List of All Articles with Tag 'americas'

Georgia’s Supreme Court on Monday dismissed an attempt from Donald Trump to shut down key parts of a probe from state officials investigating him for potential interference in the 2020 election. The high court found in a unanimous ruling that the former president hadn’t shown the kind of “extraordinary circumstances” that would require the Georgia Supreme Court to intervene in the case and toss out key portions of evidence. “(Trump) has not shown that this case presents one of those extremely rare circumstances in which this Court’s original jurisdiction should be invoked, and therefore, the petition is dismissed,” the ruling states. The judges also were not persuaded by Mr Trump’s arguments that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be removed from the case. On 11 July, a new set of grand jurors were sworn in for the long-running investigation who could potentially be the ones to approve an indictment against the former president. Since February 2021, officials in Fulton County have been investigating the conduct of Mr Trump and his allies in the state during the hotly contested 2020 election, where Joe Biden narrowly carried the state. The investigation has focused on an infamous 2 January, 2021, call Mr Trump placed to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, urging the top official to “find” enough votes for him to overturn his defeat in the state, but has expanded to cover a wide-ranging influence campaign Mr Trump and his allies exerted in Georgia. Another key area of focus is a December 2020 plot, allegedly directed by Trump campaign officials and potentially the former president himself, to organize a slate of unauthorised Republican electors to cast the state’s Electoral College votes, rather than the Democratic slate Georgia voters had selected. The group of false electors included the chair of the Georgia GOP and Republican members of the state legislature. They’ve defended their efforts as a back-up in case the original election results were tossed out in court. Mr Trump has denied wrongdoing. Ms Willis has suggested a decision on charges against Mr Trump could come as soon as August. Charges in Georgia would join the other unprecedented sanctions against the former president, including felony charges in New York for a hush money scheme involving a porn star and federal charges against Mr Trump for his alleged mishandling of classified documents. Read More Trump news – live: Manchin run could help Trump as ex-president eyes two of his GOP 2024 rivals for VP Citing Trump case, Pentagon leak suspect Teixeira urges judge to release him while he awaits trial Senior ex-intelligence official warns second Trump term could fatally destabilise US, new book says Georgia's top court rejects Trump attempt to thwart prosecutor in 2020 election investigation 9th Circuit denies bid by environmentalists and tribes to block Nevada lithium mine Trump praises judge overseeing classified documents case: ‘She loves our country’

The husband of the viral “pink beret” protester at the Capitol riot has been identified and arrested. Spencer Geller was photographed wearing a red Maga hat and a puffy black coat and carrying a big blue flag on 6 January alongside the “pink beret” rioter, according to an FBI affidavit. Mr Geller “can be seen pushing bike racks into a line of officers during the time of the initial breach on the West side of the U.S. Capitol,” the affidavit said. After the breach, the affidavit continued, he can be seen “at various other points within the restricted area” at the Capitol building, accompanied by photographs of his movements. “He was one of the first individuals to arrive at the West Plaza,” the FBI wrote. Mr Geller was previously referred to as #CaliGreat. The “pink beret” rioter was previously identified as Jennifer Vargas Geller. Photos of her went viral after the FBI tweeted them out asking for tips in April. Mrs Geller’s ex reported her to the FBI in a complaint in May, the document said, and she was charged with multiple counts. The affidavit also said that the tipster believed that the two are now married and may have been travelling to Japan. Mr Geller also faces multiple counts, according to the affidavit, which was dated 13 July. Read More Capitol riot suspect arrested near Barack Obama's home indicted on firearms charges Special counsel issues criminal warning to Trump Organization employee over alleged obstruction, report says FBI director shoots down ‘ludicrous’ January 6 conspiracy theory

