A top House Republican leader is accusing the International Criminal Court (ICC) of equating Israel’s democratically elected government with terror group Hamas after its chief prosecutor petitioned for arrest warrants against top officials in both.

‘The ICC’s decision to equate Israel with Hamas as a war criminal is a gift to terrorists around the globe and a slap in the face to the only free-standing democracy in the Middle East,’ House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., the No. 3 House GOP lawmaker, told Fox News Digital. ‘There is no comparison between the deliberate killing, raping, and torturing of thousands of innocent civilians and those who are rightfully defending themselves against it.’

He’s one of several pro-Israel lawmakers who have called for the ICC to face consequences over the developments. Others are calling for the U.S. to take action directly against the international judicial body.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said in a statement, ‘In the absence of leadership from the White House, Congress is reviewing all options, including sanctions, to punish the ICC and ensure its leadership faces consequences if they proceed. If the ICC is allowed to threaten Israeli leaders, ours could be next.’

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan announced on Monday morning that he believes there are ‘reasonable grounds’ to accuse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant of ‘war crimes and crimes against humanity’ in the Gaza strip.

Among the charges Khan listed are the intentional targeting of civilians and ‘starvation of civilians as a method of warfare.’ 

He’s also seeking arrest warrants for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, top Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh, and Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri, the head of Hamas’s military wing – known as the Al-Qassam Brigades – over the Palestinian liberation group’s Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack in Israel.

It’s prompted a flurry of outrage from Israel’s defenders in Washington, many of whom pointed out that Israel, like the U.S., is not under ICC jurisdiction. The Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank, however, joined in 2015.

Emmer went a step further in his condemnation on Monday, declaring, ‘It’s time for the rest of the world to defund and refuse to recognize any legitimacy from a pro-terrorist international court.’

Meanwhile, Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., suggested ICC officials should be banned from setting foot in the U.S. 

‘There is no legal or legislative basis for these charges,’ he told Fox News Digital, vowing that Congressional Republicans ‘will push to end American support for the ICC and bar their officials from entering our country.’

Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., urged President Biden to stand up against the Israel arrest warrants.

‘The ICC is a sham kangaroo court that’s drawing a moral equivalency between our ally Israel and the Hamas terrorists who are currently holding U.S. citizens hostage. This is why I co-sponsored legislation to sanction the ICC if it goes after Americans and our allies,’ he told Fox News Digital.

House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., who was in Israel meeting with Netanyahu when the news first broke Monday, is also urging Congress to mount a legislative response.

She said her bill would ‘punish those in the ICC that made this baseless, undemocratic decision.’

On the other side of Capitol Hill, pro-Israel hawks in the Senate are equally furious.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said the charges against Netanyahu and Gallant are ‘politically motivated’ and warned, ‘My colleagues and I look forward to making sure neither Khan, his associates nor their families will ever set foot again in the United States.’

The top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, said in a statement, ‘Today’s actions have hurt the credibility of the court and seriously harmed legitimate accountability efforts where true war crimes are occurring, like Ukraine, Syria, and across Africa.’

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., accused Khan of lying about his intentions. He said in a statement, ‘Prosecutor Khan’s team was supposed to be in Israel today to arrange a meeting for next week with the prosecutor’s office about the allegations. I was told by ICC staff that the investigation would likely take months and not weeks, and that there would be meaningful consultation with the State of Israel. Instead of the ICC following through with scheduled consultations with Israel, they announced the warrants.’

Even Democrats up to the White House condemned the move – President Biden slammed the ICC’s warrants against Israel as ‘outrageous.’

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., wrote on X, formerly Twitter: ‘Requesting arrest warrants for both Israel and Hamas leaders suggests there is a moral equivalence between them – there is none and it’s disgusting to suggest otherwise. The ICC’s credibility is now in shambles and they have only themselves to thank.’                

Amal Clooney, wife of actor George Clooney, was among the experts who advised the International Criminal Court (ICC) in seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar over alleged war crimes. 

The ICC’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, asked Clooney, 46, to assist him with evaluating evidence of suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity in Israel and the Gaza Strip, where Israeli military forces have been operating since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.

