US intelligence officials blame Iran for hacks targeting Trump, Biden-Harris campaigns

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washington — U.S. intelligence officials said Monday that they were confident that Iran was responsible for the hack of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, casting the cyber intrusion as part of a brazen and broader effort by Tehran to interfere in American politics and undermine faith in democratic institutions. Although the Trump campaign and private-sector cybersecurity investigators had previously said Iran was behind the hacking attempts, it was the first time the U.S. government had assigned blame for the attack. The joint statement from the FBI and other federal agencies also indicated that Iran was responsible for attempts to hack Vice Presidentmore

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Trump begins visits to battleground states, calls Harris a ‘country destroyer’

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york, pennsylvania — As Democrats kicked off their convention in Chicago, Donald Trump sought Monday to regain his footing after weeks of adjusting to Vice President Kamala Harris as his rival.  The former president and GOP nominee spoke at a factory in Pennsylvania, the first in a string of stops aimed at undercutting the Democratic celebration. He is holding daily events in battleground states tied to subjects on which Republicans think they hold an advantage, including the economy, crime and safety, national security and the border.  “Kamala Harris is an economy wrecker and a country destroyer,” Trump told factory workers andmore

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Protesters gather in Chicago for opening of Democratic National Convention   

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chicago — Protesters rallied outside the Democratic National Convention on its opening day Monday, saying they were determined to voice their opposition to the war in Gaza and other issues. Chicago officials said they were committed to keeping the demonstrations peaceful.  Protesters said their plans have not changed since President Joe Biden left the race and the party quickly rallied behind Vice President Kamala Harris, who will formally accept the Democratic nomination this week. Activists said they were ready to amplify their progressive message before the nation’s top Democratic leaders.  “We have to play our part in the belly of themore

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Thousands of activists expected at Democratic convention to call for Gaza cease-fire

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CHICAGO — Thousands of activists are expected to converge on Chicago this week for the Democratic National Convention, hoping to call attention to abortion rights, economic injustice and the war in Gaza. While Vice President Kamala Harris has energized crowds of supporters as she prepares to accept the Democratic nomination, progressive activists maintain their mission remains the same. Activists say they learned lessons from last month’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and are predicting bigger crowds and more robust demonstrations in Chicago, a city with deep social activism roots. Who is protesting? Demonstrations are expected every day of the convention and,more

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Harris and Walz make phone calls, rally volunteers on Pennsylvania bus tour before DNC in Chicago

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WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and running mate Tim Walz embarked on a bus tour in southwestern Pennsylvania on Sunday, hoping to ride a wave of enthusiasm for her candidacy to their party’s nominating convention in Chicago this week.  Vice President Harris and Walz, the governor of Minnesota, were joined by their spouses, Doug Emhoff and Gwen Walz, as they made their first stop visiting local volunteers making phone calls at a campaign office in the borough of Rochester, in Beaver County. Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, won the county in 2020. But the Democrats are riding onmore

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Democratic Party delegates gather in Chicago amid Harris momentum

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In the U.S. presidential election, thousands of Democratic Party delegates this week will celebrate Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as their presidential ticket for 2024. They are gathering in the Midwest city of Chicago. VOA’s Senior Washington Correspondent Carolyn Presutti takes a look at some volatile confrontations from past conventions and how support for the party’s candidate has grown since President Joe Biden dropped out of the race. …

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County in US state of Pennsylvania boasts uncanny ability to choose presidents   

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bethlehem, pennsylvania — The voters of Northampton County, in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania, have chosen the victor of all but three U.S. presidential elections since 1920. The only misses: picking Democrat Hubert Humphrey over Republican Richard Nixon in 1968; preferring Democrat Al Gore, who won the popular vote nationwide in 2000 but narrowly lost the electoral vote — which determines the winner — to Republican George W. Bush; and four years later, selecting Democrat John Kerry over incumbent Bush. That is one of the reasons that the county is a focus of this year’s presidential campaigns by Vice Presidentmore

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Pro-Palestinian ‘uncommitted’ movement hits impasse with top Democrats as DNC begins

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DEARBORN, Michigan — Of the thousands of delegates expected to gather Monday at the Democratic National Convention, only 36 will belong to the “uncommitted” movement sparked by dissatisfaction with U.S. President Joe Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war. But that small core has an outsized influence. Anger over U.S. backing for Israel’s offensive in Gaza could generate unwelcome images for convention organizers, with raucous protests expected outside and potentially inside the Chicago arena where Vice President Kamala Harris will accept the nomination Thursday. Top Democrats have spent weeks meeting with “uncommitted” voters and their allies — including a previously unreported sit-downmore

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New Jersey governor’s ex-chief of staff will replace Menendez until election

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NEWARK, New jersey — New Jersey Democratic Governor Phil Murphy tapped his former chief of staff Friday to temporarily replace convicted U.S. Senator Bob Menendez and said he would appoint whoever wins the post in November as soon as election results were certified. Democratic Representative Andy Kim and Republican hotelier Curtis Bashaw are competing in the race. Murphy said that he spoke to both about his plans. “I expressed to them that this approach will allow the democratically chosen winner of this year’s election to embark on the smallest possible transition into office,” Murphy said at a news conference. Former chiefmore

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Harris, Trump duel on inflation, taxes

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U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump laid out their economic visions for the country this week, promising to rein in inflation and slash federal taxes on workers’ tips. While both ideas are popular with voters ahead of the November presidential election, experts say they are not so easy to implement. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this report. …

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Harris to roll out populist proposals in first economic speech

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WASHINGTON — Kamala Harris is set to unveil plans for a federal ban on food and grocery “price gouging” and assistance of up to $25,000 in down payment support for first-time homeowners – populist proposals the vice president has embraced since becoming the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee. Harris is scheduled to outline her proposals Friday, in her first speech on the economy focusing on dealing with rising grocery and housing prices – key concerns for voters. She is set to speak in front of supporters at a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, a battleground state that she and former President Donaldmore

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Trump asks judge to delay hush money sentencing until after election

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NEW YORK — Donald Trump is asking the judge in his New York hush money criminal case to delay his sentencing until after the November presidential election. In a letter made public Thursday, a lawyer for the former president and current Republican nominee suggested that sentencing Trump as scheduled on September 18 — about seven weeks before Election Day — would amount to election interference. Trump lawyer Todd Blanche wrote that a delay would also allow Trump time to weigh next steps after the trial judge, Juan Merchan, is expected to rule September 16 on the defense’s request to overturn themore

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Vance, Walz agree to vice-presidential debate Oct. 1 on CBS

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COLUMBIA, South Carolina — Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Ohio Senator JD Vance have agreed to debate each other on October 1, setting up a matchup of potential vice presidents as early voting in some states gets underway for the general election. CBS News on Wednesday posted on its X feed that the network had invited Vance and Walz to debate in New York City, presenting four dates — September 17, September 24, October 1 and October 8 — as options. Walz reposted that message from his own campaign account, “See you on October 1, JD.” The Harris-Walz campaign followed upmore

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Trump talks energy, economy amid attacks on Harris, personally, on policy

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ASHEVILLE, North Carolina — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump lobbed a series of personal and policy-based attacks at his Democratic rival, Kamala Harris, in a speech on Wednesday.  Some allies, donors and advisers have expressed concern at Trump’s attacks on the U.S. vice president’s intellect and suggested that he instead focus on what they argue are the failed policies Harris has promoted while in office.  Speaking to supporters in Asheville, North Carolina, Trump steered clear of broadsides challenging Harris’ racial identity and spoke about policy in more detail than he has at other recent events. But he continued to throw personalmore

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Google says Iranian group trying to hack US presidential campaigns

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NEW YORK — Google said Wednesday that an Iranian group linked to the country’s Revolutionary Guard had tried to infiltrate the personal email accounts of roughly a dozen people linked to President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump since May.  The tech company’s threat intelligence arm said the group was still actively targeting people associated with Biden, Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, who replaced Biden as the Democratic candidate last month when he dropped out of the presidential race. It said those targeted have included current and former government officials, as well as presidential campaign affiliates.  The new reportmore

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Democrats are energized, but can Harris win?

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WASHINGTON — Since replacing President Joe Biden as the Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris has quickly consolidated power and energized a campaign that many Democrat leaders had worried about. Meeting no meaningful challenge from other Democrats, Harris secured votes to be the nominee from 4,567 delegates — 99% of the participating delegates — in a virtual call earlier this month.  The campaign, together with the Democratic National Committee and other joint fundraising committees, raised a historic $310 million in July, dwarfing the tally for the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, in the same month. More than $200 millionmore

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