thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Corporate Power Is On The Ballot In A Key Massachusetts House Primary

But in the course of Holyoke , Massachusetts , Mayor Alex Morse ’ s campaign to unseat Neal in Tuesday @ @ @ @ @ , Morse and his allies have done their best to turn it into a case @ @ @ @ @ turned its back on ordinary people .
They argue that Neal ’ s actions were @ @ @ @ @ corruption : He has benefited from a flood of campaign cash from private equity firms @ @ @ @ @ profit from surprise medical billing and expect their contributions to Neal to help keep the @ @ @

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Rep. Richard Neal, who has represented central and western Massachusetts in Congress since 1989, likes to frame his brand of business-friendly moderation as purely pragmatic.
After taking the helm of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee in January 2019, Neal emphasized his mastery of the “arcane details” associated with legislating in an interview with the Berkshire Eagle.
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“This is about getting something done,” he declared.
But when top congressional Republicans, who typically oppose even the most modest health care regulations, joined with Democrats toward the end of 2019 to curb the byzantine practice of “surprise” medical billing ― when health care providers outside of a hospital’s insurance network spring exorbitant bills on unwitting patients ― Neal almost single-handedly prevented Congress from “getting something done.” He objected to the bill at the last minute, grinding the legislative process to a halt. Reform has not moved forward since.
The bipartisan bill was “a pretty well-established deal on the table,” said Loren Adler, a health care policy expert at the Brookings Institution. “All the wind came out of the sails when [Neal] threw his proposal into the mix.”
The issue of surprise medical billing is not easy to summarize in a 30-second campaign advertisement.
Rep. Richard Neal (D-Mass.) has faced intense scrutiny for his role in stalling a bipartisan bill eliminating "surprise" medical billing. Critics say he was swayed by campaign contributions. David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe/Getty Images
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But in the course of Holyoke, Massachusetts, Mayor Alex Morse’s campaign to unseat Neal in Tuesday’s Democratic congressional primary, Morse and his allies have done their best to turn it into a case study of how Washington has turned its back on ordinary people. They argue that Neal’s actions were a prime example of legalized corruption: He has benefited from a flood of campaign cash from private equity firms, hospitals and doctors who profit from surprise medical billing and expect their contributions to Neal to help keep the money flowing.
Whether Neal survives the progressive primary challenge or not, anti-corruption activists see the race as a step in the direction of accountability for members of Congress accustomed to thinking that backroom deals with corporate interests are too obscure to elicit scrutiny from voters.
Surprise billing “became a defining issue early on” in the Morse-Neal race, said Faiz Shakir, an adviser to the group Fight Corporate Monopolies, which spent $325,000 on TV ads accusing Neal of selling out patients for the private equity donors that fund his campaign.
Congressional Democrats, he added, “are now seeing that the contributions they take and the actions they perform in Congress for corporate America can be used against them.”
Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) cut a deal with a top House Democrat to end surprise medical billing. Neal's last-minute objection killed the bill. Al Drago/Pool/Getty Images
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The Surprise Billing Deal That Wasn’t
Surprise billing occurs because certain kinds of doctors and other health care providers find that they can make more money by refusing to participate in a hospital’s insurance agreements. It’s particularly common among doctors involved in emergency care, such as emergency-room physicians, pathologists (doctors who perform lab tests) and anesthesiologists. These physicians stand to profit more from declining insurance because patients seeking urgent, non-elective medical care typically cannot avoid using their services.
In cases of surprise billing ― officially known as “balance” billing ― insurers typically cover a small fraction of these out-of-network doctors’ bill, and the doctor or hospital where the doctor works sends the patient a bill for the remainder. These bills are often financial and emotional nightmares for patients forced to pay a “sticker” price for medical procedures that are not constrained by a normal market force like competition. Sarah Kliff, a New York Times reporter who has documented some of the most extreme cases, highlighted the ordeal of a woman charged over $5,700 for spending time in an emergency room waiting room.
The rates of surprise billing have increased dramatically in recent years as private equity firms, hungry for a new profit stream, have begun buying up physician staffing firms that employ out-of-network medical specialists and expanding their ranks. Hospitals profit from the practice as well by shifting at least some of the cost of retaining high-paid doctors onto patients.
The cleanest solution to the problem of surprise medical billing would be to legally prohibit medical professionals who practice at a given hospital from opting out of the hospital’s insurance agreements. But given the multi-million dollar public relations offensive launched by private equity firms warning that surprise billing reform would usher in “doctor shortages” and “hospital closures,” it was likely that industry stakeholders would carve out at least some concessions.
In the end, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee joined forces with House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and the committee’s most senior Republican, Rep. Greg Walden, to put forward a compromise plan in December 2019. The bill would end “surprise” billing and to ensure that insurers would not just shift the cost of out-of-network payments back onto patients, the lawmakers capped out-of-network payments at $750 with an option to negotiate a higher rate in arbitration.
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BuzzFeed News reported at the time that while some lawmakers remained wary of the bill and special interests were waiting for the slightest sign of weakness to pounce, the bill’s chief co-sponsors were confident that it would pass both houses of Congress and head to President Donald Trump’s desk to be signed.
Then Neal, who had only a nominal jurisdiction over the bill (his committee generally does not deal with regulating the health care industry), released a counter-proposal that made it clear that the bill as written could not proceed without changes. His alternative, originally just one page long, was more favorable to out-of-network doctors and their backers because it scrapped the $750 cap on out-of-network payments.
“There’s no question that Chairman Neal’s movement very late in the process to assert his very, very narrow jurisdiction over this issue created uncertainty and slowed things down at the end of the last session.” - Frederick Isasi, Families USA
Proponents of the bill, inside and outside the halls of Congress, were furious, blaming Neal for tanking the prospects of a resolution in 2019.
“There’s no question that Chairman Neal’s movement very late in the process to assert his very, very narrow jurisdiction over this issue created uncertainty and slowed things down at the end of the last session,” Frederick Isasi, executive director of the nonpartisan patient advocacy group Families USA, told HuffPost in April.
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Other critics accused Neal of being swayed by the private equity firm Blackstone, which owns TeamHealth, one of the country’s largest physician staffing companies.
Neal had not received donations from Blackstone in the previous three election cycles. Then, in 2019, he began receiving hefty donations from the firm’s top officers that would total nearly $32,000. Blackstone President Jonathan Gray contributed $5,600, the combined maximum for the primary and general elections. And Neil Simpkins, a senior executive who oversaw Blackstone’s acquisition of TeamHealth in 2016, gave Neal $2,800.
At the time that he scuttled the bill, Neal said that the process had been too rushed. He later expressed concern that the Alexander-Pallone-Waldman bill would have jeopardized the health of hospitals in Massachusetts’ 1st Congressional District.
It’s an argument that echoes what Dr. Mark Keroack, CEO of Baystate Health, the parent company of a major hospital in Springfield, wrote in a MassLive op-ed praising Neal a few weeks after he killed the bill. (Keroack also contributed $1,000 to Neal’s campaign this past March.)
Keroack, who co-wrote the op-ed with the head of a local physicians’ trade group, called for insulating patients from harm while preventing “undue government interference in private contracts” that would jeopardize “patient access to healthcare services.”
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Without a system for capping out-of-network costs, experts like Adler of the Brooking Institution fear that providers could continue to charge exorbitant prices and insurers would simply pass the higher costs onto patients in the form of higher premiums and other fees.
What’s more, it’s hard to believe that hospitals are so financially precarious that they need the savings provided by surprise billing in order to thrive. Baystate Health reported profits of more than $68 million in fiscal year 2017.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Baystate Health has also received over $32 million from a hospital assistance fund in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, which Neal frequently claims credit for helping write. Despite the aid that the hospital system received, top executives at Baystate encouraged managers to furlough employees and force them to use up their paid time off, according to a report by the investigative news site Sludge.
“That’s the tactic that hospitals have used against reform forever: That anything that cuts one dollar is suddenly going to drive them all out of business,” Adler said.
Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse has sought to make Neal's role in delaying surprise billing reform an emblem of Neal's loyalty to corporations at the expense of voters. Erin Clark/Boston Globe/Getty Images
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Putting Neal On The Defensive
From the moment that Neal stopped the bipartisan deal to end surprise billing in December, Morse (his progressive challenger) jumped on it as an example of the 16-term incumbent’s closeness to corporate America. “It’s evident who Congressman Neal is working for. He’s certainly not working for the people,” Morse told BuzzFeed News at the time.
Morse and his allies knew they had found a politically potent issue when Data for Progress, a progressive think tank and polling firm that consults for Justice Democrats, a left-wing group backing Morse, found strong responses to the issue among voters in Massachusetts’ 1st District. Almost three-quarters of respondents to a March poll said that a statement claiming that Neal had “tanked” the surprise billing legislation after receiving $680,000 in contributions from insurance and pharmaceutical companies would be a “convincing” argument to vote against him.
The Morse campaign has hit Neal on the issue in campaign mailers, digital ads and a 1-minute TV spot running in the final week of the campaign.
Neal’s “gotten more and more power, but hasn’t used it to help us,” Morse says in the ad. “Instead, Neal has used his power to help big corporations ― like when he killed a bill that would protect people from getting surprise medical bills.”
But Morse has had the leeway to devote some of his earlier TV ads to other themes thanks to the work of Fight Corporate Monopolies, which raised the issue’s profile for him. The group is a political arm of anti-monopoly think tank American Economic Liberties Project.
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Fight Corporate Monopolies decided that highlighting the connection between the campaign cash that Neal had received from Blackstone and his veto of surprise billing reform would be the perfect case study for shaming a politician engaging in legalized corruption. The group spent $325,000 on a TV ad blasting Neal for his conduct based on the principles at stake. The 30-second spot, which aired on network television in Springfield starting in early July, managed to succinctly explain the concept of surprise billing, Neal’s role in derailing a bipartisan resolution to it, and his connection to the private equity industry.
“Corporate power is corrupting democracy and Richie Neal is part of the problem,” the ad concludes.
“I want to believe in a different way.” - Pam Thompson, a voter in the district
Morse has also personalized the issue by elevating the voices of district residents who have been hit with surprise medical bills, including Pam Thompson, a writer from Worthington, who spoke at a virtual press conference convened by the Morse campaign in July.
In the summer of 2019, Thompson’s daughter, an undergraduate at Northwestern University outside Chicago, was referred to a hospital emergency room because she was experiencing sharp stomach pains. The emergency room personnel ran tests and scans but never managed to diagnose the mystery ailment. Thompson’s daughter’s stomach pain eventually subsided on its own.
A few months later, in September 2019, the Thompsons received a bill for $15,000 for the emergency room visit. The family of four was especially shocked by the price because they already pay $19,000 a year on a state-regulated health insurance plan available for families earning less than 300% of the federal poverty level.
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What followed was an agonizing ordeal. Pam put in an estimated 120 hours of work over the course of more than four months using every means at her disposal to waive the bill, get it reduced, or receive some kind of subsidy.
In February when the bill went into collection, Thompson reached out to all of her state and federal elected officials and received direct responses from all of their offices except Neal’s. (Neal campaign spokesperson Kate Norton said the congressman’s Pittsfield office was in touch with Thompson’s state representative about the matter.)
Whether it was thanks to the behind-the-scenes help of elected officials or Thompson’s threat of a publicity campaign, the hospital finally caved and dismissed the bill.
Thompson, whose trying experience reaffirmed her support for “Medicare for All,” was more dismayed by Neal’s role in derailing surprise billing reform than the lack of outreach from his office.
“Richie Neal represents this old kind of politics where it’s really pay to play ― that’s what he is,” Thompson said. “And I want to believe in a different way.”
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Morse campaigns at a bakery in Springfield, Massachusetts. It's unclear whether his focus on surprise medical billing and corporate influence more broadly is swaying voters. Erin Clark/Boston Globe/Getty Images
Will It Matter?
Neal has responded to stories like Thompson’s and the barrage of related attacks from Morse and groups like Fight Corporate Monopolies by turning the tables on his critics.
In an August debate with Morse, Neal argued that he was the more genuine opponent of surprise billing since he is siding with hospitals and doctors against health insurance companies.
“The insurance industry is opposed to my bill,” Neal said in a moment that he later circulated video of on social media. “You know who supports my bill? The providers, the hospitals, the health care centers.”
Neal’s characterization of the two bills is misleading. Insurers supported the Alexander-Pallone-Walden bill that was tougher on providers mostly because of the positive public relations value it offered them, according to the Brookings Institution’s Adler. In the end, they are fine with either outcome, because they can always shift additional costs of payments to out-of-network providers onto patients.
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“Insurers have a lot less to gain than consumers do.” - Loren Adler, Brookings Institution
“Insurers have a lot less to gain than consumers do,” Adler said.
Whether Neal’s talking point succeeds in muddying the debate or not, the health care providers he is happy to count as allies have come through for him in his time of need. The American Hospital Association, a powerful Washington lobbying group, has poured $500,000 into a super PAC blanketing the airwaves with pro-Neal TV ads. Trade groups representing various medical specialties ― including radiology, neurology, plastic surgery, podiatrists and chiropractic care ― have also rushed last-minute donations to Neal’s campaign in the days before the election.
In the most recent public poll of the race, Neal was ahead of Morse by 9 percentage points. Several voters in the district, including Morse supporters, told HuffPost they were unfamiliar with the issue and motivated by other factors.
Whether Neal wins or loses though, Shakir believes that Fight Corporate Monopolies and other opponents of corporate influence in politics can take heart in knowing that corruption became a dominant theme in a race that many observers never thought would be as competitive.
“When we boil it down to wins and losses, they obfuscate the advances that have been made,” he said. “You’ve taken a very powerful member of Congress, educated the people in this district, and changed the narrative in a major way.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Biden Campaign Uses Nintendo's Animal Crossing To Reach Voters

Joe Biden ’ s presidential campaign hopes its presence on one of the most popular games during the pandemic will help reach more voters .
The campaign on Tuesday released a set of downloadable yard signs for users of Nintendo ’ s Animal Crossing , The Verge reported Tuesday .
“ Animal Crossing is a dynamic , diverse , and powerful platform that brings communities together from across the world .
It is an exciting new opportunity for our campaign to engage and connect Biden-Harris supporters as they build and decorate their islands , ” Christian Tom , the campaign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told The Verge .
“ As we enter the final campaign stretch towards November , this is one way we are finding new , creative and innovative ways to meet voters where they are and bring our supporters together.
” The game ’ s newest version , Animal Crossing : New Horizons , launched on March 20 , just as many U.S. states were beginning to impose COVID-19 stay-at-home orders .
The game has become a massive hit due to its interactivity for users stuck at home .
Political candidates and campaigns have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outreach this year since the ability to hold in-person events has been limited due to the pandemic .
But using digital media and technology to reach voters is nothing new .
In 2016 , then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton urged young voters to “ Pokemon Go to the polls , ” which led to some mockery .
In May , Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ( D-N.Y. ) , known for deftly engaging voters on social media , joined Animal Crossing and invited her Twitter followers to interact with her .
She visited some of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a few users taught her how to use some of the game ’ s functions .
The congresswoman said the messages she got through Animal Crossing were “ very wholesome ” and gave her “ faith in humanity , ” a pleasant contrast to the toxicity of many social media interactions .

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Joe Biden’s presidential campaign hopes its presence on one of the most popular games during the pandemic will help reach more voters.
The campaign on Tuesday released a set of downloadable yard signs for users of Nintendo’s Animal Crossing, The Verge reported Tuesday.
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Biden campaign launches official Animal Crossing: New Horizons yard signs https://t.co/eqonQ9cLUA pic.twitter.com/c5K7KvECBR — The Verge (@verge) September 1, 2020
“Animal Crossing is a dynamic, diverse, and powerful platform that brings communities together from across the world. It is an exciting new opportunity for our campaign to engage and connect Biden-Harris supporters as they build and decorate their islands,” Christian Tom, the campaign’s director of digital partnerships, told The Verge. “As we enter the final campaign stretch towards November, this is one way we are finding new, creative and innovative ways to meet voters where they are and bring our supporters together.”
The game’s newest version, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, launched on March 20, just as many U.S. states were beginning to impose COVID-19 stay-at-home orders. The game has become a massive hit due to its interactivity for users stuck at home.
Political candidates and campaigns have had to find creative methods for digital outreach this year since the ability to hold in-person events has been limited due to the pandemic. But using digital media and technology to reach voters is nothing new. In 2016, then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton urged young voters to “Pokemon Go to the polls,” which led to some mockery.
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In May, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), known for deftly engaging voters on social media, joined Animal Crossing and invited her Twitter followers to interact with her. She visited some of their islands and posted messages, and a few users taught her how to use some of the game’s functions.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--House Panel Identifies Tens Of Thousands Of PPP Loans At 'High Risk' For Fraud Or Abuse

Tens of thousands of loans issued by the Trump administration as part an economic relief program for small businesses struggling amid the coronavirus pandemic face a “ high risk of fraud , waste or abuse , ” according to a report issued Tuesday by a House panel .
The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis , which was created in April to oversee the Trump administration ’ s response to the economic disaster caused by the pandemic , found that billions of dollars dispersed as part of the Paycheck Protection Program ( PPP ) may have been misappropriated .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ business loan program , has granted more than 5.2 million loans since it was established in late March by the Coronavirus Aid , Relief and Economic Security Act , also known as the CARES Act .
In its report Tuesday , the House subcommittee found over $ 1 billion in loans went to companies that received multiple PPP loans ― a violation of the program ’ s rules .
The subcommittee also said over $ 96 million went to companies that were ineligible for the program or had been flagged for potential fraud @ @ @ @ @ @ @ implemented the PPP , approved more than 350 loans that amounted to roughly $ 195 million to government contractors that were previously flagged for “ integrity ” or “ performance ” issues , according to the House subcommittee .
Though PPP helped millions of small businesses “ stay afloat ” during the coronavirus crisis , inadequate oversight made the program vulnerable to abuse , the subcommittee ’ s chairman , Rep. Jim Clyburn ( D-S.C. ) , said in a statement Tuesday .
“ A lack of oversight and accountability from SBA and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dollars being diverted to fraud , waste , and abuse , rather than reaching small businesses truly in need , ” Clyburn said in his statement .
The Treasury Department and SBA have said they will only audit loans that are over $ 2 million and “ other loans as appropriate.
” But the House committee called on the agencies to develop a more “ robust , risk-based audit plan.
” “ The administration has prioritized big businesses over small businesses and the American workers that Congress intended to protect , ” Clyburn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin testified .
“ The administration needs to refocus [ PPP ] ... to ensure that they preserving jobs , not lining the pockets of wealthy business executives , ” Clyburn added .
“ The Treasury must improve oversight and accountability to ensure that taxpayers ’ dollars are not squandered.
” Mnuchin said Tuesday that the SBA and Treasury Department “ want to get money back for the taxpayers ” from people who borrowed PPP loans unlawfully .
He also said the Trump administration would release new information regarding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ close later in the day .
“ I think you will be quite pleased with the impact it will have , ” Mnuchin told the subcommittee .
A federal ban on evictions during the coronavirus crisis expired at the end of the July and several local and state moratoriums are set to expire soon .
Roughly 40 million people could be at risk of eviction by the end of the year because of the pandemic , according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition .

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Tens of thousands of loans issued by the Trump administration as part an economic relief program for small businesses struggling amid the coronavirus pandemic face a “high risk of fraud, waste or abuse,” according to a report issued Tuesday by a House panel.
The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, which was created in April to oversee the Trump administration’s response to the economic disaster caused by the pandemic, found that billions of dollars dispersed as part of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) may have been misappropriated.
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The PPP, a $669 billion business loan program, has granted more than 5.2 million loans since it was established in late March by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act.
In its report Tuesday, the House subcommittee found over $1 billion in loans went to companies that received multiple PPP loans ― a violation of the program’s rules. The subcommittee also said over $96 million went to companies that were ineligible for the program or had been flagged for potential fraud.
The Small Business Administration, which implemented the PPP, approved more than 350 loans that amounted to roughly $195 million to government contractors that were previously flagged for “integrity” or “performance” issues, according to the House subcommittee.
Though PPP helped millions of small businesses “stay afloat” during the coronavirus crisis, inadequate oversight made the program vulnerable to abuse, the subcommittee’s chairman, Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), said in a statement Tuesday.
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“A lack of oversight and accountability from SBA and Treasury may have led to billions of dollars being diverted to fraud, waste, and abuse, rather than reaching small businesses truly in need,” Clyburn said in his statement.
The Treasury Department and SBA have said they will only audit loans that are over $2 million and “other loans as appropriate.” But the House committee called on the agencies to develop a more “robust, risk-based audit plan.”
“The administration has prioritized big businesses over small businesses and the American workers that Congress intended to protect,” Clyburn said during a subcommittee hearing Tuesday in which Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin testified.
“The administration needs to refocus [PPP] ... to ensure that they preserving jobs, not lining the pockets of wealthy business executives,” Clyburn added. “The Treasury must improve oversight and accountability to ensure that taxpayers’ dollars are not squandered.”
Mnuchin said Tuesday that the SBA and Treasury Department “want to get money back for the taxpayers” from people who borrowed PPP loans unlawfully.
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He also said the Trump administration would release new information regarding a federal eviction moratorium after the markets close later in the day.
“I think you will be quite pleased with the impact it will have,” Mnuchin told the subcommittee.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Bill Barr Tightens Rules On Surveilling Political Candidates

WASHINGTON ( AP ) — The Justice Department announced new restrictions Tuesday on how it conducts any secret national security surveillance of candidates for federal office or their staff .
The restrictions , announced by Attorney General William Barr in a pair of memos , are part of broader changes to the Justice Department ’ s surveillance procedures implemented in response to problems detected during the 2016 investigation into ties between Russia and President Donald Trump ’ s campaign .
Coming just two months before the 2020 election , the changes are designed to ensure that law enforcement officials have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same type of surveillance as was conducted on a former adviser to Trump ’ s 2016 campaign .
Barr is acting on an issue that has provoked loud concerns from Trump ’ s allies , who have seized on errors in the surveillance process to attack the underpinnings of the Russia probe even as reports from the Justice Department ’ s watchdog and the Senate intelligence committee have laid out extensive contacts between Russia and Trump associates during the 2016 presidential contest .
One new policy would require the FBI to consider briefing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ person was being targeted by a foreign power before applying for a warrant from the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to eavesdrop on their communications .
The FBI had contemplated giving such “ defensive briefings ” to the Trump campaign but decided against it for fear of compromising an ongoing investigation , according to a Justice Department inspector general report .
Under the new policy , no application on a candidate or staffer could be submitted unless the FBI director has decided that a defensive briefing is not appropriate and has stated as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ publicly known if there are any counterintelligence investigations connected to the 2020 presidential campaign .
The FBI in 2016 and 2017 applied for warrants to monitor former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page because of concerns about his contacts with Russia , but the inspector general report has identified errors and omissions in each of those applications .
Page was never charged with any wrongdoing .
The new policy will also tighten controls aimed at ensuring the accuracy of applications submitted to the court .
It is imperative that the Justice Department make “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for surveillance warrants , Barr wrote .
“ When those activities involve federal elected officials , federal political candidates , or their respective staff members , the Department must be especially vigilant , ” he added .
“ Such intelligence activities must be subject to rigorous review to ensure that they are justified and non-partisan , are based on full and complete information , take into account the significant First Amendment interests at stake , and do not undermine the political process .
”

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department announced new restrictions Tuesday on how it conducts any secret national security surveillance of candidates for federal office or their staff.
The restrictions, announced by Attorney General William Barr in a pair of memos, are part of broader changes to the Justice Department’s surveillance procedures implemented in response to problems detected during the 2016 investigation into ties between Russia and President Donald Trump’s campaign.
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Coming just two months before the 2020 election, the changes are designed to ensure that law enforcement officials have to clear additional hurdles before pursuing the same type of surveillance as was conducted on a former adviser to Trump’s 2016 campaign.
Barr is acting on an issue that has provoked loud concerns from Trump’s allies, who have seized on errors in the surveillance process to attack the underpinnings of the Russia probe even as reports from the Justice Department’s watchdog and the Senate intelligence committee have laid out extensive contacts between Russia and Trump associates during the 2016 presidential contest.
One new policy would require the FBI to consider briefing a federal candidate or staffer that the person was being targeted by a foreign power before applying for a warrant from the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to eavesdrop on their communications.
The FBI had contemplated giving such “defensive briefings” to the Trump campaign but decided against it for fear of compromising an ongoing investigation, according to a Justice Department inspector general report.
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Under the new policy, no application on a candidate or staffer could be submitted unless the FBI director has decided that a defensive briefing is not appropriate and has stated as much in writing. It is not publicly known if there are any counterintelligence investigations connected to the 2020 presidential campaign.
The FBI in 2016 and 2017 applied for warrants to monitor former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page because of concerns about his contacts with Russia, but the inspector general report has identified errors and omissions in each of those applications. Page was never charged with any wrongdoing.
The new policy will also tighten controls aimed at ensuring the accuracy of applications submitted to the court. It is imperative that the Justice Department make “accurate and complete representations” when applying for surveillance warrants, Barr wrote.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--CNN Fact-Checker: Trump's 'Dark Shadows' Claim Is 'Almost Too Stupid' To Debunk

CNN fact-check reporter Daniel Dale debunked President Donald Trump ’ s most recent conspiracy theory about his Democratic opponent Joe Biden on Tuesday , despite deeming Trump ’ s fearmongering claim “ almost too stupid to fact check.
” In a Fox News interview that aired Monday night , Trump prompted skepticism even from his host and staunch ally , Laura Ingraham , when he declared that the former vice president is controlled by “ people that are in the dark shadows.
” Those same unnamed people were controlling the streets , he claimed without evidence , before going on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on a plane were involved in a secret plot to damage the Republican National Convention .
He refused to provide any clarification .
“ When you have Fox ’ s Laura Ingraham telling you it sounds like a conspiracy theory , it ’ s probably a conspiracy theory , ” Dale told anchor Jim Sciutto on “ CNN Newsroom.
” “ Joe Biden is his own man , his campaign is run by Democrats , many of them conventional Democrats for many decades , and there are no shadowy figures on the streets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s strings , ” he added .
“ This is another dishonest attempt by Trump to try to foment fear about a candidate who ’ s been in the public eye for many years.
” “ It ’ s almost too stupid to fact-check , ” CNN ’ s @ ddale8 says about President Trump ’ s remarks that Joe Biden is being controlled by “ people that are in the dark shadows.
” “ This President is a conspiracy theorist , ” Dale tells @ jimsciutto .
https : //t.co/2JN657N81h pic.twitter.com/G14FdPUSew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ September 1 , 2020 “ This president is a conspiracy theorist , ” he added , citing a slew of other baseless stories the president has sown and promoted .
These included his racist birther accusations about former President Barack Obama , anti-scientific claims about windmills causing cancer , his recent attacks on mail-in voting and his 2016 campaign-trail allegation that Republican Sen. Ted Cruz ’ s father was involved in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy .
“ He just does this , and he ’ s doing it again , @ @ @ @ @

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CNN fact-check reporter Daniel Dale debunked President Donald Trump’s most recent conspiracy theory about his Democratic opponent Joe Biden on Tuesday, despite deeming Trump’s fearmongering claim “almost too stupid to fact check.”
In a Fox News interview that aired Monday night, Trump prompted skepticism even from his host and staunch ally, Laura Ingraham, when he declared that the former vice president is controlled by “people that are in the dark shadows.” Those same unnamed people were controlling the streets, he claimed without evidence, before going on to allege that thugs in dark uniforms on a plane were involved in a secret plot to damage the Republican National Convention. He refused to provide any clarification.
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“When you have Fox’s Laura Ingraham telling you it sounds like a conspiracy theory, it’s probably a conspiracy theory,” Dale told anchor Jim Sciutto on “CNN Newsroom.”
“Joe Biden is his own man, his campaign is run by Democrats, many of them conventional Democrats for many decades, and there are no shadowy figures on the streets or in dark clothing pulling Joe Biden’s strings,” he added. “This is another dishonest attempt by Trump to try to foment fear about a candidate who’s been in the public eye for many years.”
“It’s almost too stupid to fact-check,” CNN’s @ddale8 says about President Trump’s remarks that Joe Biden is being controlled by “people that are in the dark shadows.”
“This President is a conspiracy theorist,” Dale tells @jimsciutto. https://t.co/2JN657N81h pic.twitter.com/G14FdPUSew — CNN Newsroom (@CNNnewsroom) September 1, 2020
“This president is a conspiracy theorist,” he added, citing a slew of other baseless stories the president has sown and promoted.
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These included his racist birther accusations about former President Barack Obama, anti-scientific claims about windmills causing cancer, his recent attacks on mail-in voting and his 2016 campaign-trail allegation that Republican Sen. Ted Cruz’s father was involved in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Twitter Removes Trump Video After 'Electric Avenue' Singer Issues Copyright Complaint