‘I agreed and joined a panel of international legal experts to undertake this task,’ Clooney, an attorney, said in a lengthy statement on the Clooney Foundation for Justice website. 

 The ICC determined it has jurisdiction over crimes committed by Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, its top political leader Ismail Haniyeh and its military commander Mohammed Deif, as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

‘We unanimously conclude that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, including hostage-taking, murder and crimes of sexual violence,’ Clooney wrote of the panel’s determination.

She cited Israeli war crimes of ‘starvation as a method of warfare, murder, persecution and extermination.’

‘As a human rights lawyer, I will never accept that one child’s life has less value than another’s. I do not accept that any conflict should be beyond the reach of the law, nor that any perpetrator should be above the law,’ she wrote.

‘So I support the historic step that the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has taken to bring justice to victims of atrocities in Israel and Palestine,’ Clooney added. 

Clooney is married to actor George Clooney, who is a well-known supporter of President Biden. The Biden campaign enlisted George Clooney, as well as actress Julia Roberts and former President Obama for a star-studded fundraiser in Los Angeles next month. 

George Clooney will appear in social media posts and digital ads in support of President Biden.

Amal Clooney was joined on the panel by legal experts in international humanitarian and criminal law. Two members are former judges at criminal tribunals at The Hauge. 

Meanwhile, Netanyahu called the ICC’s decision the latest example of ‘what the new antisemitism looks like.’ 

‘It is directed against the IDF soldiers, who are fighting with extraordinary heroism against the vile Hamas murderers who attacked us with terrible cruelty on Oct. 7,’ Netanyahu said in an English-language statement.

‘What a travesty of justice! What a disgrace!’ he said. 

Democrats are coming out divided against the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday following a prosecutor’s decision to pursue arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas’ top leaders, with one lawmaker describing it as ‘retribution against Israel for the original sin of existing as a Jewish State.’ 

Rep. Richie Torres, D-N.Y., made the pointed remark as ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said his office has ‘reasonable grounds’ to believe Netanyahu, Israel Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, its top political leader Ismail Haniyeh and its military commander Mohammed Dief have committed ‘war crimes and crimes against humanity’ since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7. 

‘Israel is not a member of the ICC and therefore the ICC has no jurisdiction. The decision to seek arrest warrants is not law but politics,’ Torres said in a statement. ‘It is not justice but rather retribution against Israel for the original sin of existing as a Jewish State and the subsequent sin of defending itself amid the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.  

‘Today’s decision in effect makes it criminal for a state like Israel to defend itself against an enemy shrewd enough to embed itself in a civilian population, as Hamas has done to an extent never seen before in the history of warfare,’ he continued. 

‘But for October 7th and Hamas’ unprecedented militarization of its own civilian population and infrastructure, there would be no war in Gaza and no humanitarian crisis among Gazans,’ Torres also said. ‘Hamas is the cause of everything tragic that has ensued and Hamas alone should be the target of criminal prosecution.’ 

Fellow New York Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who previously has said Israel is carrying out a ‘genocide’ in Gaza and has been implementing a ‘forced famine,’ said on Monday that ‘I think my role as much as possible broadly is … that we cease U.S. funding for human rights abuses, war crimes and violations abroad. 

‘And what we see happening in Gaza, in the West Bank and throughout Palestine has been a broad – and as we’ve seen even from this morning that with the ICC’s designation as well of both Sinwar and Netanyahu – that this is happening, and it’s occurring this should not happen with U.S. resources,’ she added. 

Fox News’ Tyler Olson contributed to this report. 

Lawyers for two IRS whistleblowers who informed Congress about the Hunter Biden criminal probe are seeking an inspector general investigation into Special Counsel David Weiss, alleging he ‘hid and twisted’ information – prompting more angst on Capitol Hill amid inquiries into Biden family conduct and alleged politicization of the Justice Department.

