thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-08--Donald Trump Spectacularly Self-Owns With Twitter Attack On Kamala Harris During Debate

President Donald Trump was raked over the coals on Twitter for his praise of Vice President Mike Pence ― and his criticism of Democratic vice-presidential nominee Kamala Harris ― during Wednesday ’ s vice presidential debate .
Trump tweeted almost an hour into the debate that Pence was “ doing GREAT !
” He referred to Harris , a California senator , as “ she ” and called her “ a gaffe machine.
” Mike Pence is doing GREAT !
She is a gaffe machine .
— Donald J. Trump ( @ realDonaldTrump ) October 8 , 2020 Some Twitter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ― who routinely misspeaks and often posts embarrassing typos on Twitter ― accusing someone else of committing a gaffe .
Others asked if the president was watching the same debate as everyone else .
Which debate are you watching ?
Change the channel to the # VPDebate — Chidi® ( @ ChidiNwatu ) October 8 , 2020 Is the President @ realDonaldTrump watching the same # VPDebate ?
Asking because the fact-checking is really killing @ Mike_Pence https : //t.co/4u3QJKbsVa — Jesús García ( @ JesusGar ) October 8 , 2020 And by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coherent and viable expressions of policy ?
https : //t.co/NyhHtXFiCw — Abigail Disney ( @ abigaildisney ) October 8 , 2020 She is a truth machine wiping the floor with your pitiful patsy Pence .
# VPDebates # BidenHarris2020ToSaveAmerica — Lesley Abravanel🆘 ( @ lesleyabravanel ) October 8 , 2020 Mike Pence looked like an utter idiot trying to cover up your coronavirus debacle .
— Angela Belcamino ( @ AngelaBelcamino ) October 8 , 2020 The irony is strong with this one https : //t.co/gH0UKx4nME — Ben Palmer ( @ benjpalmer ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are the best .
https : //t.co/EblR2KuGlB — Abraham Gutman 🔥 ( @ abgutman ) October 8 , 2020 Since when can you spell `` gaffe '' ?
— Jeremy Kaplan ( @ SmashDawg ) October 8 , 2020 You still don ’ t know how to spell “ Kamala ” do you ?
— Palmer Report ( @ PalmerReport ) October 8 , 2020 210,000+ dead from the pandemic that Mike Pence was supposed to manage .
No one ’ s winning .
— Chris Sotomayor ( @ SotoColor ) October 8 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ name is Kamala Harris .
https : //t.co/9UkK2aTmQU — Alexandra ( @ maizenthusiast ) October 8 , 2020 Are you watching the same debate we are ?
You just thinks it 's great b/c he mentions your name all the time..please ... grow up !
https : //t.co/G0Bs3PbsGp — ashamedof repubs🆘 ( @ ashamedofrepubs ) October 8 , 2020 Your boy alienated women for 90 minutes and then a fly stuck to his head .
Go to bed .
https : //t.co/s969d2gluZ — Roshan Rinaldi ( @ Roshan_Rinaldi ) October 8 , 2020

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President Donald Trump was raked over the coals on Twitter for his praise of Vice President Mike Pence ― and his criticism of Democratic vice-presidential nominee Kamala Harris ― during Wednesday’s vice presidential debate.
Trump tweeted almost an hour into the debate that Pence was “doing GREAT!” He referred to Harris, a California senator, as “she” and called her “a gaffe machine.”
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Mike Pence is doing GREAT! She is a gaffe machine. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 8, 2020
Trump later claimed Pence had “WON BIG!”
Mike Pence WON BIG! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 8, 2020
Some Twitter users pointed out the irony of Trump ― who routinely misspeaks and often posts embarrassing typos on Twitter ― accusing someone else of committing a gaffe.
Others asked if the president was watching the same debate as everyone else.
Trump, who routinely lies, misleads & misspeaks, calls Kamala Harris "a gaffe machine" --> https://t.co/ovhDcWw0pN — Kenneth P. Vogel (@kenvogel) October 8, 2020
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Which debate are you watching? Change the channel to the #VPDebate — Chidi® (@ChidiNwatu) October 8, 2020
Is the President @realDonaldTrump watching the same #VPDebate ? Asking because the fact-checking is really killing @Mike_Pence https://t.co/4u3QJKbsVa — Jesús García (@JesusGar) October 8, 2020
And by "gaffe" I assume you mean coherent and viable expressions of policy? https://t.co/NyhHtXFiCw — Abigail Disney (@abigaildisney) October 8, 2020
"she" has a name — Jeff Tiedrich (@itsJeffTiedrich) October 8, 2020
She is a truth machine wiping the floor with your pitiful patsy Pence. #VPDebates #BidenHarris2020ToSaveAmerica — Lesley Abravanel🆘 (@lesleyabravanel) October 8, 2020
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Mike Pence looked like an utter idiot trying to cover up your coronavirus debacle. — Angela Belcamino (@AngelaBelcamino) October 8, 2020
The irony is strong with this one https://t.co/gH0UKx4nME — Ben Palmer (@benjpalmer) October 8, 2020
It’s ironic af coming from this guy. https://t.co/O2zZgdJxPk — John Kohler (@clmbien) October 8, 2020
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The scheduled tweets are the best. https://t.co/EblR2KuGlB — Abraham Gutman 🔥 (@abgutman) October 8, 2020
Since when can you spell "gaffe"? — Jeremy Kaplan (@SmashDawg) October 8, 2020
You still don’t know how to spell “Kamala” do you? — Palmer Report (@PalmerReport) October 8, 2020
210,000+ dead from the pandemic that Mike Pence was supposed to manage. No one’s winning. — Chris Sotomayor (@SotoColor) October 8, 2020
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She??? Her name is Kamala Harris. https://t.co/9UkK2aTmQU — Alexandra (@maizenthusiast) October 8, 2020
Are you watching the same debate we are? You just thinks it's great b/c he mentions your name all the time..please...grow up! https://t.co/G0Bs3PbsGp — ashamedof repubs🆘 (@ashamedofrepubs) October 8, 2020
Your boy alienated women for 90 minutes and then a fly stuck to his head.
Go to bed. https://t.co/s969d2gluZ — Roshan Rinaldi (@Roshan_Rinaldi) October 8, 2020
Is he watching the same debate I'm watching?#VPDebate2020 https://t.co/nG02fjFFQS — Greg Stulen (@GregStulen) October 8, 2020


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-07--A Fly On Mike Pence's Head During The VP Debate Drew The Buzziest Reactions

Imagine you ’ re a fly .
You ’ re zipping along and see a soft , white surface .
You land and look up .
You realize you ’ re at the 2020 vice presidential debate and you ’ re seated atop the head of Vice President Mike Pence .
This was the reality of one insect at the debate on Wednesday night .
More than halfway through the debate between Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris , public attention veered off from the responses of the two presidential running mates to zero in on the bug on Pence ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Twitter , so we ’ ve done you the favor of rounding up the buzziest of the bunch : Pence apologizing to Mother right now for getting to 3rd base with the fly — The Daily Show ( @ TheDailyShow ) October 8 , 2020 So , a fun art history fact !
Flies are used to represent rot , wasting away , decay , death , melancholia .
A fly hovering over a church official or nobleman indicates disfavor with the king or corruption and dereliction of duty .
pic.twitter.com/aLuiKFwWNI — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 8 , 2020 And , of course , there were numerous Twitter pages set up for the fly itself : We want to know what you ’ re hearing on the ground from the candidates .
If you get any interesting ― or suspicious !
― campaign mailers , robocalls or hear anything else you think we should know about , email us at scoops @ huffpost.com .

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Imagine you’re a fly. You’re zipping along and see a soft, white surface. You land and look up. You realize you’re at the 2020 vice presidential debate and you’re seated atop the head of Vice President Mike Pence.
This was the reality of one insect at the debate on Wednesday night.
Total time a fly sat on Mike Pence's head: two minutes pic.twitter.com/PtI0rKSi5I — Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) October 8, 2020
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More than halfway through the debate between Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris, public attention veered off from the responses of the two presidential running mates to zero in on the bug on Pence’s coiffure.
The buzz was plentiful on Twitter, so we’ve done you the favor of rounding up the buzziest of the bunch:
Pence apologizing to Mother right now for getting to 3rd base with the fly — The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) October 8, 2020
I think the fly won this debate — Ana Cabrera (@AnaCabrera) October 8, 2020
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Live look at the SNL writing room when the fly stopped on Pence's head pic.twitter.com/5AEZGGhXe2 — Peter Rosenberg (@Rosenbergradio) October 8, 2020
EWWWWWWWWW that fly has Mike Pence on his stomach. #VPDebate — Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) October 8, 2020
The fly is free and now getting a COVID test — Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) October 8, 2020
Siri, play "Stay Fly" by Three 6 Mafia — ko “that’s it” bragg. (@keaux_) October 8, 2020
the fly showing up at tonight's debate pic.twitter.com/X5msW8nKhz — David Mack (@davidmackau) October 8, 2020
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So, a fun art history fact! Flies are used to represent rot, wasting away, decay, death, melancholia.
A fly hovering over a church official or nobleman indicates disfavor with the king or corruption and dereliction of duty. pic.twitter.com/aLuiKFwWNI — Jennifer Wright (@JenAshleyWright) October 8, 2020
Even worse for pence, the fly is gay pic.twitter.com/km115DiGRa — Randall Otis (@RandallOtisTV) October 8, 2020
who is she pic.twitter.com/ZzD9KBX2ZA — quinta brunson (@quintabrunson) October 8, 2020
someone better interview that fly tomorrow. — melissa radz (@melissaradz) October 8, 2020
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That fly is an American hero. — Gabrielle Union (@itsgabrielleu) October 8, 2020
Even Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden offered a response to the fly:
Pitch in $5 to help this campaign fly. https://t.co/CqHAId0j8t pic.twitter.com/NbkPl0a8HV — Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 8, 2020
And, of course, there were numerous Twitter pages set up for the fly itself:
HuffPost US


