Donald Trump is returning to Pa., backs out of debate with Kamala Harris; Josh Shapiro won't say if he's submitted VP vetting paperwork

Nearly two weeks after Donald Trump’s near assassination, the FBI confirmed Friday that it was indeed a bullet that struck the former president’s ear, moving to clear up conflicting accounts about what caused the former president’s injuries after a gunman opened fire at a Pennsylvania rally.

“What struck former President Trump in the ear was a bullet, whether whole or fragmented into smaller pieces, fired from the deceased subject’s rifle,” the agency said in a statement.

A new poll from Fox News found that Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are tied in preference among Pennsylvania voters — and that Pennsylvanians vastly prefer Gov. Josh Shapiro over any potential running mate for Harris, the presumed Democratic presidential nominee.

Fox's poll showed that Harris and Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, are tied among Keystone State voters at 49% each. A previous poll from the outlet in April, months before President Joe Biden's decision to drop out, had Trump and Biden each garnering 48%.

Former President Donald Trump plans to make a return to Butler, Pa. for a rally, he wrote in a Truth Social post Friday, nearly two weeks since a 20-year-old Pennsylvania man attempted to assassinate him there at his rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds.

Trump said the rally will honor Corey Comperatore, the 50-year-old man who was killed in the shooting, and two other individuals who were wounded. No other details were provided.

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker and leaders in the four collar counties released an ad Friday supporting Vice President Kamala Harris for president.

The ad, which is paid for by Parker's campaign committee, presents a united front among Democrats in the Philadelphia area in favor of Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president.

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker said Friday that Republicans who have referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as a “DEI hire” in recent days are trying to deflect attention from their party.

“It’s the old debate trick,” Parker said. “When you’re not prepared, when you are not as talented, when you are not as gifted, and quite frankly, when you are afraid, you have to resort to name-calling.”

Dozens of Philadelphia labor leaders and union members rallied for Vice President Kamala Harris Friday morning in Northeast Philadelphia as the city’s politically powerful building trades council endorsed her, but you’d be excused for thinking the event was also to support her potential running mate.

Gov. Josh Shapiro, whose name has been floated as a top contender for the Democratic vice presidential nomination, stood alongside a gathering of labor leaders and elected officials who heaped praise on him Friday.

Kamala Harris has earned another Pennsylvania endorsement: Pink.

The Doylestown-born pop singer (born Alecia Moore) voiced her support for Harris’ presidential bid on Thursday night during a massive fundraiser where more than 160,000 women came together on a 90-minute Zoom and raised about $2 million.

Former U.S. Rep. Bob Brady, a longtime Democratic party leader in Philadelphia, said he spoke to President Joe Biden this week and had a frank conversation about the state of the presidential race.

Brady, who has known Biden for decades, said he still calls the president “Joe,” and that Biden refers to him as “Bobby.”

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro was cryptic with reporters Friday as he’s being considered to be Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, repeatedly dodging questions and refusing to confirm whether he’s being vetted.

His posture — essentially referring all questions about the vice presidential search to Harris’ campaign — is slightly different from earlier in the week, when he said he had not submitted paperwork to be vetted. Asked directly whether he had done so on Friday, Shapiro wouldn’t answer.

Donald Trump is lashing out at FBI Director Christopher Wray, slamming his testimony before Congress earlier this week that investigators still weren’t certain whether the former president had been struck by a bullet or shrapnel during a July 13 assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pa.

Wray’s remarks came in response to questioning Wednesday from Democratic lawmakers of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, who had noted that medical records from the treatment Trump received after the attack had not yet been released.

Former President Donald Trump’s tune regarding his willingness to debate presidential hopeful Kamala Harris continues to change like the wind.

Following Harris’ announcement she was pursuing the Democratic nomination, Trump expressed hesitancy about a debate on Truth Social, saying he didn’t know who he’d be debating and that the debates should be hosted by right-leaning Fox News. By Tuesday, he softened his stance, saying he’d like to debate Harris multiple times without committing to dates.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat under consideration to be Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, said Friday that former President Donald Trump is “afraid” to debate Harris.

“He’s afraid to stand toe-to-toe with our vice president,” Shapiro said. “It’s because he can’t run away from his record any longer.”

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker on Friday endorsed Gov. Josh Shapiro to be Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate.

During a rally hosted by the Philadelphia Building Trades & Construction Council, Parker said Shapiro would be a partner to the city of Philadelphia.

More than 50 Pennsylvania labor leaders signed a letter in support of Gov. Josh Shapiro, as he continues to be considered as a potential running mate for Vice President Kamala Harris.

The major political power players threw their support behind Shapiro in the letter, sent to their “Democratic Brothers and Sisters.”

Former President Barack Obama and his wife, former first lady Michelle Obama, have endorsed Kamala Harris' presidential campaign.

In a video shared on social media Friday morning, Harris is seen taking a call from the Obamas backstage at a campaign event. It's unclear when the call took place — Barack Obama noted in his post it happened "earlier this week."

Former President Donald Trump will return to Pennsylvania next week for the first time since a 20-year-old Pennsylvania man attempted to assassinate him.

Trump will return to the state less than three weeks after an assassination attempt against him at an open-air campaign rally in Butler, Pa., where a bullet grazed his ear.

Donald Trump has backed out of a previously scheduled debate that was slated to take place in September.

In a statement, Trump claimed it was "inappropriate" to schedule a debate with Harris because she is not yet officially the Democratic nominee, though she has secured the support of enough delegates and does not face any challengers.

Haley Voters for Harris, a Philadelphia-based group led by Nikki Haley voters against former President Donald Trump, has set its sights on Pennsylvania and other crucial battleground states, encouraging Haley’s backers to throw their support instead behind Vice President Kamala Harris’ candidacy.

But Haley, a former Republican presidential candidate, is not on board.

A network of more than two dozen public education advocacy groups from across the country published a letter Wednesday night urging Vice President Kamala Harris not to select Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as her running mate because of his support for private school vouchers.

School vouchers, which provide parents with state funding to send children to private schools, are an issue on which Shapiro has agreed to compromise with Republicans since becoming governor.