theguardian--2020-01-21--Trump, the whistleblower and the comic: key players in the Ukraine scandal

Democrats announced an official impeachment inquiry into Trump on 24 September following a whistleblower ’ s complaint about Trump ’ s interactions with the president of Ukraine .
A White House summary of a 25 July call shows Trump pressed Volodymyr Zelenskiy to work with the US attorney general and Rudy Giuliani , to investigate his political rival Joe Biden in the run-up the 2020 US election .
Trump told Zelenskiy to look into unfounded and debunked allegations that Biden helped remove a Ukrainian prosecutor who investigated a company tied to his son Hunter .
Ukraine ’ s new president @ @ @ @ @ @ @ experience of politics save for playing the president in a TV comedy .
In a remarkable plot twist , he ’ s now been thrust into the centre of an American political scandal .
“ I don ’ t want to be involved in democratic elections of the USA , ” Zelenskiy said in September , visibly embarrassed after the release of the summary .
“ We had a good phone call .
It was normal .
You read it .
Nobody pushed me.
” Currently a strong candidate in the 2020 race @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was vice-president in 2016 , when the Obama administration pressured Ukraine to remove Viktor Shokin , the country ’ s top prosecutor : the US and other western countries said Shokin was corrupt .
There is no evidence of wrongdoing by Biden .
“ This is not a Republican issue or a Democratic issue .
It is a national security issue , ” Biden said .
Joe Biden ’ s second son served on the board of Burisma Holdings , a Ukrainian gas producer , from 2014 to 2019 .
Burisma had been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but the investigation had been dropped by the time the US government urged Ukraine to fire Shokin .
The former Ukrainian prosecutor general was widely seen as having blocked the prosecutions of corrupt oligarchs .
Reform-minded Ukrainian politicians and international partners pressured the Ukrainian government to remove him for some time , and he was finally dismissed in 2016 .
He was later reinvented as a kind of heroic victim by Giuliani , who claimed – without evidence – that Shokin was fired on Biden ’ s orders .
The former mayor of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attorney , most strident TV defender and , it seems , an occasional diplomat .
The rough transcript of the Trump-Zelenskiy phone call shows Trump telling the Ukraine president to work with Giuliani in investigating Joe Biden .
Trump also repeatedly told US officials running Ukraine policy to “ talk to Rudy ” , they said .
But US officials testified they were alarmed by Giuliani ’ s role , which included a campaign against ambassador Marie Yovanovitch .
The attorney general is named by Trump in the call with Zelenskiy , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to investigate a conspiracy theory blaming Ukraine , instead of Russia , for 2016 election tampering .
The Department of Justice , which Barr oversees , said Trump had not asked Barr to work with Ukraine .
The DoJ examined the Trump-Zelenskiy call but decided not to open an investigation – a decision which has been criticized by legal analysts .
The anonymous author of a detailed complaint in mid-August that set the impeachment inquiry in motion , warning that Trump was “ using the power of his office to solicit interference from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election ” .
The account has been corroborated by witness testimony and public statements by Republicans .
Yet Trump , in an apparent attempt to deflect attention from his alleged misconduct , has led a campaign to unveil the whistleblower , whose identity is purportedly protected by federal law .
The former US special envoy to Ukraine resigned from the state department and met with congressional investigators , turning over records of WhatsApp chats in which he and other US diplomats worked to arrange a deal between Zelenskiy and Trump in which Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Zelenskiy would make a public statement that Ukraine had opened investigations of Burisma and election tampering .
“ I think Potus really wants the deliverable , ” Gordon Sondland , the US ambassador to the European Union , said on the chats .
A wealthy hotelier , Trump mega-donor and now US ambassador to the European Union .
In the chats turned over by Volker , Sondland , whose usual portfolio does not include Ukraine , pushed Volker and a third diplomat , Bill Taylor , to get what Trump wanted from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ initially said he took Trump at his word that there “ was no quid pro quo ” .
Sondland later revised his testimony , saying , “ I now recall speaking individually with [ Zelenskiy aide Andriy ] Yermak , where I said that resumption of US aid would likely not occur until Ukraine provided the public anti-corruption statement that we had been discussing for many weeks.
” A public servant for 50 years , the former military officer was appointed ambassador to Ukraine by George W Bush and asked by Trump to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Taylor delivered testimony in October seen as devastating .
He described how diplomats and Giuliani pursued Trump ’ s demand that Zelenskiy go on CNN and announce of investigation of Biden .
Taylor said Sondland told him that both military aid and a White House visit – “ everything ” – hinged on Zelenskiy ’ s willingness to announce the investigation.In the chats , Taylor repeatedly expressed alarm about the deal Sondland was trying to put together .
“ As I said on the phone , I think it ’ s crazy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a political campaign , ” Taylor wrote .
Taylor was scheduled to be the first witness to testify in public hearings .
A deputy assistant secretary of state , Kent was nominally in charge of Ukraine policy – until Trump reportedly put Giuliani and his EU ambassador in charge instead .
Kent testified that Trump wanted to hear three words out of the Ukrainian president ’ s mouth : “ investigations ” , “ Biden ” and “ Clinton ” .
Kent described his outrage over the plot to destroy the career of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to “ two snake pits ” in Ukraine and the US .
“ I was told to keep my head down , ” he said , “ and lower my profile in Ukraine.
” Kent was scheduled to be the second witness to testify in public hearings .
Yovanovitch was US ambassador to Ukraine for almost three years before being unexpectedly recalled by Trump in May this year .
US officials have described a plot – successful , it turned out – by her political enemies in Ukraine to destroy her ambassadorship .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Zelenskiy , saying , “ Well , she ’ s going to go through some things.
” “ I didn ’ t know what it meant , ” said Yovanovitch .
“ I was very concerned .
I still am.
” In March , Yovanovitch called on Ukraine to do more to address corruption .
Then Ukraine prosecutor general Yuri Lutsenko accused Yovanovitch of giving Ukraine “ a list of people whom we should not prosecute ” .
Lutsenko has since said Yovanovitch did not give him such a list .
Yovanovitch was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ testify in public hearings .
The acting director of national intelligence only took on the role on 16 August .
Maguire has been criticized for not sharing the whistleblower ’ s complaint with Congress – as is normal procedure .
The acting director said he thought issues raised in the complaint might be covered by executive privilege , and said he consulted with officials at the justice department and White House lawyers over whether to pass the complaint to Congress .
The White House eventually published the complaint .
After receiving the complaint @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the intelligence community , recommended it be shared with Congress .
This put Atkinson at odds with his superior , Maguire , who blocked it from being shared .
While the complaint was being withheld , Atkinson alerted lawmakers to its existence , saying it raised issues of “ urgent concern ” .
The speaker of the House , and the most powerful woman in Congress , Pelosi decided to initiate an impeachment inquiry after the rough transcript of the Trump-Zelenskiy call was published .
In doing so , Pelosi succumbed to long-mounting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some of whom had been pushing for an impeachment inquiry to begin for more than a year .
A veteran on the political scene , Lutsenko replaced Shokin as Ukraine ’ s prosecutor general but was also viewed with suspicion by reformers .
Lutsenko met Giuliani and appears to have been amenable to opening an investigation into unsubstantiated claims of Ukrainian interference in the 2016 US election on behalf of the Democrats .
Ukrainian officials have denied any effort to help Hillary Clinton in the election .
One of the new brand of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s Maidan revolution , Leshchenko was a leading political journalist who wrote widely on corruption and became an MP .
In May 2016 , he published information from a so-called “ black ledger ” that showed under-the-table payments from the pro-Russian former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych ’ s regime to figures including Trump ’ s then campaign manager Paul Manafort .
This led to Manafort ’ s resignation .
Leshchenko later became an adviser to Zelenskiy and has said that before this week , it was “ a clear fact that Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only if Biden case will be included ” .