Empower Oversight, the legal group representing IRS special agents Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler, allege that Weiss’ team – in a March 11 federal court filing – deliberately misled the public by suggesting an unnamed federal agency was investigating the two whistleblowers for misconduct. However, the vague reference to the ‘potential investigation(s)’ is a reference to a probe the whistleblowers sought, alleging the Justice Department and IRS were retaliating against them for their disclosures.

Shapley and Ziegler testified last year to Congress alleging political considerations led the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service to go soft on its probe of Hunter Biden’s finances. Now, they have taken fire from both the defense and prosecution, noted House Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer, R-Ky.

‘Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler, the two brave IRS whistleblowers who made legally protected disclosures to Congress about misconduct within the Justice Department, have been attacked by Hunter Biden’s legal team,’ Comer told Fox News Digital.

‘Special Counsel Weiss has been part of this smear campaign as he misled the public that the IRS whistleblowers were under investigation when in fact they were not,’ Comer continued. ‘Ever since Special Counsel Weiss got caught trying to give Hunter Biden a sweetheart plea deal, he’s been trying to cover his tracks. There must be accountability for this misconduct.’

Empower Oversight wants two Justice Department agencies – the Office of Inspector General and the Office of Professional Responsibility – to investigate the conduct by Weiss’ office.

‘David Weiss has been retaliating against Gary Shapley ever since Shapley objected a year and a half ago to letting the statute of limitations lapse on 2014 felony tax charges against Hunter Biden,’ Tristan Leavitt, president of Empower Oversight, told Fox News Digital. ‘Weiss then learned from internal IRS communications that Shapley had been telling his IRS chain of command about Weiss’ office pulling punches in the Hunter Biden probe.’

In a letter this week, representatives for the two whistleblowers also asked the Office of Special Counsel – an independent whistleblower protection agency known as OSC, not to be confused with Weiss’s office – to clarify for the record that the two agents are not under investigation.

‘Weiss’ response is exactly why Shapley filed a whistleblower retaliation complaint with OSC in the first place,’ Leavitt continued. ‘DOJ OIG or OPR need to investigate to see whether Weiss’ office intentionally misled the public in order to further retaliate against the IRS whistleblowers.’

Reached by Fox News Digital, Weiss spokesperson Kim Reeves declined to comment for this story.

In 2023, Hunter Biden entered a plea deal with Delaware U.S. Attorney Weiss’ office. However, Shapley and Ziegler – who worked on the investigation – presented the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Oversight Committee with new information about the case. Shortly thereafter, a federal judge rejected the agreement.

After that, Attorney General Merrick Garland gave Weiss special counsel status, allowing him to bring charges outside his jurisdiction. Weiss secured an indictment on a gun charge in Delaware and a tax evasion case in California.  

In February, Hunter Biden’s lawyers filed a motion to dismiss the tax case in California, arguing in part that Shapley and Ziegler made disclosures that put political pressure on prosecutors.

The March 11 filing by Weiss’ office in federal court in the Central District of California was in opposition to the motion to dismiss the case, and attempted to rebut that claim about the influence of whistleblowers – though in doing so, suggested they were under investigation.

The Weiss response to the motion to dismiss said Shapley and Ziegler ‘made unsubstantiated claims that prosecutors’ decision-making in this investigation was infected by politics.’ It adds the ‘IRS has taken responsible steps to address Shapley and Ziegler’s conduct.’ It directs the court to Exhibit 2, redacted from the public.

The Weiss team explains redactions in Exhibit 2 are because, ‘Here, the potential investigation(s) may involve allegations of wrongdoing, and the potential investigation(s) could be frustrated, not served, if the public were allowed access to these materials in the midst of the potential investigation(s).’

On May 14, the advocates for the IRS whistleblowers wrote a letter to the Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz and Office of Professional Responsibility Counsel Jeffrey Ragsdale.

‘Weiss’ office hid and twisted the significance of OSC’s investigation into the whistleblowers’ own allegations that the IRS and Special Counsel Weiss retaliated against them,’ the letter to DOJ internal watchdog officials says. ‘Rather than acknowledging the truth that OSC is investigating the reprisal against the whistleblowers, the DOJ filing falsely suggested to the public that some unnamed agency was investigating the conduct of the whistleblowers themselves.’

