thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-21--Pope Francis: Autistic Kids Are Beautiful, Unique Flowers To God

VATICAN CITY ( AP ) — Pope Francis told a group of children with autism and spectrum disorders Monday that they are beautiful , unique flowers in the eyes of God .
Francis met with members of an Austrian center for autism , Sonnenschein ( “ Sunshine ” ) , in an audience at the Vatican .
He told them that the center ’ s name evoked a flower-filled lawn in the sun “ and the flowers of this house are you !
” Speaking to the children , their parents and caregivers from the center , Francis said : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ great variety of flowers of all different colors .
Each flower has its unique beauty .
And each one of us is beautiful in the eyes of God , who loves us.
” Francis has a particular soft spot for children , allowing himself even amid coronavirus social distancing protocols to greet and pat them on the head during his public audiences .
He has frequently met with groups of children and parents who are experiencing difficulties in caring for them , hoping to encourage them through sickness , disability , poverty and @ @ @

LOADING ERROR LOADING
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis told a group of children with autism and spectrum disorders Monday that they are beautiful, unique flowers in the eyes of God.
Francis met with members of an Austrian center for autism, Sonnenschein (“Sunshine”), in an audience at the Vatican. He told them that the center’s name evoked a flower-filled lawn in the sun “and the flowers of this house are you!”
Advertisement
Speaking to the children, their parents and caregivers from the center, Francis said: “God created the world with a great variety of flowers of all different colors. Each flower has its unique beauty. And each one of us is beautiful in the eyes of God, who loves us.”
Francis has a particular soft spot for children, allowing himself even amid coronavirus social distancing protocols to greet and pat them on the head during his public audiences.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-21--White Bar Owner Charged In Black Protester’s Death Dies By Suicide

OMAHA , Neb .
( AP ) — A white business owner charged with manslaughter for fatally shooting a Black man during protests in Nebraska has died by suicide days after his indictment , his attorney said Sunday .
Jacob Gardner , of Omaha , Nebraska , was found dead Sunday outside a medical clinic in Hillsboro , Oregon , the Hillsboro Police Department said in a news release .
His attorney , Stu Dornan , said in a news conference Sunday evening that Gardner ’ s death was a suicide .
“ Unfortunately there are two men who have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dornan said .
“ It ’ s a terrible tragedy for the Omaha community , it ’ s a terrible tragedy for James Scurlock and his family .
It ’ s a terrible tragedy for the Gardner family.
” A grand jury on Tuesday charged Gardner , 38 , with manslaughter in the death of James Scurlock , the Black man authorities say Gardner shot May 30 during a protest against police brutality and racial injustice outside Gardner ’ s bar in Omaha , Nebraska .
Gardner was also charged with attempted assault @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gun to commit a felony .
A memorial for James Scurlock remains Wednesday , Sept. 16 , 2020 , near where he was shot and killed on May 30 , in Omaha , Neb .
( AP Photo/Nati Harnik ) Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine initially decided not to charge Gardner , saying he acted in self-defense .
After intense criticism , a grand jury was called to examine the case , resulting in charges being filed against Gardner .
Dornan said Gardner , who had gone to California after the shooting , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the grand jury ’ s indictment .
“ The grand jury indictment was a shock to him , and it was a shock to us , ” Dornan said .
Attorney Tom Monaghan , who also spoke during Sunday ’ s news conference , said “ the community of Omaha had convicted Mr. Gardner on social media.
” Special Prosecutor Frederick Franklin has said the grand jury reviewed additional evidence that Kleine didn ’ t have , including texts from Gardner ’ s phone , messages on his Facebook profile and his interactions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Spurlock .
Franklin declined to provide specifics of what the new evidence shows except to say it undermines the notion of self-defense .
An arrest warrant was approved for Gardner on Friday .
He was scheduled to return to Omaha on Sunday to face the charges against him , Dornan said .
If you or someone you know needs help , call 1-800-273-8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline .
You can also text HOME to 741-741 for free , 24-hour support from the Crisis Text Line .
Outside of the U.S. , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Prevention for a database of resources .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A white business owner charged with manslaughter for fatally shooting a Black man during protests in Nebraska has died by suicide days after his indictment, his attorney said Sunday.
Jacob Gardner, of Omaha, Nebraska, was found dead Sunday outside a medical clinic in Hillsboro, Oregon, the Hillsboro Police Department said in a news release. His attorney, Stu Dornan, said in a news conference Sunday evening that Gardner’s death was a suicide.
Advertisement
“Unfortunately there are two men who have died in a terrible tragedy,” Dornan said. “It’s a terrible tragedy for the Omaha community, it’s a terrible tragedy for James Scurlock and his family. It’s a terrible tragedy for the Gardner family.”
A grand jury on Tuesday charged Gardner, 38, with manslaughter in the death of James Scurlock, the Black man authorities say Gardner shot May 30 during a protest against police brutality and racial injustice outside Gardner’s bar in Omaha, Nebraska. Gardner was also charged with attempted assault, making terroristic threats and using a gun to commit a felony.
Gardner had said the shooting was done in self-defense.
A memorial for James Scurlock remains Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, near where he was shot and killed on May 30, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik) ASSOCIATED PRESS
Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine initially decided not to charge Gardner, saying he acted in self-defense. After intense criticism, a grand jury was called to examine the case, resulting in charges being filed against Gardner.
Advertisement
Dornan said Gardner, who had gone to California after the shooting, was “really shook up” after the grand jury’s indictment.
“The grand jury indictment was a shock to him, and it was a shock to us,” Dornan said.
Attorney Tom Monaghan, who also spoke during Sunday’s news conference, said “the community of Omaha had convicted Mr. Gardner on social media.”
Special Prosecutor Frederick Franklin has said the grand jury reviewed additional evidence that Kleine didn’t have, including texts from Gardner’s phone, messages on his Facebook profile and his interactions with bystanders before coming into contact with Spurlock.
Franklin declined to provide specifics of what the new evidence shows except to say it undermines the notion of self-defense.
An arrest warrant was approved for Gardner on Friday. He was scheduled to return to Omaha on Sunday to face the charges against him, Dornan said.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-20--Kate McKinnon Pays Tribute To 'Real-Life Superhero' Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Kate McKinnon has honored Ruth Bader Ginsburg , whom she portrayed on “ Saturday Night Live , ” following the Supreme Court justice ’ s death on Friday .
“ For so many of us , Justice Ginsburg was a real-life superhero : a beacon of hope , a warrior for justice , a robed crusader who saved the day time and again , ” McKinnon said in a statement provided to several news outlets on Saturday .
“ Playing her on SNL was a profound joy because I could always feel the overwhelming love and gratitude that the audience @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legal renown and lifelong dedication to fighting for equality propelled her to become a feminist and cultural icon , died at her home in Washington on Friday due to complications from pancreatic cancer .
She was 87 .
McKinnon portrayed Ginsburg many times since at least 2012 , usually firing off zingers and dancing after each “ Ginsburn ” she delivered .
She won praise from the justice herself for her impression .
“ I liked the actress who portrayed me , and I would like to say ‘ Ginsburned ’ sometimes to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sundance Film Festival in 2018 .
She even did an impression of McKinnon ’ s impression of her .
The two were pictured crossing paths at a “ Fiddler On The Roof ” performance in New York last year .
McKinnon said Saturday that it was “ one of the great honors of my life to meet Justice Ginsburg , to shake her hand , and to thank her for her lifetime of service to this country .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Kate McKinnon has honored Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whom she portrayed on “Saturday Night Live,” following the Supreme Court justice’s death on Friday.
“For so many of us, Justice Ginsburg was a real-life superhero: a beacon of hope, a warrior for justice, a robed crusader who saved the day time and again,” McKinnon said in a statement provided to several news outlets on Saturday.
Advertisement
“Playing her on SNL was a profound joy because I could always feel the overwhelming love and gratitude that the audience had for her.”
Ginsburg, whose legal renown and lifelong dedication to fighting for equality propelled her to become a feminist and cultural icon, died at her home in Washington on Friday due to complications from pancreatic cancer. She was 87.
McKinnon portrayed Ginsburg many times since at least 2012, usually firing off zingers and dancing after each “Ginsburn” she delivered. She won praise from the justice herself for her impression.
Advertisement
“I liked the actress who portrayed me, and I would like to say ‘Ginsburned’ sometimes to my colleagues,” Ginsburg said at Sundance Film Festival in 2018. She even did an impression of McKinnon’s impression of her.
The two were pictured crossing paths at a “Fiddler On The Roof” performance in New York last year.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-20--TikTok Owner Says It Wasn't Aware Deal Included $5 Billion 'Education Fund'

ByteDance , the China-based company that owns video-sharing app TikTok , said it was not told that $ 5 billion of its deal with Walmart and Oracle would go to President Donald Trump ’ s so-called “ patriotic education ” initiative .
Trump told a campaign rally Saturday that money from TikTok ’ s sale would fund his proposal to educate children about “ the real history of our country ― the real history , not the fake history.
” Trump also gave his blessing to the sale of TikTok ’ s U.S. operation to Walmart and Oracle , corporations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ positions .
The administration pushed for the sale as a condition of allowing the app to continue operating in the U.S. Reuters was the first to report ByteDance ’ s response , which it posted to its own Chinese news and information site Toutiao .
“ The company has been committed to investing in the education field , and plans to work with partners and global shareholders to launch online classroom projects based on AI and video technology for students around the world , ” ByteDance said .
In recent months and with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leaned heavily into racist rhetoric as a tool to excite his largely white base .
Trump on Friday announced the formation of the “ 1776 Commission ” as a reaction to efforts to include lessons about slavery and racism in America ’ s schools , such as The New York Times ’ 1619 Project .
Numerous schools have incorporated content from the project , created by reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones , in an effort to improve their teaching about the role of race in American history .
Conservative media and Republican lawmakers across the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s revelations about the history of racism do not portray the country in a positive light , with some even calling it propaganda .
Trump has also argued that there is no systemic racism in the U.S. Trump made that unsubstantiated comment after a white police officer in Kenosha , Wisconsin , shot 29-year-old Black man Jacob Blake in the back seven times .

