Harris and Trump campaign in Michigan in final sprint to election

Former President Donald Trump sat for a wide-ranging on-set interview on “Fox and Friends” on Friday morning, just days after his rival Vice President Kamala Harris sat down for her first interview as the Democratic presidential nominee with the conservative network.

Asked about whether he expects to get more women, like his wife Melania and daughter Ivanka, as well as former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, on the campaign trail to help him appeal to women voters, Trump answered, “I think I do very well with women. And I think it’s all nonsense. I see the polls, and we do well.”

A pre-taped town hall that Trump did with a female audience in Georgia aired on Fox on Thursday. Fox News did not disclose that the female audience it selected for the event was packed with local Republican supporters and the network edited its broadcast to remove some of their vocal advocacy of Trump.

“Without abortion, the women love me now. They like me anyway, because what I’ve done is so good, I’ve taken this issue out of the federal government and put it back to the states where they’re voting,” he continued, again touting his appointment of Supreme Court justices who overturned federal abortion protections.

Trump said “a lot of the people” who attended the Al Smith dinner in New York on Thursday night would be part of his potential future cabinet, saying “I put him in, right?” when asked by a Fox host about Cardinal Timothy Dolan.

Pressed again on roles in a potential administration, Trump said, “look, I think it’s a little bit early. I have great people at every position.”

Asked about former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who endorsed him this summer, Trump answered, “he’s going to be a part of it.”

The show also played a clip of a segment that will air on Monday of Trump’s visit to a barbershop in the Bronx on Thursday. He told the people there “you guys are the same as me,” adding, “we were born the same way. I grew up in Queens and all of that.” This comes as both Trump and Harris’ campaigns are trying to appeal to Black male voters.

Former President Donald Trump said Friday morning that Fox News staffers helped him write his speech at the Al Smith charity dinner in New York City on Thursday evening.

Trump made the comment during an interview on “Fox and Friends.” Host Steve Doocy said a lot of Democrats historically “turn to the guys from Saturday Night Live or the Tonight Show; they write all their material” before asking Trump who helped write his speech.

“I had a lot of people, a couple people from Fox actually, I shouldn’t say that. But they wrote some jokes. For the most part I didn’t like any of them,” Trump said to laughter from the co-hosts.

A Fox News spokesperson did not immediately respond to a CNN request for comment.

During his speech Thursday night to the friendly Catholic charity crowd, Trump disparaged Vice President Kamala Harris’ intelligence, insulted her family, and complained about how badly he was treated during his presidency, drawing occasional cheers and some laughs.

While many Fox News personalities are openly pro-Trump, using their television platforms to promote the former president and his narratives, it’s rare to see one of them participate in a formal way with the campaign. But it wouldn’t be the first time. In 2018, host Sean Hannity campaigned with Trump ahead of the midterm elections.

When Vice President Kamala Harris stepped in front of reporters on Thursday to deliver a statement about the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the moment was a product of some careful choreography.

Harris was the first US official to say anything on camera about the monumental occasion. But President Biden, who was aboard Air Force One jetting toward Germany, had drafted a paper statement with his team hailing Sinwar’s death and calling for renewed ceasefire talks.

Biden’s statement hit inboxes at 2:10 p.m. ET. Harris walked out to cameras five minutes later. The moment was carefully coordinated between aides to the president and vice president.

The one-two step was a glimpse into the methodical approach to the conflict taken by Harris, who has been under scrutiny for her approach to the war but unwilling to break from Biden’s strategy.

For Harris, the complicated politics of the Middle East are unlikely to be made much easier by Sinwar’s demise. Standing outside of the campaign event in Wisconsin where she was speaking Thursday, demonstrators kept up their pro-Palestinian chants.

And as she headed to Michigan a day later for a three-stop swing, the fraught politics were likely to continue dogging her. The Israel war has proven a complicating factor as the vice president looks for votes among the state’s large Arab and Muslim-American population in the Detroit metro area.

