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Jd vance approaches air force two after kamala harris, walz land in wisconsin — says it will be ‘my plane’ soon.

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance stunned reporters Wednesday by attempting to confront Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, on the tarmac here when their planes arrived at about the same time.

“I figured I’d come by and, one, just get a good look at the plane because hopefully it’s going to be my plane in a few months,” the Ohio senator told campaign reporters after approaching Air Force Two.

“I also thought you guys might get lonely because the vice president doesn’t answer questions from reporters and hasn’t for 17 days.”

The unexpected stunt snatched attention away from a large nearby rally featuring Harris, 59, and Walz, the 60-year-old Minnesota governor who joined the Democratic ticket on Tuesday.

Harris and Walz posed for pictures with Girl Scout Troop 3307 on the tarmac shortly before Vance overshadowed their first joint Midwestern campaign stop.

The Democratic candidates seemed to have left seconds before their rival walked over.

Harris’ campaign attempted to mock Vance by posting video of his plane landing at the Eau Claire airport  with the TikTok-style oral caption , “all of a sudden, I hear this agitating, grating voice.”

“Make sure AF2 is deep cleaned because Lord only knows what @KamalaHarris and her team have done on there,” Trump-Vance campaign spokesman Steven Cheung  tweeted  back. 

“The smell alone on that plane must be crazy.”

Vance’s approach seemed to be a spur-of-the-moment decision — after he  accused Walz of “stolen valor”  and faulted Harris’ performance as President Biden’s designated point person on reducing illegal immigration at a Michigan event earlier in the day.

“Have they given you guys an explanation for why she won’t take questions from reporters?” Vance, 40, asked the press.

He said it was “insulting” to Americans that Harris hasn’t been giving interviews.

“I’d love her to just answer what she wants to do and also explain why every single position she has has changed,” Vance said.

“She pretends to be a tough-on-crime prosecutor and yet here she is wanting to defund the police. She’s the border czar, yet she’s opened up the American southern border.”

Vance concluded, “This is a person who has to answer questions from the media and it’s disgraceful that she runs from you guys, and it’s also insulting to the American people.”

Vance drove home similar themes at his event in Michigan earlier Wednesday.

“I’m the father of a 2-year-old girl. I cannot imagine having a government that cares so little about you that they’re letting people who come into our communities get deported and come back in and then they rape our children,” Vance said. 

“That is a policy choice of Kamala Harris.”

Vance also tore into Walz after the Minnesota governor ridiculed him at his first rally as Harris’ running mate Tuesday night in Philadelphia.

At that rally, Walz mocked Vance for touting ties to Appalachia despite attending Yale University and even alluded to a debunked internet claim that the senator admitted having sex with a couch in his 2016 memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy.”

Follow The Post’s coverage on Kamala Harris’ running mate Tim Walz:

• Kamala Harris chooses Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as running mate
• Who is Tim Walz, Kamala Harris’ VP pick?
• Tim Walz signed laws catering to illegal migrants, giving them free health care, tuition
• Trump team says it’s relieved Kamala Harris chose ‘extremist’ Tim Walz: ‘An easy opponent’
• Editorial: Kamala Harris bows to the radicals by picking lefty Tim Walz as her running mate

“What bothers me about Tim Waltz is the stolen valor garbage,” Vance said of Walz, who  left the National Guard in 2005  shortly after his battalion was ordered to deploy to the Iraq war.

Vance, who did serve in the Iraq war, said: “Do not pretend to be something that you’re not. And if he wants to criticize me for getting an Ivy League education, I’m proud of the fact that my mamaw supported me, that I was able to make something of myself. I’d be ashamed if I was him and I lied about my military service.”

In a video that went viral Wednesday, Walz is heard promoting gun control by referring to “weapons of war that I carried in war.”

Harris’ decision to avoid early interviews has helped prolong the “honeymoon” phase of her candidacy, which has featured surging donations from freshly enthused Democrats and very little negative coverage.

Although Harris has given few on-the-record answers to reporters since Biden, 81, dropped his re-election bid on July 21 and endorsed her as his successor, she has frequently gaggled off the record with reporters on Air Force Two.

Harris spoke off the record with the press for four minutes Tuesday afternoon and five minutes on Wednesday aboard her vice presidential jet — answering questions about various topics but not permitting those answers to be reported.

A Post reporter was part of the Tuesday gaggle and a New York Times reporter served as the primary representative of the press corps Wednesday.

This is a developing story. Please check back for more updates.

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Sweeping Raids, Giant Camps and Mass Deportations: Inside Trump’s 2025 Immigration Plans

If he regains power, Donald Trump wants not only to revive some of the immigration policies criticized as draconian during his presidency, but expand and toughen them.

Donald Trump wants to reimpose a Covid 19-era policy of refusing asylum claims — this time basing that refusal on assertions that migrants carry other infectious diseases like tuberculosis. Credit... Doug Mills/The New York Times

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By Charlie Savage Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan

• Nov. 11, 2023

Former President Donald J. Trump is planning an extreme expansion of his first-term crackdown on immigration if he returns to power in 2025 — including preparing to round up undocumented people already in the United States on a vast scale and detain them in sprawling camps while they wait to be expelled.

The plans would sharply restrict both legal and illegal immigration in a multitude of ways.

Mr. Trump wants to revive his first-term border policies, including banning entry by people from certain Muslim-majority nations and reimposing a Covid 19-era policy of refusing asylum claims — though this time he would base that refusal on assertions that migrants carry other infectious diseases like tuberculosis.

He plans to scour the country for unauthorized immigrants and deport people by the millions per year.

To help speed mass deportations, Mr. Trump is preparing an enormous expansion of a form of removal that does not require due process hearings. To help Immigration and Customs Enforcement carry out sweeping raids, he plans to reassign other federal agents and deputize local police officers and National Guard soldiers voluntarily contributed by Republican-run states.

To ease the strain on ICE detention facilities, Mr. Trump wants to build huge camps to detain people while their cases are processed and they await deportation flights. And to get around any refusal by Congress to appropriate the necessary funds, Mr. Trump would redirect money in the military budget, as he did in his first term to spend more on a border wall than Congress had authorized.

In a public reference to his plans, Mr. Trump told a crowd in Iowa in September: “Following the Eisenhower model, we will carry out the largest domestic deportation operation in American history.” The reference was to a 1954 campaign to round up and expel Mexican immigrants that was named for an ethnic slur — “ Operation Wetback .”

The constellation of Mr. Trump’s 2025 plans amounts to an assault on immigration on a scale unseen in modern American history. Millions of undocumented immigrants would be barred from the country or uprooted from it years or even decades after settling here.

Such a scale of planned removals would raise logistical, financial and diplomatic challenges and would be vigorously challenged in court. But there is no mistaking the breadth and ambition of the shift Mr. Trump is eyeing.

In a second Trump presidency, the visas of foreign students who participated in anti-Israel or pro-Palestinian protests would be canceled. U.S. consular officials abroad will be directed to expand ideological screening of visa applicants to block people the Trump administration considers to have undesirable attitudes. People who were granted temporary protected status because they are from certain countries deemed unsafe, allowing them to lawfully live and work in the United States, would have that status revoked.

Similarly, numerous people who have been allowed to live in the country temporarily for humanitarian reasons would also lose that status and be kicked out, including tens of thousands of the Afghans who were evacuated amid the 2021 Taliban takeover and allowed to enter the United States. Afghans holding special visas granted to people who helped U.S. forces would be revetted to see if they really did.

