Doug Burgum drops out of 2024 presidential race – latest

North Dakota’s Governor Doug Burgum ended his campaign for the presidency on Monday ahead of the fourth Republican primary debate in Alabama.

Mr Burgum, 67, had poured millions of his own money into his presidential bid but after an initial meetup of the candidates in August failed to reach the polling requirements necessary for attendance at successive GOP primary debates. He sought to run on his record as governor but had little name recognition at the national level.

John Bowden reports:

North Dakota governor Doug Burgum announced on Monday that he would be suspending his campaign for 2024 president.

In a lengthy statement provided by his campaign, Mr Burgum called out the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) new debate rules for forcibly “narrowing the field”.

“The RNC’s clubhouse debate requirements are nationalizing the primary process and taking the power of democracy away from the engaged, thoughtful citizens of Iowa and New Hampshire,” Mr Burgum said.

“These arbitrary criteria ensure advantages for candidates from major media markets on the coasts versus America’s Heartland. None of their debate criteria relate to the qualifications related to actually doing the job of the president. This effort to nationalize the primary system is unhealthy for the future of the party, especially for a party that proclaims to value leadership from outside of Washington,” he added.

Mr Burgum announced his campaign on 7 June.

The dates and venues for the three 2024 presidential debates have been announced.

The debates, which will take place in September and October will be staged at US university campuses in the states of Texas, Virginia and Utah.

The news was announced by the nonpartisan, nonprofit Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) on Monday.

The first debate will take place on 16 September at Texas State University in San Marcos. It will be followed by the second at Virginia State University in Petersburg on 1 October.

The final debate will take place just over a week later at The University of Utah, in Salt Lake City, on 9 October.

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After South Carolina Senator Tim Scott suspended his 2024 presidential campaign, his fellow political opponents wished him well.

Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley said her home state was “blessed” to have Mr Scott as a senator and said the Republican primary “was made better by his participation.”

At times, Mr Scott and Ms Haley butted heads on the debate stage.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis commended Mr Scott for being courageous in running for president and thanked him for his service in Congress.

Chris Christie called Mr Scott a “friend” and said the US was better because of his service.

Vivek Ramaswamy said Mr Scott strikes him “as a good dude” and boasted about giving the senator a fist-bump on the debate stage.

Mr Ramaswamy said he hopes he can “convince” Mr Scott that giving Ukraine more financial aid “is an awful idea” as he resumes his work in Congress.

Asa Hutchinson, Doug Burgum and Mike Pence also thanked Mr Scott for his service and wished him well.

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott made a surprise announcement on Fox News on Sunday, saying he is suspending his campaign.

“I am suspending my campaign. I think the voters, who are the most remarkable people on the planet, have been really clear that they’re telling me, ‘not now, Tim.’” Mr Scott told Trey Gowdy on Sunday Night in America.

“I don’t think they’re saying, Trey, ‘no.’ But I do think they’re saying ‘not now.’ And so I’m gonna respect the voters and I’m gonna hold on and keep working really hard and look forward to another opportunity,” he added.

Sen Tim Scott (R-SC) announced on Fox News on Sunday evening that he would suspend his presidential campaign after he failed to gain traction in the Republican primary.

Mr Scott made the announcement on the programme of former congressman Trey Gowdy, who came to Congress the same year he did in 2011.

Shortly after delivering the news on live TV, members of Mr Scott’s staff told Politico they were caught completely off guard.

The staffers said he made a call immediately after the interview and acknowledged that he “may have caught you by surprise” but said he “tried to be as strategic as possible dealing with this”.

Nikki Haley is known for a lot of firsts — the first Asian American woman to serve as governor in US history, the first Indian American member of a presidential Cabinet, the first woman of colour to run for the GOP nomination — but will she become the first woman to serve as US president?

Few think so.

On paper, Ms Haley is arguably the ideal GOP candidate. She boasts impressive foreign policy experience amid the bloody conflict in Ukraine and the war between Israel and Hamas. She is the only woman in the race, giving her a sophisticated position to discuss reproductive rights as Republicans struggle to appeal to voters following the demise of Roe v Wade.

Still, the 51-year-old can’t seem to catch up to Mr Trump. Ms Haley’s candidacy demonstrates a larger problem with the 2024 Republican race — no one can touch him.

Kelly Rissman reports:

During the 2016 election, the Green Party received votes that exceeded Republican Donald Trump’s lead over Democrat Hillary Clinton.

The number of votes the candidate, Jill Stein, obtained is largely considered to be a contributing factor to Mr Trump’s win – as the Green Party took votes away from Ms Clinton in key swing states like Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

Political analysts have said the votes Ms Stein, who advocates heavily for sustainable energy policies, would have likely gone Democratic had she not been an option in the election.

The third Republican primary debate was an ugly slugfest reminiscent of the earliest Trump debates of 2015 — except the former president wasn’t even there.

A group of five candidates, minus their party’s frontrunner, appeared onstage Wednesday evening in Miami for what was billed as a presidential debate but in the end, may have just been an exercise in futility.

1. Ramaswamy unleashed and ‘unhinged’

The businessman and first-time candidate was eager to swipe at anyone onstage. He took a particular (and eyebrow-raising) interest in Nikki Haley, the former UN ambassador and governor of South Carolina. His continues jabs at Ms Haley lost him the goodwill of the crowd, who erupted in murmurs when he mentioned her “heels” derisively and outright boos (the only set of the night) when he mentioned her daughter.

2. DeSantis and Haley brawl for second place

Ms Haley was eager to score points against her rival on the issue of energy production, interjecting “you banned fracking!” as Mr DeSantis defended protecting the Everglades from drilling.

“You’re trying to make up for it and act like you weren’t a liberal when it comes to the environment,” Ms Haley claimed, addressing Mr DeSantis. “Just own it if that’s the case.”

3. Candidates greenlight Israel’s response to Hamas

The assembled Republicans called on Israel to “finish” Hamas and destroy the group entirely, calling it an existential threat to Israel’s existence.

4. The elephant not in the room

The main issue for the Republican pack of would-be runners-up remains unseating Mr Trump, and that means drawing blood and picking off the former president’s supporters.

5. Culture wars take a back seat

Foreign policy took a front seat for much of the debate, as the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict and the war in Ukraine provoked a discussion about America’s role as a world leader, and what that tangibly means in terms of investments. Entitlement reform and energy policy were also on the table, with the latter devolving into accusations of being insufficiently pro-fracking and the former turning into an artful dance around the question of what America’s retirement age should be in 2023.