buzzfeed--2020-09-30--Trump's Strategy Made The First Presidential Debate Unwatchable

A broadcast of the first debate between President Donald Trump and Joe Biden is played at The Abbey on September 29 , 2020 in West Hollywood , California .
“ Are you going to pack the court ?
” “ Make sure you in fact let people know , your Senators — ” “ He ’ s not going to answer the question.
” “ I ’ m not going to answer the question— ” “ Who is on your list , Joe ?
” “ Gentlemen , no no .
We have ended the segment.
” The first presidential @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Vice President Joe Biden descended within minutes into incomprehensible , rambling bouts of crosstalk and bitter personal attacks , leaving moderator Chris Wallace begging Trump to stop a barrage of interruptions of Biden over the hour and a half long debate .
A few moments cut through the chaos that Trump was intent on sowing .
Trump refused to condemn white supremacist groups and right-wing militias that have turned up at protests throughout the summer , deflecting repeated requests from Wallace .
“ Proud Boys , stand back and stand by !
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tell you what , somebody 's got to do something about Antifa and the left .
And as Biden spoke about his son , Beau , who died in 2015 , Trump interrupted with an attack on the substance abuse problems of Biden ’ s younger son , Hunter .
`` I 'm talking about my son Beau Biden ! ''
Biden said .
But especially in the debate ’ s early moments , where voters often form their impressions , a debate that felt especially climactic in a historically consequential election — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ needed to help reverse a deep nationwide polling deficit — was for long stretches virtually unwatchable , and at the very least untranscribable .
Trump ’ s heckling was a constant background of many of Biden ’ s two-minute answers , including some where he addressed the American people directly to the camera , a stream of interjections from Trump in the background .
After Trump raised allegations of corruption — which have been largely discredited — against Biden ’ s son Hunter , another bout of muddled cross-talk ensued .
`` None @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Biden said , while Trump talked over him .
“ My son did nothing wrong at Burisma .
He does n't want me to answer , because he knows that I have the truth.
” Biden looked directly at the camera .
“ We want to talk about families and ethics ?
I do n't want to do that .
His family , we could talk about all night , ” he said , as Trump again talked over him .
“ This is not about my family or his family @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the American people .
It 's about you , ” he said to the camera .
And Trump interrupted Wallace nearly as frequently as he did Biden , leaving Wallace to beg the president to let Biden speak , and sometimes finding himself caught in lengthy back-and-forth-arguments with the president .
“ You ’ re going to have — gentlemen !
I hate to raise my voice !
” Wallace snapped at one point .
Trump spent much of the debate attacking a vision of Biden — a far-left candidate controlled by socialist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at odds with the moderate Democrat on the stage next to him .
Biden repeatedly condemned violent protests and said he was opposed to “ defunding the police , ” two areas where Republicans have sought to present him as closely aligned with progressives and protesters .
Biden stumbled and stuttered , at times , in the face of Trump ’ s attacks , often appearing baffled by the president ’ s instant , out-of-the-gate interruptions .
Sometimes lines that seemed intended for a big moment were mumbled or subdued .
But in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had set a low bar for his own opponent to clear , accusing him without evidence of having cognitive problems and even being unable to complete a sentence .
As in his speech at the Democratic National Convention , Biden cut through the fray as he spoke about the losses incurred across the country from the coronavirus pandemic , which has now killed 200,000 Americans .
“ Look , you folks at home , how many of you got up this morning and had an empty chair at the kitchen table because someone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , turning away from Trump to address the camera directly .
“ How many of you are in a situation where you lost your mom or dad and you could n't even speak to them , you had to have a nurse holding the phone up so you could in fact say goodbye ?
” “ You would have lost far more people.
” Trump said .
“ Far more people .
You would have been months late .
”

“Vote now.”
“Are you going to pack the court?”
“Make sure you in fact let people know, your senators—”
“He’s not going to answer the question.”
“I’m not going to answer the question—”
“Why wouldn’t you answer the question?”
“Because the question is—”
“A lot of new Supreme Court Justices—”
“The question—”
“Radical left—”
“Will you shut up, man?”
“Who is on your list, Joe?”
“This is—”
“Who’s on your list?”
“This is so unpresidential.”
“Gentlemen, no, no. We have ended the segment.”
The first presidential debate between President Donald Trump and former vice president Joe Biden descended within minutes into incomprehensible, rambling bouts of crosstalk and bitter personal attacks, leaving moderator Chris Wallace begging Trump to stop a barrage of interruptions of Biden over the hour and a half long debate.
A few moments cut through the chaos that Trump was intent on sowing. Trump refused to condemn white supremacist groups and right-wing groups of armed civilians who have turned up at protests throughout the summer, deflecting repeated requests from Wallace.
“Proud Boys, stand back and stand by!” Trump said. “But I'll tell you what, somebody's got to do something about antifa and the left."
And as Biden spoke about his son Beau, who died in 2015, Trump interrupted with an attack on the substance abuse problems of Biden’s younger son, Hunter.
"I'm talking about my son Beau Biden!" Biden said.
"I don't know Beau,” Trump interjected. “I know Hunter."
But especially in the debate’s early moments, where voters often form their impressions, a debate that felt especially climactic in a historically consequential election — and which Trump, especially, badly needed to help reverse a deep nationwide polling deficit — was for long stretches virtually unwatchable, and at the very least untranscribable.
Trump’s heckling was a constant background of many of Biden’s two-minute answers, including some where he addressed the American people directly to the camera, a stream of interjections from Trump in the background.
After Trump raised allegations of corruption — which have been largely discredited — against Biden’s son Hunter, another bout of muddled cross talk ensued.
"None of that is true. Totally discredited,” Biden said, while Trump talked over him. “My son did nothing wrong at Burisma. He doesn't want me to answer, because he knows that I have the truth.”
Biden looked directly at the camera.
“We want to talk about families and ethics? I don't want to do that. His family, we could talk about all night,” he said, as Trump again talked over him. “This is not about my family or his family, it's about your family, the American people. It's about you,” he said to the camera.
And Trump interrupted Wallace nearly as frequently as he did Biden, leaving Wallace to beg the president to let Biden speak, and sometimes finding himself caught in lengthy back-and-forth arguments with the president.
“You’re going to have— Gentlemen! I hate to raise my voice!” Wallace snapped at one point.
Trump spent much of the debate attacking a vision of Biden — a far-left candidate controlled by socialist factions of the party — that was at odds with the moderate Democrat on the stage next to him. Biden repeatedly condemned violent protests and said he was opposed to “defunding the police,” two areas where Republicans have sought to present him as closely aligned with progressives and protesters.
Biden stumbled and stuttered, at times, in the face of Trump’s attacks, often appearing baffled by the president’s instant, out-of-the-gate interruptions. Sometimes lines that seemed intended for a big moment were mumbled or subdued.
But in months of attacks on Biden, Trump had set a low bar for his own opponent to clear, accusing him without evidence of having cognitive problems and even being unable to complete a sentence.
As in his speech at the Democratic National Convention, Biden cut through the fray as he spoke about the losses incurred across the country from the coronavirus pandemic, which has now killed 200,000 Americans.
“Look, you folks at home, how many of you got up this morning and had an empty chair at the kitchen table because someone died of COVID?” Biden said, turning away from Trump to address the camera directly. “How many of you are in a situation where you lost your mom or dad and you couldn't even speak to them, you had to have a nurse holding the phone up so you could in fact say goodbye?”
Trump interrupted.
“You would have lost far more people,” Trump said. “Far more people. You would have been months late.”


