talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-22--DeJoy’s Cost-Cutting Moves Heaped Problems Upon More Problems At USPS, IG Says

Cost-cutting changes at the U.S .
Postal Service championed by the new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy this year created “ significant negative service impacts across the country , ” an investigation from the Postal Service ’ s inspector general concluded this week .
A report on the investigation found that a slew of changes spearheaded and accelerated after DeJoy became Postmaster General over the summer were harmful in their own right — but also , that poor documentation , guidance and analysis of the changes “ compounded ” the problem .
DeJoy ’ s near single-minded focus on cutting costs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ establishment as a GOP megadonor — not to mention President Donald Trump ’ s own vilification of mail-in voting — have brought accusations that DeJoy is seeking to undermine the Postal Service , which he denied in a heated pair of congressional hearings in August .
The watchdog office conducted the investigation after a request of multiple members of Congress in August .
Since then , federal judges have stepped in and ordered DeJoy to halt his more extreme changes to the USPS , including DeJoy ’ s order to limit overtime and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ postal workers use to deliver mail on-time rather than waiting an extra day — or longer .
That policy change and dozens of others , according to the report , were developed to achieve an estimated 64 million “ workhour savings.
” But those changes , called “ Do It Now FY Strategies , ” had a substantial impact on mail delivery , the report found , and the COVID-19 crisis only exacerbated problems by impacting employee availability .
In addition to DeJoy ’ s efforts to limit work hours , the report @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leadership , USPS also accelerated the removal of mail processing machines : Compared the past five fiscal years , when 375 flat processing machines were removed on average annually , 437 machines were removed over just three months this year , from June through August .
The mail delays speak for themselves : In July alone , per the report , on-time delivery of first-class mail dropped from 90.1 % to 79.7 % .
As of early September , the report said , that number was back up to 86.8 % — still @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 96 % on-time delivery target .
The inspector general ’ s report added to another , from late August , that rang alarm bells about a decrease in on-time delivery of election and political mail ( meaning , both absentee ballots and political advertising ) .
But the report noted steps that the Postal Service has taken to ensure the delivery of ballots .
“ According to Postal Service officials , the service impacts caused by the operational changes were temporary and will not impact election mail for the upcoming 2020 election , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Postal Service has established processes for handling election mail and efforts have been ongoing to train and prepare their employees on the Election Mail policies and procedures .
”

Cost-cutting changes at the U.S. Postal Service championed by the new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy this year created “significant negative service impacts across the country,” an investigation from the Postal Service’s inspector general concluded this week.
A report on the investigation found that a slew of changes spearheaded and accelerated after DeJoy became Postmaster General over the summer were harmful in their own right — but also, that poor documentation, guidance and analysis of the changes “compounded” the problem.
DeJoy’s near single-minded focus on cutting costs and his close ties to the Republican establishment as a GOP megadonor — not to mention President Donald Trump’s own vilification of mail-in voting — have brought accusations that DeJoy is seeking to undermine the Postal Service, which he denied in a heated pair of congressional hearings in August.
The watchdog office conducted the investigation after a request of multiple members of Congress in August. Since then, federal judges have stepped in and ordered DeJoy to halt his more extreme changes to the USPS, including DeJoy’s order to limit overtime and cut so-called “late trips” that postal workers use to deliver mail on-time rather than waiting an extra day — or longer.
That policy change and dozens of others, according to the report, were developed to achieve an estimated 64 million “workhour savings.” But those changes, called “Do It Now FY Strategies,” had a substantial impact on mail delivery, the report found, and the COVID-19 crisis only exacerbated problems by impacting employee availability.
In addition to DeJoy’s efforts to limit work hours, the report also found that under DeJoy’s leadership, USPS also accelerated the removal of mail processing machines: Compared the past five fiscal years, when 375 flat processing machines were removed on average annually, 437 machines were removed over just three months this year, from June through August.
The mail delays speak for themselves: In July alone, per the report, on-time delivery of first-class mail dropped from 90.1% to 79.7%. As of early September, the report said, that number was back up to 86.8% — still nearly 10 points shy of USPS’ 96% on-time delivery target.
The inspector general’s report added to another, from late August, that rang alarm bells about a decrease in on-time delivery of election and political mail (meaning, both absentee ballots and political advertising). But the report noted steps that the Postal Service has taken to ensure the delivery of ballots.
“According to Postal Service officials, the service impacts caused by the operational changes were temporary and will not impact election mail for the upcoming 2020 election,” the report said. “ The Postal Service has established processes for handling election mail and efforts have been ongoing to train and prepare their employees on the Election Mail policies and procedures.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-22--GOP Asks SCOTUS To Reinstate Tighter Ballot Deadlines In Critical Swing State

Yet another election dispute in a potentially critical swing state has landed at the Supreme Court ’ s door step .
Republican legislative leaders , as well as the Trump campaign joined by the RNC , have asked that the Supreme Court to undo a six-day extension that the North Carolina State Board of Elections added to the state ’ s deadline for receipt of mail-in ballots .
The extension was a product of a consent decree the board agreed to in a lawsuit brought by voter advocacy groups .
As part of the decree , the board also agreed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ witness requirement for absentee voting .
The Republicans are asking the Supreme Court to block that accommodation for voters as well .
North Carolina is a swing state in the presidential election .
It also has a very tight Senate race that could decide which party controls the upper chamber next year .
In previous elections , Black voters have made up a disproportionate number of those whose mail ballots were rejected , a recent ProPublica report found , while pointing specifically to the state ’ s witness requirement .
Already , data @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that Black voters are more likely to turn in mail ballots with deficiencies that white voters , even though they make a smaller portion of absentee voters so far , according to the ProPublica report .
Under the guidance from the board of elections that is now being challenged at the Supreme Court , when election officials receive ballots with missing witness information , they can reach out to the voter and have them sign a declaration that certifies the voter ’ s identity instead .
Beyond the impact the dispute stands to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will also give the Supreme Court another chance to weigh in on a controversial argument Republicans have been pushing to reverse accommodations granted to voters for the pandemic .
In this case , as well as in a dispute previously before the U.S. Supreme Court coming out of Pennsylvania , the Republicans are arguing that the looser rules are a violation of the U.S. Constitution ’ s Elections Clause , because they were put into place by an entity other than a state legislature .
In the Pennsylvania case , the entity was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extended the receipt deadline for mail ballots by three days .
With Chief Justice John Roberts joining the three liberal justices , the U.S. Supreme Court deadlocked 4-4 on the dispute , which allowed the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling to stand for now .
Neither side provided an explanation for why they voted the way did .
It ’ s unclear whether Roberts would swing towards the liberals in this case as well , since it ’ s a state board decision — rather than a ruling from a state Supreme Court — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ justices to disturb .
( Like in the Pennsylvania dispute , a 4-4 decision would have the effect of leaving in place a federal appeals court decision upholding the North Carolina Election Board ’ s consent decree ) .
Another unknown is how a newly seated Justice Amy Coney Barrett would respond to the Republicans ’ arguments about the Elections Clause .
She is slated to be confirmed to the Supreme Court by the Senate early next week .
Roberts , who received the North Carolina requests because he has oversight of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for responses to the Republican requests by 3 p.m. Saturday .

Yet another election dispute in a potentially critical swing state has landed at the Supreme Court’s door step.
Republican legislative leaders, as well as the Trump campaign joined by the RNC, have asked that the Supreme Court to undo a six-day extension that the North Carolina State Board of Elections added to the state’s deadline for receipt of mail-in ballots.
The extension was a product of a consent decree the board agreed to in a lawsuit brought by voter advocacy groups. As part of the decree, the board also agreed to loosen up North Carolina’s witness requirement for absentee voting. The Republicans are asking the Supreme Court to block that accommodation for voters as well.
North Carolina is a swing state in the presidential election. It also has a very tight Senate race that could decide which party controls the upper chamber next year.
In previous elections, Black voters have made up a disproportionate number of those whose mail ballots were rejected, a recent ProPublica report found, while pointing specifically to the state’s witness requirement. Already, data from the 2020 general election has shown that Black voters are more likely to turn in mail ballots with deficiencies that white voters, even though they make a smaller portion of absentee voters so far, according to the ProPublica report.
Under the guidance from the board of elections that is now being challenged at the Supreme Court, when election officials receive ballots with missing witness information, they can reach out to the voter and have them sign a declaration that certifies the voter’s identity instead.
Beyond the impact the dispute stands to have on North Carolina voters, it will also give the Supreme Court another chance to weigh in on a controversial argument Republicans have been pushing to reverse accommodations granted to voters for the pandemic.
In this case, as well as in a dispute previously before the U.S. Supreme Court coming out of Pennsylvania, the Republicans are arguing that the looser rules are a violation of the U.S. Constitution’s Elections Clause, because they were put into place by an entity other than a state legislature.
In the Pennsylvania case, the entity was the state Supreme Court, which had extended the receipt deadline for mail ballots by three days. With Chief Justice John Roberts joining the three liberal justices, the U.S. Supreme Court deadlocked 4-4 on the dispute, which allowed the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling to stand for now. Neither side provided an explanation for why they voted the way did.
It’s unclear whether Roberts would swing towards the liberals in this case as well, since it’s a state board decision — rather than a ruling from a state Supreme Court — that the Republicans are now asking the justices to disturb.
(Like in the Pennsylvania dispute, a 4-4 decision would have the effect of leaving in place a federal appeals court decision upholding the North Carolina Election Board’s consent decree).
Another unknown is how a newly seated Justice Amy Coney Barrett would respond to the Republicans’ arguments about the Elections Clause. She is slated to be confirmed to the Supreme Court by the Senate early next week.
Roberts, who received the North Carolina requests because he has oversight of the Circuit containing the state, has asked for responses to the Republican requests by 3 p.m. Saturday.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-22--Fort Bragg Says Civilian Staffer Posted Explicit Tweets On Official Account By Mistake

A civilian employee was responsible for the lewd tweets posted on the Fort Bragg military base ’ s official Twitter account on Wednesday , according to Col. Joe Buccino , the public affairs officer for the XVIII Airborne Corps .
Buccino told TPM over the phone that the employee , who was one of three people who had access to the account , told investigators that he had sent the tweets by accident .
The XVIII Airborne Corps had previously announced that the account was “ hacked.
” The base subsequently closed its investigation after the staffer came forward , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ formal inquiry into appropriate measures ” to address the incident , according to Buccino .
He also said that the Twitter account , which was temporarily deactivated shortly after the tweets were posted , will be turned back on in approximately one week to 30 days .
On Wednesday afternoon , the account set off a firestorm when it responded to a sex worker ’ s tweets with decidedly graphic comments : The sex worker , who goes by Quinn Finite , cheered on the mishap .
“ Normalize horny tweeting from US @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Finite also pounced on a business opportunity by offering a 50 % military discount on her content on OnlyFans .

