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More than a year out of office, former President Donald Trump is more popular than his Democrat successor and the entire congressional leadership.

According to the latest aggregate of favorability ratings by RealClearPolitics, Trump maintains a net-negative of 5.5 percentage points, far higher than Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has the lowest at a net-negative of nearly 32 points.

President Joe Biden is viewed unfavorably by an 8.5-point spread, followed by Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer at a nearly 14-point spread, Vice President Kamala Harris by a more than 14-point spread, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy by nearly 18 points, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi by 20 points.

The low ratings for incumbent leadership reflect a growing discontent among the anxious public, which has been left to cope with inflation at a four-decade high compounded by record gas prices as a consequence of Bidens war on fossil fuels.

While Democrats continue to campaign on climate change and racism as the most important issues heading into a historically hostile midterm cycle for the party in the White House, recent polling suggests voters priorities are fixated on the economy, particularly inflation.

According to a March survey from the Pew Research Center of more than 9,000 registered voters, the economy was rated the top issue among both political parties as very important in the upcoming contest. Issues surrounding climate change, racism, and coronavirus ranked at the bottom. Voting policies, health care, education, and energy policy rounded out the top five while the economy ranked first by far, with nearly 8 in 10 voters across parties in agreement.

Another March survey conducted by Harvard Universitys Center for American Political Studies with The Harris Poll found inflation as the top issue on the minds of nearly 2,000 registered voters. Thirty-two percent said price increases/inflation was the most important problem to face the country today, followed by economy at 27 percent, and immigration at 21 percent. Only about a third of those surveyed said America was on the right track, with nearly half reporting that their own personal finances are deteriorating.

Trump also topped the list of 18 political figures in the Harvard/Harris survey on favorability with a net-positive rating of 4 percentage points.

Aside from the obstacles presented by Democrats priorities, McConnells own unpopularity outside the Beltway can be seen in Republican Senate primaries, where challengers have pledged to oppose the Kentucky lawmakers re-election as conference leader. Not only do Democrats view the Republican Senate leader unfavorably, so do many in the GOP base.

McConnell has received flak for brokering with Democrats on major issues while offering legitimacy to the Houses sham Jan. 6 Committee. A changing party motivated by cultural issues over the Trump years which McConnell has been resistant to embrace has also called into question whether the 80-year-old incumbent leader is best suited to steer the GOP in its transition.

In Alaska, incumbent Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowskisprimary challenger, Kelly Tshibaka, who was endorsed by the state party, announced early in her candidacy that she supports a challenge to McConnells leadership.

Mitch McConnell has repeatedly bailed out Joe Biden, giving him gifts of Senate votes, which are the only things keeping the Biden administration on life support, Tshibaka said on Steve Bannons War Room podcast.

Frustrated by a weak-kneed, debt junkie, open-border RINO Republican, Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks, who is now seeking a seat in the upper chamber, has also vowed to oppose a McConnell re-election bid for leadership of the GOP Senate conference.

I will not vote for Mitch McConnell for leader, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that Republicans choose a conservative to be leader, Brooks said in a new ad last month.

Tristan Justice is the western correspondent for The Federalist. He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at Tristan@thefederalist.com.

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Donald Trump Is The Least Unpopular Leader In The Country - The Federalist

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) A Cumberland County man was indicted by a federal grand jury for threatening to kill President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, the indictment alleges that Mohamed Farah, a citizen of Somalia, threatened to assassinate President Biden in January 2022.

The indictment further alleges that Farah threatened to assassinate former President Trump if he runsfor reelection.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Lower Allen Township Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carl D. Marchioli is prosecuting the case.

The maximum penalty under federal law for each of the charged offenses is five years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine.

Stay up to date on the latest from abc27 News on-air and on the go with thefree abc27 Mobile app.

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Cumberland County man charged with threatening to kill Biden, Trump - ABC27

Donald Trump has suggested that he is perhaps the most honest human being ever created.

The former POTUS naturally didnt hold back when speaking of his character, prompting laughter from his followers.

At a rally in Selma, NC on Saturday the former president defended himself from the multiple investigations probing his tax affairs and his attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

You know, youve been investigated years and years, millions and millions of pages of documents, they found nothing,' Mr. Trump said, supposedly quoting private remarks from a friend. You are the cleanest on Earth when you think about it.'

He continued: I think Im the most honest human being, perhaps, that God ever created. As laughter broke out from his supporters, Mr. Trump added: Perhaps.

His comments come hot on the heels of prosecutors in New York asking a court to hold Mr. Trump in contempt, claiming he is refusing to comply with an order to turn over documentsin her probe ofhis companys business dealings.

New York Attorney General Letitia James also requested that Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron fine the former president $10,000 for each day he allegedly fails to respect the ruling.

