Democrats have a clear edge in early voting so far, but Republicans are embracing the practice of casting their ballots before Election Day more than they have in past election cycles, despite former President Donald Trump sending mixed signals on the issue. More than 15 million Americans have voted early in-person or cast mail-in ballots, including 5.3 million in the seven swing states, according to data from the University of Florida’s Election Lab. In the...

Julian Assange’s father expressed gratitude to Russian President Vladimir Putin in an interview released Oct. 20 with Russian state-owned news agency Ria Novosti. “Your President Putin in 2012 was the first head of state to defend Julian’s interests as a publisher and a citizen at a time when Julian was receiving every smearing lie and calumny that the institutions of state and those hangers-on in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia could deliver upon his...

Ohio voters will decide in the general election whether to amend their state constitution to create a new redistricting commission, but election integrity advocates warn that the amendment will result in making the state more Democratic. A proposed constitutional amendment is on the November ballot that could alter the makeup of Ohio’s state legislature in future elections. A similar constitutional amendment passed in Michigan in 2018, which resulted in giving Democrats control of the state...

Former President Trump on Monday attacked the federal response to Hurricane Helene by repeating debunked claims about funding and bashed North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) during a stop in storm-ravaged Asheville, N.C. Trump met with local officials and viewed damage from Hurricane Helene ahead of a pair of campaign events in the Tar Heel State. The former president praised the enthusiasm of voters despite the storm damage amid sizable early turnout, but he also swiped at...

Chick-fil-A announced Monday it will launch a new app that features "free digital fun" and "kid-friendly content" including original shows, podcasts, games, recipes and more. The app, called Chick-fil-A Play, is not intended to be a streaming service to compete with the likes of Netflix, Hulu and others, but rather it aims to create "new ways for families to have fun, connect and spend time together," according to a news release from Chick-fil-A. Chick-fil-A says the app is...

The FBI and the Department of Defense are scrambling to uncover how it was that two highly classified intelligence documents related to Israel’s preparation for a potential retaliatory attack on Iran appeared on a Middle East news-related Telegram channel days ago. The White House has described President Biden as "deeply concerned" over the serious breach, and has confirmed there is an intense investigation ongoing to ascertain how it happened and who had access. At this...

A new political trend is emerging in the U.S.: voters aged 18 to 24 are identifying as more conservative than those just a few years older, according to the latest Harvard Youth Poll. Why it matters: This shift, which has become evident in recent years, is seen in both men and women but is especially pronounced among young men. More young men in this age group are identifying as conservative than liberal, a significant reversal from previous trends. Zoom in: It’s uncommon for such a...

Liz Cheney teamed up with Vice President Kamala Harris Monday in a last-minute effort to appeal to moderate Republicans who the former congresswoman believes might be uneasy about voting for Donald Trump but are afraid to say so publicly.  Harris and Cheney visited three counties: Chester County in Pennsylvania, Oakland County in Michigan and Waukesha County in Wisconsin. Each were won by Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and U.S. ambassador to the United...

Former Republican lawmakers, advisers and Justice Department officials have called on Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate tech billionaire Elon Musk for awarding cash prizes to voters in swing states if they sign his political organization’s petition, according to a letter obtained by The Washington Post and sent to Garland on Monday. The letter argues that the large prizes set up by Musk, a vocal supporter of Republican nominee Donald Trump, violate federal voting...

On this day, thirty-four years ago… Pearl Jam play their first show. It’s at the Off-Ramp in Seattle. Here’s how it happened. Guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament were members of Seattle-based Grunge band Green River during the mid-1980s. In late 1987, Gossard and Ament were in Malfunkshun with vocalist Andrew Wood. They morphed into Mother Love Bone. The band was signed by Polygram with their debut “Apple” dropping in ’90… four months after Wood died of a heroin overdose.  Following Wood’s death and the demise of Mother Love Bone, Gossard started practicing with fellow Seattle guitarist Mike McCready, who encouraged Gossard to reconnect with Ament. The trio sent out a five-song demo tape in order to find a singer and a drummer. A copy went to former Red Hot Chili Peppers’ drummer Jack Irons who passed it to his friend Eddie Vedder, who added vocals to the instrumental tracks and mailed it back to Seattle. Gossard, McCready and Ament were impressed enough to fly Vedder from San Deigo to Seattle for an audition. Within a week, Vedder had joined the band. With the addition of drummer Dave Krusen the band took the name Mookie Blaylock, a nod to the one-time basketball star, and played its first official show. Mookie Blaylock soon signed to Epic and renamed themselves Pearl Jam, a moniker originated by Vedder. ### The post A Day In Rock: October 22nd, 1990: Pearl Jam Debuts appeared first on RockinTown.