US election news LIVE: Harris, Trump conclude respective rallies in Georgia, Pennsylvania

Source: TruthSocial – @realdonaldtrump

Former US President Donald Trump’s longest-serving chief of staff, John F Kelly, has reentered the public arena with a series of scathing remarks about his former boss, describing him as a dangerous authoritarian with fascist tendencies.

This dramatic rebuke comes as Trump enters the final stretch of his Republican campaign for the 2024 United States presidential race, just days before Election Day.

Kelly, along with several other high-ranking military and political figures who once worked closely with Trump, has voiced alarm about the potential consequences of a second Trump presidency.

US President Donald Trump speaks to White House Chief of Staff John Kelly after an event with reporters in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, October 10, 2018. File Image/Reuters

With less than two weeks left for the US Presidential elections, The Washington Post reported that an American living in Moscow has allegedly been funded by Russian intelligence to circulate stories targeting Kamala Harris’s campaign.

Earlier this year, it was reported that the man involved in the case was John Mark Dougan. The American national has created a network of online news sites filled mostly with stories written by AI – but the network also carries completely invented stories, backed by evidence such as fake videos, designed to undermine Ukraine and US foreign policy.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, leads his Democratic rival Kamala Harris 47% to 45%, a Wall Street Journal poll found on Wednesday. The poll surveyed 1,500 registered voters from Oct. 19-22 with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.

Meanwhile, Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris on Wednesday told a town hall in Pennsylvania that her administration will be different from President Joe Biden’s, while Republican Donald Trump campaigned in Georgia, another battleground state.

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris. AP

The 2024 US Presidential election is less than a fortnight away and the contenders for the top post – Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump – are calling out names and levelling charges against each other to gain an upper hand among voters who will seal their fate on November 5.

During a CNN town hall, US Vice President Harris called Trump a “fascist” who seeks “unchecked power” and desires a military person loyal to him as she addressed his reported praise for Adolf Hitler.

Harris also warned that her rival in the US Presidential race was “increasingly unstable”.

Here’s a look at everything she said at the event.

Democratic presidential nominee and US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a CNN town hall event in Aston, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, US, October 23, 2024. Source: REUTERS.

In 1800, the election outcome set the stage for one of America’s most infamous moments: a duel. Fast forward to 1920, a socialist candidate, Eugene Debs, ran his entire campaign from prison, gathering just under a million votes and finishing third overall.

These are far from the only strange moments in US election history. The 2024 campaign has been no different, with Kamala Harris stepping in to replace President Joe Biden as the Democratic nominee in a last-minute twist.

Electoral politics in the US has always been a gritty affair, going as far back as 1800, when the founding fathers engaged in bitter rivalries. Throughout history, elections have been marked by nasty accusations, unusual circumstances, and even the death of candidates.

Let’s take a look at some of them:

This representation of the Hamilton-Burr duel shows Burr aiming at Hamilton, who falls from an injury. Image courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Hours after US VP Kamala Harris called Trump ‘fascist’, the former president slammed his Democratic rival and said that she has a “wrapped mind”.

Trump has responded on his Truth Social platform, writing: “She is increasingly raising her rhetoric, going so far as to call me Adolf Hitler, and anything else that comes to her warped mind.”

The ex-president referred to Harris as “Comrade Kamala Harris” – a reference to what he says are her far-left policies – and described her as a “threat to democracy”.

While addressing the rally in Georgia, Trump reiterated his plans to launch largest deportation program is American history. “Immediately upon taking the oath of office, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history,” Trump declared at a rally in Duluth, Georgia. “I will rescue every town across America, and every town is worried about it,” he added.

It’s a claim Trump has made several times on the campaign trail.

During his address at a Georgia rally, Trump spoke about how US President Joe Biden said yesterday that voters should “lock him up”, borrowing a reference from Trump’s 2016 campaign. Biden corrected himself to say “Politically lock him up”.

Trump insisted that Biden is “not legally allowed to say it”, adding: “It’s election interference, that’s all it is.”

Former President and Republican candidate Donald Trump (left), and President Joe Biden during a presidential debate hosted by CNN (right) in Atlanta. AP

US Vice President Kamala Harris concluded her appearance on CNN’s town hall. Over the course of the evening, the Democratic presidential nominee was seen avoiding giving direct answers to several questions (calling Donald Trump’s plan to build a border wall “stupid”, for example, but then declining to commit to not building any more wall herself) instead seeking to define her opponent as dangerous.

Meanwhile, Trump concluded his rally in Georgia as many called his address “rambling”.

The Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt has told the Associated Press, “Kamala will say anything to distract from her open border invasion and record high inflation.”

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris. AP

While participating at CNN town hall on Thursday Vice President Kamala Harris said that she believes former President Donald Trump is a “fascist”.

Moderator Anderson Cooper posed the question to Harris, who responded, “Yes I do. Yes I do.” “And I also believe that the people who know him best on this subject should be trusted,” Harris added. “Again, look at their careers, these are not people, I think with the exception of only Mike Pence, these are not politicians. These are career people who have served in the highest roles of national security. Who has served as general in our military? Who are highly respected, talking about the person who will be commander in chief.”

