npr--2020-08-28--How The Coronavirus Has Affected Individual Members Of Congress

How The Coronavirus Has Affected Individual Members Of Congress Updated on August 28 at 1:00 p.m .
ET The coronavirus pandemic has upended the daily work of Congress .
Starting in March , House and Senate leaders delayed bringing back members for several weeks as public health guidelines recommended social distancing because of the outbreak .
The Senate finally returned in May , but the much larger House still stayed mostly away as a result of advice from the attending physician to Congress .
That same month , the House approved historic rule changes allowing remote voting and hearings .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ forced many more members to self-quarantine .
Dozens more members of their staffs and Capitol Hill workers have tested positive .
And it remains an ongoing threat .
Two Republican lawmakers , Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona , were the first members of Congress to announce self-quarantines on March 8 .
Both had attended the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor , Md.
, a few days earlier .
An attendee at the conference had fallen ill , its organizers revealed .
The following week , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they tested positive for the coronavirus .
Republican Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida and Democratic Rep. Ben McAdams of Utah both said they developed symptoms after a March 14 vote on a coronavirus relief package .
Since that time , dozens more lawmakers entered self-quarantine as a result of exposure to someone who was sick , including fellow members of Congress , constituents and dignitaries .
And by late July , at least 85 Capitol workers have reported a positive test or were presumed so , including more than two dozen members of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 24 , Gary Tibbetts , a longtime staffer for Republican Rep. Vern Buchanan of Florida , died from COVID-19 .
And some lawmakers have taken antibody tests to see if they were previously ill .
Among them , Democratic Sens .
Tim Kaine of Virginia and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania , both said they tested positive months after experiencing symptoms in the spring .
To stem the flow of new cases , both chambers have issued new social distancing guidance .
Also , the U.S. Capitol remains closed to public tours and open @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and official business visitors .
In late July , House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also issued a new mask mandate after Rep. Louie Gohmert , R-Texas , who has often rejected mask protocols , tested positive for the coronavirus .
Gohmert had attended several hearings a day before testing and returned to the Capitol following a White House screening that caught his infection .
This story was originally published on April 15 , 2020 .

Congress and COVID-19: members' cases and quarantines
Enlarge this image toggle caption Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Editor's note: This page is no longer updating as of Dec. 31, 2021.
A number of congressional lawmakers experienced breakthrough COVID-19 infections as coronavirus cases rose nationwide with the spread of the omicron variant.
Earlier in 2021, Congress went months with no coronavirus cases among its members. That came a halt amid a national surge driven by the delta variant, when Republican Reps. Vern Buchanan of Florida and Clay Higgins of Louisiana reported infections in July. Buchanan says he was fully vaccinated, but that was less clear for Higgins.
At least another dozen members followed throughout the fall with news they had also tested positive for coronavirus; many of those infections involving vaccinated Senate and House members.
Before these latest waves, Congress' nearly six-month case pause came after a majority of more than 500 lawmakers were fully vaccinated by January. The Capitol's attending physician then lifted much of the mask mandates that dominated the past year. However, a minority of House Republican members have refused to seek vaccination.
Lawmakers impact by the coronavirus
This new threat arrives after the coronavirus already exacted a large toll on the Capitol.
Last year, the pandemic upended daily work for months, sickening dozens of members and hundreds of workers. A sitting congressman, a member-elect and an aide died.
By February 2021, more than 60 lawmakers and 360 Capitol Hill workers had tested positive, or were presumed so, for the coronavirus, according to NPR's tracker and congressional aides.
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See a list of all members who tested positive or quarantined.
That same month, Rep. Ron Wright, R-Texas, became the first sitting member of Congress to die after a more than two-week battle with COVID-19. In December, Rep.-elect Luke Letlow of Louisiana died days before he was due to be sworn in for a seat that was later filled in April by his widow, Rep. Julia Letlow, following a special election.
And last summer, an aide to Buchanan died from COVID-19.
The rash of infections among members continued at a consistent pace since the pandemic began, with the longest stretch without any such cases lasting about three weeks during recess periods away from Washington, D.C.
But this past March, Capitol Hill began its first month-long stretch without any reported cases or quarantines among members. The most recent positive case before July was reported by Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., on Jan. 29, despite his having received his second dose of the vaccine days earlier.
Another member, House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., reported that she quarantined on Feb. 1. It ended Feb. 8 without a report of a positive test.
January 6 insurrection caused spike in cases on Capitol Hill
Up until this summer, the most recent outbreak of cases on Capitol Hill for members was triggered by the Jan. 6 insurrection, which forced members to cluster together in rooms for several hours. Some House Republicans were seen refusing to wear masks during the ordeal.
Later, Monahan told Congress that at least one of these holding rooms for House members included a lawmaker who was already positive.
More than a half-dozen members quarantined as a result, and several tested positive, including Democratic Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey and Brad Schneider of Illinois.
In all, January proved to be one of members' worst month for the coronavirus, with at least 16 lawmakers testing positive. Before the insurrection, the House met to launch a new session before reinstating rules allowing proxy voting.
This, as congressional leaders and lawmakers received the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, which became available to members in December. The doses were provided to meet long-standing requirements for continuity of government operations, Monahan told members in a Dec. 17 note.
Pandemic impacted congressional operations
Ahead of the vaccinations, both chambers of Congress recessed multiple times last year as the Capitol went largely without a widespread testing program.
The Democratic-controlled House installed emergency proxy voting and remote hearings in May 2020, and Pelosi extended the covered period several times due to the pandemic. It remains in place until at least until mid-August.
In November, Pelosi triggered a broader coronavirus testing program for Congress following new requirement for travelers to the Washington, D.C., area.
Pelosi has previously said with about 75% of House members vaccinated, and several Republicans who refuse to do so, she's unclear when Congress will fully get back to normal.
"One of the most substantial steps that can be taken is that everybody should be vaccinated," Pelosi told reporters in March, later adding, "We need 100% of the members vaccinated, because it just takes one to endanger others."
The pandemic delayed other rituals, such as President Biden's first address before a joint session of Congress, which was held with only 200 socially distanced guests on April 28.
Last year remains a reminder of how quickly outbreaks spiraled out of control among lawmakers.
In December, at least nine House members, including six Republicans, tested positive for the coronavirus. And November proved to be another one of the worst months of the pandemic for Congress, when at least 15 lawmakers said they were infected, including two of the oldest, Republicans Rep. Don Young of Alaska and Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa.
A previous outbreak in September was tied to a White House Rose Garden ceremony to announce Amy Coney Barrett as then-President Donald Trump's Supreme Court justice nominee. Trump, then-first lady Melania Trump and dozens of others in attendance tested positive, including Republican Sens. Mike Lee of Utah and Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
It was one of several instances forcing leaders to change the congressional schedule.
Starting in the first month of the pandemic, in March 2020, House and Senate leaders delayed bringing back members in light of public health guidelines recommending social distancing.
The Senate returned in May 2020, but the much larger House remained mostly away under the advice of Monahan, the Capitol's attending physician. That same month, the House approved its historic rule changes to allow remote voting and hearings.
The first spate of cases began March 8, 2020, when two Republican lawmakers, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona, were the first members of Congress to announce self-quarantines. Both attended the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Md., where another guest fell ill.
The following week, the first two members of Congress said they tested positive for the coronavirus. Republican Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida and then-Democratic Rep. Ben McAdams of Utah both said they developed symptoms after a March 14 floor vote on a coronavirus relief package.
By last summer, dozens of Capitol workers reported a positive test or were presumed so, and Gary Tibbetts, a longtime staffer for Buchanan died from COVID-19 on July 24.
Some lawmakers also took antibody tests to see if they were previously infected. They include Democratic Sens. Tim Kaine of Virginia and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, who both said they tested positive months after experiencing symptoms in the spring.
To stem the flow of new cases, both chambers early on issued new social distancing guidance. Also, the U.S. Capitol closed to public tours and remained open only to members, staff, the press and official business visitors, and aside from the Jan. 6 breach by pro-Trump extremists, it has remained so.
In late July 2020, Pelosi also issued a temporary, new mask mandate after Texas GOP Rep. Louie Gohmert, who often rejected such protocols, tested positive. Gohmert had attended several hearings a day earlier and returned to the Capitol following a White House screening that caught his infection.
Gohmert's case triggered quarantines for five House members, including Arizona Democratic Rep. Raúl Grijalva. Days later, Grijalva tested positive but fully recovered symptom free. Until recent changes lifting the mask mandates, members could be fined or be forcibly removed by Capitol Police if they are not wearing masks.


