thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--Keith Ellison, Once An Activist, Meets His Moment As Minnesota’s Top Prosecutor

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s commitment to civil rights activism took root in January 1989 when he was a law student at the University of Minnesota.
The Minneapolis police threw a stun grenade in an apartment window during a drug raid, starting a fire that killed two elderly Black residents. Days later, police raided a quiet birthday party among Black students at a hotel after someone called 911 on a noisy kegger thrown by white students in another room.
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Ellison led an angry march down to city hall demanding the governor call on the state attorney general to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the deaths resulting from the of the drug raid. Nothing ever came of it; an internal police inquiry cleared the officers involved.
“When I was a 24-year-old law student working on police accountability, if the attorney general had said, ‘I’m going to take this seriously,’ I would be thrilled beyond belief,” he recalled in an interview with HuffPost.
After decades as a public interest attorney, state lawmaker and member of Congress, Ellison, 56, has the chance to be the attorney general that his younger self yearned for.
Following the May 25 police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, state officials turned to this Black Muslim ― whose radical roots and outspoken progressive record have made him a target of right-wing rancor ― to begin restoring public trust.
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Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz who, like many Democrats before him, kept Ellison at arm’s length during the 2018 election when both won their statewide offices, tapped him to take over the prosecution of Derek Chauvin, the police officer accused of murdering Floyd. With Ellison at the helm, Floyd’s family members could rest assured that “the facts would be heard and justice would be served,” Walz said.
Ellison quickly upgraded the murder charges against Chauvin and filed charges against the three officers who were with Chauvin as he pressed his knee against Floyd’s neck for almost nine minutes; each was charged with aiding and abetting the killing.
“This is a test of him.” - Michelle Gross, Communities United Against Police Brutality
But while Ellison’s stewardship of the case is a source of relief for many people around the country, it also looms as the biggest challenge of his career. And he is acutely aware that he carries on his shoulders the weight of generations of Black Minnesotans’ cries for justice.
“Minneapolis is a tale of two cities,” he said, referring to the Black-white gap on key quality-of-life and economic metrics. “If we can make this place so great for the majority, for the white community, why can’t we share the bounty of this wonderful city and state that we have?”
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“We can,” he said, answering his own question, “but we’ve got to have the political will.”
Conversations with Ellison and more than 20 elected officials, attorneys and activists with whom he has worked paint the picture of an unabashed fighter for ordinary people who is nonetheless wary of conduct and rhetoric that he considers impractical; an attentive listener adept at building relationships with ideological adversaries; and a reformer who has spent his 18 months as attorney general restoring the reputation of an office that had fallen into disarray under his predecessors.
The stakes are high. If he succeeds where others have failed in convicting cops, he is likely to be hailed as a hero.
But if his efforts fall short, no amount of progressive credibility will spare him the rage of grieving families and anti-racist activists, particularly those who already feel that he has strayed from the social movements from which he sprang.
“This is a test of him,” said Michelle Gross, founder of the Minneapolis-St. Paul-based Communities United Against Police Brutality and a frequent Ellison critic. “He had better do right by this prosecution.”
Keith Ellison's loss to former Labor Secretary Tom Perez (left) in the 2017 race to chair the Democratic National Committee disappointed the party's progressive wing. But it paved the way for him to become Minnesota's leading law enforcement official. Mark Wilson/Getty Images
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‘Thank God He Won’
Ellison did not expect to be here. He almost certainly would not have run for attorney general if he had won his race for chairman of the Democratic National Committee in early 2017. Former Labor Secretary Tom Perez, with the help of former President Barack Obama and his aides ― as well as a whisper campaign equating Ellison’s criticism of the Israeli government with anti-Semitism ― narrowly claimed the post on the second ballot. At the time, the loss seemed like a major blow to an activist left eager to flex its muscles after Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) ― an Ellison ally ― fell short in his bid for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination and Republican Donald Trump won the White House that November.
In retrospect, it all looks like a godsend for Ellison. As he steers the highest-profile prosecution in the country, Perez is stuck with the thankless task of managing a party fundraising apparatus and bureaucracy that has spurred criticisms of him from both his right and his left.
As an initial consolation prize, Ellison served as Perez’s deputy chairman while he continued to serve in the House. In his final two years there, Ellison stepped aside as co-chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus but maintained his status as one of the chamber’s left-wing leaders, a role buttressed by being the chief sponsor of the Medicare for All, single-payer health care bill.
But Ellison had grown tired of working in a chamber where Republican obstruction and excessive caution among Democratic leaders often stifled progressive policy in the cradle. And his tenure at the DNC was marked by private tensions with Perez, who consolidated power by excluding Ellison’s allies.
A last-minute decision by then-Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson to mount a gubernatorial bid gave Ellison his shot at that post. Billing himself as a candidate for “people’s lawyer,” Ellison promised to leverage the AG’s office to do what he viewed as not possible in Congress ― help people “afford their lives and live with dignity.”
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“Unions are a critical voice, but most unions are concerned about the product that they’re selling, the service they’re offering.” - Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison
With name recognition and experience in the courtroom from his days as executive director of the nonprofit Legal Rights Center, Ellison seemed like a shoo-in for the Democratic nod. Then, days before the August primary, an ex-girlfriend accused him of “narcissist abuse,” claiming a video existed that showed him trying to pull her off a bed.
Ellison denied the charge and still won the primary handily. But despite an investigation commissioned by the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party that cleared him and the failure of the promised video to materialize, Ellison spent the general election campaign fighting for his political life with limited help from other Democrats on the ticket. His GOP opponent, social conservative Doug Wardlow, used the abuse charge to depict Ellison as “extreme,” alongside dog-whistles about Ellison’s history as an activist and defense attorney.
Ellison ended up prevailing in the election, but by a considerably smaller margin than the party’s other statewide candidates.
The idea that Wardlow, a right-wing crusader, could be in office at this pivotal moment, still makes some Democrats in the state shudder.
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“Thank God [Ellison] won,” said Ken Martin, chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, who has known Ellison for two decades. “We’d be in a lot different situation if he had not won.”
Then-Rep. Ellison visits a Black Lives Matter encampment in Minneapolis in November 2015. His turn against the encampment remains controversial. Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
Bridge Builder Or Political Climber?
Thanks to decades of fear-mongering from Republicans and even some Democrats, Ellison has developed a reputation as a radical bomb-thrower that is largely unearned. In the course of activism against police violence and racism in the 1980s and ’90s, he kept company with some members of the Nation of Islam, a Black nationalist sect that is virulently anti-Semitic and bigoted.
But Ellison’s demands ― for health care, housing and equal treatment before the law ― never veered into extreme territory. He parted ways with Nation of Islam after his disappointment with the group’s failure to translate 1995′s Million Man March in Washington into a pragmatic political program. (He has also renounced the group’s prejudiced views.)
Elected to his House seat in 2006, Ellison used his position as the first Muslim member of Congress ― and the first Black member of Congress from Minnesota ― to dispel stereotypes and speak up against racism.
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As attorney general, one key goal for Ellison ― generally a staunch supporter of unions ― is preventing police unions from using collective bargaining agreements to shield themselves from public accountability. He is urging Minneapolis officials to play hardball in talks for the next contract (the city’s police chief earlier this week announced a halt in the negotiations), and is open to the state government passing legislation limiting cops’ bargaining rights for pay, benefits and working conditions.
“Unions are a critical voice, but most unions are concerned about the product that they’re selling, the service they’re offering,” he said. “The people who are supposed to be served by the police federation in Minneapolis are not the citizens of Minneapolis. That’s the problem.”
“I don’t think the binary is pro-police/anti-police. The question is public safety.” - Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison
Ellison’s analysis ― that his city, state and even country are not beyond repair ― is fundamentally hopeful. It springs from a belief that human beings are susceptible to scapegoating and ignorance, but are not intrinsically prone to racism. He eschews discussions of “white fragility” and “privilege” more popular with contemporary Black civil rights activists in favor of more universal language.
“All human beings have flaws and I may not be a racist but maybe I got some things about myself that I need to work on,” he told The Washington Post earlier this month.
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Ellison also has politely broken with some of the left’s more radical pronouncements. He told HuffPost in April 2017 that he supported the right of right-wing provocateur Ann Coulter to speak at the University of California-Berkeley, arguing that restricting speech at public institutions would eventually infringe on progressives’ freedom as well.
During his state’s recent crisis over racism and police violence, Ellison has stuck to his pragmatic views, condemning the looting during some demonstrations that destroyed corporate chain stores and minority-owned small businesses alike even as he’s said he understands the anger lurking behind the property destruction.
“I’ve organized anti-police brutality rallies. I have participated in them. I expect to more in my life,” he said. “If I saw somebody smashing windows when I was trying to take my moral stand on a critical issue, I would stand in front of the window and say, ‘Don’t you dare do that. You’re ruining all that we’re trying to get done.’”
He is also declining to get behind calls to “defund the police.”
“I don’t think the binary is pro-police/anti-police,” he said. “The question is public safety.”
Campaigning in his first House race in 2006, his win that year made him the first Muslim to serve in Congress. Joey McLeister/Star Tribune/Getty Images
Ellison complements this philosophy with a warm, informal demeanor that disarms people meeting him for the first time.
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“He has a demeanor that is not confrontational and is endearing and leads people to want to like him, hear him out and give him due respect for ideas that I would argue are ahead of our times,” said Rick Nolan, a former Democratic House member from Minnesota’s rural Iron Range.
