Tag Archives : Build House

DC schools relaxing COVID-19 protocols ahead of student return

The Washington, D.C., public school system announced Thursday evening during a town hall that it would relax COVID-19 measures ahead of the 2022-2023 school year.

D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) announced that it will no longer be conducting daily health screenings on students upon arrival to school. However, DCPS is asking parents to screen their children for COVID-19 symptoms every day before sending them to the classroom.

The district will also no longer require students and staff to quarantine following a COVID-19 exposure — unless they are exhibiting symptoms, which is DCPS’s biggest change from last school year’s guidance. The latest guidance has been updated in accordance with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations.

Asymptomatic weekly testing from the prior school year will now be discontinued at schools, except for at the start of the school year when “test to return” will be conducted.

Each school in the DCPS system will distribute COVID-19 tests for each student to take the day before the first day of school.

DCPS is also asking parents that if a child is exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms, they are kept home from school and a medical professional is contacted, and if the child does test positive for COVID-19, the school is notified.

Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 will still be required to isolate for five days, and parents will receive a notice in writing or in an email if someone in the child’s class tests positive.

Masks will remain optional in the classrooms, though students who have tested positive for COVID-19 will be required to wear a mask until day 10 following their positive test after the end of their five-day isolation period.

Additionally, students ages 12 and older will be required to present proof of COVID-19 vaccination on the first day of school, alongside other DCPS immunization requirements.

Source: TEST FEED1

The terrorists are indeed back in Afghanistan

The one year anniversary of the Biden administration’s chaotic exit from Afghanistan has provided the occasion for Congressman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and his fellow Republicans on the House Foreign Affairs Committee to issue an interim report entitled “A ‘Strategic Failure’: Assessing the Administration’s Afghanistan Withdrawal.” Even before the report appeared, however, the White House launched a preemptive strike against its content by means of a memorandum to “Interested Parties.” The paper, by National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson, bore the notation, “Re: Recently Released Partisan Report on the Afghanistan Withdrawal.” Among other assertions, the memo claimed that the GOP report was full of “inaccurate characterizations … and false claims.”

The White House memo asserted that one of the report’s allegedly false claims was that “we are less safe today because of the withdrawal because  al Qaeda has reconstituted and Afghanistan has become a terrorist haven.” The memo claimed that, to the contrary, the Intelligence Community had assessed that al Qaeda has not reconstituted in the country. Moreover, the memo continued, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the organization’s leader, “was the only key al Qaeda figure who attempted to reestablish their presence in country.” Indeed, it asserted, “there are less than a dozen al Qaeda core members who remain in Afghanistan and they probably were located there prior to the fall of Kabul.” Nor, it pointed out, did al Qaeda have the capability to attack the U.S. or its interests from Afghanistan.

This issue is an especially sensitive one for the administration because the Feb. 29, 2020, Doha agreement between the United States and the Taliban made no demands on the group other than that it not permit terrorists to operate from its territory. Specifically, Part II of that agreement, which detailed the Taliban’s promises to Washington, outlined five commitments from the group regarding the prevention of terrorist operations from Afghan soil. 

Among those explicit commitments were that the Taliban 1) “Will not allow any of its members, other individuals or groups, including al Qaeda, to use the soil of Afghanistan to threaten the security of the United States and its allies”; 2) that it “send a clear message [to] … instruct [its] members not to cooperate with groups or individuals threatening the security of the United States and its allies”; and 3) that it “prevent any group or individual in Afghanistan … from recruiting, training and fundraising and will not host them in accordance with the commitments in this agreement.”

Yet it is clear that the Taliban has not abided by those commitments. To begin with, it is no more plausible that the Taliban was not hosting al-Zawahiri in one of the rare tony parts of Kabul than that Pakistan was unaware that Osama bin Laden was ensconced in its midst. Moreover,  if the “less than a dozen” al Qaeda members were in Kabul before it fell, the Taliban surely knew where they were and, per the Doha agreement, should have rooted them out.

In fact, from all indications, Afghanistan does indeed remain a haven for terrorist groups. They include the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which seeks to overthrow the government in Islamabad and thus poses a serious threat to South Asian stability; Islamic State-Khorasan, or ISIS-K, which has parallel objectives vis-à-vis the governments of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan; and the Islamic State, which opposes the Taliban as well as American and Western interests.

