alternet--2020-10-29--Here's what the Supreme Court's threat to mail-in ballots really means

Two Supreme Court decisions issued Wednesday took no action to change 2020 's election rules in Pennsylvania and North Carolina , but statements from conservative justices warned that the high court would likely disqualify any absentee ballot received by election officials after Election Day—because those states ' legislatures had not extended the ballot return deadline .
`` The important constitutional issue raised by this matter… could lead to serious post-election problems , '' began the statement by Justice Samuel Alito concerning Pennsylvania , where the state supreme court extended the ballot deadline by three days to Friday , November 6 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Constitution conferring on state legislatures , not state courts , the authority to make rules governing federal elections would be meaningless if a state court could override the rules adopted by the legislature simply by claiming that a state constitutional provision gave the courts the authority to make whatever rules it thought appropriate for the conduct of a fair election , '' Alito said , in a statement agreed to by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch .
`` In some respects , this case may be even more egregious , '' wrote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Carolina ruling , `` given that a state court and the [ statewide election ] Board worked together to override a carefully tailored legislative response to COVID .
Indeed , the president pro tempore of the North Carolina Senate and the speaker of its House of Representatives have intervened on behalf of the General Assembly to oppose revisions to its work . ''
At first glance , the contention that state constitutions , state supreme courts and state boards of elections have no power to regulate elections without explicit authorization from federal authorities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ implications .
It would suggest states could not adopt policies that go beyond the federal standard .
But , for now , the issue in play concerns the counting or the disqualifying of absentee ballots that will be received by officials after Election Day in two 2020 battleground states .
In recent days , the U.S. Supreme Court has issued rulings that rolled back accommodations made by lower federal courts after Republican-majority legislatures did not extend absentee ballot deadlines and loosen other voting rules in response to the pandemic .
The newest Justice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ participate in either decision issued Wednesday .
The court 's conservatives said that they would have gone further in the North Carolina and Pennsylvania rulings but for the proximity to Election Day .
Any last-minute changes in voting rules are confusing for voters , officials and tend to create problems undermining public confidence in the process , they noted .
Gorsuch recounted this chronology and said that he and fellow conservatives were inclined to draw a line on counting absentee ballots that were received by officials after Election Day , even though that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ November 3 .
`` Despite the [ North Carolina ] General Assembly 's considered judgment about the appropriate response to COVID , other state actors—including the State Board of Elections—recently chose to issue their own additional and supplemental set of amendments to state election laws , '' he wrote .
`` Relevant here , they purported to extend the absentee ballot receipt deadline by six days , up to November 12 .
That last part should sound familiar .
Just days ago , this Court rejected a similar effort [ in Wisconsin ] @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deadlines .
Wisconsin ( like North Carolina ) has a ballot receipt deadline enshrined in statute .
All the same , a federal district court decided to order Wisconsin to extend its deadline by six days .
The Seventh Circuit stayed that ruling , and we agreed with its disposition .
For many of the same reasons I believe that decision was correct , I believe we should stay the Board 's action here . ''
The justices ' statements , which told Republicans that they have a post-Election Day basis to challenge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ballots in the two swing states , reshuffles some Election Day scenarios .
Kathy Boockvar , Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth , told the Supreme Court on Wednesday that she has directed county election offices , which run her state 's elections , to `` securely segregate all mail-in and civilian absentee ballots received between 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday , November 3 , 2020 , and 5:00 p.m. on Friday , November 6 , 2020 , from all other voted ballots . ''
On his ElectionLawBlog , scholar-pundit Rick Hasen asked , `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ? ''
He opined that they did not want Republicans to try to disqualify all of the absentee ballots cast—because once the ballots are taken from their return envelopes and counted , it would be impossible to retrieve them should the high court void them .
North Carolina 's State Board of Elections had no statement about the Supreme Court ruling on its website on Wednesday , but instead emphasized how statewide voter turnout was poised to cross the `` 50 percent '' threshold with one week to go before Election Day .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ million voters had cast ballots in person this year , nearing the 2,955,600 votes during the entire 2016 early voting period , '' it said .
`` Combined with more than 819,000 by-mail ballots , more than 3.6 million North Carolinians have already voted , about 49.6 percent of all registered voters . ''
North Carolina-based voting rights attorneys contacted on Wednesday night did not know if the state board would follow Pennsylvania and segregate absentee ballots that were received after Election Day .
The board had said that ballots received through November @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Senate president , Phil Berger , issued a statement saying late-arriving ballots should not counted .
`` If public confidence in elections is important to our system of government , then hopefully the answer to that question is 'no . '
'' The conservative justices ' statements open up a potential post-Election Day avenue for Republicans to disqualify some volume of absentee ballots .
This scenario raises big immediate questions , such as how many votes might be imperiled , and could that volume alter election outcomes ?
Phil Keisling , a Democrat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ oversaw its introduction of all-mail voting and who is now the board chair of the National Vote at Home Institute , said that the impacts might be less than many Democrats may fear .
To start , state legislatures in every other battleground state have passed laws that set post-Election Day `` received by '' deadlines for absentee ballots returned via the mail , he said , which was what the high court 's conservatives wanted to see .
In Iowa , that cutoff is November 9 .
In Nevada , it 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's November 13 .
When it comes to future Supreme Court litigation and rulings shaving off possibly thousands of votes after Election Day , Keisling thought that fear might be overstated because so many voters have already cast ballots or were likely to vote by Election Day .
Just as the North Carolina State Board of Elections said that half of the state 's registered voters had voted by Wednesday , in Pennsylvania record-breaking percentages of voters have requested and already returned absentee ballots .
The U.S .
Elections Project , whose early @ @ @ @ @ @ @ data is the basis for many national news reports , said that nearly 2 million absentee ballots had been returned across Pennsylvania as of October 28 , out of 3.1 million requested ballots .
Kiesling said that having an Election Day return deadline could undermine the false Republican narrative that late-arriving absentee ballots would be fabricated by Democrats to elect Joe Biden .
Historically , Republicans have voted in higher numbers by absentee ballots , he said .
But that precedent has been turned upside down in 2020 , as Democrats and independents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ triple the rate of Republicans .
Keisling was hopeful the volume of absentee ballots arriving after Election Day in Pennsylvania and North Carolina would not be very large , especially if voters were urged to return their ballots in person .
( He noted that Pennsylvania was widely deploying drop boxes .
In North Carolina , absentee ballots could be dropped off at any early voting location—ending Saturday—but not at Election Day polls . )
While Keisling may prove correct that the latest rulings might not implicate enough votes to determine the outcomes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the conservative justices ' comments left no doubt that the nation was on the verge of a new chapter in election law—one where only legislatures have the power to run elections , not state constitutions , governors via executive orders , secretaries of state issuing directives , state election boards settling lawsuits or state supreme courts upholding their state constitutions .
`` As they [ the federal appeals court ] observed , efforts like these [ in North Carolina ] not only offend the [ U.S. Constitution 's ] Elections Clause 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to state and federal legislators , they do damage to faith in the written Constitution as law , to the power of the people to oversee their own government , and to the authority of legislatures , '' wrote Gorsuch in his dissent .
`` Such last-minute changes by largely unaccountable bodies , too , invite confusion , risk altering election outcomes , and in the process threaten voter confidence in the results . ''
If these issues return to the court after Election Day , Justice Barrett will likely participate in the @ @ @ @

