theguardian--2020-08-23--Coronavirus: Trump authorizes plasma treatment amid attacks on FDA

After expressing frustration at the slow pace of approval for coronavirus treatments , and causing controversy by publicly linking the Food and Drug Administration to the “ deep state ” conspiracy theory , Donald Trump on Sunday announced the emergency authorization of convalescent plasma , a method which has been used to treat flu and measles , for Covid-19 patients .
Covid-19 has killed more than 175,000 , cratered the economy and upended the president ’ s hopes of re-election .
The White House has sunk vast resources into an expedited process to develop a vaccine , known as Operation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ produce an “ October surprise ” before the presidential election on 3 November .
Making the announcement at a press conference , and with FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn standing with him , Trump added to days of White House officials suggesting politically motivated delays in approving a vaccine and therapeutics .
“ This is what I ’ ve been looking to do for a long time , ” Trump told reporters on Sunday at the White House .
“ I ’ m pleased to make a truly historic announcement in our battle against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lives.
” Critics say that name for the virus , based on where it originated , is racist .
Furthermore , though more than 64,000 Covid-19 patients in the US have already been given convalescent plasma , a go-to tactic for new diseases , there is no solid evidence that it fights the virus .
On Saturday , Trump tweeted : “ The deep state , or whoever , over at the FDA is making it very difficult for drug companies to get people in order to test the vaccines and therapeutics .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the answer until after 3 November .
Must focus on speed , and saving lives !
” The “ deep state ” conspiracy theory holds that a permanent government of bureaucrats exists to thwart the president ’ s agenda .
Former Trump campaign manager and White House adviser Steve Bannon , an enthusiastic propagator of the theory , has also said it is “ for nut cases ” and “ none of this is true ” .
The news site Axios , meanwhile , reported that trade adviser Peter Navarro was a driving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state ” and Covid treatments .
Citing two sources in a meeting last Monday , Axios said Navarro aggressively confronted FDA officials , saying : “ You are all deep state and you need to get on Trump Time.
” White House chief of staff Mark Meadows took the battle to the Sunday talk shows , telling ABC ’ s This Week : “ We ’ ve looked at a number of people that are not being as diligent as they should be in terms of getting to the bottom of it .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He had to make sure that they felt the heat .
If they don ’ t see the light , they need to feel the heat because the American people are suffering.
” Former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb defended his old employer .
“ I firmly reject the idea they would slow-walk anything or accelerate anything based on any political consideration or any consideration other than what is best for the public health and a real sense of mission to patients , ” he told CBS ’ s Face the Nation .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to a reporter from the fringe , far-right One America News , Trump doubled down .
“ We broke the logjam over the last week , ” he said , “ to be honest I think that there are people in the FDA [ who ] can see things being held up and wouldn ’ t mind so much.
” Shortly after being challenged on his claims about plasma treatment compared to caution from officials including FDA commissioner Hahn , Trump ended the briefing .
There is little data on how effective plasma @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fairly early in an illness , Dr William Schaffner , an infectious diseases expert at Vanderbilt University , told the Associated Press .
Hundreds of drugs are being developed , he added , and Trump “ has made all kinds of therapeutic suggestions ” that are not supported by science and are even dangerous .
Those statements from the president include claims about the possible value of treating patients with ultraviolet light and bleach .
Trump reportedly recently became enthusiastic about oleandrin , a plant extract derived from a toxic shrub which scientists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ best known for his ardent embrace of the anti-malaria drugs hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine .
In March the FDA granted emergency authorization for distribution of the drugs .
In June the agency revoked it , in light of growing evidence they don ’ t work and could cause serious side effects .
The FDA also warned doctors against prescribing the drugs in combination with remdesivir , a drug that was shown to help patients with Covid-19 .
Axios cited a senior administration official as saying Navarro , “ a fervent proponent of hydroxychloroquine … @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the drug didn ’ t work against Covid-19.
” Trump told reporters the order regarding plasma was “ only possible … because of Operation Warp Speed .
That is everybody working together .
We ’ re years ahead of approval .
If we went by the speed levels of past administrations we ’ d be two years , three years behind where we are today and that includes and vaccines that you ’ ll be hearing about very soon.
” The president also expressed support for the idea the American people have a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being researched .
Hahn has emphasized that routine evaluation procedures will remain in place to evaluate vaccine candidates .
Furthermore , a top FDA official overseeing trials vowed to resign if the administration approved a vaccine before it was shown to be safe and effective .
Peter Marks , director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research , made his promise during a call with pharmaceutical executives , government officials and others , Reuters reported .
“ I think this administration has put more pressure on the Food and Drug Administration than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the AP .
“ Everybody is just a little bit nervous .
”

Donald Trump on Sunday announced the emergency authorization of convalescent plasma, a method which has been used to treat flu and measles, for Covid-19 patients.
The move comes after the US president expressed frustration at the slow pace of approval for coronavirus treatments, and caused controversy by publicly linking the Food and Drug Administration to the “deep state” conspiracy theory.
Covid-19 has killed more than 175,000, cratered the economy and upended the president’s hopes of re-election. The White House has sunk vast resources into an expedited process to develop a vaccine, known as Operation Warp Speed, which aides hope will produce an “October surprise” before the presidential election on 3 November.
Making the announcement at a press conference, and with FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn standing with him, Trump added to days of White House officials suggesting politically motivated delays in approving a vaccine and therapeutics.
“This is what I’ve been looking to do for a long time,” Trump told reporters on Sunday at the White House. “I’m pleased to make a truly historic announcement in our battle against the China virus that will save countless lives.”
Critics say that name for the virus, based on where it originated, is racist. Furthermore, though more than 64,000 Covid-19 patients in the US have already been given convalescent plasma, a go-to tactic for new diseases, there is no solid evidence that it fights the virus.
On Saturday, Trump tweeted: “The deep state, or whoever, over at the FDA is making it very difficult for drug companies to get people in order to test the vaccines and therapeutics. Obviously, they are hoping to delay the answer until after 3 November. Must focus on speed, and saving lives!”
The “deep state” conspiracy theory holds that a permanent government of bureaucrats exists to thwart the president’s agenda. Former Trump campaign manager and White House adviser Steve Bannon, an enthusiastic propagator of the theory, has also said it is “for nut cases” and “none of this is true”.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called Trump’s tweet “scary” and “beyond the pale”.
The news site Axios, meanwhile, reported that trade adviser Peter Navarro was a driving force behind claims about the “deep state” and Covid treatments. Citing two sources in a meeting last Monday, Axios said Navarro aggressively confronted FDA officials, saying: “You are all deep state and you need to get on Trump Time.”
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows took the battle to the Sunday talk shows, telling ABC’s This Week: “We’ve looked at a number of people that are not being as diligent as they should be in terms of getting to the bottom of it. This president is about cutting red tape. He had to make sure that they felt the heat. If they don’t see the light, they need to feel the heat because the American people are suffering.”
Former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb defended his old employer.
“I firmly reject the idea they would slow-walk anything or accelerate anything based on any political consideration or any consideration other than what is best for the public health and a real sense of mission to patients,” he told CBS’s Face the Nation.
At the White House, in answer to a reporter from the fringe, far-right One America News, Trump doubled down.
“We broke the logjam over the last week,” he said, “to be honest I think that there are people in the FDA [who] can see things being held up and wouldn’t mind so much.”
Shortly after being challenged on his claims about plasma treatment compared to caution from officials including FDA commissioner Hahn, Trump ended the briefing.
There is little data on how effective plasma is or whether it must be administered fairly early in an illness, Dr William Schaffner, an infectious diseases expert at Vanderbilt University, told the Associated Press.
Hundreds of drugs are being developed, he added, and Trump “has made all kinds of therapeutic suggestions” that are not supported by science and are even dangerous.
Those statements from the president include claims about the possible value of treating patients with ultraviolet light and bleach. Trump reportedly recently became enthusiastic about oleandrin, a plant extract derived from a toxic shrub which scientists warned against.
The president is perhaps best known for his ardent embrace of the anti-malaria drugs hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine. In March the FDA granted emergency authorization for distribution of the drugs. In June the agency revoked it, in light of growing evidence they don’t work and could cause serious side effects. The FDA also warned doctors against prescribing the drugs in combination with remdesivir, a drug that was shown to help patients with Covid-19.
Trump listens as FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn speaks. Photograph: Alex Brandon/AP
Axios cited a senior administration official as saying Navarro, “a fervent proponent of hydroxychloroquine … remained angry at the FDA for saying the drug didn’t work against Covid-19.”
Trump told reporters the order regarding plasma was “only possible … because of Operation Warp Speed. That is everybody working together. We’re years ahead of approval. If we went by the speed levels of past administrations we’d be two years, three years behind where we are today and that includes and vaccines that you’ll be hearing about very soon.”
The president also expressed support for the idea the American people have a “right to try” treatments still being researched.
Hahn has emphasized that routine evaluation procedures will remain in place to evaluate vaccine candidates. Furthermore, a top FDA official overseeing trials vowed to resign if the administration approved a vaccine before it was shown to be safe and effective.
Peter Marks, director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, made his promise during a call with pharmaceutical executives, government officials and others, Reuters reported.
“I think this administration has put more pressure on the Food and Drug Administration than I can remember,” Schaffner told the AP. “Everybody is just a little bit nervous.”


