Tag: Republican

Trump appears at convention with bandaged ear after shooting

By Frankie TAGGART and Michael MATHES MILWAUKEE, July 16, 2024 (AFP) – Donald Trump received a hero’s welcome Monday as he entered the Republican National Convention arena with a bandaged right ear in his first public appearance since being wounded in a weekend assassination attempt. Hours after winning the formal nomination to be the Republican presidential candidate and announcing right-wing Senator J.D. Vance as his running mate, Trump marched into Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum flanked by […]

J.D. Vance is Trump’s bold choice for VP, but can he win?

By Michael Mathes MILWAUKEE, July 16, 2024 (AFP) – Donald Trump has put a youthful, loyal gladiator for his Make America Great Again movement on the Republican ticket, hoping J.D. Vance’s transformation from blue-collar Rust Belter to senator can help him secure victory. A White House candidate often chooses a vice presidential running mate who can appeal to new categories of voters or compensate for acknowledged weaknesses in terms of image or policy. Trump, though, […]

Trump-backed candidate wins nomination for key US Senate race

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — J.D. Vance, a Republican candidate for the US Senate who had received former president Donald Trump’s endorsement, has won his party’s hotly-contested primary in Ohio, US media projected Tuesday. Like many Republicans, the 37-year-old was initially critical of Trump during the latter’s rise in politics — at one point even calling him “America’s Hitler” — but later became an ardent supporter, emulating the former president’s firebrand style of populism. […]

Biden ‘didn’t anticipate’ level of Republican obstruction

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Joe Biden said Wednesday that he did not anticipate the level of obstruction he has encountered from Republicans in Congress. “I didn’t overpromise,” Biden said at a press conference held to make his first year in the White House. “I did not anticipate that there’d be such a stalwart effort (by Republicans) to make sure that the most important thing was that President Biden didn’t get anything done,” […]

Trump tells Republican convention ‘weak’ Biden will destroy US

by Sebastian Smith WASHINGTON, United States (AFP )– President Donald Trump warned Thursday that his election opponent Joe Biden wants to destroy “American greatness” in a speech accepting the Republican nomination for a second term against a backdrop of explosive racial tensions and the deadly coronavirus pandemic. The former celebrity real estate developer declared himself all that stands between Americans and the disaster he claimed his “weak” Democratic rival would bring if he wins on […]

Trump gets Republican nomination and claims election being rigged

  by Brendan Smialowski with Sebastian Smith in Washington Agence France Presse CHARLOTTE, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump opened his bid for a second term after securing the Republican nomination Monday, with his party launching its national convention as the US president claims Democrats want to “steal” the election that polls currently show him losing. Minutes after the party completed the nomination vote confirming Trump as the candidate on November 3, he […]

Washington sets aside divisions for Bush funeral

by Michael Mathes Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A divided Washington led by the nation’s five living presidents put on a show of unity Wednesday at the poignant state funeral of George H.W. Bush, as America bade farewell to its 41st president. Donald and Melania Trump shared a front row pew in the National Cathedral with past presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter and their wives as an honor guard brought […]

Trump’s trade war edgy for Republicans in US midterms

by Douglas Gillison Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — An Iowa Republican jokes that US President Donald Trump’s trade war with China has him thinking of jumping out a window. But a five hour drive to the south, an Illinois Democrat cheers the local steel mills that Trump’s punishing import tariffs have brought roaring back to life. Though by no means the top issue on voters’ minds nationwide, Trump’s multi-front trade battles have […]

Top Republican slams targeting of Clinton, Obama as ‘domestic terrorism’

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday the targeting of US Democratic politicians Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama with potential explosives amounted to acts of “domestic terrorism.” “I stand with all Americans in condemning today’s attempted acts of domestic terrorism,” the Republican McConnell said in a statement. House Speaker Paul Ryan, the top Republican in Congress, also condemned the sending of the suspicious packages just 13 days before crucial midterm […]

Trump warns of violence around midterms

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump raised the spectre of violence around upcoming midterms Wednesday, saying he did not want to see “unnecessary” unrest days after he reportedly warned evangelical leaders of violent change if Republicans lose control of Congress. When asked by a reporter why he had on Monday suggested there would be violence around the November elections, Trump simply said “because that’s the way.” “If you look at what happens […]

Two Republican women could sink Trump’s US Supreme Court pick

  by Michael Mathes Agence France-Presse   WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The fate of Donald Trump’s US Supreme Court nominee increasingly appears to lie in the hands of two Republican senators, pro-choice moderates with a penchant for rebellion — and who have bucked the president before. But despite extraordinary pressure already heaped on Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski by liberal groups, and Democrats who warn that confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh could spell disaster for […]

US Justice Dept’s No. 3 official resigns: report

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The third-ranking official at the US Justice Department is resigning just nine months after taking the powerful position, the New York Times reported Friday. The resignation of Associate Attorney General Rachel Brand, a national security law expert, comes as President Donald Trump and Republican legislators have stepped up attacks on the department over special prosecutor Robert Mueller’s investigation of possible Trump campaign links to Russian interference in the 2016 election. […]