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-08--5 Takeaways From The Vice Presidential Debate

President Donald Trump was just hospitalized for several days after contracting the novel coronavirus , which has killed more than 211,000 Americans and left the economy in pieces .
The White House recently held what is now being considered a superspreader event , and more than two dozen administration officials , from security staff to top-ranking generals , have contracted COVID-19 .
And still , Trump continues to downplay the disease , calling it a “ blessing ” in his life .
But on Wednesday night , Pence had little to say about those realities .
Instead , he told @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fought the coronavirus pandemic and won , rattling off a series of lies about the magnitude of testing and about all the protective equipment available to health professionals , even as time delays and shortages persist on both fronts .
Pence claimed the Trump administration has always told the truth about the seriousness of the pandemic , despite Trump ’ s own words in a February recording , admitting in private that the disease was deadly at a time when he was telling Americans it wasn ’ t more serious than a flu @ @ @ @ @ @ @ promise a vaccine in short order , even though health officials say it will likely take longer , and he said the White House has been transparent with its information about Trump ’ s health , which isn ’ t verifiable .
“ I want to ask the American people : How calm were you when you were panicked about where you were going to get your next roll of toilet paper ?
” she asked .
“ How calm were you when your kids were sent home from school and you didn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to go back ?
How calm were you when your children couldn ’ t see your parents because you were afraid you could kill them ?
” That said , compared with the presidential debate , Harris and Pence were civil .
Pence interrupted the senator on a few occasions and had a habit of running the clock , but there weren ’ t any major fireworks , and both candidates were able to get their main talking points across .
Harris Came To Make The Points Biden Wasn ’ t Able To @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Politically Toxic For Democrats It ’ s a familiar talking point .
Republicans have balked at the Green New Deal ever since it first came out , and Trump pushed Biden into distancing himself from the proposal last week at the debate .
There ’ s clearly some evidence that Harris and Biden are sensitive to the attack .
Harris repeated several times that Biden will not ban fracking — a measure supported by Sen. Bernie Sanders ( I-Vt. ) during the primaries .
That said , it ’ s not entirely clear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ politically toxic as Pence and the Republican Party think it is .
One poll , from the progressive think tank Data for Progressive and YouGov last year , which surveyed opinions in the swing districts , found 49 % of voters in the 42 House districts across the country that switched parties in 2018 supported the Green New Deal — even if it meant increasing government spending .
Still No Commitment On A Peaceful Transition Of Power “ If we have a free and fair election , we know we ’ re going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I believe in my heart that President Trump will be reelected for four more years , ” Pence said instead , before launching into a tangent about the impeachment hearings against Trump .
“ We ’ ve all seen the avalanche — what you put the country through for the better part of three years , until it was found there was no obstruction , no collusion , case closed , ” Pence said after accusing Democrats of spending “ the last 3½ years trying to overturn the results of the last election.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ re hearing on the ground from the candidates .
If you get any interesting ― or suspicious !
― campaign mailers , robocalls or hear anything else you think we should know about , email us at scoops @ huffpost.com .

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Vice President Mike Pence didn’t come to the first vice presidential debate against Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) to answer questions about what’s going on right now.
Since the train wreck of a presidential debate last week, the nation’s government has been in a total frenzy.
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President Donald Trump was just hospitalized for several days after contracting the novel coronavirus, which has killed more than 211,000 Americans and left the economy in pieces. The White House recently held what is now being considered a superspreader event, and more than two dozen administration officials, from security staff to top-ranking generals, have contracted COVID-19. And still, Trump continues to downplay the disease, calling it a “blessing” in his life.
But on Wednesday night, Pence had little to say about those realities. Instead, he told the story of an administration that valiantly fought the coronavirus pandemic and won, rattling off a series of lies about the magnitude of testing and about all the protective equipment available to health professionals, even as time delays and shortages persist on both fronts.
Pence claimed the Trump administration has always told the truth about the seriousness of the pandemic, despite Trump’s own words in a February recording, admitting in private that the disease was deadly at a time when he was telling Americans it wasn’t more serious than a flu. The vice president went on to promise a vaccine in short order, even though health officials say it will likely take longer, and he said the White House has been transparent with its information about Trump’s health, which isn’t verifiable.
Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her husband, Douglas Emhoff, wave at Vice President Mike Pence and his wife, Karen Pence, following the vice presidential debate Wednesday in Salt Lake City. Patrick Semansky/ASSOCIATED PRESS
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The coronavirus pandemic loomed large over the first and only vice presidential debate Wednesday, held in Salt Lake City and moderated by USA Today’s Washington bureau chief, Susan Page. Pence, who has thus far tested negative for COVID-19, was potentially exposed to the coronavirus at the White House last week. The two candidates sat 12 feet apart amid plexiglass shields.
Harris came to the debate prepared to knock the Trump administration on its handling of the virus, from the hundreds of thousands of dead to the empty shelves in grocery stores.
“I want to ask the American people: How calm were you when you were panicked about where you were going to get your next roll of toilet paper?” she asked. “How calm were you when your kids were sent home from school and you didn’t know when they were going to go back? How calm were you when your children couldn’t see your parents because you were afraid you could kill them?”
The exchange on coronavirus was emblematic of the entire debate — one in which Pence avoided answering direct questions about the Trump administration’s record and instead focused on attacking Biden and Harris.
That said, compared with the presidential debate, Harris and Pence were civil. Pence interrupted the senator on a few occasions and had a habit of running the clock, but there weren’t any major fireworks, and both candidates were able to get their main talking points across.
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Harris Came To Make The Points Biden Wasn’t Able To
The first presidential debate was a disaster. Biden couldn’t get a word in, and his message was largely overshadowed by Trump’s bluster.
On Wednesday night, Harris, who is known for her fiery questionings in Senate hearings, came prepared to deliver the debate performance Biden wasn’t able to.
She made clear the contrasts between Biden and Trump, most notably on health care. She touted President Barack Obama’s record in passing the Affordable Care Act while Biden was his vice president, and Biden’s plan to expand it ― while hitting Trump on a lawsuit headed for the Supreme Court that’s aimed at dismantling the health care law.
“On the other hand, Donald Trump is in court trying to get rid of the Affordable Care Act, which means that you will lose protections if you have preexisting conditions,” she said directly to the camera.
“If you have a preexisting condition, heart disease, diabetes, breast cancer, they’re coming for you,” Harris said, attacking Trump and Republicans for the lawsuit. “If you love someone with a preexisting condition, they’re coming for you. If you’re under the age of 26 on your parents’ coverage, they’re coming for you.”
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If you have a pre-existing condition, the Trump administration is coming for you. pic.twitter.com/mf6fux03nR — Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) October 8, 2020
Unlike Biden last week, she was able to get through those talking points.
Pence Sees The Green New Deal As Politically Toxic For Democrats
Whenever given the chance, Pence defaulted to attacking the Green New Deal, the sweeping progressive set of proposals to combat climate change.
He repeated Harris and Biden’s desire to “abolish fossil fuels” and called out Harris’s “radical environmental agenda.” He said the Green New Deal “literally would crush American jobs” and called proposals to make buildings more energy-efficient unrealistic.
It’s a familiar talking point. Republicans have balked at the Green New Deal ever since it first came out, and Trump pushed Biden into distancing himself from the proposal last week at the debate. There’s clearly some evidence that Harris and Biden are sensitive to the attack. Harris repeated several times that Biden will not ban fracking — a measure supported by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) during the primaries.
That said, it’s not entirely clear that the Green New Deal is as politically toxic as Pence and the Republican Party think it is. One poll, from the progressive think tank Data for Progressive and YouGov last year, which surveyed opinions in the swing districts, found 49% of voters in the 42 House districts across the country that switched parties in 2018 supported the Green New Deal — even if it meant increasing government spending.
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Polling last summer also indicated that voters simply didn’t know enough about the plan to think one way or another; though when they learned more about the cost of the proposed legislation, support decreased.
That said, climate change is increasingly on voters’ minds, particularly among Democrats, and it’s being prioritized more as Americans go to the ballot box.
Still No Commitment On A Peaceful Transition Of Power
Once again, the question needed to be asked: Would the Trump-Pence ticket peacefully accept a loss in November? And, once again, voters got a non-answer.
Pence, like Trump, refused to commit to a peaceful transition of power in November, dodging the question altogether.
“If we have a free and fair election, we know we’re going to have confidence in it, and I believe in my heart that President Trump will be reelected for four more years,” Pence said instead, before launching into a tangent about the impeachment hearings against Trump.
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“We’ve all seen the avalanche — what you put the country through for the better part of three years, until it was found there was no obstruction, no collusion, case closed,” Pence said after accusing Democrats of spending “the last 3½ years trying to overturn the results of the last election.”
Trump has repeatedly refused to commit to a peaceful transition should he lose in November, floating the possibility of election results being taken to court. High-ranking Republican lawmakers have brushed off the possibility of Trump refusing to accept the election’s results. But Pence, who does not stray far from the president’s comments, stayed mum on the issue.
The Fly
Vice President Mike Pence has a visitor as he listens to Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris during the vice presidential debate Wednesday. Julio Cortez/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Lastly, among the most memorable moments of the 90-minute debate was when a fly sat on Pence’s head, for a while.
Pence was talking about his support of law enforcement — a message I’m sure few people were paying their undivided attention to because a fly sat on the vice president’s head and just stayed there for two minutes.
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Pence either didn’t notice the fly or pretended not to. Needless to say, the rest of us did. Biden’s campaign is already fundraising off the fly.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-07--‘Mr. Vice President, I’m Speaking’: Kamala Harris Shuts Down Mike Pence’s Interruptions

Vice President Mike Pence seemed ready to take a page out of President Donald Trump ’ s book when he @ @ @ @ @ D-Calif. ) during Wednesday night ’ s vice presidential debate .
It didn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ .
Harris fired back , “ Mr .
Vice President , I ’ m speaking @ @ @ @ @ quickly took off on social media .
Pence tried it again a little later in @ @ @ @ @ even less success : The first presidential debate last week , between Trump and former @ @ @ @ @ was marked by frequent interruptions , mostly from the president .
In one segment , @ @ @ @ @ in less than three minutes , according to The Washington Post .

