thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-18--Interior Dept. Consulted ‘Junk Science’ Troll On ‘Transparency’ Rule, Emails Show

That same day , Dec. 10 , Milloy also participated in an invite-only public policy roundtable with Bernhardt at Interior ’ s headquarters .
According to an email Milloy later sent another agency political appointee , he and Bernhardt at some point discussed the agency ’ s push to limit the types of scientific studies that can be used in crafting regulation .
“ The Secretary suggested I offer to assist you however I can on [ Interior ’ s ] science transparency initiative , ” Milloy wrote in a Dec. 12 email to Susan Combs , then the department @ @ @ @ @ @ @ management and budget .
“ I was on the EPA transition team and have been the driving force in science transparency at EPA.
” Combs , a former Texas comptroller who once likened proposed Endangered Species Act listings to “ incoming Scud missiles ” and has a long history of vehemently opposing Interior Department actions , responded less than an hour later to say she ’ d be “ happy to chat.
” Her staff carved an hour out of her schedule the following week to sit down with Milloy , who has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scientists and denying well-established science , including that air pollution kills people .
HuffPost obtained the emails via a public records request , and they are the first indication that Milloy may have played a role in crafting Interior ’ s proposed rule , which closely resembles EPA ’ s ongoing effort .
Dubbed the “ Promoting Open Science ” rule , Interior ’ s measure is “ designed to increase transparency in scientific data , reproducibility in studies , and rigorous peer review of scientific findings , ” according to an order @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the policy , which Interior is working to codify as a formal rule , would effectively prohibit the agencies from using scientific studies that don ’ t make public their raw data ― a move that rules out a lot of peer-reviewed research .
Interior forwarded its proposal to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review in mid-February , The Hill reported , but a draft has not yet been made public .
A public comment period on the latest version of EPA ’ s rule , known commonly as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ came to a close last month .
Internal agency documents indicate Steve Milloy ( right ) , who runs a climate change denial blog , enjoyed direct access to high-ranking Interior Department officials as the agency worked on a rule to limit the types of scientific studies used in crafting regulation .
The access came after he and Interior Secretary David Bernhardt posed for the above picture at the agency 's Christmas party last year .
Milloy did not respond to HuffPost ’ s requests for comment .
But it seems unlikely that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ called Junk Science , who called EPA ’ s proposed rule “ one of my proudest achievements , ” would miss an opportunity to offer suggestions about Interior ’ s initiative .
A day after landing the sit-down with Combs , he proudly shared the news with one of Bernhardt ’ s senior advisers , Jeff Small .
Critics like Andrew Rosenberg , director of the Union of Concerned Scientists ’ Center for Science and Democracy , say the efforts at EPA and Interior have nothing to do with transparency , but rather @ @ @ @ @ @ @ benefit of industry .
The proposed rules are significant , Roseberg said , because they would effectively block the agency from using public health impact studies that require keeping certain health data confidential .
The Trump administration has stacked both EPA and Interior with former staffers and lobbyists from the very industries they now regulate .
Bernhardt is a former fossil fuel and agricultural lobbyist , while EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler previously worked as a lobbyist for the coal industry .
Goodwin , the Interior spokesman , said Milloy is not assisting Interior @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But the emails HuffPost obtained make clear that Milloy maintains a direct line of communication with at least one of Bernhardt ’ s top advisers , often sharing news articles and his own personal tweets .
After the December roundtable , Small emailed Milloy to thank him for attending and encouraged him to flag his social media posts about the event .
“ You were awesome and I thought it went very well , ” Small wrote .
“ Look forward to future efforts.
” And a few days before the White House @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unveiled its plan at the start of this year to gut the National Environmental Policy Act , one of America ’ s most important environmental laws , Small sent Milloy embargoed details about the upcoming rollback and asked if he ’ d be willing to provide a “ supportive quote .
”

Last December, prominent climate change denier Steve Milloy mingled with top Interior Department officials at an agency holiday party in Washington, at one point posing for a photo with Secretary David Bernhardt under the skull of a moose that hangs over the agency chief’s office fireplace.
That same day, Dec. 10, Milloy also participated in an invite-only public policy roundtable with Bernhardt at Interior’s headquarters. According to an email Milloy later sent another agency political appointee, he and Bernhardt at some point discussed the agency’s push to limit the types of scientific studies that can be used in crafting regulation.
A former tobacco and coal lobbyist, Milloy served on President Donald Trump’s transition team for the Environmental Protection Agency and has taken credit for EPA’s proposed science “transparency” rule that would block certain peer-reviewed scientific studies from the rulemaking process and give more weight to industry-backed research.
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“The Secretary suggested I offer to assist you however I can on [Interior’s] science transparency initiative,” Milloy wrote in a Dec. 12 email to Susan Combs, then the department’s assistant secretary for policy, management and budget. “I was on the EPA transition team and have been the driving force in science transparency at EPA.”
Combs, a former Texas comptroller who once likened proposed Endangered Species Act listings to “incoming Scud missiles” and has a long history of vehemently opposing Interior Department actions, responded less than an hour later to say she’d be “happy to chat.” Her staff carved an hour out of her schedule the following week to sit down with Milloy, who has made a career of attacking and trolling scientists and denying well-established science, including that air pollution kills people.
HuffPost obtained the emails via a public records request, and they are the first indication that Milloy may have played a role in crafting Interior’s proposed rule, which closely resembles EPA’s ongoing effort. Dubbed the “Promoting Open Science” rule, Interior’s measure is “designed to increase transparency in scientific data, reproducibility in studies, and rigorous peer review of scientific findings,” according to an order Bernhardt signed in September 2018. But the policy, which Interior is working to codify as a formal rule, would effectively prohibit the agencies from using scientific studies that don’t make public their raw data ― a move that rules out a lot of peer-reviewed research.
Interior forwarded its proposal to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review in mid-February, The Hill reported, but a draft has not yet been made public. A public comment period on the latest version of EPA’s rule, known commonly as the “secret science rule,” came to a close last month.
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Conservatives have long complained about EPA’s use of what they call “secret science” to enact rules ― a phrase that Milloy is credited with coining. “The era of secret science @EPA is coming to an end,” then-EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt wrote in a Twitter post announcing the proposal in April 2018.
Internal agency documents indicate Steve Milloy (right), who runs a climate change denial blog, enjoyed direct access to high-ranking Interior Department officials as the agency worked on a rule to limit the types of scientific studies used in crafting regulation. The access came after he and Interior Secretary David Bernhardt posed for the above picture at the agency's Christmas party last year. Department of the Interior
Despite what the emails reveal, the Interior Department denies that Milloy was involved in crafting its measure, or that Bernhardt encouraged him to offer to assist the agency.
“Mr. Milloy had no involvement in the development of the rule nor did he provide any recommendations,” Interior spokesman Nicholas Goodwin said via email.
Milloy did not respond to HuffPost’s requests for comment. But it seems unlikely that the publisher of a climate denial blog called Junk Science, who called EPA’s proposed rule “one of my proudest achievements,” would miss an opportunity to offer suggestions about Interior’s initiative. A day after landing the sit-down with Combs, he proudly shared the news with one of Bernhardt’s senior advisers, Jeff Small.
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“I am meeting with Susan Combs next week re science transparency,” Milloy wrote in a Dec. 13 email.
“Thats (sic) awesome! Nice work” wrote back Small, who joined Interior’s intergovernmental and external affairs shop in October after several years working as executive director of the Congressional Western Caucus and a senior adviser to right-wing Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.).
WINNING!!! Science transparency moves to Department of Interior https://t.co/90SEaEOnAu pic.twitter.com/Ke1sdNlsgX — Steve Milloy (@JunkScience) October 17, 2018
Critics like Andrew Rosenberg, director of the Union of Concerned Scientists’ Center for Science and Democracy, say the efforts at EPA and Interior have nothing to do with transparency, but rather are aimed at stifling regulation to the benefit of industry. The proposed rules are significant, Roseberg said, because they would effectively block the agency from using public health impact studies that require keeping certain health data confidential.
“In a time of a pandemic, we’re saying epidemiology doesn’t matter,” he said. “Quite ironic.”
Rosenberg said Milloy’s apparent involvement in Interior’s rulemaking shows the extent to which the fossil fuel industry has “captured” federal agencies during Trump’s tenure.
The Trump administration has stacked both EPA and Interior with former staffers and lobbyists from the very industries they now regulate. Bernhardt is a former fossil fuel and agricultural lobbyist, while EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler previously worked as a lobbyist for the coal industry.
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Goodwin, the Interior spokesman, said Milloy is not assisting Interior with any actions or policy initiatives. But the emails HuffPost obtained make clear that Milloy maintains a direct line of communication with at least one of Bernhardt’s top advisers, often sharing news articles and his own personal tweets.
After the December roundtable, Small emailed Milloy to thank him for attending and encouraged him to flag his social media posts about the event. “You were awesome and I thought it went very well,” Small wrote. “Look forward to future efforts.”
Milloy later sent along the below Twitter post, which Small called “awesome.”
I was lucky enough to be able to attend a briefing last week by Secretary of @Interior Dave Bernhardt about the fantastic deregulatory job the Trump administration is doing.
Check out DoI's progress so far: https://t.co/Twp5GuCPnA pic.twitter.com/25hkX47Fse — Steve Milloy (@JunkScience) December 13, 2019
When Milloy inquired about the photo he took with Bernhardt at the Interior Christmas party, the agency photographer offered to have it printed, signed and sent to him.
And a few days before the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) unveiled its plan at the start of this year to gut the National Environmental Policy Act, one of America’s most important environmental laws, Small sent Milloy embargoed details about the upcoming rollback and asked if he’d be willing to provide a “supportive quote.”
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Milloy jumped at the opportunity, offering a glowing statement about Trump “having the courage to take on the entrenched anti‐development and swamp interests.” CEQ included it in a 28-page press release of laudatory statements.
The proposed changes to the 50-year-old law would expedite fossil fuel pipelines, highways, power plants and other major development by limiting the number of projects that require in-depth environmental assessments and setting strict review deadlines for those that do. It would also allow agencies to ignore climate change when evaluating the environmental effects of such infrastructure projects.
While opponents slammed the planned NEPA rollback as a clear attack on environmental justice ― it is low-income populations and communities of color that are disproportionately affected by major development and the mounting effects of climate change ― Milloy applauded Trump’s latest gift to the fossil fuel industry, mimicking one of the president’s stock phrases.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-18--Americans Are Losing Faith In What The Government Says About The Coronavirus