Nolan is a progressive, but Ellison’s personality has won him friends from Democrats of various stripes in his state. He goes turkey hunting with Rep. Collin Peterson, one of the House’s most conservative Democrats. And he is a longstanding ally of Sen. Amy Klobuchar. Ellison surprised some Minnesota politics watchers with his willingness to stand by her viability for the vice-presidential slot on presumed nominee’s Joe Biden ticket, despite her controversial prosecutorial record. He told HuffPost in May that she’d “make a great vice president.”
The feeling is mutual. Klobuchar defended his patriotism during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in 2016 chaired by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), where an Islamophobic pseudo-expert attacked Ellison.
Ellison passed Klobuchar a written note afterward that said, “I wasn’t there, but I know you stood up for me.”
“That kind of reflected how he thinks and how he is,” Klobuchar said. “It’s not just what you say on TV, it’s what you do for people when no one’s watching.”
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But if Ellison’s relationships with other Minnesota Democrats have helped him advance his policy agenda and career, it has also created a perception among some Twin Cities activists that he cares more about his colleagues’ opinions than the causes he claims to support.
A key flashpoint is Ellison’s role in the protest encampment that emerged in response to the killing by Minneapolis police of Jamar Clark, an unarmed Black man, in November 2015.
“He really seems to say, ‘This is a problem. How do we figure out the problem itself?’” - Luke Grundman, Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid
Then-Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton (D) summoned Ellison to serve as a liaison to the demonstrators who would end up occupying a street outside a Minneapolis police precinct for 18 days. In that capacity, Ellison facilitated conversations for activists with government officials.
But after the shooting of demonstrators by a racist interloper, Ellison turned against the occupation, as it was known, joining city officials and Black leaders from Minneapolis’ northside at a press conference calling for the encampment to disband. “My plea is to minimize the impact, the negative impact, on the neighbors,” Ellison, who lives nearby and represented the neighborhood in Congress, said at the time.
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Nekima Levy Armstrong, then-president of the Minneapolis NAACP and an active figure in the occupation, said she felt betrayed by Ellison’s move.
“I thought it was a slap in the face to the community,” she said. “I thought Keith would support the community taking a stand, even though it was an extreme stance. We had to do something to get their attention.”
Ellison consults with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) in Congress in 2016. Despite their ideological differences, they have a longstanding friendship. Tom Williams/Getty Images
Minnesota state Rep. Jamie Long, who was Ellison’s district director at the time, said the then-congressman was concerned about the difficulty of ensuring the safety of the protesters, particularly after the shooting that wounded five of them. Ellison’s office was also being inundated with complaints from senior citizens and other neighborhood residents complaining about smoke from the fires that the protesters lit at night for warmth and the lack of access to the street, according to Long.
Leslie Redmond, an activist at the 2015 occupation who now runs the Minneapolis NAACP, wanted the encampment to go on for longer, but she does not begrudge Ellison the decision he made. “There are valid points to be made on all fronts,” said Redmond, who briefly worked in the attorney general’s office under Ellison.
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“It was an ill-advised protest in the first place,” said Rev. Jerry McAfee, a prominent Black pastor on the northside, noting that the demonstration should have been at the seat of power downtown. “They made it harder for poor folk than the people in power.”
“Keith is just as Black today as the day I met him,” added McAfee, who has known Ellison since the 1980s.
Armstrong, Gross and other critics also contend that Ellison has not done enough to combat police violence as attorney general. In the Floyd case, they have called for the governor to name a special prosecutor from outside the state’s law enforcement apparatus.
“We do not trust [Ellison] to do right in this matter at all,” Gross said.
“The credit I’ll give to Keith Ellison is that he even generated the use-of-force working group because he didn’t have to.” - Ashley Quiñones
Since taking on the prosecution in the Floyd case, Ellison has touted the working group he has already convened to study the use of deadly force by police in Minnesota. The special commission issued a report in February that offered 28 recommendations addressing the issue, including the creation of an independent agency within the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to investigate police uses of deadly force.
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Gross and Levy Armstrong were part of a small group of activists angered by the working group’s inclusion of so many law enforcement officials, including several police chiefs and prosecutors. (The working group also contained Black elected officials, public interest attorneys, civil liberties activists and Clarence Castile, uncle of Philando Castile, the Black motorist killed in a highly controversial 2016 shooting in a St. Paul suburb.) And the working group critics also want the creation of an entirely new government body to investigate cases of deadly force by police, rather than one still housed within the BCA, an agency that is involved in police work.
Ellison declined to comment on criticisms of either his handling of the precinct occupation or the working group for this story.
But other activists say that for all of its imperfections, the working group was unique in that it at least gave them a chance to share their stories.
Toshira Garraway, whose husband died following a police car chase in St. Paul in 2009, wished that the state began re-investigating old police killings, but she acknowledged the limits of Ellison’s power. (With a few exceptions, he can only take on criminal cases that the governor or a county attorney have asked him to help proscutee.)
“He did call and check on me and see how I was doing,” Garraway said. “He is responding ― unlike Tim Walz.”
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Ashley Quiñones, whose husband Brian was killed by police in Richfield, Minnesota, in September, had a similar sense that Ellison was at least an improvement on the status quo.
“The credit I’ll give to Keith Ellison is that he even generated the use-of-force working group because he didn’t have to,” Quiñones said. “He’s the only politician creating listening sessions… That is commendable.”
Ellison pumped his fist to cheers from onlookers after he and members of the Congressional Black Caucus visited the site of George Floyd's death in Minneapolis on Thursday. Anthony Souffle/Star Tribune/Getty Images
‘A Sea Change’
If Ellison left office tomorrow, he will have already secured a legacy in some circles as a turnaround artist. He has restored morale in an attorney general’s office that had been undermined by a culture of fear that had made it an unattractive place to work under Ellison’s two immediate predecessors, Swanson and Mike Hatch, according to lawyers familiar with office dynamics.
A scandal over Swanson’s use of official, taxpayer-funded staff to perform campaign duties helped derail her gubernatorial bid.
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But her tenure was also marked by mismanagement. Based in the capitol building in St. Paul, she rarely, if ever, visited the downtown Minneapolis building where nearly all of her staff attorneys worked. Employees were forbidden from communicating with her by email; she required them instead to use a private fax machine to reach her.
“A lot of these attorneys practiced in very complicated areas of state and federal law: environmental regulation, public utilities and Medicaid. It takes time to do an excellent job. And that was not valued,” said Bev Heydinger, a former administrative law judge and deputy attorney general under then-Attorney General Skip Humphrey who helped Ellison set up his office in a volunteer capacity.
After winning the election, Ellison immediately worked to mend fences between the attorney general’s office and a Minnesota legal community. He embarked on a listening tour across the state to hear from community members, local prosecutors and state agency officials. He held the office’s first all-staff meeting in years, allowing even the most junior staff members to pepper him with questions, and he established the office’s first annual summer picnic.
The trust he built is evident in the Minnesota County Attorneys Association’s vote of confidence in him. Last week, the historically conservative group of local prosecutors called for the state attorney general to be responsible for prosecuting all police officers charged with a crime stemming from their use of deadly force.
“This ain’t about me. This is about Mr. Floyd, George Floyd.” - Ellison
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“There’s been just a sea change, in my view, as Keith has listened hard to the state agencies and what they needed, to the county attorneys and what they needed,” said Heydinger, who left the AG’s office in 1999 but had frequent dealings with it as a judge and then chair of the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission.
Once Ellison was settled in, he initiated a flurry of activity designed to deliver on his populist campaign platform with a particular focus on combating pharmaceutical industry abuses.
But his work on behalf of low-income tenants is what has really distinguished his tenure to date. Ellison filed a lawsuit against Steven Meldahl, a Minneapolis slumlord accused of cycling poor renters in and out of his houses by charging them rents he knows they cannot afford, assessing exorbitant fees for late payments, and threatening tenants with eviction if they reported his failures to conduct basic maintenance to city authorities. Ellison successfully obtained an injunction forcing Meldahl to, among other things, seek inspections of all his properties.
Luke Grundman, managing attorney of Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid’s housing program ― which is representing tenants in a separate class-action lawsuit against Meldahl ― credited Ellison for dramatically changing the attorney general office’s approach to the concerns of people living in poverty, particularly Minnesotans from minority communities suffering from the legacy of housing discrimination.
Under Swanson, “There was never a sense that this is a systemic problem, it’s a problem that has racist roots and we need to fix this,” Grundman said. “Ellison is the opposite. He really seems to say, ‘This is a problem. How do we figure out the problem itself?’”
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But for all of his accomplishments, Ellison’s prosecution of four Minneapolis cops is the type of career-defining moment that few public officials ever confront. He faces the difficult task of convicting police officers of murder charges in a state where that has only happened once before (the cop, Mohamed Noor, was Black and his victim was white).
He has sought to downplay expectations. “One thing I’m not going to do is start guaranteeing people things before I’m ready to do so,” he said.
Asked whether he is personally invested in the case, as a Black man who has fought for racial equity for decades, Ellison briefly affirmed that he was ― while then launching into a promise that he would not let that affect his judgment in the case.
“I’m professional enough to understand that I’m holding a public trust,” he said. “This ain’t about me. This is about Mr. Floyd, George Floyd. And this is about trying to make sure we have a standard of conduct in our community.”
As for Minnesotans and concerned citizens across the country who are skeptical about the prospects of getting justice for Floyd from the existing legal system, Ellison expressed empathy.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--John Bolton Says Reelection Is 'Only Thing That Mattered' To Trump

