alternet--2020-10-16--Conservative argues the attacks on Hunter Biden are going too far: 'Very creepy'

With President Donald Trump trailing former Vice President Joe Biden in countless polls and the election less than three weeks away , Republicans are hoping for some type of `` October surprise '' that will derail Biden 's campaign .
To fulfill this wish , some right-wing media outlets have been obsessing over the contents of a laptop hard drive that , according to the New York Post , allegedly belonged to his son , Hunter Biden .
Conservative Ed Morrissey discusses the laptop in an op-ed for Hot Air , arguing that the attacks on Hunter Biden are crossing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into business or political revelations , '' Morrissey explains , `` the NY Post chooses today to report on personal e-mails , photos and the pain and partying they reveal .
In a way , it 's a more human side of Hunter than we 've so far seen . ''
In the New York Post article , reporters Emma-Jo Morris and Gabrielle Fonrouge write , `` Hunter Biden 's e-mails and texts show not just a politician 's troubled son angling for lucrative overseas business deals — they also reveal a concerned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ man tortured by the deaths that have devastated his family . ''
But Morrissey is critical of the Post 's reporting , saying , `` I suppose the Post can argue that they are trying to paint a more balanced portrait of Hunter , but I somehow doubt that he or his family will appreciate that nuance .
There is something very creepy about publishing the personal e-mails of a public-figure-once-removed like Hunter , and especially those of his daughter in a time of financial crisis . ''
Morrissey adds , `` On @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's revealed in this report has anything to do with public policy .
It 's private conversations and private behavior with no connection to anything to voters ' lives or choices .
It 's an unwarranted intrusion of privacy with no real purpose other than to offer a prurient look into Hunter 's 'wild life ( and ) pained soul ' when Hunter 's not running for anything .
Imagine the outcry that would arise if NBC did this to Tiffany Trump . ''
The conservative writes although the Post is claiming that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entirely Hunter Biden 's , he has his doubts .
`` It 's possible that it 's all Hunter 's , '' Morrissey writes , `` but it 's also very possible that some of it is n't . ''
Morrissey stresses that the material on the laptop still needs to be `` authenticated . ''
`` The potential for dirty tricks looks rather large , '' Morrissey warns .
`` Until this data gets fully authenticated by an outside agency — hopefully the FBI , which reportedly has the laptop — the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this manipulative story does n't do much to boost the Post 's credibility either .
The best we can assume is that this story signals that the Post does n't have much more to wring out of this October surprise . ''

With President Donald Trump trailing former Vice President Joe Biden in countless polls and the election less than three weeks away, Republicans are hoping for some type of "October surprise" that will derail Biden's campaign. To fulfill this wish, some right-wing media outlets have been obsessing over the contents of a laptop hard drive that, according to the New York Post, allegedly belonged to his son, Hunter Biden. Conservative Ed Morrissey discusses the laptop in an op-ed for Hot Air, arguing that the attacks on Hunter Biden are crossing the line.
"Rather than delve into business or political revelations," Morrissey explains, "the NY Post chooses today to report on personal e-mails, photos and the pain and partying they reveal. In a way, it's a more human side of Hunter than we've so far seen."
In the New York Post article, reporters Emma-Jo Morris and Gabrielle Fonrouge write, "Hunter Biden's e-mails and texts show not just a politician's troubled son angling for lucrative overseas business deals — they also reveal a concerned father, a fun-loving friend and a man tortured by the deaths that have devastated his family."
But Morrissey is critical of the Post's reporting, saying, "I suppose the Post can argue that they are trying to paint a more balanced portrait of Hunter, but I somehow doubt that he or his family will appreciate that nuance. There is something very creepy about publishing the personal e-mails of a public-figure-once-removed like Hunter, and especially those of his daughter in a time of financial crisis."
Morrissey adds, "On top of that, none of what's revealed in this report has anything to do with public policy. It's private conversations and private behavior with no connection to anything to voters' lives or choices. It's an unwarranted intrusion of privacy with no real purpose other than to offer a prurient look into Hunter's 'wild life (and) pained soul' when Hunter's not running for anything. Imagine the outcry that would arise if NBC did this to Tiffany Trump."
The conservative writes although the Post is claiming that the material on the hard drive is entirely Hunter Biden's, he has his doubts.
"It's possible that it's all Hunter's," Morrissey writes, "but it's also very possible that some of it isn't."
Morrissey stresses that the material on the laptop still needs to be "authenticated."
"The potential for dirty tricks looks rather large," Morrissey warns. "Until this data gets fully authenticated by an outside agency — hopefully the FBI, which reportedly has the laptop — the earlier reporting isn't reliable, and this manipulative story doesn't do much to boost the Post's credibility either. The best we can assume is that this story signals that the Post doesn't have much more to wring out of this October surprise."


alternet--2020-10-16--Trump's team is already 'darkly pessimistic' about the election — and blaming one another: report

Several of President Donald Trump 's re-election campaign advisors are reportedly bracing for the possibility of an election loss to Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden , according to a new report .
As the general election approaches , Trump 's campaign manager Bill Stepien and several other Team Trump advisers have become `` darkly pessimistic '' about his future in the White House , according to a report published by Axios ' Jonathan Swan .
Although the election is still weeks away , Swan reports that advisors are already blaming each other for the president 's gradual downward spiral .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump , himself , has placed a dominant role in his own descent , comparing him to an untreatable patient .
`` A lot of this is the president himself , '' one adviser said .
`` You ca n't heal a patient who does n't want to take the diagnosis . ''
Another campaign insider weighed in on Stepien 's alleged stance suggesting even he believes the president will be faced with an upsetting defeat on November 3 .
`` It 's not a great feeling when you get the sense the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we 're going to win , '' another campaign source said .
However , Stepien has strongly rebutted the claims .
On Friday , he weighed in on the speculation .
According to Stepien , their campaign data signals `` a clear pathway to 270 '' for Trump .
As he expressed confidence in the campaign 's ability to win , he claimed the president will win again .
`` With each day closer to November 3 , our campaign data presents a clear pathway to 270 for the President that provides me @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's re-election , '' he said .
`` Our campaign knows how President Trump was elected in 2016 and more importantly , we know exactly how he 's going to do it again . ''
Despite Stepien 's attempt to depict a relatively united front for the Trump campaign , poll projections from multiple news outlets including Fox News have signaled that there may be trouble trouble ahead for the president .
National polls for the upcoming presidential election show Biden in the lead .
While polls also showed former Democratic presidential nominee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not project her winning the same key states Biden appears to be leading in .
Based on the latest results , critical states like Florida , Michigan , and Pennsylvania could all be blue on Election Day .
With Trump running out of time , one campaign insider has noted that , at this point , the outcome of the race is far beyond the control of the president 's re-election campaign .
`` In terms of really changing the trajectory of the race , '' said one campaign source , `` there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ side , who can do that .
And that 's Trump . ''

Several of President Donald Trump's re-election campaign advisors are reportedly bracing for the possibility of an election loss to Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, according to a new report.
As the general election approaches, Trump's campaign manager Bill Stepien and several other Team Trump advisers have become "darkly pessimistic" about his future in the White House, according to a report published by Axios' Jonathan Swan.
Although the election is still weeks away, Swan reports that advisors are already blaming each other for the president's gradual downward spiral. However, one advisor has admitted that Trump, himself, has placed a dominant role in his own descent, comparing him to an untreatable patient.
"A lot of this is the president himself," one adviser said. "You can't heal a patient who doesn't want to take the diagnosis."
Another campaign insider weighed in on Stepien's alleged stance suggesting even he believes the president will be faced with an upsetting defeat on November 3.
"It's not a great feeling when you get the sense the campaign manager doesn't deep down think we're going to win," another campaign source said.
However, Stepien has strongly rebutted the claims. On Friday, he weighed in on the speculation. According to Stepien, their campaign data signals "a clear pathway to 270" for Trump. As he expressed confidence in the campaign's ability to win, he claimed the president will win again.
"With each day closer to November 3, our campaign data presents a clear pathway to 270 for the President that provides me more confidence than ever in President Trump's re-election," he said. "Our campaign knows how President Trump was elected in 2016 and more importantly, we know exactly how he's going to do it again."
Despite Stepien's attempt to depict a relatively united front for the Trump campaign, poll projections from multiple news outlets including Fox News have signaled that there may be trouble trouble ahead for the president. National polls for the upcoming presidential election show Biden in the lead. While polls also showed former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton leading Trump, polls did not project her winning the same key states Biden appears to be leading in.
Based on the latest results, critical states like Florida, Michigan, and Pennsylvania could all be blue on Election Day. With Trump running out of time, one campaign insider has noted that, at this point, the outcome of the race is far beyond the control of the president's re-election campaign.
"In terms of really changing the trajectory of the race," said one campaign source, "there's only one person, from either side, who can do that. And that's Trump."


alternet--2020-10-16--Trump is playing a dangerous and cynical game with QAnon

Last night , during the shameful town hall NBC gave Donald Trump so he could avoid another humiliating debate defeat at Joe Biden 's hands , Trump played the same game with QAnon that he does with white supremacists and right wing terrorists : Played dumb while giving winking encouragement to his more unhinged followers .
After repeatedly pretending not to know what this `` QAnon '' thing might be , when asked about it by journalist Savannah Guthrie , Trump then exposed himself as a liar by proving he does , in fact , know what QAnon purports to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they are very much against pedophilia , '' he said .
`` They fight it very hard . ''
As most people not caught up in the cult of QAnon understand , the loosely organized online movement does not actually fight pedophilia .
Its adherents promote a conspiracy theory that claims Trump is some kind of secret warrior in a fight against a worldwide liberal cabal of pedophiles , which leads to accusing innocent people of being sexual predators .
That is very different from fighting child sexual abuse in the real world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sincere movement promoting well-meaning convictions , Trump is establishing a poisonous narrative that threatens to help mainstream it .
This is , after all , how the anti-abortion movement mainstreamed their fringe views , by portraying themselves as good-hearted people who just love the children .
That gave pundits and other political gatekeepers permission to look away from their true purpose , which is stripping women of the basic human rights .
By claiming to be fighting against child abuse , QAnon appears to be trying to pull off the same trick .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump Thursday night .
So let 's be quite clear here : QAnon is not about helping , protecting or saving children from actual sexual predators .
They are people who promote lurid and made-up accusations of pedophilia as cover for their true purpose , which is to spin out ever-wilder rationalizations for continuing to support Trump in the face of economic collapse , racist oppression and an out-of-control pandemic .
If anything , the rapidly growing cult is making it much harder for people who are doing the work to fight sexual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to present child sexual abuse as a shadowy conspiracy , when we know that most perpetrators are actually known to the child , '' Debra Hauser , the president of Advocates for Youth , told Salon .
`` People who commit child sexual abuse are not strangers or monsters they read about online , '' Laura Palumbo , the communications director of the National Sexual Violence Resource Center , added in an email .
`` The hard reality is that parents , family members , neighbors , mentors and coaches are most often @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' This idea that `` the danger lurks outside '' can make it harder for victims who are seeking help , Hauser noted , because if they tell their story to an adult `` it becomes harder for that person to believe '' if that adult has bought into QAnon-style images of what child sexual abuse looks like .
In the real world , sexual abuse — both of children and adults — rarely fits the QAnon-style dramatic fantasies of Satanic rituals and kidnapping rings .
Instead it looks a lot like , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was on tape bragging to Billy Bush about — people , mostly men , who exploit their power over another person they know personally in order to sexually violate them .
We can already see evidence of the poisonous way that QAnon directs attention away from serious efforts to combat sexual abuse , especially of minors , and towards their ridiculous conspiracy theories by putting a strain on non-profit organizations that do the real life work of helping children and fighting human trafficking .
QAnon has been using the hashtag # SaveTheChildren on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their radical views and recruit unwitting new followers .
This has presented a problem for the very real child welfare charity Save The Children , who finally responded with a press release in August complaining that the use of their `` name in hashtag form '' is `` causing confusion among our supporters and the general public . ''
They also pointed people to a FAQ sheet debunking the kinds of myths about human trafficking that QAnon promotes .
When QAnon adherents spread an urban legend falsely accusing the furniture company Wayfair of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Project — an organization that fights real human trafficking — was forced to issue a press statement after getting slammed with an `` extreme volume '' of contacts from people reporting the fake story , which `` made it more difficult for the Trafficking Hotline to provide support and attention to others who are in need of help . ''
Similarly , officials in Oregon reported that 911 and other emergency hotlines were overwhelmed with false reports during the wildfires that swept the state recently , when QAnon accounts started spreading urban legends @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fires .
These calls made it harder for people in distress to get help from first responders , which is alarming considering how dangerous and deadly the fires were .
While that example does n't directly involve sexual abuse , it does illustrate how QAnon whips credulous adherents into a frenzy over fake threats , which then creates a burden and drain on resources needed to fight real dangers in the world .
Zooming out a little more , it 's also important to understand that , by supporting Trump , QAnon actually @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of children .
Trump 's Education Secretary , Betsy DeVos , has undermined regulations meant to protect K-12 students from sexual harassment , a critical tool in fighting child sex abuse .
Trump has also cut funding to sexual health care clinics , such as Planned Parenthood , that have long served as safe spaces for young people to report sexual abuse .
We know what 's actually needed to fight child sexual abuse , Hauser explained .
`` It is helpful to be honest , and to provide young people with honest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is , '' she said .
`` It 's really , really important for young people to understand , and for children to understand that their body is theirs and that they have the right to say no . ''
And it 's important for `` young people to be able to be trusted when they say this happened to them . ''
This kind of advice is n't as exciting as going on a QAnon message board and swapping wild tales of kidnapping rings , but it is the sort of thing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , by spreading misleading tales about what child abuse looks like , QAnon is n't just concocting a silly cover story to justify unjustifiable support for Trump .
This movement is flooding the discourse with noise , and making it harder for those who have useful information and advice to be heard .

Last night, during the shameful town hall NBC gave Donald Trump so he could avoid another humiliating debate defeat at Joe Biden's hands, Trump played the same game with QAnon that he does with white supremacists and right wing terrorists: Played dumb while giving winking encouragement to his more unhinged followers.
After repeatedly pretending not to know what this "QAnon" thing might be, when asked about it by journalist Savannah Guthrie, Trump then exposed himself as a liar by proving he does, in fact, know what QAnon purports to be about.
"I do know they are very much against pedophilia," he said. "They fight it very hard."
As most people not caught up in the cult of QAnon understand, the loosely organized online movement does not actually fight pedophilia. Its adherents promote a conspiracy theory that claims Trump is some kind of secret warrior in a fight against a worldwide liberal cabal of pedophiles, which leads to accusing innocent people of being sexual predators. That is very different from fighting child sexual abuse in the real world. But by framing QAnon as a sincere movement promoting well-meaning convictions, Trump is establishing a poisonous narrative that threatens to help mainstream it.
This is, after all, how the anti-abortion movement mainstreamed their fringe views, by portraying themselves as good-hearted people who just love the children. That gave pundits and other political gatekeepers permission to look away from their true purpose, which is stripping women of the basic human rights. By claiming to be fighting against child abuse, QAnon appears to be trying to pull off the same trick. And they got a big assist from Trump Thursday night.
So let's be quite clear here: QAnon is not about helping, protecting or saving children from actual sexual predators. They are people who promote lurid and made-up accusations of pedophilia as cover for their true purpose, which is to spin out ever-wilder rationalizations for continuing to support Trump in the face of economic collapse, racist oppression and an out-of-control pandemic.
If anything, the rapidly growing cult is making it much harder for people who are doing the work to fight sexual violence.
"It is not helpful to present child sexual abuse as a shadowy conspiracy, when we know that most perpetrators are actually known to the child," Debra Hauser, the president of Advocates for Youth, told Salon.
"People who commit child sexual abuse are not strangers or monsters they read about online," Laura Palumbo, the communications director of the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, added in an email. "The hard reality is that parents, family members, neighbors, mentors and coaches are most often the ones who commit sexual abuse."
This idea that "the danger lurks outside" can make it harder for victims who are seeking help, Hauser noted, because if they tell their story to an adult "it becomes harder for that person to believe" if that adult has bought into QAnon-style images of what child sexual abuse looks like.
In the real world, sexual abuse — both of children and adults — rarely fits the QAnon-style dramatic fantasies of Satanic rituals and kidnapping rings. Instead it looks a lot like, well, the kind of thing Trump was on tape bragging to Billy Bush about — people, mostly men, who exploit their power over another person they know personally in order to sexually violate them.
We can already see evidence of the poisonous way that QAnon directs attention away from serious efforts to combat sexual abuse, especially of minors, and towards their ridiculous conspiracy theories by putting a strain on non-profit organizations that do the real life work of helping children and fighting human trafficking.
QAnon has been using the hashtag #SaveTheChildren on social media as a way to launder their radical views and recruit unwitting new followers. This has presented a problem for the very real child welfare charity Save The Children, who finally responded with a press release in August complaining that the use of their "name in hashtag form" is "causing confusion among our supporters and the general public." They also pointed people to a FAQ sheet debunking the kinds of myths about human trafficking that QAnon promotes.
When QAnon adherents spread an urban legend falsely accusing the furniture company Wayfair of enabling child sex trafficking, the Polaris Project — an organization that fights real human trafficking — was forced to issue a press statement after getting slammed with an "extreme volume" of contacts from people reporting the fake story, which "made it more difficult for the Trafficking Hotline to provide support and attention to others who are in need of help."
Similarly, officials in Oregon reported that 911 and other emergency hotlines were overwhelmed with false reports during the wildfires that swept the state recently, when QAnon accounts started spreading urban legends accusing "antifa" of starting the fires. These calls made it harder for people in distress to get help from first responders, which is alarming considering how dangerous and deadly the fires were. While that example doesn't directly involve sexual abuse, it does illustrate how QAnon whips credulous adherents into a frenzy over fake threats, which then creates a burden and drain on resources needed to fight real dangers in the world.
Zooming out a little more, it's also important to understand that, by supporting Trump, QAnon actually enables many real threats to the welfare of children. Trump's Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos, has undermined regulations meant to protect K-12 students from sexual harassment, a critical tool in fighting child sex abuse. Trump has also cut funding to sexual health care clinics, such as Planned Parenthood, that have long served as safe spaces for young people to report sexual abuse.
We know what's actually needed to fight child sexual abuse, Hauser explained.
"It is helpful to be honest, and to provide young people with honest education about what child sexual abuse actually is," she said. "It's really, really important for young people to understand, and for children to understand that their body is theirs and that they have the right to say no."
And it's important for "young people to be able to be trusted when they say this happened to them."
This kind of advice isn't as exciting as going on a QAnon message board and swapping wild tales of kidnapping rings, but it is the sort of thing that actually stops child abuse. Unfortunately, by spreading misleading tales about what child abuse looks like, QAnon isn't just concocting a silly cover story to justify unjustifiable support for Trump. This movement is flooding the discourse with noise, and making it harder for those who have useful information and advice to be heard.


alternet--2020-10-16--Remdesivir study raises more questions about Trump's COVID treatment while hospitalized

President Donald Trump and his White House physicians have credited his rapid COVID recovery to Remdesivir , monoclonal antibodies , and dexamethasone , but a new study released by the World Health Organization ( WHO ) raises questions about the effectiveness of Remdesivir .
WHO released a statement on Thursday , detailing its latest findings on the antiviral drug Remdesivir .
According to a study sponsored by the public health agency , Remdesivir `` as little or no effect on mortality for patients hospitalized with COVID-19 , '' reports The Hill .
`` Remdesivir , hydroxychloroquine , lopinavir/ritonavir and interferon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ effect on 28-day mortality or the in-hospital course of COVID-19 among hospitalized patients , '' the WHO said in a statement .
Trump once touted hydroxychloroquine as a potentially game-changing treatment for COVID-19 and even took it prior to his infection on dubious claims that it could serve a prophylactic function .
But notably , it was not a part of his course of treatment with the disease .
WHO 's Solidarity Therapeutics Trial focused on the effects of Remdesivir and three other potential drug regimens that have been used to treat COVID @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , was based on 11,266 patients adults suffering with COVID-19 who were given Remdesivir .
Those patients were housed in 405 hospitals in 30 countries .
Despite the president touting the drug , the study determined that none of the drugs , or any combination of the drugs decreased patient mortality .
The study found that the drugs also failed to reduce the need for a ventilator or serve as a means of shortening recovery time .
However , Gilead Sciences challenged the WHO 's findings with a statement of its own .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the WHO 's results `` appear inconsistent with more robust evidence from multiple randomized , controlled studies published in peer-reviewed journals validating the clinical benefit of Veklury [ remdesivir ] . ''
`` The benefits of Veklury [ remdesivir ] have been demonstrated in three randomized , controlled clinical trials , including a randomized , double-blind , placebo-controlled clinical trial -- the gold standard for evaluating the efficacy and safety of investigational drugs , '' Gilead Sciences said in a statement .
The latest news comes months after the Trump administration 's promoting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) granted an emergency use authorization ( EUA ) for the drug .
Then in August , the FDA broadened the emergency authorization of the drug to include treatment for all patients hospitalized with COVID .
As of Friday , October 16 , 2020 , the United States has reported more than 8.2 million coronavirus cases , nationwide .
As the number of COVID cases and deaths continue to rise , there is growing concern that the U.S. could be entering its second wave of coronavirus @

President Donald Trump and his White House physicians have credited his rapid COVID recovery to Remdesivir, monoclonal antibodies, and dexamethasone, but a new study released by the World Health Organization (WHO) raises questions about the effectiveness of Remdesivir.
WHO released a statement on Thursday, detailing its latest findings on the antiviral drug Remdesivir. According to a study sponsored by the public health agency, Remdesivir "as little or no effect on mortality for patients hospitalized with COVID-19," reports The Hill.
"Remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir/ritonavir and interferon regimens appeared to have little or no effect on 28-day mortality or the in-hospital course of COVID-19 among hospitalized patients," the WHO said in a statement.
Trump once touted hydroxychloroquine as a potentially game-changing treatment for COVID-19 and even took it prior to his infection on dubious claims that it could serve a prophylactic function. But notably, it was not a part of his course of treatment with the disease.
WHO's Solidarity Therapeutics Trial focused on the effects of Remdesivir and three other potential drug regimens that have been used to treat COVID. The results, released on Wednesday, was based on 11,266 patients adults suffering with COVID-19 who were given Remdesivir. Those patients were housed in 405 hospitals in 30 countries. Despite the president touting the drug, the study determined that none of the drugs, or any combination of the drugs decreased patient mortality.
The study found that the drugs also failed to reduce the need for a ventilator or serve as a means of shortening recovery time. However, Gilead Sciences challenged the WHO's findings with a statement of its own.
According to the makers of Remdesivir, the WHO's results "appear inconsistent with more robust evidence from multiple randomized, controlled studies published in peer-reviewed journals validating the clinical benefit of Veklury [remdesivir]."
"The benefits of Veklury [remdesivir] have been demonstrated in three randomized, controlled clinical trials, including a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial -- the gold standard for evaluating the efficacy and safety of investigational drugs," Gilead Sciences said in a statement.
The latest news comes months after the Trump administration's promoting of Remdesivir. In May, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the drug. Then in August, the FDA broadened the emergency authorization of the drug to include treatment for all patients hospitalized with COVID.
As of Friday, October 16, 2020, the United States has reported more than 8.2 million coronavirus cases, nationwide. As the number of COVID cases and deaths continue to rise, there is growing concern that the U.S. could be entering its second wave of coronavirus.


alternet--2020-10-16--In Trump’s America, there is death before due process

The federal government 's killing of Michael Reinoehl exactly two months before the November 3 presidential race ought to have been one of the most high-profile election issues being discussed in America .
Instead , it has been almost forgotten save for some media outlets starting to question the official narrative of his death .
The little-known self-proclaimed `` antifa '' activist was killed by federal agents on September 3 .
Officers claimed that he had fired shots at them before being gunned down .
But a week after his killing , the Washington Post found that `` the wanted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Thurston County sheriff in Lacey , Washington , where the suspect was killed , released a public statement saying his investigation team `` can confirm… that Mr. Reinoehl pointed the handgun that he had in his possession at the officers at the time of the shooting . ''
The U.S .
Marshals Service whose forces were the ones that shot Reinoehl released a similar statement claiming that the fugitive task force that had been sent to his location `` attempted to peacefully arrest him , '' but , after being shot at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the threat and struck the suspect who was pronounced dead at the scene . ''
News outlets took the official statements at their word and dutifully reported the incident as one where a suspected killer opened fire on officers and was fatally shot in the course of his arrest .
In other words , there was `` nothing to see here . ''
But according to a New York Times investigation six weeks after his death , it remains unclear `` whether law enforcement officers made any serious attempt to arrest Mr. Reinoehl @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nearly two dozen witnesses that the New York Times spoke to , `` all but one said they did not hear officers identify themselves or give any commands before opening fire . ''
Even though Reinoehl was armed at the time of his death , his handgun was found in his pocket and an AR-style rifle in a bag in his car , suggesting he did not threaten the officers trying to arrest him as official accounts had initially claimed .
Reinoehl was wanted in connection to the fatal shooting of a Trump-supporting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Black Lives Matter protests in Portland , Oregon .
President Donald Trump ranted on Twitter on the day he was killed , `` Why are n't the Portland Police ARRESTING the cold blooded killer '' and adding , `` Everybody knows who this thug is . ''
Later he hailed the fatal shooting triumphantly , saying in a Fox News interview : In referring to Reinoehl as a `` cold blooded killer '' and `` violent criminal '' even though at the time of his death he was a suspect , Trump made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ law and order '' means you are guilty before being proven so and can be targeted for extrajudicial assassination if those in power decide you deserve it .
Such shocking words coming from any other head of state in the world would trigger instant condemnations from the U.S. State Department .
Speaking to his supporters , Trump boasted of the `` great job '' that U.S .
Marshals did in Portland , adding meaningfully , `` you know what I mean . ''
Attorney General William Barr , who appears to have no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of criminal justice is supposed to work , released a statement praising the federal troops ' actions and echoing Trump 's words in more official-sounding language .
Barr called Reinoehl , `` a dangerous fugitive , admitted Antifa member , and suspected murderer , '' and said before any investigation into the killing was complete that `` [ w ] hen Reinoehl attempted to escape arrest and produced a firearm , he was shot and killed by law enforcement officers . ''
In doing so , Barr too justified this extrajudicial assassination as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ calling the whole incident , `` a significant accomplishment in the ongoing effort to restore law and order to Portland and other cities . ''
He applauded `` the fugitive task force team that located Reinoehl and prevented him from escaping justice . ''
To Barr , the top law enforcement official in the nation , `` justice '' meant death , rather than arrest followed by charges and a fair trial .
To Barr and Trump , the constant drumbeat of `` law and order '' is essentially a promise to fatally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government .
In addition to the Washington Post and the New York Times , several other media outlets have corroborated that Reinoehl 's killing appeared unjustified .
Rolling Stone characterizes one eyewitness 's account of the scene as `` a violent ambush '' that `` resembled an execution . ''
Oregon Public Broadcasting in collaboration with ProPublica spoke to witnesses who said that the officers shot him without warning and `` looked less like law enforcement officers than members of a right-wing militia . ''
In a VICE News interview released just after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ claiming that he acted in self-defense in Portland—just as an attorney for Kyle Rittenhouse , the Trump-supporting armed suspect in the Kenosha , Wisconsin , killing of two Black Lives Matter activists , said .
With Reinoehl dead at the hands of U.S .
Marshals , we will never know the truth .
Instead , Reinoehl now serves as the perfect symbol of the shadowy enemy that Trump rails against .
A participant in Black Lives Matter protests , Reinoehl claimed he was `` 100 % ANTIFA all the way . ''
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' ( which is an ideology , not an organization ) as `` a Terrorist Organization '' has fed into dangerous notions designed to create panic among his base .
It has raised the specter of `` violent mobs '' terrorizing communities that only swift government action of the sort aimed at Reinoehl can quell .
But who are the `` violent mobs '' really ?
In Trump 's world , armed self-defense is acceptable only for white supremacists who support him , not for the left-wing activists they routinely threaten and hurt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , according to NPR , `` Right-wing extremists are turning cars into weapons , with reports of at least 50 vehicle-ramming incidents '' at protests against police brutality .
Conservative news outlets including Fox News and the Daily Caller have encouraged such attacks .
Even the Department of Homeland Security 's latest threat assessment identifies , `` racially and ethnically motivated violent extremists—specifically white supremacist extremists , '' as `` the most persistent and lethal threat in the Homeland '' among what the agency designates as `` Domestic Violent Extremists '' or DVEs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , more than a dozen white men were just arrested ( without being harmed ) in connection with a kidnapping plot aimed at Michigan 's Governor Gretchen Whitmer .
The governor , who is among several women who have faced Trump 's online ire , said , `` I do believe that there are still serious threats that groups like this group , these domestic terrorists , are finding comfort and support in the rhetoric coming out of Republican leadership in the White House to our state house . ''
In Trump 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reign supreme while those of us speaking out against fascism are symbolized by Reinoehl—and like him will be not be considered innocent until proven guilty .
We will never know whether or not Reinoehl was guilty of murdering Danielson , as he was not given a chance to stand trial .
In Trump 's America , there will be no law , only order .
To Trump , `` [ t ] here has to be retribution , '' rather than due process .
Among the many issues at stake in the November @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a central concern .
Sonali Kolhatkar is the founder , host and executive producer of `` Rising Up With Sonali , '' a television and radio show that airs on Free Speech TV and Pacifica stations .
This article was produced by Economy for All , a project of the Independent Media Institute .

The federal government's killing of Michael Reinoehl exactly two months before the November 3 presidential race ought to have been one of the most high-profile election issues being discussed in America. Instead, it has been almost forgotten save for some media outlets starting to question the official narrative of his death. The little-known self-proclaimed "antifa" activist was killed by federal agents on September 3. Officers claimed that he had fired shots at them before being gunned down. But a week after his killing, the Washington Post found that "the wanted man wasn't obviously armed."
The Thurston County sheriff in Lacey, Washington, where the suspect was killed, released a public statement saying his investigation team "can confirm… that Mr. Reinoehl pointed the handgun that he had in his possession at the officers at the time of the shooting." The U.S. Marshals Service whose forces were the ones that shot Reinoehl released a similar statement claiming that the fugitive task force that had been sent to his location "attempted to peacefully arrest him," but, after being shot at, "Task force members responded to the threat and struck the suspect who was pronounced dead at the scene."
News outlets took the official statements at their word and dutifully reported the incident as one where a suspected killer opened fire on officers and was fatally shot in the course of his arrest. In other words, there was "nothing to see here." But according to a New York Times investigation six weeks after his death, it remains unclear "whether law enforcement officers made any serious attempt to arrest Mr. Reinoehl before killing him."
According to nearly two dozen witnesses that the New York Times spoke to, "all but one said they did not hear officers identify themselves or give any commands before opening fire." Even though Reinoehl was armed at the time of his death, his handgun was found in his pocket and an AR-style rifle in a bag in his car, suggesting he did not threaten the officers trying to arrest him as official accounts had initially claimed.
Reinoehl was wanted in connection to the fatal shooting of a Trump-supporting right-wing activist named Aaron J. Danielson during Black Lives Matter protests in Portland, Oregon. President Donald Trump ranted on Twitter on the day he was killed, "Why aren't the Portland Police ARRESTING the cold blooded killer" and adding, "Everybody knows who this thug is." Later he hailed the fatal shooting triumphantly, saying in a Fox News interview:
"We sent in the U.S. Marshals for the killer, the man who killed the young man on the street.… Two and a half days went by, and I put out [on Twitter], 'When are you going to go get him?' And the U.S. Marshals went in to get him, and they ended in a gunfight. This guy was a violent criminal, and the U.S. Marshals killed him. And I'll tell you something—that's the way it has to be. There has to be retribution when you have crime like this."
In referring to Reinoehl as a "cold blooded killer" and "violent criminal" even though at the time of his death he was a suspect, Trump made clear that in his America, "law and order" means you are guilty before being proven so and can be targeted for extrajudicial assassination if those in power decide you deserve it. Such shocking words coming from any other head of state in the world would trigger instant condemnations from the U.S. State Department. Speaking to his supporters, Trump boasted of the "great job" that U.S. Marshals did in Portland, adding meaningfully, "you know what I mean."
Attorney General William Barr, who appears to have no understanding of how the nation's system of criminal justice is supposed to work, released a statement praising the federal troops' actions and echoing Trump's words in more official-sounding language. Barr called Reinoehl, "a dangerous fugitive, admitted Antifa member, and suspected murderer," and said before any investigation into the killing was complete that "[w]hen Reinoehl attempted to escape arrest and produced a firearm, he was shot and killed by law enforcement officers." In doing so, Barr too justified this extrajudicial assassination as Trump did and went as far as calling the whole incident, "a significant accomplishment in the ongoing effort to restore law and order to Portland and other cities." He applauded "the fugitive task force team that located Reinoehl and prevented him from escaping justice."
To Barr, the top law enforcement official in the nation, "justice" meant death, rather than arrest followed by charges and a fair trial. To Barr and Trump, the constant drumbeat of "law and order" is essentially a promise to fatally punish those perceived as enemies of the government.
In addition to the Washington Post and the New York Times, several other media outlets have corroborated that Reinoehl's killing appeared unjustified. Rolling Stone characterizes one eyewitness's account of the scene as "a violent ambush" that "resembled an execution." Oregon Public Broadcasting in collaboration with ProPublica spoke to witnesses who said that the officers shot him without warning and "looked less like law enforcement officers than members of a right-wing militia."
In a VICE News interview released just after his death, Reinoehl can be seen claiming that he acted in self-defense in Portland—just as an attorney for Kyle Rittenhouse, the Trump-supporting armed suspect in the Kenosha, Wisconsin, killing of two Black Lives Matter activists, said. With Reinoehl dead at the hands of U.S. Marshals, we will never know the truth.
Instead, Reinoehl now serves as the perfect symbol of the shadowy enemy that Trump rails against. A participant in Black Lives Matter protests, Reinoehl claimed he was "100% ANTIFA all the way." The president's promise to designate "ANTIFA" (which is an ideology, not an organization) as "a Terrorist Organization" has fed into dangerous notions designed to create panic among his base. It has raised the specter of "violent mobs" terrorizing communities that only swift government action of the sort aimed at Reinoehl can quell.
But who are the "violent mobs" really? In Trump's world, armed self-defense is acceptable only for white supremacists who support him, not for the left-wing activists they routinely threaten and hurt. Since protests began earlier this year, according to NPR, "Right-wing extremists are turning cars into weapons, with reports of at least 50 vehicle-ramming incidents" at protests against police brutality. Conservative news outlets including Fox News and the Daily Caller have encouraged such attacks. Even the Department of Homeland Security's latest threat assessment identifies, "racially and ethnically motivated violent extremists—specifically white supremacist extremists," as "the most persistent and lethal threat in the Homeland" among what the agency designates as "Domestic Violent Extremists" or DVEs.
As if to underscore the threat, more than a dozen white men were just arrested (without being harmed) in connection with a kidnapping plot aimed at Michigan's Governor Gretchen Whitmer. The governor, who is among several women who have faced Trump's online ire, said, "I do believe that there are still serious threats that groups like this group, these domestic terrorists, are finding comfort and support in the rhetoric coming out of Republican leadership in the White House to our state house."
In Trump's America, white nationalist armed vigilante men reign supreme while those of us speaking out against fascism are symbolized by Reinoehl—and like him will be not be considered innocent until proven guilty. We will never know whether or not Reinoehl was guilty of murdering Danielson, as he was not given a chance to stand trial. In Trump's America, there will be no law, only order. To Trump, "[t]here has to be retribution," rather than due process. Among the many issues at stake in the November 3 election, this ought to be a central concern.
Sonali Kolhatkar is the founder, host and executive producer of "Rising Up With Sonali," a television and radio show that airs on Free Speech TV and Pacifica stations.
This article was produced by Economy for All, a project of the Independent Media Institute.


alternet--2020-10-16--Paul Krugman reveals the biggest danger Amy Coney Barrett poses to 'the future of civilization'

If Nov. 3 brings the massive blue wave that Democrats are hoping for , voters will not only replace President Donald Trump with former Vice President Joe Biden — they will also allow the party to maintain a majority in the House and gain a majority in the Senate .
The outcome of the 2020 election remains to be seen , but the prospects for such a sweep are raising hopes about potentially major progressive changes in U.S. policy .
Liberal economist Paul Krugman , though , argues this week in his New York Times column that even if Democrats @ @ @ @ @ @ @ branches , Republicans will still be in a position to inflict considerable suffering with a far-right supermajority on the Supreme Court .
The Senate confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett — Trump 's far-right nominee to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Supreme Court — started on Monday , and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is hoping that Barrett will be confirmed before the end of the month .
Krugman explains : `` It looks as if a president who is probably about to become a lame duck @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even in 2016 — together with a Senate that represents a minority of the American people , are about to install a right-wing supermajority on the Supreme Court… .
Even if Democrats take both the Senate and the White House , they 're now almost certain to face a 6-3 Supreme Court — that is , a Court dominated by appointees of an increasingly extremist party that has only won the popular vote for president once in the past three decades . ''
The Times columnist stresses that having a far-right Supreme Court @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of ways .
`` In the hearings for Amy Coney Barrett , Democrats have , rightly and understandably , hammered on the possibility that such a ( Supreme ) Court would use transparently spurious arguments to overturn the Affordable Care Act , causing tens of millions of Americans to lose health insurance coverage , '' Krugman notes .
`` Roe v. Wade is also in obvious danger .
But I 'd argue that the biggest threat this Court will pose is to environmental policy . ''
Krugman notes that billionaire Charles Koch `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Barrett confirmed . ''
`` That 's not because he 's passionately opposed to abortion rights or probably , even because he wants the ACA overturned , '' Krugman observes .
`` What he 's looking for , surely , is a ( Supreme ) Court that will block government regulation of business — and above all , a Court that will hamstring a Biden administration 's efforts to take action against climate change . ''
Krugman adds , `` It 's hard to overstate just how dangerous it will be if the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being used to undermine environmental protection… .
We 're already starting to see the effects of global warming in the form of fires and floods , and if we waste the next few years , it will probably be too late to avoid catastrophe . ''
The economist concludes his column by warning that even if Democrats are in control of the White House and both houses of Congress next year , a far-right Supreme Court could be an environmental nightmare .
`` If a GOP-stacked Supreme Court blocks effective climate policy , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — it will be a disaster for America and the world , '' Krugman warns .
`` So , that ca n't be allowed to happen .
Never mind all the talk about norms , which only seem to apply to Democrats , anyway .
What 's at stake here could be the future of civilization . ''

If Nov. 3 brings the massive blue wave that Democrats are hoping for, voters will not only replace President Donald Trump with former Vice President Joe Biden — they will also allow the party to maintain a majority in the House and gain a majority in the Senate. The outcome of the 2020 election remains to be seen, but the prospects for such a sweep are raising hopes about potentially major progressive changes in U.S. policy.
Liberal economist Paul Krugman, though, argues this week in his New York Times column that even if Democrats are in total control of the elected branches, Republicans will still be in a position to inflict considerable suffering with a far-right supermajority on the Supreme Court.
The Senate confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett — Trump's far-right nominee to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Supreme Court — started on Monday, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is hoping that Barrett will be confirmed before the end of the month.
Krugman explains: "It looks as if a president who is probably about to become a lame duck — and who lost the popular vote even in 2016 — together with a Senate that represents a minority of the American people, are about to install a right-wing supermajority on the Supreme Court…. Even if Democrats take both the Senate and the White House, they're now almost certain to face a 6-3 Supreme Court — that is, a Court dominated by appointees of an increasingly extremist party that has only won the popular vote for president once in the past three decades."
The Times columnist stresses that having a far-right Supreme Court majority will be terrible in a variety of ways.
"In the hearings for Amy Coney Barrett, Democrats have, rightly and understandably, hammered on the possibility that such a (Supreme) Court would use transparently spurious arguments to overturn the Affordable Care Act, causing tens of millions of Americans to lose health insurance coverage," Krugman notes. "Roe v. Wade is also in obvious danger. But I'd argue that the biggest threat this Court will pose is to environmental policy."
Krugman notes that billionaire Charles Koch "is reportedly investing millions trying to get Barrett confirmed."
"That's not because he's passionately opposed to abortion rights or probably, even because he wants the ACA overturned," Krugman observes. "What he's looking for, surely, is a (Supreme) Court that will block government regulation of business — and above all, a Court that will hamstring a Biden administration's efforts to take action against climate change."
Krugman adds, "It's hard to overstate just how dangerous it will be if the power of the Supreme Court ends up being used to undermine environmental protection…. We're already starting to see the effects of global warming in the form of fires and floods, and if we waste the next few years, it will probably be too late to avoid catastrophe."
The economist concludes his column by warning that even if Democrats are in control of the White House and both houses of Congress next year, a far-right Supreme Court could be an environmental nightmare.
"If a GOP-stacked Supreme Court blocks effective climate policy, it won't just be an outrage — it will be a disaster for America and the world," Krugman warns. "So, that can't be allowed to happen. Never mind all the talk about norms, which only seem to apply to Democrats, anyway. What's at stake here could be the future of civilization."


alternet--2020-10-16--Donald Trump is gaming the Census--can Dems repair the damage if they win?

The Census , as newspapers are at always at pains to remind us , is sneakily important .
It helps drive how much power each political party holds in Congress for the next decade , and where trillions of dollars in government funding go .
It determines where we draw congressional district lines inside our states and guides how we understand and improve the condition of our people .
And it is in trouble .
There have been two sets of problems .
The first , brewing since as far back as 2017 , was a mix of mismanagement , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` budget woes , potential cyber-security weaknesses , hiring shortfalls , testing cutbacks , [ and ] a bankrupt printing company . ''
All of which was followed of course by the massive disruption of the pandemic .
While efforts have been mixed , the Census Bureau has at least tried to work through these issues .
The second , however , was deeper and more insidious : a series of engineered crises intended to manipulate the count .
The most notorious was the Trump administration 's plan to include a question on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ estimate of how many people could vote but actually intended to `` allow Republicans to draft even more extreme gerrymandered maps to stymie Democrats . ''
This is not an assertion by Democrats , it is a documented fact ( verified , improbably , through an estranged daughter 's discovery of a hard drive belonging to a deceased Republican operative ) .
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts slapped down that plan as a transparently audacious ploy with a paper thin alibi , but there have been other attempts to skew the results @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issued an Executive Order directing the Census to use other federal data to identify and remove undocumented immigrants from the count ( despite the fact that likely no such data set exists and the constitution directs that all persons be counted regardless of immigration status ; Trump has requested expedited Supreme Court review of his order ) .
And the Census Bureau decided to stop its count early – a plan subsequently halted and then reinstated by the Supreme Court – leading to what Government Accountability Office ( GAO ) managing director for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` drastic undercount '' of nonwhite communities , as well as other potential gaps and distortions .
The count is now battered , with unknown consequences .
`` We essentially are in unchartered territory in modern Census history , first because of the unprecedented scope of the disruption to Census operations , and then because of the unprecedented political interference in Census implementation , which clearly could result in unacceptably flawed Census data , '' said Terri Ann Lowenthal , a nationally-recognized expert on the Census .
So the big question– with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ process for the remainder of its time in office – is whether there is anything that Democrats can do to save it if they take control of the presidency , and especially if they add a Democratic Senate .
The answer seems to be possibly , if the problems are clear , and if Congress gets in gear quickly .
According to Justin Levitt – a professor of constitutional law who has written about the legal ramifications of the Census debacle – the first step in a rescue would be to use congressional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to open the books .
`` Transparency and communication have been so sharply curtailed in recent months that nobody really knows what 's going on under the hood there , '' he said .
`` The problems may amount to paper cuts or they could be cuts to the jugular , but to fix them we would have to understand them better .
It 's sort of the old G.I Joe refrain – knowing is half the battle . ''
If there are gaps , or if the count has been manipulated to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ using other federal data sets , Levitt says that Congress could potentially move quickly to enact a new law resetting the deadlines for finalizing the results : `` Census has been asking all year for more time to do the analysis and data cleanup right , and it has n't happened .
So if there 's a change of control , you 'd likely quickly see a move to pass a new statute allowing more time to do the post-count processing to get the data as accurate as they can be . ''
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ done , especially quickly – let alone enacting any other further policy direction on how to handle a repair – could be the GAO report that comes out with the Census Bureau results and details any issues with accuracy or undercounts .
If there are gaps that mostly affect Democratic constituencies or blue states , Republicans are likely to be unmoved – indeed , any Democratic-led moves that could affect the numbers , and therefore tilt the apportionment of House seats in the 2020s , is going to create a DEFCON 1 level @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the fraught scenario where Democrats have removed the filibuster , Republicans can still slow the process , and there remains a high likelihood of lawsuits in response to any Democratic legislation that lacks bipartisan support ( there 's probably going to be litigation even with such support ) .
However , a GAO report produced under the current Republican administration that corroborates undercounts – and especially that shows them occurring in rural , Republican-leaning areas in Republican or mixed representation states with multiple House seats ( think Ohio , Pennsylvania , etc @ @ @ @ @ @ @ support .
The 2010 version of that report showed some significant undercounts even absent all of the considerable problems of recent years , and there are early indications that some gaps are indeed occurring in Republican-leaning areas , with some of the lowest self-response rates falling in states like Mississippi , Louisiana , and Alaska .
If Congress does manage to push back the timeframe for finalizing the count early in 2021 , further steps could get even trickier .
For one thing , some of the mess may be hard to clean @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's not like their data files are going to have numbers crossed off in bold red lines that you can just undelete , '' notes Levitt .
Agency executives and congressional investigators are going to have to dig through reams of data and a lot of weedy statistics to make sure they understand the contours of where and how problems occurred .
Another challenge is that if gaps are found ( mostly in the form of undercounted areas , but also overcounted areas which can also skew the numbers ) , there are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ raw numbers can then be adjusted to bring them closer in line with reality through modeling and statistical methods .
Under current law , these methods are allowed and can even be mandatory for drawing district lines and calculating funding formulas , but not for the all-important apportionment of congressional districts among states – which is the area of greatest interest to the two parties since it affects control of the House of Representatives .
That is an issue that a newly-Democratic Congress could also fix , since it 's the legislative branch @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the numbers are calculated .
`` Congress , which has constitutional responsibility for the Census , must look long and hard at whether 2020 Census data can and should be used for purposes fundamental to a representative democracy and in ways that allow Congress to carry out its constitutional role as a prudent steward of federal dollars , '' said Lowenthal .
However , with a fast-ticking clock , lags in passing new bills , legal challenges , and the partisan pitfalls of developing legislative guidance on how to repair the count ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ undocumented immigrants , or cross-referencing numbers with other data to verify accuracy ) , nothing is going to be straightforward .
No matter what Democrats do , the Census is sure to be controversial and hard-fought .
Given the stakes , it will need to be early and high on the to-do list .

The Census, as newspapers are at always at pains to remind us, is sneakily important. It helps drive how much power each political party holds in Congress for the next decade, and where trillions of dollars in government funding go. It determines where we draw congressional district lines inside our states and guides how we understand and improve the condition of our people.
And it is in trouble.
There have been two sets of problems. The first, brewing since as far back as 2017, was a mix of mismanagement, mistakes, and bad luck, including "budget woes, potential cyber-security weaknesses, hiring shortfalls, testing cutbacks, [and] a bankrupt printing company." All of which was followed of course by the massive disruption of the pandemic. While efforts have been mixed, the Census Bureau has at least tried to work through these issues.
The second, however, was deeper and more insidious: a series of engineered crises intended to manipulate the count. The most notorious was the Trump administration's plan to include a question on citizenship status, ostensibly to improve the estimate of how many people could vote but actually intended to "allow Republicans to draft even more extreme gerrymandered maps to stymie Democrats." This is not an assertion by Democrats, it is a documented fact (verified, improbably, through an estranged daughter's discovery of a hard drive belonging to a deceased Republican operative).
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts slapped down that plan as a transparently audacious ploy with a paper thin alibi, but there have been other attempts to skew the results that were almost as brazen. Trump issued an Executive Order directing the Census to use other federal data to identify and remove undocumented immigrants from the count (despite the fact that likely no such data set exists and the constitution directs that all persons be counted regardless of immigration status; Trump has requested expedited Supreme Court review of his order).
And the Census Bureau decided to stop its count early – a plan subsequently halted and then reinstated by the Supreme Court – leading to what Government Accountability Office (GAO) managing director for strategic issues Chris Mihm called a likely "drastic undercount" of nonwhite communities, as well as other potential gaps and distortions.
The count is now battered, with unknown consequences. "We essentially are in unchartered territory in modern Census history, first because of the unprecedented scope of the disruption to Census operations, and then because of the unprecedented political interference in Census implementation, which clearly could result in unacceptably flawed Census data," said Terri Ann Lowenthal, a nationally-recognized expert on the Census.
So the big question– with the Trump administration clearly hellbent on manipulating the process for the remainder of its time in office – is whether there is anything that Democrats can do to save it if they take control of the presidency, and especially if they add a Democratic Senate.
The answer seems to be possibly, if the problems are clear, and if Congress gets in gear quickly.
According to Justin Levitt – a professor of constitutional law who has written about the legal ramifications of the Census debacle – the first step in a rescue would be to use congressional oversight and executive control of the agency to open the books. "Transparency and communication have been so sharply curtailed in recent months that nobody really knows what's going on under the hood there," he said. "The problems may amount to paper cuts or they could be cuts to the jugular, but to fix them we would have to understand them better. It's sort of the old G.I Joe refrain – knowing is half the battle."
If there are gaps, or if the count has been manipulated to remove respondents based on purported immigration status using other federal data sets, Levitt says that Congress could potentially move quickly to enact a new law resetting the deadlines for finalizing the results: "Census has been asking all year for more time to do the analysis and data cleanup right, and it hasn't happened. So if there's a change of control, you'd likely quickly see a move to pass a new statute allowing more time to do the post-count processing to get the data as accurate as they can be."
But a critical element in getting that done, especially quickly – let alone enacting any other further policy direction on how to handle a repair – could be the GAO report that comes out with the Census Bureau results and details any issues with accuracy or undercounts. If there are gaps that mostly affect Democratic constituencies or blue states, Republicans are likely to be unmoved – indeed, any Democratic-led moves that could affect the numbers, and therefore tilt the apportionment of House seats in the 2020s, is going to create a DEFCON 1 level of alarm for Senate Republicans. Even in the fraught scenario where Democrats have removed the filibuster, Republicans can still slow the process, and there remains a high likelihood of lawsuits in response to any Democratic legislation that lacks bipartisan support (there's probably going to be litigation even with such support).
However, a GAO report produced under the current Republican administration that corroborates undercounts – and especially that shows them occurring in rural, Republican-leaning areas in Republican or mixed representation states with multiple House seats (think Ohio, Pennsylvania, etc.) – could garner Republican Senate support. The 2010 version of that report showed some significant undercounts even absent all of the considerable problems of recent years, and there are early indications that some gaps are indeed occurring in Republican-leaning areas, with some of the lowest self-response rates falling in states like Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alaska.
If Congress does manage to push back the timeframe for finalizing the count early in 2021, further steps could get even trickier. For one thing, some of the mess may be hard to clean up or even identify – "it's not like their data files are going to have numbers crossed off in bold red lines that you can just undelete," notes Levitt. Agency executives and congressional investigators are going to have to dig through reams of data and a lot of weedy statistics to make sure they understand the contours of where and how problems occurred.
Another challenge is that if gaps are found (mostly in the form of undercounted areas, but also overcounted areas which can also skew the numbers), there are limits at present on how much the raw numbers can then be adjusted to bring them closer in line with reality through modeling and statistical methods. Under current law, these methods are allowed and can even be mandatory for drawing district lines and calculating funding formulas, but not for the all-important apportionment of congressional districts among states – which is the area of greatest interest to the two parties since it affects control of the House of Representatives.
That is an issue that a newly-Democratic Congress could also fix, since it's the legislative branch that ultimately sets the policy on how the numbers are calculated. "Congress, which has constitutional responsibility for the Census, must look long and hard at whether 2020 Census data can and should be used for purposes fundamental to a representative democracy and in ways that allow Congress to carry out its constitutional role as a prudent steward of federal dollars," said Lowenthal.
However, with a fast-ticking clock, lags in passing new bills, legal challenges, and the partisan pitfalls of developing legislative guidance on how to repair the count (through modeling, unwinding Trump directives on undocumented immigrants, or cross-referencing numbers with other data to verify accuracy), nothing is going to be straightforward.
No matter what Democrats do, the Census is sure to be controversial and hard-fought. Given the stakes, it will need to be early and high on the to-do list.


alternet--2020-10-16--Right-wing Joni Ernst implodes at Iowa debate when she can't answer basic farming question

Sen. Joni Ernst and Democratic challenger Theresa Greenfield were asked a basic question by the moderators of tonight 's Iowa @ @ @ @ @ price of two different agricultural commodities and their respective break-even points .
Greenfield was asked @ @ @ @ @ a great , knowledgeable answer .
The final Iowa US Senate debate gets down to @ @ @ @ @ Des Moines Register reports .
You grew up on a farm , you should know @ @ @ @

Sen. Joni Ernst and Democratic challenger Theresa Greenfield were asked a basic question by the moderators of tonight's Iowa U.S. Senate debate: the price of two different agricultural commodities and their respective break-even points. Greenfield was asked first about corn and gave a great, knowledgeable answer.
Ernst was asked a similar question about soybeans, and… boom!
The final Iowa US Senate debate gets down to serious ag issues, The Des Moines Register reports.
The candidates were also asked for the break-even price of corn, in Greenfield's case, and soybeans, in Ernst's case.
"Well a bushel of corn is going for about $3.68, today, $3.69, and breakeven really just depends on the amount of debt someone has," Greenfield said as moderator Ron Steele nodded and said "that's correct."
Ernst was then asked about the price of soybeans, but began her answer by talking about the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement and its impact on Iowa's corn market. When Steele followed up, Ernst appeared to believe he had asked her about corn as well.
"I might have missed it, I don't think you answered my question: What's the breakeven price for soybeans in Iowa? You grew up on a farm, you should know this," Steele said.
"I think you had asked about corn, and it depends on what the inputs are, but probably about $5.50," Ernst said.
"Well, you're a couple dollars off, I think here, because it's $10.05, but we'll move on to something else," Steele said.
Given another chance to answer, Ernst appeared to still believe she was being asked about corn.
"You said, could the breakeven for corn is $10.50? I don't think that's correct," she said.
You grew up on a farm, you should know this. Word.


alternet--2020-10-16--This FL county could be the best early signal of a ‘gray revolt’ against Trump: elections expert

President Donald Trump may have won the state of Florida in the 2016 general election , but one Florida county could be an early indicator that things may change for the upcoming November election .
According to NBC News , The Villages , known as one of the most staunch Republican communities in the state of Florida , turned heads on social media when a caravan of more than 500-golf carts carrying supporters of Democratic presidential nominee paraded around one of the Florida 's largest retirement community .
Reports have indicated that the senior citizen residents were heading to cast @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ' voting parade made headlines simply because of the rarity of its occurrence .
Now , election strategists are weighing in with their take on the impact of the 122,000-resident community and what the senior citizen shift could mean for Trump 's chances of winning Florida again .
Joe Steve Schale a veteran Democratic strategist in Florida , also revealed he will be focusing on two of the three counties The Villages spreads across : the Sumter and Pinellas communities located near the St. Petersburg-Clearwater area .
`` I 'll be looking at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` Both of them are really old and over 80 percent white .
And you could have 80 to 85 percent of the vote there reported by 7:15pm . ''
Based on previous elections , Republicans were the favorable candidates .
In the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections , Republicans maintained voter interest in Florida .
They produced similar results in the 2018 mid-term election .
Based on the mid-term election results , But the fact that Biden even has a chance in the typically Republican area decreases the margin of Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Florida being a critical , key state , voters in The Villages could sway the election in favor of Biden .
For Trump , losing the state of Florida could destroy his chances of re-election .

President Donald Trump may have won the state of Florida in the 2016 general election, but one Florida county could be an early indicator that things may change for the upcoming November election.
According to NBC News, The Villages, known as one of the most staunch Republican communities in the state of Florida, turned heads on social media when a caravan of more than 500-golf carts carrying supporters of Democratic presidential nominee paraded around one of the Florida's largest retirement community. Reports have indicated that the senior citizen residents were heading to cast their ballots by mail.
The residents' voting parade made headlines simply because of the rarity of its occurrence. Now, election strategists are weighing in with their take on the impact of the 122,000-resident community and what the senior citizen shift could mean for Trump's chances of winning Florida again.
Joe Steve Schale a veteran Democratic strategist in Florida, also revealed he will be focusing on two of the three counties The Villages spreads across: the Sumter and Pinellas communities located near the St. Petersburg-Clearwater area.
"I'll be looking at Sumter and Pinellas," Schale said. "Both of them are really old and over 80 percent white. And you could have 80 to 85 percent of the vote there reported by 7:15pm."
Based on previous elections, Republicans were the favorable candidates. In the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections, Republicans maintained voter interest in Florida. They produced similar results in the 2018 mid-term election. Based on the mid-term election results,
But the fact that Biden even has a chance in the typically Republican area decreases the margin of Trump's leverage among Florida voters. With Florida being a critical, key state, voters in The Villages could sway the election in favor of Biden. For Trump, losing the state of Florida could destroy his chances of re-election.


alternet--2020-10-16--Distancing from Trump: Maryland GOP governor casts write-in vote for Ronald Reagan

Maryland Gov .
Larry Hogan ( R ) admitted that he `` voted for Ronald Reagan '' in the 2020 presidential election simply because he can not support President Donald Trump or Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden .
During an interview with The Washington Post on Thursday evening , Hogan confirmed he cast his ballot by mail last week writing in the name of the 40th U.S. president who he described as his `` hero in politics . ''
`` I 'm a lifelong conservative Republican , '' Hogan said as he went through a list of his previous campaign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the guy .
I marched around as a college kid on the floor of the convention with a Reagan hat and a Reagan sign . ''
According to Hogan , the decision was made as a political statement .
While many people have suggested any vote for a third-party with no chance of winning is , subsequently , a vote for Trump , Hogan appears to believe his vote wo n't help the president due to his deeply unfavourability among Maryland voters .
In addition to Trump 's disesteem in Maryland , Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` I know it 's simply symbolic .
It 's not going to change the outcome in my state , '' Hogan said .
`` But I thought it was important to just cast a vote that showed the kind of person I 'd like to see in office , '' Hogan said of his ballot this year . ''
Hogan went on to praise Reagan for his ability to appeal to not only conservatives Republicans but also blue-collar Democratic voters .
The Republican governor insists Reagan 's rules are still an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` People really want someone who 's pragmatic , who 's not afraid to compromise , '' he said .
Hogan 's remarks come as tons of undecided voters continue to mull over their decision as Election Day approaches .
According to multiple reports , voters like Hogan could greatly impact the outcome of the election in multiple swing states .

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) admitted that he "voted for Ronald Reagan" in the 2020 presidential election simply because he cannot support President Donald Trump or Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
During an interview with The Washington Post on Thursday evening, Hogan confirmed he cast his ballot by mail last week writing in the name of the 40th U.S. president who he described as his "hero in politics."
"I'm a lifelong conservative Republican," Hogan said as he went through a list of his previous campaign efforts for Reagan. "Reagan was the guy. I marched around as a college kid on the floor of the convention with a Reagan hat and a Reagan sign."
According to Hogan, the decision was made as a political statement. While many people have suggested any vote for a third-party with no chance of winning is, subsequently, a vote for Trump, Hogan appears to believe his vote won't help the president due to his deeply unfavourability among Maryland voters. In addition to Trump's disesteem in Maryland, Biden is reportedly leading by a wide margin.
"I know it's simply symbolic. It's not going to change the outcome in my state," Hogan said. "But I thought it was important to just cast a vote that showed the kind of person I'd like to see in office," Hogan said of his ballot this year."
Hogan went on to praise Reagan for his ability to appeal to not only conservatives Republicans but also blue-collar Democratic voters. The Republican governor insists Reagan's rules are still an intricate part of his own political playbook.
"People really want someone who's pragmatic, who's not afraid to compromise," he said.
Hogan's remarks come as tons of undecided voters continue to mull over their decision as Election Day approaches. According to multiple reports, voters like Hogan could greatly impact the outcome of the election in multiple swing states.


alternet--2020-10-16--Trump expresses all his pent-up contempt for women in two words to NBC's Savannah Guthrie

The takeaway from Trump 's self-immolation at his Town Hall on Thursday can be found exactly at the 1:57 mark @ @ @ @ @ when he sarcastically expresses his contempt for moderator Savannah Guthrie , who has clearly gotten @ @ @ @ @ mutters it , underneath his breath , and you could be forgiven for missing it @ @ @ @ @ second we get a glimpse of all the animosity , all the malice , all @ @ @ @ @ misogyny and contempt this man feels towards women .
You can just hear it in @ @ @ @ @ New York Times : And one other note ; As of 9:55 EST , nearly @ @ @ @ @ own town hall ended , Joe Biden is still there , answering voters ' questions @

The takeaway from Trump's self-immolation at his Town Hall on Thursday can be found exactly at the 1:57 mark in the video above, when he sarcastically expresses his contempt for moderator Savannah Guthrie, who has clearly gotten under his skin. He mutters it, underneath his breath, and you could be forgiven for missing it, but for a fleeting second we get a glimpse of all the animosity, all the malice, all the narcissism, all the misogyny and contempt this man feels towards women. You can just hear it in his voice:
"Ha Ha. So cute."
From The Independent:
The president and the Ms Guthrie exchanged barbs during a heated opening to the NBC event.
Mr Trump even sarcastically told the TV host "so cute" when she pressed him to denounce QAnon's wild conspiracy theories.
From the New York Times:
"Why aren't you asking Joe Biden questions about why doesn't he condemn antifa?" Mr. Trump asked her.
"Because you're here," she said, matter-of-factly.
"So cute," Mr. Trump responded, in a condescending tone that was unlikely to endear him to the suburban women voters he has been trying to win back.
x
I think the suburban women will love Trump telling Savannah Guthrie sarcastically that she is "so cute."
— Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip) October 16, 2020
And one other note; As of 9:55 EST, nearly a half hour after his own town hall ended, Joe Biden is still there, answering voters' questions.


alternet--2020-10-16--Trump brags about good town hall reviews -- but ratings signal a town hall win for Biden

President Donald Trump is always touting high ratings and great reviews but Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden may have finally hit the president where it hurts .
On Friday morning , the president boasted about the reviews he claims to have received from his town hall with NBC News ' Savannah Guthrie .
He tweeted , `` Very good reviews on last night 's [ NBC News ] Town Hall in Miami .
Thank you !
!
! ''
However , Trump 's limited response may be due to the fact that his ratings paled in comparison to Biden 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ' YouTube channel attracted 153,660 viewers for Trump 's town hall while ABC News ' YouTube Channel drew 507,445 viewers by the time Biden 's town hall ended .
Multiple reports also indicate that last night 's viewership signals a win for Biden .
Vox also pointed out another reason Trump 's ratings may have dropped .
The publication noted that the president 's biggest blunders occurred in the first 15 minutes of the broadcast when he was grilled by NBC News host Savannah Guthrie .
From the very beginning , the questions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ little room for Trump to pivot .
The president 's tweet reacting to the town hall specials is a bit different from his usual boastful declarations after a televised event .
For example , after the Republican National Convention aired , Trump made it a point to not only boast about the ratings but also share the stats .
At the time , he tweeted , `` Wow !
Despite the Democrats views across TV and online lie ( Con ! )
, we had 147.9 million , the Republican National Convention blew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even close !
Just like their lies on Russia , Football ( PLAY ! )
and everything else !
NOVEMBER 3rd . ''
The American public will have another opportunity to see both presidential candidates square off .
The final presidential debate is scheduled for October 22 , 2020 .

President Donald Trump is always touting high ratings and great reviews but Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden may have finally hit the president where it hurts.
On Friday morning, the president boasted about the reviews he claims to have received from his town hall with NBC News' Savannah Guthrie. He tweeted, "Very good reviews on last night's [NBC News] Town Hall in Miami. Thank you!!!"
However, Trump's limited response may be due to the fact that his ratings paled in comparison to Biden's. According to Newsweek, NBC News' YouTube channel attracted 153,660 viewers for Trump's town hall while ABC News' YouTube Channel drew 507,445 viewers by the time Biden's town hall ended. Multiple reports also indicate that last night's viewership signals a win for Biden.
Vox also pointed out another reason Trump's ratings may have dropped. The publication noted that the president's biggest blunders occurred in the first 15 minutes of the broadcast when he was grilled by NBC News host Savannah Guthrie. From the very beginning, the questions were direct and aggressive, leaving very little room for Trump to pivot.
The president's tweet reacting to the town hall specials is a bit different from his usual boastful declarations after a televised event. For example, after the Republican National Convention aired, Trump made it a point to not only boast about the ratings but also share the stats.
At the time, he tweeted, "Wow! Despite the Democrats views across TV and online lie (Con!), we had 147.9 million, the Republican National Convention blew the Democrat National Convention AWAY. Not even close! Just like their lies on Russia, Football (PLAY!) and everything else! NOVEMBER 3rd."
The American public will have another opportunity to see both presidential candidates square off. The final presidential debate is scheduled for October 22, 2020.


alternet--2020-10-16--Fascism: As polling turns against him, Trump lays groundwork for mass violence

Rattled by poor polling numbers in his reelection bid , the alleged president of the United States is encouraging domestic terrorism .
That 's where we 're at , and everyone from top national security experts to local emergency officials are all crystal clear on that .
The New York Times reports from a bunch of 'em in a piece that can both contain remarkable factual phrases like `` Mr. Trump has descended into rants about perceived enemies '' and still somehow soft sell the underlying message : The nation is preparing for violence on and after Election Day because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is goading his supporters into that violence with rally claims that any loss on his part will be proof that his enemies cheated .
There is no possible chance that Trump does n't know what he 's doing .
His tweeted calls to `` LIBERATE '' states from governors who imposed widespread pandemic measures resulted in a Michigan militia attempting to do exactly that .
Trump is back at it even today , claiming their primary target , Michigan Gov .
Gretchen Whitmer , `` wants to be a dictator . ''
He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to calls for mob action—only to repeat those calls when it looks like the first versions are beginning to bear fruit .
The only reason he is not being treated as a radical , dangerous figure who has irreparably violated his own oath of office , necessitating removal , is because Republican Party leadership and lawmakers have themselves embraced and defended those violations .
It is self-radicalizing ; the farther Trump goes into overtly authoritarian behavior , the more pressure the party feels to defend and normalize their own support for him .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in isolating and excising state and local functionaries who express alarm at his grotesqueries , the more the party has become a homogenized group of anti-democracy , authoritarian-molded radicals themselves .
Trump has clearly been unfit for office in every respect ; the impeachment investigation identified his corruption , the pandemic proved his apathetic incompetence , and his continued calls for mob justice against targeted enemies have proven ( as have similar quotes repeated through the last five years ) that he is not just indifferent to extralegal punishments of his enemies , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Vice President Mike Pence , Sen. Mitch McConnell , Attorney General William Barr , Treasury Sec .
Steve Mnuchin , Sec .
of State Mike Pompeo , Rep. Mark Meadows , Sen. Lindsey Graham , Sen. Ted Cruz , and the entire rest of the party had not all decided to ally with him for their own ideological and policy ends , he would have been removed in bipartisan fashion long ago , reduced to a historical footnote .
They did n't , and now local law enforcement officials around the country are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ proudly designated his `` Army '' intent on disrupting Election Day , sabotaging ballot-counting measures , and committing acts of coordinated terrorism targeting his opponents .
It 's now expected .
Once again we 're in a position where the fate of democracy rests on not just beating anti-democratic forces , but doing so in such a convincing fashion that sabotage ca n't alter the outcome .
But now it comes with the near certainty of violence .
This is Mitch McConnell 's fault : Remember that .
This is Lindsey Graham 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , William Barr .
Trump 's suggestions to `` liberate '' parts of America from small-d democratic governance would be intolerable if they believed them to be intolerable .
Everything Trump does and will do has happened because they allowed it .

Rattled by poor polling numbers in his reelection bid, the alleged president of the United States is encouraging domestic terrorism. That's where we're at, and everyone from top national security experts to local emergency officials are all crystal clear on that. The New York Times reports from a bunch of 'em in a piece that can both contain remarkable factual phrases like "Mr. Trump has descended into rants about perceived enemies" and still somehow soft sell the underlying message:
The nation is preparing for violence on and after Election Day because Donald J. Trump, a fascist, is goading his supporters into that violence with rally claims that any loss on his part will be proof that his enemies cheated.
There is no possible chance that Trump doesn't know what he's doing. His tweeted calls to "LIBERATE" states from governors who imposed widespread pandemic measures resulted in a Michigan militia attempting to do exactly that. Trump is back at it even today, claiming their primary target, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, "wants to be a dictator." He is attaching the legitimacy of the state to calls for mob action—only to repeat those calls when it looks like the first versions are beginning to bear fruit.
The only reason he is not being treated as a radical, dangerous figure who has irreparably violated his own oath of office, necessitating removal, is because Republican Party leadership and lawmakers have themselves embraced and defended those violations. It is self-radicalizing; the farther Trump goes into overtly authoritarian behavior, the more pressure the party feels to defend and normalize their own support for him. The more Trump's circle has succeeded in isolating and excising state and local functionaries who express alarm at his grotesqueries, the more the party has become a homogenized group of anti-democracy, authoritarian-molded radicals themselves.
Trump has clearly been unfit for office in every respect; the impeachment investigation identified his corruption, the pandemic proved his apathetic incompetence, and his continued calls for mob justice against targeted enemies have proven (as have similar quotes repeated through the last five years) that he is not just indifferent to extralegal punishments of his enemies, but publicly fantasizes about them. If Vice President Mike Pence, Sen. Mitch McConnell, Attorney General William Barr, Treasury Sec. Steve Mnuchin, Sec. of State Mike Pompeo, Rep. Mark Meadows, Sen. Lindsey Graham, Sen. Ted Cruz, and the entire rest of the party had not all decided to ally with him for their own ideological and policy ends, he would have been removed in bipartisan fashion long ago, reduced to a historical footnote.
They didn't, and now local law enforcement officials around the country are preparing for radicals among what Trump has proudly designated his "Army" intent on disrupting Election Day, sabotaging ballot-counting measures, and committing acts of coordinated terrorism targeting his opponents. It's now expected.
Once again we're in a position where the fate of democracy rests on not just beating anti-democratic forces, but doing so in such a convincing fashion that sabotage can't alter the outcome. But now it comes with the near certainty of violence. This is Mitch McConnell's fault: Remember that. This is Lindsey Graham's fault. Mike Pence, Kellyanne Conway, William Barr. Trump's suggestions to "liberate" parts of America from small-d democratic governance would be intolerable if they believed them to be intolerable. Everything Trump does and will do has happened because they allowed it.


alternet--2020-10-17--Damage control? Trump hints at leaving the country if he loses the election

President Donald Trump is already hinting at how he would react to being defeated by Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden .
On Friday , Trump traveled to Macon , Ga. , where he held a crowded campaign rally filled with maskless supporters and no social distancing .
At one point during the rally , Trump mulled over the possibility of losing the election and how he might handle an upsetting defeat .
`` Could you imagine if I lose ? ''
Trump said during the rally .
`` My whole life , what am I going to do ?
I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lost to the worst candidate in the history of politics . '
I 'm not going to feel so good .
Maybe I 'll have to leave the country .
I do n't know . ''
It is no secret that Trump could be faced with a trove of legal repercussions if he loses the presidential privilege against prosecution .
So , his remarks also raise speculation about his reason for wanting to leave the country if he loses the election .
As Election Day approaches , Trump is deploying more tactics in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the national polls .
Bryan Lanza , a lobbyist who served on Trump 's presidential campaign and transition team in 2016 , and still maintains communication with the 2020 campaign , weighed in on Trump 's campaigning tactics .
`` He campaigns best when he is counterpunching , '' Lanza said .
`` He 's the running back who runs toward the tackles as opposed to the running back who runs away .
We used to say he 's like Rocky Balboa — he waits for his opponent to punch and then @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blow . ''
One Republican pollster Frank Luntz has also expressed concern about Trump 's latest tactic seemingly begging for voters .
Although the president has done so in a joking tone , Luntz believes the approach is not beneficial .
`` He 's taking the wrong approach , '' `` He should be talking about earning their support rather than asking them to give him their support .
He should be turning that electoral weakness into a strength . ''
With just 17 days until the 2020 election , more than 22 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by voting early .

President Donald Trump is already hinting at how he would react to being defeated by Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
On Friday, Trump traveled to Macon, Ga., where he held a crowded campaign rally filled with maskless supporters and no social distancing. At one point during the rally, Trump mulled over the possibility of losing the election and how he might handle an upsetting defeat.
"Could you imagine if I lose?" Trump said during the rally. "My whole life, what am I going to do? I'm going to say, 'I lost to the worst candidate in the history of politics.' I'm not going to feel so good. Maybe I'll have to leave the country. I don't know."
"Maybe I'll have to leave the country. I don't know." -- Trump on what could happen if he loses to Biden pic.twitter.com/NGrXDwjaSd
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 17, 2020
It is no secret that Trump could be faced with a trove of legal repercussions if he loses the presidential privilege against prosecution. So, his remarks also raise speculation about his reason for wanting to leave the country if he loses the election. As Election Day approaches, Trump is deploying more tactics in hopes of changing the trajectory being depicted in the national polls.
Bryan Lanza, a lobbyist who served on Trump's presidential campaign and transition team in 2016, and still maintains communication with the 2020 campaign, weighed in on Trump's campaigning tactics.
"He campaigns best when he is counterpunching," Lanza said. "He's the running back who runs toward the tackles as opposed to the running back who runs away. We used to say he's like Rocky Balboa — he waits for his opponent to punch and then he comes back to deliver the knockout blow."
One Republican pollster Frank Luntz has also expressed concern about Trump's latest tactic seemingly begging for voters. Although the president has done so in a joking tone, Luntz believes the approach is not beneficial.
"He's taking the wrong approach," "He should be talking about earning their support rather than asking them to give him their support. He should be turning that electoral weakness into a strength."
With just 17 days until the 2020 election, more than 22 million Americans have already cast their ballot by voting early.