Breaking News: October 7, 2024, presidential campaign news… See More

What we covered here
• Final campaign sprint: There is less than a month until Election Day, and the presidential race remains extremely close as former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris make their pitches to voters in key states and ramp up ad spending.

• Anniversary of October 7 attacks: The candidates are marking the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, which gave way to a year of escalating war in the Middle East that has shaped the 2024 campaign. Harris commemorated the anniversary with a memorial tree planting at her residence, while Trump delivered remarks at a remembrance event in Florida.

• Media blitz: Harris and running mate, Gov. Tim Walz, are participating in a multitude of interviews this week as the Democratic ticket races to reach voters. In an interview with “60 Minutes” that aired Monday evening, Harris spoke about immigration, the war in Ukraine and Liz Cheney’s endorsement.

• Election resources: Voting early and by mail is already underway in much of the country, visit CNN’s voter handbook to see how to vote in your area and read up on the 2024 candidates and their proposals on key issues.

Donald Trump is expected to hold a campaign rally on Friday in Aurora, Colorado. The former president has repeatedly mentioned Aurora in remarks around immigration and claimed without evidence that the notorious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua has been running amok in the city and terrorizing a handful of apartment buildings.

During the presidential debate last month, Trump name-checked the city: “Look at Aurora, in Colorado. They are taking over the towns. They’re taking over buildings. They’re going in violently,” pointing to the city as a harbinger of what unchecked migration could bring to towns across America.

Aurora police say gang influence is “isolated,” and the city of Aurora has countered that the real problem has been abusive housing conditions. Residents living in one of the buildings in question told CNN they were unaware of organized crime taking over.

Country music star Jason Aldean shared a video message from former President Donald Trump urging attendees at his Sunday concert in Macon, Georgia, to vote.

“Well, that’s not all. I also had a friend of mine who wanted to try and be here today but unfortunately couldn’t so he sent this instead for you guys,” Aldean told the crowd according to a clip posted to X by senior Trump campaign adviser Dan Scavino.

“Hello Georgia, you’re a very special place. You’ve been very good to me, and I appreciate it, and I’m going to be good to you. I hope everybody is having an incredible time with the great Jason Aldean, a friend of mine and a real talent,” Trump said in the video message.

Trump then went on to say that the “most important election in the history of our country” is a month away. “It’s bad, and we’re going to change it around. And so, I just say November 5th, get out and vote. You can vote early if you like, but the main thing is to vote,” Trump said.

“I wish I could be there myself and listen to that incredible music, but Jason has really been a true American patriot, one of the greatest entertainers of our time,” the former president added.

Aldean called Trump “my guy” before starting to perform his controversial song “Try That in a Small Town,” the clip showed.

Aldean, a vocal supporter of Trump, previously attended the Republican National Convention in July and sat with Trump in his VIP box

Vice President Kamala Harris faced tough questions about how she’d pay for her economic plans, whether Democrats were too slow to enact border security measures, how she’d confront Russia over its war in Ukraine and more in a wide-ranging “60 Minutes” interview that aired Monday.

The Democratic presidential nominee’s sit-down with CBS comes amid a media blitz that is putting Harris in front of friendlier interviewers with more targeted audiences. Her interview on the popular “Call Her Daddy” podcast went live Sunday. On Tuesday she’ll visit ABC’s “The View,” sit down with Howard Stern and appear on CBS’ “The Late Show” with Stephen Colbert.

Here are five takeaways from Harris’ sit-down with “60 Minutes”:

Immigration: Harris maintained migration is a “long-standing problem” when asked about the Biden administration’s approach to immigration policies and refused to answer whether officials should’ve cracked down sooner.

Ukraine: Harris said she would not meet bilaterally with Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate a solution to end the war in Ukraine, saying, “Ukraine must have a say in the future of Ukraine.”

Cheney: The interview at one point featured the vice president in Ripon, Wisconsin — claimed to be the birthplace of the Republican Party — with former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, who endorsed Harris and spoke at a rally in the key swing state last week.

Walz: Harris’ running mate was also featured in the interview. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who has faced questions about past statements, said Harris told him to be more careful with his words.

Trump: Harris criticized Donald Trump for backing out of his “60 Minutes” interview. The former president’s campaign backed out after scheduling a sit-down at his Mar-a-Lago estate, CBS correspondent Scott Pelley said at the start of the nation’s most-watched newsmagazine’s broadcast

Former President Donald Trump accused the Biden administration and the Department of Justice of setting a “terrible precedent” because he has been charged with multiple crimes after leaving office.

In an interview taped last week that aired Monday, Fox News’ Laura Ingraham asked the former president how he’d restore faith in the US justice system, with the host adding, “A lot of people will say, ‘Well, he’s just going to do to them what he they did to him back at them.’”

“A lot of people say that’s what should happen, right?” Trump said.

When Ingraham raised Trump’s past comments that “my revenge will be success,” the former president said, “Well, I do believe that, but I will say this, they have started a terrible precedent.”

“We’ve never had this. We do have that in Third World countries, banana republics, a lot in South America, where they go after somebody politically that’s an opponent,” he said.

There is no evidence that President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris personally orchestrated any of the cases against Trump, and the former president has never presented evidence for that claim.

“But you’re not going to do that. When you get into office, you’re going to look at all your political enemies,” Ingraham said.

“No, I want to make this the most successful country in the world. That’s what I want to do,” Trump replied.

Republican former Rep. Liz Cheney said she would have supported Vice President Kamala Harris four years ago if she knew then that “our Constitution is going to be under threat” ahead of November’s election.

Asked by “60 Minutes” — in an interview released Monday and taped shortly after Cheney formally endorsed the vice president at a campaign event in Wisconsin last week — if she would have thought she’d be campaigning alongside Harris four years ago, Cheney said she would have agreed to back Harris “because she’ll defend the rule of law.”

“I hope that if you had said to me four years ago, ‘Our Constitution is going to be under threat and it’s gonna be crucial for the parties to come together, and to support Vice President Harris because she’ll defend the rule of law,’ I know I would’ve said, ‘That’s exactly what I’ll do,’” she said.

Cheney’s formal endorsement in Wisconsin last week was part of an aggressive push by the Harris campaign to sway moderate Republicans who disagree with former President Donald Trump. During her remarks, Cheney sharply criticized Trump for his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Asked on “60 Minutes” whether she’d imagined campaigning alongside Cheney four years ago, Harris responded warmly.

“That’d be great,” Harris said, as both her and Cheney laughed.

“She’s really diplomatic,” Cheney joked