Twitter removed a video on Tuesday from one of President Donald Trump ’ s tweets after receiving a copyright complaint from singer Eddy Grant , whose hit song “ Electric Avenue ” played in the clip , NBC News reported .
Earlier in the day , Grant had filed a lawsuit against Trump and his campaign for using his song in the video ― an animated clip the president shared on Aug. 12 that took aim at Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden .
The rather perplexing video depicted a cartoon Biden driving an old-fashioned railroad handcar while a train bearing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an empty town .
“ Electric Avenue ” — a 1983 song that Grant , a Guyanese-British singer , penned about the 1981 Brixton race riots in London — plays in the background .
It ’ s not clear , however , what the song ’ s relevance is to the content of Trump ’ s video .
Grant said on his website last month that his legal team had issued a cease-and-desist letter to Trump and his campaign a day after the president posted the video .
But the clip remained on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ platform pulled it on Tuesday .
“ They have sought to encapsulate my intellectual property into derogatory political rhetoric , ” Grant said of the Trump campaign ’ s use of his song , “ further encapsulated in a video production that can only be construed at best as being wicked , thereby causing me considerable emotional distress.
” The singer ’ s attorney Brian Caplan told Billboard this week that Trump and his campaign had not sought Grant ’ s permission to use the song .
“ This is copyright 101 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lawsuit on Grant ’ s behalf in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York .
“ You need to have a license and nobody in his campaign with a straight face could say he has the absolute right to do this.
” A Twitter spokesman confirmed to NBC News on Tuesday that the company had removed the video in response to a copyright complaint .
NBC noted that this is at least the third time since June that Twitter has removed media content from the president ’ s Twitter account @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Twitter removed a photo from one of Trump ’ s tweets after The New York Times filed a copyright complaint about it .
Two weeks earlier , both Twitter and Facebook pulled a manipulated video Trump shared that showed a Black toddler running away from a white toddler .
In the original video , the toddlers are seen running towards each other for a hug .

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Twitter removed a video on Tuesday from one of President Donald Trump’s tweets after receiving a copyright complaint from singer Eddy Grant, whose hit song “Electric Avenue” played in the clip, NBC News reported.
Earlier in the day, Grant had filed a lawsuit against Trump and his campaign for using his song in the video ― an animated clip the president shared on Aug. 12 that took aim at Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
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The rather perplexing video depicted a cartoon Biden driving an old-fashioned railroad handcar while a train bearing Trump’s campaign logo zipped through an empty town.
“Electric Avenue” — a 1983 song that Grant, a Guyanese-British singer, penned about the 1981 Brixton race riots in London — plays in the background. It’s not clear, however, what the song’s relevance is to the content of Trump’s video.
Grant said on his website last month that his legal team had issued a cease-and-desist letter to Trump and his campaign a day after the president posted the video.
But the clip remained on Trump’s Twitter feed until the platform pulled it on Tuesday.
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“They have sought to encapsulate my intellectual property into derogatory political rhetoric,” Grant said of the Trump campaign’s use of his song, “further encapsulated in a video production that can only be construed at best as being wicked, thereby causing me considerable emotional distress.”
The singer’s attorney Brian Caplan told Billboard this week that Trump and his campaign had not sought Grant’s permission to use the song.
“This is copyright 101,” said Caplan, who filed the lawsuit on Grant’s behalf in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. “You need to have a license and nobody in his campaign with a straight face could say he has the absolute right to do this.”
Eddy Grant, pictured on July 31, 2019, sued Trump and his campaign on Tuesday. NBC via Getty Images
A Twitter spokesman confirmed to NBC News on Tuesday that the company had removed the video in response to a copyright complaint.
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NBC noted that this is at least the third time since June that Twitter has removed media content from the president’s Twitter account due to copyright violations.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Parrot Belts Out Soaring Rendition Of Beyoncé Track, Gets His Own Fan Base

People are falling crazy in love with Chico the parrot and his soulful Beyoncé renditions .
The 9-year-old yellow-crowned Amazon parrot lives at the Lincolnshire Wildlife Park in England ’ s East Midlands , and he ’ s winning hearts there and online with his impressive cover of the pop queen ’ s 2008 hit “ If I Were a Boy.
” A park spokesperson told the Boston Standard that Chico has been at the park a little over 18 months and gets on with his bird and human pals alike .
“ Only being nine-years-old means he has many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and , who knows , Simon Cowell may have started X Factor for animals by then !
” the spokesperson said .
And Chico ’ s no one-hit bird .
According to his former owner Julie Gregory , he can also belt out “ Poker Face ” by Lady Gaga , “ Crazy ” by Gnarls Barkley and “ Firework ” by Katy Perry .
Videos of his Beyoncé cover won him headlines at home and abroad , and his fan base ( Birdhive ? )
can ’ t get enough .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saw him yesterday , ” one fan wrote on Facebook .
“ He told me he was a good boy then started singing I stood there in amazement.
” And there you have it .
A parrot that sings Beyoncé better than most of us .

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People are falling crazy in love with Chico the parrot and his soulful Beyoncé renditions.
The 9-year-old yellow-crowned Amazon parrot lives at the Lincolnshire Wildlife Park in England’s East Midlands, and he’s winning hearts there and online with his impressive cover of the pop queen’s 2008 hit “If I Were a Boy.”
I mean, listen to him!
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A park spokesperson told the Boston Standard that Chico has been at the park a little over 18 months and gets on with his bird and human pals alike.
“Only being nine-years-old means he has many years of entertaining in front of him and, who knows, Simon Cowell may have started X Factor for animals by then!” the spokesperson said.
And Chico’s no one-hit bird. According to his former owner Julie Gregory, he can also belt out “Poker Face” by Lady Gaga, “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley and “Firework” by Katy Perry.
Videos of his Beyoncé cover won him headlines at home and abroad, and his fan base (Birdhive?) can’t get enough.
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“I’m in love with him saw him yesterday,” one fan wrote on Facebook. “He told me he was a good boy then started singing I stood there in amazement.”
“Chico saves 2020. Officially,” a commenter said on Chico’s Instagram.
“Such talent, I am amazed,” wrote another.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Joe Biden Turns Speech Condemning Riots Into New Television Ad

SAUL LOEB via Getty Images Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden traveled to Pittsburgh on Monday to deliver a speech on how President Donald Trump made the country less safe .
Now his campaign is turning that speech into an ad .
Former Vice President Joe Biden ’ s campaign is turning the speech he delivered on Monday in Pittsburgh — in which he condemned rioting and looting while blaming President Donald Trump for creating a more dangerous country — into a television ad .
“ I want to make it absolutely clear : Rioting is not protesting , looting is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the start of the 60-second ad , which will air on cable news networks nationally and in key swing states .
“ It ’ s lawlessness , plain and simple , and those who do it should be prosecuted.
” Biden delivered the speech as Trump and Republicans tried to seize the political advantage following protests and rioting in Kenosha , Wisconsin , spurred by the police shooting of Jacob Blake , who is Black .
Trump has invoked the threat of armed mobs rampaging through the suburbs to scare white voters , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hope of catching Biden in the polls .
Biden ’ s campaign hopes the new ad emphasizes Trump ’ s history of racist rhetoric and his refusals to condemn violence by his supporters .
“ He can ’ t stop the violence because for years , he ’ s fomented it , ” Biden says in the ad .
“ His failure to call on his own supporters to stop acting as an armed militia in this country shows how weak he is.
” The ad mixes footage of Biden ’ s speech @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , of right-wing protesters in Portland , Oregon , and Charlottesville , Virginia , and of Trump standing in Washington , D.C. ’ s Lafayette Square after using tear gas to clear the area of protesters back in June .
The spot is part of $ 45 million worth of ad spending — $ 25 million on television and $ 20 million on digital platforms — scheduled for this week , the Biden campaign said , a jump from $ 26 million last week .
( The campaign spent just $ 27 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . )
The New York Times reported earlier Tuesday that the Biden campaign and the Democratic National Committee raised more than $ 300 million in August , an amount that would shatter presidential fundraising records .
The Trump campaign is only spending $ 5 million on television ads this week and is not airing ads in Arizona , Michigan , Nevada , Ohio or Pennsylvania , according to Kantar/CMAG .

