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Trump sweeps Michigan GOP convention

Seth Christensen stood on stage and called on them to vote for Haley. He wasn’t well received. Another caucusgoer shouted out from the audience: “Are you a Republican?”…reports Asian Lite News

Former President Donald Trump continued his march toward the GOP nomination on Saturday, winning caucuses in Idaho and Missouri and sweeping the delegate haul at a party convention in Michigan.

Trump earned every delegate at stake on Saturday, bringing his count to 244 compared to 24 for former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. A candidate needs to secure 1,215 delegates to clinch the Republican nomination.

The next event on the Republican calendar is Sunday in the District of Columbia. Two days later is Super Tuesday, when 16 states will hold primaries on what will be the largest day of voting of the year outside of the November election. Trump is on track to lock up the nomination days later.

The steep odds facing Haley were on display in Columbia, Missouri, where Republicans gathered at a church to caucus.

Seth Christensen stood on stage and called on them to vote for Haley. He wasn’t well received. Another caucusgoer shouted out from the audience: “Are you a Republican?”

An organizer quieted the crowd and Christensen finished his speech. Haley went on to win just 37 of the 263 Republicans in attendance in Boone County.

Here’s a look at Saturday’s contests:

MICHIGAN

Michigan Republicans at their convention in Grand Rapids began allocating 39 of the state’s 55 GOP presidential delegates. Trump won all 39 delegates allocated.

But a significant portion of the party’s grassroots force was skipping the gathering because of the lingering effects of a monthslong dispute over the party’s leadership.

Trump handily won Michigan’s primary this past Tuesday with 68 percent of the vote compared with Haley’s 27 percent.

Michigan Republicans were forced to split their delegate allocation into two parts after Democrats, who control the state government, moved Michigan into the early primary states, violating the national Republican Party’s rules.

MISSOURI

Voters lined up outside a church in Columbia, home to the University of Missouri, before the doors opened for the caucuses. Once they got inside, they heard appeals from supporters of the candidates.

“Every 100 days, we’re spending $1 trillion, with money going all over the world. Illegals are running across the border,” Tom Mendenall, an elector for Trump in 2016 and 2020, said to the crowd. He later added: “You know where Donald Trump stands on a lot of these issues.”

Christensen, a 31-year-old from Columbia who came to the caucus with his wife and three children age 7, 5, and 2, then urged Republicans to go in a new direction.

“I don’t need to hear about Mr. Trump’s dalliances with people of unsavory character, nor do my children,” Christensen said to the room. “And if we put that man in the office, that’s what we’re going to hear about all the time. And I’m through with it.”

Supporters quickly moved to one side of the room or the other, depending on whether they favored Trump or Haley. There was little discussion between caucusgoers after they chose a side.

This year was the first test of the new system, which is almost entirely run by volunteers on the Republican side.

The caucuses were organized after GOP Gov. Mike Parson signed a 2022 law that, among other things, canceled the planned March 12 presidential primary.

Lawmakers failed to reinstate the primary despite calls to do so by both state Republican and Democratic party leaders. Democrats will hold a party-run primary on March 23.

Trump prevailed twice under Missouri’s old presidential primary system.

IDAHO

Last year, Idaho lawmakers passed cost-cutting legislation that was intended to move all the state’s primaries to the same date in May. But the bill inadvertently eliminated the presidential primaries entirely.

The Republican-led Legislature considered holding a special session to reinstate the presidential primaries but failed to agree on a proposal in time, leaving both parties with presidential caucuses as the only option.

“I think there’s been a lot of confusion because most people don’t realize that our Legislature actually voted in a flawed bill,” said Jessie Bryant, who volunteered at a caucus site near downtown Boise. “So the caucus is really just the best-case scenario to actually get an opportunity to vote for a presidential candidate and nominate them for the GOP.”

One of those voters was John Graves, a fire protection engineer from Boise. He said the caucus was fast and easy, not much different from Idaho’s usual Republican primary. He anticipated the win would go to Trump.

“It’s a very conservative state, so I would think that Trump will probably carry it quite easily,” Graves said. “And I like that.”

The Democratic caucuses aren’t until May 23.

The last GOP caucuses in Idaho were in 2012, when about 40,000 of the state’s nearly 200,000 registered Republican voters showed up to select their preferred.

