How will DNC’s virtual roll call work? And what has changed since Biden left the race?
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — Democratic support has quickly coalesced around Vice President Kamala Harris after President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 race.
In the days since the president withdrew and backed his running mate for the top of the ticket, Harris has received an unprecedented flood of donations and backing from most party leaders, rank-and-file members and even a slate of Democrats floated as could-be Biden replacements.
On Monday night, Harris secured commitments from enough delegates to become the presumptive nominee if they all honor their commitment when voting, according to ABC News reporting.
But her formal nomination, the Democratic National Committee says, will still come as part of its previously announced plan to run a “virtual roll call” that will formally determine the Democratic nominee for president.
A DNC memo obtained by ABC News, along with a press briefing from party leadership on Monday night, provided additional details on how this virtual nomination — ahead of the in-person convention starting Aug. 19 — will move forward. Virtual voting could start as soon as Aug. 1 and the DNC hopes to have it “wrapped up” by Aug. 7.
How does nominating a presidential candidate normally work for Democratic candidates?
When voters cast ballots for their preferred candidate in a Democratic presidential primary, they are not actually voting directly for the candidate — but for pledged delegates, who are individuals who have promised to support a candidate at a later party convention. A candidate nets delegates both based on the percentage of the vote the candidate gets statewide and by congressional district (in most states; some states use different divisions).
Those Democratic delegates are not formally bound to the candidate and are able to change their vote without penalty, but are pledged to follow the will of the people who elected them and are meant to reflect the will of the primary voters. The delegates formally vote for the presidential nominee at the Democratic National Convention in a roll call vote. There are nearly 4,000 pledged delegates this cycle.
Automatic delegates — also known as superdelegates — are not pledged, but only vote if no candidate gets a majority of the delegates in a first round of voting at the convention. There are more than 700 automatic delegates this cycle. This type of delegate is usually composed of local party leaders.
Why are Democrats holding a virtual roll call in the first place? And what changed when Biden left the race?
The DNC announced in May — before Biden’s decision to step away from the presidential race — that it would hold a virtual roll call vote ahead of the convention.
This is because in April, Ohio’s secretary of state alerted Democrats that the state’s ballot certification deadline would come before the party’s convention in August, meaning Biden wouldn’t be the official nominee by their cutoff and thus was ineligible. The Ohio legislature later rectified the issue, passing legislation that extended their deadline and led to Biden’s qualification.
Still, the DNC has argued that GOP-controlled Ohio leaders are acting in bad faith and that Biden’s qualification is not assured, and that they want to avoid any legal challenges. The office of the Ohio Secretary of State has disputed this and said there would be no issue.
The virtual roll call faced increased scrutiny in recent weeks as Democratic voters called on Biden to withdraw. They argued that Biden would be confirmed as the official nominee without any real opportunity for opposition when delegates are in-person together in Chicago on the convention floor.
When Biden left the race, his delegates — who were never legally or formally obligated to vote for him as pledged delegates — became completely “up for grabs” and do not transfer automatically by any means over to Harris.
Still, DNC leaders told reporters on Monday that the truncated virtual process will still “ensure” that their nominees are on the ballot in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
The DNC has held back on formally endorsing Harris — letting the planned process still play out. The party has also said voting will be conducted similar to how party voting was done in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the planned in-person convention.
Technically, other candidates can still run in the virtual roll call. They must meet the party and legal qualifications to be president, file their candidacy formally with the DNC and secure the signatures of supporting delegates before the nomination vote. They also must be Democrats, not registered as independents or with another party.
Automatic delegates will not vote in any first round of voting in the virtual roll call, a DNC official said Monday.
Does Harris need to announce her vice presidential pick before the roll call?
According to the DNC, technically, no. During a Monday briefing, a DNC official indicated that candidates do not need to have selected a vice presidential pick by Aug. 7, and that the DNC is leaving that timeframe (and any concerns with ballot access in states that need a running mate) up to the candidate — although they give the candidate the option to have running mates selected on that timeline. The official framed that as preserving how the candidate in every cycle have their own timeline to make the pick.
DNC Chair Jamie Harrison suggested Tuesday during an appearance on MSNBC that while the party has built into their working nomination proposal some flexibility surrounding vice presidential selection, the process should be “wrapped up” by Aug. 7 in order to guarantee getting the candidate on the ballot in all 50 states.
“Well, we have built this system in terms of the nomination process so that our nominee of the party has some opportunity to go through a vetting process for their VPs … But in order to be on the ballot in all 50 states, we have to have all of this wrapped up by Aug. 7,” he said.
What does it mean for Harris to have ‘secured commitments’ from more than enough delegates? Can they still change their minds?
As of Tuesday morning, according to ABC News reporting, Harris has secured non-binding commitments from more than 2,300 delegates — a total that’s well more than the 1,975 delegates needed to clinch the nomination.
