Minnesota’s Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, who is currently running to be the next vice president of the United States, once said in a gubernatorial debate that he supports “single-payer health care,” also known as “Medicare-for-all.”

“I think that’s probably the path where we end up,” Walz said in a 2018 debate while running for governor when asked, “Are you for single-payer?”

“And I say that because, be very clear about this, there were no protections for preexisting conditions before the ACA,” Walz continued. “A vote for the ACA was the first time in this nation’s history we had those protections and making sure people have that protection, making sure they were covered, and then making sure we were focused on preventative care, people were finally getting that under the ACA, we started to see health outcomes improve and that’s the real key to driving down insurance premium prices.”

Walz went on to say “let’s be very clear” that there is “no market in health care.”

MINNESOTA GOP LEADER SOUNDS ALARM ON WALZ TRYING TO ‘BAMBOOZLE’ RURAL VOTERS: ‘BERNIE SANDERS IN FLANNEL’

“Because markets by nature would be a failure if someone didn’t have it, there’s not going to be, you cannot simply shrink a pool to the sickest people and say that’s where we are going to manage them when they’re in crisis. That’s not the way to go about this. The way to go about this is making sure everybody has that preventative care, making sure everybody has that access on the front end, you start to drive down prices. The ACA did that.”

Walz’s opponent, Republican Jeff Johnson, then pressed Walz on the issue.

“I’m not sure what your answer was. Do you support single-payer health care?”

“Yes,” Walz said. “That was the answer I just gave you.”

WALZ BLASTED FOR HUDDLING WITH GEORGE SOROS’ SON AT NYC LUXURY APARTMENT: ‘BILLIONAIRE NEPO BABY’

Johnson interjected, “Are you for it?”

“Yes,” Walz said. “I’m going to push for not paying twice as much as any other industrialized nation. Getting half for it. I’m making sure that the 14 top nations that get the best returns at the least cost make sure you cut out that piece that is simply payer getting between people and their doctors.”

When Johnson countered that “single-payer” means “everybody loses their insurance” and “forced on to one government plan,” Walz countered, “We can do better.”

The comments from Walz come under the backdrop of Vice President Kamala Harris supporting “Medicare-for-all” when she ran for president in 2019. However, in August, her campaign claimed she will not push the subject of single-payer or “Medicare-for-all” during the campaign.

In 2019, Fox News spoke to Harris in the hallways of Capitol Hill, asking about her plans for providing health care.

“How important is it to your health care plan to get rid of private insurance companies? Because there is some confusion about that,” Peter Doocy asked Harris on Jan. 30, 2019.

“I’m glad you asked. Yeah. So, the bottom line and the most important is that everyone have access to health care,” Harris said. “That is the goal. That is the purpose for me supporting the policy of ‘Medicare-for-all.’

“If Congress votes in a way that reflects the values and desires of the American people, then Congress will vote for a policy that gives everyone access to health care,” she later said.

Her proposed solution was to provide “Medicare-for-all” because “Medicare works” and “it’s popular.”

“‘Medicare-for-all‘ will cover all medically necessary services, including emergency room visits, doctor visits, vision, dental, hearing aids, mental health, and substance-use disorder treatment, and comprehensive reproductive health care services,” Harris wrote. “It will also allow the Secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the Harris-Walz campaign for comment but did not receive a response.

Fox News’ Greg Wehner and Peter Doocy contributed reporting.

As the death toll and devastation from Hurricane Helene soars in the southeast, both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are being briefed by officials on Monday, as the destructive storm is smack in the middle of the White House race with just over five weeks until Election Day.

Trump made a stop in Valdosta, Georgia, to receive a briefing on the devastation, assist with relief distribution and “deliver remarks to the press,” according to his campaign.

Harris headed back to Washington, D.C., on Monday morning, cutting short a western campaign swing. The White House said the vice president would travel to Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters once she arrives in the nation’s capital, where she will be briefed on the impact of the hurricane and the federal response to support rescue and recovery efforts.

HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS REPORTING ON HELENE’S HAVOC

Over 120 people have been killed by Helene since the hurricane made landfall in Florida late Thursday before tearing a path of destruction through the interior Southeast. The storm sparked millions of power outages and billions of dollars in property damage as it smashed through the southern Appalachian Mountains and into the Tennessee Valley. 