Of far greater concern to the United States, however, is the Haqqani network, which long has worked hand-in-glove with both the Taliban and al Qaeda. The network’s top leader, Sirajuddin Haqqani, has served as both acting interior minister in the Afghan government and de facto deputy head of the Afghan state since the Taliban takeover. Haqqani is personally responsible for terrorist bombings and attacks on American forces. Indeed, a Department of State program called Rewards for Justice still offers $10 million for information that leads to Haqqani’s arrest. He, his network and his allies remain a major threat to U.S. interests worldwide.

The administration’s claims regarding al Qaeda are at best disingenuous. The White House has offered no real evidence that al Qaeda personnel have not returned to Afghanistan. Haqqani’s presence in the government would indicate otherwise; he reportedly has personal ties to the terrorist group. Moreover, despite the U.S. killing of al-Zawahiri, in the absence of a military presence that would permit far more extensive monitoring of a country the size of Texas, there is no way to know the extent of, much less to prevent, al Qaeda’s reconstitution there. Indeed, it is unlikely that the group will again operate large, open training camps that satellites or drones could detect and aircraft could attack.

Both McCaul’s report and the administration are marshaling generals to support their respective cases regarding the wisdom and execution of America’s departure from Afghanistan. The debate will rage on. One thing is clear, however: The Taliban has demonstrated that its commitments in the Doha agreement are worth less than the paper on which they were printed, and that the threat to America’s interests, allies and even the homeland itself has far from disappeared.

Dov S. Zakheim is a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and vice chairman of the board for the Foreign Policy Research Institute. He was under secretary of Defense (comptroller) and chief financial officer for the Department of Defense from 2001 to 2004 and a deputy under secretary of Defense from 1985 to 1987.

Source: TEST FEED1

McConnell says House more likely to flip than Senate, cites candidate quality

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Thursday predicted that Republicans have a better chance of flipping the House than the Senate, citing candidate quality, again taming expectations for the upper chamber less than three months out from the midterm elections.

“I think there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate. Senate races are just different — they’re statewide, candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome,” ​​McConnell said when asked about his expectations for the midterms during an event in Kentucky, according to NBC News.

“Right now, we have a 50-50 Senate and a 50-50 country, but I think when all is said and done this fall, we’re likely to have an extremely close Senate, either our side up slightly or their side up slightly,” he added.

McConnell’s comments come less than three months out from the midterm elections, which Republicans have eyed as their opportunity to take control of the House and Senate.

McConnell previously said the November midterms would be “very good” for Republicans, pointing in-part to President Biden’s poor approval. Historically speaking, the party not in power in the White House — in this case, Republicans — have gained control of Congress. 

But the Senate leader has since changed his tone, taming expectations as the outlook dampens for Republicans. The shift in perspective came after a number of Trump-blacked Senate candidates who believe the 2020 presidential election was stolen received the GOP nomination.

J.D. Vance in Ohio, Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania and Herschel Walker in Georgia are all trailing their opponents in FiveThirtyEight’s average of latest polls.

On Thursday, the Cook Political Report switched its rating for the Pennsylvania race from “toss up” to “lean Democrat.”

According to FiveThirtyEight, Democrats are favored to win the Senate, 64 percent to 36 percent, while Republicans hold an edge on Democrats when it comes to the House, 77 percent to 23 percent.

Earlier this month, McConnell said he thinks control of the Senate will be “very tight” after the November races.

“I think it’s going to be very tight. We have a 50-50 nation. And I think when this Senate race smoke clears, we’re likely to have a very, very close Senate still, with us up slightly or the Democrats up slightly,” he said.

On Thursday, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that the Senate Leadership Fund, which has connections to McConnell, took out a $28 million ad campaign in Ohio to bolster Vance.

Source: TEST FEED1

Student parents need to work 50 hours per week to afford childcare, tuition in US: report

Childcare costs and soaring tuition at America’s public colleges and universities have proven especially burdensome for students with children, leaving many with no choice but to put in extra hours at work.  

Low-income student parents need to work at least 50 hours on average per week at minimum wage –after accounting for grants, scholarships and ten hours of minimum wage work – to cover both childcare costs and tuition, according to a new report from The Education Trust and Generation Hope. 