Former President Donald Trump praised a judge he appointed as he awaits to hear about his request to delay the trial in the classified documents case until after the 2024 election. “I know it’s a very highly respected judge. A very smart judge, and a very strong judge,” Mr Trump said on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures, referring to federal Judge Aileen Cannon. Judge Cannon also presided over the court proceedings surrounding the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago. Host Maria Bartiromo pointed out that the federal judge was appointed by Mr Trump. He replied, “I did, and I’m very proud to have appointed her.” “But she’s very smart and very strong, and loves our country,” the former president continued. “We need judges that love our country so they do the right thing.” Attorneys for Mr Trump — and his co-defendent Walt Nauta — wrote in a filing on Monday: “Proceeding to trial during the pendency of a Presidential election cycle wherein opposing candidates are effectively (if not literally) directly adverse to one another in this action will create extraordinary challenges in the jury selection process and limit the Defendants’ ability to secure a fair and impartial adjudication.” Last month Mr Trump pleaded not guilty to the 37 count federal indictment in the classified documents case, which is led by Special Counsel Jack Smith. Judge Cannon was criticised last year when she issued what many legal experts saw as an unusually broad decision to appoint a “special master” to review the documents seized by the FBI from Mr Trump’s home. She temporarily barred federal agents and prosecutors from reviewing a batch of classified documents seized during the search. However, her order was ultimately thrown out in a scathing opinion by a federal appeals court, which found she had overstepped. While Mr Trump’s supporters had cheered her ruling as a check on what they viewed as a politically motivated probe, others accused her of trying to help the former president. With reporting from the Associated Press Read More Is DeSantis campaign dead in the water? The money says yes Donald Trump Jr says he wouldn’t have got away with having cocaine at White House: ‘Luckily it’s not my thing’ Fox News anchor and Trump superfan Maria Bartiromo shocks by pushing back on ex-president: ‘You didn’t drain the swamp’

Progressive Action Fund launched a new ad attacking crackdowns on reproductive rights ahead of an Ohio ballot measure, featuring an elderly Republican congressman in a couple’s bedroom. The ad begins with a sex scene in which a woman asks, “Do you have a condom?” The man reaches for the condom in a bedside table drawer, and another suit-covered arm reaches for it as well, shocking the couple. “Sorry, you can’t use those,” says an older man, clad in a black suit and red tie, while standing beside the bed. The woman asks who he is. “I’m your Republican congressman. Now that we’re in charge, we’re banning birth control,” he says. “This is our decision, not yours,” the woman replies, adding, “Get out of our bedroom!” The Republican congressman says eerily, “I won the last election, I’m not going anywhere. I’m just gonna watch and make sure you don’t do anything illegal.” The ad then ends with a frame of the Republican congressman’s face next to text that reads: “Keep republicans out of your bedroom.” It urges voters to “vote no” on 8 August, in reference to State Issue 1, which would require proposed amendments to Ohio’s constitution “receive the approval of at least 60 per cent of eligible voters voting on the proposed amendment.” If passed, State Issue 1 would replace a simple majority requirement. The argument for Issue 1 states that it “protects our Constitution from deep-pocketed, out-of-state interests,” while the argument against it states that “it takes away our freedom by undermining the sacred principle of ‘one person, one vote’ and destroys majority rule in Ohio.” A number of people have said the amendment is all about preventing abortion access. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose disagreed, “Some people say this is all about abortion.” Instead, he said, it was about protecting the state from special interest groups: “Well, you know what, I’m pro-life. I think many of you are as well. This is 100% about keeping a radical pro-abortion amendment out of our constitution. The left wants to jam it in there this coming November.” “If you live in Ohio, watch this steamy and horrifying ad and vote against raising the number for ballot initiatives to pass to 60%,” Jill Wine-Banks tweeted. Read More Ohio's Republican secretary of state, Frank LaRose, launches his campaign for US Senate Watchdog calls for House committee to uninvite RFK Jr. after his comments are blasted as antisemitic Ohio police officers struggle to get mayonnaise jar off raccoon’s head in CCTV footage Unhealthy air quality lingers across parts of U.S. from drifting Canadian wildfire smoke Watchdog calls for House committee to uninvite RFK Jr. after his comments are blasted as antisemitic Ohio's Republican secretary of state, Frank LaRose, launches his campaign for US Senate

