Election Day forecast: Heavy rain, record heat and snow could impact voters across US
Kamil Krzaczynski via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — As millions of Americans head to the polls, thunderstorms are forecast from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast, with the potential to cause inconveniences to voters across the country.
The heaviest concentration of rain is expected in Wisconsin, Louisiana, eastern Texas and Arkansas but heavy rain along the Mississippi River and Ohio River valleys could bring flash flooding and approximately 2 inches to 4 inches of rain between Louisiana and southern Indiana.
Meanwhile, heavy snow is forecast in the Rockies from Montana down to Colorado and winter weather alerts have been issued in those regions.
In California, strong winds and dry conditions will create a threat for wildfires from the San Francisco Bay area down to Los Angeles where a red flag warning has been issued.
However, beautiful weather is forecast in the Northeast today, with warm temperatures in the 70s across much of the eastern seaboard and potential record highs from Meridian, Mississippi, all the way to Rochester, New York, with temperatures in the 80s.
The record heat is expected to concentrate in the Northeast on Wednesday with record highs possible for major cities such as Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and New York City with temperatures close to 80 degrees.
(WASHINGTON) — Federal prosecutors have officially charged Ryan Routh with attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump, a source familiar with the matter confirms to ABC News.
The move was expected and previewed both by prosecutors in a court hearing yesterday and by Attorney General Merrick Garland in a news conference this afternoon.
The charging documents have not yet been officially updated on Routh’s court docket. He is expected to be arraigned on the charges in a court hearing Monday.
(NEW YORK) — New York Judge Juan Merchan has delayed President-elect Donald Trump’s Nov. 26 sentencing date in his criminal hush money case, according to a brief order issued Friday.
The judge is allowing the defense to file a motion to dismiss the case, which he said is due by Dec. 2.
The judge provided no new sentencing date after adjourning the original Nov. 26 date.
Trump was scheduled to be sentenced next week after he was found guilty in May on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.
Judge Merchan’s order also puts off any decision about whether the Supreme Court’s recent presidential immunity decision applies to the case.
While the $130,000 payment to Daniels preceded Trump’s ascension to the presidency, Trump has claimed that prosecutors filled “glaring holes in their case” with evidence that related to official acts he subsequently performed in office — which the Supreme Court ruled are off limits in its July ruling on presidential immunity.
Prosecutors have argued that the case centers on “entirely personal” conduct with “no relationship whatsoever to any official duty of the presidency.”
Trump has asked that the verdict be overturned or the case be thrown out entirely. If Judge Merchan tosses the conviction, he could order a new trial — which would be delayed for at least four years until Trump leaves office — or dismiss the indictment altogether.
Trump’s conviction carries a penalty of up to four years in prison, though first-time offenders normally receive lesser sentences.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during a briefing on Hurricane Helene response and recovery efforts, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on October 1, 2024 in Washington, DC. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will both head to the Southeast on Wednesday to survey damage wrought by Hurricane Helene, which so far is confirmed to have killed more than 160 people.
The president said Tuesday that the cost of the massive storm could stretch into the billions of dollars.
“We have to jump start this recovery process,” Biden said. “People are scared to death. This is urgent.”
Biden’s scheduled visit to North Carolina — which is expected to be a pivotal battleground state in next month’s presidential election — and South Carolina will include an aerial tour of Asheville in western North Carolina, which was one of the region’s worst hit areas.
“I’ve ensured my travel will not disrupt the ongoing response,” Biden said in a post to X. “I plan to travel to Georgia and Florida as soon as possible.”
Harris will travel to Georgia, another battleground state.
“The Vice President will also provide updates on Federal actions that are being taken to support emergency response and recovery efforts in Georgia and several other states throughout the southeast,” her office said in a statement.
Hundreds of people remain unaccounted for following Helene’s passage. More than 150,000 households have registered for assistance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Frank Matranga — an agency representative — said.
That number is expected to increase in the coming days, Matranga said. He noted that almost two million ready-to-eat meals and more than a million liters of water have been sent to the hardest-hit areas.
Wednesday’s visits by Biden and Harris come shortly after former President Donald Trump traveled to devastated Valdosta, Georgia, to see Helene’s destruction firsthand.
Trump also used the Monday visit to attack his Democratic opponents over their emergency response efforts.
“As you know, our country is in the final weeks of a hard-fought national election,” Trump said while in Valdosta.
“But in a time like this, when a crisis hits, when our fellow citizens cry out in need, none of that matters. We’re not talking about politics now. We have to all get together and get this solved. We need a lot of help. They have to have a lot of help down here,” Trump said.
Trump accused Biden and Harris of “being very nonresponsive,” claiming both had failed to speak to Georgia’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, though Kemp said they had.
The president hit back at the criticism.
“Let me get this straight — he’s lying,” Biden said during an Oval Office briefing with reporters, framing Trump’s remarks as “irresponsible.”
“I don’t know why he does this, and the reason I get so angry about it — I don’t care about what he says about me, I care what he communicates to the people that are in need. He implies that we’re not doing everything possible. We are. We are,” Biden said.
