Trump calls Walz ‘moron’ as betting odds show him favored over Vance ahead of high stakes VP debate: Live

While his campaign manages expectations ahead of vice presidential debate, Trump lashes out at Kamala Harris’s running mate

Donald Trump claims US election debates against Harris and Walz are ‘rigged’

The Trump campaign appears to be trying to manage expectations ahead of tonight’s vice presidential debate between Senator JD Vance and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, but Donald Trump doesn’t seem to be on message, calling Kamala Harris’s running mate “a moron”.

Earlier, during a campaign call with reporters, senior Trump adviser Jason Miller said: “Walz is very good in debates. I want to repeat that: Tim Walz is very good in debates. Really good. He’s been a politician for nearly 20 years. He’ll be very well-prepared for tomorrow night.”

Walz will square up to Vance on the debate stage on Tuesday evening in what promises to be a hugely consequential and fiery encounter in New York. Betting odds currently favor the Democrat.

Meanwhile, Trump has continued to try to attack Harris and Joe Biden over the federal response to Hurricane Helene, which has wrought havoc in states including Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina. State governors tell have said they have received the support they need.

Finally, Trump has been attacked by the daughter of his former personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, who says he “destroys everything he touches” in an article for Vanity Fair in which she implores voters to support Harris instead.

Key Points

• Betting odds: Walz and Vance go head-to-head in VP debate tonight, but who will win?
• Trump campaign tries to temper expectations ahead of VP debate — former president has other ideas
• When is the VP debate between Tim Walz and JD Vance?
• Trump GoFundMe for Hurricane Helene victims raises $1.8m
• Republican narrows Harris’s lead among Latino voters in new poll
• VP debate could change the course of the election, according to the data

[1 October 2024 01:00 · Oliver O'Connell]

Republican ex-senator Jeff Flake endorses Kamala Harris as anti-Trump right coalesces

Kamala Harris on Sunday picked up the endorsement of another prominent opponent of Donald Trump within the Republican Party, a sign that the remaining “#NeverTrump” wing of the GOP is rallying behind her.

Jeff Flake, a former senator from Arizona who left Congress in 2019, issued his endorsement in a statement released on Twitter. He further explained his motivations in an interview Sunday on ABC’s This Week.

“I’ll be supporting Kamala Harris for President and Tim Walz for Vice President,” wrote Flake in the post accompanying his video message endorsement. “I’ve served with Kamala in the U.S Senate. I’ve also served with Tim in the House of Representatives.”

John Bowden reports:

[1 October 2024 00:30 · Oliver O'Connell]

Giuliani’s daughter says she ‘lost her dad’ to Trump and begs people to vote for Harris

Rudy Giuliani’s daughter issued a stark warning about a second Trump presidency, using her father’s “implosion” as an example of what happens when someone is caught up in the former president’s “destructive trail”.

Giuliani has gone from a revered prosecutor and New York mayor that led the city through the devastation of the 9/11 attacks to a bankrupt and disbarred attorney since becoming one of Trump’s staunchest allies.

This fall from grace exemplifies how Donald Trump “destroys everything he touches”, according to Caroline Giuliani.

Kelly Rissman has the story.

[1 October 2024 00:00 · Oliver O'Connell]

Trump’s nine weirdest nicknames for his political rivals

There’s the good, there’s the bad, and then there’s the plain ugly. Donald Trump is known for branding his political allies and enemies alike with a nickname.

James Liddell writes:

[30 September 2024 23:30 · Oliver O'Connell]

Trump claims Biden and Harris forced him to hold rally at 750-seat theater

Donald Trump is claiming that he could only campaign in a 750-seat theatre because Vice President Kamala Harris and Joe Biden are using Secret Service assets to protect the President of Iran, who he claims is “doing everything possible to kill me.”

In a Truth Social post that Trump made on Monday, he claimed that Harris and Biden were “going out of their way to make it difficult for me to Campaign.”

Graig Graziosi reports.

[30 September 2024 23:15 · AP]

Biden administration doubles down on tough asylum restrictions at border

The Biden administration said Monday it is making asylum restrictions at the southern border even tougher, as it’s increasingly eager to show voters uneasy over immigration that it is taking a hard stance on border security.

The new rules, which toughen restrictions announced in June, bar migrants from being granted asylum when U.S. officials deem that the southern border is overwhelmed.

Under the previous rules, the U.S. could restrict asylum access when the number of migrants trying to enter the country between the official border crossings hit 2,500 per day. The daily numbers had to average below 1,500 per day for a week in order for the restrictions to be lifted.

The version rolled out Monday says the daily numbers will have to be below 1,500 for nearly a month before the restrictions can be lifted. And the administration is now counting all children toward that number, whereas previously only migrant children from Mexico were counted.

These changes, which go into effect on Tuesday, will make it much more difficult to lift the restrictions and allow people entering the country between the official border crossings eventually to apply for asylum in the U.S.

But the restrictions implemented in June have never been lifted because the numbers of border encounters have never gotten low enough for long enough, raising the question of why the administration felt the need to make them even tougher now. The seven-day average has gotten down to about 1,800 migrant encounters per day, the Department of Homeland Security said.

A senior administration official said Monday that the longer timeline was necessary to make sure that drops in immigration are sustained and not due to a one-time event. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to brief reporters about the tighter restrictions before they were made public.

Immigration advocates already had harshly criticized the restrictions announced in June, saying the administration was slashing away at vital protections for people fleeing persecution.

[30 September 2024 23:09 · Oliver O'Connell]

Biden hits back at Trump on storm Helene as he announces plans for surveying damage

President Joe Biden on Monday angrily hit back at Donald Trump’s false accusations of neglect and malfeasance after the former president and Republican presidential nominee leveled a baseless claim about the federal response to Hurricane Helene on his social media platform.

Andrew Feinberg and Julia Musto report.

[30 September 2024 23:05 · Oliver O'Connell]

Worrying news for Ted Cruz as Texas Senate race tightens

Ted Cruz’s chances of winning reelection to the Senate are narrowing, with a pair of recent polls showing that his Democratic challenger Colin Allred holds a chance of defeating the Republican incumbent in a tighter-than-expected race.

A recent survey of Texas voters, from Public Policy Polling/Clean and Prosperous America, shows Allred leading with 47 percent to Cruz’s 46 percent, after an August poll showed Cruz leading Allred by two points.

Those results have a margin of error of 3.5 percent, putting the candidates in a virtual tie.

Alex Woodward reports.

[30 September 2024 23:00 · Oliver O'Connell]

Texas man smashes ‘autographed’ Taylor Swift guitar with hammer after paying $4,000 for it at auction

A man in Texas paid $4,000 for what was described as an “autographed” Taylor Swift guitar, only to immediately smash it to pieces with a hammer.

Footage of the incident at the Ellis County Wild Game Dinner in Waxahachie, Texas has since gone viral.

Kevin E G Perry reports.

[30 September 2024 22:45 · Oliver O'Connell]

[30 September 2024 22:41 · Oliver O'Connell]

Biden says Trump lying about Hurricane response

The Independent’s Andrew Feinberg asked President Joe Biden about Donald Trump’s accusation that his administration was ignoring Republican areas hit by Hurricane Helene.