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Biden, Harris 'have never once reached out' to Gold Star families of 13 fallen servicemembers, they say

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Biden, Harris 'have never once reached out' to Gold Star families of 13 fallen servicemembers, they say

President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris “have never once reached out” to the Gold Star families who lost their loved ones in the deadly bombing at Abbey Gate that killed 13 Americans during the disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal three years ago. 

Members of the Gold Star families participated in a call with GOP Vice Presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, the Trump campaign and reporters Monday afternoon — three years after the attack. 

‘YOU’RE FIRED’: TRUMP VOWS PINK SLIPS ON DAY 1 FOR EVERY OFFICIAL RESPONSIBLE FOR ‘AFGHANISTAN CALAMITY’

The suicide bombing by a member of ISIS-K at the Abbey Gate entrance of Hamid Karzai International Airport took the lives of 13 U.S. service members – 11 Marines, one Navy sailor and one Army soldier. Eighteen other U.S. service members were wounded. The bombing also left more than 150 civilians dead.

Pallbearers carry one of the 13 slain soldiers from the Abbey Gate attack at Kabul airport in April 2021. (Stephen Lam/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)

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Former President Trump held a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery Monday morning to commemorate and honor the 13 American servicemembers who were killed. 

Trump at wreath ceremony

ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA – AUGUST 26: Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump stands alongside Bill Barnett (L), whose grandson Staff Sgt Darin Taylor Hoover died in Abbey Gate Bombing, during a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery on August 26, 2024 in Arlington, Virginia. Monday marks three years since the August 26, 2021, suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport, which killed 13 American service members.  (Getty Images )

But neither Biden nor Harris attended, or held any similar events on Monday to honor the fallen soliders. 

“I think this administration has shown they have treated the Afghanistan withdrawal like the plague – they’ve stayed as far away from it as they possibly can,” Gold Star father Mark Schmitz said in response to a question by Fox News Digital. “I’m not surprised in the least bit that neither one of them would show up for this event.” 

Schmitz told Fox News Digital that “it is pretty obvious that when things get tough, they go running.” 

“This is yet another spit in the face to the 13 families,” Schmitz told Fox News Digital.

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Schmitz added that Trump’s presence at the event “was genuine.”

REPUBLICANS SLAM HARRIS FOR BEING ‘LAST PERSON IN THE ROOM’ WHEN BIDEN MADE CALL TO EVACUATE AFGHANISTAN

“I don’t see this as being part of his political campaign in any way, shape or form,” Schmitz said. “He has always vowed to be there for us—since we met with him early on—and he has never let us down.” 

Schmitz lost his 20-year-old son, U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz, that day. 

Gold Star Aunt Cheryl Juels, who attended the ceremony Monday at Arlington National Ceremony, said that “it doesn’t matter” what Biden or Harris say, adding “it is not genuine.” 

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“He has never once reached out to any of our families,”  Juels said, “Kamala Harris has never once reached out. Kamala Harris supported [Biden] this entire time.” 

Trump stands on the steps with a young woman at the Arlington wreath laying ceremony

Trump participated in a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on the third-year anniversary of the Abbey Gate bombing that killed 13 U.S. service members during the Afghanistan withdrawal. (POOL)

Juels, the aunt of fallen Marine Corps Sgt. Nicole Ghee, told Fox News Digital that “the only person who has reached out to our family over and over again and to all 13 families is Trump.” 

“Him coming out here today and honoring these kids who served, and spending the time talking to all of us and doing this ceremony and showing them honor and respect and dignity,” Juels said. “We need President Trump back in office.” 

Juels said Trump “is the only president president who kept our men and women safe who were serving this country. We 100% support him.” 

“We will do whatever we can to get him back into office so that we can keep the men and women serving this country safe again,” Juels said. 

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Fox News Digital had previously reported that the suicide bomber had been a prisoner released from Bagram Air Base on Aug. 15, 2021, after the Taliban seized control of the facility.

