Anna Paulina Luna

Far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s latest conspiracy theory just dropped. Mysterious drones have been spotted across the eastern U.S. over the past month, sparking concerns from citizens and drawing the attention of the FBI. And while the FBI and Department of Homeland Security have said the drones do not pose “a national security or public safety threat,” Greene has taken that information and spun it into a new conspiracy. “The government is in control of the drones and refuses to tell the American people what is going on,” the Georgia congresswoman wrote on X this past Saturday. “It really is that bad.”Greene is one of many officials to join this conspiracy squawking. Donald Trump also pointed fingers at the current administration, urging citizens to "shoot them down.”However, before you point your guns at the sky, one expert is urging people to reconsider. Rob D'Amico, the former chief of the FBI's counter-drone unit, told MSNBC that shooting at these unidentified aircrafts would be “irresponsible” and would be "the same legally as shooting at a manned aircraft.”Despite the obvious danger of shooting into the sky, other government officials have joined in on the squawking, including Republican Reps. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, Tim Burchett of Tennessee, and Chris Smith and Jeff Van Drew, both of New Jersey.Government officials also confirmed that many of the reported drone sightings were "actually manned aircraft, operating lawfully,” according to one National Security Council official.However, National Security Advisor John Kirby said to a reporter during a Dec. 12 press briefing that he could not “characterize for you definitively what these sightings are.”Daily Kos has contacted the White House regarding claims that the aircraft are their own. Greene’s fear-mongering statement is one of many conspiracy theories the congresswoman has made in recent years.Following the destruction Hurricane Helene left throughout the East Coast, Greene decided it was the appropriate time to claim that the government was to blame for the natural disaster. “Yes they can control the weather,” she wrote via X. “It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.”Greene was linked to supporting the QAnon conspiracy theory in the past, but she began to distance herself from those in 2020. However, she also seemingly supported the “Frazzledrip” conspiracy, which falsely alleges Democrat Hillary Clinton and former Clinton aide Huma Abedin were videotaped sexually assaulting and murdering a child.Greene and her lovely ideas will be a part of the incoming administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, an advisory commission led by tech bros Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. We're right in the thick of the holiday season, and we're all tired after a long election in which we gave 110%, but this is important: Daily Kos is falling short of our final goal of the year and time is running out. Can you chip in to help us close the books on 2024?

Republicans and Democrats in Congress are split on President Biden's record-breaking clemency announcement. "I'm not surprised at this point," one congresswoman said.

President-elect Trump has nominated Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer for secretary of labor as he continues to form his Cabinet.

Lara Trump is considered a favorite to replace Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., but Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he's vetting "several possible candidates."

House Republicans on opposite sides of the conference are grimacing at the potential plan to kick government funding into the new year.

Rep. Gary Palmer is leading new legislation to replenish FEMA disaster relief funding using unspent funds the agency has elsewhere.

Gov. Ron DeSantis, just returned from a trade mission in Italy, said he likely won't make a decision until early January. Other candidates are also interested, though President-Elect Donald Trump's supporters are pushing for daughter-in-law to get the seat.

Republicans have found a new way to try to curry favor with Donald Trump: by pushing to have his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, appointed to the Senate.A number of Republicans are cheering the idea that the daughter-in-law could take the place of Sen. Marco Rubio, who has been picked to serve as secretary of State.As in her current role co-chairing the Republican National Committee, Lara Trump’s main qualification appears to be that she married into the Trump family.

'I do think that there's a big spot open at the table'

Former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz's nomination for attorney general is being met with a variety of reactions from Republicans, including cautious reservation, praise and pointed criticism

