Driver, 74, says he meant no harm, just wanted to get away from 'angry mob'

Antifa mob threatens motorists in Portland, Oregon; insight from Andy Ngo, journalist and Portland resident.

The driver of a car seen in a viral video driving through a protest in downtown Portland, Ore., last week said Friday that he never tried to run them over, according to reports.

"When you have an angry mob yelling at you and beating on your car you just want to get out of there," Kent Houser, 74, told the Oregonian.

The demonstrators were protesting last Saturday after a fatal police shooting that occurred the previous week.
Progressive activists accused Houser of attempting to mow down the protesters, but he says he had no idea that police had shot and killed Patrick Kimmons, 27, on Sept. 30, according to the paper.
Houser, a southwest Portland resident, said he was driving through downtown to meet his wife, the paper reported.
"I saw them, they saw me, and they rushed my car," Houser said. "Admittedly, I might have given them the one-finger salute when I rolled up."

"I saw them, they saw me, and they rushed my car. Admittedly, I might have given them the one-finger salute when I rolled up."

— Kent Houser, 74, driver involved in viral video

Portland Police Sgt. Chris Burley told Portland's KGW-TV that the driver reported he was shoved during the interaction.
Authorities are investigating the incident.
Houser said he also received a "nasty postcard" recommending that he sign up for anger management training, the Oregonian reported.

John Kelly called Elizabeth Warren 'impolite arrogant woman' after 'insulting' conversation

White House chief of staff John Kelly once described Sen. Elizabeth Warren as an “impolite arrogant woman” after having a telephone conversation with her about President Trump’s travel ban.
“Absolutely most insulting conversation I have ever had with anyone,” wrote Kelly in an email to his top aide, Kevin Carroll, on Feb. 8, 2018, when he was the secretary of Homeland Security, BuzzFeed reported.
“What an impolite arrogant woman. She immediately began insulting our people accusing them of not following the court order, insulting and abusive behavior towards those covered by the pause, blah blah blah,” he added.

"What an impolite arrogant woman. She immediately began insulting our people accusing them of not following the court order, insulting and abusive behavior towards those covered by the pause, blah blah blah."
— White House chief of staff John Kelly

Kelly reportedly refers to an order issued by federal judges to block Trump’s executive order that affected several mostly Muslim countries. The ban was temporarily blocked following a lawsuit by the ACLU.
The Massachusetts Democrat, a likely 2020 presidential contender, has long been an opponent of the travel ban, attended protests shortly after Trump first issued the executive order.
At Logan International Airport, Warren condemned Trump’s order, saying “we will not turn away children,” according to the Boston Globe. “We will not turn away families,” she continued. “We will not turn away people who try to help Americans. We will not turn away anyone because of their religion.”
In March last year, she also took a swipe at Trump, celebrating lower courts’ decisions to block the travel ban. “Turns out, an illegal Muslim ban by another name is still an illegal Muslim ban. So the courts just blocked @realDonaldTrump's second one,” she wrote in a tweet, adding that the ban is a “recruiting tool for ISIS” and a “betrayal of our values.”
SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS TRUMP TRAVEL BAN ON SOME MUSLIM-MAJORITY NATIONS
Earlier this year, however, the Supreme Court upheld Trump’s travel ban and offered a limited endorsement of the president’s executive authority on immigration.
In a written statement, Trump called the ruling “a tremendous victory for the American People and the Constitution.” As critics continued to decry the policy as “xenophobic,” Trump described the court decision as “a moment of profound vindication following months of hysterical commentary from the media and Democratic politicians who refuse to do what it takes to secure our border and our country.”
The top aide to whom Kelly wrote the email about Warren told BuzzFeed: “Too bad Senate Majority Leader McConnell couldn’t order her to be quiet again! Warren is running for president so early, trying too hard, and chasing bad pitches.”

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.