What's happening on the campaign trail today
- Former President Donald Trump is wooing Jewish voters today, participating in an event about fighting antisemitism before he addresses the Israeli American Council’s national summit in Washington, D.C.
- Vice President Kamala Harris is participating in a discussion hosted by Oprah Winfrey in Detroit, which has featured livestreamed appearances by Meryl Streep, Chris Rock and other stars.
- Both vice presidential nominees, Republican Sen. JD Vance of Ohio and Democratic Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, made a rare appearance at the same event today, addressing CEOs at the Business Roundtable's quarterly meeting in Washington.
- One down-ballot race made headlines today after CNN reported that Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate for governor in North Carolina, called himself a “black NAZI,” expressed support for bringing back slavery and made other lewd comments on a pornographic website. Robinson has denied the report and vowed to remain in the race.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper weighs in on Mark Robinson controversy
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, in a post to X criticized Trump's relationship with Republican gubernatorial nominee Mark Robinson.
"Donald Trump and NC GOP leaders embraced Mark Robinson for years knowing who he was and what he stood for including disrespect for women and inciting violence," Cooper said in the post. "They reap what they sow."
Cooper is term-limited.
Trump addresses hate speech on college campuses at fighting antisemitism event
Trump said at an antisemitism event in Washington, D.C., tonight that if he is elected, he will strip the accreditation from any college that fails to end antisemitic propaganda on its campus.
"My first week back in the Oval Office, my administration will inform every college president that if you do not end antisemitic propaganda, they will lose their accreditation and federal tax credit support," Trump said.
"I will inform every educational institution in our land that if they permit violence, harassment or threats against Jewish students, the schools will be held accountable for violations of the civil rights law," he added.
Trump also vowed tonight to ban refugee resettlement from areas like the Gaza Strip.
Biden makes history with 12th Senate-confirmed LGBTQ judge
Biden secured the record for the most openly LGBTQ judges appointed to the bench by any president when the Senate voted Tuesday to confirm a military veteran who spent years working as a prosecutor to be a life-tenured judge in Philadelphia.
The Democratic-led Senate voted 52-41 to confirm Mary Kay Costello to serve as a district court judge in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, making her Biden's 12th openly LGBTQ judicial nominee to win confirmation.
Colorado voter registration jumps after debate, Swift endorsement
Online voter registration increased in Colorado after the presidential debate and Taylor Swift's endorsement of Harris this month, according to the state's top elections official.
Over 21,000 Coloradans either newly registered to vote or updated their voter registrations online the day of the debate and during the two days after, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold's office said in a news release.
Before the night of the debate and Swift's post, an average of 1,604 voter registrations and updates took place each day in September, according to Griswold's office.
Because the debate and the endorsement came on the same night, NBC News cannot confirm whether one of the events had a larger impact on voter registration.
"It is exciting to see Coloradans registering to vote and getting involved in advance of this November’s election," Griswold said in the statement. "Every voter has a voice, and I’m proud to make sure that every Coloradan can be heard."
Georgia Secretary of State Raffensperger expresses concern about board changing rules
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger expressed concern at a panel discussion today about the Georgia Election Board's changing rules ahead of November's elections.
"We consider these major changes to the election process," he said.
"Everything that we’ve done for the last six years has to speed up the process to give the voters the results quicker, and all of a sudden now they’re adding an element that it’s actually going to take longer," Raffensperger added during a panel discussion with secretaries of state in battleground states.
House task force investigating first Trump assassination attempt announces hearing for next week
A House task force investigating the first attempt to assassinate Trump announced plans today for its first hearing to be held Sept. 26, with a focus on the "security failure" at his July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and the Secret Service's use of state and local law enforcement.
Next week is scheduled to be the last week in session for the House until after the election.
Walz meets with families of American hostages held in Gaza
Walz met today with families of the American hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza, a Harris campaign official confirmed.
"The Governor listened to the stories and perspectives of the families and emphasized that Vice President Harris, alongside President Biden, will continue doing everything possible to secure the release of their family members and all the hostages, including the remains of those who have been tragically confirmed to be deceased," the official said.