SCENES FROM THE STORM’S PATH OF DESTRUCTION

Among the hardest hit states were North Carolina and Georgia, two of the seven key battlegrounds whose razor-thin margins decided President Biden’s 2020 election victory over Trump and are expected to determine the outcome of the 2024 showdown between Harris and Trump.

Trump at a Sunday rally in battleground Pennsylvania took aim at the administration and Harris over the storm, accusing the president of “sleeping” at his beach house in Delaware as the storm blasted the Southeast.

And speaking with reporters as he arrived in Valdosta, the former president charged that “the federal government is not being responsive.”

Biden returned to the nation’s capital on Sunday afternoon to monitor federal relief efforts.

The White House noted that over 3,300 federal workers have been deployed to support storm response efforts in the impacted states, and at least 50,000 personnel from across the country and Canada are responding to the massive power outages in affected areas. 

Biden told reporters the federal government is giving states “everything we have” to assist with their response to the storm and that “we’re not leaving until the job is done.”

CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLLING IN THE HARRIS-TRUMP SHOWDOWN

Biden said he would tour the storm-damaged areas later this week as long as his presence on the ground would not hamper rescue and recovery efforts.

“I’m committed to traveling to the impacted areas as soon as possible, but I’ve been told that it would be disruptive if I did it right now. We will not do that at the risk of diverting or delaying any of the response assets needed to deal with this crisis,” he told reporters on Monday.

Trump, at his Sunday rally, attacked Harris for attending “fundraising events with her radical left lunatic donors” in California this weekend. He argued that Harris “ought to be down in the area” where the storm caused destruction.

On Monday, Trump repeated the dig, saying “the vice president, she’s out someplace campaigning looking for money.”

The White House said Harris spoke Sunday with the governors of Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina and that “the Vice President intends to visit impacted communities as soon as it is possible without disrupting emergency response operations.”

In a Saturday statement, Harris said that she and the president “remain committed to ensuring that no community or state has to respond to this disaster alone.”

Trump, in his visit to Valdosta, was briefed by FEMA as well as state and local officials. And he toured a furniture store heavily damaged by the storm.

After criticizing the federal storm response minutes earlier, Trump said in remarks later during his visit that “at a time like this when a crisis hits, when our fellow citizens cry out in need..we’re not talking about politics now. We all need to get together and get this solved.”

“I’ve come to Valdosta with large semi-trucks, many of them, filled with relief aid. A tanker truck filled up with gasoline, a couple of big tanker trucks fille dup with gasoline, which they can’t get now. And we’ll be working to distribute it throughout the day,” Trump highlighted.

The response by elected officials to natural disasters can vastly impact their political fortunes on the campaign trail.

Trump faced criticism early in his White House tenure as Puerto Rico struggled to recover from a powerful storm. The then-president was criticized for throwing paper towels to the crowd as he stopped by a relief center during a storm-related visit to the island.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

At least a dozen staffers at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs improperly accessed the medical records of both vice presidential nominees, Republican Sen. JD Vance, of Ohio, and Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, over the summer, according to a report. 

Those employees are under criminal investigation for potentially violating federal health privacy laws, The Washington Post reported. The unauthorized views came from staffers within the Veterans Health Administration and were uncovered by Veterans Affairs investigators, who notified the Vance and Walz campaigns, sources familiar with the probe told the Post. 

It’s the first time veterans were both parties’ vice presidential nominees since Democrat Al Gore and Republican Jack Kemp during the 1996 election. 

Law enforcement officials told the Post that VA Inspector General Michael Missal’s office shared evidence with federal prosecutors related to several health system employees, including a physician and a contractor who “spent extended time” viewing the medical files of former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mates. 

FOX NEWS MEDIA WILL PRESENT SPECIAL LIVE PROGRAMMING OF VANCE-WALZ DEBATE

The potential motive for accessing the medical records is under investigation, and investigators are still trying to determine if Vance and Walz’s information was shared as a result of the breaches, the Post reported. 

