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The Latest: Citing Clinton, Kaine says Dems may win Arkansas

WASHINGTON – The Latest on the U.S. presidential race (all times EDT):

5:30 p.m.

Tim Kaine says Democrats have a chance of winning GOP-friendly Arkansas this presidential contest, thanks to Hillary Clinton’s personal ties to the state.

Kaine, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee, visited Clinton supporters at a Little Rock campaign office Tuesday.

The senator from Virginia said that while polls suggest an Arkansas victory would be an uphill climb, the Clinton campaign still believes the state is in play.

Clinton spent much of her adult life in Arkansas, and served as the state’s first lady when her husband, former President Bill Clinton, was governor.

Since becoming Clinton’s running mate last month, Kaine has been on a whirlwind tour around the country, including to other deep red states like Louisiana and Texas.

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5:15 p.m.

GOP vice-presidential candidate Mike Pence got a haircut at a black-owned barbershop on Tuesday between campaign stops in the Philadelphia area.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has made overtures to black voters in recent days, asking them, “What do you have to lose?” by supporting him.

The owner, Henry Jones, says he had no idea who his lone customer for the day was when he arrived. The two discussed their families and sports while Pence sat for his $20 trim.

When the haircut ended, Jones asked Pence his name. When Pence identified himself as Indiana governor and GOP vice-presidential candidate, Jones said, “Vice president?” and added, “This is history.”

Jones says Pence didn’t ask for his vote, and he is undecided in the November election.

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3 p.m.

Donald Trump’s campaign says the decision by rival Hillary Clinton’s family foundation to no longer accept foreign and corporate donations if she’s elected president doesn’t go far enough.

Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller says, “The Clinton Foundation’s laughable attempt to address conflicts of interest fails to include many of its umbrella organizations,” such as the Clinton Health Access Initiative.

Former President Bill Clinton has said that he and the health initiative’s board are “considering a range of options to ensure that its vital work will continue and will announce details soon.”

Miller warns that conflicts of interest “would continue unabated in a Hillary Clinton administration” under the proposed plan.

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2:30 p.m.

Hillary Clinton is praising small business owners as the “unsung heroes of our economy”

The Democratic presidential candidate is unveiling economic proposals on a Tuesday conference call with small-business owners.

Clinton is proposing a new tax deduction for small businesses and offering federal incentives to encourage state and local governments to streamline regulations. The goal, says her campaign, is to make it cheaper to start a company.

Clinton says: “we want you to do what you do best: innovate, grow and hire.”

She’s also attacking Donald Trump, saying he’s “made a career out of stiffing small business.” The Republican candidate has faced lawsuits accusing him of failing to pay small companies for services and products used in his businesses.

Clinton is on a three-day fundraising swing across California.

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1:45 p.m.

Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Kaine is promoting Hillary Clinton’s plans for helping small businesses, saying smaller companies are critical to America’s economy.

Kaine told an audience at a Denver machine shop Tuesday that his running mate’s proposals would simplify and cut small business taxes and allow business owners to take standardized deductions similar to those offered on personal income taxes.

The Virginia senator also said that Clinton wants to make it easier for community banks and credit unions to finance start-ups and small businesses expansions.

Kaine also said Clinton’s plan would provide incentives for state and local governments to ease regulatory burdens on new companies, make health insurance more affordable for small businesses, and make it easier to do business with the federal government.

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1:05 p.m.

Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Kaine is accusing Donald Trump of using his campaign to make money for himself.

Speaking at a Denver machine shop Tuesday, Kaine noted reports that Republican presidential candidate significantly increased the monthly rent his campaign pays in at his Trump Tower headquarters after his campaign started raising large amounts of money from donors.

Kaine said: “Once donors were writing checks to the campaign, Trump said, ‘Wow, I can get more money personally out of this.’” He said Trump had a “what-can-the-campaign-do-for-me” ethos.

Trump campaign says it needed to rent more space in the building in anticipation of significantly increasing staff.

Kaine also said Trump was proposing a self-serving tax plan while Democrat Hillary Clinton would cut and simplify taxes for small businesses.

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12:15 p.m.

Green Party candidate Jill Stein says she could win the presidential election if she could just get more public exposure.

But she’s not holding her breath.

At a Washington news conference Tuesday, Stein made her case for being included in the presidential debates, saying voters deserve to hear from all the candidates.

The Commission on Presidential Debates says candidates must have the support of at least 15 per cent of voters to be included in the three debates.

So far, Stein has been polling in the low single digits. Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson has been doing a little better, but not good enough.

Stein said, “We could potentially win this race. I’m not holding my breath, but I’m not ruling it out. It’s a crazy election.”

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11:35 a.m.

Donald Trump plans to use a pair of events in Texas on Tuesday to stress the need for tougher border security.

Jason Miller, the campaign’s communications director, released a statement saying that Trump will tape a town hall in Austin for the Fox News Network focusing on the need to fortify the southern border. He will later expand on the theme at a rally in the Texas capital.

Trump has highlighted crimes committed by immigrants living in the U.S. illegally. Government figures, though, do not indicate that these immigrants commit violent crimes more frequently than legal residents do.

Trump had been expected to unveil his full immigration policy this week, but that was postponed, likely until next week.

Trump will also campaign in Florida, Mississippi, Nevada and Iowa this week.

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10:25 a.m.

Vice-President Joe Biden is telling Baltic leaders to disregard Donald Trump’s threats not to defend NATO allies.

Biden is meeting with the leaders of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia during a visit to Latvia designed to show support to countries near Russia. He says the U.S. honours its Article 5 commitment to defend NATO allies.

Biden isn’t using Trump’s name. But he tells the leaders they “occasionally may hear something from a presidential candidate.” He says that “it’s nothing that should be taken seriously.”

Trump alarmed NATO countries when he said if he’s president, the U.S. might not defend NATO allies under attack if they haven’t paid their fair share of defence costs.

Referring to Trump, Biden says, “I don’t think he understands what Article 5 is.”

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10:10 a.m.

Donald Trump’s campaign is paying more than ever to rent space inside his Trump Tower in New York.

Federal Election Commission reports show that the Republican presidential nominee’s campaign paid $35,457 per month for rent and utilities to Trump Tower Commercial LLC between August 2015 and this April. The payment began increasing in May and hit $169,758 last month.

The campaign says in a statement the rent hike came as the Trump team expanded from only the fifth floor to also include two additional floors.

It says the rent was calculated based on the average price per square foot in the area. It notes Trump made a $2 million personal donation last month, which more than covers the rent.

The Huffington Post first noted the bigger payments.

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3:35 a.m.

Donald Trump and his Republican allies say Hillary Clinton is weak, lacks stamina and doesn’t look presidential.

Trump and his backers are increasingly relying on rhetoric that academics and even some Republican strategists say has an undeniable edge focused on gender.

He has repeatedly called attention to Clinton’s voice, saying listening to her gives him a headache. Last December, he mocked her wardrobe.

The billionaire mogul has also used stereotypes about women to demean Clinton, who stands to become the country’s first female president if she wins in November.

Trump often says Clinton doesn’t look like a typical president.

A recent survey by the Pew Research Center found Clinton with a 19-percentage-point lead over Trump among women.

News from © The Associated Press, . All rights reserved.
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