Two Supreme Court decisions issued Wednesday took no action to change 2020's election rules in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, but statements from conservative justices warned that the high court would likely disqualify any absentee ballot received by election officials after Election Day—because those states' legislatures had not extended the ballot return deadline.
"The important constitutional issue raised by this matter… could lead to serious post-election problems," began the statement by Justice Samuel Alito concerning Pennsylvania, where the state supreme court extended the ballot deadline by three days to Friday, November 6.
"The provisions of the Federal Constitution conferring on state legislatures, not state courts, the authority to make rules governing federal elections would be meaningless if a state court could override the rules adopted by the legislature simply by claiming that a state constitutional provision gave the courts the authority to make whatever rules it thought appropriate for the conduct of a fair election," Alito said, in a statement agreed to by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch.
"In some respects, this case may be even more egregious," wrote Gorsuch in his dissent in the North Carolina ruling, "given that a state court and the [statewide election] Board worked together to override a carefully tailored legislative response to COVID. Indeed, the president pro tempore of the North Carolina Senate and the speaker of its House of Representatives have intervened on behalf of the General Assembly to oppose revisions to its work."
At first glance, the contention that state constitutions, state supreme courts and state boards of elections have no power to regulate elections without explicit authorization from federal authorities or state legislatures, could have radical implications. It would suggest states could not adopt policies that go beyond the federal standard. But, for now, the issue in play concerns the counting or the disqualifying of absentee ballots that will be received by officials after Election Day in two 2020 battleground states.
In recent days, the U.S. Supreme Court has issued rulings that rolled back accommodations made by lower federal courts after Republican-majority legislatures did not extend absentee ballot deadlines and loosen other voting rules in response to the pandemic. The newest Justice, Amy Coney Barrett, did not participate in either decision issued Wednesday.
The court's conservatives said that they would have gone further in the North Carolina and Pennsylvania rulings but for the proximity to Election Day. Any last-minute changes in voting rules are confusing for voters, officials and tend to create problems undermining public confidence in the process, they noted.
Gorsuch recounted this chronology and said that he and fellow conservatives were inclined to draw a line on counting absentee ballots that were received by officials after Election Day, even though that issue could not be litigated until after November 3.
"Despite the [North Carolina] General Assembly's considered judgment about the appropriate response to COVID, other state actors—including the State Board of Elections—recently chose to issue their own additional and supplemental set of amendments to state election laws," he wrote. "Relevant here, they purported to extend the absentee ballot receipt deadline by six days, up to November 12. That last part should sound familiar. Just days ago, this Court rejected a similar effort [in Wisconsin] to rewrite a state legislature's election deadlines. Wisconsin (like North Carolina) has a ballot receipt deadline enshrined in statute. All the same, a federal district court decided to order Wisconsin to extend its deadline by six days. The Seventh Circuit stayed that ruling, and we agreed with its disposition. For many of the same reasons I believe that decision was correct, I believe we should stay the Board's action here."
The justices' statements, which told Republicans that they have a post-Election Day basis to challenge and disqualify potentially thousands of late-arriving absentee ballots in the two swing states, reshuffles some Election Day scenarios.
Kathy Boockvar, Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth, told the Supreme Court on Wednesday that she has directed county election offices, which run her state's elections, to "securely segregate all mail-in and civilian absentee ballots received between 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 3, 2020,and 5:00 p.m. on Friday, November 6, 2020, from all other voted ballots."
On his ElectionLawBlog, scholar-pundit Rick Hasen asked, "Why would Democratic state officials do this?" He opined that they did not want Republicans to try to disqualify all of the absentee ballots cast—because once the ballots are taken from their return envelopes and counted, it would be impossible to retrieve them should the high court void them.
North Carolina's State Board of Elections had no statement about the Supreme Court ruling on its website on Wednesday, but instead emphasized how statewide voter turnout was poised to cross the "50 percent" threshold with one week to go before Election Day.
"Through Tuesday, more than 2.8 million voters had cast ballots in person this year, nearing the 2,955,600 votes during the entire 2016 early voting period," it said. "Combined with more than 819,000 by-mail ballots, more than 3.6 million North Carolinians have already voted, about 49.6 percent of all registered voters."
North Carolina-based voting rights attorneys contacted on Wednesday night did not know if the state board would follow Pennsylvania and segregate absentee ballots that were received after Election Day. The board had said that ballots received through November 12 could be counted. The state Senate president, Phil Berger, issued a statement saying late-arriving ballots should not counted. "If public confidence in elections is important to our system of government, then hopefully the answer to that question is 'no.'"
A 2020 Game Changer or Not?
The conservative justices' statements open up a potential post-Election Day avenue for Republicans to disqualify some volume of absentee ballots. This scenario raises big immediate questions, such as how many votes might be imperiled, and could that volume alter election outcomes?
Phil Keisling, a Democrat, former Oregon secretary of state who oversaw its introduction of all-mail voting and who is now the board chair of the National Vote at Home Institute, said that the impacts might be less than many Democrats may fear.
To start, state legislatures in every other battleground state have passed laws that set post-Election Day "received by" deadlines for absentee ballots returned via the mail, he said, which was what the high court's conservatives wanted to see. In Iowa, that cutoff is November 9. In Nevada, it's November 10. In Ohio, it's November 13.
When it comes to future Supreme Court litigation and rulings shaving off possibly thousands of votes after Election Day, Keisling thought that fear might be overstated because so many voters have already cast ballots or were likely to vote by Election Day. Just as the North Carolina State Board of Elections said that half of the state's registered voters had voted by Wednesday, in Pennsylvania record-breaking percentages of voters have requested and already returned absentee ballots.
The U.S. Elections Project, whose early voting, ballot request and ballot return data is the basis for many national news reports, said that nearly 2 million absentee ballots had been returned across Pennsylvania as of October 28, out of 3.1 million requested ballots. Kiesling said that having an Election Day return deadline could undermine the false Republican narrative that late-arriving absentee ballots would be fabricated by Democrats to elect Joe Biden.
Historically, Republicans have voted in higher numbers by absentee ballots, he said. But that precedent has been turned upside down in 2020, as Democrats and independents have been voting absentee at more than triple the rate of Republicans. Keisling was hopeful the volume of absentee ballots arriving after Election Day in Pennsylvania and North Carolina would not be very large, especially if voters were urged to return their ballots in person. (He noted that Pennsylvania was widely deploying drop boxes. In North Carolina, absentee ballots could be dropped off at any early voting location—ending Saturday—but not at Election Day polls.)
While Keisling may prove correct that the latest rulings might not implicate enough votes to determine the outcomes of the highest-profile races in these states, the conservative justices' comments left no doubt that the nation was on the verge of a new chapter in election law—one where only legislatures have the power to run elections, not state constitutions, governors via executive orders, secretaries of state issuing directives, state election boards settling lawsuits or state supreme courts upholding their state constitutions.
"As they [the federal appeals court] observed, efforts like these [in North Carolina] not only offend the [U.S. Constitution's] Elections Clause's textual commitment of responsibility for election lawmaking to state and federal legislators, they do damage to faith in the written Constitution as law, to the power of the people to oversee their own government, and to the authority of legislatures," wrote Gorsuch in his dissent. "Such last-minute changes by largely unaccountable bodies, too, invite confusion, risk altering election outcomes, and in the process threaten voter confidence in the results."
If these issues return to the court after Election Day, Justice Barrett will likely participate in the deliberations and rulings.


alternet--2020-10-29--How artists have been on the front lines of political resistance for the past 50 years

`` There 's no us versus them—there 's just us .
Everybody in the world is us . ''
Shepard Fairey 's voice rings out over a haunting Damned Anthem cover of the Muse song `` Uprising , '' as images of recent protests in the U.S. flash across the screen at the beginning of the trailer for a new feature-length documentary , `` The Art of Protest . ''
It is a montage of the scenes that have come to define American protests : police lined up in riot gear , a car that was dented after it sped @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a bloodied face , men shouting and carrying Confederate flags , people cheering as a statue is torn down , climate activists carrying a large model of the Earth , a structure on fire and law enforcement aiming pepper spray and water cannons at people from behind shields and tanks .
The film , released for free to the public online in October via the Rolling Stone website , is executive produced and distributed by Zero Cool films .
The project was created by the anarchist artist collective Indecline and `` Saving Banksy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ responsible for many notorious art pieces , including the famed statues of a naked Donald Trump that popped up in cities across the country overnight prior to the 2016 election .
The film moves through a series of interviews with resistance artists from around the world , coupled with B-roll images of protests and art projects in the making .
Its interview subjects range from Pussy Riot 's Nadya Tolokonnikova ; to Jello Biafra , former Dead Kennedys frontman ( and so many other punk rock artists that the filmmakers plan to convert @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to punk ) ; to Black Panther Party 's artist Emory Douglas ; to gonzo illustrator Ralph Steadman ; to transgender porn star Buck Angel , and many more .
Colin Day estimates the film team has interviewed at least 40 people .
A filmmaker and founding member of Indecline who spoke with the Independent Media Institute anonymously says it was important to the film 's creators to include a range of artists—not just the big names .
`` We 've got people you would n't expect to hear from , from different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he says .
`` [ There are ] some people who you 've maybe never heard of , like Jodie Herrera , an incredible artist out of [ northern ] New Mexico .
I think she 's just as good if not better than a lot of the artists that we have in the documentary who are household names . ''
He said the film offers a `` timestamp of this moment , '' in the lead-up to the critical upcoming election on November 3 , and he also hopes it will remain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , it can serve a double purpose and 15 years from now , you can still put this thing on and listen to Tom Morello [ of Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave ] or Noodles [ of The Offspring ] or someone from Indecline talk about why it 's important to use your privileges to go creatively fight for people who do n't have those privileges or do n't have a voice or a platform or the means to do these things . ''
Day , the film 's director , says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the film he and his co-creators at Indecline wanted to watch : a film that could offer insights from artist-activists around the world , across decades , and provide inspiration—even some `` how-to guidance '' —to the next generation of resistance artists .
`` It started with us wishing that [ a ] movie [ like this ] existed , so we decided to make it , '' he says .
The film , he continued , is `` really about freedom .
We feel like that 's what 's at stake : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ law enforcement with no repercussions .
Because it 's looking more and more like that 's just a normal thing that can happen to anybody , a 70-year-old man , women , kids , it 's a whole spectrum now .
We do n't want to see that become normalized . ''
Day says while the team had been working on the film for over a year , interest from artists became `` electric '' following the police killing of George Floyd on May 25 .
`` It was almost like a lightning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' he says .
`` In the movie , you 'll hear a bunch of people talk about using their art to activate people .
And that 's [ one of our goals for the film ] … to touch people on a sort of firmware level where they 're not even thinking about it , but when they see something like an anti-masker doing something racist in a 7-Eleven , they wo n't just ignore it .
They wo n't just walk away .
They 'll have the courage to stand up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ says that while he was making the film , hearing from Oakland-based Emory Douglas who created well-known artwork for the Black Panther movement throughout the '60s and '70s was particularly poignant for him .
`` The Black Panthers ' reputation was run through the mud by the press at the time , and the FBI [ targeting the group ] , and the disinformation that was occurring , but they did a lot of good , a lot of social programs and good work for their communities—which were just being left to fend @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` I feel [ Emory Douglas ] should be a household name . ''
Day adds that he finds Douglas ' work inspirational and resonant today , as the current movement toward racial reckoning parallels with protests during the civil rights era .
He points to the moment in the 1968 Olympics when Black athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their fists upon accepting their medals during the national anthem to `` protest the treatment of Black Americans , '' as a parallel with former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick taking a knee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his team 's preseason games , to `` protest racial and social injustice . ''
The filmmaker from Indecline says it was key for the film team to release the project prior to the 2020 election .
`` The term 'resistance art ' has become a household term , and in the last four years , it 's been in your face more than it has in any other time I 've been around—definitely since the '70s , '' he says .
`` The idea is to put this thing out and have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
Indecline began in the Bush administration years as a group of disenchanted `` punk skater kids '' in Los Angeles for whom street art and punk rock were outlets to protest the general direction the country seemed to be going .
It has since grown into a collective that includes artists from a range of mediums and backgrounds across the country .
While not solely focused on Indecline , `` The Art of Protest '' does include many projects of the collective in its decades of bringing resistance art to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ explain to somebody who does n't know who we are , what it is we do , because one week we might write a play and the other week we might be scaling down the side of a building , painting it , '' says the Indecline member .
`` We [ work with ] performance artists , poets , teachers and all kinds of people . ''
Day says he hopes the film will inspire young and upcoming artist-activists and adds that for him , art provides a way to address the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ losing himself in the trauma .
In the same way , he says while the film gets into the difficult territories of protest artists , addressing things like oppression , racism , misogyny and fascism , it also shows the joy and the light that are inherent to art and activism .
`` We want it to be positive .
There are some intense parts , but we wanted to also show resistance art as fun and welcoming , and something people would want to do .
We have artists talking about how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , self-help even , and why it 's good to be having fun and enjoying yourself when you 're fighting against the powers that be , '' he says .
`` If we could get an army of people out there creating art , mission accomplished . ''
In addition to the new film , Indecline recently announced an upcoming exhibit in Las Vegas focused on drawing attention to mass shootings in America , which repurposes 600 decommissioned guns into a sculpture titled `` On Second Thought . ''
The piece is a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` The Thinker , '' and went on display on October 1 , which is the anniversary of the Route 91 Harvest festival mass shooting in Las Vegas .
Day notes that the film licenses two songs from the English band Idles , which has an album called `` Joy as an Act of Resistance . ''
`` For me , that became a mantra this whole last year [ 2020 ] , because every day it 's like a damage report , you feel like you 're taking blows , '' he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that album [ by Idles ] and I hear those words… it is kind of true that just having fun , that in itself is a form of resistance nowadays .
Not letting them destroy you emotionally or psychologically , that 's a win . ''
April M. Short is an editor , journalist and documentary editor and producer .
She is a writing fellow at Local Peace Economy , a project of the Independent Media Institute .
Previously , she served as a managing editor at AlterNet as well as an award-winning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ California 's weekly newspaper .
Her work has been published with the San Francisco Chronicle , In These Times , Salon and many others .
This article was produced by Local Peace Economy