The letter was signed by Leavitt, Empower Oversight founder Jason Foster, as well as attorneys Marke Lytle and Justin Gelfand.

The same day, the four signed a lengthier letter to the OSC acting principal deputy counsel, Karen Gorman. The letter notes the vague reference to investigations in Exhibit 2 was an OSC probe of the IRS and Justice Department initiated by Shapley and Ziegler. Whereas, the Weiss filing suggested the investigation is targeting Shapley and Ziegler.  

The letter to Gorman says the OSC should ‘not allow the Justice Department to mischaracterize your work for the purposes of a retaliatory attack on the reputation of whistleblowers who have done nothing wrong.’

An OSC spokesperson acknowledged receipt of the letter to Fox News Digital, but could not confirm or deny the existence of an open investigation.

The OSC has been under scrutiny for other reasons loosely related to the case involving President Biden’s son. The president appointed Hampton Dellinger, a former colleague of Hunter Biden at a law firm, to run the agency. Dellinger has recused himself from this case.

‘However, it would be entirely improper if the rest of OSC were to stay silent as the Biden Justice Department mischaracterizes OSC’s work probing the reprisal against the IRS whistleblowers in the Hunter Biden case,’ the letter to Gorman says. ‘Accordingly, we respectfully request that you correct the record as soon as possible.’

A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi crashed in Iran’s East Azerbaijin province Sunday into a fog-shrouded forest. 

As multiple emergency crews instigated search-and-rescue operations, speculation mounted as to what would happen in the event of Raisi’s death, and what it would mean for Iran’s internal affairs.   

Fox News Digital spoke with Behnam Ben Taleblu, an expert on Iranian security at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD), to discuss the implications for Iran’s domestic politics. 

The helicopter crash, Taleblu noted, comes after years of growing protests in the streets against the regime, as well as plummeting participation in elections. 

‘Raisi was a symbol of the hard right shift of what’s left of the governing elite of the Islamic Republic of Iran,’ Taleblu said. ‘It represents kind of this second generation where, loyalty and zeal rather than capability and competence were key factors in his political ascension.’ 

Taleblu noted that Raisi has had blood on his hands for decades, having been involved in the mass execution of prisoners in the late 1980s.

Raisi, now 63, previously ran Iran’s judiciary. He ran unsuccessfully for president in 2017 against Hassan Rouhani, the relatively moderate cleric who as president reached Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

In 2021, Raisi became president of Iran in an election that saw all of his potentially prominent opponents barred from running under Iran’s vetting system. He swept nearly 62% of the 28.9 million votes, the lowest turnout by percentage in the Islamic Republic’s history. Millions stayed home and others voided ballots.

While a powerful position on paper, Raisi has ‘no domestic organic social support base,’ Taleblu said. ‘He’s really a vehicle for the ultra hard-right consolidation in Iranian Islamic politics.’ 

Raisi has long been seen as a protégé to Iran’s supreme leader and a potential successor for his position within the country’s Shiite theocracy. But with Raisi potentially out of the way, Taleblu said, ‘the short list would have gotten even shorter.’ 

‘Another person on that shortlist, that would benefit significantly from this is Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba, who right now basically wields power without accountability. And many, allege that he is interested in becoming the next supreme leader, or that he may be jockeying to become the next Supreme leader as well,’ Taleblu said.

Iran ultimately is run by its 85-year-old supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. But as president, Raisi supported the country’s enrichment of uranium up to near-weapons-grade levels, as well as it hampering international inspectors as part of its confrontation with the West.

Raisi also supported attacking Israel in a massive assault in April that saw over 300 drones and missiles fired at the country in response to a suspected Israeli attack that killed Iranian generals at the country’s embassy compound in Damascus, Syria — itself a widening of a yearslong shadow war between the two countries.

He also supported the country’s security services as they cracked down on all dissent, including in the aftermath of the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini and the nationwide protests that followed.

