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- Florida Elected Officials Charged in Wild Scheme Involving Fake Endorsements
Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images Five people have been charged in connection with an alleged fake voter guide scheme in Florida, including three elected officials. St. Johns County Commissioners Sarah Arnold and Christian Whitehurst, and St. Augustine Beach city commissioner and former mayor Dylan Rumrell were charged with conspiracy and taking part in producing a false voter guide. Authorities said the guide was distributed in 2024 in St. Johns County as primary elections were kicking off. ABC News first reported on accusations of “dirty tricks” in 2024 after the voter guides set off major alarms in Florida. They were sent out just days before early voting kicked off on August 10. “I saw the card, and I’m like, this is a real issue,” St. John’s County GOP Chair Denver Cook told ABC at the time. “I was in shock. I’m dealing with one of probably the most flagrant frauds on voters — the day before early voting. It became an instant train wreck.” According to charging documents, Campaign manager Brianna Jordan “developed a scheme” to create confusion in the election by creating a false voter guide similar to the official one sent out by the local Republican Party. The fake guide, however, included false endorsements. A “secret envelope stuffing” operation was allegedly carried out at Jordan’s office, with the campaign manager getting “in excess of 10,000 fraudulent voter guides” and approximately 20,000 postage stamps. They were then allegedly mailed from Jacksonville and Orlando to conceal their origin. One of Jordan’s interns at the time, who now has an immunity agreement, told authorities that Jordan requested at one point that he purchase a “kettle grill” in cash after she saw a news report about the fake mailers on local TV. Some of the fake guides were then allegedly burned with the grill. The intern also claimed Whitehurst’s mother was even involved with the scheme, slapping stamps on fake voter guides to be sent out. According to authorities, after the “kettle grill” burning, Jordan also reached out to shredding companies. She is also facing a charge for tampering with evidence. Authorities said they spoke to dozens of voters who remembered receiving the fake guides. Ann-Marie Evans was running against Whitehurst and had the endorsement of the St. Johns County GOP, which voters knew if they saw the real voter guide. Whitehurt, however, had the endorsement, according to the other guide. Other candidates… [TheTopNews] Read More.2 hours ago - Marjorie Taylor Greene Calls Mitch McConnell ‘Nearly Dead’ and Accuses Wife ...
AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene accused Elaine Chao, the wife of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), of being “a Chinese spy,” citing Chao’s visit to China while her husband was hospitalized. McConnell, 84, was reportedly found unconscious from potential cardiac arrest at his home on June 14. The senator remains in the hospital, and his aides have not explained why. His hospitalization came two days after Chao, a former U.S. Transportation secretary and Labor secretary, traveled to China. “The secretary was on a long-planned trip in China to support her family’s philanthropic endeavors,” a spokesperson for Chao said in a statement on Tuesday. “During the trip, she met with a number of people, including the US ambassador. The Senator’s health did not warrant an immediate return to the US.” The spokesperson added that Chao has since returned to the U.S., but did not say if she has been in contact with her husband. On Tuesday, Greene took to social media to slam Chao, who was born in Taiwan to Chinese parents, alleging she is “like” a spy for China. “Elaine Chao, who is likely a Chinese spy married to Mitch McConnell, has been in China almost the entire time the nearly dead Senator has been in the hospital. And she met with China’s VP,” Greene posted on X. “Now that she’s back, they are running a PR campaign. Sure totally normal.” On Tuesday, CNN commentator Scott Jennings, a longtime friend of McConnell’s, said the senator called him that morning, and the two spoke for nearly 20 minutes. Chao served as Transportation secretary under former President George W. Bush and as Labor secretary during President Donald Trump’s first term. After his first term, Trump repeatedly mocked Chao, calling her “Coco Chow.” McConnell, a former Senate majority leader, is not seeking reelection this year.The post Marjorie Taylor Greene Calls Mitch McConnell ‘Nearly Dead’ and Accuses Wife of Being ‘Chinese Spy’ first appeared on Mediaite. [TheTopNews] Read More.3 hours ago - Platner Accuser Gets Emotional on CNN Discussing Ex’s ‘Dead Eyes’ and Alle...