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Vice President Mike Pence seemed ready to take a page out of President Donald Trump’s book when he interrupted Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) during Wednesday night’s vice presidential debate.
It didn’t go so well for him.
Harris fired back, “Mr. Vice President, I’m speaking” ― a moment that quickly took off on social media.
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Pence tried it again a little later in the debate... but with even less success:
The first presidential debate last week, between Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, was marked by frequent interruptions, mostly from the president.
In one segment, Trump interrupted Biden 10 times in less than three minutes, according to The Washington Post.
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-07--Raised Eyebrows And Side-Eye: Kamala Harris Was A Human GIF Machine At Debate

Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris got her point across even when she wasn ’ t speaking during Wednesday night ’ s debate with Vice President Mike Pence , responding with a range of looks almost custom-made for memes and GIFs .
The senator from California delivered shade with her facial expressions , from pitying smiles to straight-up side-eye , a range of looks that ’ ll almost certainly end up on “ Saturday Night Live.
” Twitter users definitely noticed ― and they were here for it : Kamala Harris said just as much without words.
# VPDebate pic.twitter.com/KDg0QBslao @ @ @ @ @ @ @ October 8 , 2020 Damn .
@ KamalaHarris shading Mike Pence with these looks , is giving me life .
pic.twitter.com/2DS7uTnJML — Ana Navarro-Cárdenas ( @ ananavarro ) October 8 , 2020 Kamala breaking down the fourth wall like Fleabag with a fucken law degree — Benjamin Law 羅旭能 ( @ mrbenjaminlaw ) October 8 , 2020 Kamala Harris ' side-eye .
That 's it .
That 's the tweet .
— rachel leishman ( @ RachelLeishman ) October 8 , 2020 It 's the raised eyebrow for me pic.twitter.com/rnBDnAc26f — mattie kahn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2020 Seeing Pence ’ s reflection while Kamala gives him the side-eye has been my favorite part .
# VPDebate2020 pic.twitter.com/2x2KgUsnDR — Vanessa Richardson ( @ SportsVanessa ) October 8 , 2020 Pence took a minute and DID NOT dispute that Donald Trump paid $ 750 in personal federal income taxes ... meanwhile Kamala ’ s facial expressions were gold pic.twitter.com/J1FH1xkQ6i — Icculus The Brave ( @ FirenzeMike ) October 8 , 2020 Kamala Harris doesn ’ t need to interrupt Pence — her facial expressions are screaming .
😱 # VPDebate pic.twitter.com/LeZHw1PDUs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ October 8 , 2020 kamala ’ s facial expressions the best part of the debate i ’ m sorry pic.twitter.com/P826WMGJJi — 🇼🇸 ( @ kimukardashiann ) October 8 , 2020

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Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris got her point across even when she wasn’t speaking during Wednesday night’s debate with Vice President Mike Pence, responding with a range of looks almost custom-made for memes and GIFs.
The senator from California delivered shade with her facial expressions, from pitying smiles to straight-up side-eye, a range of looks that’ll almost certainly end up on “Saturday Night Live.”
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Twitter users definitely noticed ― and they were here for it:
Kamala Harris said just as much without words.#VPDebate pic.twitter.com/KDg0QBslao — The Recount (@therecount) October 8, 2020
Damn.@KamalaHarris shading Mike Pence with these looks, is giving me life. pic.twitter.com/2DS7uTnJML — Ana Navarro-Cárdenas (@ananavarro) October 8, 2020
KAMALA IS SO UNBOTHERED I CANNOT BREATHE 😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/oQR1jXzDQ8 — amorphous (@loneamorphous) October 8, 2020
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All of us hearing Pence's lies. pic.twitter.com/gRuDzn2yXs — The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) October 8, 2020
Kamala breaking down the fourth wall like Fleabag with a fucken law degree — Benjamin Law 羅旭能 (@mrbenjaminlaw) October 8, 2020
Kamala Harris' side-eye. That's it. That's the tweet. — rachel leishman (@RachelLeishman) October 8, 2020
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Kamala facial expressions are taking me OUT #VPDebate pic.twitter.com/c53Hv5GOwH — Drebae (@Drebae_) October 8, 2020
It's the raised eyebrow for me pic.twitter.com/rnBDnAc26f — mattie kahn (@mattiekahn) October 8, 2020
Seeing Pence’s reflection while Kamala gives him the side-eye has been my favorite part. #VPDebate2020 pic.twitter.com/2x2KgUsnDR — Vanessa Richardson (@SportsVanessa) October 8, 2020
Pence took a minute and DID NOT dispute that Donald Trump paid $750 in personal federal income taxes...meanwhile Kamala’s facial expressions were gold pic.twitter.com/J1FH1xkQ6i — Icculus The Brave (@FirenzeMike) October 8, 2020
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Kamala Harris doesn’t need to interrupt Pence — her facial expressions are screaming. 😱#VPDebate pic.twitter.com/LeZHw1PDUs — Andy Sternberg (@andysternberg) October 8, 2020
tonight’s debate in four perfect Kamala Harris reaction shots pic.twitter.com/grcCbQJicU — Kay Taylor Rea but spooky (@kaytaylorrea) October 8, 2020
kamala’s facial expressions the best part of the debate i’m sorry pic.twitter.com/P826WMGJJi — 🇼🇸 (@kimukardashiann) October 8, 2020
kamala reaction pics for the rest of the year 😗✌🏽 pic.twitter.com/FZYHP0ynBq — peanut (@brittanymajette) October 8, 2020
Kamala Harris every single time Pence fires off a lie. #VPDebate pic.twitter.com/jb36yz7Mzs — Andreas Hale (@AndreasHale) October 8, 2020


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-07--With Nearly 212,000 Dead, Mike Pence Says COVID-19 Response Has Been Great

The vice presidential debate between Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Kamala Harris started with a clash on the COVID-19 pandemic ― one in which Pence , head of the White House ’ s coronavirus task force , repeatedly misrepresented the truth and tried to change the subject .
Harris responded by bringing the conversation back to the huge toll COVID-19 has taken in the U.S. ― closing in on 212,000 dead as the debate began ― and the ways the Trump administration ’ s slow , dismissive response contributed to that figure .
But the arguments were just as sharp @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic .
When moderator Susan Page asked Harris , the senator from California , how Biden and she would deal with the pandemic if they took office on Jan. 20 , she started by attacking the Trump administration ’ s performance .
“ The American people have witnessed what is the greatest failure of any presidential administration in history , ” Harris said .
“ 210,000 dead people in our country .
… Over 7 million people have contracted this disease .
One in five businesses closed .
We ’ re looking at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sacrificial workers.
” Rather than explain why the administration minimized the threat for as long as it did , Pence insisted the administration acted effectively and early by restricting travel from China , where the outbreak started .
Specifically , Pence said that the restriction bought “ valuable time … to stand up the greatest mobilization since World War II.
” Pence also claimed that Biden opposed stopping travel to and from China and criticized it as “ xenophobic.
” In reality , the precise impact of the travel limit is murky , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a total prohibition .
Tens of thousands of people made trips between the U.S. and China even after the limit was in place .
And as media fact-checkers have pointed out , Biden didn ’ t actually oppose the restrictions .
His “ xenophobic ” complaint response was a more general attack about Trump ’ s constant use of the phrase “ China virus.
” ( The president , now afflicted with COVID-19 , used the phrase again in a video he released on Wednesday . )
But the more important point ― @ @ @ @ @ @ @ really confronted ― is that the administration ’ s slow response is partly to blame for shortages of personal protective equipment and delays in deploying a robust testing regime .
Had personal protective equipment gotten to front-line workers more quickly and had testing been more available early on , public health experts have said repeatedly , it ’ s likely fewer Americans would have gotten COVID-19 and fewer would have died .
( Amazingly , PPE is still a problem in many nursing homes . )
And while many state and local authorities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Trump ’ s delay in recognizing the virus as a major crisis ― and , then , his ongoing resistance to embracing guidelines to fight it while agitating to reopen the country prematurely ― added to the U.S. death toll , public health experts have said .
Harris brought up these shortcomings , pointing out that Pence was and remains in charge of the administration ’ s coronavirus task force .
Although she did not offer many specifics about what she and Biden would do if elected , Biden first rolled out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ― a time when the Trump administration was still fumbling around , trying to figure out how to straighten out supply chains , and the president himself was still insisting the pandemic would go away quickly .
Pence responded by saying that the Biden agenda was similar to what the Trump administration was already doing .
“ It looks a little bit like plagiarism which is something Joe Biden knows a little bit about , ” he said , referring to a scandal ― Biden using passages from a British politician ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1988 presidential campaign .
Harris didn ’ t take the bait on that ― perhaps figuring that a decades-old case of verbal plagiarism doesn ’ t feel especially relevant today , especially compared with the personal and financial scandals that have hovered over Trump .

