Democrats fear Hillary Clinton's 'kiss of death' as midterms near

Hillary Clinton is viewed as “the kiss of death” for Democratic candidates in the upcoming midterm election, forcing the former presidential candidate stay low and campaign only behind closed doors.
Few Democrats are willing to embrace Clinton on the campaign trail, despite the party’s near-universal support for her just two years ago, with many concerned that a high-profile Clinton presence would only dampen the party's prospects of retaking control of Washington from Republicans.
Throughout the midterm elections, Clinton has rarely rallied together with other candidates, appearing mostly at low-key fundraisers.
“Hillary Clinton is the kiss of death and she represents the part of the Democratic Party that led to historic losses and that elected Donald Trump president,” a leading Democratic strategist told the Washington Examiner.

 "Hillary Clinton is the kiss of death and she represents the part of the Democratic Party that led to historic losses and that elected Donald Trump president."
— A Democratic strategist

“Democrats don't want her to campaign for them because everywhere she goes she carries this stench of death and is the only political figure in America that is less popular than Donald Trump,” the strategist added. “That's a real testament to her.”
Democrats were relieved after Bill and Hillary Clinton announced that their international 13-city speaking tour wouldn't begin until after November’s midterm elections.
“I think they're measuring how they can have the best, positive impact and have kind of decided to wait until after the election,” U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told the outlet.
BILL, HILLARY CLINTON TO EMBARK ON SPEAKING TOUR AMID #METOO BACKLASH -- WITH TICKETS TOPPING $745
A House Democrat seconded, saying “When I think of people who have been part of our push to retake the House, I just don’t think of them at all. ... I think it’s a very good thing that they’re not being visible. It wouldn’t help our candidates.”

“When I think of people who have been part of our push to retake the House, I just don’t think of them at all. ... I think it’s a very good thing that they’re not being visible. It wouldn’t help our candidates.”
— A House Democrat commenting about the Clintons

But Clinton, while unwanted at the campaigns, continues to make an impact on the election, just not in a way many Democrats would prefer.
“You cannot be civil with a political party that wants to destroy what you stand for, what you care about,” Clinton said earlier this week. “That’s why I believe, if we are fortunate enough to win back the House and/or the Senate, that’s when civility can start again. But until then, the only thing Republicans seem to recognize and respect is strength."
The GOP jumped on the comments amid a relentless harassment campaign against their lawmakers during the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
Democrats like U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, whose chances of winning re-election plummeted after her “no” vote on Kavanaugh, had to forcefully come out and denounce Clinton’s remarks.
“That's ridiculous,” Heitkamp said on CNN's “Anderson Cooper 360.” “I mean, I can't imagine how you get anything done if you don't bring civility back into politics, and that goes for both sides.
“I hope that we can find common ground in this country that sexual assault is more prominent than people thought it was," she added.
DEM SENATOR HEITKAMP SLAMS CLINTON CALL TO ABANDON CIVILITY WITH GOP
But not all is over for Clinton. She did her first public event last week, a roundtable on leadership with J.B. Pritzker, the Democratic nominee for governor of Illinois, according to the Examiner.
Later this month she’s set to appear with Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum, who's in one of the most competitive races in this election cycle.
Clinton also is set to headline a couple of fundraisers for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), together with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. Next week, Clinton will raise funds with U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey as well.
HILLARY CLINTON GEARS UP TO INFLUENCE MIDTERMS -- WHETHER DEMS LIKE IT OR NOT
Her influence could also span beyond her in-person appearances. Onward Together, a group founded by Clinton aimed at “advancing the progressive vision that earned nearly 66 million votes in the last election,” has been quietly giving out money to Democratic candidates and left-wing groups.
The PAC boasts of giving over $1 million in grants in its first year. The disclosed financial records show the organization raised only $115,000 in the last year, but because it’s registered as a nonprofit social welfare organization, the actual money raised and the identities of the donors do not have to be disclosed.
According to Federal Election Commission records, the political organization also gave out $110,000 to various Democrats this election cycle.

Ocasio-Cortez Cartoons

Fusion GPS co-founder to take the Fifth to avoid testifying

Glenn Simpson, the co-founder of Fusion GPS, the firm behind the infamous dossier. (AP)

The co-founder of Fusion GPS, the opposition research firm that produced the now-infamous Trump-Russia dossier, will invoke his First and Fifth Amendment privileges in order to avoid testifying before the House Judiciary Committee next week, his lawyer said Thursday.
The committee had subpoenaed Glenn Simpson to appear for a closed-door deposition last month after attorney Joshua Levy said his client would not participate voluntarily. Simpson has previously sat for three congressional interviews as part of investigations into Russian activities during the 2016 presidential election campaign.
In a letter to committee chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va.,  Levy accused Republicans on the panel of trying to "discredit and otherwise damage witnesses to Russia's interference in the 2016 election, all as part of an effort to protect" President Trump. Levy added that the committee "has abdicated and indeed perverted its constitutional and traditional role" and shown "abundant bad faith" toward Simpson.
GOP lawmakers have focused on the relationship between Simpson and Justice Department official Bruce Ohr, who was also in contact with former British spy Christopher Steele. Fusion GPS commissioned Steele to compile his research on Trump's alleged personal and financial ties to Russia into a dossier. The dossier became part of the evidence used to obtain a secret surveillance warrant to monitor former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page and was published by BuzzFeed News in January 2017.
In previous testimony, Simpson told lawmakers on the Senate Intelligence Committee that he did not have contact with Ohr until after the 2016 election. However, work emails written by Ohr show the two were in touch that August, if not earlier. Ohr's notes also indicate that in December 2016, there was a meeting in Washington, D.C.'s Chinatown between Fusion GPS’ Simpson and Ohr, with Ohr writing, "Glen(n) gave me a memory stick."
In addition, Ohr maintained extensive contact with Steele for months after the bureau cut ties with the former MI6 man in November 2016 for leaking information to the media about his FBI ties.
Fox News' Catherine Herridge and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Change the rules? Why the Left is slamming the Senate and Electoral College

Liberals who are unhappy with the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh are starting to complain that the Senate itself is undemocratic.
Liberals who are unhappy with Donald Trump as president are starting to complain that the way he was elected is undemocratic.
While there's a fascinating political-science debate to be had on both points, it has the potential to smell like sour grapes from those on the losing side.
I just don't think it's a winning argument to say that the problem is these institutions, and rules that have been in place for more than 225 years, rather than the failure to prevail in debates and win elections.
The attack on the Senate stems from the 1787 compromise that is at the heart of the Constitution: House members are elected by population, which favors big states, and each state gets two Senate seats, which gives a disproportionate advantage to small states. Without that, the founders never could have rounded up enough votes.
But now the formula is highly objectionable. NBC reporter Ken Dilanian tweeted, "It may not happen in our lifetimes, but the idea that North Dakota and New York get the same representation in the Senate has to change." He cited a Washington Post piece complaining that senators representing less than half the country were about to confirm a Supreme Court nominee opposed by most Americans.
While we're at it, why don't we just have all public issues settled by polls?
It can seem unbalanced on its face for states with small populations (North Dakota has 755,000 people) to have equal weight in the Senate. But look at the flip side: California has 53 House seats, and North Dakota has one.
And the fear in small states of being overrun is the same as in the late 18th century, when slavery divided North and South.
These days, as The Federalist notes, the formulation doesn’t always favor the GOP:
"If you weren't born yesterday, you might recall that as recently as 2011, the Democrats controlled the White House, 59 percent of the House, and a filibuster-proof 60 percent of the Senate. Under the same laws, the same Constitution, and with an almost identical electorate, the Democrats controlled the political branches of government with huge majorities. How did they lose it all? Because the people did not like what they did with that power once they had it ...
"The focus on small states as Republican strongholds does not survive even the gentlest scrutiny. The senators from the ten smallest states are nine Democrats, nine Republicans, and two independents who caucus with the Democrats. That’s an 11-9 split in Democrats' favor."
A similar argument surfaces with the renewed assault on the Electoral College. And it's not hard to figure out why: Both Trump and George W. Bush, the last two Republican presidents, lost the popular vote while winning the White House.
Suddenly we have criticism like that of Damon Linker in The Week:
"The Electoral College is an abomination. It's long past time we abolished it.
"The Electoral College was a dumb idea when it was first proposed. Today, it's the Constitution's most egregious affront to elementary fairness. In a just and properly functioning political system, it would be eliminated without delay or regret."
And Julia Ioffe, a GQ correspondent, tweeted: "We are a country where two presidents who both lost the popular vote have now placed four justices on the Supreme Court. Democracy in action."
That spurred Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the socialist Democrat running for a House seat in New York, to declare:
"It is well past time we eliminate the Electoral College, a shadow of slavery’s power on America today that undermines our nation as a democratic republic."
I've never been a huge fan of the college. It's never worked the way Alexander Hamilton intended, with the electors a bunch of smart elitists who would make the final choice for president.
But the system does accomplish two things. It prods the nominees to campaign in smaller states, rather than just running up the turnout in New York, California, Texas and other population centers. And it amplifies the winning candidate's margin and avoids the nightmare of a national recount in tight races.
All that is debatable: If proponents can push a constitutional amendment through Congress and win over three-quarters of the states, be my guest.
The Electoral College didn't stop Barack Obama or Bill Clinton from twice capturing the White House. Rather than railing at the Constitution, liberals would do better to figure out how to win again under the longstanding rules.​

