Politics

Biden’s firewall cracks: Black support for ex-VP plunges, polls show

Where does Joe Biden stand on the issues?

Former Vice President Joe Biden has been polling as the frontrunner in the Democratic presidential primary. From health care to immigration, find out where he stands on the top issues voters care about in 2020.

Joe Biden’s key to having any shot at the Democratic presidential nomination remains strong support from African-American voters.

But that backing is crumbling, according to the latest national polls.

The former vice president has long touted his support among black voters. Earlier this month, the one-time unrivaled front-runner told reporters that “not a single person has won [the Democratic nomination] without overwhelming support from the black community, overwhelming, overwhelming. So here’s the deal… right now I am far and ahead of everybody in the African-American community. It’s the base of the Democratic Party.”

SANDERS UP 18 POINTS OVER BIDEN IN CALIFORNIA, THE BIGGEST OF THE SUPER TUESDAY STATES

And after two lackluster fourth- and fifth-place finishes in Iowa and New Hampshire, respectively — the two overwhelmingly white states that hold the first contests in the presidential nominating calendar — senior campaign adviser Symone Sanders stressed that “it would be a mistake for anyone to write Biden and our campaign off before people of color have had their say in this election. You know people of color — black folks, Latino voters — are the base of this party.”

But according to an ABC News/Washington Post national poll released Wednesday morning, Biden’s support among black voters plummeted from 51 percent in January to 32 percent this month.

At the same time, 2020 rival Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont has seen his backing from black voters nationwide jump from 15 percent in January to 27 percent now. That’s helped the populist senator zoom to a double-digit lead in the overall horse race over Biden and the rest of the field in the ABC/Washington Post poll, as well as in new NBC News/Wall Street Journal and Marist/NPR/PBS surveys.

Former New York City mayor and multi-billionaire business and media mogul Mike Bloomberg is also surging in the national polls. Feeding that jump is a rise in black support — from 8 percent to 14 percent in the ABC News/Washington Post poll this month.

Biden’s support among African-Americans also plunged in the NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey — from 52 percent in January to 38 percent now. Sanders’ backing among black voters remained steady in the 20s, while Bloomberg saw his support double to 18 percent.

“Biden’s support with African-Americans is under assault,” said Bill McInturff, the GOP pollster for the NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey.

Biden’s lead among black voters has also narrowed in the Marist/NPR/PBS survey, with the former vice president at 31 percent, Sanders at 28 percent and Bloomberg at 16 percent.

Former Vice President Joe Biden joins Culinary Union striking workers on the picket lines outside the Palms Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Feb. 19, 2020

While black voters weren’t a big factor in Iowa and New Hampshire, they play an increasingly influential role going forward, starting with Saturday’s Nevada caucuses. And African-Americans make up a majority of the Democratic presidential primary electorate in South Carolina, which votes in a week and a half. Biden’s campaign has long considered the Palmetto State as their firewall.

Black voters are also a major factor, as well, in many of the 14 Super Tuesday states that hold contests on March 3.

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South Carolina state Sen. Marlon Kimpson, who endorsed Biden earlier this year, told Fox News that support remains strong for Biden among black voters in his state.

“I note that Bloomberg is picking up African-American support of his candidacy and I don’t deny those facts but the reality is that Bloomberg’s not [on] the ballot in South Carolina,” he said.

And Kimpson stressed that a vote for any candidate other than Biden “is a vote for Bernie Sanders.”

Bloomberg memo warns Sanders could be ‘impossible to stop’ unless rivals drop out

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s campaign warned in an internal memo that Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont will be nearly unstoppable on his way to the Democratic presidential nomination unless other moderate candidates drop out before Super Tuesday.

“As the race stands today, Sanders is poised to leave Super Tuesday with an over-400 delegate lead verses his next closes competitor [Bloomberg] – a likely insurmountable advantage,” the first bullet point of the Feb. 17 memo, first obtained by Axios, says. Fox News has confirmed the authenticity of the memo.

The memo says that if Sanders continues on the path he is on without certain non-Bloomberg candidates dropping out, “it will be all but impossible to stop him from getting to a plurality (or even majority) of pledged delegates.”

The document goes on to point out the alleged weaknesses in each of Bloomberg’s moderate competitors’ campaigns before concluding: “If [Joe] Biden, [Pete] Buttigieg, and [Amy] Klobuchar remain in the race despite having no path to appreciably collecting delegates on Super Tuesday (and beyond), they will propel Sanders to a seemingly insurmountable delegate lead by siphoning votes away from [Bloomberg].”

Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg speaks at the Greenwood Cultural Center in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday, Jan. 19, 2020. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

TRUMP AND BLOOMBERG SPAR IN TWITTER AHEAD OF DEBATE

The memo reflects the public rhetoric from the Bloomberg campaign, which has portrayed the Democratic nomination as a two-person race between the New York billionaire and the democratic socialist from Vermont.

“Taking a step back: this is now a 3-candidate race between [Bloomberg], Sanders, and Trump. Both Sanders and Trump know that [Bloomberg] poses the greatest threat to their chances of winning this election,” the memo’s closing paragraph reads, before taking a shot at voters who support President Trump and Sanders. “As we ascend and begin (hopefully) consolidating support, there will be blowback from both Sanders and Trump – both candidates themselves, but also their supporters, who share some attributes. We expect them to escalate their attacks on [Bloomberg], our campaign staff, and our supporters.”

The feud between Trump and Bloomberg has been simmering for weeks and continued Wednesday as Bloomberg readied for his first presidential debate appearance.

“Is corrupt Bloomberg News going to say what a pathetic debater Mini Mike is, that he doesn’t respect our great farmers, or that he has violated campaign finance laws at the highest and most sinister level with ‘payoffs’ all over the place?” Trump tweeted.

BLOOMBERG CAMP SLAMS SANDERS AIDE AFTER CLAIMING HISTORY OF HEART ATTACKS: ‘COMPLETELY FALSE’

Bloomberg’s terse response: “Impeached president says what?”

Meanwhile, Bloomberg’s and Sanders’ campaigns are sparring over the septuagenarians’ history of heart trouble. After Sanders said he would refuse to release more medical records than he already has on a CNN town hall Tuesday night — he had a heart attack in October — Sanders’ press secretary Briahna Joy Gray claimed that Bloomberg “has suffered heart attacks in the past” and argued no one is concerned about his medical records.

“It’s completely false,” Bloomberg campaign manager Kevin Sheekey said in a statement.

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“Facts matter,” he continued. “This isn’t the way to defeat Donald Trump in November.

Gray later acknowledged she misspoke.

Sheekey was one of the recipients of the leaked memo, along with senior Bloomberg adviser Howard Wolfson.

Fox News’ Ronn Blitzer contributed to this report.

Sanders’ national surge continues

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On the roster: Sanders’ national surge continues – Sanders pushes for Iowa recount as margin narrows – Trump rallies in Senate battleground states – Barr considering quitting over Trump’s DOJ tweets – ‘You’re not robbing s***’

SANDERS’ NATIONAL SURGE CONTINUES

WaPo: “The Post-ABC poll shows [Sen. Bernie Sanders], who got more votes in Iowa than any other candidate ahead of his narrow win in New Hampshire, with the support of 32 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning registered voters. That is an increase of nine percentage points since January. … [Joe Biden], who was at 32 percent support in January, has fallen to 16 percent in the new survey. … [Michael Bloomberg], who is skipping the first four states but has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into television ads in states with primaries in March, stands at 14 percent, up from 8 percent in January. … [Elizabeth Warren] saw no change in her national support, remaining at 12 percent. [Pete Buttigieg], despite his strong performances in Iowa and New Hampshire, runs fifth nationally at 8 percent, ticking up from 5 percent a month ago. [Amy Klobuchar] stands at 7 percent in the new national poll, up from just 3 percent. Buttigieg and Klobuchar face a similar challenge, which is to appeal to a broader coalition of voters in the coming two early-state contests.”

Trump trails top five Dems in head-to-head matchups – NBC News: “In the poll, Sanders gets the support of 27 percent of Democratic primary voter… Biden now gets support from 15 percent of Democratic primary voters, which is down from 26 percent last month. Bloomberg is at 14 percent (up 5 points); Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts also gets 14 percent (down 1 point); and Pete Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, is at 13 percent (up 6 points). Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota gets support from 7 percent of Democratic primary voters, which is up 2 points since last month. … In hypothetical general-election matchups, [President Donald] Trump trails five major Democratic candidates, but all of his deficits — except against Biden — are within the poll’s margin of error. Biden leads Trump nationally by 8 points, 52 percent to 44 percent. Bloomberg is ahead by 7 points, 50 percent to 43 percent. Sanders (50 percent to 46 percent) and Buttigieg (48 percent to 44 percent) hold 4-point advantages over Trump.”

Bloomy to leave comfort zone in Wednesday’s debate – WaPo: “Mike Bloomberg still introduces himself to voters on the stump by saying ‘I’m an engineer’ — an egghead identity he honed managing large organizations like the city of New York, his namesake company and a nascent presidential campaign now on track to spend more than any other in U.S. history. But Wednesday night, Bloomberg will be forced to leave his comfort zone and test his chops as a charismatic politician. When he steps onto the debate stage in Las Vegas for his first hostile and uncontrolled campaign test, there will be no management decisions to make, teleprompters to lean on or endless ad budgets to filter his image with focus-grouped messaging. In preparation, his advisers have spent much of the past week drilling him for the big jump, which could make or break the momentum he has generated with his extravagant spending. In debate prep sessions, they have armed him with comebacks for the inevitable attacks on his enormous wealth and past record, while also coaching him to move beyond his sometimes distant, wonky and diffidently logical public persona.”

Arnon Mishkin: At Las Vegas debate expect a battle between Bloomberg and other candidates – Fox News: “The opportunity for both Sanders and Warren at the debate will be that they just need to attack Bloomberg. An effective attack may help the currently flailing Warren recapture some of the magic she had last fall… With the more moderate wing of the party divided among former Vice President Joe Biden, Bloomberg, former Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., and Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Sanders just needs to maintain his strength (and his fairly high favorability, even among Democratic voters who aren’t for him). He can do that by simply attacking Bloomberg. Bloomberg’s challenge is vastly more complicated. First, he needs to be able to respond to the anticipated attacks from the left, while also ensuring that he’s not shunted off and painted as the conservative in the race. Conservatives don’t win the Democratic presidential nomination, but moderates and sometimes liberals do.”

Sanders pulls away from AOC – WaPo: “Sen. Bernie Sanders distanced himself Tuesday from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez‘s recent suggestion that compromising on health care would be acceptable, arguing that his Medicare-for-all plan is ‘already a compromise.’ The comments, coming in a televised town hall hosted by CNN, highlighted a rare difference between the senator and the congresswoman (D-N.Y.), one of his most prominent supporters — notably, over one of the central planks of his presidential campaign platform. ‘I love Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.’ … ‘But my view is that Medicare-for-all, the bill that we wrote, is in a sense already a compromise. It is a four-year transition period.’ … In an interview with HuffPost last week, Ocasio-Cortez signaled some flexibility on the senator’s signature Medicare-for-all proposal.”

Klobuchar super PAC dumps money into Nevada, South Carolina – Politico: “A super PAC supporting Amy Klobuchar is dropping a seven-figure ad buy into Nevada and South Carolina, giving the Minnesota senator a much-needed financial boost. The super PAC, called Kitchen Table Conversations, was formed late last week at a crucial moment in the race for Klobuchar, who has only days to build on her surprise third-place finish in New Hampshire before a slew of big-ticket Democratic presidential contests begin. The group plans to air TV ads on broadcast and cable stations, as well as digital platforms, in Nevada and South Carolina, starting Wednesday. The group also plans to expand into the 14 Super Tuesday states later, according to a person familiar with the ad buy.”