ByteDance's Beijing headquarters. GREG BAKER via Getty Images
ByteDance, the China-based company that owns video-sharing app TikTok, said it was not told that $5 billion of its deal with Walmart and Oracle would go to President Donald Trump’s so-called “patriotic education” initiative.
Trump told a campaign rally Saturday that money from TikTok’s sale would fund his proposal to educate children about “the real history of our country ― the real history, not the fake history.”
Advertisement
Trump also gave his blessing to the sale of TikTok’s U.S. operation to Walmart and Oracle, corporations with major Trump campaign donors in senior positions. The administration pushed for the sale as a condition of allowing the app to continue operating in the U.S.
Reuters was the first to report ByteDance’s response, which it posted to its own Chinese news and information site Toutiao. “The company has been committed to investing in the education field, and plans to work with partners and global shareholders to launch online classroom projects based on AI and video technology for students around the world,” ByteDance said.
In recent months and with a presidential election looming, Trump has leaned heavily into racist rhetoric as a tool to excite his largely white base.
Trump on Friday announced the formation of the “1776 Commission” as a reaction to efforts to include lessons about slavery and racism in America’s schools, such as The New York Times’ 1619 Project. Numerous schools have incorporated content from the project, created by reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones, in an effort to improve their teaching about the role of race in American history.
Advertisement
Conservative media and Republican lawmakers across the U.S. have expressed outrage that the project’s revelations about the history of racism do not portray the country in a positive light, with some even calling it propaganda.
The White House earlier banned racial sensitivity training at federal agencies, declaring it “un-American.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-20--Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski Says She Opposes SCOTUS Nominee Vote Before Election

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said Sunday that she opposes the Senate voting on a Supreme Court nominee ahead of the November election , reiterating comments she made hours before Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg ’ s death was announced on Friday .
“ For weeks , I have stated that I would not support taking up a potential Supreme Court vacancy this close to the election , ” Murkowski said in a statement Sunday .
“ Sadly , what was then a hypothetical is now our reality , but my position has not changed.
” Murkowski joins Sen. Susan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their party ’ s leadership on the matter .
President Donald Trump and many of his Republican allies have called for the vacant seat created by Ginsburg ’ s death to be filled quickly .
Confirming Trump ’ s nominee would ensure a 6-3 conservative majority among the justices .
Hours after Ginsburg ’ s death Friday , Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R- Ky. ) vowed to hold a vote on Trump ’ s nominee .
Trump said Saturday that he intends to nominate a woman for the position this week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a swift confirmation of Trump ’ s nominee of being hypocrites .
In 2016 , McConnell blocked a vote on Merrick Garland , then-President Barack Obama ’ s Supreme Court nominee to fill the vacancy created by Justice Antonin Scalia ’ s death .
McConnell had said at the time that it was too close to the presidential election to confirm a new justice .
Scalia died 269 days before the 2016 presidential election .
Ginsburg died 46 days before the 2020 presidential election .
“ I did not support taking up a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to fill the vacancy created by the passing of Justice Scalia , ” Murkowski said in her statement Sunday .
“ We are now even closer to the 2020 election — less than two months out — and I believe the same standard must apply.
” It ’ s unclear whether Collins and Murkowski would vote to oppose Trump ’ s nominee should McConnell bring a vote to the floor ahead of the election .
Neither Collins nor Murkowski has spoken out against the Senate holding a vote during the lame-duck session should @ @ @ @ @ @ @ possible Americans could vote out the Senate ’ s Republican majority in November .
But if McConnell were to hold a vote after the election but before the new Congress is sworn in , Republicans could still hold 53 of the 100 seats and have a strong chance of confirming Trump ’ s nominee .
If Democrat Mark Kelly wins Arizona ’ s special election in November , he could be seated in the Senate as early as Nov. 30 , according to The New York Times .
This would alter the makeup @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 46 Democrats and two independents ( both of whom caucus with Democrats ) .
This story has been updated to note that Democrats could take another seat in the Senate as early as Nov. 30 , narrowing the GOP ’ s majority in the chamber .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said Sunday that she opposes the Senate voting on a Supreme Court nominee ahead of the November election, reiterating comments she made hours before Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death was announced on Friday.
“For weeks, I have stated that I would not support taking up a potential Supreme Court vacancy this close to the election,” Murkowski said in a statement Sunday. “Sadly, what was then a hypothetical is now our reality, but my position has not changed.”
Advertisement
Murkowski joins Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) in breaking with their party’s leadership on the matter. President Donald Trump and many of his Republican allies have called for the vacant seat created by Ginsburg’s death to be filled quickly. Confirming Trump’s nominee would ensure a 6-3 conservative majority among the justices.
Hours after Ginsburg’s death Friday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R- Ky.) vowed to hold a vote on Trump’s nominee. Trump said Saturday that he intends to nominate a woman for the position this week.
Democrats have accused Republicans pushing for a swift confirmation of Trump’s nominee of being hypocrites. In 2016, McConnell blocked a vote on Merrick Garland, then-President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee to fill the vacancy created by Justice Antonin Scalia’s death.
McConnell had said at the time that it was too close to the presidential election to confirm a new justice. Scalia died 269 days before the 2016 presidential election. Ginsburg died 46 days before the 2020 presidential election.
Advertisement
“I did not support taking up a nomination eight months before the 2016 election to fill the vacancy created by the passing of Justice Scalia,” Murkowski said in her statement Sunday. “We are now even closer to the 2020 election — less than two months out — and I believe the same standard must apply.”
It’s unclear whether Collins and Murkowski would vote to oppose Trump’s nominee should McConnell bring a vote to the floor ahead of the election.
Neither Collins nor Murkowski has spoken out against the Senate holding a vote during the lame-duck session should Trump win reelection. It’s possible Americans could vote out the Senate’s Republican majority in November. But if McConnell were to hold a vote after the election but before the new Congress is sworn in, Republicans could still hold 53 of the 100 seats and have a strong chance of confirming Trump’s nominee.
If Democrat Mark Kelly wins Arizona’s special election in November, he could be seated in the Senate as early as Nov. 30, according to The New York Times. This would alter the makeup of the Senate to 52 Republicans, 46 Democrats and two independents (both of whom caucus with Democrats).
This story has been updated to note that Democrats could take another seat in the Senate as early as Nov. 30, narrowing the GOP’s majority in the chamber.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-20--California Desert Communities Told To Evacuate As Winds Stoke Flames

Meanwhile , officials were investigating the death of a firefighter on the lines of another Southern California wildfire that erupted earlier this month from a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device used by a couple to reveal their baby ’ s gender .
In northern Los Angeles County , firefighters focused on protecting homes Saturday as increasingly erratic winds pushed the Bobcat Fire toward foothill communities in the Antelope Valley after churning all the way across the San Gabriel Mountains .
An evacuation order was issued Saturday for all residents in that zone as the fire burned toward Wrightwood , a mountain community @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mitchell .
Some residents fled as blowing embers sparked spot fires , hitting some homes but sparing others .
Bridget Lensing feared her family ’ s house was lost on Friday after seeing on Twitter that a neighbor ’ s house three doors down went up in flames .
The house stood when she made her way back Saturday afternoon but her neighbors ’ houses in the remote community were burned to the ground .
The extent of the destruction in the area about 50 miles northeast of downtown LA wasn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ County park officials said the blaze destroyed the nature center at Devil ’ s Punchbowl Natural Area , a geological wonder that attracts some 130,000 visitors per year .
On the south side of the Bobcat Fire , firefighters continued to protect Mount Wilson , which overlooks greater Los Angeles and has a historic observatory founded more than a century ago and numerous broadcast antennas serving Southern California .
Officials said the fire has been challenging because it is burning in areas that have not burned in decades , and because the firestorms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were about 1,660 firefighters on the lines .
The name of the firefighter killed in the nearby El Dorado Fire was being withheld until family members are notified .
The body was escorted down the mountain in a procession of first-responder vehicles .
No other information was released about the circumstances of the death .
To the north , a fire burning for nearly a month in Sequoia National Forest roared to life again Friday and prompted evacuation orders for the central California mountain communities of Silver City and Mineral King .
Cal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ El Dorado Fire was ignited Sept. 5 when a couple , their young children and someone there to record video staged the baby gender reveal at El Dorado Ranch Park at the foot of the San Bernardino Mountains .
The device was set off in a field and quickly ignited dry grass .
The couple frantically tried to use bottled water to extinguish the flames and called 911 .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
JUNIPER HILLS, Calif. (AP) — Strong winds stoked a wildfire burning for nearly two weeks in mountains northeast of Los Angeles, prompting authorities to issue new evacuation orders for desert communities that lost some homes a day earlier.
Meanwhile, officials were investigating the death of a firefighter on the lines of another Southern California wildfire that erupted earlier this month from a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device used by a couple to reveal their baby’s gender.
Advertisement
The death occurred Thursday in San Bernardino National Forest as crews battled the El Dorado Fire about 75 miles east of Los Angeles, the U.S. Forest Service said in a statement.
In northern Los Angeles County, firefighters focused on protecting homes Saturday as increasingly erratic winds pushed the Bobcat Fire toward foothill communities in the Antelope Valley after churning all the way across the San Gabriel Mountains. An evacuation order was issued Saturday for all residents in that zone as the fire burned toward Wrightwood, a mountain community of 4,000, said fire spokesman Andrew Mitchell.
The fire grew to 142 square miles on Saturday when winds pushed the flames into Juniper Hills.
A fire engine is driven through the devastation left behind by the Bobcat Fire on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020, in Juniper Hills, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) ASSOCIATED PRESS
Some residents fled as blowing embers sparked spot fires, hitting some homes but sparing others. Bridget Lensing feared her family’s house was lost on Friday after seeing on Twitter that a neighbor’s house three doors down went up in flames.
Advertisement
The house stood when she made her way back Saturday afternoon but her neighbors’ houses in the remote community were burned to the ground.
“Everything around us is gone,” she said.
The extent of the destruction in the area about 50 miles northeast of downtown LA wasn’t immediately clear. But, Los Angeles County park officials said the blaze destroyed the nature center at Devil’s Punchbowl Natural Area, a geological wonder that attracts some 130,000 visitors per year.
No injuries were reported.
On the south side of the Bobcat Fire, firefighters continued to protect Mount Wilson, which overlooks greater Los Angeles and has a historic observatory founded more than a century ago and numerous broadcast antennas serving Southern California.
The fire that started Sept. 6 had already doubled in size over the last week. It is 15% contained.
Officials said the fire has been challenging because it is burning in areas that have not burned in decades, and because the firestorms across California have limited resources. There were about 1,660 firefighters on the lines.
Firefighters rush up Highway 38 as the El Dorado Fire burns in heavy timber north of Angelus Oaks, Calif., Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020. (Will Lester/The Orange County Register via AP) ASSOCIATED PRESS
Advertisement
The name of the firefighter killed in the nearby El Dorado Fire was being withheld until family members are notified. The body was escorted down the mountain in a procession of first-responder vehicles. No other information was released about the circumstances of the death.
A statement from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, said it was the 26th death involving wildfires besieging the state.
A new blaze sparked by a vehicle that caught fire was growing in wilderness outside Palm Springs.
To the north, a fire burning for nearly a month in Sequoia National Forest roared to life again Friday and prompted evacuation orders for the central California mountain communities of Silver City and Mineral King.
More than 7,900 wildfires have burned more than 5,468 square miles in California this year, including many since a mid-August barrage of dry lightning ignited parched vegetation.
The El Dorado Fire has burned more than 34 square miles and was 59% contained, with 10 buildings destroyed and six damaged.
Advertisement
Cal Fire said earlier this month that the El Dorado Fire was ignited Sept. 5 when a couple, their young children and someone there to record video staged the baby gender reveal at El Dorado Ranch Park at the foot of the San Bernardino Mountains.
The device was set off in a field and quickly ignited dry grass. The couple frantically tried to use bottled water to extinguish the flames and called 911.
Authorities have not released the identities of the couple, who could face criminal charges and be held liable for the cost of fighting the fire.
Throughout the Northwest, firefighters welcomed cooler weather and rain, as well as much-improved air quality and visibility that would allow some to survey fire activity with drones.
___
Associated Press writer John Antczak in Los Angeles and Daisy Nguyen in San Francisco contributed to this report.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-20--Nancy Pelosi Doesn't Rule Out Using Impeachment To Stall SCOTUS Nomination