Just 37 % of Americans say they ’ re either very or somewhat confident that the U.S. government ’ s statements about the coronavirus are reliable and accurate , while about half , 52 % , say they ’ re either not very or not at all confident in what the government is saying .
Similarly , only one-third of the public expresses any confidence in President Trump ’ s statements about the disease , with a 56 % majority expressing little or no confidence .
The government ’ s overall approval rating for handling the coronavirus is also underwater @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rating on the issue .
As recently as April , a slim majority of the U.S. public expressed confidence in U.S. government statements about the coronavirus .
Within the past month , however , that number has notably declined .
At the start of the crisis , polling shows , public skepticism was much lower ― as recently as April , a slim majority of the public expressed confidence in government statements .
Within the past month , however , that number has notably declined .
A 56 % majority of Republicans still @ @ @ @ @ @ @ confident in government information , while just 39 % of independents and 29 % of Democrats say the same .
The poll ’ s findings come as states take a patchwork of approaches to reopening their economies , even as some report rising cases of the virus .
Top coronavirus task force officials , meanwhile , have become less visible .
Four in 10 Americans now describe themselves as “ very concerned ” by the spread of coronavirus in the U.S. , down from a peak of 58 % in early April .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ or a family member will contract the disease , down from a high of 46 % .
Yet the threat of the disease continues to play a prominent role in daily life across the country , and most people polled support some level of continued restrictions .
A 72 % majority of Americans still say they ’ re making an effort to stay home as much as possible .
Just 21 % say there are too many restrictions in place where they live , with 41 % saying restrictions are at about the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ restrictions aren ’ t stringent enough .
A 58 % majority are more concerned that states will lift stay-at-home orders too quickly , compared to 27 % who fear they will not be lifted soon enough .
Use the widget below to further explore the results of the HuffPost/YouGov survey , using the menu at the top to select survey questions and the buttons at the bottom to filter the data by subgroups .
The HuffPost/YouGov poll consisted of 1,000 completed interviews conducted June 12-14 among U.S. adults , using a sample selected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to match the demographics and other characteristics of the adult U.S. population .
HuffPost has 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 .
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 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ methodology for random probability sampling .
If these assumptions are wrong , the model-based margin of error may also be inaccurate .

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Americans are losing confidence in federal guidance about the coronavirus, a new HuffPost/YouGov poll finds.
Just 37% of Americans say they’re either very or somewhat confident that the U.S. government’s statements about the coronavirus are reliable and accurate, while about half, 52%, say they’re either not very or not at all confident in what the government is saying.
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Similarly, only one-third of the public expresses any confidence in President Donald Trump’s statements about the disease, with a 56% majority expressing little or no confidence. The government’s overall approval rating for handling the coronavirus is also underwater, as is Trump’s own rating on the issue.
As recently as April, a slim majority of the U.S. public expressed confidence in U.S. government statements about the coronavirus. Within the past month, however, that number has notably declined. ASSOCIATED PRESS
At the start of the crisis, polling shows, public skepticism was much lower ― as recently as April, a slim majority of the public expressed confidence in government statements. Within the past month, however, that number has notably declined.
A 56% majority of Republicans still say they’re at least somewhat confident in government information, while just 39% of independents and 29% of Democrats say the same.
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Results of HuffPost/YouGov tracking data on trust in the government on coronavirus. Ariel Edwards-Levy/HuffPost
The poll’s findings come as states take a patchwork of approaches to reopening their economies, even as some report rising cases of the virus. Top coronavirus task force officials, meanwhile, have become less visible.
Four in 10 Americans now describe themselves as “very concerned” by the spread of coronavirus in the U.S., down from a peak of 58% in early April. Twenty-nine percent are very concerned that they or a family member will contract the disease, down from a high of 46%.
Yet the threat of the disease continues to play a prominent role in daily life across the country, and most people polled support some level of continued restrictions. A 72% majority of Americans still say they’re making an effort to stay home as much as possible.
Just 21% say there are too many restrictions in place where they live, with 41% saying restrictions are at about the right level, and 30% that restrictions aren’t stringent enough. A 58% majority are more concerned that states will lift stay-at-home orders too quickly, compared to 27% who fear they will not be lifted soon enough.
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Use the widget below to further explore the results of the HuffPost/YouGov survey, using the menu at the top to select survey questions and the buttons at the bottom to filter the data by subgroups.
The HuffPost/YouGov poll consisted of 1,000 completed interviews conducted June 12-14 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 has 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.
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.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-18--Republicans Running Anti-China Campaigns Shrug Off Trump Seeking China Reelection Help

Zach Gibson via Getty Images Montana Sen. Steve Daines is among the Republicans whose reelection messages include touting tough stances toward China .
But Daines -- like his GOP colleagues -- has taken a pass on reacting to John Bolton 's revelations about President Donald Trump cozying up to Chinese President Xi Jinping .
Senate Republicans who have been banking on anti-China messages to help them retain their seats and their party ’ s chamber majority in the 2020 elections say they aren ’ t bothered by revelations that President Donald Trump asked Chinese President Xi Jinping to help him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plan to imprison his nation ’ s Uighur Muslims in concentration camps .
The details about Trump ’ s interactions with the Chinese leader were among the explosive claims in a new book from longtime GOP foreign policy aide John Bolton about his time as the president ’ s national security adviser .
Despite Bolton ’ s longtime ties to the party ― and his history of endorsing and campaigning for many of their colleagues ― Republican senators treated his book the same way they treat Trump ’ s tweets , pleading a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republicans have worked relentlessly to make China the central factor in virtually all of their races , with GOP candidates or groups airing ads about the country ’ s damage to the U.S. economy and bashing its handling of the coronavirus pandemic .
Trump has pursued a similar strategy in the presidential race , spending millions on ads asserting that presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is weak on China .
But Bolton ’ s revelations show how difficult it might be for the GOP to effectively mount an anti-China message , given @ @ @ @ @ @ @ elected officials have long supported liberalizing trade with China and amid the evidence that Trump is as likely to praise the communist nation ’ s authoritarian leadership as he is to criticize it .
“ Senate Republicans have spent a lot of money on phony TV ads claiming they ’ ve stood up to China when the record is clear that they haven ’ t , ” said Helen Kalla , a Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokeswoman .
“ With new reports that President Trump was ‘ pleading ’ with the president of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ let ’ s see what those Republicans are willing to say now .
We ’ re waiting.
” Republicans are counting on that strategy to maintain a Senate majority , even if Biden defeats Trump .
The GOP has a 53-47 edge in the chamber , but that hold appears threatened by the current political math .
Democrats are on offense in a number of Senate races , aiming to oust not only Daines in Montana and Tillis in North Carolina , but Republican incumbents in Maine , Iowa , Arizona and Colorado @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Alabama and , to a lesser extent , Michigan .
Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina is another Republican bashing China as part of his reelection campaign .
Yet he said he has little interest in the new book raising questions about Trump 's dealings with China .
Bolton in his book writes that Trump asked Xi to help his reelection prospects by increasing Chinese purchases of wheat and soybeans , which could boost the economy in some of the farm states the president needs to carry .
Bolton also writes that Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ defended the Chinese government ’ s decision to build concentration camps to hold 1 million Uighur Muslims in the western province of Xinjiang .
According to Bolton , Trump said he thought that was “ the exact right thing to do.
” “ I think what you do matters most , ” said Sen. Josh Hawley ( R-Mo . )
“ You can play the , ‘ He said , he said , he said ’ game , and I ’ m sure we ’ re going to play that game for weeks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ end of the day is I care about what the president does and I care about action and staying tough on China… I think he has been very strong and tough , so I think the proof is in the pudding.
” Democrats hope they can use Bolton ’ s exposé to paint Republicans as hypocrites with little interest in standing up to China outside of an election season .
Outside groups backing Biden are likely to use the revelations in advertising aimed at blunting the effectiveness of Trump ’ s barrage of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ soft on China .
In Montana , Daines has aired multiple ads promising to boost “ made in America ” manufacturing and blaming China for the spread of COVID-19 .
“ We need to break our reliance on China and bring our jobs home , ” Daines says in an ad his campaign began airing Thursday .
Democrats have countered by noting Daines helped Procter and Gamble expand its manufacturing operations in China while working as an executive there in the 1990s , and regularly advocated for closer ties to China before his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ official trips to the country during his first term in office .
Republicans have been the most aggressive in attacking a Democrat for ties to China in Arizona , where GOP Sen. Martha McSally is trailing in public polling to former astronaut and gun control advocate Mark Kelly .
McSally and other Republicans have argued Kelly is in China ’ s pocket because of an investment the Chinese conglomerate Tencent made in a company he co-founded .

