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Republican legislators said on Thursday that they will not immediately schedule an override vote for a bill that would have allowed police officers to sue people for civil damages in cases of harassment, menacing, assault or injury.

The bill, which was initially approved 12-6 by the Nassau County Legislature in August, was subsequently vetoed by Nassau County Executive Laura Curran. Majority officials said until Legislators Josh Lafazan, who proposed the legislation, and Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D-Glen Cove) supported an override vote, they would not schedule one.

Because of the 13 vote threshold needed to override a veto by the County Executive, the Majority will not schedule an override vote of the bill prohibiting discrimination against first responders until Legislators Lafazan and DeRiggi-Whitton state that they will support an override, a statement from the Republicans said. The Republican Majority remains committed to protecting our law enforcement from harassment, menacing or attack because of their service to the public.

Efforts to reach Lafazan, an independent from Syosset who caucuses with Democrats, and DeRiggi-Whitton for comment were unavailing.

The Legislature has 30 days to schedule an override after the veto was made on Sept. 27. An override would need 13 votes in the Legislature, which the Republicans control with an 11-8 majority.

Under the legislation, if a first responder is in uniform or is clearly identified as a first responder, there is an irrebuttable presumption that the harassment, menacing, assault or injury is motivated by his or her status as a first responder.

First responders would be able to sue protesters or other civilians for up to $25,000 for such actions, or $50,000 during a riot. Police officers and other first responders are already protected in the Nassau County Human Rights Law against housing, employment and public accommodations discrimination.

The police are essential to protect citizens freedom to speak, or refrain from speaking, from individuals who would use threats and violence to silence those with whom they disagree or to enforce conformity of thought, the bill states.

Curran, in a veto letter, expressed concerns that the law would intimidate free citizens from engaging in peaceful demonstrations without fear of retaliation. She also said there was no consensus from elected officials that the legislation was necessary at this time.

Curran, a Democrat, also referred to the opinion of the office of state Attorney General Letitia James, whom the county executive asked for advice on the bill. Curran said James office questioned the bills constitutionality.

In September, Nassau County was deemed the safest county in America, according to U.S. News & World Report, for the second consecutive year.

The report, which factors in per capita spending for health and emergency services in its ratings, said Nassau received a perfect score this year.

According to federal statistics, the county spends $1,148 per capita on police and fire protection, compared with the national median of $359. The countys violent crime rate is 143.6 per 100,000 people, compared with the national average of 204.6 per 100,000 people, according to the statistics.

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Republican legislators will not schedule override of police discrimination bill, for now - Featured - The Island Now

Election Day 2021 will be another day of continuing misery for the New Jersey Republican Party. It will mark another GOP event of self-destruction due to the pernicious political cancer of Trumpism.

The prime victim will be the GOP gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli. He was a bright shining light for the NJGOP four years ago when he courageously waved the anti-Trump banner, but since then he literally sold his soul to Trumpism. He went so far as to appear as a featured speaker at a Stop the Steal rally last November, and if you believe his denials of lack of knowledge of the rally purpose, I have a bridge from Manhattan to Brooklyn that I can sell you.

Most shamefully, after the despicable and traitorous Trump- inspired and fomented Day of Insurrection on January 6, 2021, Jack tried initially to blame Democrats and Republicans equally, only first publicly ascribing the primary blame and responsibility to Donald Trump eight months later at the first debate on September 28, 2021.

Ciattarelli would have been a substantial underdog in this campaign to begin with, given the fact that Phil Murphy has been New Jerseys most successful governor since Tom Kean. The polls show that the electorate rightly gives him favorable ratings, on balance, for his handling of the Covid crisis and overall job performance. From an historical point of view, Murphy has created a magnificent legacy as Americas leading social justice governor, with towering accomplishments in the areas of environmental justice and voting rights protection for New Jerseyans of color.

Ciattarelli totally failed to change any of the pre-existing election dynamics in the two debates. Murphy will win reelection by at least a high single digit margin and at best an overwhelming landslide if urban turnout is high.

Yet Ciattarelli is not the only election day catastrophe facing the New Jersey Republican Party. The Republicans are a virtual certainty to lose two state Senate seats they currently hold, in the 2nd and 16th Districts. In both districts, the incumbent Republican Senators are not seeking reelection.

In the 2nd District, comprised solely of municipalities from Atlantic County, inthe battle of the Vinces, incumbent Democratic Assemblyman Vince Mazzeo is well positioned to defeat former Republican Assemblyman Vince Polistina. People who have heard or seen Mazzeo do not as a rule confuse him with the genius Albert Einstein or the suave and urbane Jack Kennedy. He is a person, however, of genuine decency and character, especially in his business affairs, a quality most valued in the era of Trumpian excess.

In the 16th District, consisting mostly of Somerset and Hunterdon County municipalities, Democrat Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker is an overwhelming favorite to defeat former Republican Congressman Mike Pappas, who is well on his way to earning a reputation as the Harold Stassen of Somerset County a one time winner, but now a perennial losing candidate.

Nor is the overwhelming advantage of 52-28 that the Democrats currently enjoy in the State Assembly likely to change. Republicans profess hopes of picking up Assembly seats in the 2nd and 16th Districts and also the 11th District, solely comprised of Monmouth County municipalities. GOP 2nd District Assembly Candidate and former Atlantic City Mayor Don Guardian, while an underdog, does have an outside chance of scoring an upset.

