theguardian--2020-12-20--Biden mulls punishments for Russia over suspected role in government hack

As president-elect Joe Biden weighed options to punish Russia for its suspected hacking of US government agencies and companies , one leading Republican accused Moscow of “ acting with impunity ” and others called for retaliatory strikes .
Biden ’ s choices once he assumes office on 20 January range from financial sanctions to revenge cyberattacks on Russian interests , according to transition team sources .
Donald Trump , meanwhile , maintains the hacking could be the work of China , despite the certainty of his own secretary of state , Mike Pompeo that Russia was behind the attacks .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ – a frequent Trump critic – said Vladimir Putin ’ s government had effectively invaded America .
“ What this invasion underscores is that Russia acted with impunity , ” Romney told NBC ’ s Meet the Press .
“ They didn ’ t fear what we would be able to do from a cyber capacity .
They didn ’ t think that our defence systems were particularly adequate .
And they apparently didn ’ t think that we would respond in a very aggressive way .
“ This demands a response , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to occur would be a cyber response .
I don ’ t know if we have the capacity to do that in a way that would be of the same scale or even greater scale than what Russia has applied to us , but this is something we have to address as soon as possible.
” John Barasso , a Republican senator from Wyoming , told Fox News Sunday the US had been “ blindsided ” .
“ Six different agencies have been attacked in our government and this has been going on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We need to have a forceful , effective punishing response so people pay a price for this and think twice about doing it again.
” Any response is unlikely to come in Trump ’ s 31 remaining days in the White House .
Other than a critical tweet on Saturday , Trump has kept silent regarding the hack .
“ I think we ’ ve come to recognise that the president has a blind spot when it comes to Russia , ” Romney , a member of the Senate homeland security committee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Union .
“ But I think that the president-elect is a clear-eyed , intelligent individual and he ’ s going to assess Russia and their capabilities in an appropriate way.
” Mark Warner of Virginia , the leading Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee , told ABC ’ s This Week : “ When the president of the United States tries to deflect or is not willing to call out the adversary as we make that attribution , he is not making our country safer .
“ I sometimes think we disproportionately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when we should be better protecting on cyber .
And there are international implications of this attack as well .
We need to be very clear with an affirmative cyber doctrine that says [ if ] you do this kind of broad-based , indiscriminate attack , you will bear the consequences.
” A Biden source told Reuters the new president could step up counter cyber-espionage , with the goal of deterrence and diminishing the potency of Russian cyber spying .
But Biden ’ s team will need better intelligence .
Access to presidential @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ago as Trump disputed election results .
On Sunday , incoming White House chief of staff Ron Klain told CBS ’ s Face the Nation : “ We should be hearing a clear and unambiguous allocation of responsibility from the White House , from the intelligence community .
They ’ re the people in charge .
They ’ re the ones who should be making those messages and delivering the ascertainment of responsibility .
“ Instead , what we ’ ve heard is one message from the secretary of state , a different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ different message from the president ’ s Twitter feed .
We have been briefed on this .
But again , I think in terms of publicly communicating the position of our government that has to come from the current government and it should be coming in a clear and unambiguous voice.
” Romney likened Russia ’ s suspected attack to the US assault on Baghdad during the Iraq war in 2003 .
“ You saw the videos of the rockets going across the city and slamming into various buildings and the places they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ communication centers and the utility centers , ” he told NBC .
“ You can bring a country to its knees if people don ’ t have electricity , don ’ t have water and can ’ t communicate .
“ Basically what Russia appears to have done [ is ] put themselves in those systems in our country .
They don ’ t need rockets to take those things out .
They potentially have the capability to take out all of those things remotely at very small cost.
” Christopher Krebs , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency ( Cisa ) for publicly debunking the president ’ s false claims of election fraud , agreed that the hack was likely the work of the Russian foreign intelligence service SVR .
But he doubted Romney ’ s assessment about what Russia might do with the harvested data .
“ The [ SVR ] are intelligence collectors , ” Krebs told CNN .
“ They ’ re looking for policy decisions , they ’ re looking for diplomatic negotiations in federal agencies .
They ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the destructive types of attacks , and they typically don ’ t work with the other parts of the Russian government .
“ That doesn ’ t mean they can ’ t hand off access , but for now I think this is more of a intelligence collection operation .
The thing that really concerns me about this particular campaign by the Russians was the indiscriminate nature of the supply chain targeting , the fact that they have potentially compromised 18,000 companies .
That to me is outside of the bounds of what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ activities.
” Klain echoed Krebs ’ caution about what Russia might be hoping to achieve , but added : “ In terms of the measures that a Biden administration would take in response to an attack like this , I want to be very clear .
It ’ s not just sanctions .
It ’ s also steps and things we could do to degrade the capacity of foreign actors to repeat this sort of attack .
”

As Joe Biden weighed options to punish Russia for its suspected hacking of US government agencies and companies, one leading Republican accused Moscow of “acting with impunity” and others called for retaliatory strikes.
Biden’s choices once he assumes office on 20 January range from financial sanctions to revenge cyberattacks on Russian interests, according to transition team sources. Donald Trump, meanwhile, maintains the hacking could be the work of China, despite the certainty of his own secretary of state, Mike Pompeo that Russia was behind the attacks.
On Sunday, Republican senator Mitt Romney – a frequent Trump critic – said Vladimir Putin’s government had effectively invaded America.
“What this invasion underscores is that Russia acted with impunity,” Romney told NBC’s Meet the Press. “They didn’t fear what we would be able to do from a cyber capacity. They didn’t think that our defence systems were particularly adequate. And they apparently didn’t think that we would respond in a very aggressive way.
“This demands a response, and the response you’d expect to occur would be a cyber response. I don’t know if we have the capacity to do that in a way that would be of the same scale or even greater scale than what Russia has applied to us, but this is something we have to address as soon as possible.”
John Barasso, a Republican senator from Wyoming, told Fox News Sunday the US had been “blindsided”.
“Six different agencies have been attacked in our government and this has been going on since March,” he said. “We need to have a forceful, effective punishing response so people pay a price for this and think twice about doing it again.”
Any response is unlikely to come in Trump’s 31 remaining days in the White House. Other than a critical tweet on Saturday, Trump has kept silent regarding the hack.
“I think we’ve come to recognise that the president has a blind spot when it comes to Russia,” Romney, a member of the Senate homeland security committee, told CNN’s State of the Union. “But I think that the president-elect is a clear-eyed, intelligent individual and he’s going to assess Russia and their capabilities in an appropriate way.”
Mark Warner of Virginia, the leading Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee, told ABC’s This Week: “When the president of the United States tries to deflect or is not willing to call out the adversary as we make that attribution, he is not making our country safer.
“I sometimes think we disproportionately spend on tanks, ships and guns when we should be better protecting on cyber. And there are international implications of this attack as well. We need to be very clear with an affirmative cyber doctrine that says [if] you do this kind of broad-based, indiscriminate attack, you will bear the consequences.”
A Biden source told Reuters the new president could step up counter cyber-espionage, with the goal of deterrence and diminishing the potency of Russian cyber spying. But Biden’s team will need better intelligence. Access to presidential briefings was delayed until about three weeks ago as Trump disputed election results.
On Sunday, incoming White House chief of staff Ron Klain told CBS’s Face the Nation: “We should be hearing a clear and unambiguous allocation of responsibility from the White House, from the intelligence community. They’re the people in charge. They’re the ones who should be making those messages and delivering the ascertainment of responsibility.
“Instead, what we’ve heard is one message from the secretary of state, a different message from the White House, a different message from the president’s Twitter feed. We have been briefed on this. But again, I think in terms of publicly communicating the position of our government that has to come from the current government and it should be coming in a clear and unambiguous voice.”
Romney likened Russia’s suspected attack to the US assault on Baghdad during the Iraq war in 2003.
“You saw the videos of the rockets going across the city and slamming into various buildings and the places they attacked, of course, were the communication centers and the utility centers,” he told NBC. “You can bring a country to its knees if people don’t have electricity, don’t have water and can’t communicate.
“Basically what Russia appears to have done [is] put themselves in those systems in our country. They don’t need rockets to take those things out. They potentially have the capability to take out all of those things remotely at very small cost.”
Christopher Krebs, fired by Trump last month as director of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (Cisa) for publicly debunking the president’s false claims of election fraud, agreed that the hack was likely the work of the Russian foreign intelligence service SVR. But he doubted Romney’s assessment about what Russia might do with the harvested data.
“The [SVR] are intelligence collectors,” Krebs told CNN. “They’re looking for policy decisions, they’re looking for diplomatic negotiations in federal agencies. They’re typically not the ones to run the destructive types of attacks, and they typically don’t work with the other parts of the Russian government.
“That doesn’t mean they can’t hand off access, but for now I think this is more of a intelligence collection operation. The thing that really concerns me about this particular campaign by the Russians was the indiscriminate nature of the supply chain targeting, the fact that they have potentially compromised 18,000 companies. That to me is outside of the bounds of what we’ve seen recently of espionage activities.”
Klain echoed Krebs’ caution about what Russia might be hoping to achieve, but added: “In terms of the measures that a Biden administration would take in response to an attack like this, I want to be very clear. It’s not just sanctions. It’s also steps and things we could do to degrade the capacity of foreign actors to repeat this sort of attack.”


