thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--Coronavirus Aid Talks In Washington On Brink Of Collapse

WASHINGTON ( AP ) — Washington talks on vital COVID-19 rescue money are teetering on the brink of collapse after a marathon meeting in the Capitol generated lots of recriminations but little progress on the top issues confronting negotiators .
“ There ’ s a handful of very big issues that we are still very far apart ” on , said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin .
He talked of impasses on aid to states and local governments and renewing supplemental unemployment benefits in the Thursday night meetings .
Both sides said the future of the talks is uncertain .
No @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , an informal deadline to reach the broad outlines of an agreement .
President Donald Trump is considering executive orders to address evictions and unemployment insurance , but they appear unlikely to have much impact .
A breakdown in the talks would put at risk more than $ 100 billion to help reopen schools , a fresh round of $ 1,200 direct payments to most people and hundreds of billions of dollars for state and local governments to help them avoid furloughing workers and cutting services as tax revenues shrivel .
Both sides @ @ @ @ @ @ @ talks , though the Trump team is more open in disclosing a handful of its proposed compromises .
Republicans were late to agree to the talks and have become frustrated by the inflexible tactics of Pelosi and Schumer , who have been exuding confidence in a political and legislative landscape that appeared tilted in their favor .
The Democratic pair say the federal coronavirus aid package needs to be huge to meet the moment : a surge in cases and deaths , double-digit joblessness and the threat of poverty for millions of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ patient needs a major operation while Republicans want to apply just a Band-Aid , ” Schumer said .
“ We won ’ t let them just pass the Band-Aid , go home and leave America bleeding.
” Senate Republicans have been split , with roughly half of McConnell ’ s rank and file opposed to another rescue bill at all .
Four prior coronavirus response bills totaling almost $ 3 trillion have passed on bipartisan votes despite intense wrangling , but conservatives recoiled at the prospect of another Pelosi-brokered agreement with a whopping @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also promising that Trump will attempt to use executive orders to address elements of the congressional package involving evictions and jobless benefits .
But there ’ s no evidence that the strategy would have much impact or be anything close to what ’ s necessary , and Pelosi appeared unimpressed at a morning news conference .
“ Don ’ t nickel and dime our children , ” Pelosi said .
“ Don ’ t say , ‘ We want to give a tax break to a business lunch and not give more money @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Pelosi was referring to a GOP proposal to increase the deduction for business meals from 50 % to 100 % .
The idea seems likely to die , along with Trump ’ s efforts to cut the Social Security payroll tax .
But Schumer and Pelosi continue to push to restore a tax break for state and local taxes paid mostly by wealthier people with high incomes and valuable homes .
McConnell , R-Ky. , is likely to have to assume a higher profile if the talks are to come to a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ grim assessment of the situation Thursday , again complaining that Pelosi and Schumer are not negotiating in good faith .
Frustration was palpable among Republican senators shuttling in and out of a GOP lunch session , some of whom say Schumer is intent on using the situation as a hammer against Republicans .
Schumer is desperate to win the Senate majority just as Republicans are in trying to hold on in a terrible political year .
“ As long as they calculate that they ’ re better off politically doing nothing , it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ us to move forward , ” said Sen. Marco Rubio , R-Fla. “ And that ’ s the calculation they ’ ve made , it appears.
” McConnell is sending the Senate home rather than forcing impatient senators to bide their time while Democrats play hardball .
That suggests a vote won ’ t come until late next week or even after .

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington talks on vital COVID-19 rescue money are teetering on the brink of collapse after a marathon meeting in the Capitol generated lots of recriminations but little progress on the top issues confronting negotiators.
“There’s a handful of very big issues that we are still very far apart” on, said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. He talked of impasses on aid to states and local governments and renewing supplemental unemployment benefits in the Thursday night meetings.
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Both sides said the future of the talks is uncertain. No meeting is scheduled so far for Friday, an informal deadline to reach the broad outlines of an agreement. President Donald Trump is considering executive orders to address evictions and unemployment insurance, but they appear unlikely to have much impact.
A breakdown in the talks would put at risk more than $100 billion to help reopen schools, a fresh round of $1,200 direct payments to most people and hundreds of billions of dollars for state and local governments to help them avoid furloughing workers and cutting services as tax revenues shrivel.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., emerged from Thursday’s meeting to give a pessimistic update about the chances for an agreement.
“We’re very far apart. It’s most unfortunate,” Pelosi said.
Both sides have adopted a hard line in the talks, though the Trump team is more open in disclosing a handful of its proposed compromises. Republicans were late to agree to the talks and have become frustrated by the inflexible tactics of Pelosi and Schumer, who have been exuding confidence in a political and legislative landscape that appeared tilted in their favor.
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The Democratic pair say the federal coronavirus aid package needs to be huge to meet the moment: a surge in cases and deaths, double-digit joblessness and the threat of poverty for millions of the newly unemployed.
“We believe the patient needs a major operation while Republicans want to apply just a Band-Aid,” Schumer said. “We won’t let them just pass the Band-Aid, go home and leave America bleeding.”
Senate Republicans have been split, with roughly half of McConnell’s rank and file opposed to another rescue bill at all. Four prior coronavirus response bills totaling almost $3 trillion have passed on bipartisan votes despite intense wrangling, but conservatives recoiled at the prospect of another Pelosi-brokered agreement with a whopping deficit-financed cost.
The White House is also promising that Trump will attempt to use executive orders to address elements of the congressional package involving evictions and jobless benefits. But there’s no evidence that the strategy would have much impact or be anything close to what’s necessary, and Pelosi appeared unimpressed at a morning news conference.
“I don’t think they know what they’re talking about,” Pelosi said dismissively Thursday.
Pelosi and Schumer staked out a firm position to extend a lapsed $600-per-week bonus jobless benefit, demanded generous child care assistance and reiterated their insistence for food stamps and assistance to renters and homeowners facing eviction or foreclosure.
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“Don’t nickel and dime our children,” Pelosi said. “Don’t say, ‘We want to give a tax break to a business lunch and not give more money for children to have food stamps.’”
Pelosi was referring to a GOP proposal to increase the deduction for business meals from 50% to 100%. The idea seems likely to die, along with Trump’s efforts to cut the Social Security payroll tax. But Schumer and Pelosi continue to push to restore a tax break for state and local taxes paid mostly by wealthier people with high incomes and valuable homes.
McConnell, R-Ky., is likely to have to assume a higher profile if the talks are to come to a successful close, but he issued a grim assessment of the situation Thursday, again complaining that Pelosi and Schumer are not negotiating in good faith.
“Day after day, they’ve stonewalled the president’s team. Day by day, they’ve tried to invent new euphemisms to create the illusion of progress,” McConnell said.
Frustration was palpable among Republican senators shuttling in and out of a GOP lunch session, some of whom say Schumer is intent on using the situation as a hammer against Republicans. Schumer is desperate to win the Senate majority just as Republicans are in trying to hold on in a terrible political year.
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“As long as they calculate that they’re better off politically doing nothing, it’s going to be hard for us to move forward,” said Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. “And that’s the calculation they’ve made, it appears.”
McConnell is sending the Senate home rather than forcing impatient senators to bide their time while Democrats play hardball. That suggests a vote won’t come until late next week or even after.
White House negotiators made some concessions on jobless benefits and aid to state and local governments in a Tuesday session — and then promptly got scalded by Republicans after details leaked out.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--Marquita Bradshaw Scores Upset Victory In Tennessee Democratic Senate Primary

NASHVILLE , Tenn. ( AP ) — The race to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander in November will feature a matchup between a Republican candidate endorsed by President Donald Trump and a Black activist who pulled off an astonishing upset victory over the Democratic establishment ’ s choice — with a campaign war chest of less than $ 10,000 .
Former U.S .
Ambassador to Japan Bill Hagerty fended off a challenge from Nashville trauma surgeon Manny Sethi in Thursday ’ s Republican primary , while Marquita Bradshaw handily defeated Army helicopter pilot James Mackler , who raised more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee .
“ We didn ’ t raise a million dollars , but the dollars that we raised came from hard-working people in Tennessee and around this nation , ” Bradshaw told The Associated Press in an interview .
“ Some of them are housekeepers , some of them push carts from WalMart , some of them are scientists .
But they are people who want us to head on and deal with the issues.
” The 46-year-old community organizer from Memphis will have an uphill battle : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tennessee since 1994 , and Trump remains popular enough in the red state that Hagerty mentioned the president at every turn .
“ I have a very special person to thank .
I just got off the phone with him backstage .
That ’ s President Donald Trump , ” Hagerty said during a victory party Thursday , accompanied by Sens .
Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Tom Cotton of Arkansas .
“ You know , President Trump has had my back since before the beginning of all this.
” Bradshaw , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been “ one job away from middle class and one job-loss away from poverty.
” She said she was once under-employed , riddled with student loan debt and without adequate health insurance .
Then she experienced a foreclosure and bankruptcy .
With a platform that favors increasing the minimum wage to $ 15 per hour , adopting the Green New Deal , expanding Medicare and requiring universal background checks for gun purchases , she spent around $ 5,800 through March , the last time she reported any campaign finance activity , records show @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spent $ 9.6 million through mid-July .
“ The progressive movement is undeniable !
” Bradshaw tweeted after her victory .
“ Thank you all so much for your support and this victory .
It ’ s time to put hardworking people first .
Onward.
” Trump let Tennessee voters know he would back Hagerty for the seat , months before Hagerty declared himself a candidate .
Sethi had already been running for about a month when Trump ’ s tweet turned the contest upside down .
Hagerty proceeded to ignore Sethi for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attacks opened up a few weeks ago and never slowed down .
Hagerty leveraged Trump ’ s endorsement to brush back attacks on his previous business and political ties to Sen. Mitt Romney , the former GOP presidential nominee whom Hagerty now labels “ weak-kneed ” for voting to convict Trump during the president ’ s impeachment trial .
Hagerty had other major Republican endorsers , including Vice President Mike Pence , Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell , former U.N .
Ambassador Nikki Haley , Blackburn and Cotton , while others backed him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through his PAC and former Gov .
Bill Haslam , for whom Hagerty served as state economic development commissioner .
Bradshaw grew up in south Memphis and attended the University of Memphis .
She has worked with community advocacy groups , environmental organizations and unions , including the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center , the AFL-CIO , the Sierra Club and Tennesseans for Fair Taxation .
She has not held public office .