Trump dangerous to women, warns Jill Biden

First Lady Jill Biden is stepping into a more prominent role in her husband’s re-election campaign, and she’s not shying away from expressing strong opinions, particularly about former President Donald Trump, CNN reported.

At an Atlanta event aimed at mobilising female voters, she didn’t hold back, signalling a clear shift in her approach. The First Lady also launched sharp attack on former US President Donald Trump, calling him a dangerous man.

“I’ve been so proud of how Joe has placed women at the center of his agenda. But Donald Trump?” she remarked, eliciting boos from the audience. “He spent a lifetime tearing us down and devaluing our existence. He mocks women’s bodies, disrespects our accomplishments and brags about assault. Now he’s bragging about killing Roe v Wade.”

The first lady continued to highlight her concerns, saying, “He took credit again for enabling states like Georgia to pass cruel abortion bans that are taking away the right of women to make their health care decisions. How far will he go? When will he stop? You know the answer: He won’t. He won’t.”

Embarking on a three-day, four-stop battleground state campaign swing, Jill Biden is spearheading the “Women for Biden-Harris” coalition, emphasising her role as a top surrogate to organise and mobilise female voters for the upcoming general election. Her mission is clear – delivering a pointed message about the perceived dangers of Donald Trump, as reported by CNN.

U.S. first lady Jill Biden welcomes the arrival of the White House Christmas Tree at the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States, Nov. 22, 2021. (Photo by Aaron Schwartz/Xinhua/IANS)

“Donald Trump is dangerous to women and to our families. We simply cannot let him win,” she asserted passionately in Atlanta.

Her campaign trail will take her through Arizona, Nevada, and Wisconsin, with a strategic focus on reaching out to Black and Latino communities to bolster support among key demographic groups.

While her initial campaign efforts involved fundraising activities across the country, her role is evolving. In the months ahead, she is expected to become a more frequent presence on the campaign trail, advocating for her husband and his agenda.

Despite clarifying that she is not a political adviser to President Joe Biden, Jill Biden’s influence is significant. She actively participates in political meetings and hiring decisions for key staff, making her a trusted partner in the White House and the campaign. Balancing her campaign work with her official role and teaching position at Northern Virginia Community College, Jill Biden remains committed to her responsibilities.

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Michigan GOP Grapples with Leadership Crisis

Eight of the state party’s 13 congressional district chairs, including state GOP co-chair Melinda Pego, are endorsing the vote to remove Karamo, and signed a letter to that effect…reports Asian Lite News

The Republican Party in Michigan is virtually “imploding” as the GOP there faces fierce in-fighting with a section threatening to convene a meeting to remove the embattled Chairperson Kristina Karamo from her post in less than a year since her election.

A group of Michigan Republicans are planning a Saturday meeting to discuss removing the embattled Michigan GOP Chairperson Karamo from her post, less than a year from when she was elated to the role, media reports said.

Karamo, a staunch supporter of former US President Donald Trump and 2020 election conspiracy theorist, has been accused of not moving forward during a critical time heading into the 2024 elections, as well as failing to liquidate the reported $500,000 debt the Michigan GOP is in. Karamo has accused the meeting of not being called in accordance with the party bylaws, and has indicated she will not recognize the results of any votes, Newsweek reported.

The Michigan Republican Party’s state committee are reported to be holding a special meeting on January 6 to discuss an end to the internal fighting that has dogged the GOP in Michigan in recent months. The infighting has already cost the Republican dearly in the November 2022 midterms when Democrats bounced back in the legislature, and if it continued unabated, it could cost Trump votes in a state that’s turned into a swing state with a large number of independents set to vote against the former President.

At least 75 per cent of the state committee, which has just over 100 members, would need to back a motion to remove Karamo as chair, although this could be reduced to a two-thirds threshold if such a move was supported in a separate agenda in a two-thirds vote, reports said.

Eight of the state party’s 13 congressional district chairs, including state GOP co-chair Melinda Pego, are endorsing the vote to remove Karamo, and signed a letter to that effect.

“You were chosen as chairwoman because the majority of the Republican delegates strongly respected your commitment to a new era of transparency, honesty and meaningful involvement on the part of the State Committee. Regrettably, these policies no longer seem to be a priority in your administration and the Party’s financial stability is quickly deteriorating,” the letter said.

Karamo told Newsweek in reaction to her possible removal: “I find it interesting that there are reports of a meeting to remove me, without individuals first verifying that the party is in fact an actual Michigan Republican Party State Committee meeting.”

