thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--This Massachusetts House Primary Is Progressives’ Biggest Test Yet

And Morse ’ s appeal as a champion of “ Medicare for All ” and the Green New Deal is complicated by the struggles of the impoverished city he runs , as well as a politically motivated scandal earlier in August that forced him to acknowledge having consensual sex with college students at a university where he lectured .
Though there is no evidence that they were his students ― or any specific allegation of misconduct ― and the revelation was prompted by a student seeking favor with Neal , local media outlets were less diligent in their coverage of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ claims against Morse .
Perhaps Neal ’ s most controversial action was his effective veto of a bipartisan bill aimed at ending the practice of presenting patients with an exorbitant “ surprise ” bill for care performed by doctors or medical professionals who are not in a hospital ’ s insurance network .
In December , Neal scuttled a bill that lawmakers from both parties believed was headed for imminent passage , but it was opposed by private equity firms that invest in out-of-network physicians ’ practices .
Just as Congress was preparing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , Neal shocked consumer and patient advocates by tanking the bill at the last minute on the grounds that it would hurt hospitals by capping insurers ’ payments to out-of-network doctors .
( Neal introduced his own more lenient bipartisan bill , but legislative progress on the issue has slowed to a crawl since Neal made his move . )

LOADING ERROR LOADING
One of the last Democratic congressional primaries of this election cycle is also one of its most consequential.
Holyoke, Massachusetts, Mayor Alex Morse, 31, is taking on Rep. Richard Neal, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, on Tuesday in the Democratic primary for Massachusetts’ 1st Congressional District.
Advertisement
As head of the panel in charge of taxation and virtually all social program spending, Neal, 71, is one of the most powerful Democrats in Congress. Progressives have faulted him for everything from dragging his feet on demanding President Donald Trump’s tax returns and his role in stalling bipartisan legislation to end “surprise” medical billing. In the current election cycle, he is the House’s biggest recipient of donations from corporate political action committees ― many of them from health care companies, the fossil fuel industry and Wall Street firms with lucrative policy interests at stake before Neal’s committee.
There are myriad factors at work in the race’s potential outcomes, including local regard for Neal and concern about losing his clout in Washington. The former mayor of Springfield, who has represented central and Western Massachusetts since 1989, is not beset by the same challenges of other ousted incumbents, such as Reps. Eliot Engel and Joe Crowley of New York. Engel, Crowley and others could be credibly accused of losing touch with their constituents, which is, by all accounts, a tougher sell against Neal.
“We’ve not seen this level of air war": Holyoke, Massachusetts, Mayor Alex Morse's primary against Rep. Richard Neal, right, has drawn millions of dollars in campaign spending. Getty Images
And Morse’s appeal as a champion of “Medicare for All” and the Green New Deal is complicated by the struggles of the impoverished city he runs, as well as a politically motivated scandal earlier in August that forced him to acknowledge having consensual sex with college students at a university where he lectured. Though there is no evidence that they were his students ― or any specific allegation of misconduct ― and the revelation was prompted by a student seeking favor with Neal, local media outlets were less diligent in their coverage of the mitigating information than in the initial claims against Morse.
Advertisement
The race is “more local. It’s more parochial,” said Tony Cignoli, a Springfield-based political consultant who is not affiliated with either candidate. “Here you’re looking at, ‘What’s going to impact me and my kids?’”
Still, a victory for Morse would signal that even Democrats at the highest echelons of the party ― who represent districts far outside of major cities and spend lavishly defending their seats ― are vulnerable to challenges from the left. It would also clear the way for more progressive legislation to advance in the Ways and Means Committee.
“It’s the first thing that scares [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi shitless,” said Sean McElwee, a co-founder of Data for Progress, a firm that has conducted polling for Morse. “If [Neal] loses, every one of these motherfuckers can go down. And there’s nothing they can do to stop it. That is why this primary changes everything.”
A loss for Morse, however, might show the limits of a progressive insurgent wave that has had its greatest successes in and around New York City and other big, liberal metropolitan areas.
“It’d be a big victory lap for” Pelosi and the Democratic Party establishment, Cignoli said. “That allows them to say their other losses were more of a political anomaly than may have been thought.”
Advertisement
Unlike the rest of the country, the most progressive parts of Massachusetts' 1st Congressional District are often the most rural. That includes towns in the Berkshires, such as Sheffield. Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images
Rural Liberals, Urban Moderates And Ascendant Latinos
Unlike many of the sites of progressive victories against more moderate incumbents, there is no obvious racial dynamic at play in Massachusetts’ 1st District. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) ousted Crowley, a white man representing a majority-minority constituency in 2018; Jamaal Bowman, who is Black, did the same to Engel this year. By contrast, Morse and Neal are both white, as are the vast majority of the geographically expansive district’s residents.
Instead, the biggest dividing lines in the district are ideological, geographic and socioeconomic. Neal’s base of support is in Springfield, the district’s largest city, and some of its surrounding towns. Experts on local politics told HuffPost that Neal’s support is likely to be particularly strong among lower-middle-class and blue-collar white residents, many of whom are descended from Irish, Italian and Polish immigrants.
Morse is expected to enjoy significant support in Holyoke, an impoverished postindustrial city of about 40,000. Morse, who became the city’s youngest and first openly gay mayor in 2011, was reelected for a fourth term in 2017.
But Morse’s political sweet spot is in the district’s rural hinterlands. Counterintuitively, the district’s most progressive areas are concentrated in the more sparsely populated hills and mountains north and west of Holyoke. The artistic towns near the state’s northern and western borders are packed with college-educated hippies and other free-spirited people who began arriving there from Northeastern cities in the 1960s and ’70s ― part of a migration wave that also transformed the politics of Vermont to the north.
Advertisement
As a case in point, the district’s voters backed former Vice President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential primary. But Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) jointly received more than Biden, largely thanks to the voters in the district’s northern hill towns.
An internal poll released by Morse’s campaign in mid-August put him within striking distance of Neal, trailing him by 5 percentage points.
Tom Hendrickson, a college student volunteering for Morse, estimated that if Morse can generate strong turnout in the progressive rural areas, limiting Neal’s margin in Springfield would position him well for victory.
“If Morse can win just 40% of Springfield’s vote, he’ll likely win the election,” Hendrickson said.
“He has opened the doors of City Hall to the Puerto Rican community.” - Gladys Franco, school administrator in Springfield, Massachusetts
A potentially decisive variable is how the district’s considerable Latino population will break in the race. Nearly 1 in 5 (19%) of district residents are Latino, and the vast majority of them are Puerto Rican, who are citizens eligible to vote.
Advertisement
In Holyoke, in particular, which has the largest Puerto Rican population per capita of anywhere outside the island itself, Morse has made Puerto Ricans a pillar of his political coalition. Morse, the son of an Irish American father and a Jewish mother, is fluent in Spanish and has rallied the city’s disproportionately working-class Latino residents in an alliance against the city’s more conservative, anglophone old guard. It’s a coalition that has helped Morse withstand efforts by opposition city council members to his creation of the city’s first needle exchange program. (Harm reduction is personal for Morse, whose brother’s death this year stemmed from opiate addiction.)
Gladys Franco, a school administrator and Springfield resident originally from Puerto Rico, commended Morse for his efforts to combat poverty in Holyoke and for limiting the city’s cooperation with federal immigration authorities by designating Holyoke a “sanctuary city.”
“He has opened the doors of City Hall to the Puerto Rican community,” she said.
But the Puerto Rican community is not homogeneous. Neal has enlisted the help of former Rep. Luis Gutiérrez, a Puerto Rican from Chicago and immigration rights leader, who credits Neal with ensuring a House vote in November 2010 on the DREAM Act for immigrants who came to the U.S. as minors (the bill died due to a filibuster in the Senate). Gutiérrez appeared in a TV ad for Neal in both English and Spanish, informing voters, among other things, that Neal fought to ensure that Puerto Rico got its share of hurricane aid.
.@luisgutierrez, a former Chicago congressman, is backing Richie Neal. Gutierrez, who, like many residents of MA-01, is Puerto Rican, is featured in a Neal ad (there's a Spanish one too).
"During my 26 years in Congress, we didn't have a better friend, ally, than Richie Neal." pic.twitter.com/QFLcPD1Dnf — Daniel Marans (@danielmarans) August 28, 2020
Neal also has strong ties to Puerto Rican elected officials and community leaders in Springfield, which has a larger Puerto Rican population than Holyoke in absolute terms.
Advertisement
State Rep. Carlos González, who is backing Neal, said that the Puerto Rican community is divided along generational lines, with younger voters more likely to support Morse.
Younger voters want “new leadership, fresh faces,” González said.
“Well, that’s not how government works,” he added. “Government works with experience, institutional knowledge and positions that can influence legislation that can impact people today, tomorrow and the future generations.”
Rep. Richard Neal, right, announces an Environmental Protection Agency grant for the city of Chicopee on Aug. 13. Neal is counting on voters to reward him for the perks offered by his seniority in Congress. David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
“Corporate America’s Favorite Democrat” Or Senior Statesman?
Neal, Morse and the outside groups backing them have spent millions of dollars blanketing the TV airwaves in an effort to define one another. As of mid-August, Neal’s campaign had outspent Morse’s by a 4-to-1 margin, $4.2 million to Morse’s $1 million. Super PACs supporting Neal or opposing Morse have spent more than $1.7 million, compared with $1.2 million from groups backing Morse or opposing Neal.
“You can’t turn on any TV station in our neck of the woods and not see an ad from Neal or Morse or a PAC supporting them,” said Cignoli, who said he had received four outreach calls from the two campaigns and a survey in the 24-hour period preceding his interview with HuffPost on Thursday. “We’ve not seen this level of air war in I think forever.”
Advertisement
The list of progressive grievances with Neal is endless ― and Morse and his allies have tried nailing him with virtually all of them in public statements, paid ads, campaign literature and strategically placed news stories.
Bills to expand Social Security and close a tax loophole that lets hedge fund managers pay lower tax rates than salaried workers have gone nowhere in Neal’s committee, these progressives note. Neal is so opposed to single-payer health care that he instructed members of his committee to avoid the term “Medicare for All,” they add.
What’s more, Neal declined to demand Trump’s tax returns until April 2019, four months after he assumed the chairmanship. The delay, which Neal chalked up to meticulous preparation, postponed the start of an inevitable court battle, costing Democrats a chance at forcing the tax returns’ disclosure before the November election, critics charge.
Perhaps Neal’s most controversial action was his effective veto of a bipartisan bill aimed at ending the practice of presenting patients with an exorbitant “surprise” bill for care performed by doctors or medical professionals who are not in a hospital’s insurance network. In December, Neal scuttled a bill that lawmakers from both parties believed was headed for imminent passage, but it was opposed by private equity firms that invest in out-of-network physicians’ practices. Just as Congress was preparing to wrap up its business for the year, Neal shocked consumer and patient advocates by tanking the bill at the last minute on the grounds that it would hurt hospitals by capping insurers’ payments to out-of-network doctors. (Neal introduced his own more lenient bipartisan bill, but legislative progress on the issue has slowed to a crawl since Neal made his move.)
Fight Corporate Monopolies, the political arm of the anti-monopoly group American Economic Liberties Project, has spent $325,000 to air a TV ad in Springfield blasting Neal for the decision and connecting it to his receipt of donations from top executives at a private equity firm that profits from surprise billing.
“If you contribute to my campaign, you buy into my agenda. I’m not buying into yours.” - Rep. Richard Neal (D-Mass.)
The most enduring message employed against Neal, though, has not been tied to any one vote or policy position. Instead, Neal’s opponents have portrayed him as a Washington insider corrupted by corporate money and noted he hasn’t held a town hall in the district in which constituents would be free to ask questions in three years. Morse and Justice Democrats, Morse’s most important left-wing backer, have dubbed Neal “Corporate America’s favorite Democrat” ― or, alternately, “Wall Street’s favorite Democrat.”
“Do we want a member of Congress who is bought and paid for by corporations ― by Big Pharma, by the fossil fuel industry, by the big health care lobby?” Morse, who is refusing corporate PAC money, said in a televised debate with Neal on Aug. 17. “Or do we want a member of Congress that is unbought and going to Washington to fight for everyday people?”
Neal has responded that the money he has raised helped Democrats take back the House in 2018 and that he uses it to help Black and Latino members of Congress in particular.
Advertisement
“If you contribute to my campaign, you buy into my agenda,” he added in the Aug. 17 debate. “I’m not buying into yours.”
Neal and his allies have painted him as a dealmaker with the experience and power to deliver for a district that is struggling economically. While spending earmarks are no longer permitted, Neal maintains that his district, which is home to the Richard E. Neal Complex community health center, would be lost without his seniority. He touts the federal dollars he’s secured for the district through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, a March bill that expanded unemployment benefits, set up a program to help small businesses retain their workers and provided unconditional emergency loans to big business.
“When COVID-19 struck, I trusted Richie to negotiate the best deal for working people,” Pelosi says in a TV ad for Neal.
At the same time, Neal has hammered Morse for opposing the CARES Act, for missing a number of Holyoke public school board meetings and for presiding over a police department that had to settle a lawsuit for $65,000 with the family of a 12-year-old boy whom city police allegedly beat nearly unconscious in 2014.
Like other progressives, Morse maintains that the CARES Act stimulus package has been inadequate for ordinary people. And he insists that he has attended about three-quarters of Holyoke school board meetings since taking office in 2011 and that he was absent only when there was a conflict related to city business.
Advertisement
Still, Neal’s pitch about seniority remains appealing to even many of the district’s most progressive voters. Volunteer Tom Hendrickson’s parents, union school teachers who voted for Sanders in the presidential primary, are both sticking with Neal.
“The main reason is because of his position as the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee,” said Hendrickson’s father, David, who is vice president of his teachers union local. “He has the accessibility to help our region in Western Mass the most.”
Alex Morse campaigns in Springfield on Wednesday. Misconduct claims against him that were later shown to be politically motivated may have ended up helping him. Erin Clark/Boston Globe via Getty Images
The Dustup That Rocked A Gay, Millennial Mayor
Given all of the policy issues and power struggles embedded in the Neal-Morse race, it’s sometimes easy to forget that the contest got its first real dose of national attention for a bizarre sex scandal over the course of a week in early August.
Morse came under fire on Aug. 7 when The Daily Collegian, the student newspaper of the University of Massachusetts, published a leaked letter from the College Democrats of Massachusetts informing Morse on Thursday that he was no longer welcome at the group’s meetings because he had used “his position of power for romantic or sexual gain” with college students.
Advertisement
The letter stated that Morse, who had taught a course at UMass Amherst since 2015, matched with college students as young as 18 on the dating apps Tinder and Grindr, and that he had “sexual contact” with students at the UMass Amherst and other colleges near Holyoke.
It also said that Morse “us[ed] College Democrats events to meet college students and add them on Instagram” and that he messaged them in a way that made students “feel uncomfortable.”
Morse apologized for making students uncomfortable but denied wrongdoing, insisting that all of his romantic relationships had been with consenting adults and none were with any of his students.
Still, Morse considered withdrawing from the race, particularly as an array of progressive groups supporting him deliberated for days about how to respond to the news. The climate-focused Sunrise Movement and Jamaal Bowman, the congressional candidate in New York, announced that they were pausing their support for Morse pending further investigation.
Then, five days after the Daily Collegian article upended the race, The Intercept reported that at least two students active in the UMass Amherst College Democrats chapter sought to ensnare Morse by flirting with him on Instagram. One of the conspirators explicitly said that he was interested in currying favor with Neal so he could advance professionally.
Advertisement
A second Intercept report revealed that the Massachusetts Democratic Party, which is officially neutral in competitive primaries, referred Democratic power broker and former Neal donor Jim Roosevelt to the student group as an attorney to counsel them on how to handle confronting Morse. Roosevelt reportedly advised them to publicize the letter, against the students’ instincts, according to sources close to the College Democrats; Roosevelt insists that he advised that it be kept private.
Morse’s allies returned to his side with force, promising to up their spending. Neal ended up finding himself on the defensive, repeatedly denying any involvement with the incident and renouncing the homophobia that many saw in the attempt to smear Morse.
Now some political observers think the scandal may have actually helped Morse, raising his profile in the district and rallying die-hard progressive activists and members of the LGBTQ community to his cause. Indeed, Morse had his best fundraising day of the campaign the day that the Intercept story about the plot against him came out, bringing in about $130,000.
“What Neal needed to have happen to win ― and he still could do it ― is just to have nothing happen,” McElwee, of Data for Progress, said, noting that Neal’s cash advantage and name recognition in the district made him the default favorite in an unremarkable political environment. “This has given Morse a real shot at getting across the finish line.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--Trump Bashes His Niece, Bob Woodward Over Critical Books