Buttigieg exaggerated support from black leaders – ABC News: “When Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg touted support from African American comedian and actor Keegan-Michael Key last week, his campaign was forced just hours later to clarify that the actor had not officially endorsed the former South Bend mayor… [This] was not the first time the Buttigieg campaign overstated having a tie with a prominent African American figure, or black business. … Nationally, Buttigieg has support from 4% of Democratic and Democratic-leaning African-American voters, according to the latest Quinnipiac University poll released on Feb 10. That’s more than Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard … but substantially less than candidates like former Vice President Joe Biden and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg…”

SANDERS PUSHES FOR IOWA RECOUNT AS MARGIN NARROWS

WaPo: “Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign intends to request a partial recount of the Iowa caucuses, a top adviser said Tuesday, more than two weeks after the chaotic contest produced no decisive victor. The announcement came as the results further narrowed on Tuesday, following a recanvass of a small subset of precincts. The revised figures did not change the allocation of delegates to the national convention. Still, they just barely shifted projected support at the state convention, which is typically the metric used to name a winner. The Iowa Democratic Party said Pete Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Ind., would claim 563.207 state delegate equivalents, or SDEs, while Sanders (I-Vt.) would claim 563.127. What had been a difference of 2.774 shrank to 0.08. The razor-thin margin is likely to intensify the wrangling over the closely watched contest, which descended into chaos when a technology glitch threw off the transmission and verification of results. No numbers were posted until the following afternoon. When figures did start to trickle out, they were riddled with obvious inaccuracies. The Associated Press still has not called the race.”

Harry Reid: Iowa’s problems strengthen Nevada’s case to go first – NPR: “Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., the man largely responsible for making his state’s presidential caucuses a prominent early contest, has declined the opportunity to defend caucus systems in an interview with NPR. ‘I will talk about that after Super Tuesday, after when we get California and Texas out of the way,’ Reid said. … All eyes are on Nevada after the epic caucus blunder in Iowa earlier this month. Reid insists his state won’t have the same problems. He sees an opportunity in Iowa’s failing that could be used to vault Nevada into the first-in-the-nation spot next election cycle. ‘I think we have a tremendously good case now,’ Reid said, emphasizing that with its diverse population, Nevada is more reflective of the Democratic electorate than Iowa and New Hampshire, which currently precede it on the nominating calendar.”

THE RULEBOOK: READY FOR ACTION

“If one nation maintains constantly a disciplined army, ready for the service of ambition or revenge, it obliges the most pacific nations who may be within the reach of its enterprises to take corresponding precautions.” – James Madison, Federalist No. 41

TIME OUT: THE ORIGINAL BEAUTY QUEEN

Smithsonian: “On an April afternoon in 1897, thousands of women packed the Boston Theatre to see the nation’s most beguiling female entrepreneur, a 45-year-old former homemaker whose talent for personal branding would rival that of any Instagram celebrity today. She called herself Madame Yale. Over the course of several hours and multiple outfit changes, she preached her ‘Religion of Beauty,’ regaling the audience with tales of history’s most beautiful women, a group that included Helen of Troy, the Roman goddess Diana and, apparently, Madame Yale. The sermon was her 11th public appearance in Boston in recent years, and it also covered the various lotions and potions—products that Yale just happened to sell—that she said had transformed her from a sallow, fat, exhausted woman into the beauty who stood on stage: her tall, hourglass figure draped at one point in cascading white silk, her blond ringlets falling around a rosy-cheeked, heart-shaped face. Applause thundered.”

Flag on the play? – Email us at HALFTIMEREPORT@FOXNEWS.COM with your tips, comments or questions.

SCOREBOARD

ESTIMATED DELEGATES FOR DEMOCRATIC NOMINATION

Buttigieg: 23

Sanders: 21

Warren: 8

Klobuchar: 7

Biden: 6

[Ed. note: 1,991 delegates needed to win]

TRUMP JOB PERFORMANCE

Average approval: 44.8 percent

Average disapproval: 51.4 percent

Net Score: -6.6 percent

Change from one week ago: ↑ 0.8 points

[Average includes: ABC News/WaPo: 46% approve – 52% disapprove; NBC News/WSJ: 47% approve – 50% disapprove; NPR/PBS/Marist: 44% approve – 51% disapprove; Monmouth University: 44% approve – 51% disapprove; Quinnipiac University: 43% approve – 53% disapprove.]

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TRUMP RALLIES IN SENATE BATTLEGROUND STATES

Politico: “President Donald Trump’s campaign rallies over the next two weeks are taking him straight into the heart of the Senate battleground map. Trump’s recent and upcoming rallies are counter-programming the Democratic presidential primaries in early voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. But in the next two weeks he’s also hitting Arizona, Colorado and North Carolina, a trio of states that feature vulnerable Republican senators and hold the key to the GOP maintaining control of the chamber. … The upcoming Trump rallies aren’t explicitly about the Senate map, but they do underscore the significant overlap between Trump’s path to a second term and Republicans’ Senate strategy. The GOP senators up for reelection have embraced the president, relying on his performance atop the ticket in their states. That includes their recent handling of the impeachment trial: The most endangered GOP senators stood mostly in lockstep to guarantee Trump’s acquittal.”