Montana Sen. Steve Daines is among the Republicans whose reelection messages include touting tough stances toward China. But Daines -- like his GOP colleagues -- has taken a pass on reacting to John Bolton's revelations about President Donald Trump cozying up to Chinese President Xi Jinping. Zach Gibson via Getty Images
Senate Republicans who have been banking on anti-China messages to help them retain their seats and their party’s chamber majority in the 2020 elections say they aren’t bothered by revelations that President Donald Trump asked Chinese President Xi Jinping to help him win reelection and praised Xi’s plan to imprison his nation’s Uighur Muslims in concentration camps.
The details about Trump’s interactions with the Chinese leader were among the explosive claims in a new book from longtime GOP foreign policy aide John Bolton about his time as the president’s national security adviser. Despite Bolton’s longtime ties to the party ― and his history of endorsing and campaigning for many of their colleagues ― Republican senators treated his book the same way they treat Trump’s tweets, pleading a mix of ignorance and apathy.
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“I don’t,” said Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) when asked if he had any reaction to the book. Daines, facing a tough challenge in November from Montana Gov. Steve Bullock (D), has run multiple ads promising to get tough on China.
North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, hoping to fend off a challenge from Democrat Cal Cunningham, said it was unlikely he would read Bolton’s book. “Probably not,” Tillis said.
Bolton’s super PAC spent more than $1 million helping Tillis first win election to the Senate in 2014. That was part of the more than $6 million Bolton deployed to help Republicans from 2014 to 2018.
Tillis added that he wasn’t sure if the book’s revelations undercut Trump’s campaign pledges to get tough on China.
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Senate Republicans have worked relentlessly to make China the central factor in virtually all of their races, with GOP candidates or groups airing ads about the country’s damage to the U.S. economy and bashing its handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Trump has pursued a similar strategy in the presidential race, spending millions on ads asserting that presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is weak on China.
But Bolton’s revelations show how difficult it might be for the GOP to effectively mount an anti-China message, given that many of the party’s elected officials have long supported liberalizing trade with China and amid the evidence that Trump is as likely to praise the communist nation’s authoritarian leadership as he is to criticize it.
“Senate Republicans have spent a lot of money on phony TV ads claiming they’ve stood up to China when the record is clear that they haven’t,” said Helen Kalla, a Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokeswoman. “With new reports that President Trump was ‘pleading’ with the president of China to help him get re-elected, let’s see what those Republicans are willing to say now. We’re waiting.”
Top strategists working on GOP Senate races said they view Bolton’s book as essentially a one-week story, one unlikely to make a significant enough impact to alter a cycle-long strategy focused on bashing China.
Republicans are counting on that strategy to maintain a Senate majority, even if Biden defeats Trump. The GOP has a 53-47 edge in the chamber, but that hold appears threatened by the current political math. Democrats are on offense in a number of Senate races, aiming to oust not only Daines in Montana and Tillis in North Carolina, but Republican incumbents in Maine, Iowa, Arizona and Colorado. Republican pick-up opportunities seem limited to Alabama and, to a lesser extent, Michigan.
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Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina is another Republican bashing China as part of his reelection campaign. Yet he said he has little interest in the new book raising questions about Trump's dealings with China. Sarah Silbiger via Getty Images
Bolton in his book writes that Trump asked Xi to help his reelection prospects by increasing Chinese purchases of wheat and soybeans, which could boost the economy in some of the farm states the president needs to carry. Bolton also writes that Trump didn’t push back when Xi defended the Chinese government’s decision to build concentration camps to hold 1 million Uighur Muslims in the western province of Xinjiang. According to Bolton, Trump said he thought that was “the exact right thing to do.”
The Washington Post, New York Times and other media outlets reported the contents of Bolton’s book on Wednesday, shortly before Trump’s Justice Department filed a restraining order seeking to block its publication, arguing it contained classified information.
Even some of the Senate’s biggest China hawks were unwilling to criticize Trump’s actions. Asked if it was appropriate for Trump to support the construction of concentration camps, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) replied simply: “I hope every president is focused on human rights.”
“I think what you do matters most,” said Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) “You can play the, ‘He said, he said, he said’ game, and I’m sure we’re going to play that game for weeks. What I care about at the end of the day is I care about what the president does and I care about action and staying tough on China… I think he has been very strong and tough, so I think the proof is in the pudding.”
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Democrats hope they can use Bolton’s exposé to paint Republicans as hypocrites with little interest in standing up to China outside of an election season. Outside groups backing Biden are likely to use the revelations in advertising aimed at blunting the effectiveness of Trump’s barrage of attacks depicting the former vice president as soft on China.
In Montana, Daines has aired multiple ads promising to boost “made in America” manufacturing and blaming China for the spread of COVID-19. “We need to break our reliance on China and bring our jobs home,” Daines says in an ad his campaign began airing Thursday.
Democrats have countered by noting Daines helped Procter and Gamble expand its manufacturing operations in China while working as an executive there in the 1990s, and regularly advocated for closer ties to China before his reelection bid ramped up, taking five official trips to the country during his first term in office.
Republicans have been the most aggressive in attacking a Democrat for ties to China in Arizona, where GOP Sen. Martha McSally is trailing in public polling to former astronaut and gun control advocate Mark Kelly. McSally and other Republicans have argued Kelly is in China’s pocket because of an investment the Chinese conglomerate Tencent made in a company he co-founded.
“Mark Kelly doesn’t just invest in China, China invests in him,” a narrator says darkly in a recent ad from the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
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Democrats argued McSally’s demonization of China means little if she’s not willing to criticize Trump on the same front.
“If ‘getting tough on China’ is more than an empty campaign slogan for Sen. McSally, she’ll forcefully condemn Trump’s actions, including his praise for China’s COVID-19 response and his request for illegal foreign political help,” said Brad Bainum, a spokesman for the Arizona Democratic Party.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-19--Charles Booker Suddenly Has Progressives Excited About Kentucky

‘ Over And Over Again , We Keep Running The Same Playbook ’ ‘ From The Hood To The Holler @