npr--2020-08-29--In Quiet-Loving Germany, Motorcyclists Protest A Possible Ban On Loud Sunday Rides

In Quiet-Loving Germany , Motorcyclists Protest A Possible Ban On Loud Sunday Rides Noise in Germany keeps a strict schedule .
Every night after 10 p.m. and on Sundays , Germans are required by a medley of federal , state and local laws to keep schtum .
That means no spin cycles , no vacuuming , no power tools and no mowing the lawn .
As the world went into lockdown this spring , a drop in noise levels was recorded across the globe .
But in most of Germany , it was n't much quieter than an average Sunday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the peal of church bells is about as loud as it gets .
Except along popular motorcycle routes , like the one that goes through Sasbachwalden in the Black Forest .
Sonja Schuchter , the mayor , says on some Sundays , up to a thousand motorcyclists burn rubber through her centuries-old village of half-timbered houses , vineyards and decorative flowers .
`` Many villagers have stopped using their gardens on sunny weekends . ''
Schuchter says .
`` Instead of enjoying their morning coffee on the terrace , they stay indoors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the roar of the engines . ''
Schuchter says about 20 % of the bikers really rev their engines as they ride .
`` Why on earth motorcyclists think they can make so much racket when we refrain from using our lawn mowers is beyond me , '' she exclaims .
Michael Lenzen , who lives near Cologne , says he 's not the sort of neighbor to get out the hedge trimmer after Sunday lunch , either .
`` I would n't dream of mowing the lawn or cutting the hedges on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lenzen is president of Germany 's motorcycle association .
He 's been hitting the open road for 38 years and points outs that while noisy gardening is forbidden on Sundays , anti-noise regulations do n't apply to passenger vehicles .
All the same , he appeals to fellow bikers to be considerate .
`` We sympathize with people who live near popular biker routes , '' Lenzen says .
`` We 're asking our members to slow down as they ride through villages . ''
For some lawmakers , this is n't enough @ @ @ @ @ @ @ house , the Bundesrat , proposed banning bikers from popular routes like the one through Sasbachwalden on Sundays and holidays .
Outraged , thousands of motorcyclists having been roaring in protest through cities across Germany on Sundays since July .
Depending on the region and the type of noise , residents have the right to complain to authorities or obtain a reduction in rent if their neighbors are an audible nuisance .
Noise pollution cases are constantly on court dockets up and down the country .
But even Schuchter says she does n't @ @ @ @ @ @ @ respect for state-sanctioned peaceful Sundays .
`` Here , like elsewhere in Germany , you simply do n't mow your lawn or use loud machinery on a Sunday , '' she says .
`` It 's not the done thing ! ''
Sieglinde Geisel , the author of a book about the culture of noise and yearning for quiet , says an emphasis on silence became a trend in the early 20th century , when the German bourgeoisie started to revere tranquility in reaction to an ever noisier world of machinery .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very sophisticated to be sensitive to noise and to be silent , and to have the library , '' Geisel explains .
The vogue for quietude became an intellectual and political pursuit in 1908 , when German philosopher Theodor Lessing founded an anti-noise society which not only fostered debate about the meaning of noise , but also rallied against it .
Geisel says the influence of the anti-noise society is still felt today , although contemporary German attitudes to noise — and legislation against it — vary from one region to the next @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are extreme cases , like you can not go with your kids on the playground during lunchtime — from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. — because there 's also something called Mittagsruhe [ afternoon quiet ] .
You have kind of nap time , '' Geisel explains .
`` In Berlin , this would never be accepted , but in some south German small towns where people are really on the lookout , everyone behaves , it certainly is accepted . ''
But in Sasbachwalden , villagers do n't need to be on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hear it coming .
And it 's not likely to stop anytime soon .
Germany 's Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer says he has no intention of instituting a Sunday biker ban .
So for now , residents upset by the noise will have to make do with two classic German engineering solutions : the earplug , invented in Berlin a century ago , and sealed windows — something of which German Chancellor Angela Merkel is known to be particularly fond .

In Quiet-Loving Germany, Motorcyclists Protest A Possible Ban On Loud Sunday Rides
Enlarge this image toggle caption Peter Steffen/picture alliance via Getty Images Peter Steffen/picture alliance via Getty Images
Noise in Germany keeps a strict schedule. Every night after 10 p.m. and on Sundays, Germans are required by a medley of federal, state and local laws to keep schtum. That means no spin cycles, no vacuuming, no power tools and no mowing the lawn.
As the world went into lockdown this spring, a drop in noise levels was recorded across the globe. But in most of Germany, it wasn't much quieter than an average Sunday, when socializing is done sotto voce and the peal of church bells is about as loud as it gets.
Except along popular motorcycle routes, like the one that goes through Sasbachwalden in the Black Forest.
Sonja Schuchter, the mayor, says on some Sundays, up to a thousand motorcyclists burn rubber through her centuries-old village of half-timbered houses, vineyards and decorative flowers.
"Many villagers have stopped using their gardens on sunny weekends." Schuchter says. "Instead of enjoying their morning coffee on the terrace, they stay indoors and shut all the windows to escape the roar of the engines."
Schuchter says about 20% of the bikers really rev their engines as they ride. "Why on earth motorcyclists think they can make so much racket when we refrain from using our lawn mowers is beyond me," she exclaims.
Michael Lenzen, who lives near Cologne, says he's not the sort of neighbor to get out the hedge trimmer after Sunday lunch, either.
"I wouldn't dream of mowing the lawn or cutting the hedges on a Sunday," Lensen says.
Lenzen is president of Germany's motorcycle association. He's been hitting the open road for 38 years and points outs that while noisy gardening is forbidden on Sundays, anti-noise regulations don't apply to passenger vehicles.
All the same, he appeals to fellow bikers to be considerate.
"We sympathize with people who live near popular biker routes," Lenzen says. "We're asking our members to slow down as they ride through villages."
For some lawmakers, this isn't enough. In May, Germany's upper house, the Bundesrat, proposed banning bikers from popular routes like the one through Sasbachwalden on Sundays and holidays. Outraged, thousands of motorcyclists having been roaring in protest through cities across Germany on Sundays since July.
Depending on the region and the type of noise, residents have the right to complain to authorities or obtain a reduction in rent if their neighbors are an audible nuisance. Noise pollution cases are constantly on court dockets up and down the country.
But even Schuchter says she doesn't want an outright ban, just some respect for state-sanctioned peaceful Sundays.
"Here, like elsewhere in Germany, you simply don't mow your lawn or use loud machinery on a Sunday," she says. "It's not the done thing!"
Sieglinde Geisel, the author of a book about the culture of noise and yearning for quiet, says an emphasis on silence became a trend in the early 20th century, when the German bourgeoisie started to revere tranquility in reaction to an ever noisier world of machinery.
"It was very, very chic and very sophisticated to be sensitive to noise and to be silent, and to have the library," Geisel explains.
The vogue for quietude became an intellectual and political pursuit in 1908, when German philosopher Theodor Lessing founded an anti-noise society which not only fostered debate about the meaning of noise, but also rallied against it.
Geisel says the influence of the anti-noise society is still felt today, although contemporary German attitudes to noise — and legislation against it — vary from one region to the next.
In some regions, "There are extreme cases, like you cannot go with your kids on the playground during lunchtime — from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. — because there's also something called Mittagsruhe [afternoon quiet]. You have kind of nap time," Geisel explains. "In Berlin, this would never be accepted, but in some south German small towns where people are really on the lookout, everyone behaves, it certainly is accepted."
But in Sasbachwalden, villagers don't need to be on the lookout for noise. They can hear it coming. And it's not likely to stop anytime soon.
Germany's Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer says he has no intention of instituting a Sunday biker ban. So for now, residents upset by the noise will have to make do with two classic German engineering solutions: the earplug, invented in Berlin a century ago, and sealed windows — something of which German Chancellor Angela Merkel is known to be particularly fond.


npr--2020-08-29--Barr, Absent From RNC, Is Very Much Present As Part Of Trump Reelection Bid