A civilian employee was responsible for the lewd tweets posted on the Fort Bragg military base’s official Twitter account on Wednesday, according to Col. Joe Buccino, the public affairs officer for the XVIII Airborne Corps.
Buccino told TPM over the phone that the employee, who was one of three people who had access to the account, told investigators that he had sent the tweets by accident. The XVIII Airborne Corps had previously announced that the account was “hacked.”
Earlier this afternoon the Fort Bragg Twitter account was hacked and a string of inappropriate tweets were posted to the account. When made aware, the Fort Bragg social media team deleted the tweets & temporarily moved the account offline. The matter is under investigation. — XVIII Airborne Corps (@18airbornecorps) October 21, 2020
The base subsequently closed its investigation after the staffer came forward, and there will be a “less formal inquiry into appropriate measures” to address the incident, according to Buccino.
He also said that the Twitter account, which was temporarily deactivated shortly after the tweets were posted, will be turned back on in approximately one week to 30 days.
On Wednesday afternoon, the account set off a firestorm when it responded to a sex worker’s tweets with decidedly graphic comments:
The sex worker, who goes by Quinn Finite, cheered on the mishap.
“Normalize horny tweeting from US army forts,” she tweeted.
Finite also pounced on a business opportunity by offering a 50% military discount on her content on OnlyFans.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-22--Which States Are At Greatest Risk Of Militia Activity Around The Election?

With the Trump campaign calling for an “ army ” of poll watchers and armed right-wingers charged with plotting the kidnapping of the governor of Michigan , some observers are concerned this election season that various groups may interfere with the democratic process .
Now two research groups have mapped out where right-wing groups might be most active before , during and after Election Day , based on a variety of variables including recruitment patterns , relationships with law enforcement , and perceptions about a coming “ leftist coup.
” Swing states in the upcoming election are at “ heightened @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and specifically state capitals and so-called “ periphery ” towns that offer natural meeting points in suburban and rural areas .
The organizations behind the report — The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project ( ACLED ) and MilitiaWatch — concluded that Georgia , Michigan , Pennsylvania , Wisconsin and Oregon were at the highest risk of increased militia activity around the election .
The report identified some key trends driving recent activity from militias and other fringe groups .
For one thing , militia movements have realigned from being broadly anti-federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ party and candidate : The Republican Party , and President Donald Trump .
Protests against COVID-19 restrictions , as well as counter-protests against Black Lives Matter rallies and anti-fascist activists , have also provided recruiting and networking opportunities , the report found .
The report distinguishes between three primary categories of groups : “ Mainstream militia ” groups like the “ Oath Keepers ” and those that identify as “ Three Percenters ” — a callback to the supposed percentage of Americans who took up arms against the British — are more likely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the police and military as allies , the report said .
So-called “ right-wing street movements ” like the Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer are more enthusiastic about brawling with their political opponents , the report noted , as their frequent battles with anti-fascist activists show .
A third group , which the report calls “ devolved right-wing libertarian groups ” have maintained a skepticism of government authority and are “ highly primed for civil conflict ” : Think the Boogaloo movement and Ammon Bundy ’ s “ People ’ s Rights ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ High-Risk ?
The report ’ s five highest-risk states , as well as those considered at “ moderate ” risk — North Carolina , Texas , Virginia , California and New Mexico — have experienced a combination of temperature-raising factors .
In Georgia , for example , Black Lives Matter protests ( and armed counterprotesters ) have filled the streets , former Vice President Joe Biden and Donald Trump are polling competitively , and various militia groups have faced off with the armed Black protest group “ Not Fucking Around Coalition.
” In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be crucial in the upcoming election , the report focused on Kyle Rittenhouse , the 17-year-old currently charged with killing two demonstrators at a Black Lives Matter rally .
The report noted that local police offered water bottles to Rittenhouse ’ s group , Kenosha Guard , and said “ we appreciate you guys ” on the night of the shooting .
“ These behaviors have brought attention to the ‘ friendliness ’ of police towards militia groups in the state , ” the report noted .
Michigan , the site of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ governor , has been a hotspot of protests against COVID-19 restrictions for months , and militias have played a prominent role in the backlash .
Pennsylvania has proved a durable home for the Proud Boys , a street gang that pushes “ western chauvinism , ” but the state ’ s more rural areas are also home to a number of more traditional militias , including the Pennsylvania Light Foot Militia and the newly-formed groups Civilian Defense Force and American Contingency .
The report noted that those groups have focused on sharing “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and , in the latter ’ s case , providing “ a complementary weapons and tactics training program.
” In Oregon , clashes between fringe right-wing groups and anti-fascist activists and anarchists have been common in recent months .
This is partly due to the region ’ s history of organized , networked protest groups .
Portland in particular , the report notes , “ has been a long-term battleground for struggles between armed and unarmed , right- and left-wing contingents.
” The report takes pains to note that it ’ s no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ activity from armed groups is unpredictable , and election-related confrontations may not be limited to society ’ s fringe : Given the “ highly charged political moment ” in the United States , it noted , even individuals or groups with more mainstream political views may escalate confrontations or engage in violence .
Also , while some groups explicitly affiliate themselves with calls for ideological violence , “ many US militias can be described as ‘ latent ’ in that they threaten more violence than they commit , ” the report noted .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of these groups will react , no matter the vote ’ s outcome , ” the report concluded .
“ Does a Trump loss lead to anger at the system and a backlash against what is deemed a stolen election ?
Does a Trump victory further empower groups that see him as a supporter , including through verbal encouragement ahead of the election ?
The answers to these questions are as numerous as they are uncomfortable .
”

With the Trump campaign calling for an “army” of poll watchers and armed right-wingers charged with plotting the kidnapping of the governor of Michigan, some observers are concerned this election season that various groups may interfere with the democratic process.
Now two research groups have mapped out where right-wing groups might be most active before, during and after Election Day, based on a variety of variables including recruitment patterns, relationships with law enforcement, and perceptions about a coming “leftist coup.”
Swing states in the upcoming election are at “heightened risk,” the report found, and specifically state capitals and so-called “periphery” towns that offer natural meeting points in suburban and rural areas.
The organizations behind the report — The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) and MilitiaWatch — concluded that Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Oregon were at the highest risk of increased militia activity around the election.
What’s Driving Armed Right-Wing Groups?
The report identified some key trends driving recent activity from militias and other fringe groups.
For one thing, militia movements have realigned from being broadly anti-federal government to aligning with a single political party and candidate: The Republican Party, and President Donald Trump.
Protests against COVID-19 restrictions, as well as counter-protests against Black Lives Matter rallies and anti-fascist activists, have also provided recruiting and networking opportunities, the report found.
The report distinguishes between three primary categories of groups: “Mainstream militia” groups like the “Oath Keepers” and those that identify as “Three Percenters” — a callback to the supposed percentage of Americans who took up arms against the British — are more likely to align with law enforcement and see the police and military as allies, the report said.
So-called “right-wing street movements” like the Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer are more enthusiastic about brawling with their political opponents, the report noted, as their frequent battles with anti-fascist activists show. A third group, which the report calls “devolved right-wing libertarian groups” have maintained a skepticism of government authority and are “highly primed for civil conflict”: Think the Boogaloo movement and Ammon Bundy’s “People’s Rights” network.
Why Are Certain States Considered High-Risk?
The report’s five highest-risk states, as well as those considered at “moderate” risk — North Carolina, Texas, Virginia, California and New Mexico — have experienced a combination of temperature-raising factors.
In Georgia, for example, Black Lives Matter protests (and armed counterprotesters) have filled the streets, former Vice President Joe Biden and Donald Trump are polling competitively, and various militia groups have faced off with the armed Black protest group “Not Fucking Around Coalition.”
In Wisconsin, whose electoral college votes will be crucial in the upcoming election, the report focused on Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old currently charged with killing two demonstrators at a Black Lives Matter rally. The report noted that local police offered water bottles to Rittenhouse’s group, Kenosha Guard, and said “we appreciate you guys” on the night of the shooting.
“These behaviors have brought attention to the ‘friendliness’ of police towards militia groups in the state,” the report noted.
Michigan, the site of a recent alleged kidnapping plot aimed at the governor, has been a hotspot of protests against COVID-19 restrictions for months, and militias have played a prominent role in the backlash.
Pennsylvania has proved a durable home for the Proud Boys, a street gang that pushes “western chauvinism,” but the state’s more rural areas are also home to a number of more traditional militias, including the Pennsylvania Light Foot Militia and the newly-formed groups Civilian Defense Force and American Contingency. The report noted that those groups have focused on sharing “intelligence” about ongoing left-wing protest events and, in the latter’s case, providing “a complementary weapons and tactics training program.”
In Oregon, clashes between fringe right-wing groups and anti-fascist activists and anarchists have been common in recent months. This is partly due to the region’s history of organized, networked protest groups. Portland in particular, the report notes, “has been a long-term battleground for struggles between armed and unarmed, right- and left-wing contingents.”
We Can’t Predict The Future
The report takes pains to note that it’s no crystal ball: Violence or other potential activity from armed groups is unpredictable, and election-related confrontations may not be limited to society’s fringe: Given the “highly charged political moment” in the United States, it noted, even individuals or groups with more mainstream political views may escalate confrontations or engage in violence.
Also, while some groups explicitly affiliate themselves with calls for ideological violence, “many US militias can be described as ‘latent’ in that they threaten more violence than they commit,” the report noted.
“It is yet unclear how many of these groups will react, no matter the vote’s outcome,” the report concluded. “Does a Trump loss lead to anger at the system and a backlash against what is deemed a stolen election? Does a Trump victory further empower groups that see him as a supporter, including through verbal encouragement ahead of the election? The answers to these questions are as numerous as they are uncomfortable.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-22--‘I Hope They End It’: Trump Urges Supreme Court To Kill Obamacare During Pandemic

President Donald Trump said in a “ 60 Minutes ” interview set to air Sunday that he hopes the Supreme Court will wipe out the Affordable Care Act , which more than 20 million people rely on for their health care .
“ I hope that they end it .
It will be so good if they end it because we will come up with a plan , ” Trump told CBS correspondent Lesley Stahl in a “ 60 Minutes ” interview that was taped on Tuesday .
The comments come amid a fast approaching Supreme Court hearing for a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nov. 10 , just days after the presidential election .
And the President is pushing for the elimination of the landmark health care law in the middle of a global pandemic that has so far killed more than 220,000 Americans .
Stahl pressed Trump on the widely talked about but as of yet unseen plan , drilling down on his choice of the word “ will ” with regard to his agenda for health care in a hypothetical second term .
“ Yeah , we will , ” Trump replied before diving into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been accomplished toward fleshing out his supposed health care plan .
“ We have large sections of it already done and we have already come up with plans.
” The President has long made promises about unveiling an unprecedented health care plan , although he has repeatedly failed to deliver details of a plan that Democrats have suggested may not even exist .
“ We ’ re going to be doing a health care plan .
We ’ re going to be doing a very inclusive health care plan .
I ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Trump told reporters in early August , after missing a series of previous deadlines on the issue this year , to say nothing of years prior .
Late last month , Trump signed an executive order that effectively sought to rebrand the ACA , keeping its protections on preexisting conditions largely intact but claiming “ Obamacare is no longer Obamacare , as we worked on it and managed it very well.
” While Trump has been clear in his repudiation of any policy put forward by his predecessor , he has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Care Act .
But Trump ’ s comments during the CBS interview Tuesday laid bare just how unprepared his administration would be in the event that the Supreme Court rules to do away with the ACA — after making a 2016 campaign promise to repeal and replace it and failing to do so nearly four years later .
Trump released the White House ’ s copy of his “ 60 Minutes ” interview on Thursday , breaking an agreement with CBS that the interview would first air on their network Sunday .
Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ claimed in a tweet that Stahl ’ s questions revealed “ bias , hatred and rudeness ” as if to justify his decision to walk out of the interview early and release the tape ahead of schedule .
Deputy director for the DNC War Room Daniel Wessel suggested in a statement Thursday that Trump had opted to prematurely release the tape because he had poorly answered the question regarding his own health care plan .
“ Now we know why Trump was so mad about this interview .
He just made it transparently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only plan for health care is to take away yours , ” Wessel said .

President Donald Trump said in a “60 Minutes” interview set to air Sunday that he hopes the Supreme Court will wipe out the Affordable Care Act, which more than 20 million people rely on for their health care.
“I hope that they end it. It will be so good if they end it because we will come up with a plan,” Trump told CBS correspondent Lesley Stahl in a “60 Minutes” interview that was taped on Tuesday.
The comments come amid a fast approaching Supreme Court hearing for a case against the Obama-era health policy on Nov. 10, just days after the presidential election. And the President is pushing for the elimination of the landmark health care law in the middle of a global pandemic that has so far killed more than 220,000 Americans.
Stahl pressed Trump on the widely talked about but as of yet unseen plan, drilling down on his choice of the word “will” with regard to his agenda for health care in a hypothetical second term.
“Yeah, we will,” Trump replied before diving into a series of vague statements about what has been accomplished toward fleshing out his supposed health care plan. “We have large sections of it already done and we have already come up with plans.”
The President has long made promises about unveiling an unprecedented health care plan, although he has repeatedly failed to deliver details of a plan that Democrats have suggested may not even exist.
“We’re going to be doing a health care plan. We’re going to be doing a very inclusive health care plan. I’ll be signing it sometime very soon,” Trump told reporters in early August, after missing a series of previous deadlines on the issue this year, to say nothing of years prior.
Late last month, Trump signed an executive order that effectively sought to rebrand the ACA, keeping its protections on preexisting conditions largely intact but claiming “Obamacare is no longer Obamacare, as we worked on it and managed it very well.”
While Trump has been clear in his repudiation of any policy put forward by his predecessor, he has been particularly adamant about eliminating the Affordable Care Act.
But Trump’s comments during the CBS interview Tuesday laid bare just how unprepared his administration would be in the event that the Supreme Court rules to do away with the ACA — after making a 2016 campaign promise to repeal and replace it and failing to do so nearly four years later.
Trump released the White House’s copy of his “60 Minutes” interview on Thursday, breaking an agreement with CBS that the interview would first air on their network Sunday. Trump shared the video on Facebook, and claimed in a tweet that Stahl’s questions revealed “bias, hatred and rudeness” as if to justify his decision to walk out of the interview early and release the tape ahead of schedule.
Deputy director for the DNC War Room Daniel Wessel suggested in a statement Thursday that Trump had opted to prematurely release the tape because he had poorly answered the question regarding his own health care plan.
“Now we know why Trump was so mad about this interview. He just made it transparently obvious to the American people that his only plan for health care is to take away yours,” Wessel said.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-22--Trump Campaign Denies Hiring Armed Guards Who Stood Outside FL Polling Site

The Trump campaign denied hiring two people who were dressed as armed security guards outside of an early voting location in St. Petersburg , Florida and claimed to be affiliated with the President ’ s re-election campaign.In a video interview with WFLA on Wednesday , Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Julie Marcus said that Sheriff Bob Gualtieri told her that the two people who set up a tent outside of an early voting site in downtown St. Petersburg said that they worked for a licensed security company and for the Trump campaign .
“ ( Gualtieri ) told me the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ uniforms had indicated to sheriff ’ s deputies that they belonged to a licensed security company and they indicated – and this has not been confirmed yet – that they were hired by the Trump campaign , ” Marcus told WFLA on Wednesday night .
In a statement shared with TPM on Thursday , Thea McDonald , the deputy national press secretary for the Trump campaign , denied that the individuals were hired by the campaign .
“ The campaign did not hire these individuals nor did the campaign direct them to go @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
Marcus told WFLA that both she and Gualtieri , who are Republicans up for re-election , take the incident “ very seriously ” and disavowed voter intimidation tactics .
“ Voter intimidation , deterring voters from voting , impeding a voter ’ s ability to cast a ballot in this election is unacceptable and will not be tolerated in any way shape , or form , ” Marcus told WFLA .
“ So we anticipated many things going into this election .
Not only cybersecurity , but physical security and we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that plan ” The incident outside of the Florida polling site happened amid concerns over Trump ’ s encouragement of poll watchers during his disastrous presidential debate last month .
“ I ’ m urging my supporters to go into the polls and watch very carefully , ” Trump said .
“ Because that ’ s what has to happen .
I am urging them to do it .
”

The Trump campaign denied hiring two people who were dressed as armed security guards outside of an early voting location in St. Petersburg, Florida and claimed to be affiliated with the President’s re-election campaign.
In a video interview with WFLA on Wednesday, Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Julie Marcus said that Sheriff Bob Gualtieri told her that the two people who set up a tent outside of an early voting site in downtown St. Petersburg said that they worked for a licensed security company and for the Trump campaign.
“(Gualtieri) told me the persons that were dressed in these security uniforms had indicated to sheriff’s deputies that they belonged to a licensed security company and they indicated – and this has not been confirmed yet – that they were hired by the Trump campaign,” Marcus told WFLA on Wednesday night.
In a statement shared with TPM on Thursday, Thea McDonald, the deputy national press secretary for the Trump campaign, denied that the individuals were hired by the campaign.
“The campaign did not hire these individuals nor did the campaign direct them to go to the voting location,” McDonald said.
Marcus told WFLA that both she and Gualtieri, who are Republicans up for re-election, take the incident “very seriously” and disavowed voter intimidation tactics.
“Voter intimidation, deterring voters from voting, impeding a voter’s ability to cast a ballot in this election is unacceptable and will not be tolerated in any way shape, or form,” Marcus told WFLA. “So we anticipated many things going into this election. Not only cybersecurity, but physical security and we had a plan in place and executed that plan”
The incident outside of the Florida polling site happened amid concerns over Trump’s encouragement of poll watchers during his disastrous presidential debate last month.
“I’m urging my supporters to go into the polls and watch very carefully,” Trump said. “Because that’s what has to happen. I am urging them to do it.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-22--Money Pours Into Michigan Senate Race As Tight Polling Spooks Democrats