“We reported to law enforcement allegations that VA personnel may have improperly accessed Veteran records,” VA Press Secretary Terrence Hayes said in a statement to Fox News Digital, regarding the report. “We take the privacy of the Veterans we serve very seriously and have strict policies in place to protect their records. Any attempt to improperly access Veteran records by VA personnel is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.” 

Hayes referred Fox News Digital to the Department of Justice for further queries.

The VA employees under investigation, including the physician and contractor, accessed the medical records using their VA computers and did so mostly from their government offices, the Post reported. Some of the staffers in question reportedly told investigators they were simply curious to see the files of Vance and Walz given both candidates have defended their military records on the campaign trail. 

JD VANCE ACCUSES TIM WALZ OF ‘LYING’ ABOUT MILITARY SERVICE: ‘STOLEN VALOR GARBAGE’

Walz in particular faced criticism for ending his 24-year career in the Army National Guard to run for Congress months before his unit would deploy to Iraq. 

Vance, who served four years in the U.S. Marines and deployed to Iraq for about six months in 2005, has accused Walz of being “dishonest” about having served in combat zones. 

Law enforcement officials told the Post that the VA staffers under investigation did not access any disability compensation records, which have more security protocols than health information. 

A source at VA shared with Fox News Digital an internal memo sent out Aug. 30, 2024, by VA Secretary Denis McDonough “upholding our commitment to protect privacy.” 

The message reminded VA staffers that veteran information “should only be accessed when necessary to accomplish officially authorized and assigned duties as an employee, contractor, volunteer, or other personnel.” The secretary said “viewing a Veteran’s records out of curiosity or concern – or for any purpose that is not directly related to officially authorized and assigned duties – is strictly prohibited.” 

The memo also warned VA employees that “failure to comply with these requirements may result in disciplinary action, including removal, as well as referral to law enforcement for civil penalties and criminal prosecution.” 

The Pentagon has finalized plans to wrap up the U.S.-led mission to fight ISIS by next year, with many U.S. troops leaving the bases they have occupied for much of the past two decades. 

The Biden administration insists their plan is not to fully pull out of the nation but declined to say how many of the 2,500 troops currently stationed in Iraq will remain. 

“I think it’s fair to say that, you know, our footprint is going to be changing within the country,” Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Friday.

The Iraqi government announced earlier this month it had reached a deal with the Biden administration to remove most U.S. troops from its nation over the next two years. 

U.S. officials disputed characterizations of the plan as a withdrawal, prompting confusion about what the American presence there would look like over the coming months. 

“I’d like to emphasize that this is an evolution of the military mission in Iraq,” a senior Biden administration official said. 

The current mission is now set to end by September 2025. 

The notion of pulling troops out of Iraq has prompted concerns about a lack of support for the 900 troops currently stationed in Syria. 

US, IRAQ TEAM UP TO KILL 15 ISIS OPERATIVES

“Not only will it undercut the fight against ISIS, but more importantly, in the effort to restrain Iran, forces in Iraq — particularly in the Kurdish north — are very important. We need Iraq forces in order to support our troops in northeast Syria,” Ambassador James Jeffrey, former presidential envoy to the coalition to combat ISIS in Iraq, told Fox News Digital. 

“We have a very effective ally there, the Kurds, the Syrian Kurds, that we want to not abandon,” he went on, adding that a U.S. withdrawal would allow space for Russia and Iran to tighten their grip on the nation. 

“​​At the end of the day, it’s a decision of the Iraqi Government, and if the Iraqi government is being pressured by the Iranians, just as they were in 2011, and want us out, then we have no choice.”

Tehran and its influence have infiltrated the Iraqi government in a way that some say means a U.S. presence indirectly benefits Iran. 

“With the current Iraqi government heavily influenced by Iranian-backed Shia factions, including the Popular Mobilization Front, maintaining U.S. troops doesn’t effectively counterbalance Iran. In fact, our resources end up indirectly benefiting those aligned with Iranian interests, making this a misguided strategy,” director of Concerned Veterans for America and Iraq War veteran Jason Beardsley told Fox News Digital.

“ISIS may be a challenge, but it’s a challenge that the government of Iraq should be handling themselves.”

HARROWING FOOTAGE SHOWS US TROOPS BEING FIRED AT 

Baghdad and Washington have “reached an understanding” that U.S. forces in Syria will be supported from a presence on the Iraqi side of the border through at least September 2026. 