Barr , Absent From RNC , Is Very Much Present As Part Of Trump Reelection Bid Attorney General William Barr did not speak at the Republican National Convention this week , but that does n't mean he 's been sitting silently on the sidelines during this election season .
Barr has done more than a half-dozen TV interviews with national broadcasters since early June in which he has addressed hot-button issues and political fights central to the 2020 campaign .
He 's accused the media of being an arm of the Democratic party and lying to the public ; he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doomsday scenario '' and accused the Obama administration of using federal law enforcement to go after Trump ; and he 's echoed his boss ' unfounded allegations against mail-in voting .
But perhaps most forcefully , Barr has launched partisan political attacks against Democrats .
He 's accused them of being hell-bent on total victory , tearing down the American system and running people 's lives .
`` That 's what turns them on , and it 's the lust for power , '' Barr said in an interview with Fox News ' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interested in compromise .
They 're not interested in dialectic exchange of views .
They 're interested in total victory . ''
Barr added : `` They view their political opponents as evil because we stand in the way of their progressive utopia that they 're trying to reach . ''
A few days later in another interview on Fox , Barr had this to say about racism in the middle of a campaign in which that very issue has been front and center .
`` People talk about implicit racism or systemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , look no further than our public education system , '' he said .
`` That 's a racist system , maintained by the Democratic Party and the teachers ' union . ''
It is highly unusual for an attorney general to bluntly attack political opponents , particularly during a presidential campaign .
Traditionally , they seek to avoid even the perception of trying to tip the scales in their boss ' favor .
Legal experts and Justice Department veterans say it is not the attorney general 's job to engage in partisan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sorts of statements , Barr is doing exactly that .
`` He has been operating as a political operative and a campaign aide to the president rather than as attorney general of the United States , '' said Fred Wertheimer , the founder of the left-leaning watchdog group Democracy 21 .
`` Barr is free to have any views he wants but he 's not free to exercise those views as attorney general . ''
The Justice Department 's mission , Wertheimer noted , is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no way you can listen to what he says and watch what he does and conclude he is leading the American people to believe he 's going to do a fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans , '' Wertheimer said .
Critics accuse Trump and Republicans of obliterating the norms once intended to keep partisan appeals separate from their official roles .
Much of this year 's Republican convention took place at the White House , in a first , and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo , the nation 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ official overseas trip .
In Barr 's case , administration opponents say he 's doing more than using his megaphone to attack Trump 's opponents and help boost the president 's reelection efforts — they also say he 's using the levers of his office 's power to benefit Trump as well .
The prime example they point to is the Justice Department 's investigation into the origins of the Russia probe .
Barr has long been a fierce critic of the Russia investigation , calling what happened to Trump `` one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' Last year , Barr appointed a veteran federal prosecutor , U.S. Attorney for Connecticut John Durham , to lead an investigation into the origins of the Russia probe .
Since then , Barr has made repeated suggestions that what Durham has dug up is surprising and troubling , which has spurred Democrats and some DOJ veterans to accuse Barr of violating department policy by discussing an ongoing criminal investigation .
`` Generally we do not comment on the existence of investigations , and we never comment on the substance of what we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who served as deputy attorney general in the George H.W .
Bush administration .
`` So he 's been violating that rule itself categorically . ''
Then late last month , critics say Barr appeared to shrug off another department policy meant to help the department steer clear of potentially influencing an election .
When asked at a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee whether he would commit to not releasing any report from Durham before the election , Barr said `` no . ''
It is longstanding department policy to avoid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an election that could influence the outcome .
Barr told lawmakers he 's familiar with the policy , but that he does n't believe Durham 's findings , which could be issued as a public report , are covered by it .
Barr has said , including in an interview with NPR , that no one under investigation by Durham is running for president , suggesting that the probe does n't technically fall under the department 's election policy .
`` I 'm committed to having the American people have a free choice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I do n't want the Department of Justice to be interfering in that , '' he told NPR .
Despite Barr 's assurances , his critics are not assuaged .
`` There 's a whole series of things that Barr has done that fairly viewed are either overt political actions or overt political advocacy , which has no appropriate place and no logical place other than to advance the president 's reelection , '' Ayer said .

Barr, Absent From RNC, Is Very Much Present As Part Of Trump Reelection Bid
Enlarge this image toggle caption Matt McClain/AP Matt McClain/AP
Attorney General William Barr did not speak at the Republican National Convention this week, but that doesn't mean he's been sitting silently on the sidelines during this election season.
Barr has done more than a half-dozen TV interviews with national broadcasters since early June in which he has addressed hot-button issues and political fights central to the 2020 campaign.
He's accused the media of being an arm of the Democratic Party and lying to the public; he's called the Russia investigation a "doomsday scenario" and accused the Obama administration of using federal law enforcement to go after Trump; and he's echoed his boss' unfounded allegations against mail-in voting.
But perhaps most forcefully, Barr has launched partisan political attacks against Democrats. He's accused them of being hell-bent on total victory, tearing down the American system and running people's lives.
"That's what turns them on, and it's the lust for power," Barr said in an interview with Fox News' Mark Levin. "They're not interested in compromise. They're not interested in dialectic exchange of views. They're interested in total victory."
Barr added: "They view their political opponents as evil because we stand in the way of their progressive utopia that they're trying to reach."
A few days later in another interview on Fox, Barr had this to say about racism in the middle of a campaign in which that very issue has been front and center: "People talk about implicit racism or systemic racism, the racism in this country. Look no further than our public education system. That's a racist system, maintained by the Democratic Party and the teachers' union."
Unusually vocal
It is highly unusual for an attorney general to bluntly attack political opponents, particularly during a presidential campaign. Traditionally, they seek to avoid even the perception of trying to tip the scales in their boss' favor.
Legal experts and Justice Department veterans say it is not the attorney general's job to engage in partisan politics. And they say with these sorts of statements, Barr is doing exactly that.
"He has been operating as a political operative and a campaign aide to the president rather than as attorney general of the United States," said Fred Wertheimer, the founder of the left-leaning watchdog group Democracy 21. "Barr is free to have any views he wants but he's not free to exercise those views as attorney general."
The Justice Department's mission, Wertheimer noted, is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of justice.
"Now, there's no way you can listen to what he says and watch what he does and conclude he is leading the American people to believe he's going to do a fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans," Wertheimer said.
Critics accuse Trump and Republicans of obliterating the norms once intended to keep partisan appeals separate from their official roles. Much of this year's Republican convention took place at the White House, in a first, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the nation's top diplomat, addressed it from an official overseas trip.
In Barr's case, administration opponents say he's doing more than using his megaphone to attack Trump's opponents and help boost the president's reelection efforts — they also say he's using the levers of his office's power to benefit Trump as well.
The prime example they point to is the Justice Department's investigation into the origins of the Russia probe.
Barr has long been a fierce critic of the Russia investigation, calling what happened to Trump "one of the greatest travesties in American history." Last year, Barr appointed a veteran federal prosecutor, U.S. Attorney for Connecticut John Durham, to lead an investigation into the origins of the Russia probe.
Since then, Barr has made repeated suggestions that what Durham has dug up is surprising and troubling, which has spurred Democrats and some DOJ veterans to accuse Barr of violating department policy by discussing an ongoing criminal investigation.
"Generally we do not comment on the existence of investigations, and we never comment on the substance of what we are finding," said Donald Ayer, who served as deputy attorney general in the George H.W. Bush administration. "So he's been violating that rule itself categorically."
Then late last month, critics say Barr appeared to shrug off another department policy meant to help the department steer clear of potentially influencing an election.
When asked at a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee whether he would commit to not releasing any report from Durham before the election, Barr said "no."
It is longstanding department policy to avoid taking any action in the run-up to an election that could influence the outcome. Barr told lawmakers he's familiar with the policy, but that he doesn't believe Durham's findings, which could be issued as a public report, are covered by it.
Barr has said, including in an interview with NPR, that no one under investigation by Durham is running for president, suggesting that the probe doesn't technically fall under the department's election policy.
"I'm committed to having the American people have a free choice in this election between the candidates and I don't want the Department of Justice to be interfering in that," he told NPR.
Despite Barr's assurances, his critics are not assuaged.
"There's a whole series of things that Barr has done that fairly viewed are either overt political actions or overt political advocacy, which has no appropriate place and no logical place other than to advance the president's reelection," Ayer said.


npr--2020-08-29--With Virtual Rush, Fraternities And Sororities Race To Pitch More Than Parties

With Virtual Rush , Fraternities And Sororities Race To Pitch More Than Parties Freshman Taylor Vibbert has always wanted to be in a sorority .
When she signed up to rush this fall at Western Kentucky University , she was looking forward to the fanfair , house tours and meet-and-greets .
Then she got some bad news : Greek recruitment would be mostly virtual this year .
`` That was a bummer , '' the 18-year-old from Louisville , Ky. , said in early August .
`` Honestly , if I would have known , I probably would n't have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she would be more outgoing in-person than over the computer , but she was willing to see how it goes .
That willingness is something Greek organizations across the country are banking on this fall .
According to the latest numbers , more than 600,000 American college students are active members of fraternities or sororities , and those organizations rely heavily on member dues .
But the pandemic has forced many chapters — some over a century old — to move the bulk of their recruitment online , and to reconsider their pitch @ @ @ @ @ @ @ less of an option .
`` We 're looking at at least a year of none of the large traditional social gatherings that we 're accustomed to , '' says industry consultant Gentry McCreary .
If Greek organizations , especially the large social chapters , ca n't provide a more meaningful experience beyond the parties , McCreary says , `` there 's no way that those groups will be able to survive . ''
Fraternities and sororities are organized around everything from gender and cultural identity , to religion and academic field of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ millions of dollars in member dues and contributions every year — money that then goes toward charitable events , sexual assault prevention and leadership programs , among other things .
`` If less people are joining there are less dues coming in , '' McCreary says .
`` That has an impact on the bottom line . ''
While statistics for active members in collegiate chapters are hard to come by , data provided to NPR by two of the largest social Greek associations — the National Panhellenic Conference and the North American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into the hundreds of thousands .
Gentry McCreary works closely with some 20 national Greek organizations on research , annual assessments and membership surveys .
He says the number of students going Greek has plateaued the last few years , after about two decades of increases .
And while the final stats for fall 2020 recruitment wo n't be out for months , several schools he 's spoken to are reporting `` record-breaking numbers of students '' signing up to rush .
That 's despite rising membership costs , reports of structural racism @ @ @ @ @ @ @ slew of high-profile hazing incidents .
`` If there were any time to join a sorority , now is the most important time , '' says Ashlee Dunn , chapter president of Alpha Omicron Pi , a women 's fraternity at Middle Tennessee State University .
She says AOPi 's national organization has been working with chapters since the spring to prepare a mostly-virtual recruitment in September .
But what 's her pitch to potential new members ?
`` A sisterhood is going to keep you in check and keep you motivated , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ text your sister or have a FaceTime .
It 's the little things that are going to keep you going during such separation . ''
The chapter has planned a semester of mostly-virtual and some in-person gatherings .
But all those activities hinge on Middle Tennessee State University 's reopening plans — which could change at any moment .
Campuses across the country are already altering plans based on what the coronavirus is doing .
Still , not every Greek organization is in uncharted territory .
Fraternities and sororities based on race , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more directly , through personal outreach , informational sessions and community service projects .
Valerie Hollingsworth Baker , president of the Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta , says her organization is `` well equipped '' for this moment .
The group has worked for years to make more of their operations virtual and , she says , `` it 's working for them . ''
`` When you do have this virtual type of style to try to reach out and touch the masses , you can do so in smaller groups and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going , '' Hollingsworth Baker says .
Jessica Snell , of the National Multicultural Greek Council , is excited about the opportunities virtual recruitment might open for them .
`` We need to think outside the box and really think about what it is to engage with not only our current members , but [ outside ] folks that may be interested , '' Snell says .
`` How are we communicating and piquing interest and engagement with our entire community ? ''
A few weeks after she first spoke to NPR , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a success .
She says the three days of virtual meetings — or `` parties '' — she attended in mid-August were n't all that bad , and `` not meeting people in person really took away any jitters . ''
`` Each party you 'd go to , each sorority would have a little overview and then they 'd send you into a breakout room over Zoom where you kind of just had a one-on-one conversation with one of the girls in the chapter , '' Vibbert says .
In the end @ @ @ @ @ @ @ says she 's actually really excited now about the semester ahead .
And her one piece of advice for others getting ready to rush a fraternity or a sorority in the middle of a pandemic ?
`` Just breathe , '' she says .
`` You just have to talk and be yourself . ''
That 's one thing that has n't changed this year .
Ashley Westerman is an alumna of the Alpha Omicron Pi chapter at the University of Kentucky .

With Virtual Rush, Fraternities And Sororities Race To Pitch More Than Parties
Enlarge this image Kim Ryu for NPR Kim Ryu for NPR
Freshman Taylor Vibbert has always wanted to be in a sorority. When she signed up to rush this fall at Western Kentucky University, she was looking forward to the fanfair, house tours and meet-and-greets.
Then she got some bad news: Greek recruitment would be mostly virtual this year.
"That was a bummer," the 18-year-old from Louisville, Ky., said in early August. "Honestly, if I would have known, I probably wouldn't have signed up."
Vibbert was concerned she would be more outgoing in-person than over the computer, but she was willing to see how it goes.
That willingness is something Greek organizations across the country are banking on this fall. According to the latest numbers, more than 600,000 American college students are active members of fraternities or sororities, and those organizations rely heavily on member dues. But the pandemic has forced many chapters — some over a century old — to move the bulk of their recruitment online, and to reconsider their pitch to students now that social activities are less of an option.
"We're looking at at least a year of none of the large traditional social gatherings that we're accustomed to," says industry consultant Gentry McCreary.
If Greek organizations, especially the large social chapters, can't provide a more meaningful experience beyond the parties, McCreary says, "there's no way that those groups will be able to survive."
High stakes
Fraternities and sororities are organized around everything from gender and cultural identity, to religion and academic field of study. And these nonprofits bring in millions of dollars in member dues and contributions every year — money that then goes toward charitable events, sexual assault prevention and leadership programs, among other things.
"If less people are joining there are less dues coming in," McCreary says. "That has an impact on the bottom line."
While statistics for active members in collegiate chapters are hard to come by, data provided to NPR by two of the largest social Greek associations — the National Panhellenic Conference and the North American Interfraternity Conference — put the numbers well into the hundreds of thousands.
Gentry McCreary works closely with some 20 national Greek organizations on research, annual assessments and membership surveys. He says the number of students going Greek has plateaued the last few years, after about two decades of increases. And while the final stats for fall 2020 recruitment won't be out for months, several schools he's spoken to are reporting "record-breaking numbers of students" signing up to rush.
That's despite rising membership costs, reports of structural racism within the predominantly-white Greek organizations and a slew of high-profile hazing incidents.
Pitching Greek life during a pandemic
"If there were any time to join a sorority, now is the most important time," says Ashlee Dunn, chapter president of Alpha Omicron Pi, a women's fraternity at Middle Tennessee State University. She says AOPi's national organization has been working with chapters since the spring to prepare a mostly-virtual recruitment in September.
But what's her pitch to potential new members?
"A sisterhood is going to keep you in check and keep you motivated," Dunn says. "You can text your sister or have a FaceTime. It's the little things that are going to keep you going during such separation."
The chapter has planned a semester of mostly-virtual and some in-person gatherings.
But all those activities hinge on Middle Tennessee State University's reopening plans — which could change at any moment. Campuses across the country are already altering plans based on what the coronavirus is doing.
Still, not every Greek organization is in uncharted territory. Fraternities and sororities based on race, culture and identity tend to recruit much more directly, through personal outreach, informational sessions and community service projects.
Valerie Hollingsworth Baker, president of the Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta, says her organization is "well equipped" for this moment. The group has worked for years to make more of their operations virtual and, she says, "it's working for them."
"When you do have this virtual type of style to try to reach out and touch the masses, you can do so in smaller groups and one-on-ones and really encourage and keep everyone going," Hollingsworth Baker says.
Jessica Snell, of the National Multicultural Greek Council, is excited about the opportunities virtual recruitment might open for them.
"We need to think outside the box and really think about what it is to engage with not only our current members, but [outside] folks that may be interested," Snell says. "How are we communicating and piquing interest and engagement with our entire community?"
"Just breathe"
A few weeks after she first spoke to NPR, freshman Taylor Vibbert considers her recruitment experience a success. She says the three days of virtual meetings — or "parties" — she attended in mid-August weren't all that bad, and "not meeting people in person really took away any jitters."
"Each party you'd go to, each sorority would have a little overview and then they'd send you into a breakout room over Zoom where you kind of just had a one-on-one conversation with one of the girls in the chapter," Vibbert says.
In the end, she pledged Alpha Xi Delta and says she's actually really excited now about the semester ahead. And her one piece of advice for others getting ready to rush a fraternity or a sorority in the middle of a pandemic?
"Just breathe," she says. "You just have to talk and be yourself."
That's one thing that hasn't changed this year.
Ashley Westerman is an alumna of the Alpha Omicron Pi chapter at the University of Kentucky.