Trump was ordered by a judge in February to comply with subpoenas for documents, but James office says that rather than meet the March 31 deadline, he instead raised new objections.

The ship has long since sailed on Mr. Trumps ability to raise any such objections, AG lawyers said in papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court Thursday.

Mr. Trumps purported response violates the courts order; it is not full compliance or any degree of compliance, but simply more delay and obfuscation, the filing alleges. Mr. Trump should now be held in civil contempt and fined in an amount sufficient to coerce his compliance with the courts order and compensate [The Office of the Attorney General] for its fees and costs associated with this motion.

In a statement, James said the judges order for Trump to comply with her offices subpoena and hand over relevant documents had been crystal clear.

Instead of obeying a court order, Mr. Trump is trying to evade it, she said. We are seeking the courts immediate intervention because no one is above the law.

Trumps lawyer Alina Habba said, We are prepared to adamantly oppose the frivolous and baseless motion filed by the Attorney Generals office today.

Our client has consistently complied with the many discovery requests served by the Attorney Generals office over the years.

The former president also issued a lengthy statement, blasting James probe as a witch hunt and accusing her of serving as an operative for the Democrat Party in a political prosecution.

This Democrat prosecutorial misconduct began the second I came down the escalator in Trump Tower, and has continued in an attempt to silence a President who is leading in every single poll, Donald Trump said. Never before has this happened to another President, and it is an absolute violation of my civil rights.

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Donald Trump says he is 'perhaps the most honest human' ever

I expected to discuss all sorts of things with political scientists in Chicago last week, but Ill be honest: When it came to current politics, people were mostly talking about the 2024 presidential nominations especially the Republican one. And folks I spoke with were split right down the middle: About half thought that former President Donald Trump would be the Republican nominee, and half threw up their hands and said they had no idea what would happen.

Im in that second group.

The argument that Trump has the nominationlocked up is pretty straightforward. No, we dont know for sure that hell be running in 2024, but he certainly is running for 2024 right now. That is, hes doing all the things that candidates for president do holding rallies, campaigning,raising moneyand, in his own fashion, putting together a policy platform. Sure, the platform begins and ends with complaining that people are unfair to Donald Trump, but thats pretty much all he did as presidentanyway.

Trump, the case continues, has strong support from primary votersand is liked by almost all of them. Thats usually a winning combination. Yes, a significant group of party actors, including many elected officials, appear to oppose him at least in theory. But only a very small subset of those who tell reporters off the record that Trump is a disaster for the party are willing to say sopublicly. Theres no reason to think that theyllbe any better at coordinating against him than they were in 2016, or that theyll be any better at convincing Republican voters to follow their lead.

Thats not all. In 2016, Trumps big vulnerability was that he had no apparent commitment to the normal Republican policy agenda. That shouldnt be a problem for him after four years in the White House. The first time around, Christian conservatives were skeptical; now, theyre among his strongest supporters. The most notable difference he had with Republican orthodoxy while in the White House was on foreign policy, and in 2024 a lot more party actors are on his side and few voters care about itanyway.

So why wouldnt he win?

I cant speak for everyonewho took thisposition. But for me, its less one big thing than many, many small ones. To begin with: I was wrong about 2016, and while I thinkI understand what happened, Id hesitatebefore making confident predictions aboutRepublican nomination politics again.

Beyond that? Ill note that while Republican voters by all accounts like Trump, thats not actually saying that much; most voters like politicians from their own party once they get to know them. Theres just no way to know how strong their attachment is to Trump how strong any voters attachment is to any politician until its put to the test. Well learn a little more about this when primaries resume in coming weeks. Should the candidates Trump endorsed do badly, its possible that the fear of opposing him will dissipate.

Then theres Trump himself. Yes, he certainly seems to want to be president again. But the idea that hes invincible among Republicans is far from proven. His 2016 nomination was a narrow one, aided by all sorts of odd events includinga fair amount of luck. He also has an electoral record now, and its not exactly an impressive one; after all, he lost re-election, and Republicans lost the House (in 2018) and the Senate (in 2020) while he was in office. His tantrum over losing the presidency and his false claims about fraud have widely been credited for the loss of two Senate seats in Georgia. Republicans may trust Trump more on policy than they once did, but they should have even less confidence that hell be a team player now. That could mean more opposition from party actors than last time.

That leaves the question of whether voters would listen if party actors tried to oppose Trump. They certainly didnt in 2016. Would it be different this time? It might depend on which party actors; if Fox News hosts and talk radio turned against Trump (or, perhaps, just strongly supported some other candidate) I could imagine it mattering.