And Mr. Trump would try to end birthright citizenship for babies born in the United States to undocumented parents — by proclaiming that policy to be the new position of the government and by ordering agencies to cease issuing citizenship-affirming documents like Social Security cards and passports to them. That policy’s legal legitimacy, like nearly all of Mr. Trump’s plans, would be virtually certain to end up before the Supreme Court.

In interviews with The New York Times, several Trump advisers gave the most expansive and detailed description yet of Mr. Trump’s immigration agenda in a potential second term. In particular, Mr. Trump’s campaign referred questions for this article to Stephen Miller, an architect of Mr. Trump’s first-term immigration policies who remains close to him and is expected to serve in a senior role in a second administration.

All of the steps Trump advisers are preparing, Mr. Miller contended in a wide-ranging interview, rely on existing statutes; while the Trump team would likely seek a revamp of immigration laws, the plan was crafted to need no new substantive legislation. And while acknowledging that lawsuits would arise to challenge nearly every one of them, he portrayed the Trump team’s daunting array of tactics as a “blitz” designed to overwhelm immigrant-rights lawyers.

“Any activists who doubt President Trump’s resolve in the slightest are making a drastic error: Trump will unleash the vast arsenal of federal powers to implement the most spectacular migration crackdown,” Mr. Miller said, adding, “The immigration legal activists won’t know what’s happening.”

Todd Schulte, the president of FWD.us, an immigration and criminal justice advocacy group that repeatedly fought the Trump administration, said the Trump team’s plans relied on “xenophobic demagoguery” that appeals to his hardest-core political base.

“Americans should understand these policy proposals are an authoritarian, often illegal, agenda that would rip apart nearly every aspect of American life — tanking the economy, violating the basic civil rights of millions of immigrants and native-born Americans alike,” Mr. Schulte said.

‘Poisoning the Blood’

Since Mr. Trump left office, the political environment on immigration has moved in his direction. He is also more capable now of exploiting that environment if he is re-elected than he was when he first won election as an outsider.

The ebbing of the Covid-19 pandemic and resumption of travel flows have helped stir a global migrant crisis, with millions of Venezuelans and Central Americans fleeing turmoil and Africans arriving in Latin American countries before continuing their journey north . Amid the record numbers of migrants at the southern border and beyond it in cities like New York and Chicago, voters are frustrated and even some Democrats are calling for tougher action against immigrants and pressuring the White House to better manage the crisis.

Mr. Trump and his advisers see the opening, and now know better how to seize it. The aides Mr. Trump relied upon in the chaotic early days of his first term were sometimes at odds and lacked experience in how to manipulate the levers of federal power. By the end of his first term, cabinet officials and lawyers who sought to restrain some of his actions — like his Homeland Security secretary and chief of staff, John F. Kelly — had been fired, and those who stuck with him had learned much.

In a second term, Mr. Trump plans to install a team that will not restrain him.

Since much of Mr. Trump’s first-term immigration crackdown was tied up in the courts, the legal environment has tilted in his favor: His four years of judicial appointments left behind federal appellate courts and a Supreme Court that are far more conservative than the courts that heard challenges to his first-term policies.

The fight over Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals provides an illustration.

DACA is an Obama-era program that shields from deportation and grants work permits to people who were brought unlawfully to the United States as children. Mr. Trump tried to end it, but the Supreme Court blocked him on procedural grounds in June 2020.

Mr. Miller said Mr. Trump would try again to end DACA. And the 5-4 majority of the Supreme Court that blocked the last attempt no longer exists: A few months after the DACA ruling, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died and Mr. Trump replaced her with a sixth conservative, Justice Amy Coney Barrett.

Mr. Trump’s rhetoric has more than kept up with his increasingly extreme agenda on immigration.

His stoking of fear and anger toward immigrants — pushing for a border wall and calling Mexicans rapists — fueled his 2016 takeover of the Republican Party. As president, he privately mused about developing a militarized border like Israel’s, asked whether migrants crossing the border could be shot in the legs and wanted a proposed border wall topped with flesh-piercing spikes and painted black to burn migrants’ skin.

As he has campaigned for the party’s third straight presidential nomination, his anti-immigrant tone has only grown harsher. In a recent interview with a right-wing website , Mr. Trump claimed without evidence that foreign leaders were deliberately emptying their “insane asylums” to send the patients across America’s southern border as migrants. He said migrants were “ poisoning the blood of our country .” And at a rally on Wednesday in Florida , he compared them to the fictional serial killer and cannibal Hannibal Lecter, saying, “That’s what’s coming into our country right now.”

Mr. Trump had similarly vowed to carry out mass deportations when running for office in 2016, but the government only managed several hundred thousand removals per year under his presidency, on par with other recent administrations. If they get another opportunity, Mr. Trump and his team are determined to achieve annual numbers in the millions.

Keeping People Out

Mr. Trump’s immigration plan is to pick up where he left off and then go much farther. He would not only revive some of the policies that were criticized as draconian during his presidency, many of which the Biden White House ended, but also expand and toughen them.

One example centers on expanding first-term policies aimed at keeping people out of the country. Mr. Trump plans to suspend the nation’s refugee program and once again categorically bar visitors from troubled countries, reinstating a version of his ban on travel from several mostly Muslim-majority countries, which President Biden called discriminatory and ended on his first day in office .

Mr. Trump would also use coercive diplomacy to induce other nations to help, including by making cooperation a condition of any other bilateral engagement, Mr. Miller said. For example, a second Trump administration would seek to re-establish an agreement with Mexico that asylum seekers remain there while their claims are processed. (It is not clear that Mexico would agree ; a Mexican court has said that deal violated human rights .)

Mr. Trump would also push to revive “safe third country” agreements with several nations in Central America, and try to expand them to Africa, Asia and South America. Under such deals, countries agree to take would-be asylum seekers from specific other nations and let them apply for asylum there instead.

While such arrangements have traditionally only covered migrants who had previously passed through a third country, federal law does not require that limit and a second Trump administration would seek to make those deals without it, in part as a deterrent to migrants making what the Trump team views as illegitimate asylum claims.

At the same time, Mr. Miller said, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would invoke the public health emergency powers law known as Title 42 to again refuse to hear any asylum claims by people arriving at the southern border. The Trump administration had internally discussed that idea early in Mr. Trump’s term, but some cabinet secretaries pushed back, arguing that there was no public health emergency that would legally justify it. The administration ultimately implemented it during the coronavirus pandemic.

Saying the idea has since gained acceptance in practice — Mr. Biden initially kept the policy — Mr. Miller said Mr. Trump would invoke Title 42, citing “severe strains of the flu, tuberculosis, scabies, other respiratory illnesses like R.S.V. and so on, or just a general issue of mass migration being a public health threat and conveying a variety of communicable diseases.”

Mr. Trump and his aides have not yet said whether they would re-enact one of the most contentious deterrents to unauthorized immigration that he pursued as president: separating children from their parents , which led to trauma among migrants and difficulties in reuniting families. When pressed, Mr. Trump has repeatedly declined to rule out reviving the policy . After an outcry over the practice, Mr. Trump ended it in 2018 and a judge later blocked the government from putting it back into effect.

Mass Deportations

Soon after Mr. Trump announced his 2024 campaign for president last November, he met with Tom Homan, who ran ICE for the first year and a half of the Trump administration and was an early proponent of separating families to deter migrants.

In an interview, Mr. Homan recalled that in that meeting, he “agreed to come back” in a second term and would “help to organize and run the largest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.”