As recently as a month ago, Kentucky’s Democratic Senate primary was a sleepy affair. Former Marine fighter pilot Amy McGrath had raised a metric ton of money, won the backing of Democratic leaders in Washington, and paid little attention to the upstart challengers running to her left, focusing instead on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the six-term Republican from whom Democrats are trying to wrest away a Senate seat and control of the Senate itself. She seemed set to cruise to victory in a primary delayed until June 23 by the coronavirus pandemic.
But in the last three weeks, progressive state Rep. Charles Booker, the youngest Black state lawmaker elected in Kentucky in nearly a century, has interrupted McGrath’s quiet stroll to the nomination.
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Booker, 35, has surged after appearing on the front lines of racial justice protests in Louisville, where demonstrations erupted over the police killing of emergency medical technician Breonna Taylor, a Black woman. His campaign has amassed enough money to splurge on TV ads accusing McGrath of being too moderate and hitting her for failing to join the protests. He has won endorsements from a slate of local and national progressive leaders, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Kentucky’s two largest newspapers and 19 state legislators have endorsed him, too.
The shifting race has turned the supposedly deep red state of Kentucky into the latest battleground between a more pragmatic Democratic establishment urging caution and a progressive insurgency arguing that the party should move faster to address the urgent needs of voters ― especially as a devastating pandemic, the economic collapse it has caused and a nationwide outburst of protests expose the country’s deep failings on health care, the economy, racial equality and American democracy itself.
Booker and his supporters think they have unlocked the right strategy for energizing Democrats and beating McConnell, a task that has eluded their party for three decades: Don’t apologize for being a Democrat. Don’t be afraid to run on issues Democrats care about. And prioritize turning out Democratic voters.
It’s a strategy that new Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat, wielded to win a razor-thin race this past November. But Booker has taken it to the progressive hilt ― refusing to shy away from racial justice issues in a state that’s 87% white; insisting on backing big environmental reforms in the fifth-largest coal-producing state in America; swearing, perhaps against the odds, that Kentucky is ready for a progressive leader like him. It worries many local Democrats who think the state is not, but in the current moment, it has started to seem like exactly what many Kentuckians want.
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Booker has surged in the Democratic primary after appearing on the front lines of racial justice protests in Louisville. Now he's pulling in a flood of money and racking up major endorsements. Bryan Woolston/ASSOCIATED PRESS
A lack of independent polling, an uncertain electorate and the challenges driven by the pandemic ― most Kentucky counties are now limited to one polling site, and the state has no-excuse mail-in voting in place for the primary for the first time ― have left everyone flying blind into the race’s final days.
Armed with $20 million in cash, establishment credibility and a name identification advantage, McGrath still looks like the prohibitive favorite. But Booker has outsider energy, excitement in the online progressive world and grassroots support on the ground.
“There’s no result in this primary that could shock me now,” said Matt Erwin, a Kentucky-based Democratic strategist who is not affiliated with any of the campaigns in the race. “And anybody who says they know is kidding themselves.”
‘Over And Over Again, We Keep Running The Same Playbook’
Two years ago, it was McGrath who ran as a new-model outsider against an establishment-backed favorite seeking a House seat.
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Mixing grievance politics (the Democratic establishment has forgotten about you) and substance (expanded health care, minimum wage hikes and hints at economic populism), McGrath overcame a 40-percentage-point gap to win her congressional primary in its closing days.
She was frank, fearless and authentic, the sort of candidate who’d let an errant curse fly from the stump and promised donors that she was “more progressive than anybody in the state of Kentucky.” Candidates like her, McGrath’s campaign argued, could win even in areas that leaned conservative if they focused on pocketbook issues and convinced voters ― even those who disagreed with them ― that they would fight on the voters’ behalf.
McGrath narrowly lost the general election to incumbent GOP Rep. Andy Barr. To Democratic Party leaders hoping to win back the Senate, she seemed like a dream 2020 recruit: She was an incredible fundraiser who could go toe-to-toe with McConnell money-wise, and she had the sort of biography ― military vet, woman, outsider ― that seemed to make an upset possible.
Had everything gone to plan in the early stages of the current race, it’s unlikely she’d have drawn a meaningful primary challenge ― if not quite progressive by national standards, she certainly is by Kentucky’s.
“Folks are ready for something new. We want to try something different.” - Cassia Herron, board chair of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth
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But last July, during her first national TV appearance as a candidate, McGrath stumbled through an answer about President Donald Trump in which she seemed to hit McConnell for standing in the way of Trump’s promises to “drain the swamp,” “bring back jobs” and “lower prescription drug prices.” Then she flipped, flopped and flipped again on whether she’d have voted in favor of Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Supreme Court, drawing the ire of Democrats and progressives nationwide.
The missteps didn’t dent her fundraising capability ― McGrath raised $10 million early in the race and has raked in $40 million so far. But they cracked the veneer of outsider authenticity that existed around her 2018 campaign.
In Kentucky, the slip-ups generated some concern among party insiders that anointing McGrath so early had been a mistake. Among progressives, it fueled the idea that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which officially backed McGrath in February of this year, had merely wanted a talented and inoffensive fundraiser who could occupy McConnell’s attention and money leading up to the election while the party chased more winnable seats elsewhere.
For years, Kentucky Democrats have run the same sort of hyper-calculated race against McConnell and other Senate Republicans, focusing first and foremost on winning back conservative rural Democrats who’ve abandoned the party in droves. It has led to embarrassing attempts to avoid putting off those voters ― in her 2014 race against McConnell, then-Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes refused to say if she’d voted for President Barack Obama ― and loss after loss after loss.
Beating McConnell is a near-impossible task no matter what tack a Democratic candidate takes, but early in the 2020 cycle, some in the state were eager to test the reverse strategy: a full-on fight against McConnell that prioritized the Democratic base and then tried to make the math work with suburban converts and a handful of more conservative rural Democrats who like Trump and dislike the national Democratic Party but might be wooed back with the right sort of message.
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“What we’ve seen is that over and over and over again, we keep running the same playbook,” said Cassia Herron, the board chair of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, a grassroots progressive organization. The New Power PAC, the group’s campaign arm, endorsed Booker in February. “Folks are ready for something new. We want to try something different,” Herron said.
‘From The Hood To The Holler’
Booker, who worked in state government and Democratic politics before winning his state legislative seat in 2018, jumped into the Senate race in November with a stirring two-minute video that went after McConnell in righteous terms: “You know the name of the man I’m talking about, but he doesn’t know your name,” Booker said. “He doesn’t see you in the hospital bed, or in the checkout line, or at the safety drills in your classroom. He doesn’t see you at all.”
It’s impossible to ignore the parallels to McGrath’s 2018 launch, when her slick introductory video involving a fighter jet became a viral sensation. (Producing it nearly bankrupted her campaign.) But whereas McGrath benefited from her early decision to run, Booker’s entry was met with considerably less fanfare ― although one progressive group immediately jumped on board.
McGrath was the early pick of the Democratic establishment after she overcame a massive deficit to win a 2018 House primary and then only narrowly lost the general election to the Republican incumbent. The Washington Post via Getty Images
In 2018, the Sunrise Movement, a youth-led climate organization, had held a congressional sit-in in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office to demand support for a Green New Deal, the proposed sweeping overhaul of the nation’s economy meant to address climate change. One of Sunrise’s largest delegations came from the Bluegrass State, fostering belief inside the group that there might be grassroots appetite for more progressive candidates in Kentucky. Sunrise endorsed Booker in early December last year and put its Kentucky chapter to work boosting his campaign.
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Others, too, had sensed the potential of a progressive campaign: Another former Marine named Mike Broihier left behind his asparagus farm in rural Lincoln County to enter the primary last summer. Broihier, a former teacher and journalist, staked his campaign to the call for a universal basic income (which Booker also supports) and later won the backing of former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang. Broihier based his run on the idea that “you can present progressive ideas to Kentuckians as long as you do it right, as long as you don’t talk down to people,” he said last week.
No one gave either much of a chance, but early in his candidacy, Booker crafted his message as a full-throated progressive who understood the stakes.
On a trip across Appalachia in February, he pitched the Green New Deal to voters left behind by the collapse of the coal industry. It was less of a specific policy proposal than an argument that beating McConnell required uniting Kentuckians “from the hood to the holler,” as Booker’s slogan goes. Washington’s way of doing things, Booker argued, had led it to ignore and hurt both the mostly Black residents of West Louisville, which he represents in the state legislature, and the mostly white residents of eastern Kentucky. (It’s the sort of message, Herron said, that organizers have been trying to push for years.)
Voters who might look and live differently, Booker insisted, still have the same concerns: They want to be able to pay their utility bills, find good jobs, drink clean water, and afford medicine and health care. While “Medicare for All” and the Green New Deal were Booker’s ideas for how to get there, the policy details were almost secondary. His appeals were aimed at the one thing that unifies Kentuckians in a state that often feels like five different regions mashed together: a deep, perhaps inexplicable to outsiders, pride in just being Kentuckian.
“People in Kentucky love the state of Kentucky,” said Matt Jones, a popular sports radio host who considered running in the Democratic primary and endorsed Booker last week. “Charles is basically saying, ‘Look, whether you’re from the West End of Louisville or you’re from deep in Appalachia, we all have Kentucky in common, and we actually have a lot of the same struggles.’ And I think people really like that.”
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“I don’t think most people in eastern Kentucky are gonna agree with Charles necessarily on the Green New Deal, but on the things that matter the most, I think they can,” added Jones, who is from southeastern Kentucky and isn’t sure he supports the Green New Deal himself. “He says what he believes and he speaks from the heart. And I think when you do that, people will give you the benefit of the doubt even when they disagree.”
Booker’s campaign argues that the election against McConnell requires motivating the base first and says it has internal polling showing that Kentucky’s likely Democratic primary electorate favors a candidate who can help drive young voters and people of color to the polls. (Black people make up less than 9% of Kentucky’s population. Nevertheless, they’re a powerful, and often overlooked, voting bloc in a state where Democrats need every vote, especially in cities like Louisville and Lexington.)
“This means Charles can be perceived as the most electable candidate, if we are able to tell his story fully,” the campaign wrote in an April memo it circulated across the state. “A majority of Democrats here know that the only way to beat McConnell is to inspire a movement and get record turnout among young people and people of color.”
The threshold question was always whether Booker could even raise enough money to make his argument to primary voters.
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Booker’s camp didn’t think he needed to compete dollar-for-dollar on TV with McGrath, an impossible task anyway. Instead, it enlisted the help of a progressive D.C. political consulting firm and focused on building energy and enthusiasm online. A communications firm run by veterans of Sanders’ presidential campaigns came on board in late April. But even as he brought in some cash from small donors, Booker struggled to make gains on McGrath, who was spending money at a rapid clip.
To break through, Booker needed a spark.
‘The Man Met The Moment’
The death of Breonna Taylor in March did not immediately set off the sort of protests that erupted after a police officer killed George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25. But after Floyd’s death, the unrest that had bubbled beneath the surface in Louisville, a deeply segregated city with a long history of police violence against Black people, boiled over.
Booker was among the first state lawmakers to call for a special investigation into Taylor’s death. When protests broke out in the city after Floyd’s killing, he assumed a leading role. Booker amplified early calls to fire and arrest the three police officers involved in the Taylor shooting, marched in the demonstrations, and was among those tear-gassed when police cracked down.
During a June 1 primary debate, Booker spoke of his experience growing up in and representing a Black Louisville community and then protesting with it. McGrath, meanwhile, said she hadn’t joined the demonstrations because she was at home with her family.
“When you see Charles Booker showing up at protests, and his history of being engaged in the movement for Black lives, and the absence of Amy McGrath, that’s quite telling.” - Maria Langholz, a spokeswoman for the Progressive Change Campaign Committee
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Booker’s campaign has always rested on the idea that Kentuckians feel a sense of urgency about what’s broken and that they can’t wait any longer for big fixes to health care and poverty, the environment, the opioid crisis, a lack of good jobs or an overbearing and racist criminal justice system.
“We’re out here trying to survive,” Booker told HuffPost in February. He often notes that he has had to ration insulin for his diabetes, that he has lost cousins to gun violence, and that his mom often had to let the electricity lapse to keep food on the table when he was growing up.
The outbreak of protests gave voice to Black Americans, in Louisville and beyond, who had been repeatedly ignored by political leaders in the past when they raised issues around police brutality, persistent segregation and racial inequality. They won broader support this time from white Americans. In Kentucky, the protests spread from Louisville across the state and even to small, mostly white towns in Appalachia. Together with the pandemic, which has cost Kentucky nearly 1 million jobs, the demonstrations made it impossible to ignore the scope of the problems facing the state or the immediate need for change.
And there was Booker, a candidate speaking to ― and feeling ― the same frustrations, with a campaign aimed primarily at those Kentuckians.
“The man met the moment,” Jones said, in a line that more than one Kentuckian used to describe Booker’s late momentum. The Lexington Herald-Leader, Kentucky’s second-largest newspaper, tapped into that sentiment when it endorsed Booker, writing that “now is the time for bold and brave ideas” and “passion over pragmatism.”
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Protesters raise their fists in solidarity while listening to a speaker on June 5 in Louisville, Kentucky. Booker's presence at the ongoing protests has given a huge boost to his campaign. Brett Carlsen/Getty Images
Throughout the spring, Booker and the Sunrise Movement continued working contacts in national progressive groups. It had been a rough 2020 for progressives so far. In Senate campaigns especially, establishment picks have easily beaten back insurgent challengers and Sanders’ presidential campaign ended with a whimper after a hot start.
As the protests grew and Booker’s profile surged with them, he emerged as the left’s best hope ― at least on the Senate side.
“When you see Charles Booker showing up at protests, and his history of being engaged in the movement for Black lives, and the absence of Amy McGrath, that’s quite telling,” said Maria Langholz, a spokeswoman for the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, a 1-million-member group that endorsed Booker last week, after Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez backed him.
Those endorsements have helped generate a fundraising surge that has allowed Booker to spend more than $1 million on TV late in the primary race and bolster efforts on the ground, where he has amassed a small volunteer army and the Sunrise Movement has made nearly 250,000 calls to voters in an effort to boost his support. This week, Booker won endorsements from Lundergan Grimes and former Kentucky Speaker of the House Greg Stumbo, Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
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It’s possible ― perhaps even likely ― that all the excitement is for naught.
While that gap narrowed among people who planned to vote on Election Day, it still found Booker down 10 points overall. It’s still unclear whether he ― or any progressive, for that matter ― can win at the scale required outside Louisville and Lexington.
Kentucky is bigger and more expensive than it can seem, and it’s hard to win a race there in two weeks ― especially as a progressive outsider whose opponent is spending more on TV and radio in the final week than he’s raised in the entire campaign. Booker may be the man of the moment. The moment may have just arrived too late.
His most ardent supporters are confident he can pull off the upset. But even if he doesn’t, progressive groups that have spent years organizing in Kentucky believe Booker’s candidacy may have lasting effects. He has built a network of volunteers and energized voters who’ve long wanted to witness a candidate simply try to run this sort of campaign ― one that could excite young people, progressives and Black Kentuckians who’ve often felt left out and taken for granted, while potentially appealing to some disaffected rural white voters too.
“We have not been able to test the electorate in a way in which we’re seeing at this moment,” said Herron, of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth. “We’re building the progressive infrastructure for a campaign to be successful in the long term.”
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A Booker loss ― especially if it’s by a large margin ― will cause some to argue that an unabashedly progressive campaign simply can’t win in Kentucky today, and they might not be wrong. But it may also give progressives a better sense of how far they have to go and how they might go about getting there, particularly in future races down the ballot or in a 2022 contest against GOP Sen. Rand Paul.
And whatever happens in the primary, the progressive energy around Booker’s campaign has sent an important message ― that the string of defeats in the presidential primaries and Senate contests nationwide has left the progressive movement battered but not defeated, and it is ready to keep battling, even and maybe especially in states where the odds are stacked against it.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-19--Court Says Trump Rally Attendees Don't Have To Wear Masks

