House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are calling out Kamala Harris for "escalating" threats against former President Donald Trump by labeling him a "fascist" and promoting claims that he is like Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.

“Vice President Harris may want the American people to entrust her with the sacred duty of executive authority. But first, she must abandon the base and irresponsible rhetoric that endangers both American lives and institutions," Johnson (R-La.) and McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a joint statement Friday.

"We have both been briefed on the ongoing and persistent threats to former President Donald Trump by adversaries to the United States, and we call on the Vice President to take these threats seriously, stop escalating the threat environment, and help ensure President Trump has the necessary resources to be protected from those threats.”

Asked whether Trump, 78, was a "fascist" during a CNN town hall on Wednesday night, Harris, 59, nodded her head and replied: "Yes, I do. Yes, I do."

She and her campaign have also promoted claims made this week by former Trump White House chief of staff John Kelly that the 45th president expressed admiration for Hitler and his generals.

The heightened rhetoric followed a summer of political violence, which saw the former president shot in the ear by a would-be assassin at a Pennsylvania campaign rally and nearly shot at by another while golfing at his West Palm Beach, Fla., resort.

“This summer, after the first attempted assassination of a presidential candidate in more than a century, President Biden insisted that ‘we can’t allow this violence to be normalized,’" said Johnson and McConnell. "In September, after President Trump escaped yet another close call, Vice President Harris acknowledged that ‘we all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more violence.’"

“These words have proven hollow. In the weeks since that second sobering reminder, the Democratic nominee for President of the United States has only fanned the flames beneath a boiling cauldron of political animus," they added. "Her most recent and most reckless invocations of the darkest evil of the 20th century seem to dare it to boil over. The Vice President's words more closely resemble those of President Trump's second would-be assassin than her own earlier appeal to civility."

“The man who was caught waiting in ambush in Florida left others with a chilling call to arms: ‘It is up to you now to finish the job,’" the Republican congressional leaders also said. "Labeling a political opponent as a ‘fascist,’ risks inviting yet another would-be assassin to try robbing voters of their choice before Election Day."

Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are locked in a dead heat — less than two weeks out from the election, a final national Siena College poll shows.

The presidential rival candidates are now deadlocked — 48% to 48% — for the popular vote, according to the Siena/New York Times survey published Friday.

The results show that Harris’ edge over her Republican rival has dwindled in recent weeks after a similar poll conducted by the same outlet in early October showed her leading 49% to Trump’s 46%.

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LAS VEGAS – Former President Donald Trump told rally-goers in Nevada Thursday that if elected, he will call Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on election night. 

“I'm going to work on that from the day, hopefully the day that we win, which is Nov. 5th, in the evening,” Trump said of Russia’s war against Ukraine. 

“On the evening of Nov. 5th, I will call Putin. I will call Zelensky. I’ll say, ‘We got to stop it,’” the Republican nominee for president continued.   

“I'm going to try and get it done as president-elect,” Trump vowed. 

“That'll give me plenty of credibility,” he added. “I don't have to wait until Jan. 20th [Inauguration Day]. I'm going to try and get it done sooner than that.” 

Trump has long claimed that as president he could end the war in Ukraine in one day.

It was more doom and gloom than hope and change.

Former President Barack Obama joined Kamala Harris on the campaign trail for the first time Thursday at an Atlanta rally, where both took turns attacking Donald Trump less than two weeks from Election Day. 

“We do not need four years of a wannabe king – a wannabe dictator, running around trying to punish his enemies,” Obama said of Trump, who’s leading Harris in Georgia by more than 2 percentage points, according to the latest polling. 

“That's not what you need in your life,” the 44th president added. “America is ready to turn the page. We are ready for a better story.” 

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Donald Trump called into VP hopeful JD Vance's town hall on NewsNation with Chris Cuomo on Thursday and lightened the mood.

"I do have a question and I think it'll be quite an interesting one, the answer should be easy" Trump began. "How brilliant is Donald J. Trump?"

The 45th president's question elicited laughter from Vance, Cuomo and the undecided voters in attendance.

"Well first of all sir, this is supposed to be undecided voters, I would hope that I have your vote of all people," a smiling Vance replied.

The Ohio senator proceeded to share a story about Trump easing the tension for his wife, Usha, while the couple hosted the former president for an event in Cincinnati a few months ago.

"My wife is a little nervous to talk to the president of the United States," Vance said. "And he asks her, 'What do you think about your husband being in public service?'"

Vance said his wife gave a diplomatic answer to Trump's question, setting up his reply.

"President Trump chuckles and goes, 'Yeah my wife hates it too,'" Vance said.

"It immediately broke the barrier."

Donald Trump celebrated “record” early voting numbers that he’s received so far at his Arizona rally.

The numbers are the “biggest” he’s “ever seen” he claimed — but still told his voters to come out on Election Day.

Donald Trump’s campaign expressed cautious optimism about his chances of becoming the 47th president, with early voting numbers indicating the 45th president is on track to defeat Vice President Kamala Harris.

Initial returns from key states look better for the 78-year-old than both the 2016 and 2020 elections.

Donald Trump panned President Biden in his Arizona speech Thursday, blasting him for calling to "lock him up" when referring to the former president.

"He's not allowed to say that. He's such a stupid guy," Trump said of Biden.

The president said Tuesday in New Hampshire "we gotta lock him up" in reference to Trump.

Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) on Thursday hinted at feeling some regret about the way he handled claims from constituents that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating people’s pets. 

“Do I think that the media certainly got distracted on the housing crisis and the health crisis and the crisis in the public schools by focusing on the eating the dogs and the cats things? Yeah, I do,”  the Republican vice presidential nominee said during a town hall hosted by NewsNation.  

“Do I wish that I had been better in that moment? Maybe,” Vance added.  

The Ohio senator noted that he raised the alleged issue because he didn’t want to ignore his constituents. 

“[Y]ou're hearing a lot of things from your constituents,” Vance said. “They're telling you things, and I think it's important for me to listen to the people that are coming to me with their problems.” 

“It's also people in my community, people that I represent are coming to me and saying, this thing is happening,” he added. “What am I supposed to do? Hang up the phone and tell them they're a liar? Because the media doesn’t  want me to talk about it?” 

The full town hall will air on NewsNation at 8 p.m. ET and live stream on X.

Former President Donald Trump reacted to Vice President Kamala Harris' town hall on CNN during his remarks in Tempe, Ariz.

"It was pathetic," Trump said, revealing he tuned into the town hall.

He also called Nancy Pelosi "crazy as a bed bug" and accused her of selling stocks unfairly.

Donald Trump’s campaign has expressed cautious optimism about the Republican nominee’s chances of becoming the 47th president, with early voting numbers indicating the former chief executive is on course to defeat Vice President Kamala Harris.

While officials have insisted that “anything can happen” and that it is “too early to declare victory,” the initial returns from key states look better for the 78-year-old than both the 2016 and 2020 elections.

“Overall, both nationally and in battleground states, we are seeing strong returns for Republicans so far,” a Trump campaign adviser said on a surrogate call Wednesday.

“From where we’re sitting right now, things look pretty good. Encouraging signs across the board. The voter registration gains in all the partisan registration states have been tremendously in our favor.”

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