President Donald Trump finally let loose Saturday on his niece Mary L. Trump for her harshly critical book about him , calling her “ unstable.
” He also blasted Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward and former national security adviser John Bolton , who both spilled — or will spill — damning details about him in books .
Trump tweeted that only books that make him look bad have a chance at being published .
He called Bolton a “ dumb warmonger ” in an attack tweet .
The worst he could call Woodward was a “ social pretender ” with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was particularly vicious about his niece .
He said she was “ rightfully shunned , scorned and mocked her entire life ” and was “ never even liked by her own ... grandfather.
” About the only way a person is able to write a book on me is if they agree that it will contain as much bad “ stuff ” as possible , much of which is lies .
It ’ s like getting a job with CNN or MSDNC and saying that “ President Trump is great.
” You have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Donald J. Trump ( @ realDonaldTrump ) August 29 , 2020 ..Even whether it ’ s dumb warmongers like John Bolton , social pretenders like Bob Woodward , who never has anything good to say , or an unstable niece , who was now rightfully shunned , scorned and mocked her entire life , and never even liked by her own very kind & caring grandfather !
— Donald J. Trump ( @ realDonaldTrump ) August 29 , 2020 Mary Trump delivered her own stinging blows to the president in her book , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ How My Family Created the World ’ s Most Dangerous Man.
” Mary Trump also recently released secret audio recordings of Trump ’ s sister , former federal judge Maryanne Trump Barry , who ripped the president as a man entirely without principles , a liar , a cheat and cruel .
Barry called Eric Trump “ the moron ” and characterized Ivanka Trump as callous and self-absorbed as the administration separated migrant children from their parents .
Mary Trump told The Washington Post that her uncle is “ unfit ” to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ everything in my power ” to make certain he doesn ’ t win reelection .
Woodward examined the president ’ s response to COVID-19 in his upcoming book , “ Rage , ” and obtained copies of 24 letters between Trump and his one-time pal , North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un , CNN reported earlier this month .
Woodward reportedly conducted 17 interviews with Trump for the book , which is due Sept. 15 .
Trump on Friday tweeted that the book was “ a FAKE ” — even though he hadn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bob Woodward book will be a FAKE , as always , just as many of the others have been .
But , believe it or not , lately I ’ ve been getting lots of GREAT books !
— Donald J. Trump ( @ realDonaldTrump ) August 14 , 2020