theguardian--2020-12-21--How the much-litigated ballot deadlines impacted the US election

This article is made possible through Votebeat , a nonpartisan reporting project covering local election integrity and voting access .
Americans shattered records for voting by mail in many states in the 2020 presidential election , a phenomenon that tested existing election laws , new pandemic-related regulations , postal service capacity , voter education efforts and voters ’ own resolve .
Some states had more wiggle room in accepting the mail-in votes than others , allowing ballots that were postmarked by election day to come in later , anywhere from the following day to nearly three weeks after .
These @ @ @ @ @ @ @ politicized aspect of the election .
The Trump campaign and its allies challenged them all the way up to the US supreme court as part of an overall campaign questioning the legitimacy of mail-in voting .
Grace periods for mail-in ballots also became more significant as it became clear that the vote ’ s results would not be even close to final on election day and that the country would indeed experience the “ big blue shift ” that experts predicted .
But what are the implications of letting ballots arrive late ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ shows that the numbers weren ’ t large but were substantial enough to potentially sway a local race or a tighter election .
It also shows a messy national picture , with chaotic regulations and poor record-keeping .
Twenty-two states had grace periods for late-arriving ballots this election – some already had the provision written into their laws , some implemented special extensions just for the pandemic .
Five states allowed ballots to arrive three days after election day ( until 6 November ) and five others allowed a full week ( until @ @ @ @ @ @ @ uniform system in the United States for tracking data on ballots , and some of the data Votebeat collected are merely estimates .
In Pennsylvania , after a partisan legal battle , the US supreme court ( Scotus ) allowed election officials to keep accepting absentee ballots over a three-day extension .
About 10,000 votes arrived in that period , according to the secretary of state ’ s office .
Those ballots are still subject to a lawsuit pending at Sotus and are sequestered from official results .
They made up about 0.4 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In Massachusetts , which also had a three-day rule , 3,403 votes came in , or 0.2 % of the mail-in vote , the secretary of state ’ s office told Votebeat .
North Carolina is another state whose deadline was challenged in the supreme court .
The period there was longer – nine days – and about 15,000 votes arrived from 4-12 November , making up about 1.4 % of the total mail-in vote .
In Washington , where voters only cast ballots by mail , the grace period was 20 days @ @ @ @ @ @ @ votes , or about 2.4 % of the total , in that period , the secretary of state ’ s office told Votebeat .
( It ’ s important to note that in all of these states , you were also able to deliver your mail ballot to the election office or through a drop box , so the total mail-in vote includes those ballots as well . )
The US supreme court decided in late October that Wisconsin ’ s grace period , in place for the April primary , would not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ During the state ’ s primary , 79,000 ballots arrived within those extra six days , making up about 6 % of the total mail-in vote .
Wisconsin election officials haven ’ t determined how many ballots in November arrived too late to be counted .
Election officials in Kentucky and Illinois were only able to guess at how many ballots arrived within their grace periods , because of inconsistent methods for counting and recording them .
Texas , North Dakota , Ohio and Nevada do not track at all on the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ grace periods .
Generally , the longer the grace period , the larger the share of late ballots within it , but there are other factors to consider .
In states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania , pending litigation made it more of a challenge to inform voters of all the necessary deadlines and left voters uncertain about voting timetables .
Conversely , many states did not change their mail-in voting procedures , like deadlines for requesting or submitting absentee ballots , despite the anticipated increase of mail-in voting .
In Pennsylvania the deadline @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the election .
Kim Alexander , head of the California Voter Foundation , which supported the introduction of California ’ s grace period in 2014 , and has conducted research on the matter , says that under normal conditions , the grace period doesn ’ t have to be all that long .
“ In my review of late ballots , most of the ballots that come in post-election come in [ during the ] three days after an election.
” Votebeat found evidence of that pattern in 2020 by examining data @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day-by-day updates for outstanding absentee ballots , showing that the vast majority of late-arriving ballots arrived the day after the election .
How do grace periods help voters ?
The 2020 election was an election like no other , with multiple factors complicating the vote-by-mail process : more mail-in votes in general , the politicization of the issue , changing laws , litigation , US Postal Service ( USPS ) delays .
The main justification for the grace periods , proponents say , is to account for the unreliable performance of the postal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ delivery delays prior to the election , including problems getting voters their absentee ballots on time .
“ It places an unfair burden on voters to expect them to be able to predict how long it ’ s going to take for their ballot to get through the mail system and received by their county , ” Alexander said .
An NPR analysis of this year ’ s primary elections found that more than 50,000 votes were rejected because they arrived too late .
Often , it wasn ’ t the voters ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ studies in several states have shown , first-time voters , like young , Black and Latino voters , are more likely to have their ballot rejected .
“ One of the big takeaways from this election is we saw how giving voters the ability to securely vote remotely through the mail is a great benefit , in particular in a situation of a global pandemic , but it also brings the US Postal Service in as a major partner in the elections process , ” Alexander said .
“ That means elections officials @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the US Postal Service operates.
” Voting by mail may seem more convenient , but it also requires the voter to act much earlier than they would if they went to the polls , said Barry Burden , political science professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison .
You have to make sure to request your ballot early , and in some states , make sure you have a valid ID to do so .
“ One problem with having a hard and fast election day deadline is that it actually forces people who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their ballot before the campaign is over , and so it deprives them of the right to watch the campaign to its conclusion , ” said Burden .
Those final days might be pivotal for the voter ’ s decision-making process – there ’ s new information coming in , newspaper endorsements , debates .
In 2016 , then FBI director James Comey sent a letter to Congress on 28 October about a new trove of Hillary Clinton ’ s emails , which some have said had cost her the election .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ always a deadline , and there are good reasons for why it should just be election day , said Charles Stewart III , expert on election systems and professor of political science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology .
“ One is the optics issue that arose in this election , ” he said .
Ballots that arrive after the election give fodder to those who want to undermine the legitimacy of the voting process .
“ And it discourages people from getting the ballot done , ” he added .
“ The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ voting is education , ensuring that voters can cast their ballots effectively , that they have the deadlines and timelines , regardless of whether the state has a grace period or not , ” said Jared Dearing , executive director of Kentucky ’ s board of elections .
“ All [ that ] election administrators can do around voter education , the better the process.
” And Stewart says that the country did remarkably well on educating voters about when to turn their ballot in – the relatively small proportion of late ballots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and the fact that many states did not change their absentee request deadlines , is “ actually kind of amazing ” .
What is clear , however , is that the more convenient you make voting , the more people will get their votes in on time , Stewart said .
That means the solution could be much bigger than trying to optimize deadlines .
“ If you have a lot of conveniently located drop boxes , and if you have a receive-by date , or requirement , you ’ ve done @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their ballots in on time .
And I think from this election , we saw that almost all voters can get their ballots in on time .
”