U.S. Central Command announced over the weekend that forces in Syria had conducted two targeted strikes in Syria that killed 37 terrorists, including leaders of ISIS and Huras al-Din, an al Qaeda affiliate. 

U.S. forces in Iraq, Syria and Jordan have come under increased attacks since the eruption of war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza nearly a year ago. 

Three U.S. troops were killed by a drone attack in January at a U.S. base in Jordan supporting operations in Syria. 

American forces have responded with periodic airstrikes in response, such as in July near Baghdad, which have drawn sharp rebuke from the Iraqi public. 

Last month, seven U.S. troops were wounded in an operation to target ISIS in western Iraq. 

At the same time, troops are planning to depart Iraq, elsewhere in the Middle East the U.S. military presence is growing. U.S. officials announced Monday a “few thousand” more troops would be added to the roughly 40,000 service members deployed in the region. 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom tossed out a slew of bills over the weekend, bucking several of his Democratic Party’s more progressive initiatives on things like standards for transgender care, regulating gas stoves and providing additional benefits for noncitizens.

Newsom, who has had to review more than 1,000 bills over the last few months ahead of Monday’s legislative deadline, vetoed AB 2442, AB 2513 and SB 227. 

AB 2442, which would have expedited medical licenses for out-of-state applicants seeking to perform transgender surgical procedures, was declined by Newsom on Friday. 

NEWSOM’S DEEPFAKE ELECTION LAWS ARE ALREADY BEING CHALLENGED IN FEDERAL COURT

“As the number of applicants who qualify for expedited licensure grows through legislation, the benefits of mandated prioritization may start to diminish, at the expense of potential negative impacts to other applicants,” Newsom said in his veto letter. “Additionally, the increase in staff needed to ensure expedited applications may lead to licensing fee increases.”

AB 2513 – a bill that would have required gas stoves to be sold with a warning label on them for potential toxins emitted – was also a hotly debated bill in the legislature but ultimately shot down by Newsom and dubbed a “static approach” that would fail to allow for timely updates to labeling content according to the most up-to-date scientific knowledge. 

“While I appreciate the author’s intent to provide consumers with information about the products they purchase, I am concerned that this bill codifies highly prescriptive labeling content that could only be changed by a future statutory amendment,” Newsom said in the veto letter.

800-PLUS BILLS LEFT ON NEWSOM’S DESK ILLUSTRATE CALIFORNIA’S OVERRGULATION PROBLEM: EXPERTS

Among the progressive bills shot down was also SB 227, which would’ve required the Employment Development Department (EDD) to create an Excluded Workers Program to provide unemployment-style benefits to noncitizens. 

Newsom said that while “California has taken taken important steps to advance inclusion and equity for undocumented workers and mixed-status families who contribute significantly to California’s economy and local communities,” Congress must uphold its duty to create solutions that offer a legitimate pathway to citizenship for long-term residents who have made significant contributions.

NEWSOM VETOES BILL THAT WOULD LET NONCITIZEN STUDENTS WORK AT STATE’S PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES

“We can have a fair immigration system that works for families, U.S. workers, and employers, and also have a safe border,” Newsom said. “However, this bill sets impractical timelines, has operational issues, and requires funding that was not included in the budget.”

Also on Sunday, Newsom vetoed a bill to create safety measures for large artificial intelligence models, which would have been the first such law in the nation. 

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Some high-profile bipartisan bills aren’t immune to being tossed out, either. Last week, Newsom vetoed a bipartisan accountability legislation that would’ve required more accountability and data reporting on the state’s spiraling homelessness crisis.

Already, Newsom has signed a package of public safety bills aimed at reducing organized retail theft. He’s also vetoed a number of progressive bills, including several that would have expanded aid to illegal immigrants through housing loans and permitted employment through the University of California (UC) system, and a reparations package for Black residents.

Promising to tackle the mental health crisis among young people, the blue state governor also signed a historic bill restricting cellphones in schools.

Newsom often vetoes bills if they appear redundant or the cost would further burden the state’s budget shortfall, according to a CalMatters analysis. Last year, Newsom vetoed 156 bills and signed 890, reflecting a veto rate of about 15%, similar to the previous year. His veto rate in 2021 was under 8%.