LOADING ERROR LOADING
President Donald Trump finally let loose Saturday on his niece Mary L. Trump for her harshly critical book about him, calling her “unstable.”
He also blasted Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward and former national security adviser John Bolton, who both spilled — or will spill — damning details about him in books.
Advertisement
Trump tweeted that only books that make him look bad have a chance at being published.
He called Bolton a “dumb warmonger” in an attack tweet. The worst he could call Woodward was a “social pretender” with nothing good to say.
But Trump was particularly vicious about his niece. He said she was “rightfully shunned, scorned and mocked her entire life” and was “never even liked by her own ... grandfather.”
About the only way a person is able to write a book on me is if they agree that it will contain as much bad “stuff” as possible, much of which is lies. It’s like getting a job with CNN or MSDNC and saying that “President Trump is great.” You have ZERO chance. FAKE NEWS! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 29, 2020
..Even whether it’s dumb warmongers like John Bolton, social pretenders like Bob Woodward, who never has anything good to say, or an unstable niece, who was now rightfully shunned, scorned and mocked her entire life, and never even liked by her own very kind & caring grandfather! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 29, 2020
Advertisement
Mary Trump delivered her own stinging blows to the president in her book, “Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man.”
Mary Trump also recently released secret audio recordings of Trump’s sister, former federal judge Maryanne Trump Barry, who ripped the president as a man entirely without principles, a liar, a cheat and cruel.
Barry called Eric Trump “the moron” and characterized Ivanka Trump as callous and self-absorbed as the administration separated migrant children from their parents.
Mary Trump told The Washington Post that her uncle is “unfit” to be president and that she will do “everything in my power” to make certain he doesn’t win reelection.
Woodward examined the president’s response to COVID-19 in his upcoming book, “Rage,” and obtained copies of 24 letters between Trump and his one-time pal, North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, CNN reported earlier this month.
Advertisement
Woodward reportedly conducted 17 interviews with Trump for the book, which is due Sept. 15.
Trump on Friday tweeted that the book was “a FAKE” — even though he hadn’t read it.
...The Bob Woodward book will be a FAKE, as always, just as many of the others have been. But, believe it or not, lately I’ve been getting lots of GREAT books! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 14, 2020


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--California Bans Sale Of Flavored Tobacco Products, Including E-Cigarettes

The ban is slated to go into effect Jan. 1 and is aimed at curbing the use of such products by young people , the Los Angeles Times reported .
Supporters of the new law said that fruit , candy and menthol flavors make smoking and vaping more appealing to kids .
“ Menthol cigarettes , sweet cigars , candy vapes and other flavored tobacco products serve one purpose : to mask the harshness of tobacco and get users hooked to a dangerous lifelong addiction , ” said state Sen. Jerry Hill ( D-San Mateo ) , the bill ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the San Francisco Chronicle .
E-cigarettes do not contain tobacco .
But cartridges and disposable e-cigarettes that contain nicotine are considered tobacco products in the United States because nicotine is derived from tobacco .
The new law does not apply to online sales and does not prohibit possession .
There are also carve-outs for hookah products , loose-leaf tobacco and so-called “ premium ” cigars .
Those found in violation of the law will be subject to a $ 250 fine for each violation .
The bill faced opposition from the smoking and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that vaping helps smokers quit traditional cigarettes and that appealing flavors make the transition easier .
But though e-cigarettes do not contain tobacco ― an ingredient known for its detrimental effects on health ― organizations such as the American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society have said that e-cigarettes may contain other harmful substances and that little is known about their long-term effects .
California is the second state — after Massachusetts — to pass a statewide ban on all flavored tobacco products .
Several states have passed various bans and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and similar laws also exist at the local level , including in San Francisco .
Earlier this year , the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a federal ban on the production and sale of some , but not all , flavored vaping products .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed a bill Friday that will outlaw the retail sale of flavored tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes.
The ban is slated to go into effect Jan. 1 and is aimed at curbing the use of such products by young people, the Los Angeles Times reported. Supporters of the new law said that fruit, candy and menthol flavors make smoking and vaping more appealing to kids.
Advertisement
“Menthol cigarettes, sweet cigars, candy vapes and other flavored tobacco products serve one purpose: to mask the harshness of tobacco and get users hooked to a dangerous lifelong addiction,” said state Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo), the bill’s author, in a statement to the San Francisco Chronicle.
E-cigarettes do not contain tobacco. But cartridges and disposable e-cigarettes that contain nicotine are considered tobacco products in the United States because nicotine is derived from tobacco.
Disposable vape devices on display at a store in Brooklyn, New York, in February. AP Photo/Marshall Ritzel
The new law does not apply to online sales and does not prohibit possession. There are also carve-outs for hookah products, loose-leaf tobacco and so-called “premium” cigars.
Advertisement
Those found in violation of the law will be subject to a $250 fine for each violation.
The bill faced opposition from the smoking and vaping industries. Makers of electronic cigarettes said that vaping helps smokers quit traditional cigarettes and that appealing flavors make the transition easier.
But though e-cigarettes do not contain tobacco ― an ingredient known for its detrimental effects on health ― organizations such as the American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society have said that e-cigarettes may contain other harmful substances and that little is known about their long-term effects.
California is the second state — after Massachusetts — to pass a statewide ban on all flavored tobacco products. Several states have passed various bans and restrictions aimed at flavored vaping products, and similar laws also exist at the local level, including in San Francisco.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--Trump Surveys Hurricane Laura Damage In Post-Convention Trip

LAKE CHARLES , La .
( AP ) — President Donald Trump got a firsthand look Saturday at the damage from Hurricane Laura on a post-Republican National Convention trip that allowed him to use the trappings of his office to try to project empathy and leadership .
His stops , first in Louisiana and later in Texas , came two days after the Category 4 storm slammed the Gulf Coast , leaving at least 16 dead and wreaking havoc with severe winds and flooding .
While the storm surge has receded and the cleanup effort has begun , hundreds of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and they could for weeks or months as the hot summer stretches on .
“ I ’ m here to support the great people of Louisiana .
It ’ s been a great state for me , ” he said in Lake Charles .
“ It was a tremendously powerful storm.
” He said he knows one thing about the state : “ They rebuild it fast.
” During the slightly more than two hours he spent in the city , Trump met with officials and relief workers but not with any of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ apart in the storm .
He did , however , get a good look at the extensive damage and the debris strewn across the city of 80,000 people , beginning with the bird ’ s eye view from Air Force One as it came in for landing .
His first stop was a warehouse being used as a staging area for the Cajun Navy , a group of Louisiana volunteers who help with search and rescue after hurricanes and floods .
“ Good job , ” Trump told them .
Trump then toured @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Edwards and acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf , making his way down a street blocked by felled trees and where houses were battered by the storm , one with its entire roof torn off .
Edwards has said Laura was the most powerful hurricane ever to strike his state , surpassing even Hurricane Katrina , which was a Category 3 when it hit almost exactly 15 years ago .
The president then flew by helicopter to Orange , Texas , which was the worst-hit area in the state .
Several hundred supporters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , banners and signs .
Among the officials on hand were Texas Gov .
Greg Abbott and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz , R-Texas .
Before a flyover to view damaged areas , Trump and other officials visited the emergency operations center in Orange County to discuss storm damage and the government response .
He was flying back to Washington Saturday evening .
Trump has sometimes struggled with his role as consoler in chief , failing to project empathy when visiting places hard hit by tragedy and disaster .
That includes in Puerto Rico @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of paper towel into the crowd , which some saw as inappropriately playful , given the circumstances .
During a trip to the Carolinas in 2018 , Trump marveled at a yacht floodwaters had washed onto a family ’ s property , telling them , “ At least you got a nice boat out of the deal.
” And he was caught on camera telling a person he ’ d handed out food to “ have a good time.
” Other times , Trump has been a source of comfort .
After a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ killing nearly two dozen people , Trump spent time with families who ’ d lost loved ones , listening to their stories and hugging them .
Showing empathy has come more naturally for his Democratic rival , Joe Biden , who issued a statement Saturday saying he and his wife were praying for those hurt by the storm and promising that “ we will be there to help you build back better.
” In a possible subtle dig at the incumbent , Biden praised the response of families in the hurricane-hit states and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no disaster , no single person , no injustice can match the humble , personal , courageous ways that Americans choose decency every single day.
” Laura , which packed 150-mph ( 240-kph ) winds and a storm surge as high as 15 feet ( 4.5 meters ) , toppled trees and damaged buildings as far north as central Arkansas .
More than 580,000 coastal residents evacuated in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic .
More than half of those who died succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning from the unsafe operation of generators @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dozen people in Haiti and the Dominican Republic as it barreled toward the U.S .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) — President Donald Trump got a firsthand look Saturday at the damage from Hurricane Laura on a post-Republican National Convention trip that allowed him to use the trappings of his office to try to project empathy and leadership.
His stops, first in Louisiana and later in Texas, came two days after the Category 4 storm slammed the Gulf Coast, leaving at least 16 dead and wreaking havoc with severe winds and flooding. While the storm surge has receded and the cleanup effort has begun, hundreds of thousands remain without power or water, and they could for weeks or months as the hot summer stretches on.
Advertisement
“I’m here to support the great people of Louisiana. It’s been a great state for me,” he said in Lake Charles. “It was a tremendously powerful storm.” He said he knows one thing about the state: “They rebuild it fast.”
During the slightly more than two hours he spent in the city, Trump met with officials and relief workers but not with any of the residents whose homes had been ripped apart in the storm.
He did, however, get a good look at the extensive damage and the debris strewn across the city of 80,000 people, beginning with the bird’s eye view from Air Force One as it came in for landing.
His first stop was a warehouse being used as a staging area for the Cajun Navy, a group of Louisiana volunteers who help with search and rescue after hurricanes and floods. “Good job,” Trump told them.
Advertisement
Trump then toured a neighborhood with Gov. John Bel Edwards and acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf, making his way down a street blocked by felled trees and where houses were battered by the storm, one with its entire roof torn off.
Edwards has said Laura was the most powerful hurricane ever to strike his state, surpassing even Hurricane Katrina, which was a Category 3 when it hit almost exactly 15 years ago.
“Whether you come from Louisiana or 5th Avenue In New York, you know about Katrina,” Trump said.
The president then flew by helicopter to Orange, Texas, which was the worst-hit area in the state. Several hundred supporters greeted his arrival with Trump 2020 flags, banners and signs. Among the officials on hand were Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. Before a flyover to view damaged areas, Trump and other officials visited the emergency operations center in Orange County to discuss storm damage and the government response. He was flying back to Washington Saturday evening.
Trump has sometimes struggled with his role as consoler in chief, failing to project empathy when visiting places hard hit by tragedy and disaster. That includes in Puerto Rico, where Trump was photographed tossing rolls of paper towel into the crowd, which some saw as inappropriately playful, given the circumstances. During a trip to the Carolinas in 2018, Trump marveled at a yacht floodwaters had washed onto a family’s property, telling them, “At least you got a nice boat out of the deal.” And he was caught on camera telling a person he’d handed out food to “have a good time.”
Other times, Trump has been a source of comfort. After a tornado ripped through Alabama last year, killing nearly two dozen people, Trump spent time with families who’d lost loved ones, listening to their stories and hugging them.
Advertisement
Showing empathy has come more naturally for his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, who issued a statement Saturday saying he and his wife were praying for those hurt by the storm and promising that “we will be there to help you build back better.”
In a possible subtle dig at the incumbent, Biden praised the response of families in the hurricane-hit states and thanked them for “reminding Americans that no disaster, no single person, no injustice can match the humble, personal, courageous ways that Americans choose decency every single day.”
Laura, which packed 150-mph (240-kph) winds and a storm surge as high as 15 feet (4.5 meters), toppled trees and damaged buildings as far north as central Arkansas. More than 580,000 coastal residents evacuated in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--Milwaukee Bucks Resume NBA Playoffs After Sparking Historic Stoppage

