Cheryl Hines pays tribute to husband Robert F. Kennedy Jr after he suspended 2024 campaign

Actress Cheryl Hines, best known for her role on Curb Your Enthusiasm, praised her husband RFK Jr. after he suspended his presidential campaign on Friday.

She notably didn't make any mention of RFK Jr.'s endorsement of former President Donald Trump.

I'd like to extend a sincere, deeply heartfelt thank you to every person who has worked so tirelessly and lovingly on his campaign. They have accomplished feats that were said to be impossible.

I deeply respect the decision Bobby made to run on the principle of unity. Over the last year and a half, I have met some extraordinary people from all parties — Democrats, Republicans, and Independents.

It's been my experience that the vast majority of all parties are truly good people who want the best for our country and for each other. It has been an eye-opening, transformative, and endearing journey.

Jen O'Malley Dillon, chair of the Harris campaign, has issued a statement in response to RFK Jr. dropping out of the race.

She appeals to anyone who has had enough of Donald Trump's antics to get behind Harris.

For any American out there who is tired of Donald Trump and looking for a new way forward, ours is a campaign for you. In order to deliver for working people and those who feel left behind, we need a leader who will fight for you, not just for themselves, and bring us together, not tear us apart. Vice President Harris wants to earn your support.

From Rob Crilly, Chief U.S. Political Correspondent

The Trump campaign is quickly out with a memo from pollster Tony Fabrizio. He says don't listen to Harris campaign spin that RFK Jr's support is too small to impact the race.

He polled battleground states and asked Kennedy supporters who they would vote for if RFK Jr. dropped out. The results suggest a boost for Trump.

To put these numbers into perspective, the net vote gained in a state like Arizona based on just a 2020 turnout model would be over 41,000 votes nearly 4 times Biden’s winning margin or in Georgia the net gain would be over 19,000 votes nearly twice Biden’s margin. So, when you hear or see the Harris team and/or the Democrats try and spin otherwise, now that the data clearly paints a different picture. This is good news for President Trump and his campaign – plain and simple.

Former President Donald Trump acknowledged RFK Jr.'s 'very nice' endorsement of him at the start of a 'no tax on tips' campaign event in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon.

He will be traveling to Arizona after Nevada and is teasing a 'special guest' that is widely speculated to be RFK Jr. himself.

Trump told supporters in Las Vegas:

We just had a very nice endorsement from RFK junior, Bobby.. And I will be talking about that. We are heading out right after this. We will be going to Arizona.

We will be talking about that and lot of other things too. But I just want to thank everybody and I want to thank Bobby. That was very nice, that was really very nice. That's big. He's a great guy, respected by everybody.

Many months ago, I promised the American people that I would withdraw from the race if I become a spoiler. A spoiler is someone altered the outcome of the election but had no chance of winning.

In my heart, I no longer believe that I have a realistic path to electoral victory in the face of this relentless, systematic censorship and media control.

So I cannot, in good conscience, ask my staff and volunteers to keep working their long hours, or ask my donors to keep giving when I cannot honestly tell them that I have a real path to the White House.

It's with a sense of victory, and not defeat, that I'm suspending my campaign.

He went on to say that he is 'not terminating' his campaign.

'I am simply suspending it,' Kennedy said in Phoenix, Arizona on Friday.

In addition, he plans to remain on the ballot in traditionally red and blue states, but will be off in swing states.

He is also throwing his support behind former President Donald Trump.

Democrats raised more than $100 million over the four days of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

That's according to the platform ActBlue which is used by the party for online fundraising.

No word yet exactly how much of that went directly to the Kamala Harris campaign, but ActBlue said it brought in $7.2 million in the 11pm hour Thursday night alone. That's when the vice president was giving her acceptance speech.

A court filing beat Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to the punch.

In Pennsylvania, the independent candidate put in writing that he planned to endorse the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, according to the Associated Press. He also requested to be removed from Pennsylvania's ballot.

The news broke as journalists waited for the candidate to speak Friday in Phoenix where RFK Jr. is expected to drop out of the race after withdrawing Thursday night from Arizona's ballot.

The official White House transcript of Vice President Kamala Harris's speech to the Democratic Convention confirms her string of 27 expressions of thanks to the adoring crowd in Chicago.

Former President Donald Trump fixated on her opening remarks during his online own takedown of her remarks that he posted on Truth Social in real time.

'Too many 'Thank yous,' too rapidly said, what's going on with her?' Trump posted.

A group of GOP states on Friday sued the Biden administration, putting pressure on them to end a program that clears a path for illegal migrants to get lawful permanent residence.

