Amna Nawaz:
It’s a critical time for candidates across the country, as tomorrow is exactly one week before Election Day. President Trump campaigned today in ruby-red Mississippi, a state he won by nearly 23 points two years ago. This weekend, Trump and former President Barack Obama are locked in a heavyweight political showdown in the battleground state of Michigan.
Liz Landers reports.
Liz Landers:
President Trump gave speeches in swing states this weekend, laying out the stakes of the upcoming midterm elections just eight days away.
Amid the tight race for Senate control between former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers of Michigan and Democrat Abdul-Saeed, the president attacked Saeed’s faith and said he posed a threat to national security.
President Donald Trump:
I’m here to stop a jihadist Muslim Brotherhood member from becoming a United States Senator. That’s the truth. We won’t let that happen. The people of Michigan will defeat Abdul Muhammad Said.
Abdul Said (D):
I don’t care how he pronounces my name. I don’t even care if he remembers my full name because he can continue to call me Senator after November.
(cheer)
Liz Landers:
El-Sayed, who will become the first Muslim U.S. senator, said Trump’s attacks distracted voters from economic concerns.
In a controversial interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” El-Sayed’s opponent, Mike Rogers, delved into his allegations linking El-Sayed to the Muslim Brotherhood, despite no evidence that El-Sayed had any ties to the group.
Christine Welker, host:
Does this meet your standards? Call…
Mike Rogers (right):
no I do not. I never called him a terrorist. I never called him a terrorist. This election is an election between me and Abdul. I mean, he’s a candidate aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America, with these pretty radical support groups that don’t like America.
Liz Landers:
Former President Barack Obama rallied Democratic voters in two Midwestern battlegrounds on Saturday, telling people in Michigan and Ohio that Trump was responsible for the rising costs of a war with Iran.
Barack Obama:
The current president has chosen to make a series of bad decisions.
(cheer)
Barack Obama:
Most importantly, he decided to start an unnecessary war that no one supported – no one voted for.
President Donald Trump:
Washington, D.C. looks absolutely beautiful.
Liz Landers:
As President Trump mentioned his Washington, D.C., renovation projects several times during his trip, the former president scoffed at the focus.
Barack Obama:
What happened to gold? Everything is more golden. His ass is so white it looks like Saddam Hussein opened a cheesecake factory.
(laughter)
Liz Landers:
Voters lining up for Trump and Obama rallies this weekend talked about what drew them to the polls.
Ken Gunnels, Michigan resident:
Why am I here? I’m here for the future of this country because I know we are at a crossroads.
Sharday Barnwell, Ohio resident:
Education, health care, general access and affordability. Life is hard for everyone right now.
Liz Landers:
On the most important economic issue for Americans, President Trump said in Georgia:
President Donald Trump:
President Trump is talking about all the money they make while people suffer at the gas stations. This will make headlines. But I said, I don’t care. What I’m saying is. We are making a fortune. Our country is getting stronger all the time.
(cheer)
Liz Landers:
Vice President Vance lives in Belgrade, Montana today:
JD Vance, Vice President:
While I’m proud of the past 18 months, we’ve done so much, and there’s so much more we can do together.
Liz Landers:
Mr. Trump cast his vote in Florida on Saturday, joining nearly 30 million Americans who have already voted early. The president has called early voting ridiculous in the past, one of his many lines of attack on U.S. elections.
Meanwhile, the attorney general defended the Trump administration’s preemptive lawsuit against Alaska election officials, which the Justice Department filed late last week seeking to block certification of the election in the event of a Democratic victory. Branch said pitting an incumbent Republican senator against another candidate with a near-same name could create confusion.
U.S. Attorney General Todd Branch:
If there’s a lawsuit — and there probably isn’t, but if someone else files a lawsuit after the election because of the potential for voter confusion, the ballots are preserved the way Alaska does — the Alaska election system can determine who the accurate winner is.
Liz Landers:
The president said the move was directed by him. The Justice Department is also raising another challenge in a legal battle in California over how states administer elections after the federal government asked California officials to review and set aside more than 20,000 ballots they believed were sent to non-citizens.
In a rare Sunday argument, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals appeared skeptical of the Justice Department’s request, questioning the timing and authority of the federal government’s action.
Although it is extremely rare for non-citizens to vote, the Trump administration has pushed hard to prosecute these cases. This morning, the Department of Justice announced new charges against 48 non-citizens suspected of illegally voting or registering to vote. It is important to note that even if charges are brought, it does not necessarily mean that an illegal vote actually occurred.
In the rare cases where non-citizens registered to vote, there was some administrative confusion and the vote did not take place there. Including those charged today, slightly more than 200 people have been charged with illegal voting since the start of Trump’s second term. Amna estimates that more than 230 million Americans are registered to vote in the 2024 presidential election.
Amna Nawaz:
Liz, we saw President Trump weigh in on this today on social media before heading to Mississippi. What did he have to say?
Liz Landers:
He posted on TRUTH Social that anyone who reports voter fraud in past or current elections will receive a million dollars in compensation from the government. However, it is important to note that the person must be convicted of a crime.
The president did not explain specifically how that would happen, where the funding would come from, or even whether it would be legal. But he made a similar announcement in the Oval Office last week, saying he would personally determine payouts to the Whistleblower Protection Program, a $25 million fund he announced just last week.
Amna Nawaz:
Okay, Liz Landers, thank you very much.
Liz Landers:
certainly.