TULSA , Okla. ( AP ) — The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Friday rejected a request to require everyone attending President Donald Trump ’ s rally in Tulsa this weekend to wear a face mask and stay at least six feet apart from everyone else in the arena to guard against the spread of the coronavirus .
The court ruled that the two local residents who asked that the thousands expected at the rally be required to take the precautions couldn ’ t establish that they have a clear legal right to the relief they sought .
In a concurring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state ’ s reopening plan is “ permissive , suggestive and discretionary.
” The request was made by John Hope Franklin for Reconciliation , a nonprofit that promotes racial equality , and the Greenwood Centre , Ltd. , which owns commercial real estate , and on behalf of the two locals , who are described as having compromised immune systems and being particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 .
Tulsa ’ s mayor , G.T .
Bynum , declared a civil emergency and set a curfew for the area around the BOK Center ahead of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ However , Trump tweeted Friday that he spoke to Bynum and the mayor told him there would be no curfew , after all .
The mayor ’ s office didn ’ t immediately reply to a phone message seeking confirmation that the curfew had been lifted .
A police spokeswoman , Jeanne Pierce , said by email that “ it ’ s a fluid situation.
” The curfew around the arena took effect Thursday night and was initially supposed to remain in effect from 10 p.m. Friday until 6 a.m. Saturday and from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a.m. Sunday .
In setting it , Bynum cited the unrest that followed some of the recent protests around the country over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last month .
“ I have received information from the Tulsa Police Department and other law enforcement agencies that shows that individuals from organized groups who have been involved in destructive and violent behavior in other States are planning to travel to the City of Tulsa for purposes of causing unrest in and around the rally , ” Bynum said in his order , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s Facebook and Twitter pages .
Bynum didn ’ t elaborate as to which groups he meant and police Capt .
Richard Meulenberg declined to identify any .
Although President Trump has characterized those who have clashed with law enforcement after Floyd ’ s death as organized , radical-left thugs engaging in domestic terrorism , an Associated Press analysis found that the vast majority of people arrested during recent protests in Minneapolis and Washington , D.C. , were locals .
Trump on Friday morning tweeted : “ Any protesters , anarchists , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to Oklahoma please understand , you will not be treated like you have been in New York , Seattle , or Minneapolis .
It will be a much different scene !
” Police said the scores of Trump supporters who have camped in parking lots and on sidewalks outside of the 19,000-seat arena must leave the area during the curfew or face possible arrest .
Meulenberg said there had been no arrests since the curfew took effect at 10 p.m. Thursday .
Trump ’ s campaign manager , Brad Parscale , told @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to get into the arena are expected to attend what he described as a “ festival ” outside where the president might also appear .
He said he would “ probably be wearing a mask ” during the event , which Republican Gov .
Kevin Stitt has said will be safe .
McEnany said she and many other White House staffers would be traveling with Trump to Tulsa and that she wouldn ’ t wear a mask at the rally , calling it a personal decision and noting that she is regularly tested @ @ @ @ @ @ @ proximity to Trump .
She declined to say whether Trump was taking and additional personal precautions ahead of the rally .
The nation ’ s top public health professionals strongly recommend wearing a mask when social distancing can ’ t be maintained , as will be the case Saturday .
“ As someone who is cautious by nature , I don ’ t like to be the first to try anything .
I would have loved some other city to have proven the safety of such an event already , ” Bynum wrote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Friday , but it was moved back a day following an uproar that it otherwise would have happened on Juneteenth , which marks the end of slavery in the U.S. , and in a city where a 1921 white-on-black attack killed as many as 300 people .
Oklahoma has seen a recent spike in coronavirus cases , setting a daily high on Thursday of 450 .
Health officials on Friday reported 125 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Tulsa County , which is the most of any county in Oklahoma .
Statewide , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new coronavirus death reported Friday , raising the state ’ s total number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began to 9,706 and its death toll to 367 .

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TULSA, Okla. (AP) — The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Friday rejected a request to require everyone attending President Donald Trump’s rally in Tulsa this weekend to wear a face mask and stay at least six feet apart from everyone else in the arena to guard against the spread of the coronavirus.
The court ruled that the two local residents who asked that the thousands expected at the rally be required to take the precautions couldn’t establish that they have a clear legal right to the relief they sought. In a concurring opinion, two justices wrote that the state’s reopening plan is “permissive, suggestive and discretionary.”
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“Therefore, for lack of any mandatory language in the (plan), we are compelled to deny the relief requested.”
The request was made by John Hope Franklin for Reconciliation, a nonprofit that promotes racial equality, and the Greenwood Centre, Ltd., which owns commercial real estate, and on behalf of the two locals, who are described as having compromised immune systems and being particularly vulnerable to COVID-19.
Tulsa’s mayor, G.T. Bynum, declared a civil emergency and set a curfew for the area around the BOK Center ahead of Trump’s rally Saturday night. However, Trump tweeted Friday that he spoke to Bynum and the mayor told him there would be no curfew, after all. The mayor’s office didn’t immediately reply to a phone message seeking confirmation that the curfew had been lifted. A police spokeswoman, Jeanne Pierce, said by email that “it’s a fluid situation.”
The curfew around the arena took effect Thursday night and was initially supposed to remain in effect from 10 p.m. Friday until 6 a.m. Saturday and from the conclusion of the rally until 6 a.m. Sunday. In setting it, Bynum cited the unrest that followed some of the recent protests around the country over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last month.
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“I have received information from the Tulsa Police Department and other law enforcement agencies that shows that individuals from organized groups who have been involved in destructive and violent behavior in other States are planning to travel to the City of Tulsa for purposes of causing unrest in and around the rally,” Bynum said in his order, which was posted on the police department’s Facebook and Twitter pages.
Bynum didn’t elaborate as to which groups he meant and police Capt. Richard Meulenberg declined to identify any. Although President Trump has characterized those who have clashed with law enforcement after Floyd’s death as organized, radical-left thugs engaging in domestic terrorism, an Associated Press analysis found that the vast majority of people arrested during recent protests in Minneapolis and Washington, D.C., were locals.
Trump on Friday morning tweeted: “Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis. It will be a much different scene!”
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany clarified later that Trump’s tweet did not refer to all protesters, rather only to those who are “violent.”
Police said the scores of Trump supporters who have camped in parking lots and on sidewalks outside of the 19,000-seat arena must leave the area during the curfew or face possible arrest. Meulenberg said there had been no arrests since the curfew took effect at 10 p.m. Thursday.
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A video shared by Breitbart News showed several people leaving an area within the curfew zone at the direction of a police officer, moving tents beyond a barricade and carrying chairs and backpacks.
Bynum’s order said crowds of 100,000 or more were expected in the area around the rally.
Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, told Fox News on Friday that those unable to get into the arena are expected to attend what he described as a “festival” outside where the president might also appear. He said he would “probably be wearing a mask” during the event, which Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt has said will be safe.
That has not reassured the arena’s management, who requested a written health and safety plan from the Trump campaign on Thursday. In a statement to Oklahoma City television station KFOR, rally organizers appeared unimpressed but said they would review the request.
The Trump campaign said it takes “safety seriously,” noting that organizers are providing masks, hand sanitizers and doing temperature checks for all attendees.
McEnany said she and many other White House staffers would be traveling with Trump to Tulsa and that she wouldn’t wear a mask at the rally, calling it a personal decision and noting that she is regularly tested for COVID-19 because she works in close proximity to Trump. She declined to say whether Trump was taking and additional personal precautions ahead of the rally. The nation’s top public health professionals strongly recommend wearing a mask when social distancing can’t be maintained, as will be the case Saturday.
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In a Facebook post Tuesday, the mayor confessed to feeling anxious about the potential spread of the coronavirus by people attending the rally.
“As someone who is cautious by nature, I don’t like to be the first to try anything. I would have loved some other city to have proven the safety of such an event already,” Bynum wrote.
The city’s health director, Dr. Bruce Dart, has said he would like to see the rally postponed, noting that large indoor gatherings are partially to blame for the recent spread of the virus in Tulsa and Tulsa County.
The rally was originally scheduled for Friday, but it was moved back a day following an uproar that it otherwise would have happened on Juneteenth, which marks the end of slavery in the U.S., and in a city where a 1921 white-on-black attack killed as many as 300 people.
Marc Lotter, the Trump campaign’s strategic communications director, told MSNBC on Friday that the rally “is really a celebration of an America that’s reopening.”
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He said the campaign asks that supporters to stay away from the rally if they or a family member are in a high risk category for serious complications from the coronavirus.
That message has not been widely echoed by the president or his campaign, which has encouraged supporters to attend, and Lotter said the campaign would not require wearing face coverings.
Oklahoma has seen a recent spike in coronavirus cases, setting a daily high on Thursday of 450. Health officials on Friday reported 125 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Tulsa County, which is the most of any county in Oklahoma. Statewide, there were 352 new cases and one new coronavirus death reported Friday, raising the state’s total number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began to 9,706 and its death toll to 367.
The actual number of people who have contracted the virus is likely higher because many people have not been tested and studies suggest that people can be infected but not feel sick.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up within weeks. But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, the highly contagious virus can cause severe symptoms and be fatal.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-19--Melania Trump Posts Juneteenth Tweet And Gets Reminded Of 'Birther' Past

Melania Trump attempted to honor Juneteenth on Friday by reading a children ’ s book about the holiday — but was accused of not reading the room .
The first lady took to Twitter to read “ All Different Now ” by Angela Johnson , which tells the story of Juneteenth , a day that celebrates the end of slavery , through the eyes of a young girl .
In the tweet , Trump also reminisced about a trip to Ghana where she toured the House of Slaves , a place where millions of kidnapped Africans were held before being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New World .
Today we celebrate # Juneteenth , the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the end of slavery in the U.S .
In honor of today , I would like to share the story `` All Different Now '' by Angela Johnson , which sheds a light on the first Juneteenth through the eyes of a young girl .
pic.twitter.com/ZG9zoup4yG — Melania Trump ( @ FLOTUS ) June 19 , 2020 Many Twitter users found the first lady ’ s video insensitive for a variety of reasons , but especially because of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ birther ” conspiracy theory championed by her husband , President Donald Trump , that falsely claimed that former President Barack Obama wasn ’ t born in the U.S. Ok , birther .
We believe your sincerity .
We know you did n't really traffic in the racist birtherism conspiracy theories .
< 𝙎𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙖𝙨𝙢 𝙁𝙤𝙣𝙩 > # JUNETEENTH2020 # JuneTeenth # JuneteenthDay https : //t.co/DcmD1SGOHd pic.twitter.com/uy7uatQMeF — Khary Penebaker ( @ kharyp ) June 19 , 2020 Would that it had been “ All Different Now.
” “ Slavery ” ended .
But , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the KKK , Disenfranchisement , Gerrymandering , White Supremacy , Discriminatory Hiring Practices , Racial Profiling , Inferior Education & BIRTHERISM followed…3rd Lady .
https : //t.co/KBl0Tbs3Gh — Star Jones ( @ StarJonesEsq ) June 19 , 2020 Others focused on the video ’ s visual details — notably the decision to sit the first lady on a gilded bench in an ornate room and film her at a distance .
A great way to send a message of equality , humanity and togetherness is a wide shot in which the only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by ridiculously opulent furniture https : //t.co/bI6sCD8ID8 — Meredith Blake ( @ MeredithBlake ) June 19 , 2020 I am awaiting Sophia Coppola 's film about how Melania taught all of white America about Juneteenth from her gilded room in Versailles on the Potomac ... https : //t.co/tzwgiadCsn — Jeffrey St. Clair ( @ JSCCounterPunch ) June 19 , 2020 '' Do n't zoom in . ''
`` Oka- wait .
DO N'T zoom in ? ''
`` Yes .
Do n't zoom in . ''
`` So , just stay wide the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' `` Is n't that going to look weird ? ''
`` I do n't know .
Just stay wide . ''
`` So , super wide , no zoom . ''
`` Right . ''
`` Okay .
Ready when you are . ''
`` Barack Obama was n't born in the U.S. '' https : //t.co/8CZx4I7b2X — ɐpoqoʌs ʎɐɾ ( @ jaysvoboda ) June 19 , 2020 This looks like the opening of a horror movie ... .
slow push in ... she smiles.. then ... her face turns into a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ https : //t.co/6Zq19mOXYU — Hal Sparks ( @ HalSparks ) June 19 , 2020 But sometimes the most telling comments are also the shortest .

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Melania Trump attempted to honor Juneteenth on Friday by reading a children’s book about the holiday — but was accused of not reading the room.
The first lady took to Twitter to read “All Different Now” by Angela Johnson, which tells the story of Juneteenth, a day that celebrates the end of slavery, through the eyes of a young girl.
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In the tweet, Trump also reminisced about a trip to Ghana where she toured the House of Slaves, a place where millions of kidnapped Africans were held before being forced onto slave ships bound for the New World.
Today we celebrate #Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the end of slavery in the U.S. In honor of today, I would like to share the story "All Different Now" by Angela Johnson, which sheds a light on the first Juneteenth through the eyes of a young girl. pic.twitter.com/ZG9zoup4yG — Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) June 19, 2020
Many Twitter users found the first lady’s video insensitive for a variety of reasons, but especially because of her past support of the racist “birther” conspiracy theory championed by her husband, President Donald Trump, that falsely claimed that former President Barack Obama wasn’t born in the U.S.
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This ignorant bitch right here...I mean...I can't with her tone-deaf idiocy. https://t.co/orzLbssPWS — Vivicca A. Whitsett (@2tall4u2) June 19, 2020
Would that it had been “All Different Now.” “Slavery” ended. But, Jim Crow, Black Codes, Lynchings, the KKK, Disenfranchisement, Gerrymandering, White Supremacy, Discriminatory Hiring Practices, Racial Profiling, Inferior Education & BIRTHERISM followed…3rd Lady. https://t.co/KBl0Tbs3Gh — Star Jones (@StarJonesEsq) June 19, 2020
How to not read the room: a masterclass. https://t.co/tkhHw9BP1n — Tim Windsor (@timwindsor) June 19, 2020
Others focused on the video’s visual details — notably the decision to sit the first lady on a gilded bench in an ornate room and film her at a distance.
A great way to send a message of equality, humanity and togetherness is a wide shot in which the only person in the frame is completely overwhelmed by ridiculously opulent furniture https://t.co/bI6sCD8ID8 — Meredith Blake (@MeredithBlake) June 19, 2020
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I am awaiting Sophia Coppola's film about how Melania taught all of white America about Juneteenth from her gilded room in Versailles on the Potomac... https://t.co/tzwgiadCsn — Jeffrey St. Clair (@JSCCounterPunch) June 19, 2020
"Don't zoom in."
"Oka- wait. DON'T zoom in?"
"Yes. Don't zoom in."
"So, just stay wide the whole time?"
"Yes."
"Isn't that going to look weird?"
"I don't know. Just stay wide."
"So, super wide, no zoom."
"Right."
"Okay. Ready when you are."
"Barack Obama wasn't born in the U.S." https://t.co/8CZx4I7b2X — ɐpoqoʌs ʎɐɾ (@jaysvoboda) June 19, 2020
This looks like the opening of a horror movie.... slow push in... she smiles.. then... her face turns into a bleeding skull....."CHRISTMAS" https://t.co/6Zq19mOXYU — Hal Sparks (@HalSparks) June 19, 2020
But sometimes the most telling comments are also the shortest.
oh fuck off https://t.co/fUMvoKpvXS — Imani Gandy ☄🌏🔥 (@AngryBlackLady) June 19, 2020


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-19--Trump Threatens Protesters Ahead Of Oklahoma Rally

Ahead of a campaign rally in a city where a racist massacre took place , President Donald Trump threatened violence against protesters , as people in cities around the country are set to participate in peaceful anti-racism marches to mark Juneteenth , the anniversary of the end of slavery in the U.S. on June 19 , 1865 .
Echoing his prior violent threats and actions toward protesters , the president tweeted Friday that “ any protesters , anarchists , agitators , looters or lowlifes ” who come to Oklahoma ― where he is holding a rally in Tulsa on Saturday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you have been in New York , Seattle , or Minneapolis.
” Recent anti-racism protests in those cities have drawn violent police responses , though Trump ’ s tweet falsely suggests otherwise .
Any protesters , anarchists , agitators , looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand , you will not be treated like you have been in New York , Seattle , or Minneapolis .
It will be a much different scene !
— Donald J. Trump ( @ realDonaldTrump ) June 19 , 2020 Earlier this month , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the White House protesting the death of George Floyd and other instances of police brutality against Black people — in order to clear the way for Trump to stage a propagandistic photo-op in front of a nearby church , which was widely condemned by religious leaders .
Around the country throughout the last few weeks , anti-racism protesters have faced violent assaults and arrests from police .
Trump , who has a long history of promoting racism and white supremacy , has routinely incited violence — most notoriously in 2017 , when he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” at a white nationalist and neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville , Virginia .
Tulsa , where the president will host thousands of supporters on Saturday , is the site of a 1921 racist massacre of Black people by white mobs .
The rally had initially been scheduled for Friday .
“ I did something good : I made Juneteenth very famous , ” Trump told The Wall Street Journal , referring to widespread condemnation for initially scheduling the rally on Juneteenth .
“ It ’ s actually an important event , an important @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of it , ” he continued , apparently ignoring the years of Black activism dedicated to making the day more widely known in American history and trying to establish it as a national holiday .