Researchers found that student parents are disproportionately single, students of color and from low-income backgrounds. 

Tuition at four-year public colleges has increased by 28 percent since 2008, with the cost, including room and board and other supplies, exceeding $25,000 annually.  

But student parents’ out-of-pocket costs are still two to five times higher than their peers without kids, as student parents face childcare costs that can be more than $7,500 a year per child, according to estimates from California Competes.  

America is changing faster than ever! Add Changing America to your Facebook or Twitter feed to stay on top of the news. 

“This report provides real data to reinforce the fact that student parents not only face more barriers than other students when it comes to earning a postsecondary credential but also significant financial barriers,” Nicole Lynn Lewis, founder and CEO of Generation Hope, said in a media release. 

“Our hope is that policymakers and education leaders will use these findings to provide more funding and access to existing resources for this deserving student population.” 

Several federal solutions to the affordability crisis offered by the authors include doubling Pell Grants, raising minimum wage to $20 per hour and increasing funding to early childhood programs.

Source: TEST FEED1

Rep. Meeks on Taiwan visit: 'Not going to allow Beijing' to tell Congress what to do

New York Rep. Gregory Meeks (D) on Friday said in an interview that he and the coalition that traveled to Taiwan with Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) are “not going to allow Beijing and Xi” to dictate the actions taken by Congress.

“We’re not going to allow Beijing and Xi to tell members of Congress what to do, who could visit, when [they can] and cannot visit,” Meeks said to The Washington Post.

He added: “You just can’t kowtow and bow down, changing what we do because of Beijing’s decision to be more aggressive.”

Meeks was part of the group that accompanied Pelosi on her trip across the Indo-Pacific region, including Taiwan.

Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan created friction between China and the U.S. when she and her fellow members of Congress proceeded with their visit despite warnings from the Chinese government that it would have “severe negative impact” on the relationship between the two powers.

“It gravely undermines peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and sends a seriously wrong signal to the separatist forces for ‘Taiwan independence,” the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote following the trip.

When asked about his thoughts on China’s response to the Taiwan visit, Meeks told the Post: “It just shows their aggressive nature in trying to change the status of Taiwan.”

Meeks said that while the response was “unprecedented,” it was still “predictable” and he was not “terribly surprised” at China’s hostility. China intensified its threats against the U.S. and Taiwan after Pelosi’s visit by ending climate and military cooperation with the U.S. and conducting military drills in the waters surrounding Taiwan.

Source: TEST FEED1

Good news for Democrats continues to build — so now what?

It wasn’t too long ago that talk of a GOP red wave in the November midterms dominated every corner of political discourse. Democrats’ best hope was to avoid losing less than a few dozen House seats, and pundits suggesting that Democrats could retain the Senate did so cautiously. 

My, how things have changed.

Democrats now lead Republicans in the generic congressional ballot average by half a percentage point and are favored 61 percent to 39 percent to hold the Senate. In critical Senate battlegrounds such as Pennsylvania, Arizona and Ohio, the Democratic candidates hold leads ranging from 5 points to over 10 points. And in a further blow to the GOP, the Republicans’ Senate campaign committee just slashed $5 million from their Pennsylvania budget, as well as $2 million out of Wisconsin and Arizona.

A string of big wins for the Biden administration has shifted the pendulum, even if the president’s approval rating continues to hover around 40 percent. From killing al Qaeda’s leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, to securing legislative wins such as the Inflation Reduction Act, the PACT Act and the CHIPS bill, to falling prices and rising job growth numbers, President Biden has had a good run.

With cautious optimism, it looks like Democrats have been given a second lease on (electoral) life. Now moving to front and center is the hard work of keeping the Biden coalition from 2020, which has been visibly fracturing. Three key groups are central to Democratic victory: Hispanics, women and Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) voters.

There is widespread agreement that Democrats are struggling with retaining Hispanic voters. It’s clear why: In 2018, Democrats had a 47-point edge with Hispanics and it was erased completely in last month’s New York Times-Siena College poll.

The reasons behind the loss generally fall under the banner of assuming the priorities of progressives are the same as those of multicultural voters. From a lax approach to the border to soft-on-crime policies in major metropolises and an uncomfortably lenient abortion policy for many conservative Hispanics, Democrats are increasingly out of touch with their priorities.