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The race to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander in November will feature a matchup between a Republican candidate endorsed by President Donald Trump and a Black activist who pulled off an astonishing upset victory over the Democratic establishment’s choice — with a campaign war chest of less than $10,000.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Bill Hagerty fended off a challenge from Nashville trauma surgeon Manny Sethi in Thursday’s Republican primary, while Marquita Bradshaw handily defeated Army helicopter pilot James Mackler, who raised more than $2.1 million and drew endorsements from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
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“We didn’t raise a million dollars, but the dollars that we raised came from hard-working people in Tennessee and around this nation,” Bradshaw told The Associated Press in an interview. “Some of them are housekeepers, some of them push carts from WalMart, some of them are scientists. But they are people who want us to head on and deal with the issues.”
The progressive movement is undeniable! Thank you all so much for your support and this victory. It’s time to put hardworking people first.
Onward. ✊🏾#Bradshaw2020 #MBforUS — Marquita Bradshaw (@Bradshaw2020) August 7, 2020
The 46-year-old community organizer from Memphis will have an uphill battle: Republicans have held both Senate seats in Tennessee since 1994, and Trump remains popular enough in the red state that Hagerty mentioned the president at every turn.
“I have a very special person to thank. I just got off the phone with him backstage. That’s President Donald Trump,” Hagerty said during a victory party Thursday, accompanied by Sens. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Tom Cotton of Arkansas. “You know, President Trump has had my back since before the beginning of all this.”
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Bradshaw, a single mother, has said she has been “one job away from middle class and one job-loss away from poverty.” She said she was once under-employed, riddled with student loan debt and without adequate health insurance. Then she experienced a foreclosure and bankruptcy.
With a platform that favors increasing the minimum wage to $15 per hour, adopting the Green New Deal, expanding Medicare and requiring universal background checks for gun purchases, she spent around $5,800 through March, the last time she reported any campaign finance activity, records show. Now she faces a candidate who spent $9.6 million through mid-July.
“The progressive movement is undeniable!” Bradshaw tweeted after her victory. “Thank you all so much for your support and this victory. It’s time to put hardworking people first. Onward.”
Hagerty, a 60-year-old Nashville businessman, emerged from a tough challenge from Sethi to clinch his party’s nomination. Hagerty and Sethi differed little on conservative sticking points on immigration, gun rights, abortion opposition and harsh rebukes for Black Lives Matter.
Trump let Tennessee voters know he would back Hagerty for the seat, months before Hagerty declared himself a candidate. Sethi had already been running for about a month when Trump’s tweet turned the contest upside down.
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Hagerty proceeded to ignore Sethi for most of the campaign, until back-and-forth attacks opened up a few weeks ago and never slowed down. Hagerty leveraged Trump’s endorsement to brush back attacks on his previous business and political ties to Sen. Mitt Romney, the former GOP presidential nominee whom Hagerty now labels “weak-kneed” for voting to convict Trump during the president’s impeachment trial.
Hagerty had other major Republican endorsers, including Vice President Mike Pence, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Blackburn and Cotton, while others backed him with campaign cash, including Sen. Alexander through his PAC and former Gov. Bill Haslam, for whom Hagerty served as state economic development commissioner.
Bradshaw grew up in south Memphis and attended the University of Memphis. She has worked with community advocacy groups, environmental organizations and unions, including the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center, the AFL-CIO, the Sierra Club and Tennesseans for Fair Taxation. She has not held public office.
Hagerty, who last month resigned from the board of a brokerage firm because the company expressed support for the Black Lives Matter movement, now faces a Black activist in November.
___
Sainz reported from Memphis, Tennessee.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Challenger Faces Legal Trouble

Melton-Meaux , his campaign and three companies that he paid for services violated the Federal Election Campaign Act by “ conspiring to intentionally obscure the individuals providing services ” to his campaign in clear contravention of the law ’ s disclosure requirements , the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party alleged in a complaint filed with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday .
But more than three-quarters of the money that Antone for Congress spent went to three anonymous shell companies apparently created to conceal the identities of other companies .
None of the shell companies was ever listed on FEC disclosures in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ public-facing internet presence describing its business .
Two of the shell companies were incorporated in Delaware , where many companies incorporate because of the state ’ s lax regulation , according to a July MinnPost report .
A third company ’ s origins are unknown , but it has a name similar to that of another Delaware shell company , according to a report by the investigative news site TMI .
At the time of the MinnPost report , Melton-Meaux ’ s campaign provided only the broadest possible information about the firms while @ @ @ @ @ @ @ histories with other candidates .
The campaign described the two firms uncovered by MinnPost — Lake Point Consulting and North Superior Consulting — as “ strategic communications firms that provide strategic counsel for the campaign.
” Those admissions are a critical part of the case against Melton-Meaux .
The FEC has traditionally required a campaign to knowingly conceal the recipients of its funds in order to be considered in violation of the law .
Campaign finance law is more accommodating to campaigns in cases where nondisclosure is incidental , as when a campaign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ subcontractor hired by a campaign vendor .
For example , more detailed disclosures would reveal whether a super PAC supporting Melton-Meaux ’ s bid is using any of the same vendors as the campaign and thus whether the campaign might be illegally coordinating with that super PAC .
( Super PACs are allowed to receive and spend unlimited sums from individuals or corporations so long as they do not coordinate directly with candidates . )
The public might also have an interest in knowing which other candidates and clients those vendors have worked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that ’ s particularly salient because Omar has made an issue of some of his donors ’ contributing to the reelection of President Donald Trump .
“ Transparency is a cornerstone of democracy and in campaign finance law .
Transparency provides voters with information they need to cast an informed vote , ” said Brendan Fischer , a campaign finance attorney for the Campaign Legal Center .
“ When candidates develop schemes to deprive voters of that information , they ’ re undermining the ability of voters to cast an informed ballot @ @