This article is made possible through Votebeat, a non-partisan reporting project covering local election integrity and voting access.
Americans shattered records for voting by mail in many states in the 2020 presidential election, a phenomenon that tested existing election laws, new pandemic-related regulations, postal service capacity, voter education efforts and voters’ own resolve.
Some states had more wiggle room in accepting the mail-in votes than others, allowing ballots that were postmarked by election day to come in later, anywhere from the following day to nearly three weeks after. These grace periods became a highly contentious and politicized aspect of the election. The Trump campaign and its allies challenged them all the way up to the US supreme court as part of an overall campaign questioning the legitimacy of mail-in voting.
Grace periods for mail-in ballots also became more significant as it became clear that the vote’s results would not be even close to final on election day and that the country would indeed experience the “big blue shift” that experts predicted.
But what are the implications of letting ballots arrive late? A state-by-state look at the turnout data shows that the numbers weren’t large but were substantial enough to potentially sway a local race or a tighter election. It also shows a messy national picture, with chaotic regulations and poor record-keeping.
Late-arriving ballots, by the numbers
Twenty-two states had grace periods for late-arriving ballots this election – some already had the provision written into their laws, some implemented special extensions just for the pandemic. Five states allowed ballots to arrive three days after election day (until 6 November) and five others allowed a full week (until 10 November). There is no uniform system in the United States for tracking data on ballots, and some of the data Votebeat collected are merely estimates.
In Pennsylvania, after a partisan legal battle, the US supreme court (Scotus) allowed election officials to keep accepting absentee ballots over a three-day extension. About 10,000 votes arrived in that period, according to the secretary of state’s office. Those ballots are still subject to a lawsuit pending at Scotus and are sequestered from official results. They made up about 0.4% of the total mail-in vote. In Massachusetts, which also had a three-day rule, 3,403 votes came in, or 0.2% of the mail-in vote, the secretary of state’s office told Votebeat.
People dance and hold signs during a protest in support of counting all votes in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 5 November. Photograph: Chris McGrath/Getty Images
North Carolina is another state whose deadline was challenged in the supreme court. The period there was longer – nine days – and about 15,000 votes arrived from 4-12 November, making up about 1.4% of the total mail-in vote. In Washington, where voters only cast ballots by mail, the grace period was 20 days. Election offices got a whopping 100,000 votes, or about 2.4% of the total, in that period, the secretary of state’s office told Votebeat. (It’s important to note that in all of these states, you were also able to deliver your mail ballot to the election office or through a drop box, so the total mail-in vote includes those ballots as well.)
The US supreme court decided in late October that Wisconsin’s grace period, in place for the April primary, would not apply in the November general election. During the state’s primary, 79,000 ballots arrived within those extra six days, making up about 6% of the total mail-in vote. Wisconsin election officials haven’t determined how many ballots in November arrived too late to be counted.
Election officials in Kentucky and Illinois were only able to guess at how many ballots arrived within their grace periods, because of inconsistent methods for counting and recording them. Texas, North Dakota, Ohio and Nevada do not track at all on the state level how many ballots arrive within their grace periods.
Generally, the longer the grace period, the larger the share of late ballots within it, but there are other factors to consider. In states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, pending litigation made it more of a challenge to inform voters of all the necessary deadlines and left voters uncertain about voting timetables. Conversely, many states did not change their mail-in voting procedures, like deadlines for requesting or submitting absentee ballots, despite the anticipated increase of mail-in voting. In Pennsylvania the deadline for requesting was just a week ahead of the election.
Kim Alexander, head of the California Voter Foundation, which supported the introduction of California’s grace period in 2014, and has conducted research on the matter, says that under normal conditions, the grace period doesn’t have to be all that long. “In my review of late ballots, most of the ballots that come in post-election come in [during the] three days after an election.”
Votebeat found evidence of that pattern in 2020 by examining data from Minnesota, since the state provided day-by-day updates for outstanding absentee ballots, showing that the vast majority of late-arriving ballots arrived the day after the election.
How do grace periods help voters?
The 2020 election was an election like no other, with multiple factors complicating the vote-by-mail process: more mail-in votes in general, the politicization of the issue, changing laws, litigation, US Postal Service (USPS) delays.
The main justification for the grace periods, proponents say, is to account for the unreliable performance of the postal service, which had a lot of delivery delays before the election, including problems getting voters their absentee ballots on time.
“It places an unfair burden on voters to expect them to be able to predict how long it’s going to take for their ballot to get through the mail system and received by their county,” Alexander said.
An NPR analysis of this year’s primary elections found that more than 50,000 votes were rejected because they arrived too late. Often, it wasn’t the voters’ fault at all. And, as studies in several states have shown, first-time voters, like young, Black and Latino voters, are more likely to have their ballot rejected.
“One of the big takeaways from this election is we saw how giving voters the ability to securely vote remotely through the mail is a great benefit, in particular in a situation of a global pandemic, but it also brings the US Postal Service in as a major partner in the elections process,” Alexander said. “That means elections officials need to know a lot about how the US Postal Service operates.”
Voting by mail may seem more convenient, but it also requires the voter to act much earlier than they would if they went to the polls, said Barry Burden, political science professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. You have to make sure to request your ballot early, and in some states, make sure you have a valid ID to do so.
“One problem with having a hard and fast election day deadline is that it actually forces people who want to vote by mail to submit their ballot before the campaign is over, and so it deprives them of the right to watch the campaign to its conclusion,” said Burden. Those final days might be pivotal for the voter’s decision-making process – there’s new information coming in, newspaper endorsements, debates. In 2016, the then FBI director, James Comey, sent a letter to Congress on 28 October about a new trove of Hillary Clinton’s emails, which some have said cost her the election.
But, others say, there’s always a deadline, and there are good reasons for why it should just be election day, said Charles Stewart III, expert on election systems and professor of political science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “One is the optics issue that arose in this election,” he said. Ballots that arrive after the election give fodder to those who want to undermine the legitimacy of the voting process. “And it discourages people from getting the ballot done,” he added.
The most important part of absentee or mail-in voting is education Jared Dearing
“The most important part of absentee or mail-in voting is education, ensuring that voters can cast their ballots effectively, that they have the deadlines and timelines, regardless of whether the state has a grace period or not,” said Jared Dearing, executive director of Kentucky’s board of elections. “All [that] election administrators can do around voter education, the better the process.”
And Stewart says that the country did remarkably well on educating voters about when to turn their ballot in – the relatively small proportion of late ballots amid millions mailed in to election authorities, and the fact that many states did not change their absentee request deadlines, is “actually kind of amazing”.
What is clear, however, is that the more convenient you make voting, the more people will get their votes in on time, Stewart said. That means the solution could be much bigger than trying to optimize deadlines.
“If you have a lot of conveniently located drop boxes, and if you have a receive-by date, or requirement, you’ve done a lot to allow voters to get their ballots in on time. And I think from this election, we saw that almost all voters can get their ballots in on time.”


theguardian--2020-12-20--Romney decries martial law discussion in Trump's White House

Donald Trump ’ s flirtation with declaring martial law in battleground states and appointing a conspiracy theorist as special counsel to help his attempt to overturn defeat by Joe Biden are “ really sad ” and “ nutty and loopy ” , Mitt Romney said on Sunday .
“ He ’ s leaving Washington with a whole series of conspiracy theories and things that are so nutty and loopy that people are shaking their head wondering what in the world has gotten into this man , ” the Utah Republican senator said .
Joe Biden won the 3 November election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leads by more than 7m ballots in the popular vote .
Nonetheless , Trump is entertaining outlandish schemes to remain in office , egged on by allies like former national security adviser Michael Flynn , who Trump pardoned for lying to the FBI , and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani , the president ’ s personal attorney .
During a Friday meeting at the White House first reported by the New York Times then widely reported elsewhere , Trump discussed security clearance for Sidney Powell , a conspiracy-spouting attorney who was cut @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It was unclear if Trump would actually attempt to install Powell as a special counsel , a position appointed by the US attorney general , not the president .
Numerous Republicans , from outgoing attorney general William Barr to governors and state officials , have said repeatedly there is no evidence of the voter fraud Trump alleges .
“ It ’ s not going to happen , ” Romney told CNN .
“ That ’ s going nowhere .
And I understand the president is casting about trying to find some way @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one that was delivered by the American people , but it ’ s really sad in a lot of respects and embarrassing .
“ Because the president could right now be writing the last chapter of this administration , with a victory lap with regards to the [ Covid-19 ] vaccine .
After all he pushed aggressively to get the vaccine developed and distributed , that ’ s happening on a quick timeframe .
He could be going out and championing this extraordinary success .
“ Instead … this last chapter suggests what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Trump ’ s campaign and allies have filed around 50 lawsuits alleging voting fraud – almost all have been dismissed .
Trump has lost before judges of both parties , including some he appointed , and some of the strongest rebukes have come from conservative Republicans .
The supreme court , which has a 6-3 conservative majority and three Trump appointees , has refused to take up cases .
During the Friday meeting , Giuliani pushed Trump to seize voting machines .
The Department of Homeland Security ( DHS ) made clear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so .
It is unclear what such a move could accomplish .
Barr told the Associated Press this month the Department of Justice and DHS had looked into claims voting machines “ were programmed essentially to skew the election results … and so far , we haven ’ t seen anything to substantiate that ” .
Paper ballots have been used to verify results , including in Georgia , which performed two audits of its vote tally , confirming Biden ’ s victory .
Flynn went yet further , suggesting Trump could impose @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re-run the election .
Chief of staff Mark Meadows and White House counsel Pat Cipollone voiced objections , people familiar with the Friday meeting told news outlets .
Trump , who spent much of the weekend tweeting and retweeting electoral fraud claims , responded on Twitter .
John Bolton , a successor to Flynn as national security adviser , told CNN the martial law idea was “ appalling ” and said Trump was “ incompetent ” .
Trump responded : “ What would Bolton , one of the dumbest people in Washington , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ grip on the Republican party , seemingly guaranteeing challenges to the electoral college result in Congress on 6 January .
Such objections will be for political ends and will not in all likelihood succeed in overturning the election result .
Democrats hold the House and Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has indicated he will knock down challenges in the Senate .
On Sunday , Trump called Georgia senator David Perdue – up for re-election in one of two crucial runoffs in January – “ a great guy and patriot ” for apparently planning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ NBC ’ s Meet the Press , Romney , who did better at the polls in his 2012 defeat by Barack Obama than Trump did in 2016 and 2020 , was asked if his party could ever escape Trump ’ s grip .
“ I believe the Republican party has changed pretty dramatically , ” he said .
“ And by that , I mean that the people who consider themselves Republican and voted for President Trump I think is a different cohort than the cohort that voted for me .
“ …You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ running in 2024 , [ they are ] trying to see who can be the most like President Trump .
And that suggests that the party doesn ’ t want to take a different direction.
” Josh Hawley of Missouri , Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Ted Cruz of Texas are among senators thought likely to run to succeed Trump in the White House – should he not run himself – and therefore likely to challenge the electoral college result .
On Sunday , the website Axios reported that Trump has abandoned plans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ before Biden is inaugurated , “ because it would show his base he ’ s given up his fight ” to overturn this year ’ s result .
“ I don ’ t think anyone who ’ s looking at running in 2024 has the kind of style and shtick that President Trump has , ” Romney said .
“ He has a unique and capable politician … But I think the direction you ’ re seeing is one that he set out .
“ I ’ d like to see a different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ my side is very small these days … I think we recognise that character actually does count .
”

Martin Pengelly in New York and agencies

Donald Trump’s flirtation with declaring martial law in battleground states and appointing a conspiracy theorist as special counsel to help his attempt to overturn defeat by Joe Biden are “really sad” and “nutty and loopy”, Mitt Romney said on Sunday.
“He’s leaving Washington with a whole series of conspiracy theories and things that are so nutty and loopy that people are shaking their head wondering what in the world has gotten into this man,” the Utah Republican senator said.
Joe Biden won the 3 November election by 306-232 in the electoral college and leads by more than 7m ballots in the popular vote. Nonetheless, Trump is entertaining outlandish schemes to remain in office, egged on by allies like former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who Trump pardoned for lying to the FBI, and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, the president’s personal attorney.
During a Friday meeting at the White House first reported by the New York Times then widely reported elsewhere, Trump discussed security clearance for Sidney Powell, a conspiracy-spouting attorney who was cut from Trump’s campaign legal team.
It was unclear if Trump would actually attempt to install Powell as a special counsel, a position appointed by the US attorney general, not the president. Numerous Republicans, from outgoing attorney general William Barr to governors and state officials, have said repeatedly there is no evidence of the voter fraud Trump alleges.
“It’s not going to happen,” Romney told CNN. “That’s going nowhere. And I understand the president is casting about trying to find some way to have a different result than the one that was delivered by the American people, but it’s really sad in a lot of respects and embarrassing.
“Because the president could right now be writing the last chapter of this administration, with a victory lap with regards to the [Covid-19] vaccine. After all he pushed aggressively to get the vaccine developed and distributed, that’s happening on a quick timeframe. He could be going out and championing this extraordinary success.
“Instead … this last chapter suggests what he is going to be known for.”
Trump’s campaign and allies have filed around 50 lawsuits alleging voting fraud – almost all have been dismissed. Trump has lost before judges of both parties, including some he appointed, and some of the strongest rebukes have come from conservative Republicans. The supreme court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority and three Trump appointees, has refused to take up cases.
During the Friday meeting, Giuliani pushed Trump to seize voting machines. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) made clear that it had no authority to do so. It is unclear what such a move could accomplish.
Barr told the Associated Press this month the Department of Justice and DHS had looked into claims voting machines “were programmed essentially to skew the election results … and so far, we haven’t seen anything to substantiate that”. Paper ballots have been used to verify results, including in Georgia, which performed two audits of its vote tally, confirming Biden’s victory.
Flynn went yet further, suggesting Trump could impose martial law and use the military to re-run the election. Chief of staff Mark Meadows and White House counsel Pat Cipollone voiced objections, people familiar with the Friday meeting told news outlets. Trump, who spent much of the weekend tweeting and retweeting electoral fraud claims, responded on Twitter.
“Martial law = Fake News,” he wrote. “Just more knowingly bad reporting!”
John Bolton, a successor to Flynn as national security adviser, told CNN the martial law idea was “appalling” and said Trump was “incompetent”. Trump responded: “What would Bolton, one of the dumbest people in Washington, know?”
Mitt Romney speaks to reporters at the US Capitol in Washington. Photograph: Erin Scott/Reuters
Trump maintains a secure grip on the Republican party, seemingly guaranteeing challenges to the electoral college result in Congress on 6 January. Such objections will be for political ends and will not in all likelihood succeed in overturning the election result. Democrats hold the House and Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has indicated he will knock down challenges in the Senate.
On Sunday, Trump called Georgia senator David Perdue – up for re-election in one of two crucial runoffs in January – “a great guy and patriot” for apparently planning to lodge a challenge himself.
On NBC’s Meet the Press, Romney, who did better at the polls in his 2012 defeat by Barack Obama than Trump did in 2016 and 2020, was asked if his party could ever escape Trump’s grip.
“I believe the Republican party has changed pretty dramatically,” he said. “And by that, I mean that the people who consider themselves Republican and voted for President Trump I think is a different cohort than the cohort that voted for me.
“…You look at those that are thinking about running in 2024, [they are] trying to see who can be the most like President Trump. And that suggests that the party doesn’t want to take a different direction.”
Josh Hawley of Missouri, Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Ted Cruz of Texas are among senators thought likely to run to succeed Trump in the White House – should he not run himself – and therefore likely to challenge the electoral college result.
On Sunday, the website Axios reported that Trump has abandoned plans to announce his own candidacy for 2024 before Biden is inaugurated, “because it would show his base he’s given up his fight” to overturn this year’s result.
“I don’t think anyone who’s looking at running in 2024 has the kind of style and shtick that President Trump has,” Romney said. “He has a unique and capable politician … But I think the direction you’re seeing is one that he set out.
“I’d like to see a different version of the Republican party. But my side is very small these days … I think we recognise that character actually does count.”


theguardian--2020-12-20--Fox News fact-checks Smartmatic voting machine fraud claim in staged video

Fox News has taken a further step back from Donald Trump ’ s baseless allegations of election fraud with a bizarre apparent legal retraction aired during shows hosted by some of the president ’ s most fervent supporters .
First broadcast on Fox Business on Friday , on Lou Dobbs Tonight , and repeated over the weekend on shows hosted by Maria Bartiromo and Jeanine Pirro , the segment was presented as a news interview with election technology expert Eddie Perez .
In the three-minute video , described as “ a closer look at claims about Smartmatic ” , Perez @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about a Florida company that provided voting systems for the November election .
Perez is asked questions such as “ Have you seen any evidence that Smartmatic software was used to flip votes anywhere in the US in this election ?
” and “ Have you seen any evidence of Smartmatic sending US votes to be tabulated in foreign countries ?
” He says he has not seen any such evidence .
Earlier this week , Antonio Mugica , chief executive of Smartmatic , sent legal notices to Fox News and two other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ News Network ( OANN ) and Newsmax , assailing them for spreading “ false and defamatory claims ” in a “ disinformation campaign ” .
“ They have no evidence to support their attacks on Smartmatic because there is no evidence , ” Mugica said in a statement .
“ This campaign was designed to defame Smartmatic and undermine legitimately conducted elections.
” Trump lost the election to Joe Biden by 306-232 in the electoral college and trails by more than 7m ballots in the popular vote .
But his false claims of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and technology have received sympathetic hearings on the three rightwing networks .
The Fox News interview with Perez was described by a network source as “ a fact-checking segment aired in the same format ” as original reporting about Smartmatic .
Speaking to CNN , Perez said : “ My reaction was to observe , as many others have , how kind of strange and unique that particular way at presenting the facts was .
“ There was nothing in any of the preliminary conversations that I had with Fox News that gave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a matter of conversation .
It was never mentioned that this was going to be a discussion about Smartmatic or even claims about private vendors .
I was anticipating a broader discussion about the debate around the election [ and ] election integrity.
” Perez said Fox News ’ coverage of the election was “ speculative and not based in fact ” and conspiracy theories peddled by hosts were “ harmful to enhancing public confidence in the legitimacy of election outcomes ” .
“ I am not accustomed to seeing Lou Dobbs air @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
A Fox News spokesperson declined comment .
Earlier , the network referred CNN back to the video .
Erik Connolly , an attorney for Smartmatic , said the company would not comment “ due to potential litigation ” .
In a statement to CNN , Newsmax denied making direct claims of impropriety against Smartmatic and said questions about the company and its software were based on “ legal documents or previously published reports ” .
“ As any major media outlet , ” Newsmax said , “ we provide a forum @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the past we have welcomed Smartmatic and its representatives to counter such claims they believe to be inaccurate and will continue to do so .
”