Trump advisers’ vision of abrupt mass deportations would be a recipe for social and economic turmoil, disrupting the housing market and major industries including agriculture and the service sector.

Mr. Miller cast such disruption in a favorable light.

“Mass deportation will be a labor-market disruption celebrated by American workers, who will now be offered higher wages with better benefits to fill these jobs,” he said. “Americans will also celebrate the fact that our nation’s laws are now being applied equally, and that one select group is no longer magically exempt.”

One planned step to overcome the legal and logistical hurdles would be to significantly expand a form of fast-track deportations known as “expedited removal.” It denies undocumented immigrants the usual hearings and opportunity to file appeals, which can take months or years — especially when people are not in custody — and has led to a large backlog. A 1996 law says people can be subject to expedited removal for up to two years after arriving, but to date the executive branch has used it more cautiously, swiftly expelling people picked up near the border soon after crossing.

The Trump administration tried to expand the use of expedited removal , but a court blocked it and then the Biden team canceled the expansion. It remains unclear whether the Supreme Court will rule that it is constitutional to use the law against people who have been living for a significant period in the United States and express fear of persecution if sent home.

Mr. Trump has also said he would invoke an archaic law, the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 , to expel suspected members of drug cartels and criminal gangs without due process. That law allows for summary deportation of people from countries with which the United States is at war, that have invaded the United States or that have engaged in “predatory incursions.”

The Supreme Court has upheld past uses of that law in wartime. But its text seems to require a link to the actions of a foreign government , so it is not clear whether the justices will allow a president to stretch it to encompass drug cartel activity.

More broadly, Mr. Miller said a new Trump administration would shift from the ICE practice of arresting specific people to carrying out workplace raids and other sweeps in public places aimed at arresting scores of unauthorized immigrants at once.

To make the process of finding and deporting undocumented immigrants already living inside the country “radically more quick and efficient,” he said, the Trump team would bring in “ the right kinds of attorneys and the right kinds of policy thinkers” willing to carry out such ideas.

And because of the magnitude of arrests and deportations being contemplated, they plan to build “vast holding facilities that would function as staging centers” for immigrants as their cases progress and they wait to be flown to other countries.

Mr. Miller said the new camps would likely be built “on open land in Texas near the border.”

He said the military would construct them under the authority and control of the Department of Homeland Security. While he cautioned that there were no specific blueprints yet, he said the camps would look professional and similar to other facilities for migrants that have been built near the border .

Such camps could also enable the government to speed up the pace and volume of deportations of undocumented people who have lived in the United States for years and so are not subject to fast-track removal. If pursuing a long-shot effort to win permission to remain in the country would mean staying locked up in the interim, some may give up and voluntarily accept removal without going through the full process.

The use of these camps, Mr. Miller said, would likely be focused more on single adults because the government cannot indefinitely hold children under a longstanding court order known as the Flores settlement. So any families brought to the facilities would have to be moved in and out more quickly, he said.

The Trump administration tried to overturn the Flores settlement, but the Supreme Court did not resolve the matter before Mr. Trump’s term ended. Mr. Miller said the Trump team would try again.

To increase the number of agents available for ICE sweeps, Mr. Miller said, officials from other federal law enforcement agencies would be temporarily reassigned, and state National Guard troops and local police officers, at least from willing Republican-led states, would be deputized for immigration control efforts.

While a law known as the Posse Comitatus Act generally forbids the use of the armed forces for law enforcement purposes, another law called the Insurrection Act creates an exception. Mr. Trump would invoke the Insurrection Act at the border, enabling the use of federal troops to apprehend migrants, Mr. Miller said.

“Bottom line,” he said, “President Trump will do whatever it takes.”

Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Eileen Sullivan contributed reporting. Kitty Bennett contributed research.

Charlie Savage writes about national security and legal policy. He has been a journalist for more than two decades. More about Charlie Savage

Maggie Haberman is a senior political correspondent and the author of “Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America.” She was part of a team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2018 for reporting on President Trump’s advisers and their connections to Russia. More about Maggie Haberman

Jonathan Swan is a political reporter who focuses on campaigns and Congress. As a reporter for Axios, he won an Emmy Award for his 2020 interview of then-President Donald J. Trump, and the White House Correspondents’ Association’s Aldo Beckman Award for “overall excellence in White House coverage” in 2022. More about Jonathan Swan

Keep Up With the 2024 Election

The presidential election is 91 days away . Here’s our guide to the run-up to Election Day.

Tracking the Polls . The state of the race, according to the latest polling data.

Election Calendar. Take a look at key dates and voting deadlines.

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Who Is Tim Walz? Meet the Minnesota governor, who Harris picked as her V.P.

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Trump’s 2025 Plans. Trump is preparing to radically reshape the government.

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Ukraine-Russia war latest: Russian strikes deserved 'fair' response, says Zelenskyy - as Ukrainian troops reportedly enter another Russian region

Ukraine's surprise invasion of Kursk is continuing, with battles raging into a sixth day. Drones and missiles have been launched and Volodymyr Zelenskyy has acknowledged Ukraine's offensive in the Russian region for the first time.

Sunday 11 August 2024 23:12, UK

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• Zelenskyy on Kursk invasion: Russian strikes deserved 'fair response'
• Thirteen injured as drones and missiles launched over Russian region
• Michael Clarke analysis: Ukraine has astonished Russia by sending elite troops to Kursk - but Putin can't let this stand
• Belarus sends troops to reinforce border with Ukraine
• Ivor Bennett analysis: Ukraine could be playing for greater negotiating position

That's all our live coverage for today but we'll be back tomorrow with all the latest updates. 

Before we go, here's a reminder of what has happened today: 

Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged Ukraine's invasion of Russia's Kursk region for the first time, and suggested it was a "fair response" to a number of strikes launched by Russia.

The Ukrainian president said Russian forces had launched nearly 2,000 cross-border strikes at the city of Sumy from the region over the summer. 

Fighting continued in Kursk for a sixth day, with Russia claiming to have targeted Ukrainian troops with aerial weapons. 

US-based thinktank The Institute for the Study of War said Ukrainian forces have been largely holding their position in the town of Sudzha, while Kyiv's media outlets reported that forces have entered Kursk's neighbouring region of Belgorod. 

Meanwhile, Russia has evacuated around 76,000 people from the border regions.

A man convicted in the killing of a Russian opposition politician has been discharged from jail after signing a contract to fight in Ukraine, state-run news agencies TASS and RIA Novosti have reported. 

Tamerlan Eskerkhanov was among five men sent to prison over Boris Nemtsov's murder in 2017. 

He was convicted as an accomplice and jailed for 14 years. 

Mr Nemtsov, a critic of President Vladimir Putin and former deputy prime minister under president Boris Yeltsin, was shot dead in 2015 as he walked across a bridge near the Kremlin. 

"Eskerkhanov signed a contract with the defence ministry in March 2024, was pardoned, and then released from his penal colony," TASS cited a source in law enforcement agencies as saying.

"He went to one of the assault units and is now carrying out combat missions in the special military operation zone."

He added that the other convicts jailed over Nemtsov's killing were still in jail because they had refused to sign contracts with the military.

More now on the fire at the occupied Zaporizhzhia power plant... 

The UN nuclear watchdog has said strong, dark smoke has been emerging from the northern area of the site. 

It said the smoke followed multiple explosions. 

"Team was told by (the nuclear plant) of an alleged drone attack today on one of the cooling towers located at the site," the International Atomic Energy Agency said on X. 