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The vice presidential debate between Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Kamala Harris started with a clash on the COVID-19 pandemic ― one in which Pence, head of the White House’s coronavirus task force, repeatedly misrepresented the truth and tried to change the subject.
Harris responded by bringing the conversation back to the huge toll COVID-19 has taken in the U.S. ― closing in on 212,000 dead as the debate began ― and the ways the Trump administration’s slow, dismissive response contributed to that figure.
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The debate, in Salt Lake City, was vastly more civilized than last week’s presidential debate, when President Donald Trump repeatedly interrupted both the moderator and his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, turning the event into a circus.
But the arguments were just as sharp, especially on the subject of the pandemic. When moderator Susan Page asked Harris, the senator from California, how Biden and she would deal with the pandemic if they took office on Jan. 20, she started by attacking the Trump administration’s performance.
“The American people have witnessed what is the greatest failure of any presidential administration in history,” Harris said. “210,000 dead people in our country. … Over 7 million people have contracted this disease. One in five businesses closed. We’re looking at frontline workers who have been treated like sacrificial workers.”
Harris pointed out that Trump and other officials, including Pence, knew about the threat in January and downplayed the threat for months ― as journalist Bob Woodward’s reporting recently confirmed.
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Rather than explain why the administration minimized the threat for as long as it did, Pence insisted the administration acted effectively and early by restricting travel from China, where the outbreak started.
Specifically, Pence said that the restriction bought “valuable time … to stand up the greatest mobilization since World War II.” Pence also claimed that Biden opposed stopping travel to and from China and criticized it as “xenophobic.”
In reality, the precise impact of the travel limit is murky, in part because it was far from a total prohibition. Tens of thousands of people made trips between the U.S. and China even after the limit was in place. And as media fact-checkers have pointed out, Biden didn’t actually oppose the restrictions. His “xenophobic” complaint response was a more general attack about Trump’s constant use of the phrase “China virus.” (The president, now afflicted with COVID-19, used the phrase again in a video he released on Wednesday.)
But the more important point ― which Harris got across and Pence never really confronted ― is that the administration’s slow response is partly to blame for shortages of personal protective equipment and delays in deploying a robust testing regime.
Had personal protective equipment gotten to front-line workers more quickly and had testing been more available early on, public health experts have said repeatedly, it’s likely fewer Americans would have gotten COVID-19 and fewer would have died. (Amazingly, PPE is still a problem in many nursing homes.)
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And while many state and local authorities also bear some responsibility for COVID-19 failures, Trump’s delay in recognizing the virus as a major crisis ― and, then, his ongoing resistance to embracing guidelines to fight it while agitating to reopen the country prematurely ― added to the U.S. death toll, public health experts have said.
Harris brought up these shortcomings, pointing out that Pence was and remains in charge of the administration’s coronavirus task force. Although she did not offer many specifics about what she and Biden would do if elected, Biden first rolled out a detailed COVID-19 agenda back in March ― a time when the Trump administration was still fumbling around, trying to figure out how to straighten out supply chains, and the president himself was still insisting the pandemic would go away quickly.
Pence responded by saying that the Biden agenda was similar to what the Trump administration was already doing. “It looks a little bit like plagiarism which is something Joe Biden knows a little bit about,” he said, referring to a scandal ― Biden using passages from a British politician’s speeches without credit ― that unraveled his 1988 presidential campaign.
Harris didn’t take the bait on that ― perhaps figuring that a decades-old case of verbal plagiarism doesn’t feel especially relevant today, especially compared with the personal and financial scandals that have hovered over Trump.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-07--Karen Pence Ignores Vice Presidential Debate Rules, Forgoes Mask On Stage

Second lady Karen Pence was seen sans mask at the vice presidential debate on Wednesday , standing beside her husband at the end of the night with her face fully exposed despite coronavirus safety rules dictating otherwise .
Upon the start of the debate , moderator Susan Page announced the pandemic provisions put in place to Vice President Mike Pence , Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris and the audience .
Page noted that there were social distancing restrictions and that anyone in the audience must wear a mask .
Karen Pence had been wearing a mask while seated in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s conclusion , she joined her husband on stage to wave to the crowd alongside Harris ’ s husband , Douglas Emhoff .
Emhoff notably had on a mask as he stood beside Harris , but Karen Pence took hers off .
The outward defiance to the protocols comes just a week after the first presidential debate , where many members of the Trump family failed to wear their masks while seated in the audience .
They had been asked by Cleveland Clinic employees to put masks on and refused .
Days @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Melania Trump were diagnosed with COVID-19 .
Many were quick to note Karen Pence ’ s lack of a mask on stage and pointed it out on social media .
“ His wife did not wear a mask when she was on-stage at the end .
Everybody other than the candidates and the moderator were supposed to be wearing a mask .
Karen Pence was not wearing a mask at the end , ” said Maddow .
“ You know what ?
You could save lives if you would do that .
You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ somebody ’ s life in the room right now if , in fact , your husband was exposed to a COVID-infected person in the past week , which he was.
” We want to know what you ’ re hearing on the ground from the candidates .
If you get any interesting ― or suspicious !
― campaign mailers , robocalls or hear anything else you think we should know about , email us at scoops @ huffpost.com .

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Second lady Karen Pence was seen sans mask at the vice presidential debate on Wednesday, standing beside her husband at the end of the night with her face fully exposed despite coronavirus safety rules dictating otherwise.
Upon the start of the debate, moderator Susan Page announced the pandemic provisions put in place to Vice President Mike Pence, Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris and the audience. Page noted that there were social distancing restrictions and that anyone in the audience must wear a mask.
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Karen Pence had been wearing a mask while seated in the audience, but at the debate’s conclusion, she joined her husband on stage to wave to the crowd alongside Harris’s husband, Douglas Emhoff. Emhoff notably had on a mask as he stood beside Harris, but Karen Pence took hers off.
The outward defiance to the protocols comes just a week after the first presidential debate, where many members of the Trump family failed to wear their masks while seated in the audience. They had been asked by Cleveland Clinic employees to put masks on and refused. Days later, both President Donald Trump and Melania Trump were diagnosed with COVID-19.
Many were quick to note Karen Pence’s lack of a mask on stage and pointed it out on social media.
Karen Pence isn't wearing a mask pic.twitter.com/HdmHmXjPsf — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 8, 2020
On MSNBC after the debate, Rachel Maddow slammed her inability to follow the rules.
“His wife did not wear a mask when she was on-stage at the end. Everybody other than the candidates and the moderator were supposed to be wearing a mask. Karen Pence was not wearing a mask at the end,” said Maddow. “You know what? You could save lives if you would do that. You might, in fact, be saving somebody’s life in the room right now if, in fact, your husband was exposed to a COVID-infected person in the past week, which he was.”
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thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-08--Mike Pence’s ‘Biggest Lie Of The Debate’ Gets The Treatment On Twitter

“ I want the American people to know , from the very first day , President Trump has put the @ @ @ @ @ ~ @ Mike_Pence I ca n't believe you had the nerve to say that after @ @ @ @ @ That 's probably a bigger lie than any Trump ever told .

“I want the American people to know, from the very first day, President Trump has put the health of America first.” ~ @Mike_Pence
I can't believe you had the nerve to say that after the last 8 months. That's probably a bigger lie than any Trump ever told.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-08--'He Made My Skin Crawl': Conservative Pundit S.E. Cupp Hits 'Infuriating' Pence

Conservative commentator S.E .
Cupp said Vice President Mike Pence did nothing to win over women voters during Wednesday night ’ s debate with Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris .
“ Tonight he made my skin crawl , ” Cupp said on CNN .
Cupp , a longtime critic of President Donald Trump who has said she ’ s voting for Joe Biden this year , said she ’ s met Pence and found him impressive .
Pence “ showed that you can be insulting without using insults : the constant interruptions , the mansplaining , the condescending to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said , referring to both Harris and debate moderator Susan Page of USA Today .
She said Pence refused to answer questions in a way that amounted to “ gaslighting , ” which she found “ infuriating.
” But his behavior during the debate with the Democratic senator highlights a core problem within the GOP right now .
“ If you ’ re looking for the reasons why white suburban women have been leaving the Republican Party in droves , yes , it ’ s the chaos , the confusion , the incompetence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , adding : “ It ’ s also the tone .
And Mike Pence and Donald Trump have very different styles , but I found his dismissiveness and disrespect tonight very much cut from the same cloth , and I think suburban white women voters who were watching probably heard it the same.
” Cupp : I know Mike Pence , I ’ ve met Mike Pence , I ’ ve interviewed Mike Pence and at one time I found him very impressive .
Tonight , he made my skin crawl pic.twitter.com/NiDS24i7dh — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 8 , 2020 We want to know what you ’ re hearing on the ground from the candidates .
If you get any interesting ― or suspicious !
― campaign mailers , robocalls or hear anything else you think we should know about , email us at scoops @ huffpost.com .