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Antone Melton-Meaux, the attorney challenging Rep. Ilhan Omar in Minnesota’s Democratic primary election Tuesday, stands accused of violating campaign finance law by failing to adequately disclose how he is spending his campaign funds.
Melton-Meaux, his campaign and three companies that he paid for services violated the Federal Election Campaign Act by “conspiring to intentionally obscure the individuals providing services” to his campaign in clear contravention of the law’s disclosure requirements, the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party alleged in a complaint filed with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday.
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The DFL, as Minnesota’s Democratic Party is known, endorsed Omar.
The Campaign Legal Center, a nonprofit campaign and elections watchdog, filed its own complaint with the FEC Friday against Melton-Meaux’s campaign, officially called Antone for Congress, on similar grounds.
In a statement, Melton-Meaux called the DFL’s complaint “frivolous and baseless.”
“This is a continuation of more divisiveness and distraction from my opponent, Rep. Ilhan Omar, who is clearly desperate to revive a failing campaign,” he said.
Antone Melton-Meaux maintains that it is legal for him to use shell companies to conceal the identities of his campaign vendors. He blames the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for forcing him into the situation. Antone for Congress
Melton-Meaux’s bind shines a light on the pitfalls of a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee policy barring party-approved vendors from working with candidates challenging House incumbents in primaries. Melton-Meaux’s vendors are hiding their identities using shell companies so they can circumvent a party blacklist.
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“Organizations and consulting firms are trying to preserve their professional careers and their livelihoods in spite of the onerous decision by the DCCC, and frankly, that is chilling and dangerous to the democratic process,” Melton-Meaux said. (He gave The Washington Post a virtually identical quote.)
The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 requires candidates for federal office to disclose each of their itemized expenses over $200.
But more than three-quarters of the money that Antone for Congress spent went to three anonymous shell companies apparently created to conceal the identities of other companies. None of the shell companies was ever listed on FEC disclosures in the past, and none has a public-facing internet presence describing its business.
Two of the shell companies were incorporated in Delaware, where many companies incorporate because of the state’s lax regulation, according to a July MinnPost report. A third company’s origins are unknown, but it has a name similar to that of another Delaware shell company, according to a report by the investigative news site TMI.
At the time of the MinnPost report, Melton-Meaux’s campaign provided only the broadest possible information about the firms while revealing nothing about their ownership structures or histories with other candidates. The campaign described the two firms uncovered by MinnPost — Lake Point Consulting and North Superior Consulting — as “strategic communications firms that provide strategic counsel for the campaign.”
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Melton-Meaux and his campaign subsequently admitted that they agreed to nondisclosure agreements with the vendors behind the shell companies specifically to help those companies evade the Democratic campaign committee’s blacklist.
The committee, which is House Democrats’ campaign arm, announced in March 2019 that it would not contract with ― or recommend to its candidates ― firms that work for candidates challenging sitting House Democrats.
“Transparency is a cornerstone of democracy and in campaign finance law. Transparency provides voters with information they need to cast an informed vote.” - Brendan Fischer, Campaign Legal Center
Those admissions are a critical part of the case against Melton-Meaux. The FEC has traditionally required a campaign to knowingly conceal the recipients of its funds in order to be considered in violation of the law. Campaign finance law is more accommodating to campaigns in cases where nondisclosure is incidental, as when a campaign does not disclose the identity of every subcontractor hired by a campaign vendor.
The Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party complaint cited a set of frequently asked questions that Antone for Congress included in an email to supporters in which the campaign explicitly stated that the nondisclosure agreements were meant to disguise companies that do business with the Democratic campaign committee.
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“The Antone for Congress campaign committee works with several vendors and registered LLCs for a variety of services who had to protect themselves from the DCCC,” the campaign wrote in its FAQ. “These expenditures and their reporting are legal and compliant with FEC rules.”
The party complaint pointed to the language as evidence of “the Respondents’ specific intent to avoid reporting requirements of the vendors actually providing services to Antone for Congress to ‘protect’ the three vendors” from the Democratic campaign committee.
Jerry Goldfeder, a New York City-based election attorney, said that the complaints against Melton-Meaux have legal merit.
“Disclosure requires honesty,” he said. “The public has a right to know who contributes to campaigns and how campaign monies are expended.”
The Melton-Meaux campaign provided a statement from its election attorney, Scott Thomas, a former FEC commissioner. Thomas maintains that the commission views privacy and business considerations of the kind held by vendors protecting their relationship with the Democratic campaign committee as legitimate reasons for the establishment of a limited liability corporation that conceals details about their identities.
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“The complaint by the DFL would be rejected by the FEC because it lacks merit,” Thomas said. “LLCs are recognized legal entities under the law that provide liability protections, protect separate personal assets of those who form them, and provide bank privacy and tax benefits as well.”
Regardless of how the FEC ultimately rules, there are many potential ways in which Melton-Meaux’s opaque campaign spending system could prevent the public from learning relevant information about his campaign.
For example, more detailed disclosures would reveal whether a super PAC supporting Melton-Meaux’s bid is using any of the same vendors as the campaign and thus whether the campaign might be illegally coordinating with that super PAC. (Super PACs are allowed to receive and spend unlimited sums from individuals or corporations so long as they do not coordinate directly with candidates.)
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) speaks at a news conference in St. Paul, Minnesota, Wednesday. Omar is locked in an unexpectedly competitive reelection fight. Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
The public might also have an interest in knowing which other candidates and clients those vendors have worked for. In Melton-Meaux’s case, that’s particularly salient because Omar has made an issue of some of his donors’ contributing to the reelection of President Donald Trump.
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“Transparency is a cornerstone of democracy and in campaign finance law. Transparency provides voters with information they need to cast an informed vote,” said Brendan Fischer, a campaign finance attorney for the Campaign Legal Center. “When candidates develop schemes to deprive voters of that information, they’re undermining the ability of voters to cast an informed ballot.”
Fischer likened Melton-Meaux’s conduct to similar alleged practices by Trump. The Campaign Legal Center filed a complaint against Trump in July accusing his reelection campaign of routing campaign spending through a handful of firms run by Trump cronies rather than listing the itemized expenditures to the firms with which the larger firms contracted.
But the complaint against Trump only accused the president of using the favored firms as pass-through entities for about 60% of his spending ― a lower proportion than that used by Melton-Meaux’s campaign, Fischer said.
“The Trump campaign ... set an awfully low bar, but Antone for Congress seems to have crossed it,” Fischer said. “In many ways, Antone for Congress is taking the Trump campaign’s secrecy scheme even further.”
Cole Leiter, a spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, deferred to election attorneys about how to handle the controversy over Melton-Meaux’s spending.
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“If Mr. Melton-Meaux is, in fact, intentionally using a shell company to hide his vendors as this complaint alleges he has done, this is a legal question first, not a political one,” Leiter said.
The attention that Melton-Meaux’s arrangement has drawn nonetheless increases scrutiny on the campaign committee’s policy of blacklisting vendors who work with primary challengers.
Progressives decried the blacklist from the moment it was announced, arguing that it constrained the rights of candidates from varied backgrounds to contest elections.
In response to that criticism, one of the committee’s justifications for the rule was that it would apply equally to more moderate Democrats challenging progressive incumbents.
But the ease with which Melton-Meaux skirted the rule is evidence of the policy’s failure, according to Karthik Ganapathy, a progressive campaign operative-turned-consultant who works with left-leaning primary challengers.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--Facebook Axes Fake Accounts Claiming To Represent Black Support For Trump

It also wiped out hundreds of fake accounts linked to the right-wing media operation The Epoch Times that peddled pro-Trump conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and anti-racism protests .
The fake African American accounts were pushed out by a troll farm in Romania onto Facebook and Instagram targeting the U.S. ahead of the presidential election .
The accounts used names like “ We Love Our President ” on Facebook , and “ BlackPeopleVoteForTrump ” on Instagram .
Facebook said the fake network ’ s posts featured U.S. news , including the upcoming election , the “ Trump campaign and support for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as well as support for conservative ideology , Christian beliefs and QAnon .
Facebook removed 35 Facebook accounts , three pages and 88 Instagram accounts in the crackdown , which the company said was part of its ongoing action against “ coordinated inauthentic behavior ” during the presidential campaign .
In a separate troll farm operation tied to pro-Trump media organization Epoch Media Group , Facebook eliminated 303 Facebook accounts , 181 pages , 44 Facebook groups and 31 Instagram accounts followed by more than 2 million people in largely English and Chinese-speaking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is the parent company of the newspaper The Epoch Times .
The accounts were tied to the digital media outlet TruthMedia , which has been banned from Facebook .
Stephen Gregory , the publisher of The Epoch Times ’ English-language editions , denied to NBC News that the company was associated with TruthMedia .
Facebook last year jettisoned nearly 700 fake accounts using deep-fake profile photos that pushed Epoch Times stories and issues .
The network had an international following of some 55 million people .
Facebook also banned The Epoch Times from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ under account names like “ Honest Paper ” to dodge Facebook ’ s ad review system .
At that time , The Epoch Times was the second-largest buyer of pro-Trump ads on Facebook , after the Trump campaign .
Separately , Facebook last month removed 54 Facebook accounts , 50 pages and four Instagram accounts in a probe of what Facebook said was an effort by the Proud Boys “ hate group ” to slip back into the social media platform after it was permanently banned .
Identifying those accounts got a boost @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the investigation into Russian interference into the U.S. election by former special counsel Robert Mueller , Facebook noted .
The warrants were released in response to a joint petition by several media outlets .
Trump weeks ago commuted Stone ’ s 40-month prison sentence for lying to Congress and witness tampering , among other crimes , linked to the investigation into the Trump campaign and Russian interference in the U.S. presidential election .

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It also wiped out hundreds of fake accounts linked to the right-wing media operation The Epoch Times that peddled pro-Trump conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and anti-racism protests.
Advertisement
The fake African American accounts were pushed out by a troll farm in Romania onto Facebook and Instagram targeting the U.S. ahead of the presidential election. The accounts used names like “We Love Our President” on Facebook, and “BlackPeopleVoteForTrump” on Instagram.
Facebook said the fake network’s posts featured U.S. news, including the upcoming election, the “Trump campaign and support for the campaign by African Americans,” as well as support for conservative ideology, Christian beliefs and QAnon.
Facebook removed 35 Facebook accounts, three pages and 88 Instagram accounts in the crackdown, which the company said was part of its ongoing action against “coordinated inauthentic behavior” during the presidential campaign.
In a separate troll farm operation tied to pro-Trump media organization Epoch Media Group, Facebook eliminated 303 Facebook accounts, 181 pages, 44 Facebook groups and 31 Instagram accounts followed by more than 2 million people in largely English and Chinese-speaking countries and Vietnam.
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Epoch Media Group is the parent company of the newspaper The Epoch Times. The accounts were tied to the digital media outlet TruthMedia, which has been banned from Facebook.
Stephen Gregory, the publisher of The Epoch Times’ English-language editions, denied to NBC News that the company was associated with TruthMedia.
Facebook last year jettisoned nearly 700 fake accounts using deep-fake profile photos that pushed Epoch Times stories and issues. The network had an international following of some 55 million people.
Facebook also banned The Epoch Times from advertising last year after it purchased space under account names like “Honest Paper” to dodge Facebook’s ad review system. At that time, The Epoch Times was the second-largest buyer of pro-Trump ads on Facebook, after the Trump campaign.
Separately, Facebook last month removed 54 Facebook accounts, 50 pages and four Instagram accounts in a probe of what Facebook said was an effort by the Proud Boys “hate group” to slip back into the social media platform after it was permanently banned.
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Facebook linked the network to the felon and longtime Trump confidant Roger Stone and his “associates.”
Identifying those accounts got a boost from the release of search warrants linked to the investigation into Russian interference into the U.S. election by former special counsel Robert Mueller, Facebook noted. The warrants were released in response to a joint petition by several media outlets.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--Oprah Winfrey Demands Justice For Breonna Taylor With 26 Kentucky Billboards