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi ( D-Calif. ) on Sunday left open the possibility of using the impeachment process to prevent the Republican-controlled Senate from confirming a new Supreme Court associate justice in the next few months .
“ Well , we have our options .
We have arrows in our quiver that I ’ m not about to discuss right now , ” Pelosi said before pivoting to discuss the upcoming election and the coronavirus pandemic .
“ This president has threatened to not even accept the results of the election with statements that he and his henchmen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ So right now , our main goal ... would be to protect the integrity of the election as we protect the American people from the coronavirus.
” “ We have a responsibility , ” she said .
“ We take an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States .
We have a responsibility to meet the needs of the American people .
That is when we weigh the equities , protecting our democracy requires us to use every arrow in our quiver.
” The House impeached Trump in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him in February .
Many of his Republican allies have called for the swift filling of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg ’ s seat following her death on Friday .
Ginsburg , 87 , died from complications of cancer .
She was one of the court ’ s most liberal judges , making Republicans eager to fill her seat with a conservative .
If they succeed , the court will have a 6-3 conservative majority among the justices .
Hours after Ginsburg ’ s death , Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will receive a vote on the Senate floor .
Trump said Saturday that he will announce his nominee “ next week ” and that the person “ will be a woman.
” Democrats called out Republicans ’ hypocrisy in pushing to fill a Supreme Court vacancy before the November presidential election .
In 2016 , McConnell blocked a vote on Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland , whom then-President Barack Obama tapped to fill the vacancy created by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia .
McConnell said at the time that a confirmation vote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and that the winner of the 2016 election should pick the nominee .
Scalia died 269 days before the 2016 presidential election .
Ginsburg died 46 days before the 2020 presidential election .
Neither Collins nor Murkowski has spoken out against the Senate holding a vote during the lame-duck session should Trump win reelection .
It ’ s possible Americans could vote out the Senate ’ s Republican majority in November .
But if McConnell were to hold a vote after the election but before the new Congress is sworn in , Republicans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seats and have a strong chance of confirming Trump ’ s nominee .
If Democrat Mark Kelly wins Arizona ’ s special election in November , he could be seated in the Senate as early as Nov. 30 , according to The New York Times .
This would alter the makeup of the Senate to 52 Republicans , 46 Democrats and 2 independents ( both of whom caucus with Democrats ) .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Sunday left open the possibility of using the impeachment process to prevent the Republican-controlled Senate from confirming a new Supreme Court associate justice in the next few months.
George Stephanopoulos, host of ABC’s “This Week,” told Pelosi that some people have suggested the House could move to impeach President Donald Trump or Attorney General William Barr “as a way of stalling” the judicial nomination process.
Advertisement
“Well, we have our options. We have arrows in our quiver that I’m not about to discuss right now,” Pelosi said before pivoting to discuss the upcoming election and the coronavirus pandemic.
“This president has threatened to not even accept the results of the election with statements that he and his henchmen have made,” she said. “So right now, our main goal ... would be to protect the integrity of the election as we protect the American people from the coronavirus.”
Stephanopoulos pressed Pelosi: “But to be clear, you’re not taking any arrows out of your quiver? You’re not ruling anything out?”
Pelosi hesitated before responding, adding that Democrats will use “every arrow in our quiver” to protect democracy.
Advertisement
“We have a responsibility,” she said. “We take an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. We have a responsibility to meet the needs of the American people. That is when we weigh the equities, protecting our democracy requires us to use every arrow in our quiver.”
“We have our options. We have arrows in our quiver that I’m not about to discuss right now,” Speaker Pelosi tells @GStephanopoulos when pressed on what Democrats would do if Pres. Trump and Republicans push a SCOTUS nomination ahead of the Nov. 3 election. https://t.co/MCxVZDHboU pic.twitter.com/9Rd1sXdIQW — ABC News (@ABC) September 20, 2020
The House impeached Trump in December, and the Senate ultimately acquitted him in February. Many of his Republican allies have called for the swift filling of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat following her death on Friday.
Ginsburg, 87, died from complications of cancer. She was one of the court’s most liberal judges, making Republicans eager to fill her seat with a conservative. If they succeed, the court will have a 6-3 conservative majority among the justices.
Hours after Ginsburg’s death, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said that Trump’s nominee will receive a vote on the Senate floor. Trump said Saturday that he will announce his nominee “next week” and that the person “will be a woman.”
Advertisement
Democrats called out Republicans’ hypocrisy in pushing to fill a Supreme Court vacancy before the November presidential election. In 2016, McConnell blocked a vote on Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland, whom then-President Barack Obama tapped to fill the vacancy created by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.
McConnell said at the time that a confirmation vote would come too close to an election and that the winner of the 2016 election should pick the nominee. Scalia died 269 days before the 2016 presidential election. Ginsburg died 46 days before the 2020 presidential election.
Republicans hold a three-seat majority in the Senate. If three GOP senators defect and oppose Trump’s nominee, Vice President Mike Pence could break a tie vote.
Two Republican senators said recently that they would oppose holding a vote on a Supreme Court nominee ahead of the election.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who faces a tough reelection battle this year, told The New York Times Saturday that the winner of November’s election should choose the next Supreme Court nominee.
Advertisement
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said Sunday that the nomination process should wait until after the election.
It’s unclear whether Collins and Murkowski would vote to oppose Trump’s nominee if McConnell were to hold a vote ahead of the election.
Neither Collins nor Murkowski has spoken out against the Senate holding a vote during the lame-duck session should Trump win reelection. It’s possible Americans could vote out the Senate’s Republican majority in November. But if McConnell were to hold a vote after the election but before the new Congress is sworn in, Republicans could still hold 53 of the 100 seats and have a strong chance of confirming Trump’s nominee.
If Democrat Mark Kelly wins Arizona’s special election in November, he could be seated in the Senate as early as Nov. 30, according to The New York Times. This would alter the makeup of the Senate to 52 Republicans, 46 Democrats and 2 independents (both of whom caucus with Democrats).
Clarification: This story has been updated to note that Democrats could take another seat in the Senate as early as Nov. 30, weakening the GOP’s majority in the chamber.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-20--Hundreds Protest Felony Charges Against Denver Anti-Racism Leaders