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Conservative commentator S.E. Cupp said Vice President Mike Pence did nothing to win over women voters during Wednesday night’s debate with Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
“Tonight he made my skin crawl,” Cupp said on CNN.
Cupp, a longtime critic of President Donald Trump who has said she’s voting for Joe Biden this year, said she’s met Pence and found him impressive.
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But not tonight.
Pence “showed that you can be insulting without using insults: the constant interruptions, the mansplaining, the condescending to both of the women,” she said, referring to both Harris and debate moderator Susan Page of USA Today.
She said Pence refused to answer questions in a way that amounted to “gaslighting,” which she found “infuriating.”
But his behavior during the debate with the Democratic senator highlights a core problem within the GOP right now.
“If you’re looking for the reasons why white suburban women have been leaving the Republican Party in droves, yes, it’s the chaos, the confusion, the incompetence, the corruption,” she said, adding:
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“It’s also the tone. And Mike Pence and Donald Trump have very different styles, but I found his dismissiveness and disrespect tonight very much cut from the same cloth, and I think suburban white women voters who were watching probably heard it the same.”
See her full comments below:
Cupp: I know Mike Pence, I’ve met Mike Pence, I’ve interviewed Mike Pence and at one time I found him very impressive. Tonight, he made my skin crawl pic.twitter.com/NiDS24i7dh — Acyn Torabi (@Acyn) October 8, 2020


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-07--Mike Pence Tried To Defend An Administration That Doesn't Exist

Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris ( D-Calif. ) had their first and only debate on Wednesday night .
And for nearly all of those 90 minutes , Pence lied and deflected his way out of tough questions about the Trump administration ’ s mismanagement of the coronavirus , the tanking economy , their attacks on health care and the seriousness of climate change .
President Donald Trump faced questions on some of these same subjects last week in his debate with Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden .
But what was different this time around was that Pence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ without the impulsive mania of the president has to defend an administration ’ s record that is all but indefensible .
There is simply no comparison between the destruction wrought by COVID-19 and the H1N1 virus , known as swine flu .
As Pence went on to admit , the swine flu killed fewer than 13,000 Americans compared with the more than 211,000 who have died of COVID-19 and the 7.5 million who have tested positive for the virus .
Because H1N1 was far less contagious , it also did not require a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Americans ’ way of life .
And , as yet , there is no vaccine for COVID-19 .
Trump measures the strength of the economy “ based on how rich people are doing , ” Harris said , “ which is why he passed a tax bill benefiting the top 1 % and the biggest corporations of America , leading to a $ 2 trillion deficit that the American people are going to have to pay for.
” “ President Trump and I have a plan to improve health care and to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” the vice president claimed , which is something Trump and Republicans have been saying for years but have never produced .
On the contrary , the Trump administration is actively trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act , which more than 20 million Americans rely on for health care .
“ I want to ask the American people : How calm were you when you were panicked about where you were going to get your next roll of toilet paper ?
” she asked .
“ How calm were you when your @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you didn ’ t know when they were going to go back ?
How calm were you when your children couldn ’ t see your parents because you were afraid you could kill them ?
” But that ’ s not quite accurate .
Fauci said in September that he “ didn ’ t see any discrepancies ” between his private discussions with the president and what the president told the public .
He did not dispel the idea that Trump misled the public about the nature of the threat .
“ The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vice president , stating the obvious .
“ The issue is , what ’ s the cause and what do we do about it ?
President Trump has made it clear that we ’ re going to continue to listen to the science .
”

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Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) had their first and only debate on Wednesday night. And for nearly all of those 90 minutes, Pence lied and deflected his way out of tough questions about the Trump administration’s mismanagement of the coronavirus, the tanking economy, their attacks on health care and the seriousness of climate change.
President Donald Trump faced questions on some of these same subjects last week in his debate with Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. But what was different this time around was that Pence showed what it looks like when someone without the impulsive mania of the president has to defend an administration’s record that is all but indefensible.
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Instead of talking over his opponent, Pence found more polite ways to avoid answering for the administration’s mistakes.
In one instance, Pence tried to offset criticism of the White House’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic with an attack on Biden’s role in containing the swine flu in 2009 and 2010.
“We actually do know what failure looks like in a pandemic,” Pence claimed. “It was 2009. Swine flu arrived in the United States.”
There is simply no comparison between the destruction wrought by COVID-19 and the H1N1 virus, known as swine flu. As Pence went on to admit, the swine flu killed fewer than 13,000 Americans compared with the more than 211,000 who have died of COVID-19 and the 7.5 million who have tested positive for the virus. Because H1N1 was far less contagious, it also did not require a shutdown of the economy and drastic changes to Americans’ way of life. And, as yet, there is no vaccine for COVID-19.
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On the economy, Harris said the Trump administration’s failure to respond to the coronavirus has led to 1 in 5 businesses closing and more than 30 million Americans filing for unemployment.
Trump measures the strength of the economy “based on how rich people are doing,” Harris said, “which is why he passed a tax bill benefiting the top 1% and the biggest corporations of America, leading to a $2 trillion deficit that the American people are going to have to pay for.”
Pence didn’t address the nation’s suffering economy and instead accused Biden of trying to “tax and spend and regulate and fail our way back to a growing economy” when he was vice president.
“Despite what Sen. Harris says, the average American family of four had $2,000 in savings and taxes,” he said, glossing over the fact that Trump has left the country teetering on the edge of a recession.
Pence’s silence in response to hard questions also spoke volumes. He pivoted to other issues when asked about health care.
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“President Trump and I have a plan to improve health care and to protect preexisting conditions for all Americans,” the vice president claimed, which is something Trump and Republicans have been saying for years but have never produced. On the contrary, the Trump administration is actively trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which more than 20 million Americans rely on for health care.
Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris at Wednesday's vice presidential debate Salt Lake City. MORRY GASH/AFP/pool via Getty Images
In other moments, Pence responded to Harris’s critiques of his administration’s governance with flat-out lies.
Harris recalled how Trump told journalist Bob Woodward that he did not warn the public in late January about how lethal the coronavirus was because he “wanted people to remain calm.”
“I want to ask the American people: How calm were you when you were panicked about where you were going to get your next roll of toilet paper?” she asked. “How calm were you when your kids were sent home from school and you didn’t know when they were going to go back? How calm were you when your children couldn’t see your parents because you were afraid you could kill them?”
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Pence, who chairs the White House’s coronavirus task force, denied that Trump ever concealed any relevant information about the disease. But Woodward’s audio shows Trump discussing the virus’s severity in early February, even as he continued to downplay it publicly.
The vice president said that Dr. Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, had said that “everything that he told the president in the Oval Office, the president told the American people.”
But that’s not quite accurate. Fauci said in September that he “didn’t see any discrepancies” between his private discussions with the president and what the president told the public. He did not dispel the idea that Trump misled the public about the nature of the threat.
When debate moderator Susan Page asked Pence if he thinks climate change is an existential threat, Pence ignored the question altogether.
“The climate is changing,” said the vice president, stating the obvious. “The issue is, what’s the cause and what do we do about it? President Trump has made it clear that we’re going to continue to listen to the science.”
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The science is clear that climate change is driven by manmade greenhouse gas emissions and that if it’s not technically an existential threat, it’s a catastrophic one.
Pence tried to put the focus back on Harris and make her defend the Green New Deal, a progressive climate policy framework that proposes phasing out fossil fuels by 2035 and banning natural gas fracking. Harris supported both policies as a presidential candidate but has embraced Biden’s more moderate climate agenda since joining his ticket.
She retorted that, unlike the Trump administration, a Biden administration would let data and science dictate its response to climate change. Just a few weeks ago, Trump baselessly questioned climate science during a California wildfire briefing.
“We have seen a pattern with this administration, which is that they don’t believe in science,” Harris said. “Joe’s plan is about saying, ‘We’re going to deal with it, but we’re also going to create jobs.’”
We want to know what you’re hearing on the ground from the candidates. If you get any interesting ― or suspicious! ― campaign mailers, robocalls or hear anything else you think we should know about, email us at scoops@huffpost.com.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-08--Mike Pence Refuses During Debate To Accept Election Results

President Donald Trump has repeatedly refused to say whether he would accept the results of the November election if he loses , citing discredited conspiracy theories about mail-in voting .
During Wednesday ’ s vice presidential debate , Mike Pence joined Trump in undermining the legitimacy of the country ’ s democratic process by saying he believes that supposed voter fraud might taint the outcome .
In the final question of the debate , moderator Susan Page asked Pence what he would do if Trump refused to peacefully transfer power .
Pence responded by insisting that his boss would win @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mail-in voting creates a high risk of voter fraud , which is a largely nonexistent problem that Trump and the Republican party have hyped as part of their efforts to sow doubt in the outcome of the election .
“ Well , Susan , first and foremost , I think we ’ re going to win this election , ” Pence said , accusing Biden of being part of the “ establishment ” for the past 47 years .
( Pence , a former congressman and governor , first ran for Congress , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pence further claimed that he and Trump “ are fighting every day in courthouses to prevent Joe Biden and Kamala Harris from changing the rules and creating this universal mail-in voting that will create massive opportunities for voter fraud.
” It is true that Trump and the Republican party are waging a legal campaign against mail-in voting , a long-standing practice that has been expanded during the pandemic so that voters can cast ballots without risking COVID-19 exposure .
But the lawsuits have nothing to do with fraud : Instead , they are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ voters to cast mail-in ballots by exploiting technicalities that could prevent legitimate ballots from being counted .
The Republican strategy is simple .
Fear-mongering about voter fraud is a form of voter intimidation and could discourage those who are worried about inadvertently breaking the law from voting .
It also lays the groundwork for Trump to falsely declare himself the winner on Nov. 3 and move to halt the counting of mail-in ballots , which are likely to favor Biden .
With millions of people voting by mail , the actual result of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to determine .
During his answer , Pence also referenced “ Obamagate , ” a conspiracy theory embraced by Trump that posits that former President Barack Obama and his so-called “ deep state ” allies worked secretly to sabotage Trump ’ s presidency before he even entered office — a wild claim that Trump frequently turns to when advocating for the imprisonment of his political opponents .
( He has repeatedly called for Obama and former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to be arrested over the supposed scandal . )
Trump tweeted a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wednesday : “ BIDEN SHOULDN ’ T BE ALLOWED TO RUN - GOT CAUGHT !
!
!
” Instead of pressing Pence to commit to a peaceful transition of power — or at least mentioning that voter fraud is not , in fact , a widespread problem — Page moved on .
She had asked all of her prepared questions , she said , and wanted to spend the final minutes of the debate on a question about civility written by an eighth grader .
“ If our leaders can ’ t get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to get along ?
” the student wanted to know .
Page gave each candidate one minute to respond .