Reps. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) and Cory Mills (R-FL) floated possible criminal cases against special counsel Jack Smith, Judge Juan Merchan and his daughter, Democratic fundraiser Loren Merchan, over prosecutions of President-elect Donald Trump.Merchan oversaw a criminal case where Trump was convicted of 34 felonies in New York. Smith brought charges against Trump for trying to subvert the 2020 presidential election and mishandling classified documents.During a segment on Fox News on Sunday, host Maria Bartiromo wondered what would become of "the criminal cases brought forth by Biden's DOJ and Democrat state prosecutors against President-elect Donald Trump.""But what I will tell you, Maria, is that Jack Smith violated the Constitution," Luna opined. "And I'm really happy that Jim Jordan and House Judiciary is telling him to preserve evidence because even after President Trump is elected, we need to ensure that this never happens to any other candidate for president ever again.""And so we have to follow through, see who exactly ordered that," she continued. "And if it means that we need to bring criminal prosecution, I think that we need to."Mills agreed with Luna but said that punishment for the Trump prosecutions should include additional names."But I also look at the fact that this shows the Department of Injustice and this shows the actual corruption and cooperation that was going on in the White House," Mills asserted. "Look at what was happening in Georgia with Fani Willis, where we've now found out that Nathan Wade had multiple calls with the White House.""Let's look at Judge Merchan and his daughter, who was actually a fundraiser and was actually trying to support Kamala Harris and Joe Biden when it came to raising funds on the back of President Trump being in the New York court system," he added. "So I think that what we're seeing right now is that the Department of Injustice and the lawfare that was going on is now coming to a screeching halt with President-elect Donald Trump come back into office."ALSO READ: 'I don't know how that happened': Senior Dems saw writing on wall in PennsylvaniaLuna said she had a "good feeling" that Trump would appoint "someone that will go through the DOJ and really weed out a lot of the weaponization.""It is now a bright day in America," she insisted. "I think that we're all very excited that President Trump won."Watch the video below from Fox News or at the link.

Follow along for real-time updates on the latest from the 2024 presidential election, as well as major Congressional races.

President Biden referred to Trump supporters on Tuesday as "garbage" as he was asked about a performer at Trump's rally making a reference to Puerto Rico

The possibility of a special vote in Congress to budget for more disaster relief has been up in the air since Hurricane Helene made landfall in late September.

Welcome to At the Races! Each week we bring you news and analysis from the CQ Roll Call campaign team. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here. By Niels Lesniewski, Daniela Altimari and Mary Ellen McIntire Fundraising isn’t everything when it comes to campaigns — but it certainly does not hurt. [...]The post At the Races: Money comin’, money goin’ appeared first on Roll Call.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna spoke with Fox News Digital about disaster recovery efforts in her area after Hurricane Milton.

'FEMA has distributed 2 percent of the over $20 billion in disaster relief funding Congress provided,' said Johnson.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Sunday said passing additional hurricane aid for states impacted by hurricanes Helene and Milton “can wait” until Congress is back in session after the election. CBS “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan asked him why he thinks it’s fine to wait until November for Congress to pass more aid for [...]

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 17.