buzzfeed--2020-09-30--Trump Always Finds A New Way To Remind You Of The Amorality Of The Trump Era

President Donald Trump during the first presidential debate at Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland , Ohio , on September 29 .
Except for one part , where the two strategies gradually combined into one and blossomed into a driveby nightmare moment : Trump attacking Biden ’ s living son , while Biden spoke about his late son .
And for the disorienting bulk of that debate , with the exception of the occasional direct-to-camera appeal from either candidate , Trump ’ s constant weaving in and out of his own questions and Biden ’ s answers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unless you were paying keen attention , you might have only caught fragments of words and phrases and subjects swarming by .
Beyond his emphasis on law and order and the booming economy of last year , he also seemed to come in with a specific personal approach : Get Joe Biden to pop off and shout , something he was once known for as a younger politician .
Trump drove repeatedly at Biden ’ s intelligence ( a historic popping off point ) and his younger son ( a more recent occasion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Donald Trump came into the first presidential debate with a cogent strategy : dominate questions and answers with interjection until he could control the rhythm of what was being said .
“ My son was in Iraq , he spent a year there , he got the Bronze Star , he got the Conspicuous Service medal .
He was not a loser , he was a patriot— ” Biden said while talking about the late Beau Biden , referencing the recent Atlantic reporting in which anonymous officials alleged Trump called various kinds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people left behind there were heroes , and I resent— ” “ Oh really ?
You talking about Hunter ?
” Trump cut in .
“ I don ’ t know Beau , I know Hunter , ” Trump cut in again .
“ Hunter got thrown out of the military , he got dishonorably discharged for cocaine use , and he didn ’ t have a job until you became vice president .
He made a fortune in Ukraine , China , in Moscow , and various other places .
He made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t have a job , ” Trump went on as Biden repeated that it wasn ’ t true .
“ My son , my son , my son , ” Biden finally cut back in , “ like a lot of people , like a lot of people we know at home , had a drug problem , he ’ s overtaken it , he ’ s fixed it , he ’ s worked on it , and I ’ m proud of him.
” Then they went back and forth a bit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overseas during the last decade , and family ethics .
Hunter Biden , who primarily worked as a lobbyist in Washington while his father was a senator but before his father became vice president , was administratively discharged from the naval reserves after testing positive for cocaine in 2013 ; he ’ s dealt with serious drug and alcohol addiction , and spoke about that , and the overseas work , last year in a bracing New Yorker interview .
But the collision of what Trump kept trying to do ( disorient and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he put this all to someone speaking about his adult child who is no longer living surfaced a jarring moment of amorality .
Trump ’ s ability to shock , dodge , and weave never ends , and it ’ s almost always about reaction or provocation , with flexibility in target and substance , rather than an underlying central argument .
His genius in this way is a selling point to defenders — that he will drive at any exception to own and overcome — and to others , a point of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : It ’ s always like this with Trump .

“My son was in Iraq. He spent a year there. He got the Bronze Star. He got the Conspicuous Service medal. He was not a loser. He was a patriot—” Biden said while talking about the late Beau Biden, referencing the recent Atlantic reporting in which anonymous officials alleged Trump called various kinds of vets names.
“Oh, really?” Trump cut in.
“—and the people left behind there were heroes, and I resent—”
“Oh, really? You talking about Hunter?” Trump cut in.
“I’m talking about my son, Beau Biden. You’re talking about—”
“I don’t know Beau. I know Hunter,” Trump cut in again. “Hunter got thrown out of the military, he got dishonorably discharged for cocaine use, and he didn’t have a job until you became vice president. He made a fortune in Ukraine, China, in Moscow, and various other places. He made a fortune. And he didn’t have a job,” Trump went on as Biden repeated that it wasn’t true.
“My son, my son, my son,” Biden finally cut back in, “like a lot of people, like a lot of people we know at home, had a drug problem. He’s overtaken it, he’s fixed it, he’s worked on it, and I’m proud of him.”
Then they went back and forth a bit more about the work Hunter Biden did overseas during the last decade, and family ethics. Hunter Biden, who primarily worked as a lobbyist in Washington while his father was a senator but before his father became vice president, was administratively discharged from the naval reserves after testing positive for cocaine in 2013; he’s dealt with serious drug and alcohol addiction, and spoke about that, and the overseas work, last year in a bracing New Yorker interview.
But the collision of what Trump kept trying to do (disorient and upend) with the grim reality that he put this all to someone speaking about his adult child who is no longer living surfaced a jarring moment of amorality.
Trump’s ability to shock, dodge, and weave never ends, and it’s almost always about reaction or provocation, with flexibility in target and substance, rather than an underlying central argument. His genius in this way is a selling point to defenders — that he will drive at any exception to own and overcome — and to others, a point of overwhelming bleakness and damage.
Either way: It’s always like this with Trump.


buzzfeed--2020-09-30--A Judge Has Temporarily Blocked Trump From Raising Fees For Asylum-Seekers And Citizens

Aseel Jan , from Iraq , raises her right hand as she takes the oath of citizenship during a naturalization ceremony in Chicago in 2017 .
A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked the Trump administration ’ s plans to increase fees for immigrants seeking to become US citizens and others applying for asylum .
The decision is a setback to US Citizenship and Immigration Services , the agency that oversees the immigration system and has been struggling financially in recent months .
USCIS , which is funded primarily through fees from immigration applications , canceled plans to furlough nearly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The rule blocked by US District Judge Jeffrey White in Northern California was set to take effect on Friday and would have established a new $ 50 fee for asylum-seekers while also raising the prices for immigrants applying to become US citizens to upward of $ 1,170 , a jump from $ 640 , among many other changes .
White , who was appointed by President George W. Bush , found the policy would harm immigrants with low incomes and that it violated parts of the Administrative Procedures Act .
He approved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advocacy organizations to stay the implementation of the fee changes pending a final ruling .
“ Plaintiffs persuasively argue that the public interest would be served by enjoining or staying the effective date of the Final Rule because if it takes effect , it will prevent vulnerable and low-income applicants from applying for immigration benefits , will block access to humanitarian protections , and will expose those populations to further danger , ” White wrote .
USCIS said it was reviewing the decision and had no further comment .

A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s plans to increase fees for immigrants seeking to become US citizens and others applying for asylum.
The decision is a setback to US Citizenship and Immigration Services, the agency that oversees the immigration system and has been struggling financially in recent months. USCIS, which is funded primarily through fees from immigration applications, canceled plans to furlough nearly 70% of its staff in August.
The rule blocked by US District Judge Jeffrey White in Northern California was set to take effect on Friday and would have established a new $50 fee for asylum-seekers while also raising the prices for immigrants applying to become US citizens to upward of $1,170, a jump from $640, among many other changes.
White, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, found the policy would harm immigrants with low incomes and that it violated parts of the Administrative Procedures Act. He approved a request from a group of immigration advocacy organizations to stay the implementation of the fee changes pending a final ruling.
“Plaintiffs persuasively argue that the public interest would be served by enjoining or staying the effective date of the Final Rule because if it takes effect, it will prevent vulnerable and low-income applicants from applying for immigration benefits, will block access to humanitarian protections, and will expose those populations to further danger,” White wrote.
USCIS said it was reviewing the decision and had no further comment.


buzzfeed--2020-09-30--The Trump Administration Is Giving Up Its Fight To Prevent Undocumented Teens From Getting Abortions