Donald Trump is considering his Republican 2024 rivals as potential running mates should he win the GOP nomination. The former president told Fox News on Sunday that his running mate could “possibly” be among those in the 2024 field. He said that Vivek Ramaswamy has “done a very good job” and Senator Tim Scott is a “very good guy” but stopped short of saying who he would pick if the time came. Over the weekend, Mr Trump headlined the first of a two-day conference hosted by right-wing political activist group Turning Point USA alongside far-right lawmakers, candidates and pundits, including Tucker Carlson and Matt Gaetz. In his rambling Saturday night address condemned investigations and criminal indictments against him while telling Ron DeSantis to “get home to Florida,” accusing his rival for the Republican nomination for president of neglecting the governor’s office. Meanwhile, Senator Joe Manchin is continuing to feed speculation about his political future by appearing at an event with No Labels as he weighs whether to make a third-party run for president. Some Democrats fear a No Labels-backed candidacy would siphon votes away from President Joe Biden and enable Mr Trump to win another term as president. Read More Donald Trump brands US a ‘third-world hellhole’ run by ‘perverts’ and ‘thugs’ Ron DeSantis campaign fires staff as Florida governor trails Trump in the polls Fundraising takeaways: Trump and DeSantis in their own tier as Pence and other Republicans struggle RFK Jr revives antisemitic conspiracy theory that Covid-19 was ‘ethnically targeted’ to spare Jewish people

President Joe Biden on Monday invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to meet with him in the U.S. this fall, the White House said, even as he expressed ongoing concern about Netanyahu's controversial plans to overhaul his country's judicial system. Monday's phone conversation between the U.S. and Israeli leaders came one day before Israel's figurehead president Isaac Herzog is set to visit to the White House and as Netanyahu's government pushes forward with the judicial changes that have sparked widespread protest in Israel. The Biden administration declined to say whether Biden would host Netanyahu at the White House — as the Israeli leader has hoped — or in New York on the margins of the U.N. General Assembly. White House visits are typically standard protocol for Israeli prime ministers, and the delay in Netanyahu receiving one has become an issue in Israel, with opponents citing it as a reflection of deteriorating relations with the U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Biden again on Monday expressed concern to Netanyahu over the judicial plan — as he did when they last spoke earlier this year — and urged the “broadest possible consensus” over the legislation that has been pushed by Netanyahu and his hard-line coalition. Netanyahu and his allies, a collection of ultra-Orthodox and ultranationalist parties, say the plan is needed to rein in the powers of unelected judges. Opponents say the plan will destroy Israel’s fragile system of checks and balances and move the country toward authoritarian rule. Kirby said Biden also expressed his “ironclad, unwavering commitment” to Israel's security and that the two leaders discussed Iran's nuclear program and regional security issues. Biden also “expressed concern” over Israel's continued settlement growth in the West Bank and urged Israel to take steps to preserve the viability of a two state solution with Palestinians. Biden, Kirby said, also welcomed steps by the Palestinian Authority to reassert security control in Jenin and other areas of the West Bank and moves by Israel and Palestinians to move toward another round of direct talks. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide

The White House on Monday condemned anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F Kennedy Jr’s claim that the virus which causes Covid-19 was somehow engineered to target white and Black people while sparing Asians and Jews of Eastern European descent as an example of antisemitism that puts Americans at risk. During a press event in New York City on 11 July, Mr Kennedy baselessly stated that “there is an argument to be made” that the disease is “ethnically targeted” and claimed that the Sars-CoV-2 virus was “targeted to attack Cucasians and Black people” even as “those who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese”. Mr Kennedy later falsely claimed that he had made the remarks at an off-the-record event and attacked the New York Post who had reported on his offensive comments, accusing him of trying to “to discredit [him] as a crank — and by association, to discredit revelations of genuine corruption and collusion.” His comments were widely condemned by numerous Jewish groups including the Anti-Defamation League, which called them “deeply offensive” pointed out that they “feed into sinophobic and antisemitic conspiracy theories”. Speaking at the White House daily press briefing on Monday, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to respond to Mr Kennedy directly, citing his status as a 2024 presidential candidate. But Ms Jean-Pierre said the anti-vaccine activist’s comments were insensitive to the “countless” American families with empty seats at the dinner table because they’ve lost people to the virus since it began spreading across the globe in March 2020. Continuing, Ms Jean-Pierre said the claims Mr Kennedy made on a tape which was published by The New York Post were “false” as well as “vile,” and said they “put our fellow Americans in danger”. “if you think about the racist and antisemitic conspiracy theories that come out of saying those types of things, it’s an attack on our fellow citizens, our fellow Americans and so it is important that we ... speak out when we hear those claims made more broadly,” she said. “This President and this whole administration is going to stand against ... those false claims against ... Asian Americans, against Jewish Americans,” she said. “We’re going to continue to speak out and we believe ... it’s important to protect the dignity of our fellow Americans”. Read More RFK Jr revives antisemitic conspiracy theory that Covid-19 was ‘ethnically targeted’ to spare Jewish people RFK Jr press dinner screaming match over climate crisis ends with columnist launching his own natural gas Robert F Kennedy Jr calls interviewer ‘unfair’ for spelling out his laundry list of conspiracy theories Editor apologises for publishing RFK Jr anti-vaxx screed: ‘I should have been fired’