President Biden discussed the federal response to Hurricane Helene during a press conference on Monday, vowed that he would visit some of the most devastated areas – but not yet. 

At the end of the press conference, which was interrupted by his frequent coughs, the president grew defensive when a reporter pressed him on who was in command over the weekend to direct hurricane response. Biden spent the weekend at his beach home in Delaware. 

The heated exchange happened at the White House after Biden concluded his remarks and turned to leave the Roosevelt Room. 

“And the hurricane. Mr. President, why weren’t you and Vice President Harris here in Washington commanding this this weekend?” a reporter yelled as the president exited. 

“I was commanding it,” Biden retorted from the doorway. “I was on the phone for at least two hours yesterday and the day before as well. I command it. It’s called a telephone and all my security people.” 

Biden turned again to leave as the reporter began to ask, “Is it not important for the country to see?” The president left, and the door closed mid-question. 

ASHEVILLE RESIDENTS BATTLING ‘APOCALYPTIC’ AFTERMATH OF HURRICANE HELENE AFTER DEADLY FLOODING, LANDSLIDES

At the start of his remarks, Biden assured that he and his team were “in constant contact with governors, mayors and local leaders” regarding Hurricane Helene. 

The president noted that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Deanne Criswell is on the ground in North Carolina and will remain in the Asheville area. Biden recognized reports indicating more than 100 people are dead and about 600 people remain unaccounted for and cannot yet be contacted as a result of the storm. 

“We’re keeping them all in our prayers and all the lives lost and those particular unaccounted for. There’s nothing like wondering is my husband, wife, son, daughter, mother, father alive and many more who remain without electricity – water, food and communications and homes and businesses have washed away in an instant. I want them to know we’re not leaving until the job is done,” Biden said. 

“Also want you to know I’m committed to traveling to the impacted areas as soon as possible, but I’ve been told that it would be disruptive if I did it right now,” Biden added. 

NORTH CAROLINA LAWMAKER COMPARES AFTERMATH OF HURRICANE HELENE TO A ‘WARZONE’

He explained that he would visit later in the week. “We will not do that at the risk of diverting or delaying any – any of the response assets needed to deal with this crisis. My first responsibility is get all the help needed to those impacted areas,” Biden said. “I expect to be there later this week.” 

“I’m directing my team to provide every, every available resource as fast as possible to your communities to rescue, recover, and to begin rebuilding,” Biden said. 

In addition to FEMA, Biden said he directed the Federal Communications Commission to help establish communications capability, as well as the National Guard, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Department of Defense “to provide all the resources at its disposal to rescue and assist in clearing debris and delivering lifesaving supplies.” 

So far, more than 3,600 personnel have been approved so far, the president said. He also approved requests from the governors of Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia and Virginia and Alabama for an emergency declaration. 

Biden said that as president he’s seen “firsthand the devastating toll that disasters like this take on families and communities” and has heard “dozens of stories from survivors about how it feels to be lefty with nothing.” He urged those in impacted areas to head to the warnings from emergency officials.

“Take this seriously. Please be safe. Your nation has your back and the Biden-Harris administration will be there until the job is done,” Biden said. 

The president also acknowledged three members of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department who were seriously hurt in a crash near the Texas-Louisiana border over the weekend. 

“One of the brave teams that volunteered to be there was from San Diego County Fire Department, set to travel all the way from California to North Carolina to help, but on their way they were in a terrible car accident in Louisiana. We pray for their full recovery. But it was a bad accident,” he said.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer subpoenaed the Department of Homeland Security for records related to Democratic vice presidential nominee Gov. Tim Walz’s alleged connections to the Chinese Communist Party, Fox News Digital has learned. 

Comer, R-Ky., who announced last month that his committee launched an investigation into those alleged “longstanding” ties, is seeking records including intelligence reports, documents, and communications from Homeland Security. 

Fox News Digital reviewed the subpoena, directed to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. 

HOUSE OVERSIGHT INVESTIGATING WALZ OVER ‘LONGSTANDING CONNECTIONS’ TO CHINA

The subpoena comes after a whistleblower notified the committee of the existence of a non-classified, Microsoft Teams group chat among DHS employees, as well as additional intelligence reports, that allegedly contain information regarding Walz’s alleged connections to the CCP. 