Harris’ remarks came after Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly said that the ex-president used to praise German dictator Adolf Hitler behind closed doors. However, Republicans have denied the accusations.

The Georgia Secretary of State’s Office said that it was targeted by an unsuccessful cyberattack earlier this month. The official noted that the attack attempted to crash the absentee voting website, an official with the secretary of state’s office said.

On October 14, more than 420,000 attempts from around the world were made to crash the website. Security experts were ultimately able to thwart it, the official said. The Secretary of State’s Office said it still does not know who was behind the attack.

This was a big win for our cyber security team and our partners. We work everyday to protect Georgia voters and our systems. https://t.co/9vTQdDcytg

— Gabriel Sterling (@GabrielSterling) October 23, 2024

“This was a big win for our cyber security team and our partners. We work every day to protect Georgia voters and our systems,” Gabriel Sterling, chief operating officer for the agency wrote on X.

US Vice President Kamala Harris is about to take the stage for a live town hall with undecided Pennsylvania voters on CNN. Trump was invited to attend the same town hall but declined to attend the event.

Meanwhile, Trump is currently addressing a rally in Georgia where he hurled insults against Harris. “This woman is crazy,” the former president said of the vice-president. He said voters should stand up to Harris and tell her: “‘You’re the worst ever. There’s never been anybody like you. You can’t put two sentences together. The world is laughing at us because of you.’”

In a major show of support for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has asked the Supreme Court to order his name covered with stickers on Wisconsin’s ballot after the Wisconsin Elections Commission rejected his request to remove his name

“In Wisconsin, he wants everyone who will listen to vote for Trump,” his emergency appeal says. “To aid that message, he sought to have his name removed from the ballot well before the Wisconsin Elections Commission voted to put him on the ballot and before the major parties even had to submit a candidate,” the court appeal further reads.

Republican presidential nominee and former US President Donald Trump shakes hands with former independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr during a rally in Glendale, Arizona. Reuters

Wisconsin is one of two battleground states where the independent candidate is on the ballot. Kennedy has argued that he was concerned that having his name on the ballot in competitive states could be detrimental to Trump’s chances of winning.

Former US President Donald Trump is currently addressing a rally in Duluth, Georgia. The Republican presidential nominee immediately started hurling insults at his Democratic rival Kamala Harris as he took the center stage.

“This woman is crazy,” the former president said of the vice-president. He said voters should stand up to Harris and tell her, “You’re the worst ever. There’s never been anybody like you. You can’t put two sentences together. The world is laughing at us because of you.”

A new report from Microsoft’s Threat Analysis Center detailed steps that Chinese operatives have taken to discredit Republican members of Congress and that Russian agents are taking to undermine the Harris-Walz campaign.

The tech giant found a series of videos and social media posts targeting Representative Barry Moore of Alabama, Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Senator Marco Rubio of Florida – three of the most vocal Republican critics of China.

“While not always resulting in high levels of engagement, these efforts demonstrate China’s sustained attempts to influence US politics across the board,” Clint Watts, who heads the Threat Analysis Center, wrote in a post accompanying the report.

In the latest Microsoft threat analysis report, the company said that China is targeting Republicans while Russian actors are targeting the Democrats. Image Credit: Reuters

Meanwhile, the company also noted that Russian attackers have been creating AI-enhanced deepfake videos about Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. “While most of these videos received minimal engagement, they underscore Russia’s ongoing use of both traditional and AI-generated content to influence US audiences and stoke political discord,” Watts added. “We have also seen some actors shifting their content publishing strategy from Telegram to X to reach US. audiences.”

Former US President Donald Trump slammed John Kelly, calling him a “bad general” gripped by “pure Trump Derangement Syndrome Hatred” after his former White House chief of staff called the ex-president a fascist.

“Thank you for your support against a total degenerate named John Kelly, who made up a story out of pure Trump Derangement Syndrome Hatred! This guy had two qualities, which don’t work well together,” Trump wrote on TruthSocial on Wednesday.

“The problem is his toughness morphed into weakness because he became JELLO with time! The story about the Soldiers was A LIE, as are numerous other stories he told. Even though I shouldn’t be wasting my time with him, I always feel it’s necessary to hit back in pursuit of THE TRUTH. John Kelly is a LOWLIFE, and a bad General, whose advice in the White House I no longer sought, and told him to MOVE ON!” he added.

Just two weeks before the US Presidential elections, former model Stacey Williams told The Guardian that she was groped by Trump at his Manhattan tower in 1993 after she was introduced to the real estate mogul by notorious paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Williams said that Trump put his hands “all over my breasts” as well as her waist and buttocks in their brief meeting, unwanted touching that left her “deeply confused”.

Meanwhile, Trump’s campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt has vehemently denied the allegation. “These accusations, made by a former activist for Barack Obama and announced on a Harris campaign call two weeks before the election, are unequivocally false. It’s obvious this fake story was contrived by the Harris campaign,” Leavitt said in a statement.

US Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign announced that the Democratic presidential nominee will deliver her “closing argument” address next week. What made heads turn is the fact that Harris will host a rally in the same location where Donald Trump rallied January 6 rioters before they stormed the US Capitol in 2021.