Team Trump sets goal for extra $1 billion to compete with Bloomy – Bloomberg: “Members of President Donald Trump’s re-election team and some of the GOP’s biggest fundraisers are discussing a new goal of raising an extra $1 billion to compete with Michael Bloomberg’s record campaign spending, according to two bundlers who have been part of the discussions. … Trump’s campaign and the RNC have boasted about their strong fund-raising, regularly declaring record hauls and comparing their numbers to those of former President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election. But the prospect of facing an opponent with far more money at his disposal has forced Trump’s re-election team to consider ways to level the playing field. Republicans will look to super-PAC donors to give more, raise more money at high-dollar events headlined by Trump, and expand other efforts to bring in additional money.”

Trump camp hires Cambridge Analytica alum – Politico: “President Donald Trump’s campaign is bringing on an alum of the controversial data firm Cambridge Analytica, a move likely to raise alarms among Trump critics and data privacy advocates who worry the president will push the technological envelope to get reelected in 2020. Matt Oczkowski, who served as head of product at Cambridge before it went bankrupt and shut down in 2018, is helping oversee the Trump campaign’s data program, according to two people familiar with the hire. Cambridge gained notoriety for its work on psychological voter profiling and because it allegedly improperly obtained the personal information of tens of millions of Facebook users.”

BARR CONSIDERING QUITTING OVER TRUMP’S DOJ TWEETS

WaPo: “Attorney General William P. Barr has told people close to President Trump — both inside and outside the White House — that he is considering quitting over Trump’s tweets about Justice Department investigations, three administration officials said, foreshadowing a possible confrontation between the president and his attorney general over the independence of the Justice Department. So far, Trump has defied Barr’s requests, both public and private, to keep quiet on matters of federal law enforcement. It was not immediately clear Tuesday whether Barr had made his posture known directly to Trump. The administration officials said Barr seemed to be sharing his position with advisers in hopes the president would get the message that he should stop weighing in publicly on the Justice Department’s ongoing criminal investigations. ‘He has his limits,’ said one person familiar with Barr’s thinking, speaking on the condition of anonymity, like others, to discuss internal deliberations.”

PLAY-BY-PLAY

New study reveals details of nonvoters – Politico

Tom Tiffany wins Wisconsin GOP primary to replace Sean Duffy ahead of special May election – Roll Call

AUDIBLE: BUTTI-BOOM, ROASTED

“We got the oldest president in American history. How is that working out for us right now?” – Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg referring to President Trump during CNN’s Las Vegas town hall Tuesday night.

Share your color commentary: Email us at HALFTIMEREPORT@FOXNEWS.COM and please make sure to include your name and hometown.

‘YOU’RE NOT ROBBING S***’

KAPP-KVEW: “A Yakima [Wash.] fast food employee wasn’t having it when someone tried to rob him last Saturday, according to a police report. Officers were called to the Jack In The Box on North First Street around 1 p.m. for a report of an attempted robbery that went awry for the suspect. The suspect, 37-year-old Damian McCorkle, allegedly walked to the restaurant and ordered some food. A witness said he was wearing a coat with his hands in his pockets, as if he was going to pull something out of it, and told the cashier he needed money, police said. Based on statements from witnesses at the restaurant, a police report described the encounter as follows: ‘I’m robbing you,’ the suspect said. ‘You’re not robbing s***,’ the cashier replied. ‘Yeah I am. I need the money,’ the suspect said. ‘I will beat your a**. You want to go outside and handle this?’ The suspect then left the store.

AND NOW, A WORD FROM CHARLES…

“Ronald Reagan was so self-contained and impenetrable that his official biographer was practically driven mad trying to figure him out. Donald Trump is penetrable, hourly.” – Charles Krauthammer (1950-2018) writing in the Washington Post on July 27, 2017.

Chris Stirewalt is the politics editor for Fox News. Brianna McClelland contributed to this report. Want FOX News Halftime Report in your inbox every day? Sign up here.

Hunter Biden scandals explained: Ukraine, China, drug history and more

From his eyebrow-raising dealings in Delaware, China and Ukraine to controversies involving drug use and child support, Hunter Biden is no stranger to scandal. The son of former vice president and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has faced accusations of corrupt behavior from both sides of the political aisle, and played a starring role in the recently concluded impeachment proceedings against President Trump.

The younger Biden’s distinct scandals are best understood in rough chronological order because Republicans have argued that Biden’s apparently irresponsible behavior only made it more likely that his later sweetheart gigs were obtained not through merit, but because of connections that he could monetize.

Delaware

In 2008, both The New York Times and The American Spectator highlighted Hunter Biden’s sweetheart gigs while his father rose in political prominence. The articles, written as Barack Obama and John McCain vied for the White House, found that Hunter Biden received consulting fees from the financial services company MBNA from 2001 to 2005 — while his father, then a senator, was pushing successfully for legislation that would make it harder for consumers to file for bankruptcy protection.

The precise amount of the payments was unclear, but a company official once said Hunter Biden was receiving at least a $100,000 per year retainer, the Times reported. Hunter Biden, now 49, previously had been an executive at MBNA beginning in 1996, but the consulting fees came years after his departure from the company as a full-time employee.

HUNTER BIDEN FINALLY AGREES TO PAY CHILD SUPPORT FOR KID FATHERED WITH EX-STRIPPER

Aides to then-presidential candidate Barack Obama at the time denied that any lobbying had occurred, and insisted the payments were proper. However, that explanation was immediately treated with skepticism. The Trump campaign posted a contemporaneous interview in which an incredulous Tom Brokaw asked Joe Biden whether it was “inappropriate” for the then-senator to have his son “collecting money from this big credit card company while you were on the [Senate] floor protecting its interests.”

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign event, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020, in Somersworth, N.H. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

Hunter Biden’s previous work as an executive at MBNA from 1996 to 1998 also has raised what critics called red flags.

Rachel Mullen, a former senior personal banking officer at MBNA from 1994-2001 who later went into Republican politics, tweeted that managers referred to the younger Biden as “Senator MBNA” after he was hired into a lucrative management-prep track right after he graduated from Yale Law School.

