talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-13--DeSantis Likens School Reopenings In His COVID-Ravaged State To Killing Bin Laden

Florida Gov .
Ron DeSantis ( R ) on Wednesday drew yet another outlandish comparison as he continues pushing for schools to reopen amid skyrocketing COVID-19 fatalities in the state .
Last month , DeSantis likened school openings to shopping at Home Depot and Walmart .
“ I ’ m confident if you can do Home Depot , if you can do Walmart , if you can do these things , we absolutely can do the schools , ” DeSantis said during a press conference last month .
DeSantis similarly drew another baffling comparison during a press conference on Wednesday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had with Martin County Superintendent Laurie Gaylord .
“ She viewed reopening her schools as a mission akin to a Navy SEAL operation , ” DeSantis said .
“ Just as the SEALs surmounted obstacles to bring Osama bin Laden to justice , so too would the Martin County School system find a way to provide parents with a meaningful choice of in-person instruction or continued distance learning.
” DeSantis ’ latest push for schools to reopen comes amid President Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos demanding that in-person instruction resume at schools @ @ @ @ @ @ @ month , Trump threatened to withhold federal aid for those that refuse to reopen .
During a press conference at the White House on Wednesday , the President said the federal government would send up to 125 million reusable masks to schools as he discussed the release of recommendations stressing a “ safe reopening ” of schools .

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) on Wednesday drew yet another outlandish comparison as he continues pushing for schools to reopen amid skyrocketing COVID-19 fatalities in the state.
Last month, DeSantis likened school openings to shopping at Home Depot and Walmart.
“I’m confident if you can do Home Depot, if you can do Walmart, if you can do these things, we absolutely can do the schools,” DeSantis said during a press conference last month.
DeSantis similarly drew another baffling comparison during a press conference on Wednesday after bringing up a conversation he recently had with Martin County Superintendent Laurie Gaylord.
“She viewed reopening her schools as a mission akin to a Navy SEAL operation,” DeSantis said. “Just as the SEALs surmounted obstacles to bring Osama bin Laden to justice, so too would the Martin County School system find a way to provide parents with a meaningful choice of in-person instruction or continued distance learning.”
DeSantis’ latest push for schools to reopen comes amid President Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos demanding that in-person instruction resume at schools despite surging COVID-19 cases nationwide.
Last month, Trump threatened to withhold federal aid for those that refuse to reopen. During a press conference at the White House on Wednesday, the President said the federal government would send up to 125 million reusable masks to schools as he discussed the release of recommendations stressing a “safe reopening” of schools.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-13--Trump Suggests He’s Blocking USPS Emergency Funds To Hamper Mail-In Voting

Hey , at least he ’ s being honest about it .
In two separate instances on Wednesday and Thursday , the President admitted that depriving the U.S .
Postal Service of COVID-19 relief funds would hamper widespread mail-in voting .
The President has attacked voting by mail for weeks , and is growing increasingly explicit in his threats to sabotage it .
“ They don ’ t have the money to do the universal mail-in voting , ” Trump said at a White House press conference Wednesday .
“ Therefore , they can ’ t do it , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said he wasn ’ t willing to budge on congressional Democrats ’ request for $ 25 billion in USPS funding — which House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ( D-CA ) noted Thursday morning was simply the figure requested by the Trump-appointed USPS Board of Governors .
Democrats have also sought $ 3.6 billion in additional election funding .
“ How are they going to do it if they don ’ t have the money to do it ?
” Trump mused Wednesday .
And on Thursday morning , he made the same point again @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s Maria Bartiromo .
“ Now they need that money in order to make the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots , ” he said , adding : “ But if they don ’ t get those two items , that means you can ’ t have universal mail-in voting.
” It ’ s not simply that Trump is saying mail-in voting would be affected by a lack of emergency funding .
The White House has made the point explicit : “ Voting rights @ @ @ @ @ @ @ apparently , and something the Trump administration opposes in the current round of talks over COVID-19 funds .
“ So much of the Democratic asks are really liberal left wish lists we don ’ t want to have — voting rights , and aid to aliens , and so forth , ” said White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow Thursday .
“ That ’ s not our game.
” As things currently stand , USPS ’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic , and to the accompanying spike in demand for mail-in voting , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the Postal Service to deliver ballots to voters .
The Republican donor and new postmaster general , Louis DeJoy — laden with his own conflicts of interest — has overseen changes at the USPS that have slowed mail delivery , threatening not only the 2020 election but also the timely delivery of prescription medicine and other necessary cargo .
Earlier this month , DeJoy unveiled sweeping changes to the USPS organizational chart , reassigning top executives and centralizing power for himself .

Hey, at least he’s being honest about it.
In two separate instances on Wednesday and Thursday, the President admitted that depriving the U.S. Postal Service of COVID-19 relief funds would hamper widespread mail-in voting. The President has attacked voting by mail for weeks, and is growing increasingly explicit in his threats to sabotage it.
“They don’t have the money to do the universal mail-in voting,” Trump said at a White House press conference Wednesday. “Therefore, they can’t do it, I guess. Right?”
The President said he wasn’t willing to budge on congressional Democrats’ request for $25 billion in USPS funding — which House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) noted Thursday morning was simply the figure requested by the Trump-appointed USPS Board of Governors. Democrats have also sought $3.6 billion in additional election funding.
“How are they going to do it if they don’t have the money to do it?” Trump mused Wednesday.
And on Thursday morning, he made the same point again, speaking to Fox Business Network’s Maria Bartiromo.
“Now they need that money in order to make the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots,” he said, adding: “But if they don’t get those two items, that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting.”
Not only is Trump again openly admitting hes trying to make it harder for Americans to vote, but he’s admitting that’s why the WH isn’t making a covid relief deal “If we don’t make a deal, that means they don’t get the money, that means they can’t have universal mail-in voting” pic.twitter.com/nHyZYNWzeg — Lis Power (@LisPower1) August 13, 2020
It’s not simply that Trump is saying mail-in voting would be affected by a lack of emergency funding. The White House has made the point explicit: “Voting rights” are a Democratic agenda item, apparently, and something the Trump administration opposes in the current round of talks over COVID-19 funds.
“So much of the Democratic asks are really liberal left wish lists we don’t want to have — voting rights, and aid to aliens, and so forth,” said White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow Thursday. “That’s not our game.”
As things currently stand, USPS’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and to the accompanying spike in demand for mail-in voting, has worried state election officials who rely on the Postal Service to deliver ballots to voters.
The Republican donor and new postmaster general, Louis DeJoy — laden with his own conflicts of interest — has overseen changes at the USPS that have slowed mail delivery, threatening not only the 2020 election but also the timely delivery of prescription medicine and other necessary cargo. Earlier this month, DeJoy unveiled sweeping changes to the USPS organizational chart, reassigning top executives and centralizing power for himself.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-13--‘A Mad Woman’: Flailing Trump Hurls New Insults At Kamala Harris

President Donald Trump is throwing a number of insults against the wall to see what sticks as he continues attacking Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden ’ s running mate , Sen. Kamala Harris ( D-CA ) .
On Thursday morning , Trump said that he now calls Harris a “ mad woman ” because she was “ so angry ” and had “ such hatred ” during the confirmation hearings for his Supreme Court pick , Justice Brett Kavanaugh .
“ I ’ ve never seen anything like it , ” Trump told Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo during an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the group and they were all angry .
They were all radical left angry people and they were angry because I beat them.
” The President has been hurling names in Harris ’ direction since Biden announced the California lawmaker as his running mate earlier this week .
Within hours of the announcement on Tuesday , Trump had already begun describing Harris as “ nasty ” or “ nastier ” — terms he routinely uses to go after female opponents .
Hours later , Trump told Fox News ’ Sean Hannity in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” to Biden and a “ dangerous choice.
” Trump ’ s son , Eric Trump , liked a tweet on Wednesday that used a sexist slur to refer to Biden choosing Harris as his running mate .
The since-deleted tweet came from an account belonging to a user named Lori Hendry , who wrote : “ Raise your hand if you think Harris was a whorendous pick .
May have misspelled.
” Trump has likewise intensified his attacks on the basis of Harris ’ race and gender in tweets , even rehashing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by saying that “ suburban housewife ” who wants “ safety ” will be voting for him .
During a news conference on Wednesday evening , after Biden and Harris appeared together for the first time to deliver remarks in Delaware , Trump appeared to seize on a different claim — that Harris was not only nasty and mean but that she was also “ angry ” that she had to abandon her own presidential bid .
Trump seemed to latch onto the epithet during the Fox interview Thursday — using as ammunition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at Black women and claiming that Justice Kavanaugh had been on the receiving end of her rage when — doing her job — Harris vetted the President ’ s pick by questioning him during confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court .