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Former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign is turning the speech he delivered on Monday in Pittsburgh — in which he condemned rioting and looting while blaming President Donald Trump for creating a more dangerous country — into a television ad.
“I want to make it absolutely clear: Rioting is not protesting, looting is not protesting,” Biden says at the start of the 60-second ad, which will air on cable news networks nationally and in key swing states. “It’s lawlessness, plain and simple, and those who do it should be prosecuted.”
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Biden delivered the speech as Trump and Republicans tried to seize the political advantage following protests and rioting in Kenosha, Wisconsin, spurred by the police shooting of Jacob Blake, who is Black. Trump has invoked the threat of armed mobs rampaging through the suburbs to scare white voters, whose support he needs to have any hope of catching Biden in the polls.
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden traveled to Pittsburgh on Monday to deliver a speech on how President Donald Trump made the country less safe. Now his campaign is turning that speech into an ad. SAUL LOEB via Getty Images
Biden’s campaign hopes the new ad emphasizes Trump’s history of racist rhetoric and his refusals to condemn violence by his supporters.
“He can’t stop the violence because for years, he’s fomented it,” Biden says in the ad. “His failure to call on his own supporters to stop acting as an armed militia in this country shows how weak he is.”
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The ad ends with Biden promising to use “less divisive” language and quoting Pope John Paul II: “Be not afraid.”
The ad mixes footage of Biden’s speech with images of the damage in Kenosha, of right-wing protesters in Portland, Oregon, and Charlottesville, Virginia, and of Trump standing in Washington, D.C.’s Lafayette Square after using tear gas to clear the area of protesters back in June.
The spot is part of $45 million worth of ad spending — $25 million on television and $20 million on digital platforms — scheduled for this week, the Biden campaign said, a jump from $26 million last week. (The campaign spent just $27 million on advertising during the entire Democratic primary.)
The New York Times reported earlier Tuesday that the Biden campaign and the Democratic National Committee raised more than $300 million in August, an amount that would shatter presidential fundraising records.
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The ad will air in nine key swing states: Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--16 Of The Funniest Posts About Cats And Dogs

If you ’ ve been following the news the past few weeks , it probably feels like life ’ s a bitch , with schools reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic , more police violence and deadly shootings , and the loss of “ Black Panther ” star Chadwick Boseman .
But at least we have pets — specifically , cats and dogs — who are delightfully unaware of how uncertain the world feels right now .
And their blissful ignorance is the purr-fect escape .
So , with that in mind , here are some funny posts about cats and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ help you howl with joy rather than hiss at the news cycle .
There are FAR TOO MANY things on these tables and NOT NEARLY ENOUGH things on the floor !
-people thinking about getting a cat — Anna Hughes ( @ AnnaGHughes ) August 26 , 2020 quarantine day 15 is having a conversation with your cat about how lucky she is that she doesn ’ t get her period — erin gilfoy ( @ eringilfoy ) March 29 , 2020 the human says there are two options .
inside or outside @ @ @ @ @ @ @ elevate their mindset .
they would uncover a third option : stand in the doorway .
and sniff the air — Thoughts of Dog® ( @ dog_feelings ) August 31 , 2020 We ’ ve reached the part of quarantine where I worry the cat is angry at me and my boyfriend has to comfort me like “ I don ’ t think he ’ s mad that ’ s just his face ” — Paige Southwick Pfleger ( @ PaigePfleger ) September 1 , 2020 look at all these people here to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — Humor And Animals ( @ humorandanimals ) August 31 , 2020 This is Cowboy and his little brother Buck .
Buck ’ s gotten bigger over the last four months but only Cowboy has seemed to notice .
13/10 for both pic.twitter.com/QeeQO7Q87q — WeRateDogs® ( @ dog_rates ) August 24 , 2020

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If you’ve been following the news the past few weeks, it probably feels like life’s a bitch, with schools reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic, more police violence and deadly shootings, and the loss of “Black Panther” star Chadwick Boseman.
But at least we have pets — specifically, cats and dogs — who are delightfully unaware of how uncertain the world feels right now. And their blissful ignorance is the purr-fect escape.
Advertisement
So, with that in mind, here are some funny posts about cats and dogs. Hopefully, they’ll help you howl with joy rather than hiss at the news cycle.
There are FAR TOO MANY things on these tables and NOT NEARLY ENOUGH things on the floor!
-people thinking about getting a cat — Anna Hughes (@AnnaGHughes) August 26, 2020
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quarantine day 15 is having a conversation with your cat about how lucky she is that she doesn’t get her period — erin gilfoy (@eringilfoy) March 29, 2020
the human says there are two options. inside or outside. but if they would simply. elevate their mindset. they would uncover a third option: stand in the doorway. and sniff the air — Thoughts of Dog® (@dog_feelings) August 31, 2020
We’ve reached the part of quarantine where I worry the cat is angry at me and my boyfriend has to comfort me like “I don’t think he’s mad that’s just his face” — Paige Southwick Pfleger (@PaigePfleger) September 1, 2020
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look at all these people here to see me
(rockydagolden IG) pic.twitter.com/7fubnR0UT0 — Humor And Animals (@humorandanimals) August 31, 2020
This is Cowboy and his little brother Buck. Buck’s gotten bigger over the last four months but only Cowboy has seemed to notice. 13/10 for both pic.twitter.com/QeeQO7Q87q — WeRateDogs® (@dog_rates) August 24, 2020
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--San Francisco Drag Queens Delivering 'Meals On Heels Amid COVID-19

Drag queens don their colorful wigs , elaborate makeup and knee-high stiletto boots , but instead of stepping on a stage , they ’ re putting on a face covering , grabbing a takeout bag and bringing their musical numbers to fans ’ doorsteps in San Francisco .
The Oasis nightclub is turning the boring dinner blues into “ Meals on Heels , ” dispatching drag queens like Amoura Teese and Kochina Rude to bring food , cocktails and socially distant lip-synching performances to people during the coronavirus pandemic .
On a recent evening , Rude delivered dinner to Kelsie @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s Marina District and then lip-synched the drag show classic “ Finally ” by CeCe Peniston .
“ There ’ s not a lot to do these days with shelter in place and COVID and all that , ” Costa said .
“ So got ta spice it up somehow .
It ’ s really fun.
” Oasis owner D ’ Arcy Drollinger said it ’ s a way to reconnect with their fans and bring a little joy to those who haven ’ t had much to smile about recently .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ can either give up , go home and call it a night , or you can put some duct tape on , find a song you don ’ t know that well and go out there and sell the number , ” Drollinger said .
“ That ’ s how I ’ ve been looking at this whole thing , is we ’ ve got to sell the number .
The show must go on.
” With the club ’ s shows on hiatus because of the pandemic , it also gives drag @ @ @ @ @ @ @ money and keep up with their passion .
“ Drag is such a beating heart of the city , ” Rude said .
“ So it ’ s not only good for us , but it ’ s good for the people around us in our community .
I ’ m inspired by it , and I ’ m honored to be a part of it .
”

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — These divas deliver.
Drag queens don their colorful wigs, elaborate makeup and knee-high stiletto boots, but instead of stepping on a stage, they’re putting on a face covering, grabbing a takeout bag and bringing their musical numbers to fans’ doorsteps in San Francisco.
The Oasis nightclub is turning the boring dinner blues into “Meals on Heels,” dispatching drag queens like Amoura Teese and Kochina Rude to bring food, cocktails and socially distant lip-synching performances to people during the coronavirus pandemic.
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On a recent evening, Rude delivered dinner to Kelsie Costa and her family in the city’s Marina District and then lip-synched the drag show classic “Finally” by CeCe Peniston.
“There’s not a lot to do these days with shelter in place and COVID and all that,” Costa said. “So gotta spice it up somehow. It’s really fun.”
Oasis owner D’Arcy Drollinger said it’s a way to reconnect with their fans and bring a little joy to those who haven’t had much to smile about recently.
“You have the choice: You can either give up, go home and call it a night, or you can put some duct tape on, find a song you don’t know that well and go out there and sell the number,” Drollinger said. “That’s how I’ve been looking at this whole thing, is we’ve got to sell the number. The show must go on.”
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With the club’s shows on hiatus because of the pandemic, it also gives drag performers a chance to make some much-needed money and keep up with their passion.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Boy Scouts Running Ads For Abuse Victims Seeking Compensation

NEW YORK ( AP ) — Under the supervision of a bankruptcy judge , the Boy Scouts of America has launched a nationwide advertising campaign to notify victims of decades-old sex abuse by Scout leaders that they have until Nov. 16 to seek compensation from a proposed fund .
Law firms say they have already signed up thousands of clients to submit claims since the Boy Scouts filed for bankruptcy protection in February in the face of hundreds of lawsuits .
Some lawyers predict the number of people filing claims will surge past 20,000 by the November deadline .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Scouts , because they realize it ’ s going to take a lot of money to get out of this bankruptcy , ” said Andrew Van Arsdale , a lawyer with a network called Abused in Scouting that says it has signed up more than 8,000 clients .
The Boy Scouts ’ court-approved ad campaign began Monday and is scheduled to run through Oct. 17 , at an estimated cost of $ 6.8 million .
It includes print , television , radio and online ads in English and Spanish that are expected to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including more than 95 % of the primary target audience of men 50 and older .
The ads direct people to a Boy Scout website with information about the bankruptcy case and seeking compensation .
It says to file a claim regardless of how long ago the abuse took place .
“ Despite all the publicity surrounding the bankruptcy , this is the first time that the BSA has ever formally and publicly acknowledged on a wide-scale basis its long-standing problem of sexual abuse , ” Mones said .
The bankruptcy has been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which has been a pillar of American civic life for generations and a training ground for future leaders .
But its finances were already strained by sex-abuse settlements and declining membership — now below 2 million from a peak of over 4 million in the 1970s .
Most of the pending sex-abuse claims date to the 1960s , ’ 70s and ’ 80s , before the Boy Scouts adopted criminal background checks , abuse-prevention training for all staff and volunteers , and a rule that two or more adult leaders must be present @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the bankruptcy compensation fund is not yet known .
The organization is expected to contribute a substantial portion of its assets , which include financial investments and real estate .
The Boy Scouts ’ insurers also will be contributing , although they have been trying to limit their exposure .
In its bankruptcy filing , the national organization said the councils , which have extensive property holdings and other assets , are separate legal entities and should not be included as debtors in the case .
An ad hoc committee representing the councils @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Any settlement must involve not only BSA but also the local councils and insurance companies , ” said Seattle-based attorney Mike Pfau , whose team represents more than 630 potential claimants .
“ There can be no meaningful settlement without significant contributions from both of them.
” Last week , as the Boy Scouts prepared to launch its ad campaign , its lawyers filed a motion with the federal bankruptcy court in Delaware that ’ s handling the case , asking a judge to restrict ads from law firms trying to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attorneys said at least 11,000 television spots have aired and that many contain false or misleading statements that are at odds with the notification language approved by the court .
Among the misleading statements , according to Boy Scout attorneys , are assertions that victims can file claims anonymously and that financial compensation is “ ensured.
” Some ads say a compensation fund that may be worth more than $ 1.5 billion is being set up , although there has been no official projection of such an amount .