As for the 11th and 16th Districts, the GOP Assembly hopes are pipe-dreams. In the 11th District, the Democratic Senate reelection candidate is Vin Gopal, a figure of outstanding political and governmental accomplishment, giving the Democratic Assembly incumbents Joann Downey andEric Houghtaling an extra level of electoral protection.

If the New Jersey Republican Party were a synagogue, Election Day 2021 would be a most appropriate day for Republicans to recite the Mourners Kaddish for the deceased, praying for consolation from the Almighty. On Election Day 2021, however, New Jersey Republicans will be able to take supreme solace in a magnificent source of consolation, Assemblywoman Jean Stanfield, who will defeat incumbent Democratic Senator Dawn Addiego in New Jerseys 8th Legislative District, consisting largely of Burlington County with four Camden County and one Atlantic County municipalities.

In a nutshell, Jean Stanfield is a state legislator with a compelling biography, flawless character and decency, superb demonstrated competence, a magnificently warmly attractive personality without offensive flamboyance, and a significant departure from the current image New Jersey voters have of Republican candidates.

New Jersey voters will always deservedly hold former Governor Tom Kean in the highest esteem. Since the days of Tom Kean, however, the image of the Republican candidate has changed, largely due to the less than stellar legacies of other statewide GOP office holders and candidates. And the contrast between Jean Stanfield and these other GOP so-called luminaries is vivid.

Jean Stanfield is NOT a Republican woman from the country club wine and brie set, pontificating to other Republicans from an outdated playbook as to how GOP recovery in New Jersey and nationally can be effectuated.

Jean Stanfield is NOT a bully, an object of ridicule sitting bovinely on a beach chair, giving the appearance of being Nero while Rome burns.

And on the personal level, there is another aspect of Jean Stanfield that is most endearing. At the tender age of 64, she is already a GREAT -grandmother of two great-grandchildren! That is an accomplishment I most admire, as I did not become a grandfather until the age of 65!

Jean Stanfield is indeed the paradigm of what New Jersey Republicans should be seeking in future candidates for governor and US Senator.

In an era where Republican toxicity among African-American voters is at an all- time high, due to the Trumpian racism and bigotry now institutionalized in the GOP, Jean Stanfield is a remarkable exception, a mother of an interracial family. Her InsiderNJ column, Our Black Community Has Withstood Trauma for too Long was a powerful message that should not just have been adopted as required reading for the New Jersey Republican State Committee. It deserves to be must reading for all Americans.

Indeed, Jean Stanfield is the personification of the American dream. The daughter of working-class educators, she worked her way through college and law school and entered politics by being elected sheriff of Burlington County in 2001 and serving in that capacity until 2019. Her record as sheriff was distinguished by excellent grassroots outreach regarding all Burlington County community service programs.

In 2019, Jean was elected to the Assembly from Burlington Countys 8th District. She has served on the Assembly Human Services, Education, and Law and Public Safety Committees.

In nearly a quarter of a century of public service, including her tenure as assistant prosecutor in the Burlington County Prosecutors Office.Jean Stanfield has been untouched by scandal. Her trademark is competent honest service. The word you hear most often in connection with Jean Stanfield in Burlington County is beloved.

The incumbent Democrat Senator Dawn Addiego was elected to the Senate as a Republican in 2011, but switched to the Democratic Party in January, 2019. Retention of her seat is a major priority for the South Jersey George Norcross led Democrats, due to the power of Senatorial Courtesy. With Burlington County residents Troy Singleton representing the 7th Legislative District and Addiego representing the 8th, the Democrats have two Senators with Burlington County residency, and accordingly, each having senatorial courtesy plenary power to block all appointments of Burlington County residents that require State Senate approval. The election of a Republican Burlington resident Senator, Jean Stanfield would substantially reduce the leverage of the Democratic Party over such State appointments.

Accordingly, the Norcross- led South Jersey Democrat leadership cabal has arranged for a torrent of funds in support of the Addiego campaign and a plethora of negative anti-Jean Stanfield commercials. These commercials have failed to lay a glove on her.

For the Republican Party of South Jersey, a victory in the 8th District Senate Race will be the 2021 political version of the1942 Britishvictory at El Alamein, a decisive turning point in the Second World War. And Jean Stanfield makes a most compelling and commanding version of British General Sir Bernard Law Montgomery.

My next column will focus on the ramifications of a Stanfield victory, both statewide and in South Jersey. As the late Tonight show host Jack Paar used to say, more to come!

Alan J. Steinberg served as regional administrator of Region 2 EPA during the administration of former President George W. Bush and as executive director of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission.

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On Election Day 2021, the NJ Republican Consolation will be Jean Stanfield - InsiderNJ

House Ways and Means Committee member discusses IRS surveillance on 'Fox Business Tonight'

Republican senators sniped back and forth with the White House and Treasury Department Tuesday as debate over Democrats' yet-to-be-written IRS bank account reporting proposal flared yet again on Capitol Hill.