Many in that community have said they cannot vote for Harris, angry over the Biden administration’s largely unequivocal support for Israel and refusal to limit most weapons to the country.

Despite the swell of political pressure, Harris has resisted describing how she might approach the conflict differently. She has instead pointed instead to the nascent ceasefire and hostage negotiations, which have been stalled for weeks.

A Republican Jewish group went up with a presidential campaign ad Friday, first airing in New York City, condemning rising antisemitism amid fallout from Israel’s ongoing military operations in the Middle East after the October 7th attacks, and promoting former President Donald Trump’s reelection.

The ad features four women in a diner sharing their misgivings about developments overseas and politics at home, referencing the October 7th attack on Israel, campus protests, and the 2024 presidential election.

“Did you watch the news lately? Israel is under attack, antisemitism like I never thought I would see,” says one of the women featured in the ad.

“Did you hear about Samantha’s boy, Max?” asks another woman. “He got spit on, just walking at Penn.” Another responds, “I mean, that’s scary.”

The conversation turns to the 2024 election, and one of the women asks, “What about Kamala?” Her friend responds, “Busy defending the squad,” referencing the group of progressive House members who have been outspoken critics of Israel’s military conduct. “Oy vey,” another one of the women says.

More context: RJC Victory Fund’s ad bookings in New York are minimal, just $19,000 for the opening weeks of October, but the group has bought a total of $6.5 million worth of ad time since it began advertising for the presidential race in late September.

RJC Victory Fund currently has about $3 million in bookings remaining through Election Day, with reservations between $400,000 and $600,000 in several key swing states including Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada and Michigan.

Former President Donald Trump on Friday said he would consider calling his former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, who ran against him in the Republican presidential primary.

Trump then pivoted to pointing out his dominance over the GOP primary field, saying, “but let me just tell you Nikki Haley and I fought, and I beat her by 50, 60, 90 points. I beat her in her own state by numbers that nobody’s ever been beaten by.”

He said while “everybody keeps saying” Haley should campaign for him, “they don’t say get Ron, and Ron did very well,” referring to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

“I like Nikki…Nikki, I don’t think should have done what she did, and that’s fine that she did it,” he said, before again highlighting his defeat of Haley in the primary and adding “they say oh when is Nikki coming back in. Nikki is in. Nikki is helping us already.”

More about the Trump-Haley relationship: Haley said in late May that she is voting for Trump, and got a speaking slot at the Republican National Convention in July. CNN reported this week that Haley is lending her voice to support Trump in the closing weeks of the campaign in a robocall that acknowledges her past disagreements with the former president but emphasizes the stakes of the upcoming election.

Vice President Kamala Harris will join the Obamas for get-out-the-vote events in the battleground states of Georgia and Michigan next week, marking the first time she’s hitting the trail with either former President Barack Obama or Michelle Obama, according to a senior campaign official.

As Election Day nears, campaign advisers are turning their focus to voter turnout, bringing in surrogates to mobilize voters in critical states.

Next Thursday, Harris will appear with former President Obama in Georgia, where early voting has begun. And later in the week, she’ll head to Michigan to appear with Michelle Obama to mark the first day of voting in the state. Next Saturday’s event will also mark Michelle Obama’s first time on the trail for the Harris-Walz campaign.

Obama and Harris have been acquainted for 20 years. The energy fueling her candidacy and thunderous crowds chanting her name have drawn comparisons to Obama’s history-making 2008 run.

Last week, Obama admonished Black men who are hesitating to back Harris, telling them it’s “not acceptable” to sit out this election and suggesting they might be reluctant to vote for the vice president because she’s a woman.

As former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris campaign in Michigan on Friday, here’s a look into the full schedule of the 2024 candidates:

Trump did an interview on Fox News’ “Fox and Friends” this morning. He will participate in a community roundtable hosted by “Building America’s Future” at 5 p.m. ET. Later, he will speak at a 7 p.m. ET rally in Detroit, Michigan.