That came because many state parties — including groups with large delegations such as California and New York — announced Monday, the day after Harris announced she was running, that all of their delegates would commit to supporting her. Put more simply, more than enough delegates have said they’ll vote for Harris during the roll call to put her over the threshold.
“When I announced my campaign for President, I said I intended to go out and earn this nomination. Tonight, I am proud to have secured the broad support needed to become our party’s nominee … I look forward to formally accepting the nomination soon,” Harris said in a statement Monday night.
Delegates are not required — legally or otherwise — to stick to those commitments and are allowed to change their minds, which is similar to how the rules for regular nominating process would have played out.
(CHICAGO) — Democrats are kicking off their convention in Chicago this week to formally nominate Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to top their 2024 presidential ticket.
The gathering marks an opportunity for Democrats to ride the good vibes around Harris, who last month was elevated as the party’s de facto nominee after President Joe Biden ended his own bid. The convention is anticipated to be heavy on messages of “freedom” as Harris and Walz run against former President Donald Trump and Ohio Sen. JD Vance.
Beyond highlighting the party’s marquee figures, the event could also offer a platform for protesters critical of the administration’s handling of the war in Gaza and elevate rising stars on the Democratic Party bench.
Here are five things to watch for at this year’s DNC:
It’ll be a party — but for how much longer?
Democrats are euphoric as Harris takes over as their pick and ushers in a polling boost over Biden’s numbers.
That vibe sets up the convention as a party, just weeks after Democrats left their presidential hopes for dead with Biden as their nominee.
“The sheer joy that you see in Democrats these days is just incredible. I mean, it is really remarkable the way that she and the campaign and now Tim Walz have been able to capitalize on both the frustration and a sense of dread of a possible Donald Trump-JD Vance administration. Folks are coming out of the woodwork to give money. They’re coming out of woodwork to volunteer. It’s demonstrable,” said former Democratic Alabama Sen. Doug Jones.
Harris has been enjoying a nearly monthlong “honeymoon” since Biden dropped out, riding a wave of flattering social media praise. That boost is likely to continue this week and for a short time afterwards, enjoying a traditional post-convention bump.
Speculation abounds about how big of a festival the United Center will host, with whispers of whether big-name performers such as Taylor Swift and Beyonce will make an appearance.
After the convention, however, the question will be how long the good times can roll.
Harris and Trump will face off at their first debate on Sept. 10, and a good performance there could extend Harris’ honeymoon.
But while Democrats hope the vibes never change, operatives in both parties have predicted Harris’ campaign will come back down to earth — and then, all bets are off.
More freedom, less threat to democracy
Harris has framed her campaign around a message of “freedom,” even down to highlighting Beyonce’s hit song of the same name.
That message, an umbrella for, in Harris’ words, everything from the freedom to make choices on abortion to freedom to get ahead economically, is likely to take center stage in Chicago — supplanting Biden’s warnings about Trump’s threat to democracy.
The strategy is more forward-thinking, rather than Biden’s rallying cry, which harkened back to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, an event that Democrats still mention, but appeared to resonate less with voters agitating for a more long-term vision.
Still, the “freedom” messaging could dovetail with Biden’s discussions of democracy, some Democrats said.
“I think there was an understanding when we looked at how Trump was really trampling democratic norms, so there’s that connection between democracy and freedom,” said one Democratic strategist with ties to Harris’ team.
To be certain, Harris isn’t running away from Biden.
She’ll still be Biden’s right hand for five more months, and the two appeared together in Maryland on Thursday to tout savings made by allowing Medicare to negotiate the prices of certain medications.
Biden heads for a hero’s welcome
Biden is set to be feted Monday night by a base that desperately wanted him to move on and is intensely grateful he did so.
The president’s catastrophic June debate performance started the clock on the end of Biden’s political career, and the fact that he’ll be a one-term president will no doubt be a part of his enduring legacy.
However, Democrats have cast Biden’s decision as nothing short of heroic, and Harris has been singing his praises on the campaign trail, sparking chants of “thank you, Joe.”
“He deserves tremendous credit for such a selfless act,” said the Democratic strategist with ties to Harris’ team. “I’m sure when he speaks on Monday, it’s going to be a huge reception.”
How does the convention handle the war in Gaza
While Biden’s debate and age were the chief factors in ending his political career, he was also dogged by criticism from the left over his handling of the war in Gaza. And those detractors aren’t going away just because he’s no longer Democrats’ nominee.
Protests over the rising death toll in Gaza will be held blocks away from Chicago’s United Center, and delegates who were sent to the convention by “uncommitted” votes in various states have full access to the event floor, with nothing to stop them from interrupting the proceedings.
It’s unclear precisely how much the convention will deal with the war and if there will be any interruptions at all.
Harris has adopted a tonal shift from Biden, putting more of an emphasis on mounting civilian casualties in the enclave than the president had. But on policy, there hasn’t been as much of a change so far, raising questions over how much of a wait-and-see period she’ll receive from those who were critical of Biden.