theguardian--2020-08-23--Danbury, Connecticut will name sewage plant after John Oliver

Officials in Danbury , Connecticut , say they will name their sewage plant after the comedian John Oliver , in retaliation for an expletive-filled rant about the city on his HBO show .
Mayor Mark Boughton announced the move on his Facebook page .
“ We are going to rename it the John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant , ” the Republican mayor said .
“ Why ?
Because it ’ s full of crap just like you , John.
” In a recent episode of HBO ’ s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver , the British-born comic explored racial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ citing problems in Hartford and New Britain .
“ If you ’ re going to forget a town in Connecticut , ” he said , “ why not forget Danbury ?
Because , and this is true , fuck Danbury !
” Noting Danbury ’ s “ charming railway museum ” and its “ historic Hearthstone Castle ” , he said : “ Danbury , Connecticut can eat my whole ass.
” Oliver added that he knew “ exactly three things about Danbury .
USA Today ranked it the second-best city to live @ @ @ @ @ @ @ center of the American hat industry and if you ’ re from there , you have a standing invite to come get a thrashing from John Oliver , children included , fuck you.
” It wasn ’ t clear what prompted the outburst .
Oliver ’ s agent did not immediately respond to a request for comment .
In 2017 , Oliver made fun of Boughton and other mayors regarding videos they made seeking to attract Amazon ’ s second world headquarters .
In his video , Boughton asked the home assistant Alexa @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would be , and Alexa said Danbury .
In Boughton ’ s new video , he also mentions that Amazon has decided to open a distribution facility in his city .
“ And , oh by the way , thanks for showing that Amazon video , ” Boughton says .
“ We did get Amazon here in Danbury .
”

Associated Press in Danbury, Connecticut

Officials in Danbury, Connecticut, say they will name their sewage plant after the comedian John Oliver, in retaliation for an expletive-filled rant about the city on his HBO show.
Mayor Mark Boughton announced the move on his Facebook page.
“We are going to rename it the John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant,” the Republican mayor said. “Why? Because it’s full of crap just like you, John.”
In a recent episode of HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, the British-born comic explored racial disparities in the jury selection process, citing problems in Hartford and New Britain.
“If you’re going to forget a town in Connecticut,” he said, “why not forget Danbury? Because, and this is true, fuck Danbury!”
Noting Danbury’s “charming railway museum” and its “historic Hearthstone Castle”, he said: “Danbury, Connecticut can eat my whole ass.”
Oliver added that he knew “exactly three things about Danbury. USA Today ranked it the second-best city to live in 2015, it was once the center of the American hat industry and if you’re from there, you have a standing invite to come get a thrashing from John Oliver, children included, fuck you.”
It wasn’t clear what prompted the outburst. Oliver’s agent did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In 2017, Oliver made fun of Boughton and other mayors regarding videos they made seeking to attract Amazon’s second world headquarters. In his video, Boughton asked the home assistant Alexa where the best place for the facility would be, and Alexa said Danbury.
In Boughton’s new video, he also mentions that Amazon has decided to open a distribution facility in his city.
“And, oh by the way, thanks for showing that Amazon video,” Boughton says. “We did get Amazon here in Danbury.”


theguardian--2020-08-23--James Comey: ex-Trump adviser Steve Bannon 'in a world of trouble'

The former FBI director James Comey has said Steve Bannon is “ in a world of trouble ” , after the former Trump campaign manager and White House adviser was arrested on a charge of skimming donations from a fundraising campaign for a wall on the border with Mexico .
“ It ’ s another reminder of the kind of people this president surrounds himself with , ” Comey told CBS ’ s Face the Nation on Sunday .
Bannon is the latest figure with close ties to the president to have found himself in trouble with the law .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , former lawyer Michael Cohen and former national security adviser Michael Flynn .
Comey is also a former US attorney for Southern District of New York , where Bannon was indicted last week .
“ At this point they could almost start their own crime family , ” Comey told CBS , echoing the passage in his book A Higher Loyalty , released in April 2018 , in which he famously likened Trump , who fired him in May 2017 , to mafia chiefs including Sammy “ the Bull ” Gravano .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The southern district of New York has laid it out in a very detailed indictment called a speaking indictment , and he ’ s in a world of trouble.
” Bannon has pleaded not guilty and faces up to 20 years in jail if convicted .
“ It ’ s a very serious fraud case with a huge amount of money stolen from innocent victims , ” Comey said .
“ That ’ ll drive up potential punishments.
” Bannon was released on a $ 5m bond , backed by $ 1.75m @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has until 3 September to find the collateral .
Three other men , Brian Kolfage , Andrew Badolato and Timothy Shea , were also arrested in the alleged scheme to defraud the We Build the Wall campaign , which authorities said raised more than $ 25m .
Kolfage , Badolato and Shea have not yet entered pleas .
In a statement on his Facebook page on Saturday , Kolfage said he had “ obtained one of the best super lawyers around who isn ’ t afraid to fight back at the politically motivated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Comey said , was “ in trouble because the indictment lays it out in such detail , including excerpts from texts .
If you ’ re Steve Bannon [ or ] you ’ re his lawyers , you ’ re reading this saying , ‘ I ’ m going down here.
’ “ I don ’ t know what the next steps are for him and his co-defendants , but that ’ s what I meant by ‘ world of trouble.
’ ” Comey has proved a troublesome adversary for Trump , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ secure a pledge of personal loyalty before deciding to fire him as FBI director .
Comey recently announced a new book , Saving Justice : Truth , Transparency , and Trust , due for release in January .
Also in January , after the presidential election , Showtime will release The Comey Rule , a two-part adaptation of A Higher Loyalty .
Comey is played by Jeff Daniels , Trump by the Irish actor Brendan Gleeson .
In published cast lists , Bannon does not appear .