President Joe Biden, joined virtually by Vice President Kamala Harris, was briefed by his homeland security aides and federal emergency management officials in the White House’s South Court Auditorium on Wednesday. (Tom Brenner for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Data: AdImpact, Cook Political Report; Chart: Thomas Oide/AxiosWith dreams of going big, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) are pouring millions into long-shot targets.Why it matters: The House majority will be decided in little more than two dozen toss-up races, but both sides crave the shot at a substantial majority.🔎 Call them "squinter races." They aren't sleepers, given the spending. But when one party squints, they can see a path to victory.That creates a must-do: Pick off safe(er) seats on the other side, or at least make them spend big on defense.🤑 The DCCC and the Jeffries-linked House Majority PAC have invested $21 million into flipping a half dozen GOP-held districts rated "lean" or "likely Republican" by Cook Political Report.The NRCC and Johnson's Congressional Leadership Fund have spent around $16.7 million on seven Democratic-held districts rated "lean" or "likely Democratic."Zoom in: Democrats are going after six of Cook's 14 "lean" and "likely" Republican seats.While Republicans are targeting seven Democratic seats, they represent a much smaller proportion of the possible targets.Said one Democratic strategist: "This is what you're able to do when you have the bigger checking account."Driving the news: Two "squinters" recently came into focus for Democrats when Cook moved Iowa's 1st and 3rd districts from "lean Republican" to toss-up.The same happened for Republicans when Cook changed Virginia's 7th district from "lean Democrat" to a jump-ball.Democrats have poured $5.5 million into Iowa-1 and $2.1 million in Iowa-3, according to data from AdImpact. Republicans spent $1.8 million in Virginia-7.Zoom out: Three main factors can put a district on the target list, Republican and Democratic strategists who work on House races told us.1) Weak incumbent: For Democrats, targets include Reps. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wisc.), Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) and Scott Perry (R-Pa.).For Republicans, it's members like Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), who they see as facing the first truly tough challenge of her 40-year career in a district that voted for former President Trump in 2020.2) Strong challenger: Democrats are enamored with the backgrounds of candidates such as Monica Tranel, a former Olympian who's challenging Zinke, and Janelle Stelson, a TV anchor running against Perry.Republicans are leaning on the diversity of their candidate slate in these districts. That includes Rep. Pat Ryan's (D-N.Y.) challenger Alison Esposito, Rep. Jahana Hayes' (D-Conn.) challenger George Logan and former Rep. Mayra Flores, who's running against Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas).3) Promising fundamentals: House Democrats hope backlash to abortion laws in redder states like Iowa will drive turnout. They're also counting on a boost from competitive Senate races in Montana, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.Republicans are hoping for a second wave of backlash against Democrats in California and New York that fueled their 2022 victory.The bottom line: Look for more ad buys. Democrats have plenty of cash to throw around.The DCCC last month added John Avlon and Whitney Fox, the challengers to Reps. Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.) and Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), to their "Red to Blue" program. Both districts are rated "likely Republican."

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Tuesday said Congress has already authorized the disaster relief funds needed for the immediate response to Helene, the storm that has ravaged multiple states from Florida up through Western North Carolina and Tennessee. Speaking at the New York Stock Exchange before delivering remarks on his economic agenda, Johnson noted a replenishment [...]

Candidate claimed in a recorded call with an activist that he would send a Russian and Ukrainian hit squad to kill her.

The right-wing activist organization is cultivating a "candidate pipeline" in key swing states in 2024

Reps. Jared Moskowitz and Anna Paulina Luna are pushing a new bill aimed at capping federal student loan interest rates.

Some Trump allies in Florida revealed their plans for voting on Amendment 4, which would enshrine the right to an abortion into the state's constitution.

'Zero faith in the head shed'

Vice President Kamala Harris is hoping former President Donald Trump will pull a stunt most women dread at their upcoming presidential debate, a new analysis contends.Harris' demand for unmuted mics during the ABC News debate on Sept. 10 represents a strategic attempt to prompt the response she elicited then slapped down from former Vice President Mike Pence in their 2020 debate, CNN reported Tuesday.“Mr. Vice President," Harris told Pence in a viral campaign moment, "I’m speaking.”According to CNN, Harris is hoping she'll face "mansplaining" again. Pence's interruption "left the impression that Pence was mansplaining to Harris," CNN analyst Stephen Collins argued.He added, "Harris’ most stinging line in an otherwise unmemorable debate" is one she wants to whip out against her new foe."It’s obvious that the Harris campaign hopes to give Trump the chance to sabotage himself with an insulting interruption or his overbearing personality," wrote the senior political reporter."Visuals of Trump talking over and openly disrespecting the woman who has a chance to be the first Black woman president would speak for themselves."ALSO READ: Donald Trump exploits AP photo error for new $99 'Save America' bookThe opportunity to shut down a mansplain is not the only benefit Harris could receive by providing Trump more rhetorical leeway, according to Collins' sources. Harris campaign spokesman Ian Sams told CNN they believe Trump will effectively do their work for them by presenting himself unfavorably to undecided voters.“The vice president wants the American people to see an unfettered Donald Trump because that’s what we are going to get if he becomes president again,” Sams reportedly said. “I think it is important that in this election and in this moment that the American people get to see the choice between the two candidates on stage.”Harris, a former prosecutor, also believes she can accomplish what critics said debate moderators Jake Tapper and Dana Bash failed to do in the contest between Trump and President Joe Biden earlier this summer, CNN political commentator Maria Cardona told Collins. “By having the mics unmuted, it is going to give her the ability to control both what she says," Cardona said, "as well as fact-checking him on the spot."

