theguardian--2020-02-28--Trump nominates John Ratcliffe for top intelligence officer post – live

Guardian US reporters are out and about in South Carolina on the eve of the “ first in the south @ @ @ @ @ is in Columbia , where voters are line-dancing ahead of a Tom Steyer rally .
@ @ @ @ @ Daniel Strauss are keeping an eye on the 22nd Amendment of the US constitution at @ @ @ @ @ Charleston .

Julia Carrie Wong (now), Joanna Walters and Martin Belam (earlier)

29 Feb 2020 01.12 GMT Evening summary It’s been a busy day in US politics. Here’s a rundown of the top stories: A federal court blocked Trump’s Remain in Mexico policy , which barred asylum seekers from the country while their claims were under consideration in immigration court. Here’s a full report.
, which barred asylum seekers from the country while their claims were under consideration in immigration court. Here’s a full report. The House judiciary committee launched an investigation of attorney general William Barr and DOJ, over concerns that Barr has politicized prosecutions.
launched an investigation of attorney general and DOJ, over concerns that Barr has politicized prosecutions. Donald Trump nominated Congressman John Ratcliffe to be the director of national intelligence – for the second time. Ratcliffe was nominated last summer but was quickly withdrawn from consideration when questions were raised about his qualifications.
to be the – for the second time. Ratcliffe was nominated last summer but was quickly withdrawn from consideration when questions were raised about his qualifications. Joe Biden admitted that he was not arrested in South Africa.
admitted that he was not arrested in South Africa. Donald Trump is holding a rally in South Carolina.
A Wisconsin court of appeals overturned an order to purge 200,000 voters from the state’s rolls.
court of appeals overturned an order to purge 200,000 voters from the state’s rolls. A federal appeals court said that it would not get involved in Congress’s efforts to force former White House counsel Don McGahn to testify, effectively letting him off the hook from a congressional subpoena. And finally, Democratic presidential rivals are holding last minute get-out-the-vote rallies ahead of tomorrow’s South Carolina primary. We have a full day of coverage planned for you, and you can keep on top of the latest news on the coronavirus in our ongoing liveblog here.
Updated at 01.14 GMT
29 Feb 2020 01.11 GMT Trump is ad-libbing on the coronavirus at his rally in South Carolina, Oliver Laughland reports. Trump is ad libbing significantly. Breaking off from prepared remarks on coronavirus to ask Graham and Scott to pass legislation that allows him to serve for 25 years
“Lets term limit ourselves at 25 years. Tim pass it in the senate with Lindsey. A 25 year term limit, please.” — Oliver Laughland (@oliverlaughland) February 29, 2020 The president is using the epidemic to justify his anti-immigration policy – and attack Democrats: We are doing everything in our power to keep the infection and those carrying the infection from entering the country. We have no choice. Whether it’s the virus that we’re talking about, or the many other public health threats, the Democrat policy of open borders is a direct threat to the health and wellbeing of all Americans. Now you see it with the coronavirus… when you have this virus, or any other virus, or any other problem coming in, it’s not the only thing that comes in through the border… and we’re setting records at the border, we’re setting records, and now, just using this, important, so important. For factual information about the coronavirus, please see our rolling coverage here.
29 Feb 2020 00.33 GMT Another assault on reproductive rights (and the US constitution) just passed the state senate in Utah. The proposed law, Senate Bill 174, is unconstitutional. It would outlaw all elective abortions, with exceptions only for cases of rape, incest and danger to the mother’s health. Abortion is legal under current Supreme Court precedent. BREAKING NEWS: A bill to ban elective abortions in Utah PASSES the Senate, 21-6. Off to the House: https://t.co/lJ5fwecllT @fox13 #utpol #utleg — Ben Winslow (@BenWinslow) February 29, 2020 Many states have passed similarly unconstitutional laws in recent years. If enacted, the laws are generally struck down quickly by federal courts.
29 Feb 2020 00.20 GMT Adam Schiff, the chair of the House Intelligence committee, also has harsh criticism for Trump’s re-nomination of John Ratcliffe as DNI. We now have an intelligence chief who should not have been fired, an unqualified nominee who should not be confirmed, and an acting director who is patently unfit.
All while our elections are perilously at risk of foreign interference.
Just the way the President likes it. https://t.co/P8Px2E6F6r — Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) February 29, 2020
28 Feb 2020 23.25 GMT Lest you thought Senate Democrats would forget that they did not want John Ratcliffe appointed director of national intelligence, Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer just came out with a strong statement opposing the nomination: Replacing one highly partisan operative with another does nothing to keep America safe
When Putin is interfering in our elections—we need a nonpartisan leader at the helm of the Intel Community who speaks truth to power
Neither Richard Grenell nor Rep Ratcliffe comes even close pic.twitter.com/PXYxiQg7Ob — Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) February 28, 2020
28 Feb 2020 23.10 GMT Courts will not force White House officials to testify in Congress Former White House counsel Don McGahn can ignore a subpoena from Congress, a federal appeals court ruled Friday. The decision is a blow to Congressional Democrats, who had sought judicial intervention after Donald Trump barred his top advisers from testifying. The decision, by a three-judge panel of the DC circuit court of appeals, reverses a lower court ruling that would have forced McGahn to testify, the AP reports. Per the AP: “The walk from the Capitol to our courthouse is a short one, and if we resolve this case today, we can expect Congress’s lawyers to make the trip often,” wrote Judge Thomas Griffith, an appointee of former President George W. Bush.
He was joined in the 2-1 ruling by Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, an appointee of President George H.W. Bush.
Judge Judith Rogers, an appointee of President Bill Clinton, dissented. She said her colleagues’ opinion “all but assures future Presidential stonewalling of Congress, and further impairs the House’s ability to perform its constitutional duties.” Congress can still ask the full appeals court to review the case. It can also appeal to the Supreme court.
28 Feb 2020 22.59 GMT Speaking of intelligence chiefs ... Leon Panetta, whose long career in government includes stints as CIA director and secretary of defense during the Obama administration, just endorsed Joe Biden in the Democratic presidential primary. Leon Panetta becomes the 9th Obama administration Cabinet member to endorse Biden. Statement praises "his principled leadership in action" Panetta witnessed since they first met in the 1970s. pic.twitter.com/DnO8KJCuav — Jennifer Epstein (@jeneps) February 28, 2020
28 Feb 2020 22.53 GMT If the announcement of John Ratcliffe as Trump’s nominee for director of national intelligence gives you a feeling of déjà vu, it’s because we were here – literally – just seven months ago. My colleague Julian Borger wrote about some of the concerns over Ratcliffe’s – “an inexperienced but loyal partisan” – at the time. “Trump is consolidating his personal control over the intelligence community,” said Rolf Mowatt-Larssen, a former CIA intelligence officer. He said the current directors of the CIA and FBI have found their hands tied increasingly when it comes to accurate intelligence assessment, by risk of being fired for something at odds with Trump’s views.
“I fear that there is a slow takeover of the norms and procedures of governance by this president, amassing unprecedented executive power,” Mowatt-Larssen, now at Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, added. “To do that he needs to neutralise or at least silence the intelligence community. He has been doing that for three years, but this takes it to the new level.” You can read Julian’s full report here.
28 Feb 2020 22.44 GMT Trump nominates John Ratcliffe as DNI – again Donald Trump just announced the nomination of John Ratcliffe, a Republican congressman from Texas, as director of national intelligence (DNI). The position is the highest ranking intelligence officer and oversees coordination among the US’s 17 intelligence agencies. This is the second time that Trump attempted to name Ratcliffe to the position. In late July 2019, Trump announced the Texan as his intended choice for the position, only to withdraw the name following critical press reports of Ratcliffe’s record and experience. I am pleased to announce the nomination of @RepRatcliffe (Congressman John Ratcliffe) to be Director of National Intelligence (DNI). Would have completed process earlier, but John wanted to wait until after IG Report was finished. John is an outstanding man of great talent! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 28, 2020 The announcement comes just over a week after the president named Richard Grenell, a Trump loyalist who was serving as the US ambassador to Germany, as the acting DNI. Grenell’s nomination, which was not subject to senate confirmation, sparked immediate controversy. Grenell has no experience in intelligence or the military, and was best known as a fierce partisan for Trump.
28 Feb 2020 22.09 GMT Trump wants Fed to "get involved" re coronavirus The president is on his way to a rally in South Carolina and has been making remarks on his way to Air Force One. Here’s one: President Trump on what the Federal Reserve board should do in response to coronavirus: "I hope the Fed gets involved and I hope it gets involved soon." — Steve Holland (@steveholland1) February 28, 2020 He’s referring to anticipation that the Fed might lower interest rates to offset economic jitters caused by the spreading coronavirus. NEW: US Federal Reserve issues unscheduled statement from Fed Chair Jerome Powell saying “coronavirus poses evolving risks to economic activity” and that Fed “will use our tools and act as appropriate to support the economy” pic.twitter.com/pNgf9Q19K3 — Faisal Islam (@faisalislam) February 28, 2020
Updated at 22.15 GMT
28 Feb 2020 21.45 GMT David Smith Farage barrage Nigel Farage, dubbed “the Godfather of Brexit” in the official CPAC programme, urged attendees of the conservative event to help Bernie Sanders win the Democratic nomination – and thus, in his view, guarantee a landslide victory for his “friend” Donald Trump in the November 2020 election.
Farage, always a popular turn at CPAC, said of the recent British general election: “One of the things that made it easier for Boris [Johnson] was a man called Jeremy Corbyn. The British Labour party had been hijacked by hard left, unpatriotic socialism.” Nigel Farage at CPAC today. Photograph: Erik S Lesser/EPA
US Democrats will suffer the same fate under democratic socialist Sanders, he suggested. “You should be backing Bernie Sanders. You should be campaigning for Bernie Sanders. You should be donating money to Bernie Sanders.”
Farage, who waved a small Union flag on stage, added: “I think with Bernie, you won’t just get Trump. I think with Bernie, you can retake the House too.”
The crowd at this year’s CPAC event, in Oxon Hill, Maryland, burst into chants of “USA! USA!” Bernie Sanders campaigning in Finlay Park, Columbia, South Carolina, today. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA
28 Feb 2020 21.08 GMT Voter purge attempt overturned by court A Wisconsin court of appeals has overturned an order to purge more than 200,000 voters from rolls in this important swing state. The court had previously put on hold an order to immediately remove up to 209,000 names from the state’s voter registration rolls, handing Democrats who had fought the move a victory in the battleground state, my colleague Sam Levine wrote last month. The appeals court had sided with the bipartisan state elections commission in putting the brakes on removing any voters while the court fight continues. It also put on hold a ruling from Monday in which a judge found the commission and its three Democratic members in contempt for not proceeding with removing the voters The orders came as the commission was meeting in a closed session with attorneys from the state justice department to discuss the case. A conservative law firm that brought the case, the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, had wanted the purge to happen immediately, even though the elections commission raised concerns about the accuracy of data used to identify voters who would have their registrations deactivated. Rightwing group pushes Wisconsin voter purge that 'could tip' 2020 election Read more On Friday, the Hill writes, the order was overturned and would be: A boost to Democrats in a state that’s poised to play a decisive role the 2020 presidential race. Trump won Wisconsin by fewer than 23,000 votes in 2016. The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, said it plans to appeal the ruling to the state Supreme Court. A lower court judge in January ordered the purging of more than 200,000 people from voter rolls because they may have moved. On Friday, the appeals court also overturned an order by the same judge that had found the state elections commission in contempt for not moving forward with the voter roll purge. The plaintiffs in the original case argued that the state elections commission should have immediately deactivated registered voters who didn’t respond within 30 days to a mailing sent in October, an indication that the person may have moved. People voting at Jamestown Town Hall in Kieler, Wisconsin, in the November, 2018, midterm elections. Photograph: Nicki Kohl/AP
28 Feb 2020 20.54 GMT “Violated due process” Judiciary committee chairman and New York Democrat Jerry Nadler (who this morning wrote to attorney general Bill Barr requesting congressional interview with key officials amid concerns over presidential interference in the justice system), has also responded on Twitter to the court ruling blocking Trump’s “Wait in Mexico” border policy. “From day one, @HouseJudiciary has said the “Remain in Mexico” policy was illegal and violated due process, which is why we launched a comprehensive investigation into its origins. Proud to see the 9th Circuit put a halt to this fatally flawed program,” he said. Nadler and his fellow impeachment managers walking between the House and Senate on Capitol Hill during Trump’s impeachment trial. Photograph: Tom Brenner/Reuters Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal said: “The courts agree the Trump admin’s remain in Mexico policy is cruel & inhumane. As a country we should not banish people fleeing persecution to continue to wait in unsafe uncertainty. A clear violation of the law.” And Texas congressman Filemon Vela said: “Though the 9th Circuit’s decision almost certainly will be appealed, for now it stops the policy nationwide. The Trump admin. had been declaring near-victory in stemming immigration just weeks ago, in part because of MPP’s success. We must #EndMPP for good.” Though the 9th Circuit’s decision almost certainly will be appealed, for now it stops the policy nationwide. The Trump admin. had been declaring near-victory in stemming immigration just weeks ago, in part because of MPP’s success. We must #EndMPP for goodhttps://t.co/5vdKVYCjZP — US Rep. Filemon Vela (@RepFilemonVela) February 28, 2020
28 Feb 2020 20.42 GMT “Puts asylum seekers in danger” Current presidential contender Elizabeth Warren has also weighed in on the hammering of Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” border policy. She tweeted that the news of this morning’s court ruling was excellent. “Donald Trump’s cruel “Remain in Mexico” policy put asylum seekers in danger. As president, I will reverse the Trump administration’s cruel immigration policies and ensure that asylum seekers are welcomed at our borders,” she said. Elizabeth Warren poses for a photograph with audience members at a campaign Canvass Kick Off in Greenville, South Carolina, today. Photograph: Brian Snyder/Reuters New Mexico Senator Tom Udall tweeted that the policy news was a relief. “We cannot allow the Trump administration to continue punishing asylum seekers with its hateful and dangerous policies. Offering a place for those who need refuge is a bedrock part of what America is all about,” he said. House foreign affairs committee chairman, Eliot Engel, called the policy heartless, in a tweet. “I applaud the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling. Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy is heartless for those seeking asylum in our country. The Administration continues to demonize people coming to our country, but they are on the wrong side of history,” he said. One of the impeachment managers in Trump’s recent Senate impeachment trial, congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, called the policy “inhumane” in her tweet, saying: “‘Remain in Mexico’ is inconsistent w/@DHSgov’s authority & inhumanely forces thousands to wait in dangerous conditions before their asylum claims are heard. It’s a harmful policy & I’m glad the court rejected it.” Zoe Lofgren on Capitol Hill this week. Photograph: REX/Shutterstock