GOP now on the offensive in several Senate races, could expand majority even if House flips

On Wednesday, Martha talks to politically knowledgeable Chris Stirewalt about the upcoming elections and how the midterms are shaking out so far across the country, along with a small update on how things are faring in the South with Hurricane Michael, as Melania weighs in on #metoo.

With less than a month until the midterm elections, Republicans are now going on the offensive in several Senate races as part of a reinvigorated effort not only to hold onto their slim majority in the upper chamber but to expand it significantly.
Meanwhile, analysts are warning that Democrats, who extensively focused in recent months on longshot bids to derail Republican candidates in reliably red states, may have neglected critical Midwest battleground states in a miscalculation reminiscent of the 2016 presidential election.
Three pivotal Senate races have shifted in the GOP's favor in Fox News' latest Power Rankings, with Texas and North Dakota now considered likely Republican wins, and Tennessee changing from a toss-up to the lean-Republican column.
In Texas, a new Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday shows Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke trailing incumbent Sen. Ted Cruz by 9 points. "Senator Cruz would have to suffer a major collapse for him to lose" his Senate seat, said Peter Brown, the poll's assistant director.
FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS: PUMP UP THE VOLUME AS MIDTERMS APPROACH
Those results mirror a Quinnipiac poll from several weeks ago, suggesting that O'Rourke's momentum has flatlined.

"Sen. Cruz would have to suffer a major collapse for him to lose."
— Quinnipiac University poll director Peter Brown

And in another high-profile race, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., has surged to a double-digit lead over challenger Phil Bredesen, according to an in-progress New York Times poll. A CBS News poll last week showed Blackburn leading Bredesen by 8 points.
Bredesen last week secured the endorsement of music superstar Taylor Swift, who said Blackburn's voting records "appalls and terrifies" her. Bredesen broke with his fellow Democrats and voiced support for then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh as a series of uncorroborated sexual misconduct allegations were leveled against him.
Several campaign volunteers abandoned Bredesen after he announced his position on Kavanaugh, Politico reported Wednesday.
“As a woman voter in Tennessee, I felt torpedoed by the statement,” one organizer in Memphis, Rhonda McDowell, told the outlet.
Retiring Republican Sen. Bob Corker, who holds the seat Bredesen and Blackburn are seeking, last week told Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., that Democrats' scorched-earth tactics on Kavanaugh had badly damaged Bredesen, who needs conservative support to prevail in Tennessee.
Analysts say that Democrats' faltering bids to retake two seats in traditionally red states has parallels to the 2016 presidential race, when breathless news reports suggested Hillary Clinton had a chance at winning Texas.
"Liberal activists and online media [are] touting Democratic chances and paying more attention to stretch cases like Texas and Tennessee, when the Democrats need to protect vulnerable incumbents in states like Missouri and Indiana," Michigan State University political science professor Matt Grossman told Fox News.
GOP ENTHUSIASM SURGES AMID KAVANAUGH SLUGFEST, BOOSTING REPUBLICANS ACROSS THE BOARD
"That reminded me of talks about possible Democratic wins in Arizona, Georiga, and Texas in 2016, when Clinton had to protect the Midwest states," he added.
Fox News ranks the Senate races in Indiana and Missouri as toss-ups, as vulnerable incumbent Democratic Sens. Joe Donnelly and Claire McCaskill, respectively, try to fend off challengers in states President Trump won by double-digits in 2016. Both voted against Kavanaugh, which has become a central issue in both contests.
The Kavanaugh effect appears to have had the biggest effect on another vulnerable incumbent Democrat, North Dakota's Heidi Heitkamp. She trails Republican challenger Kevin Cramer by 12 points. Last month, before Heitkamp voiced her reluctance to support Kavanaugh, he was up by only 4 points.
HEITKAMP SLAMS HILLARY FOR 'RIDICULOUS' CLAIM THAT CIVILITY IS IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOP
“That spectacle proved to be perhaps the greatest political gift I’ve been given in a very long time,” Cramer said.

"The most recent polling suggests it’s going to be a tale of two elections."
— Republican strategist Bruce Mehlman

And a new poll in another red state, West Virginia, shows incumbent Democrat Joe Manchin leading Attorney General Patrick Morrisey by just one point. But the poll, which was commissioned by national Republicans and the Morrisey campaign, is an outlier.
Manchin's last-minute support for Kavanaugh, who is highly popular in West Virginia, has become a key issue in the campaign, with Morrisey calling Manchin's vote a "craven political calculation."
Speaking exclusively to Fox News Wednesday night, President Trump said Republican candidates are moving to take advantage of the encouraging numbers.
“The fact is I think we are doing really well,” Trump said. “Many of the Senate races that we didn’t think we were going to be contesting, we are now leading. We have some great candidates. And, very importantly, we are finding the same thing now with the House.”
Grossman, who also directs Michigan State's Institute for Public Policy and Social Research, cited an additional challenge for moderate senators like Heitkamp and Manchin who often buck their party: Congressional races are increasingly becoming nationalized. He cited a variety of factors to explain that trend, including greater interest in national media sources, President Trump's larger-than-life profile, and more cohesive top-down party messaging.
While indicators are strong for Republicans in the Senate, the map is also working in the GOP's favor. There are nine Senate seats currently held by Democrats in states that went for Trump in 2016 but just one Republican incumbent running in a state carried by Clinton.
That state, Nevada, is home to a tight race that Fox News currently considers a toss-up, as incumbent Sen. Dean Heller faces off against Jacky Rosen. And a state that Trump carried in 2016, Arizona, is also considered a toss-up, as Democrat Kyrsten Sinema has polled narrowly ahead of Republican Martha McSally to replace outgoing Republican Sen. Jeff Flake.
Meanwhile, in the House, where all seats are up for grabs, signs are less favorable for the GOP. A new poll from Quinnipiac University showed that 49 percent of voters preferred that the Democrats take back Congress, compared with 42 percent for Republicans.
“The most recent polling suggests it’s going to be a tale of two elections, with center-left voters powering Democratic gains in the House and center-right voters expanding Republicans’ Senate majority," Republican strategist Bruce Mehlman told Fox News.
ANALYSIS: WHAT TO EXPECT AS MIDTERM CHAOS CONTINUES
Mehlman pointed to other signs of a possible impending "blue wave" in the House. For example, Trump's approval rating is roughly consistent with that of other presidents' in recent decades when their party saw major losses in Congress. Presidents with higher approval ratings tend to see their party retain more seats.
Still, there were some signs of resurgence this week for Republicans in the House, as well.  Florida’s highly competitive 27th Congressional District, which Clinton won by a 20-point margin over Trump in 2016, had been considered one of the easiest seats in the country for Democrats to pick up just months ago.
But the race to replace retiring Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen is now only a "Lean Democrat" race according to Fox News' latest Midterm Power Rankings. Donna Shalala, the Democratic candidate, is facing a spirited challenge from her lesser-known GOP opponent, Spanish-language journalist and political rookie, Maria Elvira Salazar.
“This will be the marker for, if and possibly when, the Democrats might pick up the House for the 2018 elections,” said Florida International University political science professor Kathryn DePalo. “If Democrats pick this up, then I think it’ll be a good night for Democrats in Florida and perhaps around the country.”
In a statement to Fox News, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee was bullish on the district: "In a district that Clinton won by 20 points, this is shaping up to be a devastating loss for Democrats.”
Fox News' Chris Stirewalt and Allie Raffa contributed to this report.

Arizona Senate hopeful Sinema implied state produced 'crazy' in 2011 speech

Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., who is running in a tightly contested U.S. Senate race, implied that her home state produced "crazy" in a 2011 speech in which she also promised to advise liberal activists on how to "stop your state from becoming Arizona."
Some critics are comparing the remarks to Hillary Clinton's infamous comment about Trump supporters being "deplorables."
An edited version of Sinema's speech to the Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus, a Democratic LGBT group in the Lone Star State, was posted on Twitter on Thursday by the Reagan Battalion, an anonymous conservative group. A longer version of the speech is available on YouTube.
In the speech, Sinema recounts how she was taught at a young age that Arizona was known for "five Cs: cattle, copper, citrus, cotton and climate."
"But I would add a sixth 'C,'" added Sinema, then an Arizona state senator. "It's called crazy."
Sinema, a one-time Green Party activist, has fashioned herself as a moderate willing to work with both parties in her contest against fellow U.S. Rep. Martha McSally. The race winner will fill the Senate seat vacated by the retiring Republican Jeff Flake.
SINEMA PROMOTED EVENTS FEATURING CONVICTED TERROR LAWYER
"Calling Arizonans crazy and having particular disdain for Republicans when she wants Republicans to vote for her is unbelievable," McSally told reporters at a roundtable with business leaders and Gov. Doug Ducey. "And Arizonans need to know about it."
Sinema's "crazy" comment also drew criticism on social media.
"HEY ARIZONA VOTERS," one Twitter user wrote. "Arizona Senate hopeful Sinema has 'DEPLORABLE' moment... implied state produced 'crazy' in 2011 speech."
"(D)o everyone a favor don’t vote for Democrats!" another wrote. "Hillary started this by calling Trump supporters deplorable‘s."
Sinema's campaign issued a response to the posting of the speech.
"She was frustrated that no one in the state legislature was standing up to out-of-state special interests working to take away health care from children, make tuition more expensive, and take job security away from working families," Sinema spokeswoman Helen Hare said in a statement Thursday. "Kyrsten was born here, and will always stand up to outside special interest groups to protect and defend Arizonans."
Sinema gave her speech after Arizona Republicans had passed SB1070, a controversial immigration law that led to nationwide boycotts and concern even among some Arizona Republicans that the Legislature had moved too far right. Those concerns led to a recall against the then-Senate President Russell Pearce, whom Sinema blamed in her remarks for much of the discord. She accused Pearce of was carrying hardline immigration bills and other conservative legislation on abortion and health care at the behest of racist anti-immigrant groups and a corporate-backed conservative organization that writes "model legislation" for state lawmakers.
"There's something wrong with the people in public office in Arizona," Sinema said. "People are saying the tea party, the tea party. Those people have been in charge 20 years in Arizona. They're called Republicans."
A Fox News poll taken last month showed Sinema with a two-point lead over McSally, 47 percent to 45 percent. Sinema led McSally by nine points among women, 14 points among voters under age 45 and by 29 points among Hispanic voters.

Eric Holder Cartoons

Trump unloads on Sen. Bob Casey at fiery Pennsylvania rally: 'He's banking on the name of his father'