Fox News has taken a further step back from Donald Trump’s baseless allegations of election fraud with a bizarre apparent legal retraction aired during shows hosted by some of the president’s most fervent supporters.
First broadcast on Fox Business on Friday, on Lou Dobbs Tonight, and repeated over the weekend on shows hosted by Maria Bartiromo and Jeanine Pirro, the segment was presented as a news interview with election technology expert Eddie Perez.
In the three-minute video, described as “a closer look at claims about Smartmatic”, Perez answers questions posed by an unidentified interviewer about a Florida company that provided voting systems for the November election.
Perez is asked questions such as “Have you seen any evidence that Smartmatic software was used to flip votes anywhere in the US in this election?” and “Have you seen any evidence of Smartmatic sending US votes to be tabulated in foreign countries?”
He says he has not seen any such evidence.
This is very bizarre. Lou Dobbs ran a segment tonight basically debunking his own lies about Smartmatic voting machines pic.twitter.com/FDM91SPtT1 — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 19, 2020
Earlier this week, Antonio Mugica, chief executive of Smartmatic, sent legal notices to Fox News and two other networks promoted by Trump, One America News Network (OANN) and Newsmax, assailing them for spreading “false and defamatory claims” in a “disinformation campaign”.
“They have no evidence to support their attacks on Smartmatic because there is no evidence,” Mugica said in a statement. “This campaign was designed to defame Smartmatic and undermine legitimately conducted elections.”
Trump lost the election to Joe Biden by 306-232 in the electoral college and trails by more than 7m ballots in the popular vote. But his false claims of voter fraud and irregularities in voting systems and technology have received sympathetic hearings on the three rightwing networks.
The Fox News interview with Perez was described by a network source as “a fact-checking segment aired in the same format” as original reporting about Smartmatic.
Speaking to CNN, Perez said: “My reaction was to observe, as many others have, how kind of strange and unique that particular way at presenting the facts was.
“There was nothing in any of the preliminary conversations that I had with Fox News that gave me any indication that Smartmatic would be a matter of conversation. It was never mentioned that this was going to be a discussion about Smartmatic or even claims about private vendors. I was anticipating a broader discussion about the debate around the election [and] election integrity.”
Perez said Fox News’ coverage of the election was “speculative and not based in fact” and conspiracy theories peddled by hosts were “harmful to enhancing public confidence in the legitimacy of election outcomes”.
“I am not accustomed to seeing Lou Dobbs air very straightforward factual evidence,” he said.
A Fox News spokesperson referred the Guardian to the segments aired. Earlier, the network referred CNN back to the video.
Erik Connolly, an attorney for Smartmatic, said the company would not comment “due to potential litigation”.
In a statement to CNN, Newsmax denied making direct claims of impropriety against Smartmatic and said questions about the company and its software were based on “legal documents or previously published reports”.
“As any major media outlet,” Newsmax said, “we provide a forum for public concerns and discussion. In the past we have welcomed Smartmatic and its representatives to counter such claims they believe to be inaccurate and will continue to do so.”


theguardian--2020-12-21--Biden's pick for agriculture secretary raises serious red flags | George Goehl

It ’ s unlikely that Joe Biden expected that , of all his cabinet nominees , his choice for US agriculture secretary would cause the most blowback .
Yet that is exactly what happened .
The former secretary Tom Vilsack , fresh off the revolving door , is a kind of all-in-one package of what frustrates so many about the Democratic party .
His previous tenure leading the department was littered with failures , ranging from distorting data about Black farmers and discrimination to bowing to corporate conglomerates .
Vilsack ’ s nomination has been roundly rejected by some of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump : organizations representing Black people , progressive rural organizations , family farmers and environmentalists .
If the Biden team was looking for ways to unite the multi-racial working class , they have done so – in full-throated opposition to this pick .
We remember when Vilsack toured agricultural communities , hearing devastating testimony of big ag ’ s criminal treatment of contract farmers .
He went through the motions of expressing concern , but nothing came of it : the Department of Justice and the Department of Agriculture ( USDA ) kowtowed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ squandering a golden opportunity to rein in meat processing monopolies .
We remember when Vilsack ’ s USDA foreclosed on Black farmers who had outstanding complaints about racial discrimination and whitewashed its own record on civil rights .
That ’ s in addition to the ousting of Shirley Sherrod , a Black and female USDA official , when the far-right media published a doctored hit piece , forcing her resignation .
We remember when Vilsack left his job at the USDA a week early to become a lobbyist as CEO of the US @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a million-dollar salary to push the same failed policies of his USDA tenure , carrying out the wishes of dairy monopolies .
Despite being nominated to lead the USDA again , he ’ s still collecting paychecks as a lobbyist .
The president-elect should have righted these wrongs by charting a bold , new course for rural communities and farmers in America .
Instead , Vilsack ’ s nomination signaled more of the same from Democratic leadership .
“ Democrats need to do something big for rural people to start supporting them again @ @ @ @ @ @ @ farmer in Fairfield , Iowa , told us recently .
“ The status quo won ’ t work , and that ’ s one reason why Vilsack is the wrong choice.
” Following Trump ’ s win in 2017 , the organization I direct , People ’ s Action , embarked on a massive listening project .
We traveled across rural America – from family farms in Iowa , to the Driftless region of Wisconsin , up the Thumb of Michigan , to the hills of Appalachia – and had 10,000 conversations with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people we met the biggest barrier to their community getting what it needed , the top answer ( 81 % ) was a government captured by corporate power .
The Vilsack pick does nothing to assuage these concerns .
As Michael Stovall , founder of Independent Black Farmers , told Politico : “ Vilsack is not good for the agriculture industry , period .
When it comes to civil rights , the rights of people , he ’ s not for that.
” Mike Callicrate , a rancher from Colorado Springs , was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agribusiness monopolies in preying upon and gutting rural America , ” he told us , “ greatly reducing opportunities for young people to return and remain on our farms and ranches .
His policy led to catastrophic rural decline , followed by suicide rates not seen since the 1980s farm crisis.
” Biden had a chance to finally right some wrongs .
Sadly , he missed the mark on this one by a country mile .
• None George Goehl is the director of People ’ s Action

It’s unlikely that Joe Biden expected that, of all his cabinet nominees, his choice for US agriculture secretary would cause the most blowback. Yet that is exactly what happened.
The former secretary Tom Vilsack, fresh off the revolving door, is a kind of all-in-one package of what frustrates so many about the Democratic party. His previous tenure leading the department was littered with failures, ranging from distorting data about Black farmers and discrimination to bowing to corporate conglomerates.
Vilsack’s nomination has been roundly rejected by some of the exact people who helped Biden defeat Trump: organizations representing Black people, progressive rural organizations, family farmers and environmentalists. If the Biden team was looking for ways to unite the multi-racial working class, they have done so – in full-throated opposition to this pick.
We remember when Vilsack toured agricultural communities, hearing devastating testimony of big ag’s criminal treatment of contract farmers. He went through the motions of expressing concern, but nothing came of it: the Department of Justice and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) kowtowed to agribusiness lobbyists and corporate interests, squandering a golden opportunity to rein in meat processing monopolies.
We remember when Vilsack’s USDA foreclosed on Black farmers who had outstanding complaints about racial discrimination and whitewashed its own record on civil rights. That’s in addition to the ousting of Shirley Sherrod, a Black and female USDA official, when the far-right media published a doctored hit piece, forcing her resignation.
We remember when Vilsack left his job at the USDA a week early to become a lobbyist as the chief executive of the US Dairy Export Council. He was paid a million-dollar salary to push the same failed policies of his USDA tenure, carrying out the wishes of dairy monopolies. Despite being nominated to lead the USDA again, he’s still collecting paychecks as a lobbyist.
The president-elect should have righted these wrongs by charting a bold, new course for rural communities and farmers in America. Instead, Vilsack’s nomination signaled more of the same from Democratic leadership.
“Democrats need to do something big for rural people to start supporting them again,” Francis Thicke, a family farmer in Fairfield, Iowa, told us recently. “The status quo won’t work, and that’s one reason why Vilsack is the wrong choice.”
Following Trump’s win in 2017, the organization I direct, People’s Action, embarked on a massive listening project. We traveled across rural America – from family farms in Iowa, to the Driftless region of Wisconsin, up the Thumb of Michigan, to the hills of Appalachia – and had 10,000 conversations with rural Americans. When we asked the people we met the biggest barrier to their community getting what it needed, the top answer (81%) was a government captured by corporate power. The Vilsack pick does nothing to assuage these concerns.
As Michael Stovall, founder of Independent Black Farmers, told Politico: “Vilsack is not good for the agriculture industry, period. When it comes to civil rights, the rights of people, he’s not for that.”
Mike Callicrate, a rancher from Colorado Springs, was equally direct. “Vilsack assisted big agribusiness monopolies in preying upon and gutting rural America,” he told us, “greatly reducing opportunities for young people to return and remain on our farms and ranches. His policy led to catastrophic rural decline, followed by suicide rates not seen since the 1980s farm crisis.”
Biden had a chance to finally right some wrongs. Sadly, he missed the mark on this one by a country mile.


theguardian--2020-12-21--Georgia's millionaire senators won't drain the swamp. They are the swamp | Moira Donegan

Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue , the two Republican Senate incumbents from Georgia facing runoff elections on 5 January , are trying to nationalize their respective races .
They have spent much of their time saying that if their opponents win , thereby giving Democrats a narrow majority in the senate , the country will be unrecognizably altered .
They spin horror stories about a liberal dystopia , focusing particular ire on Loeffler ’ s Democratic challenger , a Black Atlanta pastor named the Rev Raphael Warnock , and mostly ignoring Perdue ’ s opponent , the white former investigative @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tried to mimic Donald Trump ’ s rhetoric , making poorly veiled racist overtures to the white grievance voters whose turnout they will need in order to keep their seats .
Loeffler has gone on conservative media to scaremonger about Black Lives Matter ; Perdue pulled a juvenile stunt at a Trump rally in which he pointedly and deliberately mispronounced Kamala Harris ’ first name .
The high stakes of their races , as well as these kinds of theatrics from Loeffler and Perdue , have functioned , maybe intentionally , to distract @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which has raised questions and sparked investigations from the justice department , congressional ethics authorities and the US Securities and Exchange Commission ( SEC ) .
Loeffler and Perdue , two of the Senate ’ s richest members , have each been accused of using their office to get privileged information that they used to make advantageous stock trades .
( The cases against Perdue and Loeffler were closed without charges this summer . )
The investigation was centered on stock trades made after the senators attended a closed-door Senate briefing on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ severity of the coronavirus and its economic repercussions were clear to most Americans .
Both Loeffler and Perdue made windfalls in financial transactions , dumping stocks that were damaged by the pandemic and investing in stocks that later soared in value as a result of new restrictions .
For Loeffler , the sheer size of the transactions are enormous .
Loeffler , whose husband is the chairman of the New York Stock Exchange and who herself had a long career in finance , is nearly a billionaire , worth an estimated $ 800m @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on 24 January , trades of individual stocks were made on their behalf .
By mid-February , there had been 29 trades , and 27 of them had been sales , valued between $ 1,275,000 and $ 3.1m .
One of the two stocks they bought was for Citrix Systems , a software company that offers teleworking technology .
Loeffler has defended herself by saying her stocks are in a blind trust handled by third-party advisers , and that she does not direct their trades .
Her Georgia Senate colleague , David Perdue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conspicuous trading , but perhaps this can simply be attributed to the fact that he has been in office for longer .
A former executive at companies like Dollar General and Reebok , Perdue has been a Georgia senator since 2015 .
In the wake of the 24 January briefing , he was even more prolific in his stock trades than Loeffler .
In March , he made 112 stock transactions – about three times his usual rate of trade – buying $ 1.8m in stock and selling $ 825,000 worth of stock @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in during this time was DuPont , which manufactures personal protective equipment .
Before 2 March , Perdue had made 10 different purchases of DuPont stock .
He also invested heavily in Netflix .
On the other side of the ledger , he sold shares he held in Caesar Entertainment , a casino company .
A spokesperson for Senator Perdue , John Burke , has said : “ Senator Perdue has always followed the law.
” But Perdue has been making eyebrow-raising stock transactions for much of his Senate term , beginning long @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nation .
He traded in FireEye , a cybersecurity company , while serving on the Senate ’ s cyber security subcommittee .
He bought shares of BWX Technologies , a navy contractor that supplies submarine components , a few weeks before joining the Senate ’ s seapower subcommittee .
He traded in an Atlanta-based financial firm , First Data , while serving on the Senate ’ s banking committee .
Often , according to the New York Times , these trades were made with conspicuously good timing .
After selling his entire stake @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Perdue repurchased stock in the company in late December 2018 – just three weeks before First Data announced a merger with the financial technology company Fiserv .
Throughout his time in office , Perdue has made a staggering 2,596 stock trades .
His transactions account for one third of the total stock trades made by all members of the Senate over the past six years .
It ’ s important to note that both Loeffler and Perdue have denied wrongdoing , and that a Senate ethics committee investigation into senators ’ trades @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all senators save one – Republican Richard Burr , of North Carolina .
Although it is unusual for senators to trade in individual stocks , it is not illegal for Loeffler and Perdue to do so .
Both senators claim that they do not make decisions about stock trades on their own , but rely on their financial advisers to make trading decisions .
Loeffler and Perdue are campaigning on a message that their opponents are culturally out of step with everyday Georgians , and political analysts say that Loeffler , in particular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a bargain to appeal to ordinary suburban women , voters who might be put off by Trump ’ s vulgarity and excess .
But the senators ’ obscene wealth and use of the stock market to gain even more money , coupled with a seeming indifference to the ways that their actions are perceived by Georgia voters , strains this premise past the point of credulity .
Loeffler owns a private jet .
Perdue lives in an island gated community .
Both are trading vast sums of money in a financial market @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anything like their access .
These are not ordinary Georgians .
If anything , Loeffler and Perdue ’ s financial antics have underscored the degree to which the Republican party is part of the very swamp that Donald Trump decries .
The question now is whether voters will see them for what they really are .

Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, the two Republican Senate incumbents from Georgia facing runoff elections on 5 January, are trying to nationalize their respective races. They have spent much of their time saying that if their opponents win, thereby giving Democrats a narrow majority in the Senate, the country will be unrecognizably altered. They spin horror stories about a liberal dystopia, focusing particular ire on Loeffler’s Democratic challenger, a Black Atlanta pastor named the Rev Raphael Warnock, and mostly ignoring Perdue’s opponent, the white former investigative journalist Jon Ossoff. The incumbents have tried to mimic Donald Trump’s rhetoric, making poorly veiled racist overtures to the white grievance voters whose turnout they will need in order to keep their seats. Loeffler has gone on conservative media to scaremonger about Black Lives Matter; Perdue pulled a juvenile stunt at a Trump rally in which he pointedly and deliberately mispronounced Kamala Harris’s first name.
The high stakes of their races, as well as these kinds of theatrics from Loeffler and Perdue, have functioned, maybe intentionally, to distract from their own conduct in office, which has raised questions and sparked investigations from the justice department, congressional ethics authorities and the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Loeffler and Perdue, two of the Senate’s richest members, have each been accused of using their office to get privileged information that they used to make advantageous stock trades. (The cases against Perdue and Loeffler were closed without charges this summer.)
The investigation was centered on stock trades made after the senators attended a closed-door Senate briefing on the coronavirus in January 2020 – before the severity of the coronavirus and its economic repercussions were clear to most Americans. Both Loeffler and Perdue made windfalls in financial transactions, dumping stocks that were damaged by the pandemic and investing in stocks that later soared in value as a result of new restrictions.
For Loeffler, the sheer size of the transactions are enormous. Loeffler, whose husband is the chairman of the New York stock exchange and who herself had a long career in finance, is nearly a billionaire, worth an estimated $800m with her husband. Following the briefing on 24 January, trades of individual stocks were made on their behalf. By mid-February, there had been 29 trades, and 27 of them had been sales, valued between $1,275,000 and $3.1m. One of the two stocks they bought was for Citrix Systems, a software company that offers teleworking technology. Loeffler has defended herself by saying her stocks are in a blind trust handled by third-party advisers, and that she does not direct their trades.
Her Georgia Senate colleague, David Perdue, has a much longer history of conspicuous trading, but perhaps this can simply be attributed to the fact that he has been in office for longer. A former executive at companies like Dollar General and Reebok, Perdue has been a Georgia senator since 2015. In the wake of the 24 January briefing, he was even more prolific in his stock trades than Loeffler. In March, he made 112 stock transactions – about three times his usual rate of trade – buying $1.8m in stock and selling $825,000 worth of stock. Among the companies that Perdue invested in during this time was DuPont, which manufactures personal protective equipment. Before 2 March, Perdue had made 10 different purchases of DuPont stock. He also invested heavily in Netflix. On the other side of the ledger, he sold shares he held in Caesar Entertainment, a casino company. A spokesperson for Senator Perdue, John Burke, has said: “Senator Perdue has always followed the law.”
But Perdue has been making eyebrow-raising stock transactions for much of his Senate term, beginning long before the coronavirus took hold over the nation. He traded in FireEye, a cybersecurity company, while serving on the Senate’s cyber security subcommittee. He bought shares of BWX Technologies, a navy contractor that supplies submarine components, a few weeks before joining the Senate’s seapower subcommittee. He traded in an Atlanta-based financial firm, First Data, while serving on the Senate’s banking committee. Often, according to the New York Times, these trades were made with conspicuously good timing. After selling his entire stake in First Data in November of 2018, Perdue repurchased stock in the company in late December 2018 – just three weeks before First Data announced a merger with the financial technology company Fiserv. Throughout his time in office, Perdue has made a staggering 2,596 stock trades. His transactions account for one third of the total stock trades made by all members of the Senate over the past six years.
Loeffler and Perdue’s financial antics have underscored the degree to which the Republican party is part of the very swamp that Donald Trump decries
It’s important to note that both Loeffler and Perdue have denied wrongdoing, and that a Senate ethics committee investigation into senators’ trades following the January coronavirus briefing ultimately cleared all senators save one – Republican Richard Burr, of North Carolina. Although it is unusual for senators to trade in individual stocks, it is not illegal for Loeffler and Perdue to do so. Both senators claim that they do not make decisions about stock trades on their own, but rely on their financial advisers to make trading decisions.
Loeffler and Perdue are campaigning on a message that their opponents are culturally out of step with everyday Georgians, and political analysts say that Loeffler, in particular, was appointed by Kemp as part of a bargain to appeal to ordinary suburban women, voters who might be put off by Trump’s vulgarity and excess. But the senators’ obscene wealth and use of the stock market to gain even more money, coupled with a seeming indifference to the ways that their actions are perceived by Georgia voters, strains this premise past the point of credulity.
Loeffler owns a private jet. Perdue lives in an island gated community. Both are trading vast sums of money in a financial market to which most Americans do not have anything like their access. These are not ordinary Georgians. If anything, Loeffler and Perdue’s financial antics have underscored the degree to which the Republican party is part of the very swamp that Donald Trump decries. The question now is whether voters will see them for what they really are.


