NEW YORK — Trump rally in the news again. Law enforcement officials on Long Island rushed rapidly on Wednesday to remove social media posts erroneously stating that bombs had been discovered in a car near former President Donald Trump’s planned event in New York.

The fake claims of an explosive began spreading hours before the Republican presidential nominee’s campaign event at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, just days after he was reportedly the victim of a second attempted assassination.

Nassau County officers Commissioner Patrick Ryder stated that officers questioned and detained someone who “may have been training a bomb detection dog” near the demonstration venue and “falsely reported explosives being found.”

False Reports Of Explosives Found In A Car Near A Trump Rally Spread Online

Lt. Scott Skrynecki, a county police spokeswoman, stated in follow-up messages that the person, who has yet to be named, was a citizen, not a member of a law enforcement organization.

He also stated that the individual was not employed by or involved with the event, which is expected to attract thousands of Trump fans to the arena that was once home to the NHL’s New York Islanders.

The rally is Trump’s first in Long Island, a suburban area immediately east of New York City, since 2017.

In 2020, President Joe Biden defeated Trump by nearly 4% on Long Island, beating him in Nassau County by about 60,000 votes, despite Trump winning neighboring Suffolk County by more than 200 votes.

Skrynecki and other county officials reacted quickly Wednesday to debunk the online queue claims, which appear to have begun with a post by a reporter citing unnamed sources in the local police department.

False Reports Of Explosives Found In A Car Near A Trump Rally Spread Online

The statements were subsequently widely reposted on X, formerly Twitter, by several famous accounts, including the company’s owner, Elon Musk, who has roughly 200 million followers. X spokespeople did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.

“False,” Skrynecki texted the Associated Press as the rumours spread.

“No. Ridiculous. “There is no validity,” stated Christopher Boyle, spokeswoman for Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.

SOURCE | AP

Washington — Former President Donald Trump condemned antisemitism on Thursday, hours after an explosive CNN story revealed that one of his associates running for North Carolina governor made a series of racial and sexual remarks on a website, referring to himself as a “black NAZI.”

North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson pledged to remain in the race despite the report, and the Trump campaign appeared to distance itself from the candidate while still describing the battleground state as critical to regaining the White House. Trump has regularly expressed his support for Robinson, who has been regarded as a rising star in his party despite a history of provocative comments on race and abortion.

Trump made no mention of the charges during his Thursday speeches to a group of Jewish benefactors and the Israeli-American Council in Washington. His campaign stated the CNN story that did not identify Robinson, instead claiming that Trump “is focused on winning the White House and saving this country” and that North Carolina was a “vital part of that plan.”

Robinson’s reported remarks, including a 2012 statement in which he said he preferred Adolf Hitler to the leadership in Washington, contradicted Trump’s condemnations of antisemitism in Washington and his claim that Democratic nominee Kamala Harris sympathized with Israel’s enemies. The report might also jeopardize Trump’s prospects of winning North Carolina, a key battleground state, with Robinson already trailing his Democratic opponent in public polls.

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Trump Vows To Be ‘Best Friend’ To Jewish Americans, As Allegations Of Ally’s Antisemitism Surface

“This narrative isn’t about the North Carolina governor’s campaign. “It’s about the presidential race,” said Paul Shumaker, a Republican pollster who previously worked for Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., warning that Trump may lose a state he won in 2016 and 2020.

“The question is going to be, does Mark Robinson cost Donald Trump the White House?” Shumaker added.

After the charges against Robinson surfaced, Ammar Moussa, a Harris campaign spokeswoman, uploaded a photo of Trump and the struggling candidate on social media. “Donald Trump has a Mark Robinson problem,” he stated in an email.

The North Carolina Republican Party issued a statement defending Robinson, stating that he “categorically denied the allegations made by CNN, but that won’t stop the Left from trying to demonise him via personal attacks.”