House Republicans are furious about being forced into a last-minute Biden impeachment vote — which they say could hurt their campaigns, top GOP sources tell Axios.Why it matters: Even leadership doesn't want it. But just one member can force a vote.🔎 Watch hardliners — Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) or Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) — as most likely to pull the trigger, sources tell Axios.Top House Republicans were prepared to let the Biden impeachment inquiry end with the report that came out last week.Zoom in: "I tell you what I'm afraid of ... they're going to say, we don't have time to do it," Biggs said last week on Steve Bannon's "War Room" podcast.With Congress stuck in D.C. next month to hammer out a short-term funding deal, there's plenty of time for an enterprising Republican to force the issue.Between the lines: Just last month, GOP leaders failed to stop Luna from forcing a vote on fining Attorney General Merrick Garland. The Garland vote failed on the House floor.Expect the same from an impeachment vote, Republicans overwhelmingly tell Axios.The bottom line: 11 House Republicans are defending "toss-up" seats in the Cook Political Report rankings. Another eight have "lean Republican" seats.The "only thing we should be focused on is the issues that people talk about around their dinner table and keep them up at night," one battleground House Republican told Axios."That's not a Biden impeachment."

538 breaks down five high-profile primaries for the U.S. Senate and House in Florida and Alaska.

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) faces a primary challenge on Tuesday as former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and his allies seek revenge against the Republicans who ousted him nearly a year ago. That revenge tour will reach its apex with the multi-million dollar effort to defeat Gaetz, a conservative rabble-rouser who spearheaded the effort to take [...]

Supporters of former President Donald Trump are rushing to defend Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) after scantily clad photos and video of the congresswoman began circulating online.A resurfaced video in particular of Luna, who has served in Congress since last year, suddenly went viral on Wednesday, much to the glee of Trump fans.The footage, which shows the conservative in a MAGA-themed swimsuit, was filmed back in 2016 as part of an effort to support then-candidate Trump.Anna Paulina Luna Swimsuit Videohttps://twitter.com/3orovik/status/1823771632210686366The 35-year-old appeared to blame Democrats for the video resurfacing in remarks on X."There are better [things] to do with your time than digging up modeling photos of me from almost a decade ago," she wrote. "The left is attempting to make this a thing yet can’t define a woman. Very low IQ behavior. Get over it."https://twitter.com/realannapaulina/status/1823835792386502695"I’m confirming that I have indeed worn swimsuits and you can tell I am biologically a woman," she added. But while Luna was attempting to defend herself, MAGA was busy ogling over the content."Anna Paulina Luna is probably the Hottest congresswoman we’ve ever had," the user Facts Matter wrote.Other users like Malaysian-based commentator Ian Miles Cheong accused liberals of trying to "shame" Luna for being "hot.""If she was a man in drag performing in front of children, they’d be celebrating her for ... being stunning and brave," Cheong wrote.Others also took time out to ding trans people. "I say WOW ... Definitely Biological Female,” wrote one. "They hate her for many intersectional reasons: She happens to have XX chromosomes," wrote another. https://twitter.com/GodIsNotDead/status/1824142304212357528"Liberals hate actual, biological women," said someone else. Criticism from some on the left, while present, appeared to pale in comparison to the praise coming from conservatives.Nevertheless, at least one prominent left-wing user, podcast host Ryan Shead, attacked Luna for the imagery."Anna Paulina Luna is trending for showing her ass on social media displaying her lack of qualifications or good ideas," Shead wrote. "I guess it’s ok for a former stripper to sleep her way to the top when they’re GOP. Imagine if AOC posted this?"https://twitter.com/RyanShead/status/1823965234140483677Yet most of the users in Shead's replies pushed back, despite having different political opinions than Luna. They did note, however, the apparent hypocrisy from conservatives."I really don’t have a problem with her doing this. I just have a problem with the hypocrisy that this is ok but AOC dancing in a college video or Megan Thee Stallion twerking at a Harris rally isn’t," the user said. "That’s my main qualm with this issue. If you’re sexy, flaunt it idgaf."Others similarly pointed out the sexist remarks made against Vice President Kamala Harris in recent weeks including the claim from conservatives that she "slept her way to the top.""Can people please not do this or accuse a woman of sleeping her way to the top?" asked MSNBC columnist Eric Michael Garcia. "This is sleazy slut-shaming. This is sleazy when people do it with Kamala Harris and AOC and it's just as sleazy when people do it with Anna Paulina Luna and Lauren Boebert."https://twitter.com/EricMGarcia/status/1824096968710221926But topics like these are always rampant with hypocrisy from both sides. Regardless, the vast majority of posts seemed to come primarily from thirsty MAGA bros, not angry liberals.Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.Sign up to receive the Daily Dot’s Internet Insider newsletter for urgent news from the frontline of online.The post ‘They hate biological women’: MAGA bros gin up fake outrage after Anna Paulina Luna swimsuit video recirculates appeared first on The Daily Dot.

Welcome to the Daily Kos Elections Live Digest, your liveblog of all of today's campaign news. You can find our collection of public data at dailykosdata.com.Please note: The Live Digest is a Democratic presidential primary-free space. It’s also a place to discuss elections, not policy.Subscribe to our podcast, The Downballot! New episodes every Thursday morning. Embedded Content UPDATE: Tuesday, Aug 6, 2024 · 10:26:12 PM +00:00 · Stephen Wolf • TN-05: NewsChanel 5's Phil Williams reports that the FBI executed a search warrant on Republican Rep. Andy Ogles last week, though neither the FBI nor Ogles' attorney would confirm or deny the search and what it involved. Williams, whose previous reporting revealed how Ogles seemingly had fabricated large parts of his life story and submitted fraudulent campaign finance reports, relays that the search may have been related to the latter issue and involved the congressman's electronic devices.Williams notes that the Department of Justice generally avoids openly investigating candidates within 60 days of Election Day so as not to influence the results, and the search happened the very next day after Ogles won Thursday's primary by 57-43 over Metro Nashville Councilmember Courtney Johnston.Back in May, Ogles drew unwelcome attention after he dramatically amended his 2022 campaign finance reports to say he loaned his effort $20,000, rather than the $320,000 he'd previously claimed. Williams previously pointed out that the congressman's personal financial disclosures showed he lacked the wealth to make a loan of that size. (On those forms, Ogles did not even list any bank accounts.)Those inflated figures allowed Ogles to claim he had considerably more money available three weeks before the primary than the paltry $2,000 he now says he had in the bank, and that exaggerated war chest may have convinced outside group allies like the Club for Growth that he was in stronger shape than he was. While Ogles would likely still be favored to win this fall in a heavily gerrymandered district that backed Trump 55-43 in 2020, it remains to be seen how much legal jeopardy he may be in. UPDATE: Tuesday, Aug 6, 2024 · 9:05:48 PM +00:00 · Stephen Wolf • DE-Gov: A group called Change Can't Wait PAC has launched a new TV ad ahead of the Sept. 10 Democratic primary that praises New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer's healthcare plan and his support for abortion rights. While federal law prevents this type of organization from running ads directly telling viewers to vote for or against a candidate, Delaware Spotlight's Karl Baker reports that some of Meyer's supporters are behind it.• CA-16: Assemblyman Evan Low has publicized a Tulchin Research survey that finds former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, a fellow Democrat, leading him just 30-29 with a 41% plurality of voters undecided in this dark blue open seat. Last month, Liccardo's campaign shared a late-June internal from Lake Research Partners that showed him ahead 39-28, and no other polls have recently surfaced here.• FL-13: EMILYs List has endorsed former Pinellas County transportation official Whitney Fox with just two weeks left until the Aug. 20 primary for the Democratic nomination to take on freshman Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna. This seat in the St. Petersburg area, which Republicans gerrymandered following the 2020 census, favored Donald Trump by a 53-46 margin four years ago.• MN-02: Despite saying last month that he was suspending his House campaign to serve as an adviser to Donald Trump's campaign, attorney Tayler Rahm has still been sending campaign mailers. The Star Tribune's Sydney Kashiwagi reports that Rahm appears to be engaged in a "shadow primary" campaign against former federal prosecutor Joe Teirab, who has the support of Donald Trump and House GOP leadership in the Aug. 13 GOP primary.While Rahm himself again declared last week that he had suspended his effort, 2nd District GOP chair Joe Ditto told Kashiwagi he believed that Rahm still could pull off an upset next week. "It sounds like if [Rahm’s] victorious in the primary, he will unsuspend his campaign and run against Angie in the general," said Ditto. • NV-02: Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen has endorsed wealthy investor Greg Kidd, a self-funding independent who is challenging Republican Rep. Mark Amodei in a race where Democrats did not field a candidate. Trump won this northern Nevada district 54-43, and while Democrats have not seriously contested it since Amodei's initial landslide in a 2011 special election, Kidd's lack of a party label could give him more of an opening.