Adam Gabbatt , Shaun Walker and Tom McCarthy

Donald Trump
Democrats announced an official impeachment inquiry into Trump on 24 September following a whistleblower’s complaint about Trump’s interactions with the president of Ukraine. A White House summary of a 25 July call shows Trump pressed Volodymyr Zelenskiy to work with the US attorney general and Rudy Giuliani, to investigate his political rival Joe Biden in the run-up the 2020 US election. Trump told Zelenskiy to look into unfounded and debunked allegations that Biden helped remove a Ukrainian prosecutor who investigated a company tied to his son Hunter.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy
Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images
Ukraine’s new president was a wildcard candidate who had no experience of politics save for playing the president in a TV comedy. In a remarkable plot twist, he’s now been thrust into the centre of an American political scandal. “I don’t want to be involved in democratic elections of the USA,” Zelenskiy said in September, visibly embarrassed after the release of the summary. “We had a good phone call. It was normal. You read it. Nobody pushed me.”
Joe Biden
Photograph: Olivier Douliery/AFP/Getty Images
Currently a strong candidate in the 2020 race for the Democratic presidential nomination, Biden was vice-president in 2016, when the Obama administration pressured Ukraine to remove Viktor Shokin, the country’s top prosecutor: the US and other western countries said Shokin was corrupt. There is no evidence of wrongdoing by Biden. “This is not a Republican issue or a Democratic issue. It is a national security issue,” Biden said.
Hunter Biden
Photograph: Pablo Martínez Monsiváis/AP
Joe Biden’s second son served on the board of Burisma Holdings, a Ukrainian gas producer, from 2014 to 2019. Burisma had been investigated by Shokin for alleged corruption, but the investigation had been dropped by the time the US government urged Ukraine to fire Shokin.
Viktor Shokin
Photograph: NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images
The former Ukrainian prosecutor general was widely seen as having blocked the prosecutions of corrupt oligarchs. Reform-minded Ukrainian politicians and international partners pressured the Ukrainian government to remove him for some time, and he was finally dismissed in 2016. He was later reinvented as a kind of heroic victim by Giuliani, who claimed – without evidence – that Shokin was fired on Biden’s orders.
Rudy Giuliani
Photograph: Michael Reynolds/EPA
The former mayor of New York is Trump’s personal attorney, most strident TV defender and, it seems, an occasional diplomat. The rough transcript of the Trump-Zelenskiy phone call shows Trump telling the Ukraine president to work with Giuliani in investigating Joe Biden. Trump also repeatedly told US officials running Ukraine policy to “talk to Rudy”, they said. But US officials testified they were alarmed by Giuliani’s role, which included a campaign against ambassador Marie Yovanovitch.
William ‘Bill’ Barr
Photograph: Shawn Thew/EPA
The attorney general is named by Trump in the call with Zelenskiy, the president saying Zelenskiy should work with Barr to investigate a conspiracy theory blaming Ukraine, instead of Russia, for 2016 election tampering. The Department of Justice, which Barr oversees, said Trump had not asked Barr to work with Ukraine. The DoJ examined the Trump-Zelenskiy call but decided not to open an investigation – a decision which has been criticized by legal analysts.
The whistleblower
Photograph: Alamy
The anonymous author of a detailed complaint in mid-August that set the impeachment inquiry in motion, warning that Trump was “using the power of his office to solicit interference from a foreign country in the 2020 US election”. The account has been corroborated by witness testimony and public statements by Republicans. Yet Trump, in an apparent attempt to deflect attention from his alleged misconduct, has led a campaign to unveil the whistleblower, whose identity is purportedly protected by federal law.
Kurt Volker
Photograph: José Luis Magaña/AP
The former US special envoy to Ukraine resigned from the state department and met with congressional investigators, turning over records of WhatsApp chats in which he and other US diplomats worked to arrange a deal between Zelenskiy and Trump in which Trump would invite Zelenskiy to the White House and Zelenskiy would make a public statement that Ukraine had opened investigations of Burisma and election tampering. “I think Potus really wants the deliverable,” Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the European Union, said on the chats.
Gordon Sondland
Photograph: François Lenoir/Reuters
A wealthy hotelier, Trump mega-donor and now US ambassador to the European Union. In the chats turned over by Volker, Sondland, whose usual portfolio does not include Ukraine, pushed Volker and a third diplomat, Bill Taylor, to get what Trump wanted from Zelenskiy. In closed-door testimony, Sondland initially said he took Trump at his word that there “was no quid pro quo”. Sondland later revised his testimony, saying, “I now recall speaking individually with [Zelenskiy aide Andriy] Yermak, where I said that resumption of US aid would likely not occur until Ukraine provided the public anti-corruption statement that we had been discussing for many weeks.”
William ‘Bill’ Taylor
Photograph: NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images
A public servant for 50 years, the former military officer was appointed ambassador to Ukraine by George W Bush and asked by Trump to take charge of the embassy in Kyiv. Taylor delivered testimony in October seen as devastating. He described how diplomats and Giuliani pursued Trump’s demand that Zelenskiy go on CNN and announce of investigation of Biden. Taylor said Sondland told him that both military aid and a White House visit – “everything” – hinged on Zelenskiy’s willingness to announce the investigation.In the chats, Taylor repeatedly expressed alarm about the deal Sondland was trying to put together. “As I said on the phone, I think it’s crazy to withhold security assistance for help with a political campaign,” Taylor wrote.
Taylor was scheduled to be the first witness to testify in public hearings.
George P Kent
Photograph: Carlos Jasso/Reuters
A deputy assistant secretary of state, Kent was nominally in charge of Ukraine policy – until Trump reportedly put Giuliani and his EU ambassador in charge instead. Kent testified that Trump wanted to hear three words out of the Ukrainian president’s mouth: “investigations”, “Biden” and “Clinton”. Kent described his outrage over the plot to destroy the career of ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, which he attributed to “two snake pits” in Ukraine and the US. “I was told to keep my head down,” he said, “and lower my profile in Ukraine.”
Kent was scheduled to be the second witness to testify in public hearings.
Marie Yovanovitch
Photograph: J Scott Applewhite/AP
Yovanovitch was US ambassador to Ukraine for almost three years before being unexpectedly recalled by Trump in May this year. US officials have described a plot – successful, it turned out – by her political enemies in Ukraine to destroy her ambassadorship. Trump criticized Yovanovitch in his call with Zelenskiy, saying, “Well, she’s going to go through some things.” “I didn’t know what it meant,” said Yovanovitch. “I was very concerned. I still am.” In March, Yovanovitch called on Ukraine to do more to address corruption. Then Ukraine prosecutor general Yuri Lutsenko accused Yovanovitch of giving Ukraine “a list of people whom we should not prosecute”. Lutsenko has since said Yovanovitch did not give him such a list.
Yovanovitch was scheduled to be the third witness to testify in public hearings.
Joseph Maguire
Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images
The acting director of national intelligence only took on the role on 16 August. Maguire has been criticized for not sharing the whistleblower’s complaint with Congress – as is normal procedure. The acting director said he thought issues raised in the complaint might be covered by executive privilege, and said he consulted with officials at the justice department and White House lawyers over whether to pass the complaint to Congress. The White House eventually published the complaint.
Michael Atkinson
Photograph: Jacquelyn Martin/AP
After receiving the complaint, Atkinson, the inspector general for the intelligence community, recommended it be shared with Congress. This put Atkinson at odds with his superior, Maguire, who blocked it from being shared. While the complaint was being withheld, Atkinson alerted lawmakers to its existence, saying it raised issues of “urgent concern”.
Nancy Pelosi
Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty Images
The speaker of the House, and the most powerful woman in Congress, Pelosi decided to initiate an impeachment inquiry after the rough transcript of the Trump-Zelenskiy call was published. In doing so, Pelosi succumbed to long-mounting pressure from Democratic members of Congress, some of whom had been pushing for an impeachment inquiry to begin for more than a year.
Yuriy Lutsenko
Photograph: Sopa Images/Getty Images
A veteran on the political scene, Lutsenko replaced Shokin as Ukraine’s prosecutor general but was also viewed with suspicion by reformers. Lutsenko met Giuliani and appears to have been amenable to opening an investigation into unsubstantiated claims of Ukrainian interference in the 2016 US election on behalf of the Democrats. Ukrainian officials have denied any effort to help Hillary Clinton in the election.
Serhiy Leshchenko
Photograph: NurPhoto via Getty Images
One of the new brand of politicians who entered the scene after Ukraine’s Maidan revolution, Leshchenko was a leading political journalist who wrote widely on corruption and became an MP. In May 2016, he published information from a so-called “black ledger” that showed under-the-table payments from the pro-Russian former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych’s regime to figures including Trump’s then campaign manager Paul Manafort. This led to Manafort’s resignation. Leshchenko later became an adviser to Zelenskiy and has said that before this week, it was “a clear fact that Trump wants to meet [Ukrainian officials] only if Biden case will be included”.


theguardian--2020-01-22--'A perfect storm': US census imperiled by Trump rhetoric and growing distrust

In the summer of 2018 , Alejandro Tobon worked as a census-taker in Pawtucket , Rhode Island , helping conduct a test run for the 2020 census , the decennial survey that aims to count every living person in America .
Tobon , 39 , wore an official badge but tried to make himself less intimidating – some days wearing shorts , riding his bike , or even his skateboard .
He told people the information they provided was confidential according to federal law , and at times spoke to non-English speakers in Spanish to make them feel more at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ really work .
One afternoon , he said , a mother quickly gathered her children and went inside when he approached her family during a picnic in the yard .
He began to suspect that people were fleeing inside when they heard he was nearby .
Many refused to give him all the information he needed for the survey .
There ’ s deep concern that what Tobon experienced will play out across the country this spring when the government undertakes the real national census .
Advocates fear Donald Trump has poisoned the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that have made minority groups distrustful of turning over their information .
That would be catastrophic .
Census data determines how $ 1.5tn in federal funds get allocated and how electoral districts get drawn to figure out how many representatives each area gets .
It ’ s how the federal and local governments know where to build roads , bus routes and hospitals .
It helps businesses make decisions about where to open new stores .
The census is the most fundamental unit of American democracy – the US constitution mandates the population @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no do-overs .
An undercount – estimates say it could be millions of people , largely minorities – would mean vulnerable groups have diminished access to federal resources and political power for a decade .
Despite that fear , 24 states have declined to allocate money towards the census .
Most significantly , the census has been tarred by Trump ’ s unsuccessful effort to add a citizenship question to the census form – a change that a top Republican redistricting expert had deemed “ advantageous to Republicans and Non-Hispanic Whites ” at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the US supreme court after widespread outcry that immigrants would not respond , and the question won ’ t be on the survey Americans receive beginning in March .
But many people don ’ t know that ’ s the case , said Arturo Vargas , CEO of the Naleo educational fund , which is working closely on census preparation efforts .
“ There still is a real lingering sense that if I fill out my census form , somehow the information collected can be used against me or my family , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time ever , the US Census Bureau will also invite people to respond online or by telephone before following up with paper forms and in person visits – a change that has stirred cybersecurity fears .
Combined with growing distrust and the heated campaign-year rhetoric , census consultant Terri Ann Lowenthal said there is a “ perfect storm ” of factors that could make the 2020 census less accurate than the one in 2010 .
In a worst-case scenario , the census could miss 1.22 % of Americans in total .
But it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – approximately 1.7 million people – and Hispanics by 3.57 % – about 2.2 million people , according to an analysis by the Urban Institute .
The reasons communities might avoid the census vary as widely as their cultures .
Some live in households where some people are citizens and others aren ’ t , said Liz OuYang , a census expert working with the Asian American community in New York City .
Others have left behind authoritarian rule .
“ Particularly where they had dictatorships and fled those types of regimes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sharing information with the government.
” Amy Torres , who is working on census issues affecting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in New York City , said many immigrants also fear retaliation from a landlord or an employer for answering .
The threat , however , could be most severe on the frontlines .
In Texas colonias , makeshift immigrant communities along the US-Mexico border , there has been suspicion and confusion about the census , said Martha Sanchez , an organizer with La Unión del Pueblo Entero , an advocacy group .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ‘ Can we trust this ?
’ ” she said .
The colonias often lack basic infrastructure and federal money allocated because of the census is crucial .
Sanchez has been going door-to-door to build trust before census bureau employees arrive later this year .
Bingo is popular in the colonias , so she developed a special bingo game to teach people about the benefits of the census .
Around Christmastime , she found a way to connect the census to a traditional Mexican celebration of Mary and Joseph ’ s journey @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
On Valentine ’ s Day , Sanchez plans to give out cookies with census information .
“ We have to prepare the way [ so ] when the census people come in that they ’ re able to trust and open the door , ” she said .
Sanchez wants to visit 1,000 colonias .
But she knows that goal is unrealistic , so she has begun coordinating with other groups to maximize outreach .
She is unlikely to get assistance from the state of Texas , which has not allocated any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state stands to gain additional seats in Congress after the census .
It ’ s a stark departure from states like California , home to many immigrant communities , which is investing more than $ 187m in the process .
And New York City , which was severely undercounted in 2010 , will spend $ 40m on census efforts .
“ The states that didn ’ t invest at least some effort , if not money … might regret sitting this one out , ” Lowenthal said .
Local governments and philanthropic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the gaps .
While the ramifications of the failed citizenship question and Trumpian rhetoric prove a new challenge , they also build on existing roadblocks that have rendered some American communities invisible .
The census has consistently undercounted the homeless .
The official government count says about 567,000 people were homeless on any given night in 2019 , but experts say this is significantly lower than the real figure .
The gap is partly because homeless Americans tend to be transient – California could lose a congressional seat because many are leaving the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shelters , cars or on the streets .
Meanwhile , the Trump administration ’ s aggressive anti-homelessness policies , which have policed encampments and defunded shelters , sparked even more distrust in the government .
“ Who feels comfortable sharing their information ?
It ’ s those that already have power and privilege , ” said Aiden Hill , who was formerly homeless but now works for the Berkeley city government ’ s homeless commission .
Native Americans , who are consistently overlooked by the US government , are also often left out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bureau reported undercounting the population by 4.9 % in 2010 .
Some of the issue is access : a third of the Native population lives in hard-to-reach tracts , and , like other minority groups , they have less access to broadband internet .
Others simply don ’ t trust “ the feds ” .
“ There ’ s a lot of questions , ” said Tony Garcia , dean of the Ihanktonwan Community College , which serves the Yanxton Sioux tribe in South Dakota .
“ The tribal governments themselves need to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and homeless people , Native Americans feel the domino effect of being left out of the country ’ s most important effort to find out who lives within its borders .
And the census count determines the federal funds they get , the roads they drive on , their representation in the government , and the healthcare they receive for the next 10 years .
“ The impact of an election can be changed by a subsequent election if there is a change in party or ideology by who wins , ” Vargas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the census ] are what they are for a decade .
”

In the summer of 2018, Alejandro Tobon worked as a census-taker in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, helping conduct a test run for the 2020 census, the decennial survey that aims to count every living person in America. Tobon, 39, wore an official badge but tried to make himself less intimidating – some days wearing shorts, riding his bike, or even his skateboard.
He told people the information they provided was confidential according to federal law, and at times spoke to non-English speakers in Spanish to make them feel more at ease.
But it didn’t really work. One afternoon, he said, a mother quickly gathered her children and went inside when he approached her family during a picnic in the yard. He began to suspect that people were fleeing inside when they heard he was nearby. Many refused to give him all the information he needed for the survey.
There’s deep concern that what Tobon experienced will play out across the country this spring when the government undertakes the real national census. Advocates fear Donald Trump has poisoned the process with virulent anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies that have made minority groups distrustful of turning over their information.
That would be catastrophic. Census data determines how $1.5tn in federal funds get allocated and how electoral districts get drawn to figure out how many representatives each area gets. It’s how the federal and local governments know where to build roads, bus routes and hospitals. It helps businesses make decisions about where to open new stores. The census is the most fundamental unit of American democracy – the US constitution mandates the population count every 10 years. There are no do-overs.
An undercount – estimates say it could be millions of people, largely minorities – would mean vulnerable groups have diminished access to federal resources and political power for a decade. Despite that fear, 24 states have declined to allocate money towards the census.
Most significantly, the census has been tarred by Trump’s unsuccessful effort to add a citizenship question to the census form – a change that a top Republican redistricting expert had deemed “advantageous to Republicans and Non-Hispanic Whites” at the time.
In a worst-case scenario, the census could miss 1.22% of Americans in total.
The move was blocked by the US supreme court after widespread outcry that immigrants would not respond, and the question won’t be on the survey Americans receive beginning in March. But many people don’t know that’s the case, said Arturo Vargas, CEO of the Naleo educational fund, which is working closely on census preparation efforts. “There still is a real lingering sense that if I fill out my census form, somehow the information collected can be used against me or my family,” Vargas said.
For the first time ever, the US Census Bureau will also invite people to respond online or by telephone before following up with paper forms and in person visits – a change that has stirred cybersecurity fears. Combined with growing distrust and the heated campaign-year rhetoric, census consultant Terri Ann Lowenthal said there is a “perfect storm” of factors that could make the 2020 census less accurate than the one in 2010.
In a worst-case scenario, the census could miss 1.22% of Americans in total. But it would miss African Americans by 3.68% – approximately 1.7 million people – and Hispanics by 3.57% – about 2.2 million people, according to an analysis by the Urban Institute.
Lupe’s census outreach effort so far has focused on using Censo Lote, the census-themed Mexican bingo game, in neighborhood house meetings. Photograph: Courtesy LUPE
The reasons communities might avoid the census vary as widely as their cultures. Some live in households where some people are citizens and others aren’t, said Liz OuYang, a census expert working with the Asian American community in New York City. Others have left behind authoritarian rule. “Particularly where they had dictatorships and fled those types of regimes, [they] have a concern about sharing information with the government.”
Amy Torres, who is working on census issues affecting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in New York City, said many immigrants also fear retaliation from a landlord or an employer for answering.
The threat, however, could be most severe on the frontlines. In Texas colonias, makeshift immigrant communities along the US-Mexico border, there has been suspicion and confusion about the census, said Martha Sanchez, an organizer with La Unión del Pueblo Entero (LUPE), an advocacy group. “The question that was there is, ‘Can we trust this?’” she said. The colonias often lack basic infrastructure and federal money allocated because of the census is crucial.
Sanchez and members of LUPE have been going door-to-door to build trust before census bureau employees arrive later this year. Bingo is popular in the colonias, so she developed a special bingo game to teach people about the benefits of the census. Around Christmastime, she found a way to connect the census to a traditional Mexican celebration of Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus. On Valentine’s Day, Sanchez plans to give out cookies with census information.
“We have to prepare the way [so] when the census people come in that they’re able to trust and open the door,” she said. Sanchez wants to visit 1,000 colonias. But she knows that goal is unrealistic, so she has begun coordinating with other groups to maximize outreach.
She is unlikely to get assistance from the state of Texas, which has not allocated any money towards the census, even though the state stands to gain additional seats in Congress after the census. It’s a stark departure from states like California, home to many immigrant communities, which is investing more than $187m in the process. And New York City, which was severely undercounted in 2010, will spend $40m on census efforts.
“The states that didn’t invest at least some effort, if not money … might regret sitting this one out,” Lowenthal said. Local governments and philanthropic groups are currently spending money to fill the gaps.
While the ramifications of the failed citizenship question and Trumpian rhetoric prove a new challenge, they also build on existing roadblocks that have rendered some American communities invisible.
The census has consistently undercounted the homeless. The official government count says about 567,000 people were homeless on any given night in 2019, but experts say this is significantly lower than the real figure. The gap is partly because homeless Americans tend to be transient – California could lose a congressional seat because many are leaving the state – and because some live in shelters, cars or on the streets.
Tents line a sidewalk under an overpass at the 27th and Northgate homeless encampment in Oakland, California. Photograph: Michael Short/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s aggressive anti-homelessness policies, which have policed encampments and defunded shelters, sparked even more distrust in the government. “Who feels comfortable sharing their information? It’s those that already have power and privilege,” said Aidan Hill, who was formerly homeless but now works for the Berkeley city government’s homeless commission.
Native Americans, who are consistently overlooked by the US government, are also often left out of the official count – the Census Bureau reported undercounting the population by 4.9% in 2010. Some of the issue is access: a third of the Native population lives in hard-to-reach tracts, and, like other minority groups, they have less access to broadband internet. Others simply don’t trust “the feds”.
“There’s a lot of questions,” said Tony Garcia, dean of the Ihanktonwan Community College, which serves the Yanxton Sioux tribe in South Dakota. “The tribal governments themselves need to get involved.”
As with immigrant populations and homeless people, Native Americans feel the domino effect of being left out of the country’s most important effort to find out who lives within its borders. And the census count determines the federal funds they get, the roads they drive on, their representation in the government, and the healthcare they receive for the next 10 years.
“The impact of an election can be changed by a subsequent election if there is a change in party or ideology by who wins,” Vargas said. “But the numbers [in the census] are what they are for a decade.”


theguardian--2020-01-22--Trump impeachment: senators kill Democratic efforts to subpoena more evidence – as it happened

This moment had been much hyped by cable TV but viewers hoping for the political equivalent of the OJ Simpson trial were in for a disappointment .
There was no prisoner in the dock ; Trump is thousands of miles away in Davos .
This was reality TV without the reality TV president .
There was , however , the California Democrat Adam Schiff , the lead House manager in the impeachment trial , who once wrote a screenplay for a Hollywood crime thriller .
He was not quite Henry Fonda in 12 Angry Men or Tom Cruise in A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ put Republicans on the spot over their pledge on oath to be impartial jurors .
“ The American people want a fair trial .
They want to believe their system of government is still capable of rising to the occasion , ” Schiff entreated .
“ They want to believe we can rise above party and do what ’ s best for the country , but a great many Americans don ’ t believe that will happen .
Let ’ s prove them wrong .
Let ’ s prove them wrong !
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ erupted in applause , heavenly horns played and a solitary tear trickled down McConnell ’ s face .
In the Washington version , however , Republicans sat or slouched expressionless or studied papers on their desks , while McConnell fixed Schiff with a death stare as if intent on turning him to stone .

Maanvi Singh in San Francisco (now), and Joan E Greve in  Washington (earlier)

22 Jan 2020 07.26 GMT Day one summary Over the course of nearly 13 hours, House i mpeachment managers clashed with White House lawyers as they debated the rules that will govern the impeachment trial.
clashed with White House lawyers as they debated the rules that will govern the impeachment trial. Republican senators voted to kill 11 amendments to the trial rules brought forth by the Democrats, thwarting multiple attempts to subpoena documents and witnesses, including former national security adviser John Bolton .
. House Judiciary chair Jerrold Nadler, who is one of the impeachment managers, accused Republicans of “voting for a coverup” by rejecting attempts to acquire more evidence.
Voting along party lines, Republicans pushed through the rules as proposed by Senate leader Mitch McConnell , unamended.
, unamended. McConnell did change the rules a bit since he first revealed them, allowing for each side to take three days, rather than two, to present their cases. He also allowed the House’s impeachment evidence to be admitted into the Senate record.
Throughout, Chief Justice John Roberts played a procedural role — piping up just once to admonish both sides for a lack of civil discourse. “I do think that those addressing the Senate should remember where they are,” he said.
played a procedural role — piping up just once to admonish both sides for a lack of civil discourse. “I do think that those addressing the Senate should remember where they are,” he said. As the hours wore on, lawmakers looked visibly worn out — a couple of senators appeared to nod off.
The trial is adjourned until Wednesday at 1pm ET, when House managers will present their case. Guardian reporters will be back tomorrow with more live updates from the impeachment trial. In the meantime, catch up on our coverage so far: Review the case against Trump.
Meet the Republican senators who could cross party lines.
Relive the drama that was, and wasn’t. Trump impeachment trial: Democrats' bids for new evidence dashed in marathon first day Read more
Updated at 07.33 GMT
22 Jan 2020 06.54 GMT Senate Republicans pass the trial rules, without amendments After 13 hours of debate, Republican senators pushed through the organizing resolution for the impeachment proposed by Mitch McConnell, without any of the 11 amendments proposed by Democrats. The trial is now adjourned until 1pm ET on Wednesday.
Updated at 06.57 GMT
22 Jan 2020 06.41 GMT Senators kill 11th and last Democratic amendment The final amendment proposed by minority leader Chuck Schumer would allow Chief Justice John Roberts — as a neutral party — to decide whether to allow motions to subpoena witnesses or documents. Finally, the senators are voting on the organizing resolution for the impeachment trial, as proposed by Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell. Before the vote, McConnell addressed Chief Justice John Roberts: “We want to thank you for your patience,” he said. “Comes with the job,” Roberts responded.
Updated at 06.45 GMT
22 Jan 2020 06.36 GMT The Office of Management and Budget responded to a FOIA request by releasing a trove of documents on military aid to Ukraine. BREAKING: Two minutes before midnight, OMB released 192 pages of Ukraine-related records to American Oversight, including emails that have not been previously released. https://t.co/yJ1IGn3nf7 pic.twitter.com/LZ8KRJoy1M — American Oversight (@weareoversight) January 22, 2020 The watchdog organization made “request for directives and communications that may relate to any effort to pressure the Ukrainian government to investigate one of President Trump’s political opponents as part of an effort to give the president an electoral advantage,” it said.
22 Jan 2020 06.26 GMT Senators kill the 10th Democratic amendment to allow for additional time to file responses to motions. The rules provide each side two hours. Schumer’s amendment asked for 24. The debate on this one was very short — things are speeding up.
Updated at 06.46 GMT
22 Jan 2020 06.15 GMT As expected, Democrats’ eighth amendment, like all the others, was voted down, along party lines. Republicans blocked the Democratic push to subpoena John Bolton. The former national security advisor could still testify if a majority of senators vote to subpoena his testimony later. 52-48: Senate rejects Schumer's 10th amdt to allow for additional time to file responses to motions on near party line vote. pic.twitter.com/lu7VoRE7Wx — Craig Caplan (@CraigCaplan) January 22, 2020 They also killed a ninth amendment, which would force a Senate vote on any motion to subpoena witnesses and documents. The current rules require a procedural vote that must pass before a vote on subpoenas. In this vote, there was one Republican defector: Senator Susan Collins.
Updated at 06.40 GMT
22 Jan 2020 05.58 GMT Chief Justice Roberts admonishing... pic.twitter.com/6pjioKTiRb — Jeremy Art (@cspanJeremy) January 22, 2020 John Roberts took an opportunity to rebuke both House managers and the White House counsel “in equal terms” for their language and personal attacks. He asked everyone to “avoid speaking in a manner and using language that is not conducive to civil discourse”. Dad’s still awake, and he’s getting angry. https://t.co/QmMPwGYMKt — Anthony Zurcher (@awzurcher) January 22, 2020 Roberts also offered a fun fact. In 1905, a Senator objected to a manager using the word “pettifogging” and the presiding officer found that the world “ought not to be used”, he said. “I don’t think we need to aspire to that high a standard, but I do think those addressing the senate should remember where they are,” Roberts added.
Updated at 06.48 GMT
22 Jan 2020 05.53 GMT In response, White House lawyer Jay Sekulow raised his voice and banged the podium for emphasis. He accused Nadler of trying to “shred Constitution on the floor of the floor of the Senate” by questioning Donald Trump’s executive privilege claim. Pat Cipollone called the impeachment a “farce”. “Mister Nadler, you owe an apology to the President of the United States and his family, you owe an apology to the Senate, but most of all you owe an apology to the American people,” he said.


theguardian--2020-01-22--Trump impeachment trial: Democrats' bids for new evidence dashed in marathon first day

Democratic hopes that a moderate bloc of Senate Republicans would join their demand for witnesses and testimony at Donald Trump ’ s impeachment trial were temporarily disappointed , if not dashed , as arguments on the first proper day of the trial extended past midnight into Wednesday morning .
In seven consecutive votes split precisely along party lines , the Senate voted down Democratic proposals to subpoena testimony from four potential witnesses and documents from multiple government agencies .
Four additional votes defeated proposals to ease the admission of documents and testimony and to relax related time restrictions .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but it doesn ’ t have to be late , ” Adam Schiff , the lead impeachment “ manager ” , or prosecutor in the case , said as the proceedings entered their 12th hour .
“ We don ’ t control the schedule .
There is a reason why we are still here at five minutes till midnight , and that ’ s because they don ’ t want the American people to see what ’ s going on here.
” Democrats fruitlessly called for testimony and documents from the former national @ @ @ @ @ @ @ White House chief of staff , Mick Mulvaney ; Mulvaney ’ s aide Robert Blair ; the budget official Michael Duffey ; the White House ; the state department ; the defense department ; and the budget office relevant to an alleged scheme by Trump to twist the powers of the presidency to extract personal political favors from Ukraine .
Each of the proposed subpoenas was defeated by a 53-47 vote .
Only one procedural amendment garnered a single Republican vote , from Susan Collins of Maine .
The 13-hour session came to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , with yet another straight party-line vote to approve guidelines for the trial unveiled by the majority leader , Mitch McConnell , just a day earlier .
Democrats accused Republicans of failing to commit to a fair impeachment trial and of engaging in a “ cover-up ” of misconduct by the president .
“ The president is engaged in this cover-up because he is guilty , and he knows it , ” said Representative Val Demings of Florida , one of the impeachment managers .
A further opportunity for the senators to demand @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weeks ahead .
But Schiff urged the senators to issue subpoenas before an allotted period for senators to question the legal teams .
“ You should want to see these documents , ” said Schiff .
“ You should want to know what these private emails and text messages have to say .
“ The American people want a fair trial , ” Schiff said .
“ But a great many Americans don ’ t believe that will happen .
Let ’ s prove them wrong.
” Trump ’ s defense team struck @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what they said was unfair treatment of the president and accusing the House of an attack on democracy .
“ They ’ re not here to steal one election , they ’ re here to steal two elections , ” said Pat Cipollone , the White House counsel .
“ They won ’ t tell you that .
They don ’ t have the guts to say it directly .
But that ’ s exactly what they ’ re here to do.
” The trial was scheduled to continue with late-night sessions starting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weekend .
A long-shot two-thirds majority of senators present would be required to remove Trump from office .
The supreme court ’ s chief justice , John Roberts , gaveled the trial to order shortly after 1pm .
“ The Senate will convene as a court of impeachment , ” Roberts said , proceeding to swear in one senator , James Inhofe of Oklahoma , who missed the group swearing-in last week .
Over the next 12 hours , Roberts stepped out of a strictly procedural role only once , after the manager @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against hearing from Bolton of casting a “ treacherous vote ” and Cipollone demanded that Nadler apologize to Trump and his family .
Admonishing both sides , Roberts noted that Senate rules and tradition required civil discourse .
“ I do think that those addressing the Senate should remember where they are , ” he said .
The opposing legal teams , seated in a cramped arrangement at tables stacked with paper at the base of the Senate rostrum , struck an immediate contrast in style and substance .
While Trump ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ process in the House and resuscitated a call for more information about the whistleblower whose complaint launched the process , the Democrats appealed to the 100 senators before them .
“ They talk about how bad the House is – I don ’ t agree with that at all , ” the minority leader , Chuck Schumer , told reporters during a break in the trial , referring to Trump ’ s defense team .
“ They don ’ t make a single argument why there shouldn ’ t be witnesses or documents.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ certain rhythms and incongruities in the trial emerged .
While the House managers used almost all of their allotted debate time , liberally deploying video clips drawn from public hearings last month , Trump ’ s defense team used only a fraction of its time , repeating a blanket defense of the president ’ s conduct and rarely referring to previous testimony in the case .
To debate various proposed subpoenas , Schiff deployed one of the other seven managers to make a scripted case and then , after Trump ’ s team @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rebuttals .
After the deputy White House counsel Patrick Philbin said the Democratic request for new witnesses amounted to an admission that they were unprepared for trial , Schiff pounced , calling on Trump ’ s former national security adviser and current acting chief of staff to appear .
“ We ’ re ready , ” Schiff said .
“ The House calls John Bolton .
The House calls Mick Mulvaney .
Let ’ s get this trial started , shall we .
“ We are ready to present our case .
We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ question is , will you let us ?
” Pounding the lectern , Jay Sekulow , a personal lawyer for Trump and talk-radio host , blazed through a series of conservative talking points and conspiracy theories ranging in focus from the special counsel Robert Mueller to the former attorney general Eric Holder .
“ This isn ’ t a legal defense , ” tweeted Kate Brannen , editorial director of the Just Security website .
“ It ’ s the equivalent of impeachment jazz hands.
” After Cipollone delivered a terse statement declaring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nothing wrong , ” Schiff took the lectern to reprise his description of Trump ’ s alleged misconduct and to underscore the gravity of the moment .
“ You have all now sworn an oath , ” Schiff told the senators .
“ To do impartial justice .
That oath binds you .
That oath supersedes all else .
Nothing matters now but the oath to do impartial justice .
And that oath requires a fair trial.
” Trump is charged with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress , in connection with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his political rivals .
In the hours before the trial began , Democrats escalated their criticism , lambasting what they called a “ cover-up ” and a “ rigged process ” designed to push key moments of the trial into the “ dark of night ” .
If Democrats are to secure additional witnesses , they will need at least four Republicans to back them .
A handful of moderates , including Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah , have indicated that they could support an effort to call witnesses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a proposal advanced by McConnell .
With the trial under way , Democrats continued to press Republicans to refuse McConnell ’ s terms and work with them to reach a bipartisan solution .
“ No jury would be asked to operate on McConnell ’ s absurdly compressed schedule , ” said Nancy Pelosi , the House speaker .
“ It is obvious that no senator who votes for it is intending to truly weigh the damning evidence of the president ’ s attacks on our constitution.
” In their legal brief submitted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House managers outlined their case , alleging Trump corruptly sought foreign interference in the 2020 election by pressuring Ukraine to launch investigations into his political opponents while withholding nearly $ 400m in military aid and dangling a coveted White House meeting with Ukraine ’ s president , Volodymr Zelenskiy .