Trump has sought to make gains among Black voters, frequently aligning himself with Robinson on the campaign trail, which has increasingly carried him to North Carolina. At a demonstration in Greensboro, he dubbed Robinson “Martin Luther King on steroids” in reference to the civil rights leader’s speaking abilities.

Robinson has been campaigning with Trump as recently as last month, when he appeared with the Republican nominee at an event in Asheboro, North Carolina.

Recent polls of North Carolina voters show Trump and Harris in a tight contest. The same surveys show Democrat Josh Stein leading Robinson by about ten points.

Trump recaps his White House record to Jewish supporters.
Both Trump and Harris, the Democratic nominee, were making appearances designed to energise their core supporters, with Harris taking part in a webcast with Oprah Winfrey.

Trump arrived on Thursday alongside Miriam Adelson, the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks co-owner and widow of wealthy casino tycoon Sheldon Adelson.

“My promise to Jewish Americans is this: With your vote, I will be your defender, protector, and the best friend Jewish Americans have ever had in the White House,” Trump declared at a donor event in Washington themed “Fighting Anti-Semitism in America.”

“But, in all fairness, I already am,” Trump said.

Trump has also faced criticism for his association with antisemitic extremists such as far-right activist Nick Fuentes and rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. When former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke endorsed Trump in 2016, Trump told CNN that he knew “nothing about David Duke, I know nothing about white supremacists.”

However, during his four years in office, Trump accepted a number of policy changes long sought by Israel supporters, including transferring the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and recognising Israel’s annexation of the Golan Heights.

In his remarks, Trump chastised Harris for the Biden administration’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict, as well as what he called antisemitic rallies on college campuses and elsewhere.

“Kamala Harris has accomplished nothing. “She has not lifted a single finger to protect you or your children,” Trump claimed. He also reiterated a talking point: Jewish voters who vote for Democrats “should have their heads examined.”

Several guests at the event stated they were unfamiliar with Robinson’s story or declined to discuss it. Rep. Virginia Foxx, a conservative North Carolina Republican who was asked about the CNN article beforehand, declined to take questions.

Later Thursday, Trump addressed at the Israeli-American Council National Summit to honour the victims of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, predicting a bleak future for the country if Harris is elected.

Trump Vows To Be ‘Best Friend’ To Jewish Americans, As Allegations Of Ally’s Antisemitism Surface

“Israel will not exist within two years if she becomes president,” he told the audience, adding that if he loses the presidential election to her on Nov. 5, “the Jewish people would really have a lot to do with that.”

Liberals who want a ceasefire deny Harris their endorsement.
On Thursday, Harris received pressure from some members of her leftist constituency over the war. Leaders of the Democratic protest vote organisation “Uncommitted” announced that the group will not endorse Harris for president, but urged followers to vote against Trump. The group, which opposes the Biden administration’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict, has demanded an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and an end to US arms deliveries to Israel.

“Uncommitted” received hundreds of thousands of votes in this year’s Democratic primary, highlighting a schism within the party. The group has warned that some Democratic voters may stay home in November, particularly in Michigan.

Harris’ campaign did not directly respond to the group’s announcement, but did say in a statement that she will “continue working to bring the war in Gaza to an end in a way where Israel is secure, hostages are released, suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realise their right to dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination.”

SOURCE | AP

Farmington Hills, Michigan – Vice President Kamala Harris sought a boost from persuadable and less-motivated voters during a livestream Thursday evening with former talk show host Oprah Winfrey, focussing on her plans to cut middle-class costs, restore a national right to abortion, and address gun violence.

The event, billed as “Unite for America,” and hosted by Winfrey from suburban Michigan, one of this election’s key battlegrounds, aimed to capture the same energy as Winfrey’s long-running talk show, which drove bestseller lists and allowed celebrities to share their softer side while also allowing ordinary people to share stories of struggle and inspiration.