"No impact has been reported for nuclear safety." 

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian forces had started a fire at the plant. 

Russian authorities in charge of the plant said the fire had started near the facility's cooling towers, and rescuers were working to put it out. 

By Deborah Haynes , security and defence editor 

With his troops battling hard inside Russia, Ukraine's president has finally broken his silence on an invasion that has stunned his much larger and more powerful neighbour.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the operation, which began on Tuesday in Russia's southwestern Kursk region, as "our actions to push the war out into the aggressor's territory".

Giving a further indication of the goal of the surprise assault, he said: "Ukraine is proving that it really knows how to restore justice and guarantees exactly the kind of pressure that is needed - pressure on the aggressor."

Details about the number of Ukrainian soldiers inside Russia remain unclear as commanders have deliberately stayed silent about a mission that was planned in secret.

But it is likely to be in the thousands, with elements from at least three well-equipped brigades on the ground, deploying tanks, armoured vehicles, artillery guns and drones.

Also hard to measure is how far the Ukrainian attackers have pushed, with Russian military bloggers saying they have penetrated up to around 12 miles from the Ukrainian border.

Videos, widely circulated on social media, purport to show Ukrainian soldiers raising the yellow and blue flag of Ukraine over Russian territory, including in the town of Sudzha and a settlement close to the Ukrainian border in the next door region of Belgorod.

Under pressure, Russia has rushed in reinforcements and released footage of its military fighting back, but this is the sixth day of the Ukrainian offensive and battles are still raging.

Commenting on events, analysts have noted that it is the first time Russia has been invaded since Adolf Hitler in 1941.

But Ukraine's attack is not the act of an aggressive power making a land grab.

Instead it is the counterintuitive action of a nation that was invaded by Vladimir Putin's Russia a decade ago - with the capture of Crimea and parts of eastern Ukraine - and subsequently further devastated by Moscow's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

It makes Kyiv's counter invasion into Kursk just the latest - though arguably the most audacious - effort by Ukraine to repel Russian forces from inside its own sovereign territory.

Russian forces have started a fire at a nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.

The Ukrainian president said flames could be seen on the premises of the Zaporizhzhia plant, which has been occupied by Russian forces for much of the war.

In a statement on X, he said radiation indicators were normal.

He also shared a video purporting to show the fire. Sky News has not independently verified the clip. 

A local official in the Ukrainian city of Nikopol, which looks out onto the plant, said there was unofficial information that Russian forces had set fire to numerous tyres in the cooling towers.

He urged residents to remain calm. 

Russian authorities in charge of the plant said the fire started near the facility's cooling towers, and rescuers were working to put it out. 

Ukrainian troops have been seen riding armoured vehicles near the Russian border. 

Photos taken by Reuters showed a number of troops operating in the city of Sumy - the area used to launched Ukraine's surprise invasion of Russia's Kursk region. 

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appeared to suggest this evening that the invasion was launched as a "fair" response to Russian strikes on Sumy over the summer. 

Earlier today, the Ukrainian president issued his first comments on his forces' invasion of Russia's Kursk region.

There have been very few details released about the operation, with Ukrainian officials adopting a policy of secrecy over its goal and why it has taken place. 

But in his nightly address, Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared to suggest the move has been made in retaliation to strikes conducted by Russian forces from Kursk. 

He said Russia deserved a "fair" response after it launched nearly 2,000 cross-border strikes at Ukraine's Sumy region over the summer. 

"Artillery, mortars, drones. We also record missile strikes, and each such strike deserves a fair response," he said. 

Reports have suggested that as many as 6,000 troops have crossed the border, and Ukrainian media outlets suggested today that Kyiv's forces have also entered Russia's Belgorod region. 

Now six days into the invasion, US -based thinktank The Institute for the Study of War has said Ukrainian forces are largely holding their position in the Sudzha area of Kursk. 

Russia has carried out an aerial weapons strike against Ukrainian forces in Kursk, the country's defence ministry has said. 

In a post on Telegram, it said "clusters of manpower, armoured and motor vehicles" were targeted. 

"The strike was carried out with unguided aerial missiles against reconnaissance targets," it said. 

"After the use of the aerial weapons, the crews performed an anti-missile manoeuvre, released decoy flares and returned to the site of departure." 

It claimed the targets had been destroyed. 

Ukraine's invasion of Russia's Kursk region was a moment that caught Moscow and the world by surprise. 

It was the largest incursion into Russian territory since the start of the war. 

While Ukrainian officials have remained tight-lipped over the details of the operation, we have seen Russia evacuating other areas near the border. 

Here's a timeline of what has happened in the invasion so far: 

Ukrainian units launched the surprise operation in the Kursk border region on  Tuesday 6 August.

By Wednesday 7 August , Ukrainian forces had advanced as much as 10km inside the Russian territory.

The US-based thinktank, the Institute for the Study of War, geolocated footage of Ukrainian forces in several locations and verified images showing Russian prisoners of war being taken at border checkpoints.

Ukrainian forces continued their advance on Thursday 8 August . 

By Friday 9 August , a video emerged appearing to show Ukrainian soldiers in control of a local gas facility in the town of Sudzha.

Ukraine continued to expand their presence on Saturday 10 August . 

Now six days into the invasion, this latest map shows that Ukrainian forces are largely holding their position, while the Russian military has evacuated 76,000 people from the area.

Ukrainian media outlets have also started reporting that Ukrainian forces appear to have entered Kursk's neighbouring region of Belgorod, with a video showing them in the Russian village of Poroz.

Sky News has not been able to independently verify this.

Meanwhile, the Russian government has imposed a "counter-terror" operation in the three border regions of Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk.

This allows authorities to relocate residents, confiscate vehicles and control phone communications.

People evacuating from the border areas of Russia's Kursk region have been receiving aid from the Russian Red Cross.

Red Cross workers have been visiting temporary accommodation centres to help those who have fled, and a hotline has been set up to reunite relatives. 

The Kursk office of the aid organisation said it received almost 3,000 calls in less than a day. 

Around 76,000 residents have been evacuated so far, a Russian Emergencies Ministry spokesman said yesterday.

Ukraine's invasion of the Russian region began earlier this week and has been considered an embarrassment to Russian military leaders, who were forced to scramble to contain the breach.

The exact aims of the operation remain unclear, and Ukrainian military officials have adopted a policy of secrecy, with little detail of the invasion released. 

Earlier today, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged fighting in Kursk for the first time. 

He said he had discussed the operation with top Ukrainian commander Oleksandr Syrskyi.

"Today, I received several reports from commander-in-chief Syrskyi regarding the front lines and our actions to push the war on to the aggressor's territory," he said.

"Ukraine is proving that it can indeed restore justice and ensure the necessary pressure on the aggressor." 

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Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in Arizona: Vice president departs Phoenix for Las Vegas

Vice President Kamala Harris  visited Arizona  on Thursday and Friday along with her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as part of a tour of swing states by the Democratic ticket.

The Friday evening event at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale was one of Harris and Walz's first appearances together on the campaign trail since the vice president picked Walz from a short list of contenders that also included Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz .

Their visit was part of a tour of the nation's battleground states. The pair made their debut on Tuesday in Philadelphia, with later stops in Wisconsin, Michigan and Arizona. A rally in Nevada was set for Saturday.

Follow our coverage from Republic reporters of Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as they campaign in metro Phoenix.