WHOOPS: BIDEN CAMPAIGN TOUTS UKRAINE ACTIVIST WHO CALLED HUNTER’S ACTIONS ‘VERY BAD’

An MBNA source who previously worked at the company told Fox News that other employees heard Biden boasting that his salary was unusually high, even for the management-prep track — which was widely seen in the company as a way to groom and pamper well-connected executive candidates with powerful family members. The source said Biden’s “Senator MBNA” nickname was not politically motivated, but rather reflected a widely held belief among managers – who did not work directly with Biden – that he essentially was engaged in lobbying.

In a January 2008 article entitled “The Senator from MBNA,” columnist Byron York recounted how then-MBNA vice chairman John Cochran paid “top dollar” for Biden’s home in February 1996, just prior to his Senate reelection bid, and that “MBNA gave Cochran a lot of money – $330,000– to help with ‘expenses’ related to the move.”

The $1.2M sale was a “pretty darned good deal for Biden,” York wrote, noting that “Cochran simply paid Biden’s full asking price” even though the “house needed quite a bit of work; contractors and their trucks descended on the house for months after the purchase.”

Asked how Cochran and Biden found each other for the sale, an MBNA spokesperson told York: “That’s a very personal question.”

Navy expulsion

In 2014, Hunter was kicked out of the military after testing positive for cocaine. The Navy said that Biden, a former lobbyist who worked at a private equity firm, was discharged barely a year after he was selected for his part-time position as a public affairs officer in the Navy Reserve.

Two people familiar with the situation quickly told the media that Biden was discharged because he failed a drug test in 2013. The Wall Street Journal first reported Biden’s discharge and failed drug test.

An attorney by training, Biden applied to join the Navy Reserve as a public affairs officer and was selected in 2012 — one of seven candidates recommended for a direct commission for public affairs. A board of senior Navy officers interviewed Biden before making the recommendation.

Because he was 42 at the time, he needed a special waiver to be accepted. Cmdr. Ryan Perry, a spokesman for the Navy, said Biden had been assigned to the Navy Public Affairs Support Element East, based in Norfolk, Va.

Ukraine

Hunter Biden and and his friend Devon Archer joined the natural gas company Burisma Holdings board in April 2014. Biden apparently cannot speak Ukrainian and had no relevant natural gas experience.

Joe Biden has acknowledged on camera that in spring 2016, when he was vice president and spearheading the Obama administration’s Ukraine policy, he successfully pressured Ukraine to fire top prosecutor Viktor Shokin. At the time, Shokin was investigating the notoriously corrupt Burisma Holdings — where Hunter’s role was especially lucrative. The vice president threatened to withhold $1 billion in critical U.S. aid if Shokin was not fired.

“Well, son of a b—h, he got fired,” Biden joked at a panel two years after leaving office. Shokin himself had already been widely accused of corruption.

TENSIONS FLARE IN CONGRESS, AS GOP REP BRINGS UP HUNTER BIDEN’S COCAINE USE

Critics alleged Hunter Biden might have been selling access to his father, who had pushed Ukraine to increase its natural gas production.

Government officials have raised similar concerns. During the House impeachment proceedings, a career State Department employee testified that he had flagged Hunter Biden’s apparent conflict of interest, but was told essentially not to bother the vice president’s office.

“Impossible to justify $50k/month for Hunter Biden serving on a Ukrainian energy board w zero expertise unless he promised to sell access,” political scientist Ian Bremmer previously tweeted.

Joe Biden has said he never discussed his son’s overseas business dealings — an assertion seemingly contradicted by both his son and a photo exclusively obtained by Fox News.

“I know I did nothing wrong at all. Was it poor judgment to be in the middle of something that is a swamp in many ways? Yeah,” Hunter Biden said in an exclusive sit-down with ABC’s Amy Robach at his Los Angeles home last October.

He acknowledged he may not have gotten the job were it not for his connections to the vice presidency.

In the ABC News report last year which also delved into the Bidens’ China dealings, journalist Tom Llamas called it “strange” that Ukrainian natural gas company Burisma Holdings, widely accused of corruption, had appointed Hunter Biden to its board of directors — and agreed to pay Hunter Biden’s company “more than a million dollars a year.”

“Hunter — a lawyer, who had just been discharged from the Navy Reserves for testing positive for cocaine,” Llamas says incredulously. “He had served on other boards, but had no known experience in Ukraine or natural gas.”

China

Top Republican senators recently requested travel records from the Secret Service that might shed light on Hunter Biden’s dealings in China, which Trump has long said merit a state investigation.

Much of the focus concerns Biden’s position as one of nine directors at BHR — a private-equity company controlled by Chinese government-backed stakeholders. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said the arrangement raised red flags.

Hunter Biden on Oct. 11, 2012, waiting for the start of the his father’s, Vice President Joe Biden’s, debate at Centre College in Danville, Ky. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

“In December of 2013, one month after Rosemont Seneca’s joint venture with Bohai Capital to form BHR, Hunter Biden reportedly flew aboard Air Force Two with then-Vice President Biden to China,” the senators wrote. “While in China, he helped arrange for Jonathan Li, CEO of Bohai Capital, to ‘shake hands’ with Vice President Biden.”

“Afterward,” they continued, “Hunter Biden met with Li for reportedly a ‘social meeting.’ After the China trip, BHR’s business license was approved. Then, in 2015, BHR joined with Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) to acquire Henniges, which was the ‘biggest Chinese investment into U.S. automotive manufacturing assets to date.'”

The senators also sought travel records relating to Biden’s trips to Ukraine, if any.

Kids

In January of this year Hunter Biden agreed to pay monthly child support retroactive to November 2018, ending a standoff that began after the judge in his Arkansas paternity case ordered him to appear in person for a hearing to explain why he shouldn’t be held in contempt.

Biden had previously denied paternity, before a DNA test proved otherwise.