Walz "expressed his solidarity" with the families of hostages and emphasized the Democratic ticket's "commitment to Israel's security," the official added.
Mark Robinson vows to stay in N.C. governor's race following report he made inflammatory comments on porn site
Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate for governor in North Carolina, vowed today to remain in the race following a report that he made dozens of lewd and inflammatory comments more than 10 years ago on the message board of a pornography website.
The report, published by CNN, said Robinson, in posts to a pornographic website called Nude Africa, called himself a “black NAZI,” expressed support for bringing back slavery, said he enjoyed watching transgender pornography and recounted sexually graphic stories, including one about his memory of “peeping” on women in gym showers when he was 14. The posts, made under the username “minisoldr,” were made from 2008 to 2012, CNN reported, before Robinson, who was elected lieutenant governor in 2020, entered politics.
Inside Trump and Vance’s ‘buddy level’ relationship
As Vance struggled through his debut this summer as Trump’s running mate, his remarks about “childless cat ladies” running on a loop and distracting from everything else, Trump called to offer reassurance.
“Remember the first week, there were all these stories about Trump regretting his choice?” Vance told NBC News in a recent interview aboard his campaign plane. “He was checking in: ‘Hey, you’re under a level of scrutiny that nobody has really faced except for me.’ And he was just being supportive and providing moral support and cracking some jokes.”
House Democratic leaders to spotlight Project 2025 in hearing next week
House Democrats plan to hold a hearing about the potential impacts of Project 2025 next week, featuring Americans who can speak personally about the consequences of the proposed policies.
“We’re going to be calling out that extremism as part of these hearings, as well making sure the American people understand that their agenda is already being put to work,” Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Ill., said today. “It is not something that’s theoretical or hypothetical.”
The hearing, expected Tuesday, will be held by the House Democrats’ Steering and Policy Committee, along with leaders of the Stop Project 2025 Task Force.
Tuesday’s hearing could be one of several as Democrats continue seeking to tie Trump to the ultraconservative policy agenda, with Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., telling NBC News he has talked to party leadership about “the possibility of multiple hearings and doing some of those out in the country,” adding that “there’s a great chance of that happening.”
Biden says he respects Federal Reserve's quick return to independence, unlike Trump
Biden appeared to swipe at Trump in his remarks at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., this afternoon as he touted the Federal Reserve’s work in bringing down inflation.
“Unlike my predecessor, I respect the Federal Reserve’s independence as they pursued and demanded to bring inflation down,” Biden said. “That independence has served the country well.”
Biden touted the decrease in inflation and interest rates throughout his speech but acknowledged that there is more work to be done to work toward economic recovery after the pandemic.
“Inflation has come back down, and the Fed is lowering rates to keep the country growing, economy growing,” he said. “As big as you all know, inflation was 9.1% in the United States. Today it’s much closer to 2%. It doesn’t mean our work is done. Far from it, far from it.”
“I’m not here to take a victory lap,” he added. “I’m not here to say job well done. I’m not here to say we don’t have a hell of a lot more work to do. We do have more work to do.”
The Trump campaign responded to a request for comment by pointing to a post from the Republican National Committee on X that included a photo of Biden and Fed Chair Jerome Powell.
Asked what Biden meant at the White House news briefing, Jared Bernstein, the chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, clarified that he meant did not pressure Powell over interest rates. Powell and Biden met at the White House in May 2022.
"He did not pressure Powell and has never done so. And in fact, in the speech today, that was in the section about Fed independence and the importance of respecting and honoring that independence," he said. "It's obviously a stark contrast with our predecessor."
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy says Postal Service is ready for November election
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a Trump-era appointee, said the U.S. Postal Service is prepared for the deluge of mail-in ballots in the run-up to the November election.
“Let me be clear, the Postal Service is ready to deliver the nation's mail-in ballots,” DeJoy said after the National Association of Secretaries of State and the National Association of State Election Directors raised concerns in an open letter this month over election mail service.
DeJoy also responded to a social media post by Trump this month that alleged it's "not possible" for the Postal Service to "run the 2024 Presidential Election," telling reporters that Trump's assumption was wrong.