The monthslong security crackdown killed more than 500 people and saw over 22,000 detained. In March, a United Nations investigative panel found that Iran was responsible for the ‘physical violence’ that led to Amini’s death after her arrest for not wearing a hijab, or headscarf, to the liking of authorities.

House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., on Sunday defended a recent speech she delivered to the Israeli Knesset in Jerusalem, torching President Biden’s ‘betrayal of the importance of the U.S.-Israel alliance.’ 

Stefanik, who is meeting with Israeli leaders at the same time Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan is also visiting Jerusalem, appeared on ‘Fox News Sunday’ after speaking at the parliament building. Fox News host Shannon Bream asked the third-highest ranking House Republican if the concept broadly adopted in the 1940s of leaving partisan politics at the water’s edge and minority leaders refraining from criticizing a sitting American president while abroad was now ‘out the door.’ 

But the congresswoman, reportedly on former President Trump’s 2024 VP shortlist, shot back that she had been ‘invited to talk about my work when it comes to combating antisemitism and my strong record when it comes to U.S./Israel support.’ 

‘The world needs to know, and Israel needs to know, that the House Republican majority stands strongly with Israel,’ Stefanik said. ‘That this equivocation, this weak, failed leadership that we are seeing from Joe Biden, that’s not where the American people are, that’s not where the United States Congress is. And it’s not reflective of the legislation that we passed that Joe Biden signed into law. So, it is important for the world to hear. The world is looking for moral leadership, Shannon. And it’s important that House Republicans step up to fill that void, which we have under Speaker Johnson’s leadership.’ 

Stefanik said the main focus of her speech ‘was that the American people stand strongly with Israel, as do House Republicans,’ referencing how on Thursday the House passed legislation that rebuked Biden for pausing a shipment of bombs to Israel, seeking to force the weapons transfer. 

Debate over the bill showed Washington’s deeply fractured outlook on the Israel-Hamas war. The White House and Democratic leadership scrambled to rally support from a House caucus that ranges from moderates frustrated that the president would allow any daylight between the U.S. and Israel to progressives outraged that he is still sending any weapons at all. The bill passed comfortably 224-187 as 16 Democrats joined with most Republicans to vote in favor. Three Republicans voted against it.

‘You’ve had equivocation after equivocation from Democrats, led by Joe Biden, or whether it’s Chuck Schumer calling for a new leader replacing Prime Minister Netanyahu, that is not the place – that is not the type of leadership we need to be seeing from the highest levels of the United States of America,’ Stefanik said. ‘And that’s one of the focuses that I had today in my speech at the Knesset, that House Republicans stand strongly with Israel at their time of existential need.’

‘Oct. 7 was the bloodiest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust,’ she added. ‘We want to make sure Israel has all the resources, no equivocation that it comes to eradicating Hamas.’ 

Amid concern that tens of thousands of people have been injured and killed in Gaza, Bream noted that Amnesty International sounded the alarm that U.S. weapons are being used in violation of international and U.S. laws. Stefanik, in response, said Hamas uses civilians as shields, while ‘Israel has great respect when it comes to human rights’ and ‘that’s why the United States stands fully with Israel, and that’s why they need to be a voice of truth, as those antisemitic propaganda are being shared around the world and being shared by perpetrators who support this terrorism.’ 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Courts in the United Kingdom are considering whether to nix mandatory wigs for barristers amid concerns the dress code requirement is ‘culturally insensitive.’ 

‘Following questions from barristers about wigs and hair discrimination, the Bar Council set up a working group to consider court dress in the context of all protected characteristics,’ a spokesperson for the Bar Council, which represents barristers in England and Wales, said in a statement to The Telegraph. ‘The findings of the working group are currently being discussed with the judiciary as part of our regular dialogue on equality and diversity matters.’

Several Black barristers have lodged complaints that the traditional headpieces discriminate against Afro-Caribbean hair. Though no permanent change has been decided, judges are reviewing proposals made by the Bar Council, and a decision is expected this fall at the earliest, the Telegraph reported. 