"There's no us versus them—there's just us. Everybody in the world is us."
Shepard Fairey's voice rings out over a haunting Damned Anthem cover of the Muse song "Uprising," as images of recent protests in the U.S. flash across the screen at the beginning of the trailer for a new feature-length documentary, "The Art of Protest." It is a montage of the scenes that have come to define American protests: police lined up in riot gear, a car that was dented after it sped toward a crowd, a woman with a bloodied face, men shouting and carrying Confederate flags, people cheering as a statue is torn down, climate activists carrying a large model of the Earth, a structure on fire and law enforcement aiming pepper spray and water cannons at people from behind shields and tanks.
The film, released for free to the public online in October via the Rolling Stone website, is executive produced and distributed by Zero Cool films. The project was created by the anarchist artist collective Indecline and "Saving Banksy" director Colin Day. Indecline is responsible for many notorious art pieces, including the famed statues of a naked Donald Trump that popped up in cities across the country overnight prior to the 2016 election.
The film moves through a series of interviews with resistance artists from around the world, coupled with B-roll images of protests and art projects in the making. Its interview subjects range from Pussy Riot's Nadya Tolokonnikova; to Jello Biafra, former Dead Kennedys frontman (and so many other punk rock artists that the filmmakers plan to convert unused footage into a short documentary dedicated to punk); to Black Panther Party's artist Emory Douglas; to gonzo illustrator Ralph Steadman; to transgender porn star Buck Angel, and many more. Colin Day estimates the film team has interviewed at least 40 people.
A filmmaker and founding member of Indecline who spoke with the Independent Media Institute anonymously says it was important to the film's creators to include a range of artists—not just the big names.
"We've got people you wouldn't expect to hear from, from different corners of the art world," he says. "[There are] some people who you've maybe never heard of, like Jodie Herrera, an incredible artist out of [northern] New Mexico. I think she's just as good if not better than a lot of the artists that we have in the documentary who are household names."
He said the film offers a "timestamp of this moment," in the lead-up to the critical upcoming election on November 3, and he also hopes it will remain relevant into the future.
"Hopefully, it can serve a double purpose and 15 years from now, you can still put this thing on and listen to Tom Morello [of Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave] or Noodles [of The Offspring] or someone from Indecline talk about why it's important to use your privileges to go creatively fight for people who don't have those privileges or don't have a voice or a platform or the means to do these things."
Day, the film's director, says "The Art of Protest" is the film he and his co-creators at Indecline wanted to watch: a film that could offer insights from artist-activists around the world, across decades, and provide inspiration—even some "how-to guidance"—to the next generation of resistance artists.
"It started with us wishing that [a] movie [like this] existed, so we decided to make it," he says. The film, he continued, is "really about freedom. We feel like that's what's at stake: the freedom not to be brutalized by law enforcement with no repercussions. Because it's looking more and more like that's just a normal thing that can happen to anybody, a 70-year-old man, women, kids, it's a whole spectrum now. We don't want to see that become normalized."
Day says while the team had been working on the film for over a year, interest from artists became "electric" following the police killing of George Floyd on May 25.
"It was almost like a lightning bolt… people wanted to do something," he says. "In the movie, you'll hear a bunch of people talk about using their art to activate people. And that's [one of our goals for the film]… to touch people on a sort of firmware level where they're not even thinking about it, but when they see something like an anti-masker doing something racist in a 7-Eleven, they won't just ignore it. They won't just walk away. They'll have the courage to stand up for what's right."
He says that while he was making the film, hearing from Oakland-based Emory Douglas who created well-known artwork for the Black Panther movement throughout the '60s and '70s was particularly poignant for him.
"The Black Panthers' reputation was run through the mud by the press at the time, and the FBI [targeting the group], and the disinformation that was occurring, but they did a lot of good, a lot of social programs and good work for their communities—which were just being left to fend for themselves," Day says. "I feel [Emory Douglas] should be a household name."
Day adds that he finds Douglas' work inspirational and resonant today, as the current movement toward racial reckoning parallels with protests during the civil rights era. He points to the moment in the 1968 Olympics when Black athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their fists upon accepting their medals during the national anthem to "protest the treatment of Black Americans," as a parallel with former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick taking a knee during the anthem in 2016, before his team's preseason games, to "protest racial and social injustice."
The filmmaker from Indecline says it was key for the film team to release the project prior to the 2020 election.
"The term 'resistance art' has become a household term, and in the last four years, it's been in your face more than it has in any other time I've been around—definitely since the '70s," he says. "The idea is to put this thing out and have it serve as a call to action."
Indecline began in the Bush administration years as a group of disenchanted "punk skater kids" in Los Angeles for whom street art and punk rock were outlets to protest the general direction the country seemed to be going. It has since grown into a collective that includes artists from a range of mediums and backgrounds across the country. While not solely focused on Indecline, "The Art of Protest" does include many projects of the collective in its decades of bringing resistance art to the public.
"It's hard to explain to somebody who doesn't know who we are, what it is we do, because one week we might write a play and the other week we might be scaling down the side of a building, painting it," says the Indecline member. "We [work with] performance artists, poets, teachers and all kinds of people."
Day says he hopes the film will inspire young and upcoming artist-activists and adds that for him, art provides a way to address the many traumatic realities of the world without losing himself in the trauma. In the same way, he says while the film gets into the difficult territories of protest artists, addressing things like oppression, racism, misogyny and fascism, it also shows the joy and the light that are inherent to art and activism.
"We want it to be positive. There are some intense parts, but we wanted to also show resistance art as fun and welcoming, and something people would want to do. We have artists talking about how art has been good therapy for them, self-help even, and why it's good to be having fun and enjoying yourself when you're fighting against the powers that be," he says. "If we could get an army of people out there creating art, mission accomplished."
In addition to the new film, Indecline recently announced an upcoming exhibit in Las Vegas focused on drawing attention to mass shootings in America, which repurposes 600 decommissioned guns into a sculpture titled " On Second Thought." The piece is a takeoff on the iconic Auguste Rodin sculpture "The Thinker," and went on display on October 1, which is the anniversary of the Route 91 Harvest festival mass shooting in Las Vegas.
Day notes that the film licenses two songs from the English band Idles, which has an album called "Joy as an Act of Resistance."
"For me, that became a mantra this whole last year [2020], because every day it's like a damage report, you feel like you're taking blows," he says. "But when I see that album [by Idles] and I hear those words… it is kind of true that just having fun, that in itself is a form of resistance nowadays. Not letting them destroy you emotionally or psychologically, that's a win."
April M. Short is an editor, journalist and documentary editor and producer. She is a writing fellow at Local Peace Economy, a project of the Independent Media Institute. Previously, she served as a managing editor at AlterNet as well as an award-winning senior staff writer for Santa Cruz, California's weekly newspaper. Her work has been published with the San Francisco Chronicle, In These Times, Salon and many others.