The former FBI director James Comey has said Steve Bannon is “in a world of trouble”, after the former Trump campaign manager and White House adviser was arrested on a charge of skimming donations from a fundraising campaign for a wall on the border with Mexico.
“It’s another reminder of the kind of people this president surrounds himself with,” Comey told CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday.
Bannon is the latest figure with close ties to the president to have found himself in trouble with the law. Others include former campaign chair Paul Manafort, former lawyer Michael Cohen and former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
Comey is also a former US attorney for Southern District of New York, where Bannon was indicted last week.
“At this point they could almost start their own crime family,” Comey told CBS, echoing the passage in his book A Higher Loyalty, released in April 2018, in which he famously likened Trump, who fired him in May 2017, to mafia chiefs including Sammy “the Bull” Gravano.
“It’s a very serious case. The southern district of New York has laid it out in a very detailed indictment called a speaking indictment, and he’s in a world of trouble.”
Bannon has pleaded not guilty and faces up to 20 years in jail if convicted.
“It’s a very serious fraud case with a huge amount of money stolen from innocent victims,” Comey said. “That’ll drive up potential punishments.”
Bannon was released on a $5m bond, backed by $1.75m in cash or real estate. He has until 3 September to find the collateral. Three other men, Brian Kolfage, Andrew Badolato and Timothy Shea, were also arrested in the alleged scheme to defraud the We Build the Wall campaign, which authorities said raised more than $25m.
Kolfage, Badolato and Shea have not yet entered pleas. In a statement on his Facebook page on Saturday, Kolfage said he had “obtained one of the best super lawyers around who isn’t afraid to fight back at the politically motivated assaults against me”.
Bannon, Comey said, was “in trouble because the indictment lays it out in such detail, including excerpts from texts. If you’re Steve Bannon [or] you’re his lawyers, you’re reading this saying, ‘I’m going down here.’
“I don’t know what the next steps are for him and his co-defendants, but that’s what I meant by ‘world of trouble.’”
Comey has proved a troublesome adversary for Trump, who sought unsuccessfully, and infamously, to secure a pledge of personal loyalty before deciding to fire him as FBI director.
Comey recently announced a new book, Saving Justice: Truth, Transparency, and Trust, due for release in January. Also in January, after the presidential election, Showtime will release The Comey Rule, a two-part adaptation of A Higher Loyalty.
Comey is played by Jeff Daniels, Trump by the Irish actor Brendan Gleeson. In published cast lists, Bannon does not appear.


theguardian--2020-08-23--'Donald is cruel': Trump sister criticises president in bombshell secret tapes

Donald Trump ’ s older sister , a former federal judge , can be heard sharply criticizing her brother in a series of recordings released on Saturday , at one point saying of the president : “ He has no principles.
” Maryanne Trump Barry was secretly recorded by her niece , Mary Trump , who in July released a book denouncing the president , Too Much and Never Enough : How My Family Created the World ’ s Most Dangerous Man .
Mary Trump said on Saturday she made the recordings , which are legal under New York law @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the acknowledgements for her book , she thanks her aunt for “ all of the enlightening information ” .
In one conversation , Barry , now 83 , says she had heard a 2018 interview with her brother on Fox News in which he suggested he would put her on the southern border to oversee immigration cases , while his government was separating children from their parents .
“ His base , I mean my God , if you were a religious person , you want to help people , ” Barry says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ another point , she decries “ the phoniness of it all … the phoniness and this cruelty .
Donald is cruel.
” Barry also guesses that her brother has never read her opinions on immigration cases because he doesn ’ t read at all .
“ What has he read ?
” Mary Trump asks .
Barry responds : “ No .
He doesn ’ t read.
” She also says : “ His goddamned tweet and lying , oh my God.
” She adds : “ I ’ m talking too freely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of stories .
The lack of preparation .
The lying .
Holy shit.
” After the recordings were reported by the Washington Post , Donald Trump said in a statement : “ Every day it ’ s something else , who cares.
” On Sunday , the White House continued to push back , chief of staff Mark Meadows decrying “ politics as usual ” .
“ The president that I have the privilege of serving is not the one that ’ s being described on a 15-hour ... secret tape , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what family member tapes another family member for 15 hours secretly ?
“ This is politics as usual by a niece that was written out of a will that … just has an axe to grind because she wants Joe Biden to be president.
” Mary Trump and her brother settled with their uncles and aunts in 2001 , after a dispute over the will of Fred Trump Sr , the family patriarch .
That settlement was the basis of a family attempt to stop publication of Too Much and Never Enough .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ had lied in prior depositions , ” said Chris Bastardi , a spokesman , adding : “ Anticipating litigation , she felt it prudent to tape conversations in order to protect herself.
” Jason Miller , a senior adviser to the Trump campaign , dismissed Barry ’ s quotes as a “ sibling rivalry ” .
After NBC Meet the Press host Chuck Todd pointed out that the president ’ s sister may have more credibility because she is a retired federal judge , Miller said : “ I can tell you my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , I ’ ve only heard him say positive things about his sister , as someone who ’ s a very accomplished judge.
” Meadows took a shot at Barry for not attending a White House funeral on Friday for Robert Trump , the president ’ s younger brother who died last week at the age of 71 .
“ I can tell you that I ’ ve never met the judge , ” Meadows said .
“ I was at the funeral the other day .
I was hoping to meet her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up for her brother ’ s funeral.
” In her book , a searing account which also describes how the author helped the New York Times expose the family ’ s tax affairs , Mary Trump writes about how her father , Fred Trump Jr , died of problems relating to alcoholism in 1981 , at the age of 42 .
“ As my father lay dying alone , ” she writes , “ Donald went to the movies.
” In his statement on Saturday , Donald Trump said : “ I miss @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I ’ ll continue to work hard for the American people .
Not everyone agrees , but the results are obvious .
Our country will soon be stronger than ever before.
” The president has frequently spoken highly of his sister and the recordings are the first time a family member , other than Mary Trump , has been critical of him .
Mary Trump ’ s book includes the assertion – denied by Trump – that he paid someone to take exams for him as he sought to transfer into the University @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the federal judge says a Joe Shapiro took the SAT for Trump .
The president was friends with a person at Penn named Joe Shapiro , who is deceased .
Shapiro ’ s widow and sister have said he never took a test for anybody .
Bastardi said Mary Trump “ never expected to learn much of what she heard , including the president ’ s sister , federal judge Maryanne Trump Barry , state that Donald Trump had paid someone to take an SAT exam for him ” .
On ABC , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evidence to prove the test story was not true .
“ Well , he does , ” Meadows said , though he did not provide any such evidence before pivoting to Barry ’ s claim that her brother does not read .
“ There ’ s a cardboard box that is brought on Marine One , ” Meadows said , referring to the presidential helicopter .
“ What ’ s in there are clippings and clippings , each and everyday , he reads probably more than anybody I know , which causes me @ @ @ @ @ @ @ morning he ’ s giving me a to-do list .
Every evening he ’ s giving me a to-do list .
”

Donald Trump’s older sister, a former federal judge, can be heard sharply criticizing her brother in a series of recordings released on Saturday, at one point saying of the president: “He has no principles.”
Maryanne Trump Barry was secretly recorded by her niece, Mary Trump, who in July released a book denouncing the president, Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man.
Mary Trump said on Saturday she made the recordings, which are legal under New York law, in 2018 and 2019. In the acknowledgements for her book, she thanks her aunt for “all of the enlightening information”.
In one conversation, Barry, now 83, says she had heard a 2018 interview with her brother on Fox News in which he suggested he would put her on the southern border to oversee immigration cases, while his government was separating children from their parents.
“His base, I mean my God, if you were a religious person, you want to help people,” Barry says. “Not do this.”
At another point, she decries “the phoniness of it all … the phoniness and this cruelty. Donald is cruel.”
Barry also guesses that her brother has never read her opinions on immigration cases because he doesn’t read at all.
I’m talking too freely, but you know. The change of stories. The lack of preparation. The lying. Holy shit Maryanne Trump Barry
“What has he read?” Mary Trump asks. Barry responds: “No. He doesn’t read.”
She also says: “His goddamned tweet and lying, oh my God.”
She adds: “I’m talking too freely, but you know. The change of stories. The lack of preparation. The lying. Holy shit.”
After the recordings were reported by the Washington Post, Donald Trump said in a statement: “Every day it’s something else, who cares.” On Sunday, the White House continued to push back, chief of staff Mark Meadows decrying “politics as usual”.
“The president that I have the privilege of serving is not the one that’s being described on a 15-hour ... secret tape,” Meadows said. “I mean, what family member tapes another family member for 15 hours secretly?
“This is politics as usual by a niece that was written out of a will that … just has an axe to grind because she wants Joe Biden to be president.”
Mary Trump and her brother settled with their uncles and aunts in 2001, after a dispute over the will of Fred Trump Sr, the family patriarch. That settlement was the basis of a family attempt to stop publication of Too Much and Never Enough.
“Mary realized members of her family had lied in prior depositions,” said Chris Bastardi, a spokesman, adding: “Anticipating litigation, she felt it prudent to tape conversations in order to protect herself.”
Jason Miller, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, dismissed Barry’s quotes as a “sibling rivalry”. After NBC Meet the Press host Chuck Todd pointed out that the president’s sister may have more credibility because she is a retired federal judge, Miller said: “I can tell you my conversations with the president over the years, I’ve only heard him say positive things about his sister, as someone who’s a very accomplished judge.”
Every day it’s something else, who cares Donald Trump
Meadows took a shot at Barry for not attending a White House funeral on Friday for Robert Trump, the president’s younger brother who died last week at the age of 71.
“I can tell you that I’ve never met the judge,” Meadows said. “I was at the funeral the other day. I was hoping to meet her there. She didn’t show up for her brother’s funeral.”
In her book, a searing account which also describes how the author helped the New York Times expose the family’s tax affairs, Mary Trump writes about how her father, Fred Trump Jr, died of problems relating to alcoholism in 1981, at the age of 42.
“As my father lay dying alone,” she writes, “Donald went to the movies.”
In his statement on Saturday, Donald Trump said: “I miss my brother [Robert], and I’ll continue to work hard for the American people. Not everyone agrees, but the results are obvious. Our country will soon be stronger than ever before.”
Donald Trump and Maryanne Trump Barry with relatives in Scotland in 2008. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian
The president has frequently spoken highly of his sister and the recordings are the first time a family member, other than Mary Trump, has been critical of him.
Mary Trump’s book includes the assertion – denied by Trump – that he paid someone to take exams for him as he sought to transfer into the University of Pennsylvania.
In one recording, the federal judge says a Joe Shapiro took the SAT for Trump. The president was friends with a person at Penn named Joe Shapiro, who is deceased. Shapiro’s widow and sister have said he never took a test for anybody.
Bastardi said Mary Trump “never expected to learn much of what she heard, including the president’s sister, federal judge Maryanne Trump Barry, state that Donald Trump had paid someone to take an SAT exam for him”.
On ABC, Meadows was asked if the president had evidence to prove the test story was not true.
“Well, he does,” Meadows said, though he did not provide any such evidence before pivoting to Barry’s claim that her brother does not read.
“There’s a cardboard box that is brought on Marine One,” Meadows said, referring to the presidential helicopter. “What’s in there are clippings and clippings, each and everyday, he reads probably more than anybody I know, which causes me to have to read more because every morning he’s giving me a to-do list. Every evening he’s giving me a to-do list.”


theguardian--2020-08-23--Biden indicates he could run for second term if he beats Trump in November

Joe Biden , who will be the oldest US president ever inaugurated if he beats Donald Trump in November , has indicated he could run for a second term .
Biden is 77 but he will be 78 on inauguration day in January .
He is running against the oldest president to take power , who was 70 in January 2017 and is now 74 .
Trump has faced questions about his own health and mental ability , but it hasn ’ t stopped him attacking his challenger on the same grounds .
Asked about such attacks in an ABC @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Biden said : “ Watch me .
Mr President , watch me .
Look at us both .
Look at us both , what we say , what we do , what we control , what we know , what kind of shape we ’ re in .
“ I think it ’ s a legitimate question to ask anybody over 70 years old whether or not they ’ re fit and whether they ’ re ready .
But I just , [ the ] only thing I can say to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legitimate question to ask anybody .
Watch me.
” Biden has previously challenged Trump to a press-up competition and suggested he would have beaten him up in high school .
ABC released clips of its interview with Biden and Kamala Harris , the 55-year-old California senator who is Biden ’ s running mate .
Biden has said he sees himself as a transitional figure , leading many to predict he will serve only four years if elected .
If he ran and won in 2024 he would be 82 on inauguration day .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ be 86 .
“ We haven ’ t spent nearly enough time building the bench in the Democratic party , ” Biden told ABC .
“ …So [ what ] I want to do is make sure when this is over , we have a new Senate , we won back statehouses , we ’ re in a position where we transition to a period of bringing people up to the visibility that they need to get to be able to lead nationally .
And that ’ s about raising people up .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ m about.
” Asked if he was “ leaving open the possibility you ’ ll serve eight years if elected ” , Biden said : “ Absolutely.
” Also on ABC on Sunday , deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield told This Week Biden has not had the coronavirus and “ has not been tested ” .
“ Moving forward , ” she said , “ should he need to be tested , he would be.
” She also said the campaign had “ put in place incredibly strict protocols to ensure that everybody @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who ’ s around Senator Harris , is undergoing the appropriate testing ” .
In the joint interview , Biden was asked about how he would handle the pandemic in office .
“ I would shut it down , ” he said , asked if he would close the country if necessary .
“ I would listen to the scientists .
“ I will be prepared to do whatever it takes to save lives because we can not get the country moving until we control the virus .
That is the fundamental flaw @ @ @ @ @ @ @ begin with .
In order to keep the country running and moving and the economy growing , and people employed , you have to fix the virus , you have to deal with the virus.
” Trump responded on Twitter , writing : “ Despite biggest ever job gains and a V-shaped recovery , Joe Biden said , ‘ I would shut it down ’ , referring to our country .
He has no clue !
” In fact the US economy continues to struggle and this week the number of people applying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the dizzying highs of the spring , climbed back over 1 million .
In a separate , solo interview with ABC , Biden was asked about another subject central to the campaign , as protests over police brutality continue : “ President Trump says that you want to defund the police .
Do you ?
” “ No I don ’ t , ” he said .
“ I don ’ t want to defund police departments .
I think they need more help , they need more assistance , but that , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there are unethical presidents , there are unethical doctors , unethical lawyers , unethical prosecutors , there are unethical cops .
They should be rooted out.
” In the joint interview , ABC ’ s David Muir brought up Trump ’ s attacks on Harris , which seem in part inspired by her tough questioning of appointees including supreme court justice Brett Kavanaugh during Senate proceedings .
“ President Trump has referred to you as ‘ nasty ’ , ‘ a sort of madwoman ’ , ‘ a disaster ’ , ‘ the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of anybody in the US Senate ’ .
How do you define what you hear from the president ?
” Harris laughed , and said : “ Listen , I think there is so much about what comes out of Donald Trump ’ s mouth that is designed to distract the American people from what he is doing every day that is about neglect , negligence and harm to the American people.
” “ And incompetence , ” Biden chipped in .
“ The idea that he would say something like that – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said anything like that .
No president has ever used those words .
“ And no president has said people coming out of fields with torches and spewing antisemitic bile and met by people who oppose them , and someone dies , and he says they ’ re good people on both sides .
No president of the United States has ever said anything like that ever.
” That was a reference to far-right protests in Charlottesville , Virginia , in August 2017 , in which a counter-protester , Heather Heyer , was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Trump ’ s response , helped inspire his third run for the White House .

