talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--People Who Witnessed Giuliani Wage Fraud Falsehoods At MI Hearing Must Quarantine

Those who witnessed Trump ’ s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani in the flesh as he spewed misleading voter fraud claims during a Michigan House Oversight Committee hearing last week have been advised to quarantine through at least Dec. 12 , following Giuliani ’ s COVID-19 diagnosis and hospitalization .
A day after Giuliani ’ s COVID-19 diagnosis was announced by President Trump , Ingham County Health Department issued a press release saying that individuals who were within six feet of the maskless Giuliani during the highly unusual legislative session in Michigan — which lasted more than four hours — must @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they were exposed to COVID-19 .
The Ingham County Health Department , which consulted with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services , said that state health officials concur that given the course Giuliani ’ s illness , it is “ extremely likely ” that Trump ’ s lawyer was “ contagious ” during his testimony .
The Ingham County Health Department noted that people who contract COVID-19 are contagious in the two days prior to experiencing symptoms or testing positive for the infectious disease if asymptomatic .
The department also acknowledged @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is “ highly indicative of onset prior to Saturday making Wednesday a likely exposure date.
” “ Anyone who did not wear a face covering during the proceedings must quarantine , ” Ingham County Health Department said .
“ Also , anyone who was within 6 feet of Giuliani for 15 minutes , which can be cumulative rather than a single 15-minute period ( regardless of mask usage ) , must quarantine.
” After noting that Giuliani was hospitalized with COVID-19 only a few days after “ being in a confined conference room @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mask , ” Ingham County Health Officer Linda Vail said that she ’ s also concerned over the many attendees who appeared sans mask .
“ This is the highest level of risk .
Those who were present without a mask and those who were within 6 feet of Mayor Giuliani must quarantine for the safety of others , ” Vail said .
“ I wish Mayor Giuliani a full and speedy recovery.
” The Ingham County Health Department cited CDC guidance in issuing its quarantine advisory .
Although the standard length of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has recently revised its quarantine guidelines to 10 days following COVID-19 exposure .
Giuliani ’ s maskless appearance at a legislative session in Michigan last week came amid his travel blitz to peddle the sitting president ’ s fruitless legal attempts to overturn election results .
In addition to his maskless appearance at a legislative session in Michigan last week , Giuliani also appeared sans mask at a hearing in Atlanta at the Georgia Capitol , and in Arizona where he and fellow Trump campaign lawyer Jenna Ellis spoke at an informal hearing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Shortly after Trump announced that Giuliani tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday , Arizona Senate Chief of staff Wendy Baldo informed all senators that “ due to COVID-19 concerns and out of an abundance of caution , ” the chamber would be closed the entire week .

Those who witnessed Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani in the flesh as he spewed misleading voter fraud claims during a Michigan House Oversight Committee hearing last week have been advised to quarantine through at least Dec. 12, following Giuliani’s COVID-19 diagnosis and hospitalization.
A day after Giuliani’s COVID-19 diagnosis was announced by President Trump, Ingham County Health Department issued a press release saying that individuals who were within six feet of the maskless Giuliani during the highly unusual legislative session in Michigan — which lasted more than four hours — must quarantine because it’s very likely they were exposed to COVID-19.
The Ingham County Health Department, which consulted with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, said that state health officials concur that given the course Giuliani’s illness, it is “extremely likely” that Trump’s lawyer was “contagious” during his testimony.
The Ingham County Health Department noted that people who contract COVID-19 are contagious in the two days prior to experiencing symptoms or testing positive for the infectious disease if asymptomatic. The department also acknowledged that Giuliani’s hospitalization on Sunday is “highly indicative of onset prior to Saturday making Wednesday a likely exposure date.”
“Anyone who did not wear a face covering during the proceedings must quarantine,” Ingham County Health Department said. “Also, anyone who was within 6 feet of Giuliani for 15 minutes, which can be cumulative rather than a single 15-minute period (regardless of mask usage), must quarantine.”
After noting that Giuliani was hospitalized with COVID-19 only a few days after “being in a confined conference room in Lansing for several hours without a mask,” Ingham County Health Officer Linda Vail said that she’s also concerned over the many attendees who appeared sans mask.
“This is the highest level of risk. Those who were present without a mask and those who were within 6 feet of Mayor Giuliani must quarantine for the safety of others,” Vail said. “I wish Mayor Giuliani a full and speedy recovery.”
The Ingham County Health Department cited CDC guidance in issuing its quarantine advisory. Although the standard length of quarantine is 14 days, the CDC has recently revised its quarantine guidelines to 10 days following COVID-19 exposure.
Giuliani’s maskless appearance at a legislative session in Michigan last week came amid his travel blitz to peddle the sitting president’s fruitless legal attempts to overturn election results.
In addition to his maskless appearance at a legislative session in Michigan last week, Giuliani also appeared sans mask at a hearing in Atlanta at the Georgia Capitol, and in Arizona where he and fellow Trump campaign lawyer Jenna Ellis spoke at an informal hearing in Phoenix with nine GOP lawmakers.
Shortly after Trump announced that Giuliani tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday, Arizona Senate Chief of staff Wendy Baldo informed all senators that “due to COVID-19 concerns and out of an abundance of caution,” the chamber would be closed the entire week.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--Report: Trump Admin Passed On Millions Of Pfizer Vaccine Doses

The Trump administration declined a late summer offer from Pfizer to purchase more doses of its COVID-19 vaccine , the New York Times reports .
That may mean that the U.S. will be unable to receive more doses from Pfizer beyond the initial 100 million that it purchased until June 2021 , the newspaper reported .
The European Union signed a contract for 200 million doses of the vaccine .
Pfizer ’ s vaccine requires two doses to be effective , meaning that the Trump administration secured doses for 50 million people .
The administration signed a similar contract for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two-shot vaccine , suggesting that the federal government has secured doses to inoculate 100 million Americans from the two candidates on the verge of regulatory approval .
It wasn ’ t clear why the Trump administration refused the offer from Pfizer .
When Operation Warp Speed initially purchased doses of the vaccine , the contract came with an option to purchase 500 million more .
Forbes reported on Monday that HHS has not exercised that option .
Pfizer told the Times that “ the company is not able to comment on any confidential @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the U.S. government .
”

The Trump administration declined a late summer offer from Pfizer to purchase more doses of its COVID-19 vaccine, the New York Times reports.
That may mean that the U.S. will be unable to receive more doses from Pfizer beyond the initial 100 million that it purchased until June 2021, the newspaper reported. The European Union signed a contract for 200 million doses of the vaccine.
Pfizer’s vaccine requires two doses to be effective, meaning that the Trump administration secured doses for 50 million people. The administration signed a similar contract for 100 million doses of Moderna’s two-shot vaccine, suggesting that the federal government has secured doses to inoculate 100 million Americans from the two candidates on the verge of regulatory approval.
It wasn’t clear why the Trump administration refused the offer from Pfizer. When Operation Warp Speed initially purchased doses of the vaccine, the contract came with an option to purchase 500 million more.
Forbes reported on Monday that HHS has not exercised that option. Pfizer told the Times that “the company is not able to comment on any confidential discussions that may be taking place with the U.S. government.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--Why Raffensperger’s Stacey Abrams-Donald Trump Comparison Is Absolutely Bogus

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger , a Republican who ’ s had his name tarred by the President , his state ’ s governor and its two senators for refusing to parrot baseless election fraud accusations , penned an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal Sunday arguing that President Donald Trump is simply running the “ Stacey Abrams playbook.
” He compared Trump ’ s post-election lying , refusal to concede and attempt to get the election overturned to Abrams ’ 2018 speech calling out her opponent , the triumphant Gov .
Brian Kemp , for pinning his “ hopes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people ’ s democratic right to vote.
” Abrams said then that to concede would be to acknowledge that an action was “ right , true or proper , ” something she could not do .
Raffensperger on Sunday argued that this is exactly the same as what Trump is up to in 2020 .
“ Establishing a playbook that President Trump is following to the letter now , Ms. Abrams refused to concede , announced that she would launch major litigation against Georgia ’ s election system , and began collecting hundreds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the election had been stolen from her , ” Raffensperger wrote , outlining the thesis of his argument .
Yet , while written to sound similar , none of Abrams ’ actions are in reality at all comparable to what Trump has done .
Though Abrams did , technically , refuse to concede when she spoke after the election , she still accepted publicly that Kemp would be governor of Georgia .
“ I acknowledge that former Secretary of State Brian Kemp will be certified as the victor in the 2018 gubernatorial election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that would make headlines today were Trump to make the equivalent admission about President-Elect Joe Biden .
“ Quibbling what the word concession and the like is not constructive or helpful , ” Myrna Perez , director of voting and election rights at NYU ’ s Brennan Center , told TPM .
“ She accepted that she was not gon na have that office and didn ’ t fight to the bitter end to protract and delay the moving forward.
” Trump , meanwhile , held up Biden ’ s transition for weeks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stance of independence for a Republican lawmaker to call Biden by his rightful title : President-Elect .
“ In 2020 we ’ re now more than a month past Election Day , ” noted Jeffrey Lewis Lazarus , a political science professor at Georgia State University .
“ There has been a hand-recount and a second recount and the votes are certified .
Even so , Republicans are refusing to give up their fantasy of a rigged election.
” On Raffensperger ’ s second point , the “ major litigation ” was not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election à la the dozens of flimsy lawsuits filed by Trump ’ s campaign and allied lawyers in swing states he lost — almost all of which have been laughed out of court .
Abrams ’ was a lawsuit filed by her then-new organization Fair Fight to reform voter registration , ballot access and ballot counting processes going forward .
“ Since then , [ Abrams ] has spent her efforts expanding access to the ballot and promoting and encouraging a robust and participatory democracy , ” Perez said of the disparate legal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re seeing now are efforts to get ballots discounted and thrown out , efforts to get rules in place to make it harder for people to cast ballots that count.
” The fundraising too was for Fair Fight , which has since become the best-funded political action committee in Georgia .
It was not , as in Trump ’ s case , a sneaky way to funnel supporters ’ money into a slush-fund under the guise of helping him overturn the election .
The key distinction , experts told TPM , was how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said were unfair .
Abrams looked toward future elections in which she championed reforms , while Trump tried to undo the past .
“ If President Trump had been able to channel his grievance into 1 ) an acknowledgment that Biden would be the next President , 2 ) a list of ( real ) identified problems , coupled with 3 ) ( real ) calls for productive and meaningful reform , I think ( some ) opponents might even have recognized the maturity of that move , ” Justin Levitt , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , told TPM in an email .
Abrams said that she couldn ’ t traditionally concede because the election was marred by a combination of voter suppression and mismanagement , which left voters stripped from the rolls , waiting in hours-long lines or confronted by unexpectedly closed or understaffed polling places .
She blamed Kemp , who refused to give up his job as secretary of state even when it meant overseeing the administration of his own election , as directly responsible for both malicious voter suppression and plain old incompetence .
Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ loss , his attention flitting to different myths of convenience — ballots in duffel bags , double voting , hacked voting systems and switched votes — like an ADD moth to flames .
“ In 2018 , Brian Kemp took advantage of his position as Georgia Secretary State to place real obstacles in the way of likely Democratic voters , primarily African Americans , making it harder for them to vote in numerous different ways , ” Lazarus said .
But this time , he added , “ Republicans themselves are , once @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of State ’ s office , and thus the state ’ s voting apparatus , so there ’ s no way for Democrats to have influenced the outcome the way Trump and allies are accusing.
” Raffensperger ’ s attempt to both-sides Trump ’ s democracy shredding may be an effort to remind those within his party that he is , indeed , one of them — a Republican .
But it has the dangerous potential to normalize what Trump is doing , to make people believe there is a rich history of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ system on her way out .
Trump has done everything — both within the legal boundaries and , reportedly , without — to get the results of the 2020 election overturned so he can remain in office .
Abrams pointed out a slew of suppression and mismanagement that contributed to her loss , and devoted herself to making the system better going forward .
“ It ’ s not in any way , shape or form a fair comparison , ” Lazarus said .

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican who’s had his name tarred by the President, his state’s governor and its two senators for refusing to parrot baseless election fraud accusations, penned an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal Sunday arguing that President Donald Trump is simply running the “Stacey Abrams playbook.”
He compared Trump’s post-election lying, refusal to concede and attempt to get the election overturned to Abrams’ 2018 speech calling out her opponent, the triumphant Gov. Brian Kemp, for pinning his “hopes for election on the suppression of the people’s democratic right to vote.” Abrams said then that to concede would be to acknowledge that an action was “right, true or proper,” something she could not do.
Raffensperger on Sunday argued that this is exactly the same as what Trump is up to in 2020.
“Establishing a playbook that President Trump is following to the letter now, Ms. Abrams refused to concede, announced that she would launch major litigation against Georgia’s election system, and began collecting hundreds of millions of dollars from donors convinced the election had been stolen from her,” Raffensperger wrote, outlining the thesis of his argument.
Yet, while written to sound similar, none of Abrams’ actions are in reality at all comparable to what Trump has done.
Though Abrams did, technically, refuse to concede when she spoke after the election, she still accepted publicly that Kemp would be governor of Georgia.
“I acknowledge that former Secretary of State Brian Kemp will be certified as the victor in the 2018 gubernatorial election,” she said — a pronouncement that would make headlines today were Trump to make the equivalent admission about President-Elect Joe Biden.
“Quibbling what the word concession and the like is not constructive or helpful,” Myrna Perez, director of voting and election rights at NYU’s Brennan Center, told TPM. “She accepted that she was not gonna have that office and didn’t fight to the bitter end to protract and delay the moving forward.”
Trump, meanwhile, held up Biden’s transition for weeks. He turned it into a courageous stance of independence for a Republican lawmaker to call Biden by his rightful title: President-Elect.
“In 2020 we’re now more than a month past Election Day,” noted Jeffrey Lewis Lazarus, a political science professor at Georgia State University. “There has been a hand-recount and a second recount and the votes are certified. Even so, Republicans are refusing to give up their fantasy of a rigged election.”
On Raffensperger’s second point, the “major litigation” was not an attempt by Abrams to overturn the election à la the dozens of flimsy lawsuits filed by Trump’s campaign and allied lawyers in swing states he lost — almost all of which have been laughed out of court. Abrams’ was a lawsuit filed by her then-new organization Fair Fight to reform voter registration, ballot access and ballot counting processes going forward.
“Since then, [Abrams] has spent her efforts expanding access to the ballot and promoting and encouraging a robust and participatory democracy,” Perez said of the disparate legal efforts. “Whereas what we’re seeing now are efforts to get ballots discounted and thrown out, efforts to get rules in place to make it harder for people to cast ballots that count.”
The fundraising too was for Fair Fight, which has since become the best-funded political action committee in Georgia. It was not, as in Trump’s case, a sneaky way to funnel supporters’ money into a slush-fund under the guise of helping him overturn the election.
The key distinction, experts told TPM, was how the two acted after the elections they said were unfair. Abrams looked toward future elections in which she championed reforms, while Trump tried to undo the past.
“If President Trump had been able to channel his grievance into 1) an acknowledgment that Biden would be the next President, 2) a list of (real) identified problems, coupled with 3) (real) calls for productive and meaningful reform, I think (some) opponents might even have recognized the maturity of that move,” Justin Levitt, a constitutional law professor at Loyola Law School, told TPM in an email.
Abrams said that she couldn’t traditionally concede because the election was marred by a combination of voter suppression and mismanagement, which left voters stripped from the rolls, waiting in hours-long lines or confronted by unexpectedly closed or understaffed polling places. She blamed Kemp, who refused to give up his job as secretary of state even when it meant overseeing the administration of his own election, as directly responsible for both malicious voter suppression and plain old incompetence.
Trump has baselessly blamed voter fraud for his loss, his attention flitting to different myths of convenience — ballots in duffel bags, double voting, hacked voting systems and switched votes — like an ADD moth to flames.
“In 2018, Brian Kemp took advantage of his position as Georgia Secretary State to place real obstacles in the way of likely Democratic voters, primarily African Americans, making it harder for them to vote in numerous different ways,” Lazarus said. But this time, he added, “Republicans themselves are, once again, in control of the Secretary of State’s office, and thus the state’s voting apparatus, so there’s no way for Democrats to have influenced the outcome the way Trump and allies are accusing.”
Raffensperger’s attempt to both-sides Trump’s democracy shredding may be an effort to remind those within his party that he is, indeed, one of them — a Republican. But it has the dangerous potential to normalize what Trump is doing, to make people believe there is a rich history of the loser attempting to torch the whole system on her way out.
Trump has done everything — both within the legal boundaries and, reportedly, without — to get the results of the 2020 election overturned so he can remain in office. Abrams pointed out a slew of suppression and mismanagement that contributed to her loss, and devoted herself to making the system better going forward.
“It’s not in any way, shape or form a fair comparison,” Lazarus said.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--Peter Navarro Becomes Latest Trump Official To Violate Hatch Act

The White House ’ s top trade advisor has now become the latest administration official to have violated the firewall between politics and government .
Peter Navarro repeatedly violated the Hatch Act over several months in 2020 with attacks against Joe Biden , the Office of Special Counsel said in a report released Monday .
The Hatch Act , which Trump officials are famously fond of violating , is the decades-old law that prohibits federal employees from using their positions for political purposes .
In August , the Daily Beast reported that senior administration officials “ widely view the law @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the OSC ’ s findings , certainly treated it like one .
Even after being alerted in July that he was the subject of a Hatch Act complaint , the White House adviser violated the law over and over again in the months that followed .
Between May and October , the office ’ s report found , Navarro violated the Hatch Act in at least six separate interviews , referring to then-candidate Joe Biden at various times as being “ compromised ” and susceptible to being “ bought ” by China .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , even took to calling Biden “ Beijing Biden ” — all while working as a public servant employed by the American people .
“ We need a tough president like Donald J. Trump in the White House , not the pushover in Joe , ” the report quoted Navarro as saying in one late-August interview .
The report is entirely based on public interviews and tweets from Navarro .
Among other things , Navarro attacked Biden in October over the content of emails that Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani claimed had come from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ We know who ’ s laid down for China and now all this news about Hunter and emails and all that stuff , ” Navarro told Fox Business Network ’ s Maria Bartiromo .
“ You wonder why the mainstream media won ’ t cover that , but my gosh , if any of that stuff is true it ’ s just unbelievable.
” Perhaps the lasting legacy of the Hatch Act in the Trump administration is its total toothless-ness .
For example , after OSC recommended in 2019 that White House counselor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ violations… nothing happened .
In October of this year , OSC determined that Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue had committed a fairly obvious violation of the law when he led a “ four more years ” chant in North Carolina during an official department event .
In all , fourteen senior Trump political appointees have been cited by OSC for violations , according to The Guardian ’ s count .
A few days after the Perdue decision , OSC confirmed that it was launching an investigation into Secretary of State Mike Pompeo over his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more of former Secretary Hillary Clinton ’ s emails before the 2020 election .
Pompeo , who also faces a separate Hatch Act investigation for delivering a Republican National Convention speech from Jerusalem , showed no signs of stopping Monday : The Associated Press reported that he was set to travel to Georgia — the state , not the country — this week to deliver a speech , just weeks before two crucial U.S. Senate runoff elections there .
TPM ’ s request for comment to White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spokesperson for the Trump campaign ’ s legal effort to overturn the 2020 election results — went unanswered .

The White House’s top trade advisor has now become the latest administration official to have violated the firewall between politics and government.
Peter Navarro repeatedly violated the Hatch Act over several months in 2020 with attacks against Joe Biden, the Office of Special Counsel said in a report released Monday.
The Hatch Act, which Trump officials are famously fond of violating, is the decades-old law that prohibits federal employees from using their positions for political purposes. In August, the Daily Beast reported that senior administration officials “widely view the law as a joke.”
Navarro, per the OSC’s findings, certainly treated it like one. Even after being alerted in July that he was the subject of a Hatch Act complaint, the White House adviser violated the law over and over again in the months that followed.
Between May and October, the office’s report found, Navarro violated the Hatch Act in at least six separate interviews, referring to then-candidate Joe Biden at various times as being “compromised” and susceptible to being “bought” by China. Navarro, in interviews and on Twitter, even took to calling Biden “Beijing Biden” — all while working as a public servant employed by the American people.
“We need a tough president like Donald J. Trump in the White House, not the pushover in Joe,” the report quoted Navarro as saying in one late-August interview.
The report is entirely based on public interviews and tweets from Navarro. Among other things, Navarro attacked Biden in October over the content of emails that Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani claimed had come from Hunter Biden’s laptop.
“We know who’s laid down for China and now all this news about Hunter and emails and all that stuff,” Navarro told Fox Business Network’s Maria Bartiromo. “You wonder why the mainstream media won’t cover that, but my gosh, if any of that stuff is true it’s just unbelievable.”
Perhaps the lasting legacy of the Hatch Act in the Trump administration is its total toothless-ness. For example, after OSC recommended in 2019 that White House counselor Kellyanne Conway lose her job after multiple violations… nothing happened.
In October of this year, OSC determined that Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue had committed a fairly obvious violation of the law when he led a “four more years” chant in North Carolina during an official department event. In all, fourteen senior Trump political appointees have been cited by OSC for violations, according to The Guardian’s count.
A few days after the Perdue decision, OSC confirmed that it was launching an investigation into Secretary of State Mike Pompeo over his stated expectation that the department would publish more of former Secretary Hillary Clinton’s emails before the 2020 election.
Pompeo, who also faces a separate Hatch Act investigation for delivering a Republican National Convention speech from Jerusalem, showed no signs of stopping Monday: The Associated Press reported that he was set to travel to Georgia — the state, not the country — this week to deliver a speech, just weeks before two crucial U.S. Senate runoff elections there.
TPM’s request for comment to White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany — who’s also served as a spokesperson for the Trump campaign’s legal effort to overturn the 2020 election results — went unanswered.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--A New Bunker? Reports Hint Trump May Just Stay In FL For Holidays And Never Return

President Trump is reportedly considering a new but familiar place to bunker down in for the holidays as aides speculate whether the sitting president will leave the White House for the holidays — and never come back , according to CNN and the New York Times on Monday .
CNN and the Times reported that there are plans for Trump to stay at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach over Christmas and New Year ’ s , but that staffers haven ’ t been given guidance beyond the President ’ s plans for holiday season .
A White House official @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Washington to ride out the final days of his presidency .
Yet there have also been some discussions about Trump and the first lady staying put in Florida and not returning to the White House .
Sources at Mar-a-Lago and in Washington told CNN that there is no current schedule signaling that the first couple will stay in Florida after New Years .
Trump ’ s original plans for Thanksgiving involved a visit to Mar-a-Lago until he reportedly canceled his trip amid his private quarters at his Florida estate undergoing renovations ahead of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ term concludes .
One source told CNN that Trump potentially staying in Florida later this month and never returning to the White House was “ pure speculation.
” According to CNN , staffers recognize that Trump has been tight-lipped about his plans once the Electoral College affirms President-elect Joe Biden ’ s win on December 14 .
Trump has continued fuming unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud in his fruitless legal attempts to overturn election results .

President Trump is reportedly considering a new but familiar place to bunker down in for the holidays as aides speculate whether the sitting president will leave the White House for the holidays — and never come back, according to CNN and the New York Times on Monday.
CNN and the Times reported that there are plans for Trump to stay at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach over Christmas and New Year’s, but that staffers haven’t been given guidance beyond the President’s plans for holiday season.
A White House official told CNN that Trump may return to Washington to ride out the final days of his presidency. Yet there have also been some discussions about Trump and the first lady staying put in Florida and not returning to the White House.
Sources at Mar-a-Lago and in Washington told CNN that there is no current schedule signaling that the first couple will stay in Florida after New Years.
Trump’s original plans for Thanksgiving involved a visit to Mar-a-Lago until he reportedly canceled his trip amid his private quarters at his Florida estate undergoing renovations ahead of his potential move there permanently after his term concludes.
One source told CNN that Trump potentially staying in Florida later this month and never returning to the White House was “pure speculation.”
According to CNN, staffers recognize that Trump has been tight-lipped about his plans once the Electoral College affirms President-elect Joe Biden’s win on December 14. Trump has continued fuming unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud in his fruitless legal attempts to overturn election results.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--Pentagon Adviser Resigns In Protest Over Lewandowski And Bossie Appointments

A member of the Pentagon ’ s Defense Business Board quit in protest on Monday after Trump loyalists Corey Lewandowski @ @ @ @ @ to the board last week .
“ My service to the Department of Defense was @ @ @ @ @ , not to a party .
I hereby tender my resignation , ” Steve Blank @ @ @ @ @ acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller in his resignation letter , per CNN .
Blank @ @ @ @ @ decision to fire several of the board members before installing Lewandowski and Bossie , who @ @ @ @ @ 2016 campaign manager and deputy campaign manager , respectively .
“ The abrupt termination of @ @ @ @ @ Defense Business Board and their replacement with political partisans has now put the nation ’ @ @ @ @ @ risk , ” Blank wrote .
The stunning appointments followed a sweeping purge that saw @ @ @ @ @ the traditionally nonpartisan board .

A member of the Pentagon’s Defense Business Board quit in protest on Monday after Trump loyalists Corey Lewandowski and David Bossie were appointed to the board last week.
“My service to the Department of Defense was a service to the country, not to a party. I hereby tender my resignation,” Steve Blank, the member, told acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller in his resignation letter, per CNN.
Blank slammed the administration’s decision to fire several of the board members before installing Lewandowski and Bossie, who served as Trump’s 2016 campaign manager and deputy campaign manager, respectively.
“The abrupt termination of more than half of the Defense Business Board and their replacement with political partisans has now put the nation’s safety and security at risk,” Blank wrote.
The stunning appointments followed a sweeping purge that saw nine people get ousted from the traditionally nonpartisan board.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--Thanks, COVID: Gallup Survey Shows Americans’ Mental Health Taking A Hit

We can blame COVID for that .
A Gallup survey published Monday shows that Americans ’ assessment of their mental health has plummeted to its lowest point in the last two decades .
According to Gallup , a Nov. 5-19 showed that 76 % of adults rate their mental health positively , a nine-point decline from last year .
Since 2001 , Gallup reported that Americans responded to its annual November Health and Healthcare survey by rating their mental health as excellent or good within the range of 81 % to 89 % — until this year ’ s 76 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s excellent ratings are 8 points lower than any prior year .
A majority of adults rate their mental health as excellent ( 34 % ) or good ( 42 % ) , and far fewer say it is only fair ( 18 % ) or poor ( 5 % ) .
Gallup noted that the weakening of positive ratings are “ undoubtedly influenced ” by the COVID-19 pandemic that has significantly upended people ’ s lives .
The political climate of the country , given the presidential election cycle and protests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could have also influenced Americans ’ decline in positive mental health ratings .
In April , Gallup ’ s ongoing COVID-19 tracking survey found that Americans were willing to comply with social distancing guidelines as long as necessary before their physical health and financial situation suffered .
However , less than half said the same of their mental health .
Mental and emotional wellbeing varies across demographic subgroups .
The groups whose ratings of their mental health as excellent fell by double digits since 2019 include : women , Republicans , independents , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weekly , White adults , those who are unmarried , older adults , and lower-income Americans .
According to Gallup , Democrats and frequent church attendees show the least change in their mental health ratings .
Gallup notes that subgroups who indicated the greatest declines in excellent mental health aren ’ t necessarily linked to those who ranked the lowest positive ratings , citing how more Republicans and independents than Democrats ranked their mental health as excellent , while women rated theirs less positively than men .
Lower-income Americans , young adults , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or never attend religious services have the lowest excellent ratings .
Gallup noted that these demographic patterns have been mostly consistent over the past 20 years .
Gallup conducted phone interviews with a random sample of 1,018 adults , ages 18+ , living in all 50 states and the District of Columbia .
The margin of sampling error is 4 percentage points at the 95 % confidence level .

We can blame COVID for that.
A Gallup survey published Monday shows that Americans’ assessment of their mental health has plummeted to its lowest point in the last two decades.
According to Gallup, a Nov. 5-19 showed that 76% of adults rate their mental health positively, a nine-point decline from last year.
Since 2001, Gallup reported that Americans responded to its annual November Health and Healthcare survey by rating their mental health as excellent or good within the range of 81% to 89% — until this year’s 76%.
Gallup reported that this year’s excellent ratings are 8 points lower than any prior year. A majority of adults rate their mental health as excellent (34%) or good (42%), and far fewer say it is only fair (18%) or poor (5%).
Gallup noted that the weakening of positive ratings are “undoubtedly influenced” by the COVID-19 pandemic that has significantly upended people’s lives. The political climate of the country, given the presidential election cycle and protests against police brutality throughout the year, could have also influenced Americans’ decline in positive mental health ratings.
In April, Gallup’s ongoing COVID-19 tracking survey found that Americans were willing to comply with social distancing guidelines as long as necessary before their physical health and financial situation suffered. However, less than half said the same of their mental health.
Mental and emotional wellbeing varies across demographic subgroups. The groups whose ratings of their mental health as excellent fell by double digits since 2019 include: women, Republicans, independents, those who attend religious services less than weekly, White adults, those who are unmarried, older adults, and lower-income Americans. According to Gallup, Democrats and frequent church attendees show the least change in their mental health ratings.
Gallup notes that subgroups who indicated the greatest declines in excellent mental health aren’t necessarily linked to those who ranked the lowest positive ratings, citing how more Republicans and independents than Democrats ranked their mental health as excellent, while women rated theirs less positively than men.
Lower-income Americans, young adults, the unmarried, and those who seldom or never attend religious services have the lowest excellent ratings. Gallup noted that these demographic patterns have been mostly consistent over the past 20 years.
Gallup conducted phone interviews with a random sample of 1,018 adults, ages 18+, living in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The margin of sampling error is 4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--Azar Lays Out Timeline For COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution For Healthy Adults

Health and Human Services ( HHS ) Secretary Alex Azar said on Monday that the general adult population in the @ @ @ @ @ the COVID-19 vaccine by mid-2021 .
“ Yes , by the second quarter of next @ @ @ @ @ when Axios reporter Mike Allen asked if the vaccine will be “ widely available ” @ @ @ @ @ in the country by spring .
“ My expectation is that next year we return @ @ @ @ @ thanks to the incredible work of Operation Warp Speed and these vaccines , ” the @ @ @ @

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar said on Monday that the general adult population in the U.S. will have access to the COVID-19 vaccine by mid-2021.
“Yes, by the second quarter of next year,” Azar replied when Axios reporter Mike Allen asked if the vaccine will be “widely available” to “any adult” in the country by spring.
“My expectation is that next year we return to normalcy in our lives thanks to the incredible work of Operation Warp Speed and these vaccines,” the Trump official added.
Watch Azar below:


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--The Latest Snafus In Trump’s Hijacking Of The Census Were Entirely Predictable

President Trump should not be surprised that his anti-immigrant apportionment gambit is on the brink of collapse because of logistical issues with the census .
The risks of rushing the census so the data could be produced before he left office were laid out by the bureau itself earlier this year .
The Census Bureau last week identified another round of snags — known within the bureau as “ anomalies ” — that are likely to delay the release of the census apportionment data until after Trump leaves office .
Without those numbers , Trump will be unable to implement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from that count , which determines the number of House seats and Electoral College votes each state gets .
A few weeks ago , as TPM initially reported , the Census Bureau was already warning that anomalies that had been identified were threatening plans to release the data in early January .
But the administration ’ s Trump-appointed leaders have continued to spin that sticking to close to that timeline remained possible .
After a Sunday evening meeting among career experts to discuss the scope of the new anomalies , it was not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would affect the timeline for delivering the apportionment data , according to a source within the bureau .
But the anomalies are not going to be an easy fix , the source said , and it is expected to take some time to investigate and resolve the issues .
Every census , the bureau identifies these kinds of snags .
The survey ’ s processing period after the data collection ends — a period that usually lasts around five months —is designed so that the bureau can work through these issues .
However @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bureau trim four months off the coronavirus-related extended timeline it had laid out for dealing with the pandemic ’ s disruptions to the count , that left only two and half months for processing .
The move to truncate that schedule is widely believed to be motivated by the administration ’ s desire to guarantee that Trump is still in office to implement the anti-immigrant policy , as the extended timeline would have given the bureau until late March 2021 to finish processing the apportionment data .
The bureau was informed of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ days after Trump announced the policy .
Not surprisingly , several of the anomalies identified in recent days are related to aspects of the count most disrupted by COVID-19 , going to show why the bureau had requested the four extra months to overcome these challenges .
Ironically , at least some of the anomalies would have been caught much earlier in the process , had the bureau not been forced , with the administration expedition order , to cut a specific review step that helps vet the data in question .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some level of desperation , to complete data processing on a rushed timeline simply highlights the folly of this administration ’ s effort to force the bureau to produce numbers for congressional apportionment before the bureau is able to do so , ” Terri Ann Lowenthal , a former House staffer who now consults on census issues , told TPM .
She spoke to TPM on Friday afternoon , as buzz about the new anomalies began traveling through the community of outside bureau observers .
The New York Times was first to confirm @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Friday evening , and they were later confirmed by NPR .
The Census Bureau ’ s press shop has not yet weighed in on the development .
Several of the anomalies the bureau has identified are related to what ’ s known as “ group quarters , ” i.e .
nursing homes , colleges , prisons and other settings where large groups of people live together .
Even before the pandemic , some aspects of how the 2020 survey would count group quarters were untested ; because of budget constraints , the bureau @ @ @ @ @ @ @ planned for these operations in its end-to-end test in 2018 .
But the pandemic presented unique challenges to counting group quarters populations .
Nursing homes weren ’ t eager to let census enumerators in to do their data collection .
College students were fleeing campuses right as the census was getting started .
The risks these dynamics posed for the survey ’ s accuracy were compounded when the administration began pressuring the bureau to deliver the data by the end of the year — the statutory deadline — even though earlier in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the four-month extension .
The bureau has insisted that the steps it would take to speed up its schedule wouldn ’ t come at a cost to the accuracy .
One of the adjustments it did make , however , severely limited the opportunity the bureau usually gives state demographers to do a preliminary review of the group quarters count .
The step , which was supposed to take place in September , could have helped avert the hiccups the bureau is running into now , according to a source within the bureau @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entire list of group quarters that were counted , to help identify for the Census Bureau which settings they might have missed while there was still time to get back in the field to enumerate those populations .
For instance , they might find that the bureau has skipped over counting a prison that could amount to a fifth of a county ’ s population , Robert Rhatigan , a New Mexico state demographer , told TPM .
Because that review was scaled back , he said “ there was no independent verification @ @ @ @ @ @ @ counted.
” Cutting that step was mentioned in a presentation the bureau ’ s experts gave Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross in August , on how it could speed up its schedule to meet the Dec. 31 deadline .
The presentation warned that the truncating the overall review phase that is now under way “ creates risk for errors being present in the data.
” It turned out , the bureau knew what it was talking about when it gave Ross that warning .

President Trump should not be surprised that his anti-immigrant apportionment gambit is on the brink of collapse because of logistical issues with the census. The risks of rushing the census so the data could be produced before he left office were laid out by the bureau itself earlier this year.
The Census Bureau last week identified another round of snags — known within the bureau as “anomalies” — that are likely to delay the release of the census apportionment data until after Trump leaves office.
Without those numbers, Trump will be unable to implement an unprecedented policy of excluding undocumented immigrants from that count, which determines the number of House seats and Electoral College votes each state gets.
A few weeks ago, as TPM initially reported, the Census Bureau was already warning that anomalies that had been identified were threatening plans to release the data in early January. But the administration’s Trump-appointed leaders have continued to spin that sticking to close to that timeline remained possible.
After a Sunday evening meeting among career experts to discuss the scope of the new anomalies, it was not clear how the latest round of anomalies would affect the timeline for delivering the apportionment data, according to a source within the bureau. But the anomalies are not going to be an easy fix, the source said, and it is expected to take some time to investigate and resolve the issues.
Every census, the bureau identifies these kinds of snags. The survey’s processing period after the data collection ends — a period that usually lasts around five months —is designed so that the bureau can work through these issues.
However, because the administration demanded that the bureau trim four months off the coronavirus-related extended timeline it had laid out for dealing with the pandemic’s disruptions to the count, that left only two and half months for processing.
The move to truncate that schedule is widely believed to be motivated by the administration’s desire to guarantee that Trump is still in office to implement the anti-immigrant policy, as the extended timeline would have given the bureau until late March 2021 to finish processing the apportionment data. The bureau was informed of the need to speed up the count just days after Trump announced the policy.
Not surprisingly, several of the anomalies identified in recent days are related to aspects of the count most disrupted by COVID-19, going to show why the bureau had requested the four extra months to overcome these challenges. Ironically, at least some of the anomalies would have been caught much earlier in the process, had the bureau not been forced, with the administration expedition order, to cut a specific review step that helps vet the data in question.
“This day by day urgency, with some level of desperation, to complete data processing on a rushed timeline simply highlights the folly of this administration’s effort to force the bureau to produce numbers for congressional apportionment before the bureau is able to do so,” Terri Ann Lowenthal, a former House staffer who now consults on census issues, told TPM. She spoke to TPM on Friday afternoon, as buzz about the new anomalies began traveling through the community of outside bureau observers.
The New York Times was first to confirm the latest snags in a story published Friday evening, and they were later confirmed by NPR.
The Census Bureau’s press shop has not yet weighed in on the development.
Several of the anomalies the bureau has identified are related to what’s known as “group quarters,” i.e. nursing homes, colleges, prisons and other settings where large groups of people live together. Even before the pandemic, some aspects of how the 2020 survey would count group quarters were untested; because of budget constraints, the bureau had to rework the vetting it had planned for these operations in its end-to-end test in 2018.
But the pandemic presented unique challenges to counting group quarters populations. Nursing homes weren’t eager to let census enumerators in to do their data collection. College students were fleeing campuses right as the census was getting started.
The risks these dynamics posed for the survey’s accuracy were compounded when the administration began pressuring the bureau to deliver the data by the end of the year — the statutory deadline — even though earlier in the pandemic, President Trump supported Congress granting the four-month extension.
The bureau has insisted that the steps it would take to speed up its schedule wouldn’t come at a cost to the accuracy. One of the adjustments it did make, however, severely limited the opportunity the bureau usually gives state demographers to do a preliminary review of the group quarters count. The step, which was supposed to take place in September, could have helped avert the hiccups the bureau is running into now, according to a source within the bureau.
Typically, the demographers review the entire list of group quarters that were counted, to help identify for the Census Bureau which settings they might have missed while there was still time to get back in the field to enumerate those populations. For instance, they might find that the bureau has skipped over counting a prison that could amount to a fifth of a county’s population, Robert Rhatigan, a New Mexico state demographer, told TPM.
Because that review was scaled back, he said “there was no independent verification that all group quarter facilities were actually counted.”
Cutting that step was mentioned in a presentation the bureau’s experts gave Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross in August, on how it could speed up its schedule to meet the Dec. 31 deadline.
The presentation warned that the truncating the overall review phase that is now under way “creates risk for errors being present in the data.”
It turned out, the bureau knew what it was talking about when it gave Ross that warning.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-07--Loeffler Wouldn’t Admit That Trump Lost The Election During Debate