Former White House resident Donald Trump Jr has weighed in after the Secret Service closed its investigation into the discovery of cocaine in the building - suggesting he would not have “gotten away with that”. The eldest son of former president Donald Trump made the comments at the Turning Point Action Conference on Sunday, when he assured the crowd that snorting cocaine was not his “thing”. “My guys who I stayed in touch with — many of them just dear friends — they’re like, ‘Hey dude, there’s no way you would’ve gotten away with that,’” he animatedly told the crowd. “I go, ‘I know!’ Luckily, I don’t snort, er, cocaine! It’s just not my thing.” Mr Trump has previously denied being a drug user. On his Triggered podcast earlier this year, he described to former Trump White House official Kash Patel the price of his getting involved in politics, in the process making a series of unsubstantiated claims about President Biden’s son Hunter. “I look at what they called me: a traitor,” Mr Trump said. “Adam Schiff wanted to try me for treason, a crime punishable by death, but Hunter Biden can take a billion from China, work for Ukraine oligarchs, work for Russian oligarchs, money launder, be paid in diamonds off the books, not declare anything in taxes, drop guns in dumpsters across from high schools, and it’s like, ‘He’s an upstanding human being. And then I give an impassioned speech, and it’s ‘Don Jr is on coke.’” A small amount of cocaine (around .007oz – enough for a misdemeanour charge) – was discovered in the White House, but the Secret Service said their investigation would have involved 500 people, not a short enough list of suspects to draw any concrete conclusions. However the lack of investigation has lef to criticisms levelled at President Joe Biden for not doing enough to find the culprit, as well as at White House staff in general. Conservative pundits have speculated – without evidence – that the drug may have belonged to the president’s son, Hunter Biden, who is a recovering drug addict. Former President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social: “Despite all of the cameras pointing directly at the ‘scene of the crime,’ and the greatest forensics anywhere in the World, they just can’t figure it out? They know the answer, and so does everyone else!” He subsequently took to calling President Biden a “crackhead”. Read More ‘Don Jr is on coke’: Trump’s son mocks accusations of drug use over his ‘impassioned’ speeches Trump finally reveals how he thinks he could end Russia’s war in Ukraine in a day Judge in Trump documents case under the spotlight after case intensifies following controversial ruling Rudy Giuliani sparks backlash with bizarre appearance at Gilgo Beach murder suspect’s home Donald Trump brands US a ‘third-world hellhole’ run by ‘perverts’ and ‘thugs’ ‘Stoned’ DeSantis canvasser’s lewd rant caught on doorbell camera as 2024 campaign rushes to cut costs