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Harris Looks For Boost From Oprah As Part Of Digital-First Media Strategy

It included celebrities such as Bryan Cranston, Jennifer Lopez, and Meryl Streep, as well as everyday voters’ tales, to push Harris’ message over 90 minutes and contrast it with former President Donald Trump, the GOP contender. More than 300,000 people watched the Harris campaign livestream on YouTube alone, and the event was also broadcast on other major social media channels.

“We each have those moments in our lives when it’s time to step up,” Harris said when Winfrey enquired about her overnight metamorphosis from President Joe Biden’s running mate to the Democratic contender in her own right after he abruptly dropped out in July. “I felt a sense of responsibility, to be honest with you, and with that comes a sense of purpose.”

Winfrey informed Harris that it appeared as if a “veil dropped” and she had “stepped into your power.”

At one point, Harris informed viewers that she had a gun, which astonished Winfrey, stating, “If someone breaks into my house, they’re gonna get shot.” She said, “I probably shouldn’t have said that.”

Harris was allowed to discuss her plans to reduce housing costs and slash taxes for the middle class as she answered questions from people in Michigan and Virginia.

Oprah recognized Hadley Duvall in the audience, a 22-year-old woman who became an abortion rights activist after being raped by her stepfather as a youngster.

“You can’t wait until it’s too late to care about reproductive healthcare, because then it’s too late,” said Duvall, who appears in a new Harris campaign advertisement. “Thank you for hearing and seeing us when the Supreme Court won’t,” Duvall said, praising Harris.

Harris and Winfrey also hosted the mother and sister of a young Georgia mother who died while waiting 20 hours for a hospital to address complications from an abortion medication. Amber Thurman’s death, first reported by ProPublica on Monday, came just two weeks after Georgia adopted a stringent abortion ban in 2022, following the Supreme Court’s decision to invalidate nationwide abortion rights. Harris blamed her death on Trump.

“Amber was not a statistic; she was loved by a family, a strong family, and we would have done anything to get my baby, our baby, the help that she required,” Thurman’s mother, Shanette Williams, stated.

Harris applauded their courage in speaking up and warned of a “healthcare crisis” precipitated by the reversal of Roe v. Wade. “They have no right to be in your womb,” Winfrey stated.

Natalie Griffith, a student who was shot twice last month at Apalachee High School in Georgia, attended with her parents. Her mother revealed her dread after hearing about the shooting at her child’s school.

“No parent should go through this,” Marilda Griffith said through tears, recalling rushing out of work and heading to the school to see whether her daughter was okay. She called for federal action to reduce gun violence.

Harris, after mentioning that she owned a gun, stated that assault-style rifles were meant to kill as many people as possible on a battlefield and “don’t belong on the streets of civil society.”

The gathering comes as Harris works to continue sharing her biography and governance ideas with people throughout her brief presidential campaign, with early voting already underway in some states.

Harris has minimized her engagements with conventional media, instead focussing on internet engagement and casual — and often more controlled — moments that her campaign thinks would reach voters who increasingly acquire their news from digital sources.

“I want to bring my daughters to the White House to meet this Black woman president,” comedian Chris Rock declared.

Harris Looks For Boost From Oprah As Part Of Digital-First Media Strategy

The in-the-round stage resembles a college campus, with false brick pillars and a backdrop of trees and green turf beneath the chairs of the few hundred people in the audience. Dozens more supporters appeared on TV screens across the hall.

“I look around at these screens, Oprah, and I look at who’s in the room, and this is America,” she remarked.

The gathering is intended to bring together Harris supporters who formed spontaneously after a “Black Women for Harris” call drew tens of thousands of viewers and collected $1.5 million in the hours after Harris took over for Biden when his campaign ended. “White Dudes for Harris,” “Comedians for Harris,” and “Swifties for Harris” were among the suggestions.

The event included a clear call to action for viewers to volunteer for Harris’ campaign, as well as to call and knock on doors for the Democrat.

Winfrey concluded with an appeal “for all decent people, for all caring people” to support Harris, stating of Trump, “We’re better than this.”

SOURCE | AP