theguardian--2020-12-21--Conspiracy-theorist lawyer Sidney Powell spotted again at White House

The lawyer and conspiracy theorist Sidney Powell was back at the White House on Sunday night , reportedly to pitch Donald Trump on a plan to seize voting machines as the US president continues to dispute the result of November ’ s election , which he lost .
Trump refuses to concede defeat by Joe Biden and continues to advance baseless claims of electoral fraud , despite Biden ’ s electoral college victory and regardless of the Democrat ’ s lead in the popular vote by more than 7m ballots .
Over the weekend , Trump tweeted encouragement to Republicans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ electoral college results when they come before Congress on 6 January .
Such moves will in all likelihood not succeed in overturning the result , representing instead political appeals to the Republican base , many by senators who harbour White House aspirations of their own .
Nonetheless , aides to the president , speaking anonymously , have told reporters they are concerned about Trump ’ s behaviour as inauguration day , 20 January , draws near .
Powell was cut from Trump ’ s campaign team after spouting wild conspiracy theories but continues @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Spotted by CNN on Sunday night , she denied meeting the president and said it was “ none of your business ” why she was at the executive mansion .
But she was among attendees at a Friday meeting at the White House at which Trump reportedly proposed naming her as special counsel to investigate alleged electoral fraud , and flirted with the pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn ’ s suggestion that the army might be used to rerun votes in battleground states .
Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani was reported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ martial law plans , but to have asked about seizing voting machines , all ideas knocked down by the chief of staff , Mark Meadows , and the White House counsel , Pat Cipollone .
Speaking to the Wall Street Journal , one White House aide said Trump ’ s current strategy for holding on to power amounted to : “ Let ’ s throw a giant plate of spaghetti at the wall and hope that at least one noodle sticks.
” Maggie Haberman , one of the New York Times reporters who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tweeted : “ Sources who have gotten used to Trump ’ s eruptions over four years sound scared by what ’ s transpired in the past week.
” Haberman also said Powell had returned to the White House to pitch “ an executive order on seizing voting machines to examine them , per a person with knowledge of the meeting ” .
On Monday , outgoing attorney general William Barr told reporters that though he was “ sure there was fraud in this election ” it was not “ systemic or broad-based ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ counsel to investigate such claims .
Barr also said he saw “ no basis right now for seizing machines ” .
“ If I thought a special counsel at this stage was the right tool , ” he said , “ I would name one .
But I haven ’ t and I ’ m not going to .
”

The lawyer and conspiracy theorist Sidney Powell was back at the White House on Sunday night, reportedly to pitch Donald Trump on a plan to seize voting machines as the US president continues to dispute the result of November’s election, which he lost.
Trump refuses to concede defeat by Joe Biden and continues to advance baseless claims of electoral fraud, despite Biden’s electoral college victory and regardless of the Democrat’s lead in the popular vote by more than 7m ballots.
Over the weekend, Trump tweeted encouragement to Republicans reported to be considering challenges to the electoral college results when they come before Congress on 6 January. Such moves will in all likelihood not succeed in overturning the result, representing instead political appeals to the Republican base, many by senators who harbour White House aspirations of their own.
Nonetheless, aides to the president, speaking anonymously, have told reporters they are concerned about Trump’s behaviour as inauguration day, 20 January, draws near.
Powell was cut from Trump’s campaign team after spouting wild conspiracy theories but continues to advance the president’s cause. Spotted by CNN on Sunday night, she denied meeting the president and said it was “none of your business” why she was at the executive mansion.
But she was among attendees at a Friday meeting at the White House at which Trump reportedly proposed naming her as special counsel to investigate alleged electoral fraud, and flirted with the pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s suggestion that the army might be used to rerun votes in battleground states.
Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani was reported to have pooh-poohed the special counsel and martial law plans, but to have asked about seizing voting machines, all ideas knocked down by the chief of staff, Mark Meadows, and the White House counsel, Pat Cipollone.
Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, one White House aide said Trump’s current strategy for holding on to power amounted to: “Let’s throw a giant plate of spaghetti at the wall and hope that at least one noodle sticks.”
Maggie Haberman, one of the New York Times reporters who broke news of the Friday meeting, tweeted: “Sources who have gotten used to Trump’s eruptions over four years sound scared by what’s transpired in the past week.”
Haberman also said Powell had returned to the White House to pitch “an executive order on seizing voting machines to examine them, per a person with knowledge of the meeting”.
On Monday, outgoing attorney general William Barr told reporters that though he was “sure there was fraud in this election” it was not “systemic or broad-based” and he would not name a special counsel to investigate such claims. Barr also said he saw “no basis right now for seizing machines”.
“If I thought a special counsel at this stage was the right tool,” he said, “I would name one. But I haven’t and I’m not going to.”


theguardian--2020-12-21--Statue of civil rights pioneer Barbara Johns replaces Lee at US Capitol

A statue of the civil rights activist Barbara Johns , who played a key role in the desegregation of the public school system , will be installed in the US Capitol , officials said on Monday , replacing one of Robert E Lee , a leader of the pro-slavery Confederacy .
Johns was 16 when she led classmates at her all-black Virginia high school in protest of substandard conditions , leading to a lawsuit that was resolved in the US supreme court ’ s 1954 Brown v Board of Education decision , which declared segregation illegal .
The statue , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Lee , a Confederate general during the civil war who owned slaves himself .
“ The Congress will continue our work to rid the Capitol of homages to hate , as we fight to end the scourge of racism in our country , ” the House speaker , Nancy Pelosi , said in a statement .
“ There is no room for celebrating the bigotry of the Confederacy in the Capitol or any other place of honor in our country.
” Representative Donald McEachin of Virginia said on Twitter : “ I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Barbara Johns , whose bravery changed our nation , representing Virginia here soon.
” Virginia ’ s governor , Ralph Northam , said workers removed the statue from the National Statuary Hall Collection early on Monday morning .
Northam , a Democrat , requested the removal .
A state commission decided Lee was not a fitting symbol of Virginia and recommended a statue of Johns .
Lee ’ s statue had stood with one of George Washington since 1909 as Virginia ’ s representatives in the Capitol space .
Every state gets two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the revolutionary war and became the first president .
Like other Virginian founders and presidents Thomas Jefferson , James Madison and James Monroe , he owned enslaved people .
John Adams of Massachusetts , the second president , did not .
He is not represented in the National Statuary Hall collection .
Confederate monuments have re-emerged as a national flashpoint since the death of George Floyd , a Black man who was killed when a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck in May this year .
Protesters decrying racism targeted Confederate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been taken down .
“ The Confederacy is a symbol of Virginia ’ s racist and divisive history , and it is past time we tell our story with images of perseverance , diversity and inclusion , ” Northam said .
“ I look forward to seeing a trailblazing young woman of color represent Virginia in the US Capitol , where visitors will learn about Barbara Johns ’ contributions to America and be empowered to create positive change in their communities just like she did.
” The presence of statues of generals @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Capitol locations such as Statuary Hall , the original House chamber , has been offensive to African American lawmakers for many years .
Former representative Jesse Jackson Jr , an Illinois Democrat , was known to give tours pointing out the numerous statues .
But it is up to the states to determine which of their historical figures to display .
Jefferson Davis , a former US senator from Mississippi who was president of the Confederacy , is still represented .
So is the Confederate vice-president , Alexander Stephens , from Georgia .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ seventh president , who enslaved people , represents Tennessee .