President Donald Trump is throwing a number of insults against the wall to see what sticks as he continues attacking Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA).
On Thursday morning, Trump said that he now calls Harris a “mad woman” because she was “so angry” and had “such hatred” during the confirmation hearings for his Supreme Court pick, Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Trump told Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo during an interview. “She was the angriest of the group and they were all angry. They were all radical left angry people and they were angry because I beat them.”
The President has been hurling names in Harris’ direction since Biden announced the California lawmaker as his running mate earlier this week.
Within hours of the announcement on Tuesday, Trump had already begun describing Harris as “nasty” or “nastier” — terms he routinely uses to go after female opponents.
Hours later, Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity in an interview that Harris was “disrespectful” to Biden and a “dangerous choice.”
Trump’s son, Eric Trump, liked a tweet on Wednesday that used a sexist slur to refer to Biden choosing Harris as his running mate.
The since-deleted tweet came from an account belonging to a user named Lori Hendry, who wrote: “Raise your hand if you think Harris was a whorendous pick. May have misspelled.”
Trump has likewise intensified his attacks on the basis of Harris’ race and gender in tweets, even rehashing his racist appeal to suburbanites Wednesday morning by saying that “suburban housewife” who wants “safety” will be voting for him.
During a news conference on Wednesday evening, after Biden and Harris appeared together for the first time to deliver remarks in Delaware, Trump appeared to seize on a different claim — that Harris was not only nasty and mean but that she was also “angry” that she had to abandon her own presidential bid.
Trump seemed to latch onto the epithet during the Fox interview Thursday — using as ammunition a stereotype that has long been aimed at Black women and claiming that Justice Kavanaugh had been on the receiving end of her rage when — doing her job — Harris vetted the President’s pick by questioning him during confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-13--Office Of Special Counsel Says Trump Can Give RNC Speech At WH

The Office of Special Counsel confirmed in a letter Wednesday that the Hatch Act “ does not prohibit ” President Donald Trump from delivering his Republican National Convention speech from the White House .
Deputy chief of the US Hatch Act Unit Erica Hamrick , wrote in a letter Wednesday that the President and Vice President were not covered by any of the provisions of the Hatch Act , adding that the act “ does not prohibit President Trump from delivering his RNC acceptance speech on White House grounds.
” Hamrick ’ s letter comes in response to a request @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for an advisory opinion after Trump earlier this month floated the idea of delivering his speech accepting the Republican nomination on White House grounds .
Hamrick added that there were some caveats since White House employees were implicated in the Hatch Act , writing , “ there may be Hatch Act implications for those employees , depending on their level of involvement with the event and their position in the White House.
” CNN was the first to report that Hamrick ’ s letter — which was made public in a news release @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — offered direction about the legality of the White House as a potential location for Trump ’ s GOP acceptance speech .
Trump told “ Fox & Friends ” earlier this month that he would “ probably ” deliver his acceptance speech on White House grounds , confirming reports that it was under consideration after previous plans fell through .
“ It would be by far the least expensive from the country ’ s standpoint because it really is , it ’ s a big deal when you get up and move all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the time .
The President later tweeted that he was deciding between the White House and the site of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania for his RNC speech .
Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers have criticized the suggestion of using the White House as a backdrop to the speech .
Days after Trump said the White House was a top pick for his speech , White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said in an interview that aired on Gray TV ’ s “ Full Court Press with Greta Van @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in flux ” adding that he was still advocating that the President deliver his remarks “ miles and miles away ” from the White House .
During an MSNBC interview , House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ( D-CA ) said that “ whether it ’ s legally wrong or ethically out of the question ” the suggestion that political events such as an acceptance speech for the GOP presidential nomination on White House grounds should be rejected outright .
“ He can ’ t do that , ” she added .
Hamrick conceded in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not possible to provide an exhaustive list of permitted or prohibited activities ” but said that White House employees assisting with the RNC event would be in violation of the Hatch Act .
“ They also would not be able to attend the event while on duty .
But , if the employees take leave , and the event is held on the White House lawn or in the residence , the Hatch Act would not prohibit the employees from attending the event.
” Responding to the letter on Thursday , Maloney told @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Office of the Special Counsel confirmed “ serious legal concerns ” for White House employees .
“ As this guidance from the Office of Special Counsel makes clear , President Trump ’ s idea to host this campaign event at the White House raises serious legal concerns for White House employees , ” Maloney said .
“ While President Trump has ignored the law repeatedly throughout his time in office , surely he can find a way to accept the Republican nomination without putting federal employees in legal jeopardy .
”

The Office of Special Counsel confirmed in a letter Wednesday that the Hatch Act “does not prohibit” President Donald Trump from delivering his Republican National Convention speech from the White House.
Deputy chief of the US Hatch Act Unit Erica Hamrick, wrote in a letter Wednesday that the President and Vice President were not covered by any of the provisions of the Hatch Act, adding that the act “does not prohibit President Trump from delivering his RNC acceptance speech on White House grounds.”
Hamrick’s letter comes in response to a request from House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney for an advisory opinion after Trump earlier this month floated the idea of delivering his speech accepting the Republican nomination on White House grounds.
Hamrick added that there were some caveats since White House employees were implicated in the Hatch Act, writing, “there may be Hatch Act implications for those employees, depending on their level of involvement with the event and their position in the White House.”
CNN was the first to report that Hamrick’s letter — which was made public in a news release from Rep. James Comer (R-KY) — offered direction about the legality of the White House as a potential location for Trump’s GOP acceptance speech.
Trump told “Fox & Friends” earlier this month that he would “probably” deliver his acceptance speech on White House grounds, confirming reports that it was under consideration after previous plans fell through.
“It would be by far the least expensive from the country’s standpoint because it really is, it’s a big deal when you get up and move all of this apparatus,” Trump said at the time.
The President later tweeted that he was deciding between the White House and the site of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania for his RNC speech.
Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers have criticized the suggestion of using the White House as a backdrop to the speech.
Days after Trump said the White House was a top pick for his speech, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said in an interview that aired on Gray TV’s “Full Court Press with Greta Van Susteren” that decisions were “still in flux” adding that he was still advocating that the President deliver his remarks “miles and miles away” from the White House.
During an MSNBC interview, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said that “whether it’s legally wrong or ethically out of the question” the suggestion that political events such as an acceptance speech for the GOP presidential nomination on White House grounds should be rejected outright. “He can’t do that,” she added.
Hamrick conceded in the letter Wednesday that “it is not possible to provide an exhaustive list of permitted or prohibited activities” but said that White House employees assisting with the RNC event would be in violation of the Hatch Act.
“They also would not be able to attend the event while on duty. But, if the employees take leave, and the event is held on the White House lawn or in the residence, the Hatch Act would not prohibit the employees from attending the event.”
Responding to the letter on Thursday, Maloney told TPM in a statement, that the Office of the Special Counsel confirmed “serious legal concerns” for White House employees.
“As this guidance from the Office of Special Counsel makes clear, President Trump’s idea to host this campaign event at the White House raises serious legal concerns for White House employees,” Maloney said. “While President Trump has ignored the law repeatedly throughout his time in office, surely he can find a way to accept the Republican nomination without putting federal employees in legal jeopardy.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--Trump Ignites Yet Another Racist Conspiracy Theory, Aimed This Time At Kamala Harris

President Donald Trump on Thursday fanned the flame surrounding a false racist conspiracy theory that Senator Kamala Harris ( D-CA ) , the Democratic vice presidential nominee who was born in California , was not eligible to serve as vice president because her parents were immigrants .
Trump told reporters during a White House news conference Thursday that he had “ heard ” rumors that Harris , a Black and Asian American woman , who is a U.S.-born citizen does not meet the requirements for the vice presidency , adding that the claims were “ very serious.
” “ I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t meet the requirements , ” Trump said when asked about Harris ’ eligibility , likely referring to a widely discredited claim made in a Newsweek op-ed by conservative lawyer John Eastman that the U.S. Constitution doesn ’ t grant birthright citizenship .
“ I have no idea if that ’ s right , ” Trump added .
“ I would have thought , I would have assumed , that the Democrats would have checked that out before she gets chosen to run for vice president.
” The claim made by Eastman , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is ineligible to serve is not true .
Harris ’ s parents , were working academics hailing from Jamaica and India , who met as grad students while at UC Berkeley before Harris was born in Oakland in 1964 .
But even the status of the Democratic vice presidential nominee ’ s parents at the time of her birth are irrelevant to her eligibility to be vice president since the Constitution guarantees citizenship to anyone born in the United States .
Constitutional law scholars , debunking the claim , have pointed out the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ states : “ All persons born or naturalized in the United States , and subject to the jurisdiction thereof , are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.
” Trump used similar tactics to try to deny the legitimacy of Barack Obama ’ s presidency — using a race-based and anti-immigrant like on attack to suggest for years that the former President was born in Kenya not Hawaii .
This time , the President ’ s own reelection campaign ’ s legal adviser , Jenna Ellis , shared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Trump defended the column hours later saying the op-ed had been written by a “ very highly qualified and very talented lawyer.
” Newsweek has denied claims that the op-ed is tied to birtherism .
Global editor-in-chief Nancy Cooper and opinion editor Josh Hammer said in an editor ’ s note that Eastman ’ s essay has “ no connection whatsoever ” to the false claims made about Obama , adding that the issues raised by Eastman were not meant to deny facts or making false claims .
“ No one is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the legitimacy of an obviously valid birth certificate , ” the editors wrote .

President Donald Trump on Thursday fanned the flame surrounding a false racist conspiracy theory that Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA), the Democratic vice presidential nominee who was born in California, was not eligible to serve as vice president because her parents were immigrants.
Trump told reporters during a White House news conference Thursday that he had “heard” rumors that Harris, a Black and Asian American woman, who is a U.S.-born citizen does not meet the requirements for the vice presidency, adding that the claims were “very serious.”
“I heard it today that she doesn’t meet the requirements,” Trump said when asked about Harris’ eligibility, likely referring to a widely discredited claim made in a Newsweek op-ed by conservative lawyer John Eastman that the U.S. Constitution doesn’t grant birthright citizenship.
“I have no idea if that’s right,” Trump added. “I would have thought, I would have assumed, that the Democrats would have checked that out before she gets chosen to run for vice president.”
The claim made by Eastman, and advanced by Trump, that Harris is ineligible to serve is not true.
Harris’s parents, were working academics hailing from Jamaica and India, who met as grad students while at UC Berkeley before Harris was born in Oakland in 1964. But even the status of the Democratic vice presidential nominee’s parents at the time of her birth are irrelevant to her eligibility to be vice president since the Constitution guarantees citizenship to anyone born in the United States.
Constitutional law scholars, debunking the claim, have pointed out the unwavering clarity of the 14th Amendment which states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”
Trump used similar tactics to try to deny the legitimacy of Barack Obama’s presidency — using a race-based and anti-immigrant attack to suggest for years that the former President was born in Kenya not Hawaii.
This time, the President’s own reelection campaign’s legal adviser, Jenna Ellis, shared the controversial Eastman column in a tweet. Trump defended the column hours later saying the op-ed had been written by a “very highly qualified and very talented lawyer.”
Newsweek has denied claims that the op-ed is tied to birtherism. Global editor-in-chief Nancy Cooper and opinion editor Josh Hammer said in an editor’s note that Eastman’s essay has “no connection whatsoever” to the false claims made about Obama, adding that the issues raised by Eastman were not meant to deny facts or make false claims.
“No one is questioning Harris’ place of birth or the legitimacy of an obviously valid birth certificate,” the editors wrote.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--Obama: GOP ‘So Scared’ Of People Voting That They’re ‘Undermining’ American Life

When pressed on which election concern keeps him up at night , former President Barack Obama quickly identified the Trump administration ’ s attack on the postal service .
“ What we ’ ve never seen before is a President say ‘ I ’ m gon na actively kneecap the postal service to discourage voting , and I ’ m gon na be explicit about the reason I ’ m doing it , ' ” Obama told his former campaign manager David Plouffe on the latter ’ s podcast “ Campaign HQ.
” Trump said Thursday on the Fox Business @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is directly connected to his refusal to make a deal on a COVID-19 relief package with Democrats , which would include critical funding for the USPS .
“ Now they need that money in order to make the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots , ” he said .
“ But if they don ’ t get those two items , that means you can ’ t have universal mail-in voting.
” On the podcast , Obama gave ample praise to an attempt by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer ( D-NY ) to funnel billions into the USPS via the HEROES Act that the House passed in May .
Senate Republicans have refused to vote on it , and failed to coalesce behind any counter-legislation .
“ The question is not what the Democrats should be doing , it ’ s what are the Republicans doing that you are so scared of people voting that you are now willing to undermine the basic infrastructure of American life , ” Obama said .
“ It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not gon na repair highways because people might drive to the polling places — so we ’ ll just let massive sinkholes in the middle of the interstate linger because people may use those roads to vote.
” The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Thursday that the USPS warned election officials in Pennsylvania that ballots , even those cast within state deadlines , may not be turned around fast enough to be counted .
As of Friday , the USPS ’ internal investigator is getting involved to probe controversial new policy changes and the behavior @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a Republican mega-donor .
“ Democracy is messy and conflict is inevitable , ” Obama said .
“ But there have to be some boundaries that we don ’ t cross , some basic shared assumptions that bind us together .
One of those is that we don ’ t actively hurt people or undermine key parts of our lives just for partisan advantage .
”

When pressed on which election concern keeps him up at night, former President Barack Obama quickly identified the Trump administration’s attack on the postal service.
“What we’ve never seen before is a President say ‘I’m gonna actively kneecap the postal service to discourage voting, and I’m gonna be explicit about the reason I’m doing it,'” Obama told his former campaign manager David Plouffe on the latter’s podcast “Campaign HQ.”
Trump said Thursday on the Fox Business Network that his animus towards mail-in voting is directly connected to his refusal to make a deal on a COVID-19 relief package with Democrats, which would include critical funding for the USPS.
“Now they need that money in order to make the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots,” he said. “But if they don’t get those two items, that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting.”
On the podcast, Obama gave ample praise to an attempt by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to funnel billions into the USPS via the HEROES Act that the House passed in May. Senate Republicans have refused to vote on it, and failed to coalesce behind any counter-legislation.
“The question is not what the Democrats should be doing, it’s what are the Republicans doing that you are so scared of people voting that you are now willing to undermine the basic infrastructure of American life,” Obama said. “It’s the equivalent of saying we’re not gonna repair highways because people might drive to the polling places — so we’ll just let massive sinkholes in the middle of the interstate linger because people may use those roads to vote.”
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Thursday that the USPS warned election officials in Pennsylvania that ballots, even those cast within state deadlines, may not be turned around fast enough to be counted.
As of Friday, the USPS’ internal investigator is getting involved to probe controversial new policy changes and the behavior of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, formerly a Republican mega-donor.
“Democracy is messy and conflict is inevitable,” Obama said. “But there have to be some boundaries that we don’t cross, some basic shared assumptions that bind us together. One of those is that we don’t actively hurt people or undermine key parts of our lives just for partisan advantage.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--USPS Watchdog Probing Changes At Postal Service, Postmaster’s Ethics

The United States Postal Service ’ s internal investigator will review controversial new policy changes at USPS , as well as whether the GOP donor-turned-Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has complied with ethics rules .
CNN first reported the investigation Friday as alarm bells rang across the country over whether USPS would be able to handle the influx of mailed ballots this November .
“ We have initiated a body of work to address the concerns raised , but can not comment on the details , ” a spokesperson for the USPS inspector general ’ s office told CNN .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ week asked for an investigation into recent changes at USPS .
Among other things , new USPS practices limiting overtime and extra mail processing trips have slowed mail delivery and imperil the 2020 election , Democrats say .
DeJoy ’ s financial ties have been another cause for concern : The Republican fundraiser still holds an eight-figure stake in his former company — a USPS competitor , XPO logistics , CNN previously reported .
In June , after starting as postmaster general , DeJoy purchased stock options in Amazon , CNN noted .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ probe capped a chaotic week for the Postal Service : Pennsylvania officials said in a court filing Thursday that the agency had warned them it may not be able to deliver ballots by Election Day , resulting in voter disenfranchisement .
On Friday , the Washington Post reported that the USPS had sent similar warnings to 45 other states and the District of Columbia .
In Montana , Sen. John Tester ( D-MT ) demanded answers from DeJoy regarding mail drop boxes being removed around the state , after NBC Montana reported on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Missoula , Bozeman , Lewistown and Billings .
Pictures showing drop boxes loaded onto trucks in Oregon and New York caused alarm , though spokespeople for USPS have explained away the moves as resulting from either standard maintenance , or evaluations of low-traffic areas .
“ USPS maintenance remains on a regular schedule , ” a USPS spokesperson in New York told TPM after a New York Times reporter snapped a photo of Manhattan drop boxes on the back of a USPS truck .
Nationwide , according to a complaint from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ removed mail sorting machines in a move that union officials say could drastically cut back on postal workers ’ capacity to sort through election mail .
Then there ’ s the President , who this week directly tied $ 25 billion in proposed funding for USPS — which he said he opposed — to the agency ’ s ability to effectively deliver election mail .
“ They don ’ t have the money to do the universal mail-in voting , ” the President said at a White House press conference Wednesday .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it , I guess .
Right ?
” “ For years , every time there ’ s an election , we spend an enormous amount of time searching through [ mail containers ] to make sure that we get every ballot , ” a mail clerk in Michigan told Mother Jones .
“ [ I ] t doesn ’ t appear that this year that they were real worried about that .
”

The United States Postal Service’s internal investigator will review controversial new policy changes at USPS, as well as whether the GOP donor-turned-Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has complied with ethics rules.
CNN first reported the investigation Friday as alarm bells rang across the country over whether USPS would be able to handle the influx of mailed ballots this November.
“We have initiated a body of work to address the concerns raised, but cannot comment on the details,” a spokesperson for the USPS inspector general’s office told CNN.
The probe comes after several Democratic legislators last week asked for an investigation into recent changes at USPS. Among other things, new USPS practices limiting overtime and extra mail processing trips have slowed mail delivery and imperil the 2020 election, Democrats say.
DeJoy’s financial ties have been another cause for concern: The Republican fundraiser still holds an eight-figure stake in his former company — a USPS competitor, XPO logistics, CNN previously reported. In June, after starting as postmaster general, DeJoy purchased stock options in Amazon, CNN noted.
News of the inspector general’s probe capped a chaotic week for the Postal Service: Pennsylvania officials said in a court filing Thursday that the agency had warned them it may not be able to deliver ballots by Election Day, resulting in voter disenfranchisement. On Friday, the Washington Post reported that the USPS had sent similar warnings to 45 other states and the District of Columbia.
In Montana, Sen. John Tester (D-MT) demanded answers from DeJoy regarding mail drop boxes being removed around the state, after NBC Montana reported on the removal of several dozen drop boxes in Missoula, Bozeman, Lewistown and Billings.
Pictures showing drop boxes loaded onto trucks in Oregon and New York caused alarm, though spokespeople for USPS have explained away the moves as resulting from either standard maintenance, or evaluations of low-traffic areas.
“USPS maintenance remains on a regular schedule,” a USPS spokesperson in New York told TPM after a New York Times reporter snapped a photo of Manhattan drop boxes on the back of a USPS truck.
Nationwide, according to a complaint from the USPS workers’ union, USPS has removed mail sorting machines in a move that union officials say could drastically cut back on postal workers’ capacity to sort through election mail.
Then there’s the President, who this week directly tied $25 billion in proposed funding for USPS — which he said he opposed — to the agency’s ability to effectively deliver election mail.
“They don’t have the money to do the universal mail-in voting,” the President said at a White House press conference Wednesday. “Therefore, they can’t do it, I guess. Right?”
Postal workers have taken note.
“For years, every time there’s an election, we spend an enormous amount of time searching through [mail containers] to make sure that we get every ballot,” a mail clerk in Michigan told Mother Jones. “[I]t doesn’t appear that this year that they were real worried about that.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--ICYMI: Your TPM Weekend News Roundup