alternet--2020-10-29--Donald Trump and the American descent toward failed-state status

These past few months , it 's grown ever harder to recognize life in America .
Thanks to Covid-19 , basic day-to-day existence has changed in complicated , often confusing ways .
Just putting food on the table has become a challenge for many .
Getting doctors ' appointments and medical care can take months .
Many schools are offering on-line only instruction and good luck trying to get a driver 's license or a passport renewed in person or setting up an interview for Social Security benefits .
The backlog of appointments is daunting .
Meanwhile , where actual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ websites warn you of long lines and advise those with appointments to bring an umbrella , a chair , and something to eat and drink , as the Department of Motor Vehicles in Hudson , New York , instructed me to do over the summer .
According to a September 2020 Yelp report , approximately 164,000 businesses have closed nationwide due to the pandemic , an estimated 60 % of them for good .
CNBC reports that 7.5 million businesses may still be at risk of closing .
Meanwhile , more than 225,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , as a winter spike begins , it 's estimated that up to 410,000 could be dead by year 's end .
Then there are the signs of increasing poverty .
Food banks have seen vast rises in demand , according to Feeding America , a network of 200 food banks and 60,000 food pantries and meal programs .
According to a study done by Columbia University 's Center on Poverty and Social Policy , between February and September , the monthly poverty rate increased from 15 % to 16.7 % , despite @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
That report also concluded that the CARES program , while putting a lid on the rise in the monthly poverty rate for a time , `` was not successful at preventing a rise in deep poverty . ''
And now , of course , Congress seems likely to offer nothing else .
The rate of unemployment is down from a high of 14 % in April , but still twice what it was in January 2020 and seemingly stabilizing at a disturbing 8 % .
Meanwhile , schools and universities are struggling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ universities are now online and only 4 % are conducting fully in-person classes .
The policy of stores limiting purchases in the spring and summer is still a fresh memory .
And what about freedom of movement ?
Dozens of countries , including most of the European Union , Latin America , Japan , Australia , and New Zealand , have barred entry to American tourists and travelers , given this country 's devastatingly high rate of infection .
Canada and Mexico just re-upped their bans on U.S. travelers , too .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helped build a `` great , great wall '' around America , one that wo n't let any of us out .
In fact , Americans are not being welcomed , even by one another .
Inside our borders , states are requiring those arriving from other states with high percentages of Covid-19 cases to quarantine themselves for 14 days on arrival ( though enforcing such mandates is difficult indeed ) .
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo 's list of places subject to such a travel advisory now includes 43 of the 49 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reminded on a daily basis in the run-up to Election Day , early voters , especially in heavily minority districts , are being forced to wait long hours in endless lines in states where the pandemic is beginning to spike .
In some places , local officials clearly set up the conditions for this as a deterrent to those they would prefer not to see at the polls .
In Georgia , where a governor was intent on reducing the numbers of polling places to reduce turnout in African-American neighborhoods , the waiting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Early voting lines in New York City `` stretched for blocks '' in multiple venues .
To top it all off , political and racial violence in the country is climbing , often thanks to uniformed law enforcement officers .
From George Floyd 's death to federal officials in unmarked vehicles dragging protesters off the streets of Portland , Oregon , to federal law enforcement officers using rubber bullets and tear gas on a gathering crowd of protestors to clear a path to a local church for President Trump , such cases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials across the country are ominously preparing to counter violence on Election Day In the face of such challenges and deprivations , Americans , for the most part , are learning to adapt to the consequences of the pandemic , while just hoping that someday it will pass , that someday things will return to normal .
As early as March 2020 , a Pew poll had already detected a significant uptick in symptoms of anxiety nationwide .
The percentage of such individuals had doubled , with young people and those experiencing financial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Psychological Association ( APA ) considers the pandemic not just an epidemiological but a `` psychological crisis . ''
The website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a paper written by two APA authors suggesting that Covid-19 is already taking `` a tremendous psychological toll '' on the country .
All in all , we find ourselves in a daunting new world , but do n't just blame it on the pandemic .
This country was living in a state of denial before Covid-19 hit .
The truth is that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surprisingly long time .
The pandemic might have swept away that sense of denial and left us facing a new American reality , as that virus exposed previously ignored vulnerabilities for all to see .
So , expect one thing : that the indicators of America 's decline will far surpass the problems that can be solved by addressing the pandemic 's spread .
When Covid-19 is brought under some control , the larger social system may unfortunately remain in tatters , in need of life support , posing new challenges for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , witnessing such potentially long-lasting changes to the fabric of American life , have described the United States as resembling a failed state in its reaction to the pandemic .
They point not just to the effects of staggering levels of inequality ( on the rise for decades ) or to a long-term unwillingness to invest in the kind of infrastructure that could keep what 's still the wealthiest country on our planet strong , but to entrenched poverty and the fracturing of work life .
Long before the pandemic hit , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As George Packer recently wrote in the Atlantic , the reaction to the coronavirus crisis here has been more `` like Pakistan or Belarus -- like a country with shoddy infrastructure and a dysfunctional government whose leaders were too corrupt or stupid to head off mass suffering ... Every morning in the endless month of March , '' he added , `` Americans woke up to find themselves citizens of a failed state , '' unable to get the equipment , supplies , tests , or medical help they needed to fight the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump administration 's irresponsible handling of climate change and nuclear weapons , TomDispatch 's Tom Engelhardt has also labeled the country a `` failed state , '' one that now occupies a singular category ( which he called `` Fourth World '' ) among the planet 's countries .
There is no codified definition of a failed state , but there is general agreement that such a country has become unable or unwilling to care for its citizens .
Safety and sustenance are at risk and stability in multiple sectors of life has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.N .
Ambassador Susan Rice attempted to craft a workable definition of the term in a report for the Brookings Institution , calling on President George W. Bush to address the underlying causes of failed states .
`` Failed states , '' she wrote , `` are countries in which the central government does not exert effective control over , nor is it able to deliver vital services to significant parts of its own territory due to conflict , ineffective governance , or state collapse . ''
From the Proud Boys to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clear that , in this pandemic year , the U.S. is indeed becoming an increasingly riven , disturbed land and that nothing , including the election of Joe Biden , will simply make that reality disappear without immense effort .
In the twenty-first century , in fact , the United States has visibly been inching ever closer to failed-state status .
In 2006 , the Fund for Peace , an organization whose mission is global conflict reduction , human security , and economic development , launched a yearly Failed States Index ( FSI @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the Fragile State Index .
For the last decade , for instance , Yemen has been among the top 10 most fragile states and , for the last two years , number one .
Since 2013 , Finland has been at the other end of the scale , number 178 , the least failed state on the planet .
What 's interesting , however , is the path the United States has travelled over that same decade , dropping a noteworthy 10 places .
Until the Trump years , it consistently stood @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 178 nations on the chart .
In the 2018 report , however , it took a turn for the worse .
In the 2020 report ( based on pre-pandemic numbers ) , it had dropped to 149 , reflecting in particular losses in what FSI calls `` cohesion , '' based on rising nationalist rhetoric among increasingly riven elites and unequal access to resources in a country where economic inequality was already at staggering levels .
Just imagine , then , what the 2021 Index will likely report next April .
At present @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rankings , the United States is in the third of five groupings of countries , behind the Scandinavian countries , most of the other nations of Europe , and Singapore .
Given today 's realities , it is poised to fall even further .
Elections are a crucial factor in separating successful from failing states ; fair elections , that is , ones that people in a country trust .
As Pauline Baker , the director of the Fund for Peace , points out , `` Elections are an essential part of democratization @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if they are held too soon , are blatantly manipulated , lack transparency , or are marred by violence . ''
All you have to do is think about Donald Trump 's endless claims -- that this year 's election will be `` rigged , '' that mail-in ballots will be a fraud , that he wo n't necessarily leave office even if the tallies are against him , and so on -- to know that a particularly heavy burden has been placed on the results of November 3rd .
Add to that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ via disinformation from foreign agents and hackers , Republican Party attempts at voter suppression , and threats of violence by so-called poll watchers .
Meanwhile , an embattled Supreme Court has been issuing decisions on matters like `` faithless electors , '' extended voting , and absentee ballots .
The record so far has been mixed at best .
On the one hand , the justices have voted to keep intact the Electoral College rule that requires electors to honor their pledges to vote according to whatever the voters have decided .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ National Committee to enforce a Rhode Island rule that mail-in voters , under pandemic conditions , must have their ballots signed by either two witnesses or a notary public .
And most recently , the Court voted 4-4 to uphold Pennsylvania 's decision to extend the absentee ballot deadline .
For the most part , however , its decisions have gone the other way , upholding more restrictive voting policies in 8 out of 11 cases .
In July , for example , the court ruled against a decision in Alabama that had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That same week , it refused to reinstate an order in Texas allowing all voters to cast mail-in ballots due to the pandemic .
Meanwhile , it seems that Pennsylvania Republicans are again trying to narrow the time frame on absentee ballots , announcing that they have returned to the Court for a further decision on the matter in light of Justice Amy Barrett 's certain confirmation .
The point is , this election should matter , both the form it takes and its outcome .
If trust in the process of voting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ image of the United States as a failing , even a failed state will be hard to dispute .
And if there is violence at the polls , or after the vote takes place , then we 'll sense an even deeper failure .
While some may view the coming election as a precipitous cliff , with dangers lurking everywhere , I also see it as an opportunity , which is why the tsunami of early voting , often involving hours of waiting , is an encouraging sign .
Despite the abyss that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and cruelty , this country still has a chance to prove that we are not a failing state and to reclaim our trust in our government , our protections , and one another .
Only then will we be able to begin to repair the economic damage , the rank divisiveness , and the unequal allocation of resources that has fueled our disastrous pandemic response and , with it , a further erosion of trust in government .
Maybe we need to accept the challenge of proving in this election that one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the occasion and vote to uphold the foundation of its system , elections themselves .
Maybe , using this very election , we can harness the civic pride that could lead to a successful restoration of our basic beliefs in constitutional principles and the rule of law .
The chance to vote , no matter how long the lines and the wait , might be just the opportunity we need .
Karen J. Greenberg , a TomDispatch regular , is the director of the Center on National Security at Fordham Law , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the editor-in-chief of the CNS Soufan Group Morning Brief , and the author of Rogue Justice : The Making of the Security State and editor of Reimagining the National Security State : Liberalism on the Brink .
Julia Tedesco helped with research for this article .
Follow TomDispatch on Twitter and join us on Facebook .
Check out the newest Dispatch Books , John Feffer 's new dystopian novel ( the second in the Splinterlands series ) Frostlands , Beverly Gologorsky 's novel Every Body Has a Story , and Tom Engelhardt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as well as Alfred McCoy 's In the Shadows of the American Century : The Rise and Decline of U.S .
Global Power and John Dower 's The Violent American Century : War and Terror Since World War II .

These past few months, it's grown ever harder to recognize life in America. Thanks to Covid-19, basic day-to-day existence has changed in complicated, often confusing ways. Just putting food on the table has become a challenge for many. Getting doctors' appointments and medical care can take months. Many schools are offering on-line only instruction and good luck trying to get a driver's license or a passport renewed in person or setting up an interview for Social Security benefits. The backlog of appointments is daunting.
Meanwhile, where actual in-person government services are on tap, websites warn you of long lines and advise those with appointments to bring an umbrella, a chair, and something to eat and drink, as the Department of Motor Vehicles in Hudson, New York, instructed me to do over the summer. According to a September 2020 Yelp report, approximately 164,000 businesses have closed nationwide due to the pandemic, an estimated 60% of them for good. CNBC reports that 7.5 million businesses may still be at risk of closing. Meanwhile, more than 225,000 Americans have died of the coronavirus and, as a winter spike begins, it's estimated that up to 410,000 could be dead by year's end.
Then there are the signs of increasing poverty. Food banks have seen vast rises in demand, according to Feeding America, a network of 200 food banks and 60,000 food pantries and meal programs. According to a study done by Columbia University's Center on Poverty and Social Policy, between February and September, the monthly poverty rate increased from 15% to 16.7%, despite cash infusions from Congress's CARES Act. That report also concluded that the CARES program, while putting a lid on the rise in the monthly poverty rate for a time, "was not successful at preventing a rise in deep poverty." And now, of course, Congress seems likely to offer nothing else.
The rate of unemployment is down from a high of 14% in April, but still twice what it was in January 2020 and seemingly stabilizing at a disturbing 8%. Meanwhile, schools and universities are struggling to stay viable. Thirty-four percent of universities are now online and only 4% are conducting fully in-person classes. The policy of stores limiting purchases in the spring and summer is still a fresh memory.
And what about freedom of movement? Dozens of countries, including most of the European Union, Latin America, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, have barred entry to American tourists and travelers, given this country's devastatingly high rate of infection. Canada and Mexico just re-upped their bans on U.S. travelers, too. In a sense, the pandemic has indeed helped build a "great, great wall" around America, one that won't let any of us out.
In fact, Americans are not being welcomed, even by one another. Inside our borders, states are requiring those arriving from other states with high percentages of Covid-19 cases to quarantine themselves for 14 days on arrival (though enforcing such mandates is difficult indeed). New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's list of places subject to such a travel advisory now includes 43 of the 49 other states.
And as we are reminded on a daily basis in the run-up to Election Day, early voters, especially in heavily minority districts, are being forced to wait long hours in endless lines in states where the pandemic is beginning to spike. In some places, local officials clearly set up the conditions for this as a deterrent to those they would prefer not to see at the polls. In Georgia, where a governor was intent on reducing the numbers of polling places to reduce turnout in African-American neighborhoods, the waiting time recently was up to 11 hours. Early voting lines in New York City "stretched for blocks" in multiple venues.
To top it all off, political and racial violence in the country is climbing, often thanks to uniformed law enforcement officers. From George Floyd's death to federal officials in unmarked vehicles dragging protesters off the streets of Portland, Oregon, to federal law enforcement officers using rubber bullets and tear gas on a gathering crowd of protestors to clear a path to a local church for President Trump, such cases have made the headlines. Meanwhile, officials across the country are ominously preparing to counter violence on Election Day
In the face of such challenges and deprivations, Americans, for the most part, are learning to adapt to the consequences of the pandemic, while just hoping that someday it will pass, that someday things will return to normal. As early as March 2020, a Pew poll had already detected a significant uptick in symptoms of anxiety nationwide. The percentage of such individuals had doubled, with young people and those experiencing financial difficulties driving the rise.
The American Psychological Association (APA) considers the pandemic not just an epidemiological but a "psychological crisis." The website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a paper written by two APA authors suggesting that Covid-19 is already taking "a tremendous psychological toll" on the country.
Failing, American-Style
All in all, we find ourselves in a daunting new world, but don't just blame it on the pandemic. This country was living in a state of denial before Covid-19 hit. The truth is that Americans have been in trouble for a surprisingly long time. The pandemic might have swept away that sense of denial and left us facing a new American reality, as that virus exposed previously ignored vulnerabilities for all to see.
So, expect one thing: that the indicators of America's decline will far surpass the problems that can be solved by addressing the pandemic's spread. When Covid-19 is brought under some control, the larger social system may unfortunately remain in tatters, in need of life support, posing new challenges for the country as a whole.
Several observers, witnessing such potentially long-lasting changes to the fabric of American life, have described the United States as resembling a failed state in its reaction to the pandemic. They point not just to the effects of staggering levels of inequality (on the rise for decades) or to a long-term unwillingness to invest in the kind of infrastructure that could keep what's still the wealthiest country on our planet strong, but to entrenched poverty and the fracturing of work life. Long before the pandemic hit, the Trump administration reflected this downhill slope.
As George Packer recently wrote in the Atlantic, the reaction to the coronavirus crisis here has been more "like Pakistan or Belarus -- like a country with shoddy infrastructure and a dysfunctional government whose leaders were too corrupt or stupid to head off mass suffering... Every morning in the endless month of March," he added, "Americans woke up to find themselves citizens of a failed state," unable to get the equipment, supplies, tests, or medical help they needed to fight the pandemic.
Looking beyond Covid-19 to the Trump administration's irresponsible handling of climate change and nuclear weapons, TomDispatch's Tom Engelhardt has also labeled the country a "failed state," one that now occupies a singular category (which he called "Fourth World") among the planet's countries.
There is no codified definition of a failed state, but there is general agreement that such a country has become unable or unwilling to care for its citizens. Safety and sustenance are at risk and stability in multiple sectors of life has become unpredictable. In 2003, future U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice attempted to craft a workable definition of the term in a report for the Brookings Institution, calling on President George W. Bush to address the underlying causes of failed states. "Failed states," she wrote, "are countries in which the central government does not exert effective control over, nor is it able to deliver vital services to significant parts of its own territory due to conflict, ineffective governance, or state collapse."
From the Proud Boys to the Wolverine Watchmen, it has become strikingly clear that, in this pandemic year, the U.S. is indeed becoming an increasingly riven, disturbed land and that nothing, including the election of Joe Biden, will simply make that reality disappear without immense effort.
In the twenty-first century, in fact, the United States has visibly been inching ever closer to failed-state status. In 2006, the Fund for Peace, an organization whose mission is global conflict reduction, human security, and economic development, launched a yearly Failed States Index (FSI), changing its name in 2014 to the Fragile State Index. For the last decade, for instance, Yemen has been among the top 10 most fragile states and, for the last two years, number one. Since 2013, Finland has been at the other end of the scale, number 178, the least failed state on the planet.
What's interesting, however, is the path the United States has travelled over that same decade, dropping a noteworthy 10 places. Until the Trump years, it consistently stood at number 158 or 159 among the 178 nations on the chart. In the 2018 report, however, it took a turn for the worse. In the 2020 report (based on pre-pandemic numbers), it had dropped to 149, reflecting in particular losses in what FSI calls "cohesion," based on rising nationalist rhetoric among increasingly riven elites and unequal access to resources in a country where economic inequality was already at staggering levels.
Just imagine, then, what the 2021 Index will likely report next April. At present, when it comes to FSI's rankings, the United States is in the third of five groupings of countries, behind the Scandinavian countries, most of the other nations of Europe, and Singapore. Given today's realities, it is poised to fall even further.
The Election Moment
Elections are a crucial factor in separating successful from failing states; fair elections, that is, ones that people in a country trust. As Pauline Baker, the director of the Fund for Peace, points out, "Elections are an essential part of democratization, but they can also be conflict-inducing if they are held too soon, are blatantly manipulated, lack transparency, or are marred by violence."
All you have to do is think about Donald Trump's endless claims -- that this year's election will be "rigged," that mail-in ballots will be a fraud, that he won't necessarily leave office even if the tallies are against him, and so on -- to know that a particularly heavy burden has been placed on the results of November 3rd. Add to that burden threats to the election's viability via disinformation from foreign agents and hackers, Republican Party attempts at voter suppression, and threats of violence by so-called poll watchers.
Meanwhile, an embattled Supreme Court has been issuing decisions on matters like "faithless electors," extended voting, and absentee ballots. The record so far has been mixed at best. On the one hand, the justices have voted to keep intact the Electoral College rule that requires electors to honor their pledges to vote according to whatever the voters have decided. They also nixed an attempt by the Republican National Committee to enforce a Rhode Island rule that mail-in voters, under pandemic conditions, must have their ballots signed by either two witnesses or a notary public. And most recently, the Court voted 4-4 to uphold Pennsylvania's decision to extend the absentee ballot deadline.
For the most part, however, its decisions have gone the other way, upholding more restrictive voting policies in 8 out of 11 cases. In July, for example, the court ruled against a decision in Alabama that had eased restrictions on absentee ballot submissions. That same week, it refused to reinstate an order in Texas allowing all voters to cast mail-in ballots due to the pandemic. Meanwhile, it seems that Pennsylvania Republicans are again trying to narrow the time frame on absentee ballots, announcing that they have returned to the Court for a further decision on the matter in light of Justice Amy Barrett's certain confirmation.
The point is, this election should matter, both the form it takes and its outcome. If trust in the process of voting goes by the wayside, then the image of the United States as a failing, even a failed state will be hard to dispute. And if there is violence at the polls, or after the vote takes place, then we'll sense an even deeper failure.
While some may view the coming election as a precipitous cliff, with dangers lurking everywhere, I also see it as an opportunity, which is why the tsunami of early voting, often involving hours of waiting, is an encouraging sign. Despite the abyss that we face after four years of chaos and cruelty, this country still has a chance to prove that we are not a failing state and to reclaim our trust in our government, our protections, and one another. Only then will we be able to begin to repair the economic damage, the rank divisiveness, and the unequal allocation of resources that has fueled our disastrous pandemic response and, with it, a further erosion of trust in government.
Maybe we need to accept the challenge of proving in this election that one of the world's longest-standing democracies can rise to the occasion and vote to uphold the foundation of its system, elections themselves. Maybe, using this very election, we can harness the civic pride that could lead to a successful restoration of our basic beliefs in constitutional principles and the rule of law. The chance to vote, no matter how long the lines and the wait, might be just the opportunity we need.
Karen J. Greenberg, a TomDispatch regular, is the director of the Center on National Security at Fordham Law, the host of the Vital Interests Podcast, the editor-in-chief of the CNS Soufan Group Morning Brief, and the author of Rogue Justice: The Making of the Security Stateand editor of Reimagining the National Security State: Liberalism on the Brink. Julia Tedesco helped with research for this article.
Follow TomDispatch on Twitter and join us on Facebook. Check out the newest Dispatch Books, John Feffer's new dystopian novel (the second in the Splinterlands series) Frostlands, Beverly Gologorsky's novel Every Body Has a Story, and Tom Engelhardt's A Nation Unmade by War, as well as Alfred McCoy's In the Shadows of the American Century: The Rise and Decline of U.S. Global Power and John Dower's The Violent American Century: War and Terror Since World War II.
Copyright 2020 Karen J. Greenberg


alternet--2020-10-29--Inside the minds of the people who actually think Trump handled the pandemic well

Countless critics of President Donald Trump , from liberals and progressives to Never Trump conservatives , have been arguing that Trump deserves to be voted out of office on Tuesday , Nov. 3 , because of his wretched response to the coronavirus pandemic .
The crisis has killed more than 227,900 people in the United States and over 1.1 million people worldwide , according to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore .
But journalist Olga Khazan , this week in an article for The Atlantic , offers some reasons why many White males in Trump 's hardcore MAGA base actually admire @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as their reasoning is , Khazan 's piece is still an interesting read .
`` Some 82 % of Republicans approve of Trump 's coronavirus response — a higher percentage than before the president was diagnosed with the virus , '' Khazan explains .
`` This is despite the fact that more than 220,000 Americans have died and virtually every public health expert , including those who have worked for Republican administrations , says the president has performed abysmally . ''
One of the interviewees for Khazan 's article is a McKinney , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Many Trump critics , Khazan observes , believe that leaving coronavirus to states and municipalities to cope with has been a disaster .
But Kurtis told Khazan , `` He left it up to each state to make their own decision on how they wanted to proceed '' — and according to Kurtis , that was a victory for states ' rights .
Kurtis , discussing Trump 's recent hospitalization for coronavirus , told Khazan , `` Trump 's willing to accept that risk to win for the American people .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
Khazan notes that according to Katherine Cramer , a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin at Madison , Trump supporters believe that Trump is trusting Americans to make their own decisions during the pandemic .
And sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild told Khazan , in essence , that as Trump supporters see it , Trump 's coronavirus response underscores his belief in the rugged individualism of White males .
`` Many White men feel that their gender and race have been vilified , says the sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are bad , and American culture tells them that their gender is too .
So , they 've turned to Trump as a type of folk hero — one who can restore their sense of former glory .
Exposing themselves and others to the coronavirus is part of that heroism . ''
During his 2008 presidential campaign , Barack Obama argued that many conservative working class white men who were struggling financially sought validation in their `` guns '' and `` religion . ''
The right-wing media was furious , claiming that Obama @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the centrist Obama was n't trying to be insulting ; to non-wingnuts , he sounded empathetic .
And some of the interviewees for Khazan 's article — like Obama 12 years ago — argued that white males who are n't in great shape financially seek validation through Trump 's right-wing politics .
Hochschild told Khazan that in rural Kentucky , for example , financially disadvantaged White men `` are starved for a sense of heroism .
They do n't feel good about themselves .
They feel like they have n't done as well @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on a downward slop . ''
And Trump , according to Hochschild , plays to that .
Khazan explains , `` Men who attend Trump 's rallies sometimes tell journalists that they 're willing to risk their lives to show up for Trump .
'If I die , I die .
We got to get this country moving , ' these men tell reporters .
Or : 'If I catch COVID , that 's the consequences of my actions .
So , I 'm willing to take that risk and have a good @ @ @ @ @

Countless critics of President Donald Trump, from liberals and progressives to Never Trump conservatives, have been arguing that Trump deserves to be voted out of office on Tuesday, Nov. 3, because of his wretched response to the coronavirus pandemic. The crisis has killed more than 227,900 people in the United States and over 1.1 million people worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.
But journalist Olga Khazan, this week in an article for The Atlantic, offers some reasons why many White males in Trump's hardcore MAGA base actually admire his coronavirus response. And as absurd as their reasoning is, Khazan's piece is still an interesting read.
"Some 82% of Republicans approve of Trump's coronavirus response — a higher percentage than before the president was diagnosed with the virus," Khazan explains. "This is despite the fact that more than 220,000 Americans have died and virtually every public health expert, including those who have worked for Republican administrations, says the president has performed abysmally."
One of the interviewees for Khazan's article is a McKinney, Texas resident and Trump supporter named Kurtis. Many Trump critics, Khazan observes, believe that leaving coronavirus to states and municipalities to cope with has been a disaster. But Kurtis told Khazan, "He left it up to each state to make their own decision on how they wanted to proceed" — and according to Kurtis, that was a victory for states' rights.
Kurtis, discussing Trump's recent hospitalization for coronavirus, told Khazan, "Trump's willing to accept that risk to win for the American people. And Joe Biden is sitting in his basement."
Khazan notes that according to Katherine Cramer, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, Trump supporters believe that Trump is trusting Americans to make their own decisions during the pandemic. And sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild told Khazan, in essence, that as Trump supporters see it, Trump's coronavirus response underscores his belief in the rugged individualism of White males.
"Many White men feel that their gender and race have been vilified, says the sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild," Khazan writes. "Their economic prospects are bad, and American culture tells them that their gender is too. So, they've turned to Trump as a type of folk hero — one who can restore their sense of former glory. Exposing themselves and others to the coronavirus is part of that heroism."
During his 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama argued that many conservative working class white men who were struggling financially sought validation in their "guns" and "religion." The right-wing media was furious, claiming that Obama was insulting or mocking conservatives. But the centrist Obama wasn't trying to be insulting; to non-wingnuts, he sounded empathetic. And some of the interviewees for Khazan's article — like Obama 12 years ago — argued that white males who aren't in great shape financially seek validation through Trump's right-wing politics.
Hochschild told Khazan that in rural Kentucky, for example, financially disadvantaged White men "are starved for a sense of heroism. They don't feel good about themselves. They feel like they haven't done as well as their fathers, that they're on a downward slop." And Trump, according to Hochschild, plays to that.
Khazan explains, "Men who attend Trump's rallies sometimes tell journalists that they're willing to risk their lives to show up for Trump. 'If I die, I die. We got to get this country moving,' these men tell reporters. Or: 'If I catch COVID, that's the consequences of my actions. So, I'm willing to take that risk and have a good time today.'"


alternet--2020-10-29--'Signs of a coming conflict are everywhere': Why a 2nd Civil War would be quite different from the 1

'Signs of a coming conflict are everywhere': Why a 2nd Civil War would be quite different from the 1st

In 2020 , the United States has been rocked by everything from a deadly pandemic and a brutal recession to civil unrest in a long list of cities to fears that violent conflicts will occur either on Election Day or after the election .
Journalist Matthew Gault , in an article published by Vice this week , wonders if the political divisions in the United States run so deep that the country is headed for another civil war .
Describing the unrest that has occurred this year , Gault writes , `` People are marching in the streets , aligned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of them , overwhelmingly from one side , are armed , and violence and death has resulted when these two sides have clashed .
The signs of a coming conflict are everywhere . ''
Certainly , the U.S. has had plenty of unrest in the past , from riots and assassinations during the 1960s to the Los Angeles riots in 1992 .
But Gault views 2020 as especially disturbing .
`` Political polarization is up , gun and ammunition sales have spiked , killers such as Kyle Rittenhouse are being lauded by their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in American cities , '' Gault explains .
`` Police kill unarmed people in the street , the government is polarized and corrupt , and our institutions are failing .
Armed militias patrol U.S .
streets . ''
Gault goes on to note that as if everything else that has occurred in 2020 were n't enough , Philadelphia erupted in violence the week before the presidential election following the fatal shooting of Walter Wallace , Jr. — a 27-year-old African-American man — by police .
`` In the aftermath of the shooting , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the police substation , '' Gault notes .
`` Police say 30 officers have been hurt , and one who was hit by a pickup truck has been hospitalized for a broken leg . ''
Gault adds , `` We have a sect of the president 's supporters who have vowed to show up at polling places armed .
If you have a terrible and ominous feeling about all this , you 're not alone .
Some on the far right are talking about another civil war . ''
What would another civil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
The last one occurred during the 1860s , when Americans were still using horses to commute to work — and a great deal has changed technologically since then .
Gault explains , `` According to several experts I spoke with , a new civil conflict will look nothing like the first American Civil War .
It 's not likely that clear sides will be drawn up with massive armies of Americans marching towards each other as drones strike from above .
An insurgency is more likely — a period of sustained and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ violence to achieve a political goal . ''
One of the people Gault interviewed was David Kilcullen of Foundation for Defense of Democracies .
Kilcullen is worried about the United States ' future , telling Gault , `` The worst atrocities come from fear , not hate .
Because people think they 're good , and they can justify incredible atrocious violence to themselves on the basis that it is defensive….. You need a belief that some other group is encroaching on your territory . ''
Gault also interviewed journalist Robert Evans , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Syria , Iraq and Ukraine .
Evans told Gault , `` We are in a state of civil war whenever , in more than one geographical location in the United States , it becomes commonplace for multiple non-state armed groups to fight each other with deadly force .
When that is an occurrence that is common in more than one location in the country , that 's a civil war . ''
According to Evans , `` To most people , the idea of a second American Civil War feels more like science @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have seen systems collapse .
Everything I 've seen and everything I 've read over the past two years has convinced me that the United States is closer to that kind of terror than anyone is willing to admit . ''
Adam Isacson of WOLA — a group that promotes human rights in Latin America — told Gault that a civil war in the U.S. might resemble the one that occurred in Colombia , where the conflict did n't occur throughout the entire country .
Isacson recalled that when he was in Bogotá @ @ @ @ @ @ @ n't seem like a country that was in a state of civil war .
Isacson told Gault , `` You realize that even in this horrible period for Colombia , for most of the country , this conflict was just something you saw on television .
It does n't really impact their everyday lives… .
Collapse is not evenly distributed… .
I 'd say there 's a real danger that ( the U.S. ) is going to see sustained political violence . ''

In 2020, the United States has been rocked by everything from a deadly pandemic and a brutal recession to civil unrest in a long list of cities to fears that violent conflicts will occur either on Election Day or after the election. Journalist Matthew Gault, in an article published by Vice this week, wonders if the political divisions in the United States run so deep that the country is headed for another civil war.
Describing the unrest that has occurred this year, Gault writes, "People are marching in the streets, aligned with two ideologically distinct factions. Many of them, overwhelmingly from one side, are armed, and violence and death has resulted when these two sides have clashed. The signs of a coming conflict are everywhere."
Certainly, the U.S. has had plenty of unrest in the past, from riots and assassinations during the 1960s to the Los Angeles riots in 1992. But Gault views 2020 as especially disturbing.
"Political polarization is up, gun and ammunition sales have spiked, killers such as Kyle Rittenhouse are being lauded by their political allies, and protests are widespread in American cities," Gault explains. "Police kill unarmed people in the street, the government is polarized and corrupt, and our institutions are failing. Armed militias patrol U.S. streets."
Gault goes on to note that as if everything else that has occurred in 2020 weren't enough, Philadelphia erupted in violence the week before the presidential election following the fatal shooting of Walter Wallace, Jr. — a 27-year-old African-American man — by police.
"In the aftermath of the shooting, protestors have smashed windows and spray painted the police substation," Gault notes. "Police say 30 officers have been hurt, and one who was hit by a pickup truck has been hospitalized for a broken leg."
Gault adds, "We have a sect of the president's supporters who have vowed to show up at polling places armed. If you have a terrible and ominous feeling about all this, you're not alone. Some on the far right are talking about another civil war."
What would another civil war in the United States look like? The last one occurred during the 1860s, when Americans were still using horses to commute to work — and a great deal has changed technologically since then.
Gault explains, "According to several experts I spoke with, a new civil conflict will look nothing like the first American Civil War. It's not likely that clear sides will be drawn up with massive armies of Americans marching towards each other as drones strike from above. An insurgency is more likely — a period of sustained and distributed conflict where non-state actors carry out violence to achieve a political goal."
One of the people Gault interviewed was David Kilcullen of Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Kilcullen is worried about the United States' future, telling Gault, "The worst atrocities come from fear, not hate. Because people think they're good, and they can justify incredible atrocious violence to themselves on the basis that it is defensive….. You need a belief that some other group is encroaching on your territory."
Gault also interviewed journalist Robert Evans, known for his reporting on conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Ukraine. Evans told Gault, "We are in a state of civil war whenever, in more than one geographical location in the United States, it becomes commonplace for multiple non-state armed groups to fight each other with deadly force. When that is an occurrence that is common in more than one location in the country, that's a civil war."
According to Evans, "To most people, the idea of a second American Civil War feels more like science fiction than a possible future…. I have seen systems collapse. Everything I've seen and everything I've read over the past two years has convinced me that the United States is closer to that kind of terror than anyone is willing to admit."
Adam Isacson of WOLA — a group that promotes human rights in Latin America — told Gault that a civil war in the U.S. might resemble the one that occurred in Colombia, where the conflict didn't occur throughout the entire country. Isacson recalled that when he was in Bogotá in the early 2000s, Colombia didn't seem like a country that was in a state of civil war.
Isacson told Gault, "You realize that even in this horrible period for Colombia, for most of the country, this conflict was just something you saw on television. It doesn't really impact their everyday lives…. Collapse is not evenly distributed…. I'd say there's a real danger that (the U.S.) is going to see sustained political violence."


alternet--2020-10-29--Pete Buttigieg had the perfect response to a Trump-loving heckler trying to crash a Biden rally

Former South Bend , Ind.
, Mayor Pete Buttigieg ( D ) gave a Trump-supporting heckler a taste of his own medicine when he interrupted his campaign rally for Joe Biden .
On Wednesday night , Buttigieg held a rally in St. Pete , Florida to campaign for Democratic presidential nominee .
He crossed paths with a man wearing a red MAGA hat and khaki shorts , reports Pink News .
The man held his cell phone up to live-stream his heckling protest .
Buttigieg 's staffers made attempts to remove the heckler but to no avail .
However , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his point across .
`` Would n't it be nice to have a president who will serve him just as enthusiastically as he will serve us ? ''
the former mayor asked .
`` Would n't it be nice to have a president who cares just as much about protecting the lives of those that protest us as those who stand at our side ?
Would n't it be nice to have a president who does not believe in violence against those who disagree with him ? ''
He went on to note @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he painted a picture of a better America focused on `` rejecting racism and embracing one another for a better future . ''
`` Are you not proud to be an American in a country that makes room for all of us , but whose values include rejecting hate and rejecting those who would deny science when it could save lives ?
Rejecting racism and embracing one another for a better future for this country ? ''
Then , Buttigieg offered a direct message to the heckling Trump supporter saying , `` And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for a president who finds it necessary to draw this kind of support ?
But it 's OK sir , because when Joe Biden is president you will be safer too . ''
As Buttigieg attempted to get back on track and focus on the rally , the heckler continued with his antics .
So the once-presidential hopeful challenged the heckler again asking , `` Can I finish my remarks ?
Are you afraid to hear what I have to say ? ''
When that approach did not work , Buttigieg went for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ denounce white supremacy ? ''
To that question , the man nodded that he did .
Buttigieg hit back with remarks on President Donald Trump checkered public stance on white supremacy .
`` Good , then we agree on something .
That 's a beginning point .
See if you can get your president to do the same thing . ''
Buttigieg also took a dig at Fox News and Vice President Mike Pence as he recalled his commitment to helping the Biden-Harris campaign on their road to the White House .
Over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ become one of Harris ' top allies as Democrats band together to take the Oval .
`` I 've told the Biden-Harris campaign I would go anywhere to support the cause .
I did n't know that would mean going into the mind of Mike Pence for a while to help with debate prep , '' Buttigieg said during the rally .
`` I did n't know it would mean going on Fox News quite as often as it has . ''
His latest remarks come shortly after his previous Fox News appearance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ asked about Harris change of heart regarding Medicare for All .
Buttigieg quickly fired back with an argument of his own as he noted the hypocrisy of Pence , an evangelical Christian , running on a political ticket with Trump , a president caught cheating on his wife with a known adult film star .
`` Well , there 's a classic parlour game of trying to find a little bit of daylight between running mates , '' Buttigieg quickly fired back .
He added , `` If people want to play that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an evangelical Christian like Mike Pence wants to be on a ticket with a president caught with a porn star .
Or how he feels about the immigration policy he called unconstitutional before he decided to team up with Donald Trump . ''