LAKE BUENA VISTA , Fla. ( AP ) — The Milwaukee Bucks came to the arena and prepared for a game , just as they did three days earlier .
The rescheduled Game 5 of the Bucks ’ series against Orlando began Saturday as the NBA postseason resumed after a historic stoppage that players hope will bring change in their communities .
“ It was a moment in which the world needed and obviously we know this is going to be a long , ongoing process , ” Bucks guard Wesley Matthews said .
“ But we ’ re in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and we ’ re in this fight for the long haul.
” The teams were scheduled to play Wednesday afternoon , but the Bucks decided not to take the court to show their frustration over the police shooting in Kenosha , Wisconsin , of Jacob Blake , a 29-year-old Black man , along with other acts of racial injustice .
That led to a two-day postponement of games that ended when players and owners agreed to expanded initiatives , many tied to increased voting awareness and opportunities , such as the use of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then began practicing again Friday and three games were to be played Saturday .
Matthews said he was putting on his uniform shorts about 20 minutes before the game was set to begin Wednesday when the Bucks decided they wouldn ’ t play .
The Magic were already on the court warming up .
He said the Bucks were prepared to forfeit , which would have trimmed their series lead to 3-2 .
But the Magic refused to accept it and NBA players stood behind the Bucks , even though some were frustrated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Matthews apologized for that but said the aftermath has confirmed for the Bucks that they made the right decision .
“ We didn ’ t think that this was going to turn the way that it did , but we are grateful for the fact that that moment , that pause , that postponement was able to help everybody reflect again and realize that everybody ’ s got to step up , ” Matthews said .
The Bucks remained in their locker room for hours after the game was set to begin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wisconsin officials .
Matthews said that showed the impact athletes can have .
“ I think that brought tears to everybody ’ s eyes because you felt that , ” Matthews said .
“ We didn ’ t need any other validation after talking to them about what we did , to hear that we were able to bring a smile to not only his face but the face of his parents .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — The Milwaukee Bucks came to the arena and prepared for a game, just as they did three days earlier.
This time, they played it.
The rescheduled Game 5 of the Bucks’ series against Orlando began Saturday as the NBA postseason resumed after a historic stoppage that players hope will bring change in their communities.
Advertisement
“It was a moment in which the world needed and obviously we know this is going to be a long, ongoing process,” Bucks guard Wesley Matthews said. “But we’re in. We’re in the trenches and we’re in this fight for the long haul.”
The teams were scheduled to play Wednesday afternoon, but the Bucks decided not to take the court to show their frustration over the police shooting in Kenosha, Wisconsin, of Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, along with other acts of racial injustice.
That led to a two-day postponement of games that ended when players and owners agreed to expanded initiatives, many tied to increased voting awareness and opportunities, such as the use of NBA arenas as polling sites. Teams then began practicing again Friday and three games were to be played Saturday.
Matthews said he was putting on his uniform shorts about 20 minutes before the game was set to begin Wednesday when the Bucks decided they wouldn’t play. The Magic were already on the court warming up.
Advertisement
He said the Bucks were prepared to forfeit, which would have trimmed their series lead to 3-2. But the Magic refused to accept it and NBA players stood behind the Bucks, even though some were frustrated the Bucks acted alone without consulting them.
Matthews apologized for that but said the aftermath has confirmed for the Bucks that they made the right decision.
“We didn’t think that this was going to turn the way that it did, but we are grateful for the fact that that moment, that pause, that postponement was able to help everybody reflect again and realize that everybody’s got to step up,” Matthews said.
Coach Mike Budenholzer praised his players for their leadership and commitment in taking the risk they did.
The Bucks remained in their locker room for hours after the game was set to begin, during which time they spoke with Wisconsin officials. Matthews said that showed the impact athletes can have.
Advertisement
The players had another meaningful call, speaking to Blake’s family.
“I think that brought tears to everybody’s eyes because you felt that,” Matthews said. “We didn’t need any other validation after talking to them about what we did, to hear that we were able to bring a smile to not only his face but the face of his parents.”
___


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--Kenosha Activists: Militias Tolerated, Protesters Arrested

KENOSHA , Wis. ( AP ) — Police officers in Kenosha were on alert after days of protests over the shooting of Jacob Blake by one of their colleagues , and they ’ d recently gotten a tip about “ suspicious vehicles ” from out of state .
So , after watching a group of people fill cans at a gas station Wednesday and then hop into a minivan with Oregon plates , the officers sped in .
A bystander ’ s video shows officers leaping out of black SUVs with guns drawn .
About 25 seconds later , an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ window with her baton , unlocks its door and pulls a person out .
The group turned out to be members of Riot Kitchen , a Seattle-based organization that serves food at demonstrations .
Jennifer Scheurle , a member of its board of directors , said they were filling up gas cans to power a generator for their food truck .
The nine taken into custody in the SWAT-style operation Wednesday were among dozens of people arrested this week in the Wisconsin city .
The arrests have highlighted activists ’ complaints that police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ white officer ’ s shooting that left Blake , a Black man , paralyzed , even as they ’ ve tolerated armed militia groups .
“ We reject all claims that our crew was there to incite violence or build explosives , ” said Scheurle , who was not among those in Kenosha .
“ Our nonprofit organization has always been and will always be about feeding people.
” Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis said at a Friday news conference that “ just under 50 ” people had been arrested during the protests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of 58 charges , more than half of them for curfew violations , but declined to specify the number of people arrested or provide names .
Those arrested were almost 70 % white and about two-thirds male .
The vast majority were charged with misdemeanors or civil violations , although there were also some felonies .
Miskinis said one person had been charged for having a “ flamethrower.
” Police had Akindes and three others lie on the ground as they put them in handcuffs , she said , adding that officers did @ @ @ @ @ @ @ why they were being arrested .
She was released on Thursday evening and charged with breaking curfew .
The early days of demonstrations and unrest after Blake ’ s shooting saw some people destroying buildings , setting fires and hurling objects at police , who responded at times with tear gas .
The last three nights have been mostly peaceful , and police have not fired tear gas or pepper balls .
But they have used tactics that local activists see as heavy handed .
On Thursday night , police pulled over several @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They arrested a group of people in one vehicle and searched the car of another group .
Wallner , who is Black , contrasted this with what he characterized as a tolerant , or even friendly , attitude police have taken toward the white men who ’ ve come to the city outfitted with heavy vests and long guns , including a 17-year-old charged with fatally shooting two people and wounding a third .
Earlier in the week , sheriff ’ s deputies shot pepper balls at protesters and arrested them when they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they were breaking curfew .
But officers in an armored vehicle with “ Sheriff ” on the side were also recorded at night tossing water bottles to men carrying rifles .
Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth said Friday that the officer seen giving out water was not one of his deputies , and the person who said he appreciated what the armed civilians were doing “ doesn ’ t mirror all of law enforcement ’ s perspective on what happened .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) — Police officers in Kenosha were on alert after days of protests over the shooting of Jacob Blake by one of their colleagues, and they’d recently gotten a tip about “suspicious vehicles” from out of state.
So, after watching a group of people fill cans at a gas station Wednesday and then hop into a minivan with Oregon plates, the officers sped in. A bystander’s video shows officers leaping out of black SUVs with guns drawn. About 25 seconds later, an officer shatters the van’s passenger-side window with her baton, unlocks its door and pulls a person out.
Advertisement
The group turned out to be members of Riot Kitchen, a Seattle-based organization that serves food at demonstrations. Jennifer Scheurle, a member of its board of directors, said they were filling up gas cans to power a generator for their food truck.
The nine taken into custody in the SWAT-style operation Wednesday were among dozens of people arrested this week in the Wisconsin city. The arrests have highlighted activists’ complaints that police have been responding to protests over the white officer’s shooting that left Blake, a Black man, paralyzed, even as they’ve tolerated armed militia groups.
The Riot Kitchen members were charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct, but all were free by Friday morning.
“We reject all claims that our crew was there to incite violence or build explosives,” said Scheurle, who was not among those in Kenosha. “Our nonprofit organization has always been and will always be about feeding people.”
Advertisement
Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis said at a Friday news conference that “just under 50” people had been arrested during the protests. The department later provided a list of 58 charges, more than half of them for curfew violations, but declined to specify the number of people arrested or provide names.
“I believe everybody out there in law enforcement has been friendly to both sides,” Miskinis said.
An analysis of jail records since the day of Blake’s shooting shows about 45% the people facing charges seemingly related to the protests live outside Wisconsin.
Those arrested were almost 70% white and about two-thirds male. The vast majority were charged with misdemeanors or civil violations, although there were also some felonies. Miskinis said one person had been charged for having a “flamethrower.”
More than 20 of the people remained in jail Friday afternoon.
Adelana Akindes, a 24-year-old from Kenosha, said she spent nearly a day in a crowded cell after being arrested Wednesday while walking toward the demonstrations carrying a shield.
Police had Akindes and three others lie on the ground as they put them in handcuffs, she said, adding that officers did not read their Miranda rights or say why they were being arrested. She was released on Thursday evening and charged with breaking curfew.
Advertisement
“They wanted to scare us,” said Akindes, who is Black. “They wanted to make an example of us.”
The early days of demonstrations and unrest after Blake’s shooting saw some people destroying buildings, setting fires and hurling objects at police, who responded at times with tear gas. The last three nights have been mostly peaceful, and police have not fired tear gas or pepper balls. But they have used tactics that local activists see as heavy handed.
On Thursday night, police pulled over several cars of people headed to protests. They arrested a group of people in one vehicle and searched the car of another group.
“There has been no respect for anybody’s civil rights,” said Isaac Wallner, a 30-year-old Kenosha activist. “It’s been a police free for all. They do whatever they want.”
Wallner, who is Black, contrasted this with what he characterized as a tolerant, or even friendly, attitude police have taken toward the white men who’ve come to the city outfitted with heavy vests and long guns, including a 17-year-old charged with fatally shooting two people and wounding a third.
Earlier in the week, sheriff’s deputies shot pepper balls at protesters and arrested them when they failed to quickly leave after being told they were breaking curfew. But officers in an armored vehicle with “Sheriff” on the side were also recorded at night tossing water bottles to men carrying rifles.
Advertisement
“We appreciate you guys. We really do,” someone can be heard calling from the vehicle in a video of the exchange.
Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth said Friday that the officer seen giving out water was not one of his deputies, and the person who said he appreciated what the armed civilians were doing “doesn’t mirror all of law enforcement’s perspective on what happened.”
__