The court redacted the amount of child support that Biden agreed to pay, pursuant to his agreement with plaintiff Lunden Alexis Roberts. However, Independence County Circuit Court Judge Holly Meyer noted that she “lacks sufficient information” to determine the appropriate amount of “permanent” child support “based off the defendant’s income,” and that modifications to the child support owed each month could be made based on additional evidence.

Contempt proceedings over Biden’s repeated failure to turn over relevant financial documents have been delayed until March 1, giving Biden an opportunity to resolve the issue in the meantime by providing the information.

READ THE ORDER REQUIRING BIDEN TO PAY CHILD SUPPORT

“The Court specifically reserves the right to retroactively amend or modify child support without the need for the filing of a proper motion by either party to modify support,” the judge wrote. “If the evidence indicates that the defendant should have paid more in support than the amount set forth in this Order, the Court may order that he pay an additional amount after receiving credit for the amount he has paid.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Blago holds court: Ex-gov gives dramatic account of life behind bars, declares he’s a ‘Trump-o-crat’

Rod Blagojevich, hours after returning from prison a free man, publicly thanked President Trump for commuting his sentence as he delivered a detailed account of his life behind bars with his trademark dramatic flair.

“I’m a Trump-o-crat,” the former Illinois Democratic governor declared Wednesday, in a lively press conference outside his Chicago home with his family by his side.

BLAGOJEVICH SENTENCE COMMUTED: WHAT TO KNOW

The event began later than originally scheduled, which he chalked up in part to difficulty shaving – as he repeatedly dabbed blood on his chin as he spoke.

“It’s been a long, long journey. I’m bruised, I’m battered, and I’m bloody,” Blagojevich said, patting his chin with a napkin. “It’s been a long time since I’ve shaved with a normal razor. I’ve gotta keep dabbing the blood.”

His wife, Patti, chimed in, saying: “I apologize for his tardiness. He couldn’t find where I put his socks this morning.”

The brash politician whose corruption-case sentence of 14 years was cut short a day earlier by Trump’s decision went on to say, “We want to thank and give our most profound and everlasting gratitude to President Trump.” He thanked Trump for giving back the freedom he said was “stolen” from him.

Noting they are from different parties, he said Trump’s commutation decision “does nothing to help his politics.”

“Trump is a man who is tough and outspoken, but he also has a kind heart,” he continued. “This is an act of kindness and I believe this is the beginning of the process to turn an injustice into justice.”

He added: “Sorry about this blood.”

TRUMP COMMUTES BLAGO SENTENCE, PARDONS KERIK

Blagojevich, after having served eight years of his sentence, went on to describe his first three years in prison, explaining that he was “behind what inmates call a razor wire … with guards armed with machine guns who have the discretion to shoot you.”

He noted he never went near the fence. He described where the inmates slept as “cold and squalid,” like “tombs.” He said many of the inmates were cartel members, sex offenders and other violent criminals, describing his cell as a “six-by-eight-foot” room with a heavy iron door and a small window.

“Often late in the night, I’d look out past [the window] and think of home,” he said, describing his hope to someday return to his wife. “I would say to myself, ‘One day, one day I’ll make it back to you and hold your hand, sweetheart,’ and I would remember what a gracious thing it’s been to walk through life with you.”

Blagojevich continued touting Trump as “tough and outspoken,” but said “he gets things done.”

“He’s a problem solver, where too many politicians don’t want to solve problems,” he said, noting that if he were to have the ability to vote, he would cast his ballot in November 2020 for Trump.

Blagojevich, who was a contestant on Trump’s “Celebrity Apprentice” in 2010, began his 14-year prison sentence in 2012, after being convicted of corruption. Blagojevich had been serving his sentence at a federal prison in Littleton, Colo.

Blagojevich, who was governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009, was impeached and also convicted on 18 counts, including lying to the FBI and wire fraud, for trying to trade an appointment to Barack Obama’s Senate seat for contributions, and for the attempted extortion of a children’s hospital executive. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago in 2015 tossed five of 18 convictions, including ones in which he offered to appoint someone to a high-paying job in the Senate.

He has consistently argued that he did nothing wrong.

Blagojevich’s wife, Patti, went on a media blitz in 2018 to encourage Trump to step in, praising the president and likening the investigation of her husband to special prosecutor Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election – a probe Trump long characterized as a “witch hunt.”

On Tuesday, Trump confirmed to reporters that he granted clemency for the ex-governor, calling his sentence “ridiculous.”

“He’ll be able to go back home with his family after serving eight years in jail,” Trump said.

“Many people disagreed with the sentence,” Trump told reporters.

Trump also expressed sympathy for the former Illinois governor’s children.

“Very far from his children,” Trump said. “They rarely get to see their father outside of an orange uniform. I saw that and I did commute his sentence.”

Trump first floated the idea of commuting Blagojevich’s sentence in May 2018, after pardoning conservative filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza. At the time, Trump called Blagojevich’s sentence “really unfair.”

Trump also announced on Tuesday that he pardoned financier Michael Milken, who pleaded guilty for violating U.S. securities laws. Trump also pardoned former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, who was sentenced on tax fraud charges in 2010, on Tuesday.

Fox News’ Tyler Olson, John Roberts and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Federal appeals court blocks enforcement of Florida law restricting right of ex-felons to vote

A federal appeals court issued a ruling Wednesday in favor of ex-felons challenging a Florida law that restricted their right to vote.

After voters approved a measure to allow ex-felons to vote upon completion of their sentences, the state legislature passed a law that interpreted this to include payment of all legal financial obligations (LFOs), such as fines, fees and restitution. A group of 17 ex-felons sued, claiming this requirement is unconstitutional, and the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court preliminary injunction that allowed them to register to vote if they showed they were unable to pay, and had completed all other requirements.