Former national security adviser John Bolton claims in his forthcoming book that every decision President Donald Trump has made in office has been “ driven by reelection calculations.
” Bolton ’ s publisher , Simon & Schuster , shared the remarks Friday in a news release promoting the book , which details Bolton ’ s year and a half working for Trump .
The president fired Bolton in September .
“ I am hard-pressed to identify any significant Trump decision during my tenure that wasn ’ t driven by reelection calculations , ” Bolton writes , saying he was often @ @ @ @ @ @ @ singular motivation .
Bolton , one of the most controversial figures in American foreign policy , described Trump as a “ president for whom getting reelected was the only thing that mattered , even if it meant endangering or weakening the nation.
” The former adviser also argues in the book excerpts that the House committed impeachment malpractice by leading a trial focused narrowly on Trump ’ s transgressions with Ukraine , and that the House should have also explored similar foreign policy violations Trump has committed elsewhere .
It ’ s currently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mind .
“ Trump ’ s Ukraine-like transgressions existed across the full range of his foreign policy — and Bolton documents exactly what those were , and attempts by him and others in the Administration to raise alarms about them , ” the Simon & Schuster news release states .
But Bolton wasn ’ t willing to speak out against the president when it really mattered : during Trump ’ s impeachment trial .
At the time , Bolton threatened a legal battle if Congress subpoenaed him and ultimately did not testify in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the impeachment trial alleged Bolton ’ s opposition to appearing was rooted in a desire to distance himself from being implicated in any crimes .

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Former national security adviser John Bolton claims in his forthcoming book that every decision President Donald Trump has made in office has been “driven by reelection calculations.”
Bolton’s publisher, Simon & Schuster, shared the remarks Friday in a news release promoting the book, which details Bolton’s year and a half working for Trump. The president fired Bolton in September.
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“I am hard-pressed to identify any significant Trump decision during my tenure that wasn’t driven by reelection calculations,” Bolton writes, saying he was often “astonished” by Trump’s singular motivation.
Bolton, one of the most controversial figures in American foreign policy, described Trump as a “president for whom getting reelected was the only thing that mattered, even if it meant endangering or weakening the nation.”
The former adviser also argues in the book excerpts that the House committed impeachment malpractice by leading a trial focused narrowly on Trump’s transgressions with Ukraine, and that the House should have also explored similar foreign policy violations Trump has committed elsewhere. It’s currently unclear what other incidents Bolton has in mind.
“Trump’s Ukraine-like transgressions existed across the full range of his foreign policy — and Bolton documents exactly what those were, and attempts by him and others in the Administration to raise alarms about them,” the Simon & Schuster news release states.
But Bolton wasn’t willing to speak out against the president when it really mattered: during Trump’s impeachment trial. At the time, Bolton threatened a legal battle if Congress subpoenaed him and ultimately did not testify in the proceedings. Reports during the lead-up to the impeachment trial alleged Bolton’s opposition to appearing was rooted in a desire to distance himself from being implicated in any crimes.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--List For Biden’s VP Pick Narrows Down To Warren, Harris, Susan Rice And More

Democrats with knowledge of the process said Biden ’ s search committee has narrowed the choices to as few as six serious contenders after initial interviews .
Those still in contention include Sens .
Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Kamala Harris of California , as well as Susan Rice , who served as President Barack Obama ’ s national security adviser .
The process remains somewhat fluid , according to those with knowledge , and additional candidates may still be asked to submit to the extensive document review process now underway for top contenders .
Those familiar with Biden ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the process .
Biden , who has already said he will pick a woman as his running mate , is facing increased calls from Democrats to put a woman of color on the ticket — both because of the outsize role that Black voters played in Biden ’ s road to the nomination and because of the reckoning over racism and inequality roiling the nation following the death of George Floyd .
The Black Minneapolis man died after a white police officer pressed his knee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an episode that was captured on video .
Terry McAuliffe , the former Virginia governor and former Democratic National Committee chairman , said that while Biden ’ s choice was likely to be “ all about personal chemistry , ” it would be “ exciting for the party ” to have a Black woman on a major party presidential ticket for the first time .
Biden ’ s vetting committee had conversations with a larger group of women earlier this spring ; those continuing on in the process have been asked to turn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other documentation .
Biden has had various public and private interactions with many of the women his vetting committee has considered thus far , but has not yet had any formal one-on-one interviews expressly to discuss the No .
2 spot on the ticket .
Those aren ’ t expected for several weeks .
Rice , who worked closely with Biden during his time as vice president , has emerged as a favorite among some former Obama administration officials and is personally close to the former president .
She has never held elected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , including as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations .
She ’ s also been an outspoken critic of the Trump administration since leaving the White House and considered running for U.S. Senate in Maine .
Rice has long been a target of Republicans , including for statements she made after the deadly 2012 attacks on Americans in Benghazi , Libya .
Republicans have also accused her of spying on Michael Flynn , Trump ’ s first national security adviser , though records declassified by the Trump administration show no evidence of Rice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden have forged a surprising bond in recent months and talk regularly about the progressive policy ideas the Massachusetts senator put at the forefront of her campaign .
Biden already has adopted her proposed bankruptcy law overhaul .
And now , with the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic slowdown elevating the nuts-and-bolts of governing , some Democrats see Warren ’ s policy credentials as an asset to the ticket .
Harris is the lone Black contender who has won statewide office , notable experience given Biden ’ s emphasis on wanting a partner @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Biden have also demonstrated a comfortable manner with each other in online fundraisers .
Harris is an expert voice in discussions of criminal justice , but some Black progressives view her background as a prosecutor skeptically .
One contender whose standing does appear to have fallen is Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar , who was a prosecutor years ago in the county that includes Minneapolis .
During that period , more than two dozen people — mostly minorities — died during encounters with police .
While the people with knowledge of Biden ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out , she is widely viewed among Democrats with close ties to the Biden campaign as less likely to be tapped given recent events .

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden’s search for a running mate is entering a second round of vetting for a dwindling list of potential vice presidential nominees, with several Black women in strong contention.
Democrats with knowledge of the process said Biden’s search committee has narrowed the choices to as few as six serious contenders after initial interviews. Those still in contention include Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Kamala Harris of California, as well as Susan Rice, who served as President Barack Obama’s national security adviser.
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The process remains somewhat fluid, according to those with knowledge, and additional candidates may still be asked to submit to the extensive document review process now underway for top contenders. Those familiar with Biden’s search spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the process.
Biden, who has already said he will pick a woman as his running mate, is facing increased calls from Democrats to put a woman of color on the ticket — both because of the outsize role that Black voters played in Biden’s road to the nomination and because of the reckoning over racism and inequality roiling the nation following the death of George Floyd. The Black Minneapolis man died after a white police officer pressed his knee on his neck for several minutes, an episode that was captured on video.
Terry McAuliffe, the former Virginia governor and former Democratic National Committee chairman, said that while Biden’s choice was likely to be “all about personal chemistry,” it would be “exciting for the party” to have a Black woman on a major party presidential ticket for the first time.
The campaign’s short list includes several Black women, including Harris and Rice. Advisers have also looked closely at Florida Rep. Val Demings and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, both of whom are Black, and New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Latina woman.
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Biden’s vetting committee had conversations with a larger group of women earlier this spring; those continuing on in the process have been asked to turn over financial records, past writings and other documentation. Biden has had various public and private interactions with many of the women his vetting committee has considered thus far, but has not yet had any formal one-on-one interviews expressly to discuss the No. 2 spot on the ticket. Those aren’t expected for several weeks.
Rice, who worked closely with Biden during his time as vice president, has emerged as a favorite among some former Obama administration officials and is personally close to the former president. She has never held elected office but has extensive foreign policy experience, including as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. She’s also been an outspoken critic of the Trump administration since leaving the White House and considered running for U.S. Senate in Maine.
Rice has long been a target of Republicans, including for statements she made after the deadly 2012 attacks on Americans in Benghazi, Libya. Republicans have also accused her of spying on Michael Flynn, Trump’s first national security adviser, though records declassified by the Trump administration show no evidence of Rice improperly accessing any information.
Harris and Warren have been seen as top contenders for the No. 2 spot since ending their own presidential campaigns.
Warren and Biden have forged a surprising bond in recent months and talk regularly about the progressive policy ideas the Massachusetts senator put at the forefront of her campaign. Biden already has adopted her proposed bankruptcy law overhaul. And now, with the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic slowdown elevating the nuts-and-bolts of governing, some Democrats see Warren’s policy credentials as an asset to the ticket.
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A Biden-Warren pairing would mean both Democrats on the ticket are white and in their 70s. Biden is 77, and Warren is 70.
Harris is the lone Black contender who has won statewide office, notable experience given Biden’s emphasis on wanting a partner “ready to be president.” She and Biden have also demonstrated a comfortable manner with each other in online fundraisers. Harris is an expert voice in discussions of criminal justice, but some Black progressives view her background as a prosecutor skeptically.
One contender whose standing does appear to have fallen is Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who was a prosecutor years ago in the county that includes Minneapolis. During that period, more than two dozen people — mostly minorities — died during encounters with police.
While the people with knowledge of Biden’s vetting process did not rule Klobuchar out, she is widely viewed among Democrats with close ties to the Biden campaign as less likely to be tapped given recent events.
___
Barrow reported from Atlanta. Associated Press writers Alexandra Jaffe and Will Weissert in Washington contributed to this report.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--Joe Scarborough Rips Donald Trump With Rewrite Of His Rally Coronavirus Waiver