A statue of the civil rights activist Barbara Johns, who played a key role in the desegregation of the public school system, will be installed in the US Capitol, officials said on Monday, replacing one of Robert E Lee, a leader of the pro-slavery Confederacy.
Johns was 16 when she led classmates at her all-black Virginia high school in protest of substandard conditions, leading to a lawsuit that was resolved in the US supreme court’s 1954 Brown v Board of Education decision, which declared segregation illegal. The statue, provided by Virginia, will replace one of Lee, a Confederate general during the civil war who owned slaves himself.
“The Congress will continue our work to rid the Capitol of homages to hate, as we fight to end the scourge of racism in our country,” the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, said in a statement. “There is no room for celebrating the bigotry of the Confederacy in the Capitol or any other place of honor in our country.”
Representative Donald McEachin of Virginia said on Twitter: “I look forward to seeing a statue of Barbara Johns, whose bravery changed our nation, representing Virginia here soon.”
Virginia’s governor, Ralph Northam, said workers removed the statue from the National Statuary Hall Collection early on Monday morning. Northam, a Democrat, requested the removal. A state commission decided Lee was not a fitting symbol of Virginia and recommended a statue of Johns.
Lee’s statue had stood with one of George Washington since 1909 as Virginia’s representatives in the Capitol space. Every state gets two statues.
Washington commanded American forces in the revolutionary war and became the first president. Like other Virginian founders and presidents Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and James Monroe, he owned enslaved people.
John Adams of Massachusetts, the second president, did not. He is not represented in the National Statuary Hall collection.
Confederate monuments have re-emerged as a national flashpoint since the death of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed when a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck in May this year. Protesters decrying racism targeted Confederate monuments in multiple cities, and some have been taken down.
“The Confederacy is a symbol of Virginia’s racist and divisive history, and it is past time we tell our story with images of perseverance, diversity and inclusion,” Northam said.
“I look forward to seeing a trailblazing young woman of color represent Virginia in the US Capitol, where visitors will learn about Barbara Johns’ contributions to America and be empowered to create positive change in their communities just like she did.”
The presence of statues of generals and other figures of the Confederacy in Capitol locations such as Statuary Hall, the original House chamber, has been offensive to African American lawmakers for many years. Former representative Jesse Jackson Jr, an Illinois Democrat, was known to give tours pointing out the numerous statues.
But it is up to the states to determine which of their historical figures to display. Jefferson Davis, a former US senator from Mississippi who was president of the Confederacy, is still represented. So is the Confederate vice-president, Alexander Stephens, from Georgia.
A statue of Andrew Jackson, the seventh president, who enslaved people, represents Tennessee.


theguardian--2020-12-21--How the much-litigated ballot deadlines affected the US election

This article is made possible through Votebeat , a non-partisan reporting project covering local election integrity and voting access .
Americans shattered records for voting by mail in many states in the 2020 presidential election , a phenomenon that tested existing election laws , new pandemic-related regulations , postal service capacity , voter education efforts and voters ’ own resolve .
Some states had more wiggle room in accepting the mail-in votes than others , allowing ballots that were postmarked by election day to come in later , anywhere from the following day to nearly three weeks after .
These @ @ @ @ @ @ @ politicized aspect of the election .
The Trump campaign and its allies challenged them all the way up to the US supreme court as part of an overall campaign questioning the legitimacy of mail-in voting .
Grace periods for mail-in ballots also became more significant as it became clear that the vote ’ s results would not be even close to final on election day and that the country would indeed experience the “ big blue shift ” that experts predicted .
But what are the implications of letting ballots arrive late ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ shows that the numbers weren ’ t large but were substantial enough to potentially sway a local race or a tighter election .
It also shows a messy national picture , with chaotic regulations and poor record-keeping .
Twenty-two states had grace periods for late-arriving ballots this election – some already had the provision written into their laws , some implemented special extensions just for the pandemic .
Five states allowed ballots to arrive three days after election day ( until 6 November ) and five others allowed a full week ( until @ @ @ @ @ @ @ uniform system in the United States for tracking data on ballots , and some of the data Votebeat collected are merely estimates .
In Pennsylvania , after a partisan legal battle , the US supreme court ( Scotus ) allowed election officials to keep accepting absentee ballots over a three-day extension .
About 10,000 votes arrived in that period , according to the secretary of state ’ s office .
Those ballots are still subject to a lawsuit pending at Scotus and are sequestered from official results .
They made up about 0.4 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In Massachusetts , which also had a three-day rule , 3,403 votes came in , or 0.2 % of the mail-in vote , the secretary of state ’ s office told Votebeat .
North Carolina is another state whose deadline was challenged in the supreme court .
The period there was longer – nine days – and about 15,000 votes arrived from 4-12 November , making up about 1.4 % of the total mail-in vote .
In Washington , where voters only cast ballots by mail , the grace period was 20 days @ @ @ @ @ @ @ votes , or about 2.4 % of the total , in that period , the secretary of state ’ s office told Votebeat .
( It ’ s important to note that in all of these states , you were also able to deliver your mail ballot to the election office or through a drop box , so the total mail-in vote includes those ballots as well . )
The US supreme court decided in late October that Wisconsin ’ s grace period , in place for the April primary , would not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ During the state ’ s primary , 79,000 ballots arrived within those extra six days , making up about 6 % of the total mail-in vote .
Wisconsin election officials haven ’ t determined how many ballots in November arrived too late to be counted .
Election officials in Kentucky and Illinois were only able to guess at how many ballots arrived within their grace periods , because of inconsistent methods for counting and recording them .
Texas , North Dakota , Ohio and Nevada do not track at all on the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ grace periods .
Generally , the longer the grace period , the larger the share of late ballots within it , but there are other factors to consider .
In states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania , pending litigation made it more of a challenge to inform voters of all the necessary deadlines and left voters uncertain about voting timetables .
Conversely , many states did not change their mail-in voting procedures , like deadlines for requesting or submitting absentee ballots , despite the anticipated increase of mail-in voting .
In Pennsylvania the deadline @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the election .
Kim Alexander , head of the California Voter Foundation , which supported the introduction of California ’ s grace period in 2014 , and has conducted research on the matter , says that under normal conditions , the grace period doesn ’ t have to be all that long .
“ In my review of late ballots , most of the ballots that come in post-election come in [ during the ] three days after an election.
” Votebeat found evidence of that pattern in 2020 by examining data @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day-by-day updates for outstanding absentee ballots , showing that the vast majority of late-arriving ballots arrived the day after the election .
How do grace periods help voters ?
The 2020 election was an election like no other , with multiple factors complicating the vote-by-mail process : more mail-in votes in general , the politicization of the issue , changing laws , litigation , US Postal Service ( USPS ) delays .
The main justification for the grace periods , proponents say , is to account for the unreliable performance of the postal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ delivery delays before the election , including problems getting voters their absentee ballots on time .
“ It places an unfair burden on voters to expect them to be able to predict how long it ’ s going to take for their ballot to get through the mail system and received by their county , ” Alexander said .
An NPR analysis of this year ’ s primary elections found that more than 50,000 votes were rejected because they arrived too late .
Often , it wasn ’ t the voters ’ fault @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in several states have shown , first-time voters , like young , Black and Latino voters , are more likely to have their ballot rejected .
“ One of the big takeaways from this election is we saw how giving voters the ability to securely vote remotely through the mail is a great benefit , in particular in a situation of a global pandemic , but it also brings the US Postal Service in as a major partner in the elections process , ” Alexander said .
“ That means elections officials need @ @ @ @ @ @ @ US Postal Service operates.
” Voting by mail may seem more convenient , but it also requires the voter to act much earlier than they would if they went to the polls , said Barry Burden , political science professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison .
You have to make sure to request your ballot early , and in some states , make sure you have a valid ID to do so .
“ One problem with having a hard and fast election day deadline is that it actually forces people who want @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ballot before the campaign is over , and so it deprives them of the right to watch the campaign to its conclusion , ” said Burden .
Those final days might be pivotal for the voter ’ s decision-making process – there ’ s new information coming in , newspaper endorsements , debates .
In 2016 , the then FBI director , James Comey , sent a letter to Congress on 28 October about a new trove of Hillary Clinton ’ s emails , which some have said cost her the election .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ s always a deadline , and there are good reasons for why it should just be election day , said Charles Stewart III , expert on election systems and professor of political science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology .
“ One is the optics issue that arose in this election , ” he said .
Ballots that arrive after the election give fodder to those who want to undermine the legitimacy of the voting process .
“ And it discourages people from getting the ballot done , ” he added .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mail-in voting is education , ensuring that voters can cast their ballots effectively , that they have the deadlines and timelines , regardless of whether the state has a grace period or not , ” said Jared Dearing , executive director of Kentucky ’ s board of elections .
“ All [ that ] election administrators can do around voter education , the better the process.
” And Stewart says that the country did remarkably well on educating voters about when to turn their ballot in – the relatively small proportion of late @ @ @ @ @ @ @ authorities , and the fact that many states did not change their absentee request deadlines , is “ actually kind of amazing ” .
What is clear , however , is that the more convenient you make voting , the more people will get their votes in on time , Stewart said .
That means the solution could be much bigger than trying to optimize deadlines .
“ If you have a lot of conveniently located drop boxes , and if you have a receive-by date , or requirement , you ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get their ballots in on time .
And I think from this election , we saw that almost all voters can get their ballots in on time .
”