The former number two official in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence has offered a dire prediction about America’s future should Donald Trump or another like-minded Republican succeed in winning next year’s presidential election, according to a new book by a former Trump administration homeland security aide. In Blowback, author Miles Taylor recounts an October 2020 conversation he had with Sue Gordon, a 25-year US intelligence community veteran who served as the Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence from 2017 to 2019, shortly after news broke that the FBI had disrupted a plot by Michigan-based right-wing extremists to kidnap Wolverine State governor Gretchen Whitmer. According to a copy of the book obtained by The Independent ahead of its Tuesday release, Taylor recalls how the news of the kidnapping plot prompted him to telephone Ms Gordon, who he says spent “decades” at the CIA monitoring foreign governments for signs of instability, and ask the former deputy DNI how America’s “democratic stability” would be impacted by a second term in the White House for Mr Trump or a “Maga successor”. Taylor said Ms Gordon’s reply came “in the language of a seasoned intelligence analyst” who speaks “based on data from sources in the field and the uncertainty level of information they don’t have”. He added that she told him how she would “assess with ‘low confidence’ that the United States reaches its three hundredth birthday” — the projected 2076 tricentennial anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence from Great Britain — in “any recognisable form”. “People don’t trust government institutions anymore or each other, and when the world gets tumultuous, they’re more open to authoritarianism,” she said. Continuing, Taylor writes that Ms Gordon told him her reason for pessimism about the long-term viability of the US as a functioning democracy stems from the follow-on effects of four more years of Donald Trump — or someone acting with the same malevolence towards governmental institutions — atop the US executive branch. He said she told him that she does not believe a “Next Trump” would successfully smash through “every democratic guardrail,” but would “stoke unprecedented division and set off a slow turn towards despotism” in the US by “attempting” to further erode democratic norms and bring nominally independent institutions under his or her thumb. “That process can take decades to unfold. If history is any guide, though, it might come suddenly to a head, with the literal pull of a trigger — and the odds of that happening in the not-too-distant future are historically high,” he wrote. Taylor, who was chief of staff at the Trump-era Department of Homeland Security for the first three years of Mr Trump’s administration but is better known as the formerly anonymous author of a New York Times op-ed about “resistance” to the then-president inside his own government, told The Independent in a phone interview that he fears a repeat of the January 6 attack on the Capitol — but worse — should Mr Trump lose next year’s presidential election. Echoing Ms Gordon’s prediction of a long-term breakdown of the American democratic system, Taylor said the possibility of “low-level civil conflict” touched off by Mr Trump or another Republican is “higher now than it even was in that post election period in 2020”. “The muscle memory for those extremist movements has now been solidified. The networks are closer. And ... since that time, many more people, otherwise kind of normal people in small town America, have really taken the stolen election lies, QAnon, and great replacement theory as gospel, and the polling shows that a majority of your everyday Republicans believe those lies,” he said. “Add to that the fact that the country is more armed now than at any point in its history ... it is a powder keg.” Taylor added that his fears of violence go beyond a repeat of what happened in Washington nearly three years ago, pointing to the aborted plot against Ms Whitmer, the Michigan governor, as an example of what could be in store for the future. He told The Independent that he feels “the conditions are very ripe” in the US for “that sort of low-level conflict” in many parts of the country. “This is not just a Washington, DC thing — I really think we could see something a good deal worse, and part of that could also happen if a Trump or a savvier successor is reelected. And that misuse of the justice system could foment that even more,” he said. Read More Man arrested near Obama home threatened other prominent lawmakers, officials say Three men jailed for at least seven years over plot to kidnap Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer DoJ dragged feet over including Trump in Jan 6 probe over fears of appearing biased, report says Oath Keepers leader issues warning to Trump amid ex-president’s legal woes White House blasts Marjorie Taylor Greene’s criticism of efforts to aid US families GOP presidential hopeful lists conservative pool of Supreme Court picks Trump finally reveals how he thinks he could end Russia’s war in Ukraine in a day

After an ongoing feud between Republican Reps Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert, a Republican lawmaker said the standoff between the two Congress members could result in a fistfight. “A fistfight could break out at any moment,” Republican Tennessee Rep Tim Burchett told The Daily Beast. Mr Burchett told the publication that he was serious, and added he was enjoying the Republicans’ rivalry as a “professional wrestling fan.” He told the outlet, “I am friends with both of them. It’s entertaining to think that a fistfight could break out at any movement. I kind of dig that.” The Tennessee Republican isn’t alone in his stance. Another GOP lawmaker close to both Reps Greene and Boebert, who spoke anonymously, told the outlet: “You can’t have too many of these rifts for too long.” Arizona Republican Congressman Paul Gosar called the battle a “two-way sword” to The Daily Beast. He continued, “I just think that whatever is there, could be utilized both ways,” he said, adding that “people make decisions that they have to work and live by, and you kind of hate being in their shoes.” The conflict between the congresswomen came to a head recently when Ms Greene was kicked out of the Freedom Caucus after she called Ms Boebert “a little b****.” The Georgia Republican claimed last week that she didn’t know why she was booted from the Freedom Caucus. She dismissed the move, saying that she didn’t “have time for the drama club.” Read More Marjorie Taylor Greene says she didn’t know she was kicked out of the Freedom Caucus The Freedom Caucus booting Marjorie Taylor Greene looks worse for them than it does for her Marjorie Taylor Greene ousted from House Freedom Caucus following fight with Lauren Boebert