Sen. Kelly Loeffler ( R-GA ) refused to admit that President Donald Trump lost the election during a Sunday night debate , a day after Trump falsely declared himself the winner of the state at her and Sen. David Perdue ’ s ( R-GA ) campaign rally .
Loeffler got the first question of the night , about whether she believed that the election was rigged and supported Trump ’ s call for the legislature to hold a special session to somehow overturn the results .
“ It ’ s vitally important that Georgians trust our election process , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ The President has every right to every legal recourse , and that ’ s what ’ s taking place , but I ’ ve called for investigations.
” She did not directly respond to the followup question about whether the election was rigged , instead pointing out that the New Georgia Project is under investigation .
Reverend Raphael Warnock , her opponent , formerly ran the organization , which Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has named as being investigated for possible voter registration fraud .
The group ’ s CEO called @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the incident in question involved a volunteer sending a registration reminder to the wrong address by mistake .
Later on in the night , during a segment in which the candidates asked each other questions directly , Warnock pushed Loeffler to admit that Trump had lost the election .
She again repeated an iteration of her line about Trump having the right to legal recourse , and said that she ’ d called for a signature audit , a recent rallying point for Republicans trying to stay on Trump ’ s good @ @ @ @ @ @ @ while showing his base that they ’ re trying to reform the system for the runoff .
In reality , a signature audit could only happen by a court order at this point , per Raffensperger — plus , such an audit has already happened in the course of Georgia ’ s prodigious post-election recounting , auditing and recanvassing .
It would also be completely pointless , as officials would have no way to trace back a non-matching signature on an absentee ballot envelope to the vote it once contained .
One moderator @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by echoing back her line about everything being at stake in the January election .
Logically , if Trump has won a second term , Republicans would keep Senate control even if Loeffler and Perdue lose , as Vice President Mike Pence would cast the tie-break vote .
Loeffler countered that the Senate “ majority ” is at stake , something Republicans can only get if she or Perdue wins .
Besides Loeffler ’ s contortions , the debate was largely a regurgitation of the attacks currently found in the ads that are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tried to position Warnock as a radical , citing the same handful of snippets from his sermons as proof .
Warnock hit Loeffler on her pandemic response and stock trades , trying to make her out as only concerned about enriching herself .
Perdue refused to debate the other Democratic candidate , Jon Ossoff , after Ossoff had a viral moment during a pre-Nov. 3 debate during which he called Perdue a “ crook.
” Ossoff took the stage Sunday night next to an empty podium .
The day before , Trump had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Georgia , where he ensured that they ’ d continue to accommodate his fictions by spending nearly the entire speech airing his election grievances .
Raffensperger urged his fellow Republicans to move on from the conspiracy mongering at a Monday morning press conference .
“ It ’ s time we all focus on the future and growth , ” he said .
“ I know there are people that are convinced the election was fraught with problems .
But the evidence — the actual evidence , the facts — tell us a different @ @ @

Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) refused to admit that President Donald Trump lost the election during a Sunday night debate, a day after Trump falsely declared himself the winner of the state at her and Sen. David Perdue’s (R-GA) campaign rally.
Loeffler got the first question of the night, about whether she believed that the election was rigged and supported Trump’s call for the legislature to hold a special session to somehow overturn the results.
“It’s vitally important that Georgians trust our election process,” Loeffler said, largely ignoring the question. “The President has every right to every legal recourse, and that’s what’s taking place, but I’ve called for investigations.”
She did not directly respond to the followup question about whether the election was rigged, instead pointing out that the New Georgia Project is under investigation. Reverend Raphael Warnock, her opponent, formerly ran the organization, which Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has named as being investigated for possible voter registration fraud. The group’s CEO called his allegations “bogus,” saying that the incident in question involved a volunteer sending a registration reminder to the wrong address by mistake.
Later on in the night, during a segment in which the candidates asked each other questions directly, Warnock pushed Loeffler to admit that Trump had lost the election.
She again repeated an iteration of her line about Trump having the right to legal recourse, and said that she’d called for a signature audit, a recent rallying point for Republicans trying to stay on Trump’s good side by casting doubt on the election while showing his base that they’re trying to reform the system for the runoff.
Warnock asks Loeffler directly if Trump lost the election. Loeffler dodges the question pic.twitter.com/3uXg3BnXqZ — TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) December 7, 2020
In reality, a signature audit could only happen by a court order at this point, per Raffensperger — plus, such an audit has already happened in the course of Georgia’s prodigious post-election recounting, auditing and recanvassing. It would also be completely pointless, as officials would have no way to trace back a non-matching signature on an absentee ballot envelope to the vote it once contained.
One moderator tried to box Loeffler into a corner by echoing back her line about everything being at stake in the January election. Logically, if Trump has won a second term, Republicans would keep Senate control even if Loeffler and Perdue lose, as Vice President Mike Pence would cast the tie-break vote. Loeffler countered that the Senate “majority” is at stake, something Republicans can only get if she or Perdue wins.
Besides Loeffler’s contortions, the debate was largely a regurgitation of the attacks currently found in the ads that are inundating the people of Georgia. Loeffler tried to position Warnock as a radical, citing the same handful of snippets from his sermons as proof. Warnock hit Loeffler on her pandemic response and stock trades, trying to make her out as only concerned about enriching herself.
Perdue refused to debate the other Democratic candidate, Jon Ossoff, after Ossoff had a viral moment during a pre-Nov. 3 debate during which he called Perdue a “crook.” Ossoff took the stage Sunday night next to an empty podium.
The day before, Trump had stumped for the senators in Valdosta, Georgia, where he ensured that they’d continue to accommodate his fictions by spending nearly the entire speech airing his election grievances.
Raffensperger urged his fellow Republicans to move on from the conspiracy mongering at a Monday morning press conference.
“It’s time we all focus on the future and growth,” he said. “I know there are people that are convinced the election was fraught with problems. But the evidence — the actual evidence, the facts — tell us a different story.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-08--Biden Taps Retired Gen. Lloyd Austin To Be His Defense Secretary