Democratic presidential nominee US Vice President Kamala Harris reacts during a campaign event at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in La Crosse, Wisconsin, US, October 17, 2024. File Image/Reuters

According to a senior campaign official, Harris will speak at the Ellipse, a public park just south of the White House, on 29 October – exactly one week before the 5 November election. The VP is expected to emphasize her New Way Forward campaign and call on voters to move past the chaos and division of the Trump era.

As the former US President Donald Trump reportedly faces backlash for praising Hitler, he is expected to speak at an Atlanta rally. Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that former independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr is among the warm-up acts.

At the Trump rally in Gwinnett, where Tucker Carlson, Tulsi Gabbard, Jason Aldean, RFK Jr are all here for Trump. RFK just said former John Kelly, who called Trump a fascist, is a “known liar” and part of the Deep State. pic.twitter.com/KRlCEHXQOH

— Patricia Murphy (@MurphyAJC) October 23, 2024

The Los Angeles Times editorials editor resigned on Wednesday after the newspaper’s owner prohibited the paper from endorsing a presidential candidate in the upcoming US Presidential Elections.

“I am resigning because I want to make it clear that I am not okay with us being silent,” Mariel Garza told the Columbia Journalism Review. “In dangerous times, honest people need to stand up. This is how I’m standing up.”

On October 11, LA Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong told the editorial board that the paper would not endorse a candidate. By that time, Garza had already drafted a proposed editorial endorsing Harris on behalf of the board.

The US Justice Department has sent a letter to billionaire Elon Musk’s campaign group America PAC warning that its $1 million sweepstakes giveaway could be in violation of federal law. The letter was first obtained by CNN.

The giveaway calls on registered voters in seven swing states to sign a petition. Each day until the election, one signatory is selected at random and awarded a million-dollar prize. The first check was handed out to an attendee at Musk’s rally in October 19.

Elon Musk speaks at Life Center Church in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on October 19, 2024. AP

In the past, the Tesla CEO defended his move saying, “You can be from any or no political party and you don’t even have to vote” in order to sign the petition.”

Republicans and Democrats have been busy since Trump White House’s longest-serving Chief of Staff John Kelly revealed that Trump had praised Hitler in a conversation with him, and said he wants the “kind of generals Hitler had”.

Republicans have taken the path of denial, saying that the conversation Kelly mentioned never happened. They have been using this rebuttal to ward off a barrage of attacks from Democrats, calling Trump a fascist.

But Democrats have their own worries, too. President Joe Biden, during his visit to the Democratic Party’s headquarters in Concord, New Hampshire, said, “I know this sounds bizarre. If I said this five years ago, you’d lock me up: We gotta lock him.” His clarification a few seconds later was: “Politically, lock him up – lock him out, that’s what we’ve got to do.”

That statement comes at a time when Trump is already claiming that he is being politically persecuted by the Biden administration (referring to the many court cases against him).

Trump, in a social media post, asked why Muslims would vote for Harris when she is aligning herself with Republican Liz Cheney.

Former Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney, a staunch conservative, said she is backing Harris because “she’s someone I know will defend the Constitution.”

In his post, Trump is referring to Liz Cheney’s father, former Vice President Dick Cheney’s important role in role in advocating for the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 citing the presence of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) and Iraq’s ties to terrorism. This led to long-term instability in the Middle East, with many attributing significant loss of life and ongoing conflicts to his policies.

In an opinion piece for the New York Times, NAte Silver said his intuition says Trump will win. However, he warned against listening to anyone’s gut, and told people to stick with the 50-50 odds being predicted.

“When asked who will win, most people say Mr. Trump because of recency bias — he won in 2016, when he wasn’t expected to, and then almost won in 2020 despite being well behind in the polls. But we might not remember 2012, when Barack Obama not only won but beat his polls,” Silver wrote.

A Chinese-controlled social media bot network, known as Taizi Flood, is attempting to influence voters in Alabama, Texas, and Tennessee while attacking several lawmakers, according to new research from Microsoft.

The operation targets US Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, US Representatives Barry Moore of Alabama and Michael McCaul of Texas, and Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn, all of whom have criticised China’s policies in the past.

The bots have spread antisemitic messages, accusations of corruption, and promoted opposition candidates in a coordinated interference effort. Taizi Flood is reportedly linked to China’s Ministry of Public Security.

Following an interview by John Kelly, the Trump White House’s longest-serving chief of staff, where he said the Republican leader said he wanted the “kind of generals Hitler had”, Democrats have been painting former President Trump as a fascist.

Kamala Harris, in a brief remark, said Trump “wants a military that isn’t loyal to the United States Constitution[…]He wants a military loyal to him.”

She further said, “He is unhinged, unstable, and given a second term, there would be no one to stop him from pursuing his worst impulses,” in a post on X.

Vice President Harris: “Trump said he wanted generals like Adolf Hitler had. He wants a military that is not loyal to the Constitution, but loyal to him... This is a window into who Donald Trump really is from the people who know him best” pic.twitter.com/wJsPTcTWM6

— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) October 23, 2024