DENVER ( AP ) — People gathered at the Colorado state Capitol in Denver on Saturday to protest the filing of felony charges against several leaders of racial justice demonstrations .
Six protesters , including organizers of demonstrations over the killing of Black 23-year-old Elijah McClain in Aurora , could face years in prison over what critics say are trumped-up charges representing an attack on the Black Lives Matter movement .
McClain died in 2019 when police used a stranglehold to arrest him and paramedics injected him with an excessive dose of a powerful sedative .
Prosecutors declined to file @ @ @ @ @ @ @ determine exactly what caused the death and that they could not prove the level of force used was unjustified .
His case received renewed attention following the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police in May .
Among the charges filed against some of the defendants Thursday are theft , for allegedly taking signs from counter-protesters , and attempted first-degree kidnapping , for involvement in a July 3 protest in which a crowd of 600 surrounded an Aurora police precinct with 18 officers inside , blocking doors with ropes , boards , picnic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The protesters demanded that two officers involved in McClain ’ s arrest be fired and charged .
All of the protesters — Lillian House , Joel Northam , Terrance Roberts , Whitney Lucero , Trey Quinn and John Ruch — face felonies brought by prosecutors in the 17th and 18th judicial districts , which cover Adams and Arapahoe counties , The Denver Post reported .
The charges are connected to demonstrations held in Aurora on June 27 , July 3 , July 12 and July 25 .
House and Northam were organizers for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ while Roberts is a well-known activist in Denver and Aurora and is co-founder of the Front Line Party for Revolutionary Action .
“ Those arrested were movement leaders demanding justice for Elijah McClain , who was brutally murdered by the Aurora PD , ” the Party for Socialism and Liberation tweeted Saturday .
“ They are facing heavy felony charges - an obvious frame-up aimed at stopping the movement .
IT WON ’ T WORK.
” Both district attorneys declined requests for interviews , the newspaper reported .
Dave Young , the district @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a news release said House , Northam and Lucero face attempted kidnapping charges because they “ unlawfully and feloniously attempted to imprison or forcibly secrete 18 officers with the intent to force them or another person to make a concession to secure their release.
” “ We support the First Amendment right of people to protest peacefully in our community but there is a difference between a peaceful protests and a riot , ” Young said in a news release .
“ When individuals cross the line and break the law , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than 30 pages long said investigators used recordings of livestreams , a transcript of a call between House and Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson , and social media posts by protesters to build a case against those arrested .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
DENVER (AP) — People gathered at the Colorado state Capitol in Denver on Saturday to protest the filing of felony charges against several leaders of racial justice demonstrations.
Six protesters, including organizers of demonstrations over the killing of Black 23-year-old Elijah McClain in Aurora, could face years in prison over what critics say are trumped-up charges representing an attack on the Black Lives Matter movement.
Advertisement
McClain died in 2019 when police used a stranglehold to arrest him and paramedics injected him with an excessive dose of a powerful sedative. Prosecutors declined to file charges, saying the coroner could not determine exactly what caused the death and that they could not prove the level of force used was unjustified. His case received renewed attention following the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police in May.
Among the charges filed against some of the defendants Thursday are theft, for allegedly taking signs from counter-protesters, and attempted first-degree kidnapping, for involvement in a July 3 protest in which a crowd of 600 surrounded an Aurora police precinct with 18 officers inside, blocking doors with ropes, boards, picnic tables and sandbags for seven hours. The protesters demanded that two officers involved in McClain’s arrest be fired and charged.
All of the protesters — Lillian House, Joel Northam, Terrance Roberts, Whitney Lucero, Trey Quinn and John Ruch — face felonies brought by prosecutors in the 17th and 18th judicial districts, which cover Adams and Arapahoe counties, The Denver Post reported. The charges are connected to demonstrations held in Aurora on June 27, July 3, July 12 and July 25.
House and Northam were organizers for the Party for Socialism and Liberation, while Roberts is a well-known activist in Denver and Aurora and is co-founder of the Front Line Party for Revolutionary Action.
Advertisement
“Those arrested were movement leaders demanding justice for Elijah McClain, who was brutally murdered by the Aurora PD,” the Party for Socialism and Liberation tweeted Saturday. “They are facing heavy felony charges - an obvious frame-up aimed at stopping the movement. IT WON’T WORK.”
Protesters through downtown Denver toward government buildings during the Drop the Charges march and rally. (Photo by Madeleine Kelly/NurPhoto NurPhoto via Getty Images
Both district attorneys declined requests for interviews, the newspaper reported. Dave Young, the district attorney in the 17th District, said in a news release said House, Northam and Lucero face attempted kidnapping charges because they “unlawfully and feloniously attempted to imprison or forcibly secrete 18 officers with the intent to force them or another person to make a concession to secure their release.”
Aurora police leaders contemplated sending in a helicopter to retrieve the officers from the building, but found that plan unfeasible.
“We support the First Amendment right of people to protest peacefully in our community but there is a difference between a peaceful protests and a riot,” Young said in a news release. “When individuals cross the line and break the law, they will be prosecuted.”
Advertisement
Arrest affidavits more than 30 pages long said investigators used recordings of livestreams, a transcript of a call between House and Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson, and social media posts by protesters to build a case against those arrested.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-20--Tropical Storm Beta Meandering Toward Texas, Louisiana

ASSOCIATED PRESS This GOES-16 GeoColor satellite image taken Saturday , Sept. 19 , 2020 , and provided by NOAA , shows Tropical Storm Beta , center , in the Gulf of Mexico .
A hurricane watch is in effect Saturday for coastal Texas as Tropical Storm Beta gains strength .
A storm surge watch and a tropical storm watch are also in effect for the area during an exceptionally busy Atlantic hurricane season .
( NOAA via AP ) Beta was one of three named storms whirling in the Atlantic basin during an exceptionally busy hurricane season .
If the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forecasters predict it will sometime Monday — it would be the ninth named storm to make landfall in the continental U.S. in 2020 .
Colorado State hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach said that would tie a record set in 1916 .
Coastal communities began preparing for Beta over the weekend , with both the city of Galveston and Galveston County on Saturday issued voluntary evacuation orders .
The city of Seabrook to the north of Galveston did , too .
Mayor Pro Tem Craig Brown said in a statement that high tides and up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of expected rainfall would leave roads impassable , especially along the city ’ s west end and low-lying areas .
“ If you can survive in your home for three or four days without power and electricity , which we ’ re not even sure that ’ s going to happen , you ’ re OK , ” Henry said .
“ If it ’ s uncomfortable or you need life support equipment , maybe go somewhere else.
” Beta was brewing in the Gulf of Mexico , 205 miles ( 355 kilometers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the U.S. National Hurricane Center said Sunday morning .
The storm had maximum sustained winds at 60 mph ( 95 kph ) and was moving west-northwest at 3 mph ( 6 kph ) .
In Lake Charles , Louisiana , where thousands of people remain without power more than three weeks after Hurricane Laura slammed into the coast , there are concerns that Beta could super-soak the region once again .
Up to 20 inches of rain ( 51 centimeters ) is possible in some parts of the area , Donald Jones , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lake Charles , said in a Saturday briefing .
“ A lot of people have been saying , ‘ Is this going to be like Harvey ?
Is this going to be like Imelda ?
’ ” Jones said .
“ We ’ re not talking about rainfall totals yet that are on the orders of magnitude that we saw with that.
” Imelda , which struck southeast Texas in 2019 , was one of the wettest cyclones on record .
Harvey — which dumped more than 50 inches ( 127 centimeters ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ However , if the storm ends up moving a bit slower than what ’ s being forecast now , rainfall totals could be even higher than 20 inches , Jones said .
“ Harvey was a very specific and unique event , but we are talking about the same idea in terms of very heavy , heavy rainfall , ” he said .
Forecasters were predicting up to 4 feet ( 1.2 meters ) of storm surge from Port Aransas , Texas , to Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge , Louisiana .
Strong winds , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were also expected with the storm .
Forecasters ran out of traditional storm names on Friday , forcing the use of the Greek alphabet for only the second time since the 1950s .
Meanwhile , Hurricane Teddy remained a powerful hurricane Sunday , with maximum sustained winds at 115 mph ( 185 kph ) and moving northwest at 12 mph ( 19 kph ) .
Teddy was centered 340 miles ( 550 kilometers ) south-southeast of Bermuda less than a week after Hurricane Paulette made landfall in the wealthy British territory .
A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bermuda .
Large swells from Teddy were impacting the Lesser Antilles , the Greater Antilles , the Bahamas , Bermuda , the U.S. East Coast and Atlantic Canada , forecasters said .
Parts of the Alabama coast and Florida Panhandle were still reeling from the effects of Hurricane Sally , which roared ashore on Wednesday .
At least two deaths were blamed on the system .
Roughly 82,300 were still without power in the Florida Panhandle on Saturday .
Gulf Power said 95 % of its customers in hardest hit Escambia and Santa @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the end of the day Tuesday .