Who are the rising stars?
Conventions for both parties are primarily occasions to highlight leaders, chiefly the presidential nominees. But they also serve as opportunities to elevate rising stars.
Perhaps most famously, Barack Obama was selected as Democrats’ keynote speaker in 2004 when he was still a state senator in Illinois. Four years later, he spoke at the convention as his party’s presidential nominee.
Other speakers have included Julián Castro when he was mayor of San Antonio in 2012 and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren in 2016.
Democrats have not said who this year’s keynote speaker will be — but their pick could indicate who they view as a future party leader and in what ideological direction they’re heading.
(PHILADELPHIA) — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump met for the first time Tuesday in their first presidential debate of the 2024 election, hosted by ABC News.
The high-stakes, 90-minute debate is being held at Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center, with Trump and Harris arguing their case for the White House.
As the Democratic and Republican nominees debate the most pressing topics facing the nation, ABC News is live fact-checking their statements for answers that are exaggerated, need more context or are false.
Please check back for ongoing updates.
HARRIS CLAIM: 16 Nobel laureates say Trump’s plan would increase inflation and land us in a recession
FACT-CHECK: Mostly true
Harris correctly describes what the Nobel laureates said about inflation during a Trump presidency: “There is rightly a worry that Donald Trump will reignite this inflation.” But while the group describes Harris’ agenda as “vastly superior” to Trump’s, their letter doesn’t specifically predict a recession by the middle of 2025. Rather, the group wrote: “We believe that a second Trump term would have a negative impact on the U.S.’s economic standing in the world and a destabilizing effect on the U.S.’s domestic economy.”
The 16 economists are George Akerlof, Angus Deaton, Claudia Goldin, Oliver Hart, Eric S. Maskin, Daniel L. McFadden, Paul R. Milgrom, Roger B. Myerson, Edmund S. Phelps, Paul M. Romer, Alvin E. Roth, William F. Sharp, Robert J. Shiller, Christopher A. Sims, Joseph Stiglitz and Robert B. Wilson.
-PolitiFact’s Louis Jacobson
HARRIS CLAIM: Trump wants “20% tax on everyday goods” that would cost families “about $4000 more a year”
FACT-CHECK: True, but needs context
Trump has proposed a universal “10-20%” tariff on all U.S. imports, from cars and electronics to wine, food products and many other goods. He has also proposed a 60% tariff on imports from China. Vice President Harris called the plan “Trump’s sales tax,” though the former president has not explicitly proposed such a tax. Independent economists, however, say the proposed import tariffs would unquestionably result in higher prices for American consumers across the board.
The precise financial impact on families is hard to predict and estimates vary widely — from additional annual costs per household of $1,700 to nearly $4,000, depending on the study. Trump has not called for any tax hikes for American families.
He has proposed exempting Social Security benefits and tips from taxation, as well as extending individual tax cuts enacted in 2017.
-ABC News’ Devin Dwyer
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump says “We have inflation like very few people have ever seen before. Probably the worst in our nation’s history.”
FACT-CHECK: False, but it was very high
It’s true that early in Joe Biden’s presidency the annual inflation rate peaked at roughly 9 percent (June of 2022), but that’s not the highest it’s ever been. There are several examples of the inflation rate being much higher than 9 percent in the U.S, including in the immediate aftermath of WWII and during the oil embargo and shortages of the late 70’s and early 1980s.
But, there are several examples of the inflation rate being much higher than 9 percent in the U.S., including in the immediate aftermath of WWII and during the oil embargo of the late 70’s and early 1980s when the inflation rate peaked at 14.5 percent. The inflation rate as of July 2024 is at 2.9 percent annual inflation, the lowest it has been in 3 years. It should also be noted that President Biden has falsely claimed that he inherited a high rate from his predecessor. In fact, inflation was at 1.4 percent when he took office.
*Data for this fact check was gathered from Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, or St. Louis Fed
HARRIS CLAIM: Trump left us the worst unemployment since the Great Depression
FACT-CHECK: Needs context
The unemployment rate peaked at 14.8% in April 2020 when Trump was in office – that was indeed the highest level since the Great Depression, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But unemployment rapidly declined to 6.4% in January 2021 by the time Trump left office, as the economy started to rebalance. And that 6.4% unemployment rate is still better than the 10% peak during the Great Recession in October 2009.
If you eliminate pandemic statistics, the lowest unemployment rate under Trump was just slightly higher than the lowest point under Biden. Both were good: 3.5% under Trump and 3.4% under Biden at their lowest respectively, according to data provided by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and Bureau of Labor Statistics.
HARRIS CLAIM: Trump “killed” bill that would have secured border
FACT-CHECK: True
Earlier this year, a bipartisan group of senators unveiled a $20 billion plan to substantially bolster security along the U.S.-Mexico border. It would have added hundreds of border patrol and ICE agents and asylum officers; funded construction of new border wall; expanded detention facilities; ended “catch and release;” effectively closed the border entirely when illegal crossings surge; and raised the bar for asylum claims, according to the bill.
The influential Border Patrol union, which has previously endorsed Trump, publicly backed the bill. But hours after the draft legislation was unveiled on Feb. 5, Trump urged his party to oppose the bill, even as many Republicans have spent years lobbying for some of the security measures included in the deal.
“I’ll fight it all the way,” Trump told supporters at a Las Vegas rally Feb. 8. “A lot of the senators are trying to say, respectfully, they’re blaming it on me. I say, that’s okay. Please blame it on me.” Trump openly invoked election-year politics as a motivation for his position: “This Bill is a great gift to the Democrats, and a Death Wish for The Republican Party. It takes the HORRIBLE JOB the Democrats have done on Immigration and the Border, absolves them, and puts it all squarely on the shoulders of Republicans,” Trump wrote on social media. The bill failed a key Senate procedural vote in May, with all but one Republican voting against it, including all those involved in crafting the deal.
TRUMP CLAIM: Haitian migrants eating pets in Ohio
FACT-CHECK: False
According to the city of Springfield, Ohio, these claims are false. A city spokesperson tells ABC News there have been “no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals in the immigrant community.”
Rumors that migrants from Haiti are stealing and eating animals there have run rampant after a series of claims spread widely online, amplified by social media posts from leading political figures in recent days.
“Additionally, there have been no verified instances of immigrants engaging in illegal activities such as squatting or littering in front of residents’ homes. Furthermore, no reports have been made regarding members of the immigrant community deliberately disrupting traffic,” the spokesperson added.
The House Judiciary GOP X account used AI tools to show Trump holding cats and ducks, portraying him as a savior of animals.
One of the main images circulating online, showing a man holding a dead goose, was taken not in Springfield but in Columbus, Ohio, two months ago. The resident who captured the image told ABC News he was surprised to see his image used to ” push false narratives.”
According to the Springfield News-Sun, the Springfield Police Department has not received any reports of pets being stolen and eaten. The city even created a webpage debunking some claims.
Migrants have been drawn to the region because of low cost of living and work opportunities, the city says on its site. The city estimates there are around 12,000 to 15,000 immigrants living in the county, and that the rapid rise in population has strained housing, health care, and school resources. But the city also says that the migrants are in the country legally and that many are recipients of Temporary Protected Status from the federal government.
HARRIS CLAIM: Trump ‘intends on implementing’ Project 2025
FACT-CHECK: Needs context
Conservative allies and former advisors to Donald Trump published a 900-page policy blueprint in April 2023 to help a new Republican administration transition to power. The effort – dubbed Project 2025 – was organized by the Heritage Foundation, a prominent right-wing think tank. It details proposals for staffing the government and restructuring federal agencies, writing regulations, managing the economy and ensuring national security.
Harris claims Trump “intends on implementing” the “detailed and dangerous” plan if he wins a second term. But Trump denies any association with Project 2025, saying on social media in July: “I have not seen it, have no idea who is in charge of it,” and also publicly denounced its substance as “seriously extreme” and developed by the “severe right.”
“I disagree with some of the things they’re saying and some of the things they’re saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal,” Trump posted on social media. Many of the document’s priorities, however, are broadly championed by Trump, including construction of a border wall, mass deportation of undocumented immigrants and banning transgender athletes from women’s sports, among other things.
Dozens of former members of his administration were involved in the project, including former cabinet secretaries and West Wing aides. Many of the same people helped craft the Republican Party platform, ABC News has reported. Speaking at a Heritage Foundation event in April 2022, Trump said: “This is a great group and they’re going to lay the groundwork and detail plans for exactly what our movement will do… when the American people give us a colossal mandate to save America.”
HARRIS CLAIM: ‘If Donald Trump were to be reelected, he will sign a national abortion ban.’
FACT-CHECK: False
Trump has said he has “no regrets” in selecting the Supreme Court justices who overturned the constitutional right to an abortion. But he also repeatedly has promised that if elected, he will not sign a federal abortion ban into law and will leave the issue up to the states. One open question this year had been whether he would enforce the Comstock Act, an 1873 law that prohibits mailing materials used in abortions.
Among other things, the law would make it illegal to ship the drug mifepristone, which is used to terminate early pregnancies. The Biden administration has said the law is unenforceable because the drug has medical uses other than abortion, and it would be impossible to know how the drug was being used. Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, and other conservatives have called for the enforcement of the law.
In an August interview with CBS News, Trump said that while “we will be discussing specifics of it,” he will not enforce the Comstock Act.
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump said ‘they didn’t fire anybody having to do with Afghanistan.’
FACT-CHECK: True, but needs context.
It is accurate that no one with a direct role in the chaotic withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan in 2021 has been held publicly accountable.
Trump appears to be specifically referring to a suicide bombing that killed 13 U.S. service members. U.S. Central Command ultimately concluded that the bombing was not preventable and that members of a Marine sniper team were mistaken when they told others they had the suicide bomber in their sights.
Trump, congressional Republicans and several Gold Star families say they believe these investigations have not gone far enough.
TRUMP CLAIM: Kamala Harris wants to ban fracking
FACT-CHECK: Needs context
It’s true that Harris once called to ban fracking altogether, but she has since said she changed her policy view. During a CNN town hall on climate change in 2019 when she was still a Senator, Harris said, “There’s no question I’m in favor of banning fracking.” Fracking is short for “hydraulic fracturing,” and it’s a technique used in the extraction of oil and natural gas from underground rock formations.
Harris also said she backed California’s efforts to stop the practice in her home state when she was the state’s attorney general. However, she eventually changed her view on fracking when she became Biden’s running mate in 2020. During an October 2020 segment on ABC’s The View, Harris said neither she nor Biden would ban fracking. Harris reiterated that she would not ban fracking during the ABC News Presidential Debate.
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump said ‘I’d like to give you 10,000 National Guard soldiers. They rejected me. Nancy [Pelosi] rejected me.’
FACT-CHECK: False
The final report by the bipartisan Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol determined there was “no evidence” to support the claim that Trump gave an order “to have 10,000 troops ready for January 6th.”
The report quoted President Trump’s Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller, who directly refuted this claim under oath, saying, “There was no direct order from the President” to put 10,000 troops to be on the ready for January 6th.
Instead, the report noted that when Trump referenced that number of troops, it was not to protect the Capitol but that he had “floated the idea of having 10,000 National Guardsmen deployed to protect him and his supporters from any supposed threats by left-wing counter-protesters.”
HARRIS CLAIM: If elected, Trump would be immune from criminal prosecution
FACT-CHECK: Partly true
Vice President Harris claimed Trump would be “immune from any misconduct” and have “no guard rails” after a landmark Supreme Court decision in June.
The court did rule the core powers, which include the ability to make treaties, veto bills, nominate cabinet members, appoint ambassadors, act as Commander-in-Chief of the military, and grant pardons.) The court also said that presidents enjoy “at least presumptive immunity” for other “official acts” – defined broadly as actions within the “outer perimeter” of official responsibilities but not “manifestly or palpably beyond his authority.”
While the decision is widely construed as granting broad protection for a president, the court said presidents are “not above the law” and enjoy no “absolute” immunity, leaving room for a narrow set of cases where a current or former president could face criminal prosecution. There is also no immunity for “unofficial” acts, the court said.
Trump faces a pair of active federal criminal cases against him brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith. The Supreme Court decision does not mean those prosecutions cannot move forward, but it has significantly delayed proceedings and made it more difficult to convict Trump. If he were to win a second term, Trump’s Justice Department could dismiss the Special Counsel and effectively end the cases against him.
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump said he ended the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, and ‘Biden put it back on day one.’
FACT-CHECK: Mostly false
The Nord Stream 2 is an undersea pipeline that would have allowed Russia to increase natural gas exports to Western Europe while bypassing Ukraine and depriving Kyiv billions of dollars in access fees. It’s true that in 2019, Trump announced sanctions that halted the pipeline’s construction. But by that point, the pipeline was nearly complete with a majority of the project occurring under Trump’s presidency, according to a 2020 analysis by the Congressional Research Service.
Biden later waived sanctions against the pipeline’s builder at the request of Germany in 2021, but reimposed penalties the following year as Russia invaded Ukraine.
HARRIS CLAIM: Trump’s deal with the Taliban is to blame for the chaotic withdrawal in Afghanistan.
FACT-CHECK: Needs context
The top government watchdog on the Afghanistan war blames Trump’s 2020 deal with the Taliban as “the single most important factor” in the rapid collapse of Afghanistan’s forces a year later. But the same office also says Biden’s decision to stick with a firm withdrawal date of U.S. troops was a factor as well.
Trump’s deal with the Taliban called for the withdrawal of U.S. forces by May 2021 and release 5,000 of its fighters from Afghan prisons so long as they agreed not to attack U.S. forces. According to the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, the agreement was seen by Afghan forces as a “signal that the U.S. was handing over Afghanistan to the enemy as it rushed to exit the country.” Trump also had reduced U.S. troop levels to the lowest point in the 20-year war, and Afghan forces weren’t prepared to take over, according to the inspector general.
Biden aides say the poor security situation when he took office in January 2021 put the newly elected president in an almost impossible position. Biden could have surged U.S. troops to the country to try to bolster the weakened Afghan government. But doing so would have extended what was already the nation’s longest war and put American forces at risk of renewed attacks by the Taliban. According to the inspector general, Biden’s announcement that he would stick with a 2021 withdrawal date contributed to the poor morale among Afghan troops, paving the way for a government collapse and subsequent Taliban takeover.
TRUMP CLAIM: Harris and Walz support abortion ‘in the seventh month, the eighth month, the ninth month… And probably after birth.’
FACT-CHECK: False
Trump has claimed that Democrats in some states allow for the killing of an infant after birth. This is false.
There is no state that allows the killing of a baby after birth. Infanticide is illegal in all 50 states. His false claim stems from a refusal by many Democrats to support any legal restrictions on abortion, and he specifically references comments by former Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a physician, who once said that in rare, late-pregnancy cases when fetuses are nonviable, doctors deliver the baby, resuscitate it if the mother wishes, and then have a “discussion” with the mother.
While most states that allow abortion do so only up until fetal viability, there are several states – including Colorado, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont and Gov. Tim Walz’s home state of Minnesota — that do not impose a legal limit on abortion procedures. Advocates for abortion rights say the absence of legal consequences after fetal liability doesn’t mean doctors will try to terminate full-term, healthy pregnancies.
In fact, access to late term procedures is limited, costly and medically complex — typically done only when a woman’s life is threatened or the fetus isn’t expected to survive. Many Democrats say they want to pass legislation that would codify the 1973 Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, which protects abortion rights up until viability.
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump said he lost the 2020 election on a ‘technicality’ because judges determined he lacked standing in election lawsuits.
FACT-CHECK: False
Trump lost the 2020 election after Biden won 306 electoral votes, compared to Trump’s 232 electoral votes.
After losing the 2020 election, Trump and his allies filed more than 60 lawsuits to challenge the outcome of the election — the overwhelming majority of which were dismissed or dropped. Many of the cases were dismissed because the plaintiffs in the cases could not prove a strong enough connection to the action they were challenging. Not having “standing” is a common and legally justifiable reason for a case to be dismissed.
TRUMP CLAIM: The Biden administration left $85 billion worth of ‘brand new beautiful military equipment behind’ in Afghanistan that was seized by the Taliban.
FACT-CHECK: False
This is not accurate, as $83 billion is an estimate of the entire amount spent by the US in security assistance in Afghanistan since 2001.
Still, the Defense Department’s Inspector General estimates $7.12 billion worth of U.S.-funded equipment was seized by the Taliban when the U.S. withdrew. According to the government watchdog, that amount includes 78 aircraft, some 9,500 air-to-ground munitions, 40,000 vehicles, 300,000 weapons and nearly all night-vision, surveillance, communications and biometric equipment provided to Afghanistan forces.
HARRIS CLAIM: ‘Trump took out a full page ad calling for their execution’
FACT-CHECK: True
Not long after the Central Park Five were arrested, Trump placed full-page ads in New York newspapers urging New York to bring back the death penalty. “These muggers and murderers” should be “forced to suffer and, when they kill, they should be executed for their crimes,” said the ad, above Trump’s signature.
-PolitiFact’s Aaron Sharockman
HARRIS CLAIM: Trump exchanged love letters with Kim Jong Un
FACT-CHECK: False
Trump did exchange letters with Kim Jong Un in August 2018 after the two leaders held a summit together in Singapore in June 2018. Trump tweeted thanking the North Korean leader “for your nice letter – I look forward to seeing you soon.” The White House at the time said Trump sent a reply to the North Korean leader, but the White House did not provide details about what was in Kim Jong Un’s letter or what was in Trump’s reply.
In August 2019, Trump said he received a “very beautiful letter” from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un when speaking to reporters.
In September 2018, Trump told a crowd at a campaign rally that there was once tough talk between the two leaders, “and then we fell in love.”
“And then we fell in love, okay? No, really – he wrote me beautiful letters, and they’re great letters,” Trump said at the rally. Trump did often speak favorably of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during and after his presidency.
HARRIS CLAIM: Biden-Harris made historic investments in clean energy
FACT-CHECK: Needs context
The U.S. budget for clean energy investments (over $559 billion as of August 2023) is the largest in the world, according to the World Economic Forum. About a third of that investment is going toward low-carbon electricity projects, and about a quarter is aimed at developing low-carbon, efficient transportation, according to WEF. In the first quarter of 2024, the U.S. “continued its record-setting growth” with a new high of $71 billion invested in clean energy and transportation, according to Clean Investment Monitor.
At the same time, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported in March that the U.S. is now producing more crude oil than any country ever has — and has been for the past six years in a row. In December 2023 the U.S. reached a new monthly record high of more than 13.3 million barrels per day, according to the EIA.
The Harris-Walz campaign told ABC News that the trillion-dollar amount cited by the vice president is based on the total spending of the Inflation Reduction Act, the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In a statement, they told us “Vice President Harris was proud to cast the tie-breaking vote on the largest ever investment to address the climate crisis and under the Biden-Harris Administration, America is more energy secure than ever before with the highest domestic energy production on record.”
Even if you take the lowest estimate for federal spending under the IRA, 780-800 billion dollars, adding the funds allocated in the CHIPS and BIL laws does exceed the $1 trillion figures that Harris has cited in her campaign speeches. All three laws include provisions that address climate change.
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump suggested he ‘probably took a bullet to the head’ because of Harris.
FACT-CHECK: False
Trump suggested that the July 13 assassination attempt may have been because of Harris. The FBI has not established a motive that explains why Thomas Matthew Crooks fired on Trump.
Trump said, “This is the one that weaponized, not me. She weaponized. I probably took a bullet to the head because of the things that they say about me. They talk about democracy, I’m a threat to democracy. They’re the threat to democracy.”
During the most recent update on the investigation in a briefing with reporters on Aug. 28, FBI Executive Director Robert Wells said, “At this time, the FBI has not identified a motive nor any co-conspirators or associates of Crooks with advanced knowledge of the attack.”
“We continue to see through our analysis a mixture of ideologies. So I would say that we see no definitive ideology associated with our subject, either left-leaning or right-leaning. It’s really been a mixture and something that we’re still attempting to analyze and draw conclusions on,” FBI Special Agent in Charge of the Pittsburgh Field Office Kevin Rojek said at the same briefing.
While they do not know what motivated Crooks, the FBI does believe he had a mindset to carry out some kind of attack and looked at Trump’s Butler rally, about an hour from his home, as a “target of opportunity.”
“Regarding the subject’s mindset, so we saw, through our analysis of all his – particularly his online searches – a sustained detailed effort to plan an attack on some events, meaning he looked at any number of events or targets. And then when this event was announced, the Trump rally was announced early in July, he became hyper-focused on that specific event and looked at it as a target of opportunity,” Rojek said. “Again, I want to stress that we continue to analyze all the evidence associated with his accounts, with his online search activity. And we have a clear idea of mindset, but we are not ready to make any conclusive statements regarding motive at this time.”
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump said ‘Ashley Babbitt was shot by an out-of-control police officer that should have never, ever shot her. It’s a disgrace.’
FACT-CHECK: Misleading
The U.S. Capitol Police Office of Professional Responsibility in August 2021 cleared the officer involved in the shooting of Ashli Babbitt, saying that officer would “not be facing internal discipline.”
An internal investigation found the actions of the officer were “lawful and within Department policy,” it said.
Babbitt was seen on video on Jan. 6 attempting to kick through a window near the House Speaker’s Lobby, shortly after Babbitt entered the Capitol. She was subsequently shot and killed by the officer.
The agency said they’d reviewed all available evidence in connection with the shooting including video and radio calls, and Capitol Police stood by the officer and said his actions saved the lives of lawmakers and family members.
HARRIS CLAIM: Harris said, ‘As of today, there is not one member of the United States military who is an active duty in a combat zone, in any war zone around the world, the first time this century.’
FACT-CHECK: False
Harris appears to be using a narrow definition of what constitutes a combat zone, because there are U.S. military troops in the Middle East who have come under deadly fire over the last year.
There are currently 2,500 U.S. military troops in Iraq and more than 900 U.S. military personnel in Syria who are on a mission to support local forces to prevent a resurgence by ISIS. While the troops in both countries are mostly involved in an advisory role some of them are also engaged in risky counterterrorism missions against ISIS. But the real threat to these troops over the past year were the repeated attacks against U.S. bases in both countries by Iranian-backed militia groups that launched more than 170 rocket and drone attacks.
But it was an attack on a U.S. base in neighboring Jordan this past January that has proven to be the most costly. Three U.S. Soldiers were killed and 34 others were wounded when a drone launched by those militia groups made it past air defense systems. That attack led the Biden administration to order large-scale retaliatory airstrikes against the Iranian-backed militia groups.
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump said, ‘Iran was broke under Donald Trump. Now Iran has $300 billion because they took off all the sanctions that I had.’
FACT-CHECK: Mostly false, needs context
Trump claimed that if he was in office, Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel never would have happened because the terror group’s chief sponsor, Iran, “had no money for terror.” However, Iran has been Hamas’ principal backer for decades, including through the Trump presidency. Records retrieved from inside Gaza by the Israeli Defense Forces and verified by independent news outlets indicate Tehran funneled tens of millions of dollars during the Trump administration.
Two of Trump’s top advisers for Middle Eastern affairs also claimed that Iran was supplying Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups with $100 million each year in an op-ed published in 2019. Trump also said that Iran gained $300 billion because the Biden-Harris administration “took off all the sanctions I had” on Iran.
The current administration has maintained and even levied new sanctions against Iran, but during its attempt to renegotiate an Obama-era nuclear deal that Trump exited in 2018, the U.S. did ease the enforcement of some sanctions and restore a U.N waiver that allowed companies from other countries to conduct non-proliferation work at Iranian nuclear sites.
According to shipping data, Iran’s oil exports — its chief source of revenue — have climbed during the last four years. But experts estimate than Tehran has been able to accrue around $100 billion at most during President Biden’s term, which is substantially less than Trump’s figure of $300 billion.
HARRIS CLAIM: Harris said, ‘The former president said climate change is a hoax’
FACT-CHECK: True
Trump certainly has a lengthy record of using the word “hoax” to describe climate change — mostly before and during his first run for president.
On Dec. 30, 2015, Trump told the crowd at a rally in Hilton Head, South Carolina, “Obama’s talking about all of this with the global warming and… a lot of it’s a hoax. It’s a hoax. I mean, it’s a money-making industry, okay? It’s a hoax, a lot of it.” On Jan. 25, 2014, Trump tweeted, “NBC News just called it the great freeze — coldest weather in years. Is our country still spending money on the GLOBAL WARMING HOAX?”
On Jan. 29, 2014, Trump tweeted: “Snowing in Texas and Louisiana, record setting freezing temperatures throughout the country and beyond. Global warming is an expensive hoax!” That same day, he tweeted, “Give me clean, beautiful and healthy air – not the same old climate change (global warming) b——-! I am tired of hearing this nonsense.”
Trump also called climate change a “hoax” on the Jan. 6, 2014, edition of Fox & Friends. In addition, he said on the Sept. 24, 2015, edition of CNN’s New Day, “I don’t believe in climate change.” And on Jan. 18, 2016, Trump said that climate change “is done for the benefit of China, because China does not do anything to help climate change.”
TRUMP CLAIM: Trump claims Europe giving billions less to Ukraine than the U.S.
FACT-CHECK: False
Trump said the U.S. has committed “250 billion or more” in aid to Ukraine, claiming that European countries meanwhile have paid $150 billion less, despite being more directly affected by the war.
“You take a look at what’s happening, we’re in for 250 to 275 billion. They’re into 100 to 150,” Trump said.
In reality, while the U.S. is easily the largest single donor to Ukraine, European countries collectively have given significantly more and their share recently has increased.
According to Kiel Institute’s Ukraine aid tracker, the U.S. has so far committed nearly $109 billion to Ukraine in military and humanitarian aid, with roughly $25.7 billion still to be allocated.
European countries have committed more than $196 billion — that is $87 billion more than the U.S., according to the Kiel Institute tracker. However, $85 billion of that also remains to be allocated.
Media reporting often says the U.S. has committed $175 billion to Ukraine through Congressional approvals. But in reality, much of those funds are not destined for Ukraine, but instead goes to the Department of Defense for procurement, operations and maintenance, as well as other programs, according to the Kiel Institute.
The U.S. remains the crucial supporter of Ukraine and is irreplaceable in terms of military equipment and ammunition, which other NATO allies lack in sufficient amounts. When hard-right pro-Trump Republicans in Congress delayed a new aid bill for months, Ukraine began to suffer severe ammunition shortages.
U.S. Sen. and Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance arrives to speaks about the economy at Majestic Friesians Horse Farms in Big Rapids, Michigan, on Aug. 27, 2024. (JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — With 70 days before Election Day as of Tuesday, both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump get back to campaigning with Harris in Georgia on Wednesday and Trump in Wisconsin on Thursday.
Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, campaigned in Michigan while Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz picks up the trail on Wednesday in Boston.
Here’s how the news is developing…
Harris-Walz campaign responds to superseding indictment
Quentin Fulks, the Harris-Walz campaign’s principal deputy campaign manager, reacted to the news of the superseding indictment against Donald Trump Tuesday afternoon on MSNBC and avoided remarking on “ongoing legal cases” but characterized Trump as a danger.
“They saw it with their own eyes, and so we’re going to continue to take the fight directly to Donald Trump on the issues that matter. But American voters aren’t stupid. They know who Donald Trump is, and they know what he will do if he gets more time in the White House,” Fulks told MSNBC.
JD Vance responds to new special counsel indictment
Sen. JD Vance, asked by ABC News on the tarmac in Nashville about the superseding indictment in former President Donald Trump’s federal election interference case, framed the special counsel’s actions as an effort to influence the election.
“I haven’t read the whole thing, but it looks like Jack Smith doing more of what he does, which is filing these absurd lawsuits in an effort to influence the election,” the GOP vice presidential candidate said.
The new indictment adjusts the charges to the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling.
Vance pushed back against the Harris-Walz campaign’s assertion that the Supreme Court ruling goes too far and grants the former president too much immunity, arguing that the president needs some immunity in order to do the job.
“If the president doesn’t have some level of immunity in how he conducts his office, in the same way that judges have to have immunity, police officers have to have immunity. There has to be some recognition that people can’t be sued for doing their job,” Vance said.