The reporting requirement is one potential provision in Democrats' unwritten reconciliation bill. It would require banks to report the inflows and outflows of certain accounts to the IRS in an effort to find unreported taxable income and help fund the bill's other social and environmental programs.

Democrats Tuesday touted a new proposed threshold for their plan that they say would exempt wage income and people with less than $10,000 of overall yearly bank activity instead of $600, underscoring their commitment to target rich people for tax enforcement. Meanwhile, Republicans argued that the new plan would still sweep up many regular Americans despite what Democrats say is just an effort to catch rich tax cheats.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION SCALES BACK IRS BANK-MONITORING PLAN AMID GROWING PUSHBACK

"The average American will be picked up by this plan and I think virtually every small business," Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, said at a press conference.

"If the only income that a household has is wages, I'm pretty sure that they're going to spend some of that income and hit the $10,000 threshold. And then they're pulled into the game," Crapo added, implying that if a wage worker spends more than $10,000, they would be included

Democrats' initial proposal would have required banks to report inflow and outflow information of every bank account with more than $600 in total yearly activity to the IRS, no matter the source of income or size of any individual transaction.

"The National Debt Clock" in New York City on 44th Street above an Internal Revenue Service office. (Photo by James Leynse/Corbis via Getty Images) U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during a visit to the International Union of Operating Engineers Local (. (Photo by James Leynse/Corbis via Getty Images) Matthew Hatcher/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

But the Treasury, which backed the initial reporting requirement, pushed back on Crapo's characterization of the adjusted proposal. It said that for a person making only wages, their expenditures up their total yearly wages are exempt from counting toward the $10,000 threshold too not just their wage income.

A person who makes wages, salary or receives government benefits, according to the Treasury, would only be subject to the reporting requirement if they make $10,000 in income from another source, or if they spend $10,000 more than their wage income.

Crapo's comment, notably, was made when the main source of information on the proposal early Tuesday was a Washington Post story published late Monday about Democrats' adjusted proposal.

BIDEN SEEKS TO RESTART STALLED AGENDA WITH CRUCIAL MEETINGS WITH DEMOCRATIC LAWMAKERS

"The revised version of the bank reporting proposal will also weaken its scope by exempting all wage income from counting toward the $10,000 threshold," the story said of the exemption for wage earners, without detailing whether their spending would count.

Other bits of information including a statement by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Treasury Department fact sheet lacked details about how the proposal would work, and therefore it wasn't clear how it would apply to wage earners who spend more than $10,000.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during a news conference, after attending the G7 finance ministers meeting, at Winfield House in London, Britain June 5, 2021. Justin Tallis/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo (Justin Tallis/Pool via REUTERS / Reuters Photos)

"Under the current proposal, financial accounts with money flowing in and out that totals less than $10,000 annually are not subject to any additional reporting," the Treasury fact sheet said. "Further, when computing this threshold, the new, tailored proposal carves out wage and salary earners and federal program beneficiaries, such that only those accruing other forms of income in opaque ways are a part of the reporting regime.

"Todays new proposal reflects the Administrations strong belief that we should zero in on those at the top of the income scale who dont pay the taxes they owe, while protecting American workers by setting the bank account threshold at $10,000 and providing an exemption for wage earners like teachers and firefighters," Yellen said in her statement.

Shortly after Crapo and several other Republicans hammered the adjusted proposal Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki also weighed in on it.

"People who get W-2s that's not what we're talking about here," Psaki said. "We're talking about high net worth individuals who are not paying the taxes they owe."

Psaki added: "The $10,000 is, the, anything under that would not be applicable, nor would people who receive W-2s."

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., also said on a Tuesday press call that the threshold will be based on "the total number of dollars that have come into an account and the total numbers that have gone out, not including wage W-2 income."

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, March 1, 2021, to unveil a proposed Ultra-Millionaire Tax Act. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) (AP / AP Newsroom)

There is still technically no legislative text for the adjusted reporting proposal information is limited to a series of statements and fact sheets released by Democrats and the Treasury Department. So it is impossible to know all the details of it.

But according to the information that is available, it would still almost certainly sweep up many investors and other people who are far from millionaires. And it would send bank inflow and outflow information for virtually every small business to the IRS.

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"The exclusion of payroll and federal program beneficiaries does not address millions of other taxpayers who will be impacted by this proposal," Crapo said on the Senate floor later Tuesday. "Not every nonwage worker is a millionaire. How about self-employed hairstylists, convenience store owners, and farmers, just to name a few?"

Crapo added: "If enacted, this new proposal would still raise some of the same privacy concerns, increase tax preparation costs for individuals and small businesses, and create operational challenges, particularly for community banks."

"It's a stupid idea," Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said Tuesday. He added that Iowans "don't want the peering eyes of the IRS snooping on them."

Grassley went on to cite a recent leak of IRS information to ProPublica as evidence that Americans' banking data would not be safe in the hands of the IRS.

FOX Business' Kelly Phares contributed to this report.

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Republicans, Democrats and Treasury wrangle over effects of Biden's new IRS bank account reporting proposal - Fox Business

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The Texas Legislature has signed off on new congressional districts that shore up the GOPs dominance and yield little ground to the people of color who have driven the state's growth.