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--Weeks Without Power Or Water Lie Ahead As Laura Cleanup Begins

CAMERON PARISH , La .
( AP ) — The destructive storm surge has receded , and the cleanup has begun from Hurricane Laura , but officials along this shattered stretch of southwestern Louisiana are warning returning residents they will face weeks without power or water amid the hot , stifling days of late summer .
The U.S. toll from the Category 4 hurricane rose to 16 deaths Saturday , with more than half of those killed by carbon monoxide poisoning from the unsafe operation of generators .
The latest deaths included an 80-year-old woman and an 84-year-old man who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Across southwestern Louisiana , people were cleaning up from the hurricane that roared ashore early Thursday , packing 150 mph ( 240 kph ) winds .
Many were deciding whether they wanted to return home to miserable conditions or wait until basic services are finally restored .
Along the coast in Cameron Parish , the receding storm surge left behind sediment and debris .
Roads appeared still impassable .
At South Cameron High School in Creole , parts of the roof of one building were ripped off , and debris was strewn everywhere @ @ @ @ @ @ @ side along the water .
“ This roof blew off .
There ’ s some of it over there , ” said Michael Putman , owner of Putman Restoration , pointing to part of the roof resting near the side of the building .
A pile of black garbage bags sat outside the church , filled with insulation and ceiling tile .
Putman lives in Shreveport , which also got damage from the storm .
But he said he drove down to Lake Charles to help the minister , who was his high @ @ @ @ @ @ @ feat in Lake Charles , a city of 80,000 residents hit head on .
Power lines and trees blocked paths or created one-lane roads , leaving drivers to negotiate with oncoming traffic .
Street signs were snapped off their posts or dangling .
No stoplights worked , making it an exercise in trust to share the road with other motorists .
Mayor Nic Hunter cautioned that there was no timetable for restoring electricity and that water-treatment plants “ took a beating , ” leaving barely a trickle of water coming out of most @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Lake Charles to stay , make sure you understand the above reality and are prepared to live in it for many days , probably weeks , ” Hunter wrote on Facebook .
The Louisiana Department of Health estimated that more than 220,000 people were without water .
Restoration of those services could take weeks or months , and full rebuilding could take years .
Forty nursing homes were relying on generators , and assessments were underway to determine if more than 860 residents in 11 facilities that had been evacuated could return @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one in Cameron Parish evacuated critical patients to other facilities because of water and power issues , the state health department said .
Other hospitals are operating on intermittent generator power .
Nineteen babies who weathered the hurricane at Lake Charles Memorial Hospital were brought to other hospitals across around the state .
The babies , some on respirators or eating via feeding tubes , were at the neonatal intensive care unit of another hospital and had to be moved Wednesday hours before the hurricane arrived out of concerns that storm surge would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said they then decided to move them out of Lake Charles when it became apparent that it could be weeks before water was restored .
Louisiana Gov .
John Bel Edwards called Laura the most powerful hurricane to strike the state , meaning it surpassed even Katrina , which was a Category 3 storm when it hit in 2005 .
He said Friday that officials now believe the surge was as high as 15 feet ( 4.5 meters ) .
In Lake Charles , chainsaws buzzed and heavy machinery hauled tree limbs in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Hazelton , who rode out the storm on a bathroom floor .
A tree punctured the roof not far from where the couple was taking cover .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
CAMERON PARISH, La. (AP) — The destructive storm surge has receded, and the cleanup has begun from Hurricane Laura, but officials along this shattered stretch of southwestern Louisiana are warning returning residents they will face weeks without power or water amid the hot, stifling days of late summer.
The U.S. toll from the Category 4 hurricane rose to 16 deaths Saturday, with more than half of those killed by carbon monoxide poisoning from the unsafe operation of generators. The latest deaths included an 80-year-old woman and an 84-year-old man who died from just such a poisoning.
Advertisement
President Donald Trump plans to tour the damage in Louisiana and neighboring Texas on Saturday and is expected to receive briefings on relief efforts.
White House spokesman Judd Deere said Trump was traveling “to be with those who have been impacted by Hurricane Laura.”
Across southwestern Louisiana, people were cleaning up from the hurricane that roared ashore early Thursday, packing 150 mph (240 kph) winds. Many were deciding whether they wanted to return home to miserable conditions or wait until basic services are finally restored.
Along the coast in Cameron Parish, the receding storm surge left behind sediment and debris. Roads appeared still impassable. At South Cameron High School in Creole, parts of the roof of one building were ripped off, and debris was strewn everywhere. A barge appeared tilted on its side along the water.
Advertisement
At First United Methodist Church in Lake Charles, a work crew was battling water that continued to pour into the church building as it rained Friday.
“This roof blew off. There’s some of it over there,” said Michael Putman, owner of Putman Restoration, pointing to part of the roof resting near the side of the building. A pile of black garbage bags sat outside the church, filled with insulation and ceiling tile.
Putman lives in Shreveport, which also got damage from the storm. But he said he drove down to Lake Charles to help the minister, who was his high school pastor.
“We slept in our truck in the parking lot last night,” he said.
Simply driving was a feat in Lake Charles, a city of 80,000 residents hit head on. Power lines and trees blocked paths or created one-lane roads, leaving drivers to negotiate with oncoming traffic. Street signs were snapped off their posts or dangling. No stoplights worked, making it an exercise in trust to share the road with other motorists.
Mayor Nic Hunter cautioned that there was no timetable for restoring electricity and that water-treatment plants “took a beating,” leaving barely a trickle of water coming out of most faucets. “If you come back to Lake Charles to stay, make sure you understand the above reality and are prepared to live in it for many days, probably weeks,” Hunter wrote on Facebook.
Advertisement
The Louisiana Department of Health estimated that more than 220,000 people were without water. Restoration of those services could take weeks or months, and full rebuilding could take years.
Forty nursing homes were relying on generators, and assessments were underway to determine if more than 860 residents in 11 facilities that had been evacuated could return.
Several hospitals in Calcasieu Parish and one in Cameron Parish evacuated critical patients to other facilities because of water and power issues, the state health department said. Other hospitals are operating on intermittent generator power.
Nineteen babies who weathered the hurricane at Lake Charles Memorial Hospital were brought to other hospitals across around the state. The babies, some on respirators or eating via feeding tubes, were at the neonatal intensive care unit of another hospital and had to be moved Wednesday hours before the hurricane arrived out of concerns that storm surge would swamp the one-story building. Hospital officials said they then decided to move them out of Lake Charles when it became apparent that it could be weeks before water was restored.
Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards called Laura the most powerful hurricane to strike the state, meaning it surpassed even Katrina, which was a Category 3 storm when it hit in 2005. He said Friday that officials now believe the surge was as high as 15 feet (4.5 meters).
Advertisement
Saturday marks the 15th anniversary of Katrina.
Hurricane Laura also killed nearly two dozen people in Haiti and the Dominican Republic en route to the U.S. Gulf Coast.
In Lake Charles, chainsaws buzzed and heavy machinery hauled tree limbs in the front lawn of Stanley and Dominique Hazelton, who rode out the storm on a bathroom floor. A tree punctured the roof not far from where the couple was taking cover.
They regretted staying.
“There’s people without homes,” Stanley Hazelton said. “So it was dumb. We’ll never do it again. We’ll never stay through another hurricane again.”
___


