The Latest: Fox News suspends contributor pact with Gingrich
By Associated Press
Jul 12, 2016 3:35 PM CDT
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, followed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. arrives for a rally in Portsmouth, N.H., Tuesday, July 12, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)n   (Associated Press)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on Campaign 2016 ahead of the Republican and Democratic presidential nominating conventions (all times EDT):

4:31 p.m.

Fox News says it is suspending its contributor agreement with Newt Gingrich "due to the intense media speculation" about him as a potential vice presidential candidate of Republican Donald Trump.

Jay Wallace, executive vice president of news at Fox, said Tuesday the network thought it was best to stop Gingrich as a contributor to avoid any conflicts of interest.

The former House speaker joined the network in 1999, and his role was suspended in 2011 when he ran for president in 2012. He returned to Fox in 2015.

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4:20 p.m.

Donald Trump presents himself as the "law and order" candidate for president and his country as a land of lawlessness and disorder.

That grim picture may speak to the visceral fears of voters that crime is "out of control," as Trump says.

It does not, though, reflect a trend of declining crime that has stretched over 25 years.

Crime figures are a malleable source of information. Depending on what time period is compared, and which crimes are considered, they can be used to tell a tale of progress or setbacks.

Trump has some statistical support for saying that violent crime is rising in big-city America. That appears to be true, judging by recent stats.

But there's no sign that the long-term and dramatic drop in violent crime rates is ending.

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2:55 p.m.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says it was "totally inappropriate" for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to criticize Donald Trump.

Ginsburg said in an interview with The Associated Press last week that she didn't want to think about the possibility that Trump would be president and predicted that Democrat Hillary Clinton will win.

McConnell said Tuesday that members of the Supreme Court shouldn't weigh in on American elections.

"It raises a level of skepticism that the American people have from time to time about just how objective the Supreme Court is, whether they're over there to call the balls and strikes, or weigh in on one side or another," he said.

Ginsburg said if Trump wins, "everything is up for grabs," including the future of the high court. She is the oldest justice at age 83.

McConnell also said he will speak at the Republican convention next week.

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1:56 p.m.

GOP rebels trying to dump Donald Trump as the Republican presidential standard-bearer are gathering in Cleveland ahead of the party's convention next week.

They face long odds against an alliance of Trump's campaign and leaders of the Republican National Committee, all of them pressing delegates to oppose the dissidents.

Countering that, the renegade Republicans are setting up a high-tech messaging system to coordinate with organizers on the convention floor when full sessions begin next week. They also plan ads micro-targeted to delegates' social media pages. The rebels say they have organizers inside at least 35 state delegations at the convention who will help coordinate their drive to let the gathering's 2,472 delegates vote for whichever candidate they want.

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1:20 p.m.

In some ways, tough-talking Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn could make an ideal running mate for Republican Donald Trump. The two men speak with one voice against President Barack Obama's approach to the Islamic State and the need for tighter border security.

The former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency is now on a short list of potential running mates for the presumptive Republican nominee.

But then there's that problem of him being a registered Democrat.

"At this stage, the party affiliation is less important," Flynn told the Associated Press. "If they want a person who believes in the Constitution, who believes in the rule of law, who believes we have big challenges we are facing like illegal immigration, our economic conditions, education, and we have to get those things back on track, then you're speaking to him."

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12:18 p.m.

Hillary Clinton says she wants to do more to prevent "the tragedy of black men and women and children being killed in police incidents."

Speaking in Portsmouth, New Hampshire Tuesday, Clinton said she wants to develop national guidelines on the use of force by police officers and provide "better training on implicit bias."

Clinton said communities benefit when there is respect for the law and everyone is "respected by the law." She praised the police department in Dallas for their handling of the recent shooting.

Clinton said it was time for "real meaningful action" to "end the epidemic of gun violence in America."

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12:05 p.m.

Hillary Clinton says the election will be far more enjoyable now that she and Bernie Sanders are on the same side.

Accepting the endorsement of her primary rival in Portsmouth, New Hampshire Tuesday, Clinton said she was happy to be working with someone who has energized the primary process. She said Sanders has "brought people off the sidelines and into the political process."

Clinton hailed Sanders as a warrior for liberal issues, noting that "His reputation for passionate advocacy hasn't always made him the most popular person in Washington. But that's generally a sign that you're doing something right."

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11:39 a.m.

Bernie Sanders says Hillary Clinton must become the next president because she can take on issues like income inequality, climate change and student debt.

During his endorsement of Clinton in New Hampshire on Tuesday, Sanders said his campaign was about people who are "left out and left behind." He says Clinton is prepared to fight to raise the minimum wage, create jobs, expand access to health care and address climate change.

Sanders also said Trump does not share those values. He said Trump would not hike the current minimum wage and would appoint Supreme Court justices that would threaten civil liberties and equal rights.

Sanders has avoided endorsing Clinton for weeks. But he said Tuesday that he was pleased by the updates to the official party platform made over the weekend, which he called the most progressive in history. He said he would work to make sure the party follows through.

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11:35 a.m.

Donald Trump's campaign says Bernie Sanders "is now officially part of a rigged system."

Trump senior policy adviser Stephen Miller says in a statement released during Sanders' endorsement of Hillary Clinton Tuesday that the Vermont senator is "endorsing one of the most pro-war, pro-Wall Street, and pro-off-shoring candidates in the history of the Democratic Party."

He says, "The candidate who ran against special interests is endorsing the candidate who embodies special interests."

Trump has also been taunting Sanders on Twitter, suggesting that he has sold out his supporters.

Trump's campaign is trying to woo disgruntled Sanders supporters opposed to Clinton.

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10:23 a.m.

Hillary Clinton's campaign is topping off her presidential nomination with an event on Independence Mall in Philadelphia the day after the Democratic National Convention ends.

Clinton's campaign has been issued a permit from the National Park Service for a public assembly on July 29, according to a park service schedule of events during the week of the convention. The permit includes a stretch of park near the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.

The location can host sizable crowds: Pope Francis delivered a speech on religious freedom and immigration in front of about 40,000 people at Independence Hall during his Philadelphia visit in September.

The convention is July 25-28 at the Wells Fargo Center.

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