Tag Archive for: Republican Party

Vance Takes Center Stage In White House Push To Protect GOP Majority

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Vice President JD Vance flew to Bangor, Maine, on May 14 for what was billed as an Anti-Fraud Task Force rally, but the trip quickly revealed its true purpose.

Vance shouted out former GOP Gov. Paul LePage, who is mounting a congressional bid, and extended an olive branch to Republican Sen. Susan Collins, a frequent thorn in the administration’s side who faces reelection in 2026. As rallygoers waved “Protecting Taxpayer Dollars” signs, Vance made his closing argument: keep the Trump administration in power so the fraud-fighting can continue.

Maine was just the latest example of a pattern that has defined his vice presidency.

In the last five months, Vance has traveled to eight states for 11 campaign-type events. This excludes a trip like Maine, where the vice president was there technically on official business. Since taking over as finance chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC), Vance has headlined 25 fundraisers, an RNC official told the Daily Caller.

Outside of the president, Vance owns 2026. He’s the GOP’s top surrogate, its best closer and most valuable weapon on the trail.

“He has a star power that, outside of the president, is unmatched,” RNC Chairman Joe Gruters told the Caller. “People love him, they love what he has to say. He’s a very good campaigner, a very good speaker and motivator. He just has the ability to move people.”

The White House political team has mapped out competitive districts and is deploying Vance accordingly, an official told the Caller. His team has been coordinating with the White House for months, and Vance has made clear he’ll go wherever he’s needed.

Those stops are expected to multiply as Labor Day approaches, though his travel will pause briefly when Usha Vance gives birth to their fourth child in the coming weeks.

“There’s a realization that he’s a younger face who articulates domestic issues in a way that resonates and complements the president’s style,” one source close to the administration told the Caller.

Vance isn’t alone on the trail. Cabinet officials have fanned out across the same battleground states, often far more frequently than the VP himself.

In Georgia, where former Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s seat is up for grabs, Vance has visited once; Cabinet officials have made 14 trips since January.

In North Carolina, where former RNC Chairman Michael Whatley is running for Senate, Vance has stopped once to the Cabinet’s 11. In Vance’s home state of Ohio, where Vivek Ramaswamy is running for governor, and a tight Senate race between former Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown and Republican Sen. Jon Husted is taking shape, Cabinet officials have shown up 19 times to his two. The pattern holds across Iowa (8-1), Wisconsin (11-1), and Michigan (15-1).

The numbers reflect a deliberate division of labor. The White House political team told Vance they needed him to make a push for Rep. Zach Nunn in Iowa, a source close to the political operation told the Caller, and the VP agreed. He goes where the ask is sharpest.

New York illustrates the scale: Cabinet officials have visited 27 times, Vance twice. In Texas, where Republican state Attorney General Ken Paxton faces Democrat state Sen. James Talarico, Cabinet has been there 49 times, the president once, Vance twice.

And joining the Cabinet officials and the VP on the campaign trail will be Trump, who will be making some stops as Labor Day approaches, a White House official told the Caller.

On the fundraising side, Vance has been just as formidable. He has helped raise more than $60 million for the RNC since taking over as finance chair, according to The New York Times. The RNC ended May with $125.5 million cash on hand, raising $14.8 million in the month alone.

Gruters credits Vance’s personal touch.

“People that we’ve had come to some of our events have told me that they’ve been some of the best political events they’ve ever had, the best opportunity they’ve ever had to spend quality time with the VP,” he told the Caller. “It’s really opened up the opportunity for us to break out and raise these record-setting amounts.”

None of this can happen, however, without whispers of 2028. Trump loves to poll those around him on the question of his successor: Vance or Rubio. Every trail stop the VP makes adds more to the conversation.

Sources close to Vance insist the midterm push is not a calculated audition, and the VP has gone out of his way to signal as much. Earlier this year, he turned down political trips to Iowa specifically because he didn’t want them perceived as 2028 groundwork.

For Vance’s part, he has repeatedly said he is not thinking about 2028, but the job ahead.

“I have no doubt that the president of the United States is going to be very supportive of anything that I ultimately decide to do,” Vance told CBS News. “But we really just haven’t talked about what that thing will be.”

He added that he is not “sitting around figuring out whether I’m going to run for president.

But the overlap is hard to ignore.

“It also serves the heir apparent well to hit hotly contested areas of the country ahead of his own run,” one source close to the administration told the Caller. “In many ways, it’s a win-win.”

AUTHOR

Reagan Reese

White House Correspondent

EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

ROOKE: Islamic Group With Terror Ties Tried To Infiltrate Texas GOP — Media Treated Them Like The Victims

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The Texas GOP rejected individuals with ties to an organization that Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott designated as linked to terrorist groups, trying to serve as delegates at their convention. Left-wing Texas media went out of its way to falsely present the story as one of anti-Muslim bigotry.

At the Republican Party of Texas Convention in Houston in June, individuals with ties to CAIR attempted to serve as delegates to the state GOP. When party members objected and tried to remove them, the Texas Tribune inverted the facts in order to frame the infiltrators as victims. In reality it was an attempted invasion by an Islamic advocacy network with documented terror connections.

The Texas Tribune focused on Mohamed Hussein, who left a panel discussion in tears after clashing with speakers over Sharia law. His father, Tarek Hussein, founded CAIR-Houston. Tarek Hussein established CAIR-Houston after 9/11 and maintains involvement with the Clear Lake Islamic Center, where Mohamed Hussein serves on the board.

Other attendees included Amjad Muhtaseb, executive director of the Muslim American Society Houston, and his wife, Samar Halabi. Muhtaseb leads an organization that is reportedly described as the Muslim Brotherhood’s main operational arm in the U.S. Halabi has promoted activities in public schools that opponents describe as recruitment and ideological outreach.

Texas designated CAIR and related Muslim Brotherhood entities as terrorist-linked organizations in 2025. This followed evidence from the Holy Land Foundation trial, the largest terrorism financing case in U.S. history. CAIR was named an unindicted co-conspirator in that case. Internal Brotherhood documents, including the 1991 Explanatory Memorandum, describe a “civilization jihad” strategy to undermine Western society from within through front groups. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and other countries have also designated CAIR as a terrorist organization.

Party delegates attempted to expel them due to these affiliations. Outgoing Texas GOP Chair Abraham George told the group on stage to leave the Republican caucus and join the Democrats. The party then updated its rules to prevent future participation by those linked to designated terrorist organizations.

Religious liberty under the First Amendment protects private belief and worship. It does not require political parties to accept members who advance doctrines that undermine constitutional government, like those supporting terrorist-linked organizations.

The convention clash highlights the battle going on in Texas, which is facing rapid demographic change due to the growing Muslim population in the state. The way the Texas Tribune framed the ordeal exposed the goal of left-wing media, which is to stigmatize resistance to the replacement happening to Texans and help advance the influence of these groups looking to subvert the will of Texas voters.

The Texas GOP confronted an attempted infiltration by networks with terror ties and responded with policy and principle. The Texas Tribune predictably called them bigots. However, this line of attack no longer works. The left has overplayed their hand by calling anyone who disagrees with their narrative every derogatory name from racist to xenophobic.

Texans are rightly outraged by what’s happening. For many longtime Texas residents, the alienation runs deeper than the convention. It is the quiet, daily experience of living in neighborhoods that no longer feel like home. Once close-knit communities have been transformed by rapid population growth and large-scale immigration. Texans who used to know their neighbors by name and recognize a common culture wake up every day to see that quickly slipping through their fingers.

Spend the day traveling around the suburbs of Houston and Dallas, and you’ll see streets where English is no longer the dominant language on storefronts or in casual conversations. Mosques and Islamic centers have appeared in areas with little prior Muslim presence. There is a tangible loss of social cohesion.

The Texas GOP convention pushback wasn’t anti-Muslim bigotry as the Texas Tribune tried to claim. It was merely a reflection of Texas residents’ desire to preserve the social fabric that once made their communities feel connected.

AUTHOR

Mary Rooke

Commentary and Analysis Writer. Follow Mary Rooke on X: @MaryRooke. Sign up for Mary Rooke’s weekly newsletter here!

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Elephant Pees In Front Of Press At Texas GOP Convention

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An elephant peed in front of the press at the 2026 Texas Republican Party Convention in Houston, according to footage posted Friday.

WATCH: Elephant Pees In Front Of Press At Texas GOP Convention

Lauren McGaughy, Texas politics correspondent for The New York Times, recorded footage of multiple people leading an elephant through a gap between throngs of attendees and posted it on X. The convention is set to take place from June 11 to June 13.

“They just led an elephant through the @TexasGOP convention and it took a giant pee right near the press area,” McGaughy wrote.

Footage shows at least three people directing the elephant through the gap as spectators watch and record in the background. Music and speaking can be heard as the elephant, decked in a banner reading, “Unity Drives Victory,” suddenly comes to a halt and people start shouting. The camera moves downward to show the animal peeing on the floor. A woman starts laughing as the elephant resumes walking forward.

The convention comes days after Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton won the May 26 GOP Senate primary runoff against incumbent Republican Sen. John Cornyn in a landslide a week after President Donald Trump backed his candicacy. Paxton secured a 28-point margin of victory with 63.8% to 36.2%, The New York Times reported with over 95% of the vote counted. Republican Gov. Greg Abbot and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick both secured primary wins March 3, according to The Texas Tribune.

On Friday, incumbent Republican Party of Texas Chair Abraham George lost his seat to his ex-running mate, Republican Party of Texas Vice Chair D’rinda Randall, the outlet reported. George congratulated Randall on her victory on X.

The elephant first took off as a Republican Party symbol during the American Civil War, though political cartoonist Thomas Nast’s 1874 “Harper’s Weekly” cartoon was central in popularizing it, according to History.com.

AUTHOR

Justin Bailey

Associate Editor

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Democrats Are Clear and Present Danger to the Nation

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The U.S. must be growing and prosperous at home and strong and secure in the face of the many security threats facing us abroad.

The former can only be achieved with free markets and limited government domestically and the latter through a robust defense budget.

On both fronts, Democrats would take the country in the exact opposite direction needed.

Voters seem to understand this. RealClearPolitics reports Democratic Party favorability at -20.0 unfavorable and Republicans at -15.4 unfavorable.

Nevertheless, in polling on the overall congressional election for 2026, RealClearPolitics shows Democrats up +6.0.

Two things may explain this disconnect.

One, although voters show generically more favorability to Republicans, Republicans are still underwater in overall favorability.

Second, when voters are overall not happy with how things are going, they vote against the party in power.

Per the RealClearPolitics consensus, only 34.3% feel the country is going in the right direction.

Regarding the climate that will define the upcoming election season, one big variable will be the outcome in the current hostilities in Iran.

My prediction is that President Donald Trump and the Republican Party will emerge the clear big winner here.

Those who have opposed this war will be inducted into the national hall of shame. And here we are talking overwhelmingly about Democrat leadership.

The readiness of Trump to identify the clear and present danger to our country of the maniacal regime in Iran, both regarding their acquisition of nuclear weapons and development of a massive arsenal of long-range ballistic missiles, will secure Trump’s place in history as a great leader.

American action in Iran has also brought forth with clarity where the rest of the world stands.

We now better understand the lack of principles of our so-called European allies and the squishiness of NATO. We now better understand the evil and threat lurking in Russia, China, and North Korea.

And particularly interesting is the potential realignment that will emerge in the Persian Gulf, as suddenly the Arab nations in the Gulf have found themselves attacked by the Iranian maniacs. We may see a great solidifying of U.S. relations with those oil-rich Gulf nations, and we may see an historic solidifying of their relationship with Israel.

It all has made the security picture even clearer to Trump, who is requesting in the 2027 budget a 50% increase in defense spending, from around $1 trillion to $1.5 trillion.

The current war has made abundantly clear the inadequacy of our defense spending, now hovering at an historic low of 3% of gross domestic product. We live in a dangerous world. The motto “peace through strength” has never been clearer.

But how do we add $500 billion to our defense budget when we are running multitrillion dollar deficits at home and we’re carrying national debt greater than 100% of GDP?

There is one answer. We must step up finally and revamp and reform the massive waste in our federal spending—now approaching 25% of our GDP.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office reported last year that the federal government loses $233 to $521 billion in fraud. It also reported improper federal payments since 2003 totaling at least $2.8 trillion.

In 2024 alone, the Government Accountability Office notes improper payments in Medicare, Medicaid, and SNAP (food stamps) of $95.5 billion.

When Republicans moved to reform Medicaid in the “One Big, Beautiful Bill,” Democrats went crazy and took us to a government shutdown.

Democrats are out front complaining about the spike in gasoline prices.

The best way to manage gasoline prices is to increase supplies of oil and gas. Democrats are forever obstacles to this, making discredited claims about climate. Recently, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, once a climate change enthusiast, has repudiated “the doomsday view” of climate change, saying it “is wrong.”

We may well see in the midterms that voters indeed see Democrats as the clear and present danger to the nation.

COPYRIGHT 2026 CREATORS.COM

We publish a variety of perspectives. Nothing written here is to be construed as representing the views of The Daily Signal.

AUTHOR

Star Parker

Star Parker, a columnist for The Daily Signal, is president of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education. Star on X: .

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Americans Are Continuing to Flee Blue States for Red States, Census Data Show

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Newly released census data has revealed that the trend of a mass exodus from states controlled by Democrats to states run by Republicans is continuing. Census Bureau population estimates indicate that the five fastest-growing states are red, while four of the five states that are facing a shrinking population are blue.

As noted by the National Review editorial board Monday, the data show that since 2020, the U.S. has added about 10.3 million people, only 1.9 million of which were natural births over deaths. The remaining 8.3 million constituted immigrants. “[T]he notion of a future in which we add four new immigrants for every net increase of one homegrown American is alarming,” the editors observed.

The census estimates further demonstrated that states run by Democrats (with one exception) continue to lose residents. The only five states that suffered losses in population were Vermont, Hawaii, West Virginia, New Mexico, and California, with New York narrowly breaking even. Many of these former blue state inhabitants seem to be fleeing to red states. The five fastest-growing states have Republican-controlled governments — South Carolina, Idaho, North Carolina, Texas, and Utah.

This latest data indicates that the population trends that began in 2020 are only continuing. An Institute for Family Studies (IFS) report from September 2024 found that in 2021-2022, the five states that lost the most families were the Democratic strongholds of California, New York, Illinois, Washington, and Oregon. Meanwhile, the states that gained the largest number of families were the Republican bastions of Texas, Florida, and South Carolina, along with the purple states of Georgia and Arizona.

Compounding the population problem for blue states is further data showing that fertility rates in Republican-run states are higher than they are in Democrat-run states. An October 2024 report from IFS analyzing 2023 data found that the 10 states with the highest fertility rates were all red, with the top three being South Dakota, Nebraska, and North Dakota. True to form, the 10 states with the lowest fertility rates were blue, with Vermont, Rhode Island, and Oregon being the three states with the lowest rates. The trend dovetails with studies showing that conservatives marry at higher rates and have more children than liberals.

A recent tax proposal for billionaires in California has left many scrambling the exits. The levy is emblematic of the heavy tax burden that Democrat-led states put on their citizens, with blue states securing the top 10 highest income tax rates in the nation. In addition, red states generally have fewer restrictions on home construction, have more business-friendly policies, have more jobs, and have lower energy costs, among other factors that make the cost of living less.

Experts like FRC Action Director Matt Carpenter say that the migration from blue states to red states will also likely have a big impact on future elections.

“If these projections hold up, the apportionment following the 2030 census will undoubtedly tilt future elections toward the GOP,” he told The Washington Stand. “With red states looking to pick up additional seats in Congress and additional electoral college votes, the Republican path to winning the presidency and Congressional majorities will depend less on winning swing states and swing districts in blue or purple states and will be achievable staying within red states alone.”

“It’s bad form in politics to assume outcomes, and red states will likely have to deal with an influx of more moderate and even liberal voters fleeing blue states,” Carpenter acknowledged. “But it’s even worse form to drive your population out of your state with insanely unpopular agendas.”

AUTHOR

Dan Hart

Dan Hart is senior editor at The Washington Stand.

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The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

ROOKE: It Only Took A Couple Weeks For Dark Skies To Clear Up For GOP’s Future

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The Republican Party has faced ongoing challenges in 2025, including economic pressures, immigration concerns, and criticism over inaction in Washington. Yet, under President Donald Trump’s leadership in early 2026, a renewed sense of optimism is emerging within the GOP.

New year, new party? Not exactly. While core issues like stagnant economy, border security, and bureaucratic gridlock persist, Trump’s decisive actions are creating momentum for progress and demonstrating the impact of strong leadership.

Take Venezuela as a prime example. U.S. forces conducted a successful operation, capturing former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife and bringing them to the United States to face longstanding drug trafficking and narco-terrorism charges. This bold move removed a hostile regime, enhancing American national security by disrupting alliances with adversaries like Iran, Russia, and China, as well as narco-trafficking networks.

Economically, Trump’s move will deliver immediate gains. Venezuelan officials have agreed to supply the U.S. with 30 to 50 million barrels of oil at market prices, stabilizing energy markets, reducing dependence on unreliable sources, and helping lower gas prices for Americans. The intervention showcases a president who is decisively committed to protecting U.S. interests.

Building on this momentum, Trump’s tariff policies are positioned to yield tangible benefits in 2026 as companies ramp up reshoring efforts to navigate the trade environment. While they appeared to be a drain on the American economy in 2025, these tariffs encourage domestic production, reversing years of offshoring that cost American jobs. Apple expanded U.S. facilities for products like iPads and Watches. Nvidia initiated major investments in chip manufacturing in Arizona and Texas. Intel and TSMC accelerated semiconductor plants in Ohio and Arizona. General Electric increased its domestic operations. Whirlpool announced expansions for domestic appliance production.

These initiatives are driving a revival in American industry, generating higher-wage jobs, more resilient supply chains, and greater energy independence. As facilities become operational in 2026, communities in manufacturing centers will see real economic gains, reinforcing support for the GOP’s America First approach.

Further bolstering this trajectory is Trump’s firm response to fraud scandals, especially those involving Somali-operated programs in Minnesota, where billions in taxpayer funds were allegedly diverted in childcare and welfare schemes. The administration has deployed approximately 2,000 federal agents to Minneapolis, frozen suspicious funding, and launched comprehensive investigations to uphold accountability. The focus on enforcing the law protects public resources for American citizens.

For Republicans, the Somali fraud scandal in Minnesota serves as a powerful unifying issue, galvanizing the party around a shared agenda to overhaul immigration policies, reform entitlement programs, and strengthen oversight mechanisms — all while reinforcing core commitments to fiscal responsibility and border security. The allegations involve billions in misused federal funds through childcare and welfare schemes, with the Justice Department charging 98 individuals, most of Somali origin, in what has been described as one of the largest fraud operations in U.S. history.

It allows the perfect opportunity for GOP leaders to highlight how Democrats promoted lax immigration enforcement and inadequate vetting that have enabled such abuses. Republicans should propose reforms like blocking immigrants from accessing benefits, mandatory audits for high-risk programs, and stricter penalties for those who exploit our systems.

By framing the scandal as a symptom of broader systemic failures under prior administrations, Republicans can rally their base, attract independents frustrated with waste, and build momentum for comprehensive reforms that protect American resources and sovereignty. 

Republicans’ main goal for the rest of 2026 is not to waste this opportunity. Maximize domestic efforts to revitalize the economy and address fraud, waste, and abuse of American taxpayer dollars. Use the wins to highlight the successes in messaging and campaigns, pursue legislation to solidify them, and engage grassroots supporters. Trump has once again set the stage for them to win. All the GOP has to do is not screw it up.

AUTHOR

Mary Rooke

Commentary and Analysis Writer. Follow Mary Rooke on X: @MaryRooke. Sign up for Mary Rooke’s weekly newsletter here!

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EXCLUSIVE: Why Republicans Dominated In Nassau County, New York, As Rest Of Country Went Blue

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Republicans had a big night in a large, suburban county bordering New York City — while the party suffered crushing defeats in other parts of the United States.

Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who had the endorsement of President Donald Trump, cruised to reelection victory Tuesday defeating his Democratic challenger by nearly 12 percentage points, according to results posted by the Nassau County Board of Elections. Republicans also swept countywide offices and comfortably held the legislature in the previously Democratic-leaning New York suburb — on the same night the neighboring Big Apple elected socialist Zohran Mamdani as mayor.

Blakeman, who is considering a 2026 run for New York governor, told the Daily Caller News Foundation that voters reelected him and other Nassau Republicans in a landslide due to a combination of “strong leadership, American values and common sense.”

“I ran on common sense, American values, safe communities, making sure that law enforcement has all the tools they need to be successful, hiring over 600 law enforcement professionals, 400 cops, 200 corrections officers, just in the last three years,” the county executive told the DCNF. “And I did this all without raising taxes one penny in four years.”

Blakeman cited his record on women’s sports, immigration and crime — three issues that helped President Donald Trump win the White House in 2024 — to explain why Nassau County bucked Tuesday’s “blue wave.”

“So, I think people like that. They like the fact that I took a strong stand on transgender, biological males playing against females, that it is banned in Nassau County. We were the first in America to do that,” the Republican said, referring to a law he signed barring men from competing in women’s sports in county-owned facilities.

“They like the fact that we have a comprehensive agreement with ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] and that we’re removing criminals from our community. We are named the safest county in America,” he added, citing a 2024 study from U.S. News and World Report. “We’ve also been named the most desirable place to live in New York state. So, I think we’ve got a record of achievement.”

Blakeman added that he “did all this without running away from” Trump.

“In fact, I ran with President Trump. I supported President Trump, and I made it very clear that I supported his policies,” he told the DCNF. “And I think people like the fact that I am someone of principle, that I am someone that stands up for the same values as President Trump, and that I had brought base appeal from moderate Democrats, and I’ve got almost two thirds of independent voters to vote for me.”

Trump carried Nassau County by just over four points in the 2024 presidential election, after the county voted for the Democratic nominee for the eight previous election cycles. Former President Joe Biden won it by double digits in 2020.

Two days before the election, Trump endorsed Blakeman, whom he called an “America First Patriot” in a post to Truth Social, adding that the county executive is “doing a fantastic job.”

“Bruce has been with us from the very beginning and is 100% MAGA. He is working tirelessly with the Brave Heroes of Law Enforcement, ICE, and Border Patrol to Safeguard our Communities, Ensure LAW AND ORDER, Defend our always under siege Second Amendment, Keep our now very Secure Border, SECURE, End Migrant Crime, and Stop Communism from ruining our once Great Cities,” Trump wrote in the Sunday evening social media post. “Bruce is fighting hard to Cut Taxes and Regulations, Promote MADE IN THE U.S.A., Advance American Energy DOMINANCE, and Champion our Nation’s Golden Age.”

Blakeman also told the DCNF that Republicans need to discuss the issues of affordability and cost of living by emphasizing “economic development and job creation” as opposed to “handouts” and giving people “free stuff.”

“We are creating opportunity. We are creating prosperity. We are creating wealth for the families of Nassau County,” Blakeman said. “And that’s how you beat the affordability issue, is you create an environment where people can do better, make more money, have better benefits and provide for their families better, and not give them free stuff, because free stuff doesn’t improve their overall situation. It just makes them dependent on government.”

Tuesday’s ABC News exit polls showed that voters in Virginia, New Jersey and New York City — all places that overwhelmingly elected Democrats — consistently ranked cost of living or the economy as their top issue.

When asked about Mamdani in particular, Blakeman said he is “very concerned” about the mayor-elect’s past anti-police rhetoric, left-wing policy positions, plan to raise taxes and views toward antisemitism.

“I am very troubled by his election, but I will do what I need to do to make sure that Nassau County remains safe and prosperous,” the county executive added.

Blakeman also told the DCNF that over the days following his big reelection win he has “received calls from political leaders, business leaders, big donors” urging him to enter the 2026 New York gubernatorial election.

“I have told them that I will seriously consider it, which I am, and I will make a decision after traveling around the state and talking with all of these leaders and determining whether or not I want to enter the race,” he said. “I feel very strongly that if I get in the race, I’ll win, because we have a winning formula here, and we have the base on Long Island.”

Democrats swept all of the Nov. 4, 2025 races that received the lion’s share of media attention. In addition to Mamdani’s win, the party’s endorsed candidates also won Tuesday’s elections for Virginia governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general as well as New Jersey governor and two statewide races in Republican-leaning Georgia.

One of the two New York counties that comprise the region, colloquially known as “Long Island,” Nassau County, which has a population of about 1.4 million, is relatively, diverse, being 53% white, 19% Hispanic, 12% Asian and 11% black, according to the 2023 American Community Survey (ACS) by the U.S. Census Bureau. The county also has one of the largest Jewish communities in the country, and about one-in-five Nassau County residents are Jewish, per 2023 ACS data.

It is also widely regarded as a “commuter county,” with a significant portion of its residents working in New York City.

In addition to Blakeman, Republican incumbents for Nassau County district attorney, county comptroller and county clerk all won by double digit margins. Republicans maintained complete control of the Nassau government, winning 11 of 19 seats in the County Legislature — a net loss of only one seat following redistricting seen as friendlier to the Democratic Party.

AUTHOR

Anthony Iafrate

Associate Editor

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Texas, California Kick off Redistricting Wars

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Legislatures in Texas and California this week both advanced bills to redraw their congressional maps halfway through the census cycle, kicking off what could become a partisan redistricting war over control of the U.S. House of Representatives, which is currently closely divided.

In Texas, House Republicans on Wednesday easily (88-52) advanced a bill to redraw the congressional map in a way that shifts five U.S. House seats toward the GOP. Democratic representatives initially fled the state to deny the House a quorum, but they eventually returned after the month-long special session had expired. Governor Greg Abbott (R) immediately called a second special session, and House leaders took steps to ensure the Democrats did not flee the state again.

The redistricting bill now heads to the Texas Senate. The Senate passed the bill easily during the first special session (Democratic senators did not abscond), but it must vote again in the new session. If the bill reaches Abbott’s desk, he is expected to sign it.

In California, the Democrat-controlled legislature has moved much more quickly. On Thursday, Governor Gavin Newsom (D) signed two bills to redraw California’s congressional districts that the legislature passed earlier in the day. These bills aim to move five congressional seats from Republican to Democrat. “We’re responding to what occurred in Texas. We’re neutralizing what occurred,” argued Newsom, “because when all things are equal, we’re all playing by the same rules.”

As a matter of fact, California and Texas do not play by the same redistricting rules. In 2008 and 2010, California voters passed a ballot measure that authorized a bipartisan commission to redraw California’s state and federal legislative districts. This commission drew the lines that California has used since 2022. Thus, before the California legislature can redraw the map, they need the voters’ permission to supersede the map created by the redistricting commission. To that end, Governor Newsom has called a special election on November 4, a mere 10 weeks away.

It remains unclear whether California’s voters will approve this redistricting gambit, as contradictory early polling points in both directions. Only 15 years ago, California voters overwhelmingly approved the redistricting commission (61.2% to 38.7%); it would be a remarkable shift if they undermined its authority now.

In fact, many California voters likely have some inkling that the district map drawn by the bipartisan commission already tilts heavily in Democrats’ favor. In 2022, California Democrats won 63.3% of the congressional vote but almost 77% of the seats. In 2024, Democrats won 60.4% of the vote but 82.6% of the seats. Somehow, without an obvious partisan gerrymander by Sacramento legislatures, California Democrats have maneuvered themselves into quite a comfortable advantage.

If California voters do second the legislature’s effort to neutralize Texas’s redistricting effort, it might kick off a redistricting war that Democrats are not well positioned to win. By Punchbowl’s calculation, “Republicans can get 12 or more new seats fairly easily. Democrats can get two or three without amending a state constitution, and eight if Newsom’s California gambit works.”

A New York Times analysis helps explain why: there are 15 states with unified Democratic control and 26 with unified Republican control. But partisan gain is not possible in all these states, either because a state only has one congressional seat (like Delaware or Wyoming), or because the dominant party already holds all the congressional seats (like Massachusetts or Oklahoma).

This leaves eight Democrat-controlled states with Republican-held districts and 15 Republican-controlled states with Democrat-held districts. However, in five of these Democrat-controlled states, the legislature is not in control of drawing the map. This leaves only three Democrat-controlled states (besides California) where the legislature could potentially redraw the map to knock Republicans out of Congress, compared to 15 states where Republicans could do the opposite.

Across these three states (Illinois, Maryland, and Oregon), Democrats have already maximized their advantage, leaving a total of five Republicans in Congress across the three states. It would be extremely difficult to draw maps that would favor the Democrats any further. Maryland Democrats already tried this census cycle, but their gerrymander was struck down in court. Likewise, New York (another large, Democrat-controlled state) already tried to override its redistricting commission to enact a partisan gerrymander, which was also struck down in court.

Some analysts believe California Democrats are pushing their new map simply to oppose Trump. The Trump administration provided the impetus for Texas’s redistricting effort, in hopes of giving the president’s party a more effective House majority in Congress. California Democrats may not believe they can win a nationwide redistricting war, but they do believe their base wants to see them stand tow-to-tow with Trump.

Thus, California Assemblyman Marc Berman (D), who sponsored one of the redistricting bills, offered this half-hearted defense on Thursday, “We don’t want this fight, and we didn’t choose this fight, but with our democracy on the line, we cannot and will not run away from this fight.” Begun, the Redistricting Wars have.

AUTHOR

Joshua Arnold

Joshua Arnold is a senior writer at The Washington Stand.

EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2025 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

FLORIDA: State Representative Announces Switch From Democrat To Republican Party

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Florida State Rep. Hillary Cassel announced Friday that she is switching her party affiliation from Democrat to Republican.

Cassel, who represents Florida’s 101st House district, announced the switch in a Twitter post. She cited concerns over the Democratic Party’s “failure to unequivocally support Israel” and what she calls its disconnect from everyday Floridians. Cassel is now the second Florida Democrat to join the GOP, along with Rep. Susan Valdés from Tampa.

“Today, I am announcing my decision to change my party affiliation from Democrat to Republican. This decision was not made lightly but comes from a deep sense of responsibility to my constituents and my commitment to the values that guide my service. I will be joining the Republican Conference of the Florida House of Representatives because I believe in their vision for a better, more prosperous Florida,” Cassel wrote in a statement.

