Welcome to the online version of From the policy deskevening bulletin that brings you the latest reporting and analysis from the campaign trail, the White House and Capitol Hill from the NBC News Politics team.
In today’s edition, we examine how far-right activist Laura Loomer’s association with Donald Trump has upset her Republican allies. Plus, “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker dives into the questions Kamala Harris and Trump danced around in the debate.
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Far-right activist Laura Loomer’s meeting with Trump signals a crisis in his campaign
By Jonathan Allen, Julie Tsirkin and Von Hillyard
No one can keep former President Donald Trump away from Laura Loomer — a move that has Republicans from across the political spectrum fuming.
Throughout the campaign, aides and advisers did their best to protect him from Loomer. a far-right social media influencerand similar figures who stroke his ego and stir his basest political instincts.
They lost that battle this week as Loomer boarded Trump’s plane for a debate with Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday. September 11 commemorations Wednesday. The latest appearance angered some Democrats and Republicans because it promoted conspiracy theories about a terrorist attack on the United States.
Combat is a big part of Loomer’s appeal for Trump. Loomer defends it as fiercely as he does his theories on the political fringes. baseless claim In Springfield, Ohio, Haitian immigrants eat dogs and cats. Trump proposed this during the debate on Tuesday.
According to people familiar with the situation, his presence reflects a loss of trust in Trump’s campaign aides and a fear of upsetting him in a time of crisis. It caused sharp criticism from the members of his party, who did not always see eye to eye.
One GOP senator, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, said Thursday that Loomer is “truly toxic” and should not be in Trump’s circle. Senator Tom Tillis of North Carolina on friday He called Loomer a “crazy conspiracy theorist” who is hurting Trump’s chances in the elections.
On the other hand, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia called out a social media post from Loomer — saying that if Harris, who is Indian-American and black, wins, “the White House will smell like curry and the White House.” exits will be facilitated through a call center” – “appalling and extremely racist” and unrepresentative of Trump. (Loomer applauded all three at X.)
The Republican senator, who spoke on the condition of anonymity so as not to anger his party’s nominee, said Trump was jeopardizing his chances of winning — as well as staff members who weren’t playing gatekeepers.
“Everyone was amazed that he would take her on his plane to debate, but even more amazed that he would be with her on the anniversary of 9/11. These kinds of things will create a distraction that you cannot deal with,” the senator said.
In turn, Trump Loomer defended on friday. “I don’t control Laura. Laura – she is a free spirit. Well, I don’t know. I mean, look, I can’t tell Laura what to do,” he said.
How an online lawsuit about immigrants eating pets made it to the debate stage
Henry J. Gomez, Brandy Zadrozny, Allan Smith, and Julie Tsirkin
For most Americans, this debate was probably the first time they heard the baseless and racially motivated rumor that Haitian immigrants eat cats and dogs.
But the false claim had been developing on the far right of the Internet before Tuesday and was being fueled by those close to Trump in addition to Loomer, including running mate JD Vance.
No one involved in Trump’s debate preparations or in a position to speak for his campaign agreed to discuss the strategy on the record or to answer questions about how he mutated from outsider obsession to debate stage soundbite.
The case in Springfield, about 45 miles from Columbus in southwest Ohio, involves thousands of Haitian immigrants who have settled in the city in recent years. Many of them are there legally under federal programs after fleeing violence and political turmoil. Residents and political leaders, including Vance, have raised economic and public safety concerns for months, arguing that the city could see an influx of up to 20,000 immigrants by 2020. the population was 59,000 people has tight resources.
Allegations of stealing, butchering and eating pets are more recent.
Blood Tribe, a national neo-Nazi group, was among the first suppliers in August of the rumor, posting about it on the social networks Gab and Telegram, popular among extremists. Although the group’s leader took credit for Trump’s acceptance of the allegations, the extent of the Blood Tribe is unknown; his accounts on these sites have less than 1,000 followers.
The rumor soon spread to major social media like Facebook and X. Disinformation monitoring firm NewsGuard traced the origin to an undated post from a private Facebook group. shared in the screenshot Sent to Kha on September 5.
Real world impact: Bomb threats forced the evacuation and closure of public schools and municipal buildings in Springfield, Ohio, for the second day in a row on Friday. More →
Trump and Harris did not answer questions during the debate
By Kristen Welker
in the first – and now only probability — The debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, the questions they didn’t answer were in many ways as revealing as what they did.
It started Harris with the first question of the debate: Are Americans better off today than they were four years ago?
Harris he answered noting his proposals for small business tax credits and a $6,000 child tax credit. He also attacked Trump for proposing tariffs and tax cuts for the wealthy. But he did not directly answer the question of whether Americans are better off than they were four years ago.
Later in the debate, Trump was asked if he would veto a federal abortion ban if it reached his desk. “Meet the press” What Trump will do.
ABC News’ Linsey Davis: But if I could get a yes or no. Because your partner, JD Vance, said you’d veto it if it came to your desk.
Trump: I have not discussed this with JD. To be fair, JD – and I don’t mind if he has a certain point of view or not, but I think he was speaking for me, but I really didn’t.
Translation: Trump dodged the question and threw Vance under the bus in the process.
Trump also did not respond to other questions about whether he had a plan to replace Obamacare, whether he regretted the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol (“I have concepts of a plan,” he replied), and whether Ukraine was a Russian threat. if he wanted him to win the war with – he was asked twice.
ABC News’ David Muir: Your time is up. Just to clarify the question, do you believe it is in the US interest for Ukraine to win this war? Yes or no?
Trump: I think it’s in the best interest of the United States to end this war and just get it done. Good. Negotiate the contract. Because we have to stop all this destruction of human life.
For his part, Harris responded to other questions about whether he would do differently than President Joe Biden on immigration and whether he and the Biden administration would be held accountable for US soldiers killed in Afghanistan after they were pulled out.
On Afghanistan, Harris said he agreed with Biden’s decision to withdraw: “Four presidents said they would do it, and Joe Biden did.” He criticized the Trump administration’s deal with the Taliban: “Donald Trump negotiated one of the weakest deals you can imagine when he was president.”
But he did not answer whether he was responsible for how the deadly retreat unfolded.
When the second debate between the two candidates airs, it will be up to journalists to follow these questions. It is up to the candidates whether the voters get an answer or not.
🗞️ The best stories of the day
- 📝 What is the plan? As Harris moves toward the center, there are still many unanswered questions about what policies he wants to pursue if elected. More →
- 👷 9-5 job and then some: Trump said at a campaign rally that he would eliminate overtime taxes. More →
- ✝️ Pope’s declaration: Pope Francis has said he believes Trump and Harris are “both against life” and urged citizens to vote for whomever they consider the “lesser of two evils”. More →
- 👀 Upcoming attractions: The Justice Department plans to open a criminal investigation into the hacking of Trump’s presidential campaign. More →
- ✈️ On vacation: Boeing factory workers in Oregon and Seattle are on strike after overwhelmingly rejecting a new labor contract. More →
- ⚖️ Sent to court: Smartmatic’s defamation lawsuit against Newsmax regarding the 2020 election will go to trial later this month. More →
- 🚀 To infinity and beyond: Two American astronauts stranded on the International Space Station until February said they plan to vote from space in the November election. More →
- Watch the election live here →
That’s all for the Policy Desk for now. If you have feedback – like it or not – send us an email politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com
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