theguardian--2020-02-28--Ted Cruz tried to mock AOC's scientific knowledge – it didn't end well

If you were in search of a scientifically minded , steadying presence to guide the country through the potential fallout of the coronavirus , you could not do much worse than Vice-President Mike Pence .
This being the Donald Trump administration , however , where qualifications and expertise are often seen as prohibitive factors for top jobs , that ’ s exactly who we ’ ve been given .
Cutting to the heart of the matter with her characteristic bluntness , Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez this week pointed out the absurdity of placing Pence in charge of a potentially looming health crisis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ believe in science , ” she tweeted on Wednesday .
“ It is utterly irresponsible to put him in charge of US coronavirus response as the world sits on the cusp of a pandemic .
This decision could cost people their lives .
Pence ’ s past decisions already have , ” she said .
Ocasio-Cortez reminded people of Pence ’ s credentials for the job .
While he was governor of Indiana , he oversaw an HIV crisis that was so severe that at its peak , 20 new cases of HIV @ @ @ @ @ @ @ governor , Pence ’ s science denial contributed to one of the worst HIV outbreaks in Indiana ’ s history , ” she continued .
“ He is not a medical doctor .
He is not a health expert .
He is not qualified nor positioned in any way to protect our public health.
” Rushing to the defense of the administration the next day , Ted Cruz jumped into the fray .
“ As you are speaking as the oracle of science , tell us , what exactly is a Y chromosome @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ And at what age of gestation does science tell us that an unborn child feels physical pain ?
” He may have picked the wrong opponent – Ocasio-Cortez , it transpires , holds an award for microbiology from MIT .
Despite reports in the past of the two lawmakers , surprisingly , finding common ground on other issues , Ocasio-Cortez did not let the slight go unaddressed this morning .
Touting her scientific background bona fides , and jabbing at Cruz , who , like Pence , gives primacy to his religious @ @ @ @ @ @ @ acerbic put-down .
“ I ’ m surprised you ’ re asking about chromosomes given that you don ’ t believe in evolution , ” she said .

If you were in search of a scientifically minded, steadying presence to guide the country through the potential fallout of the coronavirus, you could not do much worse than Vice-President Mike Pence.
This being the Donald Trump administration, however, where qualifications and expertise are often seen as prohibitive factors for top jobs, that’s exactly who we’ve been given.
Cutting to the heart of the matter with her characteristic bluntness, Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez this week pointed out the absurdity of placing Pence in charge of a potentially looming health crisis.
“Mike Pence literally does not believe in science,” the New York congresswoman tweeted on Wednesday. “It is utterly irresponsible to put him in charge of US coronavirus response as the world sits on the cusp of a pandemic. This decision could cost people their lives. Pence’s past decisions already have.”
Ocasio-Cortez reminded people of Pence’s credentials. While he was governor of Indiana, he oversaw an HIV crisis so severe that at its peak, 20 new cases were diagnosed each week.
“As governor, Pence’s science denial contributed to one of the worst HIV outbreaks in Indiana’s history,” she wrote. “He is not a medical doctor. He is not a health expert. He is not qualified nor positioned in any way to protect our public health.”
Rushing to the defense of the administration the next day, Ted Cruz jumped into the fray.
As you are speaking as the oracle of science, tell us, what exactly is a Y chromosome? https://t.co/t4XVVzWr3A — Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) February 27, 2020
“As you are speaking as the oracle of science, tell us, what exactly is a Y chromosome?” Cruz responded on Twitter. “And at what age of gestation does science tell us that an unborn child feels physical pain?”
He may have picked the wrong opponent – Ocasio-Cortez, it transpires, holds an award for microbiology from MIT.
Despite reports in the past of the two lawmakers, surprisingly, finding common ground on other issues, Ocasio-Cortez did not let the slight go unaddressed. Touting her scientific bona fides and jabbing at Cruz, who, like Pence, gives primacy to his religious beliefs, she delivered an acerbic put-down.
“I’m surprised you’re asking about chromosomes given that you don’t believe in evolution,” she said.
Sen. Cruz, while I understand you judge people’s intelligence by the lowest income they’ve had, I hold awards from MIT Lincoln Lab &others for accomplishments in microbiology.
Secondly, I’m surprised you’re asking about chromosomes given that you don’t even believe in evolution. https://t.co/vOIwJhpl7q — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 28, 2020
A few hours later, Cruz returned for another condescending jab. “Btw, congrats on the science fair,” he tweeted.
“We see evolution every day: the Dem party is rapidly evolving into an angry, anti-science socialist ideology. You insulted Pence & I asked you 3 real Qs re science. You ignored all 3 & responded w/ your resume & ad hominem attacks. Instead of insults, address the substance.”
The senator did not confirm whether or not he does, in fact, believe in the actual definition of evolution.