At that protest , police reported that 87 demonstrators were arrested and charged with a felony for trying to “ @ @ @ @ @ refusing to leave .
In response , Cameron said after the arrests that the protest @ @ @ @ @ division and tension within our community.
” “ From the beginning , our office has @ @ @ @ @ job , to fully investigate the events surrounding the death of Ms. Breonna Taylor , @ @ @ @ @ We continue with a thorough and fair investigation , and today ’ s events will @ @ @ @ @ the truth.
” Winfrey ’ s billboards follow her decision to feature Taylor on the @ @ @ @ @ of O magazine ― marking the first time in over two decades Winfrey herself didn @ @ @ @ @ cover .

At that protest, police reported that 87 demonstrators were arrested and charged with a felony for trying to “intimidate” the prosecutor after refusing to leave. In response, Cameron said after the arrests that the protest “only serves to further division and tension within our community.”
“From the beginning, our office has set out to do its job, to fully investigate the events surrounding the death of Ms. Breonna Taylor,” he said. “We continue with a thorough and fair investigation, and today’s events will not alter our pursuit of the truth.”
Winfrey’s billboards follow her decision to feature Taylor on the cover of the September issue of O magazine ― marking the first time in over two decades Winfrey herself didn’t appear on the cover.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--MSNBC Supercut Shows How Every Trump Line Of Attack On Biden Can Backfire

MSNBC ’ s “ Morning Joe ” on Friday exposed the hypocrisy of many of President Donald Trump ’ s @ @ @ @ @ Democratic nominee Joe Biden .
Co-host Joe Scarborough used a series of montages to show @ @ @ @ @ ’ t take Biden on , on so many issues , because it always opens @ @ @ @ @ a more severe counterattack.
” Each supercut began with Trump making accusations about Biden on @ @ @ @ @ , China and cognitive ability .
They then cut to the president ’ s own @ @ @ @ @ were not unlike what he was charging Biden with .
Check out the full video @ @ @ @ @ happening now .
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MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Friday exposed the hypocrisy of many of President Donald Trump’s lines of attack on presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
Co-host Joe Scarborough used a series of montages to show why the president “can’t take Biden on, on so many issues, because it always opens Donald Trump himself up to a more severe counterattack.”
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Each supercut began with Trump making accusations about Biden on issues including race, religion, China and cognitive ability.
They then cut to the president’s own comments which, often, were not unlike what he was charging Biden with.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--More Immigrants Have Died In ICE Custody This Year Than Every Year Since 2006

Two immigrants died in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement this week , bringing the death toll so far this year to 17 ― the highest since 2006 .
51-year-old Kuan Hui Lee died Wednesday of “ massive intercranial hemorrhage ” at the Kendall Regional Medical Center in Miami , a week after officers at ICE ’ s Krome Processing Center found him unresponsive , the agency said .
Lee , originally from Taiwan , had been in ICE custody for more than six months , according to the press release .
U.S. Border Patrol officers arrested him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ visa , which expired in 2004 , ICE said .
The spokesperson declined to specify a cause of death , though noted in an emailed release that Hill had tested positive for COVID-19 .
Hill was hospitalized on July 10 after reporting shortness of breath .
At least three migrants are confirmed to have died from COVID-19 while in ICE custody , not counting the suspected coronavirus death of Hill on Wednesday .
Farmville has 290 confirmed COVID-19 cases , the second-highest of all ICE facilities .
There are currently 917 confirmed positive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that ’ s almost assuredly an undercount .
Emails obtained by The Los Angeles Times last month show ICE has deliberately limited COVID-19 testing in at least one California facility .
Staff there feared it would be too difficult to quarantine those who tested positive , so they pushed back on carrying out the tests .
“ ICE disregards the safety and wellbeing of people in its custody resulting in deadly consequences , ” said Silky Shah , executive director of Detention Watch Network , in an emailed statement to HuffPost .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ detention amid the rising rates of COVID-19 infection , ICE has done nothing — ICE is complicit in this loss of life .
Now , more than ever , we see the importance of ending this arbitrary and inhumane system of detention.
” COVID-19 has compounded problems with ICE ’ s approach to medical care , which in general is “ indifferent at best , ” a 2019 Politico report found , beginning with inadequate records management .
The report , which reviewed immigrant deaths in ICE custody from 2013 through 2018 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in use of technology , such as failure to properly document patient care or scribbling documentation in the margins of forms.
” Together , the 2020 deaths are more than double the total from 2019 for the U.S. government ’ s fiscal year ending Sept. 30 .
Eight people died while in immigrant detention last year , according to data tracked by the Cato Institute , a libertarian think tank .

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Two immigrants died in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement this week, bringing the death toll so far this year to 17 ― the highest since 2006.
51-year-old Kuan Hui Lee died Wednesday of “massive intercranial hemorrhage” at the Kendall Regional Medical Center in Miami, a week after officers at ICE’s Krome Processing Center found him unresponsive, the agency said.
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Lee, originally from Taiwan, had been in ICE custody for more than six months, according to the press release. U.S. Border Patrol officers arrested him on Jan. 23 for overstaying his temporary visa, which expired in 2004, ICE said.
Separately Wednesday, James Thomas Hill, a 72-year-old Canadian at the Farmville Detention Center in Virginia, also died, an ICE spokesperson confirmed to HuffPost.
The spokesperson declined to specify a cause of death, though noted in an emailed release that Hill had tested positive for COVID-19. Hill was hospitalized on July 10 after reporting shortness of breath.
At least three migrants are confirmed to have died from COVID-19 while in ICE custody, not counting the suspected coronavirus death of Hill on Wednesday.
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A detainee walks past boxes to file medical grievances during a 2019 media tour of an ICE detention center in Tacoma, Washington. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Farmville has 290 confirmed COVID-19 cases, the second-highest of all ICE facilities. There are currently 917 confirmed positive cases in the system overall ― and that’s almost assuredly an undercount.
Emails obtained by The Los Angeles Times last month show ICE has deliberately limited COVID-19 testing in at least one California facility. Staff there feared it would be too difficult to quarantine those who tested positive, so they pushed back on carrying out the tests.
“ICE disregards the safety and wellbeing of people in its custody resulting in deadly consequences,” said Silky Shah, executive director of Detention Watch Network, in an emailed statement to HuffPost. “Despite countless calls to free people from detention amid the rising rates of COVID-19 infection, ICE has done nothing — ICE is complicit in this loss of life. Now, more than ever, we see the importance of ending this arbitrary and inhumane system of detention.”
COVID-19 has compounded problems with ICE’s approach to medical care, which in general is “indifferent at best,” a 2019 Politico report found, beginning with inadequate records management.
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The report, which reviewed immigrant deaths in ICE custody from 2013 through 2018, “revealed malfunctioning software and troubling gaps in use of technology, such as failure to properly document patient care or scribbling documentation in the margins of forms.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--Trump Can't Stop Defamation Suit By His Rape Accuser, State Justice Rules

President Donald Trump doesn ’ t have the grounds to stop a defamation lawsuit filed by a woman who accused him of raping her , a New York state justice ruled Thursday .
That decision is a big win for E. Jean Carroll , a magazine columnist who wrote last year that Trump raped her in a New York department store in the mid-1990s .
Last November , she sued the president for defamation after he accused her of lying about the incident and sought to collect a DNA sample from him .
Trump ’ s legal team asked the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ case on hold and argued that a sitting president is immune to any civil lawsuits in state court .
But state Justice Verna Saunders rejected that argument , citing a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that Trump couldn ’ t refuse a subpoena for his tax returns on the basis of holding presidential office .
That finding is “ applicable to all state court proceedings in which a sitting President is involved , including those involving his or her unofficial/personal conduct , ” Saunders wrote in her decision .
Carroll tweeted that she was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which will also allow her to continue seeking Trump ’ s DNA .
She says that she kept the dress she had on when Trump allegedly raped her and that genetic material a lab found on the dress may match his .
Carroll ’ s attorney , Roberta Kaplan , said she looks forward to proceeding with the lawsuit , which can now play out in the final months of Trump ’ s reelection campaign .
“ We are now eager to move forward with discovery so that we can prove that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he lied about her in connection with her brave decision to tell the truth about the fact that Donald Trump had sexually assaulted her , ” she said in a statement .
After Carroll published her allegations in a memoir last summer , Trump aggressively denied having ever met her , despite a photo of the two of them existing .
He has repeatedly accused her of lying and suggested she was working as an agent for the Democratic Party to sabotage his reelection bid — a suggestion Carroll has denied .
Carroll @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a columnist for many years , fired her after Trump began attacking her .
The magazine denied the two events were connected .
At least two dozen women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct .
He has denied all allegations .