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody said the program advances Biden's 'open-borders agenda.'

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s running mate Nicole Shanahan suggested in a podcast released Friday that a Trump endorsement wasn't a done deal.

The independent candidate will speak about his future in the 2024 race in Phoenix later today and has already made moves to withdraw his name from Arizona's ballot.

Former President Donald Trump will appear Friday afternoon in nearby Glendale, Arizona and on Thursday night his campaign teased a 'special guest,' with many guessing it would be Kennedy.

In an episode of The Adam Carolla Show, Shanahan said in order to gain RFK Jr.'s endorsement, Trump would need to apologize for perceived COVID-19 vaccine misdeeds.

'The hesitation we have right now in joining forces with Trump is that he has not apologized or publicly come out and said Operation Warp Speed was my fault, was a failure and I let it happen,' Shanahan said.

Operation Warp Speed was Trump's public-private partnership for the swift development of COVID-19 vaccines.

Trump, rightly, took credit for Operation Warp Speed and he and his allies expressed dismay when the fruits of that labor - Pfizer's announcement that the vaccine prevented more than 90 percent of infections - didn't come out until after Election Day 2020.

Since then, with vaccine skepticism on the rise on the political right, Trump has distanced himself from the COVID vaccine.

Shanahan said Trump needed to apologize for the COVID lockdowns and for keeping Dr. Anthony Fauci as a top adviser too.

'There was a lot that happened under Donald Trump's watch that should not have happened and cannot happen again,' she told Carolla. 'And if we are going to put our bet with him - and we haven't, we have not confirmed anything - we need absolute assurance.'

The White House said Friday it was still prepared for Iran to strike back against Israel, even as the Middle East held its breath for a resolution to the conflict in Gaza.

John Kirby, national security spokesman, described ceasefire talks in Cairo as 'constructive' even though the Palestinian terror group Hamas had not sent representatives.

At the same time, Iran's promised attack on Israel, in retaliation for the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Iranian soil, has yet to materialize.

But Kirby told reporters on a briefing call: 'It's still a very perilous situation. I can't predict what Iran's going to do or not going to do.

'We believe they're still prepared to do something if, in fact, they choose to do something, and that's about as far as I'll go.'

Multiple Secret Service agents have been put on leave during the investigation into the Donald Trump assassination attempt, a reports suggest.

The head of the Pittsburgh field office is one of at least five agents who have been impacted after 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire on the former president on July 13, MSNBC said on Friday morning.

The massive security failure that led to the horrific has sparked probes from a wide range of government agencies that are ongoing.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., told DailyMail.com in a statement Friday that 'there must be accountability' for the Secret Service's 'historic failures.'

'Holding negligent employees accountable is the first step. I look forward to the Task Force's findings of its investigation. We must ensure the Secret Service does not fail again.'

From Rob Crilly, Chief U.S. Political Correspondent

Robert F. Kennedy's Jr's voters could help Donald Trump beat Kamala Harris in November's presidential election, according to an exclusive poll for DailyMail.com.

It shows that his supporters lean towards Trump over Harris by a margin of two to one.

Although the nephew of JFK is only polling in single digits, that sort of boost could be enough to tip the balance towards Trump in a tight race that will be decided by just tens of thousands of voters in a handful of swing states.

The issue could take on fresh urgency on Friday, amid speculation that RFK Jr is preparing to drop out.

He is scheduled to speak in Phoenix, Arizona, 'about the present historical moment and his path forward,' at 2pm Eastern time, and has already withdrawn his name from the state's ballot.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she believes that Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz is driving Donald Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance 'nuts.'

'I think that Trump and Vance, they think they hae some kind of like, monopoly over masculinity,' the progressive lawmaker said in an interview, 'And Walz has kind of shown up.'

'He’s a football coach. He was the head of the gay-straight alliance as the football coach,' she told comedian Stephen Colbert on 'The Late Show.'

'He’s like, "Actually, this stuff is weird, and why are you acting like that?" And I think it’s driving ’em nuts because he’s showing another way to be an upright man in America.'

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled Friday that long-anticipated interest rate cuts could finally be coming this fall – just as Americans are focusing on their pocketbooks and voting.

‘The time has come for policy to adjust,’ Powell said at the Fed’s conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. ‘The direction of travel is clear, and the timing and pace of rate cuts will depend on incoming data, the evolving outlook, and the balance of risks,’ he said.

His comments come after the central bank has spent months battling inflation, but with recent signs of slowing and a slight uptick in unemployment.