At a fiery rally in Erie, Pennsylvania on Wednesday night, President Trump unloaded a series of broadsides on two-term Sen. Bob Casey, characterizing him as a pale shadow of his late father who values illegal immigrants more than U.S. citizens.
Trump also reiterated his commitment to the state's coal industry and promised immediate support to Floridians impacted by Hurricane Michael.
Trump opened the rally by saying that "all of Pennsylvania, and all of America sends its unwavering love and support" to those in the path of the hurricane. Offering his "thoughts and prayers," he vowed that "we will spare no expense" to address the storm, and that he'd traveling to Florida "very, very shortly."
"We are unleashing the power ... of clean, beautiful Pennsylvania coal," Trump said to applause, after touting the economic growth under his administration. "We are putting our miners back to work. We are putting our steelworkers back to work."
Trump has made several visits to Pennsylvania since becoming the first Republican presidential candidate to carry the far-left state since George H.W. Bush in 1988. He was stumping for Republican Reps. Mike Kelly, Glenn "GT" Thompson, and Lou Barletta, among others, as well as gubernatorial candidate Scott Wagner.
"The best thing I can say about Scott Wagner is he has the endorsement of Judge Jeanine," Trump said, referring to Fox News host Jeanine Pirro. He acknowledged that Wagner, who is far behind in the polls, is up against a "tough" opponent.
Kelly is facing a challenge from Democrat Ron DiNicola, while Barletta is mounting an uphill campaign to unseat two-term Democratic Sen. Bob Casey.
"While Lou is fighting for you, Bob Casey is fighting to protect violent criminal aliens," Trump said Wednesday, to loud boos. "Bob Casey voted in favor of deadly sanctuary cities that release thousands upon thousands of illegal alien criminals and vicious gang members to prey on Pennsylvania's streets. No good."
"Bob Casey even voted against Kate's Law, named for Kate Steinle, who was gunned down by a five-time-deported illegal alien who should never have been in our country," Trump said. The legislation, which is stalled in the Senate, would hike the penalties for illegal immigrants who attempt to re-enter the country. Casey has opposed it, saying the best solution is to focus on securing the border.
"Bob Casey puts criminal aliens ahead of U.S. citizens. Always has. ... He's banking on the name of his father," Trump said. Casey's father, who died in 2000, previously served as the state's governor from 1987 to 1995.
Trump has long attacked Casey. At a rally in Pennsylvania in August, Trump mocked Casey as "Sleepin' Bob" and said the longtime Democratic senator was a truant who is "so overrated."

"He's banking on the name of his father."
— President Trump on Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa.

"I'm not sure I ever met Bob Casey," Trump said. "Now, his father was a good man. Knew him a little bit. But we're dealing with a totally different person. I don't know this man."
"He's not an obstructionist, he's worse: He will do whatever Schumer, Pelosi, and the new star of the Democrat Party tells him to do," Trump said, referring to Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif. "Very low IQ," Trump added.
WATCH: ERIC HOLDER URGES DEMOCRATS TO FIGHT BACK AGAINST REPUBLICANS: 'WHEN THEY GO LOW, KICK 'EM'
Staring down tough midterm elections, the president and top Republicans have sought to characterize mob tactics as a hallmark of modern progressivism, in the wake of comments by Waters encouraging protesters to confront and "push back on" White House officials in public places. Trump has often mockingly called Waters a "leader" of the Democratic Party, even as he said her IQ hovers in the mid-60s.
In recent weeks, liberal fury over the nomination and eventual confirmation of Associate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh reached a tipping point, with groups of demonstrators shouting at senators on Capitol Hill and even attempting to claw their way inside the Supreme Court building. Protesters also chased Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and his wife out of a restaurant, and activists have sent death threats to Kavanaugh and top Republicans.
Trump on Wednesday night called Democrats' behavior a "disgrace" and said he "never even thought" about abandoning Kavanaugh in the face of several uncorroborated sexual misconduct allegations. He also took a shot at the so-called #MeToo movement that opposed Kavanaugh, implying that its proponents are so politically correct that they would insist on the gender-neutral phrase "the person that got away."
RADICAL PROTESTERS CHASE TED CRUZ, WIFE OUT OF RESTAURANT, CHANTING 'BELIEVE ALL WOMEN'
Trump also published an op-ed in USA Today that attacked Democrats over "Medicare for All" health care proposals. In his op-ed, Trump said Democrats have moved away from centrism, claiming the "new Democrats are radical socialists who want to model America's economy after Venezuela."
Before he flew to Erie, Trump said he faced a lose-lose "quagmire" because of the timing of the hurricane. Last month, the White House canceled rallies in Mississippi and Missouri because of Hurricane Florence, which hit the Carolinas.
The president's rallies have increasingly given him a platform to test-fire new attacks against high-profile Democratic rivals, as well as to introduce new policies.
At a rally Tuesday night in Iowa, Trump announced that he would remove a federal ban on summer sales of gasoline with high-ethanol blends, permitting year-round sales of gasoline with 15 percent ethanol or E15.
FOX NEWS POLLS SHOW KAVANAUGH SLUGFEST BOOSTING GOP IN KEY SENATE RACES
"We’re going with E15 year-round. I made that promise to you during the campaign. I made that promise to you during the primaries," he said. "Promises made, promises kept."
The long-expected announcement is something of a reward to Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, who as Senate Judiciary Committee chairman led a contentious but successful fight to confirm Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. The veteran Republican lawmaker is the Senate's leading ethanol proponent and sharply criticized the Trump administration's proposed rollback in ethanol volumes earlier this year.
At the rally Wednesday, Trump again mocked Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., for her denial last week that she had anything to do with the leak of Christine Blasey Ford's letter accusing Kavanaugh of sexual assault.
Ford, who sent the letter to Feinstein's office in July, publicly revealed herself just days before a planned Judiciary Committee vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation when news of her letter leaked to The Intercept. Senate Republicans have strongly implied that, because no Republicans had access to the letter, Feinstein or a member of her staff was involved in the leak.
JUDICIARY CMTE CHAIRMAN CONDEMNS FEINSTEIN'S HANDLING OF FORD LETTER: 'I CANNOT OVERSTATE HOW DISAPPOINTED I AM'
As Trump imitated Feinstein's denial in Iowa on Tuesday, the crowd chanted, "Lock her up,"  a phrase that Trump supporters previously applied almost exclusively to former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
For her part, Feinstein, the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, suggested that one of Ford's friends had leaked information about the letter. She also, in no uncertain terms, condemned Trump's rhetoric.
"Dr. Blasey Ford knows I kept her confidence, she and her lawyers said so repeatedly," Feinstein said Wednesday. "Republican senators admit it. Even the reporter who broke the story said it wasn't me or my staff. The president's remarks are ridiculous and an embarrassment."
Trump is scheduled to attend another rally Friday evening in Ohio and on Saturday evening in Kentucky.
Fox News' Brooke Singman and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Biden not planning 2020 run 'at this point,' but bitter feud with Trump continues

Former Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday pointedly refused to rule out a presidential run in 2020, telling an audience in London only that he has no plans "at this point" to take his war of words with President Trump to the voters.
"I think there are many people in the Democratic Party that can defeat Trump and not a single aspiring candidate that I can think of for the nomination -- and I am not one at this point -- does not have a better understanding and formulation of American foreign policy than President Trump," Biden said at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, a think tank commonly known as Chatham House.
He continued: "I'm not being rankly partisan here -- the president acknowledged at the outset he didn't know a lot about foreign policy. ... I think there are any number of potential candidates seeking the nomination, from [Sen.] Kamala Harris [D-Calif.] to a whole range of people in my party, who would pursue a much more enlightened foreign policy than the president."
WATCH: ERIC HOLDER REJECTS MICHELLE OBAMA'S CALL FOR CIVILITY: 'WHEN THEY GO LOW, WE KICK 'EM'
The 75-year-old Biden, who would be the oldest living president at 79 if he took office in January 2021, has been unrelenting critic of the Trump administration. Earlier this year, Biden vowed that he would have "beat[en] the hell out of" Trump in high school because of the Republican's boasts about women in the leaked "Access Hollywood" tape.
RAND PAUL WARNS OF 'ASSASSINATION' IN D.C. AS LIBERAL RHETORIC BECOMES INCREASINGLY HEATED
This summer, Biden panned the family separations resulting from the White House's "zero-tolerance" policy on illegal immigrants as "one of the darkest moments in our history." And in September, Biden openly mocked Trump's claims about his own intelligence.
For his part, Trump -- who often uses his campaign-style rallies to test-fire new broadsides against potential 2020 rivals -- has hit back at Biden's physical and mental prowess, saying it would be no trouble at all to rough up the former vice president.
“Remember, he challenged me to a fight," Trump said last week at a rally in Kansas. "'I’d like to take him behind the barn.’ I’d love that. That wouldn’t last long. That would not last long. That wouldn’t last long,” Trump told the crowd. Then, after imitating a punch, he continued: "He's down, and he'll never get up."
Trump has also variously called Biden "crazy" and "sleepy," referring to videos apparently showing Biden falling asleep during speeches.
Owing to what he said was rising anti-Trump sentiment, the former vice president on Wednesday was bullish on Democrats' chances in the upcoming midterm elections in November. He predicted that progressive candidates could realistically take back not only the House, but also the Senate --  where the 35 seats up for election are in GOP-leaning states.
FOX NEWS POLLS SHOW KAVANAUGH SLUGFEST BOOSTING GOP ENTHUSIASM IN KEY SENATE RACES
"I predict to you the Democrats will win 40 seats in the House. And I predict to you there's a slightly better than even chance we win the Senate," Biden said.
Political headwinds normally work against the party of incumbent presidents in their first midterm elections. According to an analysis by former George W. Bush administration official Bruce Mehlman, in the past 11 such midterm seasons, new presidents saw their party make net gains only once in the House, four times in the Senate and zero times in state gubernatorial contests.
However, Fox News battleground polls released last week show a marked increase in Republican voter enthusiasm in the wake of the heated and bitterly partisan confirmation battle over Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
JOE BIDEN'S NIECE SENTENCED IN $110K CREDIT CARD CASE
That enthusiasm has strengthened Republicans' already-strong odds of retaining control of the Senate, even as the House remains contentious.
"President Trump is the only president — and I've been there for nine now — who when things are going very well in terms of the economy, his numbers aren’t going up," Biden said Wednesday.
Still, poll numbers for Republican Senate candidates have become significantly more favorable. Compared with early September, the number of Republican voters feeling “extremely” interested in the upcoming election is up by 2 points in Arizona, up by 9 points in Indiana, up 8 points in both Missouri and North Dakota, and up 11 points in Tennessee. In each state, Republicans are now just as likely as Democrats to say they are extremely interested -- erasing an edge Democrats had in several states last month.
"The fight over Judge Kavanaugh is increasing base intensity for both parties, helping Democrats with white college-educated women in suburban House districts while bolstering Republicans among evangelical voters in the many rural red state Senate contests," Mehlman told Fox News.
Biden, who has repeatedly refused to rule out a 2020 presidential run in the past year, was briefly considered a possible challenger to Trump during the 2016 campaign. However, he ultimately decided to back eventual nominee Hillary Clinton, saying it would have been taxing to mount a campaign so soon after the 2015 death of his 46-year-old son Beau.