Wrapping up their work to build a decade of population change into new political maps, the Senate and House on Monday each approved a negotiated, final version of the congressional map, which will go to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature. In complete control of the redistricting process, Republicans designed a map that will tighten their hold on diversifying parts of the state where the partys grip on power was waning and lock in the GOPs majority in the 38-seat delegation for the U.S. House.

The map also incorporates two additional House seats the state gained, the most of any state in this years reapportionment. Though Texas received those districts because of explosive population growth 95% of it attributable to people of color Republicans opted to give white voters effective control of both, which were drawn in the Houston and Austin areas.

The Senate approved the map on a 18-13 vote. The House followed with an 84-59 vote.

Previewing the legal battles that will follow, Democrats decried the lack of adequate representation for voters of color, shunning a map that diminishes their voices instead of reflecting the states changing racial and demographic makeup. Half of the 4 million residents the state gained in the past 10 years were Hispanic.

"What we're doing in passing this congressional map is a disservice to the people of Texas. What we're doing is hurtful to millions of Texans it's shameful," state Rep. Rafael Ancha, the Dallas Democrat who chairs the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, told his colleagues before the vote. "I'd love to be able to say it is a stain on the legacy of voting rights, but that seems to be the playbook decade after decade after decade in this state."

The Republicans who led the redistricting process offered little defense of the maps from the Senate and House floors before the final votes. They have previously said the congressional map was drafted based on a series of "priorities," including partisanship and keeping communities of interest together. They've also argued the map complies with federal laws protecting voters of color from discrimination, though they have declined to offer specifics about their legal analysis.

But in fortifying GOP districts, the congressional map often manipulates district lines around communities of color. In some instances, Republicans drew diverse suburban areas into sprawling rural districts dominated by white voters. They reconfigured a district in the typically blue Rio Grande Valley to boost Republican performance even though the areas Hispanic voters usually dont prefer GOP candidates. And Republicans rejected repeated Democratic efforts and pleas from members of the public to create additional opportunities for voters of color to meaningfully influence elections.

Those efforts focused in part on North Texas, where Hispanics make up the largest portion of Dallas Countys population and where the white population declined over the last decade.

Republicans placed a new district, the 37th Congressional District, in the Austin area to capture Democratic-leaning voters that were endangering the prospects of Republican incumbents in nearby districts. They also drew in a new district, the 38th Congressional District, that would offer Republicans safe territory in the Houston area. In both districts, white residents would make up more than 60% of eligible voters.

During the Senate's first debate over the map earlier this month, state Sen. Joan Huffman, the Houston Republican who led the Senate's redistricting process, told her colleagues her team had seen "no strong basis in evidence" to create a new opportunity district for voters of color.

In the final map, Republicans reduced the number of districts in which Hispanics make up the majority of eligible voters from eight to seven. A House effort to just barely maintain the Hispanic-majority electorate of a Central Texas district was undone during backdoor negotiations ahead of Mondays vote. The number of districts with Black residents as the majority of eligible voters drops from one to zero. Meanwhile, the state would have 23 districts with a white majority among eligible voters up from 22 in the current configuration.

The 2020 census showed that the states white and Hispanic populations are nearly equal in size. The white population increased by just 187,252 over the last 10 years while the state gained nearly 11 Hispanic residents for every additional white resident.

This years political mapmaking marks the first time in nearly half a century that Texas lawmakers are free to redraw the states maps without federal oversight meant to protect voters of color from discrimination. But like the maps for the statehouse, the congressional map has already drawn a legal challenge.

Earlier Monday, a group of individual voters and organizations that represent Latino voters filed a federal lawsuit alleging the maps intentionally discriminate against Latinos by unconstitutionally diluting Latino voting strength and violate the federal Voting Rights Act.

Throughout their path to the governors desk, civil rights groups and redistricting experts repeatedly alerted lawmakers that their proposals would undermine the electoral strength of voters of color and raise issues under the Voting Rights Act and the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits discrimination based on race. The Legislatures long history of violating those protections includes the last round of redistricting in 2011, when lawmakers were found to have intentionally discriminated against Hispanic and Black voters in their mapmaking.

On the partisan front, the GOP appeared to prioritize using the redraw following the 2020 census to protect incumbents instead of aggressively running up the party's numbers.

In narrowing the battlefield of competitive races, the map also benefits incumbent Democratic members of Congress. Based on 2020 presidential election results, if the map had been in place at the time, there would have been only one district in the state the 15th Congressional District in South Texas with a margin of victory between Donald Trump and Joe Biden of less than five points.

But the map still heavily favors Republicans.

The states current delegation consists of 23 Republicans and 13 Democrats. The new map increases the number of districts that would have voted for Donald Trump in 2020 from 22 to 25. Statewide, Trump got 52.1% of the vote.

Republicans carved a new path for the party in CD-15, anchored in the Rio Grande Valley, by flipping it from a district that Biden narrowly won to one that Trump wouldve carried by 2.8 points. That shores up neighboring CD-34, which was unexpectedly close in 2020 but would have had a healthy Democratic margin of victory under the new map. The final version of the map draws CD-15 incumbent, U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, into the reconfigured CD-34 where the incumbent is retiring.

Among Democrats few wins in the redistricting battle, the final map keeps incumbent U.S. Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee and Al Green in different districts. Republicans had originally proposed pairing the two Houston Democrats who represent large Black populations and some of the citys historically Black neighborhoods.

The House undid that pairing over the weekend, following outcry from Jackson Lees constituents who spoke against the change in large numbers during a public hearing. Both lawmakers also came to the Capitol to oppose the configuration.

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Texas GOP passes congressional maps that protect conservative power - The Texas Tribune

A former Forsyth County Republican Party chairman is accused of stealing from a church and Habitat for Humanity store in Brunswick County.

John NathanTabor, is charged with four counts of felony larceny of motor vehicle parts, felony larceny of a motor vehicle, felony larceny, felony breaking and entering, and misdemeanor injury to real property in Brunswick County.

Tabor was arrested in Ocean Isle Beach the night of Oct. 7and is accused ina string of catalytic converter thefts, includingfromSeaside United Methodist Church and a Habitat for Humanity Restore. He also allegedly stole catalytic converters from two other residents, arrest warrants state.

Tabor, 48, was in custody at the Brunswick County detention center on a $75,000 secured bond. The detention center confirmed Tabor was released on Oct. 14.

In August, Tabor was alsoaccused of cyberstalking the pastor of the Kerwin Baptist Church in Forsyth County. He has an upcoming court date for the misdemeanor cyberstalking charge on Nov. 5, according to N.C. Courts. He also has an upcoming court date onNov. 10 for a charge of cyberstalking with the use of electronic communication in Catawba County.

According to the North Carolina Real Estate Commission, Tabor's broker license was permanently revoked in May following a commission hearing which found Tabor allegedlyattempted to collect finder's fees while his company was unlicensed.

Tabor was the chairman of the Forsyth County Republican Party from 2009 until 2012 and branded himself as a "biblically-based" conservative.

He is scheduled to appear in court on the Brunswick larceny charges on Jan. 4, according to N.C. Courts.

Reporter John Orona can be reached at 910-343-2327or jorona@gannett.com.

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Former Republican party chairman accused of stealing car parts in Brunswick - StarNewsOnline.com

Former President Donald Trump speaks during a "Save America" rally in Perry, Ga., on September 25, 2021. AP Photo/Ben Gray

Trump loyalists have become the dominant voice in many GOP chapters across Georgia, per the AJC.

The sea change threatens GOP Gov. Brian Kemp, who is loathed by the former president.

The wave of new leadership is set to shift the party's agenda on the local and state levels.

For decades, Cobb County, Ga., a suburb of Atlanta, boasted one of the most influential Republican Party chapters in the state, propelling the careers of well-known lawmakers like former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Sen. Johnny Isakson.

However, in recent years, what was once a solidly Republican suburban bastion has morphed into a politically-competitive jurisdiction where Democrats have been ascendant over the last decade - which culminated in President Joe Biden's countywide victory in the 2020 election, along with the locality backing Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in their respective races earlier this year.

In the wake of Georgia supporting Biden in 2020, local Republican chapters - including the Cobb County GOP - have become increasingly dominated by loyalists of former President Donald Trump, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, who was endorsed by Trump in 2018, is now on the outs with the former president after refusing to overturn Biden's victory in Georgia last fall, rejecting calls to initiate a legislative session to install pro-Trump electors.

Now, animosity against the sitting GOP governor has spread from the party's kingmaker to the grassroots level.

Four years ago, Kemp was welcomed with open arms by the Cobb County GOP when he kicked off his nascent gubernatorial bid. However, in late September, he was censured by the organization for failing to meet campaign promises on immigration, party chairperson Salleigh Grubbs told the Marietta Daily Journal.

"[Kemp] has consistently said, 'I've got a big truck in case I need to round up criminal illegals and take them home myself,'" she told the publication, alluding to a widely-viewed advertisement from the governor's first campaign. "So the resolution portion of it says that Gov. Brian Kemp be censured for his failure to keep his campaign promises and meet his obligations to end illegal immigration in the state of Georgia."

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Rep. Jody Hice is running in a GOP primary to oust Brad Raffensperger as Georgia's secretary of state. Former President Donald Trump has endorsed Hice in the race. AP Photo/Andrew Harnik

Trump boosters are now driving the agenda within local GOP chapters, even more so now that the former president continues to repeat debunked claims about the 2020 election and tease a potential 2024 campaign.

According to the AJC, Trump loyalists have wrestled control of the local GOP machinery "in at least a dozen counties" in Georgia; while the loyalists have brought new energy to the local organizations, they have also "contributed to the ongoing friction" that the party must overcome to win in 2022.

Trump has so far refused to endorse Kemp in 2022, and he's eagerly seeking to replace Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger with conservative Rep. Jody Hice next year. Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, who has been highly critical of the former president's election claims, declined to run for reelection in 2022. And former NFL star Herschel Walker is the leading 2022 Republican Senate candidate to contest Democrat Raphael Warnock in what will likely shape up as one of the most competitive races in the country.

DeAnna Harris, who leads the Cobb County Young Republicans and opposed the censure of Kemp, told the AJC that it was essential for the GOP to present a united front to voters.

"All families have disagreements, but we've got to learn how to disagree in private and move forward in public together," she said. "Because it's going to set the stage for next year - and the next presidential election."