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Ahead of a campaign rally in a city where a racist massacre took place, President Donald Trump threatened violence against protesters, as people in cities around the country are set to participate in peaceful anti-racism marches to mark Juneteenth, the anniversary of the end of slavery in the U.S. on June 19, 1865.
Echoing his prior violent threats and actions toward protesters, the president tweeted Friday that “any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes” who come to Oklahoma ― where he is holding a rally in Tulsa on Saturday ― “will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis.” Recent anti-racism protests in those cities have drawn violent police responses, though Trump’s tweet falsely suggests otherwise.
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Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis. It will be a much different scene! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2020
Earlier this month, police fired tear gas on demonstrators near the White House protesting the death of George Floyd and other instances of police brutality against Black people — in order to clear the way for Trump to stage a propagandistic photo-op in front of a nearby church, which was widely condemned by religious leaders.
Around the country throughout the last few weeks, anti-racism protesters have faced violent assaults and arrests from police.
Trump, who has a long history of promoting racism and white supremacy, has routinely incited violence — most notoriously in 2017, when he said there were “very fine people” at a white nationalist and neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
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Tulsa, where the president will host thousands of supporters on Saturday, is the site of a 1921 racist massacre of Black people by white mobs. The rally had initially been scheduled for Friday.
In a baffling interview Thursday, Trump applauded himself for spreading awareness of Juneteenth.
“I did something good: I made Juneteenth very famous,” Trump told The Wall Street Journal, referring to widespread condemnation for initially scheduling the rally on Juneteenth.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-19--GOP Candidate Says Black Democratic Opponent Is 'Not For All Virginians'

Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images Republican state Sen. Amanda Chase has deleted her post questioning whether state Sen. Jennifer McClellan ( D ) is for `` all Virginians . ''
Republican gubernatorial candidate Amanda Chase questioned whether one of her Democratic opponents is for “ ALL Virginians ” on Thursday , immediately after noting that state Sen. Jennifer McClellan is vice chairwoman of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus .
“ If you thought Ralph Northam was bad wait to you see the McClellan agenda , ” the GOP state senator wrote on Facebook .
“ She serves as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
One thing you can be sure of ― she is NOT for ALL Virginians.
” Chase also said she was “ sick and tired of ALL of the identity politics ” and lamented that the governor ’ s race was “ shaping up to be ALL about who will be the best female for Governor.
” The post went up the same day that McClellan jumped into the 2021 governor ’ s race .
So far , her competition for the Democratic nomination is state Del .
Jennifer Carroll Foy , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expected to join the field , with the biggest question over whether former Gov .
Terry McAuliffe ― who remains popular ― will run .
Chase is the only declared Republican candidate so far .
She ’ s a strong supporter of President Donald Trump and has decried “ the liberal , socialistic agenda that has taken control of the Capitol.
” She has also said that people who are “ naive and unprepared ” end up raped , and said that the push to take down Confederate monuments is “ destroying WHITE @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Virginia Black Legislative Caucus , Jennifer McClellan is championing the destruction of our historical monuments and encouraging the violence of our beloved city , ” Chase said .
“ She along with our cowardly Mayor [ Levar ] Stoney and spineless governor are placating to a movement of divisiveness and hate instead of unity and peace.
” “ What unites Virginia is stronger than what divides us , ” she wrote .
“ As a Senator , and as a member of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus , I ’ ve worked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As Governor , I will make sure everyone ’ s voice is heard , as we build a better future.
” McClellan has been an advocate for taking down Confederate monuments , recently expressing support for Gov .
Ralph Northam ’ s ( D ) decision to take down a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond .
“ You have to have an honest conversation about that and what those monuments symbolize , but what they also do is trigger 400 years of trauma for Black communities , ” she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ adding , “ The localities where they are need to decide if they want to take them down .
They should be able to take them down , or we at the commonwealth level should do so as well .
”

Republican state Sen. Amanda Chase has deleted her post questioning whether state Sen. Jennifer McClellan (D) is for "all Virginians." Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images
Republican gubernatorial candidate Amanda Chase questioned whether one of her Democratic opponents is for “ALL Virginians” on Thursday, immediately after noting that state Sen. Jennifer McClellan is vice chairwoman of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus.
“If you thought Ralph Northam was bad wait to you see the McClellan agenda,” the GOP state senator wrote on Facebook. “She serves as vice-chair of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus. One thing you can be sure of ― she is NOT for ALL Virginians.”
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Chase also said she was “sick and tired of ALL of the identity politics” and lamented that the governor’s race was “shaping up to be ALL about who will be the best female for Governor.”
Chase deleted her post, but the site Blue Virginia captured a screenshot.
The post went up the same day that McClellan jumped into the 2021 governor’s race. So far, her competition for the Democratic nomination is state Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy, who is also Black. More candidates are expected to join the field, with the biggest question over whether former Gov. Terry McAuliffe ― who remains popular ― will run.
Although Chase deleted her post, she reiterated the sentiments in a statement to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
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“As the Vice-Chair of the Virginia Black Legislative Caucus, Jennifer McClellan is championing the destruction of our historical monuments and encouraging the violence of our beloved city,” Chase said. “She along with our cowardly Mayor [Levar] Stoney and spineless governor are placating to a movement of divisiveness and hate instead of unity and peace.”
Virginia state Sen. Jennifer McClellan (D) announced her gubernatorial run on June 19. Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images
In a tweet on Friday, McClellan responded to Chase’s remarks without naming the state senator.
“What unites Virginia is stronger than what divides us,” she wrote. “As a Senator, and as a member of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, I’ve worked to deliver progress for all Virginians. As Governor, I will make sure everyone’s voice is heard, as we build a better future.”
McClellan has been an advocate for taking down Confederate monuments, recently expressing support for Gov. Ralph Northam’s (D) decision to take down a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond.
“You have to have an honest conversation about that and what those monuments symbolize, but what they also do is trigger 400 years of trauma for Black communities,” she said in an interview with HuffPost, adding, “The localities where they are need to decide if they want to take them down. They should be able to take them down, or we at the commonwealth level should do so as well.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-19--TSA Worsened Coronavirus Pandemic, Whistleblower Says

The Transportation Security Administration worsened the coronavirus outbreak by failing to institute early safety measures despite pleas from its employees , a whistleblower at the agency said in a complaint revealed on Thursday .
The federal watchdog that investigated the whistleblower ’ s claims now wants the Department of Homeland Security ― which oversees the TSA ― to investigate the allegations , The Washington Post first reported .
“ We did not take adequate steps to make sure that we were not becoming carriers and spreaders of the virus ourselves , ” the whistleblower , Jay Brainard , who runs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ I believe absolutely that that contributed to the spread of the coronavirus.
” In March , as the virus spread in the U.S. before many states instituted stay-home orders , the TSA told Brainard and other managers they could not require officers to wear masks and refused to tap its stockpile of more than 1 million N-95 masks .
The agency did not institute measures like pandemic-related training , contact tracing , installing plastic screens to separate TSA employees and passengers , or mandating the use of hand sanitizer and frequently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the situation , at this time , you can not issue N-95s , ” TSA leadership wrote in a mid-March email shared with NPR .
“ Waiting two or more weeks for them may be too late , ” agency official Robert Krekorian wrote back .
Since then , more than 700 TSA employees have tested positive for COVID-19 , the agency reports .
Five staff members and one screening contractor who contracted the virus have died .
Brainard took his concerns about what he called “ gross mismanagement ” to the Office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ complaints .
On Thursday , the agency told Brainard and his attorneys it had directed DHS to launch a probe into his concerns , in a sign that officials there believe they have some credibility , the Post and NPR reported .
TSA required employees to wear masks starting in the first week of May and has left the use of eye protection up to them , TSA spokesperson R. Carter Langston told HuffPost via email .
The agency has begun rolling out plastic barriers to prevent contact between staff and travelers and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ screening , changing them after each pat-down .
The agency needs to take further action , like developing procedures for handling passengers with symptoms , Brainard told the Post .
Travel is starting to return to normal nationwide as many states reopen despite continued growth in COVID-19 cases .
The watchdog office highlighted the gaps in using plastic barriers and the failure to require eye protection and hand sanitizer use in its referral to DHS .
“ We ’ re very concerned … they ’ re going to institutionalize the TSA workforce as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Tom DeVine , an attorney for Brainard , told the Post .