‘Senior judges are in active discussions with the Bar Council about the findings of their working group on court dress,’ a spokesperson for the judiciary also told the newspaper. ‘We welcome these discussions as part of our continuing joint work on diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.’

Michael Etienne, a Black barrister with an afro hairstyle, branded the compulsory wigs as hair discrimination, a form of racism, in 2022, sparking public debate after he was ordered to wear the headpiece or face disciplinary action. The wigs, traditionally made of horsehair, are not required in all courtrooms. They haven’t been compulsory in family, civil or Supreme Court cases since 2007.

Leslie Thomas KC, a Black legal professional in London, told the Telegraph he believes the required wigs to be a ‘ridiculous costume’ that represents a ‘culturally insensitive climate’ at the Bar.

‘The wigs certainly should go. There isn’t any place in a modern society for barristers to be wearing 17th-century fashion,’ Thomas told the newspaper, suggesting the judiciary do away with other ‘archaic’ court dress, as well, such as wing collars, bands and collarettes. 

He said a dress code that instead solely requires barristers to wear a black gown with smart business wear underneath ‘would bring the profession into the 21st century.’

Rachel Bale, a mixed-race barrister with curly afro hair, pointed to religious exemptions already in place for Sikhs who wear turbans and Muslims who wear headscarves, suggesting to The Telegraph that barristers should be able to opt out for cultural reasons. She argued that wigs are often ‘not fit for purpose’ for naturally Black hairstyles.

‘Something overlooked often in Black culture is that your hair is so inexplicably important and it is completely interwoven with your identity,’ she told the newspaper. 

Former President Trump fired up supporters at the National Rifle Association’s Annual Meeting in Texas on Saturday, calling for President Biden to take a ‘drug test,’ putting ‘radical’ Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on blast and encouraging gun enthusiasts to get out and vote.

The crowd at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas roared as Trump received the NRA’s endorsement before he took the stage.

Trump thanked the ‘great patriots’ for the endorsements, but reprimanded the ‘rebellious bunch’ for not voting.

‘But one thing I’ll say, and I say it as friends, we’ve got to get gun owners to vote because you know what? I don’t know what it is. Perhaps it’s a form of rebellion because you’re a rebellious people, aren’t you?,’ Trump said. ‘But gun owners don’t vote. What is that all about?’

‘If gun owners would vote, we would swamp them at levels that nobody’s ever seen before,’ he said. ‘So, I think you’re a rebellious bunch. So let’s be rebellious and vote this time.’

‘Radical’ RFK Jr.

Trump turned his attention to Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., telling NRA-supporters to not ‘waste your vote’ and that he is a part of the ‘radical left.’

‘RFK, Jr. — I call him Junior by the way — he’s radical left. Don’t think about it. Don’t waste your vote,’ Trump said. ‘We need a conservative person with common sense. This guy is radical left who destroyed New York.’

‘Actually, he’s a disaster. He reminds you of this fly that’s driving me crazy up here,’ said Trump, who swatted at a fly that flitted around the stage. ‘This fly is brutal. I don’t like flies!’

Trump said that RFK Jr. had ‘no policy for anything.’

‘But RFK Jr. calls you a terrorist group. You know, he calls you a terrorist group,’ Trump said. ‘[You] can’t vote for him. You can’t. You know, somebody said, well, they like his policy on vaccines the other day. He said, no, no, he’ll go for the vaccine. He’s nice. He’s got no policy or anything. He’s radical left. He always has been.’

‘We can’t waste any votes,’ he added. ‘We have to make sure we win.’

‘High as a kite’

The Republican Party’s presumptive presidential nominee set his sights on President Biden, beginning with the usual jabs at Biden’s cognitive ability, and saying that Biden was as ‘high as a kite’ during his State of the Union address in March. 

‘Now, he did that State of the Union the other day. He was high as a kite,’ Trump said. ‘So, I think we should go for drug tests on the debate. Yeah, we’re going to call for drug tests.’

Earlier Saturday, Trump’s campaign and the Republican National Committee announced the creation of a new ‘Gun Owners for Trump’ coalition that includes gun rights activists and individuals in the firearms’ industry.