“Our bylaws are very clear about the proper procedures to change party bylaws, call meetings, and remove committee members. These individuals have not followed the MIGOP bylaws to call a meeting, change bylaws, or remove any member; they have zero legal authority to conduct business regarding the Michigan Republican Party or its State Committee.”

Political observers said that infighting in the Michigan GOP arrives amid a crucial period for the party ahead of the House, Senate and presidential elections this November.

The GOP performed poorly in Michigan’s Legislature during the November 2022 midterms, with the Democrats taking control of all levels of the state’s government for the first time in nearly 40 years. The Democrats however lost their two-seat majority in the November 2023 elections after two Democratic state representatives, Lori Stone and Kevin Coleman, won their mayoral races. The House is currently tied at 54-54.

The GOP will now be hoping to regain control of the Michigan House, as well as the House of Representatives and the open US Senate seat in Michigan in 2024, as they seek to regain control of the upper chamber.

Michigan is also a key swing state in the presidential election, where Trump, the presumptive Republican 2024 nominee, won in 2016 before President Joe Biden flipped the state in 2020.

Bree Moeggenberg, a Michigan GOP state committee member who has helped organize the meeting where discussions to remove Karamo will take place, said the infighting within the party might be putting voters off. “We are currently in a position where we are pushing Republicans away from the party,” Moeggenberg told the news media.

“When the chairperson of the Michigan Republican Party tells those that don’t agree with her that they can go pound sand, the party’s losing voters,” Moggenberg said.

Michigan Republican Party delegates elected Karamo chairwoman last February after she unsuccessfully ran for secretary of state in 2022.

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Trump Leads Biden in Michigan, Georgia

In both Michigan and Georgia, the share of voters who say they wouldn’t support either candidate is at least as large as the margin between Biden and Trump…reports Asian Lite News

Former US President Donald Trump is leading his successor Joe Biden in Michigan and Georgia with broad majorities in the two crucial battleground states holding negative views of the sitting President’s job performance, policy positions and sharpness, according to the latest polls.

The CNN polls released on Monday revealed that in Georgia, a state Biden carried by a very narrow margin in 2020, registered voters say they prefer Trump (49 per cent) over Biden (44 per cent) for the presidency in a two-way hypothetical matchup. In Michigan, which Biden won by a wider margin, Trump has 50 per cent support to Biden’s 40 per cent, with 10 per cent saying they wouldn’t support either candidate even after being asked which way they lean.

In both Michigan and Georgia, the share of voters who say they wouldn’t support either candidate is at least as large as the margin between Biden and Trump. Overall, just 35 per cent in Michigan and 39 per cent in Georgia approve of Biden’s job performance, the surveys find, and majorities in both states say his policies have worsened economic conditions in the country (54 per cent in Georgia, 56 per cent in Michigan). Most voters in both states say Biden, who’s 81, does not have the attributes they’re looking for in a president when it comes to his policy positions (57 per cent in Michigan, 56 per cent in Georgia), his ability to understand the problems of people like them (60 per cent in Michigan, 56 per cent in Georgia) or his sharpness and stamina (69 per cent in Michigan, 66 per cent in Georgia). Fewer in each state say that Trump, who’s 77, falls short of their expectations for a President on those same measures.

But Trump fares worse than Biden on temperament – 57 per cent in Michigan and 58 57 per cent in Georgia say the former President doesn’t have the temperament they’re looking for, compared with about half who say the same about Biden. Michigan will hold presidential primaries on February 27, 2024, while Georgia’s primaries are set for March 12. Meanwhile, in another development, Department of Justice (DOJ) Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked the US SC to settle Donald Trump’s claim of executive immunity so that the department can keep the former President’s criminal trial on track for March 04, 2024. Smith filed motions to SC and a federal appeals court in Washington to settle the question over presidential immunity.

“The United States recognises that this is an extraordinary request. This is an extraordinary case,” Smith said. He said that the court should grant certiorari and set a briefing schedule that would permit this case. “This case presents a fundamental question at the heart of our democracy: whether a former President is absolutely immune from federal prosecution for crimes committed while in office or is constitutionally protected from federal prosecution when he has been impeached but not convicted before the criminal proceedings begin,” he said. Some part of Smith’s 81-page motion to the SC details in great length the 1974 case, United States v. Nixon, in which the high court ruled unanimously against Nixon’s attempt to block evidence from being used in a trial by claiming executive authority. “It is of imperative public importance that respondent’s claims of immunity be resolved by this Court and that respondent’s trial proceed as promptly as possible if his claim of immunity is rejected,” Smith said. He said that respondent’s claims are profoundly mistaken, as the district court held. “But only this court can definitively resolve them,” he said.