The U.S. service members killed in the suicide bombing as they conducted the massive evacuation effort to save U.S. citizens and Afghan allies include:

Staff Sgt. Darin T. Hoover, 31, U.S. Marine from Utah; Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola, 20, a U.S. Marine from California; Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, a U.S. Marine from Massachusetts; Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, 23, a U.S. Marine from California; Cpl. Hunter Lopez, 22, a U.S. Marine from California; Cpl. Daegan W. Page, 23, a U.S. Marine from Nebraska; Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, a U.S. Marine from Indiana; Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza, 20, a U.S. Marine from Texas; Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz, 20, a U.S. Marine from Missouri; Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum, 20, a U.S. Marine from Wyoming;  Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui, 20, a U.S. Marine from California; Navy Hospital Corpsman Max Soviak, 22, a Navy corpsman from Ohio; and Staff Sgt. Ryan Knauss, 23, a U.S. Army soldier from Tennessee.

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Charli XCX 'happy to help' after Kamala Harris tweet influences presidential push

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Charli XCX 'happy to help' after Kamala Harris tweet influences presidential push

Charli XCX’s influence on Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign is undeniable — even if the British singer says it was unintentional.

The “Vroom Vroom” and “Guess” pop star shared her two cents about how her viral “Brat” album and its slime-green aesthetic became a cornerstone in Harris’ social media strategy, clarifying in a recent interview she doesn’t see herself as “a political artist.”

“I’m not Bob Dylan, and I’ve never pretended to be,” she told New York Magazine in a cover story published Monday. “My music is not political. … Everything I do in my life feeds back into my art. Everything I say, wear, think, enjoy — it all funnels back into my art. Politics doesn’t feed my art.”

Earlier this year, the British singer — who cannot vote in the U.S. — released her pop album “Brat” to critical acclaim and near-instant virality on social media platforms, including X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok. For weeks, the energetic album inspired viral dances, seemingly endless memes and a wealth of other online content. Then in late July, “brat” unexpectedly became part of the political conversation.

Hours after President Biden withdrew from the presidential race and voiced his support for his vice president, Charli XCX (Charlotte Aitchison) tweeted,”Kamala IS brat.” Hopping on the album’s popularity and online ubiquity, the Harris presidential campaign quickly embraced “Brat” and its aesthetic, sharing memes and rebranding its @KamalaHQ account on X to mimic the hit album’s cover. Within weeks, “brat” and its connection to the Harris campaign’s efforts to appeal to younger voters dominated headlines and became a hot topic on networks, including CNN.

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The 32-year-old singer told New York Magazine she didn’t intend her tweet to be an endorsement for Harris, but rather “something positive and lighthearted.” She also said she’s come to embrace her role in this electoral cycle.

“To be on the right side of democracy, the right side of women’s rights, is hugely important to me,” Charli XCX said. “I’m happy to help to prevent democracy from failing forever.”

The singer hasn’t been the only celebrity to voice support for Harris amid her bid against former President Trump . Last week’s Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee was a star-studded affair that featured appearances from celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Kerry Washington.

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Trump sets intense pace with campaign events as questions swirl about Harris' policy positions

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Trump sets intense pace with campaign events as questions swirl about Harris' policy positions

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With both major party national nominating conventions now in the books, the 2024 edition of the race for the White House enters the final sprint, and former President Donald Trump is picking up the pace.

Last week, as the Democrats held their convention in Chicago, Trump stopped in five of the seven crucial battleground states that will likely determine whether he or Vice President Kamala Harris wins the presidential election.

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“We’re more than happy to go out and give specific messages to specific communities, which is what Donald Trump did last week, culminating with the big rally in Arizona. We’ll do the same thing this week,” Trump campaign senior adviser Corey Lewandowski told Fox News.

TRUMP, HARRIS, GET READY FOR THE FINAL STRETCH IN THE 2024 SHOWDOWN

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event at ll Toro E La Capra on Friday, Aug. 23, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Trump on Monday afternoon will be in Detroit to address the National Guard Association of the United States’ 146th General Conference & Exhibition. 

Later in the week, he returns to Michigan, as well as Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, to hold campaign events. Trump’s running mate – Sen. JD Vance of Ohio – stumps in Michigan on Tuesday.

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The three states make up what is known as the Democrats’ blue wall, which the party reliably won in presidential elections for a quarter-century before Trump narrowly carried all three states in 2016 en route to winning the White House.