Greg Abbott has been branded “one of the dumbest people in the country” by the author of a satirical story about country music star Garth Brooks that was reshared by the Texas governor. Christopher Blair runs the parody website The Dunning-Kruger-Times, which posted the story that Mr Brooks had been booed off the stage at the 123rd Annual Texas Country Jamboree last month after calling his conservative fans “a**holes.” The entire story was made-up - but Mr Abbott didn’t seem to notice. “When I saw [Mr Abbott’s repost], I was besides myself with joy,” Mr Blair told The Guardian. “He’s one of the dumbest people in the country.” “As soon as I wrote the headline, I said to myself that it might be a little bit much,” Mr Blair said. “But it wasn’t.” The Texas governor had tweeted a link to the story on 25 June with the caption: “Garth Brooks Booed Off Stage at 123rd Annual Texas Country Jamboree. Go woke. Go broke.” “Garth called his conservative fans. ‘a**holes’ Good job Texas,” he added. His tweet seemed to refer to a question-and-answer session with the country singer last month in which he said his new bar in Nashville planned to “serve every brand of beer,” shutting down the idea that it wouldn’t serve Bud Light, following the conservative-led boycott of the beer brand. “Our thing is this: If you come into this house, love one another,” Mr Brooks said. “If you’re an a**hole, there are plenty of other places on lower Broadway to go.” The governor has since deleted his tweet, but reactions to the tweet are still up. Democratic Texas Congressman Greg Casar tweeted: “Gov Abbott just accidentally posted a satire article because he wants to hate on queer Texans and Garth Brooks so bad.” “The Texas Country Jamboree doesn’t exist. Hambriston, Texas is not real. And the Governor is not fit to tweet, much less govern,” he explained. Read More Greg Abbott mocked after falling for hoax story about Garth Brooks being booed off stage Garth Brooks commended for not bowing to anti-LGBT trolls and refusing to boycott Bud Light First Amendment group sues Texas Governor and others over the state's TikTok ban on official devices Wembymania set to hit Las Vegas, as Spurs rookie 'can't wait' for his NBA debut at Summer League Joe Manchin fuels speculation around third-party 2024 run with No Labels event George Santos repays himself $85K raised from lackluster reelection fundraising

Sen Joe Manchin is continuing to feed speculation about his political future by appearing at an event with No Labels as he weighs whether to make a third-party run for president. The West Virginia Democrat will appear at the event on Monday night in New Hampshire, which holds one of the first presidential nominating contests and is a crucial swing state in the general election. No Labels, a centrist organisation, has pushed for a third-party candidate for president. But some Democrats have feared that a No Labels-backed candidacy would siphon votes away from President Joe Biden and enable former president Donald Trump to win another term as president. In May, the organisation said it opposed Mr Trump’s candidacy. “We don’t believe there is any “equivalency” between President Biden and former President Trump, who is a uniquely divisive force in our politics and who sought to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power after he lost the 2020 election,” the statement written by co-chairmen former senator Joe Lieberman and Benjamin Chavis said. “But we reject the notion that No Labels’ 2024 presidential insurance project would inevitably help former President Trump’s electoral prospects if he were the Republican nominee.” Mr Manchin, a conservative Democrat, has not yet indicated whether he would stage a third-party run for president or seek another term in the Senate. Were he to run in 2024, he would be seeking another term with a Republican at the top of the presidential ticket. In 2020, Mr Trump won every county in West Virginia. Throughout the first two years of Mr Biden’s presidency when Democrats controlled both the House and the Senate, Mr Manchin served as the swing vote in a 50-50 Senate. His opposition to Build Back Better, Democrats’ proposed social spending bill, ultimately killed the legislation. Last year, he and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer resurrected talks that led to the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. But since then, Mr Manchin has criticised the Biden administration’s implementation of the law. West Virginia Gov Jim Justice, a former friend of Mr Manchin, announced his candidacy to challenge the incumbent. He is heavily favoured to face Mr Manchin, himself a former governor, in the general election. Mr Manchin has said he will decide his political future by the end of the year. Despite his indecision, he raised $424,485.52 in the most recent fundraising quarter from March to July and he has more than $10.7m in cash on hand. Read More Arizona Democrats file complaint against No Labels over donor secrecy Biden’s economy pitch: Campaign like Reagan while refuting Reagan’s policies