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President Donald Trump has repeatedly refused to say whether he would accept the results of the November election if he loses, citing discredited conspiracy theories about mail-in voting. During Wednesday’s vice presidential debate, Mike Pence joined Trump in undermining the legitimacy of the country’s democratic process by saying he believes that supposed voter fraud might taint the outcome.
In the final question of the debate, moderator Susan Page asked Pence what he would do if Trump refused to peacefully transfer power. Pence responded by insisting that his boss would win reelection — and by falsely claiming that mail-in voting creates a high risk of voter fraud, which is a largely nonexistent problem that Trump and the Republican party have hyped as part of their efforts to sow doubt in the outcome of the election.
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“Well, Susan, first and foremost, I think we’re going to win this election,” Pence said, accusing Biden of being part of the “establishment” for the past 47 years. (Pence, a former congressman and governor, first ran for Congress, unsuccessfully, 32 years ago.)
Pence further claimed that he and Trump “are fighting every day in courthouses to prevent Joe Biden and Kamala Harris from changing the rules and creating this universal mail-in voting that will create massive opportunities for voter fraud.”
It is true that Trump and the Republican party are waging a legal campaign against mail-in voting, a long-standing practice that has been expanded during the pandemic so that voters can cast ballots without risking COVID-19 exposure. But the lawsuits have nothing to do with fraud: Instead, they are aimed at making it harder for registered voters to cast mail-in ballots by exploiting technicalities that could prevent legitimate ballots from being counted.
The Republican strategy is simple. Fear-mongering about voter fraud is a form of voter intimidation and could discourage those who are worried about inadvertently breaking the law from voting. It also lays the groundwork for Trump to falsely declare himself the winner on Nov. 3 and move to halt the counting of mail-in ballots, which are likely to favor Biden. With millions of people voting by mail, the actual result of the presidential election will likely take weeks to determine.
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During his answer, Pence also referenced “Obamagate,” a conspiracy theory embraced by Trump that posits that former President Barack Obama and his so-called “deep state” allies worked secretly to sabotage Trump’s presidency before he even entered office — a wild claim that Trump frequently turns to when advocating for the imprisonment of his political opponents. (He has repeatedly called for Obama and former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to be arrested over the supposed scandal.) Trump tweeted a reference to the conspiracy theory earlier on Wednesday: “BIDEN SHOULDN’T BE ALLOWED TO RUN - GOT CAUGHT!!!”
Instead of pressing Pence to commit to a peaceful transition of power — or at least mentioning that voter fraud is not, in fact, a widespread problem — Page moved on. She had asked all of her prepared questions, she said, and wanted to spend the final minutes of the debate on a question about civility written by an eighth grader.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-07--Mike Pence Attacks Obama Administration By Citing Things It Polled Well On

“ We actually do know what failure looks like in a pandemic , ” Pence said , citing the Obama administration ― and then-vice president Joe Biden ’ s ― response to the 2009 swine flu .
“ Sixty million Americans contracted the swine flu , ” Pence said .
“ [ Biden ’ s ] own chief of staff Ron Klain would say last year that it was pure luck , that they did ‘ everything possible wrong.
’ And we learned from that.
” ( Klain later told Politico his comments referred to the White House ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccines to meet public demand . )
Vice President Mike Pence speaks during the vice presidential debate in Kingsbury Hall at the University of Utah on Oct. 7 , 2020 , in Salt Lake City .
At the time , however , the Obama administration saw broadly positive marks for its response to the swine flu .
In an October 2009 CNN/ORC poll , a 57 % majority of Americans approved of how President Barack Obama handled the government response to the swine flu , with 40 % disapproving .
And in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , 55 % of voters said the blame for the swine flu vaccine shortage fell mostly on the companies that made the vaccine , with just 13 % primarily blaming the White House .
The Trump administration also saw initially positive ratings for its handling of the coronavirus ― in March 2020 HuffPost/YouGov polling , Americans ’ approval for the government response reached as high as 57 % , while Trump ’ s approval rating on the issue reached the 50 % mark .
But as the pandemic continued on , those numbers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ released this week , just 39 % of voters approve of Trump ’ s handling of coronavirus issues , and only 35 % approve of the federal government response .
Later in the debate , Pence called Obamacare a “ disaster.
” Unlike the Obama administration ’ s response to swine flu , the Affordable Care Act was often genuinely unpopular in its early years ― in 2014 , 53 % disapproved , according to Kaiser Family Foundation polling .
In the years since , however , the law has grown increasingly popular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , conducted last month , 49 % of Americans held a favorable view of the ACA , compared to the 42 % who viewed it negatively .
We want to know what you ’ re hearing on the ground from the candidates .
If you get any interesting ― or suspicious !
― campaign mailers , robocalls or hear anything else you think we should know about , email us at scoops @ huffpost.com .

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Asked about the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus during Wednesday night’s debate, Vice President Mike Pence reached for a historical comparison.
“We actually do know what failure looks like in a pandemic,” Pence said, citing the Obama administration ― and then-vice president Joe Biden’s ― response to the 2009 swine flu.
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“Sixty million Americans contracted the swine flu,” Pence said. “[Biden’s] own chief of staff Ron Klain would say last year that it was pure luck, that they did ‘everything possible wrong.’ And we learned from that.” (Klain later told Politico his comments referred to the White House’s struggle to produce an adequate supply of vaccines to meet public demand.)
Vice President Mike Pence speaks during the vice presidential debate in Kingsbury Hall at the University of Utah on Oct. 7, 2020, in Salt Lake City. ROBYN BECK via Getty Images
At the time, however, the Obama administration saw broadly positive marks for its response to the swine flu. In an October 2009 CNN/ORC poll, a 57% majority of Americans approved of how President Barack Obama handled the government response to the swine flu, with 40% disapproving.
Polling on President Barack Obama's handling of the 2009 swine flu. Roper Center
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And in a Fox News poll taken later that year, 55% of voters said the blame for the swine flu vaccine shortage fell mostly on the companies that made the vaccine, with just 13% primarily blaming the White House.
Polling on Obama's handling of the 2009 swine flu. Roper Center
The Trump administration also saw initially positive ratings for its handling of the coronavirus ― in March 2020 HuffPost/YouGov polling, Americans’ approval for the government response reached as high as 57%, while Trump’s approval rating on the issue reached the 50% mark. But as the pandemic continued on, those numbers slid underwater.
In a HuffPost/YouGov poll released this week, just 39% of voters approve of Trump’s handling of coronavirus issues, and only 35% approve of the federal government response.
Later in the debate, Pence called Obamacare a “disaster.” Unlike the Obama administration’s response to swine flu, the Affordable Care Act was often genuinely unpopular in its early years ― in 2014, 53% disapproved, according to Kaiser Family Foundation polling.
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In the years since, however, the law has grown increasingly popular. In KFF’s latest polling, conducted last month, 49% of Americans held a favorable view of the ACA, compared to the 42% who viewed it negatively.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-07--As Kamala Harris Defended Fracking, Mike Pence Painted Her As A Green Radical

Yet it was the incumbent in an administration dismantling even the most basic climate protections who went on the offensive at Wednesday night ’ s vice presidential debate .
Vice President Mike Pence repeatedly attacked Sen. Kamala Harris ( D-Calif. ) over her past support of scientifically sound proposals and successfully shifted the focus of their lone debate away from the Trump administration ’ s abandonment of virtually every major policy to cut emissions .
Over and over again , the Republican lobbed the Green New Deal at the Democratic senator as a smear , depicting the movement to rapidly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country ’ s infrastructure for climate catastrophes as a radical green boogeyman .
Harris co-sponsored the congressional resolution outlining the core tenets of a Green New Deal last year , and said last year she favored “ banning fracking.
” Those calls were largely in line with the rapid phase-out of oil , gas and coal that scientists ― including those who wrote the federal government ’ s own National Climate Assessment ― say is necessary to keep global warming within 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial averages and to avoid ecological collapse and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Public opinion is shifting against fracking , which produces air and water pollution and increases emissions of methane , a super-heating gas .
Just 22 % of Americans supported increasing fracking , while 45 % opposed more fracking , an August 2019 Associated Press-NORC poll found .
In September 2019 , a YouGov Blue poll found that 46 % of voters backed a ban on fracking , while 33 % opposed a ban .
Pollster Franklin & Marshall ’ s January survey found Pennsylvania voters were split on banning the drilling practice .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which remains more widely unionized than most renewable energy sectors .
Joe Biden , Harris ’ running mate , has steadfastly refused to come out against the drilling practice also known as hydraulic fracturing .
Last month , the Pennsylvania State Building and Construction Trades Council , a union representing workers in the state ’ s fracking industry , endorsed Biden .
At last week ’ s first debate with President Donald Trump , Biden distanced himself from the Green New Deal , insisting his plan was different .
Harris largely ignored @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the three-word slogan .
Instead , she highlighted an analysis the Wall Street firm Moody ’ s published last month that found that Biden ’ s economic plan ― which centered on green infrastructure ― would create more jobs than what Trump proposed .
“ Part of those jobs will be about clean energy and renewable energy , ” she said .
“ Joe understands that the West Coast of our country is burning , including my home state of California .
Joe sees what is happening in the Gulf states , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sees and talks to the farmers in Iowa whose crops have been battered by storms.
” “ Did you know this administration took the word ‘ science ’ off the website , then took the words ‘ climate change ’ off the website ?
” she asked .
“ We ’ ve seen a pattern with this administration , which is that they don ’ t believe in science.
” Pressed to explain his understanding of climate science , Pence followed a similar script to Trump and other Republicans who have quit denying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that position has become tangibly indefensible .
Yet it ’ s unclear how any peer-reviewed research led him to the other conclusion he reached onstage in Salt Lake City Wednesday night .
He derided Biden ’ s plan to help retrofit buildings to reduce energy and water use .
During a year when so many major storms formed in the Atlantic that forecasters ran out of names , the vice president claimed hurricanes are no worse than before .
We want to know what you ’ re hearing on the ground from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ― or suspicious !
― campaign mailers , robocalls or hear anything else you think we should know about , email us at scoops @ huffpost.com .