Harris also said that the "Trump takeover" is not just about optics, but is indicative of allies having a say in the party agenda, along with their ability to recruit candidates and spread their message to voters.

Trump for years has rebuked party members who were not firmly in his camp, and his loyalists are now waging an "internal war on mainstream Republicans who long controlled the gears of power," according to the AJC.

In recent months, the changes within local parties have been swift.

Kerry Luedke, who chaired the Cherokee County GOP for much of 2020 and focused on turnout efforts, told the AJC that she was ousted from her post after a wave of activists arrived, inspired by former Trump strategist Steve Bannon's call for loyalists to seize control of the party.

"While I was out there knocking on doors for the runoff candidates, they were Christmas shopping. But in their view, we had to go," she said. "It didn't really matter to some of these activists what we had done. They just wanted a clean sweep."

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Trump loyalists are leading a 'takeover' of local Republican parties across Georgia - Yahoo News

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- New York state GOP Chairman Nick Langworthy kicked off his Just Say No tour on Staten Island Monday in opposition of five ballot proposals that will be on the ballot on Nov. 2.

Langworthy was joined by the boroughs Republican delegation - North Shore City Council candidate Patricia Rodinelli, Assemblyman Michael Reilly (South Shore), Sen. Andrew Lanza (South Shore), Councilman Joe Borelli (South Shore), Borough President candidate Vito Fossella, Mid-Island City Council candidate David Carr, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (Staten Island/South Brooklyn), Assemblyman Michael Tannousis (Mid-Island) and Staten Island GOP Chairman Anthony Reinhart -- who are also in opposition to the ballot proposals.

The main opposition is to three of the five proposals:

The other two proposals would add a new amendment guaranteeing clean air and water to the state constitution and allow residents to sue in certain circumstances. It would also raise the limit on claims in the citys Civil Court from $25,000 to $50,000.

(Staten Island Advance/Kristin F. Dalton)

Langworthy said its his belief, and that of the Republican party, that the ballot proposals defy common sense and threaten democracy.

Its almost as if Democrats are working to legalize rigged elections, Langworthy said.

Fossella referenced the 2020 presidential election and how many Americans and lawmakers alike are still questioning the validity of the results. Youd think people would want to make sure the election is fair, Fossella continued.

Regarding same-day voter registration, there is a consensus among the GOP members that removing the process where city Board of Election (BOE) workers verify a persons identity, district, and eligibility prior to election day would undoubtedly increase fraudulent votes.

Mallotakis said its completely inappropriate.

These proposals are nothing more than an attempt by Democrats to increase their strangle hold on the state of New York. They undermine the integrity of the election; thats exactly what [Democrats] want, Lanza said.

Easy to vote, hard to cheat its the American way, Lanza said.

Borelli, who spoke briefly, said hes confident the people of Staten Island will vote against the proposals and vote Republican because they are frustrated with the one-party rule.

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Borough Republicans oppose 5 ballot proposals days before early voting in NYC - SILive.com

The second-ranking House Republican, Steve Scalise of Louisiana, repeatedly refused to say on Sunday that the 2020 election was not stolen, standing by Donald Trumps lie that Democrat Joe Biden won the White House because of voter fraud.

More than 11 months after Americans picked their president and almost nine months after Biden was inaugurated, Scalise was unwilling to say the vote was legitimate.

Ive been very clear from the beginning, he told Fox News Sunday. If you look at a number of states, they didnt follow their state-passed laws that govern the election for president. That is what the United States constitution says. They dont say the states determine what the rules are. They say the state legislatures determine the rules.

Pressed by host Chris Wallace on whether the election went beyond a few irregularities and could be considered stolen, Scalise said: Its not just irregularities. Its states that did not follow the laws set which the constitution says theyre supposed to follow.

In all, Scalise declined three opportunities to say the election was not stolen.

Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who with only one other Republican is serving on a House committee investigating the 6 January attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters seeking to overturn the election, slammed Scalises remarks.

Millions of Americans have been sold a fraud that the election was stolen, Cheney tweeted. Republicans have a duty to tell the American people that this is not true. Perpetuating the big lie is an attack on the core of our constitutional republic.

Trump left office in January, a few weeks after his supporters stormed the Capitol. As he mulls another White House run, he has been intensifying efforts to shame and potentially remove members of his party seen as disloyal, Cheney prominent among them.

At a rally in Iowa on Saturday, Trump argued falsely that he won Arizona, Georgia and Pennsylvania. Senator Charles Grassley and Governor Kim Reynolds stood by.

The election was not stolen. Trumps second attorney general, William Barr, found no evidence of widespread election corruption. Allegations of voting fraud were dismissed by a succession of judges and refuted by state officials and the homeland security department.

Nonetheless the House Republican leader, Kevin McCarthy of California, continues to defend Trump and his false assertions.

Scalise, McCarthys No 2, appeared to be referring to an argument made in several lawsuits that the constitution gives the power of election administration exclusively to state lawmakers.

The suits sought to invalidate pandemic-era accommodations including expanded mail voting put in place by governors, election officials and judges.

The high court turned away the cases. There is no indication in any of the suits that changing Covid-19 accommodations would have altered election results.

