Trump files legal challenge to block Harris from accessing Biden’s $90m war chest

The Republican is now blaming President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for “not properly protecting” him during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania where a gunman fired at the former president and killed an attendee.

Trump’s allies have floated baseless and dangerous conspiracy theories about an assassination plot orchestrated by the administration, or debunked claims the Biden administration had rejected pleas from the former president for extra security.

On his Truth Social, Trump revived those claims by directly placing the blame on the president and his likely Democratic rival for the presidency for the threat to his life.

Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has clarified that he is not donating $45m a month to Trump’s presidential campaign after all.

“What’s been reported in the media is simply not true,” the billionaire told conservative commentator Jordan Peterson.

Trump has been boasting about the perceived pledge, calling Musk a “brilliant guy” but may well now revise that opinion.

US Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg was out on CNN last night attacking the Republican nominee and his new running mate – and doing very well indeed.

Surprisingly, he is not currently on Harris’s veep shortlist, according to Mike Bedigan and Eric Garcia.

The former president and his Republican allies are planning to go all-in on attacking Vice President Kamala Harris on immigration as she becomes the presumptive Democratic nominee for president.

Harris has seen overwhelming support from her party’s elected officials, activists and labor leaders this week after President Joe Biden announced he would not see re-election and endorsed her.

But the Trump campaign has sought to hit Harris for her record and tie her to Biden’s immigration policies, which polling showed voters overwhelmingly trust Trump to handle more than Democrats.

Andrew Feinberg and Eric Garcia report.

You Know Who is seeking to overturn the $454m New York civil fraud ruling that threatens his financial health as he makes his third bid for the White House.

In February, Justice Arthur Engoron hit the former president, his sons Eric and Donald Trump Jr and top executives at the Trump Organization with the multi-million-dollar judgment after finding that they lied to banks and insurers by inflating his net worth in order to secure more favorable loans.

On Monday, Trump’s legal team appealed the judgment, slamming it as “egregious”, “erroneous” and “draconian” (is Jackie Chiles from Seinfeld representing him now?)

They also claim, absurdly, that it hands New York Attorney General Letitia James “limitless power”.

The GOP presidential nominee has committed to debating his likely Democratic counterpart, insisting he would be “willing to do more than one” head-to-head with the Vice President.

In a call with reporters on Tuesday, the former president said that he believed it was “important” to take on Harris and that respective party nominees had an “obligation” to debate each other.

The Republican’s campaign has filed a complaint against Harris accusing her of perpetrating “a $91.5m heist” by improperly accessing Joe Biden’s campaign funds after he stepped out of the race for the White House on Sunday.

In a complaint to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), Trump campaign’s general counsel David Warrington is seeking to block the transfer of funds, alleging that the “brazen money grab” was in violation of FEC campaign Act of 1971.

Democrats have shrugged off the complaint, not least because Harris was already on the ticket for fundraising by the Biden campaign team.

Calling the claim “baseless”, Charles Lutvak, a spokesperson for the Harris camp, told The New York Times: “Republicans may be jealous that Democrats are energised to defeat Donald Trump and his MAGA allies”.

Over on Trump’s Twitter knock-off website, he’s been busy trailing Bibi Netanyahu’s visit to his Florida home on Friday (following in Viktor Orban’s thudding footsteps) and promising peace in the Middle East.

He’s also carried on his desperate/frantic/scattergun attacks on Kamala Harris and expressed bewilderment at the widespread praise for Joe Biden’s selflessness, a quality he would know nothing about.

The 78-year-old narrowly avoided being fatally shot while standing on stage in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13 as local resident Thomas Crooks opened fire with a semi-automatic assault rifle from a rooftop.

On Monday, during a pre-recorded prime-time interview with Fox News, seated next to his nominated running mate JD Vance, the former president revealed the seven words Biden said to him following his near-death experience.

James Liddel has the story.

Following the shocking incident in Butler, Pennsylvania, the agency has communicated its concerns with Trump officials about holding such events with big crowds, sources familiar with the matter told The Washington Post.

Less than two weeks after the shooting, it is understood the Trump campaign is now scouting indoor venues for upcoming events, including sports arenas and other large spaces. No outdoor events are currently scheduled, a source told the newspaper.

My colleague Mike Bedigan has more: