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Beware the Ides of July: Trump assassination attempt, Biden ends reelection campaign in wild month

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Beware the Ides of July: Trump assassination attempt, Biden ends reelection campaign in wild month

It’s customary for me to write a piece this month titled “Beware the Ides of August.” It’s a take on Shakespeare, where Julius Caesar is warned “Beware the Ides of March.” The middle of March is what spells doom for Caesar. And over the years, I have found that the month of August – often the midway point – to be the most dramatic, historic and often volatile period in politics and government.

Richard Nixon resigned the presidency in August 1974. The U.S. dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. Martin Luther King Jr., gave his “I Have a Dream” speech in August 1963. There was the riot in Charlottesville, Va., in August 2017. There was even an earthquake in Washington, DC in August 2011. And not the political kind.

Will August 2024 measure up?

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: A PORTRAIT OF MIDDLETOWN, OHIO, HOME TO JD VANCE

July of 2024 is like, “August, hold my beer.”

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We’ve got a lot of August to go. But July earned a special spot in the pantheon of extraordinary political months. The shooting of former President Trump followed by the decision by President Biden to bow out of the 2024 campaign were extraordinary news events. And then there was the political hailstorm which pelted the news cycle for nearly three consecutive weeks after President Biden’s horrific debate performance in late June. We haven’t even mentioned the Republican convention in Milwaukee and Mr. Trump’s selection of Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio as his running mate. Those tectonic shifts were significant enough. But failed to rival the sheer intensity of the assassination attempt of the former President coupled with Mr. Biden dropping out.

An astonishing case study into the intensity of the July news cycle came on July 24. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was slated to deliver a controversial speech to a Joint Meeting of Congress. Bipartisan Congressional leaders – but mainly Republicans – invited Netanyahu to speak to Congress for a record fourth time. But Netanyahu’s address would temporarily take a backseat to some of the other events.

Former President Donald Trump was hit in the ear in an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, July 13, 2024. US President Joe Biden addressed the nation on Wednesday, July 24, 2024, following his historic decision to end his reelection bid.  (Getty Images)

Consider how the story shifted throughout the day on July 24.

Netanyahu would have constituted the news lede early that morning during any other period. But the testimony of FBI Director Christopher Wray to the House Judiciary Committee that morning eclipsed Netanyahu for a time. Wray was already scheduled to appear before the panel prior to the Trump shooting. But the failed assassination of the former president now commanded most of the nation’s news oxygen. Especially with Wray appearing before a House committee to discuss the FBI’s inquiry into the shooting.

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Netanyahu wasn’t due to speak to the Joint Meeting of Congress until the afternoon. But Netanyahu’s address infuriated the left and many pro-Palestinian/anti-Israel demonstrators. They flooded the streets of Washington and clashed with police. They burned American flags and hoisted Palestinian flags in front of Union Station, just blocks from the Capitol. The dramatic video and audacity of the demonstrations captured the news cycle for a bit before Netanyahu’s speech.

ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS INVADE CAPITOL HILL BUILDING ON EVE OF NETANYAHU ADDRESS

Then came Netanyahu’s presentation to Congress. The news here was just not what the Israeli Prime Minister said. But multiple sub-angles highlighted the controversy of Netanyahu’s speech. Many Democrats boycotted the Joint Meeting. There was the fact that Vice President Harris – who serves as President of the Senate – did not preside because she was speaking to a Black sorority in Indiana. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., – the highest ranking Jewish member in Congressional history – refused to shake hands with Netanyahu on the House floor. Netanyahu railed against the demonstrators near the Capitol, calling them “useful idiots” for Iran. Democrats who did attend the speech lamented that Netanyahu failed to offer a plan to get hostages back or call for a ceasefire.

But by nightfall, Netanyahu was old news.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress in the chamber of the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol on July 24, 2024, in Washington, DC.  (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

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President Biden was now healthy enough after a bout with COVID. He planned to speak to the nation about his monumental decision against seeking a second term. Yes. The president formally told the nation via X on Sunday he was standing down. But a nationwide address to the country is another level.

Never mind that buried in all of this was the fact that Harris quickly wrapped up what appeared to be support from Democratic delegates and Democratic lawmakers to stand-in for Mr. Biden. The country was exploring who Harris was and determining how she measured up to former President Trump. There was also a deep dive amid this into Vance, his policy positions and explorations of his 2016 book, Hillbilly Elegy.

HOW DEMOCRATIC CONCERN ABOUT BIDEN WENT QUIET FOR A FEW DAYS

There was a lot going on.

So August, beware. You have a lot to live up to.

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Not that those of us involved in politics or media are asking for another hellish news cycle.

Sure. There will be the Democratic National Convention at the end of August in Chicago. Harris just selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) as her running mate. There’s plenty to chew on. But these events don’t seem as dynamic as what we wrestled with in July.

