csmonitor--2020-08-13--What the first Biden-Harris event tells us about their alliance

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris pushed past their one-time political rivalry to deliver an aggressive attack on the character and performance of President Donald Trump in their historic first appearance as running mates .
The physical debut of the Democratic ticket on Wednesday was without parallel in recent political annals .
The coronavirus prevented Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris from appearing before the large , adoring crowd that typically greets a presidential nominee and his or her running mate .
Instead , they spoke in a mostly empty high school gym where reporters nearly outnumbered campaign aides and the candidates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ made a traditional campaign rollout impossible , it gave Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris a setting to emphasize their criticism of Mr. Trump as unable to contend with the most severe public health crisis in a century .
Ms. Harris was particularly sharp in her condemnation of the administration .
`` The case against Donald Trump and Mike Pence is open and shut , '' Ms. Harris said .
`` This virus has impacted almost every country .
But there 's a reason it has hit America worse than any other advanced nation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ failure to take it seriously from the start . ''
She added : `` This is what happens when we elect a guy who just is n't up for the job . ''
Ms. Harris is the first Black woman on a major party 's presidential ticket , and she and Mr. Biden noted the historical significance .
`` This morning , all across the nation , little girls woke up – especially little Black and brown girls , who so often feel overlooked and undervalued in their communities .
But today , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seeing themselves for the first time in a new way , '' Mr. Biden said .
Ms. Harris , who is also of South Asian descent , noted the `` heroic and ambitious women before me , whose sacrifice , determination , and resilience make my presence here today even possible . ''
For his part , Mr. Trump has struggled to land on a coherent message about the Biden-Harris ticket , casting the Democrats as simultaneously too liberal for America and yet not progressive enough for their party 's base .
Mr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ criticism , referring to Ms. Harris as `` nasty '' and tweeting that `` the 'suburban housewife ' will be voting for me '' to keep neighborhoods safe .
He also noted the two Democrats ' disagreements during the primary campaign last year .
`` She said horrible things about him , '' Mr. Trump said Wednesday .
`` She mocked him , openly mocked him .
That 's why I thought that was a very risky pick .
Because I 'm sure that will be played back . ''
But onstage in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ showed clear affection toward one another .
He called his running mate an `` honorary Biden , '' and Ms. Harris offered a poignant tribute to his son Beau , whom she was friends with when both served as state attorneys general .
Mr. Biden seemed overcome with emotion as Ms. Harris spoke of Beau , who died in 2015 , as `` the best of us '' and a man who modeled himself after his father .
She signaled that she 'll offer a vigorous defense of Mr. Biden 's qualifications on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ though she made headlines for assailing him for his past opposition to federally mandated busing during a primary debate .
Noting Mr. Biden 's own vice presidency under President Barack Obama , she said he `` takes his place in the ongoing story of America 's march toward equality and justice '' as the only person `` who 's served alongside the first Black president and has chosen the first Black woman as his running mate . ''
Mr. Biden 's choice of Ms. Harris brought more than just historical weight to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fundraising boost for the campaign .
He announced at a later online fundraiser that the campaign raised $ 26 million in the 24 hours since she was announced , with 150,000 people giving for the first time .
Still , the day was not without its challenges .
The main event started an hour late , and the gymnasium in which the candidates spoke lost its air conditioning after a power outage hit the area .
While most of the cable news networks took the event live , the online livestream cut out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's remarks .
The appearance was the first in a rollout that Mr. Biden aides say blends the historic nature of Ms. Harris ' selection with the realities of the 2020 campaign and the gravity of the nation 's circumstances , which include the pandemic and its dramatic economic fallout .
Ms. Harris was considered a favorite throughout Mr. Biden 's search , and she 's been a regular surrogate campaigner and fundraiser for him since he became the presumptive nominee .
They 'll nonetheless have to paper over differences exposed during the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ initial support for a single-payer health insurance system and the Green New Deal to her deeply personal debate-stage broadside against Mr. Biden over his opposition to federally mandated busing to integrate public schools in the 1970s .
Ms. Harris no longer supports a single-payer health insurance system , aligning instead with Mr. Biden 's proposal to add a public insurance option to compete alongside private plans .
Still , she memorably raised her hand during one Democratic primary debate when candidates were asked whether they could back a system that scrapped private health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Green New Deal , progressives ' most ambitious set of proposals to combat climate change , but she did n't make that an anchor of her presidential bid .
Mr. Biden has moved left on his climate proposals during the 2020 campaign but has not fully embraced the Green New Deal .
In Washington , Ms. Harris has advocated overhauling the criminal justice system , intensifying her efforts since George Floyd 's killing by a white Minneapolis police officer in May .
And she 's called for sweeping domestic programs to benefit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she has taken heat for some of her aggressive stances as a local prosecutor in the San Francisco area and for not prosecuting bank executives in the wake of the 2008 financial collapse .
Mr. Biden bets that , on balance , Ms. Harris has broad appeal that will shore up any weaknesses with Black women , an anchor of the Democratic Party , and other voters of color , while juicing turnout among white liberals and coaxing support from independents and Republican-leaning white voters who have soured on Mr. Trump .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
AP writer Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage .
It ’ s free .

Alexandra Jaffe, Bill Barrow, and Will Weissert

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris pushed past their one-time political rivalry to deliver an aggressive attack on the character and performance of President Donald Trump in their historic first appearance as running mates.
The physical debut of the Democratic ticket on Wednesday was without parallel in recent political annals. The coronavirus prevented Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris from appearing before the large, adoring crowd that typically greets a presidential nominee and his or her running mate. Instead, they spoke in a mostly empty high school gym where reporters nearly outnumbered campaign aides and the candidates' family members.
While the pandemic made a traditional campaign rollout impossible, it gave Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris a setting to emphasize their criticism of Mr. Trump as unable to contend with the most severe public health crisis in a century. Ms. Harris was particularly sharp in her condemnation of the administration.
"The case against Donald Trump and Mike Pence is open and shut," Ms. Harris said. "This virus has impacted almost every country. But there's a reason it has hit America worse than any other advanced nation. It's because of Trump's failure to take it seriously from the start."
She added: "This is what happens when we elect a guy who just isn't up for the job."
Ms. Harris is the first Black woman on a major party's presidential ticket, and she and Mr. Biden noted the historical significance.
"This morning, all across the nation, little girls woke up – especially little Black and brown girls, who so often feel overlooked and undervalued in their communities. But today, today, just maybe, they're seeing themselves for the first time in a new way," Mr. Biden said.
Ms. Harris, who is also of South Asian descent, noted the "heroic and ambitious women before me, whose sacrifice, determination, and resilience make my presence here today even possible."
For his part, Mr. Trump has struggled to land on a coherent message about the Biden-Harris ticket, casting the Democrats as simultaneously too liberal for America and yet not progressive enough for their party's base. Mr. Trump has resorted to sexist and racist criticism, referring to Ms. Harris as "nasty" and tweeting that "the 'suburban housewife' will be voting for me" to keep neighborhoods safe.
He also noted the two Democrats' disagreements during the primary campaign last year.
"She said horrible things about him," Mr. Trump said Wednesday. "She mocked him, openly mocked him. That's why I thought that was a very risky pick. Because I'm sure that will be played back."
But onstage in Wilmington, Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris showed clear affection toward one another. He called his running mate an "honorary Biden," and Ms. Harris offered a poignant tribute to his son Beau, whom she was friends with when both served as state attorneys general. Mr. Biden seemed overcome with emotion as Ms. Harris spoke of Beau, who died in 2015, as "the best of us" and a man who modeled himself after his father.
She signaled that she'll offer a vigorous defense of Mr. Biden's qualifications on issues of race and civil rights, though she made headlines for assailing him for his past opposition to federally mandated busing during a primary debate.
Noting Mr. Biden's own vice presidency under President Barack Obama, she said he "takes his place in the ongoing story of America's march toward equality and justice" as the only person "who's served alongside the first Black president and has chosen the first Black woman as his running mate."
Mr. Biden's choice of Ms. Harris brought more than just historical weight to the ticket – it also provided a big fundraising boost for the campaign. He announced at a later online fundraiser that the campaign raised $26 million in the 24 hours since she was announced, with 150,000 people giving for the first time.
Still, the day was not without its challenges. The main event started an hour late, and the gymnasium in which the candidates spoke lost its air conditioning after a power outage hit the area. While most of the cable news networks took the event live, the online livestream cut out just a few minutes into Mr. Biden's remarks.
The appearance was the first in a rollout that Mr. Biden aides say blends the historic nature of Ms. Harris' selection with the realities of the 2020 campaign and the gravity of the nation's circumstances, which include the pandemic and its dramatic economic fallout.
Ms. Harris was considered a favorite throughout Mr. Biden's search, and she's been a regular surrogate campaigner and fundraiser for him since he became the presumptive nominee.
They'll nonetheless have to paper over differences exposed during the primary campaign, from Ms. Harris' initial support for a single-payer health insurance system and the Green New Deal to her deeply personal debate-stage broadside against Mr. Biden over his opposition to federally mandated busing to integrate public schools in the 1970s.
Ms. Harris no longer supports a single-payer health insurance system, aligning instead with Mr. Biden's proposal to add a public insurance option to compete alongside private plans. Still, she memorably raised her hand during one Democratic primary debate when candidates were asked whether they could back a system that scrapped private health insurance altogether.
She has broadly endorsed the Green New Deal, progressives' most ambitious set of proposals to combat climate change, but she didn't make that an anchor of her presidential bid. Mr. Biden has moved left on his climate proposals during the 2020 campaign but has not fully embraced the Green New Deal.
In Washington, Ms. Harris has advocated overhauling the criminal justice system, intensifying her efforts since George Floyd's killing by a white Minneapolis police officer in May. And she's called for sweeping domestic programs to benefit the working and middle class. But she has taken heat for some of her aggressive stances as a local prosecutor in the San Francisco area and for not prosecuting bank executives in the wake of the 2008 financial collapse.
Mr. Biden bets that, on balance, Ms. Harris has broad appeal that will shore up any weaknesses with Black women, an anchor of the Democratic Party, and other voters of color, while juicing turnout among white liberals and coaxing support from independents and Republican-leaning white voters who have soured on Mr. Trump.
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This story was reported by The Associated Press. AP writer Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report.
Editor’s note: As a public service, the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage. It’s free.


csmonitor--2020-08-14--Mideast ‘breakthrough’ a long-sought win for deal-maker Trump

Political experts differ over whether the deal is likely to have any measurable impact on the president ’ s reelection fortunes , with the pandemic , the economy , and social unrest over race relations leaving little room for foreign policy issues .
The deal may not deliver a bump in the polls , Mr. Hannah says , but it will likely energize the president ’ s supporters , among them evangelical Christians who put a premium on Israel ’ s security .
The Israel-UAE deal “ is the first unambiguous diplomatic success for President Trump , and such successes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ administration , ” says John Hannah , an expert in Arab politics at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies .
That new approach logged its first win Thursday with President Trump ’ s announcement that Israel and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to start a process toward normalization .
Mr. Trump ’ s son-in-law , Jared Kushner , was largely credited with the diplomatic coup .
Mr. Kushner said the president had instructed him to take “ an untraditional approach.
” From the beginning , President Donald Trump turned the U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ head .
Instead of enticing Israel to reach a deal with the Palestinians by promising peace with Arab countries , Mr. Trump prioritized Israeli-Arab relations as a way of pressuring Palestinians to strike a deal .
When President Donald Trump unveiled his long-awaited Middle East peace plan in January , a major difference between the new effort and decades of dashed U.S. initiatives was the role the Trump administration envisioned for Arab-Israeli relations .
The Trump plan turned the traditional U.S. approach on its head : Instead of enticing Israel to reach a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ peace with Arab countries would be Israel ’ s reward , Mr. Trump ’ s plan called for placing the priority on reaching normalized relations between Israel and the Arabs as a way of pressuring the Palestinians to strike a deal with Israel .
That new approach logged its first win Thursday with President Trump ’ s announcement from the Oval Office that Israel and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to start a process toward normalization of relations .
The agreement , to be negotiated in the coming weeks , would make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , after Egypt and Jordan , to establish diplomatic ties with the Jewish state .
Moreover , as part of the deal , the Israeli government has agreed to suspend , at least temporarily , any plans to annex large parts of the occupied West Bank , including lands the Palestinians see becoming part of an independent Palestine .
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ’ s agreement to shelve West Bank annexation allows Emirati Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed to secure his stature as the Gulf ’ s preeminent diplomatic force while claiming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ viable independent state .
The deal announced Thursday , which the White House called a “ historic diplomatic breakthrough , ” is clearly a feather in Mr. Trump ’ s foreign policy cap – a cap that by most estimations has had few feathers to boast .
The Israel-UAE deal “ is the first unambiguous diplomatic success for President Trump , and such successes are few and far between for any administration , ” says John Hannah , a senior counselor and expert in Arab politics at the Foundation for the Defense of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ renegotiation of NAFTA , relations with NATO , and North Korea diplomacy , Mr. Hannah says , “ It ’ s hard to identify an issue or accomplishment this president has made … that doesn ’ t have a serious element of controversy or criticism from other people.
” But he notes that even former Vice President Joe Biden , the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee , praised this agreement .
Political experts differ over whether the deal is likely to have any measurable impact on the president ’ s reelection fortunes .
Most @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and social unrest over race relations , leave little room for foreign policy issues to have an impact .
The deal may not deliver a bump in the polls , Mr. Hannah says , but it will likely energize the president ’ s supporters , among them evangelical Christians who put a premium on Israel ’ s security .
“ Foreign policy always plays at the margins ” of presidential campaigns , he says , adding that “ this could be the gift that keeps on giving ” – especially if additional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House to orchestrate “ one of those iconic signing ceremonies on the South Lawn that everyone remembers.
” Nevertheless , some regional experts remained cautious about Thursday ’ s deal , noting that within hours of President Trump ’ s announcement , both Israel and the UAE were issuing conflicting statements on what they had actually agreed to .
“ There are more questions at this point than there are answers , ” says Shira Efron , a visiting fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv .
“ Each @ @ @ @ @ @ @ She notes the Emirati crown prince , known colloquially as MBZ , spoke of the agreement as a “ roadmap ” for establishing ties , while Mr. Netanyahu spoke in English of a full peace agreement – while then insisting in Hebrew that West Bank annexation “ is still on the table.
” In the Oval Office , flanked by most of his top foreign policy and national security advisers , Mr. Trump hinted that additional similar announcements could be forthcoming from other countries .
Some regional experts pointed to Bahrain as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with Israel .
Mr. Trump ’ s Oval Office entourage included son-in-law Jared Kushner , who was largely credited by officials and outside experts with securing the diplomatic coup .
Speaking after Mr. Trump , Mr. Kushner said the president had instructed him to take “ an untraditional approach ” to the Middle East , advice he said has started to pay off .
For his part , Mr. Trump said , referring to his son-in-law , that “ people don ’ t always understand what he ’ s able to do.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the great deal-maker .
Yet other diplomatic coups he has promised have proved to be illusive , which is one reason securing the Middle East breakthrough is clearly important to him .
Mr. Trump ’ s personal diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un caused a lot of fanfare but achieved little , leaving the North Korean regime to develop more nuclear weapons and steadily perfected ICBM missiles .
The president did strike an initial trade deal with China in January .
But since then relations with Beijing have sharply deteriorated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and now Mr. Trump has turned his back on a trade deal that in any case isn ’ t meeting modest expectations .
Mr. Trump ’ s Iran policy based on crushing sanctions has devastated the Iranian economy but alienated the U.S. from its traditional allies and left the regime in Tehran with a restarted nuclear program and making mischief in the region .
The president recently told a group of supporters that if reelected he would have a new deal with Iran “ within four weeks ” – which in any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reaching a “ Trump deal ” with Tehran in his first term had fallen short .
At the White House Thursday , national security adviser Robert O ’ Brien said Mr. Trump had inherited a “ mess ” in the Middle East when he took office , but that the Israel-UAE deal was one more step in fixing the region .
Few Middle East experts share that assessment , however , with many critical of a policy they say is based on waning U.S. focus on the region and lacking a strategic vision @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Israel-UAE deal will strengthen the U.S. effort to work with regional allies to counter Iran ’ s destabilizing activities .
A normalization of business relations and security ties that had already existed not-so-secretly for years between Israel and the UAE will likely prompt other Arab states to follow suit , they say , and enable Israel and Gulf states to more effectively work to weaken Iran ’ s influence .
Some regional experts acknowledge that the UAE-Israel deal represents a significant success for the Trump Middle East approach that they had doubted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` willingness to move down the path to full diplomatic relations without settlement of the Palestinian issue '' is clearly `` in line with the Trump peace deal , '' says Michael Koplow , policy director at the Israel Policy Forum .
“ I had been doubtful about that step , ” he says .
The Israel Policy Forum is a New York-based organization that supports cementing Israel ’ s security through the conclusion of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict .
Additional success of the Arab-relations-first approach – for example a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s lead – would constitute a further setback for the Palestinians , Mr. Koplow says .
`` The Palestinians will have even less ability to pressure the Israeli government if they lose the normalization with Arabs '' as a bargaining chip in negotiations , he estimates .
At the same time , however , some remained cautious about trumpeting the initial Israel-UAE deal as a cut-in-stone success .
“ By the end of Thursday the UAE was tweeting that it would require a full rejection of annexation to go forward ” and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , says Ms. Efron , who is also a policy adviser with the Israel Policy Forum .
Still , Mr. Trump was happy to bask in the glow of the deal .
At the Oval Office announcement , he said the deal would be known as the “ Abraham Accord ” in honor of the father of three faiths – Christian , Muslim , and Jewish .
He then quipped that he “ wanted it to be called the Donald J. Trump accord , ” but he said he “ didn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ”

Political experts differ over whether the deal is likely to have any measurable impact on the president’s reelection fortunes, with the pandemic, the economy, and social unrest over race relations leaving little room for foreign policy issues. The deal may not deliver a bump in the polls, Mr. Hannah says, but it will likely energize the president’s supporters, among them evangelical Christians who put a premium on Israel’s security.
The Israel-UAE deal “is the first unambiguous diplomatic success for President Trump, and such successes are few and far between for any administration,” says John Hannah, an expert in Arab politics at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies.
Progress toward peace in the Middle East has been an elusive goal for many U.S. presidents, and Donald Trump’s unconventional approach, including the use of his diplomatically untested son-in-law, has had many doubters.
That new approach logged its first win Thursday with President Trump’s announcement that Israel and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to start a process toward normalization. Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, was largely credited with the diplomatic coup. Mr. Kushner said the president had instructed him to take “an untraditional approach.”
From the beginning, President Donald Trump turned the U.S. approach to Middle East peace on its head. Instead of enticing Israel to reach a deal with the Palestinians by promising peace with Arab countries, Mr. Trump prioritized Israeli-Arab relations as a way of pressuring Palestinians to strike a deal.
When President Donald Trump unveiled his long-awaited Middle East peace plan in January, a major difference between the new effort and decades of dashed U.S. initiatives was the role the Trump administration envisioned for Arab-Israeli relations.
The Trump plan turned the traditional U.S. approach on its head: Instead of enticing Israel to reach a deal with the Palestinians by promising that peace with Arab countries would be Israel’s reward, Mr. Trump’s plan called for placing the priority on reaching normalized relations between Israel and the Arabs as a way of pressuring the Palestinians to strike a deal with Israel.
That new approach logged its first win Thursday with President Trump’s announcement from the Oval Office that Israel and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to start a process toward normalization of relations.
Why We Wrote This Progress toward peace in the Middle East has been an elusive goal for many U.S. presidents, and Donald Trump’s unconventional approach, including the use of his diplomatically untested son-in-law, has had many doubters.
The agreement, to be negotiated in the coming weeks, would make the UAE only the third Arab country, after Egypt and Jordan, to establish diplomatic ties with the Jewish state.
Moreover, as part of the deal, the Israeli government has agreed to suspend, at least temporarily, any plans to annex large parts of the occupied West Bank, including lands the Palestinians see becoming part of an independent Palestine.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s agreement to shelve West Bank annexation allows Emirati Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed to secure his stature as the Gulf’s preeminent diplomatic force while claiming the deal preserves Palestinian aspirations for a viable independent state.
The deal announced Thursday, which the White House called a “historic diplomatic breakthrough,” is clearly a feather in Mr. Trump’s foreign policy cap – a cap that by most estimations has had few feathers to boast.
The Israel-UAE deal “is the first unambiguous diplomatic success for President Trump, and such successes are few and far between for any administration,” says John Hannah, a senior counselor and expert in Arab politics at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies in Washington.
Pointing to the renegotiation of NAFTA, relations with NATO, and North Korea diplomacy, Mr. Hannah says, “It’s hard to identify an issue or accomplishment this president has made … that doesn’t have a serious element of controversy or criticism from other people.”
But he notes that even former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, praised this agreement.
Political benefit?
Political experts differ over whether the deal is likely to have any measurable impact on the president’s reelection fortunes. Most say the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy, and social unrest over race relations, leave little room for foreign policy issues to have an impact.
The deal may not deliver a bump in the polls, Mr. Hannah says, but it will likely energize the president’s supporters, among them evangelical Christians who put a premium on Israel’s security.
“Foreign policy always plays at the margins” of presidential campaigns, he says, adding that “this could be the gift that keeps on giving” – especially if additional accords with Arab states allowed the White House to orchestrate “one of those iconic signing ceremonies on the South Lawn that everyone remembers.”
Nevertheless, some regional experts remained cautious about Thursday’s deal, noting that within hours of President Trump’s announcement, both Israel and the UAE were issuing conflicting statements on what they had actually agreed to.
“There are more questions at this point than there are answers,” says Shira Efron, a visiting fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv. “Each side frames the accord very differently.”
She notes the Emirati crown prince, known colloquially as MBZ, spoke of the agreement as a “roadmap” for establishing ties, while Mr. Netanyahu spoke in English of a full peace agreement – while then insisting in Hebrew that West Bank annexation “is still on the table.”
Raneen Sawafta/Reuters View caption Hide caption Palestinians take part in a protest Aug. 14 in Nablus, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, against the United Arab Emirates' deal with Israel to normalize relations.
In the Oval Office, flanked by most of his top foreign policy and national security advisers, Mr. Trump hinted that additional similar announcements could be forthcoming from other countries.
Some regional experts pointed to Bahrain as the next likely candidate for any normalization plan with Israel.
Jared Kushner’s role
Mr. Trump’s Oval Office entourage included son-in-law Jared Kushner, who was largely credited by officials and outside experts with securing the diplomatic coup.
Speaking after Mr. Trump, Mr. Kushner said the president had instructed him to take “an untraditional approach” to the Middle East, advice he said has started to pay off. For his part, Mr. Trump said, referring to his son-in-law, that “people don’t always understand what he’s able to do.”
The president fancies himself, however, as the great deal-maker. Yet other diplomatic coups he has promised have proved to be illusive, which is one reason securing the Middle East breakthrough is clearly important to him.
Mr. Trump’s personal diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un caused a lot of fanfare but achieved little, leaving the North Korean regime to develop more nuclear weapons and steadily perfected ICBM missiles.
The president did strike an initial trade deal with China in January. But since then relations with Beijing have sharply deteriorated in large part over the coronavirus pandemic, and now Mr. Trump has turned his back on a trade deal that in any case isn’t meeting modest expectations.
Mr. Trump’s Iran policy based on crushing sanctions has devastated the Iranian economy but alienated the U.S. from its traditional allies and left the regime in Tehran with a restarted nuclear program and making mischief in the region.
The president recently told a group of supporters that if reelected he would have a new deal with Iran “within four weeks” – which in any case was acknowledgment that his hopes of reaching a “Trump deal” with Tehran in his first term had fallen short.
At the White House Thursday, national security adviser Robert O’Brien said Mr. Trump had inherited a “mess” in the Middle East when he took office, but that the Israel-UAE deal was one more step in fixing the region. Few Middle East experts share that assessment, however, with many critical of a policy they say is based on waning U.S. focus on the region and lacking a strategic vision.
But some more supportive observers say the Israel-UAE deal will strengthen the U.S. effort to work with regional allies to counter Iran’s destabilizing activities. A normalization of business relations and security ties that had already existed not-so-secretly for years between Israel and the UAE will likely prompt other Arab states to follow suit, they say, and enable Israel and Gulf states to more effectively work to weaken Iran’s influence.
Some had doubted approach
Some regional experts acknowledge that the UAE-Israel deal represents a significant success for the Trump Middle East approach that they had doubted could work.
The UAE’s "willingness to move down the path to full diplomatic relations without settlement of the Palestinian issue" is clearly "in line with the Trump peace deal," says Michael Koplow, policy director at the Israel Policy Forum. “I had been doubtful about that step,” he says. The Israel Policy Forum is a New York-based organization that supports cementing Israel’s security through the conclusion of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Additional success of the Arab-relations-first approach – for example a decision by Bahrain to follow Abu Dhabi’s lead – would constitute a further setback for the Palestinians, Mr. Koplow says.
"The Palestinians will have even less ability to pressure the Israeli government if they lose the normalization with Arabs" as a bargaining chip in negotiations, he estimates.
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empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
At the same time, however, some remained cautious about trumpeting the initial Israel-UAE deal as a cut-in-stone success. “By the end of Thursday the UAE was tweeting that it would require a full rejection of annexation to go forward” and not just Mr. Netanyahu’s suspension, says Ms. Efron, who is also a policy adviser with the Israel Policy Forum.
Still, Mr. Trump was happy to bask in the glow of the deal. At the Oval Office announcement, he said the deal would be known as the “Abraham Accord” in honor of the father of three faiths – Christian, Muslim, and Jewish. He then quipped that he “wanted it to be called the Donald J. Trump accord,” but he said he “didn’t think the press would understand that.”


csmonitor--2020-08-14--For working women, a recession like no other

So many women lost their jobs during the pandemic-led downturn this spring that it has acquired a title : the “ she-cession.
” In past recessions , men bore the brunt of the job losses .
In the 1970s and ’ 80s , women ’ s long-term move into the job market was so strong that an economic contraction would barely register in their job numbers .
But this pandemic recession has turned past patterns on their head .
It has hit hard many of the sectors where female workers predominate , so that their job losses outnumbered job losses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s a similar story .
They , too , made gains over the decades and now own more than half of the sole proprietorships in the United States , according to a recent survey .
But many of their businesses are concentrated in sectors , such as retail and leisure and hospitality , that have suffered from the lockdowns imposed by the coronavirus .
In a typical recession , the gap between women ’ s and men ’ s pay narrows a little because more men are thrown into unemployment and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work .
But a new National Bureau of Economic Research ( NBER ) study suggests that the pandemic-led recession is doing just the opposite : expanding the pay gap because this time more women are thrown out of work and can ’ t take on new work , because they have increased child care duties with schools closed by lockdowns .
If there is a silver lining , it ’ s that in the long term the pandemic may narrow the pay gap as working from home becomes more accepted and fathers , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the lockdowns , will accept doing more of household duties , according to the NBER study authors Titan Alon , Matthias Doepke , Jane Olmstead-Rumsey , and Michèle Tertiltwrite .
“ [ T ] he rise in work flexibility during a pandemic recession is likely to be persistent , and disproportionately benefits women who have major childcare responsibilities , ” they write .