Lauren Gambino in Washington and Tom McCarthy in New York

Democratic hopes that a moderate bloc of Senate Republicans would join their demand for witnesses and testimony at Donald Trump’s impeachment trial were temporarily disappointed, if not dashed, as arguments on the first proper day of the trial extended past midnight into Wednesday morning.
In seven consecutive votes split precisely along party lines, the Senate voted down Democratic proposals to subpoena testimony from four potential witnesses and documents from multiple government agencies. Four additional votes defeated proposals to ease the admission of documents and testimony and to relax related time restrictions.
“I know it’s late, but it doesn’t have to be late,” Adam Schiff, the lead impeachment “manager”, or prosecutor in the case, said as the proceedings entered their 12th hour.
“We don’t control the schedule. There is a reason why we are still here at five minutes till midnight, and that’s because they don’t want the American people to see what’s going on here.”
Democrats fruitlessly called for testimony and documents from the former national security adviser John Bolton; the acting White House chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney; Mulvaney’s aide Robert Blair; the budget official Michael Duffey; the White House; the state department; the defense department; and the budget office relevant to an alleged scheme by Trump to twist the powers of the presidency to extract personal political favors from Ukraine.
Each of the proposed subpoenas was defeated by a 53-47 vote. Only one procedural amendment garnered a single Republican vote, from Susan Collins of Maine. The 13-hour session came to an end just before 2am local time, with yet another straight party-line vote to approve guidelines for the trial unveiled by the majority leader, Mitch McConnell, just a day earlier.
Democrats accused Republicans of failing to commit to a fair impeachment trial and of engaging in a “cover-up” of misconduct by the president.
“The president is engaged in this cover-up because he is guilty, and he knows it,” said Representative Val Demings of Florida, one of the impeachment managers.
A further opportunity for the senators to demand documents or witnesses was anticipated in the weeks ahead. But Schiff urged the senators to issue subpoenas before an allotted period for senators to question the legal teams.
“You should want to see these documents,” said Schiff. “You should want to know what these private emails and text messages have to say.
“The American people want a fair trial,” Schiff said. “But a great many Americans don’t believe that will happen. Let’s prove them wrong.”
Trump’s defense team struck a combative posture, expressing outrage at what they said was unfair treatment of the president and accusing the House of an attack on democracy.
“They’re not here to steal one election, they’re here to steal two elections,” said Pat Cipollone, the White House counsel. “They won’t tell you that. They don’t have the guts to say it directly. But that’s exactly what they’re here to do.”
John Roberts, the chief justice of the US supreme court, presides during opening arguments. Photograph: Reuters
The trial was scheduled to continue with late-night sessions starting on Wednesday afternoon and running into the weekend. A long-shot two-thirds majority of senators present would be required to remove Trump from office.
The supreme court’s chief justice, John Roberts, gaveled the trial to order shortly after 1pm.
“The Senate will convene as a court of impeachment,” Roberts said, proceeding to swear in one senator, James Inhofe of Oklahoma, who missed the group swearing-in last week.
Over the next 12 hours, Roberts stepped out of a strictly procedural role only once, after the manager Jerry Nadler accused any senator who voted against hearing from Bolton of casting a “treacherous vote” and Cipollone demanded that Nadler apologize to Trump and his family.
Admonishing both sides, Roberts noted that Senate rules and tradition required civil discourse. “I do think that those addressing the Senate should remember where they are,” he said.
The opposing legal teams, seated in a cramped arrangement at tables stacked with paper at the base of the Senate rostrum, struck an immediate contrast in style and substance.
While Trump’s team attacked the conduct of the impeachment process in the House and resuscitated a call for more information about the whistleblower whose complaint launched the process, the Democrats appealed to the 100 senators before them.
“They talk about how bad the House is – I don’t agree with that at all,” the minority leader, Chuck Schumer, told reporters during a break in the trial, referring to Trump’s defense team. “They don’t make a single argument why there shouldn’t be witnesses or documents.”
As the hours wore on, certain rhythms and incongruities in the trial emerged. While the House managers used almost all of their allotted debate time, liberally deploying video clips drawn from public hearings last month, Trump’s defense team used only a fraction of its time, repeating a blanket defense of the president’s conduct and rarely referring to previous testimony in the case.
To debate various proposed subpoenas, Schiff deployed one of the other seven managers to make a scripted case and then, after Trump’s team had spoken, rose to deliver impromptu rebuttals.
After the deputy White House counsel Patrick Philbin said the Democratic request for new witnesses amounted to an admission that they were unprepared for trial, Schiff pounced, calling on Trump’s former national security adviser and current acting chief of staff to appear.
Donald Trump’s personal attorney Jay Sekulow speaks during the trial. Photograph: AP
“We’re ready,” Schiff said. “The House calls John Bolton. The House calls Mick Mulvaney. Let’s get this trial started, shall we.
“We are ready to present our case. We are ready to call witnesses. The question is, will you let us?”
Pounding the lectern, Jay Sekulow, a personal lawyer for Trump and talk-radio host, blazed through a series of conservative talking points and conspiracy theories ranging in focus from the special counsel Robert Mueller to the former attorney general Eric Holder.
“This isn’t a legal defense,” tweeted Kate Brannen, editorial director of the Just Security website. “It’s the equivalent of impeachment jazz hands.”
After Cipollone delivered a terse statement declaring: “The president has done absolutely nothing wrong,” Schiff took the lectern to reprise his description of Trump’s alleged misconduct and to underscore the gravity of the moment.
“You have all now sworn an oath,” Schiff told the senators. “To do impartial justice. That oath binds you. That oath supersedes all else. Nothing matters now but the oath to do impartial justice. And that oath requires a fair trial.”
Trump is charged with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, in connection with his attempts to pressure Ukraine to investigate his political rivals.
In the hours before the trial began, Democrats escalated their criticism, lambasting what they called a “cover-up” and a “rigged process” designed to push key moments of the trial into the “dark of night”.
If Democrats are to secure additional witnesses, they will need at least four Republicans to back them. A handful of moderates, including Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah, have indicated that they could support an effort to call witnesses – but only on the timeline outlined in a proposal advanced by McConnell.
With the trial under way, Democrats continued to press Republicans to refuse McConnell’s terms and work with them to reach a bipartisan solution.
“No jury would be asked to operate on McConnell’s absurdly compressed schedule,” said Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker. “It is obvious that no senator who votes for it is intending to truly weigh the damning evidence of the president’s attacks on our constitution.”
In their legal brief submitted to the Senate on Sunday, the House managers outlined their case, alleging Trump corruptly sought foreign interference in the 2020 election by pressuring Ukraine to launch investigations into his political opponents while withholding nearly $400m in military aid and dangling a coveted White House meeting with Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy.


theguardian--2020-01-22--As Trump goes on trial, so does the conscience of the Republican party

A lone figure in a blue suit slipped quietly into the front row of the US Senate public gallery just before 3.30pm on Tuesday and gazed down at his former colleagues .
Jeff Flake , the former Republican senator from Arizona , had returned to Washington to witness two trials .
One was that of an impeached American president accused of strong-arming a foreign government for his own political ends .
The other was a trial of the conscience of the Republican party .
Perhaps Flake , a “ Never Trumper ” who quit the Senate a year ago , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ several fellow Republicans sported bright red ties and white shirts reminiscent of Donald Trump himself .
Coincidence ?
Perhaps he saw , too , how unmoved they appeared by Democrats ’ appeal for a fair trial with witnesses .
But perhaps he also spotted senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski listening intently and taking copious notes and wondered , at least for moment , if the grand old party could still untether itself from the demagogue in the White House .
“ History is watching , ” they were warned .
Busts of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr , glowered from niches above the public gallery where teenage spectators looked twitchy without their mobile phones ( banned by the rules of decorum ) .
If Flake hoped to be a ghost at the feast , pointing an accusing finger , he would first have to sit through a trial within a trial over the rules of engagement .
McConnell started out by addressing an empty chamber to propose a resolution that would rush the trial through with sittings into the early hours , a move likely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
As McConnell went on , Chuck Schumer , the Democratic minority leader , sat down and gave his nose a hearty blow in a white handkerchief .
He spoke in opposition to the resolution .
“ On something as important as impeachment , the McConnell resolution is nothing short of a national disgrace , ” he railed , pointing a finger at Republicans ’ empty desks .
“ This will go down , this resolution , as one of the darker moments in the Senate history .
Perhaps even one of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gradually filtered in .
Jon Tester of Montana let out a magnificent sneeze .
Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona crossed the floor in a lurid pink coat – was it fur ?
– and bright yellow boots .
The Senate chaplain , Barry Black , sporting a bow tie , got the Elizabeth Warren handshake that Bernie Sanders was denied last week and held on for ages as they talked .
Sanders worked the room , chatting with Kirsten Gillibrand , Sherrod Brown and others .
Finally , the hundred senators took their seats @ @ @ @ @ @ @ facing John Roberts , chief justice of the supreme court .
The sergeant-at-arms declared : “ All persons are commanded to remain silent on pain of imprisonment.
” Snacks were banned but drinks of water and milk were permitted .
This moment had been much hyped by cable TV but viewers hoping for the political equivalent of the OJ Simpson trial were in for a disappointment .
There was no prisoner in the dock ; Trump is thousands of miles away in Davos .
This was reality TV without the reality TV president @ @ @ @ @ @ @ California Democrat Adam Schiff , the lead House manager in the impeachment trial , who once wrote a screenplay for a Hollywood crime thriller .
He was not quite Henry Fonda in 12 Angry Men or Tom Cruise in A Few Good Men , but he did put Republicans on the spot over their pledge on oath to be impartial jurors .
“ The American people want a fair trial .
They want to believe their system of government is still capable of rising to the occasion , ” Schiff entreated .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ above party and do what ’ s best for the country , but a great many Americans don ’ t believe that will happen .
Let ’ s prove them wrong .
Let ’ s prove them wrong !
” In the Hollywood version , the chamber erupted in applause , heavenly horns played and a solitary tear trickled down McConnell ’ s face .
In the Washington version , however , Republicans sat or slouched expressionless or studied papers on their desks , while McConnell fixed Schiff with a death stare as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The Washington version also brought Jay Sekulow , a conservative radio host and shouty Trump lawyer , stepping up to defend the president by slamming his accusers for denying due process .
He took his lead from Brett Kavanaugh at his supreme court confirmation hearing , so angry and aggressive that his voice boomed in the chamber , no doubt seeking his Fox News shout out , viral clip and , most prized of all , presidential tweet of approval .
“ Why are we here ?
” Sekulow demanded , brimming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ here because of a phone call ?
Or are we here , before this great body , because since the president was sworn into office there was a desire to see him removed ?
” It was an unwelcome blast of Trumpian bluster in these august surroundings .
Now McConnell – who by obstructing Barack Obama ’ s agenda , blocking Merrick Garland ’ s supreme court nomination and embracing the Trump presidency arguably did more than anyone to bring us to this moment – sat back in his chair with a sly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was red ; across the aisle , Schumer ’ s was blue .
The politics of red team versus blue team ruled supreme .
Flake was not the only one left sitting on the sidelines .

A lone figure in a blue suit slipped quietly into the front row of the Senate public gallery just before 3.30pm on Tuesday and gazed down at his former colleagues.
Jeff Flake, the former Republican senator from Arizona, had returned to Washington to witness two trials. One was that of an impeached American president accused of strong-arming a foreign government for his own political ends. The other was a trial of the conscience of the Republican party.
Perhaps Flake, a “Never Trumper” who quit the Senate a year ago, noticed how majority leader Mitch McConnell and several fellow Republicans sported bright red ties and white shirts reminiscent of Donald Trump himself. Coincidence? Perhaps he saw, too, how unmoved they appeared by Democrats’ appeal for a fair trial with witnesses.
But perhaps he also spotted senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski listening intently and taking copious notes and wondered, at least for a moment, if the grand old party could still untether itself from the demagogue in the White House.
“History is watching,” they were warned. Busts of former vice-presidents, including John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr, glowered from niches above the public gallery where teenage spectators looked twitchy without their mobile phones (banned by the rules of decorum).
If Flake hoped to be a ghost at the feast, pointing an accusing finger, he would first have to sit through a trial within a trial over the rules of engagement. McConnell started out by addressing an empty chamber to propose a resolution that would rush the trial through with sittings into the early hours, a move likely to satisfy no one but political insomniacs.
As McConnell went on, Chuck Schumer, the Democratic minority leader, sat down and gave his nose a hearty blow in a white handkerchief. He spoke in opposition to the resolution.
“On something as important as impeachment, the McConnell resolution is nothing short of a national disgrace,” he railed, pointing a finger at Republicans’ empty desks. “This will go down, this resolution, as one of the darker moments in the Senate history. Perhaps even one of the darkest.”
The hundred senators took their seats at individual desks arranged in a semicircle facing John Roberts. Photograph: AP
As he spoke, senators gradually filtered in. Jon Tester of Montana let out a magnificent sneeze. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona crossed the floor in a lurid pink coat – was it fur? – and bright yellow boots. The Senate chaplain, Barry Black, sporting a bow tie, got the Elizabeth Warren handshake that Bernie Sanders was denied last week and held on for ages as they talked. Sanders worked the room, chatting with Kirsten Gillibrand, Sherrod Brown and others.
Finally, the hundred senators took their seats at individual desks arranged in a semicircle facing John Roberts, chief justice of the supreme court. The sergeant-at-arms declared: “All persons are commanded to remain silent on pain of imprisonment.” Snacks were banned but drinks of water and milk were permitted.
This moment had been much hyped by cable TV but viewers hoping for the political equivalent of the OJ Simpson trial were in for a disappointment. There was no prisoner in the dock; Trump is thousands of miles away in Davos. This was reality TV without the reality TV president.
There was, however, the California Democrat Adam Schiff, the lead House manager in the impeachment trial, who once wrote a screenplay for a Hollywood crime thriller. He was not quite Henry Fonda in 12 Angry Men or Tom Cruise in A Few Good Men, but he did put Republicans on the spot over their pledge on oath to be impartial jurors.
“The American people want a fair trial. They want to believe their system of government is still capable of rising to the occasion,” Schiff entreated. “They want to believe we can rise above party and do what’s best for the country, but a great many Americans don’t believe that will happen. Let’s prove them wrong. Let’s prove them wrong!”
In the Hollywood version, the chamber erupted in applause, heavenly horns played and a solitary tear trickled down McConnell’s face. In the Washington version, however, Republicans sat or slouched expressionless or studied papers on their desks, while McConnell fixed Schiff with a death stare as if intent on turning him to stone.
The Washington version also brought Jay Sekulow, a conservative radio host and shouty Trump lawyer, stepping up to defend the president by slamming his accusers for denying due process. He took his lead from Brett Kavanaugh at his supreme court confirmation hearing, so angry and aggressive that his voice boomed in the chamber, no doubt seeking his Fox News shout out, viral clip and, most prized of all, presidential tweet of approval.
“Why are we here?” Sekulow demanded, brimming with righteous indignation. “Are we here because of a phone call? Or are we here, before this great body, because since the president was sworn into office there was a desire to see him removed?”
It was an unwelcome blast of Trumpian bluster in these august surroundings. Now McConnell – who by obstructing Barack Obama’s agenda, blocking Merrick Garland’s supreme court nomination and embracing the Trump presidency arguably did more than anyone to bring us to this moment – sat back in his chair with a sly smile on his lips.
His tie was red; across the aisle, Schumer’s was blue. The politics of red team versus blue team ruled supreme. Flake was not the only one left sitting on the sidelines.


theguardian--2020-01-21--Hillary Clinton says 'nobody likes' Bernie Sanders and criticizes 'culture around' him

Hillary Clinton has criticized Bernie Sanders , insisting “ nobody likes ” and “ nobody wants to work with ” him .
The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday published the comments , which Clinton made in a four-part Hulu documentary , Hillary , to premiere at the Sundance film festival in March .
Clinton beat Sanders in a bitter 2016 primary , before losing the presidential election to Donald Trump .
“ He was in Congress for years [ and ] had one senator support him , ” Clinton said , going on to call Sanders “ a career politician ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the everyday American worker as “ just baloney ” .
“ I feel so bad that people got sucked into it , ” Clinton said .
She also pointed to a “ culture around ” Sanders that she said perpetuated sexism , racism and misogyny within the senator ’ s campaign staff .
“ It ’ s his leadership team , ” she said .
“ It ’ s his prominent supporters .
It ’ s his online Bernie bros and their relentless attacks on lots of his competitors , particularly the women.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ she would endorse Sanders should he win the primary this year , Clinton refused to commit , saying : “ I ’ m not going to go there yet.
” But in a tweet on Tuesday evening , she appeared to clarify her position .
“ I thought everyone wanted my authentic , unvarnished views !
” she wrote .
“ But to be serious , the number one priority for our country and world is retiring Trump , and , as I always have , I will do whatever I can to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , in response to a Guardian editorial by the Fordham law professor Zephyr Teachout , groups of Sanders supporters successfully promoted the hashtag # BidenIsCorrupt .
Sanders apologized , telling CBS News it is “ absolutely not [ his ] view that Joe is corrupt in any way ” .
“ I ’ m sorry that that op-ed appeared , ” he said .
Biden accepted the apology , tweeting : “ These kinds of attacks have no place in this primary .
Let ’ s all keep our focus on making Donald @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Sanders issued a statement in response to Clinton ’ s comments .
He did not address them head-on .
“ My focus today is on a monumental moment in American history : the impeachment trial of Donald Trump , ” he said .
“ Together , we are going to go forward and defeat the most dangerous president in American history.
” Sanders has attracted attacks as he has risen in the polls .
With the Iowa caucuses two weeks away , he is racking up high-profile endorsements and leading in some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in January , Elizabeth Warren , a competitor for the Democratic nomination , accused Sanders of telling her in a private meeting in 2018 a woman could not beat Trump at the polls .
Sanders has strongly denied making the comment .
Both held their ground when asked to clarify their remarks on the debate stage , leading to a confrontation after the debate had ended .
CNN published audio , in which Warren accused Sanders of calling her “ a liar on national TV ” .