The real legal disclaimer on the president ’ s 2020 campaign website warns people they can ’ t sue if they catch the contagion at the indoor event , planned for June 19 at the 19,000-capacity BOK Center .
“ By clicking register below , you are acknowledging that an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present .
By attending the Rally , you and any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 and agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President , Inc. ; BOK Center ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ affiliates , directors , officers , employees , agents , contractors , or volunteers liable for any illness or injury.
” The coronavirus has killed more than 116,000 people nationwide , and at least 14 states are experiencing a surge of new cases following the easing of restrictions .
Scarborough , who has frequently clashed with Trump , on Friday tweaked the campaign ’ s waiver text on Twitter : TRUMP : Come to Our Rally .
PS .
It could kill you , but that ’ s your problem .
“ By @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that an inherent risk of exposure to Covid-19 exists in any public place where people are present.
” ~Trump Campaign https : //t.co/MTq5GGhoAR — Joe Scarborough ( @ JoeNBC ) June 12 , 2020 Scarborough expanded on the waiver on Friday ’ s broadcast of “ Morning Joe , ” which he co-hosts with his wife Mika Brzezinski :

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The real legal disclaimer on the president’s 2020 campaign website warns people they can’t sue if they catch the contagion at the indoor event, planned for June 19 at the 19,000-capacity BOK Center.
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It reads:
“By clicking register below, you are acknowledging that an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present. By attending the Rally, you and any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 and agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President, Inc.; BOK Center; ASM Global; or any of their affiliates, directors, officers, employees, agents, contractors, or volunteers liable for any illness or injury.”
The coronavirus has killed more than 116,000 people nationwide, and at least 14 states are experiencing a surge of new cases following the easing of restrictions.
Scarborough, who has frequently clashed with Trump, on Friday tweaked the campaign’s waiver text on Twitter:
TRUMP: Come to Our Rally.
PS. It could kill you, but that’s your problem.
“By clicking register below, you are acknowledging that an inherent risk of exposure to Covid-19 exists in any public place where people are present.” ~Trump Campaign https://t.co/MTq5GGhoAR — Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) June 12, 2020
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--Trump Is Back To Business As Usual As Virus Surges In States

Three months after President Donald Trump bowed to the realities of a pandemic that put big chunks of life on pause and killed more Americans than several major wars , Trump is back to business as usual — even as coronavirus cases are on the upswing in many parts of the country .
While the nation has now had months to prepare stockpiles of protective gear and ventilators , a vaccine still is many months away at best and a model cited by the White House projects tens of thousands of more deaths by the end of September .
At @ @ @ @ @ @ @ played down the severity of the virus surge and sought to blame it on factors beyond Trump ’ s forceful push to reopen the economy , which he ’ s counting on to help him win reelection .
Still , Adams cautioned at a roundtable with Trump in Texas that while the country has flattened the curve on virus cases , “ that doesn ’ t mean that COVID has gone away , that it ’ s any less contagious , that it ’ s any less deadly to vulnerable communities.
” The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many of the safety proposals it recommended , eager to project a sense of normalcy even as it relied on strong testing capacity not available to the rest of the nation .
Now Trump , who watched the human and economic toll of the virus take the wind out of his campaign sails , sees even greater urgency in returning to how things were — no matter the state of the virus .
At the White House , the coronavirus task force has dramatically scaled back both its visibility and its operations .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ week on an as-needed basis instead of every day .
Yet Trump has taken to talking about the pandemic in the past tense — an “ invisible enemy ” conquered — rather than one still ravaging a nation that has , in recent weeks , also been consumed by mass protests following George Floyd ’ s killing by police .
Within the White House complex , many staffers have been flouting directions issued last month to limit their entry to the West Wing and advising “ everyone who enters the West Wing to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unless they are sitting at their desks and at least 6 feet ( 1.8 meters ) away from colleagues .
The directive came after two White House officials — the vice president ’ s press secretary and a presidential valet — tested positive for the virus , sending panic waves through the building .
Weeks later , staff members are frequently seen walking around the West Wing without masks .
That includes at meetings with the president , such as a Wednesday roundtable with African American supporters .
White House staff have also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ One , even in close proximity to the president .
Vice President Mike Pence , for his part , tweeted — and then deleted ― a photo of himself posing with staff huddled together at the reelection campaign ’ s headquarters .
No one appeared to be wearing a mask .
The White House and campaign did not respond to requests for comment .
The visual return to normalcy comes as the country surpassed 2 million COVID-19 cases this week , with new hot spots emerging in battleground states like Arizona and cases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to an Associated Press analysis .
Though some states that have moved quickly to reopen have not seen a surge , others have seen escalations .
Yet Trump has continued to travel — even to states that still have restrictions — and announced this week that he ’ ll resume his signature campaign rallies beginning next Friday in Tulsa , Oklahoma .
The state , which was among the earliest to begin loosening coronavirus restrictions , has a relatively low rate of infection but has seen cases rising .
Campaign officials chose @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Stitt would raise no objections .
Stitt ’ s most recent reopening phase places no limits on the size of group gatherings .
The campaign hopes the location will all but guarantee a large crowd , since Oklahoma is one of the most Republican states in the nation and Trump has never held a rally there as president .
“ By clicking register below , you are acknowledging that an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present , ” Trump ’ s campaign advised those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ By attending the Rally , you and any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 and agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President , Inc. ” liable for illness or injury .

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WASHINGTON (AP) — At the White House, aides now routinely flout internal rules requiring face masks. The president’s campaign is again scheduling mass arena rallies. And he is back to spending summer weekends at his New Jersey golf club.
Three months after President Donald Trump bowed to the realities of a pandemic that put big chunks of life on pause and killed more Americans than several major wars, Trump is back to business as usual — even as coronavirus cases are on the upswing in many parts of the country.
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While the nation has now had months to prepare stockpiles of protective gear and ventilators, a vaccine still is many months away at best and a model cited by the White House projects tens of thousands of more deaths by the end of September.
Amid renewed fears of a virus resurgence, financial markets — frequently highlighted by Trump as a sign of economic recovery — suffered their worst drop since March on Thursday.
At the White House, though, officials played down the severity of the virus surge and sought to blame it on factors beyond Trump’s forceful push to reopen the economy, which he’s counting on to help him win reelection.
“The data shows that we are moving in the right direction as a nation,” said Surgeon General Jerome Adams, who stressed the country has a positive testing rate under 6%.
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Still, Adams cautioned at a roundtable with Trump in Texas that while the country has flattened the curve on virus cases, “that doesn’t mean that COVID has gone away, that it’s any less contagious, that it’s any less deadly to vulnerable communities.”
The White House was a late adopter of many of the safety proposals it recommended, eager to project a sense of normalcy even as it relied on strong testing capacity not available to the rest of the nation. Now Trump, who watched the human and economic toll of the virus take the wind out of his campaign sails, sees even greater urgency in returning to how things were — no matter the state of the virus.
At the White House, the coronavirus task force has dramatically scaled back both its visibility and its operations. It now meets once or twice a week on an as-needed basis instead of every day.
White House officials say that, because response systems have already been put in place and a strategy developed, there’s no longer a need for a whole-of-government response. Still, the president receives regular briefings, and the vice president gets briefed multiple times a day.
Yet Trump has taken to talking about the pandemic in the past tense — an “invisible enemy” conquered — rather than one still ravaging a nation that has, in recent weeks, also been consumed by mass protests following George Floyd’s killing by police.
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Within the White House complex, many staffers have been flouting directions issued last month to limit their entry to the West Wing and advising “everyone who enters the West Wing to wear a mask or facial covering” unless they are sitting at their desks and at least 6 feet (1.8 meters) away from colleagues. The directive came after two White House officials — the vice president’s press secretary and a presidential valet — tested positive for the virus, sending panic waves through the building.
Weeks later, staff members are frequently seen walking around the West Wing without masks. That includes at meetings with the president, such as a Wednesday roundtable with African American supporters. White House staff have also declined to wear masks on Air Force One, even in close proximity to the president.
Vice President Mike Pence, for his part, tweeted — and then deleted ― a photo of himself posing with staff huddled together at the reelection campaign’s headquarters. No one appeared to be wearing a mask. The White House and campaign did not respond to requests for comment.
The visual return to normalcy comes as the country surpassed 2 million COVID-19 cases this week, with new hot spots emerging in battleground states like Arizona and cases rising in nearly half of states, according to an Associated Press analysis. Though some states that have moved quickly to reopen have not seen a surge, others have seen escalations.
Yet Trump has continued to travel — even to states that still have restrictions — and announced this week that he’ll resume his signature campaign rallies beginning next Friday in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The state, which was among the earliest to begin loosening coronavirus restrictions, has a relatively low rate of infection but has seen cases rising.
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“They’ve done a great job with COVID, as you know, the state of Oklahoma,” Trump said Wednesday.
Campaign officials chose the location knowing Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt would raise no objections. Stitt’s most recent reopening phase places no limits on the size of group gatherings. The campaign hopes the location will all but guarantee a large crowd, since Oklahoma is one of the most Republican states in the nation and Trump has never held a rally there as president.
Still, the reality could not be completely ignored.
“By clicking register below, you are acknowledging that an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present,” Trump’s campaign advised those signing up for the rally. “By attending the Rally, you and any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 and agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President, Inc.” liable for illness or injury.
Trump is also planning events in Arizona and Florida — states where cases are on the upswing. In Arizona, hospitals have been told to prepare for the worst as hospitalizations have surged.
Trump this month decided that he would no longer hold the marquee event of the Republican National Convention —- his acceptance speech — in North Carolina after the state refused to guarantee that he could fill an arena to capacity with maskless supporters. It’s being moved to Jacksonville, Florida.
For the White House, the priority is regaining economic momentum.
___
Associated Press writer Jonathan Lemire in New York contributed to this report.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--Trump On Police Chokeholds: 'Concept' Is 'Innocent, So Perfect,' But Should Be Ended