It comes as Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are battling over the state and direction of the economy, with Trump warning of a ‘Kamala crash’ and a ‘1929-style depression’ after a sudden drop in stock prices (which subsequently reversed itself). The first mail-in ballots go out Sept. 6. The Fed’s September meeting is set for September 17-18.

White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan plans to travel to Beijing at the end of the month, as the Biden administration continues to try to keep relations on an even keel.

He will discuss ‘bilateral, regional, and global issues,’ according to a bland statement provided by the White House that only hints at the tensions over trade, tariffs, power projection in the Pacific, and Beijing’s support for Moscow amid its brutal war on Ukraine.

‘These meetings are consistent with efforts to maintain this strategic channel of communication to responsibly manage the relationship’ between the two powers after President Biden met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in California last year, the statement said.

It comes after Biden has said he intends to keep busy during his final months as a ‘lame duck’ and just hours after Vice President Kamala Harris accepted her party’s nomination. The trip runs August 27 through August 29.

Kamala Harris will have a quiet day on Friday after giving the political speech of her lifetime.

Harris will return to Washington D.C. with husband Doug Emhoff. She has nothing on her public schedule for the day.

On Thursday night, Harris accepted the Democratic presidential nomination, capping off a week of festivities in Chicago.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. officially filed paperwork withdrawing his name from the presidential race in Arizona, the day before he is set to address his 'path forward.'

Insiders say RFK Jr. is readying to end his campaign on Friday in a speech in Arizona, the day after the state's secretary of state said he had filed paperwork to withdraw from the ballot.

The move was made despite Kennedy earning almost three times the required number of signatures to appear on the Arizona ballot, however some have questioned their legitimacy as they were reportedly collected by a super PAC.

Kennedy's campaign has not said he is dropping out, however his speech on Friday comes amid mounting rumors that he is set to endorse former President Donald Trump.

With Kennedy's reported withdrawal speech coming on Friday in Arizona, Trump's campaign mysteriously said he will have a 'special guest' at his own rally on Friday, which will also take place in Arizona.

Kamala Harris encountered Fox News reporter Peter Doocy on thursday night just before her speech at the convention center in Chicago.

Doocy has covered the White House for Fox News in the Biden administration.

Critics have slammed Harris for avoiding interviews and press conferencessince Joe Biden dropped out of the race.

They had the following exchange:

Doocy:

Madame Vice President.

Vice President Harris:

Hi Peter. How are you?

Doocy:

Congratulations.

Vice President Harris:

Thank you, good to see you.

Doocy:

Are you ready for your Fox interview?

Vice President Harris (laughing)

I’m working toward it.

From Rob Crilly, Chief U.S. Political Correspondent in Asheboro, North Carolina

The botched withdrawal of U.S. troops is the keystone around which Donald Trump is building his foreign policy plans.

In an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com he set out his thinking and explained why the episode, in which 13 American personnel were killed and the world watched in horror as thousands of terrified Afghans raced after departing planes, marked a turning point in U.S. standing in the world.

He outlined his thoughts after putting the issue at the center of a national security speech in Asheboro, North Carolinam, where he promised tough action on anyone involved in the withdrawal.

'I will ask for the resignations of every single senior military official who touched the Afghanistan disaster,' he announced on stage.

'I want their resignations immediately.'

Trump took a shot at her biography of serving as San Francisco District Attorney before becoming California Attorney General.

'She's talking about how great San Francisco was before she destroyed it, probably not a good idea!' Trump wrote.

He couldn't help throwing in a 'WHERE'S HUNTER' line, days after the president's son appeared on stage with President Biden during his late-night speech.

He took exception to her long section on January 6, where she said he 'intends to set free violent extremists who assaulted those law enforcement officers at the Capitol' on January 6, and called out Trump for saying he would issue pardons to convicted perpetrators.

Harris said Trump 'sent an armed mob to the United States Capitol' and 'fanned the flames' when people were begging for help.

'PEACEFULLY AND PATRIOTICALLY!' Trump posted, using words he has applied in the past toward the mob on January 6.

She also said he was 'found guilty of fraud by a jury of everyday Americans' in his New York fraud trial and 'separately found liable for committing sexual abuse,' in reference to the E. Jean Carroll verdict.

'These Prosecutions were all started by her and Biden against their Political Opponent, ME!' Trump countered.

Ahead of Kamala Harris' primetime speech to end the DNC on Thursday night, rumors spread that a 'special guest' was set to introduce her.

Beyonce quickly became the prime suspect, with TMZ citing anonymous sources that said the star was preparing for a surprise performance.

