Oregon AG touts confidence in courts as Trump tries to ‘amass power in unconstitutional ways'
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Trump's DoJ is demanding states hand over election information. Officials are wondering what they intend to do with it
The Department of Justice is on a mission to collect election information, including sensitive voter information, from states as part of President Donald Trump's executive order cracking down on voting accessibility – but it's left state officials concerned. Over the last three months, the DoJ's Voting Section has reached out to at least 15 states seeking their voter roll, information about individuals who may have violated federal voting laws, and questions about the state's process for identifying and removing ineligible voters, the Associated Press reported. Traditionally, the Voting Section's main focus is to protect citizens' right to vote, but under Trump's direction, it's cracking down on voter fraud – a rare occurrence that Trump has mischaracterized as a major problem in the United States. But some state officials have flagged concerns with the swath of information being requested, saying voter rolls contain private information about individuals and cannot be shared without congressional notification. Utah's Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson, the state's top election official, said she refused to provide expansive information on the state's 2.1 million voters to the DoJ. 'We've offered the public voter list. If they want protected data, there's a process for government entities to request it for lawful purposes,' Henderson told The Salt Lake Tribune. 'We'll address that if it comes,' she continued, 'but so far we haven't identified any federal or state statute that would justify handing over to the federal government the personal identifying information of 2.1 million Utah voters,' Henderson added. Officials in at least four California counties told the Associated Press that DoJ officials requested information about the number of people removed from rolls for being noncitizens, including their ID numbers, dates of birth, and voting records. Trump has sought to conduct the largest deportation of undocumented immigrants, in part by targeting individuals using government information. In Colorado, DoJ officials demanded the state hand over 'all records' pertaining to the 2024 election – a massive trove of documents that includes ballots and voting equipment information, as well as records retained from the 2020 election. Last year, the Colorado state Supreme Court tried to bar Trump from appearing on the presidential ballot, claiming he was ineligible because he violated the Fourteenth Amendment by inciting the January 6 attack on the Capitol. The U.S. Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of Trump, declaring that states did not have the authority to determine a federal candidate's eligibility. In Maine, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said she was denying the DoJ's request for the state's voter registration list, the names of officials who maintain the list, and the number of ineligible voters due to noncitizenship status. Officials had sent multiple requests for information, one of which insinuated that Maine had an unusually high number of registered voters, the Maine Morning Star reported. 'The nature of these questions suggest that the DOJ is more interested in keeping people that they don't like from voting than promoting voter registration and participation,' Bellows told Maine Morning Star. Already, DoJ officials had spoken to Bellows about a potential 'information-sharing agreement' to provide the department with information on registered voters who are ineligible to vote. Similar requests were made to Arizona, Connecticut, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin. 'Why on Earth does the Department of Justice need the voter information from all 50 states?' Bellows asked. 'If Congress thought it was appropriate that there be a national voter file, Congress could have authorized the Department of Justice to do that, but they have not.' The DoJ's motivation in collecting such information appears to be to assist its efforts to identify and prosecute those who violate federal election laws. Trump has directed the attorney general and DoJ to collect election information from states to add extra safeguards to elections. Despite no evidence of mass voter fraud or noncitizen voting in the last several elections, Trump has continually claimed the 2020 election was rigged with mass voter fraud and that undocumented migrants voted in the 2024 election.
Yahoo
4 minutes ago
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Kevin O'Leary Rejects Trump's Tariff Rebate Plan, Says Taxpayers Want To See The National Debt Paid Down
President Donald Trump recently suggested that revenue from tariffs could be returned to Americans in the form of rebate checks. He floated the idea as a way to give back to "people of a certain income level," noting that the U.S. is generating "so much money" from tariffs. The concept drew attention, especially as Trump said that tariffs once funded the federal government entirely — before the income tax was permanently established in 1913. Tariffs are taxes placed on imported goods, and while they're paid by importers, the added costs can trickle down to consumers. Shop Top Mortgage Rates Your Path to Homeownership Personalized rates in minutes A quicker path to financial freedom Don't Miss: 'Scrolling To UBI' — Deloitte's #1 fastest-growing software company allows users to earn money on their phones. You can Accredited Investors: Grab Pre-IPO Shares of the AI Company Powering Hasbro, Sephora & MGM— O'Leary Pushes Back: "Pay Down the Debt" But Kevin O'Leary, investor and chair of O'Leary Ventures, disagrees with using tariff revenue this way. "No. I tell you the idea I like — and I think every taxpayer likes better than this idea — use any excess capital to reduce the national debt," O'Leary told Fox News. O'Leary emphasized that America's growing debt isn't just a current burden — it's a long-term risk for future generations. With interest rates elevated, the cost of servicing the national debt increases, and a large portion of that debt is held by foreign entities. "Let's use any excess cash anywhere to get to that balanced budget and start paying down that debt," O'Leary urged. A Debate