theguardian--2020-02-28--Comedians mock ‘Confederate sympathizer' Steve King with tiny statue

They ’ re calling it a tiny statue for a tiny man .
Given Iowa congressman Steve King ’ s pitiful history of racist and xenophobic comments , it may not be small enough .
The statue , placed in front of the Iowa statehouse in Des Moines , is the work of the comedy duo Davram Stiefler and Jason Selvig , known as The Good Liars .
“ This site is dedicated to Confederate sympathizer and White Nationalist , Steve King , ” reads the plaque underneath the statue , which is indeed especially small .
“ Here , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s smallest Confederate statue.
” The comedy duo – who were also behind the recent stunt at New York bookshops in which covers of Donald Trump Jr ’ s new book were replaced with ones that read : “ Daddy , Please Love Me : How Everything I Do Is to Try and Earn My Father ’ s Love ” – told the Guardian that they wanted to honor history .
Mocking the language often used by those in defence of Confederate statues , Selvig said : “ We ’ re just saying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ heritage and – like it or not – Steve King ’ s racism is part of our heritage and we need to respect that.
” Selvig said that the four-inch statue , should act as a metaphor : “ Racists are trying to bring down others so they can make themselves feel better .
That ’ s the mark of somebody who is very small , ” he said .
In 2017 around the time of the violent marches in Charlottesville , King dismissed any connection between Confederate iconography and slavery .
That @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anti-immigrant Dutch presidential candidate Geert Wilders , King tweeted that “ culture and demographics are our destiny .
We can ’ t restore our civilization with somebody else ’ s babies ” – commentary that echoed the white supremacist slogan “ the 14 words ” .
A full accounting of similarly dehumanizing and degrading comments King has made about immigrants and other marginalized groups would fill a book .
Explaining why he opposed legal status for immigrants brought into the country as children in 2013 he said : “ For everyone who ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ another 100 out there that weigh 130 pounds and they ’ ve got calves the size of cantaloupes because they ’ re hauling 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert.
” Selvig pointed out that it would be hypocritical for the statue to be removed , seeing as so many Republicans have argued against removing other Confederate monuments .
“ They are the last ones fighting for the Confederacy , to keep its memory alive .
So they deserve their own Confederate monuments , all of them , ” added Selvig – in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ statues to come .
In 2016 at the Republican national convention he dismissed the benefits of multiculturalism , saying that non-white European groups had contributed little to civilization .
“ I would ask you to go back through history and figure out where are these contributions that have been made by these other categories of people you are talking about .
Where did any other subgroup of people contribute more to civilization ?
” A few days later he followed up in an interview by adding : “ The idea of multiculturalism , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s not objectively true … We ’ ve been fed that information for the past 25 years , and we ’ re not going to become a greater nation if we continue to do that.
” Last year King was stripped of his committee assignments and rebuked by Republican leaders after further offensive comments .
“ White nationalist , white supremacist , western civilization – how did that language become offensive ?
” he asked .
In a tweet showing images of the statue , the Good Liars chastised “ the Confederate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will honor his heritage and not take it down.
” Selvig added that while King ’ s comments are terrible by modern-day standards , they pale in comparison to what those Confederate leaders and generals who have statues honoring them did .
These statues were put up for intimidation purposes [ to scare ] minorities , and is disgusting and to defend them .
In this day and age , there ’ s really no excuse for that , ” said Selvig .

They’re calling it a tiny statue for a tiny man. Given Iowa congressman Steve King’s pitiful history of racist and xenophobic comments, it may not be small enough.
The statue, placed in front of the Iowa statehouse in Des Moines, is the work of the comedy duo Davram Stiefler and Jason Selvig, known as The Good Liars.
“This site is dedicated to Confederate sympathizer and White Nationalist, Steve King,” reads the plaque underneath the statue, which is indeed especially small. “Here, King is honored with the world’s smallest Confederate statue.”
We put up a confederate statue honoring confederate sympathizer Steve King. Hopefully he will honor his heritage and not take it down. pic.twitter.com/TuhKTmut1q — The Good Liars (@TheGoodLiars) February 27, 2020
The comedy duo – who were also behind the recent stunt at New York bookshops in which covers of Donald Trump Jr’s new book were replaced with ones that read: “Daddy, Please Love Me: How Everything I Do Is to Try and Earn My Father’s Love” – told the Guardian that they wanted to honor history. Mocking the language often used by those in defence of Confederate statues, Selvig said:
“We’re just saying we should respect our ancestry and our heritage and – like it or not – Steve King’s racism is part of our heritage and we need to respect that.”
Selvig said that the four-inch statue, should act as a metaphor: “Racists are trying to bring down others so they can make themselves feel better. That’s the mark of somebody who is very small,” he said.
In 2017 around the time of the violent marches in Charlottesville, King dismissed any connection between Confederate iconography and slavery. That same year, writing in support of anti-immigrant Dutch prime ministerial candidate Geert Wilders, King tweeted that “culture and demographics are our destiny. We can’t restore our civilization with somebody else’s babies” – commentary that echoed the white supremacist slogan “the 14 words”.
A full accounting of similarly dehumanizing and degrading comments King has made about immigrants and other marginalized groups would fill a book. Explaining why he opposed legal status for immigrants brought into the country as children in 2013 he said: “For everyone who’s a valedictorian, there’s another 100 out there that weigh 130 pounds and they’ve got calves the size of cantaloupes because they’re hauling 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert.”
Selvig pointed out that it would be hypocritical for the statue to be removed, seeing as so many Republicans have argued against removing other Confederate monuments.
“They are the last ones fighting for the Confederacy, to keep its memory alive. So they deserve their own Confederate monuments, all of them,” added Selvig – in a hint that there will be more statues to come.
In 2016 at the Republican national convention he dismissed the benefits of multiculturalism, saying that non-white European groups had contributed little to civilization.
“I would ask you to go back through history and figure out where are these contributions that have been made by these other categories of people you are talking about. Where did any other subgroup of people contribute more to civilization?”
A few days later he followed up in an interview by adding: “The idea of multiculturalism, that every culture is equal – that’s not objectively true … We’ve been fed that information for the past 25 years, and we’re not going to become a greater nation if we continue to do that.”
Last year King was stripped of his committee assignments and rebuked by Republican leaders after further offensive comments. “White nationalist, white supremacist, western civilization – how did that language become offensive?” he asked.
In a tweet showing images of the statue, the Good Liars chastised “the Confederate sympathizer” King. “Hopefully he will honor his heritage and not take it down.”
Selvig added that while King’s comments are terrible by modern-day standards, they pale in comparison to what those Confederate leaders and generals who have statues honoring them did.
These statues were put up for intimidation purposes [to scare] minorities, and is disgusting and to defend them. In this day and age, there’s really no excuse for that,” said Selvig.


theguardian--2020-02-28--Trump 'could suck coronavirus out of 60,000 people' and he'd still be criticized – Huckabee

Donald Trump could “ personally suck ” the coronavirus “ out of every one of the 60,000 people in the world , suck it out of their lungs , swim to the bottom of the ocean and spit it out , and he would be accused of pollution for messing up the ocean ” , a top Republican has claimed .
Former Republican Arkansas governor and ex-presidential candidate Mike Huckabee made the outlandish statement on Twitter on Thursday night and on Fox News ’ Fox & Friends show on Friday morning .
According to the World Health Organization ( WHO @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus have in fact been confirmed worldwide , with about 2,800 deaths .
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , there are 60 confirmed cases in the US .
In the US , Huckabee ’ s widely ridiculed comment followed the publication of a column for Fox News in which he took aim at criticism of Trump ’ s choice of Vice-President Mike Pence to lead US containment efforts .
Critics have said Pence ’ s religious faith , plus the decisions he took as governor of Indiana on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him a poor choice to lead efforts undermined by budget cuts and poor organization .
Huckabee said Pence was “ a proven leader who knows how to get people with different perspectives working together effectively ” on public health matters including the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome ( Mers ) outbreak of 2014 .
“ Instead of calling for bipartisan cooperation in this life-or-death effort , ” he wrote , “ liberals reacted with collective outrage , even going so far as to ridicule the vice-president ’ s Christian faith as a way of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the role .
“ Numerous media outlets have also published and broadcast one-sided reports trashing Pence ’ s handling of an HIV outbreak as governor of Indiana , but such criticisms are both inaccurate and irrelevant.
” The outbreak in question happened in 2015 .
Pence declared a public health emergency but many said faith-driven cuts to sexual health programs made the situation worse .
Huckabee , the father of the former Trump press secretary Sarah Sanders , is not the first rightwing commentator to claim Democrats and the media are using @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and undermine the president .
Earlier this week , the conservative shock jock and presidential medal of freedom honoree Rush Limbaugh claimed “ the coronavirus is being weaponized as yet another element to bring down Donald Trump ” and said “ the coronavirus is the common cold ” .
Some experts have criticised media coverage of the outbreak as inaccurate and potentially alarmist .
According to the Guardian ’ s guide to the coronavirus , sufferers report “ coughs , fever and breathing difficulties .
In severe cases there can be organ failure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ antibiotics are of no use … Recovery depends on the strength of the immune system .
Many of those who have died were already in poor health.
” The outbreak began in China .
The WHO has not yet declared it a pandemic but international markets , trade , travel and sporting events have been severely affected .
In the US on Friday the Dow Jones Index plunged again , at the end of the markets ’ worst week since the financial crisis of 2008 .
In Geneva , a WHO spokesman said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The scenario of the coronavirus reaching multiple countries , if not all countries around the world , is something we have been looking at and warning against since quite a while .
”

Donald Trump could “personally suck” the coronavirus “out of every one of the 60,000 people in the world, suck it out of their lungs, swim to the bottom of the ocean and spit it out, and he would be accused of pollution for messing up the ocean”, a top Republican has claimed.
Former Republican Arkansas governor and ex-presidential candidate Mike Huckabee made the outlandish statement on Twitter on Thursday night and on Fox News’ Fox & Friends show on Friday morning.
Mike Huckabee says Trump "could personally sick the virus out of every one of the 60,000 people in the world, suck it out of their lungs, swim to the bottom of the ocean and spit it out, and he would be accused of pollution for messing up the ocean." pic.twitter.com/X7xbC5ebDz — Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) February 28, 2020
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) more than 82,000 cases of the coronavirus have in fact been confirmed worldwide, with about 2,800 deaths. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are 60 confirmed cases in the US.
In the US, Huckabee’s widely ridiculed comment followed the publication of a column for Fox News in which he took aim at criticism of Trump’s choice of Vice-President Mike Pence to lead US containment efforts.
Critics have said Pence’s religious faith, plus the decisions he took as governor of Indiana on scientific and public health matters, make him a poor choice to lead efforts undermined by budget cuts and poor organization.
Huckabee said Pence was “a proven leader who knows how to get people with different perspectives working together effectively” on public health matters including the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers) outbreak of 2014.
“Instead of calling for bipartisan cooperation in this life-or-death effort,” he wrote, “liberals reacted with collective outrage, even going so far as to ridicule the vice-president’s Christian faith as a way of suggesting that he’s not qualified for the role.
“Numerous media outlets have also published and broadcast one-sided reports trashing Pence’s handling of an HIV outbreak as governor of Indiana, but such criticisms are both inaccurate and irrelevant.”
The outbreak in question happened in 2015. Pence declared a public health emergency but many said faith-driven cuts to sexual health programs made the situation worse.
Huckabee, the father of the former Trump press secretary Sarah Sanders, is not the first rightwing commentator to claim Democrats and the media are using concerns over the coronavirus outbreak to attack and undermine the president.
Earlier this week, the conservative shock jock and presidential medal of freedom honoree Rush Limbaugh claimed “the coronavirus is being weaponized as yet another element to bring down Donald Trump” and said “the coronavirus is the common cold”.
Some experts have criticised media coverage of the outbreak as inaccurate and potentially alarmist.
According to the Guardian’s guide to the coronavirus, sufferers report “coughs, fever and breathing difficulties. In severe cases there can be organ failure. As this is viral pneumonia, antibiotics are of no use … Recovery depends on the strength of the immune system. Many of those who have died were already in poor health.”
The outbreak began in China. The WHO has not yet declared it a pandemic but international markets, trade, travel and sporting events have been severely affected. In the US on Friday the Dow Jones Index plunged again, at the end of the markets’ worst week since the financial crisis of 2008.
In Geneva, a WHO spokesman said: “The outbreak is getting bigger. The scenario of the coronavirus reaching multiple countries, if not all countries around the world, is something we have been looking at and warning against since quite a while.”


theguardian--2020-02-28--Donald Trump’s war on coronavirus is just his latest war on truth | Jonathan Freedland

The coronavirus crisis is a war against a disease , but it ’ s also the most serious battle yet in the war on truth .
That much was clear from the start , as China moved to hush up the first outbreak and gag the doctor who had spotted it .
It was a classic case of what we might call Chernobyl syndrome : the tendency of authoritarian systems to react to disaster by rushing to downplay or cover up the problem , focusing more on shifting blame than tackling the threat head on .
Viewers of last year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nuclear accident could recognise the pattern immediately , as the priority of those in charge becomes avoiding embarrassment rather than saving lives .
There was some of that in the Iranian reaction to the virus , as the country ’ s deputy health minister coughed and sweated his way through a press conference called to reassure citizens , only later for it to be confirmed that he had himself been infected .
( There were already suspicions , since Tehran ’ s official numbers didn ’ t add up . )
And there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that at the heart of the outbreak in South Korea is a religious sect similarly devoid of transparency .
Usually , the democratic world can contrast itself flatteringly with such closed , controlled societies , proud that its approach to calamity is openness and the free flow of information .
Indeed , crises like this one can serve as test cases for the competing merits of free systems v authoritarian ones .
True , democracies can not match Beijing ’ s ability to lock down whole cities and build an entire hospital in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to a global pandemic , it ’ s free speech , full disclosure and cross-border scientific cooperation that ultimately save lives .
Except this time , the familiar authoritarian v democratic contrast has become muddled .
That ’ s because the current leader of the world ’ s most powerful democracy , the US , has the same instincts as the authoritarian rulers he so admires , and those instincts have coloured his response to coronavirus .
The result is that what for many must have seemed an abstract concern – Donald Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and science – is now a matter of life and death .
So while US medical officials have been at pains to brace Americans for the inevitability of coronavirus – a matter of when , not if – Trump and his outriders have worked hard to minimise the threat .
On Thursday , Trump repeatedly referred to the figure of “ 15 ” cases in the US , when the actual figure was 60 , and promised that that number would go down rather than up : “ It ’ s going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like a miracle , it will disappear.
” Trump ’ s chief economic adviser , Larry Kudlow , breezily assured the US public that the bug had been contained and that the country was sealed “ pretty close to airtight ” against the disease , when of course it is not .
One of the administration ’ s most influential propagandists – for whom Trump paused his state of the union address this month so that his wife , Melania , might garland him with America ’ s highest civilian honour , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ radio host Rush Limbaugh has been telling his vast audience that “ the coronavirus is the common cold , folks ” , and that it had been “ overhyped ” and “ weaponised … to bring down Donald Trump ” .
Trump has nodded in a similarly conspiracist direction , tweeting that the media are doing all they can “ to make the Caronavirus [ sic ] look as bad as possible , including panicking markets , if possible ” .
That reference to the markets is key .
Trump believes his chances @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stewardship of the economy , betting that voters will back him if their pensions – linked to the stock market – are up .
That the Dow Jones suffered the biggest one-day drop in its history on Thursday has him rattled .
And so his first instinct is that of the Manhattan hustler-hotelier loudly assuring guests that the strong smell of burning coming from the ground floor is merely the chef trying out a new barbecue rather than a sign that the building is on fire .
Crucial to that effort is talking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even gagging them altogether .
You could see that when Trump spoke in the White House briefing room , brazenly contradicting the experts by his side .
But it ’ s now become formal policy , with Trump ’ s insistence that all federal officials – including those with deep scientific expertise – are to say nothing that has not first been authorised by the White House .
Note the fate of Dr Anthony Fauci , director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease .
On Thursday he dared say that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ virus ” with a higher mortality rate than regular flu .
That was deemed insufficiently upbeat for the great leader .
According to the New York Times , “ Dr Fauci has told associates that the White House had instructed him not to say anything else without clearance.
” The new mantra , it seems , is to be one of Trump ’ s favourite phrases : repeated again on Thursday : “ Nobody really knows.
” That could be the motto of post-truthists such as Trump , conveying the hope that voters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ truth is ever even possible , and that in the fog of information and rumour it ’ s best simply to trust the man in charge .
That ’ s what Trump wants every American to believe , about coronavirus and everything else for that matter : nobody really knows .
Now Trump has put his slavishly deferential vice-president , Mike Pence , in charge of the coronavirus effort .
Put aside Pence ’ s appalling record as governor of Indiana , when his response to an HIV outbreak was to veto a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ offer his prayers instead .
Focus instead on the fact that Pence has been appointed over the head of the health secretary , Alex Azar , whom Trump deemed too “ alarmist ” .
In that same spirit , Trump has gutted the very agencies that the US will now desperately rely on .
In 2018 , he slashed health spending by $ 15bn , binning the Obama-era programmes and teams established for the express purpose of leading the US response to a pandemic .
Among those cut : the Centers for Disease @ @ @ @ @ @ @ frontline against coronavirus – which was forced to reduce by 80 % its efforts to prevent global disease outbreak .
The consequences are clear enough : only eight of the US ’ s 100 public-health labs are now even able to test for Covid-19 .
This onslaught against the health agencies is of a piece with Trump ’ s entire approach to data , science and truth .
You might remember “ Sharpiegate ” , when the president all but got out a black marker pen and amended a map issued by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appeared to support his tweeted , and false , claim that Alabama was about to get hit by a hurricane .
Trump has installed cronies and business pals at the helm of a raft of agencies previously respected as providers of neutral , factual data , the better to ensure those bodies say only what he wants them to say .
He has moved to shrink their budgets – whether at the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps or the Census Bureau – and allowed experts with deep knowledge to retire and not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ say we weren ’ t warned .
On Trump ’ s first full day in office , he telephoned the head of the National Park Service , angered by photographs showing that crowds that had gathered for his inauguration the previous day were smaller than those for Barack Obama .
The head of the NPS duly passed on the instruction from the president , and new , more flattering images appeared .
We laughed about it at the time because it was so petty , so vain and so trivial .
But the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is a man who does not want the facts or the truth .
He wants only what makes him look good .
That impulse might not have mattered much in January 2017 .
But it matters gravely now .

The coronavirus crisis is a war against a disease, but it’s also the most serious battle yet in the war on truth. That much was clear from the start, as China moved to hush up the first outbreak and gag the doctor who had spotted it. It was a classic case of what we might call Chernobyl syndrome: the tendency of authoritarian systems to react to disaster by rushing to downplay or cover up the problem, focusing more on shifting blame than tackling the threat head on. Viewers of last year’s TV dramatisation of the Chernobyl nuclear accident could recognise the pattern immediately, as the priority of those in charge becomes avoiding embarrassment rather than saving lives.
There was some of that in the Iranian reaction to the virus, as the country’s deputy health minister coughed and sweated his way through a press conference called to reassure citizens, only later for it to be confirmed that he had himself been infected. (There were already suspicions, since Tehran’s official numbers didn’t add up.) And there was a grim logic to the fact that at the heart of the outbreak in South Korea is a religious sect similarly devoid of transparency.
Usually, the democratic world can contrast itself flatteringly with such closed, controlled societies, proud that its approach to calamity is openness and the free flow of information. Indeed, crises like this one can serve as test cases for the competing merits of free systems v authoritarian ones. True, democracies cannot match Beijing’s ability to lock down whole cities and build an entire hospital in a week. But when it comes to a global pandemic, it’s free speech, full disclosure and cross-border scientific cooperation that ultimately save lives.
Q&A How can I protect myself and others from the coronavirus outbreak? Show The World Health Organization is recommending that people take simple precautions to reduce exposure to and transmission of the coronavirus, for which there is no specific cure or vaccine. The UN agency advises people to: Frequently wash their hands with an alcohol-based hand rub or warm water and soap
Cover their mouth and nose with a flexed elbow or tissue when sneezing or coughing
Avoid close contact with anyone who has a fever or cough
Seek early medical help if they have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, and share their travel history with healthcare providers
Advice about face masks varies. Wearing them while out and about may offer some protection against both spreading and catching the virus via coughs and sneezes, but it is not a cast-iron guarantee of protection Many countries are now enforcing or recommending curfews or lockdowns. Check with your local authorities for up-to-date information about the situation in your area. In the UK, NHS advice is that anyone with symptoms should stay at home for at least 7 days. If you live with other people, they should stay at home for at least 14 days, to avoid spreading the infection outside the home. Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback.
Except this time, the familiar authoritarian v democratic contrast has become muddled. That’s because the current leader of the world’s most powerful democracy, the US, has the same instincts as the authoritarian rulers he so admires, and those instincts have coloured his response to coronavirus. The result is that what for many must have seemed an abstract concern – Donald Trump’s assault on facts, experts and science – is now a matter of life and death.
So while US medical officials have been at pains to brace Americans for the inevitability of coronavirus – a matter of when, not if – Trump and his outriders have worked hard to minimise the threat. On Thursday, Trump repeatedly referred to the figure of “15” cases in the US, when the actual figure was 60, and promised that that number would go down rather than up: “It’s going to disappear. One day it’s like a miracle, it will disappear.”
Trump’s chief economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, breezily assured the US public that the bug had been contained and that the country was sealed “pretty close to airtight” against the disease, when of course it is not. One of the administration’s most influential propagandists – for whom Trump paused his state of the union address this month so that his wife, Melania, might garland him with America’s highest civilian honour, the Presidential Medal of Freedom – the talk radio host Rush Limbaugh has been telling his vast audience that “the coronavirus is the common cold, folks”, and that it had been “overhyped” and “weaponised … to bring down Donald Trump”.
01:42 Trump says coronavirus spread not ‘inevitable' – video
Trump has nodded in a similarly conspiracist direction, tweeting that the media are doing all they can “to make the Caronavirus [sic] look as bad as possible, including panicking markets, if possible”. That reference to the markets is key. Trump believes his chances of re-election in November hinge on his stewardship of the economy, betting that voters will back him if their pensions – linked to the stock market – are up. That the Dow Jones suffered the biggest one-day drop in its history on Thursday has him rattled.
And so his first instinct is that of the Manhattan hustler-hotelier loudly assuring guests that the strong smell of burning coming from the ground floor is merely the chef trying out a new barbecue rather than a sign that the building is on fire. Crucial to that effort is talking loudly over the fire marshals, or even gagging them altogether.
You could see that when Trump spoke in the White House briefing room, brazenly contradicting the experts by his side. But it’s now become formal policy, with Trump’s insistence that all federal officials – including those with deep scientific expertise – are to say nothing that has not first been authorised by the White House.
Note the fate of Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease. On Thursday he dared say that “we are dealing with a serious virus” with a higher mortality rate than regular flu. That was deemed insufficiently upbeat for the great leader. According to the New York Times, “Dr Fauci has told associates that the White House had instructed him not to say anything else without clearance.”
The new mantra, it seems, is to be one of Trump’s favourite phrases: repeated again on Thursday: “Nobody really knows.” That could be the motto of post-truthists such as Trump, conveying the hope that voters will become confused, concluding that no truth is ever even possible, and that in the fog of information and rumour it’s best simply to trust the man in charge. That’s what Trump wants every American to believe, about coronavirus and everything else for that matter: nobody really knows.
Donald Trump and Mike Pence at a White House press conference on the coronavirus outbreak. Photograph: Barcroft Media/Barcroft Media via Getty Images
Now Trump has put his slavishly deferential vice-president, Mike Pence, in charge of the coronavirus effort. Put aside Pence’s appalling record as governor of Indiana, when his response to an HIV outbreak was to veto a medically recommended needle exchange programme and to offer his prayers instead.
Focus instead on the fact that Pence has been appointed over the head of the health secretary, Alex Azar, whom Trump deemed too “alarmist”. In that same spirit, Trump has gutted the very agencies that the US will now desperately rely on. In 2018, he slashed health spending by $15bn, binning the Obama-era programmes and teams established for the express purpose of leading the US response to a pandemic. Among those cut: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – now in the frontline against coronavirus – which was forced to reduce by 80% its efforts to prevent global disease outbreak. The consequences are clear enough: only eight of the US’s 100 public-health labs are now even able to test for Covid-19.
This onslaught against the health agencies is of a piece with Trump’s entire approach to data, science and truth. You might remember “Sharpiegate”, when the president all but got out a black marker pen and amended a map issued by the key US meteorological agency so that it appeared to support his tweeted, and false, claim that Alabama was about to get hit by a hurricane. Trump has installed cronies and business pals at the helm of a raft of agencies previously respected as providers of neutral, factual data, the better to ensure those bodies say only what he wants them to say. He has moved to shrink their budgets – whether at the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps or the Census Bureau – and allowed experts with deep knowledge to retire and not be replaced.
We can’t say we weren’t warned. On Trump’s first full day in office, he telephoned the head of the National Park Service, angered by photographs showing that crowds that had gathered for his inauguration the previous day were smaller than those for Barack Obama. The head of the NPS duly passed on the instruction from the president, and new, more flattering images appeared.
We laughed about it at the time because it was so petty, so vain and so trivial. But the mindset was clear. The US president is a man who does not want the facts or the truth. He wants only what makes him look good. That impulse might not have mattered much in January 2017. But it matters gravely now.


theguardian--2020-02-27--John Legend adds star power to Elizabeth Warren's primary push

Elizabeth Warren has been making a last-ditch effort to woo black voters away from former vice-president Joe Biden ahead of the South Carolina primary vote on Saturday .
Singer John Legend headlined three events for the Massachusetts senator on Wednesday , including in key African American communities .
Legend is an especially appealing surrogate to young voters in South Carolina and to African Americans , and his stump speech aligned closely with hers .
“ She supports creating a commission on reparations for the descendants of enslaved people , ” Legend told the crowd in Orangeburg on Wednesday , before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Democratic presidential nomination .
“ Unlike [ former New York ] Mayor [ Mike ] Bloomberg , she knows that housing discrimination through redlining has been a national tragedy , ” he said , referring to the decades-long practice of US banks denying mortgages to people , mostly people of color in urban areas , preventing them from buying a house or getting a loan to renovate .
“ Her housing plan creates a first of its kind program to help first-time home buyers living in formerly redlined areas buy a home @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that government-sponsored discrimination denied their parents and grandparents for decades.
” Warren faces yet another daunting political contestin South Carolina , the first state in the deep south to cast its vote in the primary race , where African American voters form a majority of the electorate .
In the 2016 presidential election , 24 % of national Democratic primary voters were black .
The vote comes just days before Super Tuesday on 3 March , when the candidates will be vying for more than a third of the available delegates that are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ high-stakes day that has the potential to propel one candidate to solid frontrunner status and see others drop out .
Thus far , Warren has not won or achieved the runner-up spot in any of the early state primary contests .
Her best showing so far was in Iowa , where she ended up trailing the former South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg and Vermont senator Bernie Sanders , respectively .
In New Hampshire , a neighbor state to Warren ’ s Massachusetts , Warren placed a distant fourth , behind fellow New Englander @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Klobuchar .
In Nevada , Warren once again ended up in fourth place .
Biden has long courted voters in the black community , touting his record as vice-president to America ’ s first African American head of state , Barack Obama .
But Warren is hoping that support from prominent black surrogates and some changes to her campaign will help her rank among the top-end candidates in South Carolina .
In addition to Legend , Black Womxn For , a group advocating for “ intentional meeting spaces for Black Women and gender-nonconforming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ among the black surrogates who have held events for Warren throughout South Carolina .
Warren has spent much of the election race enjoying top-tier status without any association to Super Pacs or high-dollar fundraisers , instead favoring individual donors .
But just days before the South Carolina Democratic primary , the situation is different .
There ’ s now a Super Pac , which Warren has at least declined to disavow .
Warren allies , at the same time , have begun hosting more traditional fundraisers for her rather than the small-dollar , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as its only source of fuel for months .
Warren has also been increasingly warning voters about corporate corruption and economic inequality , especially by attacking billionaire Bloomberg , who has been spending hundreds of millions of dollars to run for president .
She ’ s criticized billionaires as part of her arguments for increasing taxes on the wealthy .
“ Now , you may have heard there ’ s some billionaires who don ’ t like this , ” Warren said during a campaign stop at South Carolina State University , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Orangeburg .
“ Some of them go on TV and cry .
So sad .
“ Some of them run for president , ” Warren continued , joking “ they ’ re discovering it ’ s harder than they thought.
” Lines like that still please her crowds .
At the Orangeburg event the immediate response was deep laughter from the audience .
But it ’ s unclear whether Warren ’ s efforts will succeed in South Carolina .
“ I think her John Legend events are good .
I don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ significant African American votes or young votes , ” said Clay Middleton , a South Carolina Democratic National Committee member , who highlighted that Warren had not spent a lot of time in the state until now .
“ She has not , in my opinion , had a large organizing staff .
Her events that she has done , her public events have not been diverse .
She has not done much retail politics.
” Warren ’ s campaign has 40 staffers across South Carolina and has 11 offices .
Warren ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state more than a dozen times for a total of 21 days .
The surrogates who have campaigned for her include congresswomen Ayanna Pressley and Deb Haaland , and she has picked up endorsements from local lawmakers including state representatives Kambrell Garvin and Wendy Brawley .
Supporters remain enthusiastic but are also realistic about Warren ’ s prospects .
At an event in Charleston on Wednesday night Trevin Cooper , a 25-year-old Warren supporter , said he still believed “ that she is the best chance this country has as far as change @ @ @ @ @ @ @ candidates , Bernie Sanders in particular , has a stronger base of supporters who are impassioned in what they believe , ” Cooper said .
Asked what he thought of Warren ’ s chances in the primary Cooper said : “ I ’ m not really sure .
I think she has in this state a chance to beat Sanders which I think is her biggest competition but I ’ m not sure the margin of error – it could really go either way.
” Another Warren supporter who attended the Charleston event @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that he saw Warren ’ s chances of winning the state as “ not very good ” .
“ Because according to the polls Biden has it wrapped up and probably Sanders will come in second , ” Wilson said .
“ But I can always be hopeful .
”