This GOES-16 GeoColor satellite image taken Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020, and provided by NOAA, shows Tropical Storm Beta, center, in the Gulf of Mexico. A hurricane watch is in effect Saturday for coastal Texas as Tropical Storm Beta gains strength. A storm surge watch and a tropical storm watch are also in effect for the area during an exceptionally busy Atlantic hurricane season. (NOAA via AP) ASSOCIATED PRESS
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Tropical Storm Beta on Sunday was making a slow crawl to the shores of Texas and Louisiana, casting worries about heavy rain, flooding and storm surge across the Gulf Coast.
Beta was one of three named storms whirling in the Atlantic basin during an exceptionally busy hurricane season. If the system makes landfall in Texas — which forecasters predict it will sometime Monday — it would be the ninth named storm to make landfall in the continental U.S. in 2020. Colorado State hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach said that would tie a record set in 1916.
Advertisement
Coastal communities began preparing for Beta over the weekend, with both the city of Galveston and Galveston County on Saturday issued voluntary evacuation orders. The city of Seabrook to the north of Galveston did, too.
Mayor Pro Tem Craig Brown said in a statement that high tides and up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) of expected rainfall would leave roads impassable, especially along the city’s west end and low-lying areas.
County Judge Mark Henry said during a Saturday news conference that his concern is also based on rising waters creating a storm surge and that a mandatory evacuation is not expected.
“If you can survive in your home for three or four days without power and electricity, which we’re not even sure that’s going to happen, you’re OK,” Henry said. “If it’s uncomfortable or you need life support equipment, maybe go somewhere else.”
Advertisement
Beta was brewing in the Gulf of Mexico, 205 miles (355 kilometers) southeast of Galveston, Texas, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said Sunday morning. The storm had maximum sustained winds at 60 mph (95 kph) and was moving west-northwest at 3 mph (6 kph).
Little change in strength was expected as the system approaches Texas, forecasters said. Earlier predictions showed Beta could reach hurricane strength before making landfall.
A tropical storm warning was in effect from Port Aransas, Texas, to Morgan City, Louisiana. A hurricane watch, a tropical storm watch and a storm surge watch were all discontinued Sunday morning.
In Lake Charles, Louisiana, where thousands of people remain without power more than three weeks after Hurricane Laura slammed into the coast, there are concerns that Beta could super-soak the region once again. Up to 20 inches of rain (51 centimeters) is possible in some parts of the area, Donald Jones, a National Weather Service meteorologist based in Lake Charles, said in a Saturday briefing.
“A lot of people have been saying, ‘Is this going to be like Harvey? Is this going to be like Imelda?’” Jones said. “We’re not talking about rainfall totals yet that are on the orders of magnitude that we saw with that.” Imelda, which struck southeast Texas in 2019, was one of the wettest cyclones on record. Harvey — which dumped more than 50 inches (127 centimeters) of rain on Houston in 2017.
Advertisement
However, if the storm ends up moving a bit slower than what’s being forecast now, rainfall totals could be even higher than 20 inches, Jones said.
“Harvey was a very specific and unique event, but we are talking about the same idea in terms of very heavy, heavy rainfall,” he said.
Forecasters were predicting up to 4 feet (1.2 meters) of storm surge from Port Aransas, Texas, to Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge, Louisiana. Strong winds, and life-threatening surf and rip current conditions were also expected with the storm.
Forecasters ran out of traditional storm names on Friday, forcing the use of the Greek alphabet for only the second time since the 1950s.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Teddy remained a powerful hurricane Sunday, with maximum sustained winds at 115 mph (185 kph) and moving northwest at 12 mph (19 kph). Teddy was centered 340 miles (550 kilometers) south-southeast of Bermuda less than a week after Hurricane Paulette made landfall in the wealthy British territory.
Advertisement
A tropical storm warning was in effect for Bermuda. Large swells from Teddy were impacting the Lesser Antilles, the Greater Antilles, the Bahamas, Bermuda, the U.S. East Coast and Atlantic Canada, forecasters said.
Tropical Storm Wilfred was still at sea but expected to dissipate by Tuesday.
Parts of the Alabama coast and Florida Panhandle were still reeling from the effects of Hurricane Sally, which roared ashore on Wednesday. At least two deaths were blamed on the system. Roughly 82,300 were still without power in the Florida Panhandle on Saturday. Gulf Power said 95% of its customers in hardest hit Escambia and Santa Rosa counties will have power restored by the end of the day Tuesday.
Meanwhile, residents in Springfield were warned to avoid contact with standing water after 5,000 gallons (about 19,000 liters) of raw sewage spilled into Lake Martin, according to county health officials.
The Salvation Army was distributing roughly 10,000 meals Saturday at 10 locations throughout the Panhandle.
___


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-22--Before You Call My Son A Jerk, There's Something You Should Know About Him

Our sweet boy spent eight grueling weeks in a neonatal intensive care unit four hours from our home .
The rhythm of his heartbeat was marked with a loud beep ; an alarm sounded each time that rhythm went awry .
A different alarm announced that he had stopped breathing .
CA was fed with one tube and breathed with help from another .
The chaos in his hospital room made holding him difficult but , thankfully , not impossible .
When CA could breathe and eat on his own , he was released from the hospital with assurances that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ life .
The worst , we thought , was behind us .
We were wrong .
By age 2 , we could not get through a meal without CA throwing everything he could reach .
He damaged his toys .
He kicked , scratched and bit other children .
He liked to be alone and preferred not to play with or near others .
He had epic tantrums and odd behaviors , including rocking his torso and head so violently that we worried about head injury .
We had to bolt his bed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and games from his bedroom .
We could not leave him alone for even a second for fear he would hurt himself , his sister or our pets .
After an eardrum-shattering tantrum at the farmers market , we stopped taking our son in public .
We saw the stares and heard the comments muttered under the breaths of bystanders who were certain that : ( a ) we were horrible parents who refused to discipline our child ; and/or ( b ) CA was a poorly supervised , unloved hooligan .
For @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , stopped eating out and stayed home from community events just to avoid the judgment we felt .
We still felt the anxiety , frustration and fear that came with having a child we could not explain or control .
We just did it without an audience .
Because my husband and I had to work , however , day care could not be avoided .
CA initially did well at an in-home day care , but his escalating behaviors became too much for the provider .
A move to a day care @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s unwillingness or inability to understand our son ’ s demanding personality .
We gave up on day care altogether the day he bit seven children over a 90-minute period .
We shifted our work schedules to care for CA at home , but we faced the same day-to-day struggles his day care providers had .
We applied various disciplinary styles : some with tiny successes and more with disastrous ends .
Soon our son began to display opposition and defiance in addition to physical aggression .
Although we still feared public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forever insulate our son from the world ( or the world from him ) .
One Sunday when he was 3½ , we attended services at our church .
We sat in the back to ease a quick exit , but CA was on his best behavior and appeared to enjoy the goings-on .
That is until , late in the service , I walked toward the altar to take communion with my son in my arms .
As we neared the dais where the praise band played , CA began to squirm @ @ @ @ @ @ @ inconsolable crying accompanied by kicking , rearing and head-banging .
All front-and-center , to the dismay of several hundred onlookers .
We left quickly , but the tantrum continued for 45 minutes more as we strapped him into his car seat and retreated to our home .
When the storm passed , CA provided a shocking explanation for his outburst : The loud music “ hurt his body.
” After the Epic Church Tantrum of 2019 , my husband and I easily recognized CA ’ s hypersensitivity to sound .
We also suspected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was no mystery that standing too close or picking him up without warning was a risk to one ’ s life and limb .
Still , in our minds , these sensitivities could not explain the number and severity of tantrums and aggression we faced on a daily basis .
And thus came our introduction to the “ hidden ” senses : the vestibular and proprioceptive systems .
The vestibular systems help us balance and orient ourselves in space .
Children with vestibular processing disorder can not easily recognize whether their bodies are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ moving , how fast and in what direction .
Some children cope by avoiding movement altogether ; others seek movement in its most extreme forms .
Vestibular function is also responsible for the “ flight , freeze or fight ” response we experience when stressed or frightened .
Without a clear idea of which action to take , children with vestibular dysfunction often react to everyday frustrations in an overly anxious or highly emotional manner .
CA has been diagnosed with global developmental delays resulting from his premature birth .
As a result @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and physical therapy ( OT/PT ) , and he has received special education services from our school district since birth .
These service providers have been instrumental in ensuring that CA has the SPD therapy and support services he needs .
In fact , the same month we learned about SPD , CA ’ s special education case manager called to ask about our plans for preschool for the coming school year .
My husband and I were aghast .
We had assumed preschool was out of the question for our son .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ behaviors and access to therapies to address them , but there was still a 50/50 chance any interaction between CA and another child would end in tears and/or physical harm .
After several conversations with the school and CA ’ s OT/PT providers , we signed him up for preschool and held our breath .
Our anxiety increased when we learned CA ’ s teacher was just one year out of college .
Believing this fresh-faced educator would be clueless about SPD , we scheduled a meeting intending to inform her of what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meeting by giving us a tour of her room , which included a “ calm-down tent ” for kids who need a moment to themselves , weighted lap blankets for those who require proprioceptive input and a daily schedule with photographs to assist anxious students in transitioning from one activity to the next .
Clearly , our son was in the right place .
Surrounded by this great support system , CA thrived in preschool .
He made friends , played appropriately and discovered a love for books .
Weekly occupational and physical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ services gave CA an opportunity to move with the speed and force he sought .
A supportive preschool staff and a fantastic special education team cheered him on with every success and had the know-how to address his behaviors in a positive way .
We still struggled at home sometimes , but we were slowly learning how to parent this special child in the best way we could .
Without school-based supports or physical and occupational therapy , CA did not receive the sensory input he needs .
With two parents working from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he did not receive the attention he deserved .
His behavior regressed ― his tantrums reappeared stronger than ever , he flatly refused to obey household rules , he responded to discipline with headbutts and scratching , and he screamed himself hoarse .
Worse than the times when we chose to retreat from the public , the quarantine meant we had no way to escape the chaos .
My husband and I grew exhausted and sad , our daughter frustrated and angry , and CA lost his bright smile .

CA at preschool in September 2019 Courtesy of Kristin Asche
My 5-year-old son was kicked out of two day cares for his behavior ― for biting; for rocking so hard he damaged furniture; and for pinching, pushing and hitting. We have had to leave public places due to embarrassing tantrums. I get nervous every time another child stands too close to him ― there is a 50/50 chance the interaction will go well or the other child will be crying within seconds.
But all children start out as innocent, tiny babies. Our story is no different.
My son, CA, was born under inauspicious circumstances. He was nine weeks premature and weighed just 3 pounds, 6 ounces. His lungs were underdeveloped. He had been exposed to MRSA, hepatitis and, likely, methamphetamines in utero. His birth mother was a drug user with a strong distaste for basic obstetrics care and general nutrition.
Advertisement
Prior to his birth, CA’s birth mom arranged for my husband and me to adopt him. The moment we heard of his birth, we stepped into the role of CA’s parents. He was our son, and we fully intended to celebrate his birth and life despite his adverse beginning.
Our sweet boy spent eight grueling weeks in a neonatal intensive care unit four hours from our home. The rhythm of his heartbeat was marked with a loud beep; an alarm sounded each time that rhythm went awry. A different alarm announced that he had stopped breathing. CA was fed with one tube and breathed with help from another. The chaos in his hospital room made holding him difficult but, thankfully, not impossible. When CA could breathe and eat on his own, he was released from the hospital with assurances that he would live a long and healthy life. The worst, we thought, was behind us. We were wrong.
CA’s bright blue eyes, blond hair and perfect chin dimple give him the appearance of an angel, but he was temperamental from the beginning. He cried easily and often; feeding was a struggle; he disliked being held. Yet even his darkest moods as a baby did not prepare us for the destruction he wrought as a toddler.
By age 2, we could not get through a meal without CA throwing everything he could reach. He damaged his toys. He kicked, scratched and bit other children. He liked to be alone and preferred not to play with or near others. He had epic tantrums and odd behaviors, including rocking his torso and head so violently that we worried about head injury. We had to bolt his bed to the wall and remove all toys and games from his bedroom. We could not leave him alone for even a second for fear he would hurt himself, his sister or our pets.
Advertisement
CA in the neonatal intensive care unit on Sept. 14, 2015, the day he was born. Courtesy of Kristin Asche
I like to think my husband and I are relatively intelligent people. We each obtained advanced degrees and enjoy our rigorous professional careers. Imagine how frustrated we were with our inability to effectively communicate with our own toddler. Despite our best efforts, we could not determine what triggered our son’s destructive behavior or what we could do to stop it.
After an eardrum-shattering tantrum at the farmers market, we stopped taking our son in public. We saw the stares and heard the comments muttered under the breaths of bystanders who were certain that: (a) we were horrible parents who refused to discipline our child; and/or (b) CA was a poorly supervised, unloved hooligan. For many months, we skipped social engagements, stopped eating out and stayed home from community events just to avoid the judgment we felt. We still felt the anxiety, frustration and fear that came with having a child we could not explain or control. We just did it without an audience.
Because my husband and I had to work, however, day care could not be avoided. CA initially did well at an in-home day care, but his escalating behaviors became too much for the provider. A move to a day care center proved catastrophic due to the staff’s unwillingness or inability to understand our son’s demanding personality. We gave up on day care altogether the day he bit seven children over a 90-minute period. We shifted our work schedules to care for CA at home, but we faced the same day-to-day struggles his day care providers had. We applied various disciplinary styles: some with tiny successes and more with disastrous ends. Soon our son began to display opposition and defiance in addition to physical aggression.
Although we still feared public scrutiny, we knew we could not forever insulate our son from the world (or the world from him). One Sunday when he was 3½, we attended services at our church. We sat in the back to ease a quick exit, but CA was on his best behavior and appeared to enjoy the goings-on. That is until, late in the service, I walked toward the altar to take communion with my son in my arms. As we neared the dais where the praise band played, CA began to squirm and whine, which then turned to inconsolable crying accompanied by kicking, rearing and head-banging. All front-and-center, to the dismay of several hundred onlookers. We left quickly, but the tantrum continued for 45 minutes more as we strapped him into his car seat and retreated to our home. When the storm passed, CA provided a shocking explanation for his outburst: The loud music “hurt his body.”
Advertisement
We are active and engaged parents who strive for respect and kindness. In fact, we prided ourselves on our consistency with CA’s older sister, back when she was an only child. We workshop parenting issues among our friends, read the mommy blogs and parenting books, and consult with professionals as needed. Nothing we’d heard, read or discussed up to this point had prepared us to decode what it means when a child feels physical pain in the presence of loud music.
Through extensive research and consultation with CA’s pediatrician, early childhood staff from our school district and a family counselor, we learned that CA’s behavior was likely the consequence of a sensory processing disorder (SPD).
The author with CA in August 2019. Courtesy of Kristin Asche
Sensory processing refers to the way the brain receives and responds to messages from the senses (sight, taste, smell, hearing and touch). SPD is a neurological disorder that exists when the brain either cannot receive those messages or cannot interpret the messages it receives. The disorder was first recognized in the 1960s by Dr. Jean Ayres, who described SPD as a “traffic jam of the brain.”
Advertisement
After the Epic Church Tantrum of 2019, my husband and I easily recognized CA’s hypersensitivity to sound. We also suspected he was hypersensitive to touch. It was no mystery that standing too close or picking him up without warning was a risk to one’s life and limb. Still, in our minds, these sensitivities could not explain the number and severity of tantrums and aggression we faced on a daily basis. And thus came our introduction to the “hidden” senses: the vestibular and proprioceptive systems.
The vestibular systems help us balance and orient ourselves in space. Children with vestibular processing disorder cannot easily recognize whether their bodies are moving or still, and, if moving, how fast and in what direction. Some children cope by avoiding movement altogether; others seek movement in its most extreme forms. Vestibular function is also responsible for the “flight, freeze or fight” response we experience when stressed or frightened. Without a clear idea of which action to take, children with vestibular dysfunction often react to everyday frustrations in an overly anxious or highly emotional manner.
The proprioceptive processing system helps us know where our bodies begin and end. Children with proprioceptive processing disorder do not instinctively know how to move and with how much effort. As a result, they can be awkward and clumsy, and have no sense of their own strength. As a result, they are in constant motion, bump into things or seem out of control.
Little is known about the cause of SPD, but risk factors include premature birth, in utero drug exposure, certain developmental delays or neurological disorders, and being over- or under-stimulated during crucial periods of neurological development, which may occur during lengthy hospitalization or institutionalization in infancy or early childhood. In other words, our son’s inauspicious beginning put him at high risk for SPD.
Children with SPD benefit greatly from physical and occupational therapies, where they learn to manage their responses to sensations and practice coping mechanisms to address their sensitivities. Unfortunately, some mental health providers do not recognize SPD as a true disorder. Worse still, most health insurance carriers refuse to cover the therapies most beneficial to children with SPD. Others only cover therapies provided in conjunction with a separately diagnosed mental health or neurological disorder, such as autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Advertisement
CA has been diagnosed with global developmental delays resulting from his premature birth. As a result, our insurance carrier covers pediatric occupational and physical therapy (OT/PT), and he has received special education services from our school district since birth. These service providers have been instrumental in ensuring that CA has the SPD therapy and support services he needs. In fact, the same month we learned about SPD, CA’s special education case manager called to ask about our plans for preschool for the coming school year. My husband and I were aghast. We had assumed preschool was out of the question for our son. We had a better understanding of his behaviors and access to therapies to address them, but there was still a 50/50 chance any interaction between CA and another child would end in tears and/or physical harm.
CA at occupational therapy in June 2019 Courtesy of Kristin Asche
After several conversations with the school and CA’s OT/PT providers, we signed him up for preschool and held our breath. Our anxiety increased when we learned CA’s teacher was just one year out of college. Believing this fresh-faced educator would be clueless about SPD, we scheduled a meeting intending to inform her of what we knew. Teacher Abby began the meeting by giving us a tour of her room, which included a “calm-down tent” for kids who need a moment to themselves, weighted lap blankets for those who require proprioceptive input and a daily schedule with photographs to assist anxious students in transitioning from one activity to the next. Clearly, our son was in the right place.
Surrounded by this great support system, CA thrived in preschool. He made friends, played appropriately and discovered a love for books. Weekly occupational and physical therapy at a hospital and school-based support services gave CA an opportunity to move with the speed and force he sought. A supportive preschool staff and a fantastic special education team cheered him on with every success and had the know-how to address his behaviors in a positive way. We still struggled at home sometimes, but we were slowly learning how to parent this special child in the best way we could.
Advertisement
Then COVID-19 hit, and the tenuous peace we were beginning to enjoy came to an end.
Without school-based supports or physical and occupational therapy, CA did not receive the sensory input he needs. With two parents working from home and a sister doing distance learning, he did not receive the attention he deserved. His behavior regressed ― his tantrums reappeared stronger than ever, he flatly refused to obey household rules, he responded to discipline with headbutts and scratching, and he screamed himself hoarse. Worse than the times when we chose to retreat from the public, the quarantine meant we had no way to escape the chaos. My husband and I grew exhausted and sad, our daughter frustrated and angry, and CA lost his bright smile.
Now six months later, we are nervously preparing CA for his return to school. He will have an experienced teacher, and his special education team is ready and willing to get him back on track. We have resumed weekly occupation and physical therapy to ensure he gets the sensory input he needs. We are setting him up for success, and we believe in this bright, funny and intelligent child.
Yet I still worry about those people who stand in judgment when CA cannot regulate his feelings or behavior. I guess if we happen to be in public when we miss a behavior trigger or CA simply cannot cope with an unavoidable one, I will simply inform the assembled audience that my son is not a little jerk. He has sensory processing disorder.
Kristin Asche is a lawyer who spends her free time advocating for children with disabilities, adoptive families and those who wish to adopt, and the public school system. After her son, CA, was born, Kristin found a new passion in learning about the infant brain and how its development affects behavior. She and her family live in northern Minnesota, where they are surrounded by lakes, trees and halfway decent pizza. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram at @bitsobroccoli.
Do you have a compelling personal story you’d like to see published on HuffPost? Find out what we’re looking for here and send us a pitch!


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-22--RFK's Grandson Blew The Whistle On Kushner's 'Lord Of The Flies' COVID Task Force: Report