However, four years later, in 2020, President Biden won back all three by razor-thin margins to defeat Trump and claim the presidency.

HARRIS TAKES AIM AT TRUMP AS SHE VOWS ‘TO BE A PRESIDENT FOR ALL AMERICANS’

Harris has been riding a wave of energy and enthusiasm – both in polling and in fundraising – since replacing Biden at the top of the Democrats’ 2024 ticket five weeks ago. 

The Harris campaign announced on Sunday that they have hauled in over $540 million in fundraising since the vice president replaced Biden at the top of the Democrats’ 2024 ticket. 

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They highlighted that $82 million of that haul came in during last week’s convention “thanks to a surge of grassroots donations,” and that the hour after Harris’ Thursday night nomination acceptance speech was the best hour of fundraising since she became a presidential candidate.

Harris on stage at the DNC

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on stage during the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 22, 2024 in Chicago. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

Trump’s political team expects that momentum to continue – for now – in the wake of last week’s Democratic national nominating convention.

“Post-DNC we will likely see another small (albeit temporary) bounce for Harris in the public polls. Post-Convention bounces are a phenomenon that happens after most party conventions,” Trump campaign pollsters Tony Fabrizio and Travis Tunis wrote late last week in a strategy memo.

HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLLING IN THE 2024 ELECTION

Besides the increased campaign stops, Trump is getting ready to sit down for more media interviews, and after a long absence, is regularly posting on X.

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Additionally, while he will still hold large rallies – as he did in Arizona – campaign officials tell Fox News to expect Trump to take part in more smaller events and meet-and-greets that focus on the economy and the border – two top issues where they believe Harris is vulnerable.

The campaign is also planning to use Democrat turned independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as a top Trump surrogate.

RFK and Trump

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, shakes hands with Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally on Friday, Aug. 23, 2024, in Glendale, Arizona.

Kennedy, the longtime environmental activist and high-profile vaccine skeptic who is the scion of the nation’s most storied political dynasty, on Friday suspended his campaign, endorsed Trump, and later teamed up with the former president at the rally in Arizona.

“Bobby’s going to be on the campaign trail,” Lewandowski said Sunday in an interview on “Fox and Friends.” “He’s now going to have the opportunity to be on the road telling the American people exactly what he’s witnessed first hand, what he’s seen first hand.”

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Lewandowski predicted that “now that he’s [Kennedy] with the Trump campaign, that’s going to be a special opportunity for more people to come join us in our path to victory.”

However, Trump will not have the campaign trail to himself this week. 

Harris and her running mate – Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz – kick off a bus tour in battleground Georgia on Wednesday, with the vice president holding a rally in Savannah on Thursday evening.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

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Opinion: Are American Jews losing their long-standing political home in the Democratic Party?

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Opinion: Are American Jews losing their long-standing political home in the Democratic Party?

Republicans have repeatedly tried — and failed — to win over Jewish Americans, who have historically supported Democrats in overwhelming numbers. One memorable attempt was the campaign by Donald Trump and others on the right to falsely portray Barack Obama as a closeted Muslim who should be feared by those of other faiths. American Jews were not as bigoted as they hoped: Obama won 78% of the Jewish vote in 2008 and 70% in 2012.

This election, however, feels different. Since Oct. 7, the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, was followed by a surge in antisemitic attacks, more Jews have begun to question their safety in this country. With much of the antisemitism emanating from the political left, Republicans seem to think their moment to win the Jewish vote has arrived.

Their argument appears to be simple: You may deplore Trump’s assault on democratic institutions, reproductive rights and the rule of law, but you can’t afford to care about those things anymore — not when the future of Jews in America is being threatened by protesters who praise Hamas and Israel is fighting an existential war against Iranian proxies.

It is no coincidence that in the days after Vice President Kamala Harris became Trump’s presumptive rival for the presidency, Trump began to falsely frame her as an enemy of Israel and Jews. “She’s totally against the Jewish people,” he declared at a rally in North Carolina on July 24. “No. 1, she doesn’t like Israel. No. 2, she doesn’t like Jewish people,” he told a New York radio station on July 30.