One of Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner’s accusers spoke out for the first time on camera on Tuesday, and she fought back tears multiple times as she described Platner’s alleged abuse and “dead eyes.” Lyndsey Fifield joined Jake Tapper on The Lead after Tapper interviewed another Platner accuser, Jenny Racicot, about her relationship experience with Platner. Racicot alleged that Platner showed up at her home in 2021 and sexually assaulted her while intoxicated. She described the alleged attack as rape in her interview with Tapper. Platner has denied sexually assaulting Racicot as pressure has mounted within his own party to drop his campaign. During Fifield’s interview, Tapper asked if anything Racicot described experiencing with Platner aligned with her experience. Fifield accused Platner of getting physical during their relationship, something he has denied. “The eyes,” Fifield told Tapper. “The dead eyes?” he asked. Fifield nodded. “Where he couldn’t hear your protests?” Tapper asked. Fifield said I just know exactly what that looks like. I know exactly what it looks like. And that is something that I feel like people need to understand is it was almost like looking at, like, a pit bull where they just… it’s nothing, but not just nothing, but like a capacity for violence. And you see it and, you know, it’s there and it’s terrifying. She described a “deafness” to consent, alleging Platner would engage in unprotected sex against her protests, something Racicot also alleged. Fifield got emotional while discussing Platner’s alleged behavior, leading her to take a moment. “Oh God, I’m sorry,” she told Tapper before answering his next question. Fifield also blasted previous coverage of her allegations in a New York Times report about Platner, accusing the paper of emphasizing her work in conservative politics and not corroborating her story despite saying she offered them sources who could corroborate parts of her story. Watch above via CNN.The post Platner Accuser Gets Emotional on CNN Discussing Ex’s ‘Dead Eyes’ and Alleged Abuse: ‘Like Looking at a Pit Bull’ first appeared on Mediaite. [TheTopNews] Read More.3 hours ago - CNN’s Kasie Hunt Challenges Scott Jennings To Get Ailing McConnell on the Phon...CNN’s Kasie Hunt put network contributor Scott Jennings on the spot on Tuesday and challenged him to get Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) on the phone amid the senator’s health battle. Jennings joined Hunt’s panel on The Arena, where he spoke about a call he had with McConnell earlier after the senator, 84, was hospitalized after being found unconscious in his home on June 14. The senator hasn’t been seen in weeks, but multiple allies, including Jennings, have said they’ve spoken to him by phone. “I spoke to my old friend Mitch McConnell this morning, the senior Senator from Kentucky. He’s still recovering in the hospital. We talked for just shy of 20 minutes … about IRAN, UKRAINE, the unfolding situation in MAINE, my visit to the TR Presidential Library, and even a little bit of Senate history. I told him we want to see him back at work as soon as possible,” Jennings wrote on X earlier on Tuesday. Wrapping up a segment on McConnell, Hunt asked Jennings whether McConnell would be willing to call into the show. “As we wrap up here, do you think he’d be willing to call into the show? Could we get him on the phone now?” Hunt asked. Jennings laughed off the request. He said: I wasn’t really expecting him to call this morning, to be honest so when the phone rang and I was able to talk to him, I was frankly pretty grateful. I mean, as I said, I’ve known him since I was a teenager. If it hadn’t been for Mitch McConnell and the McConnell Center at the University of Louisville, you know, I would never have been able to go to college. He’s been my mentor, and he changed the trajectory of my life. So, you know, when things happen to him and happen to people in your life that you really care about, you just sort of naturally feel extremely worried. So when I heard his voice today, and he was clearly keeping up with stuff, that made me happy to hear from him because like everybody else, I’ve been, you know, somewhat in the dark about it, but to hear him talking and to know that he’s also talking to the Senate leadership, it made me pretty happy. Hunt asked Jennings whether McConnell’s team should be more transparent by releasing photos and further information about the… [TheTopNews] Read More.4 hours ago
- George Conway Flat Out Brands Trump a ‘Rapist’ — Argues It’s Time for Am...