Harris will speak at Michigan campaign events in Grand Rapids and in Lansing this afternoon. In Lansing, Harris is expected to meet union workers. Harris will end the day with a rally in Oakland County.

Senator JD Vance does not have any public events scheduled for Friday. Vance told a crowd in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Thursday that he plans to be off the trail on Friday to attend his cousin’s wedding.

Governor Tim Walz also does not have any public events scheduled for Friday. He is expected to remain in St. Paul, Minnesota, for internal meetings.

The Harris campaign on Friday released a new ad targeting Latino voters featuring singer and songwriter Marc Anthony as it seeks to court the key demographic ahead of Election Day.

In the ad, titled “Recuerdo,” Anthony details why he supports Vice President Harris as he criticizes Donald Trump for his record for handling Hurricane Maria and his rhetoric toward the Latino community.

“I was not surprised because I also remember he launched his campaign by calling Latinos “criminals” and “rapists. He told us what he’ll do. He’ll separate children from their families, and threaten to use the Army to do it,” he continued.

In the 60-second slot, Anthony emphasized that the election “goes way beyond political parties.”

“Let’s remember what the United States represents and stands for: UNITED. Regardless of where we’re from…That’s why I support Kamala Harris for President,” he said.

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris chats with the hosts during a commercial break at The View on Tuesday, October 8, in New York.

The leading pro-Trump super PAC launched a pair of new TV ads Friday, one slamming Kamala Harris for her comments on “The View” last week that have also been picked up by the campaign, the other echoing sustained GOP attacks on Harris’ record in law enforcement.

The ad seized on Harris’ answer when she was asked by host Sunny Hostin what she would have done differently than President Joe Biden. Harris answered, “There is not a thing that comes to mind.” It’s the second ad this week that has gone up, with the Trump campaign launching its own version featuring the clip days ago, and quickly putting millions behind it.

The new ad from MAGA Inc., the super PAC, follows the clip with a narrator saying that “Kamala wouldn’t change a thing even though her radical agenda costs American lives,” and ticking through a list of attacks focused on immigration and crime.

Harris’ answer on “The View” was immediately picked up by GOP critics, eager to cement the link between the vice president and the outgoing incumbent, with Biden’s approval rating stuck underwater.

The second new TV ad that MAGA Inc. launched on Friday also reflects pro-Trump advertisers’ sustained focus on immigration and crime, which have been top issues in GOP campaign ads throughout the year. The ad hammers Harris’ record as California Attorney General, which has been repeatedly criticized by Trump allies, with stark warnings about sex offenders and criminals. “Don’t make America Kamala’s next victim,” the ad closes.

Former President Donald Trump is lying about a whole bunch of topics in the final month of the presidential election. But he is lying most frequently, by far, about immigration.

Trump’s October rally speeches and interviews have featured a dizzying barrage of false claims on the subject – about immigrants and crime, about Vice President Kamala Harris’ record on immigration policy, about Trump’s own record on immigration policy and about how foreign countries are supposedly “dumping” their most unwanted citizens into the US.

Here is a fact check of some of the distinct false claims he has made about immigration in the last two weeks alone, some of which he has repeated over and over:

Harris’ border role:

Harris’ border visits:

Harris’ approach to the border:

Read more about Trump’s claims here.

Vice President Kamala Harris will continue to campaign across Blue Wall states with three stops in Michigan on Friday, according to a campaign official.

Harris will begin the day with a “Fall Fest” rally where she will deliver remarks at Riverside Park in Grand Rapids. She will be joined by others, including Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow and Rep. Hillary Scholten.

The vice president will then head to Lansing to meet union workers and deliver remarks at a local union hall, where she is expected to emphasize that she will fight to protect American jobs, Michigan’s auto industry and American manufacturing if elected, as she draws contrast with former President Donald Trump.