Michigan is one of Republicans ’ scant Senate pickup opportunities in a cycle that favors the Democrats — and the money being spent there reflects it .
On Thursday , the campaign for incumbent Sen. Gary Peters ( D-MI ) announced that it had raised $ 7.4 million from October 1 to October 14 .
“ The surge in grassroots fundraising comes after Peters ’ third quarter fundraising marked the largest quarterly haul for a Senate candidate in Michigan history , ” the campaign said in a press release .
The influx is likely a welcome sign to the Peters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republican challenger John James this year in every quarter prior .
The James campaign did not respond to questions about their pre-general filing report for the same two week period .
Outside groups have also been spending lavishly on the race , with the Democratic Senate Majority PAC spending some $ 29 million in the race so far , including $ 4.4 last week .
The Republican Senate Leadership Fund answered with nearly $ 13 million , according to the Center For Responsive Politics .
The race attracted attention from panicked Democrats last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poll showed Peters only leading James by a single point .
Most other polls from this month have shown Peters with a mid- to high-single digit lead .
Former President Barack Obama also cut an ad for Peters that aired early this week , the only one he filmed for an incumbent , not a challenger .
The only other Democratic incumbent likely to need the same kind of help is Sen. Doug Jones ( D-AL ) , whose race seems more dire in the Trump-loving state .
Obama recorded a robocall on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election against Roy Moore that went out 24 hours before Election Day , though Jones said he wasn ’ t told about it at the time .
Holding Peters ’ seat is crucial for Democrats as they look to flip the Senate .
They need a net gain of three seats , plus the White House , to achieve a bare minority .
That will also likely entail winning an additional seat , as Jones is fighting an uphill battle against a candidate much less toxic to Republicans than Moore , marred by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was three years ago .
There are four seats — in Colorado , Arizona , North Carolina and Maine — that Democrats seem well-positioned to pick up .
Winning five entails dipping into TPM ’ s “ toss-up ” category , though there is some evidence to suggest that Iowa may be trending more Democrat-friendly in the final weeks of the campaign .

Michigan is one of Republicans’ scant Senate pickup opportunities in a cycle that favors the Democrats — and the money being spent there reflects it.
On Thursday, the campaign for incumbent Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) announced that it had raised $7.4 million from October 1 to October 14. “The surge in grassroots fundraising comes after Peters’ third quarter fundraising marked the largest quarterly haul for a Senate candidate in Michigan history,” the campaign said in a press release.
The influx is likely a welcome sign to the Peters campaign, which had been out-fundraised by Republican challenger John James this year in every quarter prior. The James campaign did not respond to questions about their pre-general filing report for the same two week period.
Outside groups have also been spending lavishly on the race, with the Democratic Senate Majority PAC spending some $29 million in the race so far, including $4.4 last week. The Republican Senate Leadership Fund answered with nearly $13 million, according to the Center For Responsive Politics.
The race attracted attention from panicked Democrats last week, when a New York Times-Siena poll showed Peters only leading James by a single point. Most other polls from this month have shown Peters with a mid- to high-single digit lead.
Former President Barack Obama also cut an ad for Peters that aired early this week, the only one he filmed for an incumbent, not a challenger. The only other Democratic incumbent likely to need the same kind of help is Sen. Doug Jones (D-AL), whose race seems more dire in the Trump-loving state. Obama recorded a robocall on Jones’ behalf during his 2017 special election against Roy Moore that went out 24 hours before Election Day, though Jones said he wasn’t told about it at the time.
Holding Peters’ seat is crucial for Democrats as they look to flip the Senate. They need a net gain of three seats, plus the White House, to achieve a bare minority. That will also likely entail winning an additional seat, as Jones is fighting an uphill battle against a candidate much less toxic to Republicans than Moore, marred by accusations of preying on underage girls, was three years ago.
There are four seats — in Colorado, Arizona, North Carolina and Maine — that Democrats seem well-positioned to pick up. Winning five entails dipping into TPM’s “toss-up” category, though there is some evidence to suggest that Iowa may be trending more Democrat-friendly in the final weeks of the campaign.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-22--CBS Fires Back At Trump After He Whines About ’60 Minutes’ Interview

CBS News quickly fired back at President Trump on Thursday , shortly after he posted what he claimed was his full interview on “ 60 Minutes ” on his Facebook page , days before its scheduled airtime on Sunday .
On Thursday morning , CBS “ This Morning ” aired a short preview of Trump ’ s “ 60 Minutes ” interview that he reportedly walked out on because he was unhappy with “ 60 Minutes ” anchor Lesley Stahl ’ s tough questioning .
The short clip aired by CBS “ This Morning ” shows Stahl asking Trump what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but the President proceeded to boast about his supposed economic achievements while dodging the question .
Stahl pushed back on Trump ’ s assertion that his administration “ created the greatest economy in the history of our country ” by telling him “ you know that ’ s not true.
” Several hours after CBS released the “ 60 Minutes ” clip , Trump posted what he claimed was the full interview on his Facebook page .
In the video caption , the President griped that “ 60 Minutes ” and CBS @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” while also throwing NBC News ’ Kristen Welker , who is set to moderate the final presidential debate later Thursday , under the bus by characterizing her as “ far worse.
” CBS News quickly rebuked Trump ’ s move in a statement shared with TPM on Thursday .
The network said that it is committed to releasing “ its full , fair and contextual reporting.
” “ The White House ’ s unprecedented decision to disregard their agreement with CBS News and release their footage will not deter 60 MINUTES from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reporting which presidents have participated in for decades , ” CBS News said .
“ 60 MINUTES , the most-watched news program on television , is widely respected for bringing its hallmark fairness , deep reporting and informative context to viewers each week.
” CBS News also praised Stahl , who Trump has been on a rampage against by vowing to release footage of his “ 60 Minutes ” interview prior to its scheduled airtime on Sunday .
Over the course of the week , Trump posted a short video clip and photos @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the White House to his Twitter .
“ Few journalists have the presidential interview experience Lesley Stahl has delivered over her decades as one of the premier correspondents in America and we look forward to audiences seeing her third interview with President Trump and subsequent interview with Vice President Pence this weekend , ” CBS News added in its statement .
Trump ’ s early release of footage from his “ 60 Minutes ” interview comes a day after White House chief of staff Mark Meadows appeared to hype the ominous hit job @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after ditching the interview early .
During an interview on Fox Business Network on Wednesday morning , Meadows said that “ there ’ s a high probability , but more to come .
”

CBS News quickly fired back at President Trump on Thursday, shortly after he posted what he claimed was his full interview on “60 Minutes” on his Facebook page, days before its scheduled airtime on Sunday.
On Thursday morning, CBS “This Morning” aired a short preview of Trump’s “60 Minutes” interview that he reportedly walked out on because he was unhappy with “60 Minutes” anchor Lesley Stahl’s tough questioning.
The short clip aired by CBS “This Morning” shows Stahl asking Trump what his “biggest domestic priority” is, but the President proceeded to boast about his supposed economic achievements while dodging the question. Stahl pushed back on Trump’s assertion that his administration “created the greatest economy in the history of our country” by telling him “you know that’s not true.”
Several hours after CBS released the “60 Minutes” clip, Trump posted what he claimed was the full interview on his Facebook page. In the video caption, the President griped that “60 Minutes” and CBS demonstrated “bias, hatred and rudeness” while also throwing NBC News’ Kristen Welker, who is set to moderate the final presidential debate later Thursday, under the bus by characterizing her as “far worse.”
CBS News quickly rebuked Trump’s move in a statement shared with TPM on Thursday. The network said that it is committed to releasing “its full, fair and contextual reporting.”
“The White House’s unprecedented decision to disregard their agreement with CBS News and release their footage will not deter 60 MINUTES from providing its full, fair and contextual reporting which presidents have participated in for decades,” CBS News said. “60 MINUTES, the most-watched news program on television, is widely respected for bringing its hallmark fairness, deep reporting and informative context to viewers each week.”
CBS News also praised Stahl, who Trump has been on a rampage against by vowing to release footage of his “60 Minutes” interview prior to its scheduled airtime on Sunday. Over the course of the week, Trump posted a short video clip and photos of Stahl not wearing a mask at the White House to his Twitter.
“Few journalists have the presidential interview experience Lesley Stahl has delivered over her decades as one of the premier correspondents in America and we look forward to audiences seeing her third interview with President Trump and subsequent interview with Vice President Pence this weekend,” CBS News added in its statement.
Trump’s early release of footage from his “60 Minutes” interview comes a day after White House chief of staff Mark Meadows appeared to hype the ominous hit job against Stahl that the President teased shortly after ditching the interview early.
During an interview on Fox Business Network on Wednesday morning, Meadows said that “there’s a high probability, but more to come.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-23--Trump Mocked For Taking ‘Full Responsibility’ For COVID And Also None At All

President Donald Trump on Thursday gestured at possibly taking some responsibility for a failed response to the COVID-19 pandemic , before quickly retreating into a familiar blame game with China .
“ I take full responsibility , ” Trump said , before quickly adding : “ It ’ s not my fault it came here .
It ’ s China ’ s fault.
” The comment laid bare a common refrain for President Trump to blame others for his failures as a President after more than 223,000 people as of Friday morning , have died from coronavirus in the United @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mislead the public about the virus ’ severity .
It ’ s almost impossible to sum up the many times Trump shrugged responsibility for his bungled pandemic response .
When it came to testing back in March , Trump claimed it was the fault of his predecessor that testing for the novel coronavirus wasn ’ t meeting demand .
“ The Obama administration made a decision on testing that turned out to be very detrimental to what we ’ re doing , ” Trump said at the time .
Days later when pressed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ again deflected blame .
“ I don ’ t take responsibility at all , ” Trump said before pointing a vague finger into “ specifications from a different time , ” that he said hampered his administration ’ s ability to roll out testing .
In a stunning twist , once testing got underway , Trump blamed the tests for rising cases — suggesting if the country tested less there wouldn ’ t be any COVID-19 cases at all .
In an interview with Axios ’ Jonathan Swan in August , when given @ @ @ @ @ @ @ failures after more than 155,000 people had died from coronavirus in the United States at that time , Trump famously said — “ it is what it is.
” Calling it an “ iconic debate line ” and a “ slogan for 2020 ” critics on Twitter wouldn ’ t let Trump forget just how often he ’ s shrugged responsibility for COVID-19 in the past :