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NEW YORK (AP) — Under the supervision of a bankruptcy judge, the Boy Scouts of America has launched a nationwide advertising campaign to notify victims of decades-old sex abuse by Scout leaders that they have until Nov. 16 to seek compensation from a proposed fund.
Law firms say they have already signed up thousands of clients to submit claims since the Boy Scouts filed for bankruptcy protection in February in the face of hundreds of lawsuits. Some lawyers predict the number of people filing claims will surge past 20,000 by the November deadline.
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“It’s frightening for the Boy Scouts, because they realize it’s going to take a lot of money to get out of this bankruptcy,” said Andrew Van Arsdale, a lawyer with a network called Abused in Scouting that says it has signed up more than 8,000 clients.
The Boy Scouts’ court-approved ad campaign began Monday and is scheduled to run through Oct. 17, at an estimated cost of $6.8 million. It includes print, television, radio and online ads in English and Spanish that are expected to reach more than 100 million people, including more than 95% of the primary target audience of men 50 and older.
The ads direct people to a Boy Scout website with information about the bankruptcy case and seeking compensation. It says to file a claim regardless of how long ago the abuse took place.
Lawyer Paul Mones, who won a $19.9 million sex-abuse verdict against the Boy Scouts in Oregon in 2010, described the campaign as historic.
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“Despite all the publicity surrounding the bankruptcy, this is the first time that the BSA has ever formally and publicly acknowledged on a wide-scale basis its long-standing problem of sexual abuse,” Mones said.
The bankruptcy has been painful for the 110-year-old Boy Scouts, which has been a pillar of American civic life for generations and a training ground for future leaders. But its finances were already strained by sex-abuse settlements and declining membership — now below 2 million from a peak of over 4 million in the 1970s.
Most of the pending sex-abuse claims date to the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s, before the Boy Scouts adopted criminal background checks, abuse-prevention training for all staff and volunteers, and a rule that two or more adult leaders must be present during activities.
The potential size of the bankruptcy compensation fund is not yet known. The organization is expected to contribute a substantial portion of its assets, which include financial investments and real estate. The Boy Scouts’ insurers also will be contributing, although they have been trying to limit their exposure.
Attorney Christopher Hurley of the Chicago-based law firm Hurley McKenna & Mertz, which says it represents more than 2,500 potential claimants, said lawyers are braced for tough negotiations with the insurers.
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“If they’re smart, they’ll find a way to resolve this in a fair way,” Hurley said. “With 100% certainty, we’re not going out anywhere until there’s justice for these survivors.”
Another contentious issue is the extent to which the Boy Scouts’ roughly 260 local councils will contribute to the fund.
In its bankruptcy filing, the national organization said the councils, which have extensive property holdings and other assets, are separate legal entities and should not be included as debtors in the case. An ad hoc committee representing the councils is negotiating what they will pay in.
“Any settlement must involve not only BSA but also the local councils and insurance companies,” said Seattle-based attorney Mike Pfau, whose team represents more than 630 potential claimants. “There can be no meaningful settlement without significant contributions from both of them.”
Last week, as the Boy Scouts prepared to launch its ad campaign, its lawyers filed a motion with the federal bankruptcy court in Delaware that’s handling the case, asking a judge to restrict ads from law firms trying to solicit business from victims.
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Boy Scout attorneys said at least 11,000 television spots have aired and that many contain false or misleading statements that are at odds with the notification language approved by the court.
Among the misleading statements, according to Boy Scout attorneys, are assertions that victims can file claims anonymously and that financial compensation is “ensured.” Some ads say a compensation fund that may be worth more than $1.5 billion is being set up, although there has been no official projection of such an amount.
At a hearing Monday, the judge declined to approve an order restricting the ads, saying it was “incredibly broad” and raised concerns about First Amendment issues.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--The Best Labor Day 2020 TV Deals Under $500 To Watch Out For

HuffPost may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page .
Prices and availability subject to change .
Whether you ’ ve been escaping to “ Animal Crossing ” whenever you can or untangling all the computer cords at your desk , chances are your screen time ’ s probably gone up in recent months .
These days , your tech might be all teched out — with your laptop , tablet or phone just not working like they used to .
If you ’ ve been meaning to finally get a new TV , it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Labor Day weekend is here and there are lots of deals to check out .
There are sales already live , too , including on mattresses at Allswell , AirPods on Amazon and furniture at FLOYD .
For TVs , you might turn to the three retailers that are probably best-known for their electronics selection — Amazon , Best Buy and Walmart .
All three have marked down lots of TVs , including from brands like LG and Samsung , ahead of the long Labor Day weekend .
Of course , you don @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on your wallet so we rounded up TVs that are on sale for under $ 500 .
Among the best TV deals that we ’ ve seen so far are an under $ 100 well-rated TV at Walmart and a smart TV that ’ s $ 100 off at Amazon right now .

HuffPost may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page. Prices and availability subject to change.
HuffPost You won't have to leave the couch to catch these Labor Day TV deals.
Whether you’ve been escaping to “Animal Crossing” whenever you can or untangling all the computer cords at your desk, chances are your screen time’s probably gone up in recent months.
Advertisement
These days, your tech might be all teched out — with your laptop, tablet or phone just not working like they used to.
If you’ve been meaning to finally get a new TV, it’s your chance now — the long Labor Day weekend is here and there are lots of deals to check out. There are sales already live, too, including on mattresses at Allswell, AirPods on Amazon and furniture at FLOYD.
For TVs, you might turn to the three retailers that are probably best-known for their electronics selection — Amazon, Best Buy and Walmart. All three have marked down lots of TVs, including from brands like LG and Samsung, ahead of the long Labor Day weekend.
Of course, you don’t want to go too hard on your wallet so we rounded up TVs that are on sale for under $500. Among the best TV deals that we’ve seen so far are an under $100 well-rated TV at Walmart and a smart TV that’s $100 off at Amazon right now.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Naomi Osaka Wears 'Breonna Taylor' Mask During First Match Of U.S. Open

Naomi Osaka wore a mask emblazoned with Breonna Taylor ’ s name prior to her first match at the U.S. Open on Monday , and reportedly plans to wear other face coverings with the names of victims of racial violence throughout the tournament .
Osaka , who plays for Japan and was the 2018 U.S. Open champion , won a first round victory against opponent Misaki Doi on Monday evening .
In interviews with reporters at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens , New York , Osaka said she brought seven masks to the tournament .
“ It ’ s quite @ @ @ @ @ @ @ enough for the amount of names , so hopefully I ’ ll get to the finals so you can see all of them , ” Osaka said .
The 22-year-old , who is of Haitian and Japanese descent but has lived in the United States since childhood , told reporters after the match that she was hoping to spread awareness of racial injustice worldwide .
“ I ’ m aware that tennis is watched all over the world , and maybe there is someone that doesn ’ t know Breonna Taylor ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ So maybe they ’ ll Google it .
... For me , [ I ’ m ] just spreading awareness .
...
I started off with Breonna Taylor ’ s name first because for me she was the most important and [ Black Lives Matter ] is still actively going on ; there are still marches even though people don ’ t really talk about it.
” Osaka has been a vocal proponent of the Black Lives Matter movement , and withdrew from her semifinals match in the Western & Southern Open tennis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sports world following the police shooting of Jacob Blake .
The tournament later paused for a day and Osaka resumed play , though she pulled out before the finals , citing a hamstring injury .
At the time , Osaka wrote on social media that “ watching the continued genocide of Black people at the hand of police is honestly making me sick to my stomach .
”

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Naomi Osaka wore a mask emblazoned with Breonna Taylor’s name prior to her first match at the U.S. Open on Monday, and reportedly plans to wear other face coverings with the names of victims of racial violence throughout the tournament.
Osaka, who plays for Japan and was the 2018 U.S. Open champion, won a first round victory against opponent Misaki Doi on Monday evening. In interviews with reporters at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York, Osaka said she brought seven masks to the tournament.
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“It’s quite sad that seven masks isn’t enough for the amount of names, so hopefully I’ll get to the finals so you can see all of them,” Osaka said.
.@naomiosaka walked out in a Breonna Taylor mask for her night match at Arthur Ashe stadium.#USOpen pic.twitter.com/Ubxwst54kl — US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 1, 2020
.@naomiosaka has 7 masks ready with different names for a potential run at the #USOpen. pic.twitter.com/jmARabKhae — US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 1, 2020
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The 22-year-old, who is of Haitian and Japanese descent but has lived in the United States since childhood, told reporters after the match that she was hoping to spread awareness of racial injustice worldwide.
“I’m aware that tennis is watched all over the world, and maybe there is someone that doesn’t know Breonna Taylor’s story,” Osaka said. “So maybe they’ll Google it. ... For me, [I’m] just spreading awareness. ... I started off with Breonna Taylor’s name first because for me she was the most important and [Black Lives Matter] is still actively going on; there are still marches even though people don’t really talk about it.”
Osaka has been a vocal proponent of the Black Lives Matter movement, and withdrew from her semifinals match in the Western & Southern Open tennis tournament last week after walkouts rocked the sports world following the police shooting of Jacob Blake. The tournament later paused for a day and Osaka resumed play, though she pulled out before the finals, citing a hamstring injury.
At the time, Osaka wrote on social media that “watching the continued genocide of Black people at the hand of police is honestly making me sick to my stomach.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--McDonald's Sued For Racial Discrimination By 52 Black Former Franchisees