FLORIDA SEES CONFUSION A YEAR AFTER ALLOWING CONVICTED FELONS TO VOTE

“Because the LFO requirement punishes those who cannot pay more harshly than those who can,” the court’s ruling said, “Supreme Court precedent leads us to apply heightened scrutiny in asking whether the requirement violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment as applied to these plaintiffs.”

The three-judge panel upheld the injunction — blocking the enforcement of the LFO requirement for the duration of the case — saying that the requirement does indeed violate the Equal Protection Clause because it constitutes wealth discrimination.

“Here, these plaintiffs are punished more harshly than those who committed precisely the same crime—by having their right to vote taken from them likely for their entire lives,” the court said. “And this punishment is linked not to their culpability, but rather to the exogenous fact of their wealth.”

The court recognized that Florida would be permitted to keep all felons from voting, as they had done in the past, but said they do not have a valid interest in restricting some but not others based on ability to pay.

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“Whatever interest the State may have in punishment, this interest is surely limited to a punishment that is applied in proportion to culpability,” the ruling said.

For those reasons, the court determined that the ex-felons were “substantially likely to succeed on the merits” and stated that the lower court acted properly within its discretion determining that they would suffer irreparable harm if the law remained in place.

Trump and Bloomberg spar on Twitter ahead of debate

Hours before former Michael Bloomberg will take the debate stage for the first time in his presidential campaign, the former New York City mayor and President Trump traded online insults Wednesday as the feud between the two simmers and Bloomberg rises in the polls.

WHERE DOES MICHAEL BLOOMBERG STAND ON THE ISSUES?

Trump has repeatedly dug at Bloomberg over the fact he has yet to appear on a Democratic debate stage. The billionaire from New York, who is fighting for the right to run against the billionaire from New York currently occupying the White House, entered the presidential race in November and was kept out of the debates due to Democratic National Committee rules that required candidates to have a certain number of individual donors to qualify.

But the party changed the rules for Wednesday’s Las Vegas Debate late last month, allowing candidates who register at 10 percent or higher in four qualifying national polls onto the debate stage.

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG: 5 THINGS TO KNOW

In response to Trump’s explicit jab at his debating ability and veiled jab at the news organization he owns, which has vowed not to investigate any Democrats running in 2020 — while continuing to investigate Trump — Bloomberg brought up the fact Trump is part of an infamous group which only includes former Presidents Bill Clinton and Andrew Johnson.

“Impeached president says what?” Bloomberg tweeted.

Among Trump’s previous debate-related insults aimed at Bloomberg, the president speculated that Bloomberg was negotiating with the DNC for permission to stand on a box during any debate appearance, a dig a Bloomberg’s height.

SANDERS TAKES DOUBLE-DIGIT LEAD IN NEW NATIONAL POLL, AS BIDEN CRUMBLES AND BLOOMBERG RISES

In one of the president’s height comments, Trump said, “Mini Mike is a 5’4″ mass of dead energy who does not want to be on the debate stage with these professional politicians. No boxes please.” Bloomberg responded by telling Trump their mutual friends were talking behind his back.

“[Trump] – we know many of the same people in NY,” Bloomberg tweeted. “Behind your back they laugh at you & call you a carnival barking clown. They know you inherited a fortune & squandered it with stupid deals and incompetence. I have the record & the resources to defeat you. And I will.”

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Bloomberg has spent over $400 million on his campaign, mainly in delegate-rich Super Tuesday states, which has allowed him to quickly rise national Democratic polls despite the fact he has not secured a pledged delegate. On track to spend more on than any presidential candidate in history, Bloomberg has become a real threat to win the Democratic primary and challenge Trump in November.

The former mayor earned 14 percent national support in an ABC News/Washington Post poll released Wednesday morning, placing him third behind Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Vice President Joe Biden. Bloomberg registered above Biden with a second-place 19 percent tally in an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll released Tuesday, which allowed him to meet the DNC’s requirements for the Las Vegas debate on the last day candidates could qualify.

Trump’s attacks on Bloomberg have ratcheted up as Bloomberg’s poll numbers have increased. They seem unlikely to stop as Super Tuesday, the first day in which Bloomberg is likely to earn delegates to the Democratic National Convention, approaches on March 3.

Trump takes aim at Dem senator over Iran meeting, suggests he should be prosecuted

President Trump lashed out Wednesday at Sen. Chris Murphy for meeting with Iran’s foreign minister and accused the Democratic senator of “illegally” violating the Logan Act.

The Logan Act, enacted in 1799, bars Americans from conducting rogue negotiations with foreign governments in disputes with the U.S.

SENATE DEMOCRAT MURPHY ACKNOWLEDGES MEETING WITH IRAN’S FOREIGN MINISTER

No one has ever been successfully prosecuted under this obscure federal law, but some critics suggested in 2017 that Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn ran afoul of the law in his dealings with Russia before Trump took office. Murphy himself called for investigations at the time. Trump on Wednesday argued the Connecticut senator is now the one in breach of that law, suggesting he face consequences.

“Kerry & Murphy illegally violated the Logan Act,” Trump tweeted Wednesday, in reference to former Secretary of State John Kerry as well. “This is why Iran is not making a deal. Must be dealt with strongly!”

Murphy met with Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif while at the Munich Security conference declaring, “if Trump isn’t going to talk to Iran, then someone should.”

Once hearing the news of Murphy’s visit, Trump previewed his line of attack to reporters.

“I saw that Senator Murphy met with the Iranians, is that a fact?” Trump said Tuesday before boarding Air Force One. “I just saw that on the way over. Is there anything I should know? Because that sounds like, to me, a violation of the Logan Act.”

Trump has previously accused Kerry of meeting the Iranians and trying to undermine his foreign policy.

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A spokesperson for Kerry responded Wednesday: “We’ve addressed this many times before. The president is still tweeting, is still wrong, and is still trying to distract from his diplomatic malpractice on Iran.”

Flynn wasn’t prosecuted for Logan Act violations, but in 2017 he pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI in relation to the Russia probe.

Fox News’ Rich Edson contributed to this report.

Sanders up by 18 points over 2020 rivals in California: poll

With less than two weeks to go until Super Tuesday, a new poll shows Sen. Bernie Sanders leading his rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination by double digits in California.

Sanders stands at 32 percent support among likely Democratic primary voters in the Golden State’s March 3 contest, according to a Public Policy Institute of California survey. Sanders is 18 percentage points ahead of former Vice President Joe Biden, who comes in second at 14 percent.

SANDERS TAKES DOUBLE-DIGIT LEAD IN ANOTHER NEW NATIONAL POLL

The poll, released Monday night, shows Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts at 13 percent support, with former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg and former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg each at 12 percent.

Sanders has risen 5 points since the previous PPIC poll, conducted a month ago, while both Biden and Warren have each plunged 10 points.

Bloomberg jumped 11 points and Buttigieg doubled his support in the past month. The poll also indicates Sen. Amy Klobuchar at 6 percent, environmental and progressive advocate Tom Steyer – who lives in California – at 3 percent and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii at 1 percent.

The survey suggests that Sanders has been successful in consolidating support among the state’s Latinos and voters younger than 45, with a majority of both groups backing the populist senator from Vermont who’s making his second straight White House run.

“As the campaign moves to larger and more diverse states, Sanders’ support among Latinos and younger voters is noteworthy,” PPIC president and chief executive Mark Baldassare said.

Sanders was last in California on Monday, drawing roughly 10,000 people to a President’s Day rally in the state’s East Bay region.

With 415 presidential nominating convention delegates at state, California is by far the largest of the 14 states that hold contests on Super Tuesday.

The release of the survey in California comes as Sanders has soared in national polling, taking double-digit leads in three new surveys.

Klobuchar taking heat from Dems for past support of Trump nominees

As she rises in national polls, Democratic presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar is taking heat from critics inside her party over her past support of President Trump’s cabinet nominees and judges.

Sen. Klobuchar, D-Minn., has a history of voting for some of the president’s nominees for cabinet positions.

PRO-WARREN GROUP SLAMS KLOBUCHAR AS ‘COMPLETELY UNPREPARED’

In 2017, Klobuchar voted for John Kelly’s confirmation to Homeland Security secretary; Wilbur Ross as Commerce secretary; Mike Pompeo as CIA director, and later as secretary of State; Nikki Haley as U.N. ambassador; Elaine Chao as Transportation secretary; David Shulkin as secretary of Veterans’ Affairs; Linda McMahon as Small Business Administrator; Dan Coats as director of National Intelligence; Robert Lighthizer as U.S. trade representative; Sonny Perdue to be secretary of Agriculture, and more.

None of the other senators who are currently running for president – Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., or Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. – or have dropped out the race – Cory Booker, D-N.J., Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., or Kamala Harris, D-Calif. – voted in favor of those nominees.

In 2018, Klobuchar voted for Kevin McAleenan to serve as commissioner of Customs and Border Protection (CBP). McAleenan later served as acting Homeland Security secretary.

Last week at a town hall in Nevada, former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg – one of Klobuchar’s rivals – took a veiled swipe at Klobuchar for voting to confirm McAleenan after she has repeatedly downplayed his political experience.

IN UNEARTHED 2006 CLIP, KLOBUCHAR CALLED FOR FENCE, ‘ORDER’ AT THE BORDER

“You know, I’ve heard some people say that, you know, my experience is not relevant because you have to have Washington experience in order to become a president,” Buttigieg said. “But some of those same voices are among those who voted to confirm Kevin McAleenan as the CBP head, who presided over, for example, the horrifying conditions that children were kept in, and we have to look at what kind of judgment that experience has brought.”

Klobuchar has, in general, taken a more moderate stance on border security compared with some of her left-wing primary rivals. In July, she told ABC’s “This Week” that she didn’t agree with candidates like Warren, who called for the decriminalization of illegal border crossings. She also, in 2018, came out in favor of negotiating with Trump for wall funding as part of a broader immigration reform deal and to avoid a government shutdown.

The Klobuchar campaign, though, told Fox News that she does oppose the wall at the southern border.

“Sen. Klobuchar strongly opposes President Trump’s border wall as well as diverting military funds for its construction,” a campaign spokesperson said. “She supports paying for border security as part of comprehensive immigration reform and she believes that comprehensive reforms and implementing a policy to allow asylum seekers from the Northern Triangle countries to seek asylum in their home countries could result in a decrease in some of the funding necessary for the border.”

AMY KLOBUCHAR: 5 THINGS TO KNOW

Meanwhile, over the course of the 2017-2018 congressional session, Klobuchar also voted to confirm nearly two-thirds of judges nominated by President Trump – far more than any other Senate Democrat who was or still is running for the White House – decisions that a Warren-affiliated group has taken issue with in recent days.

“Klobuchar has faced no scrutiny this year. New Hampshire voters didn’t know that Klobuchar voted to confirm two-thirds of Trump judges to lifetime appointments – and has one of the most conservative records of any Democrat,” the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, a major supporter of Warren’s presidential campaign, said in a statement this week.

Klobuchar did, however, receive plenty of attention for her tough questioning of then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who she did not vote to confirm.

Klobuchar outperformed Warren in New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary last week, making a strong third-place finish. Since then, Klobuchar has seen an infusion of campaign cash.

Recent polls in Nevada, which will have its caucuses Saturday, suggest Warren, Klobuchar, Buttigieg and billionaire Tom Steyer are all competing for third place, behind Sanders and former Vice President Joe Biden.

Fox News reached out to the Klobuchar campaign for comment on the jabs from the PCCC but has not yet received a response.

Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.

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