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The Transportation Security Administration worsened the coronavirus outbreak by failing to institute early safety measures despite pleas from its employees, a whistleblower at the agency said in a complaint revealed on Thursday.
The federal watchdog that investigated the whistleblower’s claims now wants the Department of Homeland Security ― which oversees the TSA ― to investigate the allegations, The Washington Post first reported.
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“We did not take adequate steps to make sure that we were not becoming carriers and spreaders of the virus ourselves,” the whistleblower, Jay Brainard, who runs transportation security in Kansas, told NPR. “I believe absolutely that that contributed to the spread of the coronavirus.”
In March, as the virus spread in the U.S. before many states instituted stay-home orders, the TSA told Brainard and other managers they could not require officers to wear masks and refused to tap its stockpile of more than 1 million N-95 masks. The agency did not institute measures like pandemic-related training, contact tracing, installing plastic screens to separate TSA employees and passengers, or mandating the use of hand sanitizer and frequently changing gloves.
“While we understand the situation, at this time, you cannot issue N-95s,” TSA leadership wrote in a mid-March email shared with NPR. “Waiting two or more weeks for them may be too late,” agency official Robert Krekorian wrote back.
Since then, more than 700 TSA employees have tested positive for COVID-19, the agency reports. Five staff members and one screening contractor who contracted the virus have died.
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Brainard took his concerns about what he called “gross mismanagement” to the Office of Special Counsel, which manages whistleblower complaints. On Thursday, the agency told Brainard and his attorneys it had directed DHS to launch a probe into his concerns, in a sign that officials there believe they have some credibility, the Post and NPR reported.
TSA required employees to wear masks starting in the first week of May and has left the use of eye protection up to them, TSA spokesperson R. Carter Langston told HuffPost via email. The agency has begun rolling out plastic barriers to prevent contact between staff and travelers and requires TSA agents to use gloves during screening, changing them after each pat-down.
The agency needs to take further action, like developing procedures for handling passengers with symptoms, Brainard told the Post. Travel is starting to return to normal nationwide as many states reopen despite continued growth in COVID-19 cases.
The watchdog office highlighted the gaps in using plastic barriers and the failure to require eye protection and hand sanitizer use in its referral to DHS.
“We’re very concerned … they’re going to institutionalize the TSA workforce as a major threat for spreading the pandemic,” Tom DeVine, an attorney for Brainard, told the Post.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-06-19--Trump Sets The Stage For Mayhem At Tulsa Rally

“ Any protesters , anarchists , agitators , looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand , you will not be treated like you have been in New York , Seattle , or Minneapolis , ” he wrote .
“ It will be a much different scene !
” The threat against protesters , most of whom will be out demonstrating against systemic racism and police brutality , is another indication of Trump ’ s stance on the First Amendment .
While he has claimed he ’ s being censored by social media companies , he has also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s presided over federal forces shutting down protests .
He ’ s said some journalists should be executed , according to an upcoming book by former aide John Bolton .
And In 2016 , Trump said he ’ d like to punch a protester in the face and told supporters to knock out anyone that tried to throw tomatoes .
Meanwhile , his supporters have repeatedly indicated that they ’ re listening and ready to follow orders .
Tensions were always going to be high at the rally , given the nationwide movement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ place the Trump campaign picked for his return to mass events .
Trump rescheduled the campaign event “ out of respect ” for Juneteenth , the day commemorating Black emancipation from slavery .
He ’ s faced fierce criticism for holding the rally , originally slated for Juneteenth , in Tulsa , the site of a racist massacre in 1921 when white mobs torched a prosperous Black neighborhood and killed as many as 300 Black residents .
But moving the rally forward a day doesn ’ t remove the threat , and Tulsa @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Bynum , the city ’ s mayor , issued an executive order Thursday declaring a civil emergency ahead of the rally and said law enforcement had information “ that shows that individuals from organized groups who have been involved in destructive and violent behavior in other States are planning to travel to the City of Tulsa for purposes of causing unrest in and around the rally.
” Some 250 soldiers with the Oklahoma Army National Guard have been activated to provide security at the event , The Associated Press reported .
Nicholas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Randall Thom , right , on the racial policies of President Donald Trump outside the BOK Center in Tulsa , Oklahoma , on Friday .
Trump is scheduled to hold his first political rally since the start of the coronavirus pandemic at the BOK Center on Saturday .
In recent weeks , Trump has repeatedly railed against what he calls “ lowlifes , ” “ thugs ” and “ hoodlums ” ― escalating tensions at a time when much of the nation is crying out for racial justice and suffering from the economic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the Trump administration ’ s botched response .
That Trump took to Twitter on Juneteenth to specifically call out “ protesters , ” who have overwhelmingly remained peaceful in the face of violent police crackdowns , shines a clear light on how he views the ongoing unrest : not as a growing movement for equality but rather some Democratic plot to take him down .
It is unclear how the scene Trump is warning of Saturday in Tulsa would be different from what has played out across the country since George Floyd @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Minneapolis police late last month .
In many American cities , including those the president mentioned in his Friday tweet , police have responded to anti-racism protesters with tear gas , rubber bullets , violence and arrests .
Later that day , law enforcement officers ― at the Trump administration ’ s direction ― violently cleared protesters from in front of the White House using tear gas so that Trump could walk to a nearby church and pose for a photo while awkwardly holding up a Bible .
The crackdown came a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been rushed to an underground bunker at the White House over the weekend to ensure his safety as protests raged outside .
Apparently outraged by coverage depicting him in hiding , Trump told aides he wanted to be seen outside , a source told CNN after the violent episode .
“ What he was meaning is violent protesters , anarchists , looters ― the kind of lawlessness that we saw play out before President Trump came in with the National Guard and calmed our streets with law and order , ” White House @ @ @ @ @ @ @ briefing .

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President Donald Trump is all but cheering for violence in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday.
A day ahead of his big rally in the Sooner State, his first since COVID-19 and protests against racism gripped the nation, Trump took to Twitter to pick a fight with American citizens.
“Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis,” he wrote. “It will be a much different scene!”
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Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis. It will be a much different scene! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2020
The threat against protesters, most of whom will be out demonstrating against systemic racism and police brutality, is another indication of Trump’s stance on the First Amendment. While he has claimed he’s being censored by social media companies, he has also advocated against free expression. He’s presided over federal forces shutting down protests. He’s said some journalists should be executed, according to an upcoming book by former aide John Bolton. And In 2016, Trump said he’d like to punch a protester in the face and told supporters to knock out anyone that tried to throw tomatoes. Meanwhile, his supporters have repeatedly indicated that they’re listening and ready to follow orders.
His tweet indicated that Saturday’s rally, which will have 19,000 attendees indoors and numerous protesters, could be the scene of a violent confrontation. And he’s fanning the flames.
Tensions were always going to be high at the rally, given the nationwide movement against racism and the particular date and place the Trump campaign picked for his return to mass events.
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Trump rescheduled the campaign event “out of respect” for Juneteenth, the day commemorating Black emancipation from slavery. He’s faced fierce criticism for holding the rally, originally slated for Juneteenth, in Tulsa, the site of a racist massacre in 1921 when white mobs torched a prosperous Black neighborhood and killed as many as 300 Black residents.
But moving the rally forward a day doesn’t remove the threat, and Tulsa is preparing for potential conflict. G.T. Bynum, the city’s mayor, issued an executive order Thursday declaring a civil emergency ahead of the rally and said law enforcement had information “that shows that individuals from organized groups who have been involved in destructive and violent behavior in other States are planning to travel to the City of Tulsa for purposes of causing unrest in and around the rally.” Some 250 soldiers with the Oklahoma Army National Guard have been activated to provide security at the event, The Associated Press reported.
Nicholas Winford, left, debates Trump supporter Randall Thom, right, on the racial policies of President Donald Trump outside the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Friday. Trump is scheduled to hold his first political rally since the start of the coronavirus pandemic at the BOK Center on Saturday. Win McNamee via Getty Images
In recent weeks, Trump has repeatedly railed against what he calls “lowlifes,” “thugs” and “hoodlums” ― escalating tensions at a time when much of the nation is crying out for racial justice and suffering from the economic fallout of a pandemic made far worse by the Trump administration’s botched response. That Trump took to Twitter on Juneteenth to specifically call out “protesters,” who have overwhelmingly remained peaceful in the face of violent police crackdowns, shines a clear light on how he views the ongoing unrest: not as a growing movement for equality but rather some Democratic plot to take him down.
It is unclear how the scene Trump is warning of Saturday in Tulsa would be different from what has played out across the country since George Floyd, a Black man, was killed by Minneapolis police late last month. In many American cities, including those the president mentioned in his Friday tweet, police have responded to anti-racism protesters with tear gas, rubber bullets, violence and arrests.
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The crackdowns haven’t been enough to satisfy Trump, who has a long history of inciting violence and making racist comments. In a June 1 video call with the nation’s governors, Trump dismissed state leaders as “weak” and called for greater use of force.
“You have to dominate,” he said. “If you don’t dominate, you’re wasting your time. They’re going to run over you, you’re going to look like a bunch of jerks.”
Police officers violently clear protesters from near the White House on June 1 so the president can stage a photo-op near a church. JOSE LUIS MAGANA via Getty Images
Later that day, law enforcement officers ― at the Trump administration’s direction ― violently cleared protesters from in front of the White House using tear gas so that Trump could walk to a nearby church and pose for a photo while awkwardly holding up a Bible. The crackdown came a day after media reports that Trump had been rushed to an underground bunker at the White House over the weekend to ensure his safety as protests raged outside. Apparently outraged by coverage depicting him in hiding, Trump told aides he wanted to be seen outside, a source told CNN after the violent episode.
Along with condemning Trump’s appearance in Tulsa during the Juneteenth celebration, Black community leaders have voiced fears that it will end with violence. “We’re all terribly concerned,” the Rev. Ray Owens, pastor of the historically black Metropolitan Baptist Church, told The Associated Press.
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White House officials defended Trump’s inflammatory tweet on Friday.
“What he was meaning is violent protesters, anarchists, looters ― the kind of lawlessness that we saw play out before President Trump came in with the National Guard and calmed our streets with law and order,” White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said during a briefing.
McEnany’s response ignores Trump’s use of “any protesters” in his tweet, not to mention his ongoing support for aggressive military action to quash demonstration, and advocacy for violence among his supporters.
“The Trump rally this weekend is going to be a massive, angry gathering, a response to the protests, and from what I’ve seen covering the rallies there’s a real, real opportunity for violence and bloodshed,” Jared Yates Sexton, an author and associate professor of writing at Georgia Southern University, wrote in a Twitter post Friday.
The American Civil Liberties Union responded to Trump’s hostile post by promising to take legal action against him or any mayor or police department that attacks protesters.
“You WILL be held accountable,” the civil rights organization wrote on Twitter.
Andy Campbell contributed to this report.