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Steve Scalise, No 2 House Republican, refuses to say election was not stolen - The Guardian

RNC: Nikki Haley calls out Democrats' 'cancel culture'

Nikki Haley, former U.S. ambassador to the UN, praises the efforts of President Trump while being critical of former Vice President Joe Biden.

USA TODAY, Associated Press

WASHINGTON Nikki Haley told fellow Republicans Tuesday that they have an urgent mission to renew their conservative convictions, the latest in a series of high-profile speeches by potential GOP presidential candidates maneuvering in the shadow of former President Donald Trump.

"A large portion of our people are plagued by self-doubt or even by hatred of America. Its a pandemic much more damaging than any virus," Haley said in a heavily promoted speech attheRonald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute in Simi Valley, Calif.

Likeformer Vice PresidentMike Pence, former Secretary of StateMike Pompeoand former New Jersey Gov.Chris Christie before her,Haley joined a"Time for Choosing" speaker series sponsored by the the institute dedicated to a Republican icon, President Ronald Reagan.

Many of the speeches areseen as overtures to possible presidential campaigns in 2024.

Stressing her experience as governor of South Carolina and then ambassador to the United Nations, Haley saidRepublicans also need to confront enemies abroad and face down Democratic pessimists at home.

Haley made few direct references toTrump she defended him against media criticism of his Russia policybut spent more time attacking President Joe Biden and the Democrats as well as foreign antagonists like China and Iran.

More: 'We shouldnt have followed him': Nikki Haley sharply condemns Trump's post-election behavior

More: Republican feud: Donald Trump goes after Paul Ryan for going after him

Many political analysts say other Republicans probably hope Trump does not run again, given his fundraising, his high name recognitionand his remaining support among Republican voters despite the tumultuous ending of his presidency in January.

"If Trump runs, they probably don't have a chance," said Jack Pitney,professor of government at Claremont McKenna College in California.

If Trump doesn't run in 2024, Pitney said, the other would-be candidates "wantto be ready for a window of opportunity that will open and close very quickly. Otherwise, somebody else will seize the moment, leaving them behind, probably forever."

Haley told The Associated Press in April that she would support Trump if he ranagain and not run herself.

Citing China, Russia, Iranand Islamic terrorists as formidable adversaries, Trump's ambassador to the United Nations said the U.S. is engaged in a "clash of civilizations" and that "the bad guys think the good guys lack thewill to win."

As for Biden and the Democrats, Haley hit themon points ranging from the Afghanistan pullout to the claims of some that the United States is a racist nation.

"The most important mission of our time is to stop our national self-loathing and to regain our courage and renew our convictions," Haley said.

Arguing thatDemocrats "don't even believe in America" and have "given up on America as a colorblind society," Haley said that they "see Americas flaws as more profound than its strengths. They deny the massive progress weve made, and they punish anyone who disagrees."

The daughter of Indian immigrants and a businesswoman before entering politics in South Carolina, Haley said: "I havent just seen the American story. Ivelivedthe American story."

"Where we lead, the world follows," Haley said. "When we speak, the world listens. What we are, the world wants.

Haley also discussed her decision in 2015 to remove the Confederate battle flag from the top of the South Carolina State Capitolless than a month after a white man killed nine Black people at a church in Charlestonin a racially motivated mass murder.

Urging Republicans to expand their political coalition nationwide, Haley said "we cannot ignore minorities and women."

More: Nikki Haley: Confederate flag could not be taken down in South Carolina in today's 'outrage culture'

More: Ex-White House press secretary warns Trump 'will be about revenge' if reelected

Since Trump left the White House on Jan. 20,Haley has offered mixed messages on the former president.

Shortly after the Jan. 6 insurrection by Trump supporters at the U.S. Capitol,Haley told Politico that Trump "let us down" and added that"he went down a path he shouldn't have, and we shouldn't have followed him, and we shouldn't have listened to him. And we can't let that ever happen again."

Just months later, Haley told The Associated Press that "I would not run if President Trump ran, and I would talk to him about it."

In an interview published Tuesday before her speech, Haley told The Wall Street Journal that she disagreed with Trump's claim about a "stolen election" in 2020, saying that "there wasfraud in the election, but I dont think that the numbers were so big that it swayed the vote in the wrong direction."

Haley also told the Journal: "We need him in the Republican Party. I dont want us to go back to the days before Trump.

Other potential Republican candidates have navigated the Trump question in their speeches at the Reagan institute.

Last month,New Jersey'sChristie saidRepublicans "need to renounce the conspiracy theorists andtruth deniers." He also urged Republicans to face the "realities" of the 2020 election:"Pretending we won when we lost is a waste of time and energy and credibility."

Pence, Trump's vice president, praised Trump in his speech in June and compared him favorably to Reagan. Pence also touted his decision to reject Trump's demands that he spike or delay certification of electoral votes that sealed Biden's victory in the Electoral College.

"There'salmost no idea more un-American than the notion that any one person could choose the American president," Pence said.

Former House Speaker Paul Ryan, who is not running for president in 2024, offered the most anti-Trump speech in the Reagan speakers series.

"If the conservative cause depends on the populist appeal of one personality, or of second-rate imitations, then we're not going anywhere," Ryan said in his remarks in May.