Robert F. Kennedy ’ s grandson volunteered to work on a COVID-19 task force run by White House senior adviser Jared Kushner .
But he ended up sending a complaint to Congress after witnessing what he described as a chaotic , dismal “ Lord of The Flies ” operation , The New Yorker reported Monday .
“ I just couldn ’ t sleep , ” Max Kennedy Jr. , 26 , told the magazine .
“ I was so distressed and disturbed by what I ’ d seen.
” Kennedy detailed a poorly managed operation to procure desperately needed medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ volunteers .
There appeared to be no vision , no strategy , and no real leadership driving the operation , he recounted .
Kennedy , a lifelong Democrat , said he volunteered for the COVID Supply-Chain Task Force because it was “ such an unprecedented time.
” But he said he was stunned to learn that he and some 12 other young volunteers were essentially the government ’ s team in charge of obtaining protective equipment like masks , gloves and hospital gowns for frontline workers .
They were using their own laptops @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they could .
“ We were the entire frontline team , ” an incredulous Kennedy told the magazine .
The volunteer numbers were more appropriate for an “ after-school event — not to run the greatest crisis in a hundred years , ” he said .
And there was no urgency to mobilize more people for such an “ unbelievably colossal ” challenge , he added .
Kennedy said he suspected that inexperienced volunteers were used so that the White House could “ control the narrative , ” and wouldn ’ t be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was alarmed Trump consistently underplayed the danger of COVID-19 and the dire of lack of supplies .
Trump ’ s solution for the chaos was to blame states — a strategy that won him praise as a “ marketing genius ” from his aides , Kennedy recounted .
Kennedy ignored a nondisclosure agreement he had been required to sign and sent an anonymous complaint to the House Oversight Committee , he told the magazine .
He quit in April .
The supply operation was like a “ family office meets organized crime , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ’ ” Kennedy said .
There was no immediate response from the White House .
It wasn ’ t clear what happened to his complaint to Congress .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Robert F. Kennedy’s grandson volunteered to work on a COVID-19 task force run by White House senior adviser Jared Kushner. But he ended up sending a complaint to Congress after witnessing what he described as a chaotic, dismal “Lord of The Flies” operation, The New Yorker reported Monday.
“I just couldn’t sleep,” Max Kennedy Jr., 26, told the magazine. “I was so distressed and disturbed by what I’d seen.”
Advertisement
Kennedy detailed a poorly managed operation to procure desperately needed medical supplies run by an inexperienced crew of volunteers. There appeared to be no vision, no strategy, and no real leadership driving the operation, he recounted.
Kennedy, a lifelong Democrat, said he volunteered for the COVID Supply-Chain Task Force because it was “such an unprecedented time.”
“It seemed larger than the administration,” he told The New Yorker.
But he said he was stunned to learn that he and some 12 other young volunteers were essentially the government’s team in charge of obtaining protective equipment like masks, gloves and hospital gowns for frontline workers. They were using their own laptops and personal email accounts to do what they could.
“We were the entire frontline team,” an incredulous Kennedy told the magazine. The volunteer numbers were more appropriate for an “after-school event — not to run the greatest crisis in a hundred years,” he said. And there was no urgency to mobilize more people for such an “unbelievably colossal” challenge, he added.
Advertisement
Kennedy said he suspected that inexperienced volunteers were used so that the White House could “control the narrative,” and wouldn’t be contradicted by anyone with expertise.
He was alarmed Trump consistently underplayed the danger of COVID-19 and the dire of lack of supplies. Trump’s solution for the chaos was to blame states — a strategy that won him praise as a “marketing genius” from his aides, Kennedy recounted.
Kennedy ignored a nondisclosure agreement he had been required to sign and sent an anonymous complaint to the House Oversight Committee, he told the magazine. He quit in April.
The supply operation was like a “family office meets organized crime, melded with ‘Lord of The Flies,’” Kennedy said.
“It was a government of chaos,” he added.
There was no immediate response from the White House. It wasn’t clear what happened to his complaint to Congress.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-22--Anthony Fauci Shows Exactly When And How To Wear A Face Mask, And When You Don't Need It

Dr. Anthony Fauci , the nation ’ s leading infectious disease expert , has you covered .
( Watch the video below at the 11:00 mark . )
On “ The Daily Show ” Monday , Fauci fielded questions from host Trevor Noah about when and where to wear a mask during the coronavirus pandemic , and when not to .
In short , you don ’ t necessarily need to wear a mask when you ’ re riding your bicycle on the street , “ but you should have it in case you come into close contact with people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for restaurants , you should take off your mask to eat , obviously , but put it back on between courses because there ’ s enough movement where people are likely to be within 6 feet of you at some point , Fauci noted .
Noah got a little hung up on the issue of mask contamination via the neck , so Fauci demonstrated a flip move for safely reinstalling a mask .
Fauci recommended keeping your mask on in an empty elevator and even in a near-empty movie theater .
He also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if someone can ’ t understand you while you ’ re talking with a mask on .
Watch him explain at the 11-minute mark below .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Need smart advice on some confusing face mask issues?
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, has you covered. (Watch the video below at the 11:00 mark.)
On “The Daily Show” Monday, Fauci fielded questions from host Trevor Noah about when and where to wear a mask during the coronavirus pandemic, and when not to.
Advertisement
In short, you don’t necessarily need to wear a mask when you’re riding your bicycle on the street, “but you should have it in case you come into close contact with people,” the doctor said.
As for restaurants, you should take off your mask to eat, obviously, but put it back on between courses because there’s enough movement where people are likely to be within 6 feet of you at some point, Fauci noted.
Noah got a little hung up on the issue of mask contamination via the neck, so Fauci demonstrated a flip move for safely reinstalling a mask.
Advertisement
Fauci recommended keeping your mask on in an empty elevator and even in a near-empty movie theater. He also had firm advice on what to do if someone can’t understand you while you’re talking with a mask on.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-22--Trump’s Wildest Coronavirus Claim Yet Gets Instant Fact-Check On Twitter

President Donald Trump attempted to downplay the coronavirus pandemic on Monday as the U.S. death toll approached 200,000 by saying it affects “ elderly people with heart problems and other problems.
” Trump also said the virus doesn ’ t really affect anyone below the age of 18 .
“ In some states , thousands of people , nobody young ... they have a strong immune system , who knows , ” he said .
“ But it affects virtually nobody .
It ’ s an amazing thing.
” According to the CDC , some 400,000 people under the age @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus .
While many cases were mild or even without symptoms , at least 576 patients under the age of 18 were hospitalized for the infection between March and July .
“ It ’ s turning out it ’ s not just old people , ” Trump told journalist Bob Woodward in March in comments that were only recently made public .
“ Just today and yesterday , some startling facts came out .
It ’ s not just old –- older .
Young people , too .
Plenty of young people.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ continued to spend much of the pandemic trying to downplay the virus .
In February , he predicted the number of cases “ within a couple of days ” would be “ down to close to zero.
” More recently , Trump has tried to dismiss cases in “ blue ” states .
“ The blue states had tremendous death rates , ” Trump said last week .
“ If you take the blue states out , we ’ re at a level that I don ’ t think anybody in the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ really at a very low level.
” Former Vice President Joe Biden took the opposite approach when asked about the climbing death toll , warning against becoming numb to the news .
“ We can ’ t lose the ability to feel the sorrow and the loss and the anger for so many lives lost , ” Biden said in Manitowoc , Wisconsin on Monday .
“ We can ’ t let the numbers become statistics , a background noise , just a blur that we see on the nightly news.
” Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just numbers but “ empty chairs at dining room tables and kitchen tables that weeks and months ago were filled with a loved one , a mom , a dad , a brother , a sister.
” On social media , Trump ’ s critics zeroed in on his use of the phrase “ virtually nobody ” as both callous and inaccurate : Trump 's point here is even more cruel than it seems : those who are lost to COVID are just `` nobodies '' to him -- the same way that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' and `` losers . ''
https : //t.co/EAdr9Qf4bV — Ronald Klain ( @ RonaldKlain ) September 22 , 2020 Hey newsflash from trump , a guy I trust for all my medical information !
( He is an expert in all topics ) Corona doesn ’ t really affect the young , like if you ’ re under 18 you ’ re good , soooo it affects virtually nobody !
Phew !
https : //t.co/XivyocRKf9 — Rachel Dratch ( @ TheRealDratch ) September 22 , 2020 '' It affects virtually nobody '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Americans ( that we know of ) & 31M worldwide , and killed 200K Americans ( 963K dead worldwide ) , but sure , keep telling your BS to your gullible base who trust a 2nd grade reality tv show guy over facts & science .
https : //t.co/3bZIJ9iUn7 — Francesco Francavilla ( @ f_francavilla ) September 22 , 2020