Hillary Clinton has criticized Bernie Sanders, insisting “nobody likes” and “nobody wants to work with” him.
The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday published the comments, which Clinton made in a four-part Hulu documentary, Hillary, to premiere at the Sundance film festival in March.
Clinton beat Sanders in a bitter 2016 primary, before losing the presidential election to Donald Trump.
“He was in Congress for years [and] had one senator support him,” Clinton said, going on to call Sanders “a career politician” and to dismiss his claim to represent the everyday American worker as “just baloney”.
“I feel so bad that people got sucked into it,” Clinton said.
She also pointed to a “culture around” Sanders that she said perpetuated sexism, racism and misogyny within the senator’s campaign staff.
“It’s his leadership team,” she said. “It’s his prominent supporters. It’s his online Bernie bros and their relentless attacks on lots of his competitors, particularly the women.”
Asked by the Hollywood Reporter if she would endorse Sanders should he win the primary this year, Clinton refused to commit, saying: “I’m not going to go there yet.” But in a tweet on Tuesday evening, she appeared to clarify her position.
“I thought everyone wanted my authentic, unvarnished views!” she wrote. “But to be serious, the number one priority for our country and world is retiring Trump, and, as I always have, I will do whatever I can to support our nominee.”
Over the weekend, in response to a Guardian editorial by the Fordham law professor Zephyr Teachout, groups of Sanders supporters successfully promoted the hashtag #BidenIsCorrupt.
Sanders apologized, telling CBS News it is “absolutely not [his] view that Joe is corrupt in any way”.
“I’m sorry that that op-ed appeared,” he said.
Biden accepted the apology, tweeting: “These kinds of attacks have no place in this primary. Let’s all keep our focus on making Donald Trump a one-term president.”
On Tuesday, Sanders issued a statement in response to Clinton’s comments. He did not address them head-on.
“My focus today is on a monumental moment in American history: the impeachment trial of Donald Trump,” he said. “Together, we are going to go forward and defeat the most dangerous president in American history.”
Sanders has attracted attacks as he has risen in the polls. With the Iowa caucuses two weeks away, he is racking up high-profile endorsements and leading in some polls of likely Iowa voters.
Earlier in January, Elizabeth Warren, a competitor for the Democratic nomination, accused Sanders of telling her in a private meeting in 2018 a woman could not beat Trump at the polls.
Sanders has strongly denied making the comment. Both held their ground when asked to clarify their remarks on the debate stage, leading to a confrontation after the debate had ended. CNN published audio, in which Warren accused Sanders of calling her “a liar on national TV”.


theguardian--2020-01-22--Relax, Democrats: your nominee will beat Trump in the midwest

A weekend blizzard and a sub-zero deep freeze helped cool tempers that were reaching boiling point among Democrats .
Chill , everyone .
Whoever wins the nomination will beat Trump across the struggling midwest .
The Sanders crowd suggested Warren was an elitist .
Warren elbowed back with a gender argument .
Sanders attacked Biden over social security ; Biden countered that he was lying .
The snake emojis are out .
Old resentments over issues that can ’ t even be recalled are fed .
The result of it all ?
Nobody knows .
JD Scholten , running for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ames on Saturday when the temperature was -4F .
Hundreds came out for the Story County Democrats ’ soup supper in the hometown of Iowa State University , a key territory .
He asked how many were undecided .
Half raised their hands .
A poll one week shows Sanders on top in Iowa .
A week later , another poll finds Biden leading , with Amy Klobuchar in the double digits .
Warren , Sanders and Klobuchar are confined to the Senate with two weekends left to campaign ahead of the 3 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pete Buttigieg is everywhere all at once , working like a beaver .
Any one of them can beat Trump .
The president knows it .
That ’ s why he sent his daughter-in-law Lara Trump to Iowa to make fun of Biden ’ s stuttering , which endeared him even more to Iowans .
Vice-President Mike Pence was dispatched to Iowa this week to shore up the evangelical vote for this philanderer of a president .
The Donald himself is expected to invade Iowa just days before the caucus in hopes of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It will only serve to remind us that he was impeached for being a liar .
Midwesterners cling to quaint notions of honesty .
The president ’ s approval rating is underwater in Iowa , Wisconsin and Michigan .
Senator Joni Ernst , the Republican senator , has gone from being very popular to being the third most unpopular senator in the country , with an approval rating of just 37 % , behind only Senator Susan Collins , of Maine , and the Senate majority leader , Mitch McConnell , of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ All because of Trump .
Since Trump was inaugurated , corn and soybean markets have tanked .
Ethanol production is stunted by Trump ’ s Environmental Protection Agency .
Trade wars with the world , especially China , caused layoffs at John Deere in Iowa and slack sales of Harley Davidsons from Wisconsin .
It will take years for export markets to recover .
Some won ’ t .
New research from the Iowa State University economist Dave Swenson reports that Iowa trailed the nation in new job creation , and that non-metro @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decade .
There is a palpable economic anxiety across the midwest that explains why Bernie Sanders surged to first place in the latest Iowa Poll , considered one of the best .
Most of us recognize that 50 years of trickle-down economics is , as Tom Steyer might say , a fraud and a failure .
That poll showing Sanders with a lead was over a week ago , a lifetime in primary politics .
The voters I talk to are not paying that much attention to the intramural elbows .
They expected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some sort of reckoning .
The spat died down as quickly as it blew up .
It does not appear that Sanders has landed any real body blows on Biden .
Klobuchar keeps plugging along and gaining support .
Anybody who thinks they know who will win the Iowa caucuses is full of themselves .
The nominee is unlikely to be identified until spring , if then , after New Hampshire and South Carolina and Nevada and the SEC Super Tuesday primaries , and California .
Unless , of course , these good @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leaves them all walking wounded .
African American voters will flood the polls in Flint , Michigan , to vote for Pete Buttigieg if he somehow can run the gauntlet .
Bernie Sanders will do fine in Wisconsin , the land of famed progressive LaFollette .
Elizabeth Warren has shown that she can take a punch and land a roundhouse on any man , especially a lunkhead like Trump .
Amy Klobuchar will thump Trump in Iowa , and knows how to speak to a union member in Ohio wondering where the auto @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right up to Joe Biden .
Even Michael Bloomberg could beat Trump in Colorado .
So chill .
Iowa has thinned a huge field and will vault four or five campaigns down the trail .
The process has exposed weaknesses and identified strengths .
The point is to beat the worst president in history , and the conditions are ripe to do so .
Just don ’ t blow it .
That is the main sentiment in Iowa .
• None Art Cullen is editor of the Storm Lake Times in Northwest Iowa @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for editorial writing .
He is a Guardian US columnist and author of the book Storm Lake : Change , Resilience , and Hope in America ’ s Heartland , just released in paperback