Setting aside that Harris is the first vice president in history with a Jewish spouse, Trump has repeatedly and recently shown that he is no true friend of Israel or the Jewish people. Just four days after Oct. 7, he criticized Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for failing to prevent Hamas’ invasion and called Hezbollah, the Lebanese terrorist group that has been firing rockets at Israel since Oct. 8, “smart.” At a rally in Florida the same day, he said the Israeli military had to “step up their game,” referred to Israel’s defense minister as “this jerk” and reiterated that he considers Hezbollah “very smart.”

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Imagine the outrage if a Democrat — let alone the party’s leader — had said any of this just after Hamas’ massacre.

Trump was furthermore calling on Israel to “finish up your war” as long ago as March. It was not until two months later that President Biden delivered his first public call for an end to the war in Gaza — one conditioned, unlike Trump’s, on a Hamas release of Israeli hostages. Trump repeated his call during Netanyahu’s July visit to the United States, saying Israel must end the war “and get it done quickly.” Speaking on Fox News, he added that “Israel is not very good at public relations” and was “getting decimated” on that score.

Anyone understandably concerned about the Israeli government’s far-right turn in recent years should keep in mind that the Trump administration empowered the ultranationalist forces responsible for its increasing international isolation.

Trump has also repeatedly insulted Jews in his desperate bid to reimagine Democrats as a party of antisemites, saying Jewish Americans should have their “head examined” and “be ashamed of themselves” for supporting Democrats. He recently called Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), one of the country’s highest-ranking Jewish officials and a staunch supporter of Israel, “a proud member of Hamas.”

It’s Trump’s MAGA camp that is infested with actual antisemites. Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Trump loyalist who famously blamed California wildfires on Jewish space lasers, opposed a bipartisan bill to address antisemitism on the premise that it rejected “the Gospel that says Jesus was handed over to Herod to be crucified by the Jews.” Greene’s far-right colleague Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) voted against the bill for the same reason. The Holocaust denier Candace Owens was to appear alongside Donald Trump Jr. at a recent campaign event if not for a backlash from the Jewish community. The former president has also fraternized with unabashed antisemites such as Nick Fuentes and Kanye West.

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Again, try to imagine if personalities like these were connected to Harris or Biden.

For all the legitimate fears aroused by violent anti-Israel protests over the last 10 months, let’s remember that the bloodiest days for Jews in America were at the hands of the far right, not the far left. The deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history was perpetrated at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018 by a white nationalist who believed in the far-right “great replacement” conspiracy theory that Jews are working to flood the country with illegal immigrants. The previous year, neo-Nazi Trump supporters marched through Charlottesville, Va., chanting, “Jews will not replace us.” Then-President Trump insisted that some of them were “very fine people.”

Jews have long been overrepresented in social justice movements in this country, which may be one reason for their enduring common cause with Democrats. But Jewish support for the party has never been tested as it has since Oct. 7. Recent surveys showed 89% of American Jews have seen an increase in antisemitism and 60% feel uncomfortable being open about their faith. The backdrop to this sense of insecurity is the extreme rhetoric of some anti-Israel protesters. While most of the protesters have been peaceful, others have called for the deaths of Jews and expressed support for Hamas and Hezbollah.

One stark recent example of the state of the Democratic Party’s relationship with Jews was a conversation on CNN about Kamala Harris’ potential running mates. Regarding Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, the network’s John King told Anderson Cooper, “He’s Jewish; there could be some risk in putting him on the ticket,” a reference to the party’s division over the war in Gaza. That Cooper didn’t ask a follow-up or raise an eyebrow at the idea that Shapiro’s faith presented a problem suggested — rightly or not — that King was stating a fact of Democratic politics. Although Harris’ selection of a running mate no doubt depended on a variety of variables, it’s a troubling perception of the party that has been the political home of most Jewish voters for the better part of a century.

Nevertheless, especially after the powerful expressions of support for Israel and the Jewish people at last week’s Democratic National Convention, Trump’s quest to paint Harris as their enemy looks absurd. American Jews’ relationship with Democrats has certainly been complicated, but — particularly in light of the alternative — it’s likely to remain strong.

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Yardena Schwartz is a journalist and the author of “Ghosts of a Holy War: The 1929 Massacre in Palestine that Ignited the Arab-Israeli Conflict.”

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