Dozens of Virginia Housing Projects to be Supported by $93 Million in Loans

The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development is distributing more than $93 million in housing loans to support housing projects across the commonwealth that are estimated to create nearly 4,000 units for low-income and extremely low-income households, according to Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office. 

The $93 million in Affordable and Special Needs Housing loans administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development will support 57 projects in various parts of the state. In total, the projects are estimated to create 3,936 units for low-income and extremely low-income households, including 298 permanent supportive housing units, 3,825 rental units and 111 units for homeownership opportunities, according to the governor’s office. 

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State Senator Reeves Supporting Lawsuit over Decision to Melt Charlottesville Lee Statue

Senator Bryce Reeves (R-Spotsylvania) is supporting a lawsuit against the City of Charlottesville over the decision to give the Lee statue to a museum that plans to melt it. The lawsuit argues that the city didn’t have a competitive or transparent process to consider offers to take the statue, and additionally argues that melting the statue violates the spirit of state law governing monument removals. According to the lawsuit, the statue has already been delivered to a foundry and broken up, although not yet melted down.

“The City can legally remove, relocate, contextualize or cover the Lee monument, but the General Assembly denied the City authority to alter or destroy it,” the Trevillian Station Battlefield Foundation and the Ratcliffe Foundation state in the lawsuit.

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Albemarle County, Virginia Considers Gun Ban on County Property

After lengthy discussion, public hearing, and a pro-gun protest outside the Albemarle County Office Building, the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors (BOS) decided to postpone a decision on a gun ban on county property. In the board’s virtual meeting Wednesday, many public speakers spoke against the proposed ordinance, while others argued for a gun ban. But the supervisors seemed to take a more nuanced approach, discussion exemptions for concealed handgun permit holders and trying to make sure people wouldn’t accidentally violate the law.

Vice Chair Donna Price said, “One of the interesting things when you talk about weapons/guns: on either extreme there are people who believe there should be no regulations or total regulation, and both parties argue that if you don’t follow their belief, that there will either be anarchy or tyranny. And I tend not to believe either of those to be likely.”

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Charlottesville Removes Lee and Jackson Statues

Charlottesville, Virginia – The City of Charlottesville removed two famous Confederate statues of Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson on Saturday. Workers began removing Lee shortly after 7 a.m. to a moderately sized crowd, but more people arrived later in the morning to see Jackson lifted off his pedestal and driven to storage. In a special meeting afterwards, the city council also approved removing Charlottesville’s Lewis, Clark, and Sacajawea statue; workers removed that statue after the meeting.

“Taking down this statue is one small step closer to the goal of helping Charlottesville, Virginia, and America, grapple with the sin of being willing to destroy Black people for economic gain,” Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker said in a speech before the monuments came down, according to The Associated Press.

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Virginia Supreme Court Allows Charlottesville to Remove Lee and Jackson Statues

The Supreme Court of Virginia ruled Thursday that Charlottesville can remove a statue of Robert E. Lee and a statue of Stonewall Jackson from its parks. In February 2017, the city chose to remove the Lee statue, triggering a lawsuit. Then, in the wake of the violent Unite the Right rally, the city reaffirmed its decision to remove the Lee statue and to remove the Jackson statue as well, according to court documents.

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Warner and Gade Face off in Second Debate for Senate

Incumbent Senator Mark Warner (D) and challenger Daniel Gade (R) debated police reforms, social justice, and COVID-19 at Norfolk State University on Saturday evening. The live-streamed event was the second debate between the two candidates.  Warner touted his experience as a governor and senator, and cast himself as a middle-of-the-road Democrat. Gade portrayed himself as a free-thinker who nonetheless supports many traditional Republican values.

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Warning Nashville: Virginia Police Officers Leaving Over Citizen Oversight Board

There’s a reported mass exodus of police officers in Charlottesville, Virginia, and one of the reasons cited is a civilian oversight board over the police, like what Nashville will soon have. The Charlottesville Police Department is down nearly two dozen officers, according to that city’s The Daily Progress website. Police administrators are having a hard time filling the vacancies. Things are so bad Police Chief RaShall Brackney told the website the department is experiencing a “mass exodus.” “It seems like, I think, on average, one to two officers a week are leaving the department,” she said. One of the reasons officers leave, Brackney went on to say, stems from how vocal and biased members of the initial Police Civilian Review Board act toward officers. Members create bylaws for a future board that will provide civilian oversight of the department, according to The Daily Progress. Brackney told the website that board members go on TV and radio and speak at marches to discuss how “officers’ days are numbered and that they’re coming after them.” “The officers do not believe that there’s going to be any fair, impartial oversight,” Brackney said. “It’s well-documented of how some of them have treated our officers,…