A recent special election loss in Texas’s 24th district to the GOP was a crescendo moment. In the aftermath, Democratic Congressman Henry Cuellar commented, “The moment you start getting people to say, ‘Well, it’s OK to vote Republican,’ then the next time will be easier.”

Cuellar is right. Many of the loudest voices in the Democratic Party are espousing policies that are major turn-offs to Hispanic voters (e.g., defund the police). They must be countered passionately and with clear proposals that address crime and security concerns, parent empowerment in schools, and the economic solutions all voters crave. A moderate Democratic platform is the only one that can keep Hispanics in the tent.

Rallying female voters has been a cornerstone of Democratic politicking the past several cycles. From smashing the glass ceiling with Hillary Clinton in 2016 to standing up for the #MeToo movement in 2018 to preserving democracy and returning to normalcy in 2020, Democrats have been focused on turning out women voters.

College-educated, white women have become a reliable voting bloc for Democrats, but the party’s success with white women overall is much shakier. In 2016, 52 percent of white women voted for Donald Trump and they were the deciding factor in last year’s race for governor in Virginia, where there was a 13-point swing toward the GOP among white women, fueled by a 37-point shift among white women without a college degree.

But, as with voters overall, Democrats have struggled with white women for the majority of Biden’s term. Issues such as rising crime, education and inflation have been pushing them away — until now.

Fox News polling shows there has been an 8-point shift among white women toward the Democratic Party since May, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. There is tremendous opportunity to build on these gains.

We know that voters who are happy with the court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling are more motivated to vote in November than those who disapprove, by a margin of 59 percent to 50 percent. It follows that Democrats’ messaging can’t be singularly focused on the abortion ruling itself but on the bird’s-eye view of what a Republican administration would do: strip women of their rights. This allows for a fulsome defense of cornerstone Democratic policies such as protecting a woman’s right to choose and expanding access to health care, paid family leave and universal pre-K. Taking a more conservative stance on issues such as crime and security are also crucial. The “security moms” of the ’90s are still around — and ripe for the taking.

Following the 2020 election, the American political ecosphere was buzzing about the impact of AAPI voters in critical battlegrounds such as Georgia and Arizona. The fastest growing segment of eligible voters, their numbers have doubled in the past 20 years. Like Hispanic voters, AAPI voters are hugely diverse and there’s a substantial conservative cohort made up of, primarily, religious people and small business owners.

Racism and violence against Asian Americans were central issues in the 2020 election because of the impact of bigoted rhetoric around the COVID-19 virus. Democrats benefitted electorally by being the party to stand in support of these communities. They also honed messages that prioritized other issues critical to AAPI voters: access to health care and education, as well as investment in their communities and a positive economic agenda.

Today the focus of AAPI voters remains similar to 2020. As Jeff Le, a Democratic strategist and partner at the Truman National Security Project told me, health care is still a top issue for AAPI voters. “Many AAPI community members are disproportionately unable to access health care, and this is a significant impact for the same communities that are also among the poorest as well,” he said.

The good news for Democrats is that they have continued to expand ObamaCare, while Republicans offer no health care plan at all, let alone a viable alternative. And new Democratic legislation should continue America’s economic recovery. But it’s all for naught without targeted voter outreach that emphasizes these issues, as well as less publicized concerns such as liberal school board members. In fact, the recalls of several board members and the district attorney in San Francisco were fueled by disillusioned Asian American Democrats. These positions cannot be ignored.

Of course, Democrats should work to build as wide a coalition as possible. But without the support of these groups at previous electoral levels, November won’t look good.

I believe that many voters who are looking to the GOP as a viable choice are doing so against their will. They want to vote for Democrats but they want assurance that their needs and preferences are understood. The good news is, there’s still time to drive home that message.

Jessica Tarlov is head of research at Bustle Digital Group and a Fox News contributor. She earned her Ph.D. at the London School of Economics in political science. Follow her on Twitter @JessicaTarlov.

Source: TEST FEED1

Hong Kong reopens COVID-19 isolation facility as cases spike

Hong Kong plans to reopen one of its largest COVID-19 isolation facilities amid climbing case numbers that stand at a four month-high.

“We are very concerned,” said Hospital Authority Chief Manager of Quality and Standards Lau Ka-hin of the rate of cases, according to Bloomberg. “We’ve come to a very key moment and we are worried that the situation may deteriorate further.” 