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-30--Trump Ducks Question About Accused Teen Shooter In Kenosha

Demonstrating a reticence to condemn that he hasn ’ t afforded to protesters , President Donald Trump on Saturday dodged a question about Kyle Rittenhouse .
The Illinois teenager and Trump supporter has been charged with homicide in the shooting deaths of two demonstrators in Kenosha , Wisconsin .
The teen traveled to the Kenosha protest Tuesday armed with a semi-automatic rifle , according to investigators .
The fatal shooting of two protesters and the wounding of a volunteer medic was captured in cellphone videos .
Protesters have been demonstrating in Kenosha against the police shooting of young Black father @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shootings by a reporter , Trump responded : “ You know that ’ s under investigation right now , and they ’ ll be reporting back to me ... 48 hours maybe max , and we ’ ll have a comment about it .
... We ’ re looking at it very , very carefully.
” The shootings occurred more than four days earlier , and the teen was charged Thursday with several crimes , including first-degree intentional homicide , first-degree reckless homicide , first-degree attempted homicide and illegal possession of a dangerous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Rittenhouse earlier the day of the shootings told police the teen did not seem capable of handling his gun — an AR-15 — “ very well , ” according to the charging documents against him .
The journalist also recounted that he saw Rittenhouse aim and fire at one of the victims , who did not appear to be armed , according to the documents .
An older , unidentified armed man nearby earlier said he was there to “ protect ” Rittenhouse , the journalist recalled in his police account .
A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that night said armed vigilantes , who were recruited on Facebook , were on the streets looking to “ hurt people.
” Trump Jr. retweeted a post Friday supporting Rittenhouse .
The original tweet claimed that Rittenhouse traveled to Kenosha to “ protect businesses and offer medical support to people , even the rioters ” ― though there is no evidence that he provided “ medical support ” to anyone .
The tweet string also claimed that he was “ threatened and shot at , ” again with no evidence and completely unsupported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the charging documents against Rittenhouse .
The original poster , YouTuber Tim Pool , said Rittenhouse is a “ good example of why I decided to vote for Trump.
” Donald Trump Jr. retweets message supporting Kyle Rittenhouse , who has been charged in the shooting deaths of two protesters in Kenosha , Wisconsin .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Demonstrating a reticence to condemn that he hasn’t afforded to protesters, President Donald Trump on Saturday dodged a question about Kyle Rittenhouse. The Illinois teenager and Trump supporter has been charged with homicide in the shooting deaths of two demonstrators in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Donald Trump Jr., meanwhile, retweeted a supportive message about Rittenhouse.
The teen traveled to the Kenosha protest Tuesday armed with a semi-automatic rifle, according to investigators. The fatal shooting of two protesters and the wounding of a volunteer medic was captured in cellphone videos. Protesters have been demonstrating in Kenosha against the police shooting of young Black father Jacob Blake.
Advertisement
When asked about the shootings by a reporter, Trump responded: “You know that’s under investigation right now, and they’ll be reporting back to me ... 48 hours maybe max, and we’ll have a comment about it. ... We’re looking at it very, very carefully.”
The shootings occurred more than four days earlier, and the teen was charged Thursday with several crimes, including first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, first-degree attempted homicide and illegal possession of a dangerous firearm.
A reporter who had interviewed Rittenhouse earlier the day of the shootings told police the teen did not seem capable of handling his gun — an AR-15 — “very well,” according to the charging documents against him. The journalist also recounted that he saw Rittenhouse aim and fire at one of the victims, who did not appear to be armed, according to the documents. An older, unidentified armed man nearby earlier said he was there to “protect” Rittenhouse, the journalist recalled in his police account.
A Wisconsin lawmaker who was on the scene that night said armed vigilantes, who were recruited on Facebook, were on the streets looking to “hurt people.”
Advertisement
Some on the right are supporting, even lionizing, Rittenhouse.
Trump Jr. retweeted a post Friday supporting Rittenhouse. The original tweet claimed that Rittenhouse traveled to Kenosha to “protect businesses and offer medical support to people, even the rioters” ― though there is no evidence that he provided “medical support” to anyone. The tweet string also claimed that he was “threatened and shot at,” again with no evidence and completely unsupported in the account of the shootings in the charging documents against Rittenhouse.
The original poster, YouTuber Tim Pool, said Rittenhouse is a “good example of why I decided to vote for Trump.”
Donald Trump Jr. retweets message supporting Kyle Rittenhouse, who has been charged in the shooting deaths of two protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Screen Shot/Twitter/Donald Trump Jr.
Trump plans to travel to Kenosha Tuesday to meet with law enforcement there.
The President isn’t quite ready to weigh in on this subject pic.twitter.com/lfq0EoyLY4 — Acyn Torabi (@Acyn) August 29, 2020


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--Top General Mark Milley Vows That Military Won't Interfere In U.S. Election

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has assured congressional leaders that the military will not interfere in the upcoming presidential election .
The mere fact that the question was raised was extraordinary .
President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted without any basis in fact that the Nov. 3 election will be “ rigged ” and “ corrupt , ” sparking unprecedented fears that he may refuse to leave office if he loses .
The president serves as commander-in-chief of the American military , making him the last word in military orders .
“ I believe deeply in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Milley said in his response to Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin and New Jersey Rep. Mikie Sherrill .
“ In the event of a dispute over some aspect of the elections , by law U.S. courts and the U.S. Congress are required to resolve any disputes , not the U.S. military ... We will not turn our backs on the Constitution of the United States.
” Asked if the military would refuse an order from the president if Trump was attempting to use military action for political gain rather than for national security @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not follow an unlawful order.
” Milley placed himself in a strange position in June when he appeared in his military fatigues to accompany Trump as the president walked across Lafayette Square from the White House to hold aloft a Bible in front of St. John ’ s Episcopal Church for a photo op .
Federal officers , meanwhile , were manhandling and spraying tear gas at peaceful protesters exercising their First Amendment rights to make way for Trump .
Former Defense Secretary James Mattis condemned the Trump stunt in a searing statement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an oath to support and defend the Constitution , ” he wrote .
“ Never did I dream that troops taking that same oath would be ordered ... to violate the Constitutional rights of their fellow citizens — much less to provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander-in-chief , with military leadership standing alongside.
” Milley later apologized for his appearance with Trump that evening , calling it a “ mistake.
” “ I should not have been there , ” Milley said in remarks to a National Defense University commencement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ moment and in that environment created a perception of the military involved in domestic politics.
” Slotkin noted that the queries to Milley were “ prudent , ” given the “ things that the president has been saying publicly ” about the election — and Trump ’ s threat to station law enforcement officers at polling places .
Milley ’ s answers , she said , “ demonstrated that the chairman recognized the military ’ s role in our elections is to essentially stay out ; that the military ’ s role in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stay out.
” Trump has not yet made a commitment to accept a loss in the election .
“ I have to see .
Look ...
I have to see , ” Trump told Chris Wallace on “ Fox News Sunday ” last month .
“ I ’ m not going to just say yes .
I ’ m not going to say no .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has assured congressional leaders that the military will not interfere in the upcoming presidential election.
Advertisement
The mere fact that the question was raised was extraordinary. President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted without any basis in fact that the Nov. 3 election will be “rigged” and “corrupt,” sparking unprecedented fears that he may refuse to leave office if he loses. The president serves as commander in chief of the American military, making him the last word in military orders.
“I believe deeply in the principle of an apolitical U.S. military,” Milley said in his response to Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin and New Jersey Rep. Mikie Sherrill.
“In the event of a dispute over some aspect of the elections, by law U.S. courts and the U.S. Congress are required to resolve any disputes, not the U.S. military ... We will not turn our backs on the Constitution of the United States.”
Asked if the military would refuse an order from the president if Trump was attempting to use military action for political gain rather than for national security, Milley responded: “I will not follow an unlawful order.”
Advertisement
Milley placed himself in a strange position in June when he appeared in his military fatigues to accompany Trump as the president walked across Lafayette Square from the White House to hold aloft a Bible in front of St. John’s Episcopal Church for a photo op. Meanwhile, to make way for Trump, federal officers were manhandling and spraying tear gas at peaceful protesters exercising their First Amendment rights.
Former Defense Secretary James Mattis condemned the Trump stunt in a searing statement in The Atlantic. “I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution,” he wrote. “Never did I dream that troops taking that same oath would be ordered ... to violate the Constitutional rights of their fellow citizens — much less to provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander-in-chief, with military leadership standing alongside.” Milley later apologized for his appearance with Trump that evening, calling it a “mistake.”
“I should not have been there,” Milley said in remarks to a National Defense University commencement ceremony. “My presence in that moment and in that environment created a perception of the military involved in domestic politics.”
Slotkin noted that the queries to Milley were “prudent,” given the “things that the president has been saying publicly” about the election — and Trump’s threat to station law enforcement officers at polling places.
Milley’s answers, she said, “demonstrated that the chairman recognized the military’s role in our elections is to essentially stay out; that the military’s role in the peaceful transition of power is to stay out.”
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-30--1 Person Killed In Portland As Protesters, Trump Supporters Clash