ICYMI: Your TPM Weekend News Roundup

Are you a student ?
Apply for a free student membership

The California State Bar is arguing that recent criminal charges against John Eastman in Fulton County, Georgia should not prevent…


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--Trump Supporters Trawl Sturgis Motorcycle Rally Looking To Turn Bikers Into Voters

STURGIS , S.D .
( AP ) — It ’ s a Friday night at a crowded biker bar in South Dakota when Chris Cox , founder of Bikers for Trump , takes the stage .
While many have come to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for some combination of riding and partying , Cox ’ s focus is on something else : voting .
The coronavirus pandemic may have squashed most in-person get-out-the-vote efforts across the country , but Cox ’ s group remains unbothered by public health recommendations .
As the Trump campaign struggles to gain momentum less than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Trump has taken advantage of recent motorcycle rallies to make direct appeals to register to vote .
While the group has gained a significant online following for its bravado in providing security at some Trump 2016 rallies , it remains to be seen if it can get bikers — many from the suburbs Trump is targeting — to show up at the ballot box .
To make his appeal , Cox enlisted scantily-clad female bartenders to join his nightly “ Trump rallies ” atop bars at One Eyed Jack ’ s Saloon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and singing the national anthem .
As members of the predominantly male audience removed their hats , one bartender who was topless except for a pair of strategically placed American flag stickers performed the Star-Spangled Banner in sign language .
“ If you live in Wisconsin , North Carolina , Arizona , Ohio , Pennsylvania or Florida the campaign needs you to double-down because those are the states that we need to carry this thing , ” Cox bellowed to the crowd .
Cox ’ s list of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many places Trump carried in 2016 are now in doubt .
But his praise for the president drew cheers from the crowd , a display of Trump ’ s lasting favor among those who still see him as an outsider in defiance of the political elite .
“ Trump tapped into all this fear and anger and frustration , ” said Bill Thompson , a sociologist at Texas A & M University at Commerce who studies biker culture .
“ Man , he ’ s a master at whipping that up.
” Cox @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , has shown a knack for generating political drama .
He gained media attention during the 2016 election for assembling a quasi-security force at rallies and forming what he called a “ wall of meat ” to keep protesters from disrupting Trump ’ s inauguration .
More recently , he has enlisted bikers to give Amish and Mennonite Trump supporters motorcycle rides to rallies in Pennsylvania .
Since the last election , Cox has tried to build Bikers for Trump into a political machine , registering a political action committee .
Its Facebook @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and 180,000 people have signed up for a mailing list .
Cox did not give numbers on how many had registered to vote .
Turning bikers into voters could prove difficult .
Cox experienced that firsthand this year when his bid to represent South Carolina in Congress got less than 10 % of the vote in the Republican primary .
“ A lot of people want to participate , wearing T-shirts or maybe waving flags , ” he said .
“ But the only way to really raise the bar and move the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ don ’ t vote and get them to vote.
” Chris Carr , the Trump campaign ’ s political director , urged members of the crowd at a rally Thursday to get their neighbors registered to vote .
“ Chris Cox right here is a huge ally , ” Carr said .
“ The president loves this man.
” With hundreds of thousands of people rumbling into Sturgis through this weekend , Cox may be in the right place to reach the suburban voters that the Trump campaign is desperate to win over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , tattooed biker , a significant number are what ’ s known as “ Rolex riders , ” professionals who can afford to travel across the country with expensive motorcycles .
A growing number are female , college-educated and married , according to the Motorcycle Industry Council .
Cox said that women , including those from the suburbs , are willing to overlook Trump ’ s character to vote for his economic policies and support for law enforcement .
“ It ’ s not always about liking the leadership , but it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seeing the direction of your future , ” Cox said .
Genevieve Schmitt , who founded an online biker magazine called Women Riders Now , said that she sees just as many liberals as conservatives among women riders .
They often see the sport as an “ expression of freedom , independence , to express herself in the outdoors , ” she said .
“ If you start to throw flyers at her , whatever side you are on , they kind of just turn their nose up at it , ” Schmitt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ride.
” Cox also tried to brush aside criticism of Trump ’ s handling of the COVID-19 crisis .
Cox called it a “ plandemic , not a pandemic , ” suggesting a misguided notion that the coronavirus crisis is politically motivated and will disappear .
That message may resonate with some bikers , who echoed the sentiment that the coronavirus is not as serious as health experts have warned .
“ If you ’ re going to get it , you ’ re going to get it , ” said Linda Harrison @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Deal with it.
” But even at the Sturgis rally , where displays opposing Hillary Clinton were common in 2016 , there was an undercurrent of exasperation with the president this year .
Phillip Geary , a rallygoer from Washington , strolled the streets in a “ Make America Kind Again ” T-shirt .
He said that he had gotten fist bumps amid the leather-clad crowd , and someone even bought him lunch .
“ I think there ’ s more sentiment against the president , ” he said .
“ It ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the facade .
”

STURGIS, S.D. (AP) — It’s a Friday night at a crowded biker bar in South Dakota when Chris Cox, founder of Bikers for Trump, takes the stage. While many have come to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for some combination of riding and partying, Cox’s focus is on something else: voting.
The coronavirus pandemic may have squashed most in-person get-out-the-vote efforts across the country, but Cox’s group remains unbothered by public health recommendations. As the Trump campaign struggles to gain momentum less than 90 days from the election, Bikers for Trump has taken advantage of recent motorcycle rallies to make direct appeals to register to vote.
While the group has gained a significant online following for its bravado in providing security at some Trump 2016 rallies, it remains to be seen if it can get bikers — many from the suburbs Trump is targeting — to show up at the ballot box.
To make his appeal, Cox enlisted scantily-clad female bartenders to join his nightly “Trump rallies” atop bars at One Eyed Jack’s Saloon. Most of the rallies consisted of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and singing the national anthem. As members of the predominantly male audience removed their hats, one bartender who was topless except for a pair of strategically placed American flag stickers performed the Star-Spangled Banner in sign language.
“If you live in Wisconsin, North Carolina, Arizona, Ohio, Pennsylvania or Florida the campaign needs you to double-down because those are the states that we need to carry this thing,” Cox bellowed to the crowd.
Cox’s list of battleground states contained a tacit acknowledgment that many places Trump carried in 2016 are now in doubt. But his praise for the president drew cheers from the crowd, a display of Trump’s lasting favor among those who still see him as an outsider in defiance of the political elite.
“Trump tapped into all this fear and anger and frustration,” said Bill Thompson, a sociologist at Texas A&M University at Commerce who studies biker culture. “Man, he’s a master at whipping that up.”
Cox, who started the group in 2015, has shown a knack for generating political drama. He gained media attention during the 2016 election for assembling a quasi-security force at rallies and forming what he called a “wall of meat” to keep protesters from disrupting Trump’s inauguration. More recently, he has enlisted bikers to give Amish and Mennonite Trump supporters motorcycle rides to rallies in Pennsylvania.
Since the last election, Cox has tried to build Bikers for Trump into a political machine, registering a political action committee. Its Facebook group has more than 350,000 followers, and 180,000 people have signed up for a mailing list. Cox did not give numbers on how many had registered to vote.
Turning bikers into voters could prove difficult. Cox experienced that firsthand this year when his bid to represent South Carolina in Congress got less than 10% of the vote in the Republican primary.
“A lot of people want to participate, wearing T-shirts or maybe waving flags,” he said. “But the only way to really raise the bar and move the needle is to identify people who otherwise don’t vote and get them to vote.”
Chris Carr, the Trump campaign’s political director, urged members of the crowd at a rally Thursday to get their neighbors registered to vote.
“Chris Cox right here is a huge ally,” Carr said. “The president loves this man.”
With hundreds of thousands of people rumbling into Sturgis through this weekend, Cox may be in the right place to reach the suburban voters that the Trump campaign is desperate to win over. Despite the stereotype of the grizzled, tattooed biker, a significant number are what’s known as “Rolex riders,” professionals who can afford to travel across the country with expensive motorcycles. A growing number are female, college-educated and married, according to the Motorcycle Industry Council.
Cox said that women, including those from the suburbs, are willing to overlook Trump’s character to vote for his economic policies and support for law enforcement.
“It’s not always about liking the leadership, but it’s more about respecting the leadership and seeing the direction of your future,” Cox said.
Genevieve Schmitt, who founded an online biker magazine called Women Riders Now, said that she sees just as many liberals as conservatives among women riders. They often see the sport as an “expression of freedom, independence, to express herself in the outdoors,” she said.
“If you start to throw flyers at her, whatever side you are on, they kind of just turn their nose up at it,” Schmitt said. “They just want to ride.”
Cox also tried to brush aside criticism of Trump’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis. Cox called it a “plandemic, not a pandemic,” suggesting a misguided notion that the coronavirus crisis is politically motivated and will disappear.
That message may resonate with some bikers, who echoed the sentiment that the coronavirus is not as serious as health experts have warned.
“If you’re going to get it, you’re going to get it,” said Linda Harrison, who came from Ohio. “Deal with it.”
But even at the Sturgis rally, where displays opposing Hillary Clinton were common in 2016, there was an undercurrent of exasperation with the president this year.
Phillip Geary, a rallygoer from Washington, strolled the streets in a “Make America Kind Again” T-shirt. He said that he had gotten fist bumps amid the leather-clad crowd, and someone even bought him lunch.
“I think there’s more sentiment against the president,” he said. “It’s just beneath the surface, beneath the facade.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--Acting DHS Sec. Wolf And Deputy Cuccinelli Aren’t Valid Office-Holders, GAO Finds