President Donald Trump on Thursday gestured at possibly taking some responsibility for a failed response to the COVID-19 pandemic, before quickly retreating into a familiar blame game with China.
“I take full responsibility,” Trump said, before quickly adding: “It’s not my fault it came here. It’s China’s fault.”
The comment laid bare a common refrain for President Trump to blame others for his failures as a President after more than 224,000 people as of Friday morning, have died from coronavirus in the United States and he has continuously sought to mislead the public about the virus’ severity.
It’s almost impossible to sum up the many times Trump shrugged responsibility for his bungled pandemic response.
When it came to testing back in March, Trump claimed it was the fault of his predecessor that testing for the novel coronavirus wasn’t meeting demand.
“The Obama administration made a decision on testing that turned out to be very detrimental to what we’re doing,” Trump said at the time, suggesting the former president had hampered his administration’s ability to roll out testing.
In a stunning twist, once testing got underway, Trump blamed the tests for rising cases — suggesting if the country tested less there wouldn’t be any COVID-19 cases at all.
In an interview with Axios’ Jonathan Swan in August, when given the opportunity to own up to his failures after more than 155,000 people had died from coronavirus in the United States at that time, Trump famously said — “it is what it is.”
Calling it an “iconic debate line” and a “slogan for 2020” critics on Twitter wouldn’t let Trump forget just how often he’s shrugged responsibility for COVID-19 in the past:
The more I think about it, the more I think "I take full responsibility. It's not my fault" is going to be a truly iconic debate line. It's "who am I? Why am I here?" level work. — Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) October 23, 2020
“I take full responsibility, it’s China’s fault,” is really the slogan of 2020 — Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) October 23, 2020
President Trump says he takes full responsibility for his response to pandemic. A few months ago, when Kristen Welker asked Trump about responsibility for COVID, he said, "I don't take responsibility at all." — Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) October 23, 2020
Two consecutive sentences: “I take full responsibility. It’s not my fault…” — Steve Inskeep (@NPRinskeep) October 23, 2020
Trump: Why didn't he get stuff done on his watch? Also Trump: Coronavirus will "disappear" like a "miracle" "I don't take responsibility at all" Now that more than 200K died, it's "not my fault" "I got stuck with it" (All real quotes from Trump) — Greg Sargent (@ThePlumLineGS) October 23, 2020
Trump: I take full responsibility for coronavirus but it’s not my fault, it’s China’s fault. But it’s my responsibility…What does responsibility mean, again? Trump talks about closing the border to China like Al Bundy talks about his four-touchdown football game in high school — michaelharriot (@michaelharriot) October 23, 2020


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-23--‘How Are You All Still Doing This?’: Pundits Roasted For Painting Trump As A Newly Tamed Beast

During Thursday night ’ s debate ( you know , the one that had a new rule on muting mics @ @ @ @ @ managed to avoid repeatedly heckling and shouting over Democratic candidate Joe Biden as often as @ @ @ @ @ new tone ” -hungry pundits to predictably applaud him for sort of exercising a restraint @ @ @ @ @ any grown adult .
Those pundits found themselves under fire from critics who pointed out @ @ @ @ @ gold star for not slipping on banana peels as often as he did before , @ @ @ @ @ still spouted a bunch of nonsensical conspiracy theories and racist comments that weren ’ t @ @ @ @ @ he didn ’ t scream them this time :

During Thursday night’s debate (you know, the one that had a new rule on muting mics), President Donald Trump managed to avoid repeatedly heckling and shouting over Democratic candidate Joe Biden as often as he did last time–prompting “new tone”-hungry pundits to predictably applaud him for sort of exercising a restraint that one would expect from any grown adult.
Those pundits found themselves under fire from critics who pointed out that Trump hardly deserves a gold star for not slipping on banana peels as often as he did before, especially considering how the President still spouted a bunch of nonsensical conspiracy theories and racist comments that weren’t any more coherent just because he didn’t scream them this time:
All of this is happening like clockwork pic.twitter.com/sIqU2kWJW3 — Jamison Foser (@jamisonfoser) October 23, 2020
Ladies and gentleman, I present to you your DC press corps. https://t.co/g7qEZnfZPk — i'm that trigger (@luckybastard77) October 23, 2020
omg dr fauci can you develop a vaccine for New Tonitis https://t.co/vsiqZyV8Ik — Matt Negrin, HOST OF HARDBALL AT 7PM ON MSNBC (@MattNegrin) October 23, 2020
I just heard Chuck Todd say that “Trump did probably stop the bleeding tonight and that’s important” and I want to scream. — Scott Hechinger (@ScottHech) October 23, 2020
The President struck a new gentler tone tonight when he described his orphan warehouses as clean — Jess Dweck (@TheDweck) October 23, 2020
What is this compulsion? Does it have a clinical name? I want to know what to tell the doctors when I check people in. https://t.co/NfOf8NMJTZ — Ken Tremendous (@KenTremendous) October 23, 2020
I say this fully aware that I’m an opinion journalist who also makes wrong assumptions sometimes, but: I think a lot of pundits analyze these debates with the assumption that the typical American is conservative or sympathetic to Trump and that’s just simply not true. — Abdallah Fayyad (@abdallah_fayyad) October 23, 2020
The Americans lost more men at Omaha Beach than the Germans, so I suspect that means the Germans won. https://t.co/hYuS1UFPVu — Fuss Still Doesn't Have The Plague (@semperfitrex) October 23, 2020


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-23--‘We Need To Move On’: Welker Keeps Debate On Track After Week Of Trump Attacks

NBC News White House correspondent Kristen Welker was widely praised for her performance moderating the final presidential debate between President Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden Thursday , following a week of Trump waging attacks against her .
Welker , who is the first Black woman to moderate a general-election presidential debate since Carole Simpson of ABC in 1992 , was targeted by Trump in the days leading up to her moderation duties .
The President repeatedly accused Welker of being “ a radical left Democrat or whatever she is ” following a New York Post article claiming that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ties.
” ( She doesn ’ t . )
Just hours before the debate , Trump kept up the assault on Welker in a tweet .
The President wrote that Welker is “ far worse ” than the “ bias , hatred and rudeness ” of CBS and “ 60 Minutes , ” in light of Trump reportedly walking out on his solo interview with anchor Lesley Stahl over her tough questioning .
However , Welker kept her composure throughout the night as she asked pointed questions to both candidates and cut in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the debate topic at hand by telling them : “ We need to move on.
” Even Trump himself came around and briefly praised Welker .
“ By the way , so far , I respect very much the way you ’ re handling this , I have to say , ” Trump said .
Some examples that earned Welker high praise included when Trump criticized the moderator as he blasted Biden for his position on fracking .
After the President told Welker that “ you never asked that question , ” she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ topics , we ’ re going to get to it.
” As soon as Trump hit back by preparing to attack Biden for “ socialized medicine , ” Welker gave the floor to Biden for his response .
When Welker pressed Trump on his administration ’ s family separation policy that separated more than 4,000 children from their parents at the border and what he will do to reunite families affected by it , Trump attempted to deflect by bringing up an images of “ horrible cages.
” But Welker pressed him again @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reunite the children with their parents , to which Trump replied “ yes , we ’ re trying very hard.
” Segueing into the final question of the night , Welker halted Trump ’ s rant accusing Biden of setting out to “ destroy the oil industry.
” After Welker gave Biden time to respond — which he did by ripping Trump for taking “ everything out of context ” — Trump attempted to butt in by asking if the former VP is “ going to get China to do it.
” Welker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with his interjection , however , as she replied “ no , we ’ re finished ” before moving onto the final question about Trump ’ s Inauguration Day speech if he wins re-election .
Throughout and after the debate , Welker was roundly praised by other members of the press .
Even Chris Wallace , who moderated last month ’ s disastrous debate , couldn ’ t help but express envy for the debate that Welker solidly moderated .
Shortly after the debate wrapped up , MSNBC anchor Brian Williams said “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ apology , ” referring to Trump ’ s weeklong attacks against her .
Fellow MSNBC host Rachel Maddow agreed with Williams , saying that “ she ’ s owed an apology by the President , who attacked her over and over and over again heading into this event tonight .
”