It wasn ’ t clear if the shooting was linked to fights that broke out as a caravan of about 600 vehicles was confronted by counter-demonstrators in the city ’ s downtown .
Police said the caravan had left the area around 8:30 p.m. , and officers heard gunshots at about 8:46 p.m. , according to a statement .
Officers arrived at the shooting scene “ within a minute , ” police said , but the man who was shot did not survive .
An Associated Press freelance photographer heard three gunshots and then observed police medics working on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be a white man .
The freelancer said the man was wearing a hat bearing the insignia of Patriot Prayer , a right-wing group whose members have frequently clashed with protesters in Portland in the past .
“ It is important for detectives get a full and accurate picture of what happened before , during , and after the shooting , ” a police statement said .
“ If anyone was a witness , has video , or has information about the homicide , they ’ re asked to contact the primary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of nightly protests for more than three months since the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis .
Many of them end in vandalism and violence , and hundreds of demonstrators have been arrested by local and federal law enforcement since late May .
In the two hours following the shooting , protesters gathered downtown and there was sporadic fighting and vandalism , police stated .
Some gave speeches in Lownsdale Square Park before the protest petered out .
Ten people were arrested , police said .
The caravan had arrived downtown just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ getting underway .
The chaotic scene came two days after Trump invoked Portland as a liberal city overrun with violence in a speech at the Republican National Convention as part of his “ law and order ” re-election campaign theme .
The caravan marked the third Saturday in a row that Trump supporters have rallied in the city .
Trump and other speakers at last week ’ s convention evoked a violent , dystopian future if Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden wins in November and pointed to Portland as a cautionary tale for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The pro-Trump rally ’ s organizer , who recently coordinated a similar caravan in Boise , Idaho , said in a video posted on Twitter Saturday afternoon that attendees should only carry concealed weapons and the route was being kept secret for safety reasons .
The caravan had gathered earlier in the day at a suburban mall and drove as a group to the heart of Portland .
As they arrived in the city , protesters attempted to stop them by standing in the street and blocking bridges .
Videos from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as Trump supporters firing paintball pellets at opponents and using bear spray as counter-protesters threw things at the Trump caravan .
The Black Lives Matter demonstrations usually target police buildings and federal buildings .
Some protesters have called for reductions in police budgets while the city ’ s mayor and some in the Black community have decried the violence , saying it ’ s counterproductive .
An accelerant was used to ignite a mattress and other debris that was laid against the door of the Portland Police Association building , police said in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had also been set on fire in the street nearby .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The founder of Patriot Prayer, a right-wing group whose supporters have frequently clashed with left-wing protesters in Portland, Oregon, said Sunday that the man fatally shot in Oregon’s largest city was a supporter of the group and a “good friend.”
Joey Gibson, head of the group based in Washington state, said he was also in Portland on Saturday night when supporters of President Donald Trump clashed with Black Lives Matter protesters in the streets of downtown. Gibson arrived at the scene of the shooting shortly after it happened and was briefly corralled in a nearby gas station by angry protesters.
Advertisement
“I can’t say much right now. All I can do is verify that he was a good friend and a supporter of Patriot Prayer,” Gibson said of the shooting victim in a text exchange with The Associated Press. He said he would make a fuller statement later Sunday.
Police issued a plea for videos, photos or eyewitness accounts of the killing late Saturday night, which happened about 15 minutes after a caravan of about 600 vehicles that were part of a pro-Trump rally left downtown.
It wasn’t clear if the shooting was related to the clashes between Trump supporters and counterprotesters in Portland, which has become a flashpoint in the national Black Lives Matter protests since George Floyd was killed in May and an increasing centerpiece in Trump’s law-and-order re-election campaign theme.
Police have not released any information about the case but said they were aware of videos on social media that showed the shooting.
Advertisement
“It is still early in this investigation, and I ask everyone to give the detectives time to do their important work before drawing conclusions about what took place,” said Police Chief Chuck Lovell.
“If anyone can provide information about this case, I ask them to please reach out to our detectives. This violence is completely unacceptable and we are working diligently to find and apprehend the individual or individuals responsible.”
An Associated Press freelance photographer heard three gunshots and then saw police medics attending to the victim, who appeared to be a white man. The freelancer said the man was wearing a hat bearing the insignia of Patriot Prayer.
Police said the man was shot in the chest. He was not immediately identified. It’s unclear who shot him.
Portland has been the site of nightly protests for more than three months since the police killing of Floyd in Minneapolis. Many of them end in vandalism and violence, and hundreds of demonstrators have been arrested by local and federal law enforcement since late May.
Advertisement
In the two hours following the shooting, protesters gathered downtown and there was sporadic fighting and vandalism, police said. Ten people were arrested, police said.
The caravan had arrived downtown just as a planned protest was getting underway. The chaotic scene came two days after Trump invoked Portland as a liberal city overrun with violence in a speech at the Republican National Convention. The caravan marked the third Saturday in a row that Trump supporters have rallied in the city.
The right-wing group Patriot Prayer has a history in Portland and has repeatedly rallied supporters for pro-Trump rallies beginning in 2017. The group was founded by Joey Gibson and is based in Washington state; supporters periodically cross into Oregon for rallies and marches.
Counterprotesters have squared off with Patriot Prayer and other right-wing groups such as the Proud Boys and the Three Percenters multiple times in the city since Trump’s election.
Photos and videos taken late Saturday show Gibson arrived at the scene shortly after the shooting, but it wasn’t immediately clear why he did so.
Advertisement
On Sunday, Trump issued a flurry of tweets and retweets including several that blamed Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler for the death and one in which the president appeared to be encouraging his supporters to move into Portland. Wheeler was expected to hold a news conference later Sunday.
“GREAT PATRIOTS!” Trump wrote as he shared video of his supporters driving into Portland to confront the protesters.
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf blamed local officials for failing “to protect their communities.”
“I’m asking Portland officials, so that’s the mayor, that’s the governor and that’s local law enforcement, to do their job to address any violent activity that is occurring in their streets,” Wolf told CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
Wolf said the federal government was prepared to send agents to Portland and other cities to protect federal buildings and assist police.
Advertisement
When federal agents increased their presence in downtown Portland in July, the city saw some of the largest protests of the summer, with thousands of people turning out nightly. The crowds dissipated after the agents withdrew and State Police agreed to protect federal buildings for a two-week period.
Trump and other speakers at last week’s Republican convention evoked a violent, dystopian future if Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden wins in November and pointed to Portland as a cautionary tale for what would be in store for Americans.
The pro-Trump rally’s organizer, who recently coordinated a similar caravan in Boise, Idaho, said in a video posted Saturday on Twitter that attendees should only carry concealed weapons and the route was being kept secret for safety reasons.
The caravan had gathered earlier in the day at a suburban mall and drove as a group to the heart of Portland. As they arrived in the city, protesters tried to stop them by standing in the street and blocking bridges.
Video from the scene showed sporadic fighting, as well as Trump supporters firing paintball pellets at opponents and using bear spray as counter-protesters threw things at the Trump caravan.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-29--Arkansas Sheriff Resigns After He's Caught On Tape In Racist Tirade

An Arkansas sheriff has resigned after he was caught on tape yelling racist slurs at a Black man working in a local market .
He resigned Friday effective immediately during a meeting of the local court that serves as a governing council in the county , located just over an hour southeast of Little Rock .
The special meeting was called after Wright was finally identified by the local newspaper as the voice on a recording of the rant widely posted on social media earlier this year .
Wright erupted with a string of some nine racist slurs when a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Black man in a local grocery story , reported the Pine Bluff Commercial newspaper .
Wright apologized at the local meeting “ to everyone.
” ( Check out the video of the meeting above at 15:10 . )
He said he made the slurs in the heat of the moment when he was “ upset over certain things.
” “ That ’ s not [ really ] me , ” he claimed .
“ People who know me , know that ’ s not me .
I was angry.
” After the incident @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wright said on his Facebook page : “ To all I have offended or hurt I send my sincere apologies and will pray for my enemies.
” He did not , however , detail what had happened .
The mother of the man Wright yelled at upbraided him for calling her son , a “ hardworking ” man with two jobs , “ names like that ” over and over .
County Judge Thomas Best said the court ’ s members decided Thursday to ask for Wright ’ s resignation after he was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saddens me that anyone would disrespect God ’ s creation in this manner , ” Best said .
“ No way will I condone this action from anyone .
”

An Arkansas sheriff has resigned after he was caught on tape yelling racist slurs at a Black man working in a local market.
Despite the shocking tape, now-former Arkansas County Sheriff Todd Wright insisted to local legislators that he’s not racist.
Advertisement
He resigned Friday effective immediately during a meeting of the local court that serves as a governing council in the county, located just over an hour southeast of Little Rock.
The special meeting was called after Wright was finally identified by the local newspaper as the voice on a recording of the rant widely posted on social media earlier this year.
Wright erupted with a string of some nine racist slurs when a woman he was with spoke to a Black man in a local grocery store, reported The Pine Bluff Commercial newspaper.
Wright apologized at the local meeting “to everyone.” (Check out the video of the meeting above at 15:10.) He said he made the slurs in the heat of the moment when he was “upset over certain things.”
Advertisement
“That’s not [really] me,” he claimed. “People who know me, know that’s not me. I was angry.”
The county Wright worked for is 25% Black, according to Census Bureau data.
After the incident, which occurred earlier this year, Wright said on his Facebook page: “To all I have offended or hurt I send my sincere apologies and will pray for my enemies.” He did not, however, detail what had happened.
The mother of the man Wright yelled at upbraided him for calling her son, a “hardworking” man with two jobs, “names like that” over and over.
County Judge Thomas Best said the court’s members decided Thursday to ask for Wright’s resignation after he was identified by the newspaper.
“It saddens me that anyone would disrespect God’s creation in this manner,” Best said. “No way will I condone this action from anyone.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-30--The GOP Is Very Much Trump's Party, Poll Shows