• TX-18: Former Houston Councilmember Dwight Boykins has ended his campaign for the Democratic nomination to replace the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee after her children endorsed former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, with Boykins saying, "I respect their decision." Local party precinct chairs are set to meet on Aug. 13 to choose a replacement nominee for November's ballot in this dark blue seat. UPDATE: Tuesday, Aug 6, 2024 · 8:24:55 PM +00:00 · Stephen Wolf Poll Pile:AZ-Sen: Redfield & Wilton Strategies for The Telegraph: Ruben Gallego (D): 42, Kari Lake (R): 36 (44-43 Harris with third-party candidates)NM-Sen: Redfield & Wilton Strategies for The Telegraph: Martin Heinrich (D-inc): 40, Nella Domenici (R): 34 (44-37 Harris with third-party candidates)NV-Sen: Redfield & Wilton Strategies for The Telegraph: Jacky Rosen (D-inc): 41, Sam Brown (R): 38 (40-40 presidential tie with third-party candidates) (July: 45-40 Rosen)PA-Sen: Redfield & Wilton Strategies for The Telegraph: Bob Casey (D-inc): 45, Dave McCormick (R): 40 (46-44 Trump with third-party candidates) (July: 46-39 Casey)NC-Gov: Redfield & Wilton Strategies for The Telegraph: Josh Stein (D): 43, Mark Robinson (R): 38 (44-41 Trump with third-party candidates) (July: 38-34 Stein)Ad Roundup:MT-Sen: Tim Sheehy (R); Last Best Place - anti-SheehyOH-Sen: Sherrod Brown (D-inc)PA-Sen: Dave McCormick (R) - anti-Bob Casey (D-inc); One Nation - anti-CaseyNH-Gov: Kelly Ayotte (R)CO-08: House Majority Forward - pro-Yadira Caraveo (D-inc) (in English and Spanish)IA-01: Christina Bohannan (D) - anti-Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-inc)ME-02: House Majority Forward - pro-Jared Golden (D-inc)NY-04: House Majority Forward - anti-Anthony D’Esposito (R-inc)NY-18: Pat Ryan (D-inc) - anti-Alison Esposito (R)WI-08: Roger Roth (R) UPDATE: Tuesday, Aug 6, 2024 · 4:30:38 PM +00:00 · Jeff Singer • MN-Gov: Vice President Kamala Harris tapped Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate on Tuesday, a decision that could usher in a new era of leadership in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.Democratic Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan would become Minnesota's new chief executive should the Harris-Walz ticket prevail in November, an ascension that would make her the first woman to lead the state. Flanagan, a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe, would also be the first Native American woman to serve as governor of any state. No matter what, though, this office will next be on the ballot in 2026 for a full four-year term.Walz, writes KARE 11's Jeremiah Jacobsen, would be the state's first governor to resign since 1976, when Sen. Walter Mondale's election as Jimmy Carter's vice president set off a volatile chain of events back home that proved disastrous for Democrats.Following Mondale's departure for Washington, Democratic Gov. Wendell Anderson stepped down from his post and arranged for his lieutenant governor, Rudy Perpich, to appoint him to Mondale's Senate seat. These insider dealings, however, backfired with voters, leading to the "Minnesota massacre" of 1978: Republican Rudy Boschwitz trounced Anderson in the race for Senate while Republican Al Quie unseated Perpich as governor.Walz's succession would be a far simpler affair, but there's also the matter of who would replace Flanagan in her current role. State constitutional law expert Quinn Yeargain explains in Guaranteed Republics that the next person in line to become lieutenant governor is the president of the state Senate, a post that's held by Democrat Bobby Joe Champion. Should Champion succeed Flanagan, he, too, would make history, as the first Black person to serve as Minnesota's lieutenant governor.There's a potential hitch, though. The 67-member Senate is currently tied because Democratic state Sen. Kelly Morrison, who is the favorite to replace retiring Rep. Dean Phillips in Congress, resigned in July so that a special election could be held simultaneously with the November general election. The rest of the Senate, however, isn't up for election again until 2026, so this one race will determine who controls the upper chamber next year.Fortunately for Democrats, Morrison's 45th District, which is based in the Minneapolis suburbs, will be tough for the GOP to flip, especially now that Walz is on the national ticket. This constituency supported Joe Biden by a 57-41 margin in 2020, according to VEST data from Dave's Redistricting App, while the Walz-Flanagan team scored an identical win two years later. Three Democrats are competing in the Aug. 13 primary; the winner will face Republican Kathleen Fowke, who lost to Morrison 56-44 in 2022.But even if Republicans were to pull off an upset in this special election at the same time Harris and Walz prevail in the Electoral College, Yeargain writes that it's possible that Walz could time his resignation to ensure that Champion still becomes lieutenant governor.That would be a far better outcome for Democrats than the last time the number two slot became vacant. When then-Gov. Mark Dayton selected Lt. Gov Tina Smith to fill Al Franken's Senate seat after he resigned in early 2018, the GOP had control of the state Senate. As a result, Republican Michelle Fischbach was elevated to the lieutenant governorship and served for a year before waging a successful bid for Congress in 2020.Looking ahead, because Minnesota does not have term limits, whoever is governor—whether that's Walz or Flanagan—will be able to run in 2026. Voters, however, have never awarded an incumbent three consecutive terms. The last to try was Perpich, who staged a successful comeback in 1982 and won two full terms. But when he sought a third straight in 1990, he lost a close and chaotic battle to Republican Arne Carlson.Republican Tim Pawlenty tried to win a third non-consecutive term in 2018, nearly a decade after retiring to prepare for what would be a doomed presidential campaign. But primary voters passed him over in favor of Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Johnson, who went on to badly lose the general election to none other than Walz.