NBC News White House correspondent Kristen Welker was widely praised for her performance moderating the final presidential debate between President Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden Thursday, following a week of Trump waging attacks against her.
Welker, who is the first Black woman to moderate a general-election presidential debate since Carole Simpson of ABC in 1992, was targeted by Trump in the days leading up to her moderation duties. The President repeatedly accused Welker of being “a radical left Democrat or whatever she is” following a New York Post article claiming that the White House correspondent has “deep Democratic ties.” (She doesn’t.)
Just hours before the debate, Trump kept up the assault on Welker in a tweet. The President wrote that Welker is “far worse” than the “bias, hatred and rudeness” of CBS and “60 Minutes,” in light of Trump reportedly walking out on his solo interview with anchor Lesley Stahl over her tough questioning.
However, Welker kept her composure throughout the night as she asked pointed questions to both candidates and cut in as soon as their remarks deviated from the debate topic at hand by telling them: “We need to move on.”
Even Trump himself came around and briefly praised Welker.
“By the way, so far, I respect very much the way you’re handling this, I have to say,” Trump said.
Some examples that earned Welker high praise included when Trump criticized the moderator as he blasted Biden for his position on fracking. After the President told Welker that “you never asked that question,” she responded “we have a number of topics, we’re going to get to it.” As soon as Trump hit back by preparing to attack Biden for “socialized medicine,” Welker gave the floor to Biden for his response.
When Welker pressed Trump on his administration’s family separation policy that separated more than 4,000 children from their parents at the border and what he will do to reunite families affected by it, Trump attempted to deflect by bringing up an images of “horrible cages.” But Welker pressed him again about whether he has a plan to reunite the children with their parents, to which Trump replied “yes, we’re trying very hard.”
Segueing into the final question of the night, Welker halted Trump’s rant accusing Biden of setting out to “destroy the oil industry.” After Welker gave Biden time to respond — which he did by ripping Trump for taking “everything out of context” — Trump attempted to butt in by asking if the former VP is “going to get China to do it.” Welker didn’t let Trump get away with his interjection, however, as she replied “no, we’re finished” before moving onto the final question about Trump’s Inauguration Day speech if he wins re-election.
Throughout and after the debate, Welker was roundly praised by other members of the press. Even Chris Wallace, who moderated last month’s disastrous debate, couldn’t help but express envy for the debate that Welker solidly moderated.
Shortly after the debate wrapped up, MSNBC anchor Brian Williams said “somebody owes our colleague Kristen Welker an apology,” referring to Trump’s weeklong attacks against her. Fellow MSNBC host Rachel Maddow agreed with Williams, saying that “she’s owed an apology by the President, who attacked her over and over and over again heading into this event tonight.”
Near-universal praise for moderator Welker underscores she’s the lone reporter to escape the curse of being a 2020 presidential moderator. Two moderators got steamrolled and third would-be moderator got suspended from C-SPAN. Once-glamorous job carries new risks in Trump era. — Dan Diamond (@ddiamond) October 23, 2020
A quick personal shoutout: @kwelkernbc is doing a phenomenal job moderating this debate. Phenomenal. Her colleagues in the press corps, this reporter included, are ecstatic for her (and not surprised.) — Jeff Mason (@jeffmason1) October 23, 2020
It’s extremely embarrassing for everyone who tried, unfairly, to discredit her that @kwelkernbc is by far the best debate moderator of the 2020 cycle. — Olivia Nuzzi (@Olivianuzzi) October 23, 2020
Just fabulous, fabulous questions by Kristen Welker. — John Bresnahan (@BresPolitico) October 23, 2020


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-23--Trump’s Last Hurrah Was Saturated With Racist Appeals

The President answered a question about his history of racism at Thursday night ’ s presidential debate by telling moderator Kristen Welker , whose mother is Black , “ I am the least racist person in this room.
” “ I can ’ t even see the audience because it ’ s so dark , but I don ’ t care , ” he added .
It was a characteristic bit of wind , but also representative of Trump ’ s strategy for years : Demonize immigrants , call Black athletes protesting for civil rights sons of bitches — and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump played the hits Thursday night : Migrants and asylum seekers at the border include murderers and rapists , he said — but the only ones who show up for immigration court hearings are “ those with the lowest IQ.
” Hundreds of children who remain apart from their parents years after being separated from them at the border are actually “ so well taken care of ” in U.S. hands , he stressed separately .
That COVID-19 stimulus bill that Senate Republicans have stonewalled ?
It ’ s simply unacceptable , Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people — and then people from all over the world would start “ pouring into our country.
” “ We can ’ t do it , ” he said , winding up to the next sentence .
“ This was a way of taking care of them.
” Though the President was restrained enough not to call COVID-19 the “ China Virus ” or “ Kung Flu , ” as he ’ s done in the past , he did his best to paint China as the source of what he essentially described @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the world .
“ It ’ s China ’ s fault , ” he said of the pandemic at one point .
“ They kept it from going into the rest of China , for the most part , but they didn ’ t keep it from coming out to the world including Europe and ourselves.
” Later , it wouldn ’ t be enough to accuse Democrats of , like him , not taking the virus seriously in its early months .
No , Trump said that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the streets of Chinatown in San Francisco !
” ( Pelosi visited the city ’ s Chinatown to combat xenophobia , and before San Francisco had declared a state of emergency over the virus . )
Asked later about the systematic racism faced by Black and brown families across the country , Trump did his best to sympathize — which , in his case , meant comparing himself to the President who ended slavery .
“ Nobody has done more for the Black community than Donald Trump , ” he said , before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lincoln .
“ Abraham Lincoln here is one of the most racist presidents who has a modern history , ” Joe Biden shot back shortly after .
Living politicians didn ’ t get nearly as generous a treatment .
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ( D-NY ) and other progressive lawmakers of color , Trump warned at one point , were the ones really in the driver ’ s seat of Biden ’ s climate policy .
“ You know who developed it ?
AOC plus three , ” he said , referring to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( D-MN ) , Ayanna Pressley ( D-MA ) and Rashida Tlaib ( D-MI ) .
Aside from the Lincoln line and the AOC attack , Trump didn ’ t have much to say when it got down to policy on racial discrimination .
When asked , for example , what he would say to families who live near chemical plants and oil refineries that he ’ s aggressively deregulated , and who are disproportionately people of color , the President appeared stumped .
“ The families that we ’ re talking about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ making a lot of money — more money than they ’ ve ever made , ” he said , before stressing that he was speaking generally about the tens of millions of Hispanic , Black and Asian Americans .
“ I have not heard the numbers or the statistics that you ’ re saying , ” he told Welker of her question .
“ But they ’ re making a tremendous amount of money .
”

The President answered a question about his history of racism at Thursday night’s presidential debate by telling moderator Kristen Welker, whose mother is Black, “I am the least racist person in this room.”
“I can’t even see the audience because it’s so dark, but I don’t care,” he added.
It was a characteristic bit of wind, but also representative of Trump’s strategy for years: Demonize immigrants, call Black athletes protesting for civil rights sons of bitches — and then simply ignore the racism questions.
Trump played the hits Thursday night: Migrants and asylum seekers at the border include murderers and rapists, he said — but the only ones who show up for immigration court hearings are “those with the lowest IQ.”
Hundreds of children who remain apart from their parents years after being separated from them at the border are actually “so well taken care of” in U.S. hands, he stressed separately.
That COVID-19 stimulus bill that Senate Republicans have stonewalled? It’s simply unacceptable, Trump said, because it would benefit undocumented people — and then people from all over the world would start “pouring into our country.”
“We can’t do it,” he said, winding up to the next sentence. “This was a way of taking care of them.”
Though the President was restrained enough not to call COVID-19 the “China Virus” or “Kung Flu,” as he’s done in the past, he did his best to paint China as the source of what he essentially described as a bioweapon aimed at the rest of the world.
“It’s China’s fault,” he said of the pandemic at one point. “They kept it from going into the rest of China, for the most part, but they didn’t keep it from coming out to the world including Europe and ourselves.”
Later, it wouldn’t be enough to accuse Democrats of, like him, not taking the virus seriously in its early months. No, Trump said that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was “dancing on the streets of Chinatown in San Francisco!” (Pelosi visited the city’s Chinatown to combat xenophobia, and before San Francisco had declared a state of emergency over the virus.)
Asked later about the systematic racism faced by Black and brown families across the country, Trump did his best to sympathize — which, in his case, meant comparing himself to the President who ended slavery.
“Nobody has done more for the Black community than Donald Trump,” he said, before allowing for the possible exception of Abraham Lincoln.
“Abraham Lincoln here is one of the most racist presidents who has a modern history,” Joe Biden shot back shortly after.
Living politicians didn’t get nearly as generous a treatment.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and other progressive lawmakers of color, Trump warned at one point, were the ones really in the driver’s seat of Biden’s climate policy.
“You know who developed it? AOC plus three,” he said, referring to the congresswoman as well as Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI).
Aside from the Lincoln line and the AOC attack, Trump didn’t have much to say when it got down to policy on racial discrimination.
When asked, for example, what he would say to families who live near chemical plants and oil refineries that he’s aggressively deregulated, and who are disproportionately people of color, the President appeared stumped.
“The families that we’re talking about are employed heavily and they’re making a lot of money — more money than they’ve ever made,” he said, before stressing that he was speaking generally about the tens of millions of Hispanic, Black and Asian Americans.
“I have not heard the numbers or the statistics that you’re saying,” he told Welker of her question. “But they’re making a tremendous amount of money.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-23--Trump Speaks At Length During Debate In Indecipherable Code Of Far-Right Fever Swamps

President Donald Trump , who spends much of his time in the right-wing fever swamps of Twitter and TV , has come to speak the language — a reality on full display during the last presidential debate of 2020 .
But for those of us who don ’ t live in those worlds , it can be impossible to figure out what he ’ s talking about .
In the first hour of the debate , Trump tossed out handfuls of buzzwords for various conspiracy theories , Greek to those who left their Fox News decoders at home .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Russia and it came through Putin because he was friendly with the mayor of Moscow , and it was the mayor of Moscow ’ s wife , ” he said .
That particular accusation seems to be linked to the never-ending quest to nail down some dirt on Hunter Biden .
He followed it up with another doozy on his Russian tangent .
“ While he was selling pillows and sheets , I sold tank busters to Ukraine , ” Trump declared .
Trump has lodged this attack before .
The Obama administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but it sent military equipment and more than $ 100 million in security assistance .
Ironically , Trump is ripping the attack off something his nemesis , the late Sen. John McCain ( R-AZ ) , said in 2015 : “ The Ukrainians are being slaughtered and we ’ re sending blankets and meals .
Blankets don ’ t do well against Russian tanks.
” Back to the debate , where things made considerably less sense : “ There is nobody tougher on Russia than Donald Trump , ” the aforementioned Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” he opined , “ they took over the submarine port.
” Biden , accordingly , looked nonplussed ( and I can not fact check this because I have no idea what it means ) : On and on it went .
Biden didn ’ t even try to engage with Trump ’ s accusations .
Instead , the former vice president brought up Trump ’ s foreign business entanglements .
This president , Biden said , “ has a secret bank account in China , does business in China and is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
I have not taken a single penny from any country whatsoever.
” Trump furthered his attempt to taint the Biden family with corruption later on , in another inscrutable attack .
“ Your brother made money in Iraq — millions of dollars , your other brother made a fortune , ” Trump said , perhaps referring to a construction contract Biden ’ s brother got to build houses in Iraq .
In another section — intended to be focused on race-related issues — Trump looped back to Hunter Biden again , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from hell.
” The president was in fact riffing on Rudy Giuliani ’ s more alliterative “ hard drive from hell , ” which , Giuliani claims , is the property of Hunter Biden and will become the source of many more information dumps .
It ’ s not clear if the emails released from the hard drive so far are real , foreign disinformation , domestic ratfuckery , or even really what they purport to reveal .
The situation is so replete with red flags that only the likes of the New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ten-foot pole .
“ There ’ s a reason he ’ s bringing up all of this malarkey .
There ’ s a reason for it , ” Biden said , looking the camera dead on .
“ He does not want to talk about the substantive issues .
It ’ s not about his family and my family .
It ’ s about your family , and your family is hurting badly .
”