“The committee has recently received whistleblower disclosures informing the Committee of serious concern among Department of Homeland Security personnel regarding a longstanding connection between the CCP and Minnesota Governor Timothy James Walz,” Comer wrote in the subpoena cover letter to Mayorkas. 

The non-classified Microsoft Teams group chat is titled “NST NFT Bi-Weekly Sync,” and allegedly contains information relevant to Comer’s probe. 

House Oversight Committee officials told Fox News Digital that information regarding Walz and China have been memorialized in both classified and unclassified documents under the control of DHS. 

“Specifically, through whistleblower disclosures, the Committee has learned of a non-classified, Microsoft Teams group chat among DHS employees—titled ‘NST NFT Bi-Weekly Sync’—that contains information about Governor Walz that is relevant to the Committee’s investigation,” Comer wrote. “The Committee has also learned that further relevant information regarding Governor Walz has been memorialized in both classified and unclassified documents in the control of DHS.” 

Comer is subpoenaing Mayorkas for all documents and communications in the Microsoft Teams group chat from July 1, 2024, to present, as well as any uploaded or embedded attachments and documents referring to or relating to Walz or his gubernatorial office or staff. 

TIM WALZ WOULDN’T CALL FOR TIKTOK BAN ON GOVERNMENT DEVICES EVEN THOUGH OVER 75% OF OTHER STATES DID

Comer is also subpoenaing all intelligence information reports and regional intelligence notes from November 2023 to present related to Walz. 

Comer, last month, revealed that Walz has “engaged and partnered with” Chinese entities, making him “susceptible” to the CCP’s strategy of “elite capture,” which seeks to co-opt influential figures in elite political, cultural and academic circles to “influence the United States to the benefit of the communist regime and the detriment of Americans.” 

Comer has pointed to reports that Walz, while working as a teacher in the 1990s, organized a trip to China for Alliance High School students. The costs were reportedly “paid by the Chinese government.” 

Comer is investigating Walz’s 1994-created private company named “Educational Travel Adventures, Inc.,” which coordinated annual student trips to China until 2003 and was led by Walz. 

The company reportedly “dissolved four days after he took congressional office in 2007.” 

Comer said Walz has traveled to China an estimated “30 times.” 

“In its investigation, the Committee has highlighted the importance of U.S. officials being cognizant of CCP political and psychological warfare efforts that seek to threaten national security,” Comer said last month. 

Comer then pointed to Walz’s time in Congress, noting he served as a fellow at the Macau Polytechnic University — a Chinese institution that characterizes itself as having a “long-held devotion to and love for the motherland.” 

“At the time he disclosed serving as a Macau fellow, Mr. Walz also had significant credit card debt,” Comer said last month upon launching the investigation, noting that in 2019, Walz headlined the 27th National Convention for the U.S. China Peoples Friendship Association in Minnesota.

“Governor Walz spoke alongside the president of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, which, a year later, the Department of State exposed as ‘a Beijing-based organization tasked with co-opting subnational governments,’ including efforts to ‘directly and malignly influence state and local leaders to promote the PRC’s global agenda,’” Comer said. 

WALZ APPOINTEE WITH APPARENT CCP TIES COULD EXPOSE POTENTIAL VEEP’S NATIONAL SECURITY WEAKNESS, LAWMAKER SAYS

Comer said Walz himself has “admitted that he does not ‘fall into the category that China necessarily needs to be an adversarial relationship.’” 

“Despite bipartisan efforts to identify and defeat CCP unrestricted warfare against America, Governor Walz continues problematic engagement with concerning entities and individuals,” Comer wrote. 

Comer also pointed to a March 2024 meeting Walz had with Consul General Zhao Jian to discuss “China-U.S. relations and sub-national cooperation.”

Comer, in his letter to Mayorkas Monday, said his committee’s investigation of the CCP began long before Walz became the Democratic vice presidential nominee, and said it is focused on understanding “the extent of the CCP’s infiltration and influence campaign and to identify legislative reforms to combat CCP political warfare targeting prominent Americans for elite capture.” 