"My response is like my response to everyone who says that we’re not prepared for the election is that they’re wrong," DeJoy said. "And I don’t know that I need to comment any more than that. They’re wrong."
Biden to host ‘Quad’ leaders at his home in Delaware
While Biden’s primary residence is still the White House for a few more months, he plans to host world leaders at another home this weekend: his house in Wilmington, Delaware.
Biden will hold bilateral meetings with the heads of Australia, India and Japan there for his final summit of the “Quad,” an alliance he decided to elevate during his first year in office. NBC News is the first to report that he will host the meetings at his Delaware home.
Biden specifically wanted to incorporate “personal touches” at the two-day event, emphasizing the importance of “deep personal relationships” as central to his foreign policy approach, a senior White House official said.
During both group discussions and individual conversations this weekend, Biden is likely to proudly showcase his home, known by aides as “Lake House” because of the manmade lake on its grounds. He expects to share with them significant milestone moments during his career that have been marked there, including where he learned four years ago that he had been elected president.
To wrap up their work and highlight that philosophy, Biden has invited the leaders to an “intimate” dinner Saturday at his high school, Archmere Academy, a place of particular significance to him, the official said.
Alaska man charged with making death threats against Supreme Court justices
An Alaska man has been indicted on charges that he sent racist and violent threats against six Supreme Court justices and their family members.
Federal prosecutors in Anchorage asked a judge to keep Panos Anastasiou, 76, locked up pending trial because of the graphic threats, which they say increased after FBI agents questioned him about the messages he’d been sending through the Supreme Court’s website.
He has pleaded not guilty to charges of threatening to assault, kidnap and murder the six justices, as well as some of their family members.
“We allege that the defendant made repeated, heinous threats to murder and torture Supreme Court Justices and their families to retaliate against them for decisions he disagreed with,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement, adding that “democracy depends on the ability of public officials to do their jobs without fearing for their lives or the safety of their families.”
Court filings allege that Anastasiou sent over 465 messages to the high court through its public website from March 10, 2023, to July 16, 2024.
They became increasingly more menacing in January, including threats to assassinate the judges. Anastasiou is also alleged to have made lynching threats and used the N-word in statements aimed at a justice identified as “Supreme Court Justice 1” in the indictment, apparently referring to Clarence Thomas, who is Black.
Sentencing in Hunter Biden's gun trial pushed to December
Hunter Biden’s sentencing in Delaware on three felony gun charges has been pushed from Nov. 13 to Dec. 4 after his attorneys requested a delay, citing the large amount of presentencing work they have in that case and separate tax charges the president’s son faces in California.
Biden was found guilty in June on three felony gun charges in connection with possession of a gun while using narcotics. He pleaded not guilty. He faces maximum prison sentences of 10 years on the first two counts and five years on the third.
Biden pleaded guilty to all charges in the federal tax case.
Trump fan featured in Biden ad admits assaulting officers with bear spray on Jan. 6
A Trump supporter who bear-sprayed officers during the Jan. 6 attack and whose photo was featured in a Biden ad in early 2024 has pleaded guilty, admitting he hit at least three officers during the attack, temporarily blinding at least two of them.
Andy Steven Oliva-Lopez — whom online sleuths had dubbed “Blue Plaid Sprayer” because he was wearing a blue plaid shirt along with a helmet and a gas mask when he unleashed chemical spray on officers protecting the Capitol — pleaded guilty yesterday. His sentencing was set for Jan. 17, just days before the next president will be inaugurated at the U.S. Capitol.
Early this year, before he was arrested, a photo of Oliva-Lopez pepper-spraying officers was featured in both a Biden campaign ad and a presentation about the Capitol attack caseload by U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves. NBC News reported this Jan. 6 that online sleuths had identified him about two years earlier and turned the information over to law enforcement. Weeks later, the FBI arrested Oliva-Lopez in Oregon, confirming the sleuths’ identification.
Sen. Lindsey Graham denies Trump's campaign sent him to Nebraska
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., denied today that Trump's campaign asked him to visit Nebraska yesterday, as NBC News reported, insisting he was sent by Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., and Gov. Jim Pillen to discuss foreign policy.
“Senator Ricketts and the governor asked me to come out to talk to the caucus, I guess that’s what you call it, about the state of the play in the world, and the consequences of the next election on a foreign policy front,” Graham told NBC News.
NBC reported yesterday that Graham went as an “emissary” for the Trump campaign to discuss how the state allocates electoral votes. Pressed by NBC News on the reporting, Graham denied it again. The news of the meeting was previously reported by KOLN-TV.
The senator acknowledged to NBC News that the Nebraska delegation asked him to discuss the state’s apportionment of electoral votes, but said it was not originally what he was sent to speak about. Trump has backed moving the state to a winner-take-all system, which Graham says he agrees with.
“I hope they will allow winner take all,” Graham said, “Apparently, the delegation last night, the members of Congress and the two senators urged the change. It’ll be up to Nebraska, we’ll see what they do.”
Ricketts also said that he encouraged Graham to come. However, he did not comment on the Trump campaign's involvement. Asked why he invited Graham, he said, “I think Senator Graham is a great spokesperson for it. He’s very savvy about why we need to make sure that all of our voters have an opportunity to have their voices heard and what the other states are doing.”
In an interview with NBC News, Ricketts said he and Pillen specifically asked the South Carolina Senator to speak with their state officials on the allocation of electoral votes. He called Graham "a great spokesperson" for the winner take all strategy.
“He’s very savvy about why we need to make sure that all of our voters have an opportunity to have their voices heard and what the other states are doing,” he said.
Pillen's office and the Trump campaign have not responded to NBC News' requests for comment.
Law enforcement personnel seized local businesses' surveillance video after apparent Trump assassination attempt
FBI special agents and members of the Palm Beach sheriff’s office went to nearby businesses to seize surveillance video within two hours of a Secret Service agent firing at Ryan Wesley Routh, who authorities say was lying in wait with a semi-automatic rifle for Trump at the perimeter of his golf course in West Palm Beach, business owners said.
The businesses owners did not want to be named in speaking with NBC News, citing privacy reasons.
At one business, law enforcement personnel took the surveillance video hard drive, which may have contained images of Routh leaving the road along Trump's golf course, a store employee said. Another business owner also said the FBI copied the file of surveillance video that might have contained images of the suspect leaving the scene. A third business said agents visited for surveillance video after the shooting.
Law enforcement experts said federal investigators are likely trying to develop a timeline to determine what Routh did before and after what the FBI has called an apparent assassination attempt.
Video and witness interviews can be used to get more information, such as on who Routh might have been talking to or what he could have been speaking about — all potentially helpful to investigators trying to determine a motive, the experts say.
A spokesperson for the Palm Beach County sheriff’s office declined to comment, referring NBC News to the FBI. A spokesperson for the FBI, which is leading the investigation, did not immediately respond to NBC News' request for comment on their investigative work.
Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan to remain blocked, federal judge orders
A federal judge has extended a temporary restraining order against the Biden administration’s latest student loan forgiveness plan, threatening the White House hope to provide financial relief to tens of millions of Americans ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential elections.
U.S. District Judge Randal Hall, appointed by former Republican President George W. Bush, said yesterday that he would maintain the order blocking the Biden administration from forgiving student debt for an additional 14 days.
In the meantime, Hall said, the could would review the plaintiffs’ request for a preliminary injunction against the Biden’s relief plan, and the Biden administration’s request to dismiss the case.
The continuation of the restraining order is the latest setback to the Biden administration’s efforts to cancel people’s federal student loans. President Joe Biden began promising to alleviate people’s education debts during his 2020 campaign bid, but Republican legal challenges have consistently stymied his attempts.
The Federal Reserve lowered interest rates yesterday by 0.5% — the first cut since 2020 and the largest reduction in 16 years. NBC’s Christine Romans joins "TODAY" to break down what the size of the slash could mean.
Pro-Palestinian Uncommitted Movement refuses to endorse Harris
The Uncommitted Movement of pro-Palestinian Democrats is withholding its endorsement from Harris after she rebuffed its latest request, the group announced today, while also making clear its opposition to Trump and the third-party candidates who might inadvertently help elect him.