President Donald Trump, who spends much of his time in the right-wing fever swamps of Twitter and TV, has come to speak the language — a reality on full display during the last presidential debate of 2020.
But for those of us who don’t live in those worlds, it can be impossible to figure out what he’s talking about.
In the first hour of the debate, Trump tossed out handfuls of buzzwords for various conspiracy theories, Greek to those who left their Fox News decoders at home.
“Joe got $3.5 million dollars from Russia and it came through Putin because he was friendly with the mayor of Moscow, and it was the mayor of Moscow’s wife,” he said.
Biden’s expression sums it up:
That particular accusation seems to be linked to the never-ending quest to nail down some dirt on Hunter Biden. He followed it up with another doozy on his Russian tangent.
“While he was selling pillows and sheets, I sold tank busters to Ukraine,” Trump declared.
Trump has lodged this attack before. The Obama administration did not send lethal aid to Ukraine, but it sent military equipment and more than $100 million in security assistance.
Ironically, Trump is ripping the attack off something his nemesis, the late Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), said in 2015: “The Ukrainians are being slaughtered and we’re sending blankets and meals. Blankets don’t do well against Russian tanks.”
Back to the debate, where things made considerably less sense: “There is nobody tougher on Russia than Donald Trump,” the aforementioned Trump continued.
“They were so bad,” he opined, “they took over the submarine port.”
Biden, accordingly, looked nonplussed (and I cannot fact check this because I have no idea what it means):
On and on it went. Biden didn’t even try to engage with Trump’s accusations. Instead, the former vice president brought up Trump’s foreign business entanglements.
This president, Biden said, “has a secret bank account in China, does business in China and is in fact talking about me taking money? I have not taken a single penny from any country whatsoever.”
Trump furthered his attempt to taint the Biden family with corruption later on, in another inscrutable attack.
“Your brother made money in Iraq — millions of dollars, your other brother made a fortune,” Trump said, perhaps referring to a construction contract Biden’s brother got to build houses in Iraq.
In another section — intended to be focused on race-related issues — Trump looped back to Hunter Biden again, including a reference to the fabled “laptop from hell.”
The president was in fact riffing on Rudy Giuliani’s more alliterative “hard drive from hell,” which, Giuliani claims, is the property of Hunter Biden and will become the source of many more information dumps. It’s not clear if the emails released from the hard drive so far are real, foreign disinformation, domestic ratfuckery, or even really what they purport to reveal. The situation is so replete with red flags that only the likes of the New York Post would touch it with a ten-foot pole.
Finally, Biden dismissed the vague, but sinister-sounding accusations.
“There’s a reason he’s bringing up all of this malarkey. There’s a reason for it,” Biden said, looking the camera dead on. “He does not want to talk about the substantive issues. It’s not about his family and my family. It’s about your family, and your family is hurting badly.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-23--ICYMI: Your TPM Weekend News Roundup

ICYMI: Your TPM Weekend News Roundup

• It was President Trump ’ s last best chance to alter the trajectory of the 2020 campaign .
But even with a more subdued performance , the debate Thursday night failed to shake up the race , with polls showing Trump trailing Democratic nominee Joe Biden .
• Trump threw a lot against the wall during the 90-minute debate , little of it decipherable : Biden got money from Russia !
Biden ’ s brother got money in Iraq !
And on and on it went .
• The President also made a number of racist appeals in his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ before Election Day , telling moderator Kristen Welker , who is Black , that he was surely the least racist person in the room .
• Welker , for her part , was widely praised for her job moderating .
It ’ s no easy task , but she kept the candidates on track with sharp questions and effective follow-ups .
Even Trump , who had spent the previous week baselessly attacking her , gave her kudos during the debate .
• We also rounded up some fun reactions after the debate , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ full responsibility ” for his handling of COVID , and yet none at all , to pundits getting roundly mocked for celebrating Trump ’ s so-called new tone .
• As is customary before a presidential election , both Trump and Biden sat down with “ 60 Minutes ” for interviews .
But the President did not seem too happy with how his went .
• On Tuesday , Trump reportedly stormed out of the interview and later tweeted a brief clip of “ 60 Minutes ” correspondent Lesley Stahl speaking with her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Much more to come , ” Trump teased .
The President reportedly cut the interview short because he was unhappy with Stahl ’ s questions .
• The next day , White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said there was a “ high probability ” that Trump would release the full “ 60 Minutes ” interview , which is set to air Sunday evening on CBS , early .
• Sure enough , Trump did just that on Thursday .
Earlier in the day , CBS released a short clip of Stahl @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
• CBS News on Thursday also fired back at Trump for breaking his agreement with the network and releasing the interview early .
“ The White House ’ s unprecedented decision to disregard their agreement with CBS News and release their footage will not deter 60 MINUTES from providing its full , fair and contextual reporting which presidents have participated in for decades , ” the network said in a statement .
• The Supreme Court deadlocked on Monday over whether to grant a Republican effort to prevent Pennsylvania from counting mail-in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Day .
• That marks a win for voting rights advocates , but as TPM ’ s Tierney Sneed reports , the conservative Supreme Court dissenters could spell trouble for similar cases in the future .
• The Supreme Court also upheld a ban on curbside voting in Alabama on Wednesday .
State Republicans argued that because Alabama does not have a law explicitly allowing for curbside voting that it should not be allowed .
• And in North Carolina , a crucial swing state in the presidential race , Republicans asked the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deadline that allowed mail-in ballots to be received by the state .
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The California State Bar is arguing that recent criminal charges against John Eastman in Fulton County, Georgia should not prevent…


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-23--A Court Fight Is Brewing Over A Ballot Slip-Up Affecting 29K Pittsburgh-Area Voters

Republicans have gone to federal court to make it easier for them to challenge the ballots of nearly 29,000 Pittsburgh-area voters who were caught up in ballot-sending flub in recent weeks .
The court fight stems from a mail vendor screw-up that resulted in 28,879 Allegheny County voters being sent the wrong ballots .
Election officials have since sent those voters the correct ballots , and have created a process to prevent those voters from having their votes counted twice if they send both of the ballots back in .
But two GOP U.S. House candidates filed a federal lawsuit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s approach to the blunder violates their constitutional rights .
They ’ ve asked the court to order that any ballot cast by the nearly 29,000 affected voters be automatically treated as “ challenged ” — a designation that could subject the ballot to an onerous process in order to be counted — and that the court waive the $ 10-per-ballot fee the candidates would usually face to file challenges .
If the Republicans get their way , it could create a messy and confusing situation that would drag out the process of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ key swing state that ’ s already been a flashpoint of election litigation .
President Trump has made false claims to suggest that any delay in announcing the presidential election is a sign of fraud .
He and his allies have also signaled the potential that a Bush v. Gore-like legal battle could ultimately resolve the election .
When ballots are challenged in Pennsylvania , they ’ re subjected to an additional set of checks akin to provisional ballots .
The process includes the voter receiving a notice that her ballot is being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an elections board to resolve whether it should be tossed .
At a hearing Friday morning , U.S. District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan urged Republicans and Allegheny County to work out an agreement over the weekend that would avoid a court fight while the election was underway or right after .
Both sides ultimately said they ’ d give such a discussion a shot , but Allegheny County lawyer Andrew Szefi stressed that the county officials were already extremely busy managing the current election .
Democrats have been allowed to intervene in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ argued that if the GOP requests were granted , it “ significantly delay the canvassing process and resolution of the election.
” “ [ S ] ubjecting tens of thousands of ballots to a time-consuming challenge process without any basis to question the eligibility of any specific voter…not only violates state law , it tramples the constitutional rights of voters and improperly injects this Court into election administration decisions that state officials are better equipped to make , ” the Democrats said in a court filing earlier this week .
The judge has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republicans made in the case that the county allow poll watchers to observe the so-called “ satellite ” election offices where voters can submit in-person their absentee ballots .
At Friday ’ s hearing , lawyers for the GOP candidates argued their goal is not to disenfranchise people , but to guarantee they will be able to evaluate that all the ballots from the 29,000 voters are being treated in accordance of state law .
“ This isn ’ t ‘ let ’ s strike 29,000 people in there and create this big @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one of the GOP lawyers , said .
“ But there are some significant legal issues and a multitude of scenarios that have to be spelled out.
” The county , meanwhile , defended the system it set up : voters who only cast the correct ballot will have those ballots counted , those who cast a erroneous ballot will be treated like a in-person voter who has shown up to the wrong precinct ( their statewide votes will count ) , and those who cast both will see only the correct ballots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to observe the process of reconciling the ballots from those voters fitting into the third category .
Szefi , the lawyer for Allegheny County , noted that at that point , if Republicans had issues with how the ballots were being handled , they could file a lawsuit in state court .
Szefi questioned why this was even a matter for a federal court to resolve .
Hanging their arguments on the Supreme Court ’ s Bush v. Gore decision , Republicans claim the the county is violating their 14th Amendment equal protection @ @ @ @ @ @ @ regardless of whether the county is right on that legal question , it was in “ everybody ’ s best interest to sort this out now , whether it ’ s a consent order or something along those lines.
” “ I don ’ t think it ’ s in everyone ’ s best interest to have a bunch of Election Day lawsuits over these ballots when there hopefully could be some agreement on the procedures that will be implemented , ” he said .

