NEW YORK NEWS
Mayor Eric Adams declared a state of emergency over the thousands of migrants being sent from southern border states since the spring, saying the demand being put on the city to provide housing and other assistance is “not sustainable.” Officials say that 18,600 illegal migrants have come into the city, mostly from Venezuela. Congressional Republicans claim that DHS is aware that Venezuelan dictator Nicholas Maduro is releasing prisoners from Venezuelans prisons and sending them with migrant caravans to the Southern Border. Fourteen House Republicans sent a letter to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas looking for answers. Mayorkas has yet to respond.
Governor Kathy Hochul announced a second round of funding for those who come to New York from states that limit or outlaw abortions. $13.4 million dollars will be given to 37 abortion providers as part of the initial $35 million promised by Hochul in a unilateral move last May. Hochul, who has made abortion access the central focus of her gubernatorial election campaign against challenger Lee Zeldin, said that “This is the next stop on the journey to let the nation know that this is the state of New York and we will protect a woman’s right to a safe and legal abortion. It’s happening here in our state.
The Second U.S. Court of Appeals allowed New York to continue enforcing its new gun law while it is considering a lower court ruling that would block key provisions. The decision came six days after a federal district judge in Syracuse declared multiple portions of the law unconstitutional and placed a temporary hold on them. Kathy Hochul, after the initial ruling, said that she found it “deeply disappointing that the Judge wants to limit my ability to keep New Yorkers safe and to prevent more senseless gun violence.” Hochul claims that the “The Concealed Carry Improvement Act was carefully crafted to put in place common-sense restrictions around concealed carry permits.”
Governor Kathy Hochul took several pictures with Maher Abdelqader, a Democrat donor with a history of sharing anti-Semitic content online, including propagating the conspiracy that six million Jews were not killed in the Holocaust. Hochul, the Democrat governor running for re-election in the Empire State, was attending a Harvard Club fundraiser in New York City last month where she stopped to take a few photos with Abdelqader. Abdelqader twitter post supporting the Governor was deleted after the Governor’s office was asked to comment on the relationship between the two. Will Reinert, spokesperson for the Republican Governors Association, told Fox News Digital, “Kathy Hochul unabashedly rubbed shoulders with a widely publicized radical anti-Semite — begging the question — who else in the Governor’s inner circle have anti-Semitic ties?” Reinert continued, “With friends like these, it’s no wonder recent polling shows Hochul on the ropes and Zeldin surging towards victory.”
US NEWS
The Consumer Price Index rate of inflation in the United States accelerated again in September, with the cost of housing and other necessities intensifying pressure on households, wiping out pay gains that many have received and ensuring that the Federal Reserve will keep raising interest rates aggressively. Consumer prices rose 8.2% in September compared with a year earlier, the government said Thursday. On a month-to-month basis, prices increased 0.4% from August to September after having ticked up 0.1% from July to August. So-called “core inflation,” which removed food and energy costs, rose 6.6%. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy was quick to blame Democrats for the rise. “The American people deserve a majority whose top priority is to pass legislation that delivers an economy that is strong. Instead of doubling down on reckless, wasteful spending, we should be advancing legislation that makes America energy independent, curbs wasteful spending, and strengthens our supply chains,” he said
Social Security beneficiaries will be seeing an 8.7% increase in monthly payments this upcoming year, the largest increase in four decades. This cost of living raise is part of an annual ritual where Washington adjusts Social Security benefits to keep up with inflation, or at least with one narrow measure of it. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “This means that seniors will have a chance to get ahead of inflation, due to the rare combination of rising benefits and falling premiums. We will put more money in their pockets and provide them with a little extra breathing room.” Economists worry that this increase will put yet another monetary pressure on the inflationary cycle.
The January 6 Committee unanimously voted to subpoena former President Donald Trump to testify in a largely symbolic move before the committee broke prior to the midterms. It is widely assumed that should the Republicans win the House of Representatives, the committee will be dissolved or at least reconstituted to include some of the Republicans representatives that Nancy Pelosi initially kicked off the committee. New footage released by the committee showed Pelosi threatening bodily harm on the then-president. “I hope he comes. I want to punch him out,” Pelosi says in response to being informed that Trump wanted to come to the Capitol, gesticulating with her palm. “This is my moment. I’ve been waiting for this. For trespassing on the Capitol grounds. I want to punch him out, and I’m going to go to jail, and I’m going to be happy.”
WORLD NEWS
Israel and Lebanon arrived at an agreement over a maritime border dispute, ending the possibility of open warfare between the two nations. The U.S. mediated agreement set lines in the Mediterranean Sea for offshore oil drilling, a resource both countries desperately need. Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid is fast-tracking the agreement through the Knesset without a formal vote, hoping to have the deal done prior to the November 1 election. Lapid, who is running against political rival and former Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, said, “This is a historic achievement that will strengthen Israel’s security, inject billions into the Israeli economy and ensure the stability of our northern border,” in a statement.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia accused President Joe Biden of pressuring them to delay their reduction of oil production for one month, until after the midterm elections. The accusation comes on the heels of the Biden administration’s consideration of “reevaluating” the relationship with the Saudis, which may include reduction of armaments. Military weapons are sold to the Saudis to help deter the Iranian threat in the region, a government in the midst of a massive women-led protest movement. The Biden administration is hoping to appease Iran into resuming nuclear talks. Critics of the Biden administration claim that this accusation is reminiscent of the first impeachment of President Trump, where he was accused of pressuring Ukraine for political gain. As opposed to this situation with Saudi Arabia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denied ever feeling pressure from President Trump for the so-called “quid pro quo.”