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Post Office Named for Slain Soldier Capt. Humayun Khan, Whose Father Famously Spoke at the 2016 DNC Convention

by Jason Hopkins   President Donald Trump signed a bill that names a post office after Capt. Humayun Khan, a Muslim soldier who was killed in 2004 while serving in Iraq. The law changes the name of a U.S. Postal Service facility in Charlottesville, Virginia, to the Captain Humayun Khan Post Office. Before it landed on Trump’s desk, the bill enjoyed widespread support from both parties. First introduced by Virginia Republican Rep. Tom Garrett, it received unanimous consent in both chambers. Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, both Democrats, praised the law. “With the dedication of this post office, we’re showing the Khan family that we’re forever grateful for his service and sacrifice for our country,” the two senators said in a joint statement. Humayan, a 27-year-old U.S. Army officer at the time, was killed June 8, 2004, when a vehicle containing explosives drove into his compound. He was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star. Twelve years later, Humayun became a household name when his parents, Khizr and Ghazala Khan, were keynote speakers at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. His father teared into then-candidate Trump for his comments about Muslims, and accused the Republican presidential nominee of “sacrificing nothing and no one.”…

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FAKE NEWS: Washington Post Publishes ‘Historian’ Max Boot’s False Racism Accusation Against Trump

Max Boot

by James D. Agresti   Max Boot, a foreign policy expert and historian, recently wrote in the Washington Post that President Trump “praised white supremacists who gathered nearly a year ago in Charlottesville as ‘very fine people’.” This is an abject falsehood. At the press conference where Trump allegedly said that, he explicitly “condemned” the white supremacists two times, said they were “very bad people,” and emphasized that he was not calling them “very fine people.” Still, a reporter at the conference tried to put this spin on his words, and Trump responded, “No, no.” Nonetheless, a wide range of media outlets, politicians, and activists falsely portrayed Trump as lauding the white supremacists. The full transcript and video of the press conference show that when Trump used the phrase “very fine people,” he was referring to “people protesting very quietly the taking down of the statue of Robert E. Lee.” Trump also accurately pointed out that the event’s organizers “didn’t put themselves down as neo-Nazis.” In fact, on the day beforehand, the local NBC news station reported that the event was a “protest of the City Council’s decision to remove the statue of confederate General Robert E. Lee from Emancipation Park.” The report contained no mention of white supremacy or anything similar. Hence, some…

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Commentary: Don’t Let the Democrats Cover-Up Their Charlottesville Riot

  by ConservativeHQ.com Staff   President Trump was right that there was violence from both sides during the Charlottesville riots. However, Virginia Democrats in control of the investigation and the fake news media are already whitewashing the violence of leftwing extremists. CHQ has run three articles connecting the dots between decisions made by Virginia’s Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe, Charlottesville’s Democratic Mayor Mike Signer, their staff and employees to the police stand-down that pushed the two violent factions together. In those articles, we called for an independent investigation of the Virginia and Charlottesville security decisions that led to the riot. Those decisions consciously created the environment for a riot to occur to advance the Democrats’ political narrative against Republicans and President Trump. Here are links to the articles: How And Why Virginia’s Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe Killed Three People In Charlottesville Charlottesville, Charlottesville, Charlottesville Was The Charlottesville Riot A Set-Up? After violent leftwing protestors called “Antifa” clashed with white supremacists in Charlottesville on August 12, President Trump has been widely criticized for saying the violence should be blamed on both sides. He’s even been called a racist for his remarks, even though his statements were accurate. Reports from the scene in…

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State Rep. Judd Matheny Rips Tennessee U.S. Sen. Bob Corker for Harsh Criticism of President Trump