More than 50 Black former McDonald ’ s franchise owners are suing the burger chain , saying the company steered them to less-profitable restaurants and didn ’ t give them the same support and opportunities given white franchisees .
The 52 plaintiffs , who owned around 200 U.S. stores before being forced to sell them over the last decade , are seeking compensation of $ 4 million to $ 5 million per store , according to the lawsuit .
The suit was filed Tuesday in federal court in Chicago , where McDonald ’ s is based .
According to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ franchisees to stores in inner-city neighborhoods with lower sales volumes and higher security and insurance costs .
The company would provide them with misleading financial information or push them to decide quickly when a store became available , the lawsuit says .
Once Black franchisees owned a store , they would be asked to rebuild or remodel within a shorter period of time than white franchisees without the rent relief and other financial support given to white franchisees , the lawsuit says .
Black franchise owners were also denied the chance to buy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it says .
As a result , the plaintiffs averaged sales of $ 2 million per year .
By comparison , McDonald ’ s average U.S. store brought in $ 2.7 million annually between 2011 and 2016 and $ 2.9 million in 2019 , the lawsuit says .
“ Revenue is determined by one thing and one thing only : location , ” said James Ferraro , the Miami-based attorney representing the plaintiffs .
“ It ’ s a Big Mac .
They ’ re the same everywhere.
” Ferraro also noted that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ franchisees has fallen by half over the last two decades .
The chain had 377 Black franchisees in 1998 ; it has 186 now .
At the same time , the number of franchised restaurants has more than doubled to 36,000 .
“ These allegations fly in the face of everything we stand for as an organization and as a partner to communities and small business owners around the world , ” the company said .
“ Not only do we categorically deny the allegations that these franchisees were unable to succeed because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s , we are confident that the facts will show how committed we are to the diversity and equal opportunity of the McDonald ’ s System , including across our franchisees , suppliers and employees.
” McDonald ’ s has a troubled history with Black franchisees .
In 1969 , activists boycotted four McDonald ’ s in Cleveland until the company sold them to Black owners .
In 1983 , a Black franchise owner from Los Angeles sued the company for discrimination ; McDonald ’ s eventually paid him $ 4.5 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leadership acknowledged that Black franchisees weren ’ t achieving parity with their white counterparts and resolved to make changes .
Don Thompson , the company ’ s first Black president and CEO , served from 2012 to 2015 .
But charges of discrimination continued .
In January , two Black McDonald ’ s executives sued the company .
They claimed McDonald ’ s shifted advertising away from Black customers , graded Black-owned stores more harshly than white ones and implemented business plans that had a discriminatory impact on Black franchisees .
At the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disagreed with the characterization of its actions .
It noted that 45 % of its corporate officers and all of its field vice presidents are people of color .

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More than 50 Black former McDonald’s franchise owners are suing the burger chain, saying the company steered them to less-profitable restaurants and didn’t give them the same support and opportunities given white franchisees.
The 52 plaintiffs, who owned around 200 U.S. stores before being forced to sell them over the last decade, are seeking compensation of $4 million to $5 million per store, according to the lawsuit. The suit was filed Tuesday in federal court in Chicago, where McDonald’s is based.
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According to the lawsuit, McDonald’s steered Black franchisees to stores in inner-city neighborhoods with lower sales volumes and higher security and insurance costs. The company would provide them with misleading financial information or push them to decide quickly when a store became available, the lawsuit says.
Once Black franchisees owned a store, they would be asked to rebuild or remodel within a shorter period of time than white franchisees without the rent relief and other financial support given to white franchisees, the lawsuit says. Black franchise owners were also denied the chance to buy more profitable stores in better neighborhoods, it says.
As a result, the plaintiffs averaged sales of $2 million per year. By comparison, McDonald’s average U.S. store brought in $2.7 million annually between 2011 and 2016 and $2.9 million in 2019, the lawsuit says.
“Revenue is determined by one thing and one thing only: location,” said James Ferraro, the Miami-based attorney representing the plaintiffs. “It’s a Big Mac. They’re the same everywhere.”
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Ferraro also noted that the number of Black McDonald’s franchisees has fallen by half over the last two decades. The chain had 377 Black franchisees in 1998; it has 186 now. At the same time, the number of franchised restaurants has more than doubled to 36,000.
McDonald’s Corp. denied the allegation and defended its history with Black franchisees.
“These allegations fly in the face of everything we stand for as an organization and as a partner to communities and small business owners around the world,” the company said. “Not only do we categorically deny the allegations that these franchisees were unable to succeed because of any form of discrimination by McDonald’s, we are confident that the facts will show how committed we are to the diversity and equal opportunity of the McDonald’s System, including across our franchisees, suppliers and employees.”
McDonald’s has a troubled history with Black franchisees. In 1969, activists boycotted four McDonald’s in Cleveland until the company sold them to Black owners. In 1983, a Black franchise owner from Los Angeles sued the company for discrimination; McDonald’s eventually paid him $4.5 million.
In 1996, McDonald’s leadership acknowledged that Black franchisees weren’t achieving parity with their white counterparts and resolved to make changes. Don Thompson, the company’s first Black president and CEO, served from 2012 to 2015.
But charges of discrimination continued. In January, two Black McDonald’s executives sued the company. They claimed McDonald’s shifted advertising away from Black customers, graded Black-owned stores more harshly than white ones and implemented business plans that had a discriminatory impact on Black franchisees.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Spotted: AirPods Pro For Cheaper Than They Were On Black Friday

HuffPost may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page .
Prices and availability subject to change .
Conference calls , Zoom meetings and remote learning .
If there ’ s one thing we ’ ve learned from all of this time at home , it ’ s that a good pair of headphones or earbuds is essential to getting your work done .
And if you ’ ve been holding out on replacing the worn-out headphones you ’ ve been using that came with your smartphone , you might want to listen up to these Labor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Powerbeats wireless headphones and Amazon Echo Buds are on sale on Amazon for prices that rival Black Friday last year .
Perhaps the best AirPods deal going on right now is on the Apple AirPods Pro .
You can upgrade to the newest AirPods model while they ’ re on sale this weekend for just $ 220 .
They normally retail for $ 249 .
This is the cheapest we ’ ve ever seen Apple AirPods Pro .
On Black Friday 2019 , they were on sale for $ 235 .
Like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to other Apple devices and more via Bluetooth .
Play , pause or skip with a simple double-tap motion .
AirPods pause automatically when you take them out of your ears .
For a true hands-free experience , you can summon Siri with a quick , “ Hey , Siri !
” voice command .
The AirPods Pro offer a “ Transparency ” mode that allows you to switch between noise-canceling and amplifying the sounds around you .
It ’ s a feature that allows you to chat with others around you without @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the time .
Amazon ’ s EchoBuds — which we ’ ve previously reviewed and found to be an affordable alternative to AirPods — have a similar “ Transparency ” feature for canceling and amplifying sound .
Amazon ’ s EchoBuds usually retail for $ 130 but are also on sale right now for $ 90 .
If you prefer Beats headphones over Apple , the Powerbeats Pro Wireless Earphones are also on sale this Labor Day weekend on Amazon for $ 200 .
They usually retail for $ 250 .

HuffPost may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page. Prices and availability subject to change.
Avid Photographer. Travel the world to capture moments and beautiful photos. Sony Alpha User via Getty Images This Apple AirPods early Prime Day 2020 deal is better than Black Friday.
Conference calls, Zoom meetings and remote learning. If there’s one thing we’ve learned from all of this time at home, it’s that a good pair of headphones or earbuds is essential to getting your work done.
Advertisement
And if you’ve been holding out on replacing the worn-out headphones you’ve been using that came with your smartphone, you might want to listen up to these early Prime Day 2020 deals on Apple AirPods that rival Black Friday’s prices last last year.
Perhaps the best AirPods deal going on right now is on the Apple AirPods Pro. You can upgrade to the newest AirPods model while they’re on sale right now for just $220. They normally retail for $249.
This is the cheapest we’ve ever seen Apple AirPods Pro, and we first spotted them for this price on Labor Day this year. Fro context, on Black Friday 2019, AirPods Pro were on sale for $235.
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Amazon This early Prime Day 2020 Apple AirPods deal is better than Black Friday.
Like most Apple products, AirPods easily sync to other Apple devices and more via Bluetooth. Play, pause or skip with a simple double-tap motion. AirPods pause automatically when you take them out of your ears. For a true hands-free experience, you can summon Siri with a quick, “Hey, Siri!” voice command.
The AirPods Pro offer a “Transparency” mode that allows you to switch between noise-canceling and amplifying the sounds around you. It’s a feature that allows you to chat with others around you without having to take out your earbuds all the time.
Amazon’s EchoBuds — which we’ve previously reviewed and found to be an affordable alternative to AirPods — have a similar “Transparency” feature for canceling and amplifying sound. Amazon’s EchoBuds retail for $130.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Walmart Launching Its Answer To Amazon Prime 15 Years Later

NEW YORK ( AP ) — Walmart is launching a new membership service that it hopes can compete with Amazon Prime .
Called Walmart+ , it will cost $ 98 a year , or $ 12.95 a month , and give members same-day delivery on 160,000 items , a fuel discount at certain gas stations and a chance to check out at Walmart stores without having to wait at a register .
Walmart has a long way to go to catch up with Amazon Prime .
Launched in 2005 , Prime has more than 150 million members worldwide who pay @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 12.99 a month , for faster shipping and other perks , such as discounts at Amazon ’ s Whole Foods supermarkets and access to its video streaming site .
Walmart ’ s online sales are growing rapidly , especially during the pandemic , when more people have turned to the company to order groceries online and pick them up at a store .
But the world ’ s biggest retailer is still a distant second online to Amazon .
Walmart is expected to take 6 % of all online sales in the U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s 38 % , according to market research firm eMarketer .
Last week , Walmart emerged as a possible suitor for the U.S. business of TikTok , the fast-growing video app with more than 100 million users .
Analysts have said the bid with tech company Microsoft could be a way for Walmart to grow its online shopping business and connect with millions of young shoppers .
“ We ’ re launching it to meet the needs of our customers , ” she said .
“ And it really was designed to make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will still have to spend at least $ 35 online to qualify for free same-day delivery .
Items are delivered from stores , which typically costs as much as $ 9.95 for non-members .
The 160,000 items that qualify include groceries , toys , electronics and household items , such as toilet paper and soap .
Members will get a discount of up to 5 cents a gallon at Murphy gas stations or at the 2,000 Walmart locations that have gas pumps .
The company said it ’ s working to add more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its stores , members can unlock an app to scan items as they shop and pay without having to stop at a cashier .