npr--2020-08-29--Adapting To A Pandemic, GOP Confab Sets Tone For Trump Re-Election Campaign

Adapting To A Pandemic , GOP Confab Sets Tone For Trump Re-Election Campaign The 2020 Republican National Convention this week began and ended with two performances by the man who designed it all , President Donald J. Trump .
Most of the attention went , of course , to the final night 's event , when a live audience saw him `` profoundly accept '' his re-nomination in an hour-long speech delivered on the South Lawn of the White House .
Backed by a forest of American flags , the president looked out upon members of his family and staff @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of his party in Congress .
They sat side-by-side in close rows of chairs .
Few wore masks .
There was little sign of the pandemic that had cost the president the big show he had originally planned for Charlotte , N.C. , or in his backup venue in Jacksonville , Fla .
Unlike most of the speakers during the week , Trump did not ignore the disease that has killed 180,000 Americans or speak of it in the past tense .
But he cast it as less than central to the moment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his parade of triumphs : `` We are meeting this challenge , '' he said proudly , `` delivering lifesaving therapies and we will produce a vaccine before the end of the year or maybe even sooner . ''
Few experts have seen a realistic possibility of a vaccine that would be regarded as safe by year 's end , let alone sooner .
But in recent weeks the White House has barred TV appearances by such figures as Dr. Anthony Fauci , the nation 's longtime leading immunologist , who has contradicted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ displayed a portrait of three presidencies – his own , his predecessor 's and the one he said Democratic nominee Joe Biden would create if elected .
Most of the attention focused on Trump 's own first four years , which he sketched as a montage of success upon success .
He spoke of having conquered the vexing issues of taxes and trade , European allies and Middle East rivals , refugees and immigrants and most notably – the pandemic itself .
The White House had promised a speech that would be `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the consequent recession or the widespread racial unrest following multiple killings of Black people by police .
The speech was defiant , to be sure , but the inspirational elements were less salient than Trump 's relentless attack on his Democratic foe .
`` Joe Biden is not a savior of America 's soul , '' the president said .
`` He is the destroyer of America 's jobs , and if given the chance he will be the destroyer of America 's greatness . ''
Overall , the speech sounded a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by an angry outsider running for president four years ago at the Republican convention in Cleveland .
That night , candidate Trump railed against the work of Democrats and Washington insiders , whom he would displace .
`` Only I can fix it , '' he said then .
And four years later , the message was much the same , although he had been working for most of that time inside the building that served as the backdrop for his speech on Thursday .
[ Throughout the week , government watchdogs and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wanton disregard being shown for previous norms and regulations regarding the use of government officials or taxpayer property to promote a campaign for office .
The Hatch Act , a century old law , prohibits such uses but has not been used to send anyone to jail .
When asked about this during the week , White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said : `` No one outside of the Beltway really cares . ''
] Trump 's case for himself may have been even sharper on Monday , when he made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , instead of the 50,000 attendees originally anticipated , a remnant of 336 delegates had done the official business of renominating the incumbent .
The unopposed incumbent had won every state , and in fact every vote from every state .
Many states had canceled their primaries or caucuses on the Republican side .
As he followed Vice President Mike Pence on stage in Charlotte , Trump was greeted with chants of `` four more years . ''
He replied : `` If you want to really drive them crazy you say : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ president did not explain how a four-term presidency might happen , given the constitutional limit of two terms set by the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution halfway through the 20th century .
But the president did offer an hour 's worth of free-form , wide-ranging ruminations on everything from the state of the national economy to trade deals with China and South Korea and the kinds of people most likely to die from COVID-19 ( `` It affects older people , the elderly , people with problems , with heart , diabetes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , two attendees at the Charlotte event and two support staff had tested positive for the virus .
But in that hour in Charlotte , the president was loose and very much among friends .
His language veered beyond informal to crude at times , but no one in the hall seemed to mind .
The shouts of `` we love you '' and `` thank you , Mr. President , '' were recurrent , persistent and well-amplified to be clearly audible on TV .
Monday 's midday walk-on was not widely seen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cable TV .
And the primetime TV audience began tuning in that same night , when Trump was not featured but did make a cameo appearance .
The same happened on the second and third nights , posing the president for pictures with Melania , his wife , or Pence , his vice president , just as the TV anchors were signing off .
This Republican gathering was sui generis , a creature unto itself , unlike any preceding convention either party held since such gatherings began in the 1830s .
The Democrats @ @ @ @ @ @ @ online , but the Republicans managed to perform before live audiences that were small but vocal and highly enthusiastic .
The overnight reviews split along partisan lines as sharply , and predictably , as the votes on impeachment in Congress last winter .
It is hard to remember now that President Trump is the only president ever to face the voters after being impeached ( or forced from office under threat of impeachment ) .
But if that was any inhibition for him , it did not show .
It was not in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ asserted in his concluding speech that `` Obama and Biden spied on me and got caught '' – an allusion to his explanation for the investigation of his ties to Russian interference in the 2016 election .
Multiple investigations have yet to find evidence to prove this accusation .
Trump did not mention his actual impeachment , but several other speakers from his retinue did during the week .
It was noted that the Democrats , who impeached Trump in the House and pressed for his removal from office in the Senate , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ speeches the previous week .
But sadly for the president , impeachment was only the first dire challenge to face in his re-election year .
And it has proven more difficult to elide the facts and consequences of the others .
Despite the president 's assertions , the crisis over the COVID-19 pandemic rages on , with 180,000 dead and still nearly a thousand dying each day .
The U.S. also adds thousands of new infections each day ( leading the world with 5.8 million so far ) , while the administration responds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people getting tested and promoting various therapies that have not been shown to be helpful .
The president has repeatedly blamed the testing for the high numbers of new cases .
He and others in his orbit have suggested only people showing symptoms of the disease should be tested at all .
Still , flashing the bravado that characterized his business career , Trump has insisted his handling of the virus has been not only defensible but exemplary .
What has seemed to concern the president more is the dislocation the pandemic has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in March .
The Gross Domestic Product for the second quarter fell by nearly a third ( on an annualized basis ) and unemployment soared to nearly 15 % .
Both measures were the worst since the Great Depression .
Aggrieved by the shutdown of schools and workplaces , Trump began saying `` the cure can not be worse than the disease . ''
Today , Trump can point to some bright spots .
The stock market has rebounded to regain its previous highs .
Partial reopening of many businesses has allowed many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But the positive jobs trend at mid-summer has since reversed itself , and a million or more people are again filing for unemployment compensation each week .
At the scaled-down RNC this week , all talk of the economy this was spun to highlight the happier times of last winter and look forward to a snapback next winter .
As he usually does , Trump took credit for the `` strongest economy in history '' and a record number of people with jobs .
But both claims , while often repeated , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ previous week by the Democrats , there were more jobs created in the U.S. in the last three years under Obama than in the first three under Trump .
More than a million more .
But whatever the validity of of Trump 's claims about the past , current reality for millions of the unemployed is dire .
With the virus still far from controlled , the economic climb could get steeper as well .
Given all the strange and strained circumstances , no one can be surprised that this convention seemed so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But the starkest contrast was with those past conventions staged by incumbent presidents seeing a second term — especially those in the era of TV coverage .
Looking just at GOP conventions renominating incumbents , the record is impressive .
Four of the five incumbents in this era went on to win a second term ( George W. Bush , Ronald Reagan , Richard Nixon and Dwight Eisenhower ) .
The latter three won re-election in landslides : Ike carried 41 of 48 states , Nixon and Reagan each carried 49 of 50 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with little or no controversy touching the candidate ( other than health concerns following Eisenhower 's 1955 heart attack ) .
George W. Bush was renominated in 2004 in New York City to celebrate that city 's comeback from the Sept. 11 attacks of 2001 .
The stars of that show were the city 's former mayor Rudy Giuliani ( also on the program Thursday night , although with far less starpower impact ) and the movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger , then a newly elected governor of California , who has since disappeared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ GOP convention in these five that presaged a losing November was the 1992 event on behalf of President George H.W .
Bush in his hometown of Houston .
And a review of that episode turns up some similarities in rhetoric to what we heard this week .
Rich Bond , the party 's national chairman , told the convention hall `` We are America , they [ the Democrats ] are not America . ''
This week , Pence told the crowd at Ft. McHenry that `` America is on the ballot .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the elder Bush 's show fell flat for two reasons .
First , it failed to address the big negative story hanging over the country – lagging recovery from a recession that had lingered in some swing states .
But the other problem for the incumbent nominee was one Trump did not have : speakers whose performance overshadowed the nominee 's own .
One was Reagan , then just four years out of office and still immensely popular .
In the last major address of his career , Reagan reminded the audience he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; but many in the audience were reminded how much they preferred Reagan .
A larger problem was the indelible opening night speech by Patrick Buchanan , a former journalist and speechwriter both for Reagan and the previous Republican president Richard Nixon .
Buchanan had run against Bush , his party 's incumbent president , in the GOP primaries that year .
While he had just 18 delegates , the Bush team wanted his help with the party 's more populist , nationalist wing .
( Buchanan would later run for president as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` America First . ''
) Buchanan 's outsider campaign had been about reducing immigration and resisting social changes such as abortion rights , gay rights , women in combat units and multicultural education .
In Houston he said these were `` not the kind of change America wants and not the kind of change we can abide in a nation we still call God 's country . ''
He spoke of `` a cultural war '' in America and said that summer 's Democratic Convention had featured `` 20,000 radicals and liberals @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' Buchanan closed by paying tribute to National Guard troops sent to Los Angeles that summer to quell street riots after a jury acquitted police officers videotaped beating Rodney King , a black man .
Buchanan said the soldiers , with bayonets fixed , were `` taking back America , block by block . ''
The speech lit up the Astrodome , unleashing a roar from the crowd that seemed to reverberate throughout the week and beyond .
It would be widely criticized as incendiary and contradictory of Bush 's `` kinder , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the incumbent president 's own speech at week 's end , which lacked the force of his first acceptance speech four years earlier .
All conventions have their memorable moments , positive or otherwise , and their connection to either victory or defeat will always be subject to debate .
This year 's versions , one online and one largely a hybrid , were both scaled way back from historic expectations .
Their actual effect on the campaign 's outcome may be similarly reduced , perhaps even marginal .
In 2024 , we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ again , or we may have come to regard them as an anachronism .
Much may depend on who is in the White House at that time , and on how much of a contribution that person believes the 2020 convention made to the November outcome .

Adapting To A Pandemic, GOP Confab Sets Tone For Trump Reelection Campaign
Enlarge this image toggle caption Evan Vucci/AP Evan Vucci/AP
The 2020 Republican National Convention this week began and ended with two performances by the man who designed it all, President Donald J. Trump.
Most of the attention went, of course, to the final night's event, when a live audience saw him "profoundly accept" his renomination in an hourlong speech delivered on the South Lawn of the White House. Backed by a forest of American flags, the president looked out upon members of his family and staff, members of his Cabinet and members of his party in Congress.
They sat side by side in close rows of chairs. Few wore masks. There was little sign of the pandemic that had cost the president the big show he had originally planned for Charlotte, N.C., or in his backup venue in Jacksonville, Fla.
Unlike most of the speakers during the week, Trump did not ignore the disease that has killed 180,000 Americans or speak of it in the past tense. But he cast it as less than central to the moment, a kind of speed bump for his parade of triumphs: "We are meeting this challenge," he said proudly, "delivering lifesaving therapies and we will produce a vaccine before the end of the year or maybe even sooner."
Few experts have seen a realistic possibility of a vaccine that would be regarded as safe by year's end, let alone sooner. In recent weeks, the White House has barred TV appearances by such figures as Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's longtime leading immunologist, who has contradicted the president without criticizing him.
Trump displayed a portrait of three presidencies – his own, his predecessor's and the one he said Democratic nominee Joe Biden would create if elected. Most of the attention focused on Trump's own four years, which he sketched as a montage of success upon success. He spoke of having conquered the vexing issues of taxes and trade, European allies and Middle East rivals, refugees and immigrants and most notably – the pandemic itself.
Uplifting or unloading?
The White House had promised a speech that would be "uplifting," unbowed by the virus, the consequent recession or the widespread racial unrest following multiple killings of Black people by police. The speech was defiant, to be sure, but the inspirational elements were less salient than Trump's relentless attack on his Democratic foe.
"Joe Biden is not a savior of America's soul," the president said. "He is the destroyer of America's jobs, and if given the chance, he will be the destroyer of America's greatness."
Overall, the speech sounded a great deal like an earlier acceptance speech by an angry outsider running for president four years ago at the Republican convention in Cleveland. That night, candidate Trump railed against the work of Democrats and Washington insiders, whom he would displace.
"Only I can fix it," he said then. And four years later, the message was much the same, although he had been working for most of that time inside the building that served as the backdrop for his speech on Thursday.
(Throughout the week, government watchdogs and other critics of the administration noted the wanton disregard being shown for previous norms and regulations regarding the use of government officials or taxpayer property to promote a campaign for office. The Hatch Act, an 81-year-old law, prohibits such uses but has not been used to send anyone to jail. When asked about this during the week, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said: "No one outside of the Beltway really cares.")
Trump's case for himself may have been even sharper on Monday, when he made an unscheduled appearance in Charlotte. Here, instead of the 50,000 attendees originally anticipated, a remnant of 336 delegates had done the official business of renominating the incumbent. The unopposed incumbent had won every state, and in fact every vote from every state. Many states had canceled their primaries or caucuses on the Republican side.
As he followed Vice President Pence onstage in Charlotte, Trump was greeted with chants of "four more years." He replied: "If you want to really drive them crazy you say: 'Twelve more years.' "
The president did not explain how a four-term presidency might happen, given the constitutional limit of two terms set by the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution halfway through the 20th century.
But the president did offer an hour's worth of free-form, wide-ranging ruminations on everything from the state of the national economy to trade deals with China and South Korea and the kinds of people most likely to die from COVID-19. ("It affects older people, the elderly, people with problems, with heart, diabetes, other problems.") By Friday, two attendees at the Charlotte event and two support staff had tested positive for the virus.
But in that hour in Charlotte, the president was loose and very much among friends. His language veered beyond informal to crude at times, but no one in the hall seemed to mind. The shouts of "we love you" and "thank you, Mr. President" were recurrent, persistent and well-amplified to be clearly audible on TV.
Monday's midday walk-on was not widely seen, but clips were great fodder for cable TV. And the prime-time TV audience began tuning in that same night, when Trump was not featured but did make a cameo appearance. The same happened on the second and third nights, posing the president for pictures with Melania, his wife, or Pence, his vice president, just as the TV anchors were signing off.
A creature unto itself
This Republican gathering was sui generis, a creature unto itself, unlike any preceding convention any major party held since such gatherings began in the 1830s. The Democrats the week before had met almost entirely online, but the Republicans managed to perform before live audiences that were small but vocal and highly enthusiastic.
The overnight reviews split along partisan lines as sharply, and predictably, as the votes on impeachment in Congress last winter. It is hard to remember now that President Trump is the only president ever to face the voters after being impeached (or forced from office under threat of impeachment).
But if that was any inhibition for him, it did not show. It was not in his prepared remarks, but he again asserted in his concluding speech that "Obama and Biden spied on me and got caught" – an allusion to his explanation for the investigation of his ties to Russian interference in the 2016 election. Multiple investigations have yet to find evidence to prove this accusation.
Trump did not mention his actual impeachment, but several other speakers from his retinue did during the week. It was noted that the Democrats, who impeached Trump in the House and pressed for his removal from office in the Senate, did not mention impeachment in their prime-time speeches the previous week.
But sadly for the president, impeachment was only the first dire challenge to face in his reelection year. And it has proven more difficult to elide the facts and consequences of the others.
Despite the president's assertions, the crisis over the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, with more than 180,000 dead and still nearly a thousand dying each day. The U.S. also adds thousands of new infections each day (leading the world with 5.9 million as of Saturday), while the administration responds by trying to limit the number of people getting tested and promoting various therapies that have not been shown to be helpful.
The president has repeatedly blamed the testing for the high numbers of new cases. He and others in his orbit have suggested only people showing symptoms of the disease should be tested at all. Still, flashing the bravado that characterized his business career, Trump has insisted his handling of the virus has been not only defensible but exemplary.
Recession the larger threat?
What has seemed to concern the president more is the dislocation the pandemic has caused in the economy, which crashed in March. The gross domestic product for the second quarter fell by nearly a third (on an annualized basis), and unemployment soared to nearly 15%. Both measures were the worst since the Great Depression. Aggrieved by the shutdown of schools and workplaces, Trump began saying, "The cure cannot be worse than the disease."
Today, Trump can point to some bright spots. The stock market has rebounded to regain its previous highs. Partial reopening of many businesses has allowed many laid-off workers to return to work. But the positive jobs trend at mid-summer has since reversed itself, and a million or more people are again filing for unemployment compensation each week.
At the scaled-down RNC this week, all talk of the economy was spun to highlight the happier times of last winter and look forward to a snapback next winter. As he usually does, Trump took credit for the "strongest economy in history" and a record number of people with jobs. But both claims, while often repeated, are shaky. As was noted the previous week by the Democrats, there were more jobs created in the U.S. in the last three years under Obama than in the first three under Trump. More than a million more.
But whatever the validity of of Trump's claims about the past, current reality for millions of the unemployed is dire. With the virus still far from controlled, the economic climb could get steeper as well.
Given all the strange and strained circumstances, no one can be surprised that this convention seemed so different from all its historic analogs. But the starkest contrast was with those past conventions staged by incumbent presidents seeing a second term — especially those in the era of TV coverage.
Looking just at GOP conventions renominating incumbents, the record is impressive. Four of the five incumbents in this era went on to win a second term (George W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon and Dwight Eisenhower). The latter three won reelection in landslides: Ike carried 41 of 48 states, Nixon and Reagan each carried 49 of 50.
Those campaigns featured supremely confident conventions with little or no controversy touching the candidate (other than health concerns following Eisenhower's 1955 heart attack).
George W. Bush was renominated in 2004 in New York City to celebrate that city's comeback from the Sept. 11 attacks of 2001. The stars of that show were the city's former mayor Rudy Giuliani (also on the program Thursday night, although with far less starpower impact) and the movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger, then a newly elected governor of California, who has since disappeared from Republican politics.
The one renominating GOP convention in these five that presaged a losing November was the 1992 event on behalf of President George H.W. Bush in his hometown of Houston. And a review of that episode turns up some similarities in rhetoric to what we heard this week. Rich Bond, the party's national chairman, told the convention hall "We are America, they [the Democrats] are not America." This week, Pence told the crowd at Fort McHenry that "America is on the ballot."
It has often been said that the elder Bush's show fell flat for two reasons. First, it failed to address the big negative story hanging over the country – lagging recovery from a recession that had lingered in some swing states. But the other problem for the incumbent nominee was one Trump did not have: speakers whose performance overshadowed the nominee's own. One was Reagan, then just four years out of office and still immensely popular. In the last major address of his career, Reagan reminded the audience he had chosen Bush as his vice president; but many in the audience were reminded how much they preferred Reagan.
A speech sets campaign tone
A larger problem was the indelible opening night speech by Patrick Buchanan, a former journalist and speechwriter both for Reagan and the previous Republican president Richard Nixon. Buchanan had run against Bush, his party's incumbent president, in the GOP primaries that year. While he had just 18 delegates, the Bush team wanted his help with the party's more populist, nationalist wing. (Buchanan would later run for president as a third-party candidate on the campaign slogan "America First.")
Buchanan's outsider campaign had been about reducing immigration and resisting social changes such as abortion rights, gay rights, women in combat units and multicultural education. In Houston, he said these were "not the kind of change America wants and not the kind of change we can abide in a nation we still call God's country." He spoke of "a cultural war" in America and said that summer's Democratic Convention had featured "20,000 radicals and liberals dressed up as moderates and centrists."
Buchanan closed by paying tribute to National Guard troops sent to Los Angeles that summer to quell street riots after a jury acquitted police officers videotaped beating Rodney King, a black man. Buchanan said the soldiers, with bayonets fixed, were "taking back America, block by block."
The speech lit up the Astrodome, unleashing a roar from the crowd that seemed to reverberate throughout the week and beyond. It would be widely criticized as incendiary and contradictory of Bush's "kinder, gentler" conservatism. But it overshadowed the incumbent president's own speech at week's end, which lacked the force of his first acceptance speech four years earlier.
All conventions have their memorable moments, positive or otherwise, and their connection to either victory or defeat will always be subject to debate. This year's versions, one online and one largely a hybrid, were both scaled way back from historic expectations. Their actual effect on the campaign's outcome may be similarly reduced, perhaps even marginal.
In 2024, we may be eager to hold traditional conventions again, or we may have come to regard them as an anachronism. Much may depend on who is in the White House at that time and on how much of a contribution that person believes the 2020 convention made to the November outcome.


npr--2020-08-29--Why Scapegoating Is A Typical Human Response To A Pandemic

Why Scapegoating Is A Typical Human Response To A Pandemic First comes the disease .
Then the scapegoating .
Whether it 's Ebola , cholera and now COVID-19 , Jesse Verschuere has witnessed `` a pattern of stigma against others in every disease outbreak '' he has responded to as part of the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders .
The objects of prejudice have included health-care workers , minorities , immigrants , indeed any outsider or other who looks or acts different from those in the local community , says the Belgium-based Verschuere , who works to improve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care .
This bias occurs around the world .
And it 's not anything new .
Villainizing an unknown other as guilty of spreading , causing or exploiting disease has a long , hate-filled history , says Debora MacKenzie , author of the new book Covid-19 : The Pandemic That Should Never Have Happened and How to Stop the Next One .
Back in 14th-century Europe , Jews were blamed — and thousands of them slaughtered — by Christian mobs who baselessly accused them of spreading the deadly bubonic plague by poisoning wells @ @ @ @ @ @ @ immigrants from Ireland , Italy and China were censured , variously and also baselessly , for bringing with them cholera and polio , among other feared infections .
So perhaps it should n't be a surprise that in the wake of COVID-19 , the blame game is playing out once again .
• In the United States , where some leaders have used the racist term `` Kung flu '' to describe COVID-19 , increased verbal and physical assaults against Asian Americans have been linked to the virus .
In one documented incident @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Taiwan and has lived in New York City for 16 years filmed a video on the subway of a man accusing her of spreading `` Kung flu . ''
Responding to the surge in anti-Asian verbal and physical assaults , the New York Police Department has this month announced the formation of an Asian Hate Crime Task Force .
• In the Democratic Republic of Congo , Kinshasha-based photo journalist Justin Makangara reports , misinformation has led to a number of different potential scapegoats for COVID-19 : `` There is a lot of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it is a disease of the rich , a disease of foreigners according to many people .
In a state where religion and belief are important , the virus is also associated with punishment from the gods .
The government is also accused of inflating the numbers of cases in order to receive funding from structures like WHO , and to allow donor countries like China to sell a lot of masks .
Many continue to be suspicious of imported masks . ''
• In Haiti , medical workers are often distrusted and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Without Borders , one pervasive myth is that hospital patients who seek help for COVID-19 will instead receive a fatal injection .
The more people who die , it 's alleged , the more money the government will receive as part of a corrupt ploy to exploit unsuspecting citizens .
• In Malaysia , authorities have used COVID-19 as a pretext to target — and exacerbate prejudice against — immigrants , refugees , asylum seekers and the Rohingya community , says Doctors Without Borders head of mission Dirk van der Tak .
Immigration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the disease by these groups coming from outside the country in fact ended up sparking new disease clusters in the overcrowded detention centers where the detainees were sent .
This has further served to reinforce anti-immigrant sentiment , hate speech , stigma , and the blaming of groups from outside the country for the transmission of COVID-19 .
This link between disease and blame is rooted in evolution , says Mark Schaller , a professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia and co-author of Social Psychology of Prejudice .
According @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is an instinctual , unconscious response to avoid the risk of infection .
It forms part of what he calls the behavioral immune system , a kind of psychological parallel to the physical immune system .
This aversion to outsiders may have served a purpose long ago in avoiding unknown ( and unfamiliar-looking ) groups that could harbor unknown illnesses .
`` This underlying psychology evolved in a different world , before modern medicine or public health , and is no longer adaptive , '' Schaller says .
`` But we 're stuck @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wary and with negative consequences for today '' — notably , prejudicial and discriminatory responses to people perceived to be different .
Singling out immigrants in particular for scapegoating is one such negative consequence , says Tahseen Shams , assistant professor of sociology at University of Toronto and author of Here , There , and Elsewhere : The Making of Immigrant Identities in a Globalized World .
As examples , she points to the 1980s , when Haitian refugees and Africans were among those blamed for the AIDS epidemic , and to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ external threats occur , immigrant groups are often seen `` as the link bringing the threat inside our borders , closer to home , '' she explains .
And that , she says , leads to stigma and harassment .
The Ebola outbreak has such examples .
In 2014 , when a traveler from Liberia developed Ebola while visiting family in Dallas , the city 's African immigrant community was targeted and stigmatized , says Kevin J.A .
Thomas , professor of African American and African Diaspora studies at the University of Texas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Local Implications : African immigrants and the Ebola Crisis in Dallas .
`` People were already traumatized by losing family to Ebola in Africa , '' he says , citing one pastor in the community mourning the loss of six family members in a single week .
Then they had to deal with demeaning racist tropes in local media as well .
In this instance , the community found ways to counteract the prejudice they were facing , Thomas said .
For example , they assisted with contact tracing of those who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Even those who come specifically to help in a medical crisis can be blamed , stigmatized , distrusted as outsiders who hurt rather than heal .
For international emergency medical teams who come from afar to succeed , building trust with the larger community is the cornerstone to countering such prejudice , says Karin Huster , an emergency coordinator for Doctors Without Borders .
She worked in countries in West Africa during the Ebola outbreak in 2014-2016 , a period when some health clinics and their workers were attacked by community members they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ arrogant '' and did not take the time to explain what Ebola was , or try to understand their concerns , Huster says .
`` All of a sudden someone dressed in a moon suit starts bringing sick people into a newly built unit , and drags dead people out in a plastic bag .
Would n't you run away if you saw this ? ''
Having learned from those errors , the organization deploys a variety of strategies to include the community , reach out to local leaders , present accurate medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ says Verschuere , with social media being one way to mitigate stigma and fear .
In the same way that prejudice manifests in every setting , the goal in counter-acting it is also the same : to bring out the humanity .
By contrast , stigma does just the opposite , he says : It strips people 's humanity away .
Diane Cole writes for many publications , including The Wall Street Journal and The Jewish Week , and is book columnist for The Psychotherapy Networker .
She is the author of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Life Emerges .
Her website is dianejcole.com .

Why Scapegoating Is A Typical Human Response To A Pandemic
Enlarge this image Tracy J Lee for NPR Tracy J Lee for NPR
First comes the disease. Then the scapegoating.
Whether it's Ebola, cholera and now COVID-19, Jesse Verschuere has witnessed "a pattern of stigma against others in every disease outbreak" he has responded to as part of the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders.
The objects of prejudice have included health-care workers, minorities, immigrants, indeed any outsider or other who looks or acts different from those in the local community, says the Belgium-based Verschuere, who works to improve the ability of communities to obtain health care.
This bias occurs around the world.
And it's not anything new.
Villainizing an unknown other as guilty of spreading, causing or exploiting disease has a long, hate-filled history, says Debora MacKenzie, author of the new book Covid-19: The Pandemic That Should Never Have Happened and How to Stop the Next One.
Back in 14th-century Europe, Jews were blamed — and thousands of them slaughtered — by Christian mobs who baselessly accused them of spreading the deadly bubonic plague by poisoning wells and streams. In 19th-century America, immigrants from Ireland, Italy and China were censured, variously and also baselessly, for bringing with them cholera and polio, among other feared infections.
So perhaps it shouldn't be a surprise that in the wake of COVID-19, the blame game is playing out once again.
A global sampling:
In the United States, where some leaders have used the racist term "Kung flu" to describe COVID-19, increased verbal and physical assaults against Asian Americans have been linked to the virus. In one documented incident, a woman who is originally from Taiwan and has lived in New York City for 16 years filmed a video on the subway of a man accusing her of spreading "Kung flu." Responding to the surge in anti-Asian verbal and physical assaults, the New York Police Department has this month announced the formation of an Asian Hate Crime Task Force.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinshasha-based photo journalist Justin Makangara reports, misinformation has led to a number of different potential scapegoats for COVID-19: "There is a lot of misinformation, there is a rumor that it is a disease of the rich, a disease of foreigners according to many people. In a state where religion and belief are important, the virus is also associated with punishment from the gods. The government is also accused of inflating the numbers of cases in order to receive funding from structures like WHO, and to allow donor countries like China to sell a lot of masks. Many continue to be suspicious of imported masks."
In Haiti, medical workers are often distrusted and ostracized. According to reports from Doctors Without Borders, one pervasive myth is that hospital patients who seek help for COVID-19 will instead receive a fatal injection. The more people who die, it's alleged, the more money the government will receive as part of a corrupt ploy to exploit unsuspecting citizens.
In Malaysia, authorities have used COVID-19 as a pretext to target — and exacerbate prejudice against — immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers and the Rohingya community, says Doctors Without Borders head of mission Dirk van der Tak. Immigration raids purportedly aimed at stopping the spread of the disease by these groups coming from outside the country in fact ended up sparking new disease clusters in the overcrowded detention centers where the detainees were sent. This has further served to reinforce anti-immigrant sentiment, hate speech, stigma, and the blaming of groups from outside the country for the transmission of COVID-19.
This link between disease and blame is rooted in evolution, says Mark Schaller, a professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia and co-author of Social Psychology of Prejudice. According to Schaller, aversion to unfamiliar outsiders is an instinctual, unconscious response to avoid the risk of infection. It forms part of what he calls the behavioral immune system, a kind of psychological parallel to the physical immune system.
This aversion to outsiders may have served a purpose long ago in avoiding unknown (and unfamiliar-looking) groups that could harbor unknown illnesses. "This underlying psychology evolved in a different world, before modern medicine or public health, and is no longer adaptive," Schaller says. "But we're stuck with our ancient psychology, leaving us wary and with negative consequences for today" — notably, prejudicial and discriminatory responses to people perceived to be different.
Singling out immigrants in particular for scapegoating is one such negative consequence, says Tahseen Shams, assistant professor of sociology at University of Toronto and author of Here, There, and Elsewhere: The Making of Immigrant Identities in a Globalized World. As examples, she points to the 1980s, when Haitian refugees and Africans were among those blamed for the AIDS epidemic, and to the current surge of anti-Asian racism.
When external threats occur, immigrant groups are often seen "as the link bringing the threat inside our borders, closer to home," she explains. And that, she says, leads to stigma and harassment.
The Ebola outbreak has such examples. In 2014, when a traveler from Liberia developed Ebola while visiting family in Dallas, the city's African immigrant community was targeted and stigmatized, says Kevin J.A. Thomas, professor of African American and African Diaspora studies at the University of Texas, Austin and author of Global Epidemics, Local Implications: African immigrants and the Ebola Crisis in Dallas.
"People were already traumatized by losing family to Ebola in Africa," he says, citing one pastor in the community mourning the loss of six family members in a single week. Then they had to deal with demeaning racist tropes in local media as well.
In this instance, the community found ways to counteract the prejudice they were facing, Thomas said. For example, they assisted with contact tracing of those who had interacted with the infected person.
Even those who come specifically to help in a medical crisis can be blamed, stigmatized, distrusted as outsiders who hurt rather than heal.
For international emergency medical teams who come from afar to succeed, building trust with the larger community is the cornerstone to countering such prejudice, says Karin Huster, an emergency coordinator for Doctors Without Borders. She worked in countries in West Africa during the Ebola outbreak in 2014-2016, a period when some health clinics and their workers were attacked by community members they aimed to help.
"We were arrogant" and did not take the time to explain what Ebola was, or try to understand their concerns, Huster says. "All of a sudden someone dressed in a moon suit starts bringing sick people into a newly built unit, and drags dead people out in a plastic bag. Wouldn't you run away if you saw this?"
Having learned from those errors, the organization deploys a variety of strategies to include the community, reach out to local leaders, present accurate medical information and track and correct rumors, says Verschuere, with social media being one way to mitigate stigma and fear.
In the same way that prejudice manifests in every setting, the goal in counter-acting it is also the same: to bring out the humanity. By contrast, stigma does just the opposite, he says: It strips people's humanity away.
Diane Cole writes for many publications, including The Wall Street Journal and The Jewish Week, and is book columnist for The Psychotherapy Networker. She is the author of the memoir After Great Pain: A New Life Emerges. Her website is dianejcole.com.