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President Donald Trump doesn’t have the grounds to stop a defamation lawsuit filed by a woman who accused him of raping her, a New York state justice ruled Thursday.
That decision is a big win for E. Jean Carroll, a magazine columnist who wrote last year that Trump raped her in a New York department store in the mid-1990s. Last November, she sued the president for defamation after he accused her of lying about the incident and sought to collect a DNA sample from him.
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Trump’s legal team asked the New York Supreme Court to put the case on hold and argued that a sitting president is immune to any civil lawsuits in state court. But state Justice Verna Saunders rejected that argument, citing a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that Trump couldn’t refuse a subpoena for his tax returns on the basis of holding presidential office.
That finding is “applicable to all state court proceedings in which a sitting President is involved, including those involving his or her unofficial/personal conduct,” Saunders wrote in her decision.
Carroll tweeted that she was excited to move forward with her case, which will also allow her to continue seeking Trump’s DNA. She says that she kept the dress she had on when Trump allegedly raped her and that genetic material a lab found on the dress may match his.
WE MOVE FORWARD!! Judge Verna L. Saunders has DENIED Trump's assertion of absolute immunity! My attorneys, @kaplanrobbie, @JoshuaMatz8 & Matthew Craig are chomping at the bit to begin DISCOVERY!
(This is the 2nd great ruling by a Black Woman today!)https://t.co/6yrP9BKBs2 — E. Jean Carroll (@ejeancarroll) August 6, 2020
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Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, said she looks forward to proceeding with the lawsuit, which can now play out in the final months of Trump’s reelection campaign.
“We are now eager to move forward with discovery so that we can prove that Donald Trump defamed E. Jean Carroll when he lied about her in connection with her brave decision to tell the truth about the fact that Donald Trump had sexually assaulted her,” she said in a statement.
After Carroll published her allegations in a memoir last summer, Trump aggressively denied having ever met her, despite the existence of a photo of the two of them together. He has repeatedly accused her of lying and suggested she was working as an agent for the Democratic Party to sabotage his reelection bid — a suggestion Carroll has denied.
Carroll said Elle Magazine, where she worked as a columnist for many years, fired her after Trump began attacking her. The magazine denied the two events were connected.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--Trump Is Ramping Up His Absurd Claims That He Is Anti-War

The ads , which are running on Facebook , are part of a broader effort by Trump and his allies to credit him with getting the U.S. out of unpopular military interventions abroad , as well as to collect contact information they can use to encourage potential supporters to vote and donate .
And after decades of bellicose rhetoric from much of the right , they show how some Republicans now believe the smarter political move is to fight on anti-war terrain .
“ Thanks to President Trump ’ s leadership , his administration has taken out two of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ successfully decimated [ the Islamic State ] , and has been committed to getting the United States OUT of Endless Wars , ” reads a message the Trump campaign began promoting on Facebook on July 30 .
The late “ top terrorist leaders ” likely refers to Islamic State head Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani .
The same text is used as a caption for various images , some of which include 1960s-style psychedelic graphics , peace signs and slogans like “ Peace Not War ” and “ Support Peace.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ label him “ the negotiator of peace ” and say he “ stopped America from getting into endless wars.
” The ads are being shown in multiple states , according to Facebook , including Texas and three crucial to Trump ’ s reelection bid ― Florida , Pennsylvania and Ohio .
Concerned Veterans for America , a group funded by the right-wing Koch network , is simultaneously running Facebook ads calling for the U.S. to withdraw from Afghanistan , which feature images and an audio recording of then-President Barack Obama talking about past @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an $ 800,000 digital and mail campaign in support of that objective , said Dan Caldwell , a senior adviser to the group .
Earlier this year , they ran a $ 1.5 million three-month television and digital campaign in Michigan , Wisconsin , Pennsylvania and Washington , D.C. , to boost the idea of Afghanistan withdrawal .
The messages come as Trump is personally selling himself as opposed to war and speaking more about the situation in Afghanistan .
“ I ’ ve done things that no other president has done .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Middle East , ” he told Axios in an interview filmed July 28 and released Aug. 3 .
The U.S. is currently scheduled to pull out entirely by the middle of next year , according to a deal Washington signed in February with the Taliban , the dominant rebel Afghan militia .
But the step-by-step drawdown envisioned in that plan is supposed to depend on the Taliban abiding by conditions like cutting ties with al Qaeda , which American officials say has not happened , and refraining from attacks on U.S.-aligned Afghans and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The U.S. has repeatedly bombed the Taliban in response to such attacks since the February agreement , though it will not publicly acknowledge the strikes , The New York Times reported .
The Pentagon declined to tell reporters this week whether plans are in motion to change troop levels .
Trump has tried to present himself as a dove on foreign policy throughout his recent political career , falsely saying during his run for the presidency that he had opposed the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq and thereby suggesting that he was different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s traditionally assertive posture abroad , including leaders in his own historically hawkish Republican Party .
In truth , the president has given the military more flexibility to launch strikes in Afghanistan , Somalia , Iraq and Syria , which have killed historic numbers of civilians .
He has suggested that he could end the Afghan war by brutally killing millions of people , undermined accountability for war crimes by pardoning former soldiers , and blocked efforts to end American policies like support for a brutal Saudi-led intervention in Yemen .
Trump ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an object lesson in how encouraging world peace requires more than reductions in troop deployments .
By squeezing Iran while rejecting international diplomacy around its nuclear program , he has repeatedly risked dramatic conflicts between Washington and Tehran , most recently after the U.S. assassination of Soleimani .
In condemning global human rights standards and U.S. commitments to international partners , he has made it easier for repressive leaders like Turkey ’ s Recep Tayyip Erdogan and China ’ s Xi Jinping to crack down on marginalized communities ― respectively , the Syrian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the Uighur Muslims who have been corralled into internment camps .
And in explicitly tying American military support to financial payments ― pulling soldiers from Germany based on his false claim that Berlin owes money to the NATO military alliance and justifying a military alliance with the Saudis by citing their planned purchases of weapons ― Trump has propagated a vision not of a peaceful world but of one in which the most powerful army is for sale .
The combination in the U.S. of public frustration with the long-running wars in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about global affairs enables Trump to obscure and misrepresent his record to voters ― and to appear to be addressing concerns that are most frequently raised by progressives who oppose him .
Liberals have responded in different , sometimes conflicting ways , with some like Sen. Bernie Sanders ( I-Vt. ) saying Trump too often risks wars while more moderate Democrats have repeatedly aligned with some Republicans to describe him as insufficiently forceful abroad .