Within the GOP? O'Leary hinted that discussions about what to do with tariff revenue may be happening behind the scenes within Republican leadership. "Within the administration itself, this is a big debate going on," he said, suggesting there's pressure internally to shift attention toward fiscal responsibility. Trending: $100k+ in investable assets? – no cost, no obligation. He praised current efforts to lower tax rates and increase U.S. competitiveness but warned that the cost — an estimated $3 trillion addition to the national debt — means America now needs to focus on balancing the budget. Alternative Ideas for Reducing Debt In addition to using tariff revenue, O'Leary proposed another strategy: generating income from domestic energy resources. For example, he pointed to the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska — a large government-owned oil reserve — as a potential source of revenue. "We could open up the NIR in Alaska and put a tariff on that oil like they do in Norway and just use it all for debt reduction," he This Could Affect Everyday Americans O'Leary believes that reducing the national debt is critical for America's long-term financial health. He pointed out that when interest rates rise — or even remain high — the cost of servicing the debt increases. Much of that debt is held by foreign creditors, which he says makes the issue even more pressing. Whether or not Trump's rebate idea gains traction, O'Leary's response highlights a broader debate about the best use of government revenue. For taxpayers, especially those nearing or in retirement, questions about the national debt are becoming harder to ignore. Read Next: How do billionaires pay less in income tax than you?. Image: Shutterstock Up Next: Transform your trading with Benzinga Edge's one-of-a-kind market trade ideas and tools. Click now to access unique insights that can set you ahead in today's competitive market. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? APPLE (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article Kevin O'Leary Rejects Trump's Tariff Rebate Plan, Says Taxpayers Want To See The National Debt Paid Down originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
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Chris Christie likens Trump to 'petulant child' over labor statistics chief's firing
WASHINGTON − Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie called President Donald Trump's firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics chief "irresponsible" and likened his response to weaker-than-anticipated jobs numbers to "the action of a petulant child." The Trump ally turned critic said in an appearance on ABC News that the firing was classic Trump. "When he gets news he doesn't like, he needs someone to blame because he won't take the responsibility himself, and this is the action of a petulant child. Like, you give me bad news, I fire the messenger," Christie told "This Week" host George Stephanopoulos. Trump ordered the removal of Erika McEntarfer, the U.S. commissioner of Labor Statistics, on Aug. 1 after the Labor Department said the U.S. economy added a mere 73,000 jobs in July. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also revised down totals for May and June by a combined 258,000 jobs. The president accused McEntarfer, a 20-year veteran of the federal government appointed to the position by Biden, of politically driven data manipulation. He did not provide evidence for the charge. Trump said she would be replaced by "someone much more competent and qualified" in a Truth Social post announcing the firing. "Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate, they can't be manipulated for political purposes." President Trump orders firing: Labor statistics chief removed after weak jobs report He wrote in another post, 'In my opinion, today's Jobs Numbers were RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad.' Christie invoked his eight years as New Jersey governor and said in his experience, "it would be almost impossible for anyone to try to rig these numbers because so many people are involved in putting them together." "All she's doing is being a conduit of the information," he said. "So it's irresponsible, from a position of facts, but it also shows you the way he manages." White House defends Labor Statistics chief's firing Trump economic advisers defended the president's decision elsewhere on television, with National Economic Council chair Kevin Hassett arguing on NBC News that the bureau needs a "fresh set of eyes." 'There have been a bunch of patterns that could make people wonder. And I think the most important thing for people to know is that it's the president's highest priority that the data be trusted and that people get to the bottom of why these revisions are so unreliable,' Hassett said on "Meet the Press." Trump also went on the attack, alleging in a post on Aug. 3 that McEntarfer "did the same thing just before" the 2024 presidential election − inflating and then revising down former President Joe Biden's jobs numbers. "I then won the Election, anyway, and she readjusted the numbers downward, calling it a mistake, of almost one million jobs. A SCAM!" he claimed. Revisions to monthly estimates are common, and in December 2024, the Labor Department said 15,000 fewer jobs were created in the month of November than its initial estimate. BLS said 7,000 more jobs than it projected were created in October. Trump appeared to be referencing an announcement BLS made in August 2024, three months before the election, when the agency reduced its estimate by 818,000 for jobs created between April 2023 and March 2024. It was the largest downgrade in 15 years. In an interview on CBS News' "Face the Nation," U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer did not repeat Trump's claim that the data was "rigged" but argued that "there were enormous swings in the jobs numbers" during last year's presidential campaign. "And so it sounds to me like the president has real concerns," he said in the interview that taped Aug. 1. "There are always revisions, but sometimes you see these revisions go in really extreme ways. And it's, you know, the president is the president. He can choose who works in the executive branch." Contributing: Joey Garrison This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Christie likens Trump to 'petulant child' after jobs data firing