Tennessee Star

NASHVILLE, Tennessee — State Rep. Judd Matheny (R-Tullahoma) on Friday said U.S. Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) was out of line in his recent harsh criticism of President Trump. As a leading U.S. senator, Corker should know better than to undermine the president at a time when the country is facing tough challenges at home and abroad, Matheny said. “You don’t speak like that about the president. You just don’t. He ought to be ashamed,” Matheny told The Tennessee Star at Legislative Plaza, where Matheny was receiving an award from the Center for Security Policy for his efforts to fight terrorism. Corker told reporters in Chattanooga last week that “radical changes” are needed at the White House. He questioned Trump’s competence and his understanding of what has made the U.S. a great nation. Trump fired back on Friday with a tweet saying, “Strange statement by Bob Corker considering that he is constantly asking me whether or not he should run again in ’18. Tennessee not happy!” Trump has been bombarded with criticism from the mainstream media, the left and establishment Republicans like Corker in the wake of his comments blaming both sides for the recent violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, between white supremacists and radical…

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President Trump Blasts Tennessee U.S. Sen. Bob Corker in Tweet

Tennessee Star

President Trump took to Twitter Friday morning to lash back at U.S. Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) for Corker’s recent sharp criticisms of the president. Strange statement by Bob Corker considering that he is constantly asking me whether or not he should run again in '18. Tennessee not happy! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2017 Last week in Chattanooga, Corker told reporters that “radical changes” are needed at the White House and that “the president has not yet been able to demonstrate the stability nor some of the competence that he needs to demonstrate in order to be successful.” Corker said Trump “has not demonstrated that he understands what has made this nation great and what it is today, and he’s got to demonstrate the characteristics of a president who understands that.” Corker’s comments came as Trump was getting criticized by the mainstream media, the left and some Republicans for blaming both sides for the recent violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, between white supremacists and radical leftists. Critics said Trump’s comments indirectly showed support for white supremacists. In Chattanooga, Corker said, “I think that sometimes he gets in a situation where he doubles-down to try and make a wrong a right.…

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Alabama Manufacturer Meeting Demand for Confederate Flags

  A company near downtown Huntsville, Alabama, that makes flags is getting flooded with orders for the Confederate flag. Alabama Flag & Banner may be the the only flag manufacturer in the U.S. still making the rebel flag, reports AL.com. The company began manufacturing the Confederate flag after many retailers pulled it from their shelves in 2015 because of a shooting at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina. Nine people were killed by a white supremacist who was featured in personal photos holding a Confederate flag. America’s major flag manufacturers have stopped producing the rebel flag, leaving Alabama Flag & Banner to fill the void for retailers and people still interested in obtaining American-made Confederate flags. Demand is up after the recent racial violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, and the renewed debate over the place for statues and memorials commemorating the role of Southern leaders during the Civil War. “We are shipping them as fast as we can make them and in the order in which they are received,” says a message on the company’s website. Belinda Kennedy is the longtime owner of Alabama Flag & Banner. She told AL.com that people have different reasons for buying the Confederate flag but…

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Knoxville Preparing for Protests Saturday, Bans Firearms

Tennessee Star

  The city of Knoxville is bracing for demonstrations Saturday afternoon featuring a rally in support of a Confederate monument and counterprotesters, but a prohibition on firearms is raising concerns among some gun rights advocates. Because of the violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, two weeks ago, Knoxville city officials are taking precautions to try to prevent protests from turning violent. “Our officers will be there to maintain order and ensure that everybody is free to speak their piece,” said Mayor Madeline Rogero in a news release Wednesday. “These are volatile times, and I strongly urge everyone to refrain from antagonism. We can have these discussions as a community without resorting to angry rhetoric or violence.” No guns, other weapons or masks will be allowed for people entering designated demonstration areas. People planning to enter those areas will be screened with a metal detector. Signs and flags will not be allowed into the demonstration zones if they are attached to a pole or stick or any object that could be used as a weapon. Water bottles, drink containers, coolers, beverages and food are also banned. Water will be provided on site. The city is citing TCA 39-17-1359 in state law to support…

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George Rasley Commentary: How And Why Virginia’s Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe Caused the Deaths of Three People In Charlottesville

by George Rasley ConservativeHQ.com Editor   “The police actually allowed us to square off against each other,” a Black Lives Matter protester told CNN. “There were fights and the police were standing a block away the entire time. It’s almost as if they wanted us to fight each other.” “Where are the police?” One Antifa protester said in the crowd. “I don’t see any police here!” While the Far-Left dominated national media has concentrated on driving the narrative that President Trump somehow embraces “white nationalism” an astonishing set of facts about who is responsible for the chaos of the Charlottesville riot has emerged. That reporting by truth-seeking independent journalists has revealed that, more than any other single person, it is Virginia’s Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe who is responsible for the deaths of Heather Heyer, Trooper-Pilot Berke M. M. Bates. Pilot Lt. H. Jay Cullen, because he ordered his Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Brian Moran to disperse the lawful “Unite the Right” protesters directly into the unlawfully gathered thugs of the anarchist and Black Bloc movement. What’s more, McAuliffe held back the riot control-equipped police and allowed the unlawfully assembled Antifa shock troops to repeatedly charge the lawfully…