Harris departs Phoenix for Las Vegas

Vice President Kamala Harris departed the Valley on a Saturday afternoon flight aboard Air Force 2, heading to Las Vegas.

About 3 p.m., a motorcade carrying Harris arrived at the Lincoln J. Ragsdale Executive Terminal at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, and by 3:12 p.m., Air Force 2 had lifted off.

Harris ascended the stairs of Air Force 2 alone, as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz had already departed from Phoenix before Harris, according to campaign staffers.

— Rey Covarrubias Jr .

Campaign reports surge of volunteer sign-ups

People attending Friday’s Harris-Walz campaign rally didn’t just show up, cheer and go home.

The campaign reported that 3,000 volunteer shifts were filled by attendees as they left Desert Diamond Arena, a sign of momentum, said Jacques Petit, communications director for the Harris campaign in Arizona.

“This rate of sign-ups is higher than we’d expect for attendees at a rally, as opposed to a canvass kickoff or a local organizing event,” Petit said.

More than 30,000 volunteers have signed up in Arizona since July 21, when President Biden announced he would not seek reelection, Petit said.

— Mary Jo Pitzl

What is the next campaign stop for Harris and Walz?

Friday night's rally in Glendale marked the beginning of a busy political weekend after a busy week of campaigning for Vice President Kamala Harris.

She was scheduled to leave Phoenix Saturday afternoon and fly to Las Vegas for a campaign event with running mate Tim Walz.

Nevada, like Arizona, is a swing state in the 2024 presidential election.

Another campaign event was planned Sunday in San Francisco before a flight back to Washington, D.C.

— Laura Gersony

San Carlos Apache Tribal Council endorses Harris

The San Carlos Apache Tribe's governing council approved a resolution Tuesday to formally endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for president in the Nov. 3 election.

The 11-member council endorsed Harris and her newly selected running mate, Tim Walz, two days before the presumptive Democratic candidates visited Phoenix. The endorsement focused on key issues like the economy, the environment and border control.

"We are proud to be among the first Tribes in the country to formally endorse the Harris-Walz ticket," wrote Terry Rambler, chairman of the San Carlos Apache Tribe Council.

Harris syncs new ad campaign with Phoenix visit  

The Harris-Walz campaign released a new ad Friday centered around border security ahead of her visit to Phoenix.

The ad, called “Tougher” is being aired in several swing states, including Arizona.

The 30-second ad highlights Harris’ past as a prosecutor in a state bordering Mexico and lays out her plans to “hire thousands of more border agents and crack down on fentanyl and human trafficking.”

Since Harris became the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump has called her a failed “border czar,” blaming her for faults in the country’s border security.

President Joe Biden assigned Harris to focus on addressing the “root causes” of migration in Central America as vice president.

— Sabine Martin

Arizona residents find hope, joy in Harris' message

Hope was on several Valley residents’ minds as they exited Vice President Harris’ campaign rally in Glendale on Friday evening. There was renewed hope for Democrats’ chances of retaining the White House.

“Harris has brought a new energy to this (race), especially for those who felt that it was hopeless,” said Steve Koenigseder, a 33-year-old Gilbert teacher. “This definitely brought hope back to us.”

For so many of the women voters who attended, there was hope for the protection of reproductive health care rights, like access to abortion and in vitro fertilization, or IVF.

“The hope was already in the room,” said state Rep. Quantá Crews, noting Walz’s retelling of how his daughter, Hope, was conceived with the help of fertility treatments. “I don't know if you felt that energy when he told that story, and you heard that chant, ‘Hope, hope, hope.’ It was almost like we were feeling it.”

Walz’s story resonated with Koenigseder, who’s going through a similar process with his partner.

“It meant a lot,” he said of Harris’ and Walz’s commitment to protect women’s reproductive rights. “They're both willing to protect and fight for that for us.”

For JT Schmitt, a 44-year-old hair stylist in Chandler, abortion rights were at the top of mind after Arizona’s Supreme Court voted in April to restore a pre-Civil War era law that banned most abortions.

“It's scary for us,” Schmitt said.

Patricia Ezerski’s biggest takeaway from the rally was the sense that Harris wasn’t relying on fear to drum up support.

“These are the people that I want to see going forward into the future, people who are not fearful, they're not afraid. They're not trying to instill fear in people,” says the 69-year-old church administrator. “They want to find joy in trying to find solutions for the things that are bothering this country.

"And that is such a fantastic and positive message.“

— Shawn Raymundo

Harris, Walz stop for Mexican food in downtown Phoenix

On the heels of their Glendale rally, Harris and Walz engaged in a time-honored tradition for presidents and presidential hopefuls visiting Arizona: getting Mexican food.

Harris and Walz went to Cocina Adamex in Phoenix , accompanied by Rep. Ruben Gallego.

As they decided what to order, the group joked about Walz’s spice tolerance. The most he can handle is “black pepper,” Harris said.

Both parties are making efforts to appeal to Latino voters, a bloc that has appeared to drift toward the GOP in recent years.

In March, President Joe Biden announced his campaign’s nationwide Latino outreach effort from El Portal Mexican restaurant in Phoenix.

Harris tackles border security in speech to Arizona crowd 

Harris addressed border security, one of the biggest issues in Arizona, and invoked the failed bipartisan border-security bill that U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., helped broker. 

She pointedly noted her support for that bill, which failed earlier this year after former President Donald Trump urged Republicans not to give President Joe Biden a legislative victory.

In Glendale, Harris joined border security with immigration reforms to make the case for what she wants on the issues. 

“We know our immigration system is broken, and we know what it takes to fix it: comprehensive reform that includes strong border security and an earned pathway to citizenship,” she said.

“But Donald Trump does not want to fix this problem. Let’s be clear about that. He has no interest or desire to actually fix the problem. He talks a big game about border security, but he doesn’t walk the walk.

“Earlier this year, we had a chance to pass the toughest bipartisan border security bill in decades. But Donald Trump tanked the deal because he thought by doing that it would help win an election. But when I am president, I will sign the bill.” 

It extended a message that her campaign formalized earlier in the day with a new ad taking on border security, an issue where Trump has found broad appeal. 

The Harris ad notes her years as a California prosecutor who “took on drug cartels and jailed gang members for smuggling weapons and drugs.” It casts her as the right person to tackle a “tough” problem.

— Ronald J. Hansen  

Harris to pro-Palestinian protesters: 'I respect your voices'

Several minutes into Harris’ remarks, a handful of protesters interrupted her.

They shouted a slogan in support of the Palestinian cause in Gaza: “Free, free, free Palestine.”

At a rally earlier this week in Detroit, met with a similar protest, Harris gave a dismissive response.

“I’m speaking,” Harris told the Detroit protesters.

“You know what? If you want Donald Trump to win, then say that,” she continued.

Harris struck a more conciliatory tone at the rally in Arizona on Friday, expressing sympathy for their demands.

“I have been clear: Now is the time to get a ceasefire deal, and get the hostages home,” she said.

Harris said she and Biden were working “around the clock” on both fronts.

“I respect your voices, but we are here to now talk about this race in 2024,” she said.

The Democrats’ 2024 presidential campaign has dodged protests on the topic since the latest wave of hostilities between Israel and Hamas began in October of last year.

For a time the campaign began holding smaller campaign events, or withholding the time and location of events from the public, to avoid protests on the topic, NBC News has reported.

Harris has pushed the White House to show more concern for the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Democrats’ fresh energy ripples though arena    

The atmosphere inside Desert Diamond Arena was electric ahead of Walz and Harris’ remarks. The crowd standing in front of the stage danced as “One More Time” by Daft Punk thumped over the speaker. 