President Donald Trump expressed his confusing feelings about the use of chokeholds during arrests by police officers around the country , saying that he thinks there are a lot of variables to consider but that “ generally speaking it should be ended.
” The president sat down with Fox News ’ Harris Faulkner for an interview in Dallas , and they discussed the ongoing protests against racial inequality and police brutality in this country .
As the protests are a response to the police killing of George Floyd , Faulkner asked Trump about the force used in the video of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t like chokeholds , ” said Trump , who then meandered off to say that sometimes police officers deal with “ a real bad person ” who is very “ tough.
” In fights such as that , he wondered , “ what are you gon na do now ― let go ?
” He added that it ’ s “ a very tricky situation ” for officers to be in .
Faulkner then asked if he wanted to be in the public conversation about reform and the variables involved in using chokeholds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ am.
” Trump went on to say that he thinks “ the concept of chokehold sounds so innocent , so perfect , ” but it depends on how many people are in need of restraint or up against the officer and the “ toughness and strength ” of those involved .
“ I think it would be a very good thing that , generally speaking , it should be ended , ” he said .
Chokeholds are also known as neck restraints or neck holds and refer to the practice of officers ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ arm or leg .
The practice has been controversial for years , and furor against it reignited when Minneapolis Black man Floyd died last month after white police Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck .
Earlier in the conversation with Faulkner , Trump addressed the ongoing protests connected with Floyd .
When Faulkner asked him what he thought the protesters needed from him right now , he evaded the question by claiming without evidence that there were people involved who had no idea why they were there .
“ A lot of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ following the crowd , ” Trump said .
`` You had protesters for different reasons & then you had protesting also because , you know , they just did n't know ... a lot of them really were there b/c they were following the crowd '' -- Trump suggests many George Floyd protesters were n't even aware of what they were protesting pic.twitter.com/KnbTJy2U8m — Aaron Rupar ( @ atrupar ) June 12 , 2020 Faulkner , again , tried to press Trump on what he had to say to protesters and the Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I ’ ve done more for the Black community than any other president , ” said Trump , who then argued that Abraham Lincoln “ did good although it ’ s always questionable.
” Trump , who has repeatedly defended the Confederacy , says he 's done more for black community than any president with possible exception of Abraham Lincoln but then adds of Lincoln : `` He did good although it 's always questionable , you know , in other words , the end result . ''
# wut pic.twitter.com/nIuu6fRAM2 — Aaron @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , 2020

President Donald Trump expressed his confusing feelings about the use of chokeholds during arrests by police officers around the country, saying that he thinks there are a lot of variables to consider but that “generally speaking it should be ended.”
The president sat down with Fox News’ Harris Faulkner for an interview in Dallas, and they discussed the ongoing protests against racial inequality and police brutality in this country. As the protests are a response to the police killing of George Floyd, Faulkner asked Trump about the force used in the video of his death.
“I don’t like chokeholds,” said Trump, who then meandered off to say that sometimes police officers deal with “a real bad person” who is very “tough.” In fights such as that, he wondered, “what are you gonna do now ― let go?” He added that it’s “a very tricky situation” for officers to be in.
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Faulkner then asked if he wanted to be in the public conversation about reform and the variables involved in using chokeholds. Trump responded, “I really am.”
Trump went on to say that he thinks “the concept of chokehold sounds so innocent, so perfect,” but it depends on how many people are in need of restraint or up against the officer and the “toughness and strength” of those involved.
“I think it would be a very good thing that, generally speaking, it should be ended,” he said.
"Sometimes if you're alone and you're fighting somebody, it's tough ... we have some real bad people" -- Trump defends police chokeholds pic.twitter.com/DZfjT5isFU — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 12, 2020
Chokeholds are also known as neck restraints or neck holds and refer to the practice of officers’ restraining someone’s neck with an arm or leg. The practice has been controversial for years, and furor against it reignited when Minneapolis Black man Floyd died last month after white police Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck.
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Earlier in the conversation with Faulkner, Trump addressed the ongoing protests connected with Floyd. When Faulkner asked him what he thought the protesters needed from him right now, he evaded the question by claiming without evidence that there were people involved who had no idea why they were there.
“A lot of them really were there because they were following the crowd,” Trump said.
"You had protesters for different reasons & then you had protesting also because, you know, they just didn't know... a lot of them really were there b/c they were following the crowd" -- Trump suggests many George Floyd protesters weren't even aware of what they were protesting pic.twitter.com/KnbTJy2U8m — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 12, 2020
Faulkner, again, tried to press Trump on what he had to say to protesters and the Black community right now.
“I think I’ve done more for the Black community than any other president,” said Trump, who then argued that Abraham Lincoln “did good although it’s always questionable.”
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Trump, who has repeatedly defended the Confederacy, says he's done more for black community than any president with possible exception of Abraham Lincoln but then adds of Lincoln: "He did good although it's always questionable, you know, in other words, the end result." #wut pic.twitter.com/nIuu6fRAM2 — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 12, 2020
Pushing back, Faulkner responded by saying: “Well, we are free, Mr. President. He did pretty well.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--GOP Senator Touts Low Black Unemployment As Black Unemployment Hits 10-Year Peak

Amid an economic crisis spurred by the coronavirus pandemic that ’ s disproportionately hit Black and brown Americans , as hundreds of thousands of Americans march in the streets to protest racism , the Republican message to the public remains that President Donald Trump has done more for the economy ― and specifically for Blacks ― than any other president in recent history .
As a guest on conservative Hugh Hewitt ’ s talk radio show this week , Georgia GOP Sen. David Perdue , who is up for reelection this year , claimed Trump has done more for Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last ... 100 years , ” repeating some clear falsehoods .
“ In the African American community we have the lowest unemployment in U.S. history right now —the highest middle-class income ever measured , ” Perdue said , touting the Republican agenda “ before COVID-19 and even in COVID-19.
” “ President Trump has done more through justice reform , HBCUs , which are our historic black colleges and universities , and our opportunity zones ... has done more for that community than any president in the last decade — in the last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ repeating what has been one of Trump ’ s favorite talking points : that unemployment levels for Black Americans reached its lowest levels in U.S. history under his administration .
The Black unemployment rate hit 5.4 % last August , the lowest figure under the measuring system the government has used since 1972 .
But , as The Washington Post detailed , Black unemployment was likely lower in the 1950s under the system then in use .
Also , Black unemployment had been ticking up since last August .
More broadly , until @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the U.S. , the unemployment rate , across the board , had been in steady decline since 2011 .
The rate of decline hadn ’ t accelerated under Trump ’ s leadership .
But all of this was dramatically changed by the pandemic , which his administration was slow to react to and which into March Trump kept insisting would magically disappear ( the number of confirmed coronavirus cases surpassed 2 million earlier this week ) .
Between March and April , the unemployment rate for Black Americans shot up 10 percentage points @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics .
In May , it hovered just shy of 17 % — the highest figure in the last decade .
Nationwide , Black Americans are dying at nearly two times the rate of their share of the population , and are losing jobs at a higher rate than white workers .
Black-owned businesses are also being forced to shut down at a higher rate , according to a recent National Bureau of Economic Research report .
These trends underscore persistent systemic inequalities that the Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and in some cases has worsened , as in health care .
Black Americans on average are more likely to be uninsured , and have underlying chronic health conditions like diabetes , hypertension and asthma .
They also are disproportionately represented in “ essential ” front-line jobs that put them at great risk of contracting COVID-19 .
Perdue , who faces off in November against Democrat Jon Ossoff in one of the key races in the battle for Senate control between the two parties , repeated those talking points on Hewitt ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his part , has incited violence on protesters demonstrating for racial equality and against police brutality .
He ’ s tweeted conspiracy theories about the demonstrations , celebrated law enforcement officers using excessive force on peaceful protesters , suggested those involved in lootings get shot , and described protesters as “ THUGS.
” In an interview that aired Friday on Fox News , Trump continued to tout a record that virtually all historians dispute , saying , “ I think I ’ ve done more for the black community than any other president @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pass on Abraham Lincoln , because he did good .
”