“In particular, if a state governor and major political party’s nominee for Vice President of the United States has been a witting or unwitting participant in the CCP’s efforts to weaken our nation, this would strongly suggest that there are alarming weaknesses in the federal government’s effort to defend the United States from the CCP’s political warfare that must be urgently addressed,” Comer wrote. “Along those lines, the Committee is currently considering legislative solutions to ameliorate deficiencies it already has identified among government agencies’ strategies to combat CCP political warfare.” 

Democratic Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin, who is running for a Senate seat this cycle, recently warned donors that Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is “underwater” in the key battleground state, according to a report. 

“I’m not feeling my best right now about where we are on Kamala Harris in a place like Michigan,” Slotkin told donors during a virtual campaign event with Democratic New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker last Wednesday, according to Axios. 

“We have her underwater in our polling,” Slotkin added, according to audio Axios obtained from the event. 

TRUMP NARROWS HARRIS’ SMALL LEAD IN BATTLEGROUND MICHIGAN, WISCONSIN, POLL FINDS

Latest polling shows former President Donald Trump closing in on Harris in the key battleground states of both Michigan and neighboring Wisconsin. Harris received 48% of support among likely Michigan voters in a New York Times/Siena College poll this week, while Trump garnered 47% support in the poll — effectively locking the pair in a tie well within the poll’s margin of error. 

‘HE IMPREGNATED HIS KID’S NANNY’: PSAKI RIPPED AFTER CLAIMING EMHOFF ‘RESHAPED’ MASCULINITY

A USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll of likely voters in the Great Lake State released last week found Harris was up three points over Trump. That poll had a 4.4% margin of error.

ROGERS ADDRESSES ABORTION AMID SLOTKIN ATTACKS: ‘MICHIGAN VOTERS HAVE ALREADY DECIDED’

Michigan is once again a key battleground state this year, as Harris and Trump zigzag campaign events across the state, as well as in other key states such as Pennsylvania, Georgia and Wisconsin. 

The Axios article noted that if Trump secures votes from the Sunbelt States across the southern portion of the U.S., he would only need to win either Michigan, Wisconsin or Pennsylvania to declare victory. While Harris’ easiest path to victory is locking down Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

Trump won Michigan in his 2016 election against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton by a 0.23% margin. President Biden won by 2.78% in the state in 2020 when he faced off against Trump. 

TRUMP-ENDORSED HOUSE CANDIDATE SOUNDS ALARM ON CHINA’S GROWING INFLUENCE IN BATTLEGROUND STATE

Slotkin, who has served in the U.S. House since 2019, announced her Senate run last year after Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow said she would not seek re-election. Her remarks that Harris is “underwater” in Michigan could have been campaign rhetoric to drum up donations, but the campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s inquiry for additional comment on the campaign event.

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Fox News Digital also reached out to the Harris campaign for comment on the report, but did not receive a reply. 

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, on Sunday vetoed a bill to create safety measures for large artificial intelligence models, which would have been the first such law in the nation.

The governor’s veto delivers a major setback to attempts to create guardrails around AI and its rapid evolution with little oversight, according to The Associated Press. The legislation faced staunch opposition from startups, tech giants and several Democratic lawmakers.

Newsom said earlier this month at Dreamforce, an annual conference hosted by software giant Salesforce, that California must lead in regulating AI as the federal government has failed to put safety measures in place, but that the proposal “can have a chilling effect on the industry.”

S.B. 1047, the governor said, could have hurt the homegrown industry by setting up strict requirements.

DEMOCRAT SENATOR TARGETED BY DEEPFAKE IMPERSONATOR OF UKRAINIAN OFFICIAL ON ZOOM CALL: REPORTS

“While well-intentioned, SB 1047 does not take into account whether an AI system is deployed in high-risk environments, involves critical decision-making or the use of sensitive data,” Newsom said in a statement. “Instead, the bill applies stringent standards to even the most basic functions — so long as a large system deploys it. I do not believe this is the best approach to protecting the public from real threats posed by the technology.”

Newsom announced instead that the state will partner with several industry experts to develop safety measures for powerful AI models.