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Just this week, wildfires scorched an unprecedented 4 millionth acre of California, a powerful Category 4 hurricane barreled toward the Gulf states, and federal scientists declared 2020 a record year for billion-dollar climate-related disasters.
Yet it was the incumbent in an administration dismantling even the most basic climate protections who went on the offensive at Wednesday night’s vice presidential debate.
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Vice President Mike Pence repeatedly attacked Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) over her past support of scientifically sound proposals and successfully shifted the focus of their lone debate away from the Trump administration’s abandonment of virtually every major policy to cut emissions.
Over and over again, the Republican lobbed the Green New Deal at the Democratic senator as a smear, depicting the movement to rapidly transition from fossil fuels and fortify the country’s infrastructure for climate catastrophes as a radical green boogeyman.
“We’re all about freedom and respecting the American people,” Pence said. “They want to abolish fossil fuels and ban fracking.”
That rhetorical tactic created an uncomfortable wedge for the Democrat.
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) sparred with Vice President Mike Pence at the lone vice presidential debate of the 2020 election on Wednesday night. ERIC BARADAT via Getty Images
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Harris co-sponsored the congressional resolution outlining the core tenets of a Green New Deal last year, and said last year she favored “banning fracking.” Those calls were largely in line with the rapid phase-out of oil, gas and coal that scientists ― including those who wrote the federal government’s own National Climate Assessment ― say is necessary to keep global warming within 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial averages and to avoid ecological collapse and hundreds of millions of human deaths.
Public opinion is shifting against fracking, which produces air and water pollution and increases emissions of methane, a super-heating gas. Just 22% of Americans supported increasing fracking, while 45% opposed more fracking, an August 2019 Associated Press-NORC poll found. In September 2019, a YouGov Blue poll found that 46% of voters backed a ban on fracking, while 33% opposed a ban. Pollster Franklin & Marshall’s January survey found Pennsylvania voters were split on banning the drilling practice. But influential labor unions fiercely defend fracking, which remains more widely unionized than most renewable energy sectors.
Joe Biden, Harris’ running mate, has steadfastly refused to come out against the drilling practice also known as hydraulic fracturing. Last month, the Pennsylvania State Building and Construction Trades Council, a union representing workers in the state’s fracking industry, endorsed Biden.
“I will repeat, and the American people know, that Joe Biden will not ban fracking,” Harris said Wednesday night. “That is a fact.”
At last week’s first debate with President Donald Trump, Biden distanced himself from the Green New Deal, insisting his plan was different. Harris largely ignored Pence’s repeated attempts to invoke the three-word slogan.
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Instead, she highlighted an analysis the Wall Street firm Moody’s published last month that found that Biden’s economic plan ― which centered on green infrastructure ― would create more jobs than what Trump proposed.
“Part of those jobs will be about clean energy and renewable energy,” she said. “Joe understands that the West Coast of our country is burning, including my home state of California. Joe sees what is happening in the Gulf states, which are being battered by storms. Joe sees and talks to the farmers in Iowa whose crops have been battered by storms.”
“I will repeat, and the American people know, that Joe Biden will not ban fracking. That is a fact.” - Vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris
She, too, went on the attack at times, criticizing the Trump administration’s Orwellian removal of information from federal websites, a move that demonstrates the White House’s efforts to undercut climate regulations.
“Did you know this administration took the word ‘science’ off the website, then took the words ‘climate change’ off the website?” she asked. “We’ve seen a pattern with this administration, which is that they don’t believe in science.”
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Pressed to explain his understanding of climate science, Pence followed a similar script to Trump and other Republicans who have quit denying that warming is even occurring now that that position has become tangibly indefensible.
“The climate is changing,” he said. “We’ll follow the science.”
Yet it’s unclear how any peer-reviewed research led him to the other conclusion he reached onstage in Salt Lake City Wednesday night. He derided Biden’s plan to help retrofit buildings to reduce energy and water use. During a year when so many major storms formed in the Atlantic that forecasters ran out of names, the vice president claimed hurricanes are no worse than before.
“Many of the climate alarmists use hurricanes and wildfires to sell a bill of goods with the Green New Deal,” Pence said.
We want to know what you’re hearing on the ground from the candidates. If you get any interesting ― or suspicious! ― campaign mailers, robocalls or hear anything else you think we should know about, email us at scoops@huffpost.com.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-08--What If Donald Trump Had Handled The Pandemic A Little More Like Bolsonaro?

Donald Trump , it seemed , had decided to go Full Bolsonaro .
On Monday , just hours after the U.S. president left the hospital where he ’ d been treated for COVID-19 following a positive coronavirus test last week , a defiant Trump insisted that he was doing fine and told his countrymen not to let the virus that has killed 210,000 Americans ( and counting ) , and was still presumably marauding through his body , “ dominate ” their minds .
Three months ago , after his own positive test , Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro wasted little @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and thus justified in his assertion that COVID-19 was nothing more than the “ little flu ” he had always claimed it to be .
Trump , whom Bolsonaro considers a model for his own presidency , perhaps saw the Brazilian as the example to follow this time : Despite having presided over one of the few COVID-19 outbreaks that rivals the United States ’ in its sheer devastation , Bolsonaro is today as popular as he ’ s ever been .
With his own poll numbers plummeting , Trump needed the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ apparently given his Brazilian friend .
Trump and Bolsonaro ’ s similarities have never been more obvious than during the pandemic : Their refusals to endorse even the most basic precautions have had disastrous consequences and are responsible not just for their own infections but for two of the world ’ s worst COVID-19 outbreaks .
Together , the U.S. and Brazil are home to more than 12 million cases and 350,000 deaths .
On Tuesday , Trump tweeted that he was cutting off talks with House Democrats and Speaker Nancy Pelosi over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after the Nov. 3 election .
The tweets were a shock : Trump was turning down a potential gift from his opponents that might have provided a boost to both the economy and his lagging political prospects just weeks before Election Day .
More than that , he was placing the blame for the continued struggles of the American people squarely on his own shoulders .
Much like Trump , Bolsonaro early on made his pandemic response a false choice between public health and economic health , on the bet “ that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ own economic survival , ” as Brazilian political analyst Thomas Traumann wrote in August .
But unlike Trump , he has remained steadfastly focused on the economy as the only real concern and proved himself much more politically shrewd than his U.S. counterpart ― at least in that when he was offered a gift , he knew well enough to take it .
Bolsonaro has really botched it in terms of the epidemic , [ but ] that has been pushed aside because ... the people who have been most affected by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ something for them .
Monica de Bolle , a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics Brazil ’ s public assistance program pushed the country ’ s poverty rate near a historic low , and although the economy slumped , it contracted at lower rates than in most other South American countries .
Bolsonaro ’ s scandal-ridden presidency and the pain of the pandemic drove away many middle- and upper-middle-class Brazilians who ’ d once supported him .
Nevertheless , his approval ratings rose in August to the highest levels of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from poorer and working-class Brazilians , especially in the country ’ s poor northeast region , who had largely supported his opponent in 2018 but had now benefited from the cash assistance .
“ There ’ s no question that what has driven Bolsonaro ’ s rise in the polls is not the fact that he survived COVID , but the fact that the Brazilian state provided ... enough aid to meaningfully change the lives of the poorest members of society , ” said Brian Winter , the New York-based editor-in-chief of Americas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the Americas Society/Council of the Americas .
Trump , too , backed a massive spending package that delivered significant amounts of relief to Americans early in the pandemic , via a stimulus payment , enhanced unemployment benefits and assistance to businesses .
But the direct cash aspect was comparatively meager in terms of its design : The U.S. relied on a one-time payment instead of recurring monthly assistance .
Most of the benefits of the overall package went to wealthy and large corporations , while only a fifth of the $ 4 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to The Washington Post .
Bolsonaro , on the other hand , supported an extension of Brazil ’ s assistance program as it neared its original expiration date in early September .
Although the government cut the amount of each monthly payment in half , its guarantee of public assistance through the end of 2020 could help ensure that Bolsonaro continues to enjoy the political benefits of the “ coronavoucher ” while escaping blame for the continued spread of the virus .
( In the August poll , just 11 % of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s death toll . )
“ A huge number of people have been beneficiaries of this program , and even if they ’ re unemployed , they feel like the government has helped them , ” said Monica de Bolle , a Brazilian economist and senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington who advised Brazilian legislators involved in the design of the relief program .
“ Bolsonaro has really botched it in terms of the epidemic , [ but ] that has been pushed aside because ... the people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ epidemic feel that the government actually did something for them .
As opposed to here , where by and large the government hasn ’ t really done anything for the people who are very vulnerable.
” While Bolsonaro has benefited from and stoked Brazil ’ s high levels of polarization , the country ’ s population is in many respects less politically rigid than the electorate in the United States , a dynamic that makes many Brazilians more willing to support ― or turn their backs on ― their leaders .
( To @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reach the 90 % approval that then-Brazilian President Lula da Silva enjoyed a decade ago .
Neither could one sink to the 3 % rating that Brazilians bestowed on Bolsonaro ’ s predecessor , Michel Temer , in 2017 . )
Trump ’ s COVID-19 illness also appears far more serious than Bolsonaro ’ s and has done more to puncture the veneer of invincibility on which strongmen like them rely .
And in any case , Bolsonaro has proved more ruthless than his U.S. counterpart : Trump may have largely sidelined his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fired one health minister and forced another to resign after just 28 days on the job .
His strong-arm approach and the boost in support from his economic response have helped him win the narrative war against governors , mayors and other state officials who sought to keep lockdowns in place longer than Bolsonaro wanted .

