Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar files paperwork to run for Minnesota governor, inching closer to announcement
Senator Amy Klobuchar attends a field hearing at the Minnesota Senate Building on Jan. 16, 2026, in St Paul, Minnesota. (Jim Vondruska/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Democratic Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar filed paperwork on Thursday to create a campaign committee to run for governor in the state — the latest step indicating that she is nearing an official announcement to enter the race.
A source close to the senator said that her filing “is a preliminary step necessary for any candidate considering a run. The senator will make an announcement of her plans in the coming days.”
Klobuchar is widely seen as the most popular Democrat in the state, and could help the party avoid a pitched primary fight to succeed Gov. Tim Walz, who dropped his bid for reelection as governor earlier this month.
Walz decided to suspend his run for a third term amid intensifying federal pressure on his state following a welfare fraud investigation. Walz said he would not run for reelection because he would not be able to give a campaign all of his attention as he works to defend Minnesota against those allegations of fraud.
The state has been at the center of the Trump’s administration immigration crackdown, drawing large protests following a federal agent’s fatal shooting of Renee Good, and threats from President Donald Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act, a law that authorizes the use of the military on U.S. soil for certain purposes.
Frey defended himself and Walz on ABC News’ “This Week” on Sunday, calling the investigation “deeply concerning,” and saying he intends to comply with it.
“Look, we have done nothing wrong, so of course we will comply in it, but at the same time, we need to be understanding how wild this is,” Frey said.
In a statement posted on X, Walz called the investigation “political theater.”
“This Justice Department investigation, sparked by calls for accountability in the face of violence, chaos, and the killing of Renee Good, does not seek justice,” Walz said the statement. “It is a partisan distraction.”
Klobuchar, who is also seen as a possible 2028 presidential candidate after running in 2020, won reelection to the Senate in 2024.
One Democratic Party county chair in Minnesota, speaking with ABC News after Walz dropped out of the race, said that Klobuchar likely would have a lock on the party’s nomination if she runs.
Another county party chair told ABC News at the time that to some in the party, a bid by Klobuchar didn’t seem to make sense because she could be a candidate for Senate Majority Leader if Democrats flip the chamber. Klobuchar is currently a member of Democratic Senate leadership.
Earlier this week, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he would not run for governor.
(NEW YORK) — President Donald Trump arrived in South Korea, the third stop on his Asia tour that will culminate in a high-stakes meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday.
Trump touched down in Busan, South Korea, descending down Air Force One onto a red carpet flanked with Korean soldiers.
Trump greeted H.E. Hyun Cho, the foreign minister of the Republic of Korea, and a 21-gun salute followed. The band played a rendition of YMCA after the gun salute.
Trump then headed to the coastal city of Gyeongju for remarks at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
There, the president addressed several key aspects of his Asia trip, including his upcoming meeting with Xi. Trump expressed his hope for a “grand deal” between Washington and Beijing.
“I think we’re going to have a deal,” Trump said. “I think it’ll be a good deal for for both. And that’s really a great result.”
An agreement, Trump continued, would be beneficial for the broader region and “better than fighting and going through all sorts of problems, and, you know, no reason for it.”
Trump also lauded bilateral ties between the U.S. and South Korea, praising South Korean President Lee Jae Myung as “a terrific person.”
“The Republic of Korea is a cherished American friend and a close ally, and as we can see in this beautiful city, it’s truly one of the most remarkable nations anywhere on Earth,” Trump said.
Later, at an APEC leaders’ working dinner, Trump said the bilateral meetings were “tremendous” and produced a “pretty much finalized” trade deal with South Korea.
The president used his APEC address to tout his domestic and foreign economic strategies.
Trump said the tax cuts within the Big Beautiful Bill were a “tremendous success” for the return of manufacturing to America, and described himself as a president that “cuts through the red tape and excuses.”
Trump also celebrated Nvidia and TSMC for creating the first Blackwell AI Chip in the U.S. which he says is a chip “10 years advanced.”
The president claimed that his administration had secured upwards of $22 trillion in foreign investments coming into the U.S.
Trump said the figure included some $10 billion in investment by Japanese auto giant Toyota to build new car plants in “six or seven” states.
The president said the U.S. and South Korea would partner on ship building, referring to the Hanwha Group’s acquisition of the Philly Shipyard.
Trump added that his use of tariffs was “strengthening our alliances” and “also bringing peace to the world.”
“The only [deal] I didn’t do is Russia-Ukraine,” the president added. “But that’ll get done too. That’ll get done. I thought that was going to be an easy one because of my relationship with [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin. He turned out to be a little different. But I think it’ll get done.”