Democratic presidential candidate, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz appear on stage together during a campaign event at Girard College on August 6, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

That’s not to say that other major things won’t bubble up this month. The Middle East is white hot. There are grave concerns about a conflagration which could engulf the entire region. One could always fret about the chances of hostilities between China and Taiwan. Another major political narrative could emerge about former President Trump, Harris, Vance or Walz. Mr. Biden is still President and questions abound about his final months in office. And then there is the unknown. August has a way of surprising people with historic events and episodes which spring out of nowhere, shifting the course of history.

Iraq invaded Kuwait in early August, 1990, setting off the first Gulf War a few months later. The Soviets shot down a Korean jetliner in late August, 1983, killing an American congressman and hundreds of others. Walz was major political news. But the decision by 2008 Republican presidential nominee and late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to select former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) as his running mate was a shock. Tapping Walz paled in comparison to the Palin pick. Never mind that a hurricane cut short the GOP’s convention that year. That’s because in 2006, Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast, forever altering the trajectory of former President George W. Bush.

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So, beware the ides of August – just because it’s August.

But last month, it was “Beware the Ides of July.”

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Trump stirs GOP primary drama with visit to Massie’s Kentucky home turf

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Trump stirs GOP primary drama with visit to Massie’s Kentucky home turf

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President Donald Trump is taking his feud with Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., to the libertarian lawmaker’s home turf on Wednesday.

Trump is expected to hold an event in Hebron, Kentucky, on Wednesday, the Republican Party of Kentucky announced on social media Monday. It’s located in the northern part of the state’s 4th Congressional District, which Massie represents.

Massie’s primary rival, Ed Gallrein, will attend the Hebron event, his campaign confirmed to Fox News Digital on Tuesday, while deferring all other questions on the matter to the White House.

Massie himself will miss the event due to a previously scheduled official engagement, his spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

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KHANNA AND MASSIE THREATEN TO FORCE A VOTE ON IRAN AS PROSPECT OF US ATTACK LOOMS

President Donald Trump will be visiting Rep. Thomas Massie’s congressional district on Wednesday. (Win McNamee/Getty Images; Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

When asked about the visit, White House spokeswoman Liz Huston told Fox News Digital, “President Trump will visit the great states of Ohio and Kentucky on Wednesday to tout his economic victories and detail his Administration’s aggressive, ongoing efforts to lower prices and make America more affordable.”

The president has thrown his considerable influence behind Gallrein to unseat Massie after the GOP lawmaker publicly defied Trump on multiple occasions.

MASSIE, KHANNA TO VISIT DOJ TO REVIEW UNREDACTED EPSTEIN FILES

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Massie most recently was one of two House Republicans to vote to stop Trump’s joint operation in Iran with Israel, though the legislation was successfully blocked by the majority of GOP lawmakers and a handful of Democrats.

Ed Gallrein, left, seen with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House. (Ed Gallrein congressional campaign)

He was also one of two Republicans to vote against Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” last year.

Trump in turn has hurled a slew of personal attacks against Massie, including calling him “weak and pathetic” in a statement endorsing Gallrein in October.

“He only votes against the Republican Party, making life very easy for the Radical Left. Unlike ‘lightweight’ Massie, a totally ineffective LOSER who has failed us so badly, CAPTAIN ED GALLREIN IS A WINNER WHO WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN,” Trump posted on Truth Social at the time, one of numerous criticisms targeting the Kentucky Republican through the years.

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He called Massie the “worst Republican congressman” in July amid Massie’s bipartisan push to force the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release its files on Jeffrey Epstein.

Then-Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, and Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California, during a news conference outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

But Massie has so far appeared to defy political gravity despite making political enemies out of both Trump and House GOP leaders.

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He handily defeated multiple primary challengers in 2024 and 2022, despite public feuds with Trump, and has served his district since 2012.

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Gallrein is a retired Navy SEAL and farmer who launched his campaign days after Trump made his endorsement. Their primary election day is May 19.

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California Democrats launch pricey polling effort to winnow crowded gubernatorial field

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California Democrats launch pricey polling effort to winnow crowded gubernatorial field

As anxiety mounts among California Democrats about the potential of a Republican being elected governor, the state party will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on polling to assess the viability of the sprawling field of candidates hoping to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom, according to plans released Tuesday.

The move comes after nearly every Democratic candidate refused party leaders’ call last week to withdraw from the race to avoid splitting the vote in the June primary — an outcome that could lead to a Republican being elected to statewide office for the first time in two decades.

“Candidates have filed, and now they’ve got the opportunity to showcase their viability, their path to win. I want to simply ensure that everybody has information to fully understand the current state of the race,” said Rusty Hicks, the leader of the California Democratic Party.

As campaign season ramps up, the series of six polls will allow “candidates, supporters, the media, voters, anyone and everyone to have a clear understanding of what is or is not happening in this particular race,” he said.

The filing deadline to appear on the June 2 ballot was Friday. Three days earlier, Hicks released an open letter urging candidates who did not have a path to victory to withdraw from the race. Of the nine prominent Democrats who had announced runs for governor, only one heeded his call: former state Assembly Majority Leader Ian Calderon.

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That means the eight other candidates’ names will appear on the ballot, regardless of whether they decide to later drop out. And that creates the possibility of a Republican winning the race because of how California elections are decided.

The state has a voter-approved top-two primary system, under which the two candidates who receive the most votes in the June primary advance to the November general election, regardless of party.

Two prominent Republicans will appear on the ballot: former conservative commentator Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. Even though Democratic voters outnumber Republicans nearly 2 to 1, and the state’s electorate last elevated Republicans to statewide office in 2006, it is mathematically possible for Democrats to splinter the vote, allowing the two GOP candidates to advance.

Under such a scenario, not only would Republicans be guaranteed the leadership of the nation’s most-populous state, but Democratic voter turnout also would probably be depressed in November, potentially affecting down-ballot races such as those that could determine control of Congress.

Hicks’ call last week prompted concerns among candidates of color, including former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and state Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, that the effort was aimed at every nonwhite candidate in the race.

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The state party chairman responded that his letter was not aimed at any specific candidate.

“It’s not something I lose sleep over,” Hicks said when asked about the racial claims. But he added that the voter surveys will be conducted by Los Angeles-based Evitarus, the state’s only Black- and Latino-led full-service polling firm, and will oversample historically underrepresented communities: Latino, Black and Asian American voters.

Hicks said the polling will cost “multiple six figures” but did not specify the exact amount.

The first poll will be released on March 24, and then five additional surveys will come out every seven to 10 days until voters start receiving mail ballots in early May.

“We’re putting this forward to ensure everyone is armed with the information they need to clearly have an eyes-wide-open assessment of where the state of the race currently is between now and when ballots land in the mailboxes of voters,” Hicks said.

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Trump reveals top issues GOP should focus on to secure midterms victory: ‘I’ve never been more confident’

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Trump reveals top issues GOP should focus on to secure midterms victory: ‘I’ve never been more confident’

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President Donald Trump outlined five key items he believes will tip the upcoming midterm elections in the GOP’s favor — if Republicans can muscle them through Congress.

“No transgender mutilation surgery for our children,” Trump told an audience at the Republican Members’ Issues Conference. “Voter ID, citizenship [verification], mail-in ballots, we don’t want men playing in women’s sports.”

It’s the best of Trump. Those are the best of Trump. This is the number one priority, it should be, for the House,” Trump said.

Trump’s exhortations to Republican lawmakers come as the GOP wages an uphill campaign to hang on to a controlling majority in the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. He framed his legislative priorities as a way for Republicans to capitalize on popular demands within the GOP base that would increase their chances of preserving a Republican governing trifecta.

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President Donald Trump gestures as he boards Air Force One before departing Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, on March 1, 2026. (Mandel Ngan / AFP via Getty Images)

HOUSE REPUBLICANS PUSH ELECTION OVERHAUL WITH VOTER ID, MAIL-IN BALLOT CHANGES AHEAD OF MIDTERMS

Currently, Republicans hold just four more seats than Democrats in the House of Representatives.

The GOP holds six more than Democrats in the Senate.

To keep the numbers in their favor, Republicans will need to beat historical trends. In the vast majority of past cases, parties that capture the White House in presidential elections face blowback in the midterms. Notably, the last time a majority party gained seats in both chambers of Congress in the midterms came under the Bush administration in 2002, following devastating attacks on the World Trade Center.

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House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, left, and President Donald Trump shake hands during an Invest America roundtable in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, District of Columbia, on June 9, 2025. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

REPUBLICANS, TRUMP RUN INTO SENATE ROADBLOCK ON VOTER ID BILL

Trump said he believes Republicans have a shot at bucking the trend come November if they focus on his list.

“It’ll guarantee the midterms,” Trump said of his legislative priorities.

Republicans have already taken strikes towards two of them through the SAVE America Act, a piece of legislation that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and cast a ballot. That bill cleared the House last month for a second time in the 119th Congress.

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Its future is uncertain in the Senate, where Republicans would need the assistance of seven Democrats to overcome the 60-vote threshold to defeat a filibuster. Democrats, for their part, believe the legislation would disenfranchise voters who cannot readily provide documented proof of citizenship through a passport, REAL ID, or birth certificate. 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. has promised a vote on the package despite its long odds. 

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, talks with a guest during a “Only Citizens Vote Bus Tour” rally in Upper Senate Park to urge Congress to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

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Several members have introduced bills on transgender issues, although none of them have cleared either chamber.

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I’ve never been more confident that if we keep these promises and deliver on this popular agenda, the American people will stand with us in overwhelming numbers, just as they did in 2024,” Trump said.

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