More Trump voters said they were loyal to President Donald Trump than they were to the Republican Party , according to a new HuffPost/YouGov poll .
Some 49 % of Republican and Republican-leaning independents who voted for Trump in 2016 said they consider themselves more supporters of Trump than of the Republican Party .
Just 19 % said they were more supporters of the party , with another 28 % saying they were supporters of both .
The poll came on the heels of the Republican National Convention , at which the party opted not to adopt a new platform @ @ @ @ @ @ @ party ’ s strong support for President Donald Trump and his administration.
” About 61 % of Republican and Republican-leaning independent voters said that they would be more likely to support Trump over congressional Republicans if they had a disagreement ; only 13 % said they would side with the party members .
Similarly , 66 % said they would back Trump over their own representative ; just 10 % would support the representative .
These questions are , of course , broad hypotheticals ― public opinion could shake out very differently in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the president and his party ’ s congressional delegation .
The results suggest , however , that most Republicans ’ sympathies lie with Trump .
Most of Trump ’ s supporters see little distance between him and other officials in the party , the poll found .
Roughly three-quarters of Trump voters said they believed that most of or almost all congressional Republicans support Trump .
That represented a marked strengthening of Trump ’ s political situation compared to three years ago .
In August 2017 , following the Senate GOP ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % of Trump voters believed that the president had the support of most of his party .
The HuffPost/YouGov poll consisted of 1,000 completed interviews conducted from Aug. 24 to 26 among U.S. adults , using a sample selected from YouGov ’ s opt-in online panel to match the demographics and other characteristics of the adult U.S. population .
HuffPost teamed up with YouGov to conduct daily opinion polls .
You can learn more about this project and take part in YouGov ’ s nationally representative opinion polling .
More details on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Most surveys report a margin of error that represents some but not all potential survey errors .
YouGov ’ s reports include a model-based margin of error , which rests on a specific set of statistical assumptions about the selected sample rather than the standard methodology for random probability sampling .
If these assumptions are wrong , the model-based margin of error may also be inaccurate .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
More Trump voters said they were loyal to President Donald Trump than they were to the Republican Party, according to a new HuffPost/YouGov poll.
Some 49% of Republican and Republican-leaning independents who voted for Trump in 2016 said they consider themselves more supporters of Trump than of the Republican Party. Just 19% said they were more supporters of the party, with another 28% saying they were supporters of both.
Advertisement
The poll came on the heels of the Republican National Convention, at which the party opted not to adopt a new platform and chose instead to “reassert the party’s strong support for President Donald Trump and his administration.”
About 61% of Republican and Republican-leaning independent voters said that they would be more likely to support Trump over congressional Republicans if they had a disagreement; only 13% said they would side with the party members.
Similarly, 66% said they would back Trump over their own representative; just 10% would support the representative.
Advertisement
These questions are, of course, broad hypotheticals ― public opinion could shake out very differently in the event of a new schism between the president and his party’s congressional delegation. The results suggest, however, that most Republicans’ sympathies lie with Trump.
Most of Trump’s supporters see little distance between him and other officials in the party, the poll found.
Roughly three-quarters of Trump voters said they believed that most of or almost all congressional Republicans support Trump. That represented a marked strengthening of Trump’s political situation compared to three years ago.
In August 2017, following the Senate GOP’s failure to repeal Obamacare, only 47% of Trump voters believed that the president had the support of most of his party.
Trump voters’ support for Trump has remained relatively consistent over that time.
The HuffPost/YouGov poll consisted of 1,000 completed interviews conducted from Aug. 24 to 26 among U.S. adults, using a sample selected from YouGov’s opt-in online panel to match the demographics and other characteristics of the adult U.S. population.
Advertisement
HuffPost teamed up with YouGov to conduct daily opinion polls. You can learn more about this project and take part in YouGov’s nationally representative opinion polling. More details on the polls’ methodology are available here.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-30--DHS Chief Says He Was Unaware Naturalization Ceremony Would Be Aired At RNC

Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf claimed Sunday that he did not know the naturalization ceremony he led at the White House last week would be televised at the Republican National Convention later that day .
In a pretaped scene aired Aug. 25 as part of the convention ’ s prime-time programming , President Donald Trump participated in a naturalization ceremony at the White House for five new citizens while Wolf administered the Oath of Allegiance .
The video raised concerns that Trump and Wolf used the ceremony on government property to further the president ’ s reelection chances .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ s “ This Week , ” the DHS head argued that he believed Trump just genuinely happened to be leading a naturalization ceremony alongside him with cameras filming it at the White House during the week of the convention ― where Republicans officially renominated Trump for president .
“ Again , naturalization ceremonies are what the department does .
We do hundreds , if not thousands , of them every year , ” Wolf told ABC ’ s Jonathan Karl .
“ I participated in several of them not only with the president @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ So it ’ s absolutely a legitimate role for the department to do , ” he continued .
“ Again , we do them across the nation .
I did one in Denver the day after on Wednesday of this past week , and we ’ ll continue to do that.
” When Karl continued pressing Wolf to answer his question about whether he knew the ceremony would be aired at the RNC , the DHS chief said , “ No.
” “ What I knew is again , participating in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of USCIS employees there , as they do every naturalization ceremony , making sure that that ceremony goes off without a hitch , ” Wolf said .
“ They were giving that Oath of Allegiance to those individuals there .
And again , we ’ ll continue to do that , because that ’ s our mission at the department.
” Last week , two of the immigrants featured in the naturalization ceremony video told The Wall Street Journal that they were unaware the footage would be shown at the RNC .
Sudha @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did not mind having the video featured at the event .
Rep. Bennie Thompson ( D-Miss . )
, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee , sent a letter on Aug. 26 to the Office of Special Counsel requesting an investigation into Wolf to determine whether his participation in the naturalization ceremony violated the Hatch Act .
The Hatch Act prohibits employees of the executive branch from engaging in political activity while in their official capacity .
“ This is an unprecedented politicization of the naturalization ceremony ― an official function of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Thompson wrote .
“ Mr .
Wolf ’ s participation appears to constitute engaging in political activity while acting in an official capacity .
It also sets a bad example for the Department ’ s 240,000 employees who are required to comply with the Hatch Act.
” The watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington ( CREW ) also filed a complaint with the OSC over Wolf ’ s participation in the ceremony .
“ The Hatch Act isn ’ t some nebulous , technical code buried deep in some federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meant to keep officials from using taxpayer dollars and the authorities of the federal government to keep themselves in power , as totalitarian regimes do , ” CREW Executive Director Noah Bookbinder said in a statement .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf claimed Sunday that he did not know the naturalization ceremony he led at the White House last week would be televised at the Republican National Convention later that day.
In a pretaped scene aired Aug. 25 as part of the convention’s prime-time programming, President Donald Trump participated in a naturalization ceremony at the White House for five new citizens while Wolf administered the Oath of Allegiance. The video raised concerns that Trump and Wolf used the ceremony on government property to further the president’s reelection chances.
Advertisement
In an interview Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” the DHS head argued that he believed Trump just genuinely happened to be leading a naturalization ceremony alongside him with cameras filming it at the White House during the week of the convention ― where Republicans officially renominated Trump for president.
“Again, naturalization ceremonies are what the department does. We do hundreds, if not thousands, of them every year,” Wolf told ABC’s Jonathan Karl. “I participated in several of them not only with the president, but with the vice president.
“So it’s absolutely a legitimate role for the department to do,” he continued. “Again, we do them across the nation. I did one in Denver the day after on Wednesday of this past week, and we’ll continue to do that.”
When Karl continued pressing Wolf to answer his question about whether he knew the ceremony would be aired at the RNC, the DHS chief said, “No.”
Advertisement
NEW: “No,” acting DHS Sec. Chad Wolf tells @jonkarl when pressed about whether he knew that the naturalization ceremony that he led at the White House would be aired as part of the Republican National Convention. https://t.co/zlzRmVpIbE pic.twitter.com/ktyzY1fOlS — ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) August 30, 2020
“What I knew is again, participating in a naturalization ceremony, we had a number of USCIS employees there, as they do every naturalization ceremony, making sure that that ceremony goes off without a hitch,” Wolf said. “They were giving that Oath of Allegiance to those individuals there. And again, we’ll continue to do that, because that’s our mission at the department.”
Last week, two of the immigrants featured in the naturalization ceremony video told The Wall Street Journal that they were unaware the footage would be shown at the RNC. Sudha Narayanan and Neimat Awadelseid both said they did not mind having the video featured at the event.
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, sent a letter on Aug. 26 to the Office of Special Counsel requesting an investigation into Wolf to determine whether his participation in the naturalization ceremony violated the Hatch Act. The Hatch Act prohibits employees of the executive branch from engaging in political activity while in their official capacity.
“This is an unprecedented politicization of the naturalization ceremony ― an official function of the Department of Homeland Security,” Thompson wrote. “Mr. Wolf’s participation appears to constitute engaging in political activity while acting in an official capacity. It also sets a bad example for the Department’s 240,000 employees who are required to comply with the Hatch Act.”
Advertisement
The watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) also filed a complaint with the OSC over Wolf’s participation in the ceremony.
“The Hatch Act isn’t some nebulous, technical code buried deep in some federal manual, it’s the law meant to keep officials from using taxpayer dollars and the authorities of the federal government to keep themselves in power, as totalitarian regimes do,” CREW Executive Director Noah Bookbinder said in a statement.