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Louie Gohmert, Texas Republican, Calls for DOJ Investigation of Charlottesville Violence

Rep. Louie Gohmert said Sunday the Justice Department should investigate Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Charlottesville Mayor Michael Signer and “Unite the Right” rally organizer Jason Kessler for their roles in violent clashes that resulted the death of an anti-racism protester at last Saturday’s rally. In an appearance on “Fox & Friends,” Mr. Gohmert said there should…

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Mark Fitzgibbons Commentary: Charlottesville, Charlottesville, Charlottesville

  by Mark J Fitzgibbons, Esq.   Charlottesville is the new meme of the far left, the media, and even the establishment GOP in their effort to replace President Trump by any means. Those means include impeachment, and by some, assassination. No longer do we hear Russia, Russia, Russia. It’s now Charlottesville, Charlottesville, Charlottesville. But whether it’s Russia or Charlottesville, the plan associated with the meme is the same. The media, often working off talking points from the left, can’t be trusted to report the facts accurately. Some members of the establishment GOP think they’ve got an issue to weaken Trump or even run him out of office, and choose the left’s narrative over facts and principles. Trump’s style has disrupted the Washington insiders’ game. On Charlottesville Trump was right again, and as facts come to the surface it is perfectly clear that two sides were responsible for the violence in Charlottesville, as explained with great reporting at The Daily Caller. Phillip Stucky’s article about how police cleared the park where the protest started before it fatally poured out onto the streets is just one of many examples. The faith leaders there to attempt to preserve the peace fled soon…

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Mitt Romney Demands That President Trump Apologize For Charlottesville Comments

Tennessee Star

  Mitt Romney on Friday called for President Trump to apologize for his Charlottesville “both sides” comments and to put all the blame on white supremacists and none on the radical leftists who also acted violently. Earlier this week, Trump explicitly condemned white supremacist groups by name, but said both sides were to blame for the violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend. He also said there were innocents on both sides. A man identified as a white supremacist drove his car into a crowd, killing a woman and injuring around 20 others. White supremacists and radical leftists threw punches, bottles and rocks at each other. They also used sticks and chemical sprays. As The Daily Caller News Foundation reported, the white supremacists were attending a legally permitted “Unite the Right” rally at Emancipation Park to protest the City of Charlottesville’s decision to remove the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. The radical leftists had no legal permit, and were gathered on the street immediately in front of Emancipation Park. Romney was the Republican nominee who lost to former President Obama in the 2012 presidential election. On Tuesday, Romney was critical of Trump on Twitter. He elaborated in a…

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Tennessee U.S. Senator Bob Corker Stands By Statements Criticizing Trump Over Charlottesville

  COLUMBIA, Tennessee — U.S. Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) on Friday defended his remarks Thursday criticizing President Trump for his comments about the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend between white supremacists and leftist radicals. Corker was in Columbia on Friday to speak at a joint luncheon of the Rotary and Kiwanis clubs at the Memorial Building downtown. On Thursday in Chattanooga, Corker questioned Trump’s competence and said, “He has not demonstrated that he understands what has made this nation great and what it is today, and he’s got to demonstrate the characteristics of a president who understands that.” Trump’s critics in the mainstream media and on the left, as well as some establishment Republicans, have maintained that Trump indirectly supported white supremacy by blaming both sides for the violence and saying there were innocent people on both sides. Asked by The Tennessee Star after Friday’s luncheon what he thought Trump should have said instead, Corker said he didn’t want to get into analyzing it further. “I’m trying to steer away from that,” Corker said. “What I said yesterday I think speaks for itself. Hopefully this, myself and maybe a few others speaking out, will have an effect. But I just want good…

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Country Music Artist Charlie Daniels Defends President Trump