Attendees filled the stadium to capacity. There were over 15,000 people in the crowd, according to the Harris campaign. 

People stayed on their feet in between speakers and roared as images of Harris flashed across screens inside the arena. 

The mood was unrecognizable compared to the campaign events that the Democrats held while President Joe Biden was still the nominee. Biden tended to hold intimate gatherings when visiting Arizona, often delivering prepared remarks. 

Harris’ placement at the top of the ticket, and her pick of Walz as her running mate, has freshly energized the Democratic base. 

— Laura Gersony 

Giffords, Kelly take the stage

U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz, took the stage with his wife, former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz.

Giffords suffered a near-fatal gunshot wound in 2011. She has recovered her ability to speak and walk. She retold the story at Glendale’s rally.

“We are living in challenging times,” Giffords said. “We’re up to the challenge.”

Kelly, who was on the short list for Harris’ running mate, reiterated his support for the Harris-Walz ticket.

What happened to Gabby Giffords? Here's what to know about 2011 Tucson shooting

Pro-Palestinian groups march outside rally 

Dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters marched with signs and flags at 4 p.m. on Friday outside the event.  

“Kamala Harris, your hands are red, 40,000 children dead,” the group chanted as they walked near the entrance of Desert Diamond Arena. Nearly 15,000 children have been killed in Gaza as of April 22, according to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights .

It is unclear if they will be able to get inside as the event is at capacity. 

The Arizona chapter of the Party for Socialism and Liberation posted on Instagram that the group had been relocated multiple times by event security. 

— Shawn Raymundo and Helen Rummel 

Desert Diamond Arena reaches full capacity

Those looking to enter Desert Diamond Arena for Vice President Harris’ rally were turned away just before 4 p.m. as the event reached maximum capacity. 

An event staff member confirmed the fire marshal is not letting any more people inside the arena. 

Wes Hooker, a 62-year-old rideshare driver from Phoenix, looked to get into the rally by 3:30 p.m. when doors were scheduled to close. He left after being told he couldn’t enter.

— Shawn Raymundo 

'We’re obsessed with coconut': Harris, Walz stop at campaign office

Harris and Walz's motorcade made a stop at a campaign office in north Phoenix on their way to the rally in Glendale.

A group of volunteers greeted them. They were making signs for this evening's rally. 

The mood was exuberant as Harris and Walz thanked the volunteers one by one.

“What is that?” Harris asked, pointing to a large black dot on one poster.  

“It’s a coconut,” a volunteer replied, a reference to Harris’  viral remark .  

Harris laughed.  

“We’re obsessed with coconut,” another told the vice president. “And we’re obsessed with you, too.”  

Addressing the group, Harris described how, during her first-ever campaign, volunteers sat at one table together to stuff envelopes.  

“This reminds me of that,” she said. “That’s part of what is powering our campaign, nationally and here in Arizona.”  

Field presence has been a strength of the Biden-Harris campaign in must-win Arizona. Democrats began opening campaign offices late last year. Trump's ground operation was slower to take shape, trailing behind the pace it set in 2020.  

The GOP has built out its ground game since then, though it continues to rely on outside support from the conservative group Turning Point USA. 

— Laura Gersony  

Harris motorcade departs downtown Phoenix hotel            

Vice President Kamala Harris' motorcade left the Sheraton Downtown Phoenix hotel at about 2:50 p.m. 

— Dan Nowicki

Rally protest expected from pro-Palestinian groups 

The Arizona chapter of the Party of Socialism and Liberation and other activist groups announced plans for a protest at Harris’ rally in Glendale.  

On Wednesday, pro-Palestinian groups in Detroit protested at her rally chanting, “Kamala, Kamala, you can’t hide. We won’t vote for genocide.” After the vice president’s first attempt at quieting the crowd failed, she followed with a more direct response.  

“You know what? If you want Donald Trump to win, then say that,” Harris said to the group. “Otherwise, I’m speaking.” 

Some of the protesters also align with a bloc of Democratic voters who submitted “uncommitted” ballots in primary elections across the country as a show of discontent with President Joe Biden. 

Both Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, have faced criticism from some pro-Palestinian groups about their position on the war in Gaza . A similar protest could take place in Arizona as activist groups mobilize. 

“Palestinians can’t wait for us to vote the 'lesser of two evils' into power for this genocide to end,” a post from multiple advocacy groups reads. “300 days of endless suffering, protests, and brutality ― all under the watch of the Democrats.” 

— Helen Rummel  

Scheduling conflict keeps Hobbs from attending rally

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs won’t attend Friday’s rally with Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

It is unclear exactly why the Democratic governor will skip the high-profile event, which comes three days after Hobbs gushed that Walz was “America” and she was “absolutely thrilled” he had been tapped to be the vice presidential nominee.

Hobbs’ spokesperson, Christian Slater, said the governor had a scheduling conflict on Friday but wouldn’t say what that conflict was.

On Thursday, Hobbs was also missing from the lineup of Democratic lawmakers who snapped pictures as Harris’ plane arrived in Phoenix.

Hobbs was in Clarkdale on Thursday afternoon for a rural policy forum focusing on infrastructure, workforce development and broadband. She also announced a new microbusiness loan program.

— Stacey Barchenger

Which Arizona politicians will be at Friday’s rally? 

Some of Arizona’s top Democrats will attend the rally, including state Attorney General Kris Mayes and Reps. Greg Stanton and Ruben Gallego. 

Sen. Mark Kelly and Arizona Democratic Party chair Yolanda Bejarano also are expected to attend. Gov. Katie Hobbs, meanwhile, will not be there. 

Both Hobbs and Mayes skipped Harris' visit to Arizona in March, before she became the Democrats' presumptive presidential nominee, citing scheduling conflicts. 

RSVPs for the event have reached capacity, according to an invitation sent by the campaign. 

Doors open, lines moving smoothly

Doors have opened for this afternoon's Harris-Walz rally in Glendale. Lines to pass security were long but moving smoothly just after 1 p.m.

Attendees were given hand fans, ice pops and water bottles to help fight the high temperatures, which hovered around 102 degrees.

As of Friday afternoon, the precise timeline of the Harris-Walz rally remained unclear. The campaign has not publicly announced when the event will begin, though attendees have been told to arrive no later than 3:30 p.m.  

The campaign wrote that for security reasons, only confirmed RSVPs would be granted access to the rally and an invitation for the event says RSVPs are at capacity. 

Harris and Walz had initially planned to make a campaign stop in North Carolina on Thursday evening, and another in Georgia on Friday afternoon. The campaign canceled both stops due to extreme weather from Tropical Storm Debby . The vice president and her entourage spent the night in Phoenix instead. 

— Laura Gersony and Fernando Cervantes Jr .

Directions released for rallygoers 

Police have designated routes to the parking areas to ensure smooth traffic flow for those attending the  rally for Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate Tim Walz  in Glendale. 

The rally, where Harris and Walz will be kicking off their brand-new battleground campaign, is planned for Friday afternoon at Desert Diamond Arena. 

Glendale police suggested on  their social media page : 

• For those coming from the north, exit onto Glendale Avenue, head east to 91st Avenue then south to parking lots Grey and Yellow. 
• For those coming from the south, exit on Cardinals Way, head east to 91st Avenue, then north on 91st Avenue to parking lots Grey and Yellow. 

“Let's make sure everyone arrives without any hassle! Thank you for your cooperation,” police officials said in the social media post. 