Daniel Strauss in Charleston, South Carolina

Elizabeth Warren has been making a last-ditch effort to woo black voters away from former vice-president Joe Biden ahead of the South Carolina primary vote on Saturday.
Singer John Legend headlined three events for the Massachusetts senator on Wednesday, including in key African American communities. Legend is an especially appealing surrogate to young voters in South Carolina and to African Americans, and his stump speech aligned closely with hers.
“She supports creating a commission on reparations for the descendants of enslaved people,” Legend told the crowd in Orangeburg on Wednesday, before directly contrasting her with her rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination.
“Unlike [former New York] Mayor [Mike] Bloomberg, she knows that housing discrimination through redlining has been a national tragedy,” he said, referring to the decades-long practice of US banks denying mortgages to people, mostly people of color in urban areas, preventing them from buying a house or getting a loan to renovate.
“Her housing plan creates a first of its kind program to help first-time home buyers living in formerly redlined areas buy a home and start building the kind of wealth that government-sponsored discrimination denied their parents and grandparents for decades.”
Warren faces yet another daunting political contestin South Carolina, the first state in the deep south to cast its vote in the primary race, where African American voters form a majority of the electorate. In the 2016 presidential election, 24% of national Democratic primary voters were black.
The vote comes just days before Super Tuesday on 3 March, when the candidates will be vying for more than a third of the available delegates that are key to securing the nomination – a high-stakes day that has the potential to propel one candidate to solid frontrunner status and see others drop out.
Thus far, Warren has not won or achieved the runner-up spot in any of the early state primary contests. Her best showing so far was in Iowa, where she ended up trailing the former South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg and Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, respectively. In New Hampshire, a neighbor state to Warren’s Massachusetts, Warren placed a distant fourth, behind fellow New Englander Sanders, and the Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar. In Nevada, Warren once again ended up in fourth place.
Biden has long courted voters in the black community, touting his record as vice-president to America’s first African American head of state, Barack Obama. But Warren is hoping that support from prominent black surrogates and some changes to her campaign will help her rank among the top-end candidates in South Carolina.
In addition to Legend, Black Womxn For, a group advocating for “intentional meeting spaces for Black Women and gender-nonconforming community leaders and activists” have been among the black surrogates who have held events for Warren throughout South Carolina.
John Legend stumps for Elizabeth Warren in Charleston. Photograph: Patrick Semansky/AP
Warren has spent much of the election race enjoying top-tier status without any association to Super Pacs or high-dollar fundraisers, instead favoring individual donors.
But just days before the South Carolina Democratic primary, the situation is different. There’s now a Super Pac, which Warren has at least declined to disavow. Warren allies, at the same time, have begun hosting more traditional fundraisers for her rather than the small-dollar, grassroots-only approach that her campaign proudly touted as its only source of fuel for months.
Warren has also been increasingly warning voters about corporate corruption and economic inequality, especially by attacking billionaire Bloomberg, who has been spending hundreds of millions of dollars to run for president. She’s criticized billionaires as part of her arguments for increasing taxes on the wealthy.
“Now, you may have heard there’s some billionaires who don’t like this,” Warren said during a campaign stop at South Carolina State University, a Historically Black College and University, in Orangeburg. “Some of them go on TV and cry. So sad.
“Some of them run for president,” Warren continued, joking “they’re discovering it’s harder than they thought.”
Lines like that still please her crowds. At the Orangeburg event the immediate response was deep laughter from the audience.
But it’s unclear whether Warren’s efforts will succeed in South Carolina.
“I think her John Legend events are good. I don’t think that is going to translate into significant African American votes or young votes,” said Clay Middleton, a South Carolina Democratic National Committee member, who highlighted that Warren had not spent a lot of time in the state until now.
“She has not, in my opinion, had a large organizing staff. Her events that she has done, her public events have not been diverse. She has not done much retail politics.”
Warren’s campaign has 40 staffers across South Carolina and has 11 offices. Warren’s campaign said she has visited the state more than a dozen times for a total of 21 days. The surrogates who have campaigned for her include congresswomen Ayanna Pressley and Deb Haaland, and she has picked up endorsements from local lawmakers including state representatives Kambrell Garvin and Wendy Brawley.
John Legend speaks to Warren supporters at D & B Fried Fish and Barbecue in Orangeburg, South Carolina, on Wednesday. Photograph: Brian Snyder/Reuters
Supporters remain enthusiastic but are also realistic about Warren’s prospects. At an event in Charleston on Wednesday night Trevin Cooper, a 25-year-old Warren supporter, said he still believed “that she is the best chance this country has as far as change.
“Unfortunately I think that other candidates, Bernie Sanders in particular, has a stronger base of supporters who are impassioned in what they believe,” Cooper said.
Asked what he thought of Warren’s chances in the primary Cooper said: “I’m not really sure. I think she has in this state a chance to beat Sanders which I think is her biggest competition but I’m not sure the margin of error – it could really go either way.”
Another Warren supporter who attended the Charleston event, Jim Wilson, 70, conceded that he saw Warren’s chances of winning the state as “not very good”.
“Because according to the polls Biden has it wrapped up and probably Sanders will come in second,” Wilson said. “But I can always be hopeful.”


theguardian--2020-03-01--Pete Buttigieg will not quit Democratic race despite Joe Biden surge

Pete Buttigieg will not drop out of the race to be the Democratic presidential nominee , despite finishing well behind Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders in the South Carolina primary on Saturday .
“ Every day we are in this campaign is a day that we have reached the conclusion that pushing forward is the best thing we can do for the country and for the party , ” he insisted on NBC ’ s Meet the Press .
The South Carolina result firmly established Biden as the frontrunner for the centrist wing of the Democratic party , which is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a self-declared socialist , heading into the key Super Tuesday contests next week .
The billionaire Tom Steyer , who had the third most support in South Carolina with 11 % , dropped out on Saturday night .
Buttigieg had an even worse performance , getting 8 % of the vote to Biden ’ s 48 % and Sanders ’ 20 % .
Some observers and party figures have called for other moderates – including Minnesota Amy Klobuchar and the billionaire former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg – to get out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clear the field for Biden in an attempt to deny Sanders the nomination .
But Buttigieg , who has pitched himself as the best moderate candidate , told NBC ’ s Meet the Press on Sunday he would not quit .
“ I think the most important thing right now is to look at what we can do to make sure that we put forward a campaign that is going to end the Trump presidency , ” Buttigieg said .
“ Everywhere I go , Americans are focused on ensuring that we not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ turn the page on all of the things that this president is doing and has done to our country , to our democracy , but also that we turn the page on the tone in our politics and that we move on from this divisive and toxic season in American public life and that continues to be my focus , as it has every day since the campaign began.
” On Sunday Biden ’ s campaign said the former vice-president had raised $ 5m in donations in the past 24 hours , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day for his campaign .
He also picked up a string of endorsements , including from former Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe and former Democratic National Committee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz .
Speaking to CNN ’ s State of the Union , Biden said he hadn ’ t had any conversations with other candidates about the need for them to drop out and back him .
“ I think it ’ s going to be a decision for the rest of the field to make as they move forward , ” he said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ s going to be much more difficult to win back the Senate and keep control of the House if Bernie ’ s at the top of the ticket .
But that ’ s a judgment for them to make and I think that will work itself out in the near term .
”

Pete Buttigieg will not drop out of the race to be the Democratic presidential nominee, despite finishing well behind Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders in the South Carolina primary on Saturday.
“Every day we are in this campaign is a day that we have reached the conclusion that pushing forward is the best thing we can do for the country and for the party,” he insisted on NBC’s Meet the Press.
The South Carolina result firmly established Biden as the frontrunner for the centrist wing of the Democratic party, which is attempting to fend off Vermont senator Sanders, a self-declared socialist, heading into the key Super Tuesday contests next week.
The billionaire Tom Steyer, who had the third most support in South Carolina with 11%, dropped out on Saturday night. Buttigieg had an even worse performance, getting 8% of the vote to Biden’s 48% and Sanders’ 20%.
Some observers and party figures have called for other moderates – including Minnesota Amy Klobuchar and the billionaire former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg – to get out of the race, in order to clear the field for Biden in an attempt to deny Sanders the nomination.
But Buttigieg, who has pitched himself as the best moderate candidate, told NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday he would not quit.
“I think the most important thing right now is to look at what we can do to make sure that we put forward a campaign that is going to end the Trump presidency,” Buttigieg said.
“Everywhere I go, Americans are focused on ensuring that we not only get better policies, that we turn the page on all of the things that this president is doing and has done to our country, to our democracy, but also that we turn the page on the tone in our politics and that we move on from this divisive and toxic season in American public life and that continues to be my focus, as it has every day since the campaign began.”
On Sunday Biden’s campaign said the former vice-president had raised $5m in donations in the past 24 hours, a record for most online donations in one day for his campaign.
He also picked up a string of endorsements, including from former Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe and former Democratic National Committee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Speaking to CNN’s State of the Union, Biden said he hadn’t had any conversations with other candidates about the need for them to drop out and back him.
“I think it’s going to be a decision for the rest of the field to make as they move forward,” he said. “I think everyone knows it’s going to be much more difficult to win back the Senate and keep control of the House if Bernie’s at the top of the ticket. But that’s a judgment for them to make and I think that will work itself out in the near term.”


theguardian--2020-03-01--Coronavirus: Pence defends Trump Jr claim Democrats want 'millions' to die

When Donald Trump Jr said Democrats hope coronavirus “ kills millions of people ” in the US because they want to bring his father down , he was merely “ pushing back ” at politicisation of the viral outbreak by Trump opponents , Mike Pence claimed in an interview broadcast on Sunday .
“ It ’ s time for the other side to turn down the volume , ” the vice-president told NBC ’ s Meet the Press .
At a White House press conference on Saturday , Trump was forced to defend his use of the word “ hoax @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Harshly criticised by contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination , the president said he had been referring to politicisation of coronavirus , not the outbreak itself .
In the interview broadcast on Sunday , NBC host Chuck Todd played Pence clips of Trump allies discussing the outbreak which on Saturday claimed its first US death , a man in Washington state .
Rush Limbaugh , the conservative shock jock to whom Trump gave the Presidential Medal of Freedom , said : “ The coronavirus is being weaponized , as yet another element to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Committee chair Ronna McDaniel said : “ Democrats are using this for their political gain to try and stoke fear in the American people , which is shameful , wrong , and I think un-American.
” And Donald Trump Jr , appearing on Fox News , said : “ For them to try to take a pandemic and seemingly hope that it comes here and kills millions of people so that they could end Donald Trump ’ s streak of winning is a new level of sickness.
” On CNN ’ s State @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Jake Tapper twice asked Pence if he agreed with Trump Jr ’ s claim that Democrats want coronavirus to “ kill millions of people ” .
Pence avoided the question , instead saying people need to set politics aside in the response to the outbreak and insisting Trump , who at his Friday rally claimed “ the Democrat policy of open borders is a direct threat to the health and wellbeing of all Americans ” , was directing all sides to take politics out of the equation .
Pence is in charge of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outbreak .
Saying he was leading “ decisive action to protect the American people ” , he told NBC : “ And when you see voices on our side pushing back on outrageous and irresponsible rhetoric on the other side , I think that ’ s important , and I think it ’ s justified.
” Todd said : “ It seems like people are taking nervousness and turning it into a political wedge issue.
” “ Well , ” Pence replied , “ that ’ s why my friends that you just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hard as they ’ re pushing .
It is time for the other side to turn down the volume.
” Asked to cite instances of politicisation of the outbreak by Democrats or the media , Pence said : “ There was a column in the New York Times by a prominent liberal journalist that said , ‘ We should rename it the Trump virus.
’ ” “ I mean , to have someone advocate that you rename the coronavirus the Trump virus is reckless and irresponsible.
” The column in question , by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the headline “ Let ’ s call it Trumpvirus ” and with a standfirst which read : “ If you ’ re feeling awful , you know who to blame.
” A critical take on Trump ’ s response to the virus , its first line read : “ So , our Coronavirus Czar is going to be … Mike Pence .
Feeling more secure ?
” Pence has faced criticism for his record on public health while governor of Indiana , and for his view of science-based policy as a strict Christian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Post published a deeply reported account of what it called “ the administration ’ s slapdash and often misleading attempts to contain not just the virus , but also potential political damage from the outbreak – which has tanked financial markets , slowed global commerce and killed some 3,000 people worldwide ” .
On NBC , Pence was asked if the president was nervous that the outbreak was going to affect the US economy in an election year .
“ The president ’ s concern is the health and safety of the American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I mean , the fundamentals of this economy are strong … and as the president said yesterday , we ’ re going to focus on the health of the American people and this economy and particularly the stock market that saw some downturns this week , it will come back .
“ But our focus is going to remain on the health and well-being of the American people.
” A man in his 50s in Washington state is the first person known to have died from coronavirus in the US , but officials @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how he contracted the virus .
Twenty-two Americans have coronavirus that is either travel-related or was spread from another person , according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) .
Of the Americans repatriated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship and Wuhan , China , 47 have tested positive for coronavirus .
According to the latest World Health Organization ( WHO ) situation report , there have been reports of 83,652 cases of coronavirus and nearly 2,800 deaths worldwide .
The majority of cases are in China but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , South Korea and Italy .
On Saturday , Pence announced measures including new travel restrictions on Iran and screening of passengers coming to the US from other countries .

Martin Pengelly and Amanda Holpuch in New York

When Donald Trump Jr said Democrats hope coronavirus “kills millions of people” in the US because they want to bring his father down, he was merely “pushing back” at politicisation of the viral outbreak by Trump opponents, Mike Pence claimed on Sunday.
“It’s time for the other side to turn down the volume,” the vice-president told NBC’s Meet the Press.
At a White House press conference on Saturday, Trump was forced to defend his use of the word “hoax” in reference to the outbreak. Strongly criticised by contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination, Trump said he had been referring to politicisation of coronavirus, not the outbreak itself.
On Sunday, NBC host Chuck Todd played Pence clips of Trump allies discussing the outbreak, which on Saturday claimed its first US death, a man in Washington state.
Rush Limbaugh, the conservative shock jock to whom Trump gave the presidential medal of freedom, said: “The coronavirus is being weaponized, as yet another element to bring down Donald Trump.”
You see voices on our side pushing back on outrageous and irresponsible rhetoric on the other side Mike Pence
Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel said: “Democrats are using this for their political gain to try and stoke fear in the American people, which is shameful, wrong, and I think un-American.”
And Donald Trump Jr, appearing on Fox News, said: “For them to try to take a pandemic and seemingly hope that it comes here and kills millions of people so that they could end Donald Trump’s streak of winning is a new level of sickness.”
On CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday, host Jake Tapper twice asked Pence if he agreed with Trump Jr’s claim that Democrats want coronavirus to “kill millions of people”.
Pence avoided the question, instead saying people need to set politics aside in the response to the outbreak and insisting Trump, who at his Friday rally claimed “the Democrat policy of open borders is a direct threat to the health and wellbeing of all Americans”, was directing all sides to take politics out of the equation.
Pence is in charge of White House efforts in response to the outbreak. Saying he was leading “decisive action to protect the American people”, he told NBC: “And when you see voices on our side pushing back on outrageous and irresponsible rhetoric on the other side, I think that’s important, and I think it’s justified.”
Todd said: “It seems like people are taking nervousness and turning it into a political wedge issue.”
“Well,” Pence replied, “that’s why my friends that you just played clips of are pushing back as hard as they’re pushing. It is time for the other side to turn down the volume.”
The column in question, by Gail Collins, ran on Wednesday under the headline “Let’s call it Trumpvirus” and with a standfirst which read: “If you’re feeling awful, you know who to blame.”
A critical take on Trump’s response to the virus, its first line read: “So, our Coronavirus Czar is going to be … Mike Pence. Feeling more secure?”
Pence has faced criticism for his record on public health while governor of Indiana, and for his view of science-based policy as a strict Christian.
On Saturday night, the Washington Post published a deeply reported account of what it called “the administration’s slapdash and often misleading attempts to contain not just the virus, but also potential political damage from the outbreak – which has tanked financial markets, slowed global commerce and killed some 3,000 people worldwide”.
A man in his 50s in Washington state is the first person known to have died from coronavirus in the US, but officials said on Saturday they did not know how he contracted the virus.
Twenty-two Americans have coronavirus that is either travel-related or was spread from another person, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Of the Americans repatriated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship and Wuhan, China, 47 have tested positive for coronavirus.
According to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) situation report, there have been reports of 83,652 cases of coronavirus and nearly 2,800 deaths worldwide.
The majority of cases are in China but severe outbreaks have been reported in Iran, South Korea and Italy. On Saturday, Pence announced measures including new travel restrictions on Iran and screening of passengers coming to the US from other countries.


theguardian--2020-03-01--Democrats ‘very nervous’ says Sanders as he campaigns on Warren’s home turf