Photos via: AP Photo/Alex Brandon and George Conway for Congress on YouTube George Conway accused President Donald Trump of being a “rapist” on Tuesday, which he said is a “fact” that Americans need to “stop pretending” isn’t true. Conway made the claim in a lengthy X post on Tuesday. It came in response to a post from conservative radio host Erick Erickson, who had told another X user that Trump could sue them for “actual defamation” because they had branded Trump an “adjudicated rapist.” Conway responded by saying Erickson was wrong and the anonymous user — going by the name Abe’s Cat on X — was spot on. “It is not defamation. Not even close,” Conway replied. “It is not false to state that a man who forcibly inserted his fingers into a non-consenting woman’s vagina has raped her.” He then pointed to E. Jean Carroll’s civil court victory against Trump in 2023, after she accused him of raping her in a Manhattan department store at some point in the 1990s; Carroll could not remember the exact year. Trump was found liable for sexually abusing Carroll and ordered to pay her $5 million. The president has repeatedly denied the rape charge. “I’ll say it with great respect: Number one, she’s not my type,” Trump said in 2019. “Number two, it never happened.” Conway continued on Tuesday: That’s because, as the distinguished district judge in Carroll v. Trump explained more than once, and as dictionaries confirm, the word “rape” is broad enough to encompass forcible, involuntary penetration of the vagina or anus by fingers or some foreign object, even if under the specific criminal code provisions of some (but not all) jurisdictions, non-penile penetration is categorized as sexual abuse or sodomy. It is therefore not defamation to state that a man who, like [Trump], was found unanimously by a federal jury to have forcibly inserted his fingers into a non-consenting woman’s vagina, is an adjudicated rapist. Because he is. His accusation stands out, not only because Conway was married to Trump’s former counselor Kellyanne Conway until 2023. Trump sued ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos when he said the president was found “liable for rape” on air. In fact, Trump was found liable for sexual abuse in civil court, which carries a different definition in New York. ABC apologized and paid $15 million to settle Trump’s lawsuit in late 2024. Conway’s X post on Tuesday… [TheTopNews] Read More.4 hours ago - How Could Platner Be Replaced? Veteran Maine Journo Answers the Question On Ever...
Screenshot via C-SPAN Veteran Maine political journalist Phil Hirschkorn tried his best on Tuesday to offer some clarity on one of the key questions surrounding the sexual assault allegations against Graham Platner: How do Democrats replace him on the November ballot? Hirschkorn, who hosts Maine’s Political Brew, told C-SPAN that while “Maine state law has a provision” for a party to replace an incapacitated candidate, the situation with Platner is truly “unprecedented.” Platner, the Democratic Party’s nominee for U.S. Senate, has been under pressure to pull out of the race ahead of next week’s deadline following the latest allegation against him. Maine journalist and "Political Brew" host Phil Hirschkorn (@PHirschkorn) on how Democrats could replace Graham Platner (D) should he drop out of the U.S. Senate race: "No one really knows. This is unprecedented territory." pic.twitter.com/RNWW3WJDNZ — CSPAN (@cspan) July 7, 2026 “There’s a 113-member state Democratic committee, but everyone I’m talking to says they can’t just meet behind closed doors and say, ‘Here’s the new nominee.’ That’s not going to fly. So how do they have an open process?” Hirschkorn began, adding: People are speculating about a mini convention. Our runner-up Democratic candidate for governor, Dr. Nirav Shah, who led the Maine CDC through the coronavirus pandemic, suggested having a full debate with the people who tossed their hat in the ring, like he will probably do if Graham pulls out. It’s possible, but no one really knows. This is unprecedented territory. We don’t think this has ever happened, although Maine state law has a provision for this happening. Other than death or a horrible illness that incapacitates you, this is a circumstance that Maine law has foreseen. And it sets the second Monday in July as a deadline for a duly nominated candidate to withdraw on his own, and he’s the only one who can do it. And then the party has until the fourth Monday in July, which would be July 27th, to name a replacement candidate. So we don’t know how that process would work. Among the contenders are Dr. Shah, who I mentioned, Troy Jackson, who is our state senate president, who placed third in the primary. He’s already filed his paperwork with the FEC. He’s, I’m told, definitely interested, and the filing proves that. Our secretary of state, Shenna Bellows, who placed fourth in the primary, is also considering it, should… [TheTopNews] Read More.5 hours ago
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