Harris will end her day with a rally in Oakland County.

This weekend: On Saturday, Harris will mark the first day of early voting in Detroit by meeting with faith leaders in the area. She will also give brief remarks at a Get Out the Vote event where Harris-Walz supporters will gather before marching to the polls to vote.

Sam Brown, left, and Sen. Jacky Rosen shake hands before a debate on Thursday, October 17, in Las Vegas.

Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada and her GOP challenger Sam Brown faced off on Thursday in their only debate for a pivotal Senate seat.

Here are some of the topics they discussed:

Economy: The candidates were asked about the one specific policy they’d support to lower costs for consumers. Rosen said she would work to lower housing costs and promoted her legislation, the HOME Act, which would direct the federal government to investigate price gouging of residential rental and sale prices. On how she’d lower grocery prices, Rosen said that she’s working with the Federal Trade Commission to hold Kroger to account in its plans to acquire Albertsons.

Brown said the US needs to prioritize cheaper and more efficient energy, arguing that it will drive down costs. He then accused Rosen and Harris of driving up costs with prioritizing energy policies that reward green energy projects.

The candidates were asked about their parties’ standard bearers’ proposals to eliminate tax on workers’ tips and who should qualify for this policy.

“If you’re receiving tips, then you ought to be– not have to pay taxes on those tips,” said Brown. Rosen said that they should start with servers, bartenders and waitresses and address the sub-minimum wage, then we “can also have a discussion and analysis, and see if there other industries that also work heavily in tip.”

Immigration: Brown was pressed on whether he agrees with mass deportations as former President Donald Trump has promised on the campaign trail, and acknowledged it’s a “very big logistical undertaking.”

Rosen did not directly answer whether she believed that the next US president should keep some of the Trump administration immigration policies that were brought back by the Biden administration. She said that the first thing she’d pass is the bipartisan border security agreement that was blocked in Congress earlier this year.

She then criticized Trump’s plans for mass deportations, saying, “How would that happen? Mass deportations? Who would get caught in that? How many innocent people would get rounded up?”

Brown asked to clarify stance on Yucca Mountain: Brown insisted that he hasn’t change his position on the Yucca Mountain nuclear depository when asked about his comments back in 2022 where he suggested that it could be “an incredible opportunity” and another source of revenue for Nevada.

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump holds a town hall in Oaks, Pennsylvania, on October 14.

Former President Donald Trump will hold a town hall in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on Sunday and a rally in Greenville, North Carolina, on Monday.

The former president and Vice President Kamala Harris have been criss-crossing key battleground states as Election Day quickly approaches

Local residents line up to enter a polling site on the first day of early in-person voting in Asheville, North Carolina, on October 17.

The executive director of North Carolina’s election board said early voting began on Thursday with “terrific turnout statewide.”

Executive Director Karen Brinson Bell became teary-eyed and overcome with emotion as she discussed the start of early voting at a news conference in western North Carolina, where some have feared turnout could drop this election due to damage from Hurricane Helene.

The North Carolina State Board of Elections said there were 209,644 early voting ballots as of Thursday afternoon.

Bell said early voting is now underway in all 100 of North Carolina’s counties, which includes 76 early voting sites — down from 80 that were originally planned — in the 25 counties in a designated disaster area. She said the voting sites are not temporary structures but rather brick-and-motor buildings with power, though not necessarily running water.

She said the Postal Service has reduced the number of undeliverable addresses “considerably,” though acknowledged that some people in affected communities may still have to walk to get their ballots or travel to their polling places.

She commended workers who have helped restore power, cell service and infrastructure in time for early voting.

Corinne Duncan, director of elections in Buncombe County, home to Asheville, which sustained heavy damage, said her county is caught up on absentee-ballot processing and has a “strong” plan for early voting. She said about two-thirds of poll workers who had been trained before the storm to serve during early voting are still able to work.

CNN’s Sara Murray contributed reporting to this post.