So many women lost their jobs during the pandemic-led downturn this spring that it has acquired a title: the “she-cession.” In past recessions, men bore the brunt of the job losses. In the 1970s and ’80s, women’s long-term move into the job market was so strong that an economic contraction would barely register in their job numbers. But this pandemic recession has turned past patterns on their head. It has hit hard many of the sectors where female workers predominate, so that their job losses outnumbered job losses for men.
For female entrepreneurs, it’s a similar story. They, too, made gains over the decades and now own more than half of the sole proprietorships in the United States, according to a recent survey. But many of their businesses are concentrated in sectors, such as retail and leisure and hospitality, that have suffered from the lockdowns imposed by the coronavirus.
In a typical recession, the gap between women’s and men’s pay narrows a little because more men are thrown into unemployment and women with jobless spouses take on more work. But a new National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) study suggests that the pandemic-led recession is doing just the opposite: expanding the pay gap because this time more women are thrown out of work and can’t take on new work, because they have increased child care duties with schools closed by lockdowns.
If there is a silver lining, it’s that in the long term the pandemic may narrow the pay gap as working from home becomes more accepted and fathers, getting a taste of child care during the lockdowns, will accept doing more of household duties, according to the NBER study authors Titan Alon, Matthias Doepke, Jane Olmstead-Rumsey, and Michèle Tertilt. “[T]he rise in work flexibility during a pandemic recession is likely to be persistent, and disproportionately benefits women who have major childcare responsibilities,” they write.
SOURCE: Chart 1: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; Chart 2: UENI survey of 39,000 U.S. businesses; Chart 3: "This Time It's Different: The Role of Women's Employment in a Pandemic Recession," National Bureau of Economic Research, August 2020 | Jacob Turcotte and Laurent Belsie/Staff
Why We Wrote This To get an honest picture of how an economy is faring, it helps to look at working women. The pandemic recession has been challenging for them, but rapidly changing norms around work offer a sliver of optimism.


csmonitor--2020-08-14--‘Don’t stop having optimism’: combat vets on surviving the pandemic

He realizes that unemployed Americans face a dire plight as the economy sputters .
He urges them to keep rising from bed .
“ You have to get up and take those first breaths , ” he says .
“ The only chance tomorrow will be better is if you get through today.
” The ordeal taught him to find meaning in the moment .
“ As hard as things are , the pandemic will eventually pass .
Until it does , look for simple joys , ” says Mr. Pemble-Belkin .
He recalls pausing each morning as he picked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Green Mountains .
“ It doesn ’ t sound like much , but those little bits of beauty can help you survive the day.
” After an Army career cut short by a rocket blast in Afghanistan , Misha Pemble-Belkin moved to Vermont .
Working as an apple picker and stock clerk , his searing back pain made rising from bed a Herculean feat .
Depression linked to his deployments shadowed him as he fell below the poverty line .
Constricted living conditions , unseen threats , mental fatigue : What we ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ echoes some of the experience of soldiers in war .
What they learn in combat gives them insight into surviving prolonged adversity , and adapting to ambiguity .
The coronavirus pandemic at once slows and blurs time .
Each day suspends us between monotony and uncertainty , rendering tomorrow almost identical to yesterday , and foiling our efforts to imagine much beyond the present .
For five months , and to varying degrees from state to state , most of us have lived inside a closed-loop routine that resembles shampoo instructions : wake @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Confronted by that daily sameness , Colleen Ryan-Hensley relies on coping skills she honed while deployed aboard Navy destroyers in support of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan .
“ The way I maintained sanity was focusing on what I could control , ” says Ms. Ryan-Hensley , who served in the Navy for 11 years and lives in Frisco , Texas .
“ I ’ ve tried to do the same during the pandemic , and that ’ s been helpful in keeping things in balance.
” The restrictions on civilian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ veterans as everybody else , recall aspects of what they endured in war .
Their memories of deployment – the constricted living conditions , the unseen threats , the mental fatigue – give them insight into surviving prolonged adversity , and their experiences after leaving the military offer lessons about adapting to ambiguity .
What can we learn from them to navigate the pandemic ?
Five veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars share their perspectives on perseverance , resilience , and what we might gain from our collective struggle .
Misha Pemble-Belkin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Army .
A rocket blast during his second combat tour in Afghanistan in 2011 derailed his plan , inflicting injuries to his back and neck that forced him into medical retirement four years later .
The loss of a military career that began in 2006 cast him adrift .
He moved to Vermont and worked as an apple picker and stock clerk , despite searing back pain that made the simple act of rising from bed a Herculean feat .
Depression linked to his deployments shadowed him as he fell below the poverty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ find meaning in the moment .
“ As hard as things are , the pandemic will eventually pass .
Until it does , look for simple joys , ” says Mr. Pemble-Belkin , who appeared in “ Restrepo , ” an Oscar-nominated documentary about his Army unit ’ s 15-month tour in Afghanistan that ended in 2008 .
He recalls pausing each morning as he picked apples to watch the sun crest the Green Mountains .
“ It doesn ’ t sound like much , but those little bits of beauty can help @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of two young daughters , he fought against despair , willing himself to meet the day .
In time , he joined the staff of Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports , an organization in Killington that works with disabled children and adults .
He realizes that millions of unemployed Americans face a dire plight as the economy sputters .
He urges them to keep rising from bed .
“ You have to get up and take those first breaths , ” he says .
“ The only chance tomorrow will be better is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ end of Jeff Hensley ’ s 21-year Navy career in 2009 cued an identity crisis .
The retired fighter pilot deployed twice to Iraq and lost one of his closest friends there .
He returned to his native Texas with his first marriage collapsing , three children to raise , and his sense of self in free-fall .
Hanging up his uniform prodded him to redefine his purpose , to emphasize personal growth over professional pursuits .
He suggests that the upheaval of the pandemic has illuminated the need to nurture emotional well-being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we search for answers to the question of who we are beneath our work and within our relationships , we ’ ll be more comfortable with ourselves no matter what ’ s happening around us , ” says Mr. Hensley , a veterans advocate and pilot for United Airlines .
“ That ’ s especially important right now because we ’ re dealing with something that ’ s so beyond our control.
” The widening impact of the coronavirus “ makes it clear that all of us are vulnerable , ” says Mr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ryan-Hensley .
As the number of cases climbs , he adds , we can seek to alleviate our own unease by showing empathy for others .
“ This is something that everyone is going through .
Everyone has fears , anxieties , occasionally anger , ” he says .
“ If we recognize that we share those emotions , even if we show them in different ways , that can bring us together .
This is a shared experience , and there is a common humanity.
” The long months at sea during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2003 and 2005 offered ample time for bleak thoughts to fester .
She reined in her mind with a resolute focus on her tasks as a combat systems analyst , and she has applied a similar discipline since the pandemic arrived .
A set of routines – for work , household chores , family conversations , exercise – serves to reassure her in the absence of the old normal .
“ We have no other choice except to adapt , ” says Ms. Ryan-Hensley , who works for Unite Us , a tech @ @ @ @ @ @ @ services for vulnerable populations .
She attempts to treat hardship as an opportunity to build inner strength .
“ There is value in recognizing your ability to overcome circumstances that you ’ ve never encountered before , that you never imagined , ” she says .
“ It can give you the confidence to face difficult situations in the future.
” Ms. Ryan-Hensley established a wellness program at the San Diego naval base where she was stationed before leaving the military in 2010 .
She later provided counseling services for active-duty troops , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and she encourages those mired in distress over the pandemic to ask for help from clinicians , trusted peers , or friends .
“ If you ’ re suffering , realize you don ’ t have to do so in silence , ” she says .
“ Because the reality is , almost everybody is suffering.
” Kevin Miller mustered out of the Marine Corps in 2006 after two combat tours in Iraq that included surviving a roadside bomb explosion .
The war stayed with the onetime infantryman in the form of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and back pain , and post-traumatic stress disorder .
A range of physical and psychological therapies aided his slow recovery over the ensuing years , and in 2013 , he found work with Swords to Plowshares , a veterans advocacy organization in San Francisco .
“ I didn ’ t want to get blown up any more than any of us want to be going through a pandemic , ” he says .
“ But now I can see the resilience I gained from that experience in Iraq , and there will be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will make us stronger .
It ’ s just not something we can see yet.
” Mr. Miller summoned that willpower when the coronavirus outbreak threatened to upend long-gestating plans to move east this summer with his partner .
They packed up last month and drove to their new home in a suburb of Washington , D.C. , and he exhorts people to nurture their ambitions as a way to sustain the spirit .
“ We decided not to put life on hold , ” he says .
“ Obviously , not everyone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ life change right now .
But at the very least , don ’ t stop planning your future and don ’ t stop having optimism about what you want to accomplish.
” Joshua Mantz died in Iraq in 2007 .
A sniper ’ s bullet caused his heart to stop for 15 minutes , until field medics revived him .
Mr. Mantz , a former Army platoon leader , recounts his physical and emotional recovery in his 2017 book , “ The Beauty of a Darker Soul : Overcoming Trauma Through the Power @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that follows trauma pulls us where we need to go – not necessarily where we want to go – to feel whole again , ” says Mr. Mantz , who lives in Las Vegas .
The economic fallout from the pandemic has wrought a psychological toll that he describes as a kind of living death for Americans whose jobs have vanished .
“ Losing your business , career , or life ’ s work – there ’ s severe trauma and a grief process involved with that , ” he says .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to seek out conversations that delve into that struggle rather than avoid talking about it .
When we articulate feelings like shame and powerlessness with each other , it creates resonance between us.
” Mr. Mantz has founded a company , Phaedrus Factory , that teaches clinicians , military personnel , and law enforcement officers about the moral psychology of trauma .
His call for compassion defies the country ’ s partisan rancor , reflecting his own journey out of the abyss and his gratitude to those who lifted him .
“ A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hope and what we do to deliver hope to each other , ” he says .
“ We ’ re really not in this alone , no matter how isolated we may feel.
” Editor ’ s note : As a public service , we have removed our paywall for all pandemic-related stories .

He realizes that unemployed Americans face a dire plight as the economy sputters. He urges them to keep rising from bed. “You have to get up and take those first breaths,” he says. “The only chance tomorrow will be better is if you get through today.”
The ordeal taught him to find meaning in the moment. “As hard as things are, the pandemic will eventually pass. Until it does, look for simple joys,” says Mr. Pemble-Belkin. He recalls pausing each morning as he picked apples to watch the sun crest the Green Mountains. “It doesn’t sound like much, but those little bits of beauty can help you survive the day.”
Five veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars offer perspective on perseverance, resiliency, and what we might gain from our struggle against the coronavirus outbreak.
After an Army career cut short by a rocket blast in Afghanistan, Misha Pemble-Belkin moved to Vermont. Working as an apple picker and stock clerk, his searing back pain made rising from bed a Herculean feat. Depression linked to his deployments shadowed him as he fell below the poverty line.
Constricted living conditions, unseen threats, mental fatigue: What we’ve all been through in the pandemic echoes some of the experience of soldiers in war. What they learn in combat gives them insight into surviving prolonged adversity, and adapting to ambiguity.
The coronavirus pandemic at once slows and blurs time. Each day suspends us between monotony and uncertainty, rendering tomorrow almost identical to yesterday, and foiling our efforts to imagine much beyond the present.
For five months, and to varying degrees from state to state, most of us have lived inside a closed-loop routine that resembles shampoo instructions: wake up, shelter in place, repeat. Confronted by that daily sameness, Colleen Ryan-Hensley relies on coping skills she honed while deployed aboard Navy destroyers in support of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“The way I maintained sanity was focusing on what I could control,” says Ms. Ryan-Hensley, who served in the Navy for 11 years and lives in Frisco, Texas. “I’ve tried to do the same during the pandemic, and that’s been helpful in keeping things in balance.”
Why We Wrote This Five veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars offer perspective on perseverance, resiliency, and what we might gain from our struggle against the coronavirus outbreak.
The restrictions on civilian life, if as onerous for military veterans as everybody else, recall aspects of what they endured in war. Their memories of deployment – the constricted living conditions, the unseen threats, the mental fatigue – give them insight into surviving prolonged adversity, and their experiences after leaving the military offer lessons about adapting to ambiguity.
What can we learn from them to navigate the pandemic? Five veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars share their perspectives on perseverance, resilience, and what we might gain from our collective struggle.
Finding meaning in the moment
Misha Pemble-Belkin intended to serve 20 years in the Army. A rocket blast during his second combat tour in Afghanistan in 2011 derailed his plan, inflicting injuries to his back and neck that forced him into medical retirement four years later.
The loss of a military career that began in 2006 cast him adrift. He moved to Vermont and worked as an apple picker and stock clerk, despite searing back pain that made the simple act of rising from bed a Herculean feat. Depression linked to his deployments shadowed him as he fell below the poverty line.
The ordeal taught him to find meaning in the moment. “As hard as things are, the pandemic will eventually pass. Until it does, look for simple joys,” says Mr. Pemble-Belkin, who appeared in “Restrepo,” an Oscar-nominated documentary about his Army unit’s 15-month tour in Afghanistan that ended in 2008.
He recalls pausing each morning as he picked apples to watch the sun crest the Green Mountains. “It doesn’t sound like much, but those little bits of beauty can help you survive the day.”
The father of two young daughters, he fought against despair, willing himself to meet the day. In time, he joined the staff of Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports, an organization in Killington that works with disabled children and adults. He realizes that millions of unemployed Americans face a dire plight as the economy sputters. He urges them to keep rising from bed.
“You have to get up and take those first breaths,” he says. “The only chance tomorrow will be better is if you get through today.”
Reordering life priorities
The end of Jeff Hensley’s 21-year Navy career in 2009 cued an identity crisis. The retired fighter pilot deployed twice to Iraq and lost one of his closest friends there. He returned to his native Texas with his first marriage collapsing, three children to raise, and his sense of self in free-fall.
Hanging up his uniform prodded him to redefine his purpose, to emphasize personal growth over professional pursuits. He suggests that the upheaval of the pandemic has illuminated the need to nurture emotional well-being and reorder life priorities.
“If we search for answers to the question of who we are beneath our work and within our relationships, we’ll be more comfortable with ourselves no matter what’s happening around us,” says Mr. Hensley, a veterans advocate and pilot for United Airlines. “That’s especially important right now because we’re dealing with something that’s so beyond our control.”
The widening impact of the coronavirus “makes it clear that all of us are vulnerable,” says Mr. Hensley, who is married to Ms. Ryan-Hensley. As the number of cases climbs, he adds, we can seek to alleviate our own unease by showing empathy for others.
“This is something that everyone is going through. Everyone has fears, anxieties, occasionally anger,” he says. “If we recognize that we share those emotions, even if we show them in different ways, that can bring us together. This is a shared experience, and there is a common humanity.”
Treating hardship as an opportunity
The long months at sea during Ms. Ryan-Hensley’s wartime deployments in 2003 and 2005 offered ample time for bleak thoughts to fester.
She reined in her mind with a resolute focus on her tasks as a combat systems analyst, and she has applied a similar discipline since the pandemic arrived. A set of routines – for work, household chores, family conversations, exercise – serves to reassure her in the absence of the old normal.
“We have no other choice except to adapt,” says Ms. Ryan-Hensley, who works for Unite Us, a tech company that coordinates health care and social services for vulnerable populations. She attempts to treat hardship as an opportunity to build inner strength.
“There is value in recognizing your ability to overcome circumstances that you’ve never encountered before, that you never imagined,” she says. “It can give you the confidence to face difficult situations in the future.”
Ms. Ryan-Hensley established a wellness program at the San Diego naval base where she was stationed before leaving the military in 2010. She later provided counseling services for active-duty troops, veterans, first responders, and caregivers, and she encourages those mired in distress over the pandemic to ask for help from clinicians, trusted peers, or friends.
“If you’re suffering, realize you don’t have to do so in silence,” she says. “Because the reality is, almost everybody is suffering.”
Nurturing ambitions
Kevin Miller mustered out of the Marine Corps in 2006 after two combat tours in Iraq that included surviving a roadside bomb explosion. The war stayed with the onetime infantryman in the form of a traumatic brain injury, chronic neck and back pain, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
A range of physical and psychological therapies aided his slow recovery over the ensuing years, and in 2013, he found work with Swords to Plowshares, a veterans advocacy organization in San Francisco.
“I didn’t want to get blown up any more than any of us want to be going through a pandemic,” he says. “But now I can see the resilience I gained from that experience in Iraq, and there will be something we gain from this experience that will make us stronger. It’s just not something we can see yet.”
Mr. Miller summoned that willpower when the coronavirus outbreak threatened to upend long-gestating plans to move east this summer with his partner. They packed up last month and drove to their new home in a suburb of Washington, D.C., and he exhorts people to nurture their ambitions as a way to sustain the spirit.
“We decided not to put life on hold,” he says. “Obviously, not everyone can or wants to make a big life change right now. But at the very least, don’t stop planning your future and don’t stop having optimism about what you want to accomplish.”
Delivering hope
Joshua Mantz died in Iraq in 2007. A sniper’s bullet caused his heart to stop for 15 minutes, until field medics revived him.
Mr. Mantz, a former Army platoon leader, recounts his physical and emotional recovery in his 2017 book, “The Beauty of a Darker Soul: Overcoming Trauma Through the Power of Human Connection.”
“The struggle that follows trauma pulls us where we need to go – not necessarily where we want to go – to feel whole again,” says Mr. Mantz, who lives in Las Vegas. The economic fallout from the pandemic has wrought a psychological toll that he describes as a kind of living death for Americans whose jobs have vanished.
“Losing your business, career, or life’s work – there’s severe trauma and a grief process involved with that,” he says. “So it’s important for people to seek out conversations that delve into that struggle rather than avoid talking about it. When we articulate feelings like shame and powerlessness with each other, it creates resonance between us.”
Mr. Mantz has founded a company, Phaedrus Factory, that teaches clinicians, military personnel, and law enforcement officers about the moral psychology of trauma. His call for compassion defies the country’s partisan rancor, reflecting his own journey out of the abyss and his gratitude to those who lifted him.
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empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
“A big part of healing comes down to hope and what we do to deliver hope to each other,” he says. “We’re really not in this alone, no matter how isolated we may feel.”
Editor’s note: As a public service, we have removed our paywall for all pandemic-related stories.


csmonitor--2020-08-14--Summer’s antidote to ‘COVID fatigue’

Summer’s antidote to ‘COVID fatigue’

The dog days of summer are in full swing in the Northern Hemisphere .
This year that annual sense that life has ground nearly to a halt has been compounded by what some are calling “ COVID fatigue.
” The pandemic ’ s disruption of normal activity has pushed on for five months with no end in sight .
For some , a sense of isolation may have set in .
Some people say they can ’ t remember the last time they received a hug from another human being .
It ’ s one thing to hunker down at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ August people want to unmask and hit the road or the beach .
In recent days some 250,000 motorcycle enthusiasts roared into Sturgis , South Dakota , to celebrate their shared interest in the two-wheeled noisemakers , despite concerns that it might not be a good idea during a pandemic .
People may hold different perspectives on what are appropriate activities , but being a good neighbor doesn ’ t need to restrict our ability to find safe and constructive ways to feel refreshed and recharged .
The mental health effects of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recent poll found a majority of Americans believe the pandemic is harming their mental health .
Those deeply affected are being urged to seek counseling .
A beginning for everyone is to reject the false choice between either a life of isolation , loneliness , and confinement , or unwise efforts to make human contact .
Early in the pandemic people dove into projects that provided productive outlets , from new adventures in cooking to sewing face masks .
Phone calls and video chats helped people stay connected .
Many learned to stay @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on COVID-19 chatter .
Relying on a moderate dose of news from a few high-quality , unsensational media sources can help keep thought calm .
All those efforts , and many others , especially ones that move thinking off ourselves and on to helping others , are worth continuing .
In good weather , just a walk or bicycle ride around the neighborhood can be refreshing .
Even those who for financial or work-related reasons can ’ t get away to the countryside can take advantage of this simple pleasure .
For those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has opened up a cornucopia of thought-lifting activities .
Local parks offer playgrounds for children and picnic tables for outdoor meals and games – maybe even a spot to go fishing .
This summer ’ s camping boom has turned families formerly stuck in front of screens into budding nature lovers and outdoor explorers .
Water is always a big attraction .
People are taking to it in craft of all kinds , from canoes , kayaks , and paddleboards to water skis and sailboats .
Experiencing the sight and sound of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and awe .
All of these activities bring joy even while practicing social distancing .
Summer is the time to “ follow your bliss , ” the phrase made famous by scholar Joseph Campbell in 1988 .
It ’ s a great time to listen for what fulfills you .
“ We are having experiences all the time , ” Dr. Campbell said , that give “ a little intuition of where your bliss is .
Grab it .
No one can tell you what it is going to be.
” It ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can be rewarding , but for those who are able to get away , this summer offers a time to step off the treadmill and gain new insights , such as how little we may really need to do so many things , such as buy more stuff .
And , of course , it ’ s a great time to quietly pause and remember to count our blessings .

The dog days of summer are in full swing in the Northern Hemisphere. This year that annual sense that life has ground nearly to a halt has been compounded by what some are calling “COVID fatigue.”
The pandemic’s disruption of normal activity has pushed on for five months with no end in sight. For some, a sense of isolation may have set in. Some people say they can’t remember the last time they received a hug from another human being.
It’s one thing to hunker down at home in frosty March; but in August people want to unmask and hit the road or the beach. In recent days some 250,000 motorcycle enthusiasts roared into Sturgis, South Dakota, to celebrate their shared interest in the two-wheeled noisemakers, despite concerns that it might not be a good idea during a pandemic.
People may hold different perspectives on what are appropriate activities, but being a good neighbor doesn’t need to restrict our ability to find safe and constructive ways to feel refreshed and recharged.
The mental health effects of the pandemic are a legitimate concern. A recent poll found a majority of Americans believe the pandemic is harming their mental health. Those deeply affected are being urged to seek counseling.
A beginning for everyone is to reject the false choice between either a life of isolation, loneliness, and confinement, or unwise efforts to make human contact.
Early in the pandemic people dove into projects that provided productive outlets, from new adventures in cooking to sewing face masks. Phone calls and video chats helped people stay connected. Many learned to stay away from too much social media centered on COVID-19 chatter. Relying on a moderate dose of news from a few high-quality, unsensational media sources can help keep thought calm.
All those efforts, and many others, especially ones that move thinking off ourselves and on to helping others, are worth continuing.
In good weather, just a walk or bicycle ride around the neighborhood can be refreshing. Even those who for financial or work-related reasons can’t get away to the countryside can take advantage of this simple pleasure.
For those who can get outside, summer weather has opened up a cornucopia of thought-lifting activities. Local parks offer playgrounds for children and picnic tables for outdoor meals and games – maybe even a spot to go fishing.
This summer’s camping boom has turned families formerly stuck in front of screens into budding nature lovers and outdoor explorers.
Water is always a big attraction. People are taking to it in craft of all kinds, from canoes, kayaks, and paddleboards to water skis and sailboats. Experiencing the sight and sound of a waterfall can provide special moments of serenity and awe.
All of these activities bring joy even while practicing social distancing.
Summer is the time to “follow your bliss,” the phrase made famous by scholar Joseph Campbell in 1988. It’s a great time to listen for what fulfills you. “We are having experiences all the time,” Dr. Campbell said, that give “a little intuition of where your bliss is. Grab it. No one can tell you what it is going to be.”
Get stories that
empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
It’s not just about doing. Projects can be rewarding, but for those who are able to get away, this summer offers a time to step off the treadmill and gain new insights, such as how little we may really need to do so many things, such as buy more stuff.
And, of course, it’s a great time to quietly pause and remember to count our blessings.


csmonitor--2020-08-14--'Can't have it': Trump speaks on USPS funding, mail-in voting

President Donald Trump frankly acknowledged that he 's starving the United States Postal Service of money to make it harder to process an expected surge of mail-in ballots , which he worries could cost him reelection .
In an interview on Fox Business Network , Mr. Trump explicitly noted two funding provisions that Democrats are seeking in a relief package that has stalled on Capitol Hill .
Without the additional money , he said , the Postal Service wo n't have the resources to handle a flood of ballots from voters who are seeking to avoid polling places during the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t make a deal , that means they don ’ t get the money , ” Mr. Trump told host Maria Bartiromo on Thursday .
“ That means they can ’ t have universal mail-in voting ; they just can ’ t have it.
” Mr. Trump 's statements , including the false claim that Democrats are seeking universal mail-in voting , come as he is searching for a strategy to gain an advantage in his November matchup against Joe Biden .
He 's pairing the tough Postal Service stance in congressional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fight in states that could decide the election .
In Iowa , which Mr. Trump won handily in 2016 but is more competitive this year , his campaign joined a lawsuit Wednesday against two Democratic-leaning counties in an effort to invalidate tens of thousands of voters ’ absentee ballot applications .
That followed legal maneuvers in battleground Pennsylvania , where the campaign hopes to force changes to how the state collects and counts mail-in ballots .
And in Nevada , Mr. Trump is challenging a law sending ballots to all active voters .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday rebuffed Republicans who challenged an agreement in Rhode Island allowing residents to vote by mail through November ’ s general election without getting signatures from two witnesses or a notary .
For Democrats , Mr. Trump ’ s new remarks were a clear admission that the president is attempting to restrict voting rights .
Mr. Biden said it was `` Pure Trump .
He does n't want an election.
” Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said it was `` voter suppression to undermine the safest method to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Americans to risk their lives to vote . ''
Negotiations over a big new virus relief package have all but ended , with the White House and congressional leaders far apart on the size , scope , and approach for shoring up households , reopening schools , and launching a national strategy to contain the coronavirus .
While there is some common ground over $ 100 billion for schools and new funds for virus testing , Democrats also want other emergency funds that Mr. Trump rejects .
“ They want $ 3.5 billion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be fraudulent .
That ’ s election money , basically , ” Mr. Trump said during Thursday 's call-in interview .
Democrats have pushed for a total of $ 10 billion for the Postal Service in talks with Republicans on the COVID-19 response bill .
That figure , which would include money to help with election mail , is down from a $ 25 billion plan in a House-passed coronavirus measure .
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has said that the agency is in a financially untenable position , but he maintains it can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ A major donor to Mr. Trump and other Republicans , Mr. DeJoy is the first postmaster general in nearly two decades who is not a career postal employee .
“ Although there will likely be an unprecedented increase in election mail volume due to the pandemic , the Postal Service has ample capacity to deliver all election mail securely and on-time in accordance with our delivery standards , and we will do so , '' he told the Postal Service 's governing board last week .
Memos obtained by The Associated Press show @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eliminate overtime and halt late delivery trips that are sometimes needed to ensure mail arrives on time , measures that postal workers and union officials say are delaying service .
Additional records detail cuts to hours at post offices , including reductions on Saturdays and during lunch hours .
Democrats , and a handful of Republicans , have sent Mr. DeJoy several letters asking him to reverse his changes and criticizing what they say is a lack of openness by the agency .
Late Wednesday , Senate Democrats again wrote Mr. DeJoy , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state election officials to opt for pricier first-class postage for mail-in ballots to be prioritized .
“ Instead of taking steps to increase your agency ’ s ability to deliver for the American people , you are implementing policy changes that make matters worse , and the Postal Service is reportedly considering changes that would increase costs for states at a time when millions of Americans are relying on voting by mail to exercise their right to vote , ” the Democrats wrote .
Separately , in a letter last month , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Jocelyn Benson that the agency might not be able to deliver ballots in time to be counted under the state ’ s deadlines for casting mail-in votes .
Postal Service spokesman David Partenheimer said in a statement that “ certain deadlines concerning mail-in ballots , may be incompatible with the Postal Service ’ s delivery standards , ” especially if election officials do n't pay more for first-class postage .
“ To the extent that states choose to use the mail as part of their elections , they should do so in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ works , ” he said .
In a memo to staff Thursday , Mr. DeJoy said his policies have brought “ unintended consequences that impacted our overall service levels , ” but added that the Postal Service “ must make a number of significant changes which will not be easy , but which are necessary . ''
“ This will increase our performance for the election and upcoming peak season and maintain the high level of public trust we have earned for dedication and commitment to our customers throughout our history , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ memo obtained by the AP .
Judy Beard , legislative and political director for the American Postal Workers Union , said postal workers are up to the task of delivering mail-in ballots this year .
“ We definitely know that the president is absolutely wrong concerning vote-by-mail , ” she said .
Rep. Gerry Connolly , D-Va. , chair of the House subcommittee on government operations , said Mr. Trump is acknowledging that he wants to hold up funding for the U.S .
Postal Service to hinder Americans from voting .
“ The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ funding hostage is that he doesn ’ t want Americans to vote by mail , ” Mr. Connolly said in a statement Thursday .
“ Why ?
It hurts his electoral chances .
He ’ s putting self-preservation ahead of public safety , for an election he deserves to lose.
” Mr. Trump has requested a mail-in ballot for Florida ’ s primary election Tuesday .
Ballots were mailed Wednesday to both the president and first lady Melania Trump at the Mar-a-Lago resort , which Mr. Trump lists as his legal address , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ records .
Both voted by mail in the presidential preference primary in March , according to records .
This story was reported by The Associated Press .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage .
It ’ s free .

President Donald Trump frankly acknowledged that he's starving the United States Postal Service of money to make it harder to process an expected surge of mail-in ballots, which he worries could cost him reelection.
In an interview on Fox Business Network, Mr. Trump explicitly noted two funding provisions that Democrats are seeking in a relief package that has stalled on Capitol Hill. Without the additional money, he said, the Postal Service won't have the resources to handle a flood of ballots from voters who are seeking to avoid polling places during the coronavirus pandemic.
“If we don’t make a deal, that means they don’t get the money,” Mr. Trump told host Maria Bartiromo on Thursday. “That means they can’t have universal mail-in voting; they just can’t have it.”
Mr. Trump's statements, including the false claim that Democrats are seeking universal mail-in voting, come as he is searching for a strategy to gain an advantage in his November matchup against Joe Biden. He's pairing the tough Postal Service stance in congressional negotiations with an increasingly robust mail-in-voting legal fight in states that could decide the election.
In Iowa, which Mr. Trump won handily in 2016 but is more competitive this year, his campaign joined a lawsuit Wednesday against two Democratic-leaning counties in an effort to invalidate tens of thousands of voters’ absentee ballot applications. That followed legal maneuvers in battleground Pennsylvania, where the campaign hopes to force changes to how the state collects and counts mail-in ballots. And in Nevada, Mr. Trump is challenging a law sending ballots to all active voters.
His efforts could face limits. The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday rebuffed Republicans who challenged an agreement in Rhode Island allowing residents to vote by mail through November’s general election without getting signatures from two witnesses or a notary.
For Democrats, Mr. Trump’s new remarks were a clear admission that the president is attempting to restrict voting rights.
Mr. Biden said it was "Pure Trump. He doesn't want an election.”
Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said it was " voter suppression to undermine the safest method to vote during a pandemic, and force Americans to risk their lives to vote."
Negotiations over a big new virus relief package have all but ended, with the White House and congressional leaders far apart on the size, scope, and approach for shoring up households, reopening schools, and launching a national strategy to contain the coronavirus.
While there is some common ground over $100 billion for schools and new funds for virus testing, Democrats also want other emergency funds that Mr. Trump rejects.
“They want $3.5 billion for something that will turn out to be fraudulent. That’s election money, basically,” Mr. Trump said during Thursday's call-in interview.
Democrats have pushed for a total of $10 billion for the Postal Service in talks with Republicans on the COVID-19 response bill. That figure, which would include money to help with election mail, is down from a $25 billion plan in a House-passed coronavirus measure.
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has said that the agency is in a financially untenable position, but he maintains it can handle this year's election mail. A major donor to Mr. Trump and other Republicans, Mr. DeJoy is the first postmaster general in nearly two decades who is not a career postal employee.
“Although there will likely be an unprecedented increase in election mail volume due to the pandemic, the Postal Service has ample capacity to deliver all election mail securely and on-time in accordance with our delivery standards, and we will do so," he told the Postal Service's governing board last week.
Memos obtained by The Associated Press show that Postal Service leadership has pushed to eliminate overtime and halt late delivery trips that are sometimes needed to ensure mail arrives on time, measures that postal workers and union officials say are delaying service. Additional records detail cuts to hours at post offices, including reductions on Saturdays and during lunch hours.
Democrats, and a handful of Republicans, have sent Mr. DeJoy several letters asking him to reverse his changes and criticizing what they say is a lack of openness by the agency. Late Wednesday, Senate Democrats again wrote Mr. DeJoy, this time saying postal leadership is pushing state election officials to opt for pricier first-class postage for mail-in ballots to be prioritized.
“Instead of taking steps to increase your agency’s ability to deliver for the American people, you are implementing policy changes that make matters worse, and the Postal Service is reportedly considering changes that would increase costs for states at a time when millions of Americans are relying on voting by mail to exercise their right to vote,” the Democrats wrote.
Separately, in a letter last month, the Postal Service warned Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson that the agency might not be able to deliver ballots in time to be counted under the state’s deadlines for casting mail-in votes.
Postal Service spokesman David Partenheimer said in a statement that “certain deadlines concerning mail-in ballots, may be incompatible with the Postal Service’s delivery standards,” especially if election officials don't pay more for first-class postage.
“To the extent that states choose to use the mail as part of their elections, they should do so in a manner that realistically reflects how the mail works,” he said.
In a memo to staff Thursday, Mr. DeJoy said his policies have brought “unintended consequences that impacted our overall service levels,” but added that the Postal Service “must make a number of significant changes which will not be easy, but which are necessary."
“This will increase our performance for the election and upcoming peak season and maintain the high level of public trust we have earned for dedication and commitment to our customers throughout our history,” Mr. DeJoy wrote, according to the memo obtained by the AP.
Judy Beard, legislative and political director for the American Postal Workers Union, said postal workers are up to the task of delivering mail-in ballots this year.
“We definitely know that the president is absolutely wrong concerning vote-by-mail,” she said.
Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., chair of the House subcommittee on government operations, said Mr. Trump is acknowledging that he wants to hold up funding for the U.S. Postal Service to hinder Americans from voting.
“The president admits his motive for holding USPS funding hostage is that he doesn’t want Americans to vote by mail,” Mr. Connolly said in a statement Thursday. “Why? It hurts his electoral chances. He’s putting self-preservation ahead of public safety, for an election he deserves to lose.”
Mr. Trump has requested a mail-in ballot for Florida’s primary election Tuesday. Ballots were mailed Wednesday to both the president and first lady Melania Trump at the Mar-a-Lago resort, which Mr. Trump lists as his legal address, according to online Palm Beach County elections records. Both voted by mail in the presidential preference primary in March, according to records.
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This story was reported by The Associated Press.
Editor’s note: As a public service, the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage. It’s free.


csmonitor--2020-08-14--Does Yale racially discriminate? Justice Department says yes.

A Justice Department investigation has found Yale University is illegally discriminating against Asian American and white applicants , in violation of federal civil rights law , officials said Thursday .
Yale denied the allegation , calling it `` meritless '' and `` hasty . ''
The findings detailed in a letter to the college 's attorneys Thursday mark the latest action by the Trump administration aimed at rooting out discrimination in the college application process , following complaints from students about the application process at some Ivy League colleges .
The Justice Department had previously filed court papers siding with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ allegations against Harvard University .
The two-year investigation concluded that Yale `` rejects scores of Asian American and white applicants each year based on their race , whom it otherwise would admit , '' the Justice Department said .
The investigation stemmed from a 2016 complaint against Yale , Brown , and Dartmouth .
`` Yale 's race discrimination imposes undue and unlawful penalties on racially-disfavored applicants , including in particular Asian American and White applicants , '' Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband , who heads the department 's civil rights division , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's attorneys .
Prosecutors found that Yale has been discriminating against applicants to its undergraduate program based on their race and national origin and `` that race is the determinative factor in hundreds of admissions decisions each year . ''
The investigation concluded that Asian American and white students have `` only one-tenth to one-fourth of the likelihood of admission as African American applicants with comparable academic credentials , '' the Justice Department said .
`` Unlawfully dividing Americans into racial and ethnic blocs fosters stereotypes , bitterness , and division , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` It is past time for American institutions to recognize that all people should be treated with decency and respect and without unlawful regard to the color of their skin . ''
The investigation also found that Yale uses race as a factor in multiple steps of the admissions process and that Yale `` racially balances its classes . ''
The Supreme Court has ruled colleges and universities may consider race in admissions decisions but has said that must be done in a narrowly tailored way to promote diversity and should be limited @ @ @ @ @ @ @ burden of showing why their consideration of race is appropriate .
In a statement , Yale said it `` categorically denies this allegation , '' has cooperated fully with the investigation and has been continually turning over `` a substantial amount of information and data . ''
`` Given our commitment to complying with federal law , we are dismayed that the DOJ has made its determination before allowing Yale to provide all the information the Department has requested thus far , '' the university said in a statement .
`` Had the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ information , it would have concluded that Yale 's practices absolutely comply with decades of Supreme Court precedent . ''
The university said it considers a multitude of factors and looks at `` the whole person when selecting whom to admit among the many thousands of highly qualified applicants . ''
`` We are proud of Yale 's admissions practices , and we will not change them on the basis of such a meritless , hasty accusation , '' the statement said .
The Justice Department has demanded that Yale immediately stop and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ origin for upcoming admissions .
The government also says that if Yale proposes that it will continue to use race or national origin as a factor in future admission cycles , the college must first submit a plan to the Justice Department `` demonstrating its proposal is narrowly tailored as required by law , including by identifying a date for the end of race discrimination . ''
The Justice Department has also previously raised similar concerns about Harvard University , which prosecutors accused of `` engaging in outright racial balancing , '' siding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who allege the Ivy League school discriminated against them .
A federal judge in 2019 cleared Harvard of discriminating against Asian American applicants in a ruling that was seen as a major victory for supporters of affirmative action in college admissions across the United States .
That ruling has been appealed and arguments are scheduled for next month .
In the Harvard case , the Justice Department had argued that the university went too far in its use of race , but the judge disagreed .
Though the Supreme Court has ruled that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ must be `` narrowly tailored '' and can be only a `` plus factor , '' past rulings still give colleges wide latitude in considering a wide range of factors , including race , as they build their classes .
This story was reported by The Associated Press .
AP writer Collin Binkley in Boston contributed to this report .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage .
It ’ s free .

A Justice Department investigation has found Yale University is illegally discriminating against Asian American and white applicants, in violation of federal civil rights law, officials said Thursday.
Yale denied the allegation, calling it "meritless" and "hasty."
The findings detailed in a letter to the college's attorneys Thursday mark the latest action by the Trump administration aimed at rooting out discrimination in the college application process, following complaints from students about the application process at some Ivy League colleges. The Justice Department had previously filed court papers siding with Asian American groups who had levied similar allegations against Harvard University.
The two-year investigation concluded that Yale "rejects scores of Asian American and white applicants each year based on their race, whom it otherwise would admit," the Justice Department said. The investigation stemmed from a 2016 complaint against Yale, Brown, and Dartmouth.
"Yale's race discrimination imposes undue and unlawful penalties on racially-disfavored applicants, including in particular Asian American and White applicants," Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband, who heads the department's civil rights division, wrote in a letter to the college's attorneys.
Prosecutors found that Yale has been discriminating against applicants to its undergraduate program based on their race and national origin and "that race is the determinative factor in hundreds of admissions decisions each year." The investigation concluded that Asian American and white students have "only one-tenth to one-fourth of the likelihood of admission as African American applicants with comparable academic credentials," the Justice Department said.
"Unlawfully dividing Americans into racial and ethnic blocs fosters stereotypes, bitterness, and division," Mr. Dreiband said in a statement. "It is past time for American institutions to recognize that all people should be treated with decency and respect and without unlawful regard to the color of their skin."
The investigation also found that Yale uses race as a factor in multiple steps of the admissions process and that Yale "racially balances its classes."
The Supreme Court has ruled colleges and universities may consider race in admissions decisions but has said that must be done in a narrowly tailored way to promote diversity and should be limited in time. Schools also bear the burden of showing why their consideration of race is appropriate.
In a statement, Yale said it "categorically denies this allegation," has cooperated fully with the investigation and has been continually turning over "a substantial amount of information and data."
"Given our commitment to complying with federal law, we are dismayed that the DOJ has made its determination before allowing Yale to provide all the information the Department has requested thus far," the university said in a statement. "Had the Department fully received and fairly weighed this information, it would have concluded that Yale's practices absolutely comply with decades of Supreme Court precedent."
The university said it considers a multitude of factors and looks at "the whole person when selecting whom to admit among the many thousands of highly qualified applicants."
"We are proud of Yale's admissions practices, and we will not change them on the basis of such a meritless, hasty accusation," the statement said.
The Justice Department has demanded that Yale immediately stop and agree not to use race or national origin for upcoming admissions.
The government also says that if Yale proposes that it will continue to use race or national origin as a factor in future admission cycles, the college must first submit a plan to the Justice Department "demonstrating its proposal is narrowly tailored as required by law, including by identifying a date for the end of race discrimination."
The Justice Department has also previously raised similar concerns about Harvard University, which prosecutors accused of "engaging in outright racial balancing," siding with Asian American students in a lawsuit who allege the Ivy League school discriminated against them.
A federal judge in 2019 cleared Harvard of discriminating against Asian American applicants in a ruling that was seen as a major victory for supporters of affirmative action in college admissions across the United States. That ruling has been appealed and arguments are scheduled for next month.
In the Harvard case, the Justice Department had argued that the university went too far in its use of race, but the judge disagreed.
Though the Supreme Court has ruled that colleges' use of race in admissions must be "narrowly tailored" and can be only a "plus factor," past rulings still give colleges wide latitude in considering a wide range of factors, including race, as they build their classes.
This story was reported by The Associated Press. AP writer Collin Binkley in Boston contributed to this report.
Editor’s note: As a public service, the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage. It’s free.