A weekend blizzard and a sub-zero deep freeze helped cool tempers that were reaching boiling point among Democrats. Chill, everyone. Whoever wins the nomination will beat Trump across the struggling midwest.
The Sanders crowd suggested Warren was an elitist. Warren elbowed back with a gender argument. Sanders attacked Biden over social security; Biden countered that he was lying. The snake emojis are out. Old resentments over issues that can’t even be recalled are fed.
The result of it all? Nobody knows.
JD Scholten, running for US congress in Iowa, was in Ames on Saturday when the temperature was -4F. Hundreds came out for the Story County Democrats’ soup supper in the hometown of Iowa State University, a key territory. He asked how many were undecided. Half raised their hands.
A poll one week shows Sanders on top in Iowa. A week later, another poll finds Biden leading, with Amy Klobuchar in the double digits.
Warren, Sanders and Klobuchar are confined to the Senate with two weekends left to campaign ahead of the 3 February caucuses. In their absence, Pete Buttigieg is everywhere all at once, working like a beaver.
Any one of them can beat Trump. The president knows it. That’s why he sent his daughter-in-law Lara Trump to Iowa to make fun of Biden’s stuttering, which endeared him even more to Iowans. Vice-President Mike Pence was dispatched to Iowa this week to shore up the evangelical vote for this philanderer of a president. The Donald himself is expected to invade Iowa just days before the caucus in hopes of changing the subject from his dismal performance. It will only serve to remind us that he was impeached for being a liar. Midwesterners cling to quaint notions of honesty.
The president’s approval rating is underwater in Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan. Senator Joni Ernst, the Republican senator, has gone from being very popular to being the third most unpopular senator in the country, with an approval rating of just 37%, behind only Senator Susan Collins, of Maine, and the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, according to Morning Consult. All because of Trump.
Since Trump was inaugurated, corn and soybean markets have tanked. Ethanol production is stunted by Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency. Trade wars with the world, especially China, caused layoffs at John Deere in Iowa and slack sales of Harley Davidsons from Wisconsin. It will take years for export markets to recover. Some won’t. New research from the Iowa State University economist Dave Swenson reports that Iowa trailed the nation in new job creation, and that non-metro areas have lost jobs over the past decade.
There is a palpable economic anxiety across the midwest that explains why Bernie Sanders surged to first place in the latest Iowa Poll, considered one of the best. Most of us recognize that 50 years of trickle-down economics is, as Tom Steyer might say, a fraud and a failure.
The voters I talk to are not paying that much attention to the intramural elbows
That poll showing Sanders with a lead was over a week ago, a lifetime in primary politics. The voters I talk to are not paying that much attention to the intramural elbows. They expected that Sanders and Warren had to have some sort of reckoning. The spat died down as quickly as it blew up. It does not appear that Sanders has landed any real body blows on Biden. Klobuchar keeps plugging along and gaining support.
Anybody who thinks they know who will win the Iowa caucuses is full of themselves. The nominee is unlikely to be identified until spring, if then, after New Hampshire and South Carolina and Nevada and the SEC Super Tuesday primaries, and California.
Unless, of course, these good shooters form a circular firing squad that leaves them all walking wounded.
African American voters will flood the polls in Flint, Michigan, to vote for Pete Buttigieg if he somehow can run the gauntlet. Bernie Sanders will do fine in Wisconsin, the land of famed progressive LaFollette. Elizabeth Warren has shown that she can take a punch and land a roundhouse on any man, especially a lunkhead like Trump. Amy Klobuchar will thump Trump in Iowa, and knows how to speak to a union member in Ohio wondering where the auto plant went. Pennsylvania voters will warm right up to Joe Biden. Even Michael Bloomberg could beat Trump in Colorado.
So chill. Iowa has thinned a huge field and will vault four or five campaigns down the trail. The process has exposed weaknesses and identified strengths. The point is to beat the worst president in history, and the conditions are ripe to do so. Just don’t blow it. That is the main sentiment in Iowa.


theguardian--2020-01-22--Joe Biden used to be a progressive Democrat. What happened? | Bhaskar Sunkara

Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren supporters not looking forward to a potential Joe Biden nomination might want to time-travel back to 1972 .
That year , Biden was an underdog Senate candidate running against a popular incumbent .
With his sister , Valerie , as campaign manager and limited resources , he knocked on hundreds of doors and embraced a progressive message centered around ending the Vietnam war , protecting the environment and supporting civil rights .
He directed particular ire at millionaires who didn ’ t pay taxes and mega-corporations that grew rich while being subsidized by the public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ platform called for an expansion of key entitlement programs and , as the journalist Branko Marcetic writes in Yesterday ’ s Man : The Case Against Joe Biden , the prospective senator was fully onboard .
The call for automatic cost-of-living increases for social security recipients figured prominently in the 29-year-old ’ s stump speech .
As Biden told a crowd of Delaware autoworkers , the program needed to be more generous , “ raised to a level where people can live in dignity ” .
They rewarded him with a United Autoworkers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crucial in his narrow victory .
A decade later , the “ New Deal Democrat ” had completely changed his tune .
As the Reagan era dawned , Biden recalls listening to friends “ mostly on the Republican side of the aisle ” .
“ More and more , ” he became “ a believer in balanced budgets.
” By 1984 , Biden took his newfound small-government approach to its logical conclusion and proposed a total federal spending freeze .
A majority of states had double-digit unemployment rates at the time , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ instead of taking aim at the structural reasons for decline , Biden focused single-mindedly on the deficit .
Along with two Republican colleagues , he spearheaded a plan to “ shock the living devil out of everyone in the US Senate ” by freezing spending , including cost-of-living adjustments for social security recipients .
This despite a majority of Americans supporting more funding for the program , even if it meant higher taxes .
At the time , inflation was nearing 5 % , so effectively Biden would have taken billions of dollars @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Joe ” from Scranton , Pennsylvania , the economic populist of 1972 , was long gone .
And he never regretted his shift .
In 1995 , when he finally had a Republican majority to work with in the Senate , Biden reminded his colleagues that “ When I argued that we should freeze federal spending , I meant social security as well , I meant Medicare and Medicaid.
” He joined only a handful of Democrats in backing a Republican proposal to enshrine small government into the constitution through a balanced budget @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when running for president in 2007 , telling Tim Russert on Meet the Press he wasn ’ t afraid of the “ third rail ” of American politics – entitlement reform , even cuts to popular programs .
In particular , he touted the idea of “ protecting ” social security by raising the retirement age .
In the early weeks of 2020 , this troubling history has finally gotten mainstream attention .
It ’ s been mostly driven by the Sanders campaign , which is eager to cut into Biden ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it has sparked a lot of back and forth between the Sanders and Biden camps about particular episodes of the former vice-president ’ s record , and whether or not he ’ s being misrepresented .
But the general arc of Biden ’ s time in Washington – from campaigning on the expansion of entitlement programs to calling for cuts to them – is undeniable .
Bernie Sanders also ran his first Senate campaign in 1972 , on a platform denouncing “ the world of Richard Nixon , and the millionaires and billionaires @ @ @ @ @ @ @ young Biden , he vigorously defended the threadbare American welfare state .
Unlike Biden , he continued that defense throughout his political career .
Today , 62 % of retirees draw half or more of their monthly income from social security .
Without it , 15 million more people would be in poverty .
Medicare is no less vital to the well-being of older Americans .
Biden is certainly not alone in “ evolving ” his stances on these vital programs .
In fact , his career is a perfect case study of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a generation , as the progressivism of the McGovern campaign morphed into the retreat of the Reagan years and then the triangulation of the Clinton-era .
Democratic politicians may have “ evolved ” , but Democratic voters , for the large part , haven ’ t .
Most still want robust social programs .
And with older Democrats at the core of his 2020 nomination hopes , Biden better hope that they are forgiving .
• None Bhaskar Sunkara is the founding editor of Jacobin magazine and a Guardian US columnist .
He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : The Case for Radical Politics in an Era of Extreme Inequality

Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren supporters not looking forward to a potential Joe Biden nomination might want to time-travel back to 1972.
That year, Biden was an underdog Senate candidate running against a popular incumbent. With his sister, Valerie, as campaign manager and limited resources, he knocked on hundreds of doors and embraced a progressive message centered around ending the Vietnam war, protecting the environment and supporting civil rights. He directed particular ire at millionaires who didn’t pay taxes and mega-corporations that grew rich while being subsidized by the public.
The Democrats’ exceptionally leftwing 1972 platform called for an expansion of key entitlement programs and, as the journalist Branko Marcetic writes in Yesterday’s Man: The Case Against Joe Biden, the prospective senator was fully onboard. The call for automatic cost-of-living increases for social security recipients figured prominently in the 29-year-old’s stump speech. As Biden told a crowd of Delaware autoworkers, the program needed to be more generous, “raised to a level where people can live in dignity”. They rewarded him with a United Autoworkers Union endorsement, support that would be crucial in his narrow victory.
A decade later, the “New Deal Democrat” had completely changed his tune. As the Reagan era dawned, Biden recalls listening to friends “mostly on the Republican side of the aisle”. “More and more,” he became “a believer in balanced budgets.”
By 1984, Biden took his newfound small-government approach to its logical conclusion and proposed a total federal spending freeze. A majority of states had double-digit unemployment rates at the time, and there were widespread economic worries. But instead of taking aim at the structural reasons for decline, Biden focused single-mindedly on the deficit. Along with two Republican colleagues, he spearheaded a plan to “shock the living devil out of everyone in the US Senate” by freezing spending, including cost-of-living adjustments for social security recipients. This despite a majority of Americans supporting more funding for the program, even if it meant higher taxes. At the time, inflation was nearing 5%, so effectively Biden would have taken billions of dollars away from working people.
“Middle-class Joe” from Scranton, Pennsylvania, the economic populist of 1972, was long gone. And he never regretted his shift. In 1995, when he finally had a Republican majority to work with in the Senate, Biden reminded his colleagues that “When I argued that we should freeze federal spending, I meant social security as well, I meant Medicare and Medicaid.” He joined only a handful of Democrats in backing a Republican proposal to enshrine small government into the constitution through a balanced budget amendment.
He was just as unremorseful when running for president in 2007, telling Tim Russert on Meet the Press he wasn’t afraid of the “third rail” of American politics – entitlement reform, even cuts to popular programs. In particular, he touted the idea of “protecting” social security by raising the retirement age.
In the early weeks of 2020, this troubling history has finally gotten mainstream attention. It’s been mostly driven by the Sanders campaign, which is eager to cut into Biden’s huge lead among older voters. And it has sparked a lot of back and forth between the Sanders and Biden camps about particular episodes of the former vice-president’s record, and whether or not he’s being misrepresented. But the general arc of Biden’s time in Washington – from campaigning on the expansion of entitlement programs to calling for cuts to them – is undeniable.
Bernie Sanders also ran his first Senate campaign in 1972, on a platform denouncing “the world of Richard Nixon, and the millionaires and billionaires whom he represents”. Like the young Biden, he vigorously defended the threadbare American welfare state. Unlike Biden, he continued that defense throughout his political career.
Today, 62% of retirees draw half or more of their monthly income from social security. Without it, 15 million more people would be in poverty. Medicare is no less vital to the well-being of older Americans.
Biden is certainly not alone in “evolving” his stances on these vital programs. In fact, his career is a perfect case study of how much the Democratic party changed in a generation, as the progressivism of the McGovern campaign morphed into the retreat of the Reagan years and then the triangulation of the Clinton-era.
Democratic politicians may have “evolved”, but Democratic voters, for the large part, haven’t. Most still want robust social programs. And with older Democrats at the core of his 2020 nomination hopes, Biden better hope that they are forgiving.