House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) appeared on – News Saturday after the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, where he detailed the GOP’s strategy for holding the House, discussed campaign spending and voter participation, weighed in on the Democratic Party’s ideological course, and marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

In an interview with – News Washington Bureau Chief Matthew Boyle, Emmer said the Dallas gathering reflected significant momentum and enthusiasm among Republicans heading into the closing stretch of the midterm election cycle.

“The midterm convention, this brainchild of Donald J. Trump, was to show what kind of energy is out there on the Republican side, and there is a ton of energy,” Emmer said.

Emmer also took aim at media coverage of the Trump administration’s economic performance, arguing that news outlets were overlooking positive developments in the economy and the newest employment numbers. He said the report included high-tech jobs with strong pay and benefits, along with manufacturing opportunities.

Describing the turnout in Dallas, Emmer said the venue was “absolutely packed.” He added that he had been told the crowd outside the American Airlines Arena in Dallas rivaled the size of the audience outside the RNC in Milwaukee.

According to Emmer, the convention was designed both to spotlight what Republicans see as accomplishments of the Trump administration and to drive voter turnout. “Quite frankly, communism is on the ballot,” he said, noting that Trump’s central message to GOP voters was that the election would ultimately come down to turnout.

When Boyle asked how Republicans plan to keep control of the House, Emmer urged caution in interpreting polling data. “You can’t rely on polls. You look for trends in polls,” he said.

“For us, the mechanics of this election are very clear,” Emmer continued. “We have to have Republican turnout to be successful.”

Emmer said the party’s first priority is defending its current House seats, arguing that incumbencies offer the most efficient path to victory. “The cheapest seat to win is the one you already hold,” he said, citing battleground districts across Pennsylvania, Iowa, New York, New Jersey, and California.

He also described a potential Republican House strategy in which expected losses tied to redistricting in California and Utah could be balanced by pickups in other parts of the country.

“You’re already making up one in Maine. You’re going to win Maine, so now you’re a negative four. You’re going to win Tennessee, negative three. You’re going to win Alabama, negative two. You’re going to win Louisiana, negative one,” Emmer said.

Emmer said that calculation did not include additional opportunities in Texas, Florida, New Mexico, and Washington State.

“So that’s how you do it,” he said. “You keep what you’ve got, and then you build in places like Florida, in Texas, New Mexico, and Washington State.”

Emmer also rejected suggestions that control of the House has already been decided, pointing to forecasts identifying more than 200 safe seats for each party.

“At the end of the day, it’s going to come down to about — well, they’ll say 21 seats that are in play,” Emmer said. “I would say it’s probably 10 to 15, Matt, and it is too close to call.”

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Boyle also asked about Republican campaign spending. Emmer said Trump-aligned groups were preparing to spend heavily in House and Senate races and pointed to Elon Musk as another Republican ally.

“We do have money to win these races, and we’ve got allies like President Trump and Elon Musk and others that are doing their job to make sure that they hold the House,” Emmer said.

Emmer also said statewide races could help drive turnout in congressional contests, pointing to Texas and Iowa. “We have never seen this kind of parity between Republican and Democrat spending,” he said.

The conversation later turned to the influence of democratic socialists within the Democrat Party. Emmer rejected the label, saying, “There’s nothing democratic about socialism, Matt. They are communist. They’re flat out Marxist communists and/or anarchists.”

He then singled out Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, saying, “You got false Muslim prophets like Abdul Abdul El Sayed in Michigan, who literally pals around with terrorists, and his best friend believes that 3,000 people deserved to die here in America 25 years ago yesterday.” Emmer continued, “You come to America to be an American,” adding that Republicans need to “keep sounding the alarm.”

Emmer also invoked Ayn Rand, saying that “the goal of socialism and communism is exactly the same” because, in his telling, both seek “power over human beings,” with one pursuing it “through the ballot box” and the other “through force.”

Emmer also criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) over their conduct during September 11 memorial observances. “Look what they were doing yesterday,” Emmer said. “You got this ridiculous mayor of New York, and you’ve got Ms. Ocasio-Cortez laughing and joking as the names of the fallen from 9/11, 25 years ago, are being read in front of their families and their friends, the survivors.” He called the conduct “pathetic” and said it illustrated what he views as the political choice facing voters. “There’s nothing democratic about socialism. I wish we would just call them what they are,” Emmer said. “These are flat-out communists that are here.”

“If they are given the gavels, get ready. They’re coming after you,” Emmer added. “They’re not just coming after Donald Trump and his family. They’re coming after all of us, Matt.”

Boyle concluded by asking Emmer about the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks and what younger Americans who were born after them should understand.