“As a proud Jewish woman,” she continued. “I have been increasingly troubled by the Democratic Party’s failure to unequivocally support Israel and its willingness to tolerate extreme progressive voices that justify or condone acts of terrorism. I’m constantly troubled by the inability of the current Democratic Party to relate to everyday Floridians. I can no longer remain in a party that doesn’t represent my values.”

Cassel seemed to signal the switch earlier in December, tweeting an infographic depicting the overwhelming Republican majorities in Florida’s upcoming legislative session.

“Understanding the makeup of our State Legislature is key to navigating the upcoming session and addressing the needs of Floridians,” she wrote.

Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez endorsed the move, writing, “I am proud to share that @RepCassel has joined our House Republican Conference. Welcome to the team!”

House District 101 includes Dania Beach and portions of Broward County. Cassel won the seat in 2022 with 53% of the vote, defeating Republican challenger Guy Silla, who won 46% of the vote. Her current term expires in November 2026. The 101st District also swung 16 points towards the GOP, shifting from Joe Biden +14 in 2020 to Donald Trump +2 in 2024, according to a tweet from @Uncrewed, who writes about statewide elections on Substack.

AUTHOR

Henry Rodgers

Chief national correspondent.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

More Americans Identify as Republican than Democrat as November Draws Nearer

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For the first time in recorded history, more Americans are identifying with the Republican Party in the third quarter of a presidential election year than the Democratic Party — and are aligning with the GOP on key issues heading into November. Gallup released an in-depth analysis this week revealing that 48% of adults in the U.S. either identify as Republican or lean towards the Republican Party, compared to only 45% who identify as Democrat or lean towards the Democratic Party.

“Party affiliation and voting are strongly predictive of individuals’ vote choices, with the vast majority of identifiers and leaners voting for the candidate of their preferred party,” Gallup noted. The analytics giant continued, “At the aggregate level, there are typically more Democrats and Democratic leaners than Republicans and Republican leaners in the U.S. adult population.” In observing prior elections, Gallup pointed out that Democrats have typically won the White House when they have had “larger-than-normal advantages in party affiliation.”

For example, 52% of Americans identified with the Democratic Party in 1992, as opposed to 40% who allied themselves with the Republican Party, and Bill Clinton, then the Democratic Governor of Arkansas, won the presidency. The margin was a little lower in 1996, when 50% of Americans identified with the Democratic Party and 41% with the GOP, but Clinton won reelection. The margin was significantly narrower in 2000 (48% Democrat, 43% Republican) when Texas Governor George W. Bush, a Republican, beat incumbent Vice President Al Gore, a Democrat. In 2004, the nation was evenly split (47% identifying with the Democratic Party, 47% with the Republican Party), yielding another Bush win.

From that point forward, the margins between the two party identifications stayed fairly close, but still with a decided Democratic advantage. Barack Obama took the White House in 2008 (49% identifying with the Democratic Party, 41% with the Republican Party) and was reelected in 2012 (47% identifying with the Democratic Party, 43% with the Republican Party). Donald Trump ascended to the presidency four years later, with 46% of Americans identifying with the Democratic Party and 43% with the GOP, the slimmest margin seen since 2000. In 2020, 48% of Americans affiliated themselves with the Democratic Party and only 43% with the Republican Party and former Vice President Joe Biden was sworn in as president.

Now, more Americans not only identify with the Republican Party than the Democratic Party, but more Americans identify with the Republican Party than have identified with the Democratic Party over the past 16 years. Gallup noted, “Republicans previously have not had an outright advantage in party affiliation during the third quarter of a presidential election year, and they have rarely outnumbered Democrats in election and nonelection years over the past three decades.”

Beyond party identification, Gallup discovered that Americans have greater confidence in the GOP’s handling of issues voters consider important — namely, the economy and inflation, immigration, and government — than in the Democratic Party’s, by a five-point margin, which Gallup classifies as a “strong” advantage in the context of previous presidential elections.

The Republican Party is also leading on economic issues. As Gallup noted, “Americans currently give the Republican Party a six-percentage-point edge, 50% to 44%, as the party they think would do a better job of keeping the country prosperous.” The party which has held an advantage on this question in the past has won 12 out of 16 presidential elections. Americans also give the economy a rating of -28, with only 22% saying that economic conditions under President Joe Biden are “excellent” or “good.” Gallup added, “Republicans hold a more substantial advantage of 14 points (54% to 40%) as the party Americans believe is better able to keep the nation safe from terrorism and other international threats.”

Additionally, only 22% of Americans say that they are satisfied with how things are going in the U.S. currently, a low unrivaled since 13% said the same in 2008. Gallup observed, “Satisfaction levels this low have been associated with incumbent presidents losing their reelection bids in 1980 (19%), 1992 (22%) and 2020 (28%).” Biden’s low favorability ratings (39%, significantly lower than former President Donald Trump’s 46% heading into the 2020 election) are less likely to impact the 2024 election, Gallup anticipates, since he dropped out of the presidential race. But Gallup noted, “Biden’s unpopularity could still affect the election to the extent voters transfer their frustrations with the Biden administration to Vice President Kamala Harris.”

The survey analysis from Gallup follows news that Republican voter registration is on the rise, outpacing Democratic voter registration in several historically-Democratic districts, and Republicans are accounting for a significantly higher percentage of early voting turnout than in previous years. Historically, early voting and mail-in voting have been dominated by Democrats, with Republicans voting on election day itself.

In its analysis, Gallup concluded, “The political environment suggests the election is Trump’s and Republicans’ to lose. Nearly every indicator of the election context is favorable to the Republican Party, and those that aren’t are essentially tied rather than showing a Democratic advantage.”

AUTHOR

S.A. McCarthy

S.A. McCarthy serves as a news writer at The Washington Stand.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

Republicans Outpacing Dems in Voter Registrations, but Election Integrity Concerns Persist

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A crucial county in the swing state of Pennsylvania is flipping red for the first time in nearly 60 years, following a statewide and nationwide trend. Luzerne County, the most populous county in the Keystone State’s northeastern region, has officially registered more Republican voters than Democrats for the first time since 1970.

According to local WFMZ-TV 69 News, there are 87,415 registered Republicans in Luzerne County, against 87,332 registered Democrats, as of Monday morning. There are also 22,414 unaffiliated voters and 6,160 third-party voters. Luzerne had been a Democrat stronghold for decades, but former President Donald Trump won the county by eight points in 2020 and is poised to do so again by wider margins in November.

In comments to The Washington Stand, FRC Action Director Matt Carpenter said, “Pennsylvania is known as the Keystone state, and that moniker could not be more fitting for its role in the 2024 election. Without the state’s 19 electoral college votes, the paths to 270 for Kamala Harris and Donald Trump get much more difficult.” He added, “But, with a closely divided Congress, all eyes are on the state’s contested Senate race and competitive House races as well.”

Carpenter continued, “Luzerne County is probably the swingiest county in arguably the most crucial swing state, and with the news that Republicans outnumber Democrats in this key county for the first time in decades, suddenly the prospect of turning this state red at the presidential level, defeating longtime Democrat Senator Bob Casey, Jr., and Democrat Representative Matt Cartwright, is a real possibility.”

Just 10 years ago in 2014, Democrats held a lead of 47,322 registered voters over Republicans, with 111,233 Democrats registered to vote and only 63,911 Republicans. That lead has increasingly diminished over the past decade and Republicans now lead by 83 registered voters. This trend is not isolated to Luzerne County. According to Early Vote Action founder Scott Presler, Democrats have also lost their lead in Pennsylvania’s Bucks County. In 2020, there were 201,254 Democrats registered in Bucks and 185,672 Republicans, giving the Democrats an advantage of 15,582 registered voters. Now, there are 199,359 Democrats registered and 201,479 Republicans, giving Republicans a lead of 2,120 registered voters. Last year, Pennsylvania’s Beaver County was also flipped red.

Other states, like Virginia, have seen similar shifts away from Democratic Party enthusiasm. According to former state senator Glen Sturtevant (R), early voting has seen a significant uptick from prior years, with roughly 30,000 more ballots having been cast early than the same time in 2020, with a heavy Republican lean. Virginia’s solidly-red Washington County has reportedly seen a 150% early voting increase compared to 2020, Bland County has seen a 200% increase, and Smith County has seen an even greater increase.

While some battleground states are more hotly-contested, Trump has made inroads among Democrats. In Michigan, the Democratic mayor of Hamtramck, the most densely-populated municipality in the state and the nation’s only majority-Muslim city, formally endorsed Trump over Harris. “President Trump and I may not agree on everything, but I know he is a man of principles,” said mayor Ameer Ghalib. “I believe he is the right choice for this critical time. I’ll not regret my decision no matter what the outcome would be, and I’m ready to face the consequences.”

Additionally, a poll of Teamsters Union members showed that Trump is leading among the historically-Democrat-aligned voting bloc, especially in battleground states. Trump is leading Harris among the Teamsters by 18.6 points in Arizona, 15.6 points in Georgia, 33.9 points in Pennsylvania, nearly 30 points in Michigan, and 16.5 points in Wisconsin. This follows the Teamsters Union refusing to endorse Harris — the first time in decades that the union hasn’t endorsed a Democrat — after internal polling revealed that nearly 60% of union members supported Trump’s reelection campaign.

However, the Virginia Project, a voter outreach and election integrity organization, warned that polling data and voter registrations need to be accompanied by election integrity safeguards and lawyers. “Pennsylvania isn’t going to stop a 3AM ballot dump with voter registrations. The longer the question remains open and nobody can proffer a responsible party with a real plan, the more disturbing the situation is and the less likely we will carry that state,” the group warned.

The Virginia Project asked, “When Philly illegally kicks out observers, covers the windows of the polling place, and stuffs the ballot box, who exactly is going to do what exactly to stop it?” Pointing to the election integrity measures used in Virginia elections, the organization explained, “Here’s what would happen in Virginia. An observer would see something improper, and would immediately call the legal hotline. Inside 15 minutes lawyers would strike like a bolt of lightning and put everything on hold until a court can decide.”

AUTHOR

S.A. McCarthy

S.A. McCarthy serves as a news writer at The Washington Stand.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

Who Is J.D. Vance? Ohio Senator Tapped as Trump VP Candidate

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Former President Donald Trump announced Monday that he had selected Senator J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) as his vice presidential running mate, touching off rounds of praise and occasional statements of condemnation from the pro-life community.

Vance, who is presently serving his first term in the U.S. Senate, mirrors President Trump’s views on immigration and the importance of elevating the American middle class. The two men made a surprise appearance at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, shortly after delegates nominated the ticket.

Vance memorialized his underprivileged upbringing and chaotic family life in his 2016 memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis,” which was made into a well-received movie directed by Ron Howard in 2020. After joining the Marines, Vance graduated from Yale Law School and worked at Peter Thiel’s venture capital firm before starting his own, where he raised more than $90 million. He has become a critic of Wall Street, called for higher corporate taxes, and supported raising the minimum wage.

Vance’s supporters say he has never lost touch with the struggling region of Appalachia that formed him. “There are few leaders in America that understand the challenges our families and children are facing today like Senator J.D. Vance,” Aaron Baer, president of the Ohio-based Center for Christian Virtue, told The Washington Stand. Jeremy Carl, author of the best-selling “The Unprotected Class,” has noted that “Vance comes from the forgotten white working class, and he has made concern for the people he came from the centerpiece of his career from the beginning. That’s incredibly important.”

David Closson, the director of the Center for Biblical Worldview at Family Research Council, congratulated Vance on Monday, noting that “Senator Vance was one of only five senators who received a perfect score on FRC Action’s scorecard for votes taken in 2023.” Vance once compared abortion to slavery. Vance also scored an A- from Students for Life Action and an A+ from SBA Pro-Life America. Michael New of the Charlotte Lozier Institute highlighted positive aspects of Vance’s abortion record, including his opposition to Ohio’s Amendment 1 and his decision to speak at the Ohio March for Life.

While running for office in 2022, Vance said the states could “have different abortion laws” but that there should also be a reasonable “minimum national standard.” He viewed the “Protecting Pain-Capable Unborn Children from Late-Term Abortions,” which would limit abortion to the first 15 weeks of pregnancy, or longer in the cases of rape or incest, as such a reasonable bill. The measure would allow more than nine out of 10 abortions in the United States to take place. Yet he attacked his opponent, former “pro-life Democrat” Tim Ryan, for supporting abortion until birth. “As much as you call me an extremist, you’re the extremist on this issue,” Vance told him in 2022.

As Trump’s vice presidential list narrowed to Vance, Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum (R), Vance stepped back from his pro-life voting record to match the nominee.

“On the question of the abortion pill, what so many of us have said is that … the Supreme Court made a decision saying that the American people should have access to that medication. Donald Trump has supported that opinion. I support that opinion,” said Vance on the July 7 episode of “Meet the Press.” He went on to praise Trump’s view that Dobbs returned the issue of abortion to the states alone. “Donald Trump is the pragmatic leader here. He’s saying most abortion policy’s going to be decided by the states,” said Vance.

That outraged some pro-life leaders. “Both J.D. Vance and President Trump support the legalization of abortion pills,” said Lila Rose, founder of Live Action. “This is heartbreaking and wrong. Vance was once strongly against the murder of all preborn babies. Both men can still change their positions, and we will pray and work for them to do so.”

“The reality is this: we are dealing with two pro-abortion legalization tickets, with the Biden/Harris ticket supporting abortions on babies through all nine months of pregnancy as well as the political persecution of pro-life people,” Rose noted.

Yet abortion lobbyists decried Vance as an alleged right-wing crank on abortion. Planned Parenthood Action derided Vance as an “unqualified, anti-abortion politician who won’t protect any of your rights.” (Bold in original.) Reproductive Freedom for All (formerly NARAL) called Vance “an anti-abortion extremist” who is “out of step with the majority of Americans.” EMILY’s List said erroneously that Trump and Vance constitute “the most anti-abortion presidential ticket in history,” although President Ronald Reagan supported a Right to Life Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would have protected all children from abortion. (Joe Biden voted for the amendment during the Reagan administration.) The pro-abortion PAC insisted, “a vote for Trump is a vote for a national abortion ban and an end to access to other essential forms of reproductive health care,” possibly a reference to Vance’s opposition to childhood transgender surgeries.

The Ohio senator has strongly opposed the transgender industry’s profit-fueled desire to carry out procedures on underage children. Last July, Vance introduced the Senate version of the Protect Children’s Innocence Act, which would protect minors from transgender surgeries and chemical injections, in an effort “to save countless young Americans from a lifetime of suffering and regret.” He also urged Ohio lawmakers to override the veto of a similar house bill, H.B. 68, by Governor Mike DeWine (R), which legislators proceeded to do.

“He is strong on this issue, and I support him, because I believe he will stop other kids from facing the harm that has plagued my childhood and has forever altered the course of my life,” said detransitioner Chloe Cole.

Vance became a longstanding and outspoken advocate for increasing the birthrate of native-born U.S. citizens, pointing out the political and economic problems of lower population. Vance has called for introducing economic incentives for families to have more children, such as making births “free” at the point of service.

“Students for Life Action has been proud to work with the senator’s team to provide additional benefits for young families and pregnant mothers, which is part of the hard work of protecting life in law and in service at every stage of life,” Students for Life Action President Kristan Hawkins told TWS. “But it will be important to talk with this ticket about the realities of how the Biden administration has weaponized policy and the law against pro-life Americans and the preborn children.”

At a time of record-breaking illegal immigration, Vance scored an A (90%) from the immigration watchdog, NumbersUSA.

Vance has admitted that his Christian faith has grown in recent years. He grew up in a family that identified as Christian but did not regularly attend church. Yet he learned lifelong lessons attending his father’s evangelical congregation. “I saw people of different races and classes worshipping together. I saw that there were certain moral expectations from my peers of what I should do,” Vance told Deseret News. When he entered Yale Law School in 2010, Vance revealed, “I would have called myself an atheist.” In 2015, he began seeking clarity about his Christian views. Vance selected the Roman Catholic faith due to its importance in the life of people close to him, as well as its intellectual depth. He was baptized for the first time in his life as a Roman Catholic in August 2019, according to his friend, Rod Dreher.

“I’ve seen how his sincere Christian faith gives him courage to stand for what’s right, even when it doesn’t make him popular with the most powerful forces in culture,” Baer told TWS.

If elected, J.D. Vance would be only the second Roman Catholic vice president in U.S. history. (Former Vice President Joe Biden also identifies as Catholic.) Vance, who will turn 40 years old on August 2, would also rank as the third-youngest vice president in U.S. history, behind former Vice Presidents Richard Nixon (who had just turned 40) and John C. Breckenridge (36 years old).

Vance met his wife — Usha Chilukuri Vance, who was born in San Diego to Indian immigrant parents — when both were students at Yale Law School. They got married in 2014 and have three children: Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel. Like her parents, Mrs. Vance is a Hindu. “That was one of the things that made them such good parents, that made them really good people,” she told Fox News. Yet Senator Vance described his wife as “very supportive” when he began to “reengage with my own faith.”

“I knew that JD was searching for something. This just felt right for him,” said Mrs. Vance.

The couple seemingly has little trouble raising their sons and daughter in an interfaith home, because they “agree a lot” on family rearing and “talk a lot,” said Mrs. Vance.

Pro-life supporters hope Vance will take a strong stand for the unborn if elected. “With approximately 750,000 babies in states like California and New York still lacking basic protections, we need champions whose boldness will not waver,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America, in a statement emailed to The Washington Stand. Her organization has committed to spending $92 million to reach 10 million voters in eight battleground states this election cycle.

AUTHOR

Ben Johnson

Ben Johnson is senior reporter and editor at The Washington Stand.

RELATED ARTICLE: Vivek Ramaswamy floated as possible Senate replacement for JD Vance in Ohio

EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

GOP platform pledges to stand with Israel, deport ‘pro-Hamas radicals,’ fight anti-Christian bias

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It should be obvious to all by now, although it isn’t, that there tends to be a bias against Israel on the left. This is despite the well-documented history of persecution that Israel has endured since 1948, as well as the jihad waged against Jews even prior to Israel’s founding. The GOP platform also intends “to fight anti-Christian bias as well as ‘gender insanity.’”

The Republican platform is consistent with the longstanding policies of the Republicans; whereas the Democrats have been unpredictable in their position on Israel, as well as ruinous to American interests.

An outstanding question remains, however, regarding the logistics of the Republican pledge to “DEPORT PRO-HAMAS RADICALS AND MAKE OUR COLLEGE CAMPUSES SAFE AND PATRIOTIC AGAIN.”

Does this mean also, for example, that groups that were designated unindicted co-conspirators for their support for Hamas, which were uncovered in the Holy Land Foundation trial, might be further investigated? Many of these groups have been driving the stealth jihad and have escaped accountability since that trial, and perpetuate a false Palestinian victimhood perspective, while concealing what the “resistance” is really about.

Another question for the GOP: what happens if those “pro-Hamas radicals” are American citizens?

The GOP commitment to fight Hamas and protect Christians is a good start.

America needs to get tough and root out stealth jihadist enemies from within, which are a threat to freedom. But it is a complex task.

GOP platform pledges to stand with Israel, deport ‘pro-Hamas radicals’ from US

by Jacob Majid, Times of Israel, July 7, 2024:

The 2024 Republican Party platform pledges to fight antisemitism and to keep Israel safe. It promises to fight anti-Christian bias as well as “gender insanity.”

And it vows, in all-caps, to “DEPORT PRO-HAMAS RADICALS AND MAKE OUR COLLEGE CAMPUSES SAFE AND PATRIOTIC AGAIN.”

Parties traditionally publish platforms in election years ahead of their national conventions, as a statement of its values and a wish list of policies should their candidate win the White House.

The Republican platform, posted Monday and subject to a vote at next week’s convention in Milwaukee, is heavily influenced by the priorities and language of the nominee, former United States president Donald Trump — down to the capitalization style he’s favored in his social media posts. It also repeatedly attacks the Biden administration.

While quarrels over platforms have sometimes made waves among party insiders, they are largely symbolic, non-binding documents that have little practical implication.….

Continue reading.

AUTHOR

CHRISTINE DOUGLASS-WILLIAMS

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Launch of Platform Integrity Project Seeks to Keep Conservative Planks ahead of GOP Convention

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A new conservative coalition is mobilizing to ensure that the Republican Party’s platform maintains its strong commitment to socially conservative principles. On Monday, FRC Action partnered with a host of other conservative organizations to form the Platform Integrity Project, an initiative to ensure that when Republican delegates gather in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for the Republican National Convention next week, they will write a party platform that includes, according to a press release shared with The Washington Stand, “longstanding pro-life, pro-family, and pro-Israel planks.”

The initiative is the first ever to track and score how delegates vote on the Republican Party’s platform. In addition to FRC Action, Platform Integrity Project partners include WallBuilders, Faith Wins, American Principles Project, Family Policy Alliance, AFA Action, Liberty Counsel Action, Pro-Family Legislative Network, The Family Foundation of Kentucky, Center for Arizona Policy Action, Frontline Policy Action, Maryland Family Action, Human Coalition Action, Palmetto Family Council, and the North Carolina Values Coalition.

“Party platforms matter. They state a party’s principles and their priorities,” FRC Action Chairman Tony Perkins, an elected member of the Republican National Committee (RNC) Platform Committee from Louisiana, said in a statement. He noted that research has found that, historically, elected Republicans follow their party’s platform over 80% of the time. “America is in an unprecedented place of moral and cultural confusion and is in dire need of leadership and moral clarity,” Perkins continued. “The Republican Party must once again communicate a clear and hopeful contrast between the parties by painting a message for voters on the foundational issues — life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness — not in pale pastels but in bright, bold colors.”

“Voters need to see a contrast between the two parties on their policy priorities. Voters want and need a choice,” Perkins concluded. “The message to Platform Committee delegates is clear: preserve life and family values in the Republican Party platform so that social conservatives can continue to find a home in the GOP.”

FRC Action Director Matt Carpenter told The Washington Stand, “The party platform is an important document for voters to understand what policies a public official is likely to support if elected.” He continued, “The Platform Integrity Project is an effort to organize like-minded organizations, officials, delegates, and individuals to keep pro-life and pro-family language in the GOP platform. Drawing a clear contrast is important for Christian voters to see where the parties are on the issues that we care about.”

Since the U.S. Supreme Court dismantled Roe v. Wade in 2022, there has been a push from moderate Republicans to abandon the life issue altogether and remove pro-life commitments from the GOP platform. Even some more hardline conservatives, like former President Donald Trump, have taken a more tentative position on abortion. While Trump touts the pro-life record established in his first term and proudly takes credit for his Supreme Court appointees overturning Roe, he has repeatedly shot down any notion of using the federal executive branch to craft pro-life protections at the national level, instead saying that the issue should be left to the states. A memo from the Trump team has suggested that the GOP “streamline” its platform to be more “easily digestible.” Concerns have mounted among Republicans and conservatives that this “paring down” may result in tacit Republican support for abortion, same-sex marriage, and even transgenderism.

With the party platform debate taking place behind closed doors — a novelty, given that the debate is typically public — on July 8 and 9, the Platform Integrity Project commitment to “an open process that will help ensure the preservation of the GOP’s solidly conservative platform” will allow Republican voters to ensure that their party represents their values. The Platform Integrity Project’s website encourages Americans to sign up to pray for their delegates when they meet next week.

In a letter sent Monday and seen by The Washington Stand, Perkins suggested to RNC Chairman Michael Whatley that the platform deliberations not be a secret, noting that the “gag rule” is “unprecedented and appears to violate RNC rules.” Perkins quipped that the gag rule cannot be the will of Trump, especially since the presumptive Republican presidential nominee has himself been targeted by such “un-American” tactics from the Left. He added that the gag rule “heightens speculation that the GOP platform will be watered down to a few pages of meaningless, poll-tested talking points. This contrasts sharply with Ronald Reagan’s call for a party platform, ‘a banner of bold, unmistakable colors with no pale pastels,’ challenging the nation with a clear vision for the future.”

“These bold principles on life, family, and freedom have served the GOP well for over a half-century, starkly contrasting with the other Party and attracting many God-fearing Americans to the GOP,” Perkins wrote. “There is great concern that the foundational efforts of patriots like Phyllis Schlafly and countless others who have built the Republican Party into a majority, pro-life, pro-family, pro-ordered liberty party will be undermined by these unprecedented changes in the process.”

The letter was sent not only to Whatley, but to all RNC leadership. Perkins pledged that if the gag rule were not rescinded, he would elevate the issue to all GOP platform stakeholders. “This process will likely result in an outcome that jeopardizes the Party’s ability to continue being a stabilizing force for freedom in this nation, as it has been for nearly 175 years,” Perkins averred. “I respectfully request that you reject the imposition of the Gag Rule. If you decide to proceed, I formally request the RNC meeting minutes that recorded the motion and the vote, which allowed this unprecedented Gag Rule to be implemented.”

In comments to The Washington Stand, former Congressman and FRC Senior Vice President Jody Hice stated, “In the world of politics, few things are more important than the party platform. A written ‘platform’ delineates the differences between parties, and is the track upon which elected representatives generally vote. Moreover, its impact goes far beyond the federal government, it also provides guidance for the various state legislatures. Further yet, the voters themselves align with one party or the other based upon the stated values expressed in the platform.”

Hice concluded, “The importance of a statement that clearly identifies core values and the foundational worldview upon which the GOP will be guided cannot be over-emphasized. As the platform debate begins, we cannot afford to compromise or water down the essential elements of conservatism and morality.”

AUTHOR

S.A. McCarthy

S.A. McCarthy serves as a news writer at The Washington Stand.

EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

Latest Polls and Primaries Spell Disaster for a GOP that Abandons Life and Marriage

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With just two weeks left until the GOP platform committee meets in Milwaukee, conservatives are preparing for what many believe will be an all-out war for the party’s soul. Rumors have been swirling for months that a quiet army of moderates is assembling to overthrow key Republican pillars on life and marriage. And while delegates are used to having to defend core principles, insiders say this time is different. They’re coming for the GOP’s most basic beliefs, Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said somberly. “I hate to tell you this, but it’s true. … The Republican Party Platform is under assault.”

While most of the attention is on the bright lights of the convention itself, the majority of conservatives realize that the lead-up to the big television bonanza is what makes or breaks the party. “If you change the platform,” Perkins warned, “you change the party.” July 8 and 9, when the document is hashed out for the first time in eight years, are “critical to keep at least one party aligned with biblical truth,” he insisted.

Fortunately, a few stories are bubbling up that should cast some serious doubt on the wisdom of diluting the life and marriage planks. For one, Republican support for same-sex marriage is cratering. After creeping upward for the last decade or so, the bottom fell out of the issue for the GOP, dropping almost 10 points in the last two years. Only 46% of Republicans favor the idea now, down from 55% in 2022 according to Gallup.

Some of that pushback was obvious in the aftermath of the House and Senate votes on the far-left Respect for Marriage Act, when 51 Republicans abandoned their base and sided with Democrats. Together, they helped bulldoze natural marriage and gutted religious freedom — a decision that resulted in a stunning amount of backlash at home. The grassroots outrage was so intense after the first vote in July that eight fewer House Republicans supported it on final passage in December.

Over in the Senate, the 12 Republicans who betrayed natural marriage faced blistering criticism in their states. Across Iowa, Wyoming, Alaska, Indiana, and North Carolina, the urgency to “do something” about the Republicans’ vote intensified in the following months , as counties moved to censure and publicly excoriate members who set fire to the party’s principles. Senator Thom Tillis (N.C.) even lost the party’s financial backing. A year and a half later, Gallup’s numbers show that the fury over these traitorous moves is still very much alive.

As for the suggestion that watering down the GOP’s life position would win over more voters, the primaries in South Carolina are one in a long line of stories that should put that logic to rest. Three Republican state senators who tried to filibuster the chamber’s pro-life protections lost their reelection bids this month — including the longest-serving female in the senate GOP. The women, who became known as “Sister Senators,” refused to back the Palmetto State’s lower abortion threshold, eventually costing Sandy Senn, Penry Gustafson, and Katrina Shealy their jobs.

PBS points out, “Billboards saying Shealy was not ‘pro-life’ were all over her district in Lexington County, which led the charge to flip the state from Democratic to Republican control over the past five decades.”

FRC Action Director Matt Carpenter, who watched the state’s primary with interest, told The Washington Stand, “Ultimately, the takeaway from the defeat of these three South Carolina senators who defected from the rest of the conference on the issue of protecting the unborn is that Republican primary voters are paying attention to who is truly pro-life, and who will side with the pro-abortion Left. Protecting the unborn is just as salient an issue for Republican primary voters today as it has ever been, they won’t allow the Overton Window to move left on the protection of life, and they’re willing to throw out incumbents to make that point.”

Let’s hope national leaders are paying attention to these signs. As Perkins pointed out on “Washington Watch” Tuesday, a lot of things were pivotal to Donald Trump’s 2016 support among evangelicals: releasing a list of pro-life nominees he would pick for the Supreme Court, choosing a known conservative as his running mate, and the embrace of the most conservative Republican Party Platform in history. “Those three things galvanized his support.”

Ralph Reed, founder of the Faith & Freedom Coalition, agreed. “I think we absolutely need a repeat” in 2024, he said. “We’re at an inflection point in this campaign, and in many ways, the foundation for the fall is going to be laid in the next three weeks. We have a debate taking place here in Atlanta. … And how well the president does, meaning former President Trump and how well Biden does is going to determine a lot. It’ll be a key moment.”

The second, Reed explained, “is the selection of his vice presidential running mate. And the third will be the gathering in Milwaukee and the adoption of the platform. And I’ve said repeatedly … and I know that you’ve said similar things — that if the Republican Party and the Trump campaign send a message of equivocation or retreat on the historic defense of innocent human life by the Republican Party — [which] I believe [is] the most important position of this party other than its opposition to slavery — it will make it harder to turn these voters out in the fall.”

AUTHOR

Suzanne Bowdey

Suzanne Bowdey serves as editorial director and senior writer at The Washington Stand.

EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.