  Country music artist Charlie Daniels defended President Trump and slammed political correctness in an interview Wednesday on Newsmax TV. Daniels said Trump was right to condemn both sides in the violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday between white supremacists and leftist radicals. “There’s no doubt about it. I mean there’s animosity on both sides, from what I saw on TV. I saw two sides fighting each other,” Daniels told host Rita Cosby. “I condemn both sides.” Daniels was also critical of the push to take down statues of historical figures. “That’s what ISIS is doing,” Daniels said. “There were pieces of history over there they didn’t like, they’re taking them down…Where does it stop?” Daniels called Confederate Army General Robert E. Lee “one of the most honorable people in our history.” If people don’t like the statutes, they just shouldn’t look at them, he said, drawing an analogy by saying he walks by movie posters he doesn’t like. “These statues are not preaching,” Daniels said. “They’re not shouting out some kind of crazy epitaphs or something. They’re just sitting there. So just turn around and don’t look at them.” Daniels said the media is “very, very prejudiced against…

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Tennessee U.S. Senator Bob Corker Criticizes President Trump – Again – In Chattanooga Thursday

Tennessee Star

  U.S. Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) sharply criticized President Trump on Thursday at a Rotary Club luncheon in Chattanooga and said “radical changes” are needed at the White House. Corker questioned Trump’s competence. “He has not demonstrated that he understands what has made this nation great and what it is today, and he’s got to demonstrate the characteristics of a president who understands that,” Corker told reporters after the luncheon, according to WRCB Channel 3. Corker’s latest criticism of Trump comes after a long string of other attacks he has made on the president that do not sit well with Republican primary voters in Tennessee.  Tennessee’s junior senator is up for re-election in 2018. Local reaction from Tennessee conservatives to Corker’s comments was harshly critical of the former mayor of Chattanooga, as these comments on the Nashville Tea Party Facebook page demonstrated.   “Ready to put my name on recall petition! Trump has done more for this country in six months than Corker has in his entire senatorial career. And to speak on ‘character’, Corker wouldn’t have a clue what the word means,” Carole posted. “No Bob, it is the Senate who needs a Radical Change and that includes getting you and…

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Democrat U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen of Memphis Calls for Impeaching Trump over Charlottesville Comments

  U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN-9) said Thursday that he will introduce articles of impeachment against President Trump because of Trump’s comments following violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday. “Instead of unequivocally condemning hateful actions by neo-Nazis, white nationalists and Klansmen following a national tragedy, the President said ‘there were very fine people on both sides.’ There are no good Nazis. There are no good Klansmen,” said Cohen, who is Jewish, in a statement. A progressive leftist whose congressional district includes Memphis, Cohen is a ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice. The clashes in Charlottesville were between white supremacist demonstrators and leftist radical counterprotesters. A woman was killed and around 20 injured when a man identified as a white supremacist drove his vehicle into a crowd. There also was fighting in which both white supremacists and counterprotesters were “swinging sticks, punching and spraying chemicals,” according to the Washington Post. Bottles and rocks were also thrown back. There were injuries on both sides. On Saturday, Trump condemned the “egregious display of hatred, bigotry, and violence on many sides.” At a press conference Tuesday, Trump said he waited until Monday to condemn specific groups because he…

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The Daily Caller News Foundation: An Exclusive Look At How Virginia Police Emptied Emancipation Park

Virginia State Police cleared Emancipation Park Saturday after a white nationalist demonstration turned violent, but the action forced attendees into a crowd of counter-protesters. The rally was organized as a protest to the ordered removal of a statue of Robert E. Lee in downtown Charlottesville, Va. The rally was named the “Unite the Right” rally, but…

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Niger Innis: Pinning Charlottesville on Trump Is ‘Pure Partisan Politics,’ ‘Extreme Nonsense’

National Spokesperson for the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) Niger Innis said it is “absurd” to blame President Donald Trump for the actions of extremists who marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday, during an interview Tuesday on “The Laura Ingraham Show.” Innis, the son of the late civil rights pioneer Roy Innis and the executive director…

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Justice Dept. Opens Civil Rights Investigation of Charlottesville Death

The Justice Department has opened a civil rights investigation into the circumstances under which a vehicle plowed into a crowd of people protesting a white nationalist rally held Saturday in Charlottesville, Virginia. A 32-year-old woman was killed and at least nine others injured when a car barreled down a street crowded with pedestrians. Charlottesville police identified…

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After Charlottesville Clashes Trump Says Violence ‘Must Stop Right Now’

President Trump called for unity Saturday in the wake of clashes between white supremacists and counter-protestors in Charlottesville, Virginia, demanding “the division must stop, and must stop right now.” “Ideally we have to love each other,” Mr. Trump said from his golf club in New Jersey, where he’s taking a working vacation, and was signing into…

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