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Donald Trump, it seemed, had decided to go Full Bolsonaro. On Monday, just hours after the U.S. president left the hospital where he’d been treated for COVID-19 following a positive coronavirus test last week, a defiant Trump insisted that he was doing fine and told his countrymen not to let the virus that has killed 210,000 Americans (and counting), and was still presumably marauding through his body, “dominate” their minds.
Three months ago, after his own positive test, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro wasted little time in declaring himself fit and healthy, and thus justified in his assertion that COVID-19 was nothing more than the “little flu” he had always claimed it to be. Trump, whom Bolsonaro considers a model for his own presidency, perhaps saw the Brazilian as the example to follow this time: Despite having presided over one of the few COVID-19 outbreaks that rivals the United States’ in its sheer devastation, Bolsonaro is today as popular as he’s ever been. With his own poll numbers plummeting, Trump needed the sort of bailout a coronavirus infection had apparently given his Brazilian friend.
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Trump and Bolsonaro’s similarities have never been more obvious than during the pandemic: Their refusals to endorse even the most basic precautions have had disastrous consequences and are responsible not just for their own infections but for two of the world’s worst COVID-19 outbreaks. Together, the U.S. and Brazil are home to more than 12 million cases and 350,000 deaths.
Only one of them, however, seems set to pay an immediate political price for it because, for all their similarities, Trump has failed to do one key thing that has boosted Bolsonaro.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro have presided over two of the world's worst coronavirus outbreaks. But Trump may face a political price, while Bolsonaro has largely escaped blame. AP Photo/Alex Brandon
On Tuesday, Trump tweeted that he was cutting off talks with House Democrats and Speaker Nancy Pelosi over a second pandemic-related economic relief package until after the Nov. 3 election. The tweets were a shock: Trump was turning down a potential gift from his opponents that might have provided a boost to both the economy and his lagging political prospects just weeks before Election Day. More than that, he was placing the blame for the continued struggles of the American people squarely on his own shoulders.
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Much like Trump, Bolsonaro early on made his pandemic response a false choice between public health and economic health, on the bet “that the first concern of Brazilians would be their own economic survival,” as Brazilian political analyst Thomas Traumann wrote in August. But unlike Trump, he has remained steadfastly focused on the economy as the only real concern and proved himself much more politically shrewd than his U.S. counterpart ― at least in that when he was offered a gift, he knew well enough to take it.
In the early months of the pandemic, over Bolsonaro’s objections, Brazil’s Congress approved an emergency spending package that provided direct cash support to millions of informal-economy workers who were facing financial calamity. The payments ― about $100 per month, or roughly half the monthly minimum wage ― provided assistance to nearly 70 million people, few of whom realized or cared that Bolsonaro had initially sought to provide far less.
“Bolsonaro has really botched it in terms of the epidemic, [but] that has been pushed aside because ... the people who have been most affected by the epidemic feel that the government actually did something for them.” - Monica de Bolle, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics
Bolsonaro’s approval ratings cratered in June amid allegations of corruption and executive overreach and as Brazil became a new epicenter of the global pandemic. But the economic assistance (along with some timely concessions to an influential bloc of centrist congressmen) helped ensure the sag would be short-lived.
Brazil’s public assistance program pushed the country’s poverty rate near a historic low, and although the economy slumped, it contracted at lower rates than in most other South American countries. Bolsonaro’s scandal-ridden presidency and the pain of the pandemic drove away many middle- and upper-middle-class Brazilians who’d once supported him. Nevertheless, his approval ratings rose in August to the highest levels of his presidency, thanks to increased support from poorer and working-class Brazilians, especially in the country’s poor northeast region, who had largely supported his opponent in 2018 but had now benefited from the cash assistance.
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“There’s no question that what has driven Bolsonaro’s rise in the polls is not the fact that he survived COVID, but the fact that the Brazilian state provided ... enough aid to meaningfully change the lives of the poorest members of society,” said Brian Winter, the New York-based editor-in-chief of Americas Quarterly and the vice president for policy at the Americas Society/Council of the Americas.
Trump, too, backed a massive spending package that delivered significant amounts of relief to Americans early in the pandemic, via a stimulus payment, enhanced unemployment benefits and assistance to businesses. But the direct cash aspect was comparatively meager in terms of its design: The U.S. relied on a one-time payment instead of recurring monthly assistance. Most of the benefits of the overall package went to wealthy and large corporations, while only a fifth of the $4 trillion in aid helped individuals directly, according to The Washington Post.
More than 21 million Americans are currently unemployed, and another 11.5 million have seen reduced hours and pay during the pandemic, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a liberal think tank. Although the unemployment rate has fallen from its pandemic peak, job growth is slowing and the number of layoffs has increased. The lack of new stimulus funding risks turning the U.S. economy into “a wasteland,” economists have warned.
Bolsonaro, on the other hand, supported an extension of Brazil’s assistance program as it neared its original expiration date in early September. Although the government cut the amount of each monthly payment in half, its guarantee of public assistance through the end of 2020 could help ensure that Bolsonaro continues to enjoy the political benefits of the “coronavoucher” while escaping blame for the continued spread of the virus. (In the August poll, just 11% of Brazilians blamed him for the country’s death toll.)
“A huge number of people have been beneficiaries of this program, and even if they’re unemployed, they feel like the government has helped them,” said Monica de Bolle, a Brazilian economist and senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington who advised Brazilian legislators involved in the design of the relief program. “Bolsonaro has really botched it in terms of the epidemic, [but] that has been pushed aside because ... the people who have been most affected by the epidemic feel that the government actually did something for them. As opposed to here, where by and large the government hasn’t really done anything for the people who are very vulnerable.”
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Trump appeared at the White House on Monday after leaving the hospital and attempted to persuade Americans that COVID-19 was nothing to worry about. A day later he cut off talks about economic stimulus funding. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images
There are plenty of reasons why Trump might not have benefited had he followed Bolsonaro religiously down this path.
The pandemic hit the U.S. during an election year, while Bolsonaro is still shy of the halfway point of his presidency. Trump faces a coalesced and coherent opposing force in the Democratic Party, while the Brazilian opposition is still splintered, voiceless and largely impotent. And Brazil’s higher levels of poverty may have made direct cash payment programs more impactful from a political standpoint.
While Bolsonaro has benefited from and stoked Brazil’s high levels of polarization, the country’s population is in many respects less politically rigid than the electorate in the United States, a dynamic that makes many Brazilians more willing to support ― or turn their backs on ― their leaders. (To wit: No U.S. president could ever reach the 90% approval that then-Brazilian President Lula da Silva enjoyed a decade ago. Neither could one sink to the 3% rating that Brazilians bestowed on Bolsonaro’s predecessor, Michel Temer, in 2017.)
Trump’s COVID-19 illness also appears far more serious than Bolsonaro’s and has done more to puncture the veneer of invincibility on which strongmen like them rely. And in any case, Bolsonaro has proved more ruthless than his U.S. counterpart: Trump may have largely sidelined his top public health officials, but Bolsonaro fired one health minister and forced another to resign after just 28 days on the job. His strong-arm approach and the boost in support from his economic response have helped him win the narrative war against governors, mayors and other state officials who sought to keep lockdowns in place longer than Bolsonaro wanted.
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Brazilians also report higher levels of mistrust in scientists than many of their global counterparts, according to a recent poll from the Pew Research Center.
The confluence of all these factors may have created “a more ideal environment for denialism in Brazil than in the United States,” allowing Bolsonaro to benefit in ways Trump couldn’t, said Oliver Stuenkel, a professor at the Getúlio Vargas Foundation in São Paulo.
Bolsonaro may still face political blowback if he doesn’t continue the economic assistance into next year or if his government’s lack of assistance for Brazilian businesses hampers the economy in the near future.
Still, it’s shocking to those who’ve watched Bolsonaro prosper politically in the midst of his country’s pain that Trump hasn’t done more to copy the one aspect of the Brazilian response that actually makes good sense. Giving people money, it turns out, is good economics and good politics in the midst of a pandemic, even if everything else you’re doing is actively making the crisis worse.
“It completely surprises me because this is the obvious thing, right?” de Bolle said of Trump’s refusal to deliver more economic aid. “This is what you do: You help people out. It’s a win-win situation.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-10-08--Keith Olbermann Goes To Town On ‘Creature’ Donald Trump In Return To Punditry

Keith Olbermann returned to political commentary on Wednesday , demanding that President Donald Trump ’ s “ reign of terror @ @ @ @ @ In the first of what he promised would be a daily video , the ex-MSNBC @ @ @ @ @ time in lacing into Trump ’ s mishandling of the coronavirus pandemic .
Olbermann titled @ @ @ @ @ Person In The World.
” Olbermann described the president as “ a mass murderer , @ @ @ @ @ and “ the worst terrorist this country has ever faced.
” Trump continues downplaying the @ @ @ @ @ was hospitalized for three days with COVID-19 .
“ Earth is now ruled by a @ @ @ @ @ ruled by a madman , ” Olbermann said in the 15-minute video .
The show @ @ @ @ @ monologues for GQ ’ s “ The Resistance ” show he hosted until 2017 .
@ @ @ @ @ will be released on YouTube daily at 5 p.m .
Check out the video here @

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Keith Olbermann returned to political commentary on Wednesday, demanding that President Donald Trump’s “reign of terror over us must end.”
In the first of what he promised would be a daily video, the ex-MSNBC and ESPN commentator wasted no time in lacing into Trump’s mishandling of the coronavirus pandemic. Olbermann titled his series “The Worst Person In The World.”
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Olbermann described the president as “a mass murderer,” a “creature” and “the worst terrorist this country has ever faced.” Trump continues downplaying the pandemic ― even after he was hospitalized for three days with COVID-19.
“Earth is now ruled by a virus and America is now ruled by a madman,” Olbermann said in the 15-minute video.
The show recalls Olbermann’s scathing monologues for GQ’s “The Resistance” show he hosted until 2017.
Episodes of the new show will be released on YouTube daily at 5 p.m.
Check out the video here: