theguardian--2020-10-17--Trump heads for battleground states, disregarding Covid concerns – live

According to a CNN analysis of Johns Hopkins University data , 10 US states recorded their highest-ever daily total of @ @ @ @ @ Colorado , Idaho , Indiana , Minnesota , New Mexico , North Carolina , North @ @ @ @ @ Wisconsin and Wyoming all had their highest daily totals since the start of the pandemic @ @ @ @ @ total of those 10 states , with 3,861 new cases on Friday .
Wisconsin is @ @ @ @ @ the presidential election , with Joe Biden holding a lead of 7.5 % over Donald @ @ @ @ @ poll .
Trump is holding a rally in Janesville , Wisconsin , on Saturday night @ @ @ @ @ all to be aware that Wisconsin is currently one of our red states , ” @ @ @ @ @ Jerome Adams , said on Friday .
“ Meaning , your positivity rates are over @ @ @ @ @ the wrong direction .
Cases are in the red , going in the wrong direction @ @

Tom Lutz in New York (now) and Martin Pengelly (earlier)

17 Oct 2020 22.29 BST Mitch McConnell announced Saturday that the Senate will vote Tuesday on a Paycheck Protection Plan funding bill and Wednesday on the same $500bn Covid-19 aid package that Democrats blocked last month on the grounds that it didn’t go far enough.
“It is long past time for the two parties to agree where we can and get more money out the door,” the Senate majority leader said in a statement. I just announced the Senate will vote next week on hundreds of billions more dollars for relief programs that Democrats do not even oppose. Working families have already waited too long for Speaker Pelosi’s Marie Antoinette act to stop. Let's make law. pic.twitter.com/iR7OYKuCKw — Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) October 17, 2020
17 Oct 2020 22.21 BST Richard Luscombe Amid a pandemic-induced economic meltdown that has seen thousands of businesses closed and millions put out of work, one industry in California appears to be booming: gun sales. A study by the UC Davis violence prevention research program estimates that 110,000 Californians have purchased a firearm since the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis. And for almost half of them – 47,000 – it was the first time they had bought a weapon. The lead researcher of the study, assistant professor Nicole Kravitz-Wirtz, said while previous spikes in firearms sales could be linked at least partially to actual rising levels of violent crime, the coronavirus “surge” is related more to apprehension. The UC Davis team found that respondents’ concerns about violence happening to them significantly increased during the pandemic compared with before, including robbery, assault, homicide, police violence, suicide and unintentional firearm injury. Significantly, the fears did not extend to mass shootings. “Our findings add support to public health-oriented strategies designed to address the enduring psychological trauma associated with direct and indirect exposure to violence, as well as the underlying social and structural factors that contribute to violence-related harms,” Kravitz-Wirtz said. “We wanted to capture individuals’ lived experiences of violence in the context of the pandemic, along with information on pandemic-induced firearm acquisition.” Another finding was that “more than one in 10 respondents, representing an estimated four million California adults, were concerned that someone they know might physically harm themselves on purpose.” For many, Kravitz-Wirtz noted, the concern was because the person they were worried about had suffered a major loss due to the pandemic, such as losing a loved one, their job or housing. The California study mirrored a national study that tracked rising levels of gun crime and firearms sales through the early months of the pandemic.
17 Oct 2020 21.53 BST Thousands of people gathered for the Women’s March in downtown Washington on Saturday to exhort voters to expel Donald Trump from the White House and protest his nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. The latest of rallies that began with a massive women’s march the day after Trump’s January 2017 inauguration was playing out during the coronavirus pandemic, and demonstrators were asked to wear face coverings and practice social distancing. Rachel O’Leary Carmona, executive director of the Women’s March, opened the event by asking people to keep their distance from one another, saying that the only superspreader event would be the recent one at the White House. “His presidency began with women marching and now it’s going to end with woman voting. Period,” she said. Women’s March activists participate in a nationwide protest against US president Donald Trump’s decision to fill the seat on the Supreme Court left by the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg before the 2020 election. Photograph: Michael McCoy/Reuters Dozens of other rallies were planned from New York to San Francisco to signal opposition to Trump and his policies, including the push to fill the seat of the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg before Election Day. One march was being held at Cornell University in upstate New York outside the dormitory where Bader Ginsburg lived as an undergraduate student. In Washington, Sonja Spoo, director of reproductive rights campaigns at Ultraviolet, said she has to chuckle when she hears reporters ask Trump whether he will accept a peaceful transfer of power if he loses his reelection bid, according to the Associated Press. “When we vote him out, come November 3rrd, there is no choice,” said Spoo. “Donald Trump will not get to choose whether he stays in power.” “That is not his power, that is our power. ... We are the hell and high water,” she said.
17 Oct 2020 21.12 BST Richard Luscombe Tensions are rising between Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis, a keen Donald Trump ally, and elections supervisors, two days before early in-person voting begins in the crucial swing state. Brad McVay, general counsel for Florida’s department of state, emailed supervisors of elections in all 67 counties this week informing them of a requirement that all ballot drop-off boxes must be attended at all times by elections staff or an armed guard, according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. While burdensome, McVay says the in-person measures are necessary to ensure the drop boxes are protected “from those who intend to do harm to the boxes (or the contents within them).” He warns: “A person onsite can prevent foreign substances or small incendiary devices (like firecrackers) from being thrown into the drop box; video monitoring cannot do the same.” But the supervisors’ representative body, the Florida Supervisors of Elections association, has effectively told them to ignore the directive, advising that no state law, statute or regulation compels them to comply. A vote by mail ballot drop box at the Broward County Supervisor of Elections office in Lauderhill, Florida. Photograph: Larry Marano/REX/Shutterstock “Drop boxes that are at the main office, a branch office or early voting site are required to be secure, but I don’t see that there is any staffing requirement or hours of operation related to those drop boxes [in state law]” the association’s general counsel Ron Labasky wrote in his own memo. “There is no definition of secure, so in my view that is within the discretion of the supervisor.” In South Florida’s three most populous counties, the Sun-Sentinel reports, Palm Beach has four drop boxes that are monitored by 24-hour video surveillance, Broward County has two, and Miami-Dade has only daytime drop off facilities at 33 early-voting locations that will be guarded from Monday. Florida is notorious for post-election finger pointing and lawsuits, and this latest wrangle sets the stage for another contentious and controversial voting season. Already this year, DeSantis and the Republicans in control of the state legislature have successfully nullified a voter-approved ballot initiative from 2018 that would have restored voting rights to hundreds of thousands of disenfranchised former felons. Almost 2.5m mail-in votes, a record for this stage of an election cycle, have already been submitted in Florida, with Democrats holding a sizable advantage. Trump needs Republican voters to turn out in person in massive numbers to capture the state and its 29 electoral college votes, which most analysts say the president must win to secure a second term.
17 Oct 2020 20.45 BST A representative for Nebraska senator Ben Sasse has responded to Donald Trump’s Twitter broadside earlier Saturday, in which he called the conservative lawmaker “little”, “the least effective of our 53 Republican senators”, “rather stupid and obnoxious” and “an embarrassment”. Sasse’s crime was to have criticized Trump in robust terms on a call with constituents first reported by the Washington Examiner, saying the president “kisses dictators’ butts” and “flirts with white supremacists”. “I’m now looking at the possibility of a Republican bloodbath in the Senate, and that’s why I’ve never been on the Trump train,” Sasse said. James Wegmann, a spokesman for Sasse, claimed: Ben said the same thing to Nebraskans that he has repeatedly said to the president directly in the Oval Office. Ben is focused on defending the Republican Senate majority, and he’s not going to waste a single minute on tweets. Sasse, 48, is considered a shoo-in for re-election against Democratic opponent Chris Janicek, who has faced criticism and calls to drop out after he sent sexually vulgar texts to a campaign staffer.
Updated at 20.45 BST
17 Oct 2020 20.23 BST Donald Trump’s presidential motorcade departed the White House at the top of the hour for today’s trips to Michigan, Wisconsin and an overnight in Las Vegas. Ahead of departure, Jared Kushner could be seen walking back and forth next to waiting cars as he chatted on his cell phone and took a quick selfie. He was wearing in a light ski jacket. Later Stephen Miller could be seen heading for the cars with a bag in each hand. The reason for the motorcade instead of Marine One is the White House 2020 Fall Garden Tours. It is a beautiful fall day for it. Trump is holding rallies around the country to try to secure key battleground states that he won four years ago. The former New York businessman prevailed in Michigan and Wisconsin in 2016 but surveys show him running behind Biden, the Democratic candidate, in those states this year. The president’s advisers have long seen Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as Pennsylvania, as key to his chances of re-election. The president is also playing defense in traditional Republican strongholds, including Arizona, where he plans to campaign on Monday, and Georgia, where he campaigned on Friday night.
17 Oct 2020 19.45 BST Lauren Aratani Thousands of travelers have already taken advantage of Hawaii’s new testing program that allows visitors to bypass the state’s mandatory 14-day quarantine if they test negative for Covid-19 at least 72 hours before their arrival. On Thursday, the program’s first day, about 8,300 passengers came through the state’s local airports. Over the last few months, about 100 visitors a day arrived in the islands. Since March, travelers looking to experience their dream Hawaiian getaway were looking at a 14-day quarantine once they touched down in the Hawaiian islands. By July, nearly 200 people were arrested for breaking quarantine, which required people to shelter-in-place as soon as they left the airport. As a result, the number of visitors crashed down from nearly 862,572 in January to 22,344 visitors in August, bringing down with it the state’s economy that relied on the $17-billion tourism industry. Hawaii is just coming down from an influx of cases of Covid-19 that it saw in the summer. At its peak in August, the average number of new cases a day was 250. Recently, the number has climbed down to around 90 cases per day. Since the number of visitors flying into the islands was so low, community transmission played a major role in the spread of the virus. Some have spoken out about the program leading to increased cases if travelers end up contracting the virus before they arrive in the islands and after they take a test. But local leaders are generally enthusiastic about the program, particularly its potential to get the state’s economy rolling again after a months-long halt. The state had a 12.5% unemployment rate in August, the fourth highest of any state, down from its peak of 13.9% in June.
17 Oct 2020 19.16 BST US daily Covid cases at highest level since July Lauren Aratani More than 68,000 new cases of Covid-19 were recorded in the US on Friday, the highest number in a single day since July, further confirmation the country is in the midst of a coronavirus resurgence. According to data from Johns Hopkins University and the Covid Tracking Project, the last time the US saw close to 68,000 new cases in a day was 31 July, when a summer peak was starting to recede. “You can’t enter into the cool months of the fall and the cold months of the winter with a high community infection baseline,” said Dr Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious disease expert, on Friday, while discussing the difficulties the virus will present in the coming weeks. Fauci has said repeatedly that the US is still in its first wave of coronavirus, pointing out that case numbers have not dipped to a low enough point to constitute an end to that first phase. On Friday, the US hit a global record of total cases, 8 million since March, with a death toll close to 220,000. US records highest daily coronavirus case total since July Read more
17 Oct 2020 18.30 BST Joe Biden has continued his attack on what his campaign see as a weak spot for Donald Trump: the Covid-19 pandemic. On Saturday, Biden tweeted out a video of Trump saying America is “rounding a corner” in the fight against the virus. Headlines are then displayed detailing the rise in cases of the coronavirus across America. The video ends with three words: “Clueless. Dangerous. Reckless”. You deserve a president who will actually tell you the truth. pic.twitter.com/I9XzZ0ADmT — Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 17, 2020 The US passed 8m Covid-19 cases on Friday as fatalities in America from the virus approach 220,000.
17 Oct 2020 18.15 BST Sam Levine Black voters in North Carolina are disproportionately having their mail-in ballots flagged for potential rejection in the battleground state, setting off alarms about disenfranchisement. North Carolina requires mail-in voters to get a witness for their ballots and at least 7,000 mail-in ballots have been flagged across the state because of a deficiency, according to data collected by Michael Bitzer, a professor at Catawba College who closely tracks voting data in the state. As of Wednesday, 40% of rejected ballots – 2,871 – were from Black voters, even though they comprised only 16% of the overall ballots returned. (A spokesman for the state board of elections cautioned some of the data may be outdated because local election offices have not been entering rejection data into the statewide system while legal challenges are pending.) Postal voting will play a huge part in this year’s election. Photograph: Lynne Sladky/AP The Rev Anthony Spearman, the head of the North Carolina chapter of the NAACP, attributed the higher rate at which Black voters’ ballots were being flagged to the fact that African Americans traditionally have not widely voted by mail in the state, instead opting for in-person voting. Many voters are getting tripped up by the state’s requirement that mail-in voters get a witness to sign their absentee ballot, he said. “The African American community, many of them for the first time, are utilizing absentee ballots and have not been cultivated to the practices thereof. There is a level of them being not aware of the process and how it goes and so they’re not filling out their forms correctly,” he said. Just 3% of the Black voters whose ballots were flagged for rejection voted by mail in 2016, according to data collected by Bitzer. “Voting by mail is very different than voting in person,” Bitzer said. “Until I’m presented otherwise I have to think lack of familiarity with the vote method process is probably what is hanging up so much of these ballots.” The North Carolina data underscores the conundrum Democrats are facing this year as they encourage supporters to cast their votes by mail amid concerns about Covid-19. A mail vote is more likely to be rejected than an in-person one and research has shown that first-time voters and minorities are all much more likely to have their ballots rejected. You can read the full article below: Black voters' mail-in ballots being rejected at higher rate Read more
17 Oct 2020 17.55 BST Cinemas in areas of New York with low Covid-19 positivity rates will be able to reopen from Friday, the state’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, says. Theatres will only be allowed to operate at 25% capacity, up to a maximum audience of 50, and the ruling only applies outside of New York City. NEW: Starting October 23, movie theaters outside of NYC can reopen at 25% capacity with up to 50 people per screen.
There will be mandatory social distancing and other precautions. pic.twitter.com/QKmKvuyTy2 — Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) October 17, 2020 There were 1,784 new cases of Covid-19 reported in New York on Friday, and nine fatalities. Of the 159,972 tests reported, 1.11% came back positive.
17 Oct 2020 17.39 BST Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, arguably the most powerful person in the Republican party and a ruthless political operator, is up for reelection this November and holds a 12-point lead over his challenger, Amy McGrath. However, one of the largest newspapers in his home state of Kentucky has endorsed McGrath’s candidacy. “During his 36 years in office, McConnell has made it perfectly clear that his only passion is the pursuit of power, his own and that of the Republican Party,” the Lexington Herald-Leader wrote in its editorial. “For that reason alone, we would endorse his opponent. “Luckily for voters, McGrath, a former fighter pilot and public servant, would make an excellent senator who would actually put the needs and interests of Kentuckians above her own.”
17 Oct 2020 17.21 BST Lauren Gambino In 1994, Senator Joe Biden of Delaware stood proudly behind Bill Clinton as he signed into law a reform bill that touched nearly every aspect of the US criminal justice system. More than 25 years later, amid national protests against racial injustice in law enforcement, the Democratic presidential nominee is grappling anew with the implications of legislation he helped author and which experts say opened the door to an era of mass incarceration that devastated African American communities. At a town hall in Philadelphia on Thursday night, Biden was asked by a voter about the legacy of the 1994 bill, which she said included “prejudice against minorities”, and what his view of the legislation was now. Biden sought to defend the bill as a product of a different era, while arguing that elements of it were wrongly implemented. Pressed by the moderator, George Stephanopoulos, to say if his support for the bill had been a mistake, Biden replied: “Yes, it was. “But here’s where the mistake came,” he said. “The mistake came in terms of what the states did locally.” In an eight-minute response, Biden said the bill passed with the support of the Congressional Black Caucus and Black mayors around the country. He noted that it contained the landmark Violence Against Women Act and an assault weapons ban. Conditions were different now, he said, as activists demand an overhaul of policing and incarceration policies in response to police killings of Black Americans. “Things have changed drastically,” Biden said. You can read the full article below: 'Things have changed': can Biden overcome the racist legacy of the crime bill he backed? Read more
17 Oct 2020 16.45 BST Kamala Harris will return to the campaign trail on Monday, according to the Biden campaign. Harris cancelled her in-person appearances on Thursday after it emerged she had flown with someone who had later tested positive for Covid-19. Harris tested negative for the virus on Friday, and she will appear at an event in Florida on Monday. Kamala Harris will return to the campaign trail on Monday. Photograph: Ronda Churchill/AFP/Getty Images Meanwhile David Perdue, a Republican senator from Georgia, has been criticized for mocking Harris’s name. During an event in Macon, Georgia, Perdue mentioned: “Kah-mah-la or Kah-ma-la or Kamala-mala-mala, I don’t know, whatever.” This is intentionally disrespectful and a bigoted racist tactic straight from the Trump playbook. Every Georgia Republican has to answer for this. https://t.co/guUmn1htTi — Georgia Democrats (@GeorgiaDemocrat) October 16, 2020 Harris’s late mother was Indian and her father is black, and Democrats accused Perdue of using racially-charged language. “Senator David Perdue has served in the Senate alongside Vice Presidential nominee and Senator Kamala Harris since 2017. He knows her name and he knows how to say it. His disgusting performance today is nothing more than a desperate dog whistle from a losing politician ... Perdue has shown he lacks the dignity and respect that Georgians deserve from their US senator, and he must immediately apologize,” Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesperson Helen Kalla said in a statement.


theguardian--2020-10-17--Black voters' mail-in ballots being rejected at higher rate

Black voters in North Carolina are disproportionately having their mail-in ballots flagged for potential rejection in the battleground state , setting off alarms about disenfranchisement .
North Carolina requires mail-in voters to get a witness for their ballots and at least 7,000 mail-in ballots have been flagged across the state because of a deficiency , according to data collected by Michael Bitzer , a professor at Catawba College who closely tracks voting data in the state .
As of Wednesday , 40 % of rejected ballots – 2,871 – were from Black voters , even though they comprised only 16 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( A spokesman for the state board of elections cautioned some of the data may be outdated because local election offices have not been entering rejection data into the statewide system while legal challenges are pending . )
The Rev Anthony Spearman , the head of the North Carolina chapter of the NAACP , attributed the higher rate at which Black voters ’ ballots were being flagged to the fact that African Americans traditionally have not widely voted by mail in the state , instead opting for in-person voting .
Many voters are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s requirement that mail-in voters get a witness to sign their absentee ballot , he said .
“ The African American community , many of them for the first time , are utilizing absentee ballots and have not been cultivated to the practices thereof .
There is a level of them being not aware of the process and how it goes and so they ’ re not filling out their forms correctly , ” he said .
Just 3 % of the Black voters whose ballots were flagged for rejection voted by mail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Bitzer .
“ Voting by mail is very different than voting in person , ” Bitzer said .
“ Until I ’ m presented otherwise I have to think lack of familiarity with the vote method process is probably what is hanging up so much of these ballots.
” The North Carolina data underscores the conundrum Democrats are facing this year as they encourage supporters to cast their votes by mail amid concerns about Covid-19 .
A mail vote is more likely to be rejected than an in-person one and research has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all much more likely to have their ballots rejected .
There is an ongoing legal battle in the state over how easy it should be for voters to fix a ballot flagged for rejection .
Earlier this year state officials said that if voters had any omissions with the witness portion of their ballots – the section Spearman said was confusing voters – they could sign an affidavit and have their ballot count .
But state officials quickly suspended that guidance amid objections from Republicans and ongoing litigation .
On Wednesday , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ use an affidavit to fix small discrepancies with the witness section , but said the voter would have to cast a new ballot if the witness forgot to sign altogether .
Republicans are appealing against the ruling .
There also appears to have been some inconsistency in how strictly election officials needed to review a ballot to determine if it should be rejected .
Earlier this month , state officials released a memo instructing local election boards that they should not automatically reject a ballot if an address for a witness was incomplete @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , was flagging nearly one in every 10 ballots that came in for rejection before the memo .
Madeline Reed , a voter in the county , told the Greensboro News and Record her ballot was flagged for rejection because officials couldn ’ t read the letter “ C ” in her witness signature .
The rejection rate in the county has since fallen to 2.2 % , according to data collected by Michael McDonald , a political science professor at the University of Florida .
“ Our staff is very , very @ @ @ @ @ @ @ well and they tend to scrutinize more closely the ballots they take a look at .
And that may have something to do with the higher numbers in Guilford county , ” said Spearman , who is also a member of the county ’ s board of elections .
In-person early voting began Thursday in North Carolina and Spearman said he would encourage anyone who had their ballot flagged for rejection to forget about casting a new mail-in ballot and vote in person instead .
“ I think people will go ahead and @ @ @ @ @ @ @

Black voters in North Carolina are disproportionately having their mail-in ballots flagged for potential rejection in the battleground state, setting off alarms about disenfranchisement.
North Carolina requires mail-in voters to get a witness for their ballots and at least 7,000 mail-in ballots have been flagged across the state because of a deficiency, according to data collected by Michael Bitzer, a professor at Catawba College who closely tracks voting data in the state. As of Wednesday, 40% of rejected ballots – 2,871 – were from Black voters, even though they comprised only 16% of the overall ballots returned. (A spokesman for the state board of elections cautioned some of the data may be outdated because local election offices have not been entering rejection data into the statewide system while legal challenges are pending.)
The Rev Anthony Spearman, the head of the North Carolina chapter of the NAACP, attributed the higher rate at which Black voters’ ballots were being flagged to the fact that African Americans traditionally have not widely voted by mail in the state, instead opting for in-person voting. Many voters are getting tripped up by the state’s requirement that mail-in voters get a witness to sign their absentee ballot, he said.
“The African American community, many of them for the first time, are utilizing absentee ballots and have not been cultivated to the practices thereof. There is a level of them being not aware of the process and how it goes and so they’re not filling out their forms correctly,” he said.
Just 3% of the Black voters whose ballots were flagged for rejection voted by mail in 2016, according to data collected by Bitzer.
“Voting by mail is very different than voting in person,” Bitzer said. “Until I’m presented otherwise I have to think lack of familiarity with the vote method process is probably what is hanging up so much of these ballots.”
The North Carolina data underscores the conundrum Democrats are facing this year as they encourage supporters to cast their votes by mail amid concerns about Covid-19. A mail vote is more likely to be rejected than an in-person one and research has shown that first-time voters and minorities are all much more likely to have their ballots rejected.
There is an ongoing legal battle in the state over how easy it should be for voters to fix a ballot flagged for rejection. Earlier this year state officials said that if voters had any omissions with the witness portion of their ballots – the section Spearman said was confusing voters – they could sign an affidavit and have their ballot count.
But state officials quickly suspended that guidance amid objections from Republicans and ongoing litigation. On Wednesday, a federal judge ruled that a voter could use an affidavit to fix small discrepancies with the witness section, but said the voter would have to cast a new ballot if the witness forgot to sign altogether. Republicans are appealing against the ruling.
There also appears to have been some inconsistency in how strictly election officials needed to review a ballot to determine if it should be rejected. Earlier this month, state officials released a memo instructing local election boards that they should not automatically reject a ballot if an address for a witness was incomplete.
Guilford county, home to Greensboro, was flagging nearly one in every 10 ballots that came in for rejection before the memo. Madeline Reed, a voter in the county, told the Greensboro News and Record her ballot was flagged for rejection because officials couldn’t read the letter “C” in her witness signature. The rejection rate in the county has since fallen to 2.2%, according to data collected by Michael McDonald, a political science professor at the University of Florida.
“Our staff is very, very effective and they have been trained very well and they tend to scrutinize more closely the ballots they take a look at. And that may have something to do with the higher numbers in Guilford county,” said Spearman, who is also a member of the county’s board of elections.
In-person early voting began Thursday in North Carolina and Spearman said he would encourage anyone who had their ballot flagged for rejection to forget about casting a new mail-in ballot and vote in person instead. “ I think people will go ahead and do that,” he said.


theguardian--2020-10-17--Statue of former California governor Pete Wilson removed in San Diego

A statue of the former California governor Pete Wilson was removed from a San Diego park after critics said the governor supported laws and policies that hurt immigrants and the LGBTQ community .
The 13-year-old statue near Horton Plaza Park was removed by Horton Walk , the non-profit that owns it , the San Diego Union-Tribune reported .
Horton Walk ’ s president , Steve Williams , wrote in an email that no decision had been made on whether it will be returned .
“ All property – whether statues or real property – must be protected , ” he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we have decided to secure and protect the statue in a place of safekeeping.
” On Monday , representatives of Latino and gay rights groups held a news conference in front of the life-sized bronze , saying Wilson supported laws and policies that hurt their communities .
Activist Enrique Morones told the Union-Tribune he is glad the statue was taken down because it was not something the community wanted in the first place .
“ No one has unified the Latino community more than Pete Wilson , ” Morones said in an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Proposition 187 back in 1994 unified Latino community and supporters of human rights , against him.
” In 1994 , voters approved the Wilson-supported Proposition 187 , which sought to limit illegal immigration by cutting off state services , including healthcare and public education , to undocumented migrants .
A federal judge later ruled it unconstitutional .
Wilson , 87 , could not be reached for comment .
Sean Walsh , his law partner and former chief of staff , said the statue was a recognition of 50 years of public service .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ tactics similar to those used in Seattle , Portland , Oakland and other cities across the country are causing individuals and businesses to protect themselves , ” he said .
“ Our country , our society can not be ruled by the threat of intimidation and violence.
” The property where the statue was located is owned and maintained by a private company , and the city was not involved in removing the statue , San Diego spokesman Gustavo Portela said .
The move comes amid nationwide demands for the removal of statues @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who owned enslaved people .
Wilson was mayor of San Diego from 1971 to 1983 .
He represented California in the US Senate from 1983 to 1991 and was governor from 1991 to 1999 .

A statue of the former California governor Pete Wilson was removed from a San Diego park after critics said the governor supported laws and policies that hurt immigrants and the LGBTQ community.
The 13-year-old statue near Horton Plaza Park was removed by Horton Walk, the non-profit that owns it, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. Horton Walk’s president, Steve Williams, wrote in an email that no decision had been made on whether it will be returned.
“All property – whether statues or real property – must be protected,” he wrote. “With this in mind, we have decided to secure and protect the statue in a place of safekeeping.”
On Monday, representatives of Latino and gay rights groups held a news conference in front of the life-sized bronze, saying Wilson supported laws and policies that hurt their communities.
Activist Enrique Morones told the Union-Tribune he is glad the statue was taken down because it was not something the community wanted in the first place.
“No one has unified the Latino community more than Pete Wilson,” Morones said in an email. “His racist support of Proposition 187 back in 1994 unified Latino community and supporters of human rights, against him.”
Today: San Diego human rights advocates made a call to remove a statue of former mayor and governor Pete Wilson adjacent to Horton Plaza. Wilson, who backed CA Prop 187 in the 90s, has recently voiced his support for the current presidential administration. pic.twitter.com/ImJvyYGnfb — Mario A. Cortez (@macortez619) October 12, 2020
In 1994, voters approved the Wilson-supported Proposition 187, which sought to limit illegal immigration by cutting off state services, including healthcare and public education, to undocumented migrants. A federal judge later ruled it unconstitutional.
Wilson, 87, could not be reached for comment. Sean Walsh, his law partner and former chief of staff, said the statue was a recognition of 50 years of public service.
“It’s regrettable that intimidation tactics similar to those used in Seattle, Portland, Oakland and other cities across the country are causing individuals and businesses to protect themselves,” he said. “Our country, our society cannot be ruled by the threat of intimidation and violence.”
The property where the statue was located is owned and maintained by a private company, and the city was not involved in removing the statue, San Diego spokesman Gustavo Portela said.
The move comes amid nationwide demands for the removal of statues and symbols of Confederate generals and those who owned enslaved people.
Wilson was mayor of San Diego from 1971 to 1983. He represented California in the US Senate from 1983 to 1991 and was governor from 1991 to 1999.


theguardian--2020-10-17--'She represents the past': a Senate hug symbolizes California's Dianne Feinstein fatigue

It was a hug that would have shocked many , even in a year without social distancing : Dianne Feinstein , the top Democrat on the Senate judiciary committee , ending a contentious week of supreme court confirmation hearings with a full-body embrace of Lindsey Graham , the committee ’ s Republican chair .
The act and her remarks about the hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett – “ This has been one of the best set of hearings that I ’ ve participated in ” – sparked calls among progressives for her retirement , and outcry that she had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Many of the California senator ’ s constituents and her more progressive Democratic party colleagues have been arguing that for years .
“ There have been a number of us in San Francisco that for a long time felt that , without taking away from what she has accomplished , it has gotten to a point where she is out of touch with where San Francisco is and where California is , ” said David Campos , chair of the San Francisco Democratic party .
He was not speaking on behalf of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of San Francisco and California , ” Campos continued .
“ It ’ s not surprising that at a time when we ’ re facing a crisis , when we have a rightwing supremacist being rushed through the supreme court , she ’ s not up to the task .
And it ’ s not because of her age .
It ’ s just because of who she is.
” Feinstein became mayor of San Francisco in 1978 , following the assassinations of the activist Harvey Milk and mayor George Moscone , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Although her legacy in the city is one of respect , given her lengthy history of public service , her penchant for civility and not rocking the boat feels out of place in today ’ s politics , her critics say .
In 2018 , the California Democratic party voted to endorse Feinstein ’ s opponent in the state ’ s US Senate race , with the four-term incumbent – Feinstein has served in the Senate since 1992 – winning just 7 % of the endorsement vote .
A recent push to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ racist or colonialist legacies has included an elementary school named after her .
The school names advisory committee noted that when Feinstein was mayor of San Francisco in 1986 , she not only allowed a Confederate flag to fly in front of City Hall but pushed to prosecute the Black activist who removed it in protest .
And few have forgotten when a group of young climate activists engaged Feinstein in San Francisco and she told them : “ You didn ’ t vote for me.
” Progressives now say Feinstein failed in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the judiciary committee , which this week interviewed Barrett , a staunch conservative .
“ It ’ s not like Dianne Feinstein and I have a lot in common , ” said the local lawmaker Hillary Ronen .
“ She ’ s a very moderate Democrat and I ’ m a very progressive Democrat .
I expect us to disagree a lot of the time , but I feel like she betrayed a lot of us in that statement thanking Graham for his fairness .
There was absolutely nothing fair .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a travesty and the least fair thing that we ’ ve seen.
” Ronen said she was “ floored and crushed ” to hear Feinstein ’ s remarks after the confirmation hearings .
“ When people ask , ‘ Why are you surprised ?
She ’ s basically a Republican.
’ Well , I had never , in all the times I ’ ve seen her represent our state , expected her to betray us to this degree , ” Ronen said .
“ I don ’ t know she fully realizes what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ constituents , who are about to see decades of civil rights gains go down the drain because of the sham proceeding orchestrated by the Republican party and Mitch McConnell.
” On Thursday , several national progressive groups called for Feinstein to step down as the top Democrat on the judiciary committee.. Brian Fallon , Demand Justice ’ s executive director , argued that Feinstein had “ undercut Democrats ’ position ” during the hearings .
Naral Pro-Choice America , a leading reproductive rights group , called Feinstein “ wildly out of step with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ committee needs new leadership ” .
The Democratic California congresswoman Katie Porter also criticized Feinstein , telling HuffPost : “ I disagree strongly with Senator Feinstein that that set of hearings was one of the best or was even acceptable .
I think Amy Coney Barrett did not answer basic questions about her beliefs and stonewalled repeatedly .
We got many fewer direct answers than we have out of most supreme court hearings .
”

It was a hug that would have shocked many, even in a year without social distancing: Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate judiciary committee, ending a contentious week of supreme court confirmation hearings with a full-body embrace of Lindsey Graham, the committee’s Republican chair.
The act and her remarks about the hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett – “This has been one of the best set of hearings that I’ve participated in” – sparked calls among progressives for her retirement, and outcry that she had been in office for too long. Many of the California senator’s constituents and her more progressive Democratic party colleagues have been arguing that for years.
“There have been a number of us in San Francisco that for a long time felt that, without taking away from what she has accomplished, it has gotten to a point where she is out of touch with where San Francisco is and where California is,” said David Campos, chair of the San Francisco Democratic party. He was not speaking on behalf of the organization.
“She represents the past of San Francisco and California,” Campos continued. “It’s not surprising that at a time when we’re facing a crisis, when we have a rightwing supremacist being rushed through the supreme court, she’s not up to the task. And it’s not because of her age. It’s just because of who she is.”
Feinstein became mayor of San Francisco in 1978, following the assassinations of the activist Harvey Milk and mayor George Moscone, and moved city politics firmly back to center. Although her legacy in the city is one of respect, given her lengthy history of public service, her penchant for civility and not rocking the boat feels out of place in today’s politics, her critics say.
In 2018, the California Democratic party voted to endorse Feinstein’s opponent in the state’s US Senate race, with the four-term incumbent – Feinstein has served in the Senate since 1992 – winning just 7% of the endorsement vote.
A recent push to rename public schools honoring historical figures with racist or colonialist legacies has included an elementary school named after her. The school names advisory committee noted that when Feinstein was mayor of San Francisco in 1986, she not only allowed a Confederate flag to fly in front of City Hall but pushed to prosecute the Black activist who removed it in protest.
And few have forgotten when a group of young climate activists engaged Feinstein in San Francisco and she told them: “You didn’t vote for me.”
We’ve been saying this about Dianne Feinstein for a while now pic.twitter.com/rfNQJIeStt — Sunrise Movement LA 🌅 (@SunriseMvmtLA) October 15, 2020
Progressives now say Feinstein failed in her leadership role as the top Democrat on the judiciary committee, which this week interviewed Barrett, a staunch conservative.
“It’s not like Dianne Feinstein and I have a lot in common,” said the local lawmaker Hillary Ronen. “She’s a very moderate Democrat and I’m a very progressive Democrat. I expect us to disagree a lot of the time, but I feel like she betrayed a lot of us in that statement thanking Graham for his fairness. There was absolutely nothing fair. The handling of this democratic process has been a travesty and the least fair thing that we’ve seen.”
Ronen said she was “floored and crushed” to hear Feinstein’s remarks after the confirmation hearings.
“When people ask, ‘Why are you surprised? She’s basically a Republican.’ Well, I had never, in all the times I’ve seen her represent our state, expected her to betray us to this degree,” Ronen said. “I don’t know she fully realizes what that statement says to us as her constituents, who are about to see decades of civil rights gains go down the drain because of the sham proceeding orchestrated by the Republican party and Mitch McConnell.”
Feinstein speaks on the third day of Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s Senate confirmation hearings. Photograph: Erin Schaff/EPA
On Thursday, several national progressive groups called for Feinstein to step down as the top Democrat on the judiciary committee..
Brian Fallon, Demand Justice’s executive director, argued that Feinstein had “undercut Democrats’ position” during the hearings. Naral Pro-Choice America, a leading reproductive rights group, called Feinstein “wildly out of step with the American people”, saying the “committee needs new leadership”.
The Democratic California congresswoman Katie Porter also criticized Feinstein, telling HuffPost: “I disagree strongly with Senator Feinstein that that set of hearings was one of the best or was even acceptable. I think Amy Coney Barrett did not answer basic questions about her beliefs and stonewalled repeatedly. We got many fewer direct answers than we have out of most supreme court hearings.”
05:10 Amy Coney Barrett: key moments from the supreme court confirmation hearings – video
Sam Levin contributed to this report


theguardian--2020-10-17--'Things have changed': can Biden overcome the racist legacy of the crime bill he backed?

In 1994 , Senator Joe Biden of Delaware stood proudly behind Bill Clinton as he signed into law a reform bill that touched nearly every aspect of the US criminal justice system .
More than 25 years later , amid national protests against racial injustice in law enforcement , the Democratic presidential nominee is grappling anew with the implications of legislation he helped author and which experts say opened the door to an era of mass incarceration that devastated African American communities .
At a town hall in Philadelphia on Thursday night , Biden was asked by a voter about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which she said included “ prejudice against minorities ” , and what his view of the legislation was now .
Biden sought to defend the bill as a product of a different era , while arguing that elements of it were wrongly implemented .
Pressed by the moderator , George Stephanopoulos , to say if his support for the bill had been a mistake , Biden replied : “ Yes , it was .
“ But here ’ s where the mistake came , ” he said .
“ The mistake came in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” In an eight-minute response , Biden said the bill passed with the support of the Congressional Black Caucus and Black mayors around the country .
He noted that it contained the landmark Violence Against Women Act and an assault weapons ban .
Conditions were different now , he said , as activists demand an overhaul of policing and incarceration policies in response to police killings of Black Americans .
Biden has pledged to decriminalize marijuana , a step short of calls to legalize the drug at the federal level .
He has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will expunge the records of anyone previously arrested for possession of marijuana and help divert those with minor drug convictions into treatment rather than jail .
Asked if he still believed , as he did in 1994 , that more police officers on the streets meant less crime , Biden said he did – but only “ if in fact they ’ re involved in community policing ” .
Turning to calls from Black Lives Matter protesters to re-imagine or “ defund ” police departments , he reiterated his opposition .
On Friday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ criminal justice reform bill as one of his biggest accomplishments , seized on the issue , claiming Biden “ freely used the term SUPER PREDATOR !
!
!
” as he advocated for the passage of the 1994 crime bill .
That is false .
In a 1993 speech , Biden warned of “ predators on our streets ” .
But there is no record of him using the term “ super predator ” , which Trump repeatedly invoked in 2016 , attacking Hillary Clinton for using the term 20 years before , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bill Clinton has expressed regret over the crime bill , acknowledging in 2015 that it played a significant role in mass incarceration and sent even minor criminals to prison for “ way too long ” .
Biden ’ s reluctance to embrace sweeping police reform has frustrated some activists .
Polling shows Biden draws overwhelming support from Black voters , who helped revive his primary campaign , and yet he has struggled to excite young and progressive African Americans .
In the town hall on Thursday night , a student from Pennsylvania referred @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that if African Americans “ have a problem figuring out whether you ’ re for me or Trump , then you ain ’ t black ” .
Cedric Humphrey asked the former vice-president what he could say to persuade young , Black men , like himself , “ who see voting for you as further participation in a system that continually fails to protect them ” .
“ First of all , ” Biden said , “ if young Black women and men vote , you can determine the outcome of the election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ next question is : am I worthy of your vote , can I earn your vote ?
” Biden explained what he intended to do as president to reform the criminal justice system and reduce the racial wealth gap .
“ That ’ s what got me involved in politics in the first place , a thing called redlining , ” Biden said .
“ We can change so much , that we can do so much to change the circumstances to give people a real opportunity.
” Stephanopoulos asked Humphrey if Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had not yet earned Humphrey ’ s vote , Biden asked him to stay after the event was over , so they could speak more .

In 1994, Senator Joe Biden of Delaware stood proudly behind Bill Clinton as he signed into law a reform bill that touched nearly every aspect of the US criminal justice system.
More than 25 years later, amid national protests against racial injustice in law enforcement, the Democratic presidential nominee is grappling anew with the implications of legislation he helped author and which experts say opened the door to an era of mass incarceration that devastated African American communities.
At a town hall in Philadelphia on Thursday night, Biden was asked by a voter about the legacy of the 1994 bill, which she said included “prejudice against minorities”, and what his view of the legislation was now.
Biden sought to defend the bill as a product of a different era, while arguing that elements of it were wrongly implemented.
Pressed by the moderator, George Stephanopoulos, to say if his support for the bill had been a mistake, Biden replied: “Yes, it was.
“But here’s where the mistake came,” he said. “The mistake came in terms of what the states did locally.”
In an eight-minute response, Biden said the bill passed with the support of the Congressional Black Caucus and Black mayors around the country. He noted that it contained the landmark Violence Against Women Act and an assault weapons ban.
Conditions were different now, he said, as activists demand an overhaul of policing and incarceration policies in response to police killings of Black Americans.
“Things have changed drastically,” Biden said.
Biden has pledged to decriminalize marijuana, a step short of calls to legalize the drug at the federal level. He has also said that if elected, he will expunge the records of anyone previously arrested for possession of marijuana and help divert those with minor drug convictions into treatment rather than jail.
Asked if he still believed, as he did in 1994, that more police officers on the streets meant less crime, Biden said he did – but only “if in fact they’re involved in community policing”.
Turning to calls from Black Lives Matter protesters to re-imagine or “defund” police departments, he reiterated his opposition.
On Friday, Donald Trump, who touts a criminal justice reform bill as one of his biggest accomplishments, seized on the issue, claiming Biden “freely used the term SUPER PREDATOR!!!” as he advocated for the passage of the 1994 crime bill.
That is false. In a 1993 speech, Biden warned of “predators on our streets”. But there is no record of him using the term “super predator”, which Trump repeatedly invoked in 2016, attacking Hillary Clinton for using the term 20 years before, a choice she said she regretted.
Bill Clinton has expressed regret over the crime bill, acknowledging in 2015 that it played a significant role in mass incarceration and sent even minor criminals to prison for “way too long”.
Biden’s reluctance to embrace sweeping police reform has frustrated some activists. Polling shows Biden draws overwhelming support from Black voters, who helped revive his primary campaign, and yet he has struggled to excite young and progressive African Americans.
In the town hall on Thursday night, a student from Pennsylvania referred to Biden’s comment this year that if African Americans “have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black”. Cedric Humphrey asked the former vice-president what he could say to persuade young, Black men, like himself, “who see voting for you as further participation in a system that continually fails to protect them”.
“First of all,” Biden said, “if young Black women and men vote, you can determine the outcome of the election. Not a joke.
“The next question is: am I worthy of your vote, can I earn your vote?”
Biden explained what he intended to do as president to reform the criminal justice system and reduce the racial wealth gap.
“That’s what got me involved in politics in the first place, a thing called redlining,” Biden said. “We can change so much, that we can do so much to change the circumstances to give people a real opportunity.”
Stephanopoulos asked Humphrey if Biden had answered his question.
“I guess so,” he said.
Sensing he had not yet earned Humphrey’s vote, Biden asked him to stay after the event was over, so they could speak more.


theguardian--2020-10-17--Stock Market America is booming. So is Unemployment America | Lloyd Green

The chasm between the two Americas – “ Unemployment America ” and “ Stock Market America ” – made starkly visible this spring , has not disappeared .
Instead , the divide has widened .
America ’ s stock indexes have weathered the pandemic ; the country ’ s job markets less so .
On Thursday , the labor department reported nearly 900,000 new unemployment claims and Columbia University announced that 8 million Americans had fallen into poverty since May .
Meanwhile , the number of Covid-19 cases continues to climb , the Affordable Care Act stands in legal jeopardy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ president ’ s latest pick for the supreme court , will not tell us if she believes that Medicare and social security pass constitutional muster .
The New Deal may yet be undone .
On that score , language that soothed the White House and Republicans may come back to haunt them at the ballot box .
According to polls , older voters are prepared to vote for Joe Biden , a Democrat , in a marked departure from elections past .
Donald Trump , not to mention many Republicans in Congress , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ millions of older Americans , social security and Medicare are not nice-to-haves or cushy benefits handed out at the benevolent whims of the state .
Rather , they are the earned benefits of a lifetime of work .
According to US government data , social security benefits constitute about one-third of the income of the elderly , and for many even more .
According to the New York Times , in February , at the same time that the Trump administration was declaring that the virus was not a big deal , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the gods of the markets and the Republican donor base that the outbreak would be worse than the administration was saying publicly .
Trump and his minions acted as if they believed the public could not handle the truth even as Wall Street dumped its holdings .
Against that backdrop , preserving healthcare and retirement is the least they can do .
But we know they won ’ t .
Both the president and Mitch McConnell , the Senate majority leader , have spoken openly of cutting or “ adjusting ” entitlements .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ failure of Congress to deliver Covid relief .
On the campaign trail , the populist rhetoric of Trump ’ s 2016 campaign has given way , in 2020 , to self-pity and personal resentments .
The president wants us to feel his pain even as it appears that he is incapable of feeling ours .
His relationship with his core supporters grows ever more asymmetric .
When Trump ’ s refusal to wear a mask in public is taken as a sign of defiant courage , the body politic is certainly ailing .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ as better than they were four years ago .
At the same time , however , nearly three in five voters see the country as being in worse shape than at the outset of the Trump presidency .
With nearly 220,000 people dead from the disease , the state of the Union is definitely hurting .
The much touted “ V ” -shaped recovery is slow in coming , if it ever arrives .
Don ’ t look to election day to bind the nation ’ s wounds .
The realities that led @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are still with us .
The gaps between the rural US , white evangelicals , white voters without college degrees and the rest of the country have not disappeared .
Military suicides are up by a fifth and death by opioids has returned .
Beyond that , the issue of immigration retains its potency .
True , the president may have given his base a sense of calm but the causes of grievance have not gone away .
What David Brooks once described as an idyllic urban existence , Bobos in Paradise , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for everyone else .
Expect Trumpism to live on , regardless of what happens on 3 November and the days that follow .
A definitive Biden victory stands to provide the US with a president whose political legitimacy is less open to question or attack .
Unlike George W Bush in 2004 or the incumbent , a Biden win would likely be accompanied by a majority of the popular vote .
Beyond that , Biden does not carry Clinton-era baggage .
The former vice-president is not a child of 1960 .
Likewise , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reflexively centrist “ man from Scranton ” of being a radical .
Together , that would help lower the temperature for a bit , anyway , and that counts .
The two Americas will not disappear any time soon .
At most , we can at least hope for some civility , and God knows we can use it .

The chasm between the two Americas – “Unemployment America” and “Stock Market America” – made starkly visible this spring, has not disappeared. Instead, the divide has widened.
America’s stock indexes have weathered the pandemic; the country’s job markets less so. On Thursday, the labor department reported nearly 900,000 new unemployment claims and Columbia University announced that 8 million Americans had fallen into poverty since May.
Meanwhile, the number of Covid-19 cases continues to climb, the Affordable Care Act stands in legal jeopardy, and Amy Coney Barrett, the president’s latest pick for the supreme court, will not tell us if she believes that Medicare and social security pass constitutional muster. The New Deal may yet be undone.
On that score, language that soothed the White House and Republicans may come back to haunt them at the ballot box. According to polls, older voters are prepared to vote for Joe Biden, a Democrat, in a marked departure from elections past.
Donald Trump, not to mention many Republicans in Congress, do not seem to understand that for millions of older Americans, social security and Medicare are not nice-to-haves or cushy benefits handed out at the benevolent whims of the state. Rather, they are the earned benefits of a lifetime of work. According to US government data, social security benefits constitute about one-third of the income of the elderly, and for many even more.
According to the New York Times, in February, at the same time that the Trump administration was declaring that the virus was not a big deal, the president’s top advisers tipped off the gods of the markets and the Republican donor base that the outbreak would be worse than the administration was saying publicly. Trump and his minions acted as if they believed the public could not handle the truth even as Wall Street dumped its holdings.
Against that backdrop, preserving healthcare and retirement is the least they can do. But we know they won’t. Both the president and Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, have spoken openly of cutting or “adjusting” entitlements. Then again, McConnell laughs about the failure of Congress to deliver Covid relief.
On the campaign trail, the populist rhetoric of Trump’s 2016 campaign has given way, in 2020, to self-pity and personal resentments. The president wants us to feel his pain even as it appears that he is incapable of feeling ours. His relationship with his core supporters grows ever more asymmetric.
When Trump’s refusal to wear a mask in public is taken as a sign of defiant courage, the body politic is certainly ailing. Half of Americans view their personal situations as better than they were four years ago. At the same time, however, nearly three in five voters see the country as being in worse shape than at the outset of the Trump presidency.
When Trump’s refusal to wear a mask in public is taken as a sign of courage, the body politic is ailing
With nearly 220,000 people dead from the disease, the state of the Union is definitely hurting. The much touted “V”-shaped recovery is slow in coming, if it ever arrives.
Don’t look to election day to bind the nation’s wounds. The realities that led to Trump’s electoral college upset are still with us.
The gaps between the rural US, white evangelicals, white voters without college degrees and the rest of the country have not disappeared. Military suicides are up by a fifth and death by opioids has returned. Beyond that, the issue of immigration retains its potency.
True, the president may have given his base a sense of calm but the causes of grievance have not gone away. What David Brooks once described as an idyllic urban existence, Bobos in Paradise, appears to have turned into a hell for everyone else. Expect Trumpism to live on, regardless of what happens on 3 November and the days that follow.
A definitive Biden victory stands to provide the US with a president whose political legitimacy is less open to question or attack. Unlike George W Bush in 2000 or the incumbent, a Biden win would likely be accompanied by a majority of the popular vote.
Beyond that, Biden does not carry Clinton-era baggage. The former vice-president is not a child of 1960. Likewise, no one has ever seriously accused the reflexively centrist “man from Scranton” of being a radical. Together, that would help lower the temperature for a bit, anyway, and that counts.
The two Americas will not disappear any time soon. At most, we can at least hope for some civility, and God knows we can use it.


theguardian--2020-10-16--'We don't have any choice': the young climate activists naming and shaming US politicians

It was a Saturday night in September when 160 or so middle and high school students logged on to a Zoom call about how to confront American politicians using tactics inspired by young civil rights activists fighting for the abolition of slavery .
The teenagers were online with the Sunrise Movement , a nationwide youth-led climate justice collective , to learn about organizing Wide Awake actions – noisy night-time protests – to force lawmakers accused of ignoring the climate emergency and racial injustice to listen to their demands .
It ’ s a civil disobedience tactic devised by the Wide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who confronted anti-abolitionists at night by banging pots and pans outside their homes in the run-up to the civil war .
Now , in the run-up to one of the most momentous elections in modern history , a new generation of young Americans who say they are tired of asking nicely and being ignored , are naming and shaming US politicians in an effort to get their concerns about the planet , police brutality , inequalities and immigration heard .
The first one targeted the Kentucky senator Mitch McConnell after details emerged about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In the days following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg , Sunrise activists woke up key Republican senators including McConnell and Lindsey Graham , demanding that they delay the vote on Trump ’ s supreme court nominee until a new president is sworn in .
“ Even though we can ’ t vote , we can show up on the streets and wake up politicians .
It ’ s our future on the line not theirs , ” said 17-year-old Abby DiNardo , a senior from Delaware county .
The high school @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outside the home of the Republican senator Pat Toomey , a former Wall Street banker who has repeatedly voted against climate action measures .
The Sunrise Movement was founded by a small group of disparate young activists in 2017 and initially focussed on helping elect proponents of clean energy in the 2018 midterms .
It has since evolved into an influential youth-led political movement , with more than 400 hubs nationwide that use rallies , sit-ins and old-fashioned voter outreach to help elect local , state and national candidates who back key progressive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and police and immigration reform .
Sunrise members made about 200,000 calls to help Senator Ed Markey , a leading Green New Deal sponsor , win the Massachusetts Democratic primary election against Joe Kennedy who was backed by the House speaker , Nancy Pelosi .
On Thursday middle school students gathered outside the Philadelphia constitution centre during Joe Biden ’ s ABC town hall to demanded a better , bolder climate action plan from the Democratic presidential candidate .
“ Zero emissions by 2050 isn ’ t fast enough , ” said Maddy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is already happening , it ’ s not a theory .
If I do my part , I hope others will be empowered to fight for future generations too.
” Amid a mounting sense of urgency fuelled by Black Lives Matter protests , wildfires and Covid-19 , the movement has become notably younger .
Solei Yoder Salim , a sophomore from Lancaster , last month co-founded a high school hub which already has 40 or so active members from across the county .
Lancaster is a diverse progressive city surrounded by rural conservative @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Salim , 15 , spends about five hours a day on electoral work including phone banking in Spanish for Mike Siegel , a Democrat running for Texas 10th congressional district , mailing postcards encouraging youngsters to vote in swing states , and organizing a forthcoming Wide Awake action .
“ The Green New Deal is worth fighting for , it ’ s important for the world and our country .
I like coming together with my community and other high schools , it ’ s important but also fun , ” Salim @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than 15 million Americans have turned 18 since the last general election and the majority appear to want Trump out of the White House .
Biden holds a 33-point lead over Trump among 18- to 29-year-olds who plan to vote , according to a Harvard Institute of Politics poll last month .
While less than a third of young Biden voters said they were very enthusiastic about casting a ballot for the 77-year-old former vice-president , voter turnout among the under 30s could be key : 63 % of respondents said they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ compared to just 47 % in the same poll four years ago .
Troy Turner , 29 , Sunrise ’ s electoral coordinator for Pennsylvania , said : “ Biden is super unappealing to young people , he represents the old guard of politics favoring style over substance .
Young people are policy voters , but we have to vote for Biden as he represents potential for a livable future .
Trump represents the apocalypse.
” The movement ’ s endorsements for Congress include Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ; Qasim Rashid , a Muslim anti-violence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Marquita Bradshaw in Tennessee .
But they are mostly supporting local candidates like the anti-fracking advocate Danielle Friel Otten in Chester county , who is up for re-election to the state house .
DiNardo , who is holed up with a handful of colleagues from the Down Ballot Disruption project in a rented house in North Carolina , coaches juniors and seniors on how to do banner drops , town halls and phone banking to help turnout voters for endorsed candidates in 33 states .
“ A lot of these down ballot races @ @ @ @ @ @ @ votes and most people don ’ t pay attention , but we can ’ t win a Green New Deal without these candidates .
A lot of young people don ’ t love Biden , but it ’ s not just about the presidency , ” she said .
Voter turnout is crucial , but it may not be enough .
Trump and his allies have refused to commit to a peaceful transition of power while making wild , unsubstantiated claims about widespread voter fraud .
Abby Leedy , 19 , a full-time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hub leaders on how to mobilize large numbers of protesters in case Trump tries to steal the election .
“ We need to to be ready if Trump tries to pull off a coup by mobilizing his supporters especially white supremacist groups to come to places like Philadelphia and do God knows what .
We ’ re preparing people , but if his supporters start shooting or drive into the crowd there could be a massacre .
This keeps me awake at night , but we really don ’ t have any choice @ @

It was a Saturday night in September when 160 or so middle and high school students logged on to a Zoom call about how to confront American politicians using tactics inspired by young civil rights activists fighting for the abolition of slavery.
The teenagers were online with the Sunrise Movement, a nationwide youth-led climate justice collective, to learn about organizing Wide Awake actions – noisy night-time protests – to force lawmakers accused of ignoring the climate emergency and racial injustice to listen to their demands.
It’s a civil disobedience tactic devised by the Wide Awakes – a radical youth abolitionist organization who confronted anti-abolitionists at night by banging pots and pans outside their homes in the run-up to the civil war.
Now, in the run-up to one of the most momentous elections in modern history, a new generation of young Americans who say they are tired of asking nicely and being ignored, are naming and shaming US politicians in an effort to get their concerns about the planet, police brutality, inequalities and immigration heard.
The first one targeted the Kentucky senator Mitch McConnell after details emerged about the police killing of Breonna Taylor. In the days following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sunrise activists woke up key Republican senators including McConnell and Lindsey Graham, demanding that they delay the vote on Trump’s supreme court nominee until a new president is sworn in.
“Even though we can’t vote, we can show up on the streets and wake up politicians. It’s our future on the line not theirs,” said 17-year-old Abby DiNardo, a senior from Delaware county. The high school senior recently coordinated a Wide Awake action outside the home of the Republican senator Pat Toomey, a former Wall Street banker who has repeatedly voted against climate action measures.
The Sunrise Movement was founded by a small group of disparate young activists in 2017 and initially focussed on helping elect proponents of clean energy in the 2018 midterms.
‘We can show up on the streets and wake up politicians.’ Photograph: Sunrise Movement
It has since evolved into an influential youth-led political movement, with more than 400 hubs nationwide that use rallies, sit-ins and old-fashioned voter outreach to help elect local, state and national candidates who back key progressive issues such as the Green New Deal and police and immigration reform.
Sunrise members made about 200,000 calls to help Senator Ed Markey, a leading Green New Deal sponsor, win the Massachusetts Democratic primary election against Joe Kennedy who was backed by the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi.
On Thursday middle school students gathered outside the Philadelphia constitution centre during Joe Biden’s ABC town hall to demanded a better, bolder climate action plan from the Democratic presidential candidate.
If I do my part, I hope others will be empowered to fight for future generations too Maddy King
“Zero emissions by 2050 isn’t fast enough,” said Maddy King, 13. “Climate change is already happening, it’s not a theory. If I do my part, I hope others will be empowered to fight for future generations too.”
Amid a mounting sense of urgency fuelled by Black Lives Matter protests, wildfires and Covid-19, the movement has become notably younger.
Solei Yoder Salim, a sophomore from Lancaster, last month co-founded a high school hub which already has 40 or so active members from across the county. Lancaster is a diverse progressive city surrounded by rural conservative neighborhoods including large Mennonite and Amish communities.
Salim, 15, spends about five hours a day on electoral work including phone banking in Spanish for Mike Siegel, a Democrat running for Texas 10th congressional district, mailing postcards encouraging youngsters to vote in swing states, and organizing a forthcoming Wide Awake action.
‘The Green New Deal is worth fighting for, it’s important for the world and our country.’ Photograph: Sunrise Movement
“The Green New Deal is worth fighting for, it’s important for the world and our country. I like coming together with my community and other high schools, it’s important but also fun,” Salim said.
Salim cannot vote but more than 15 million Americans have turned 18 since the last general election and the majority appear to want Trump out of the White House.
Biden holds a 33-point lead over Trump among 18- to 29-year-olds who plan to vote, according to a Harvard Institute of Politics poll last month.
While less than a third of young Biden voters said they were very enthusiastic about casting a ballot for the 77-year-old former vice-president, voter turnout among the under 30s could be key: 63% of respondents said they will “definitely be voting”, compared to just 47% in the same poll four years ago.
Troy Turner, 29, Sunrise’s electoral coordinator for Pennsylvania, said: “Biden is super unappealing to young people, he represents the old guard of politics favoring style over substance. Young people are policy voters, but we have to vote for Biden as he represents potential for a livable future. Trump represents the apocalypse.”
Young people are policy voters, but we have to vote for Biden as he represents potential for a livable future Troy Turner
The movement’s endorsements for Congress include Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; Qasim Rashid, a Muslim anti-violence advocate and environmental justice campaigner; and Marquita Bradshaw in Tennessee.
But they are mostly supporting local candidates like the anti-fracking advocate Danielle Friel Otten in Chester county, who is up for re-election to the state house.
DiNardo, who is holed up with a handful of colleagues from the Down Ballot Disruption project in a rented house in North Carolina, coaches juniors and seniors on how to do banner drops, town halls and phone banking to help turnout voters for endorsed candidates in 33 states.
“A lot of these down ballot races can be decided by just hundreds of votes and most people don’t pay attention, but we can’t win a Green New Deal without these candidates. A lot of young people don’t love Biden, but it’s not just about the presidency,” she said.
Voter turnout is crucial, but it may not be enough. Trump and his allies have refused to commit to a peaceful transition of power while making wild, unsubstantiated claims about widespread voter fraud.
Abby Leedy, 19, a full-time organizer from Philadelphia, is training young hub leaders on how to mobilize large numbers of protesters in case Trump tries to steal the election.
“We need to to be ready if Trump tries to pull off a coup by mobilizing his supporters especially white supremacist groups to come to places like Philadelphia and do God knows what. We’re preparing people, but if his supporters start shooting or drive into the crowd there could be a massacre. This keeps me awake at night, but we really don’t have any choice.”


theguardian--2020-10-16--'The Democratic party left us': how rural Minnesota is making the switch to Trump

Ask Larry Cuffe why , after decades of voting for Democrats , he voted for Donald Trump four years ago , and he ’ ll talk about his distrust of Hillary Clinton and the need to get northern Minnesota ’ s mines back to work .
Ask the former police officer why he ’ s sticking with Trump in 2020 and the list is very much longer .
“ The Democratic party left us .
Even in the past four years it ’ s changed so much .
Supporting people who riot ?
Defunding the police ?
That ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ us up here are Democrats in Republican clothing now , ” he said .
Cuffe , who twice voted for Barack Obama , is one of six mayors from a stretch of Minnesota mining country , known as the Iron Range , who turned their back on the Democratic party and signed a joint letter endorsing Trump even as the state is swinging behind the president ’ s opponent , Joe Biden The mayors said that after decades of voting for Democrats , they no longer regarded the party as advocating for workers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are out of touch with the working class , out of touch with what the country needs , and out of touch with those of us here on the Iron Range and in small towns like ours across our nation , ” they said .
The mayors praised Trump for standing up to China , cutting taxes and said he “ fought for the working class ” .
“ Now , four years later , the Iron Range is roaring back to life and for the first time in a very long time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ president ’ s policies and willingness to fight for us , ” the mayors said in their endorsement .
After losing Minnesota by less 1.5 % of the vote four years ago , Trump imagined he might take the midwestern state this year .
It was a potential prize that , if it fell into the president ’ s lap , would almost certainly mean Biden also lost the crucial neighboring swing states of Wisconsin and Michigan .
That now appears to be increasingly unlikely for Trump as opinion polls consistently give Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or more with early voting already under way .
But the mayors cling to hope that Trump can once again pull off the unexpected with the help of a region where many traditionally Democrat voters who backed the president four years ago have not been drawn back to the party this year .
Large numbers were alienated by Clinton as a candidate in 2016 but since then a gap has opened up with the broader Democratic party and Biden has failed to bridge it .
The once heavily unionized Iron Range is part @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to flip to the Republicans in the otherwise disastrous 2018 midterms for Trump as voters in the region liked his showdown with China over steel dumping and a promise to clear the way for vast new mines blocked by Obama .
Two years later , support for Trump appears to have strengthened further following the protests and civil unrest in Minneapolis , the state ’ s largest city , in the aftermath of George Floyd ’ s death , and amid demands to defund the police .
Cuffe is also hostile to a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of “ socialism ” and scrap immigration enforcement .
But the immediate issue that drew the mayors and other Democrats to Trump in the Iron Range was mining , the source of the region ’ s fading prosperity , and on that they say he has delivered .
Andrea Zupancich , a real estate agent and part-time mayor of the small city of Babbitt who also voted for Obama and signed the letter in support of Trump , twice testified to Congress that China dumping cheap steel on the US was killing her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down demand for iron ore from the mines around Babbitt which cost jobs , battered the local economy and drove people to leave the city .
“ We were pleading with Obama to do something about this .
He started doing a little bit and then it just kind of fizzled , ” she said .
Zupancich credits Trump for standing up to China by imposing tariffs on its steel that she says has injected new life into the industry in the US and the Iron Range .
“ The tariffs , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the selling of our steel , so we ’ ve noticed an increase in the mines ’ production .
We see that they ’ re hiring people , they ’ re putting money back into the mines .
They ’ re planning on mining for a while , ” she said .
The Trump administration claims to have driven up iron ore production in the region by nearly one-third , to have created hundreds of new mining jobs and to have increased miners ’ wages .
Steve Bonach , president of the local @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s claims are overblown .
“ I ’ m not for saying Trump is saving the steel industry .
He promised in some of the advertisements he was going to open six new steel mills .
He hasn ’ t opened new mills , he ’ s shut them down , ” said Bonach , who emphasizes that he is speaking for himself , not the union .
“ We have a mill in Detroit that is closed .
It got all its [ iron ore ] pellets from here .
He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was gon na get it running and it ’ s not running .
There ’ s still two other mills of ours that are down .
So it ’ s still struggling .
It ’ s still a challenge.
” But Bonach acknowledged that many of his members who might have voted Democratic in the past now support Trump .
“ He ’ s thrown out the tariff thing .
He ’ s riding that up here .
I ain ’ t saying he didn ’ t help .
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not sure it ’ s changed very much , ” he said .
There was also widespread anger in the region after Obama blocked a vast copper and nickel mine in Minnesota ’ s Superior national forest that the owners said would last for decades .
Trump lifted the block .
“ We are sitting on a half a trillion dollars ’ worth of copper and nickel , ” said Zupancich .
“ We import all our nickel whereas we could provide 90 % of the world ’ s nickel and the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pay for our schools for the entire state.
” The plan ran into opposition from Minnesota Democrats over environmental concerns .
To Zupancich it didn ’ t make sense if a ban on mining in northern Minnesota means the minerals then come from countries such as China or Russia with lower environmental and other standards .
“ Minnesota has the strictest standards in mining and safety .
Green energy , turbines , need copper , nickel , platinum , cobalt , which we have here .
We import it from countries that have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , no environmental standards , and we do have that here .
So we want to make sure it ’ s done , and we want to make sure it ’ s done right .
Trump understands that , ” she said .
But if it was mining that drew Democrats in the Iron Range to Trump four years ago , many are sticking with him because they feel even more alienated from their former party .
Cuffe , a military veteran , watched the protests and destruction in Minneapolis following the death @ @ @ @ @ @ @ regards as the Democrats complicity in it , with despair .
He scoffs at the calls to defund the police .
He ’ s shocked that Minneapolis council passed an ordinance to dismantle the city ’ s force .
“ I think reform is always a good route , but when you vote to just completely defund the police , it creates a myriad of problems .
We ’ re an armed society .
We are a very tumultuous society right now , a very violent society , and a very divided country @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he said .
Cuffe ticked off other frustrations , including a claim that “ we are gravitating toward the actually erasing our entire history of the United States by pulling down these monuments.
” But he acknowledged that the reckoning with the past is a reflection of shifting priorities and politics of many Democratic voters in other parts of the country .
“ You have millennials and younger people that want to come in and try to shape their way of life .
You could support it or not support it , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is alarmed by the talk of democratic socialism and what she regards as a far-too-radical wave of young Democrats , exemplified by Ilhan Omar – the Minnesota member of congress who is the first woman of colour to hold national elective office in the state .
Still , mining remains at the core of the presidential race in the Iron Range .
Bonach said he does not believe that Biden is opposed to mining , but he said there is a strong perception in the region that the Democrats as a whole are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ The perception is harming Biden , there ’ s no doubt about it .
The USW will make sure Biden does the right thing , ” he said .

Ask Larry Cuffe why, after decades of voting for Democrats, he voted for Donald Trump four years ago, and he’ll talk about his distrust of Hillary Clinton and the need to get northern Minnesota’s mines back to work.
Ask the former police officer why he’s sticking with Trump in 2020 and the list is very much longer.
“The Democratic party left us. Even in the past four years it’s changed so much. Supporting people who riot? Defunding the police? That’s crazy. I think a lot of us up here are Democrats in Republican clothing now,” he said.
Cuffe, who twice voted for Barack Obama, is one of six mayors from a stretch of Minnesota mining country, known as the Iron Range, who turned their back on the Democratic party and signed a joint letter endorsing Trump even as the state is swinging behind the president’s opponent, Joe Biden
The mayors said that after decades of voting for Democrats, they no longer regarded the party as advocating for workers.
“Lifelong politicians like Joe Biden are out of touch with the working class, out of touch with what the country needs, and out of touch with those of us here on the Iron Range and in small towns like ours across our nation,” they said.
A truck passes a sign in support of Donald Trump near Rochester, Minnesota. Photograph: Eric Miller/Reuters
The mayors praised Trump for standing up to China, cutting taxes and said he “fought for the working class”.
“Now, four years later, the Iron Range is roaring back to life and for the first time in a very long time, locals are hopeful because of this president’s policies and willingness to fight for us,” the mayors said in their endorsement.
After losing Minnesota by less 1.5% of the vote four years ago, Trump imagined he might take the midwestern state this year. It was a potential prize that, if it fell into the president’s lap, would almost certainly mean Biden also lost the crucial neighboring swing states of Wisconsin and Michigan.
That now appears to be increasingly unlikely for Trump as opinion polls consistently give Biden a lead in Minnesota of six points or more with early voting already under way.
But the mayors cling to hope that Trump can once again pull off the unexpected with the help of a region where many traditionally Democrat voters who backed the president four years ago have not been drawn back to the party this year. Large numbers were alienated by Clinton as a candidate in 2016 but since then a gap has opened up with the broader Democratic party and Biden has failed to bridge it.
The once heavily unionized Iron Range is part of one of the few congressional districts to flip to the Republicans in the otherwise disastrous 2018 midterms for Trump as voters in the region liked his showdown with China over steel dumping and a promise to clear the way for vast new mines blocked by Obama.
Two years later, support for Trump appears to have strengthened further following the protests and civil unrest in Minneapolis, the state’s largest city, in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death, and amid demands to defund the police. Cuffe is also hostile to a new breed of Democratic politicians who talk of “socialism” and scrap immigration enforcement.
But the immediate issue that drew the mayors and other Democrats to Trump in the Iron Range was mining, the source of the region’s fading prosperity, and on that they say he has delivered.
Andrea Zupancich, a real estate agent and part-time mayor of the small city of Babbitt who also voted for Obama and signed the letter in support of Trump, twice testified to Congress that China dumping cheap steel on the US was killing her community.
The Trump administration claims to have created hunreds of new mining jobs and increased miners’ wages in Minnesota mining country. Photograph: Jim Mone/AP
She said the imports drove down demand for iron ore from the mines around Babbitt which cost jobs, battered the local economy and drove people to leave the city.
“We were pleading with Obama to do something about this. He started doing a little bit and then it just kind of fizzled,” she said.
Zupancich credits Trump for standing up to China by imposing tariffs on its steel that she says has injected new life into the industry in the US and the Iron Range.
“The tariffs, that is causing an equal playing field for the selling of our steel, so we’ve noticed an increase in the mines’ production. We see that they’re hiring people, they’re putting money back into the mines. They’re planning on mining for a while,” she said.
The Trump administration claims to have driven up iron ore production in the region by nearly one-third, to have created hundreds of new mining jobs and to have increased miners’ wages.
Steve Bonach, president of the local United Steelworkers union branch, said Trump’s claims are overblown.
“I’m not for saying Trump is saving the steel industry. He promised in some of the advertisements he was going to open six new steel mills. He hasn’t opened new mills, he’s shut them down,” said Bonach, who emphasizes that he is speaking for himself, not the union. “We have a mill in Detroit that is closed. It got all its [iron ore] pellets from here. He talked to them people there and said he was gonna get it running and it’s not running. There’s still two other mills of ours that are down. So it’s still struggling. It’s still a challenge.”
But Bonach acknowledged that many of his members who might have voted Democratic in the past now support Trump.
“He’s thrown out the tariff thing. He’s riding that up here. I ain’t saying he didn’t help. It’s helped. But overall I’m not sure it’s changed very much,” he said.
A closed steel plant near Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota, was later awarded to a planned copper and nickel mine in 2016. Photograph: Jim Mone/AP
There was also widespread anger in the region after Obama blocked a vast copper and nickel mine in Minnesota’s Superior national forest that the owners said would last for decades. Trump lifted the block.
“We are sitting on a half a trillion dollars’ worth of copper and nickel,” said Zupancich. “We import all our nickel whereas we could provide 90% of the world’s nickel and the state would really benefit. The mining taxes pay for our schools for the entire state.”
The plan ran into opposition from Minnesota Democrats over environmental concerns. To Zupancich it didn’t make sense if a ban on mining in northern Minnesota means the minerals then come from countries such as China or Russia with lower environmental and other standards.
“Minnesota has the strictest standards in mining and safety. Green energy, turbines, need copper, nickel, platinum, cobalt, which we have here. We import it from countries that have child labour, no strict safety standards, no environmental standards, and we do have that here. So we want to make sure it’s done, and we want to make sure it’s done right. Trump understands that,” she said.
But if it was mining that drew Democrats in the Iron Range to Trump four years ago, many are sticking with him because they feel even more alienated from their former party.
Trump supporters wave flags as the president delivers remarks on jobs and the economy on 17 August. Photograph: Kerem Yucel/AFP/Getty Images
Cuffe, a military veteran, watched the protests and destruction in Minneapolis following the death of George Floyd, and what he regards as the Democrats complicity in it, with despair. He scoffs at the calls to defund the police. He’s shocked that Minneapolis council passed an ordinance to dismantle the city’s force.
“I think reform is always a good route, but when you vote to just completely defund the police, it creates a myriad of problems. We’re an armed society. We are a very tumultuous society right now, a very violent society, and a very divided country. We need the police,” he said.
Cuffe ticked off other frustrations, including a claim that “we are gravitating toward the actually erasing our entire history of the United States by pulling down these monuments.”
But he acknowledged that the reckoning with the past is a reflection of shifting priorities and politics of many Democratic voters in other parts of the country.
“You have millennials and younger people that want to come in and try to shape their way of life. You could support it or not support it,” he said.
Zupancich, too, is alarmed by the talk of democratic socialism and what she regards as a far-too-radical wave of young Democrats, exemplified by Ilhan Omar – the Minnesota member of congress who is the first woman of colour to hold national elective office in the state.
Still, mining remains at the core of the presidential race in the Iron Range. Bonach said he does not believe that Biden is opposed to mining, but he said there is a strong perception in the region that the Democrats as a whole are, and that has a big impact.
“The perception is harming Biden, there’s no doubt about it. The USW will make sure Biden does the right thing,” he said.


theguardian--2020-10-18--Facebook says it rejected 2.2m ads seeking to obstruct voting in US election

A total of 2.2m ads on Facebook and Instagram have been rejected and 120,000 posts withdrawn for attempting to “ obstruct voting ” in the upcoming US presidential election , Facebook ’ s vice president Nick Clegg has said .
In addition , warnings were posted on 150m examples of false information posted online , the former British deputy prime minister told French weekly Journal du Dimanche on Sunday .
Facebook has been increasing its efforts to avoid a repeat of events leading up to the 2016 US presidential election , won by Donald Trump , when its network was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ carried out from Russia .
There were similar problems ahead of Britain ’ s 2016 referendum on leaving the European Union .
“ Thirty-five thousand employees take care of the security of our platforms and contribute for elections , ” said Clegg , who is vice president of global affairs and communications at Facebook .
“ We have established partnerships with 70 specialised media , including five in France , on the verification of information ” , he added .
AFP is one of those partners .
Clegg added that the company also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it possible to delete billions of posts and fake accounts , even before they are reported by users ” .
Facebook also stores all advertisements and information on their funding and provenance for seven years “ to ensure transparency , ” he said .
In 2016 , while he was still deputy prime minister , Clegg complained to the Journal du Dimanche that Facebook had not identified or suppressed a single foreign network interfering in the US election .
On Wednesday , Trump rebuked Facebook and Twitter for blocking links to a New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dealings by election rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter in Ukraine .
A day earlier Facebook announced a ban on ads that discourage people from getting vaccinated , in light of the coronavirus pandemic which the social media giant said has “ highlighted the importance of preventive health behaviours ” .

A total of 2.2m ads on Facebook and Instagram have been rejected and 120,000 posts withdrawn for attempting to “obstruct voting” in the upcoming US presidential election, Facebook’s vice president of global affairs and communications Nick Clegg has said.
In addition, warnings were posted on 150m examples of false information posted online, the former British deputy prime minister told French weekly Journal du Dimanche on Sunday.
Facebook has been increasing its efforts to avoid a repeat of events leading up to the 2016 US presidential election, won by Donald Trump, when its network was used for attempts at voter manipulation, carried out from Russia.
There were similar problems ahead of Britain’s 2016 referendum on leaving the European Union.
“Thirty-five thousand employees take care of the security of our platforms and contribute for elections,” said Clegg, who is vice president of global affairs and communications at Facebook.
“We have established partnerships with 70 specialised media, including five in France, on the verification of information”, he added. AFP is one of those partners.
Clegg added that the company also uses artificial intelligence that has “made it possible to delete billions of posts and fake accounts, even before they are reported by users”.
Facebook also stores all advertisements and information on their funding and provenance for seven years “to ensure transparency,” he said.
In 2016 Clegg complained to the Journal du Dimanche that Facebook had not identified or suppressed a single foreign network interfering in the US election.
On Wednesday, Trump rebuked Facebook and Twitter for blocking links to a New York Post article purporting to expose corrupt dealings by election rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter in Ukraine.
A day earlier Facebook announced a ban on ads that discourage people from getting vaccinated, in light of the coronavirus pandemic which the social media giant said has “highlighted the importance of preventive health behaviours”.


theguardian--2020-10-17--Biden accuses Trump of trying to wish away Covid ahead of Wisconsin rally – as it happened

Black voters in North Carolina are disproportionately having their mail-in ballots flagged for potential rejection in the battleground state , setting off alarms about disenfranchisement .
North Carolina requires mail-in voters to get a witness for their ballots and at least 7,000 mail-in ballots have been flagged across the state because of a deficiency , according to data collected by Michael Bitzer , a professor at Catawba College who closely tracks voting data in the state .
As of Wednesday , 40 % of rejected ballots – 2,871 – were from Black voters , even though they comprised only 16 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( A spokesman for the state board of elections cautioned some of the data may be outdated because local election offices have not been entering rejection data into the statewide system while legal challenges are pending . )
The Rev Anthony Spearman , the head of the North Carolina chapter of the NAACP , attributed the higher rate at which Black voters ’ ballots were being flagged to the fact that African Americans traditionally have not widely voted by mail in the state , instead opting for in-person voting .
Many voters are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s requirement that mail-in voters get a witness to sign their absentee ballot , he said .
“ The African American community , many of them for the first time , are utilizing absentee ballots and have not been cultivated to the practices thereof .
There is a level of them being not aware of the process and how it goes and so they ’ re not filling out their forms correctly , ” he said .
Just 3 % of the Black voters whose ballots were flagged for rejection voted by mail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Bitzer .
“ Voting by mail is very different than voting in person , ” Bitzer said .
“ Until I ’ m presented otherwise I have to think lack of familiarity with the vote method process is probably what is hanging up so much of these ballots.
” The North Carolina data underscores the conundrum Democrats are facing this year as they encourage supporters to cast their votes by mail amid concerns about Covid-19 .
A mail vote is more likely to be rejected than an in-person one and research has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all much more likely to have their ballots rejected .
You can read the full article below :

Bryan Armen Graham in New York (now) and Tom Lutz  and Martin Pengelly (earlier)