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NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart is launching a new membership service that it hopes can compete with Amazon Prime.
Called Walmart+, it will cost $98 a year, or $12.95 a month, and give members same-day delivery on 160,000 items, a fuel discount at certain gas stations and a chance to check out at Walmart stores without having to wait at a register.
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Walmart has a long way to go to catch up with Amazon Prime. Launched in 2005, Prime has more than 150 million members worldwide who pay $119 a year, or $12.99 a month, for faster shipping and other perks, such as discounts at Amazon’s Whole Foods supermarkets and access to its video streaming site.
Walmart’s online sales are growing rapidly, especially during the pandemic, when more people have turned to the company to order groceries online and pick them up at a store. But the world’s biggest retailer is still a distant second online to Amazon. Walmart is expected to take 6% of all online sales in the U.S. this year, compared to Amazon’s 38%, according to market research firm eMarketer.
Last week, Walmart emerged as a possible suitor for the U.S. business of TikTok, the fast-growing video app with more than 100 million users. Analysts have said the bid with tech company Microsoft could be a way for Walmart to grow its online shopping business and connect with millions of young shoppers.
Janey Whiteside, Walmart’s chief customer officer, said it wasn’t launching Walmart+ to compete with any other shopping membership.
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“We’re launching it to meet the needs of our customers,” she said. “And it really was designed to make their busy lives easier.”
Walmart+ members will still have to spend at least $35 online to qualify for free same-day delivery. Items are delivered from stores, which typically costs as much as $9.95 for non-members. The 160,000 items that qualify include groceries, toys, electronics and household items, such as toilet paper and soap.
Members will get a discount of up to 5 cents a gallon at Murphy gas stations or at the 2,000 Walmart locations that have gas pumps. The company said it’s working to add more gas-station chains to its list.
At its stores, members can unlock an app to scan items as they shop and pay without having to stop at a cashier.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-09-01--Florida 'Antifa Hunter' Gets 3 Years For Online Racist Threats

A Florida man who called himself “ the Antifa hunter ” as he waged an online campaign to terrorize and harass those who opposed his white supremacist ideology was sentenced on Monday to more than three years in prison .
Daniel McMahon , 32 , of Brandon , Florida , pleaded guilty in April to using social media to threaten a Black activist to deter the man from running for office in Charlottesville , Virginia .
McMahon also admitted that he threatened to sexually assault the young autistic daughter of a North Carolina woman who protested against white nationalists .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to three years and five months in prison .
McMahon declined an opportunity to make a public statement beforehand , but he heard from his victims during the hearing , which was conducted remotely by video conference .
Most of McMahon ’ s cyberstalking victims knew him as “ Jack Corbin.
” Under that pseudonym , he posted social media messages intended to deter a Black activist , Don Gathers , from running for a seat on Charlottesville ’ s city council .
He called himself “ the Antifa hunter , ” a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations .
McMahon accused Gathers of “ attacking ” a white supremacist group member who later pleaded guilty to attacking counterprotesters at the “ Unite the Right ” rally in Charlottesville in August 2017 .
McMahon called for using a “ diversity of tactics ” against Gathers , which authorities interpreted as a euphemism for violence .
After McMahon ’ s arrest , the North Carolina woman called federal prosecutors to report that he had threatened her and her daughter , a severely autistic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extort personal information from her about another counterprotester .
The woman said McMahon sent her hundreds of threatening messages , including some detailing how he would sexually assault her daughter .
He posted the girl ’ s photo on a racist social media platform , she added .
He also did a Google search for the term “ sex with autistic girls ” a day before his arrest , according to a court filing .
A folder with a racist slur for a title contained photos of dead Black men , including a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ images of Trayvon Martin after the Black teenager was shot and killed by a neighborhood watch member in Florida in 2012 , according to prosecutors .
Other folders on McMahon ’ s computer contained personal information about his targets , including photos of their children .
One target was a woman whose child had died , a tragedy that McMahon tried to exploit to extort information from her about antifascists , prosecutors said .
The FBI found 278 files with the word “ owned ” in the title , signaling that he had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ All told , prosecutors said , McMahon compiled 35 gigabytes of data that he could “ weaponize ” against his targets .
McMahon pleaded guilty to cyberstalking and bias-motivated interference with a candidate for elective office .
U.S. District Judge Norman Moon wasn ’ t bound by sentencing guidelines that called for a prison term ranging from two years and nine months to three years and five months .
“ It may not have been physically violent , but it couldn ’ t have been more violent to one ’ s mental health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ judge said .
Phillips said her client made “ bad choices ” but is remorseful and took full responsibility for his crimes .
She attributed McMahon ’ s behavior to an untreated mental health disorder , alcohol abuse and a “ lack of social stability .
”

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A Florida man who called himself “the Antifa hunter” as he waged an online campaign to terrorize and harass those who opposed his white supremacist ideology was sentenced on Monday to more than three years in prison.
Daniel McMahon, 32, of Brandon, Florida, pleaded guilty in April to using social media to threaten a Black activist to deter the man from running for office in Charlottesville, Virginia. McMahon also admitted that he threatened to sexually assault the young autistic daughter of a North Carolina woman who protested against white nationalists.
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A federal judge in Virginia sentenced McMahon to three years and five months in prison. McMahon declined an opportunity to make a public statement beforehand, but he heard from his victims during the hearing, which was conducted remotely by video conference.
In a written statement read aloud by a court employee, the North Carolina woman said McMahon methodically “cultivated a culture of fear and chaos” in her community of anti-racist activists.
“There is seemingly nothing that Daniel McMahon will not do in the name of white supremacy,” she wrote.
Most of McMahon’s cyberstalking victims knew him as “Jack Corbin.” Under that pseudonym, he posted social media messages intended to deter a Black activist, Don Gathers, from running for a seat on Charlottesville’s city council. He called himself “the Antifa hunter,” a reference to anti-fascist, leftist militant activists who confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.
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McMahon accused Gathers of “attacking” a white supremacist group member who later pleaded guilty to attacking counterprotesters at the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville in August 2017. McMahon called for using a “diversity of tactics” against Gathers, which authorities interpreted as a euphemism for violence.
The FBI notified Gathers of McMahon’s threats. Instead of kicking off his campaign at a January 2019 event, Gathers announced he wouldn’t run for office. “Hail Victory!” McMahon wrote in response.
On Monday, Gathers told McMahon that he prays he may find a way to forgive him some day.
“But today is not that day,” Gathers added. “I despise all that you and others like you represent.”
After McMahon’s arrest, the North Carolina woman called federal prosecutors to report that he had threatened her and her daughter, a severely autistic minor, over Facebook and tried to extort personal information from her about another counterprotester.
The woman said McMahon sent her hundreds of threatening messages, including some detailing how he would sexually assault her daughter. He posted the girl’s photo on a racist social media platform, she added. He also did a Google search for the term “sex with autistic girls” a day before his arrest, according to a court filing.
“Only a deeply disturbed individual would do this, a monster,” the woman wrote. “I will never feel completely safe about my child again.”
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Prosecutors say the contents of McMahon’s computer revealed his obsession with racially motivated violence and hatred of Black people, including images of white supremacist James Fields plowing his car into a crowd of Charlottesville counterprotesters, killing a woman.
A folder with a racist slur for a title contained photos of dead Black men, including a lynching victim. McMahon also saved graphic images of Trayvon Martin after the Black teenager was shot and killed by a neighborhood watch member in Florida in 2012, according to prosecutors.
Other folders on McMahon’s computer contained personal information about his targets, including photos of their children. One target was a woman whose child had died, a tragedy that McMahon tried to exploit to extort information from her about antifascists, prosecutors said.
The FBI found 278 files with the word “owned” in the title, signaling that he had harassed that victim to his satisfaction. All told, prosecutors said, McMahon compiled 35 gigabytes of data that he could “weaponize” against his targets.
McMahon pleaded guilty to cyberstalking and bias-motivated interference with a candidate for elective office. U.S. District Judge Norman Moon wasn’t bound by sentencing guidelines that called for a prison term ranging from two years and nine months to three years and five months.
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Moon accepted prosecutors’ recommendation to impose the maximum under the guidelines, saying McMahon’s conduct was “as egregious as it could be.”
“It may not have been physically violent, but it couldn’t have been more violent to one’s mental health or feeling of well-being,” the judge said.
Defense attorney Jessica Phillips asked the judge to sentence McMahon to a year and a half in prison and give him credit for time served since his Sept. 18, 2019, arrest.
Phillips said her client made “bad choices” but is remorseful and took full responsibility for his crimes. She attributed McMahon’s behavior to an untreated mental health disorder, alcohol abuse and a “lack of social stability.”
“While he did not realize the impact of his words at the time, he certainly does now,” Phillips wrote in a court filing.
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Gathers told McMahon that “a new day, a different day, is coming” for those who share his “pitiful views.”