LOADING ERROR LOADING
President Donald Trump attempted to downplay the coronavirus pandemic on Monday as the U.S. death toll approached 200,000 by saying it affects “elderly people with heart problems and other problems.”
“That’s what it really affects,” Trump said during a campaign rally in Ohio. “That’s it.”
Trump also said the virus doesn’t really affect anyone below the age of 18.
“In some states, thousands of people, nobody young... they have a strong immune system, who knows,” he said. “But it affects virtually nobody. It’s an amazing thing.”
Advertisement
"It affects virtually nobody," Trump says of the coronavirus, which has now killed 200,000 Americans and counting pic.twitter.com/qHrZvUWNhX — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 22, 2020
According to the CDC, some 400,000 people under the age of 18 have been infected with the coronavirus. While many cases were mild or even without symptoms, at least 576 patients under the age of 18 were hospitalized for the infection between March and July.
The president’s comments also contradicted his own past statements.
“It’s turning out it’s not just old people,” Trump told journalist Bob Woodward in March in comments that were only recently made public. “Just today and yesterday, some startling facts came out. It’s not just old –- older. Young people, too. Plenty of young people.”
In public, however, Trump has continued to spend much of the pandemic trying to downplay the virus. In February, he predicted the number of cases “within a couple of days” would be “down to close to zero.” More recently, Trump has tried to dismiss cases in “blue” states.
Advertisement
“The blue states had tremendous death rates,” Trump said last week. “If you take the blue states out, we’re at a level that I don’t think anybody in the world would be at, we’re really at a very low level.”
Former Vice President Joe Biden took the opposite approach when asked about the climbing death toll, warning against becoming numb to the news.
“We can’t lose the ability to feel the sorrow and the loss and the anger for so many lives lost,” Biden said in Manitowoc, Wisconsin on Monday. “We can’t let the numbers become statistics, a background noise, just a blur that we see on the nightly news.”
Biden said the COVID-19 deaths weren’t just numbers but “empty chairs at dining room tables and kitchen tables that weeks and months ago were filled with a loved one, a mom, a dad, a brother, a sister.”
On social media, Trump’s critics zeroed in on his use of the phrase “virtually nobody” as both callous and inaccurate:
Advertisement
They should turn this into a 30 second spot and run it in retirement communities. https://t.co/C5gVngsjfG — Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) September 22, 2020
Trump to Bob Woodward in March: “Just today and yesterday, some startling facts came out. It’s not just old, older. Young people too, plenty of young people."
Trump today: "It affects virtually nobody...old people..that's it."pic.twitter.com/COVlyvMGAA#TrumpLied200KAmericansdied — Holly Figueroa O'Reilly (@AynRandPaulRyan) September 22, 2020
Today Trump said covid, “Affects virtually nobody.”
In fact, there have only been 3 events with more deaths than covid in ALL OF US HISTORY. https://t.co/2ZBWK5KZRO — Mikel Jollett (@Mikel_Jollett) September 22, 2020
Trump's point here is even more cruel than it seems: those who are lost to COVID are just "nobodies" to him -- the same way that soldiers lost in battle are "suckers" and "losers." https://t.co/EAdr9Qf4bV — Ronald Klain (@RonaldKlain) September 22, 2020
How does Trump shrugging off old people dying by the thousands play at The Villages in Florida? — Schooley (@Rschooley) September 22, 2020
Advertisement
if you take away the blue states, the old, the nonwhite and all the others who died, it affects virtually nobody — Farhad Manjoo (@fmanjoo) September 22, 2020
Hey newsflash from trump, a guy I trust for all my medical information! (He is an expert in all topics) Corona doesn’t really affect the young, like if you’re under 18 you’re good, soooo it affects virtually nobody! Phew! https://t.co/XivyocRKf9 — Rachel Dratch (@TheRealDratch) September 22, 2020
“It affects virtually nobody. It’s an amazing thing.”
“By the way, open your schools.”
A reminder that we have NO comprehensive plan to confront a pandemic that has killed 200K Americans. pic.twitter.com/uqlS6ZK4VF — Kristen Clarke 866-OUR-VOTE (@KristenClarkeJD) September 22, 2020
Just play Trump's actual quotes over shots of a funeral:
"I don't take responsibility at all."
"It is what it is."
"It affects virtually nobody." https://t.co/lwC8hVKPNF — Frank Lesser (@sadmonsters) September 22, 2020
Advertisement
Know someone who died from coronavirus? Trump considers them "virtually nobody." https://t.co/sDS0tybyy2 — Tim Hogan (@timjhogan) September 22, 2020
"Virtually nobody" = 200,000 people.
I'm starting to understand how he bankrupted the casinos. — Josh Moon (@Josh_Moon) September 22, 2020
If you, or a family member, or a friend got sick or died of #COVID19, to Trump you are "virtually nobody." https://t.co/wuZCnvN9oD — Peter Gleick (@PeterGleick) September 22, 2020
"It affects virtually nobody" except it affected nearly 7 millions of Americans (that we know of) & 31M worldwide, and killed 200K Americans (963K dead worldwide), but sure, keep telling your BS to your gullible base who trust a 2nd grade reality tv show guy over facts & science. https://t.co/3bZIJ9iUn7 — Francesco Francavilla (@f_francavilla) September 22, 2020
200,000 dead Americans
6.9 million infected
Families shattered
Millions thrown out of work
Trump tonight: "It (coronavirus) effects (virtually) nobody..." — West Wing Reports (@WestWingReport) September 22, 2020


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-21--‘We’ve Got The Votes’: Lindsey Graham Says Senate Will Fill Ginsburg's Seat Before Election

Sen. Lindsey Graham , the powerful chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee , said Monday that the Republican Party has the votes to confirm Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg ’ s replacement on the Supreme Court before the Nov. 3 election .
“ They tried to destroy Brett Kavanaugh so they could fill the seat , ” Graham said Monday on Fox News , lambasting Democratic colleagues who have vowed to block any such nomination .
“ I ’ ve seen this movie before .
It ’ s not going to work .
… We ’ ve got the votes to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the election , we ’ re going to move forward in the committee , we ’ re going to report the nomination out of the committee to the floor of the United States Senate so we can vote before the election.
” The move adds new firepower to the political brinkmanship over Ginsburg ’ s replacement , which could tilt the balance of power on the Supreme Court starkly to the right for a generation .
Ginsburg , 87 , died on Friday after spending decades on the nation ’ s highest bench @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s rights and anti-discrimination .
Her last public words , given to her granddaughter in the days before her death , were a wish that she “ not be replaced until a new president is installed.
” But President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-Ky. ) have vowed to move forward with the nomination process while the balance of power is in their favor .
The president said he expected to name a nominee this weekend , and McConnell said Monday the chamber would vote on the nomination “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if he planned to do so before the election or during a lame-duck session of Congress . )
Graham has been called out for his hypocrisy after he moved to block former President Barack Obama ’ s nominee to the Supreme Court , Merrick Garland , after the February 2016 death of Justice Antonin Scalia .
At the time , the South Carolina Republican said he didn ’ t believe a president should put forward a nominee in an election , bolstering his claims with the statement : “ I want you to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he ever swap his stance .
The senator , who is facing a tighter-than-expected reelection battle this November , fired back at critics this week and attempted to justify his decision .
“ I am certain if the shoe were on the other foot you would do the same , ” Graham wrote in a letter Monday to Democratic colleagues on the Judiciary Committee .
Democrats ’ main hope to block any potential nominee before the election rests on winning four votes from current Republican senators .
The party controls a 53-47 majority @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mike Pence on hand as a tie-breaker .
Two Republicans , Sens .
Susan Collins ( Maine ) and Lisa Murkowski ( Alaska ) , have so far said they don ’ t believe there should be a vote until after the election .
Another potential swing vote , Sen. Cory Gardner ( R-Colo. ) , said Monday he would not block a nominee , diminishing Democratic prospects .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Sen. Lindsey Graham, the powerful chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Monday that the Republican Party has the votes to confirm Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s replacement on the Supreme Court before the Nov. 3 election.
“They tried to destroy Brett Kavanaugh so they could fill the seat,” Graham said Monday on Fox News, lambasting Democratic colleagues who have vowed to block any such nomination. “I’ve seen this movie before. It’s not going to work. … We’ve got the votes to confirm Justice Ginsburg’s replacement before the election, we’re going to move forward in the committee, we’re going to report the nomination out of the committee to the floor of the United States Senate so we can vote before the election.”
Advertisement
Senate Judiciary Chair Graham (R-SC): “We’ve got the votes to confirm Justice Ginsburg’s replacement before the election … that’s what’s coming.” pic.twitter.com/QXW03ekUWt — The Recount (@therecount) September 22, 2020
The move adds new firepower to the political brinkmanship over Ginsburg’s replacement, which could tilt the balance of power on the Supreme Court starkly to the right for a generation. Ginsburg, 87, died on Friday after spending decades on the nation’s highest bench as a fierce advocate of women’s rights and anti-discrimination. Her last public words, given to her granddaughter in the days before her death, were a wish that she “not be replaced until a new president is installed.”
But President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) have vowed to move forward with the nomination process while the balance of power is in their favor. The president said he expected to name a nominee this weekend, and McConnell said Monday the chamber would vote on the nomination “this year” (it is unclear if he planned to do so before the election or during a lame-duck session of Congress.)
Graham has been called out for his hypocrisy after he moved to block former President Barack Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court, Merrick Garland, after the February 2016 death of Justice Antonin Scalia. At the time, the South Carolina Republican said he didn’t believe a president should put forward a nominee in an election, bolstering his claims with the statement: “I want you to use my words against me” should he ever swap his stance.
Advertisement
The senator, who is facing a tighter-than-expected reelection battle this November, fired back at critics this week and attempted to justify his decision.
“I am certain if the shoe were on the other foot you would do the same,” Graham wrote in a letter Monday to Democratic colleagues on the Judiciary Committee.
Democrats’ main hope to block any potential nominee before the election rests on winning four votes from current Republican senators. The party controls a 53-47 majority in the Senate, with Vice President Mike Pence on hand as a tie-breaker.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-22--Tucker Carlson Slams Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's 'Pathetic' Dying Wish

Fox News host Tucker Carlson ripped the purported dying wish of Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg , who asked that her seat be filled by the winner of November ’ s presidential election .
On Monday night , Carlson said he didn ’ t believe it , but “ if it were true , it would be pathetic because life is bigger than politics , even this year.
” Days before her death on Friday at the age of 87 , Ginsburg dictated a statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera .
“ My most fervent wish is that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new president is installed , ” Ginsburg said , per NPR .
“ We don ’ t really know , actually , what Ruth Bader Ginsburg ’ s final words were , ” Carlson said .
“ Did she really leave this world fretting about a presidential election ?
We don ’ t believe that for a second.
” Carlson called those words “ so small ” and said Ginsburg didn ’ t say them but rather “ was thinking at the end about her family and where she might be going next.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ initiated earlier in the day on his cable network by President Donald Trump .
“ I don ’ t know that she said that .
Or was that written out by Adam Schiff and Schumer and Pelosi ?
” Trump said on Fox News Monday morning .
Ginsburg ’ s last wish would be in keeping with a precedent set in 2016 by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell , who blocked then-President Barack Obama ’ s nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court because it was eight months before the election .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ quickly announced that he would move to fill the seat with Trump ’ s nominee , who the president said he will announce Friday or Saturday .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Fox News host Tucker Carlson ripped the purported dying wish of Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who asked that her seat be filled by the winner of November’s presidential election. On Monday night, Carlson said he didn’t believe it, but “if it were true, it would be pathetic because life is bigger than politics, even this year.”
Days before her death on Friday at the age of 87, Ginsburg dictated a statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera.
Advertisement
“My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed,” Ginsburg said, per NPR.
But Carlson said he didn’t believe it.
“We don’t really know, actually, what Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s final words were,” Carlson said. “Did she really leave this world fretting about a presidential election? We don’t believe that for a second.”
Carlson called those words “so small” and said Ginsburg didn’t say them but rather “was thinking at the end about her family and where she might be going next.”
Media Matters posted the comments online:
Advertisement
Carlson was parroting a conspiracy theory initiated earlier in the day on his cable network by President Donald Trump.
“I don’t know that she said that. Or was that written out by Adam Schiff and Schumer and Pelosi?” Trump said on Fox News Monday morning.
“Mr. President, this is low. Even for you,” Schiff fired back on Twitter.
Within hours, other right-wing figures, including Carlson, repeated Trump’s talking point.