Election 2024 live updates: Trump slams Harris as a ‘cognitive mess’; Cheney urges pro-life voters to back Democrat
Polls tighten in key swing states as Kamala Harris and Donald Trump set to end busy day of campaigning with events in Waukesha County, Wisconsin and Concord, North Carolina respectively
Your support helps us to tell the story
This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.
The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.
Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.
Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are still virtually tied in the seven key battleground states according to the latest Washington Post/Schar School poll.
Harris has a narrow lead in the Blue Wall states of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, as well as in Georgia. Trump is ahead in Arizona and North Carolina, while they are tied in Nevada.
Trump visited Swannanoa, North Carolina, which was devastated by floods from Hurricane Helene, and repeated the baseless conspiracy theory that Federal Emergency Management Agency money had instead been sent to “illegal migrants”. He reiterated the accusation later at a rally in Greenville and called Harris a “cognitive mess”.
Harris joined former Republican Rep Liz Cheney on Monday for a tour of suburban districts in three states that could swing the election to her by encouraging GOP voters, unhappy with Trump, to vote for the Democratic ticket instead.
Cheney, who has opposed abortion in the past and praised the Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v Wade argued it is OK to vote for Harris even if you oppose abortion, as women are not getting the care they need and that has to change.
Pennsylvania rally not first time Trump has shared vulgar Arnold Palmer story
Donald Trump’s vulgar anecdote about the late golfer Arnold Palmer during his rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday raised eyebrows – but it is reportedly not the first time the former president shared the innuendo.
The first time Trump went to campaign in Latrobe, Pennsylvania – Palmer’s hometown – in September 2020, he is said to have recounted a story of admiring the legendary golfer’s naked body to his team before traveling to the city.
Ariana Baio has the story.
Trump shared vulgar story about Arnold Palmer in the Oval Office: report
While on the campaign trail in 2020, Trump is said to have recounted a story about Palmer’s physique to his team
Lindsey Graham melts down on air over book passage that calls Trump a ‘fascist’
South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham grew irate on Sunday during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press after he was reminded that a four-star general called former President Donald Trump “fascist to the core.”
Host Kristen Welker noted to Graham that retired General Mark Milley told Watergate journalist Bob Woodward that no one has ever posed more danger to the US than Trump.
“Why shouldn’t voters trust Donald Trump’s top general on this, Senator?” Welker asked.
Gustaf Kilander reports.
Lindsey Graham melts down on air after Trump is called a ‘fascist’
South Carolina senator claims Republicans backing Harris are ‘supporting the most radical nominee in the history of American politics’
Watch: Trump repeats FEMA conspiracy lie at campaign stop in North Carolina
Latest poll updates: Can Kamala Harris beat Donald Trump?
Alicja Hagopian reports on the latest numbers as the campaigns enter their final two weeks.
Can Kamala Harris beat Donald Trump? Latest poll updates from the 2024 election
Here’s what the latest polls say about the 2024 presidential election, from The Independent’s data correspondent
Exonerated Central Park Five sue Trump for defamation over comments at presidential debate
The Central Park Five, who now call themselves the Exonerated Five, have filed a defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump over his remarks during last month’s presidential debate.
During the September 10 showdown between Trump and Kamala Harris, Trump said that the five men — Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise — pleaded guilty when they were tried in connection with the assault and rape of a woman who had been running in Central Park on April 19, 1989, and that the victim died.
The former president said during the debate: “They admitted — they said, they pled guilty. And I said, well, if they pled guilty they badly hurt a person, killed a person ultimately. And if they pled guilty — then they pled we’re not guilty.”
Each of them men pleaded not guilty during their trials, and the victim did not die.
In the complaint, they said that Trump's statements are ‘demonstrably false,” adding, “Plaintiffs never pled guilty to any crime and were subsequently cleared of all wrongdoing. Further, the victims of the Central Park assaults were not killed.”
The complaint argues the men have “suffered injuries as a result of Defendant Trump’s false and defamatory statements.”
At the time of the attack and the trial, the five were teenagers and maintained their innocence throughout and during their time in jail. Trump inserted himself into the narrative by taking out large newspaper ads calling for the return of the death penalty.
In 2002, they were exonerated after DNA evidence linked a serial rapist to the attack. They received a legal settlement from New York City of $41m.
Watch: Walz answers quick-fire questions on ‘The View'
Trump bizarrely impersonates a duck
Donald Trump bizarrely impersonated a duck during his town hall in Pennsylvania on Sunday, not long after boasting that he had “aced” two cognitive tests.
Just hours after briefly manning the fryer at a McDonald’s in the battleground state, the former president held a town hall in Lancaster focusing on climate, the economy and immigration.
During the event, Trump touted his own mental acuity and insisted that, at 78, he is “not close” to 80 years old.
James Liddell reports on the latest worrying behavior by the former president.
Trump impersonates a duck at rally after insisting he’s ‘aced’ cognitive test
‘We’re going to frack, frack, frack!’ former president said, before adding: ‘Like a duck’
Watch LIVE: Kamala Harris participates in a campaign event in Malvern, PA
Watch: Walz asked what Harris would have done differently to Biden
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments