Matt Gaetz says he’s not returning to Congress after dropping bid to be attorney general
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(WASHINGTON) — Matt Gaetz said Friday he will not return to Congress after withdrawing his name from consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general.
In an interview with conservative commentator Charlie Kirk on “Real America’s Voice,” Gaetz said he is “still going to be in the fight but it’s going to be from a new perch.”
“I do not intend to join the 119th Congress,” he said. “There are a number of fantastic Floridians who’ve stepped up to run for my seat, people who have inspired with their heroism, with their public service. And I’m actually excited to see northwest Florida go to new heights and have great representation.”
Questions swirled about Gaetz’s future after he dropped his confirmation bid on Thursday amid sexual misconduct allegations. While he’d resigned from the 118th Congress just hours after being tapped by Trump to serve in the administration, he won reelection to serve in the 119th Congress beginning in January.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — With the economy the top issue for many voters in the home stretch of the election, Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to announce record lending from the federal government to small business owners on Thursday, according to a White House fact sheet shared exclusively with ABC News.
The Small Business Administration (SBA) provided a record $56 billion in loans to small businesses from October 2023 through September 2024, the fact sheet said, with more than 100,000 small businesses receiving the loans — the highest number in 16 years — while lending to Black-owned businesses has tripled in the past four years.
The SBA lends money to small businesses as a way for them to get off the ground, expand or rebuild — especially when other financing options might not be available — and companies must meet eligibility requirements, such as being based in the United States or only having a certain number of employees, to qualify for the loans.
“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy. And we know that small business owners need access to capital to hire more employees, grow their businesses, and advance innovation,” Harris said in a statement to ABC News. “Today I am proud to announce that the U.S. Small Business Administration has made record lending to over 100,000 small businesses in the last year, the most by the agency in over 15 years. When small businesses thrive, our local economies thrive.”
The agency has been under pressure after the White House said last week that its disaster loan program, which provides low-interest lending to disaster survivors, ran out of funds in the wake of Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
The announcement from Harris comes as she seeks to dispel voters’ doubts over the Biden-Harris administration’s handling of the economy and inflation. Polls consistently show former President Donald Trump outranks Harris in handling the economy.
The latest report from the National Federation of Independent Business, which represents small businesses nationwide, found uncertainty among its members is at an all-time high ahead of the election.
Last month, Vice President Harris unveiled a proposal to increase the tax deduction for new small businesses ten-fold, from $5000 to $50,000.
(NEW YORK) — Vice President Kamala Harris went after Donald Trump for his false claims about FEMA in the wake of devastating storms in the Southeast during an appearance on ABC’s “The View” on Tuesday.
“It’s profound and it is the height of irresponsibility and, frankly, callousness,” Harris said of Trump’s claims. “Lives are literally at stake right now.”
Harris described personal stories she heard from those affected by Hurricane Helene and its aftermath after traveling to Georgia and North Carolina.
“People are losing their home with no hope of ever being able to reconstruct or return, and the idea that somebody would be playing political games for the sake of himself — but this is so consistent about Donald Trump,” she said. “He puts himself before the needs of others. I fear that he really lacks empathy on a very basic level to care about suffering of other people and understand the role of a leader is not to beat people down, it’s to lift people up.”
Harris’ sit-down on “The View” marked her first live interview since becoming the Democratic nominee. She is ramping up her media appearances this week with now just one month until Election Day.
Harris was also asked about a comment from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis accusing Harris of only getting involved in storm response out of political motivation.
“She has no role in this,” DeSantis said on Monday. “In fact, she’s been vice president for three-and-a-half years. I’ve dealt with a number of storms under this administration. She has never contributed anything to any of these efforts, and so what I think is selfish is trying to blunder into this.”
ABC News reported DeSantis declined to take a call with Harris in the last several days, though DeSantis later said he was unaware of the attempted outreach.
“I have called and talked within the course of this crisis, this most recent crisis, Democrat and Republican governors — called, taken the call, answered the call, had a conversation,” Harris said. “So, obviously this is not an issue that is about partisanship or politics for certain leaders but maybe is for others.”
Harris then turned to Hurricane Milton and urged any Floridians tuning in to the show to heed to calls to evacuate. The storm is expected to make landfall on Wednesday evening as possibly a Category 4 hurricane.
“This one is going to be different, and that’s why I called the governor about what Florida has received in terms of impact,” she said.
President Biden, after being briefed on Hurricane Milton on Tuesday, was asked if Harris had been helpful in preparing for the storm. Biden nodded his head and said “yes.”
Biden also criticized those spreading misinformation about FEMA in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, calling it “un-American.”
“It puts people in certain things where they panic. Where they really, really, really worry,” Biden said. “They think we’re not being taken care of. And it really is — that’s going to sound, I’m gonna use an old phrase, it’s un-American. It really is. People are scared to death.”
Biden said he was able to speak with all the governors of states that will be affected by Hurricane Milton, including a call with DeSantis last night. Biden said DeSantis has been “cooperative” and that the Florida governor said he’s received everything he needs.
“I made clear they should reach out, including to me directly, with everything else they may need as they see this storm hit,” Biden said. “I gave them my personal number to contact me here in the White House.”
(NEW YORK) — After months of legal wrangling, Rudy Giuliani on Friday turned over his luxury sports car, several watches, a ring and financial assets to two Georgia election workers he defamed in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, his lawyer wrote Friday.
A federal jury ordered Giuliani last year to pay Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss nearly $150 million for defaming them with false accusations that the mother and daughter committed election fraud while the two were counting ballots in Georgia’s Fulton County on Election Day in 2020.
The attorneys for both sides waged a back in forth in court for months over the delivery of those assets and, last week, attorneys representing Freeman and Moss said Giuliani’s apartment was virtually empty when their receivership entered the property.
The poll workers’ representatives accused Giuliani of “secreting away” his property.
The former New York City mayor was given a Nov. 14 deadline to turn over the shares in his Upper East Side co-op apartment, valuable sports memorabilia, a blue Mercedes-Benz convertible that once belonged to Lauren Bacall, and luxury watches — including one that belonged to Giuliani’s grandfather.
Joseph Cammarata, Giuliani’s attorney, said in a four-page letter to U.S. Judge Lewis Liman, that “watches and a ring were delivered via FedEx” to an address in Atlanta on Friday morning, and that “the Mercedes Benz automobile was delivered as requested” to an address in Florida.
Giuliani’s bank was “advised to turn over all non-exempt funds” to the plaintiffs, as well, according to the filing.
Liman issued a warning that he would file a motion of contempt if Giuliani didn’t comply with the order to transfer the assets to Freeman and Moss.
Earlier on Friday, Ted Goodman, a spokesman for Giuliani, posted a video on X with several watches arrayed on a table.
“This right here, folks, this is the accumulation of 60 years of hard work,” Goodman said.
Despite giving up those assets, Cammarata argued that his client should not give up other assets.
He wrote a lengthy list of items they deemed “exempt,” including some jewelry of lower value, a refrigerator, a radio receiver and other household furniture. He also said a Joe DiMaggio jersey was part of the “overbroad” turnover list and will fight to keep it.
The attorney argued that the court “should never have allowed the turnover” of the Mercedes Benz, arguing that the car should be appraised and returned to Giuliani if the value does not exceed $5,500.
Cammarata also requested that the court reschedule a trial in this matter currently scheduled for Jan. 16, 2025, until after the inauguration, as Giuliani “plans to be present” at events in Washington that week.
Representatives for Freeman and Moss didn’t immediately comment on the delivery of the assets.