Harris and Walz are on a  sprint to the White House , rising to the top of the presidential ticket after President Joe Biden stepped aside last month. They are facing a contentious race against Donald Trump. 

― Michelle Cruz and Stephanie Murray  

Road closures continue in downtown Phoenix

Several roads will be closed for a second day in parts of downtown Phoenix on Friday, due to Harris’ visit. 

Roque Espinoza, a Phoenix street transportation worker, said the following road closures were in effect: 

• Second Street was closed from Van Buren Street to between Fillmore and Taylor streets 
• Taylor Street was closed from First to Third streets 
• Polk Street was closed from First to Second streets 
• Third Street was closed from Taylor to Van Buren streets 

The roadways are blocked by law enforcement vehicles, traffic barricades and large steel trash bins. Local traffic is still allowed access in some areas after passing security checkpoints. 

Harris and her vice presidential pick, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz,  will campaign in Arizona on Friday  as part of a cross-country battleground state tour, according to a Harris campaign official. The vice president has been a frequent visitor to Arizona, coming here six times during her tenure in the Biden administration. 

The visit to the Phoenix area on Friday will mark her first time visiting as the candidate at the top of the presidential ticket. 

Arizona is a crucial battleground state on the electoral map. President Joe Biden won by fewer than 11,000 votes here in 2020, his smallest margin of any state. 

― David Ulloa Jr. and Michelle Cruz

Where does the race between Trump and Harris stand in Arizona? 

Since Kamala Harris took over the top of the ticket last month, she has made up much of the ground that President Joe Biden had lost to former President Donald Trump in the years since the 2020 election. The race has narrowed, public polling shows, and the Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan group that forecasts elections, this week moved Arizona from “lean Republican” to “toss-up."   

A new survey from the Arizona polling firm HighGround found Harris narrowly leading Trump in Arizona  44% to 42% among likely voters. She has a 15 percentage point lead among female voters, but Trump has a 10 percentage point lead with men. The survey was conducted July 30-Aug. 5 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.38 percentage points. 

— Stephanie Murray  

Can vice president candidate Tim Walz’s 'Normal Joe vibe' appeal to Arizona men? 

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz knocks Republicans for being “weird.” Can he win over Arizona men by being “normal”?   

Vice President Kamala Harris’ brand new running mate  is coming to Arizona,  and political watchers here say he could draw independent male voters into her coalition if he can follow the playbook of another Democrat Harris considered for the post: Sen. Mark Kelly.  

The 60-year-old Walz was relatively unknown outside of his home state of Minnesota until this week. Now, he has three months to introduce himself on the biggest stage in politics — and avoid being shoved into a political box.  

“What has underwritten the success of Mark Kelly in Arizona, it's the same basic thing that I think is going to underwrite the success of Walz in Arizona,” said David Waid, former executive director of the Arizona Democratic Party. “He is a Democrat who breaks the mold, who breaks the expectations and can't be put neatly into a box.”  

If Walz can play up his working class and pro-union bona fides, his background as a teacher and his perspective as a hunter who understands gun rights, he could tap into what helped Kelly win back-to-back races in 2020 and 2022, Waid said. 

VP Kamala Harris' past visits to Arizona 

Vice President Kamala Harris’ stop in Arizona this week marks her and Tim Walz’s first appearance in the state since becoming the presumptive Democratic ticket after President Joe Biden withdrew from the race on July 21.   

But Harris’ visit isn’t her first time in the Valley. She has visited Arizona half a dozen times over the last four years as vice president.   

She most recently returned to  Arizona on June 24  — the anniversary of U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade.   

Second gentleman Doug Emhoff also  visited Phoenix  in late July to affirm support for President Joe Biden and Harris, who were the Democratic presidential and vice presidential nominees at the time.   

Harris visited the state in the last four years to advocate for issues from  solar energy  to  immigration and gun violence . But the topic of abortion rights has dominated the discussions during her most recent visits.   

— Sabine Martin  

Kari Lake hurls broadsides at Kamala Harris ahead of Arizona speech 

Kari Lake assailed Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris ahead of her  Friday rally in Phoenix  while several dozen Arizonans described as independents and Democrats said they backed Lake’s U.S. Senate bid. 

At a news conference in Gilbert , Lake, two Republican members of Congress and the state’s GOP chair took turns hitting Harris, her running mate, Lake’s opponent, and President Joe Biden. 

It came not long after former President  Donald Trump held a rambling news conference  from his Florida resort similarly ripping Harris as her campaign has tapped a cash gusher and favorable recent polling in a race that not long ago appeared headed to Trump. 

The splintered messages seemed intended to hold back Democratic momentum and often zeroed in on a theme that helped give Trump a sizable lead over Biden in the first place: border security. 

A 'forward-looking speech' to come from Harris

Rep. Greg Stanton, D-Ariz., and Mesa Mayor John Giles, a notable Republican who expressed his support for Harris in a late-July op-ed published in The Arizona Republic , greeted the vice president at the airport.

At the terminal, Giles said he knew the vice president was aware of his cross-party support, but was surprised to hear her thank him in person upon her arrival.

“She expressed her appreciation for my support, and that was more than I expected,” he told The Republic.

“Watching this airplane come in. ... It’s very inspiring to be reminded what the strength of the U.S. (is) and (the) power of the president’s office and vice president’s office.”

Stanton, who is seeking a fourth term representing Arizona’s 4th Congressional District, expressed his appreciation for her ability to “consolidate support” in the short time since her candidacy announcement.

“It’s really been an amazing thing to watch, it’s a huge accomplishment. She’s been able to bring together the diverse interest not only of the Democratic Party but independent and moderate Republicans,” he said.

“Tomorrow you’re going to see her provide a very uplifting speech, a very forward-looking speech, in direct contrast to what the American people saw from the former president in his press conference that was based on grievance and crowd size and backward-looking. The VP and Governor Walz are going to have a very forward campaign.”

— Rey Covarrubias Jr.

Walz follows Harris' arrival in Phoenix

Walz arrived at Sky Harbor around 7:10 p.m., about 40 minutes after the vice president landed in Phoenix.

The Minnesota governor arrived in an unmarked white aircraft, taxiing about a quarter of a mile west of Air Force 2.

Harris arrives at Phoenix Sky Harbor

Harris arrived in Phoenix via Air Force Two on Thursday evening just before 6:30 p.m. at Sky Harbor International Airport's Lincoln J. Ragsdale Executive Terminal.

Wind gusts neared 20 mph as the plane landed, just as a monsoon storm appeared on the outskirts of the Phoenix metro area.

The aircraft arrived from the west, flying over Phoenix metro before taxing in front of the executive terminal. Among local dignitaries receiving her were Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego and Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes.

Harris was expected to make her way into downtown Phoenix, where a barricade was set near Van Buren and 2nd streets early Thursday.

She is set to kick off campaign events alongside Walz on Friday.

Who is Tim Walz, Harris’ running mate?

Walz was elected Minnesota's 41st governor and his tenure began in 2019.

Walz, 60, brings political acuity, suburban-and-rural appeal and progressive patriotism to a competition where all three criteria are seen as helpful for Democrats to clinch a 2024 win against the Republican ticket of former President Donald Trump and Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio.

A military veteran, former public-school teacher and six-term member of Congress, Walz is serving the sixth year of his eight-year stint as governor of the North Star State .