Bernie Sanders is campaigning to beat fellow progressive senator Elizabeth Warren in her home state of Massachusetts on Super Tuesday , which would be a huge blow to her candidacy if successful .
Sanders made his case on the Boston Common on Saturday to 13,000 supporters stirred up by the cold and the soundtrack – Revolution by Flogging Molly .
Echoing across the nation ’ s oldest public park was the call and response of “ Not me , us ” .
The Democratic establishment is getting “ very nervous about our campaign ” , he said .
“ Tonight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the TV and find that 10,000 people came out to the Boston Common , and they ’ re going to become even more nervous.
” Warren was elected Massachusetts senator in 2012 and re-elected in 2018 .
While Sanders is concentrating on winning the delegate-rich states of California and Texas on Super Tuesday , he has also been campaigning for lower delegate states such as Virginia and Massachusetts , which has 91 up for grabs .
A win for Sanders in the state would not just bring in delegates , but deal a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the remaining seven major candidates – is ideologically closest to him , and would likely cement his position as the progressive frontrunner .
A WBUR poll last week found Sanders was the choice of 25 % of likely Democratic primary voters , with Warren in second place at 17 % .
Sanders told the crowd he beats Trump in 65 out of 70 national polls , and covered a variety of policy topics , including income inequality , housing , climate change , and health care .
He promised to raise the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , create a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and instill criminal justice reforms like ending cash bail .
Warren ’ s team is counting on its early organizational investment in the contests to come : a staff of more than 1,000 spread across 31 states , including in the major Super Tuesday battlegrounds .
To sustain her campaign , Warren is relying on a prodigious small-donor fundraising operation , an enthusiastic base of supporters , and relatively high favorability ratings .
Among other groups getting nervous , he said , are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ companies , “ insurance companies ” and the “ military industrial complex ” .
A recent New York Times interview with dozens of Democratic party officials found overwhelming opposition of handing Sanders the nomination if he falls short on the majority of super delegates needed to win .
Sanders dedicated Friday and Saturday to Massachusetts , following a new WBUR poll showing that his lead had grown to 25 % , ahead of Warren ’ s 17 % in the state .
Only five months ago , Warren held a 20 % lead @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appears to have fallen away .
Sanders is the current Democratic leader in delegates , with more than 50 .
Warren is not giving up home turf easily , but she is noticeably absent from the Bay State this weekend , with campaign events in South Carolina , which voted decisively for former vice-president Joe Biden on Saturday , as well as Arkansas and Texas , which cast their votes on Super Tuesday with 12 other states in the biggest night of the election cycle bar election days itself .
Warren has cast @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unite the party , and her supporters believe there is a double standard at work – that Warren , as one of the last remaining women in the race , is hurt by a fixation on electability and that she is held to a higher standard on policy , despite having an arsenal of plans to combat the climate crisis , break up big tech , cancel student loan debt and create a Medicare for All healthcare system .
On Friday , House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal , of Massachusetts endorsed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ candidate to take on Donald Trump on the economy ” .
Her campaign surrogates , including Representative Ayanna Pressley and Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey held canvass kick offs Saturday morning , as dozens of canvasses were planned across the state .
When asked following the CBS News Democratic debate if she can count on her home state to back her , she declined to give a definitive answer .
“ Look , I ’ m out here making my case to everybody all across the nation and I ’ m so deeply @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state who helped me beat an incumbent Republican back in 2012.
” Sanders has both the Nevada caucus and New Hampshire primary under his belt , and a near tie with Buttigieg in the Iowa caucuses , making him a current frontrunner .
On Friday , he drew around 5,000 people to Springfield in Western Massachusetts and told the crowd : “ I ’ m here tonight to humbly ask for your support ” .
Sanders picked away at hometown issues , including support for affordable housing , saying nationwide “ 18 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % of their income for housing .
That ’ s insane ” .
He also promised to build up to 10m units of affordable housing .
Nick Woods , a human services worker , spends time in what he calls “ oppressed communities ” .
He says while Warren has done great things for the state , “ Sanders is the one who can go toe to toe with Trump in November – that ’ s what the polls say.
” Currently in his mid-40s and under the weight of 100,000 of student @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hopeful about Sanders ’ higher education policies , which include eliminating student loan debt for everyone , not just lower income families as Warren pledges .
“ It effects where I live , what I can afford , the food I eat , the healthcare I buy-– everything , ” he said of the debt .
For South Boston ’ s 17-year-old Nico Iannecone , Sanders will be the first candidate for president that he plans on voting for in November .
Medicare for All and “ getting money out of politics ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s claimed to have shifted business man Andrew Yang ’ s former supporters to join the Sanders camp .
Iannecone said he wouldn ’ t consider a vote for Warren .
“ Elizabeth Warren is like Bernie Sanders for rich people .
She ’ s like diet Bernie , ” he said , adding that he feels her support for Medicare for All has not been consistent , and that she accepted money from billionaire supporters during her Senate run .
“ I ’ ve just been disappointed , ” he said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her eight-year-old daughter Maple perched on her shoulders .
McLaren , 48 , is a single mother with over $ 43,000 of student loan debt and intends to vote for Sanders .
She said she loves Warren , but is casting her vote for Sanders because “ Bernie is more electable against Trump , the predator ” .
The endorsement of the week for Warren may have come from the Boston Globe editorial board , which flip-flopped after urging her not to run for president in 2018 .
Then the publication ran a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ behind her political lines is an affront to his Senate colleague , supposed friend , and left-wing ally .
Any advantage he gains would come at the cost of her dignity.
” The Warren campaign says it has the support of about 150 elected officials across the state , including Representative Joe Kennedy III .
At an event last week , Kennedy dismissed comments of Warren losing her state .
“ I believe in her .
I think the people here believe in her .
I expect she ’ s going to have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ think she ’ s going to have a great day across the country .
”

Bernie Sanders is campaigning to beat fellow progressive senator Elizabeth Warren in her home state of Massachusetts on Super Tuesday, which would be a huge blow to her candidacy if successful.
Sanders made his case on the Boston Common on Saturday to 13,000 supporters stirred up by the cold and the soundtrack – Revolution by Flogging Molly. Echoing across the nation’s oldest public park was the call and response of “Not me, us”.
The Democratic establishment is getting “very nervous about our campaign”, he said. “Tonight they’re going to turn on the TV and find that 10,000 people came out to the Boston Common, and they’re going to become even more nervous.”
Warren was elected Massachusetts senator in 2012 and re-elected in 2018. While Sanders is concentrating on winning the delegate-rich states of California and Texas on Super Tuesday, he has also been campaigning for lower delegate states such as Virginia and Massachusetts, which has 91 up for grabs.
Sanders told the crowd he beats Trump in 65 out of 70 national polls, and covered a variety of policy topics, including income inequality, housing, climate change, and health care. He promised to raise the wages of teachers to $60,000 a year, create a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and instill criminal justice reforms like ending cash bail.
Warren’s team is counting on its early organizational investment in the contests to come: a staff of more than 1,000 spread across 31 states, including in the major Super Tuesday battlegrounds. To sustain her campaign, Warren is relying on a prodigious small-donor fundraising operation, an enthusiastic base of supporters, and relatively high favorability ratings.
Sanders dedicated Friday and Saturday to Massachusetts, following a new WBUR poll showing that his lead had grown to 25% , ahead of Warren’s 17% in the state. Only five months ago, Warren held a 20% lead over the Vermont senator, but that appears to have fallen away. Sanders is the current Democratic leader in delegates, with more than 50.
Bernie Sanders leaves the stage after delivering a speech during his rally in Boston, Massachusetts. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
Warren is not giving up home turf easily, but she is noticeably absent from the Bay State this weekend, with campaign events in South Carolina, which voted decisively for former vice-president Joe Biden on Saturday, as well as Arkansas and Texas, which cast their votes on Super Tuesday with 12 other states in the biggest night of the election cycle bar election days itself.
Warren has cast herself as the progressive candidate who can unite the party, and her supporters believe there is a double standard at work – that Warren, as one of the last remaining women in the race, is hurt by a fixation on electability and that she is held to a higher standard on policy, despite having an arsenal of plans to combat the climate crisis, break up big tech, cancel student loan debt and create a Medicare for All healthcare system.
On Friday, House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal, of Massachusetts endorsed Warren, calling her the “best candidate to take on Donald Trump on the economy”. Her campaign surrogates, including Representative Ayanna Pressley and Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey held canvass kick offs Saturday morning, as dozens of canvasses were planned across the state.
When asked following the CBS News Democratic debate if she can count on her home state to back her, she declined to give a definitive answer. “Look, I’m out here making my case to everybody all across the nation and I’m so deeply grateful to the people in my home state who helped me beat an incumbent Republican back in 2012.”
Sanders has both the Nevada caucus and New Hampshire primary under his belt, and a near tie with Buttigieg in the Iowa caucuses, making him a current frontrunner.
On Friday, he drew around 5,000 people to Springfield in Western Massachusetts and told the crowd: “I’m here tonight to humbly ask for your support”.
Nick Woods, a human services worker, said that although Warren has done great things for the state, “Sanders is the one who can go toe to toe with Trump in November – that’s what the polls say.”
For South Boston’s 17-year-old Nico Iannecone, Sanders will be the first candidate for president that he plans on voting for in November. Medicare for All and “getting money out of politics” are big issues for him. He’s claimed to have shifted business man Andrew Yang’s former supporters to join the Sanders camp. Iannecone said he wouldn’t consider a vote for Warren.
Iannecone said: “Elizabeth Warren is like Bernie Sanders for rich people.” He said he feels her support for Medicare for All has not been consistent, and that she accepted money from billionaire supporters during her Senate run. “I’ve just been disappointed.”
The endorsement of the week for Warren may have come from the Boston Globe editorial board, which flip-flopped after urging her not to run for president in 2018. Then the publication ran a column saying that Sanders’ “raid behind her political lines is an affront to his Senate colleague, supposed friend, and left-wing ally. Any advantage he gains would come at the cost of her dignity.”
The Warren campaign says it has the support of about 150 elected officials across the state, including Representative Joe Kennedy III. At an event last week, Kennedy dismissed comments of Warren losing her state.
“I believe in her. I think the people here believe in her. I expect she’s going to have a great day here, and I think she’s going to have a great day across the country.”
Jessie McLaren was listening to Sanders with her eight-year-old daughter Maple on her shoulders. McLaren, 48, is a single mother with over 43,000 of student loan debt and intends to vote for Sanders.
She said she loves Warren, but was voting for Sanders because “Bernie is more electable against Trump, the predator.”
Lauren Gambino contributed to this report