Trump-Xi meeting on the horizon Trump’s most anticipated meeting on the three-country tour is with China’s Xi on Thursday, with a goal to end a month-long trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
Trump and Xi are set to meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Busan, South Korea, according to the White House. It will be their first face-to-face meeting since Trump’s return to office.
China’s state-run Xinhua news agency, citing a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, also reported on Wednesday that the meeting will occur in Busan on Thursday.
Trump expressed optimism on striking a deal with Xi, telling reporters on Air Force One that he thinks there will be a “successful transaction.”
“We’re going to have a great talk. I have a lot of respect for President Xi. I like him a lot. He likes me a lot,” Trump said as he flew to Japan. On Wednesday, the president said he expected the meeting with Xi to last for three or four hours.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday, said the administration reached a “substantial framework” in tariff negotiations with Chinese counterparts ahead of Thursday.
“The president had given me maximum leverage when he threatened 100% tariffs if the Chinese imposed their rare earth global export controls, so I think we have averted that,” Bessent said, adding that the levies on Chinese goods would be avoided if the deal holds.
Bessent didn’t provide specifics on the framework, but suggested American soybean farmers would be happy. Farmers have been caught in the administration’s global tariff fight, particularly with China importing more soybeans than any other country, but currently buying none from the U.S.
“I believe, when the announcement of the deal with China is made public, that our soybean farmers will feel very good about what’s going on, both for this season and the coming seasons, for several years,” Bessent said.
Will Trump meet with Kim Jong Un? While in Asia, Trump has faced questions on whether he will try to meet with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un. The two men met three times during Trump’s first term, and Trump was the first sitting U.S. president to step into North Korea.
“I’d love to meet with him if he’d like to meet. I got along great with Kim Jong Un. I liked him. He liked me. If he wants to meet, I’ll be in South Korea,” Trump said on Air Force One.
Trump even said he was open to possibly extending his trip, which is set to wrap on Thursday.
“I think the answer would be yeah. I would do that, sure,” Trump told reporters when asked if he’d stay in Asia longer to make such a meeting happen.
In Japan, Trump and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi had a photo spray with families of people who “were abducted by North Korea,” according to a White House official. There were about 20 people there, many holding photos of their loved ones taken by North Korea. Trump said he recognized some of the families from his visits during his first term.
Trump was then asked by a reporter whether he plans to discuss the abducted people with the North Korean leader, but Trump said that he has not yet spoken to Kim.
“We’re going to see what’s going on. We have not done anything. We’ve been so busy. We really haven’t, but we’ll be discussing it,” Trump said.
Trump talks trade with Japan’s new prime minister — first woman to serve in role
Trump visited with Japan’s Emperor Naruhito on Monday after landing in Tokyo. On Tuesday, Trump met with Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Takaichi, a conservative, is the country’s first woman to serve as prime minister. Trump congratulated her on her election victory earlier this month, calling it “incredible news” for Japan. Takaichi is a protege of the late Shinzo Abe, with whom Trump developed a close diplomatic relationship during his first term.
Trump and Takaichi talked trade, with Japan’s previous leadership having agreed to a $550 billion investment in the U.S. in exchange for a 15% tariff rate, as well as security.
“Now both Japan and the United States have developed the greatest alliance in the world, and together with you, Japan is ready to contribute towards peace and stability,” Takaichi said during the meeting.
The prime minister noted that Japan will gift the U.S. with 250 cherry blossom trees to Washington, D.C., in honor of America’s 250th anniversary in 2026. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that during their bilateral meeting, Takaichi told the president that she nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize and presented the papers to him.
The leaders also held a signing ceremony for an implementation of the trade deal that the nations struck. The agreement they signed “confirmed their strong commitment to implementing this GREAT DEAL,” the agreement read. Later, the White House released a fact-sheet detailing some of the investments.
Trump and Takaichi also signed the framework for an agreement to “support the supply of raw and processed critical minerals and rare earths crucial to the domestic industries of the United States and Japan.” The agreement comes as Trump has been working to shore up rare earths deals with nations after China slapped strict export controls on the key minerals causing trade tensions between the U.S. and China.
At a dinner with business leaders in Tokyo, Trump said Japan is opening its market up more to US goods and discussed some of the joint ventures the U.S. is taking part in with Japan, including shipbuilding, semiconductors and critical minerals.
U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) speaks at a Hanukkah reception at the U.S. Capitol Building on December 10, 2025 in Washington, DC. T. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — As House Speaker Mike Johnson eyes a vote next week on a to-be-announced health care package, a growing number of House Republicans are revolting against leadership by trying to force a vote on extending the expiring Affordable Care Act enhanced subsidies.
Nearly a dozen Republicans — many from swing districts — have signed onto dueling bipartisan discharge petitions to extend and reform the subsidies in the hopes of bypassing leadership and triggering a vote on the House floor.