Keeping his own eye on 2024,Trump has resumed his political rallies, including an event Saturday in Iowa. He and his political action committees are raising money at campaign-style rates. While he remains banned on Twitter and Facebook, Trump is issuing a steady stream of written statements attacking the Biden administration and other critics like Ryan.

In a series of interviews, Trump has taken aim at potential Republican rivals.

Asked last week about the prospects of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Trump told Yahoo Finance: "I think most people would drop out. I think he would drop out. And, if I faced him, I would beat him like I would beat everyone else, frankly."

Trump also said he hasn't formally declared a 2024 election run: "Isaid that if I do run, I think that I'll do extremely well, and I'm looking not only at polls, I'm looking at the enthusiasm."

The former president does have potential headwinds, including an investigation by prosecutors in New York into past financial dealings. Prosecutors in Georgia are investigating his efforts as president to pressure local officials into altering the election results in the state.

The Reagan institutewill continue the speakers series in 2022. On Tuesday, it announced a speakers' list that includes prominent critics of Trump but not Trump himself.

The list of speakers includes Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., one of 10 House Republicans to vote for impeachment of Trump over Jan. 6 and now the target of a Trump-backed primary challenger; and Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who also has said he wants the party to move past Trump.

Other speakers include Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse, both of whom have questioned Trump's leadership of the party.

Trump enjoys high approval ratings from Republicans, many of whom believe his false claims about the election. Many observers believe Trump will run again,barring health or legal problems.

Said Pitney: "Unless he is in a hospital bed or jail cell in 2024, hes running."

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Nikki Haley outlines her vision of the Republican future, with or without Donald Trump - USA TODAY

Republicans in the Wisconsin Legislature, with the support of the lobbying group Hunter Nation, released a slate of 13 bills on Wednesday that aim to expand hunting in Wisconsin and weaken the power of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

The bills aim to expand opportunities for Wisconsinites to hunt and fish different animals while curtailing the control the DNR has over conservation policy in the state. All summer, Republican lawmakers and Hunter Nation have been engaged in a coordinated effort to undermine the DNRs efforts under Gov. Tony Evers and Secretary Preston Cole to move the department in a more environmentally conscious direction.

The bills will allow the hunting of sandhill cranes and farm-raised bovidae hooved animals such as bison, sheep and antelopes as well as changing the hunting seasons for wild turkeys and stocking more pheasants to be hunted. The bills would also increase the amount of fish that are stocked in public and private waterways across the state.

Other bills will affect how the DNR can regulate hunting in the state.

One bill, sponsored by Sen. Duey Stroebel (R-Saukville) and Rep. Calvin Callahan (R-Tomahawk), will require the DNR to eliminate three hunting rules every time it tries to create a new one. Current hunting rules set seasons, size limits and other conditions for allowing hunting while conserving animal populations. Another bill, sponsored by Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) and Rep. Alex Dallman (R-Green Lake), would require the DNR to consolidate or eliminate some of the licenses it requires for hunting and fishing certain species.

The slate of bills also includes a proposal to scale back regulations over where and when people can carry weapons in Wisconsin. The bill would allow people to carry a concealed weapon without being issued a concealed carry license by the Wisconsin Department of Justice or a law enforcement identification card. It also eliminates a law that prevents people from carrying firearms, crossbows or other weapons while riding all-terrain vehicles and prevents local governments from prohibiting weapons on mass transit.

Republican lawmakers in the Senate and Hunter Nation have been working together to retain a Republican majority on the Natural Resources Board the body that sets policy for the DNR. An appointee of former Gov. Scott Walker has refused to step down from his seat even though his term expired May 1 and his replacement has been nominated by Evers.

A lobbyist for Hunter Nation has been working with the board member, Wausau dentist Frederick Prehn, encouraging him to resist political pressure to step aside while the lobbying group and Republican lawmakers attempted to intervene in a lawsuit that aimed to remove Prehn. Republican leaders in the Senate have refused to hold a confirmation hearing for Prehns replacement.

While conservation policies in areas as varied as logging and chemical regulation are contentious in Wisconsin, nothing is more polarizing than the fight over wolf hunting in the state. A Wisconsin state law requires a wolf hunt to be held whenever the animal isnt listed as endangered by the federal government. In 2020 the wolf was delisted by the administration of President Donald Trump. Since then, environmental activists have clashed with hunters and some residents in Northern Wisconsin over the ability to hunt wolves in Wisconsin, with the DNR often moving to limit when and how many wolves can be hunted.

Hunter Nation has been a prominent part of the push for more wolf hunting in the state and the political fight over the issue is central to the release of these bills, according to a release.

Governor Evers and his DNR havent shown good leadership in any aspect for Wisconsin outdoorsmen and women, Sen. Rob Stafsholt (R-New Richmond) said in a statement. Over and over again, the DNR has made it clear that they wont listen to rural Wisconsin citizens concerns, so were taking a stand with this legislative package. Were telling hunters, anglers, trappers, and gun owners that weve got their backs and were defending our rights for transparency, simplified regulations, and improved access to our states natural resources.

The bills in what Republicans are calling the Wisconsin Sporting Freedom Package have begun to be circulated for co-sponsorship.

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Legislative Republicans, hunting group release slate of bills to expand hunting - Wisconsin Examiner