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President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign is running online ads claiming that he’s getting America “OUT of Endless Wars” and “will NEVER stop fighting to restore peace around the world” ― a dubious statement from a president who has deployed the largest non-nuclear bomb ever and overseen a dramatic increase in U.S. military strikes killing civilians abroad.
The ads, which are running on Facebook, are part of a broader effort by Trump and his allies to credit him with getting the U.S. out of unpopular military interventions abroad, as well as to collect contact information they can use to encourage potential supporters to vote and donate. And after decades of bellicose rhetoric from much of the right, they show how some Republicans now believe the smarter political move is to fight on anti-war terrain.
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“Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, his administration has taken out two of the world’s top terrorist leaders, successfully decimated [the Islamic State], and has been committed to getting the United States OUT of Endless Wars,” reads a message the Trump campaign began promoting on Facebook on July 30. The late “top terrorist leaders” likely refers to Islamic State head Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani.
“President Trump will NEVER stop fighting to restore peace around the world, and now he needs to know he has your support!” the ad continues. “Sign NOW to show your support for the end of ENDLESS WARS!”
The same text is used as a caption for various images, some of which include 1960s-style psychedelic graphics, peace signs and slogans like “Peace Not War” and “Support Peace.” Other graphics with photos of Trump label him “the negotiator of peace” and say he “stopped America from getting into endless wars.” The ads are being shown in multiple states, according to Facebook, including Texas and three crucial to Trump’s reelection bid ― Florida, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
Trump ads currently running on Facebook. They do not mention his use of the so-called "Mother of All Bombs." HuffPost US
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Concerned Veterans for America, a group funded by the right-wing Koch network, is simultaneously running Facebook ads calling for the U.S. to withdraw from Afghanistan, which feature images and an audio recording of then-President Barack Obama talking about past troop surges. The organization is pushing an $800,000 digital and mail campaign in support of that objective, said Dan Caldwell, a senior adviser to the group. Earlier this year, they ran a $1.5 million three-month television and digital campaign in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C., to boost the idea of Afghanistan withdrawal.
The messages come as Trump is personally selling himself as opposed to war and speaking more about the situation in Afghanistan. “I’ve done things that no other president has done. We should never have been in the Middle East,” he told Axios in an interview filmed July 28 and released Aug. 3.
To back up his pitch, Trump is pressuring military officials to withdraw more forces from Afghanistan, where the U.S. military has been deployed for nearly 20 years to fight insurgent forces aligned with al Qaeda after it carried out the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Trump told Axios that he wants to reduce the number of U.S. troops to 4,000, down from 8,500.
The U.S. is currently scheduled to pull out entirely by the middle of next year, according to a deal Washington signed in February with the Taliban, the dominant rebel Afghan militia. But the step-by-step drawdown envisioned in that plan is supposed to depend on the Taliban abiding by conditions like cutting ties with al Qaeda, which American officials say has not happened, and refraining from attacks on U.S.-aligned Afghans and other partner forces in the country.
The U.S. has repeatedly bombed the Taliban in response to such attacks since the February agreement, though it will not publicly acknowledge the strikes, The New York Times reported. The Pentagon declined to tell reporters this week whether plans are in motion to change troop levels.
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Trump campaign ads currently running on Facebook. HuffPost US
Trump has tried to present himself as a dove on foreign policy throughout his recent political career, falsely saying during his run for the presidency that he had opposed the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq and thereby suggesting that he was different from other politicians associated with America’s traditionally assertive posture abroad, including leaders in his own historically hawkish Republican Party.
In truth, the president has given the military more flexibility to launch strikes in Afghanistan, Somalia, Iraq and Syria, which have killed historic numbers of civilians. He has suggested that he could end the Afghan war by brutally killing millions of people, undermined accountability for war crimes by pardoning former soldiers, and blocked efforts to end American policies like support for a brutal Saudi-led intervention in Yemen.
Trump’s approach to global affairs has been an object lesson in how encouraging world peace requires more than reductions in troop deployments. By squeezing Iran while rejecting international diplomacy around its nuclear program, he has repeatedly risked dramatic conflicts between Washington and Tehran, most recently after the U.S. assassination of Soleimani. In condemning global human rights standards and U.S. commitments to international partners, he has made it easier for repressive leaders like Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan and China’s Xi Jinping to crack down on marginalized communities ― respectively, the Syrian Kurds who helped the U.S. fight ISIS and the Uighur Muslims who have been corralled into internment camps.
And in explicitly tying American military support to financial payments ― pulling soldiers from Germany based on his false claim that Berlin owes money to the NATO military alliance and justifying a military alliance with the Saudis by citing their planned purchases of weapons ― Trump has propagated a vision not of a peaceful world but of one in which the most powerful army is for sale.
Advertisement
The combination in the U.S. of public frustration with the long-running wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and low general awareness about global affairs enables Trump to obscure and misrepresent his record to voters ― and to appear to be addressing concerns that are most frequently raised by progressives who oppose him. Liberals have responded in different, sometimes conflicting ways, with some like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) saying Trump too often risks wars while more moderate Democrats have repeatedly aligned with some Republicans to describe him as insufficiently forceful abroad.
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has also pledged to end the “forever” war in Afghanistan and to bring home the “vast majority” of U.S. troops there.
Trump’s political team appears freshly convinced that presenting him as opposed to military interventions helps him with voters, said Caldwell, whose group is not permitted to coordinate with the Trump campaign and wants withdrawal from Afghanistan whether Trump or Biden wins in November.
“I have no insight into what the Trump campaign is seeing on their end,” Caldwell said, “but it wouldn’t surprise me if their polling and the response they’re getting online around this issue is just as positive as the response we’ve been getting.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--US Adds 1.8 million Jobs In A Sign Hiring Has Slowed

With confirmed viral cases still elevated in much of the nation and businesses under continued pressure , many employers appear reluctant or unable to hire .
Even counting the hiring of the past three months , the economy has now recovered only about 42 % of the 22 million jobs it lost to the pandemic-induced recession , according to the Labor Department ’ s jobs report released Friday .
The acceleration of the viral outbreak that began in late June more than doubled the daily U.S. confirmed case count by mid-July , though the rate of new reported cases has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many states and cities to close bars and other businesses for a second time and have dampened confidence , causing many consumers to continue limiting their shopping , traveling , eating out and gathering in crowds .
The economy is struggling to emerge from the devastating recession that caused the economy to shrink at a nearly 33 % annual rate in the April-June quarter , the worst quarterly fall on record .
Employers slashed their work forces , consumers cut spending and corporations pulled back on investment and expansion .
The economy has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many economists have forecast a solid rebound in the July-September quarter , though not nearly enough to offset the second quarter ’ s dizzying fall .
Economists have forecast that employers added 1.6 million jobs , according to a survey by data provider FactSet .
That would normally be a scintillating gain .
Yet it would still fall far short of June 's 4.8 million increase and May 's 2.7 million gain .
And it would mean that the economy has regained only about 40 % of the jobs that were lost when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a deep recession and tens of millions of layoffs .
Some economists say Friday 's report could even show that the nation lost jobs in July .
Others expect the gain to be much larger .
The pandemic has so disrupted the economy that the range of predictions by experts has become much wider — and less accurate — than it typically was before .
Growth rebounded in May and June .
But the viral outbreak re-intensified in late June , doubling the nation 's daily confirmed case count to more than 60,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recent weeks .
Yet the new outbreaks have forced most states to pause or reverse their re-openings — closing bars , discouraging travel and limiting shopping and indoor dining for a second time , all of which has likely slowed hiring .
Even when the economy does rebound , it 's likely to do so , at least initially , with fewer jobs .
Once an economy starts to recover , companies typically try to derive as much production from their existing employees as they can before taking the risk of hiring more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reported in two surveys this week that both manufacturing and service sector companies expanded output and sales faster in July than in June .
Even so , companies in both surveys reported that they were still cutting jobs .
Some other recent data points to a weak month for hiring .
The Census Bureau has found in weekly experimental surveys that the number of people with jobs fell 6.7 million in July , which points to a huge drop in the official figures .
In June , the same set of surveys had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ close to the government 's official figure .
The Census report is n't adjusted for seasonal trends , though , and many schools typically cut jobs in the summer , which has led economists to say that the Census figures might be exaggerating the losses .
Some reports suggest that businesses still added workers in July , albeit at a slower pace .
Kronos , a company that makes work management software for small companies , said the number of shifts worked at its clients rose just 1 % in July , indicating @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being recalled .
But that 's much smaller than the total gain of 32 % in the previous 11 weeks combined .
Two bright spots for the economy , though , have been housing and auto sales .
Ultra-low interest rates , produced in part by the Federal Reserve 's ultra-low interest rates , fueled sharp increases in sales of new and existing homes in June .
Lower interest rates have also boosted auto sales , though both home and auto sales remain below pre-pandemic levels .

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States added 1.8 million jobs in July, a pullback from the gains of May and June and evidence that the resurgent coronavirus is stalling hiring and slowing an economic rebound.
With confirmed viral cases still elevated in much of the nation and businesses under continued pressure, many employers appear reluctant or unable to hire. Even counting the hiring of the past three months, the economy has now recovered only about 42% of the 22 million jobs it lost to the pandemic-induced recession, according to the Labor Department’s jobs report released Friday.
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The unemployment rate did decline in July from 11.1% to 10.2%, though that still exceeds the highest rate during the 2008-2009 Great Recession.
The acceleration of the viral outbreak that began in late June more than doubled the daily U.S. confirmed case count by mid-July, though the rate of new reported cases has since declined. The outbreaks have led many states and cities to close bars and other businesses for a second time and have dampened confidence, causing many consumers to continue limiting their shopping, traveling, eating out and gathering in crowds.
July’s job gain was much lower than June’s 4.8 million and May’s 2.7 million jobs, both of which were revised slightly.
The economy is struggling to emerge from the devastating recession that caused the economy to shrink at a nearly 33% annual rate in the April-June quarter, the worst quarterly fall on record. Employers slashed their work forces, consumers cut spending and corporations pulled back on investment and expansion.
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The economy has since started to grow again, and many economists have forecast a solid rebound in the July-September quarter, though not nearly enough to offset the second quarter’s dizzying fall.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story is below:
Just how severely has the resurgence of the coronavirus pummeled the U.S. economy? The jobs report for July being released Friday will provide the clearest answer yet.
Economists have forecast that employers added 1.6 million jobs, according to a survey by data provider FactSet. That would normally be a scintillating gain. Yet it would still fall far short of June's 4.8 million increase and May's 2.7 million gain. And it would mean that the economy has regained only about 40% of the jobs that were lost when the pandemic intensified in March and triggered a deep recession and tens of millions of layoffs.
The unemployment rate is expected to have declined from 11.1% to 10.5%, which would still exceed the highest rate during the 2008-2009 Great Recession.
Some economists say Friday's report could even show that the nation lost jobs in July. Others expect the gain to be much larger. The pandemic has so disrupted the economy that the range of predictions by experts has become much wider — and less accurate — than it typically was before.
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The economy cratered in the April-June quarter, shrinking at a nearly 33% annual rate, as the viral outbreak shut down businesses and consumers pulled back sharply on dining out, traveling and shopping.
Growth rebounded in May and June. But the viral outbreak re-intensified in late June, doubling the nation's daily confirmed case count to more than 60,000. Case counts have declined somewhat in recent weeks. Yet the new outbreaks have forced most states to pause or reverse their re-openings — closing bars, discouraging travel and limiting shopping and indoor dining for a second time, all of which has likely slowed hiring.
Even when the economy does rebound, it's likely to do so, at least initially, with fewer jobs. Once an economy starts to recover, companies typically try to derive as much production from their existing employees as they can before taking the risk of hiring more people.
The Institute for Supply Management reported in two surveys this week that both manufacturing and service sector companies expanded output and sales faster in July than in June. Even so, companies in both surveys reported that they were still cutting jobs.
Some other recent data points to a weak month for hiring. The Census Bureau has found in weekly experimental surveys that the number of people with jobs fell 6.7 million in July, which points to a huge drop in the official figures. In June, the same set of surveys had shown a gain of 5.5 million, close to the government's official figure.
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The Census report isn't adjusted for seasonal trends, though, and many schools typically cut jobs in the summer, which has led economists to say that the Census figures might be exaggerating the losses.
Some reports suggest that businesses still added workers in July, albeit at a slower pace. Kronos, a company that makes work management software for small companies, said the number of shifts worked at its clients rose just 1% in July, indicating that some previously laid-off workers are still being recalled. But that's much smaller than the total gain of 32% in the previous 11 weeks combined.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--About A Fourth Of Americans Think Trump Has Kept His Campaign Promises

