US elections live coverage: Trump and Harris hit battleground states

Americans from both sides of the political spectrum should be alarmed by Trump’s words and behavior. The nation must confront the fact that beyond his hateful character, he is crippled cognitively and showing clear signs of mental illness.

…. A recent analysis by The New York Times noted that Trump’s rally speeches over the past eight years have become darker, longer, more profane and increasingly unfocused and unhinged — a troubling sign that he is no longer able to articulate ideas or reason in ways we expect of our leaders. This makes him prey to manipulations by his own staff or, worse, the control of foreign adversaries.

He shambles about aimlessly, slurs his words and sometimes speaks gibberish. Always an effortless liar, now that his speeches are nothing more than a series of lies tangled in a mass inside his head, it appears he no longer even knows he’s lying.

Alyssa Farah Griffin says Trump’s garbage truck stunt is a “total fail”.

She posted on X: “Am I cracking up? Yes.”

“Is it an effective stunt? No. He’s assuming voters hear ‘garbage’ & think of Biden’s gaffe.. but Trump campaign’s Puerto Rico debacle is much deeper in the zeitgeist. A total fail.”

Here’s what we’ve learned from the former president’s bizarre impromptu press conference.

Elon Musk needs to be protected:

No one loves Puerto Rico more than him, he knows nothing about a comedian, and Puerto Ricans love him.

He really insists he doesn’t know who the comedian is.

Trump hopes to declare victory on election night.

From “little silver spoon boy Donald Trump” to “Kamala is for they/them”, Eric Garcia breaks down the most ostentatious ads from the final weeks of the US election.

In the latest CNN polls of several battleground states, Kamala Harris leads Donald Trump in Michigan and Wisconsin – but the two are tied in Pennsylvania.

The so-called blue wall states are Harris’s most viable, but not only, path to an Electoral College victory after Tuesday’s election.

Gustaf Kilander has more:

The Elon Musk hearing in Philadelphia, over his potentially illegal $1m giveaway to voters, has been moved up to tomorrow.

“All parties must be present,” the judge states, with Musk named as a defendant in the case.

Here’s an excerpt from the filing about the need to move the hearing:

he same day this Complaint was filed, Elon Musk posted to his 202.7 million followers on X, the social-media website he owns, his agreement with an attack on the integrity of the Court the statement that Larry Krasner “knows it’s not illegal but wants a leftist judge to stop it before Election Day.” … That retweet now has 8.9 million views. … It immediately triggered an avalanche of posts from Musk’s followers. Many made antisemitic attacks on Krasner.

Even worse, one account responded to posts about the lawsuit at least 19 times by inviting political violence, posting Krasner family’s home address, including numerous posts also stating, “Krasner loves visitors. Mask up and leave all cellphones at home.” … The directives to “mask up” and to “leave all cellphones at home” are to prevent identification of illegal actors by video, by eyewitnesses, and by cellphone geolocation. … These posts, which unquestionably are criminal … remain posted on Musk’s X website today.

DA Krasner is charged with the responsibility to protect the voting rights and safety of all citizens of Philadelphia, including assuring a free and fair election.

Hours later, the judge moved a planned hearing for Friday to tomorrow morning and changed the venue from a courthouse to a room at City Hall where there’s better security.

Here’s what you need to know about the case:

An 18-year-old Floridian has been arrested after he brandished a machete at a polling place in an attempt to intimidate voters.

The teenager, Caleb James Williams, has been charged with aggravated assault on a person 65 years of age or older and improper exhibition of a firearm or dangerous weapon, according to ABC News.

Neptune Beach Police Chief Michael Key said at a press conference that Williams “brandished a machete in an aggressive, threatening posture over his head” at two women, aged 54 and 71.

Williams and seven other male teens, aged 16 and 17 went to the polling place at Beaches Branch Library “to protest and antagonize the opposing political side.”

“The group was there for no other reason but for ill intentions to cause a disturbance,” he added. “This is not an incident of solely a First Amendment protected right, but rather one where they were simply there to cause a ruckus.”

Senate Republicans could block Robert F Kennedy Jr from joining a possible second Trump cabinet, according to Semafor.

Kennedy Jr claims Trump has promised him “control” over multiple health agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

He told followers in a livestream on Monday that Trump would put him in charge of the Departments of Health and Agriculture if he wins a second term.

In August, the 70-year-old suspended his independent campaign for president and backed the Republican billionaire. He previously made a run in the Democratic primary before switching to an independent bid.

But Kennedy Jr might struggle to be confirmed in the Senate even if the Republicans control the chamber.

One person close to the Trump campaign told Semafor that there’s “appetite at the highest levels of the Trump campaign to take on a fight to get Kennedy confirmed.”

However, three congressional aides told the outlet that Kennedy would be difficult to confirm even in a GOP-controlled Senate.

A GOP aide told Semafor they “highly” doubted Kennedy’s chances to be confirmed, and another aide added: “There’s some deference afforded to an incoming president, but I don’t think [Kennedy] would be a shoo-in.”