Republicans have gone to federal court to make it easier for them to challenge the ballots of nearly 29,000 Pittsburgh-area voters who were caught up in ballot-sending flub in recent weeks.
The court fight stems from a mail vendor screw-up that resulted in 28,879 Allegheny County voters being sent the wrong ballots. Election officials have since sent those voters the correct ballots, and have created a process to prevent those voters from having their votes counted twice if they send both of the ballots back in.
But two GOP U.S. House candidates filed a federal lawsuit earlier this month arguing the county’s approach to the blunder violates their constitutional rights. They’ve asked the court to order that any ballot cast by the nearly 29,000 affected voters be automatically treated as “challenged” — a designation that could subject the ballot to an onerous process in order to be counted — and that the court waive the $10-per-ballot fee the candidates would usually face to file challenges.
If the Republicans get their way, it could create a messy and confusing situation that would drag out the process of counting and tabulating the results of a key swing state that’s already been a flashpoint of election litigation. President Trump has made false claims to suggest that any delay in announcing the presidential election is a sign of fraud. He and his allies have also signaled the potential that a Bush v. Gore-like legal battle could ultimately resolve the election.
When ballots are challenged in Pennsylvania, they’re subjected to an additional set of checks akin to provisional ballots. The process includes the voter receiving a notice that her ballot is being challenged and a hearing in front of an elections board to resolve whether it should be tossed.
At a hearing Friday morning, U.S. District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan urged Republicans and Allegheny County to work out an agreement over the weekend that would avoid a court fight while the election was underway or right after.
Both sides ultimately said they’d give such a discussion a shot, but Allegheny County lawyer Andrew Szefi stressed that the county officials were already extremely busy managing the current election.
Democrats have been allowed to intervene in the case. In their filings, they argued that if the GOP requests were granted, it “significantly delay the canvassing process and resolution of the election.”
“[S]ubjecting tens of thousands of ballots to a time-consuming challenge process without any basis to question the eligibility of any specific voter…not only violates state law, it tramples the constitutional rights of voters and improperly injects this Court into election administration decisions that state officials are better equipped to make,” the Democrats said in a court filing earlier this week.
The judge has already rejected a separate request that the Republicans made in the case that the county allow poll watchers to observe the so-called “satellite” election offices where voters can submit in-person their absentee ballots.
At Friday’s hearing, lawyers for the GOP candidates argued their goal is not to disenfranchise people, but to guarantee they will be able to evaluate that all the ballots from the 29,000 voters are being treated in accordance of state law.
“This isn’t ‘let’s strike 29,000 people in there and create this big convoluted mess.’” Thomas Breth, one of the GOP lawyers, said. “But there are some significant legal issues and a multitude of scenarios that have to be spelled out.”
The county, meanwhile, defended the system it set up: voters who only cast the correct ballot will have those ballots counted, those who cast a erroneous ballot will be treated like a in-person voter who has shown up to the wrong precinct (their statewide votes will count), and those who cast both will see only the correct ballots counted.
Republican campaigns will be able to observe the process of reconciling the ballots from those voters fitting into the third category. Szefi, the lawyer for Allegheny County, noted that at that point, if Republicans had issues with how the ballots were being handled, they could file a lawsuit in state court. Szefi questioned why this was even a matter for a federal court to resolve.
Hanging their arguments on the Supreme Court’s Bush v. Gore decision, Republicans claim the the county is violating their 14th Amendment equal protection rights.
Judge Ranjan said that, regardless of whether the county is right on that legal question, it was in “everybody’s best interest to sort this out now, whether it’s a consent order or something along those lines.”
“I don’t think it’s in everyone’s best interest to have a bunch of Election Day lawsuits over these ballots when there hopefully could be some agreement on the procedures that will be implemented,” he said.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-10-23--Graham’s Closing Argument Muffled As Barrett Confirmation Slips Under The Radar

Senator Lindsey Graham ( R-SC ) was supposed to put his uncomfortably close reelection race to rest with his starring role in an October drama : the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett .
The Senate Judiciary Committee chairman , Graham got a gavel and the limelight as he shepherded conservatives ’ dream judge onto the bench despite the heat of Democratic fury .
He could at once contribute to the Trump administration ’ s radical transformation of the judiciary , emphasize his importance to voters and count a generation of aggressively conservative jurisprudence as his own personal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ never live up to the hype .
Graham used his opening statements during the hearings as mini-stump speeches , opining about Obamacare in South Carolina , bragging about his efforts to ban abortions after 20 weeks , touting upcoming legislation with the hearings ’ breakout star , Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse ( D-RI ) , about dark money and the judiciary .
He even snuck in , apropos of nothing , that he and President Donald Trump had casually chatted during one of their golfing excursions about the assassination of Qasem Soleimani .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Barrett ’ s rushed confirmation somehow got nudged to the electoral back burner .
Perhaps it was the inevitability of Barrett ’ s successful confirmation , or Trump ’ s COVID-19 diagnosis , or just the frenetic pace of the final lap of a massively important presidential campaign — either way , the Barrett confirmation became one of many headlines instead of the marquee story .
It was only briefly mentioned at Thursday ’ s presidential debate , the last of the cycle , as the premise for a question on health care @ @ @ @ @ @ @ court seat hasn ’ t had a significant impact on the presidential race , and a CNBC poll published Tuesday shows that a majority of voters in six swing states want COVID-19 relief legislation prioritized ahead of Barrett ’ s confirmation .
With his big fall boost less powerful than he ’ d hoped , Graham is now locked into the fight of his political life with Jaime Harrison , the former South Carolina Democratic party chairman .
Since September , the polls have tightened considerably from a summer stretch that saw Graham @ @ @ @ @ @ @ usually only by mid-single digit leads .
During October , Harrison and Graham have been trading one- or two-point leads back and forth .
A Morning Consult poll released Thursday showed Harrison not only making up a six-point deficit from earlier in the month , but even surpassing Graham by two points .
Meanwhile , Harrison is raking in tons of money .
A fundraising juggernaut , he broke an eye-popping new record with his latest FEC filings , according to the Charleston Post and Courier , becoming the first Senate candidate in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than $ 100 million .
The previous record was set by Sen. Rick Scott ( R-FL ) at $ 85 million ( though more than $ 73 million of that was his own family ’ s money ) .
When asked about his record-shattering fundraising haul Friday on MSNBC , Harrison brought the conversation back to insufficient health care and crumbling infrastructure in the state , juxtaposing Graham as someone far away and out of touch .
“ I hope the voter that is voting for Jaime Harrison is a voter who wants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” he said , “ who is tired of Lindsey Graham going to Washington D.C. trying to represent D.C. interests and not represent the interests of the folks of South Carolina .
”

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) was supposed to put his uncomfortably close reelection race to rest with his starring role in an October drama: the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett.
The Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, Graham got a gavel and the limelight as he shepherded conservatives’ dream judge onto the bench despite the heat of Democratic fury. He could at once contribute to the Trump administration’s radical transformation of the judiciary, emphasize his importance to voters and count a generation of aggressively conservative jurisprudence as his own personal achievement.
Alas, some shows just never live up to the hype.
Graham used his opening statements during the hearings as mini-stump speeches, opining about Obamacare in South Carolina, bragging about his efforts to ban abortions after 20 weeks, touting upcoming legislation with the hearings’ breakout star, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), about dark money and the judiciary.
He even snuck in, apropos of nothing, that he and President Donald Trump had casually chatted during one of their golfing excursions about the assassination of Qasem Soleimani.
But despite Graham’s best efforts, Barrett’s rushed confirmation somehow got nudged to the electoral back burner.
Perhaps it was the inevitability of Barrett’s successful confirmation, or Trump’s COVID-19 diagnosis, or just the frenetic pace of the final lap of a massively important presidential campaign — either way, the Barrett confirmation became one of many headlines instead of the marquee story.
It was only briefly mentioned at Thursday’s presidential debate, the last of the cycle, as the premise for a question on health care plans. Polling reflects that the open court seat hasn’t had a significant impact on the presidential race, and a CNBC poll published Tuesday shows that a majority of voters in six swing states want COVID-19 relief legislation prioritized ahead of Barrett’s confirmation.
With his big fall boost less powerful than he’d hoped, Graham is now locked into the fight of his political life with Jaime Harrison, the former South Carolina Democratic party chairman.
Since September, the polls have tightened considerably from a summer stretch that saw Graham consistently ahead, even if it was usually only by mid-single digit leads. During October, Harrison and Graham have been trading one- or two-point leads back and forth. A Morning Consult poll released Thursday showed Harrison not only making up a six-point deficit from earlier in the month, but even surpassing Graham by two points.
Meanwhile, Harrison is raking in tons of money. A fundraising juggernaut, he broke an eye-popping new record with his latest FEC filings, according to the Charleston Post and Courier, becoming the first Senate candidate in American history to raise and spend more than $100 million. The previous record was set by Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) at $85 million (though more than $73 million of that was his own family’s money).
When asked about his record-shattering fundraising haul Friday on MSNBC, Harrison brought the conversation back to insufficient health care and crumbling infrastructure in the state, juxtaposing Graham as someone far away and out of touch.
“I hope the voter that is voting for Jaime Harrison is a voter who wants to bring hope back to South Carolina,” he said, “who is tired of Lindsey Graham going to Washington D.C. trying to represent D.C. interests and not represent the interests of the folks of South Carolina.”