Just 26 % of Americans say Trump has lived up to most of his campaign promises , with an additional 16 % expecting him to do so in the future .
The plurality , 42 % , say he ’ s unlikely to do so .
More than three years ago , as Trump marked his 100th day in office , 9 % believed he had already achieved his campaign promises , 31 % that he would and 44 % that he was unlikely to fulfill them .
In polling since , the share expecting Trump to fail has remained @ @ @ @ @ @ @ along political lines , although the president ’ s opponents are more universal in their negativity than his backers are in their support .
Sixty percent of voters who supported Trump in 2016 say he ’ s already lived up to most of his goals , 22 % that he ’ s likely to and just 11 % that he ’ s unlikely to do so .
An 83 % majority of voters who backed Hillary Clinton in the last election say Trump is unlikely to live up to his promises .
Americans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that Trump ’ s policy positions as president are largely similar to the ones he espoused as a candidate .
Most stand by their choices from 2016 : Only 3 % of Clinton voters and a slightly higher 7 % of Trump voters say they regret their votes in that election .
A more substantial minority of nonvoters , 22 % , say they regret not having cast a ballot .
Just 6 % of Americans say they believe Trump has succeeded in “ draining the swamp , ” with a quarter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that in office and 49 % that he ’ s unlikely to do so .
Seventeen percent believe he ’ s succeeded in making America great again , with 24 % expecting him to do this and 47 % saying he ’ s unlikely to do so .
By contrast , half or more say Trump has accomplished or will accomplish naming a new Supreme Court justice , temporarily banning refugees from some Muslim-majority counties and renegotiating trade deals with other countries .
Asked which three of the listed campaign promises they most @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 38 % of Americans pick bringing manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. , with 26 % naming “ draining the swamp ” and 20 % choosing Trump ’ s vow to make America great again .
Fewer than 1 in 5 selected any of the other options , including the president ’ s promise to build a wall on the southern border and make Mexico pay for it , or to repeal President Barack Obama ’ s health care law .
Notably , the emphasis of Trump ’ s supporters has shifted .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the president ’ s list of campaign promises include “ draining the swamp ” ( 53 % ) and restoring manufacturing jobs ( 51 % ) .
Only 27 % now list building a wall on the Mexican border as among the three promises of the highest importance to them , down from 39 % in 2018 , when it was one of the promises his voters most wanted to see kept .
Similarly , just 22 % now cite repealing the Affordable Care Act as among Trump ’ s most important @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a 2017 poll taken before the Republican Party largely abandoned the idea .
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 .
Click here for a more detailed explanation of the model-based margin of @ @

President Donald Trump arrives to deliver remarks after touring a Whirlpool manufacturing plant in Clyde, Ohio, on Thursday. JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images
With months left until President Donald Trump faces reelection, only about one-quarter of Americans say he has lived up to most of his campaign promises, a new HuffPost/YouGov survey finds.
Just 26% of Americans say Trump has lived up to most of his campaign promises, with an additional 16% expecting him to do so in the future. The plurality, 42%, say he’s unlikely to do so.
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More than three years ago, as Trump marked his 100th day in office, 9% believed he had already achieved his campaign promises, 31% that he would and 44% that he was unlikely to fulfill them. In polling since, the share expecting Trump to fail has remained relatively steady.
Ariel Edwards-Levy/HuffPost
Results remain sharply divided along political lines, although the president’s opponents are more universal in their negativity than his backers are in their support. Sixty percent of voters who supported Trump in 2016 say he’s already lived up to most of his goals, 22% that he’s likely to and just 11% that he’s unlikely to do so. An 83% majority of voters who backed Hillary Clinton in the last election say Trump is unlikely to live up to his promises.
Americans say, 48% to 30%, that Trump’s policy positions as president are largely similar to the ones he espoused as a candidate. Most stand by their choices from 2016: Only 3% of Clinton voters and a slightly higher 7% of Trump voters say they regret their votes in that election. A more substantial minority of nonvoters, 22%, say they regret not having cast a ballot.
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Just 6% of Americans say they believe Trump has succeeded in “draining the swamp,” with a quarter saying he’s likely to accomplish that in office and 49% that he’s unlikely to do so. Seventeen percent believe he’s succeeded in making America great again, with 24% expecting him to do this and 47% saying he’s unlikely to do so. By contrast, half or more say Trump has accomplished or will accomplish naming a new Supreme Court justice, temporarily banning refugees from some Muslim-majority counties and renegotiating trade deals with other countries.
Asked which three of the listed campaign promises they most want to see the president keep, 38% of Americans pick bringing manufacturing jobs back to the U.S., with 26% naming “draining the swamp” and 20% choosing Trump’s vow to make America great again. Fewer than 1 in 5 selected any of the other options, including the president’s promise to build a wall on the southern border and make Mexico pay for it, or to repeal President Barack Obama’s health care law.
Notably, the emphasis of Trump’s supporters has shifted. Most Trump voters now say their priorities from the president’s list of campaign promises include “draining the swamp” (53%) and restoring manufacturing jobs (51%). Only 27% now list building a wall on the Mexican border as among the three promises of the highest importance to them, down from 39% in 2018, when it was one of the promises his voters most wanted to see kept. Similarly, just 22% now cite repealing the Affordable Care Act as among Trump’s most important campaign promises, down from 44% in a 2017 poll taken before the Republican Party largely abandoned the idea.
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.
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The HuffPost/YouGov poll consisted of 1,000 completed interviews conducted July 29-31 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.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--FAA Employees Fear Senior Leaders Prioritize Industry Approval Over Safety

WASHINGTON , Aug 7 ( Reuters ) - Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA ) safety employees reported facing “ strong ” external pressure from industry and raised alarms the agency does not always prioritize air safety , according to an independent survey seen by Reuters on Friday .
The survey report gives ammunition to critics who argue in the aftermath of two fatal Boeing 737 MAX crashes that the FAA has not done enough to insulate employees from industry pressure .
The report found employees believe aviation safety leaders ” painted ‘ too rosy of a picture ’ ” after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not acknowledge the needed changes to FAA safety-related policies and processes.
” The survey , turned over to Congress on Friday , found that many aviation safety employees believe that “ senior leaders are overly concerned with achieving the business-oriented out comes of industry stakeholders and are not held accountable for safety-related decisions.
” FAA Administrator Steve Dickson , who took over in August2019 , said in a letter to Congress on Friday , adding the agency is moving to create a Voluntary Safety Reporting Program - a confidential “ non-punitive environment that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and concerns.
” The FAA commissioned the survey after it announced plans in April 2019 to improve safety culture following the second fatal Boeing crash .
The agency noted the survey was “ designed specifically to encourage candid feedback.
” The survey , conducted in late 2019 and in focus groups in early 2020 , said employees and managers reported “ external pressure from industry is strong and is impacting ” the safety culture .
“ They shared that there is an unwritten code to be more ‘ liberal-minded ’ ( versus conservative @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there is pressure to find win-win solutions that benefit industry , ” the survey found .
“ Many reported that industry will escalate issues to senior leadership and/or Congress if FAA employees are perceived as ‘ getting in their way , ’ ” which directly leads to decisions that are friendlier to industry ( i.e.
, to help meet timelines and manage costs of industry applicants and operators ) , ” the survey added .
Agency employees said they can be “ over-powered in meetings with industry , ” with one unnamed employee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are showing up to a knife fight with Nerf weapons .
It is a challenge to be an equal match with Boeing in the meetings/conversations.
” The MAX has been grounded since March 2019 after two crashes in five months , in Indonesia and Ethiopia , killed 346 people.Several reports have raised concerns about Boeing Co employees performing FAA certification tasks facing undue pressure .
The survey said FAA employees ’ perception was that “ no one at FAA has taken responsibility or been held accountable for ” the 737 MAX .
Boeing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new organization to centralize investigations of safety concerns and undue pressure allegations .
The FAA on Wednesday proposed fining Boeing $ 1.25 million after the agency alleged Boeing exerted undue pressure on workers who handle FAA safety oversight work .
U.S. Representative Peter DeFazio , who chairs the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee , in December said an FAA whistleblower reported “ Boeing applied undue pressure on FAA managers to overrule those managers ’ own safety engineers and experts on safety-critical matters.
” Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and others have defended the FAA ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has reported just one fatality in a U.S. passenger airline accident since 2009 .