There are 6,445 new cases in Hong Kong, 1,898 of which are being treated in hospitals, pressuring the country’s hospital system.

Of the almost 2,000 COVID-19 patients in hospitals, 25 have serious cases of the virus while an additional 36 are in critical condition and 10 are in intensive care.

Ka-hin said at a Friday briefing that an isolation facility will open up next week, providing 200 hospital beds for COVID-19 patients and employing 100 health care workers.

He added that some services will be reduced at Hong Kong hospitals, specifically minor non-emergency services.

Bloomberg reports that more transmissible subvariants of the omicron variant of COVID-19 are contributing to the spike in Hong Kong.

The increase in cases may complicate the region’s reopening of its border with the Chinese mainland, which leadership continues to plan.

Source: TEST FEED1

Liz Cheney will be gone from Congress but not forgotten

Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) lost a Republican primary to keep her seat this week and will soon be gone from Congress, but she will not be forgotten for her fight for principle over party.

Former President Donald Trump has won some and lost some GOP primary races in which he’s endorsed candidates, but he took down his most prominent Republican antagonist Tuesday when Cheney lost her chance to serve again in Congress by more than a two-to-one margin.

Her defeat means only two of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump still have a chance to get back to Congress for the next session. The Republican caucus room in the next session of the U.S. House of Representatives will not be a kinder and gentler place especially with a GOP leader like Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) who comes to heel when Trump barks.

Her defeat and the forced retirements of her anti-Trump colleagues is a clear illustration of Trump’ stranglehold over the GOP. Trump’s success may snatch defeat from the jaws of Republican victory in November.

While Trump’s hold on Republicans is firm, his standing with Americans is shaky. Four out of five Republicans have a favorable opinion of him, but most independents and four-fifths of the Democrats dislike him, according to a new national survey for the Economist completed Wednesday.

The former president’s purge of his opponents in the party is going well, but the GOP could pay the price in November.

The disgraced former president has triumphed in GOP primaries, but his acolytes like Dr. Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania and former football star Herschel Walker in Georgia are not performing well with less than three months until the November midterm elections. Things in Pennsylvania are so bad that the Cook Political Report has just moved the Senate race there from “toss-up” to “lean Democratic.” The Republican campaign for control of Congress is in jeopardy because of Trump’s success in the primaries and his failure to keep a low profile.

Election deniers and sordid political riffraff have a home in the GOP, but Cheney who put integrity over party is out in the cold. In a hyper-partisan environment without a center, she’s stuck in no man’s land.

It’s hard to believe that Cheney won’t have a prominent political future. As the daughter of two-term Vice President Dick Cheney and as the most prominent member of the House Committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection, she is a national figure.

But it’s also difficult to imagine what that role could be.

Her opposition to Trump has made her persona non grata in the GOP. The Economist poll indicated that two out of three Republicans dislike her.

Most Democrats have a favorable opinion of her because of her hostility toward Trump. But her traditionally conservative opposition to an aggressive and progressive federal government is a problem for most members of that party. She, like all her GOP congressional colleagues, voted against the landmark Inflation Reduction Act, which increases corporate taxes and constitutes an energetic government challenge to the climate crisis and the excessive cost of prescription drugs.

But she has made it clear that she aims to hound Trump all the way to hell and back. So, she has threatened to campaign for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination to drive the final nail in Trump’s coffin. If she runs for president and loses while taking Trump down, her political career will end in a blaze of glory, and she will have done a great service to the nation.

She has little chance to win the nomination. If former Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s (R) failed GOP primary campaign in 2016 is an indication, her presidential primary prospects are limited. She might even have a tough time getting debate invitations and ballot access. But she could make Trump’s life miserable during the campaign. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), another Republican who may be eyeing a White House bid, would mostly likely love to have her on the debate stage to take Trump down.

Cheney’s message for her presidential campaign would likely be that Trump is a threat to traditional Republican conservative principles. He was an aggressive chief executive in a party that formerly valued limited government and states’ rights. He has made a mockery of conservative devotion to the sanctity of the Constitution with his attempt to subvert the outcome of the 2020 election.

In short, she should argue that Trump is just a demagogue without a conservative compass. That would be an effective message for traditional Republicans. But this is not her father’s Republican Party anymore. The GOP is now the party of Trump idolatry not conservative ideology.