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President Biden Joins UAW Strikers in Michigan

Fain joined Biden at the picket line. He thanked Biden for coming, saying the President “will do right by the working class”…reports Asian Lite News

US President Joe Biden has visited a picket line outside a General Motors parts distribution centre in Wayne County, US state of Michigan, to show his support to autoworkers who are on the United Auto Workers (UAW) strike against the Big Three US automakers.

“You made a lot of sacrifice. You gave up a lot when the companies were in trouble. Now, they’re doing incredibly well… You should be doing incredibly well, too,” Biden said on Tuesday amid the applause from the striking workers. 

“You deserve a significant raise you need and other benefits… It’s time for them to step up for us.”

“Wall Street didn’t build the country,” Biden added. 

“The middle class built the country, and unions built the middle class. That’s a fact. Let’s keep it going.”

This is the first time in at least a century for a sitting President visiting a labor union’s picket line, at the invitation of UAW President Shawn Fain, The Detroit News quoted the White House on Tuesday.

Fain joined Biden at the picket line. He thanked Biden for coming, saying the President “will do right by the working class”.

US former President Donald Trump is set to make an address on Wednesday at an auto supplier in Macomb County, Michigan, showing his support to the autoworkers, Xinhua news agency reported.

The UAW went on strike on September 15 at select facilities of Ford, GM and Stellantis, and expanded it to 38 GM and Stellantis facilities on September 22. 

Nationwide, UAW autoworkers at 41 Ford Motor Co, GM and Stellantis NV facilities are on strike, asking for higher wages, pensions for all workers and the elimination of a two-tier pay scale.

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Michigan Hit by Series of Deadly Tornadoes, 5 Fatalities Reported

The storms caused power outages for more than 390,000 customers in Michigan by 7:15 p.m. (2315 GMT) on Friday, according to the PowerOutage.us website…reports Asian Lite News

Seven severe tornadoes tore across five counties in the US Midwestern state of Michigan, claiming five lives and causing widespread damage and power outages, local media reported.

A strong tornado with winds up to 125 mph struck Lansing, the state’s capital, on Thursday night, killing an 84-year-old woman and injuring three others.

In western Michigan, a 21-year-old woman and two girls, aged one and three, respectively, died in a head-on collision between two vehicles that hydroplaned on wet pavement, local media reported on Saturday.

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In Ingham County, southeast of Lansing, one person was confirmed dead and several people were severely injured in a pileup of more than 25 vehicles on an interstate highway, Xinhua news agency reported.

The storms caused power outages for more than 390,000 customers in Michigan by 7:15 p.m. (2315 GMT) on Friday, according to the PowerOutage.us website.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer on Friday declared a state of emergency for Wayne and Monroe counties.

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Protests erupt in Michigan after cop kills black man

The protests first erupted on Wednesday after the Grand Rapids Police Department released several videos of an officer’s encounter with Patrick Lyoya earlier this month, reports Asian Lite News

The killing of a black man by a white police officer sparked a series of protests during the past three days in Michigan’s Grand Rapids.

The protests first erupted on Wednesday after the Grand Rapids Police Department released several videos of an officer’s encounter with Patrick Lyoya earlier this month, including two that show the fatal shot during a struggle after a traffic stop, Xinhua news agency reported citing the local media.

Lyoya, 26, a refugee from Congo, was killed in the garden of a house in Grand Rapids after a brief chase followed by a struggle with the officer, who has not been named.

On Wednesday night, after videos of the incident were released, barriers went up at the Grand Rapids police station as hundreds marched downtown, chanting and demanding the department release the name of the officer who shot Lyoya, local TV channel WZZM reported.

There have been multiple protests and rallies on behalf of Lyoya. On Tuesday evening, dozens of people called for justice as they rallied outside a City Commission meeting. Community members in Grand Rapids gathered downtown at Rosa Parks Circle on Friday. The group marched downtown to the Grand Rapids Police Department headquarters to make their voices heard.

The deaths of George Floyd and other black men at the hands of police have led to protests across America in recent years. There have been 255 police shootings across the US this year, according to The Washington Post.