“Those who do not know history are bound to repeat it,” Emmer said, before referencing the Holocaust, the September 11 attacks, and the importance of teaching American history.

“If you don’t understand your history, and we’ve done a poor job of actually teaching American history, this is where our public schools have failed as much as anywhere else,” he said.

Emmer closed by saying Americans should understand the sacrifices made for the country’s freedoms and participate in the November election.

“You got to defend freedom,” Emmer said. “And right now, thank God in this country, you can still defend it by showing up on November 3 and voting for Republicans up and down the ticket.”

“We got to get back to work teaching our young people about our history and why this country is so special,” Emmer concluded. “So, you got to know your history.”

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The sister of a sixth-form student who died from meningitis B at just 18 has made an emotional appeal for others to protect themselves through vaccination.

George Zographou had been looking forward to travelling to the Boardmasters surf and music festival in Newquay when he told his sister, Nicole, that he was beginning to feel unwell.

Keen not to miss out on the trip, George set off from Bristol with a friend. But as they travelled, his illness rapidly became more severe.

He complained of pain in his foot and felt progressively disoriented. During the night, he began vomiting uncontrollably, and by the following morning he was unable to walk.

At the time, George had no idea that a meningococcal infection was spreading through his body with alarming speed.

Within hours, he collapsed after suffering a heart attack and sustaining a devastating brain injury. He was taken urgently to hospital, where doctors discovered he had meningitis B, an aggressive infection known to disproportionately affect teenagers and young adults.

Five days later, his family faced the devastating decision to withdraw life support. George, remembered as kind, funny, beautiful and bright-eyed, had died.

Nicole, 38, said: ‘He died in his prime. If George hadn’t got meningitis B, he would be with us today. He would be 28, enjoying a good career, having finished university, and still be having fun.’

‘His death has bled into every part of my life. We were really close, and I miss him incredibly. I’d give the world to have him back.’ 

The coroner’s reports stated that the only thing that would have saved George’s life would have been a vaccination, senior public health practitioner Nicole said.

She issued an urgent warning for students to get vaccinated ahead of the return to university later this month.

In a desperate plea, she added: ‘Please check. Please ask. Please have the jabs and get protected. Please don’t make the mistake of thinking this won’t happen to you.’ 

In March, two students aged 18 and 21 were killed by meningitis B in an outbreak in Kent which infected 21 people following a fateful club night out. Another 18-year-old was killed in Oxfordshire by the disease in May.

Last week, the teenagers in Suffolk were rushed to hospital with the same infection.

Nicole spoke further about her brother’s death in 2017: ‘George felt a little unwell. Five days later he was dead. That is how quickly this disease can take hold.

‘You cannot look at a healthy 18-year-old and imagine that they could be dead within days. That’s what is so frightening about meningitis.

‘It can start with symptoms that seem ordinary, and you might not realise how seriously ill someone is until they suddenly deteriorate so quickly that they cannot be treated.’ 

Nicole painfully recalled the day she last saw her brother – a student at St Brendon’s Sixth Form College in Bristol – before he was struck down by meningitis.

George was excited – excited for his first festival experience, even excited by the journey, having never driven on a motorway before.

She said: ‘He told me he was feeling a little unwell and I advised him not to push himself. I told him to make sure he sought help if he needed it, but he wasn’t feeling too bad, so none of us were too worried.’

Nicole was jetting off to Ibiza for a week on her own adventure, which she had been really looking forward to as well. So they said their goodbyes and parted ways.

Soon after arriving in Newquay, George was texting their parents -mum Elaine, now 73, and dad Andrew Zographou, now 59 – and Snapchatting Nicole in Ibiza to tell them he had started feeling very unwell. 

The following evening, a call came that changed the family forever. George had gone into cardiac arrest and stopped breathing for 12 minutes.

Nicole said: ‘From the call, I learned he’d been blue-lighted to hospital, placed on life support and was found to have suffered a catastrophic brain injury.’

She rushed back home, getting the first flight back from Ibiza and arrived 10 hours later at her brother’s side, where he was being kept alive with a life support machine.

Nicole continued: ‘He was catastrophically brain dead. But we had no idea what was going on.

‘The doctors were asking, did he do any drugs? But George was not a risk taker and it could not have been that.

‘We found out after three days that it was Meningitis B, and his CT scan had shown he was never going to recover. So after five days, we took the only decision we could – to turn off his life-support machine.’

In a helpless moment, the family checked George’s vaccination records only to find he was not covered from the disease as they had thought. The vaccine required was not yet available in 2017.

Meningitis had already struck George’s school the year before, infecting two girls and killing one. 

Well Pharmacy’s Deputy Superintendent Pharmacist Wendy Lee, warned: ‘George’s story is tragic, but sadly not an isolated case.

