International
Biden campaigns in Pennsylvania, ground zero for midterms
| By AFP | Sebastian Smith |
US President Joe Biden touted the rebirth of American infrastructure and manufacturing Thursday in a Pennsylvania trip aimed at boosting Senate hopeful John Fetterman, whose closely watched race could be key to avoiding a Democratic wipeout in the midterms.
Biden touched down first in Pittsburgh, where he plugged his signature infrastructure package with a tour of a newly repaired bridge, ahead of an evening fundraiser with Fetterman in Philadelphia.
The national spending spree that Biden’s Democrats got through the divided Congress is “the most significant investment” in US history, Biden said on a makeshift podium at the edge of Fern Hollow Bridge, which collapsed eight months ago on a day that Biden happened to be visiting. Now, it has now almost been rebuilt, serving as a poster child for the White House’s policies.
“There’s no better place to talk about rebuilding the backbone of America, the middle class,” Biden said.
“I want you to feel the way I do — pride, pride in what we can do when we work together,” he said, referring to the pieces of heavy construction equipment lined up around the build.
The speech aimed to buoy Democrats in the final run-up to the midterms in three weeks, with Fetterman in one of the key races to holding the Senate.
Fetterman, who greeted Biden on the tarmac in Pittsburgh, is known for his multiple tattoos and a love of hoodies and cargo shorts.
He was once a runaway favorite in the battle against Republican candidate Mehmet Oz, a celebrity TV doctor — but the race has tightened, reflecting sinking Democratic hopes of maintaining the party’s already fragile control of Congress.
The Democrat suffered a stroke in May and the Oz campaign has made his health a major campaign issue, arguing he is medically unfit for office.
Fetterman’s doctor released a letter this week stating that he could work “full duty” in public office. Fetterman’s performance will be scrutinized for any signs of physical or cognitive weakness when the two candidates meet for a debate October 25.
The latest average of polls shows Fetterman’s nearly 11-point lead in mid-September whittled down to about five points.
With Biden hampered by approval ratings in the low 40 percent range, some campaigning Democratic candidates have even asked him to keep away.
He has avoided large-scale rallies in favor of smaller policy announcements that he hopes can shift the momentum. Just this week, Biden gave speeches vowing to protect abortion access and explaining his attempts to tamp down high energy costs.
But three weeks from voting day, Americans appear to be veering toward the Republican message that Democrats are failing on the economy.
That raises the likelihood of Republicans taking control of at least the House and quite possibly the Senate — ushering in two years of political trench warfare for the White House.
Even just the House would give the increasingly far-right Republican Party the ability to shut down Biden’s agenda and — as prominent figures are already threatening — attempt impeachment.
Numbers don’t add up
A New York Times/Siena poll this week showed that, of likely voters, 26 percent named worries over the economy as their top issue, while 18 percent listed inflation, at its highest rate in four decades.
Even on issues where Biden feels he has a winning hand, there are limits.
During his impassioned speech on abortion, the president tapped into widespread anger over the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the half-century-old Roe v. Wade ruling that enshrined national abortion rights.
Predicting a revolt by women voters at the ballot box, Biden said Republicans “ain’t seen nothing yet.”
But the Siena poll showed just five percent of likely voters named abortion as their top issue.
Analysts with Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball election newsletter at the University of Virginia said that after giddy hopes of defying expectations to win this fall, the Democrats seem to be coming back to earth.
“It’s just tough for a party to thrive with an unpopular president and with the public having significant concerns about issues, like the economy and inflation,” they said Wednesday.
“This is why the House remains very likely to flip to the Republicans and why, despite the aforementioned challenges, Republican chances to win the Senate remain no worse than a coin flip.”
International
Mexico Arrests CJNG Leader “El Jardinero” in Nayarit
Mexican authorities arrested Audias Flores, known as “El Jardinero,” on Monday during a naval operation in the western state of Nayarit, delivering another major blow to the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).
Flores was considered one of the top regional leaders within the cartel and had reportedly overseen criminal operations along Mexico’s Pacific coast. Security analysts viewed him as a potential successor to slain drug kingpin Nemesio Oseguera.
The arrest was carried out by Mexico’s Navy Special Forces in a planned operation, according to Security Minister Omar García Harfuch.
The United States Department of the Treasury had previously identified Flores as a “significant foreign narcotics trafficker,” while U.S. authorities offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to his capture and extradition.
A U.S. grand jury indicted Flores in 2021 on charges including conspiracy to distribute cocaine and heroin.
His capture comes months after the reported death of “El Mencho,” an operation that Mexican authorities considered a priority due to the cartel leader’s alleged involvement in a 2020 assassination attempt against García Harfuch.
International
Suspect Armed With Shotgun and Knives Detained at White House Correspondents Dinner
U.S. authorities confirmed Saturday that the suspect who stormed into the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner while President Donald Trump was attending acted alone, adding that there is no ongoing threat to the public following the incident, which left one Secret Service agent injured.
Acting Metropolitan Police Department chief Jeff Carroll said during a press conference that the suspect was carrying “a shotgun, a handgun, and multiple knives” when he attempted to pass through a Secret Service security checkpoint inside the hotel lobby at approximately 8:36 p.m. local time.
“At this point, everything indicates that this was a lone actor, a lone gunman,” Carroll stated, adding that investigators have found no preliminary evidence suggesting the involvement of additional suspects.
During the exchange of gunfire inside the hotel corridors, the suspect was not struck by bullets but was subdued by law enforcement officers and later transported to a hospital for medical evaluation.
A member of the United States Secret Service Uniformed Division was shot during the incident, though the bullet was stopped by the officer’s ballistic vest, preventing serious injuries. The agent was taken to a hospital and is reportedly “in good spirits,” according to Carroll.
The shooting prompted the immediate evacuation of President Trump, Melania Trump, and several senior officials attending the event after multiple gunshots were heard outside the hotel’s main ballroom.
International
U.S. allows Venezuela to fund Maduro and Cilia Flores’ legal defense
Until now, the U.S. administration had blocked the Venezuelan government from covering the legal fees of Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who is also jailed and facing drug trafficking charges, due to international sanctions imposed on Venezuela.
The couple’s legal team had relied on that argument in an attempt to have the indictment dismissed, claiming that preventing a defendant from accessing counsel of their choice violates rights guaranteed under the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
However, the U.S. Treasury Department will now allow “defense attorneys to receive payments from the Government of Venezuela under certain conditions,” New York prosecutor Jay Clayton wrote in a letter dated Friday to Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who is overseeing the case.
According to the letter, the funds must have become available after March 5, 2026, and cannot come from Venezuelan oil sales regulated in the United States.
Since Maduro’s removal from power in early January, former Vice President Delcy Rodríguez has served as Venezuela’s interim leader.
The United States effectively controls Venezuelan crude exports, with revenues deposited into special accounts supervised by Washington.
Court documents filed on Friday show that the defense acknowledged the sanctions exemption and, for now, withdrew its motion seeking dismissal of the charges.
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