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WASHINGTON, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) safety employees reported facing “strong” external pressure from industry and raised alarms the agency does not always prioritize air safety, according to an independent survey seen by Reuters on Friday.
The survey report gives ammunition to critics who argue in the aftermath of two fatal Boeing 737 MAX crashes that the FAA has not done enough to insulate employees from industry pressure.
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The survey quoted one anonymous employee as saying that the message was, “Don’t rock the boat with Boeing.”
The report found employees believe aviation safety leaders” painted ‘too rosy of a picture’” after the 737 MAX crashes “and did not acknowledge the needed changes to FAA safety-related policies and processes.”
The survey, turned over to Congress on Friday, found that many aviation safety employees believe that “senior leaders are overly concerned with achieving the business-oriented out comes of industry stakeholders and are not held accountable for safety-related decisions.”
“It is completely unacceptable that there are employees who lack confidence that their safety concerns are taken seriously,”
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FAA Administrator Steve Dickson, who took over in August2019, said in a letter to Congress on Friday, adding the agency is moving to create a Voluntary Safety Reporting Program - a confidential “non-punitive environment that encourages open reporting of aviation safety issues and concerns.”
The FAA commissioned the survey after it announced plans in April 2019 to improve safety culture following the second fatal Boeing crash. The agency noted the survey was “designed specifically to encourage candid feedback.”
The survey, conducted in late 2019 and in focus groups in early 2020, said employees and managers reported “external pressure from industry is strong and is impacting” the safety culture. “They shared that there is an unwritten code to be more ‘liberal-minded’ (versus conservative) when assessing safety risks, and there is pressure to find win-win solutions that benefit industry,” the survey found.
“Many reported that industry will escalate issues to senior leadership and/or Congress if FAA employees are perceived as ‘getting in their way,’” which directly leads to decisions that are friendlier to industry (i.e., to help meet timelines and manage costs of industry applicants and operators),” the survey added.
Nearly half of survey respondents disagreed that the FAA makes data-driven decisions on safety regardless of external pressure.
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Agency employees said they can be “over-powered in meetings with industry,” with one unnamed employee saying: “It feels like we are showing up to a knife fight with Nerf weapons. It is a challenge to be an equal match with Boeing in the meetings/conversations.”
The MAX has been grounded since March 2019 after two crashes in five months, in Indonesia and Ethiopia, killed 346 people.Several reports have raised concerns about Boeing Co employees performing FAA certification tasks facing undue pressure.
The survey said FAA employees’ perception was that “no one at FAA has taken responsibility or been held accountable for” the 737 MAX.
Boeing said in June it had created a new organization to centralize investigations of safety concerns and undue pressure allegations. The FAA on Wednesday proposed fining Boeing $1.25 million after the agency alleged Boeing exerted undue pressure on workers who handle FAA safety oversight work.
U.S. Representative Peter DeFazio, who chairs the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, in December said an FAA whistleblower reported “Boeing applied undue pressure on FAA managers to overrule those managers’ own safety engineers and experts on safety-critical matters.”
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Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and others have defended the FAA’s safety record. The United States has reported just one fatality in a U.S. passenger airline accident since 2009.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-07--A Super PAC Run By Bernie Allies Is Airing Its First Ad For Joe Biden

Kevin Lamarque / Reuters A group of former top aides to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is running a super PAC that 's trying to rally progressive support for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden , who defeated Sanders in the presidential primaries .
A super PAC created by former top aides to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders ’ presidential campaign is set to air its first television ad , aiming to win over progressives who remain skeptical of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden ’ s center-left politics .
The 30-second ad from America ’ s Progressive Promise features footage of Sanders @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is planning to spend six figures to air the spot during the Democratic National Convention later this month on national cable TV and in select markets in the swing states of North Carolina , Arizona , Iowa and Wisconsin .
“ Every person who voted for me and for the other candidates understands Donald Trump is the most dangerous president in the history of our country , and that it is absolutely imperative that we come together to defeat him — and defeat him badly , ” Sanders says in the ad .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ whether it ’ s the environment or climate change , whether it ’ s education , whether it ’ s in the economy , Joe Biden will be the most progressive president since FDR , ” he concludes .
Jeff Weaver , who was Sanders ’ campaign manager in 2016 and a senior adviser to his 2020 campaign , said the group remains worried about Biden ’ s relatively weak standing with Latinos and young voters — two groups that Sanders is popular with — even if public polling gives him a healthy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ states .
“ If you look at the polling , Biden is underperforming where Secretary Clinton was with Latinos , ” Weaver told HuffPost .
“ In the Latino community , he just isn ’ t well-known.
” Sanders beat Biden among Latino voters in key states like Nevada and California during the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries , and America ’ s Progressive Promise has already worked with Nuestro PAC — which was founded by former Sanders aide Chuck Rocha to target Latino voters — to air ads aimed at Latinos in Arizona @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also said the group would try to remain focused on Iowa , a state that many political forecasters see as a second-tier presidential battleground .
Sanders became well-known in Iowa after two strong performances in the state ’ s caucuses .
Weaver noted that winning over a relatively small number of voters — he estimated between 30,000 and 40,000 — could flip the state .
“ Iowa hasn ’ t received the kind of attention I think it deserves , ” he said .
“ I think it ’ s important for Democrats @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the agricultural Midwest.
” Weaver declined to reveal exactly how much the group plans to spend , saying only that the sum would be “ substantial.
” As a super PAC , it can raise and spend unlimited sums in support of Biden , provided that it does not directly coordinate with his campaign .
The group won ’ t have to reveal its donors to the Federal Election Commission until October .
Sanders was not a fan of the group ’ s creation .
He has long opposed super PACs , even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ money supporting his presidential bids in 2016 and 2020 .
While the group ’ s name originally invoked a Sanders slogan — “ Future to Believe In ” — the name was changed in May at Sanders ’ request .
Still , Weaver indicated that the group will continue to feature the grandfather of the modern progressive political movement in its advertising .
“ Sanders is the most effective messenger in this context , ” Weaver said .
“ Even among people who aren ’ t his supporters , he ’ s one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the country .
”

A group of former top aides to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is running a super PAC that's trying to rally progressive support for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, who defeated Sanders in the presidential primaries. Kevin Lamarque / Reuters
A super PAC created by former top aides to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign is set to air its first television ad, aiming to win over progressives who remain skeptical of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s center-left politics.
The 30-second ad from America’s Progressive Promise features footage of Sanders’ endorsement of Biden. The group is planning to spend six figures to air the spot during the Democratic National Convention later this month on national cable TV and in select markets in the swing states of North Carolina, Arizona, Iowa and Wisconsin.
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“Every person who voted for me and for the other candidates understands Donald Trump is the most dangerous president in the history of our country, and that it is absolutely imperative that we come together to defeat him — and defeat him badly,” Sanders says in the ad.
“Whether it is health care, whether it’s the environment or climate change, whether it’s education, whether it’s in the economy, Joe Biden will be the most progressive president since FDR,” he concludes.
Jeff Weaver, who was Sanders’ campaign manager in 2016 and a senior adviser to his 2020 campaign, said the group remains worried about Biden’s relatively weak standing with Latinos and young voters — two groups that Sanders is popular with — even if public polling gives him a healthy and consistent lead over Trump in key states.
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“If you look at the polling, Biden is underperforming where Secretary Clinton was with Latinos,” Weaver told HuffPost. “In the Latino community, he just isn’t well-known.”
Sanders beat Biden among Latino voters in key states like Nevada and California during the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries, and America’s Progressive Promise has already worked with Nuestro PAC — which was founded by former Sanders aide Chuck Rocha to target Latino voters — to air ads aimed at Latinos in Arizona, Michigan and North Carolina.
Weaver also said the group would try to remain focused on Iowa, a state that many political forecasters see as a second-tier presidential battleground. Sanders became well-known in Iowa after two strong performances in the state’s caucuses. Weaver noted that winning over a relatively small number of voters — he estimated between 30,000 and 40,000 — could flip the state.
“Iowa hasn’t received the kind of attention I think it deserves,” he said. “I think it’s important for Democrats long-term to demonstrate their continued strength in the agricultural Midwest.”
Weaver declined to reveal exactly how much the group plans to spend, saying only that the sum would be “substantial.” As a super PAC, it can raise and spend unlimited sums in support of Biden, provided that it does not directly coordinate with his campaign. The group won’t have to reveal its donors to the Federal Election Commission until October.
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Sanders was not a fan of the group’s creation. He has long opposed super PACs, even though several relatively small super PACs spent money supporting his presidential bids in 2016 and 2020. While the group’s name originally invoked a Sanders slogan — “Future to Believe In” — the name was changed in May at Sanders’ request.
Still, Weaver indicated that the group will continue to feature the grandfather of the modern progressive political movement in its advertising.