Jeb Bush wasn’t invited to Barbara’s surprise wedding

The daughter to George and Laura Bush got hitched in a secret, private ceremony in Maine. Here’s a look at some of the special moments with the happy couple.

Jeb Bush wasn’t invited to niece Barbara Bush’s surprise weekend wedding, it was revealed Wednesday.
Former first lady Laura Bush said the former Florida governor and failed presidential candidate didn’t make the cut for the small-scale, and short notice, Oct. 7 nuptials — in which her eldest daughter with former President George W. Bush married actor Craig Coyne.
“Well, I think Barbara just kept it a secret, plus so few people were invited,” the former FLOTUS told journalist Cokie Roberts, who interviewed her on stage at an event in Washington, DC.
“It was just our family and Craig’s family. And we didn’t invite Jeb, or Neil, or any of those Bushes.”
President George W. Bush’s sister, Dorothy Bush Koch, did make the cut – as she served as the couple’s officiant.
The 36-year-old bride chose the family home so her 94-year-old grandfather, former President George H.W. Bush, could be there.
“And so we had a wedding outside, looking at the ocean. And then we went in and had dinner at the dining room table, there were 20 of us at the dining room table,” Laura Bush said. “So it was just perfect. It was Barbara and Craig, her new husband – who we like a lot. And his family and our family.”
Twin sister Jenna Bush Hager’s older daughter Mila was a flower girl, as was Coyne’s niece Emma.
Laura Bush also revealed that Poppy, Jenna Bush Hager’s 3-year-old daughter, played the part of ring bearer.
She “was very proud of being a ring bearer. Of course, the box was empty because they knew that she couldn’t have the ring so Craig had it in his pocket,” Laura Bush described.
“So during the entire ceremony she walked around with the ring box,” Laura Bush said.