‘Although the Men B vaccine is now available free of charge for students from year 13, we are extremely concerned by its current slow uptake.

‘The new university term is now just weeks away, and we urge all eligible students to get themselves booked in at their local pharmacy for an injection that might just save their life.’

The infection attacks the membranes surrounding your brain, inflaming them and putting dangerous pressure on the central nervous system.

Ms Lee said that the bacteria causing it can be carried harmlessly in the throat but can invade the bloodstream and cause meningitis and ‘become life-threatening extremely quickly.’

‘Around one in four 15–19-year-olds carry meningococcal bacteria in the back of their throat without knowing it,’ she said.

To protect against the disease, two doses of the vaccine are needed at least four weeks apart. Ms Lee added: ‘If you’ve already had your first, make sure you go back for your second appointment.’

There is currently a free NHS MenB catch-up programme offering free shots to teenagers and young adults ahead of the 2026/27 university year. 

Young people born between 1 September 2007 and 31 August 2008 – the current Year 13 age group – can get it for free, Ms Lee said.

People born on or after 21 July 2001 who are starting university or certain residential further-education colleges for the first time in autumn 2026 are also eligible.

Nicole echoed her advice, adding: ‘You just don’t know whether you’re going to be one of those people who gets it or not. And in one in 10 cases it can be fatal, just like it was for George.

‘It’s meningitis season coming up. I wouldn’t ever take the risk. It’s a very effective vaccination once you have it. And up until the age of 25, you’ve got a much higher chance to catch it, especially when you’re going into university and you’re mixing with new people.

‘It really scares me that there are people starting university in meningitis season and yet people aren’t taking this on.

‘Please take some time to go and get vaccinated. Educate yourselves, speak to your GP, your nurses. If you’re worried, you’ve got any questions, educate yourself.

‘Don’t think you’re invincible. Get the jabs and stay safe.’

An American diplomat suspected of possessing child sexual abuse images was allegedly removed from his London home in a covert US operation and flown out of the UK without British police being notified.

The former US serviceman, who was employed at the American Embassy in Nine Elms, south London, was reportedly taken from his Putney flat during an early-morning raid on August 25.

Sources allege that US officials found child abuse material at the address before taking the diplomat out of Britain and transferring him to the United States.

The reported operation is said to have followed an inquiry involving the man’s US-based brother, who is accused of sending the abusive images to the embassy worker.

British authorities were allegedly alerted only after the American national had already left the country.

The allegations have raised serious concerns over whether US authorities sidestepped UK criminal justice procedures, prompting discussions between senior Metropolitan Police officers and government ministers.

A source told the Sun: ‘They should have told Scotland Yard when they carried out the raid, and certainly when they found material.

‘Instead, we believe he was taken to a US airbase before being flown more than 4,000 miles to the area where his brother was under investigation. We understand it was a dawn operation, after which he was driven to the base in a US military convoy.

‘He may ultimately face justice in America, but he should also be brought before the courts in Britain.’

The Metropolitan Police confirmed that American authorities only made them aware of the investigation on August 25 – the day of the alleged raid.

It said: ‘On August 25, US authorities made us aware of an investigation they are conducting into suspected offences in London relating to indecent images of children. We continue to liaise with them regarding this matter.’

The diplomat is understood to have been based at the US Embassy in London and to have been living at a private address in Putney.

The operation is believed to have involved Marine Security Guards, who provide security at the US Embassy.

Flight records appear to show an unusual movement by a US-linked cargo aircraft around the time of the alleged extraction.

On August 24, a Kalitta Air Boeing 747-4R7F operating as flight K49709 travelled from Chicago to RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, where the US Air Force has a significant presence.

The following day, the same aircraft left Fairford at 5.33pm as flight K4529 and arrived at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware at 7.44pm local time after a journey of seven hours and 11 minutes.

It subsequently departed Dover at 11.22pm and flew to O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, taking around one hour and 38 minutes.

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The aircraft was listed as a cargo plane and, according to flight records, had not visited Fairford for at least two months before the August 25 journey.

It is understood that US authorities may have sought a court order in America before the raid, as the investigation centred on the diplomat’s brother.

The diplomatic row has reportedly reached the highest levels of Government, with meetings taking place involving Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley and senior ministers including Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood.

The claims could prove embarrassing for the UK’s relationship with Washington and come at a particularly sensitive time for Anglo-American relations.

The US Embassy has not confirmed the identity of the individual or provided details of the investigation.

A spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of allegations concerning an individual assigned to the Embassy. The United States government expects all personnel to adhere to the highest standards of conduct, and we take these allegations seriously.’