The top officials at the Department of Homeland Security don ’ t have any legal basis to be doing those jobs , a congressional watchdog said Friday , strengthening the foundation for legal challenges to the Trump officials ’ decisions in office .
It was the latest push back against President Donald Trump ’ s reliance on “ acting ” officials doing jobs that would normally be subject to Senate confirmation .
While acting officials usually only hold those roles in an interim capacity , DHS has been without a Senate-confirmed leader for longer than any other Cabinet post in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ current acting DHS secretary , wasn ’ t actually confirmed by the Senate for that job .
And his top deputy , Ken Cuccinelli , has never been confirmed by the Senate for anything .
On Friday , the Government Accountability Office , the legislative watchdog office , told inquiring lawmakers that Wolf and Cuccinelli didn ’ t actually have a legal basis to hold those jobs .
That ’ s because the previous acting DHS secretary , then-Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenen , was himself installed without a legal basis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wolf and Cuccinelli in their respective posts were invalid , GAO found .
“ Mr .
McAleenan assumed the title of Acting Secretary upon the resignation of Secretary Nielsen , but the express terms of the existing designation required another official to assume that title , ” wrote Thomas H. Armstrong , the GAO ’ s general counsel .
“ As such , Mr. McAleenan did not have the authority to amend the Secretary ’ s existing designation .
Accordingly , Messrs. Wolf and Cuccinelli were named to their respective positions of Acting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Deputy Secretary by reference to an invalid order of succession , ” he added .
The GAO ’ s finding doesn ’ t have any immediate legal effect .
The watchdog noted that it had not reviewed the legality of the actions taken by Wolf and Cuccinelli , and that it was referring the matter to the DHS inspector general .
But if a judge agreed with the GAO ’ s findings , it could have broad ramifications .
“ The leadership structure at DHS is a house of cards , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the group Protect Democracy , told TPM .
Protect Democracy is just one of a number of groups to allege in lawsuits that Wolf and others aren ’ t legally holding their positions — and therefore that their decisions in office could be overturned .
In a July complaint over federal agents actions ’ in Portland , Protect Democracy lawyers and others argued that Wolf had ordered the beefed up federal presence in the city “ despite the fact that he has no legal authority to do so.
” “ Defendant Wolf ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Office of the DHS Secretary violates the Constitution and other applicable federal laws , ” the lawyers asserted .
It ’ s not a theoretical question : In March , a federal judge found that Cuccinelli had been appointed to a different position — acting director of U.S .
Citizenship and Immigration Services — unlawfully , and therefore that his decisions about new asylum policies should be voided .
These days , Cuccinelli holds the purported role of “ Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the International Refugee Assistance Project , said the GAO finding was “ kind of big news an hour before we ’ re about to present this argument to Court.
” IRAP was presenting oral arguments Friday as part of a lawsuit opposing new government rules limiting asylum seekers ’ ability to work legally in the United States .
In that suit , as in the Portland case , lawyers for asylum seekers noted that Wolf “ is and has been serving as Acting Secretary in violation of both the Homeland Security Act ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Vacancies Reform Act , ” and therefore that he had no legal right to issue the new asylum rules .
But a veritable buffet of DHS policies could be legally vulnerable given Wolf ’ s questionable legal status — such as his late July memo to DHS officials instructing them to “ reject all pending and future initial requests for DACA.
” “ Clever litigants are going to want to go through the Federal Register and look for Wolf or McAleenan ’ s name on final actions , ” said Anne Joseph O @ @ @ @ @ @ @ professor who focuses on administrative law and the federal bureaucracy .
“ You ’ ve already started to see some litigation on it , ” she added .
“ But I think you ’ re going to see a lot more.
” “ Because Wolf , Cuccinelli , and others at DHS are unlawfully serving in leadership positions , many of the actions they authorized are subject to legal challenge as invalid and void , ” said Vail , of Protect Democracy .
“ Anyone suing DHS should consider including legal claims based @ @ @ @ @ @ @ authority.
” Reps. Bennie Thompson ( D-MS ) and Carolyn Maloney ( D-NY ) , chairs of the House Homeland Security and Oversight committees , respectively , had requested the emergency GAO review of Wolf and Cuccinelli ’ s purported offices in November .
On Friday , they said in a statement that GAO ’ s opinion “ paints a disturbing picture of the Trump Administration playing fast and loose by bypassing the Senate confirmation process to install ideologues.
” “ In light of this decision , Mr. Wolf should immediately step down @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Under Secretary for Strategy , Policy , and Plans , ” the chairs said .
“ The President should appoint an apolitical career official to run the Department temporarily and follow the Constitution by swiftly nominating a permanent Secretary.
” “ As for Mr. Cuccinelli , a political pundit plucked by the President to serve in multiple senior roles at DHS for which he is woefully unqualified , he should immediately resign from the Federal government and retire his unprofessional official Twitter account , ” they added .
DHS did not respond to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the GAO ’ s finding .
But a spokesperson told The Washington Post , “ We wholeheartedly disagree with the GAO ’ s baseless report and plan to issue a formal response to this shortly .
”

The top officials at the Department of Homeland Security don’t have any legal basis to be doing those jobs, a congressional watchdog said Friday, strengthening the foundation for legal challenges to the Trump officials’ decisions in office.
It was the latest push back against President Donald Trump’s reliance on “acting” officials doing jobs that would normally be subject to Senate confirmation. While acting officials usually only hold those roles in an interim capacity, DHS has been without a Senate-confirmed leader for longer than any other Cabinet post in American history.
Chad Wolf, the current acting DHS secretary, wasn’t actually confirmed by the Senate for that job. And his top deputy, Ken Cuccinelli, has never been confirmed by the Senate for anything.
On Friday, the Government Accountability Office, the legislative watchdog office, told inquiring lawmakers that Wolf and Cuccinelli didn’t actually have a legal basis to hold those jobs.
That’s because the previous acting DHS secretary, then-Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenen, was himself installed without a legal basis — and therefore his decisions to appoint Wolf and Cuccinelli in their respective posts were invalid, GAO found.
“Mr. McAleenan assumed the title of Acting Secretary upon the resignation of Secretary Nielsen, but the express terms of the existing designation required another official to assume that title,” wrote Thomas H. Armstrong, the GAO’s general counsel.
“As such, Mr. McAleenan did not have the authority to amend the Secretary’s existing designation. Accordingly, Messrs. Wolf and Cuccinelli were named to their respective positions of Acting Secretary and Senior Official Performing the Duties of Deputy Secretary by reference to an invalid order of succession,” he added.
The GAO’s finding doesn’t have any immediate legal effect. The watchdog noted that it had not reviewed the legality of the actions taken by Wolf and Cuccinelli, and that it was referring the matter to the DHS inspector general.
But if a judge agreed with the GAO’s findings, it could have broad ramifications.
“The leadership structure at DHS is a house of cards,” Justin Vail, a policy advocate at the group Protect Democracy, told TPM.
Protect Democracy is just one of a number of groups to allege in lawsuits that Wolf and others aren’t legally holding their positions — and therefore that their decisions in office could be overturned.
In a July complaint over federal agents actions’ in Portland, Protect Democracy lawyers and others argued that Wolf had ordered the beefed up federal presence in the city “despite the fact that he has no legal authority to do so.”
“Defendant Wolf’s exercise of the functions and duties of the Office of the DHS Secretary violates the Constitution and other applicable federal laws,” the lawyers asserted.
It’s not a theoretical question: In March, a federal judge found that Cuccinelli had been appointed to a different position — acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services — unlawfully, and therefore that his decisions about new asylum policies should be voided.
These days, Cuccinelli holds the purported role of “Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security.”
Mariko Hirose, litigation director at the International Refugee Assistance Project, said the GAO finding was “kind of big news an hour before we’re about to present this argument to Court.”
IRAP was presenting oral arguments Friday as part of a lawsuit opposing new government rules limiting asylum seekers’ ability to work legally in the United States.
In that suit, as in the Portland case, lawyers for asylum seekers noted that Wolf “is and has been serving as Acting Secretary in violation of both the Homeland Security Act (‘HSA’) and the Federal Vacancies Reform Act,” and therefore that he had no legal right to issue the new asylum rules.
But a veritable buffet of DHS policies could be legally vulnerable given Wolf’s questionable legal status — such as his late July memo to DHS officials instructing them to “reject all pending and future initial requests for DACA.”
“Clever litigants are going to want to go through the Federal Register and look for Wolf or McAleenan’s name on final actions,” said Anne Joseph O’Connell, a Stanford Law School professor who focuses on administrative law and the federal bureaucracy.
“You’ve already started to see some litigation on it,” she added. “But I think you’re going to see a lot more.”
“Because Wolf, Cuccinelli, and others at DHS are unlawfully serving in leadership positions, many of the actions they authorized are subject to legal challenge as invalid and void,” said Vail, of Protect Democracy. “Anyone suing DHS should consider including legal claims based on Wolf’s lack of legal authority.”
Reps. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), chairs of the House Homeland Security and Oversight committees, respectively, had requested the emergency GAO review of Wolf and Cuccinelli’s purported offices in November.
On Friday, they said in a statement that GAO’s opinion “paints a disturbing picture of the Trump Administration playing fast and loose by bypassing the Senate confirmation process to install ideologues.”
“In light of this decision, Mr. Wolf should immediately step down and return to his Senate-confirmed position as Under Secretary for Strategy, Policy, and Plans,” the chairs said. “The President should appoint an apolitical career official to run the Department temporarily and follow the Constitution by swiftly nominating a permanent Secretary.”
“As for Mr. Cuccinelli, a political pundit plucked by the President to serve in multiple senior roles at DHS for which he is woefully unqualified, he should immediately resign from the Federal government and retire his unprofessional official Twitter account,” they added.
DHS did not respond to TPM’s request for comment on the GAO’s finding. But a spokesperson told The Washington Post, “We wholeheartedly disagree with the GAO’s baseless report and plan to issue a formal response to this shortly.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--The Trump Administration Is Predicting a Drastic Drop in Demand for US Visas for Years to Come

This article first appeared at ProPublica .
ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom .
Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox .
The Trump administration is predicting years of dramatically reduced international demand for U.S. visas , and planning for drastic budget cuts to visa services worldwide as a result , according to an internal memo seen by ProPublica .
The projections made by the U.S. State Department in a memo signed by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday contrast with the rosier outlook expressed repeatedly by President Donald @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Trump predicted that the coronavirus “ will go away ” and that a vaccine will be available before the end of the year .
But internally , the memo shows , the government is planning for the pandemic to drastically reduce international travel to the U.S. through at least 2022 .
The memo projects steep reductions , in particular , to non-immigrant visas .
Trump has issued restrictions on some categories of non-immigrant visas , citing the economic impacts of the pandemic , but the majority of non-immigrant visas processed by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ travel and tourism .
The memo outlines several ways the agency is cutting costs , including expanding a hiring freeze , which it acknowledges will affect consulates ’ ability to process visa applications .
Fees collected to process visa applications from people hoping to visit or move to the United States , as well as passport application fees paid by U.S. citizens , bring in around $ 3.5 billion a year to the State Department .
Those fees pay for U.S. consular operations worldwide .
The near-total halt to visa and passport services @ @ @ @ @ @ @ billion this year , senior State Department official Ian Brownlee told a congressional committee last month .
International travel collapsed this spring as the coronavirus spread .
The number of people going through security checkpoints run by the Transportation Security Administration fell by 95 % on some days in April , compared with the prior year , according to TSA data .
Many consulates around the world were shut down entirely for much of the spring and summer , or closed for all but emergency appointments .
Between the operations shutdown and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from over 670,000 in January to around 45,000 in April ( with similar numbers in May and June , the last month for which the State Department has statistics available ) .
At the same time , vast differences between Democrats , Republicans and the White House over the scale and scope of new coronavirus relief funding have dimmed hopes for any additional aid to make up for the massive disruptions caused by the coronavirus .
That affects both the State Department ’ s projections of future demand and its prospects for direct @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shortfall .
“ International travel has become a shadow of what it was even a few short months ago , ” said the State Department memo , also known as a cable .
“ We anticipate having to make very difficult trade-offs in the face of reduced revenue.
” State Department officials predict an 82 % drop in visa applications in 2021 compared with 2018 , according to data provided in the cable .
Even into 2022 , the administration is preparing for 2.6 million applications , around 22 % of the over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The administration is responding in part by freezing the consular hiring of diplomats ’ family members , the memo said , in addition to a freeze on the hiring of local staff , which it implemented in March .
Family-member employment by embassies and consulates is a popular program that often provides the only available work options for the spouses of diplomats , depending on the country they are assigned to .
“ If you ’ re telling officers , your spouse no longer has a job opportunity , I think it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Chris Richardson , a former U.S. consular officer who is now an immigration lawyer .
The cable asked consulates to find cost savings at their posts , and it said the State Department is cutting back on greeters , reducing call center hours and closing sites in Mexico , Brazil and Colombia that collect biometric data from applicants .
The State Department memo acknowledges that the family-member hiring freeze “ will likely have an impact on posts ’ processing capacity.
” A similar crisis is affecting U.S .
Citizenship and Immigration Services , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ where three-quarters of the workforce face a furlough if Congress can not make up a $ 1.2 billion shortfall by the end of August .
“ Across the immigration system , cuts are a pressing problem , ” said Sarah Pierce , a policy analyst at the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute .
“ At some future date when demand for immigration increases , our system will be woefully inadequate to meet it .
This was already true for refugee resettlement and USCIS , and now the State Department.
” At both USCIS and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down due to a combination of Trump administration restrictions on immigration and travel , and the drop in demand caused by the pandemic .
It is unclear what assumptions the State Department is making in its estimates , however — and it ’ s possible that lifting or reversing restrictive Trump policies could result in higher application levels and higher revenues .
Even before the pandemic hit , the number of applications for non-immigrant visas fell nearly 4 % between 2018 and 2019 , according to figures provided in the cable .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a continuation of the current atmosphere , where they anticipate there will be bans , ” Richardson said .
“ They anticipate all of Trump ’ s immigration regulations to remain in effect.
” The existing U.S. visa system is antiquated , slow and shuts out thousands of tourists , workers and students each year , argued Bethany Milton , a former U.S. foreign service officer , in a recent opinion piece .
She called for the successor to the Trump administration to take advantage of the pause in international travel to create @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” The drastic decline the State Department is projecting is only possible if demand for international business travel and tourism to the U.S. remains severely depressed for the next two years , above and beyond any restrictions imposed by the administration .
An executive proclamation signed by Trump in late May barred people from coming to the U.S. on certain temporary work visas through the end of 2020 .
The categories of visas most affected made up around 10 % of all visa approvals under pre-pandemic conditions , according to a ProPublica analysis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , for personal travel , business travel or both , make up over 60 % .
Those visas aren ’ t directly affected by presidential policies .
But demand for them will likely remain low as long as the U.S. fails to contain the coronavirus .
Many countries require people to self-quarantine upon return from the U.S .
In March , Congress gave the State Department an extra $ 588 million ( $ 264 million in an initial emergency spending package and $ 324 million in the CARES Act ) to pay for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including maintaining consular operations .
But that is far too little to make up for the near-shutdown in visa applications .
The extra money was also supposed to pay for evacuations and emergency preparedness .
In fact , the cable obtained by ProPublica explicitly warns employees not to dip into the “ diplomatic programs ” fund in order to cover shortfalls in the Consular and Border Security Programs account where they anticipate the shortfall to be greatest .
A Senate Democratic aide said on condition of anonymity that congressional officials for months had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the impending budget crunch .
Until recently , the agency ’ s top officials were “ oblivious or not caring.
” Legislators hoped to include provisions in the next stimulus bill to address and alleviate the shortfalls , the aide said .
But negotiations over a new round of stimulus have fallen apart in recent weeks , and the prospects for any further relief look dim .
“ I ’ m not sure anyone should go to the bank right now on anything that might happen soon from the Hill , ” the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ least one task , though , that the memo ’ s authors don ’ t want consulates to cut back on entirely .
The memo instructs consulates to continue travel to investigate “ urgent cases ” of potential immigration fraud .

This article first appeared at ProPublica. ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox.
The Trump administration is predicting years of dramatically reduced international demand for U.S. visas, and planning for drastic budget cuts to visa services worldwide as a result, according to an internal memo seen by ProPublica.
The projections made by the U.S. State Department in a memo signed by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday contrast with the rosier outlook expressed repeatedly by President Donald Trump. As recently as Aug. 5, Trump predicted that the coronavirus “will go away” and that a vaccine will be available before the end of the year. But internally, the memo shows, the government is planning for the pandemic to drastically reduce international travel to the U.S. through at least 2022.
The memo projects steep reductions, in particular, to non-immigrant visas. Trump has issued restrictions on some categories of non-immigrant visas, citing the economic impacts of the pandemic, but the majority of non-immigrant visas processed by the State Department are temporary visas for business travel and tourism.
The memo outlines several ways the agency is cutting costs, including expanding a hiring freeze, which it acknowledges will affect consulates’ ability to process visa applications.
A State Department spokesman, Noel Clay, declined to comment on internal communications.
Fees collected to process visa applications from people hoping to visit or move to the United States, as well as passport application fees paid by U.S. citizens, bring in around $3.5 billion a year to the State Department. Those fees pay for U.S. consular operations worldwide. The near-total halt to visa and passport services will drive that down by $1.4 billion this year, senior State Department official Ian Brownlee told a congressional committee last month.
International travel collapsed this spring as the coronavirus spread. The number of people going through security checkpoints run by the Transportation Security Administration fell by 95% on some days in April, compared with the prior year, according to TSA data. Many consulates around the world were shut down entirely for much of the spring and summer, or closed for all but emergency appointments. Between the operations shutdown and the collapse in demand, visa approvals plummeted from over 670,000 in January to around 45,000 in April (with similar numbers in May and June, the last month for which the State Department has statistics available).
At the same time, vast differences between Democrats, Republicans and the White House over the scale and scope of new coronavirus relief funding have dimmed hopes for any additional aid to make up for the massive disruptions caused by the coronavirus. That affects both the State Department’s projections of future demand and its prospects for direct aid from Congress to make up the shortfall.
“International travel has become a shadow of what it was even a few short months ago,” said the State Department memo, also known as a cable. “We anticipate having to make very difficult trade-offs in the face of reduced revenue.”
State Department officials predict an 82% drop in visa applications in 2021 compared with 2018, according to data provided in the cable. Even into 2022, the administration is preparing for 2.6 million applications, around 22% of the over 12 million applications made two years ago.
The administration is responding in part by freezing the consular hiring of diplomats’ family members, the memo said, in addition to a freeze on the hiring of local staff, which it implemented in March. Family-member employment by embassies and consulates is a popular program that often provides the only available work options for the spouses of diplomats, depending on the country they are assigned to.
“If you’re telling officers, your spouse no longer has a job opportunity, I think it really just hurts morale,” said Chris Richardson, a former U.S. consular officer who is now an immigration lawyer.
The cable asked consulates to find cost savings at their posts, and it said the State Department is cutting back on greeters, reducing call center hours and closing sites in Mexico, Brazil and Colombia that collect biometric data from applicants.
The State Department memo acknowledges that the family-member hiring freeze “will likely have an impact on posts’ processing capacity.”
A similar crisis is affecting U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, under the Department of Homeland Security, where three-quarters of the workforce face a furlough if Congress cannot make up a $1.2 billion shortfall by the end of August.
“Across the immigration system, cuts are a pressing problem,” said Sarah Pierce, a policy analyst at the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute. “At some future date when demand for immigration increases, our system will be woefully inadequate to meet it. This was already true for refugee resettlement and USCIS, and now the State Department.”
At both USCIS and the State Department, fee revenues are down due to a combination of Trump administration restrictions on immigration and travel, and the drop in demand caused by the pandemic. It is unclear what assumptions the State Department is making in its estimates, however — and it’s possible that lifting or reversing restrictive Trump policies could result in higher application levels and higher revenues.
Even before the pandemic hit, the number of applications for non-immigrant visas fell nearly 4% between 2018 and 2019, according to figures provided in the cable.
“To me it feels very much like a continuation of the current atmosphere, where they anticipate there will be bans,” Richardson said. “They anticipate all of Trump’s immigration regulations to remain in effect.”
The existing U.S. visa system is antiquated, slow and shuts out thousands of tourists, workers and students each year, argued Bethany Milton, a former U.S. foreign service officer, in a recent opinion piece. She called for the successor to the Trump administration to take advantage of the pause in international travel to create a “modernized and equitable visa process.”
The drastic decline the State Department is projecting is only possible if demand for international business travel and tourism to the U.S. remains severely depressed for the next two years, above and beyond any restrictions imposed by the administration.
An executive proclamation signed by Trump in late May barred people from coming to the U.S. on certain temporary work visas through the end of 2020. The categories of visas most affected made up around 10% of all visa approvals under pre-pandemic conditions, according to a ProPublica analysis of State Department data. Tourist visas, for personal travel, business travel or both, make up over 60%.
Those visas aren’t directly affected by presidential policies. But demand for them will likely remain low as long as the U.S. fails to contain the coronavirus. Many countries require people to self-quarantine upon return from the U.S.
In March, Congress gave the State Department an extra $588 million ($264 million in an initial emergency spending package and $324 million in the CARES Act) to pay for coronavirus-related “diplomatic programs” expenses, including maintaining consular operations. But that is far too little to make up for the near-shutdown in visa applications. The extra money was also supposed to pay for evacuations and emergency preparedness.
In fact, the cable obtained by ProPublica explicitly warns employees not to dip into the “diplomatic programs” fund in order to cover shortfalls in the Consular and Border Security Programs account where they anticipate the shortfall to be greatest.
A Senate Democratic aide said on condition of anonymity that congressional officials for months had raised concerns with State Department leadership about the impending budget crunch. Until recently, the agency’s top officials were “oblivious or not caring.” Legislators hoped to include provisions in the next stimulus bill to address and alleviate the shortfalls, the aide said.
But negotiations over a new round of stimulus have fallen apart in recent weeks, and the prospects for any further relief look dim.
“I’m not sure anyone should go to the bank right now on anything that might happen soon from the Hill,” the aide said.
There’s at least one task, though, that the memo’s authors don’t want consulates to cut back on entirely. The memo instructs consulates to continue travel to investigate “urgent cases” of potential immigration fraud.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--House Dems Launch Probe Into Voting Preparedness In Four Battleground States

House committee chairs sent out a letter Friday requesting information from four battleground states about their preparedness for November ’ s elections .
Committee on House Administration Chair Zoe Lofgren ( D-CA ) and Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis Chairman James Clyburn ( D-SC ) requested the information from elections officials in Florida , Georgia , Texas and Wisconsin .
“ No voter should be forced to wait for hours in line or risk their health to exercise their constitutionally protected right to vote , ” they wrote wrote .
“ Election administrators can prevent these unacceptable outcomes by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ adequate early voting , sufficient polling locations and hours , and mail-in or absentee voting options .
Officials must plan now to avoid the last-minute consolidation or closure of polling sites , long lines , and shortages of poll workers.
” They said that they selected the states due to their poor performance in the primaries when it came to extremely long lines or a scarcity of polling places .
The Wisconsin primaries in particular became emblematic of an election day spun into chaos by the pandemic .
A last minute state Supreme @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ahead as planned , despite the COVID-19 outbreak .
An eleventh hour Supreme Court decision also cast doubt on which postmarks could be counted on absentee ballots , adding more confusion to a primary that was already under-staffed with too few polls .
Dozens of voters were infected from their election day activities .
The chairs are requesting the information by August 26 to ensure that polling places are sufficiently staffed and that enough polls are open across the states .
The four letters are similar ; read the Wisconsin one here :

House committee chairs sent out a letter Friday requesting information from four battleground states about their preparedness for November’s elections.
Committee on House Administration Chair Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis Chairman James Clyburn (D-SC) requested the information from elections officials in Florida, Georgia, Texas and Wisconsin.
“No voter should be forced to wait for hours in line or risk their health to exercise their constitutionally protected right to vote,” they wrote wrote. “Election administrators can prevent these unacceptable outcomes by following [CDC] recommendations and offering adequate early voting, sufficient polling locations and hours, and mail-in or absentee voting options. Officials must plan now to avoid the last-minute consolidation or closure of polling sites, long lines, and shortages of poll workers.”
They said that they selected the states due to their poor performance in the primaries when it came to extremely long lines or a scarcity of polling places.
The Wisconsin primaries in particular became emblematic of an election day spun into chaos by the pandemic. A last minute state Supreme Court decision kept the in-person voting going ahead as planned, despite the COVID-19 outbreak. An eleventh hour Supreme Court decision also cast doubt on which postmarks could be counted on absentee ballots, adding more confusion to a primary that was already under-staffed with too few polls. Dozens of voters were infected from their election day activities.
The chairs are requesting the information by August 26 to ensure that polling places are sufficiently staffed and that enough polls are open across the states.
The four letters are similar; read the Wisconsin one here:


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--Postal Workers Union President Accuses Trump Of Holding USPS ‘Hostage’ To Suppress Votes

President of the American Postal Workers Union Mark Dimondstein on Thursday called it “ truly shameful ” that President Donald Trump would “ hold the post office hostage , ” amid the coronavirus pandemic in an attempt to suppress and discourage Americans from voting .
“ The cat ’ s out of the bag , ” Dimondstein told MSNBC ’ s Lawrence O ’ Donnell , referring to revelations earlier this week that — by his own admission — Trump said blocking a Democratic proposal for $ 25 billion of much-needed additional funding to the U.S .
Postal Service would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they need that money in order to have the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots , ” Trump said during a Fox Business interview Thursday morning , adding that by withholding the requested funding , mail-in voting would be crippled because the current mail service is “ not equipped ” to handle the increase in mailed ballots .
Democratic lawmakers have pushed back in recent weeks of cost-cutting policy changes that some say have delayed election mail .
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” adding that his opponent “ doesn ’ t want an election.
” Dimondstein , too , chastised the President for holding hostage the post office , which he called a “ national treasure.
” He accused the President of what he called attempts to “ keep people from voting , ” since ongoing health concerns have made it increasingly difficult for many people to vote safely in-person during the upcoming November election .
Dimondstein also criticized the President for perpetuating the “ dangerous ” and false claim that voting by mail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to discourage people from voting at all .
“ I think it ’ s very dangerous .
It ’ s very disturbing to postal workers who are very dedicated to the people of the country , to provide prompt , reliable , and efficient services , ” Dimonstein said , adding , “ We call it our DNA .
Never delay mail .
We ’ re not beholden to any individual candidate or political party .
We ’ re beholden to the rights of the American people to bind the country together .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ than provide access to the ballot box.
” Trump ’ s attack on the USPS to boost his own chances amid dwindling poll numbers , comes as election officials in Pennsylvania , a crucial swing state in the 2020 election , warned in a letter late last month that ballots cast “ may not be returned by mail in time to be counted , ” given limited resources and tight state deadlines .

President of the American Postal Workers Union Mark Dimondstein on Thursday called it “truly shameful” that President Donald Trump would “hold the post office hostage,” amid the coronavirus pandemic in an attempt to suppress and discourage Americans from voting.
“The cat’s out of the bag,” Dimondstein told MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell, referring to revelations earlier this week that — by his own admission — Trump said blocking a Democratic proposal for $25 billion of much-needed additional funding to the U.S. Postal Service would prevent widespread mail-in voting.
“Now, they need that money in order to have the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots,” Trump said during a Fox Business interview Thursday morning, adding that by withholding the requested funding, mail-in voting would be crippled because the current mail service is “not equipped” to handle the increase in mailed ballots. Democratic lawmakers have pushed back in recent weeks of cost-cutting policy changes that some say have delayed election mail.
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden called the move, “Pure Trump,” adding that his opponent “doesn’t want an election.”
Dimondstein, too, chastised the President for holding hostage the post office, which he called a “national treasure.” He accused the President of what he called attempts to “keep people from voting,” since ongoing health concerns have made it increasingly difficult for many people to vote safely in-person during the upcoming November election.
Dimondstein also criticized the President for perpetuating the “dangerous” and false claim that voting by mail wouldn’t work as a way to discourage people from voting at all.
“I think it’s very dangerous. It’s very disturbing to postal workers who are very dedicated to the people of the country, to provide prompt, reliable, and efficient services,” Dimonstein said, adding, “We call it our DNA. Never delay mail. We’re not beholden to any individual candidate or political party. We’re beholden to the rights of the American people to bind the country together. And what better way to do it than provide access to the ballot box.”
Trump’s attack on the USPS to boost his own chances amid dwindling poll numbers, comes as late last month the USPS warned in a letter to election officials in Pennsylvania, a crucial swing state in the 2020 election, that ballots cast “may not be returned by mail in time to be counted,” given limited resources and tight state deadlines.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--Manhattan DA: We’re Investigating Trump For More Than Michael Cohen

The Manhattan District Attorney all but confirmed on Friday that it is investigating President Trump for more than the 2016 hush money scheme involving Michael Cohen .
“ Given that this much information about potentially widespread and protracted criminal conduct was in the public record ( and without going into any additional , nonpublic sources ) , it is not plausible to speculate , let alone infer , that the grand jury investigation was limited to Cohen ’ s 2016 payments , ” attorneys for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance wrote in a Friday court filing .
The statement comes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was probing the Trump organization for fraud , citing multiple news reports purporting to document a pattern by which Trump would interfere with the book value of his assets in representations to lenders and insurers .
Trump hit back at that on Monday , arguing that the subpoena was still too broad as it exceeded the parameters for the stated origin of the investigation : the Trump org ’ s role in a scheme to buy the silence of women who said they had affairs with the President .
The arguments come @ @ @ @ @ @ @ subpoena obtained by the Manhattan DA for his financial records , including tax returns , arguing that his status as President made him “ immune from criminal process.
” That line of thinking reached its logical endpoint in appeals arguments last year , when an attorney for Trump told a panel of appellate judges that the police could not investigate President Trump were he to shoot someone on Fifth Avenue while in office .
The Supreme Court roundly dismissed that argument last month , but gave Trump leave to raise further arguments against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Vance attempted in the Friday filing to shoot those arguments down , arguing that it was unreasonable for the President to make broad claims about Vance ’ s probe based off of one grand jury subpoena .
“ But singling out one particular subpoena , and declaring that it must necessarily define and delimit the scope of a grand jury ’ s inquiry , makes no sense at all , particularly in a months-long financial investigation , ” Vance wrote .
The Manhattan DA reiterated in the filing that the probe extends @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Plaintiff has been put on notice repeatedly throughout this litigation that the investigation was not limited to Cohen ’ s 2016 payments , ” prosecutors wrote .

The Manhattan District Attorney all but confirmed on Friday that it is investigating President Trump for more than the 2016 hush money scheme involving Michael Cohen.
“Given that this much information about potentially widespread and protracted criminal conduct was in the public record (and without going into any additional, nonpublic sources), it is not plausible to speculate, let alone infer, that the grand jury investigation was limited to Cohen’s 2016 payments,” attorneys for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance wrote in a Friday court filing.
The statement comes after Vance suggested on Aug. 3 that he was probing the Trump organization for fraud, citing multiple news reports purporting to document a pattern by which Trump would interfere with the book value of his assets in representations to lenders and insurers.
Trump hit back at that on Monday, arguing that the subpoena was still too broad as it exceeded the parameters for the stated origin of the investigation: the Trump org’s role in a scheme to buy the silence of women who said they had affairs with the President.
The arguments come after Trump spent a year fighting a subpoena obtained by the Manhattan DA for his financial records, including tax returns, arguing that his status as President made him “immune from criminal process.”
That line of thinking reached its logical endpoint in appeals arguments last year, when an attorney for Trump told a panel of appellate judges that the police could not investigate President Trump were he to shoot someone on Fifth Avenue while in office.
The Supreme Court roundly dismissed that argument last month, but gave Trump leave to raise further arguments against the subpoenas at the district court level.
Vance attempted in the Friday filing to shoot those arguments down, arguing that it was unreasonable for the President to make broad claims about Vance’s probe based off of one grand jury subpoena.
“But singling out one particular subpoena, and declaring that it must necessarily define and delimit the scope of a grand jury’s inquiry, makes no sense at all, particularly in a months-long financial investigation,” Vance wrote.
The Manhattan DA reiterated in the filing that the probe extends beyond the 2016 hush money scandal.
“Plaintiff has been put on notice repeatedly throughout this litigation that the investigation was not limited to Cohen’s 2016 payments,” prosecutors wrote.
Read the filing here:


talkingpointsmemo--2020-08-14--PA Asks For Extra Time To Count Mail Ballots After USPS Issues Warning

The United States Postal Service warned election officials in Pennsylvania , a crucial swing state in the 2020 election , that ballots cast according to state deadlines may still “ not be returned by mail in time to be counted.
” The Philadelphia Inquirer first reported the letter , dated July 29 , on Thursday .
In response to the USPS warning , state election officials have asked the state ’ s supreme court to allow them to count ballots received up to three days after Election Day — as long as there ’ s no evidence they were actually @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pennsylvania ’ s top election official , USPS General Counsel and Executive Vice President Thomas Marshall told the state that “ under our reading of Pennsylvania ’ s election laws , certain deadlines for requesting and casting mail-ballots are incongruous with the Postal Service ’ s delivery standards.
” The state cited the USPS warning in a filing dropping its opposition to certain aspects of a lawsuit from a Democratic super PAC that seeks to relax the ballot-counting timeline .
“ The Postal Service ’ s announcement represents a significant change to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ general election , ” the state ’ s filing read , adding : “ [ P ] rior to Mr. Marshall ’ s letter , the Postal Service had not indicated the likelihood of widespread , continuing , multiple-day mail-delivery delays presenting an overwhelming , statewide risk of disenfranchisement for significant numbers of voters utilizing mail-in ballots.
” “ Recent reports have revealed that the United States Postal Service , already strained by the COVID-19 pandemic , has implemented certain changes to its internal protocols and procedures that have resulted in widespread , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state told the court separately .
“ The recent letter by the Postal Service ’ s General Counsel makes the threat to Pennsylvanian ’ s right to vote unmistakably clear and concrete.
” At issue are the state ’ s mail-in voting deadlines — and the Postal Service ’ s recommendation that certain steps be taken days earlier than the legally required in order to account for mail delivery times .
The state , for example , has an Oct. 27 deadline for voters to apply for a mail ballot , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recommended , in its letter , that Pennsylvanians apply for a mail ballot by Oct. 19 .
The Postal Service also recommended that people send ballots by Oct. 27 , even though the state only requires ballots be received by Election Day — though that could change with the court ’ s permission .
“ To state it simply : voters who apply for mail-in ballots in the last week of the application period and return their completed ballot by mail will , through no fault of their own , likely be disenfranchised @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Inquirer noted , court approval to count ballots that arrive after Election Day — but that were mailed on time — may delay the results in a crucial swing state .

The United States Postal Service warned election officials in Pennsylvania, a crucial swing state in the 2020 election, that ballots cast according to state deadlines may still “not be returned by mail in time to be counted.”
The Philadelphia Inquirer first reported the letter, dated July 29, on Thursday. In response to the USPS warning, state election officials have asked the state’s supreme court to allow them to count ballots received up to three days after Election Day — as long as there’s no evidence they were actually mailed late.
In his letter to Pennsylvania’s top election official, USPS General Counsel and Executive Vice President Thomas Marshall told the state that “under our reading of Pennsylvania’s election laws, certain deadlines for requesting and casting mail-ballots are incongruous with the Postal Service’s delivery standards.”
The state cited the USPS warning in a filing dropping its opposition to certain aspects of a lawsuit from a Democratic super PAC that seeks to relax the ballot-counting timeline.
“The Postal Service’s announcement represents a significant change to the outlook for voting by mail in the general election,” the state’s filing read, adding: “[P]rior to Mr. Marshall’s letter, the Postal Service had not indicated the likelihood of widespread, continuing, multiple-day mail-delivery delays presenting an overwhelming, statewide risk of disenfranchisement for significant numbers of voters utilizing mail-in ballots.”
“Recent reports have revealed that the United States Postal Service, already strained by the COVID-19 pandemic, has implemented certain changes to its internal protocols and procedures that have resulted in widespread, multiple-day delays in mail delivery,” the state told the court separately. “The recent letter by the Postal Service’s General Counsel makes the threat to Pennsylvanian’s right to vote unmistakably clear and concrete.”
At issue are the state’s mail-in voting deadlines — and the Postal Service’s recommendation that certain steps be taken days earlier than the legally required in order to account for mail delivery times.
The state, for example, has an Oct. 27 deadline for voters to apply for a mail ballot, the Inquirer noted. But the Postal Service recommended, in its letter, that Pennsylvanians apply for a mail ballot by Oct. 19.
The Postal Service also recommended that people send ballots by Oct. 27, even though the state only requires ballots be received by Election Day — though that could change with the court’s permission.
“To state it simply: voters who apply for mail-in ballots in the last week of the application period and return their completed ballot by mail will, through no fault of their own, likely be disenfranchised,” the state said.
As the Inquirer noted, court approval to count ballots that arrive after Election Day — but that were mailed on time — may delay the results in a crucial swing state.