“Vice President Harris’s unwillingness to shift on unconditional weapons policy or to even make a clear campaign statement in support of upholding existing U.S. and international human rights law has made it impossible for us to endorse her,” the group said in a news release shared with NBC News ahead of its release.
The group said Harris had given it the cold shoulder and “fumbled” by refusing even the “small gesture” of allowing a Palestinian American speaker at last month’s Democratic National Convention.
“Now, the Vice President’s campaign is courting Dick Cheney while sidelining disillusioned anti-war voices, pushing them to consider third-party options or to sit this important election out,” the group said.
Biden to tout 'new milestone' in economic speech today, aides say
In a press call yesterday, White House chief of staff Jeff Zients said President Joe Biden will speak about a “new milestone” in the economy in his remarks at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., today.
He said Biden is expected to talk about inflation and interest rates falling at the same time that employment, wages and gross domestic product are rising.
“I want to be really clear, this is not meant to be a declaration of victory. It’s meant to be a declaration of progress, significant progress,” Zients said in the call. “The president believes it’s important to mark this moment the country by laying out how far we’ve come, while also outlining work we still have to do day one of this administration.”
Biden “has always respected the Federal Reserve’s independence to bring down inflation,” Zients said.
National economic adviser Lael Brainard said Biden will note his economic accomplishments and acknowledge the work that needs to be done.
The focus going forward “has to be on sustaining the gains we’ve seen for middle class families, workers and small businesses, while continuing to address those longstanding affordability challenges in areas such as housing, health care and raising children,” Brainard said.
Arizona GOP chair says clerical error affecting 100K voters could have been avoided with public access to voter rolls
Arizona GOP Chair Gina Swoboda says a clerical error involving driver's license registrations that could prevent almost 100,000 Arizonans from voting in local, county and legislative elections in November could have been prevented if the public had access to voter rolls.
“We’re in this situation is because we have prevented the public from having oversight of the voter rolls,” Swoboda, a self-described “elections nerd,” said in a press gaggle after a Trump campaign press conference yesterday about housing.
“We need to make these rolls available to the public to do the oversight that Congress decided they had the right to do,” she added, suggesting a change in policy.
Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer filed a lawsuit at the state Supreme Court that could bar almost 100,000 residents from voting in the elections, citing an Arizona election law that mandates residents provide documents verifying citizenship, which is only required in state and local elections — not federal.
The Arizona GOP pushed back on Richer’s lawsuit with an amicus brief, arguing that his lawsuit violates state and federal law. The brief noted that the National Voter Registration Act bars systematic voter removals within 90 days of a federal election and argued the removal of voters based on the clerical error violates due process and the Constitution.
“Our brief makes it clear: nearly 100,000 Arizona voters should not be penalized for a mistake made by the government,” Swoboda said in a statement. “We will not stand by as voters are disenfranchised, especially so close to an election. The law requires that any changes to voter registration or eligibility must be handled carefully and in accordance with federal and state law. Rushing to disenfranchise voters now would not only be illegal but would severely undermine confidence in our elections.”
Vance and Walz to attend business roundtable
Both Vance and Walz will attend a business roundtable this morning in Washington, D.C., the campaigns confirmed yesterday.
The two running mates are set to address the business group, but the timing and order of their remarks are unclear.
The Teamsters announced it won’t endorse any candidate for president, a blow for Harris, who becomes the first Democratic presidential candidate in nearly three decades not to get the endorsement of America’s largest union. NBC News’ Garrett Haake reports.
Harris to campaign with Oprah Winfrey tonight
Harris is set to hold a livestream event tonight with Oprah Winfrey.
"What is essential to me is getting people motivated to vote — and that’s my intention in hosting this event,” Winfrey said in a statement last week. “My goal is to get people excited about the privilege and power of the vote.”
Winfrey praised Harris in remarks at the Democratic convention last month.
Trump participates in fighting antisemitism event
Trump will participate in an event on fighting antisemitism this evening alongside his ally, Republican donor Miriam Adelson.
In an email advertising the event, the Trump campaign said he "has been a vocal defender of religious freedom and an unwavering supporter of Jewish communities."
Trump will also speak at the Israeli-American Council’s national summit. Both events are in Washington, D.C.