This move comes as the subsidies are set to expire at the end of the month, which will prompt health premiums for more than 20 million Americans to soar.
While Johnson has not yet unveiled the specifics of his plan, an extension of the ACA subsidies is currently not expected to be included in the package. Johnson said the bill will “probably” be unveiled over the weekend ahead of next week’s anticipated vote.
The speaker and GOP leaders, during a closed door meeting this week, provided Republicans a list of several options to address health care costs, according to multiple sources. Some of those options, sources said, include Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), cost-sharing reductions and making changes to pharmacy benefit managers.
Lawmakers told ABC News they left that meeting with no clear consensus on how to address health care.
“You’re going to see a package come together that will be on the floor next week that will actually reduce premiums for 100% of Americans who are on health insurance,” Johnson said at his weekly news conference. “The overall system is broken, and we’re the ones that are going to fix it.”
A group of mainly moderate Republicans, though, want to see the subsidies addressed by Congress before the expiration date.
The discharge petitions would need 218 signatures for a vote to occur in the House, and it’s unclear if enough Democrats will provide their support to reach that threshold.
Most House Democrats have signed onto another petition led by Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to extend the subsidies for three years.
Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania filed a discharge petition that would extend the subsidies for two years, establish income caps for enrollees and regulate pharmacy benefit managers.
New Jersey Democrat Rep. Josh Gottheimer filed a separate but similar bipartisan discharge petition to extend the subsidies with reforms.
As of Thursday, 11 Republicans had signed on to both discharge petitions.
Johnson threw cold water on the efforts by vulnerable Republicans hoping to hold a vote on the subsidies.
“We’re working on a package of legislation that will reduce premiums for all Americans, not just 7% of them,” he said.
Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, who supports both discharge petitions, warned about the impacts not extending the subsidies will have on the midterm election for Republicans.
“I think it will be used like a sledgehammer a year from now. The reality will be bad,” he said.
Bacon said if Congress fails to act, “all our constituents are going to be paying a lot more for their premiums and that’s unacceptable.”
In the Senate, meanwhile, two competing health care proposals aimed at addressing the expected premium spikes — one championed by Democrats and the other by Republicans — failed to advance on Thursday, leaving the Senate back at square one.
Rep. Cory Mills, R-Fla., leaves the U.S. Capitol after the last votes before August recess, on Wednesday July 23, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
(FLORIDA) — A Florida judge issued a protective order against Republican Rep. Cory Mills after he was accused by a former girlfriend of threatening to release sexually explicit videos of her, according to court documents.
The judge ordered the congressman to refrain from contacting Lindsey Langston, who was named Miss United States in 2024 and is a Republican state committeewoman from Columbia County.
Langston alleged in July that Mills threatened to release videos of her after their breakup earlier this year and that he threatened to harm any future partners, according to a report obtained from the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office in Florida.
In the order, the judge wrote that Langston has “reasonable cause to believe she is in imminent danger of becoming the victim of another act of dating violence” and said the evidence supported Langston’s assertion that Mills had caused her “substantial emotional distress” and that Mills offered “no credible rebuttal” to her testimony.
The order, which remains in place until January 2026, prohibits Mills from contacting Langston in any way and from coming within 500 feet of her residence or place of employment.
In her first comments since the judge’s decision, Langston said she now “feels like I’m able to live my life again.”
“I do feel that justice was served, and I can’t even describe the relief that I felt once I got the phone call that I had been issued the injunction for protection. I felt like I’m able to live my life again,” Langston said on a Zoom call Wednesday with reporters, sitting next to her attorney.
Mills previously said in a statement to ABC News, “These claims are false and misrepresent the nature of my interactions,” and accused a former Florida primary opponent of “weaponizing the legal system to launch a political attack against the man who beat him.”
In the order, the judge said he did not find Mills’ testimony to be “truthful.”
“The court, considering the totality of the testimony and the circumstances, does not find the Respondent’s testimony concerning the intimate videos to be truthful,” the judge wrote.
Speaker Mike Johnson, on Wednesday, was asked about allegations against Mills and told reporters, “I have not heard or looked into details of that. I’ve been a little busy. We have a House Ethics Committee; if it warrants that, I am sure they’ll look into it.”
“You have to ask Rep. Mills about that,” the Speaker added when pressed. “I mean, he’s been a faithful colleague here. I know his work on the Hill. I mean, I don’t. I don’t know all the details of all the individual allegations and what he’s doing in his outside life. Let’s talk about things that are really serious.”
Langston’s attorney Bobi Frank said Wednesday that her client plans to cooperate with any future investigations, including with the House Ethics Committee, and said she had been in contact with “other individuals” involved the matter and alleged that “Miss Langston is not alone.”