The British Government said: ‘We expect all foreign diplomats in the UK to abide by our laws. As a US investigation is ongoing, it would not be appropriate to comment further.’

The allegations are likely to revive memories of the long-running dispute between Britain and the US over the case of teenager Harry Dunn, who was killed in a road crash involving American national Anne Sacoolas.

Dunn, 19, died after his motorbike collided with a car driven by Sacoolas outside RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire in August 2019.

Sacoolas left Britain and returned to the United States after the crash, with diplomatic immunity asserted on her behalf.

The US subsequently rejected a British extradition request after she was charged with causing Dunn’s death by dangerous driving.

The case became a major diplomatic dispute, with the British Government insisting that Sacoolas should return to the UK to face justice.

She ultimately pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving and was sentenced by a British court in 2022 via a virtual hearing, after refusing to return to Britain. 

The Foreign Office said at the time that the case had prompted lessons to be learned over diplomatic immunity.

A 2025 independent review into the Government’s handling of the Dunn case found failures and omissions in the Foreign Office’s response and said ministers and senior officials had not become involved early enough. The Government accepted all 12 recommendations.

The review also noted that changes had since been made to close the anomaly which had allowed the immunity issue to arise in the Dunn case and that a specialist team had been created to handle complex diplomatic immunity cases.

For now, the Metropolitan Police says it remains in contact with US authorities over the investigation.

Do you have a story? Email lettice.bromovsky@dailymail.co.uk 

An award-winning Melbourne restaurateur says escalating crime has left her employees fearful after her businesses were targeted in seven break-ins.

Bangkok-born business owner Sutinee Suntivatana, 47, runs several hospitality venues with her husband, including Humble Rays Café and Tori’s Artisan Bakery and Matcha Bar.

The couple launched their first businesses in 2016 and 2021, later expanding into additional sites.

Ms Suntivatana told the Daily Mail that her venues had been burgled more than six times, most recently at the couple’s Niagara Lane bakery in August.

CCTV footage posted on Instagram showed a man wearing a black balaclava repeatedly kicking the front door until the glass gave way, before entering the bakery and taking money from the counter.

The venue’s front display windows were also smashed during the raid.

‘It was particularly upsetting because it was the first break-in at that location,’ Ms Suntivatana said.

‘Unfortunately, it has become something we almost expect rather than something that shocks us anymore.’

Despite the repeated incidents, she said she would not allow them to derail the life and businesses she has spent years building.

‘I have lived in Melbourne for around 20 years and I still love this city,’ Ms Suntivatana said.

‘I am not giving up on it, but feeling safe should not be a luxury for people who simply want to go to work and run a business.’     

Ms Suntivatana’s ordeal comes amid rising concerns about crime across Victoria. 

Crime Statistics Agency figures show 625,426 offences were recorded in the 12 months to March 2026.

More than 20,000 thefts were reported at retail stores across the state during the same period, up 11.7 per cent on the previous year.

Although Ms Suntivatana lives in constant fear that another break-in is just around the corner, she said the incidents also left her staff worried about their safety.

‘Some staff start very early in the morning or finish late, and incidents like these naturally make them feel less safe,’ she said. 

‘We have also had a serious incident where a staff member was injured during an incident at one of our venues. 

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‘As an employer, you start worrying not only about your property, but whether your staff will be safe simply coming to work.’ 

Ms Suntivatana said she had spent thousands of dollars on security upgrades, but it was not enough. 

‘Every time it happens, we pick ourselves up, repair the damage, improve security, add more cameras, spend more money and hope it doesn’t happen again,’ she said.

‘We have upgraded CCTV, alarms, and locks, paid indirect costs such as insurance, time spent dealing with incidents, repairs and disruption to the business, and continue reviewing security after every incident.

‘It helps, but unfortunately it cannot completely prevent someone who is determined to break in.’ 

While Ms Suntivatana has continued to bounce back from the setbacks, she said she wanted to devote more time to the business and less to security worries. 

‘What concerns me is that every year, we seem to spend more time thinking about security and protecting ourselves,’ she said. 

‘As business owners, our energy should be going into improving our businesses, creating jobs, training young people and making Melbourne a better city.’

In order for that to happen, Ms Suntivatana said that ‘something needs to change’.

‘More visible policing and security presence in areas with repeated incidents would help,’ she said.

‘I would also like stronger prevention, faster responses to repeat offenders and better support for small businesses affected by crime. 

‘We can install cameras, stronger doors and better alarms, but there is a limit to what we can do.’

Ms Suntivatana said she didn’t think any of that was ‘unreasonable’.  

‘We simply want our staff to come to work safely, our customers to feel safe, and our businesses to be able to operate 24/7 without constantly worrying about the next incident,’ she said. 

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