And thats without getting into the possibility that Trumps various legal entanglements catch up to him. Or that hes less interested in being president again than he is in extracting money from Republican donors, a process that might be disrupted if he formally declared a run for office. Right now the nomination looks extremely valuable, given President Joe Bidens low approval ratings. Butthat could change, and if so Trump might shy away from the risk of a worse loss than he had in 2020.

Besides, were still almost two years from the first caucus or primary. At this point in the 1992 election cycle, incumbent president George H.W. Bush was so overwhelmingly popular that most high-profile Democrats passed on the race; by the time of the New Hampshire primary, Bush was so unpopular that a fringe candidate took 37% of the vote against him.

None of this is to say that Trump wont be the nominee. Its just a case for uncertainty. Perhaps Trumps triumph against all odds (and most expert opinion) in 2016 really does mean that the party is his as long as he wants it to be. Or perhaps it means that the party,the process or both are just a lot less predictable than I and others once believed. Which is true? Sorry. I have no idea.

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Is Donald Trump a Lock for the 2024 Nomination? - Bloomberg

Mentions of Donald Trump have been rare at the first few trials for people charged with storming the US Capitol, but that has changed: the latest Capitol riot defendant to go on trial is blaming his actions on the former president and his false claims about a stolen election.

Dustin Byron Thompson, an Ohio man charged with stealing a coat rack from the Capitol, doesnt deny that he joined the mob on 6 January 2021. But his lawyer vowed Tuesday to show that Trump abused his power to authorize the attack.

Describing Trump as a man without scruples or integrity, defense attorney Samuel Shamansky said the former president engaged in a sinister plot to encourage Thompson and other supporters to do his dirty work.

Its Donald Trump himself spewing the lies and using his position to authorize this assault, Shamansky told jurors Tuesday during the trials opening statements.Justice department prosecutor Jennifer Rozzoni said Thompson knew he was breaking the law that day.

He chose to be a part of the mayhem and chaos, she said.

Thompsons lawyer sought subpoenas to call Trump and Rudolph Giuliani as witnesses at his trial this week. A judge rejected that request but ruled that jurors can hear recordings of speeches that Trump and Giuliani delivered at a rally before the riot.

Thompsons jury trial is the third among hundreds of Capitol riot prosecutions. The first two ended with jurors convicting both defendants on all counts with which they were charged.

In a February court filing, Shamansky said he wanted to argue at trial that Thompson was acting at the direction of Trump and his various conspirators. The lawyer asked to subpoena others from Trumps inner circle, including former White House strategist Steve Bannon, former White House senior adviser Stephen Miller and former Trump lawyers John Eastman and Sidney Powell.

Prosecutors said Thompson cant show that Trump or Giuliani had the authority to empower him to break the law. They also noted that video of the rally speeches perfectly captures the tone, delivery and context of the statements to the extent they are marginally relevant to proof of Thompsons intent on 6 January.

Thompsons lawyer argued that Trump would testify that he and others orchestrated a carefully crafted plot to call into question the integrity of the 2020 presidential election. Shamansky claimed that Giuliani incited rioters by encouraging them to engage in trial by combat and that Trump provoked the mob by saying that if you dont fight like hell, youre not going to have a country anymore.

Shamansky said Thompson, who lost his job during the pandemic, became an avid consumer of the conspiracy theories and lies about a stolen election.This is the garbage that Dustin Thompson is listening to day after day after day, Shamansky said. He goes down this rabbit hole. He listens to this echo chamber. And he acts accordingly.

US district Judge Reggie Walton ruled in March that any in-person testimony by Trump or Giuliani could confuse and mislead jurors.

More than 770 people have been charged with federal crimes arising from 6 January. Over 250 of them have pleaded guilty, mostly to misdemeanors. Thompson is the fifth person to be tried on riot-related charges.

Thompson has a co-defendant, Robert Lyon, who pleaded guilty to riot-related charges in March.

Thompson, then 36, and Lyon, then 27, drove from Columbus, Ohio, to Silver Spring, Maryland, stayed overnight at a hotel and then took an Uber ride into Washington DC on the morning of 6 January. After Donald Trumps speech, Thompson and Lyon headed over to the Capitol.

Thompson was wearing a Trump 2020 winter hat and a bulletproof vest when he entered the Capitol and went to the Senate parliamentarians office, where he stole two bottles of liquor and a coat rack worth up to $500, according to prosecutors.

Thompson is charged with six counts: obstructing Congress joint session to certify the electoral college vote, theft of government property, entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly or disruptive conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.

Lyon pleaded guilty to theft of government property and disorderly conduct. Both counts are misdemeanors punishable by a maximum of one year imprisonment. Walton is scheduled to sentence Lyon on 3 June.

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Capitol riot defendant blames actions on Trump and false election claims - The Guardian