Amid an economic crisis spurred by the coronavirus pandemic that’s disproportionately hit Black and brown Americans, as hundreds of thousands of Americans march in the streets to protest racism, the Republican message to the public remains that President Donald Trump has done more for the economy ― and specifically for Blacks ― than any other president in recent history.
As a guest on conservative Hugh Hewitt’s talk radio show this week, Georgia GOP Sen. David Perdue, who is up for reelection this year, claimed Trump has done more for Black Americans than “any president in the last...100 years,” repeating some clear falsehoods.
“In the African American community we have the lowest unemployment in U.S. history right now —the highest middle-class income ever measured,” Perdue said, touting the Republican agenda “before COVID-19 and even in COVID-19.”
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“President Trump has done more through justice reform, HBCUs, which are our historic black colleges and universities, and our opportunity zones... has done more for that community than any president in the last decade — in the last 100 years, really.”
Perdue is repeating what has been one of Trump’s favorite talking points: that unemployment levels for Black Americans reached its lowest levels in U.S. history under his administration.
The Black unemployment rate hit 5.4% last August, the lowest figure under the measuring system the government has used since 1972. But, as The Washington Post detailed, Black unemployment was likely lower in the 1950s under the system then in use. Also, Black unemployment had been ticking up since last August.
More broadly, until the coronavirus pandemic began its spread in the U.S., the unemployment rate, across the board, had been in steady decline since 2011. The rate of decline hadn’t accelerated under Trump’s leadership.
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But all of this was dramatically changed by the pandemic, which his administration was slow to react to and which into March Trump kept insisting would magically disappear (the number of confirmed coronavirus cases surpassed 2 million earlier this week).
Perdue’s talking points are now categorically untrue.
Between March and April, the unemployment rate for Black Americans shot up 10 percentage points, from 6.7% to 16.7%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In May, it hovered just shy of 17% — the highest figure in the last decade.
The pandemic has ravaged Black and brown communities in almost every respect.
Nationwide, Black Americans are dying at nearly two times the rate of their share of the population, and are losing jobs at a higher rate than white workers. Black-owned businesses are also being forced to shut down at a higher rate, according to a recent National Bureau of Economic Research report.
These trends underscore persistent systemic inequalities that the Trump administration has done little to ameliorate — and in some cases has worsened, as in health care. Black Americans on average are more likely to be uninsured, and have underlying chronic health conditions like diabetes, hypertension and asthma. They also are disproportionately represented in “essential” front-line jobs that put them at great risk of contracting COVID-19.
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Trump himself has acknowledged the disparity: in April he said at a press briefing that Black Americans were “getting hit very, very hard.”
“This is a real problem and it is showing up very strongly in our data on the African-American community,” Trump said then.
But then in a June tweet, he focused on a positive picture that is now out-of-date.
My Admin has done more for the Black Community than any President since Abraham Lincoln. Passed Opportunity Zones with @SenatorTimScott, guaranteed funding for HBCU’s, School Choice, passed Criminal Justice Reform, lowest Black unemployment, poverty, and crime rates in history… — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 2, 2020
Perdue, who faces off in November against Democrat Jon Ossoff in one of the key races in the battle for Senate control between the two parties, repeated those talking points on Hewitt’s show almost verbatim.
Trump, for his part, has incited violence on protesters demonstrating for racial equality and against police brutality. He’s tweeted conspiracy theories about the demonstrations, celebrated law enforcement officers using excessive force on peaceful protesters, suggested those involved in lootings get shot, and described protesters as “THUGS.”
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In an interview that aired Friday on Fox News, Trump continued to tout a record that virtually all historians dispute, saying, “I think I’ve done more for the black community than any other president, and let’s take a pass on Abraham Lincoln, because he did good.”
Even with the nod to Lincoln. Trump created confusion by adding, “Although it’s always questionable, you know, in other words, the end result.”
That prompted interviewer Harris Faulkner, who is Black, to note, “Well, we are free Mr. President.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--Supercut Exposes The Ugly Truth Of Donald Trump’s Rhetoric On Protests

Nothing about today has been beautiful .
Nothing about the last week has been beautiful .
Nothing about the last @ @ @ @ @ Nothing about the last year has been beautiful .
Nothing about the last 4 years @ @ @ @ @ UglyPresident pic.twitter.com/xliXKjWeWB

Nothing about today has been beautiful.
Nothing about the last week has been beautiful.
Nothing about the last month has been beautiful.
Nothing about the last year has been beautiful.
Nothing about the last 4 years has been beautiful. #UglyPresident pic.twitter.com/xliXKjWeWB


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--Twitter Axes 32,000 State-Linked Propaganda Accounts From Russia, China And Turkey

Twitter said it has shut down 32,242 accounts peddling false information linked to the governments of Russia , China and Turkey .
“ Every account and piece of content associated ” with “ three distinct operations ... attributed to the People ’ s Republic of China , Russia and Turkey ” have been “ permanently removed from the service , ” the social media company said in a statement on Thursday .
Twitter and other social media companies were harshly criticized in the wake of the 2016 presidential election for failing to police propaganda , especially from accounts launched by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the election in Donald Trump ’ s favor .
Twitter on Thursday reemphasized the company ’ s vow to provide more vigorous and transparent action to weed out false conversations being peddled to manipulate a nation ’ s politics .
“ Ultimately our goal is to serve the public conversation , remove bad faith actors , and to advance public understanding of these critical topics , ” Twitter said .
We ’ re disclosing new state-linked information operations to our public archive — the only one of its kind in the industry .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of China ( PRC ) , Russia , and Turkey , all associated accounts and content have been removed .
https : //t.co/obRqr96iYm — Twitter Safety ( @ TwitterSafety ) June 11 , 2020 Twitter provided few details about specific content campaigns , and most of the affected accounts appeared to be aimed at manipulating citizens inside the three nations .
Twitter removed 1,152 accounts ( which tweeted 3.4 million times ) associated with Current Policy , a “ media website engaging in state-backed political propaganda within Russia , ” including activities “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ political dissidents , ” according to the company .
The accounts , which also disseminated “ anti-Western content , ” violated Twitter policy because they engaged in “ cross-posting and amplifying content in an inauthentic , coordinated manner for political ends , ” the company said .
The 7,340 “ fake and compromised accounts ” in Turkey ( which tweeted 36.9 million times ) were linked to the youth wing of the ruling Justice and Development Party , and were used primarily to “ amplify political narratives favorable ” to the ruling party @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Twitter .
The 23,750 accounts ( tweeted 348,608 times ) linked to the Chinese government were tweeting mostly in Chinese languages and “ spreading geopolitical narratives favorable to the Communist Party of China , while continuing to push deceptive narratives about the political dynamics in Hong Kong , ” Twitter said .
Tweets also praised China ’ s response to COVID-19 , especially compared with how the U.S. or Taiwan addressed the pandemic .
The messages removed by Twitter have been archived for study and have been shared with researchers at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Australian Strategic Policy Institute .
For more details about the accounts , check out Stanford ’ s in-depth study on each of them here .

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Twitter said it has shut down 32,242 accounts peddling false information linked to the governments of Russia, China and Turkey.
“Every account and piece of content associated” with “three distinct operations ... attributed to the People’s Republic of China, Russia and Turkey” have been “permanently removed from the service,” the social media company said in a statement on Thursday.
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Twitter and other social media companies were harshly criticized in the wake of the 2016 presidential election for failing to police propaganda, especially from accounts launched by the Kremlin in a bid to sway the election in Donald Trump’s favor.
Twitter on Thursday reemphasized the company’s vow to provide more vigorous and transparent action to weed out false conversations being peddled to manipulate a nation’s politics.
“Ultimately our goal is to serve the public conversation, remove bad faith actors, and to advance public understanding of these critical topics,” Twitter said.
We’re disclosing new state-linked information operations to our public archive — the only one of its kind in the industry. Originating from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Russia, and Turkey, all associated accounts and content have been removed. https://t.co/obRqr96iYm — Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) June 11, 2020
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Twitter provided few details about specific content campaigns, and most of the affected accounts appeared to be aimed at manipulating citizens inside the three nations.
Twitter removed 1,152 accounts (which tweeted 3.4 million times) associated with Current Policy, a “media website engaging in state-backed political propaganda within Russia,” including activities “promoting the United Russia party and attacking political dissidents,” according to the company.
The accounts, which also disseminated “anti-Western content,” violated Twitter policy because they engaged in “cross-posting and amplifying content in an inauthentic, coordinated manner for political ends,” the company said.
The 7,340 “fake and compromised accounts” in Turkey (which tweeted 36.9 million times) were linked to the youth wing of the ruling Justice and Development Party, and were used primarily to “amplify political narratives favorable” to the ruling party and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to Twitter.
The 23,750 accounts (tweeted 348,608 times) linked to the Chinese government were tweeting mostly in Chinese languages and “spreading geopolitical narratives favorable to the Communist Party of China, while continuing to push deceptive narratives about the political dynamics in Hong Kong,” Twitter said. Tweets also praised China’s response to COVID-19, especially compared with how the U.S. or Taiwan addressed the pandemic.
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The messages removed by Twitter have been archived for study and have been shared with researchers at the Internet Observatory of Stanford University and the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--Biden Comes This Close To Dropping An F-Bomb On Trump's 'Very Fine' Racists

Former Vice President Joe Biden caught himself before he used the f-word on Thursday to describe the racists who take @ @ @ @ @ words used by President Donald Trump .
Instead , Biden paused and admonished himself to @ @ @ @ @ before ultimately settling on “ folks.
” Biden was speaking at a roundtable discussion about @ @ @ @ @ economy amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic .
But he also took some shots at Trump @ @ @ @ @ the president was pitting Americans against each other based on race .
Biden recalled Trump @ @ @ @ @ violent clashes between white supremacists and protesters in Charlottesville , Virginia , in 2017 .
@ @ @ @ @ ‘ very fine people ’ on both sides , ” Biden said .
“ No @ @ @ @ @ the United States of America has ever said anything remotely like that.
” “ When @ @ @ @ @ matter how good or bad he is , people listen .
And when he speaks @ @ @ @ @ racist f― ”

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Former Vice President Joe Biden caught himself before he used the f-word on Thursday to describe the racists who take comfort in some of the words used by President Donald Trump. Instead, Biden paused and admonished himself to “watch my language” before ultimately settling on “folks.”
Biden was speaking at a roundtable discussion about his plan to reopen the economy amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. But he also took some shots at Trump’s divisiveness, saying the president was pitting Americans against each other based on race.
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Biden recalled Trump’s comments after the violent clashes between white supremacists and protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017.
“He said there were ‘very fine people’ on both sides,” Biden said. “No president in the history of the United States of America has ever said anything remotely like that.”
Biden also noted that the president’s words matter.
“When a president speaks, no matter how good or bad he is, people listen. And when he speaks and gives credibility to these racist f―”
That’s when he caught himself:


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--As Greens Reckon With Racism, Staff At A Major Group Revolt Over Pro-Trump Board Member

Andrew H. Walker via Getty Images Billionaire real estate tycoon Stephen Ross buddies up with Donald Trump at an event in 2010 .
Roughly a quarter of the World Resources Institute ’ s 1,000-person staff signed a lengthy letter demanding that the management at the deep-pocketed nonprofit “ embark on an institutional anti-racist journey ” that includes rooting out white supremacy in the work culture , overhauling human resources practices , and paying employees more for spending time on anti-racism work .
The real-estate magnate , whose fortune Forbes pegged at $ 7.6 billion , “ has not taken any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overtly racist President who has also encouraged the use of force against unarmed civilians , ” according to the letter , a copy of which was obtained by HuffPost .
Since anti-racism demonstrations kicked off earlier this month , Trump has threatened to send the military in to quell the unrest , encouraged police to use violence against peaceful protesters , and tear-gassed religious leaders to clear the way for a personal photo-op in front of an Episcopal church .
This week , the president ’ s reelection campaign announced its first in-person @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ― the site of a 1921 massacre where white lynch mobs killed more than 800 Black Americans .
The rally is expected to take place on June 19 , the holiday known as Juneteenth , which celebrates the end of U.S. slavery .
Black Tulsans called the timing a “ slap in the face.
” “ Leadership warmly welcomes the ideas brought forward in the recent letter from staff , ” a spokesperson for WRI said in a statement to HuffPost , adding that it would “ engage with an external expert ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ steps to address racism .
“ There is absolutely no disagreement within the organization that we must do more to address systemic and institutional racism , ” the statement read .
“ Regarding Stephen Ross , he has been a longtime supporter of WRI and has shown a steadfast commitment to our work and mission.
” The concerns about Ross are not new .
Last August , nearly 200 staffers signed an internal petition demanding that WRI ’ s management hold an open meeting to discuss the role of board members .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hold a fundraiser for Trump triggered a national boycott against SoulCycle and Equinox , the popular luxury fitness chains he owns .
The move also followed WRI ’ s decision to quietly cut ties with another board member , former New Mexico Gov .
Bill Richardson , who was named in the late financier and accused pedophile Jeffrey Epstein ’ s child sex ring scandal .
( A spokesperson for Richardson denied that the Democrat ’ s resignation from the board had anything to do with the allegations . )
Each year , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to a business , nonprofit or local government that has brought “ transformative change ” to a “ city ’ s economic vitality , resilience , environmental sustainability or quality of life.
” The $ 250,000 prize was the same amount Ross charged for a VIP ticket to the controversial fundraiser he hosted for Trump last year in the Hamptons .
“ While we understand the importance of funding to WRI ’ s fiscal health , we believe that key steps still need to be taken given Mr. Ross ’ s sizable contribution @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ongoing prominent association with the organization , which exposes WRI to significant and potentially lasting reputational harm , ” staff wrote in the letter .
Yet , WRI ’ s leadership appears to have openly deepened its relationship with Ross .
The nonprofit , whose most recent tax filings show revenue topping $ 140 million in 2018 , recently accepted “ a substantial contribution from Mr. Ross without adequately addressing the concerns that a significant number of staff expressed last year and without consulting staff in any meaningful way about the implications of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” the letter read .

Billionaire real estate tycoon Stephen Ross buddies up with Donald Trump at an event in 2010. Andrew H. Walker via Getty Images
As nationwide protests against racism force a reckoning in the historically white environmental movement, the staff at one major green group mounted a new challenge against a billionaire board member with ties to President Donald Trump.
Roughly a quarter of the World Resources Institute’s 1,000-person staff signed a lengthy letter demanding that the management at the deep-pocketed nonprofit “embark on an institutional anti-racist journey” that includes rooting out white supremacy in the work culture, overhauling human resources practices, and paying employees more for spending time on anti-racism work.
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Two thirds of the letter detailed “specific suggestions for accountability and action that are essential for WRI to become the organization that it should be.”
But “an important place to start,” the letter highlighted, was “addressing the situation involving Stephen Ross.”
The real-estate magnate, whose fortune Forbes pegged at $7.6 billion, “has not taken any clear steps to distance himself from an overtly racist President who has also encouraged the use of force against unarmed civilians,” according to the letter, a copy of which was obtained by HuffPost.
Since anti-racism demonstrations kicked off earlier this month, Trump has threatened to send the military in to quell the unrest, encouraged police to use violence against peaceful protesters, and tear-gassed religious leaders to clear the way for a personal photo-op in front of an Episcopal church.
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This week, the president’s reelection campaign announced its first in-person rally in months in Tulsa, Oklahoma ― the site of a 1921 massacre where white lynch mobs killed more than 800 Black Americans. The rally is expected to take place on June 19, the holiday known as Juneteenth, which celebrates the end of U.S. slavery. Black Tulsans called the timing a “slap in the face.”
“In light of President Trump’s disturbing actions and words, we have deep, ongoing concerns over Mr. Ross’s failure to renounce his support for the President,” the letter read.
A spokesperson for The Related Companies, Ross’ real estate firm, declined to comment on behalf of Ross.
“Leadership warmly welcomes the ideas brought forward in the recent letter from staff,” a spokesperson for WRI said in a statement to HuffPost, adding that it would “engage with an external expert (or experts) to help implement” steps to address racism.
It also said the organization analyzed employees’ salaries last year and found “that all African American staff are paid within established salary ranges.”
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“There is absolutely no disagreement within the organization that we must do more to address systemic and institutional racism,” the statement read. “Regarding Stephen Ross, he has been a longtime supporter of WRI and has shown a steadfast commitment to our work and mission.”
The concerns about Ross are not new. Last August, nearly 200 staffers signed an internal petition demanding that WRI’s management hold an open meeting to discuss the role of board members. The petition came after Ross’ decision to hold a fundraiser for Trump triggered a national boycott against SoulCycle and Equinox, the popular luxury fitness chains he owns.
The move also followed WRI’s decision to quietly cut ties with another board member, former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who was named in the late financier and accused pedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s child sex ring scandal. (A spokesperson for Richardson denied that the Democrat’s resignation from the board had anything to do with the allegations.)
“The concerns that animated the staff statement last August still remain today,” staff wrote in this week’s letter.
Ross has long had a visible imprint on the organization. WRI’s Cities program ― which aims “to make urban sustainability a reality” ― bears his name: the WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities.
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“In light of President Trump’s disturbing actions and words, we have deep, ongoing concerns over Mr. Ross’s failure to renounce his support for the President.” - Letter from World Resources Institute employees
Each year, WRI grants a Ross Prize for Cities to a business, nonprofit or local government that has brought “transformative change” to a “city’s economic vitality, resilience, environmental sustainability or quality of life.” The $250,000 prize was the same amount Ross charged for a VIP ticket to the controversial fundraiser he hosted for Trump last year in the Hamptons.
“While we understand the importance of funding to WRI’s fiscal health, we believe that key steps still need to be taken given Mr. Ross’s sizable contribution to WRI’s budget and his ongoing prominent association with the organization, which exposes WRI to significant and potentially lasting reputational harm,” staff wrote in the letter.
Yet, WRI’s leadership appears to have openly deepened its relationship with Ross. The nonprofit, whose most recent tax filings show revenue topping $140 million in 2018, recently accepted “a substantial contribution from Mr. Ross without adequately addressing the concerns that a significant number of staff expressed last year and without consulting staff in any meaningful way about the implications of this decision for our collective work,” the letter read.
WRI said Ross gave a “new gift” of $600,000 in March to beef up funding for the cities program.
“Ross has met with several representatives of our cities and climate teams” and participated in “regular communications” with staff, the organization told HuffPost. But employees said the billionaire snubbed a meeting with the staff from other teams after last year’s petition.
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“We are extremely disappointed that Mr. Ross has failed to meet with a representative group of staff from across the organization, despite explicit indications from senior management that such a meeting would take place,” the letter said.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--GOP Congressman At Risk Of Losing Seat After Officiating Gay Wedding

RICHMOND , Va. ( AP ) — Freshman Virginia GOP congressman Denver Riggleman has a conservative voting record and the strong backing of President Donald Trump but is still in danger of losing his seat this weekend in a Republican nominating contest .
Riggleman , a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus , upset many Republicans in his district last summer when he married two male campaign aides .
Local GOP groups quickly criticized Riggleman and have rallied behind a well-organized opponent for the Republican nomination .
Riggleman said he understands why some people may not support gay marriage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ big enough to accommodate opposing views on the issue .
“ I believe that individual liberty is one of the most important things Republicans can stand for , so I don ’ t regret officiating that wedding at all , ” Riggleman said .
The backlash against Riggleman comes amid the Trump administration ’ s efforts to slow or reverse gains made by LGBTQ Americans .
For example , it has restricted military service by transgender people and argued in a Supreme Court case that the federal civil rights law does not protect @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But Riggleman has lined up support from key Republicans .
Trump has endorsed him , tweeting that Riggleman is “ is a true CONSERVATIVE leader.
” Liberty University President Jerry Falwell , a high-profile evangelical leader whose school is adjacent to Riggleman ’ s district , is also backing Riggleman .
Running against him is Bob Good , a former top official at Liberty ’ s athletic department , who has pledged to restore “ Judeo-Christian ” values to Congress .
He ’ s also a hardliner on immigration and wants English to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ States .
“ What does Denver stand for ?
” Good said at a recent debate .
“ He ’ s out of step with the base of the party on life , he ’ s out of step on marriage , he ’ s out of step on immigration , he ’ s out of step on health care , on climate , on drug legalization.
” Riggleman , a distillery owner and Air Force veteran , ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2017 on a populist platform before winning a seat in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that race , which made headlines when his Democratic opponent accused him of being a “ devotee of Bigfoot erotica.
” Saturday ’ s drive-thru convention will be held at a Lynchburg-area church near Good ’ s home .
It will be the only place delegates can cast a ballot in a district that stretches from northern Virginia to the North Carolina border and is larger in land mass than New Jersey .
Riggleman said a small coterie of Republican insiders are trying to rig the contest against him forcing the nomination process @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a primary .
Conventions favor more conservative candidates and have been used for years by Virginia Republicans to block moderate Republicans from winning office .
Riggleman has tried unsuccessfully to block the convention or move its location .
Republican infighting over whether candidates are sufficiently conservative has been common in Virginia while the party has seen its influence diminish .
Democrats have won majorities at the state legislature and in the congressional delegation in recent years and no Republican has won a statewide race is more than a decade .
The 5th @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for a decade , but four Democrats are vying for their party ’ s nomination to challenge either Riggleman or Good .
Kyle Kondik , who analyzes elections for the University of Virginia Center for Politics , said the district is likely to stay in Republican hands no matter who wins Saturday .
But he said a victory by Good may make the race more competitive and entice national Democratic and liberal groups to spend money on the contest .

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RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Freshman Virginia GOP congressman Denver Riggleman has a conservative voting record and the strong backing of President Donald Trump but is still in danger of losing his seat this weekend in a Republican nominating contest.
The reason: he officiated a gay marriage, sparking a fierce backlash among some of his socially conservative constituents who questioned Riggleman’s adherence to the party’s values.
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Virginia’s mostly rural 5th Congressional District will play host to the latest culture clash within the Republican Party on Saturday, when delegates pick a candidate via a drive-thru convention amid the coronoavirus pandemic.
Riggleman, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, upset many Republicans in his district last summer when he married two male campaign aides. Local GOP groups quickly criticized Riggleman and have rallied behind a well-organized opponent for the Republican nomination.
Riggleman said he understands why some people may not support gay marriage, but said the Republican tent is big enough to accommodate opposing views on the issue.
“I believe that individual liberty is one of the most important things Republicans can stand for, so I don’t regret officiating that wedding at all,” Riggleman said.
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The backlash against Riggleman comes amid the Trump administration’s efforts to slow or reverse gains made by LGBTQ Americans. For example, it has restricted military service by transgender people and argued in a Supreme Court case that the federal civil rights law does not protect LGBTQ people from discrimination at work.
But Riggleman has lined up support from key Republicans. Trump has endorsed him, tweeting that Riggleman is “is a true CONSERVATIVE leader.” Liberty University President Jerry Falwell, a high-profile evangelical leader whose school is adjacent to Riggleman’s district, is also backing Riggleman.
Running against him is Bob Good, a former top official at Liberty’s athletic department, who has pledged to restore “Judeo-Christian” values to Congress. He’s also a hardliner on immigration and wants English to be the official language of the United States.
“What does Denver stand for?” Good said at a recent debate. “He’s out of step with the base of the party on life, he’s out of step on marriage, he’s out of step on immigration, he’s out of step on health care, on climate, on drug legalization.”
Good declined an interview request.
Riggleman, a distillery owner and Air Force veteran, ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2017 on a populist platform before winning a seat in Congress in 2018. Riggleman easily won that race, which made headlines when his Democratic opponent accused him of being a “devotee of Bigfoot erotica.”
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Saturday’s drive-thru convention will be held at a Lynchburg-area church near Good’s home. It will be the only place delegates can cast a ballot in a district that stretches from northern Virginia to the North Carolina border and is larger in land mass than New Jersey.
Riggleman said a small coterie of Republican insiders are trying to rig the contest against him forcing the nomination process to be decided with a convention instead of a primary. Conventions favor more conservative candidates and have been used for years by Virginia Republicans to block moderate Republicans from winning office. Riggleman has tried unsuccessfully to block the convention or move its location.
Republican infighting over whether candidates are sufficiently conservative has been common in Virginia while the party has seen its influence diminish. Democrats have won majorities at the state legislature and in the congressional delegation in recent years and no Republican has won a statewide race is more than a decade.
The 5th Congressional District has been in Republican hands for a decade, but four Democrats are vying for their party’s nomination to challenge either Riggleman or Good.
Kyle Kondik, who analyzes elections for the University of Virginia Center for Politics, said the district is likely to stay in Republican hands no matter who wins Saturday. But he said a victory by Good may make the race more competitive and entice national Democratic and liberal groups to spend money on the contest.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-12--Trump Moves Tulsa Rally So It Won't Fall On Juneteenth

President Donald Trump moved a campaign rally in Tulsa , Oklahoma , so it would no longer fall on June 19th , or Juneteenth , the day commemorating Black emancipation from slavery .
The president had been criticized for planning a rally on the holiday , specifically in Tulsa , the site of a 1921 racist massacre of Black people by white mobs .
Trump said the rally will be on June 20 .
“ Many of my African American friends and supporters have reached out to suggest that we consider changing the date out of respect for this Holiday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ occasion and all that it represents , ” Trump wrote on Twitter late Friday .
“ I have therefore decided to move our rally to Saturday , June 20th , in order to honor their requests.
” We had previously scheduled our # MAGA Rally in Tulsa , Oklahoma , for June 19th – a big deal .
Unfortunately , however , this would fall on the Juneteenth Holiday .
Many of my African American friends and supporters have reached out to suggest that we consider changing the date out ... — Donald @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 13 , 2020 The Tulsa massacre was one of the worst incidents of racist violence in the nation ’ s history .
Sen. Kamala Harris ( D-Calif. ) , who is Black , had called Trump ’ s rally , when it was planned for Juneteenth , a “ welcome home party ” for “ white supremacists.
” Rep. Al Green ( D-Texas ) called it a “ slap in the face to African Americans.
” Pressed about Trump ’ s decision to hold a rally in Tulsa on Juneteenth , White House @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that it was a “ meaningful day ” for Trump , adding , “ The African American community is very near and dear to his heart.
” Trump has a long history of racism , including calling for the death penalty for the “ Central Park Five , ” the Black teens wrongfully accused of raping a white woman in New York , as well as pushing the racist “ birther ” conspiracy theory that Barack Obama was not born in the U.S. and could not become president .
Since his election , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nations as “ shithole ” countries and described the white nationalists who marched in Charlottesville , Virginia , in 2017 as “ very fine people.
” Trump ’ s Oklahoma rally will be the first since he paused reelection campaign events amid the coronavirus pandemic .
Trump ’ s campaign lists a legal disclaimer on its website that those who register for the rally “ assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19.
” The venue is an indoor arena with a 19,000-person capacity , and Trump said Friday that more than 200,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The U.S. had recorded more than 2 million confirmed coronavirus cases as of Friday .

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President Donald Trump moved a campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, so it would no longer fall on June 19th, or Juneteenth, the day commemorating Black emancipation from slavery.
The president had been criticized for planning a rally on the holiday, specifically in Tulsa, the site of a 1921 racist massacre of Black people by white mobs. Trump said the rally will be on June 20.
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“Many of my African American friends and supporters have reached out to suggest that we consider changing the date out of respect for this Holiday, and in observance of this important occasion and all that it represents,” Trump wrote on Twitter late Friday. “I have therefore decided to move our rally to Saturday, June 20th, in order to honor their requests.”
We had previously scheduled our #MAGA Rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for June 19th – a big deal. Unfortunately, however, this would fall on the Juneteenth Holiday. Many of my African American friends and supporters have reached out to suggest that we consider changing the date out... — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2020
The Tulsa massacre was one of the worst incidents of racist violence in the nation’s history.
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), who is Black, had called Trump’s rally, when it was planned for Juneteenth, a “welcome home party” for “white supremacists.” Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) called it a “slap in the face to African Americans.”
Pressed about Trump’s decision to hold a rally in Tulsa on Juneteenth, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters Thursday that it was a “meaningful day” for Trump, adding, “The African American community is very near and dear to his heart.”
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Trump has a long history of racism, including calling for the death penalty for the “Central Park Five,” the Black teens wrongfully accused of raping a white woman in New York, as well as pushing the racist “birther” conspiracy theory that Barack Obama was not born in the U.S. and could not become president. Since his election, Trump has referred to African and Black-majority nations as “shithole” countries and described the white nationalists who marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017 as “very fine people.”
Trump’s Oklahoma rally will be the first since he paused reelection campaign events amid the coronavirus pandemic. Trump’s campaign lists a legal disclaimer on its website that those who register for the rally “assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19.” The venue is an indoor arena with a 19,000-person capacity, and Trump said Friday that more than 200,000 people had requested tickets to attend.