WASHINGTON ( AP ) — President-elect Joe Biden will nominate retired four-star Army general Lloyd J. Austin to be secretary of defense , according to four people familiar with the decision .
If confirmed by the Senate , Austin would be the first Black leader of the Pentagon .
Biden selected Austin over the longtime front-runner candidate , Michele Flournoy , a former senior Pentagon official and Biden supporter who would have been the first woman to serve as defense secretary .
Biden also had considered Jeh Johnson , a former Pentagon general counsel and former secretary of homeland defense @ @ @ @ @ @ @ confirmed by four people with knowledge of the pick who spoke to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the selection hadn ’ t been formally announced .
Biden offered and Austin accepted the post on Sunday , according to a person familiar with the process .
As a career military officer , the 67-year-old Austin is likely to face opposition from some in Congress and in the defense establishment who believe in drawing a clear line between civilian and military leadership of the Pentagon .
Although many previous defense secretaries @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only two — George C. Marshall and James Mattis — have been career officers .
Marshall also served as secretary of state .
Like Mattis , Austin would need to obtain a congressional waiver to serve as defense secretary .
Congress intended civilian control of the military when it created the position of secretary of defense in 1947 and prohibited a recently retired military officer from holding the position .
One of the people who confirmed the pick said Austin ’ s selection was about choosing the best possible person but acknowledged that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of color and that Austin ’ s stock had risen in recent days .
Austin is a 1975 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and served 41 years in uniform .
Biden has known Austin at least since the general ’ s years leading U.S. and coalition troops in Iraq while Biden was vice president .
Austin was commander in Baghdad of the Multinational Corps-Iraq in 2008 when Barack Obama was elected president , and he returned to lead U.S. troops from 2010 through 2011 .
Among Austin ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2009-2010 he ran the joint staff during a portion of Navy Adm. Mike Mullen ’ s term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff .
Mullen had high praise for Austin .
“ Should President-elect Biden tap him for the job , Lloyd will make a superb secretary of defense , ” Mullen said in a statement late Monday night .
“ He knows firsthand the complex missions our men and women in uniform conduct around the world .
He puts a premium on alliances and partnerships .
He respects the need @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And he leads inclusively , calmly and confidently.
” Austin also served in 2012 as the first Black vice chief of staff of the Army , the service ’ s No .
2-ranking position .
A year later he assumed command of U.S. Central Command , where he fashioned and began implementing a U.S. military strategy for rolling back the Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria .
Austin retired from the Army in 2016 , and he would need a congressional waiver of the legal requirement that a former member of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seven years before serving as secretary of defense .
That waiver has been granted only twice — most recently in the case of Mattis , the retired Marine general who served as President Donald Trump ’ s first Pentagon chief .
The Mattis period at the Pentagon is now viewed by some as evidence of why a recently retired military officer should serve as defense secretary only in rare exceptions .
Although Mattis remains widely respected for his military prowess and intellect , critics say he tended to surround himself with military officers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ perspective .
He resigned in December 2018 in protest of Trump ’ s policies .
Loren DeJonge Schulman , who spent 10 years in senior staff positions at the Pentagon and the National Security Council , said she understands why Biden would seek out candidates with a deep understanding of the military .
However , she worries that appointing a general to a political role could prolong some of the damage caused by Trump ’ s politicization of the military .
“ But retired generals are not one-for-one substitutes of civilian leaders , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bring different skills and different perspectives , and great generals do not universally make good appointees.
” Austin has a reputation for strong leadership , integrity and a sharp intellect .
He would not be a prototypical defense secretary , not just because of his 41-year military career but also because he has shied from the public eye .
It would be an understatement to say he was a quiet general ; although he testified before Congress , he gave few interviews and preferred not to speak publicly about military operations .
When @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mince words .
In 2015 , in describing how the Islamic State army managed a year earlier to sweep across the Syrian border to grab control of large swaths of northern and western Iraq , Austin said the majority of Iraqi Sunnis simply refused to fight for their government .
“ They allowed — and in some cases facilitated — ISIS ’ s push through the country , ” Austin said .
He earned the admiration of the Obama administration for his work in Iraq and at Central Command , although he disagreed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out of Iraq entirely in December 2011 .
Austin was involved in the Iraq War from start to finish .
He served as an assistant commander of the 3rd Infantry Division during the invasion of Iraq in March 2003 and oversaw the withdrawal in 2011 .
When Austin retired in 2016 , Obama praised his “ character and competence , ” as well as his judgment and leadership .
One person familiar with the matter said Biden was drawn to Austin ’ s oversight of the Iraq pull-out , especially given the military @ @ @ @ @ @ @ distribution of the coronavirus vaccines .
Like many retired generals , Austin has served on corporate boards .
He is a member of the board of directors of Raytheon Technologies .
Word of Austin ’ s selection broke a day before a meeting between Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and civil rights groups , many of whom had pushed the president-elect to pick more Black Cabinet members .
The Rev .
Al Sharpton , the civil rights activist , said Monday : “ It ’ s a good choice that I think @ @ @ @ @ @ @ support .
It ’ s the first time we have seen a person of color in that position .
That means something , in a global view , especially after such an antagonistic relationship we had with the previous administration.
” Sharpton , who is set to be in the meeting with Biden on Tuesday , called the choice “ a step in the right direction but not the end of the walk.
” Politico first reported Biden ’ s selection of Austin .
___ Lemire reported from Wilmington , Delaware .
AP @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this report .

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden will nominate retired four-star Army general Lloyd J. Austin to be secretary of defense, according to four people familiar with the decision. If confirmed by the Senate, Austin would be the first Black leader of the Pentagon.
Biden selected Austin over the longtime front-runner candidate, Michele Flournoy, a former senior Pentagon official and Biden supporter who would have been the first woman to serve as defense secretary. Biden also had considered Jeh Johnson, a former Pentagon general counsel and former secretary of homeland defense.
The impending nomination of Austin was confirmed by four people with knowledge of the pick who spoke to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the selection hadn’t been formally announced. Biden offered and Austin accepted the post on Sunday, according to a person familiar with the process.
As a career military officer, the 67-year-old Austin is likely to face opposition from some in Congress and in the defense establishment who believe in drawing a clear line between civilian and military leadership of the Pentagon. Although many previous defense secretaries have served briefly in the military, only two — George C. Marshall and James Mattis — have been career officers. Marshall also served as secretary of state.
Like Mattis, Austin would need to obtain a congressional waiver to serve as defense secretary. Congress intended civilian control of the military when it created the position of secretary of defense in 1947 and prohibited a recently retired military officer from holding the position.
One of the people who confirmed the pick said Austin’s selection was about choosing the best possible person but acknowledged that pressure had built to name a candidate of color and that Austin’s stock had risen in recent days.
Austin is a 1975 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and served 41 years in uniform.
Biden has known Austin at least since the general’s years leading U.S. and coalition troops in Iraq while Biden was vice president. Austin was commander in Baghdad of the Multinational Corps-Iraq in 2008 when Barack Obama was elected president, and he returned to lead U.S. troops from 2010 through 2011.
Among Austin’s wide range of military assignments, in 2009-2010 he ran the joint staff during a portion of Navy Adm. Mike Mullen’s term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Mullen had high praise for Austin.
“Should President-elect Biden tap him for the job, Lloyd will make a superb secretary of defense,” Mullen said in a statement late Monday night. “He knows firsthand the complex missions our men and women in uniform conduct around the world. He puts a premium on alliances and partnerships. He respects the need for robust and healthy civil-military relations. And he leads inclusively, calmly and confidently.”
Austin also served in 2012 as the first Black vice chief of staff of the Army, the service’s No. 2-ranking position. A year later he assumed command of U.S. Central Command, where he fashioned and began implementing a U.S. military strategy for rolling back the Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria.
Austin retired from the Army in 2016, and he would need a congressional waiver of the legal requirement that a former member of the military be out of uniform at least seven years before serving as secretary of defense. That waiver has been granted only twice — most recently in the case of Mattis, the retired Marine general who served as President Donald Trump’s first Pentagon chief.
The Mattis period at the Pentagon is now viewed by some as evidence of why a recently retired military officer should serve as defense secretary only in rare exceptions. Although Mattis remains widely respected for his military prowess and intellect, critics say he tended to surround himself with military officers at the expense of a broader civilian perspective. He resigned in December 2018 in protest of Trump’s policies.
Loren DeJonge Schulman, who spent 10 years in senior staff positions at the Pentagon and the National Security Council, said she understands why Biden would seek out candidates with a deep understanding of the military. However, she worries that appointing a general to a political role could prolong some of the damage caused by Trump’s politicization of the military.
“But retired generals are not one-for-one substitutes of civilian leaders,” she said. “General officers bring different skills and different perspectives, and great generals do not universally make good appointees.”
Austin has a reputation for strong leadership, integrity and a sharp intellect. He would not be a prototypical defense secretary, not just because of his 41-year military career but also because he has shied from the public eye. It would be an understatement to say he was a quiet general; although he testified before Congress, he gave few interviews and preferred not to speak publicly about military operations.
When he did speak, Austin did not mince words. In 2015, in describing how the Islamic State army managed a year earlier to sweep across the Syrian border to grab control of large swaths of northern and western Iraq, Austin said the majority of Iraqi Sunnis simply refused to fight for their government.
“They allowed — and in some cases facilitated — ISIS’s push through the country,” Austin said.
He earned the admiration of the Obama administration for his work in Iraq and at Central Command, although he disagreed with Obama’s decision to pull out of Iraq entirely in December 2011.
Austin was involved in the Iraq War from start to finish. He served as an assistant commander of the 3rd Infantry Division during the invasion of Iraq in March 2003 and oversaw the withdrawal in 2011. When Austin retired in 2016, Obama praised his “character and competence,” as well as his judgment and leadership.
One person familiar with the matter said Biden was drawn to Austin’s oversight of the Iraq pull-out, especially given the military’s upcoming role in supporting the distribution of the coronavirus vaccines.
Like many retired generals, Austin has served on corporate boards. He is a member of the board of directors of Raytheon Technologies.
Word of Austin’s selection broke a day before a meeting between Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and civil rights groups, many of whom had pushed the president-elect to pick more Black Cabinet members.
The Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights activist, said Monday: “It’s a good choice that I think many in the civil rights community would support. It’s the first time we have seen a person of color in that position. That means something, in a global view, especially after such an antagonistic relationship we had with the previous administration.”
Sharpton, who is set to be in the meeting with Biden on Tuesday, called the choice “a step in the right direction but not the end of the walk.”
Politico first reported Biden’s selection of Austin.
___
Lemire reported from Wilmington, Delaware. AP Washington Bureau Chief Julie Pace contributed to this report.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-08--Trump Asked PA GOP Leader Twice To Overturn Biden’s Win, Marking 3rd State In Pressure Campaign

President Donald Trump called Pennsylvania House Speaker Bryan Cutler ( R ) twice this week to inquire whether GOP state lawmakers could discard the will of the voters and steal President-elect Joe Biden ’ s win in the swing state .
Cutler ’ s spokesperson , Michael Straub , confirmed the two calls in an interview with the Washington Post .
“ The President said , ‘ I ’ m hearing about all these issues in Philadelphia , and these issues with your law .
What can we do to fix it ? '
” Straub told the Post .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the President that the state legislature did not have the authority to nullify the election results .
Additionally , a special session to do so would have to be ordered by Pennsylvania Gov .
Tom Wolf ( D ) or the courts , where Trump and his legal team ’ s lawsuits have persistently collapsed .
The President did not “ pressure ” the House speaker , according to Straub , and the conversations were “ amicable.
” Trump ’ s calls to Cutler mark a third battleground state where the President @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republican state leaders to hijack the election results and hand him the state ’ s electors instead of Biden on the basis of Trump ’ s bogus election fraud claims .
The President has also attempted to do so in Michigan and Georgia , and both his bids were equally fruitless .

President Donald Trump called Pennsylvania House Speaker Bryan Cutler (R) twice this week to inquire whether GOP state lawmakers could discard the will of the voters and steal President-elect Joe Biden’s win in the swing state.
Cutler’s spokesperson, Michael Straub, confirmed the two calls in an interview with the Washington Post.
“The President said, ‘I’m hearing about all these issues in Philadelphia, and these issues with your law. What can we do to fix it?'” Straub told the Post.
Straub said that Cutler had to explain to the President that the state legislature did not have the authority to nullify the election results. Additionally, a special session to do so would have to be ordered by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf (D) or the courts, where Trump and his legal team’s lawsuits have persistently collapsed.
The President did not “pressure” the House speaker, according to Straub, and the conversations were “amicable.”
Though Cutler evidently rejected Trump’s request, he was one of the dozens of GOP Pennsylvania lawmakers who signed a letter on Friday urging the state’s U.S. congressional delegation to block the Electoral College votes from Pennsylvania (a maneuver that would have no chance of surviving the Democrat-controlled House).
The President thanked Cutler for signing the letter on Tuesday morning, saying that the state leader and others “fully understand what went on in the 2020 Election” (Trump has repeatedly failed to prove his conspiracy theories about the election process).
Trump’s calls to Cutler this week mark a third battleground state where the President has urged, with little success, Republican state leaders to hijack the election results and hand him the state’s electors instead of Biden on the basis of Trump’s bogus election fraud claims. The President has also attempted to do so in Michigan and Georgia, and both his bids were equally fruitless.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-08--Report: Trump Has Discussed Pardons ‘Like Christmas Gifts’ To People Who Haven’t Asked

President Donald Trump has been discussing pardons “ like Christmas gifts ” to people who haven ’ t even asked , one senior administration official told Axios in a report published late Monday .
According to the publication , Trump recently suggested to one adviser he was going to pardon “ every person who ever talked to me , ” suggesting that even more of Trump ’ s associates could be added to a growing list of people up for pardons during his dwindling days in office .
Per Axios , the adviser wasn ’ t sure whether or not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ although the source said that Trump did not appear to indicate at the time that he was joking .
The news comes as reports surfaced last week that Trump was considering pardons for roughly 20 associates , including his personal lawyer , Rudy Giuliani , and his three eldest children .
According to Axios , Trump has made unsolicited suggestions to add people he ’ s in conversation with to a reportedly extensive potential pardons list .
Those offers have extended to those who have not appeared to commit any crimes in an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ believed could be damaging to their public persona .
Trump has previously claimed that preemptive pardons were a way around a “ witch hunt ” into his administration and a move that would protect his associates from the incoming Justice Department .
President-elect Joe Biden , however , has not yet chosen an attorney general and recently told CNN that the department will be “ the people ’ s justice department ” and not an agency assigned to do his political bidding .

President Donald Trump has been discussing pardons “like Christmas gifts” to people who haven’t even asked, one senior administration official told Axios in a report published late Monday.
According to the publication, Trump recently suggested to one adviser he was going to pardon “every person who ever talked to me,” suggesting that even more of Trump’s associates could be added to a growing list of people up for pardons during his dwindling days in office. Per Axios, the adviser wasn’t sure whether or not the comments were made in jest, although the source said that Trump did not appear to indicate at the time that he was joking.
The news comes as reports surfaced last week that Trump was considering pardons for roughly 20 associates, including his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, and his three eldest children.
According to Axios, Trump has made unsolicited suggestions to add people he’s in conversation with to a reportedly extensive potential pardons list. Those offers have extended to those who have not appeared to commit any crimes in an effort that one adviser told Axios they believed could be damaging to their public persona.
Trump has previously claimed that preemptive pardons were a way around a “witch hunt” into his administration and a move that would protect his associates from the incoming Justice Department. President-elect Joe Biden, however, has not yet chosen an attorney general and recently told CNN that the department will be “the people’s justice department” and not an agency assigned to do his political bidding.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-08--Biden Is Expected To Nominate Marcia Fudge As HUD Secretary

President-elect Joe Biden will reportedly select Rep. Marcia Fudge ( D-OH ) as secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development .
Politico first reported the news on Tuesday .
If confirmed , the Ohio lawmaker would lead the agency that is expected to play a key role in the Biden administration ’ s response to the COVID-19 pandemic by assisting Americans who ’ ve struggled with rent and mortgage payments .
House Majority Whip James Clyburn ( R-SC ) , who serves as the chair of Biden ’ s inaugural committee , advocated for the former Congressional Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ President-elect ’ s Cabinet .
Fudge also has the support of Sen. Sherrod Brown ( D-OH ) , the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee , which will handle her nomination .
Hours before Fudge ’ s expected nomination was reported by multiple outlets , Biden met with civil rights leaders from the NAACP and the National Urban League , who have pushed the incoming administration to fulfill its vows of a diverse cabinet .
Fudge wouldn ’ t confirm her nomination while speaking to reporters on Capitol Hill earlier Tuesday .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ be an “ honor and a privilege to be asked to be in a president ’ s cabinet.
” “ It is something that probably in my wildest dreams I never would ’ ve thought about , ” Fudge said .
Fudge would be the second Black woman to lead the HUD if confirmed .
Patricia Roberts Harris held the job under Jimmy Carter ’ s administration and became the first Black woman to be a member of the United States Cabinet .
Fudge currently serves on the Committee on House Administration , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Education and Labor .
She has represented Ohio ’ s 11th district since 2008 .
Her expected nomination to Biden ’ s Cabinet would prompt a special election in Ohio ’ s 11th district .
The formal announcement of Fudge ’ s nomination is expected later this week .

President-elect Joe Biden will reportedly select Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH) as secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Politico first reported the news on Tuesday.
If confirmed, the Ohio lawmaker would lead the agency that is expected to play a key role in the Biden administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic by assisting Americans who’ve struggled with rent and mortgage payments.
House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC), who serves as the chair of Biden’s inaugural committee, advocated for the former Congressional Black Caucus chairwoman to be appointed to the President-elect’s Cabinet.
Fudge also has the support of Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, which will handle her nomination.
Hours before Fudge’s expected nomination was reported by multiple outlets, Biden met with civil rights leaders from the NAACP and the National Urban League, who have pushed the incoming administration to fulfill its vows of a diverse cabinet.
Fudge wouldn’t confirm her nomination while speaking to reporters on Capitol Hill earlier Tuesday. However, she said that it would be an “honor and a privilege to be asked to be in a president’s cabinet.”
“It is something that probably in my wildest dreams I never would’ve thought about,” Fudge said.
Fudge would be the second Black woman to lead the HUD if confirmed. Patricia Roberts Harris held the job under Jimmy Carter’s administration and became the first Black woman to be a member of the United States Cabinet.
Fudge currently serves on the Committee on House Administration, House Committee on Agriculture and House Committee on Education and Labor. She has represented Ohio’s 11th district since 2008. Her expected nomination to Biden’s Cabinet would prompt a special election in Ohio’s 11th district.
The formal announcement of Fudge’s nomination is expected later this week.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-08--The Signature Audit Georgia Republicans Claim To Want Would Be Fruitless — But It’s Convenient

In recent days , Georgia Republicans have quickly coalesced behind calling for a “ signature audit ” to address the fabricated ills of the November election .
“ We must restore confidence in the integrity of our elections , ” tweeted David Shafer , chair of the state Republican party , on Monday .
“ The time for begging elections officials to do their job and obey the law is over.
” And now , the state party , the Trump campaign , and Trump himself have sued Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger , also a Republican , in state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kemp ( R ) and others to audit the signatures connected to absentee ballots from the presidential election .
The lawsuit was initially filed on Friday and rejected due to a filing fee issue , but seems to have been refiled and is now listed as “ open ” on the Fulton County courts docket .
Raffensperger , who has taken the gloves off after weeks of attacks from members of his own party , responded aggressively .
“ First , there has been no evidence presented of any issues with the signature @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tuesday .
“ Second , our office repeatedly told the GA Rep Party , including David Shafer himself , that the signature verification process was—and always has been—public and that they could observe it.
” “ David- from one Republican to another , please start focusing on what matters , ” Raffensperger concluded .
“ If you put as much effort into the January runoffs as you have put on blaming others for your failures , we can ’ t lose.
” The lawsuit , like so many others Trump and his allies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go anywhere .
Just yesterday , Fulton County Superior Court Judge Jane Barwick dismissed a different election challenge for wrongly naming Raffensperger as a defendant .
She sided with Senior Assistant Attorney General Russ Willard who pointed out that , under Georgia law , Raffensperger does not qualify as a valid defendant in an election contest .
The Republicans in the new lawsuit tacked on a long list of other election officials though , perhaps hoping they would qualify as permissible defendants .
But in addition to those potential issues , what Republicans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aside the many dozens of pages of voter fraud allegations — the lawsuit is ultimately seeking for the results of the election to be tossed altogether — the Republicans ’ lawyers are calling for a signature audit to be conducted .
“ Petitioners respectfully request that the Court order the production of the records of the absentee ballot applications and absentee ballots , for purposes of conducting an audit of the signatures on absentee ballot applications and absentee ballots cast in the Contested Election , ” they wrote .
They later specify that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ballot applications , as well as access to the voter registration database .
First of all , such a signature-matching check has already been done .
In many cases , it ’ s been done twice .
Georgia law requires county election workers to check a voter ’ s signature on an absentee ballot envelope against the voter signature on file .
On top of that , Raffensperger ’ s office added an additional signature-match check this year when a voter submitted an absentee ballot request form by mail , even before the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ submitted the request online , a photo ID was required and the signature was checked when the ballot arrived .
Once the election worker verifies the signatures , the envelope with the signature and ballot inside are separated .
That is in keeping with the state constitution , which mandates that the state ’ s voters cast “ secret ballots.
” At this point , even if another audit was conducted , there is no way to connect the envelope back to the ballot — no way to know if a voter with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Donald Trump or for President-Elect Joe Biden .
That leaves the Republicans with the hope that a judge will decide to throw out a whole batch of absentee ballots at once , perhaps in counties with high signature mismatch rates .
“ I don ’ t think there is a judge in the land that would throw out all those legally cast votes , ” said Gabe Sterling , a top Georgia election official , at a recent press conference .
So if a signature audit has already been done , would be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not with any certainty produce results in Trump ’ s favor — why are Republicans rallying around it ?
For one , Trump likes the idea and has taken to championing it publicly .
In his attempt to pressure Kemp into overriding the election results and appointing a slate of Trump-friendly electors instead , he also brought up the signature audit .
“ As I told the President this morning , I ’ ve publicly called for a signature audit three times ( 11/20 , 11/24 , 12/3 ) to restore confidence in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only legal votes are counted in Georgia , ” Kemp tweeted after the conversation .
But it ’ s also proved a useful rhetorical tool for Republicans walking a very thin tightrope .
Sens .
David Perdue ( R-GA ) and Kelly Loeffler ( R-GA ) , in particular , are trying to hold two contradictory ideas at once : that the November election was rigged , or at least peppered with irregularities , but that Republicans should still come out and vote in the January runoff .
They need to appease Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republicans so much that they don ’ t vote .
Calling for a signature audit gives them the necessary pivot .
See Loeffler ’ s response during a Sunday debate when her Democratic opponent , Rev .
Raphael Warnock , asked her to admit that Trump lost the election : “ President Trump has every right to use every legal recourse available , ” she responded , adding that there are “ investigations that need to be completed.
” “ I ’ ve called for a signature audit , ” she continued .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ involved in these investigations to make sure they move more quickly , because everything ’ s at stake for January 5th for the future of our country.
” A signature audit would be fruitless , and Republicans likely know it .
But it ’ s a rhetorical tool they need in their dwindling arsenal , as long as they agree to reside in Trump ’ s election fraud fantasyland .