Former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) gave a Trump-supporting heckler a taste of his own medicine when he interrupted his campaign rally for Joe Biden.
On Wednesday night, Buttigieg held a rally in St. Pete, Florida to campaign for Democratic presidential nominee. He crossed paths with a man wearing a red MAGA hat and khaki shorts, reports Pink News. The man held his cell phone up to live-stream his heckling protest.
Buttigieg's staffers made attempts to remove the heckler but to no avail. However, that did not stop Buttigieg from getting his point across.
"Wouldn't it be nice to have a president who will serve him just as enthusiastically as he will serve us?" the former mayor asked. "Wouldn't it be nice to have a president who cares just as much about protecting the lives of those that protest us as those who stand at our side? Wouldn't it be nice to have a president who does not believe in violence against those who disagree with him?"
He went on to note the importance of inclusion in America as he painted a picture of a better America focused on "rejecting racism and embracing one another for a better future."
"Are you not proud to be an American in a country that makes room for all of us, but whose values include rejecting hate and rejecting those who would deny science when it could save lives? Rejecting racism and embracing one another for a better future for this country?"
Then, Buttigieg offered a direct message to the heckling Trump supporter saying, "And don't you feel a little sorry for a president who finds it necessary to draw this kind of support? But it's OK sir, because when Joe Biden is president you will be safer too."
As Buttigieg attempted to get back on track and focus on the rally, the heckler continued with his antics. So the once-presidential hopeful challenged the heckler again asking, "Can I finish my remarks? Are you afraid to hear what I have to say?"
When that approach did not work, Buttigieg went for another angle asking, "Do you denounce white supremacy?"
To that question, the man nodded that he did. Buttigieg hit back with remarks on President Donald Trump checkered public stance on white supremacy. "Good, then we agree on something. That's a beginning point. See if you can get your president to do the same thing."
Buttigieg also took a dig at Fox News and Vice President Mike Pence as he recalled his commitment to helping the Biden-Harris campaign on their road to the White House. Over the last several weeks, Buttigieg has become one of Harris' top allies as Democrats band together to take the Oval.
"I've told the Biden-Harris campaign I would go anywhere to support the cause. I didn't know that would mean going into the mind of Mike Pence for a while to help with debate prep," Buttigieg said during the rally. "I didn't know it would mean going on Fox News quite as often as it has."
His latest remarks come shortly after his previous Fox News appearance with host Martha McCallum. He was asked about Harris change of heart regarding Medicare for All. Buttigieg quickly fired back with an argument of his own as he noted the hypocrisy of Pence, an evangelical Christian, running on a political ticket with Trump, a president caught cheating on his wife with a known adult film star.
Pete Buttigieg really went on Fox News and asked "why an evangelical Christian like Mike Pence wants to be on a ticket with a president caught with a porn star." pic.twitter.com/PQnodtivC8
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 8, 2020
"Well, there's a classic parlour game of trying to find a little bit of daylight between running mates," Buttigieg quickly fired back.
He added, "If people want to play that game, we could look into why an evangelical Christian like Mike Pence wants to be on a ticket with a president caught with a porn star. Or how he feels about the immigration policy he called unconstitutional before he decided to team up with Donald Trump."


alternet--2020-10-29--A White House spokesman let slip a damning admission of callous disregard for Trump's own voters

We 're less than a week away from election night and the Trump administration is set on spreading the novel coronavirus to anyone it can get its hands on .
Nationwide the U.S. is seeing a surge in COVID-19 cases following visits from Donald Trump 's campaign .
As rallies for Trump continue daily , some states are reporting more than 50 % increases in COVID-19 cases .
Despite this , the White House claimed Tuesday that Trump has ended COVID-19 and does not plan to take any action on stopping the spread .
Interesting how rising hospitalizations and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ average cases a day is equivalent to ending the coronavirus for the Trump administration .
The reality is Trump is n't ending the coronavirus pandemic , he 's spreading it .
The only break Trump has taken in visiting states to campaign is when he himself was diagnosed with COVID-19 .
Mike Pence , however , took a different approach : instead of quarantining responsibly as one of the nation 's leaders , he continued to campaign despite having been in close contact with individuals who tested positive for COVID-19 .
When asked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with increasing cases and full capacity hospitals , a member of the Trump administration told CNN Wednesday that an increase in cases and lack of hospital space will not deter the Trump campaign or Pence from visiting .
It 's mind-boggling that the Trump administration is calling increases in cases across the country `` good news . ''
Additionally , answering CNN 's question with only acknowledgment of Pence and his safety as opposed to the American people who will be present at this rally is disturbing .
It shows the clear lack @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not only the American people but even its supporters .
The lack of masks , social distancing , and the potential of spread at these categorized as `` high risk '' rallies is extreme .
Ignoring the safety of Wisconsin residents and thinking only of Pence , who has access to `` the best doctors , '' is profound .
As of Oct. 27 , at least 5,331 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Wisconsin .
The state 's average has increased by 46 % in the last two weeks resulting in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day .
As of this report , there have been at least 217,447 cases and 1,896 deaths in Wisconsin since the beginning of the pandemic , according to The New York Times database .
CNN 's Wednesday interview follows an interview with White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on Sunday during which he said the White House is `` not going to control the pandemic . ''
That statement is probably the only truthful thing the Trump administration has told .
The rising number of cases nationwide is proof that the Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do nothing to stop the spread of COVID-19 .
The U.S. has seen an increase of 39 % in its average from two weeks ago in cases per day .
More than 8.8 million Americans have been infected with coronavirus since the start of the pandemic in March .
With an average of 73,094 new COVID-19 cases per day the U.S. is failing to protect its citizens from this virus .
The deadly coronavirus pandemic is far from over and if elected again Trump will only increase this death toll and infection numbers @

We're less than a week away from election night and the Trump administration is set on spreading the novel coronavirus to anyone it can get its hands on. Nationwide the U.S. is seeing a surge in COVID-19 cases following visits from Donald Trump's campaign. As rallies for Trump continue daily, some states are reporting more than 50% increases in COVID-19 cases.
Despite this, the White House claimed Tuesday that Trump has ended COVID-19 and does not plan to take any action on stopping the spread. Interesting how rising hospitalizations and the country facing its highest number of per average cases a day is equivalent to ending the coronavirus for the Trump administration. The reality is Trump isn't ending the coronavirus pandemic, he's spreading it.
The only break Trump has taken in visiting states to campaign is when he himself was diagnosed with COVID-19. Mike Pence, however, took a different approach: instead of quarantining responsibly as one of the nation's leaders, he continued to campaign despite having been in close contact with individuals who tested positive for COVID-19.
When asked about Pence's visit to a state with increasing cases and full capacity hospitals, a member of the Trump administration told CNN Wednesday that an increase in cases and lack of hospital space will not deter the Trump campaign or Pence from visiting.
CNN's Alisyn Camerota: "Hospitals in Wisconsin are near capacity. Does that give you any pause about going there and holding a big rally?"
Trump 2020 Press Sec. Hogan Gidley: "No, it doesn't … the VP has the best doctors in the world around him. ...The fact is we are seeing some good news about coronavirus."
It's mind-boggling that the Trump administration is calling increases in cases across the country "good news." Additionally, answering CNN's question with only acknowledgment of Pence and his safety as opposed to the American people who will be present at this rally is disturbing. It shows the clear lack of concern the Trump administration has for not only the American people but even its supporters. The lack of masks, social distancing, and the potential of spread at these categorized as "high risk" rallies is extreme. Ignoring the safety of Wisconsin residents and thinking only of Pence, who has access to "the best doctors," is profound.
As of Oct. 27, at least 5,331 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Wisconsin. The state's average has increased by 46% in the last two weeks resulting in an average of 4,221 new cases per day. As of this report, there have been at least 217,447 cases and 1,896 deaths in Wisconsin since the beginning of the pandemic, according toThe New York Timesdatabase.
CNN's Wednesday interview follows an interview with White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on Sunday during which he said the White House is "not going to control the pandemic." That statement is probably the only truthful thing the Trump administration has told. The rising number of cases nationwide is proof that the Trump administration has done nothing to and will do nothing to stop the spread of COVID-19.
The U.S. has seen an increase of 39% in its average from two weeks ago in cases per day. More than 8.8 million Americans have been infected with coronavirus since the start of the pandemic in March. With an average of 73,094 new COVID-19 cases per day the U.S. is failing to protect its citizens from this virus. The deadly coronavirus pandemic is far from over and if elected again Trump will only increase this death toll and infection numbers.