But shortly after the report sparked chaos in the convention hall, a Beyonce rep told The Hollywood Reporter that 'the report of a performance is untrue', and said the 'Freedom' singer was never slated to appear.

Despite fanfare around the 'special guest' - with Taylor Swift's name also floated - a DNC source later told The Washington Post that there was never a special guest lined up in the first place.

TMZ admitted its mistake after Harris closed out the convention, saying: 'To quote the great Beyonce: We gotta lay our cards down, down, down ... we got this one wrong.'

Online, some people joked - while some more seriously charged - that the Democrats used Beyonce as bait to get Americans to tune into their convention.

'Notice how they tricked you into thinking there was a special guest so you'd stick around?' asked J.P. Freire, a Republican spokesperson for the House Ways & Means Committee. 'What do you think their approach to policy will be?'

One user posted a video clip of President Joe Biden - who attended the first night of the convention and then went on vacation to California - and commented: 'to whoever started the Beyoncé as dnc special guest rumour.'

Country legends The Chicks were heavily panned for an awkwardly off-key performance of the National Anthem at the Democrat National Convention.

The Nashville natives, who created a firestorm of controversy 20 years ago over criticism of George W. Bush and the Iraq War, were a highly-anticipated get for the DNC on its final night.

However, their performance of the Star-Spangled Banner was almost universally slammed, even by fans of the band formerly known as 'The Dixie Chicks' before dropping the d-word in 2020.

David Knowles wrote: 'Still marveling at how off-key the Chicks' rendition of the national anthem was.'

'That was terrible and I like their music,' added one social media user on X.

Others were a little more agitated: 'wow…. Maybe your monitors weren’t working. Idk. But that was horrible. At least you had the dignity to finish then smile. I almost feel sorry for you. Almost…..'

Another put it more bluntly: 'Incredibly off-key. Great job, you has beens.'

'They sounded like they had sound-hearing issues. The Chicks are iconic for their harmonies... something must have gone wrong,' wrote a more sympathetic listener.

The band - Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer - made no reference to the audio quality, simply retweeting a video from a pro-Kamala Harris account.

'I was touched to see Gus Walz’s joy when his dad @Tim_Walz took the stage last night. Thankful for you showing us all what real love looks like, Gus,' former first lady Michelle Obama posted on X.

'Let’s be a nation that embraces this kind of warmth and vulnerability, instead of making fun or mocking it. We could all use some.'

Ann Coulter shared an image of Gus overcome with emotion as his VP candidate father took to the stage in Chicago Wednesday and captioned it 'Talk about weird.'

But Coulter was quickly informed that Gus has a non-verbal learning disorder, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and an anxiety disorder.

She has since deleted the post.

Kamala Harris’ stepdaughter Ella Emhoff took the stage Thursday night at the Democratic National Convention ahead of her stepmom or ‘Momala’ for a touching tribute and to rally support.

The 25-year-old artist and model was all smiles as she was joined on stage by the vice president’s niece Meena Harris as well as her goddaughter Helena Hudlin.

The tattooed Emhoff with slicked back hair and attired in a white and ice blue off-the-shoulder dress designed especially for the occasion by Joe Ando ignited the internet with her appearance on the convention stage.

Emhoff, who is known for her knitting, crocheted the flower on her dress' sleeve herself, Ando revealed.

‘Ella Emhoff's dress just won the #DNCConvention2024,’ wrote one user on X.

'Ella Emhoff is going to be a fashion icon,' wrote another.

‘They forced Ella Emhoff into a dress for this,’ joked an X user of the artist who often opts for more hipster looks. ‘My goodness Kamala Harris wants power.’

Conservative commentator Ann Coulter sparked backlash after branding Tim Walz's neurodivergent son Gus 'weird' for crying at his father's DNC speech.

Coulter, 62, took to X hours after Gus's proud reaction to his father's address spread across social media, where he broke down in tears and pointed at his dad on stage.

'Talk about weird...' Coulter tweeted, seemingly referencing a common attack line from Democrats at Donald Trump's running mate JD Vance.

After the jibe was met with outrage, Coulter deleted the tweet and issued a semi-apology, saying she 'took it down as soon as someone told me he's autistic', while attempting to turn the insult back on Democrats.

'But it’s Democrats who go around calling everyone weird thinking it’s hilariously funny,' she said.

In another tweet responding to someone jokingly comparing getting the controversial pundit to delete a tweet to 'picking up the hammer of Thor', Coulter doubled down: 'Democrats are the ones who decided it’s fine to call people 'weird.'