S.B. 1047 would have required companies to test their models and publicly disclose their safety protocols to prevent the models from being manipulated for harmful purposes, such as, for example, wiping out the state’s electric grid or helping to build chemical weapons, scenarios that experts say could be possible in the future as the industry continues to rapidly evolve.

The legislation also would have provided whistleblower protection to industry workers.

Democratic state Sen. Scott Weiner, who authored the bill, said the veto was “a setback for everyone who believes in oversight of massive corporations that are making critical decisions that affect the safety and the welfare of the public and the future of the planet.”

“The companies developing advanced AI systems acknowledge that the risks these models present to the public are real and rapidly increasing,” he said in a statement. “While the large AI labs have made admirable commitments to monitor and mitigate these risks, the truth is that voluntary commitments from industry are not enforceable and rarely work out well for the public.”

Wiener said the debate around the bill has helped put a spotlight on the issue of AI safety, and that he would continue pushing to advance safety measures around the technology.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk supported the measure.

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The proposal is one of several bills passed by the state Legislature this year seeking to regulate AI, combat deepfakes and protect workers. State lawmakers said California must take actions this year, pointing to the results of failing to rein in social media companies when they might have had an opportunity.

Supporters of the bill said it could have presented some transparency and accountability around large-scale AI models, as developers and experts say they still do not have a full understanding of how AI models behave.

The bill sought to address systems that require a high level of computing power and more than $100 million to build. No current AI models have met that criteria, but some experts say that could change within the next year.

“This is because of the massive investment scale-up within the industry,” Daniel Kokotajlo, a former OpenAI researcher who stepped down earlier this year over what he described as the company’s disregard for AI risks, told The Associated Press. “This is a crazy amount of power to have any private company control unaccountably, and it’s also incredibly risky.”

The U.S. is behind Europe in regulating the growing technology that is raising concerns about job loss, misinformation, invasions of privacy and automation bias, supporters of the measure said. The California bill was not as comprehensive as regulations in Europe, but the supporters say it would have been a step in the right direction.

Last year, several leading AI companies voluntarily agreed to follow safeguards set by the White House, which include testing and sharing information about their models. The California bill, according to its supporters, would have required AI developers to follow requirements similar to those safeguards.

But critics of the measure argued that it would harm tech and stifle innovation in the Golden State. The proposal would have discouraged AI developers from investing in large models or sharing open-source software, according to the critics, which include U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

Two other AI proposals, which also faced opposition from the tech industry, did not pass ahead of a legislative deadline last month. The bills would have required AI developers to label AI-generated content and prohibit discrimination by AI tools used to make employment decisions.

California lawmakers are still considering new rules against AI discrimination in hiring practices.

The governor previously said he wanted to protect the state’s status as a global leader in AI, citing that 32 of the world’s top 50 AI companies are in the Golden State.

Newsom has said California is an early adopter of AI, as the state could deploy generative AI tools in the near future to combat highway congestion, provide tax guidance and streamline homelessness programs.

Earlier this month, Newsom signed some of the strictest laws in the country to fight against election deepfakes and adopt measures to protect Hollywood workers from unauthorized AI use.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Ohio Sen. JD Vance are set to take the stage for a debate on Tuesday, likely the only debate between the vice presidential candidates as the election enters its final stretch.

The vice presidential debate is being hosted by “CBS Evening News” anchor and managing editor Norah O’Donnell and “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan, taking place on Tuesday, Oct. 1 at 9 p.m. ET. CBS News will host the debate, and coverage begins at 8 p.m. ET.

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Fox News will also have pre- and post-debate coverage in addition to simulcasting the event across Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, Fox News Digital, Fox News Audio and FOX Nation.

Like the presidential debate before it, the vice presidential debate will take place without an audience and is slated to run 90 minutes, with the candidates receiving two four-minute breaks. 

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Closing statements will be two minutes, while a coin toss last week determined that Vance would be the last to make the closing pitch to voters.

Each candidate will have a pen, pad of paper and a bottle of water onstage but will not receive questions in advance. Campaign staff are not allowed to interact with either candidate during breaks, and mics will not be automatically muted, though they can be muted at the determination of the moderators.

Candidates will have two minutes to answer questions and the other candidate will get two minutes to respond. From there, each candidate will be allowed one minute for rebuttals.