Cheney plans to use the millions of dollars left over from her failed congressional campaign to create an anti-Trump organization. She could use her leftover campaign cash to mount independent expenditure campaigns against the GOP true believers who accept Trump’s Big Lie. Her group is yet unnamed. I would call it “Conservatives Against Chaos, Carnage and Corruption.” Conservatives value order and America has been in disorder since Trump entered the political arena.

Brad Bannon is a Democratic pollster and CEO of Bannon Communications Research. His podcast, “Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,” airs on Periscope TV and the Progressive Voices Network. Follow him on Twitter: @BradBannon

Source: TEST FEED1

Biden to host summit on countering hate-fueled violence

President Biden plans to host a summit in mid-September focused on stamping out the effects of hate-fueled violence in the United States in furtherance of his campaign pledge to unify the country.  

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement on Friday that the “United We Stand” summit would be held on September 15 at the White House with the goal of countering “the corrosive effects of hate-fueled violence on our democracy and public safety.” 

“Even as our nation has endured a disturbing series of hate-fueled attacks, from Oak Creek to Pittsburgh, from El Paso to Poway, from Atlanta to Buffalo, Americans remain overwhelmingly united in their opposition to such violence,” Jean-Pierre said.  

“The United We Stand Summit will bring together heroes from across America who are leading historic work in their communities to build bridges and address hate and division, including survivors of hate-fueled violence,” she said.  

The summit will take place roughly four months after Biden decried the shooting that left 10 dead in a predominantly Black neighborhood in Buffalo as an act of domestic terrorism and called white supremacy a “poison” in the U.S.  

“We need to say as clearly and forcefully as we can that the ideology of white supremacy has no place in America,” Biden said at the time after meeting with families of victims in Buffalo. “None.”

Attendees of September’s summit will include bipartisan federal, state and local officials, members of law enforcement, representatives of civil rights groups, faith and business leaders, gun violence prevention groups, and individuals who formerly belonged to violent hate groups that now work to prevent violence, Jean-Pierre said, without providing specific names.  

The White House typically waits until the day of any given event to offer the names of participants.  

Biden has consistently cited the car attack at a 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., as motivating him to run again for president in 2020.  

He pledged on the campaign trail to work to bridge divides in America and heal “the soul of the nation,” a task that has proven immensely difficult given the deep political polarization in the country.  

The “great replacement” theory cited by the shooter in Buffalo earlier this year has been echoed by prominent figures on the right. 

Jean-Pierre said that September’s summit will “present an important opportunity for Americans of all races, religions, regions, political affiliations, and walks of life” to work together to counter hate-fueled violence.  

Source: TEST FEED1

Hogan: Maryland GOP governor candidate not 'mentally stable'

Republican Gov. Larry Hogan (Md.) said this week that the GOP nominee running to replace him is not “mentally stable.”

“He’s not, in my opinion, mentally stable,” Hogan said of candidate Dan Cox while doing an interview on WGMD radio, according to The Washington Post.

Hogan added: “He wanted to hang my friend, Mike Pence, and took three busloads of people to the Capitol.”

Trump-endorsed Cox last year called former Vice President Mike Pence a “traitor” amid the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, where the gubernatorial candidate was present.

Cox apologized for that language during a legislative ethics inquiry, according to the Post.

Hogan, who called Cox a “nut” with “no chance whatsoever” of winning Maryland’s gubernatorial election in November, has previously referred to the candidate as a “QAnon whack job.”

“​​Hogan has a problem with telling the truth and mounting smear antics,” Cox said in response to Hogan, whom he has previously sued for placing COVID-19 restrictions on Mayland, according to the Post.

Cox also attempted to impeach Hogan this year over those restrictions, among other actions.

The delegate defeated fellow Republican Kelly Schulz, endorsed by Hogan, in the primary for governor last month.

Hogan blamed Cox’s victory over Schulz on “collusion between Trump and the Democrats” in July, claiming that the candidate’s win was influenced by ads organized by the Democratic Governors Association.

Democrats have come under fire over during the primary election cycle for aiding far-right candidates endorsed by Trump in their wins over more moderate Republicans, presumably so that Democrats will have a better chance at beating those candidates in November.

Source: TEST FEED1