Joe Biden, who will be the oldest US president ever inaugurated if he beats Donald Trump in November, has indicated he could run for a second term.
Biden is 77 but he will be 78 on inauguration day in January. He is running against the oldest president to take power, who was 70 in January 2017 and is now 74.
Trump has faced questions about his own health and mental ability, but it hasn’t stopped him attacking his challenger on the same grounds.
Asked about such attacks in an ABC interview scheduled for broadcast on Sunday night, Biden said: “Watch me. Mr President, watch me. Look at us both. Look at us both, what we say, what we do, what we control, what we know, what kind of shape we’re in.
“I think it’s a legitimate question to ask anybody over 70 years old whether or not they’re fit and whether they’re ready. But I just, [the] only thing I can say to the American people, it’s a legitimate question to ask anybody. Watch me.”
Biden has previously challenged Trump to a press-up competition and suggested he would have beaten him up in high school.
ABC released clips of its interview with Biden and Kamala Harris, the 55-year-old California senator who is Biden’s running mate.
Biden has said he sees himself as a transitional figure, leading many to predict he will serve only four years if elected. If he ran and won in 2024 he would be 82 on inauguration day. On handing over power, he would be 86.
“We haven’t spent nearly enough time building the bench in the Democratic party,” Biden told ABC. “…So [what] I want to do is make sure when this is over, we have a new Senate, we won back statehouses, we’re in a position where we transition to a period of bringing people up to the visibility that they need to get to be able to lead nationally. And that’s about raising people up. And that’s what I’m about.”
Asked if he was “leaving open the possibility you’ll serve eight years if elected”, Biden said: “Absolutely.”
Also on ABC on Sunday, deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield told This Week Biden has not had the coronavirus and “has not been tested”.
“Moving forward,” she said, “should he need to be tested, he would be.”
She also said the campaign had “put in place incredibly strict protocols to ensure that everybody involved who is around Vice-President Biden, who’s around Senator Harris, is undergoing the appropriate testing”.
In the joint interview, Biden was asked about how he would handle the pandemic in office.
“I would shut it down,” he said, asked if he would close the country if necessary. “I would listen to the scientists.
“I will be prepared to do whatever it takes to save lives because we cannot get the country moving until we control the virus. That is the fundamental flaw of this administration’s thinking to begin with. In order to keep the country running and moving and the economy growing, and people employed, you have to fix the virus, you have to deal with the virus.”
Trump responded on Twitter, writing: “Despite biggest ever job gains and a V-shaped recovery, Joe Biden said, ‘I would shut it down’, referring to our country. He has no clue!”
In fact the US economy continues to struggle and this week the number of people applying for unemployment benefits, of down on the dizzying highs of the spring, climbed back over 1 million.
In a separate, solo interview with ABC, Biden was asked about another subject central to the campaign, as protests over police brutality continue: “President Trump says that you want to defund the police. Do you?”
“No I don’t,” he said. “I don’t want to defund police departments. I think they need more help, they need more assistance, but that, look, there are unethical senators, there are unethical presidents, there are unethical doctors, unethical lawyers, unethical prosecutors, there are unethical cops. They should be rooted out.”
In the joint interview, ABC’s David Muir brought up Trump’s attacks on Harris, which seem in part inspired by her tough questioning of appointees including supreme court justice Brett Kavanaugh during Senate proceedings.
“President Trump has referred to you as ‘nasty’, ‘a sort of madwoman’, ‘a disaster’, ‘the meanest, most horrible, most disrespectful of anybody in the US Senate’. How do you define what you hear from the president?”
Harris laughed, and said: “Listen, I think there is so much about what comes out of Donald Trump’s mouth that is designed to distract the American people from what he is doing every day that is about neglect, negligence and harm to the American people.”
“And incompetence,” Biden chipped in. “The idea that he would say something like that – no president, no president has ever said anything like that. No president has ever used those words.
“And no president has said people coming out of fields with torches and spewing antisemitic bile and met by people who oppose them, and someone dies, and he says they’re good people on both sides. No president of the United States has ever said anything like that ever.”
That was a reference to far-right protests in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017, in which a counter-protester, Heather Heyer, was killed. Biden said those events, and Trump’s response, helped inspire his third run for the White House.


theguardian--2020-08-23--Kamala Harris is Obama's natural heir: another moderate child of radical parents | Thomas Meaney and

Kamala Harris is Obama's natural heir: another moderate child of radical parents | Thomas Meaney and Samuel Moyn

Joe Biden ’ s selection of Kamala Harris as the Democrats ’ vice-presidential nominee for 2020 elevated to the pinnacle of national politics the heir of two migrants to the US , both of whom epitomised the political ferment of the global 1960s .
Moreover , such a figure has been entrusted with the party ’ s future for the second time .
Barack Obama , who as president first helped give Harris national recognition by asking her to speak at the Democratic national convention in 2012 , is descended on his father ’ s side from a strikingly similar @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to it .
It is not just a matter of Harris ’ s family background .
The dreams of Harris ’ s father in particular – the Jamaican-born economist Donald Harris , who taught for most of his career at Stanford – have been rebuffed for decades by a Democratic party that now has a different idea of what a new phase of radicalism could mean .
The 1960s saw the decolonisation of vast swaths of humanity .
After centuries of colonial rule , newly independent states and citizens suddenly arrived on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in 1962 , the year after Kenyan Barack Obama Sr fathered the son who shares his name in Hawaii .
At the heart of aspirations of the decade , in the air that the young Donald Harris and Barack Obama Sr breathed , was an anti-racist politics that was determined to abolish the global colour line .
It was no accident that economics became the master science of those who sought to build this postcolonial future .
Both Obama Sr and Harris pursued doctorates in economics because that is where they believed the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It was only by taking control of natural resources , as well as managing the relationship between labour and foreign capital , that the new nations of the decolonising world could hope to seize the promise of new sovereignty .
Both Harris and Obama Sr were eager to put their US training to use on behalf of their new nations , though both also became gadflies in their intellectual worlds .
As a young government economic planner in Jomo Kenyatta ’ s postcolonial administration in Kenya , Obama Sr issued a withering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ replacing foreign elites with Kenyan ones , expropriating the land for its private use , and paying lip service to “ African socialism ” when it intended to pursue nothing of the sort .
Meanwhile , settled in California , Harris and Shyamala Gopalan – a radical immigrant from Tamil Nadu , who mostly raised Kamala and her sister , and has justly attracted more attention than her former husband – joined the civil rights movement .
They sought to apply the lessons of anticolonialism to the US .
But Harris believed the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the US .
“ It stretches the imagination to see why , ” he wrote in 1972 , “ black workers should in any way be better off under black owners than under white owners.
” If radicals did not work to dismantle or reform the capitalist system , Harris argued , they would accomplish little for black people .
“ The colonial analogy might be seen as playing a useful ideological role for those who stand to benefit from the ‘ transfer of power ’ which this is expected to bring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It plays another role also for those whites who see the black struggle as a vicarious means for waging their own , failing thereby to understand the nature of their own struggle as well as that of blacks.
” For Donald Harris and Barack Obama Sr , the politics of recognition were hamstrung without an agenda to achieve downward economic redistribution .
The 1963 March on Washington was , according to their view , as much about decent wages as it was about soaring oratory .
In a Jamaican newspaper , Harris saluted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ black nationalism to a more internationalist form of socialism .
Which is not to say that he has downplayed his Jamaican roots .
When Kamala Harris ingratiated herself with a radio host with a riff about how of course she smoked pot when she was younger – “ half my family is from Jamaica ” – her father excoriated her for resorting to a stereotype .
The chiding went beyond what was necessary for a daughter on a gruelling campaign trail , but it also evinced an unwillingness to surrender an inch of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thinker Paul Gilroy attributed to diasporic figures , like the parents of the Democratic party leaders , a kind of privileged insight .
They were more likely to see what others missed , and mix perspectives usually kept apart .
If this is true , it is telling that the Democratic party now gravitates towards candidates whose very intimacy with this legacy has only made them more skilled at deflecting it .
President Obama thought his father was a tragic case – an unwitting enemy of promise .
As a brash , outspoken @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he was by all accounts a professional failure when it came to achieving his dreams .
It seems plausible that some of Obama ’ s politically moderate , technocratic mindset was developed in response to his father ’ s loftier visions .
Likewise , Kamala Harris appears a much less cantankerous figure than her father , who devoted his career to criticising mainstream economics .
“ I ’ m not trying to restructure society , ” she told the New York Times last year .
Notable too was how her fortunes in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ moment when the congresswoman Karen Bass , the only VP candidate who herself participated in the global 1960s , fell from grace .
A law-and-order Democrat who is a favourite with Wall Street donors , Kamala Harris seems like a natural heir of Barack Obama ’ s legacy .
It is too early to say whether her other legacy – the explicitly egalitarian agenda that animated her parents – will register in her political future .
But a usable past is a usable past , whether you use it or not .
• @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Max Planck Society in Göttingen .
Samuel Moyn is a professor of law and history at Yale

Joe Biden’s selection of Kamala Harris as the Democrats’ vice-presidential nominee for 2020 elevated to the pinnacle of national politics the heir of two migrants to the US, both of whom epitomised the political ferment of the global 1960s.
Moreover, such a figure has been entrusted with the party’s future for the second time. Barack Obama, who as president first helped give Harris national recognition by asking her to speak at the Democratic national convention in 2012, is descended on his father’s side from a strikingly similar lineage, and defined himself in relation to it.
It is not just a matter of Harris’s family background. The dreams of Harris’s father in particular – the Jamaican-born economist Donald Harris, who taught for most of his career at Stanford – have been rebuffed for decades by a Democratic party that now has a different idea of what a new phase of radicalism could mean.
The 1960s saw the decolonisation of vast swaths of humanity. After centuries of colonial rule, newly independent states and citizens suddenly arrived on the global scene. Jamaica declared its independence in 1962, the year after Kenyan Barack Obama Sr fathered the son who shares his name in Hawaii. At the heart of aspirations of the decade, in the air that the young Donald Harris and Barack Obama Sr breathed, was an anti-racist politics that was determined to abolish the global colour line.
It was no accident that economics became the master science of those who sought to build this postcolonial future. Both Obama Sr and Harris pursued doctorates in economics because that is where they believed the levers of the world order were located. It was only by taking control of natural resources, as well as managing the relationship between labour and foreign capital, that the new nations of the decolonising world could hope to seize the promise of new sovereignty.
Both Harris and Obama Sr were eager to put their US training to use on behalf of their new nations, though both also became gadflies in their intellectual worlds. As a young government economic planner in Jomo Kenyatta’s postcolonial administration in Kenya, Obama Sr issued a withering report claiming that the government was simply replacing foreign elites with Kenyan ones, expropriating the land for its private use, and paying lip service to “African socialism” when it intended to pursue nothing of the sort.
Meanwhile, settled in California, Harris and Shyamala Gopalan – a radical immigrant from Tamil Nadu, who mostly raised Kamala and her sister, and has justly attracted more attention than her former husband – joined the civil rights movement. They sought to apply the lessons of anticolonialism to the US.
But Harris believed the colonial analogy had its limits when applied to the US. “It stretches the imagination to see why,” he wrote in 1972, “black workers should in any way be better off under black owners than under white owners.” If radicals did not work to dismantle or reform the capitalist system, Harris argued, they would accomplish little for black people. “The colonial analogy might be seen as playing a useful ideological role for those who stand to benefit from the ‘transfer of power’ which this is expected to bring about,” he wrote. “It plays another role also for those whites who see the black struggle as a vicarious means for waging their own, failing thereby to understand the nature of their own struggle as well as that of blacks.”
For Donald Harris and Barack Obama Sr, the politics of recognition were hamstrung without an agenda to achieve downward economic redistribution. The 1963 March on Washington was, according to their view, as much about decent wages as it was about soaring oratory. In a Jamaican newspaper, Harris saluted Malcolm X’s intellectual journey through black nationalism to a more internationalist form of socialism.
Which is not to say that he has downplayed his Jamaican roots. When Kamala Harris ingratiated herself with a radio host with a riff about how of course she smoked pot when she was younger – “half my family is from Jamaica” – her father excoriated her for resorting to a stereotype. The chiding went beyond what was necessary for a daughter on a gruelling campaign trail, but it also evinced an unwillingness to surrender an inch of dignity.
Three decades ago, the thinker Paul Gilroy attributed to diasporic figures, like the parents of the Democratic party leaders, a kind of privileged insight. They were more likely to see what others missed, and mix perspectives usually kept apart. If this is true, it is telling that the Democratic party now gravitates towards candidates whose very intimacy with this legacy has only made them more skilled at deflecting it.
President Obama thought his father was a tragic case – an unwitting enemy of promise. As a brash, outspoken progressive in an increasingly politically regressive Kenya, he was by all accounts a professional failure when it came to achieving his dreams. It seems plausible that some of Obama’s politically moderate, technocratic mindset was developed in response to his father’s loftier visions.
Likewise, Kamala Harris appears a much less cantankerous figure than her father, who devoted his career to criticising mainstream economics. “I’m not trying to restructure society,” she told the New York Times last year. Notable too was how her fortunes in the Democratic party climbed at the very moment when the congresswoman Karen Bass, the only VP candidate who herself participated in the global 1960s, fell from grace.
A law-and-order Democrat who is a favourite with Wall Street donors, Kamala Harris seems like a natural heir of Barack Obama’s legacy. It is too early to say whether her other legacy – the explicitly egalitarian agenda that animated her parents – will register in her political future. But a usable past is a usable past, whether you use it or not.


theguardian--2020-08-23--The Democratic convention went off without hitches. But was it a success? | Geoffrey Kabaservice

This past week , the former vice-president laid out a forceful case for the importance of empathy and character in high office , his ability to reverse the manifold failures of Donald Trump ’ s regime , and the threat that a second Trump term would pose to American democracy .
Did he – and his fellow Democrats at the convention who echoed his points – do so successfully ?
In today ’ s tribal and polarized America , there ’ s no easy way to answer that question .
Both Biden ’ s speech and the convention as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and even some Republicans , particularly in swing states .
From the perspective of those viewers , Biden and his party performed brilliantly .
Compared to past conventions , Biden ’ s address accepting the presidential nomination was comparatively short , at around 25 minutes .
The absence of cheering crowds , on account of the pandemic , meant that some of his best lines didn ’ t have quite the emotional resonance they otherwise would have .
But Biden ’ s delivery was fluid and heartfelt .
His speech occasionally soared , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tragedies and invocation of poet Seamus Heaney ’ s call “ to make hope and history rhyme ” .
The rest of the convention went off without hitches or glitches .
Other leading Democrats also spoke effectively , with the addresses of both Obamas seemingly destined to enter the annals of great rhetoric .
Overall , the convention broadcast a strong message that Democrats are firmly grounded in American traditions and values yet also prepared to responsibly undertake ambitious change .
They can be trusted to end the coronavirus ’ s ongoing scourge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more widely , repair the frayed social welfare safety net , bring about both greater racial justice and greater social unity , and restore America ’ s respected place in the world .
The Biden endorsements that came from left-leaning figures like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren were strong and unambiguous .
Warren implored Democrats to end “ this dark chapter in our nation ’ s history ” and Sanders urged his supporters to elect Biden for the sake of democracy , the economy and the planet .
The urgency of defeating Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the upper reaches of the party as well at the grassroots , more than anything else in decades .
But what difference will this convention really make ?
It may give Biden a temporary bump in the polls , but viewership for Biden ’ s speech at the virtual convention was down 21 % from Hillary Clinton ’ s in 2016 , so the bump presumably will be correspondingly modest .
And few Democrats , after the 2016 debacle , take comfort in polls that show Biden with a substantial but not insurmountable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was a huge gamble , the success of which can ’ t be assessed until we know the election ’ s outcome .
If Biden loses , expect brutal hindsight recriminations from progressives .
They will argue that the convention should have gone low , not high .
They ’ ll say the Democrats should have waged culture- and class-warfare against Trump , just as Trump surely will be unrestrained in stoking rage and hatred against Democrats at the upcoming Republican national convention .
They ’ re complaining that progressive young firebrand Alexandria @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the party , got only 60 seconds of speaking time at the convention – far less than the time allotted to old white men ( and sometime Republicans ) like Michael Bloomberg and John Kasich .
There ’ s no way to know how many progressive bitter-enders won ’ t vote for Biden , but some of them clearly may use the convention as their excuse .
The implicit theory that there are Trump-leaning voters in the swing states whose minds can be changed by a moderate-friendly Democratic convention may also be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have their discipline displace economics as the truly dismal science , have concluded that our voting behaviors increasingly have become determined by our affinities and preferences .
A person ’ s race , religion , gender , neighborhood , and even choice of grocery store and entertainment – all of these multiple identities now reinforce a person ’ s partisan identity .
And when we are in the grip of our political identities , we discount factual evidence contradicting our beliefs .
Learning more about our political opponents doesn ’ t make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we dislike them with even greater intensity .
It might appear that Biden ’ s cogent convention speech laid waste to the Republican claim , on which they have invested millions of dollars in campaign advertising , that he ’ s a dotard in the final stages of senility .
But Republican partisans will go on believing that about him despite any evidence to the contrary .
Trump will caricature the Democrats ’ moderate convention as a wild , far-left celebration of Antifa , the Green New Deal , and urban rioting – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
If Trump wins , the 2020 Democratic convention may eventually be seen as the last gasp of a politics rooted in this country ’ s founding beliefs in rationality , persuasion , and democratic norms .
But the successor of this politics may be taking shape in the form of the QAnon movement .
The convoluted and quasi-religious QAnon conspiracy theory , for which no evidence has been shown to exist , claims that President Trump is fighting to save the world from control by an elite Democratic cabal of Satanic , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this movement was found mainly in the darker reaches of the internet .
Now the Texas Republican party has adopted the motto “ We Are the Storm , ” apparently referring to the QAnon belief that Trump will soon stage a military countercoup against the “ deep state ” that will lead to the arrest and execution of his political opponents .
Trump has recently embraced the QAnon movement , and it is supported at least in part by more than 70 Republicans running for Congress this year .
American democracy has had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ best qualities were on display at the recent Democratic convention and in Joe Biden ’ s speech .
Here ’ s hoping we ’ ll have more conventions like that in the future .
• None Geoffrey Kabaservice is the director of political studies at the Niskanen Center in Washington DC as well as the author of Rule and Ruin : The Downfall of Moderation and the Destruction of the Republican Party