Fox News hosts Rachel Campos-Duffy and Lisa Boothe defended Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump after he did not kiss his wife, Melania, on the lips at the Republican National Convention (RNC) last week.Following Trump's speech at the RNC, Trump's wife walked out on stage, where the two shared an air kiss."Melania absolutely steals the show with her surprise entrance as the Trump family takes center stage, trying to show unity in their family as well," Campos-Duffy said, even though Trump's wife declined to give a speech at the convention. "But what's really amazing was the dress.""Anna Wintour refuses to put her on Vogue," she continued. "She doesn't need Vogue. She is the most fashionable first lady that ever.""I mean, look how graceful," Boothe agreed. "Could she be any more beautiful?""No!" Campos-Duffy exclaimed. "It's impossible."ALSO READ: How much access did $50,000 buy someone at the Republican National Convention?"Well, they're also criticizing the kiss," Campos-Duffy noted. "They're saying, oh, he didn't kiss her on the lips.""Have you ever been made up?" she asked. "And you give a kind of a little bit of a side kiss or an air kiss to your husband. Give me a break!""They can't stand that she's so fashionable and she's a Republican."Watch the video below from Fox News.

It’s a dramatic finish to a week of high stakes politics that saw the nomination of Vance, a conservative for the rising generation.

JD Vance aims to provide the Trump campaign with a boost in the Rust Belt states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin as the GOP vice presidential nominee.