He was born in West Point, Nebraska, and grew up in Valentine, Nebraska. He joined the National Guard at 17 and served for 24 years. He earned a social science degree at Chadron State College in 1989 and a master of science in educational leadership from Minnesota State University, Mankato in 2001.

He went on as a U.S. representative for Minnesota's 1st Congressional District, serving six terms in the House from 2007 to 2019. 

As Harris was mulling a vice presidential pick, Walz gained attention for his plain-speaking style and his takedown of Republicans as “weird,” a message that resonated with much of the Democratic base.

Harris, Walz campaign at UAW hall near Ford plant

Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, began their day in Michigan before traveling to Arizona.

A day after firing up  a boisterous crowd at a Detroit Metro Airport hangar , Harris and Walz rallied UAW members at a Michigan union hall described as ground zero for last year’s auto strike against the Detroit Three and the subsequent contract ratification.

They preached a message of unity and highlighted their connections to union members and the union movement.

The rally Thursday afternoon at UAW Local 900 in Wayne allowed the pair to focus their message on a union crowd made up of UAW members who had walked the picket line.

Michigan is a key battleground state in this year’s presidential race between Harris, the Democratic nominee, and her Republican challenger, former President Donald Trump. The union vote, powered by a  recent UAW endorsement of Harris , could prove significant for the outcome.

Harris said the “true measure” of a leader’s strength isn’t by who you beat down, but by who you bring up.“It’s about the collective,” she said, “No one should ever be made to fight alone.”

— Eric D. Lawrence, Detroit Free Press

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Tim Walz, Who Spent Decades as an Enlisted Soldier, Brings Years of Work on Vets Issues to Dem Ticket

A retired Army National Guard noncommissioned officer who was once the top Democrat on the House Veterans Affairs Committee could become the next vice president.

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris announced Tuesday that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will be her running mate. That puts someone with an enlisted background on both presidential tickets after Republican nominee former President Donald Trump chose Marine veteran Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate.

Patrick Murphy, an Army veteran who was Walz' roommate when they were both freshmen in Congress, called Walz a "soldier's soldier."

Read Next: A Rocket Attack at an Iraqi Military Base Injures US Personnel, Officials Say

"The two largest federal agencies are DoD and the VA, so someone who has intimate knowledge of both is incredibly important," Murphy, who served as Army under secretary during the Obama administration, said in a phone interview with Military.com. "He was a field artilleryman who has tinnitus as diagnosed by the VA, so he understands the plight of our brother and sister veterans."

Walz enlisted in the Army National Guard in Nebraska in 1981 and retired honorably in 2005 as the top enlisted soldier for 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment, in the Minnesota National Guard, according to a copy of his records provided by the Minnesota Guard. He reached the rank of command sergeant major and served in that role, but he officially retired as a master sergeant for benefits purposes because he didn't finish a required training course, according to the records and a statement from the Minnesota Guard.

His Guard career included responding to natural disasters in the United States, as well as a deployment to Italy to support U.S. operations in Afghanistan, according to a 2018 article by Minnesota Public Radio . Walz earned several awards, including the Army Commendation Medal and two Army Achievement Medals, according to his military records. Working a civilian job as a high school teacher and football coach, the Nebraska native was also named that state's Citizen Soldier of the Year in 1989, according to official biographies.

During the 2022 Minnesota governor's race, Walz' opponent accused him of leaving the Guard when he did in order to avoid a deployment to Iraq, though Walz maintained he retired in order to focus on running for Congress, according to the Star Tribune newspaper .

Far-right commentators and media resurfaced those allegations and knocked him for never serving in combat -- something he has never claimed to do -- in contrast with Vance's deployment to Iraq as a combat correspondent.

"Looks like it is time to bring back Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Oof. Walz is a really unforced error. He bailed on the military when they decided to send him to Iraq. JD Vance actually served," conservative talk radio host Erick Erickson posted on social media Tuesday.

Walz was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2006, becoming the highest-ranking retired enlisted soldier to serve in Congress.

His tenure in Congress included sitting on the House Veterans Affairs Committee, rising to be its ranking member in 2017.

"Walz' leadership on behalf of his fellow veterans when he was in the U.S. House of Representatives is notable at a time when our all-volunteer force continues to struggle to recruit," Allison Jaslow, CEO of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, said in a statement praising the choice of a veteran to be vice presidential nominee. "How we care for our veterans is as important to our national security as how we care for our troops, and Walz has a record to prove that he understands that imperative."

As the top Democrat on the committee, Walz was a chief adversary for the Trump administration's Department of Veterans Affairs . He battled with then-acting VA Secretary Peter O'Rourke in 2018 during a standoff over O'Rourke's handling of the inspector general's office, and pushed for an investigation into the influence of a trio of informal VA advisers who were members of Trump's Mar-a-Lago club. An investigation by House Democrats completed after Walz left Congress concluded that the so-called Mar-a-Lago trio "violated the law and sought to exert improper influence over government officials to further their own personal interests."

Walz also opposed the Mission Act, the bill that expanded veterans' access to VA-funded care by non-VA doctors that Trump considers one of his signature achievements. Walz said in statements at the time that, while he agreed the program for veterans to seek outside care needed to be fixed, he believed the Mission Act did not have sustainable funding. VA officials in recent years have said community care costs have ballooned following the Mission Act.

Walz supported another bill that Trump touts as a top achievement, the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, which sought to make it easier for the VA to fire employees accused of misconduct or poor performance. But the implementation of that law was later part of Walz' fight with O'Rourke . The law also faced legal challenges that prompted the Biden administration to stop using the expedited firing authorities granted by the bill.

Walz was also an early proponent of doing more for veterans exposed to toxins during their military service, sponsored a major veterans suicide prevention bill and advocated for the expansion of GI Bill benefits. And he repeatedly pushed the VA to study marijuana usage to treat PTSD and chronic pain, something that could come up in a future administration if the Department of Justice finalizes reclassifying marijuana into a category of drugs considered less dangerous.

Walz' time in Congress also included a stint on the House Armed Services Committee, a perch he used to advocate for benefits for members of the National Guard .

Walz consistently voted in support of the annual defense policy bill, as well as advocated for repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that effectively banned gay and lesbian service members.

"He was my battle buddy in the fight to repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' and it wouldn't have happened if we didn't have Command Sgt. Maj. Tim Walz helping lead the fight," Murphy said.

Since becoming governor of Minnesota in 2019, Walz' role as commander in chief of the Minnesota National Guard has come under a spotlight several times. In response to a request from the Minneapolis mayor, he activated the Guard in May 2020 to assist law enforcement when some protests over the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd turned destructive. At the time, Minneapolis' mayor accused Walz of being too slow to order the deployment, a charge he denied.

"It is time to rebuild. Rebuild the city, rebuild our justice system, and rebuild the relationship between law enforcement and those they're charged to protect," Walz said in a statement when he announced the activation.

He also activated the Guard to protect the Minnesota state Capitol in January 2021 amid fears that Trump supporters could riot at state houses like they did at the U.S. Capitol that month. And he's used the Guard for missions that are more routine for the service, such as to help after heavy flooding earlier this summer .

As news broke Tuesday of Walz' selection, he quickly won praise from other Democratic veterans.

"Having a person who wore the uniform and who deployed around the world adds to the ticket someone who can connect with veterans and military families in a way that no one but a veteran can," Jon Soltz, chairman of liberal political action committee VoteVets, said in a statement.

-- Steve Beynon contributed to this story.

Related: Here's Kamala Harris' Record on Veterans and Military Issues

Rebecca Kheel

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