This past week, the former vice-president laid out a forceful case for the importance of empathy and character in high office, his ability to reverse the manifold failures of Donald Trump’s regime, and the threat that a second Trump term would pose to American democracy. Did he – and his fellow Democrats at the convention who echoed his points – do so successfully? In today’s tribal and polarized America, there’s no easy way to answer that question.
Both Biden’s speech and the convention as a whole clearly were pitched toward moderate Democrats and even some Republicans, particularly in swing states. From the perspective of those viewers, Biden and his party performed brilliantly.
Compared to past conventions, Biden’s address accepting the presidential nomination was comparatively short, at around 25 minutes. The absence of cheering crowds, on account of the pandemic, meant that some of his best lines didn’t have quite the emotional resonance they otherwise would have. But Biden’s delivery was fluid and heartfelt. His speech occasionally soared, particularly with its evocation of his personal tragedies and invocation of poet Seamus Heaney’s call “to make hope and history rhyme”.
The rest of the convention went off without hitches or glitches. Other leading Democrats also spoke effectively, with the addresses of both Obamas seemingly destined to enter the annals of great rhetoric. Overall, the convention broadcast a strong message that Democrats are firmly grounded in American traditions and values yet also prepared to responsibly undertake ambitious change. They can be trusted to end the coronavirus’s ongoing scourge, revive prosperity and distribute its benefits more widely, repair the frayed social welfare safety net, bring about both greater racial justice and greater social unity, and restore America’s respected place in the world.
If Trump wins, the 2020 Democratic convention may eventually be seen as the last gasp of a politics rooted in this country’s founding beliefs in rationality, persuasion, and democratic norms
The Biden endorsements that came from left-leaning figures like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren were strong and unambiguous. Warren implored Democrats to end “this dark chapter in our nation’s history” and Sanders urged his supporters to elect Biden for the sake of democracy, the economy and the planet. The urgency of defeating Trump has united the Democrats, both in the upper reaches of the party as well at the grassroots, more than anything else in decades.
But what difference will this convention really make? It may give Biden a temporary bump in the polls, but viewership for Biden’s speech at the virtual convention was down 21% from Hillary Clinton’s in 2016, so the bump presumably will be correspondingly modest. And few Democrats, after the 2016 debacle, take comfort in polls that show Biden with a substantial but not insurmountable lead.
Orienting the convention toward moderation was a huge gamble, the success of which can’t be assessed until we know the election’s outcome.
If Biden loses, expect brutal hindsight recriminations from progressives. They will argue that the convention should have gone low, not high. They’ll say the Democrats should have waged culture- and class-warfare against Trump, just as Trump surely will be unrestrained in stoking rage and hatred against Democrats at the upcoming Republican national convention. They’re complaining that progressive young firebrand Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, often hailed as the future of the party, got only 60 seconds of speaking time at the convention – far less than the time allotted to old white men (and sometime Republicans) like Michael Bloomberg and John Kasich. There’s no way to know how many progressive bitter-enders won’t vote for Biden, but some of them clearly may use the convention as their excuse.
The implicit theory that there are Trump-leaning voters in the swing states whose minds can be changed by a moderate-friendly Democratic convention may also be faulty. Political scientists, always striving to have their discipline displace economics as the truly dismal science, have concluded that our voting behaviors increasingly have become determined by our affinities and preferences. A person’s race, religion, gender, neighborhood, and even choice of grocery store and entertainment – all of these multiple identities now reinforce a person’s partisan identity. And when we are in the grip of our political identities, we discount factual evidence contradicting our beliefs. Learning more about our political opponents doesn’t make us more sympathetic toward them; instead we dislike them with even greater intensity.
It might appear that Biden’s cogent convention speech laid waste to the Republican claim, on which they have invested millions of dollars in campaign advertising, that he’s a dotard in the final stages of senility. But Republican partisans will go on believing that about him despite any evidence to the contrary. Trump will caricature the Democrats’ moderate convention as a wild, far-left celebration of Antifa, the Green New Deal, and urban rioting – and his followers will believe that too.
If Trump wins, the 2020 Democratic convention may eventually be seen as the last gasp of a politics rooted in this country’s founding beliefs in rationality, persuasion, and democratic norms. But the successor of this politics may be taking shape in the form of the QAnon movement.
The convoluted and quasi-religious QAnon conspiracy theory, for which no evidence has been shown to exist, claims that President Trump is fighting to save the world from control by an elite Democratic cabal of Satanic, cannibalistic pedophiles. Two years ago, this movement was found mainly in the darker reaches of the internet. Now the Texas Republican party has adopted the motto “We Are the Storm,” apparently referring to the QAnon belief that Trump will soon stage a military countercoup against the “deep state” that will lead to the arrest and execution of his political opponents. Trump has recently embraced the QAnon movement, and it is supported at least in part by more than 70 Republicans running for Congress this year.
American democracy has had a good run. Many of its best qualities were on display at the recent Democratic convention and in Joe Biden’s speech. Here’s hoping we’ll have more conventions like that in the future.


theguardian--2020-08-24--Biden and Sanders' policy goals are 'not that different', Obama says

Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders ’ policy goals are “ not that different ” former president Barack Obama has said in an apparent effort to close any lingering split in Democratic ranks as the presidential election looms .
Biden , Obama ’ s vice-president from 2009 to 2017 , accepted the nomination to face Donald Trump at the Democratic convention last week .
This week , the president will take the stage .
Obama was speaking to the New Yorker .
“ If you look at Joe Biden ’ s goals and Bernie Sanders ’ s goals , they ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 40,000ft level , ” Obama said .
“ They both want to make sure everybody has healthcare .
They want to make sure everybody can get a job that pays a living wage .
They want to make sure every child gets a good education.
” For his part , Biden said he had quashed fears of an “ ideological jihad ” from Sanders .
The independent senator from Vermont , a self-described democratic socialist , pushed Hillary Clinton in 2016 .
In 2020 he made a strong early showing in the primaries @ @ @ @ @ @ @ endorsed Biden and spoke at the convention but discontent lingers among progressives , not least given what they see as the relative sidelining of stars such as Alexandria Ocasio Cortez , the young congresswoman from New York , and Biden ’ s reluctance to fully embrace policies including Medicare for All and the Green New Deal .
Obama emphasized the need for pragmatism in the fight against Trump .
“ A lot of times , ” he said , “ the issue has to do with ‘ How do we go about that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need ?
’ What I think the moment has done is to change some of those calculations , not because necessarily Joe ’ s changed but because circumstances have changed.
” Biden surged in the primary after winning South Carolina , a key test of support among African Americans , a foundational bloc in the party , in what was seen as a firm victory for centrists in the party .
However , the New Yorker also quoted a “ senior aide to Bernie Sanders ” who said Biden had told the senator @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he wanted “ to be the most progressive president since FDR ” .
Biden said he “ had to be sure that Bernie was serious , that he wasn ’ t going to make this an ideological jihad ” .
Discussing policy task forces including one on climate change , a panel chaired by Ocasio Cortez , Biden said : “ I said , ‘ Bernie , if you want these set up in order for me to insist that I be for Medicare for All … this is not where it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But I said , ‘ I ’ m open , I hear you , I ’ m ready to listen.
’ ” In June , Sanders told the magazine : “ I have a better relationship with Joe Biden than I had with Hillary Clinton .
”

Joe Biden feared an “ideological jihad” from Bernie Sanders, after beating him for the Democratic presidential nomination in a primary fiercely contested by centrists and progressives, the former vice-president has told the New Yorker.
Barack Obama, meanwhile, in an apparent effort to close any lingering split in Democratic ranks as the presidential election looms, told the same reporter the two men’s policy goals are “not that different”.
Sanders, an independent senator from Vermont and a self-described democratic socialist, pushed Hillary Clinton strongly in the primaries of 2016. In 2020 he made a strong early showing before Biden surged back, winning South Carolina, a key test of support among African Americans, in what was seen as a firm victory for party centrists.
Biden, 77 and Obama’s vice-president from 2009 to 2017, accepted the nomination to face Donald Trump at the Democratic convention last week.
Sanders endorsed Biden and spoke at the convention but discontent lingers among progressives, not least given what they see as the relative sidelining of stars such as Alexandria Ocasio–Cortez, the congresswoman from New York, and Biden’s reluctance to fully embrace policies including Medicare for All and the Green New Deal.
Biden told the New Yorker he “had to be sure that Bernie was serious, that he wasn’t going to make this an ideological jihad”.
Discussing policy taskforces including one on the climate crisis, a panel chaired by Ocasio–Cortez, he added: “I said, ‘Bernie, if you want these set up in order for me to insist that I be for Medicare for All … this is not where it’s going to go.’
“But I said, ‘I’m open, I hear you, I’m ready to listen.’”
The effort seems to have worked. In June, Sanders told the New Yorker: “I have a better relationship with Joe Biden than I had with Hillary Clinton.” This month, the magazine quoted a “senior aide” to the senator who said Biden told the senator he wanted “to be the most progressive president since FDR”.
Obama contended that “if you look at Joe Biden’s goals and Bernie Sanders’ goals, they’re not that different, from a 40,000ft level. They both want to make sure everybody has healthcare. They want to make sure everybody can get a job that pays a living wage. They want to make sure every child gets a good education.”
The former president also emphasized the need for pragmatism in the fight against Trump.
“A lot of times,” he said, “the issue has to do with ‘How do we go about that, and what are the coalitions we need?’ What I think the moment has done is to change some of those calculations, not because necessarily Joe’s changed but because circumstances have changed.”


theguardian--2020-08-24--Global stocks rally on US Covid treatment approval

Financial markets around the world have rallied strongly after the US government approved a coronavirus treatment using the plasma of recovered patients , and as hopes rise for the development of a vaccine .
Against a backdrop of rising optimism that medical advances could help to sustain a stronger economic recovery from the pandemic , stocks in Europe climbed higher on Monday after gains in Asia overnight .
The FTSE 100 index of leading UK company shares rose by more than 100 points , about 1.9 % , to trade above 6,100 after Donald Trump announced on Sunday that his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plasma , a method that has been used to treat flu and measles , for Covid-19 patients .
Shares rallied across Europe after gains across the board in Asia , where Hong Kong ’ s Hang Seng index jumped 1.4 % , Korea ’ s Kospi 200 gained 1 % and China ’ s CSI 300 gained 0.8 % .
Share prices have staged a dramatic recovery from one of the biggest stock market crashes in history at the onset of the pandemic , with large US technology firms fuelling a rebound on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ record highs .
However , the bounce-back comes despite the world economy sliding into the deepest slump since at least the 1930s Great Depression , owing to a collapse in activity during lockdown .
Britain has plunged into the deepest recession since modern records began , with gross domestic product falling by more than any other advanced economy in the three months to the end of June .
However , growth is expected to rapidly recover in the third quarter , taking Britain from the bottom of the G7 grow league table to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decline in the second quarter , Oxford Economics forecasts growth of 15 % in the three months to the end of September .
However , the research consultancy said this was because the UK exited lockdown later than other countries , which had already recorded most of the benefit from the lifting of controls on business and social activity in the second quarter .
Andrew Goodwin , the chief UK economist at Oxford Economics , said : “ The UK does indeed move from bottom to top .
But this is largely a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the initial fall .
”

Financial markets around the world have rallied strongly after the US government approved a coronavirus treatment using the plasma of recovered patients and hopes rose for the development of a vaccine.
Against a backdrop of growing optimism that medical advances could fuel a sustainable economic recovery from the pandemic, stocks in Europe climbed higher on Monday after gains in Asia overnight.
Share prices on Wall Street hit a fresh record high, driven by large technology companies that stand to benefit most from consumers and businesses moving online as the pandemic disrupts physical interaction.
After Donald Trump authorised on Sunday the use of convalescent plasma, a method that has been used to treat flu and measles, for Covid-19 patients, the S&P 500 index rose by 0.7% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1%.
In London, the FTSE 100 index of leading UK company shares rose by more than 100 points, ending the day up 1.7% at 6,105. Shares also rallied across Europe after overnight gains across the board in Asia, where Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index jumped 1.4%, Korea’s Kospi 200 gained 1% and China’s CSI 300 gained 0.8%.
Despite one of the biggest market crashes in history at the onset of the pandemic, shares have soared back to record highs in months.
However, the bounce-back comes despite the world economy falling into the deepest slump since at least the 1930s Great Depression, owing to a collapse in economic activity during lockdown.
In a reflection of the lasting damage, IHS Markit, a research provider, warned that GDP in some of the world’s most advanced economies could be 5% lower in 2030 compared with a scenario without Covid-19.
Britain has plunged into the deepest recession since modern records began, with gross domestic product falling by more than any other advanced economy in the three months to the end of June. However, growth is expected to rapidly recover in the third quarter, taking Britain from the bottom of the G7 growth league table to the top.
After a 20.4% decline in the second quarter, Oxford Economics forecasts growth of 15% in the three months to the end of September. However, the research consultancy said this was because the UK exited lockdown later than other countries, which had already recorded most of the benefits in the second quarter.
Despite hopes that medical advances could underpin a sustainable return to growth, analysts feared that a rise in infections this winter and a surge in unemployment could blow the recovery off-course.
Ruth Gregory, a senior UK economist at the consultancy Capital Economics, said: “Due to the combination of a large share of the UK’s GDP being generated by the sectors that are hampered the most by social distancing, and the drag from the uncertainty caused by Brexit, we suspect the UK economy will continue to lag behind its peers.”