In recent days, Georgia Republicans have quickly coalesced behind calling for a “signature audit” to address the fabricated ills of the November election.
“We must restore confidence in the integrity of our elections,” tweeted David Shafer, chair of the state Republican party, on Monday. “The time for begging elections officials to do their job and obey the law is over.”
And now, the state party, the Trump campaign, and Trump himself have sued Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, also a Republican, in state court for refusing calls from Governor Brian Kemp (R) and others to audit the signatures connected to absentee ballots from the presidential election. The lawsuit was initially filed on Friday and rejected due to a filing fee issue, but seems to have been refiled and is now listed as “open” on the Fulton County courts docket.
Raffensperger, who has taken the gloves off after weeks of attacks from members of his own party, responded aggressively.
“First, there has been no evidence presented of any issues with the signature matching process,” Raffensperger tweeted on Tuesday. “Second, our office repeatedly told the GA Rep Party, including David Shafer himself, that the signature verification process was—and always has been—public and that they could observe it.”
“David- from one Republican to another, please start focusing on what matters,” Raffensperger concluded. “If you put as much effort into the January runoffs as you have put on blaming others for your failures, we can’t lose.”
The lawsuit, like so many others Trump and his allies have mounted, likely won’t go anywhere. Just yesterday, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Jane Barwick dismissed a different election challenge for wrongly naming Raffensperger as a defendant. She sided with Senior Assistant Attorney General Russ Willard who pointed out that, under Georgia law, Raffensperger does not qualify as a valid defendant in an election contest. The Republicans in the new lawsuit tacked on a long list of other election officials though, perhaps hoping they would qualify as permissible defendants.
Logistically Pointless
But in addition to those potential issues, what Republicans are seeking is near impossible. Putting aside the many dozens of pages of voter fraud allegations — the lawsuit is ultimately seeking for the results of the election to be tossed altogether — the Republicans’ lawyers are calling for a signature audit to be conducted.
“Petitioners respectfully request that the Court order the production of the records of the absentee ballot applications and absentee ballots, for purposes of conducting an audit of the signatures on absentee ballot applications and absentee ballots cast in the Contested Election,” they wrote.
They later specify that they want 10,000 absentee ballot envelopes and ballot applications, as well as access to the voter registration database.
First of all, such a signature-matching check has already been done. In many cases, it’s been done twice.
Georgia law requires county election workers to check a voter’s signature on an absentee ballot envelope against the voter signature on file. On top of that, Raffensperger’s office added an additional signature-match check this year when a voter submitted an absentee ballot request form by mail, even before the ballot was mailed. If the voter submitted the request online, a photo ID was required and the signature was checked when the ballot arrived.
Once the election worker verifies the signatures, the envelope with the signature and ballot inside are separated. That is in keeping with the state constitution, which mandates that the state’s voters cast “secret ballots.”
At this point, even if another audit was conducted, there is no way to connect the envelope back to the ballot — no way to know if a voter with mismatched signatures cast a ballot for President Donald Trump or for President-Elect Joe Biden.
That leaves the Republicans with the hope that a judge will decide to throw out a whole batch of absentee ballots at once, perhaps in counties with high signature mismatch rates.
“I don’t think there is a judge in the land that would throw out all those legally cast votes,” said Gabe Sterling, a top Georgia election official, at a recent press conference.
Behind The Words
So if a signature audit has already been done, would be extremely difficult to do again and would not with any certainty produce results in Trump’s favor — why are Republicans rallying around it?
For one, Trump likes the idea and has taken to championing it publicly. In his attempt to pressure Kemp into overriding the election results and appointing a slate of Trump-friendly electors instead, he also brought up the signature audit.
“As I told the President this morning, I’ve publicly called for a signature audit three times (11/20, 11/24, 12/3) to restore confidence in our election process and to ensure that only legal votes are counted in Georgia,” Kemp tweeted after the conversation.
But it’s also proved a useful rhetorical tool for Republicans walking a very thin tightrope. Sens. David Perdue (R-GA) and Kelly Loeffler (R-GA), in particular, are trying to hold two contradictory ideas at once: that the November election was rigged, or at least peppered with irregularities, but that Republicans should still come out and vote in the January runoff. They need to appease Trump to keep his base while not disheartening Republicans so much that they don’t vote.
Calling for a signature audit gives them the necessary pivot. See Loeffler’s response during a Sunday debate when her Democratic opponent, Rev. Raphael Warnock, asked her to admit that Trump lost the election:
“President Trump has every right to use every legal recourse available,” she responded, adding that there are “investigations that need to be completed.”
“I’ve called for a signature audit,” she continued. “We need to hold folks accountable involved in these investigations to make sure they move more quickly, because everything’s at stake for January 5th for the future of our country.”
A signature audit would be fruitless, and Republicans likely know it. But it’s a rhetorical tool they need in their dwindling arsenal, as long as they agree to reside in Trump’s election fraud fantasyland.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-12-08--SCOTUS Shoots Down GOP Bid To Disrupt PA Election Results

The U.S. Supreme Court , with no noted dissents , turned down a request by Republicans in Pennsylvania seeking to muck up Joe Biden ’ s win in the state .
The case was brought by Republicans , including a member of the U.S. House re-elected this year and GOP House candidates who lost their races .
They had argued that the 2019 law that expanded mail-in voting in Pennsylvania violated the state ’ s constitution .
They had sought the U.S. Supreme Court ’ s intervention after the state Supreme Court rejected their lawsuit .
The justices ’ refusal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an unrelenting string of defeats allies of the President have faced in court in their flailing quest to stave off his defeat .
Very few of those efforts have made it to the Supreme Court , and Tuesday ’ s rejection of the Pennsylvania lawsuit is latest sign that it has no interest in disturbing the election results .
Earlier Tuesday afternoon , the President retweeted an image of Justice Amy Coney Barrett with laser-beams coming out of her eyes .
Trump pushed to get Barrett on the court before the election in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a decisive vote in any post-election disputes .
Sen. Ted Cruz ( R-TX ) had offered to argue the Pennsylvania case before the Supreme Court .
The court ’ s order denying the Republicans ’ request that it get involve was issued less than an hour after the Republicans ’ last round of briefing hit the docket .

The U.S. Supreme Court, with no noted dissents, turned down a request by Republicans in Pennsylvania seeking to muck up Joe Biden’s win in the state.
The case was brought by Republicans, including a member of the U.S. House re-elected this year and GOP House candidates who lost their races. They had argued that the 2019 law that expanded mail-in voting in Pennsylvania violated the state’s constitution. They had sought the U.S. Supreme Court’s intervention after the state Supreme Court rejected their lawsuit.
The justices’ refusal to get involved was the latest in an unrelenting string of defeats allies of the President have faced in court in their flailing quest to stave off his defeat.
Very few of those efforts have made it to the Supreme Court, and Tuesday’s rejection of the Pennsylvania lawsuit is latest sign that it has no interest in disturbing the election results.
Earlier Tuesday afternoon, the President retweeted an image of Justice Amy Coney Barrett with laser-beams coming out of her eyes. Trump pushed to get Barrett on the court before the election in part because he believed she could serve as a decisive vote in any post-election disputes. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) had offered to argue the Pennsylvania case before the Supreme Court.
The court’s order denying the Republicans’ request that it get involve was issued less than an hour after the Republicans’ last round of briefing hit the docket.