After three years of arguing in court to block pregnant , undocumented teenagers in government custody from obtaining abortions , the Trump administration dropped the fight on Tuesday , announcing it had officially changed its policy .
The new policy makes clear that the Office of Refugee Resettlement , the branch of the Department of Health and Human Services that oversees undocumented minors and those seeking asylum in the US , must allow teenagers in its custody to obtain abortions .
Trump ’ s ORR had previously refused to grant minors access to the procedure , but a series of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the administration to reverse its practice and allow the teenagers to get abortions .
The Justice Department had kept the legal battle alive , although it dropped the issue of allowing the teens access to abortion last year , instead focusing its arguments on whether the government could notify a teen ’ s parent or guardian , over the teen ’ s objection , about their decision to get an abortion .
The administration ’ s new policy prevents ORR staff from disclosing to anyone that a minor is pregnant or seeking an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ latest change in policy means that the Trump administration is giving up the fight altogether .
The American Civil Liberties Union , which brought the lawsuit against the Trump administration , filed papers on Tuesday notifying the court that it was dropping the case in light of the new policy .
The Justice Department also agreed to pay $ 336,710 to the ACLU to cover its legal fees in the case .
“ After three years of battling in court alongside brave young women , we are relieved that the government finally abandoned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its custody from accessing abortion , ” Brigitte Amiri , deputy director of the ACLU ’ s Reproductive Freedom Project , said in a statement .
`` Today ’ s policy change rights one of the wrongs this administration has committed against immigrants in detention , but their health and safety are still very much at stake . ''
The case began in October 2017 , when the ACLU filed an emergency lawsuit on behalf of a 17-year-old , referred to in court filings as Jane Doe , who was being held in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
She was about 15 weeks pregnant and had been fighting to obtain an abortion since she was apprehended at the US–Mexico border more than a month earlier , but the shelter workers prevented her from accessing the procedure due to the agency ’ s policy .
Her lawyers argued that Doe was running out of time to get an abortion ; Texas bans the procedure after 20 weeks of pregnancy .
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan quickly ordered the Trump administration to allow Doe to have an abortion .
The administration fought @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in her favor , and she was able to obtain an abortion .
However , Chutkan ’ s order only applied to Doe ; over the next few months , several other teens filed individual claims that they too were blocked by ORR from obtaining abortions .
The case was approved as a class-action lawsuit on behalf of all minors in that position in March 2018 .
Ultimately , Chutkan entered a preliminary injunction preventing the Trump administration from blocking access to abortion care for all minors in its custody .
The case @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mixed results ; in June 2018 , the justices dismissed an earlier DC Circuit opinion that sided with Jane Doe — meaning the decision in her case would not be used as precedent in future litigation — but otherwise allowed the case to proceed .
The Trump administration continued to press the fight ; in June 2019 , the DC Circuit issued an 81-page opinion concluding that the administration ’ s policy violated the constitutional right to abortion as determined by the Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade .
The government decided not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ challenge that ruling .
Since then , the ACLU and the Trump administration have been in negotiations over a new ORR policy that would help settle the case .
Doe released a statement via the ACLU Tuesday , saying , “ After three years of waiting , I am so glad to know that what happened to me will never happen to anyone else .
The decision to have an abortion is personal and belongs to each individual — no one should be shamed for making the right decision for themselves or blocked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this country to make a better life for myself , and I am working on a building a life that I can be proud of .
I am happy to know that my fight means that other young women like me will be able to make the decision about whether to become a parent for themselves.
” The policy in question was based on one issued by President George W. Bush ’ s administration in 2008 , which called for “ heightened ORR involvement ” in serious medical procedures , specifically abortions .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ it reinterpreted and expanded that policy , instructing ORR staff to attempt to prevent minors from obtaining abortions .
The administration even tried to reverse an abortion that was already underway by recommending that a minor who took the first of two pills necessary for a medical abortion be transported to a hospital to attempt to “ preserve the life ” of the teen and the “ unborn child , ” the acting head of the department at the time wrote in an email to shelter staff .
When Scott Lloyd took over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ORR in March 2017 , he ordered his staff to notify him of every pregnancy and abortion request from minors in its care .
Lloyd , who was involved in anti-abortion work before joining the Trump administration , was a controversial figure during his short tenure at ORR until November 2018 , when he moved to a different office .
He oversaw the separation of children from their parents at the border , kept a list of pregnancies , including the last menstrual cycle , of pregnant girls and young women in his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ block them from obtaining abortions .
Lloyd instructed shelter staff to bring several of the teenagers to anti-abortion clinics that specialize in convincing people not to get the procedure .
After testifying before Congress about the administration 's child separations policy , Lloyd moved to the White House Center for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives before leaving the administration entirely in June 2019 .
On Monday , Lloyd published an op-ed in the Federalist titled “ How the United States Can Stop Helping Illegal Immigrants Get Abortions.
” Lloyd wrote that the Trump administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over allowing minors in its care to have abortions because DOJ assumed that if it were taken to the Supreme Court , Justice Brett Kavanaugh would have to recuse himself , having previously ruled on the same case as a judge in the DC Circuit court .
“ The remaining justices would split along ideological lines , leaving the DC Circuit ruling in place , ” Lloyd wrote , explaining the Department of Justice ’ s reasoning .
He also added that changes on the Supreme Court , including a recent ruling in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are “ new indications that [ Trump ] would prevail ” if the administration took up the issue again .
The news comes shortly after Trump announced his pick for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg ’ s replacement , Amy Coney Barrett , who was a vocal opponent of abortion rights before she became a judge .
This is a developing story .
Check back for updates and follow BuzzFeed News on Twitter.

After three years of arguing in court to block pregnant, undocumented teenagers in government custody from obtaining abortions, the Trump administration dropped the fight on Tuesday, announcing it had officially changed its policy.
The new policy makes clear that the Office of Refugee Resettlement, the branch of the Department of Health and Human Services that oversees undocumented minors and those seeking asylum in the US, must allow teenagers in its custody to obtain abortions. Trump’s ORR had previously refused to grant minors access to the procedure, but a series of court orders since late 2017 had forced the administration to reverse its practice and allow the teenagers to get abortions.
The Justice Department had kept the legal battle alive, although it dropped the issue of allowing the teens access to abortion last year, instead focusing its arguments on whether the government could notify a teen’s parent or guardian, over the teen’s objection, about their decision to get an abortion. The administration’s new policy prevents ORR staff from disclosing to anyone that a minor is pregnant or seeking an abortion except in emergency situations.
The latest change in policy means that the Trump administration is giving up the fight altogether. The American Civil Liberties Union, which brought the lawsuit against the Trump administration, filed papers on Tuesday notifying the court that it was dropping the case in light of the new policy.
The Justice Department also agreed to pay $336,710 to the ACLU to cover its legal fees in the case.
“After three years of battling in court alongside brave young women, we are relieved that the government finally abandoned its attempts to block young people in its custody from accessing abortion,” Brigitte Amiri, deputy director of the ACLU’s Reproductive Freedom Project, said in a statement. "Today’s policy change rights one of the wrongs this administration has committed against immigrants in detention, but their health and safety are still very much at stake."
The case began in October 2017, when the ACLU filed an emergency lawsuit on behalf of a 17-year-old, referred to in court filings as Jane Doe, who was being held in a federally funded shelter in South Texas. She was about 15 weeks pregnant and had been fighting to obtain an abortion since she was apprehended at the US–Mexico border more than a month earlier, but the shelter workers prevented her from accessing the procedure due to the agency’s policy. Her lawyers argued that Doe was running out of time to get an abortion; Texas bans the procedure after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan quickly ordered the Trump administration to allow Doe to have an abortion. The administration fought the order but the judge ruled again in her favor, and she was able to obtain an abortion. However, Chutkan’s order only applied to Doe; over the next few months, several other teens filed individual claims that they too were blocked by ORR from obtaining abortions. The case was approved as a class-action lawsuit on behalf of all minors in that position in March 2018.
Ultimately, Chutkan entered a preliminary injunction preventing the Trump administration from blocking access to abortion care for all minors in its custody. The case went up to the Supreme Court with mixed results; in June 2018, the justices dismissed an earlier DC Circuit opinion that sided with Jane Doe — meaning the decision in her case would not be used as precedent in future litigation — but otherwise allowed the case to proceed.
The Trump administration continued to press the fight; in June 2019, the DC Circuit issued an 81-page opinion concluding that the administration’s policy violated the constitutional right to abortion as determined by the Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade. The government decided not to petition the US Supreme Court to challenge that ruling. Since then, the ACLU and the Trump administration have been in negotiations over a new ORR policy that would help settle the case.
Doe released a statement via the ACLU Tuesday, saying, “After three years of waiting, I am so glad to know that what happened to me will never happen to anyone else. The decision to have an abortion is personal and belongs to each individual — no one should be shamed for making the right decision for themselves or blocked from doing so. I came to this country to make a better life for myself, and I am working on a building a life that I can be proud of. I am happy to know that my fight means that other young women like me will be able to make the decision about whether to become a parent for themselves.”
The policy in question was based on one issued by President George W. Bush’s administration in 2008, which called for “heightened ORR involvement” in serious medical procedures, specifically abortions. When the Trump administration took office, it reinterpreted and expanded that policy, instructing ORR staff to attempt to prevent minors from obtaining abortions. The administration even tried to reverse an abortion that was already underway by recommending that a minor who took the first of two pills necessary for a medical abortion be transported to a hospital to attempt to “preserve the life” of the teen and the “unborn child,” the acting head of the department at the time wrote in an email to shelter staff. When Scott Lloyd took over as the head of the division of ORR in March 2017, he ordered his staff to notify him of every pregnancy and abortion request from minors in its care.
Lloyd, who was involved in anti-abortion work before joining the Trump administration, was a controversial figure during his short tenure at ORR until November 2018, when he moved to a different office. While he was head of the agency, ORR oversaw the children who were separated from their parents at the border, kept a list of pregnancies, sometimes including the last menstrual cycle, of pregnant girls and young women in his agency’s custody to attempt to block them from obtaining abortions. Lloyd instructed shelter staff to bring several of the teenagers to anti-abortion clinics that specialize in convincing people not to get the procedure.
After testifying before Congress about the administration's child separations policy, Lloyd moved to the White House Center for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives before leaving the administration entirely in June 2019.
On Monday, Lloyd published an op-ed in the Federalist titled “How the United States Can Stop Helping Illegal Immigrants Get Abortions.” Lloyd wrote that the Trump administration’s legal team dropped the fight over allowing minors in its care to have abortions because DOJ assumed that if it were taken to the Supreme Court, Justice Brett Kavanaugh would have to recuse himself, having previously ruled on the same case as a judge in the DC Circuit court.
“The remaining justices would split along ideological lines, leaving the DC Circuit ruling in place,” Lloyd wrote, explaining the Department of Justice’s reasoning. He also added that changes on the Supreme Court, including a recent ruling in a different case related to immigration, are “new indications that [Trump] would prevail” if the administration took up the issue again.
The news comes shortly after Trump announced his pick for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s replacement, Amy Coney Barrett, who was a vocal opponent of abortion rights before she became a judge.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates and follow BuzzFeed News on Twitter.


buzzfeed--2020-09-30--Scars, Tattoos, And License Plates: This Is What Palantir And The LAPD Know About You

Newly revealed documents show how Los Angeles police were trained to use the flagship product of the most secretive company in law enforcement .
Ahead of its Sept. 30 public listing , Palantir , a secretive data analytics company with ties to the defense and intelligence communities , has been touting itself as a tool that can “ target terrorists and keep soldiers safe.
” With an expected valuation of about $ 22 billion , it will become one of the biggest surveillance companies in the world .
Palantir promises that where “ technological infrastructure has failed , ” it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to deliver , its software needs data — lots of it .
Now , two never-before-seen documents , “ Intermediate Course ” and “ Advanced Course ” training manuals , reveal how the Los Angeles Police Department has taught its officers to use Palantir Gotham , one of the most controversial and powerful law enforcement tools in the world .
Much of that LAPD data consists of the names of people arrested for , convicted of , or even suspected of committing crimes , but that ’ s just where it starts .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ law enforcement activity .
Maybe a police officer was told a person knew a suspected gang member .
Maybe an officer spoke to a person who lived near a crime “ hot spot , ” or was in the area when a crime happened .
Maybe a police officer simply had a hunch .
The context is immaterial .
Once the LAPD adds a name to Palantir ’ s database , that person becomes a data point in a massive police surveillance system .
Palantir — which takes its name from the all-seeing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — and the LAPD argue that these documents show how the system protects the public .
It allows the police to quickly find criminals by plumbing a vast amount of personal information — plucking a suspected killer from a haystack .
But to critics , these documents show something vastly different .
At great taxpayer expense , and without public oversight or regulation , Palantir helped the LAPD construct a vast database that indiscriminately lists the names , addresses , phone numbers , license plates , friendships , romances , jobs of Angelenos @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those in between .
LAPD ’ s Palantir database includes information from the DMV , meaning people with a California driver ’ s license can be swept into Palantir .
It also includes 1 billion pictures taken of license plates from traffic lights and toll booths in Los Angeles and neighboring areas .
If you ’ ve driven through Los Angeles since 2015 , the police can see where your car was photographed , when it was photographed , and then click on your name to learn all about you .
Palantir is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Almost 5,000 people , more than half of all LAPD officers had accounts on Palantir , according to an “ LAPD Palantir Usage Metrics ” document .
The same document says that in 2016 , those officers ran 60,000 searches in support of more than 10,000 cases .
Dozens of California police departments , sheriff 's offices , airport police , universities , and school districts signed onto data-sharing agreements with the LAPD between 2012 and 2017 .
Contractually , these entities had to send daily copies of their own police records ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plate readings , and dispatch information so that the LAPD could put that data into Palantir .
The Los Angeles School Police Department , Compton Unified School District Police Department , El Camino College , Cal Poly University Police Department , and California State University all signed these agreements .
For activists like Jamie Garcia , an organizer with the advocacy group Stop LAPD Spying Coalition , the LAPD 's well-established history of over-policing Black and brown communities means the department simply should n't be trusted with this kind of technology .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ racism , '' she told BuzzFeed News .
Jacinta González , an organizer with Latinx advocacy group Mijente , said that Palantir gives police an opportunity to expand their power and reinforce the over-policing of Black and Brown communities .
“ [ Palantir ] is not actually improving things , ” she said .
“ It 's expanding the power that police have .
And it ’ s minimizing the right that communities have to fight back , because many times , the surveillance is done in secretive ways .
It 's ridiculous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is doing in their city , and we have to wait until you get FOIA documents to actually understand.
” The police and their critics do share one point of view , however : They both believe Palantir is working as intended .
Obtained by BuzzFeed News through a Freedom of Information Act request , the “ Intermediate ” and “ Advanced ” training guides comprise two eight-hour courses explaining to LAPD Crime Intelligence officers how to use Palantir on the job , revealing the granular level of detail the software brings to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police can search for people by name .
But , as you 'll see in the slides below , they can also search by race , gender , gang membership , tattoos , scars , friends , or family .
According to the training manuals , searches like these will return a list of names along with associated home addresses , email addresses , vehicles , warrants , and mugshots .
If Palantir finds related surveillance pictures , it will offer those up as well , along with any personal connections it might @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , neighbors , and coworkers .
LAPD officers can use this information as leads or to generate lists of people who the system believes are likely to commit a crime in the future .
Created in 2004 , Palantir was designed to solve a problem : Information about the same people is spread between multiple databases — and even when it ’ s all compiled , it can be hard to interpret .
The company ’ s law enforcement software , Gotham , has also been used by the Northern California Regional Intelligence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ departments in the state access to Palantir ’ s powerful , expensive software .
And big metropolitan police departments — like those in New Orleans , New York City , and Chicago — have used Palantir .
The US Department of Health and Human Services has used its enterprise product , Palantir Foundry , to organize information about the coronavirus pandemic .
Palantir CEO Alexander Karp didn ’ t major in engineering or computer science .
He received a PhD in philosophy from Goethe University in Frankfurt in 2002 .
In an analysis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ researcher and Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society faculty associate Moira Weigel argues that Karp sees big data analytics as an example of “ incontestable self-evidence ” that treats correlations “ simply as given.
” This can be seen in Palantir ’ s design .
When the software maps relationships from person to person , person to car , person to home , or person to crime scene , those relationships are treated as fact and presented without caveat , though they are determined by an algorithm and not guaranteed to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who embedded with the LAPD for two years to study its use of Palantir , told BuzzFeed News that when a system like this is designed this way , people using it can easily interpret results as evidence that someone may be or may become a criminal .
“ If there 's somebody who the cops have been interested in 10 times throughout the course of your life , the idea is basically , where there 's smoke , there 's fire , ” Brayne said .
“ There 's probably a reason @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this particular person.
” The LAPD started pursuing data-driven policing strategies as a way to respond to scandal .
Following the Rampart scandal in the late 1990s , which involved corruption , abuse of suspects , and evidence theft in the LAPD ’ s gang unit , the federal Department of Justice placed the LAPD under a consent decree , which forced the department to institute reforms and comply with federal audits .
So the department tried something new .
In 2002 , James Hahn , then the mayor of Los Angeles , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ LAPD .
Bratton came from the New York Police Department , where he introduced CompStat , a program that mapped crime .
Among his tasks at the LAPD were to introduce new data-driven strategies and get the department out from under the consent decree .
Andrew Ferguson , American University law professor and author of The Rise of Big Data Policing , said that at the LAPD , data-driven policing does n't just mean using evidence to go after crimes .
It means part of the police 's job is to conduct more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Palantir is a data-driven surveillance system more than a data-driven policing system , ” Ferguson said , meaning that Palantir helps the police watch people , rather than keep people safe .
And by design , it 's infinitely expandable .
“ It can be a platform for whatever sources of surveillance data they want to bring into the platform.
” The problem with data-driven policing , according to Ferguson , is that it does n't solve underlying problems within policing like concerns about misconduct or racism .
Although data-driven policing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s not .
The LAPD has used Palantir for more than a decade — first , as part of an initiative called the Los Angeles Strategic Extraction and Restoration ( LASER ) , which ran from 2009 to 2019 .
Currently , Palantir is used in a program the department calls Data-Informed , Community-Focused Policing .
Palantir is expensive , and police departments often struggle to afford it .
Between 2015 and 2016 , the LA Mayor ’ s Office of Public Safety got the money to pay for Palantir from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Federal Emergency Management Agency ’ s Urban Areas Security Initiative ( UASI ) Program , which gives cities technology to `` prevent , protect against , mitigate , respond to , and recover from acts of terrorism . ''
It ’ s unclear if the LAPD always used federal UASI money to pay for Palantir , or if it only used federal money in those years .
But purchase orders show that Palantir software upgrades and user licenses cost hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars .
Senator Ron Wyden ( D-OR @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the LAPD has used federal money in order to finance Palantir .
`` The federal government should n't be spending money on unproven surveillance software or crime prediction programs that target Black and Hispanic Americans and do n't actually reduce crime , ” he said .
“ The Justice Department has an obligation to make sure taxpayer money actually makes all of us safer while protecting the rights of every American.
” The LAPD also received federal money to design LASER , although it never directly funded payments to Palantir .
Under @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bureau of Justice Assistance started the Smart Policing Initiative to provide grants to organize data-driven programs at police departments .
The LAPD was one of the first departments to receive a Smart Policing Initiative grant for creating a `` place- and offender-based policing '' for gun violence .
Using that money , the LAPD and contractor Justice and Security Strategies devised LASER .
LASER promised “ precision policing.
” Police would reduce crime by preemptively targeting the people and areas that presented the highest risk .
It involved two main pieces of software @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a company that makes a predictive policing software , was supposed to help the LAPD identify crime hot spots by looking at time , weather , and location where a crime has been reported in the past .
Academics have criticized the company for sending police to the same places where crime has already been reported , rather than identifying areas where crime is underreported .
( The LAPD ended its use of PredPol in April , citing the cost . )
Palantir was used to identify crime hot spots by allowing police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were displayed on a timeline or a map , showing the concentration of which crimes have been reported where .
For the LAPD , Palantir swallowed up the contents of several major databases that were previously spread across public safety agencies throughout Los Angeles and the state , including incident reports , arrests , citations , license plate reader data , field interviews , recovered vehicles , warrants , booking photos , and data from the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System , and the county ’ s Community Health Services data .
Palantir @ @ @ @ @ @ @ links between the people within it ( e.g.
, “ Sally was interviewed by police in a report about Fred ” ) and makes it searchable .
Palantir also took in much of the data collected during the LAPD 's own policing activities .
Field interviews include information that police collect from civilians , including family members , neighbors , lovers , friends , and coworkers .
Their notes can also include descriptive information like race , height , weight , eye color , hair color , scars , nicknames , or tattoos @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such as suspected gang affiliation .
In 2014 , five years into using Palantir , the LAPD paid $ 2.9 million to update its existing system to include “ Thunderbird , ” a software that organizes license plate data , using its Urban Areas Security Initiative Grant money from FEMA .
Palantir also analyzed data obtained from private sources .
In one exercise in the Advanced Course training manual , police officers were asked to import telecom data from Verizon .
( One file is called “ Verizon — Phone Source Destination.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's phone number , the recipient phone number , the date , duration of the call , and the latitude and longitude of all the cell towers used .
Brayne told BuzzFeed News that technologies like Palantir are part of a larger trend of data-driven policing .
In an ideal world , data-driven methods would push police to rely on evidence .
But in practice , she said , it often results in officers using the veneer of objectivity to back up their hunches .
“ What 's going on in the current @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Brayne said .
“ It 's like , ‘ Okay , now let 's rely on fancier stuff like AI or machine learning or predictive algorithms rather than just historical crime data to identify hot spots or heat density maps.
’ ” Gonzalez said it ’ s concerning that Palantir , which was designed to be used for military intelligence in war zones , is being handed to local police departments using federal money .
“ The federal government does this , knowing that there are not adequate legal protections for people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
“ You 're seeing a whole parallel system of information gathering ... being used to police communities and to criminalize communities.
” According to activist group Stop LAPD Spying , the most controversial aspect of LASER was its “ Chronic Offender Bulletins.
” Every day between 2011 and 2019 , police officers patrolling one of 40 “ LASER Zones ” — areas that police determined to have a high risk of crime — used Palantir to rank the top 12 “ Chronic Offenders ” thought most likely to commit a violent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also had to choose five to ten “ backup ” people . )
The top twelve Chronic Offenders were determined using a point system .
Officers were told to look at arrest reports , investigative reports , and field interview cards .
Each violent crime arrest over the past two years was worth five points .
Being on parole was worth five points .
Gang membership earned five points .
An arrest for a violent crime or for being in possession of a handgun was worth five points .
“ Quality police contacts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but which Brayne said were probably “ gesturing at legal thresholds around reasonable suspicion ” — over the past two years were worth one point each .
The LAPD told BuzzFeed News that it no longer creates Chronic Offender bulletins .
From the training guide , it ’ s unclear if these people were suspects , gave an interview to police , were associated with a suspect , or just happened to be the area .
In the training manuals , police aren ’ t taught to analyze how those names were extracted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and move on with their work .
But according to critics like María Vélez , a criminologist at the University of Maryland , the LAPD 's predictive policing overtargeted Black and Latino Angelenos .
In Los Angeles , 52 % of the population is white , 49 % is Latino , and 9 % is Black .
Those singled out by the Chronic Offender Bulletins were 53 % Latino and 31 % Black , according to an LAPD inspector general report .
The LAPD inspector general report argued that since the racial percentages @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to those of arrest rates , it was n't evidence of a problem .
But Vélez said that the Chronic Offender Bulletins should be compared to the community demographics rather than those of arrests .
“ That ’ s disproportionate , ” she said .
“ The focus of a data-driven surveillance system is to put a lot of innocent people in the system , ” Ferguson said .
“ And that means that many folks who end up in the Palantir system are predominantly poor people of color , and who have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police.
” In the eyes of the LAPD inspector general , LASER 's flaws outweighed its benefits .
In a report published in 2019 , the office laid out its concerns .
Often , police didn ’ t have reliable information about who was in a gang and who wasn ’ t .
( This year , California ’ s Office of the Attorney General found that LAPD officers falsely added dozens of people to the state 's gang database . )
The inspector general also found major inconsistencies in how police selected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Chronic Offenders “ based on verbal or informal referrals from field personnel , ” the inspector general report says .
Two reporting districts “ did not use the point system at all.
” Out of the 637 Chronic Offenders identified by the LAPD , 44 % were never arrested for a violent or gun-related crime , despite LASER 's attempt to target violent crime .
And 10 % of Chronic Offenders had zero contacts with police — meaning zero arrests and zero mentions in field interviews .
Per LASER ’ s guidelines , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ already been arrested for a violent crime .
“ The database included people who were in custody , who had been arrested for only non-violent crimes and whose points were either not entered or appeared to be over- or under-stated , ” the report said .
People might or might not have found out that they were a Chronic Offender .
Sometimes the police sent a warning letter , and other times police found the person and spoke to them directly .
But there was no easy way for someone to appeal their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remove themselves from surveillance .
The only way for a person to remove their information from Palantir , according to the LAPD , is to get a court order .
The inspector general report also said that “ one of the primary areas that lacked clarity was the overall goal of the [ LASER ] program itself.
” Was the goal to “ extract ” violent people from the community ?
To deter crime ?
What are marks of success ?
The report could not determine .
It also could n't find evidence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that in 6 out of the 13 LASER Zones , violent crime rates were “ the same as , or worse than , those for non-LASER Zones.
” Although the department had argued that the program had reduced crime , citing a 23 % drop in violent crime in the Newton reporting division in a federal grant application in 2016 , the inspector general report and activist pushback were too much a deterrent to continue the program .
And so , in April 2019 , the LAPD ended the program .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Introduced this year , the Data-Informed , Community-Focused Policing program was supposed to be a more ethical iteration of LASER , but it works largely the same way : Police use Palantir to ingest large amounts of data , identify crime hot spots on map , and create lists of people ( largely based on parole data ) who might commit a crime in the future .
Brayne said that even LAPD officers don ’ t know how Data-Informed , Community-Focused Policing is different from LASER .
“ I am tentatively viewing it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meaningful shift in practice , ” she said .
There is one difference : The new plan formally expands the surveillance that began under LASER .
Under LASER , the LAPD said people who were arrested for violent or gun-related crimes could be surveilled .
Now , people suspected of nonviolent property crimes can also be .
The outline for the initiative also talks about preventing crime through “ the physical maintenance or general upkeep of a place.
” The idea that police should pursue property crime and property damage as a mode @ @ @ @ @ @ @ broken windows ” policing , which critics have said pushes police to overreact to nonviolent crimes .
For people like Stop LAPD Spying 's Garcia , these police tactics are more of the same , even if they are packaged as new and scientific .
“ All that stuff is very old .
It 's not anything new , ” Garcia said .
“ The only thing that 's fairly new about it , that they want to hide and bury , is the use of algorithms.
” ●

Ahead of its Sept. 30 public listing, Palantir, a secretive data analytics company with ties to the defense and intelligence communities, has been touting itself as a tool that can “target terrorists and keep soldiers safe.” With an expected valuation of about $22 billion, it will become one of the biggest surveillance companies in the world.
Palantir promises that where “technological infrastructure has failed,” it can create clarity and order. But to deliver, its software needs data — lots of it.
Now, two never-before-seen documents, “Intermediate Course” and “Advanced Course” training manuals, reveal how the Los Angeles Police Department has taught its officers to use Palantir Gotham, one of the most controversial and powerful law enforcement tools in the world.
Much of that LAPD data consists of the names of people arrested for, convicted of, or even suspected of committing crimes, but that’s just where it starts. Palantir also ingests the bycatch of daily law enforcement activity. Maybe a police officer was told a person knew a suspected gang member. Maybe an officer spoke to a person who lived near a crime “hot spot,” or was in the area when a crime happened. Maybe a police officer simply had a hunch. The context is immaterial. Once the LAPD adds a name to Palantir’s database, that person becomes a data point in a massive police surveillance system.
Palantir — which takes its name from the all-seeing stones in The Lord of the Rings — and the LAPD argue that these documents show how the system protects the public. It allows the police to quickly find criminals by plumbing a vast amount of personal information — plucking a suspected killer from a haystack.
But to critics, these documents show something vastly different. At great taxpayer expense, and without public oversight or regulation, Palantir helped the LAPD construct a vast database that indiscriminately lists the names, addresses, phone numbers, license plates, friendships, romances, jobs of Angelenos — the guilty, innocent, and those in between.
LAPD’s Palantir database includes information from the DMV, meaning people with a California driver’s license can be swept into Palantir. It also includes 1 billion pictures taken of license plates from traffic lights and toll booths in Los Angeles and neighboring areas. If you’ve driven through Los Angeles since 2015, the police can see where your car was photographed, when it was photographed, and then click on your name to learn all about you.
Palantir is no small thing within the LAPD. Almost 5,000 people, more than half of all LAPD officers had accounts on Palantir, according to an “LAPD Palantir Usage Metrics” document. The same document says that in 2016, those officers ran 60,000 searches in support of more than 10,000 cases.


buzzfeed--2020-09-30--Presidential Debates Rarely Matter. The Biden-Trump Debate Is Different.

You probably know how you feel about President Donald Trump .
He has been the emcee of the last five years of American life .
Depending on your view , he ’ s either the protagonist of your daily story or the uninvited guest who has been squatting in your one-bedroom apartment for years .
It is a fun little joke to have with yourself to try to imagine the likely voter who just hasn ’ t heard enough about Donald Trump to have an opinion about him one way or the other .
So what is there to gain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ between Trump and Joe Biden ?
Polling and reporting this summer showed an electorate that appears to have largely made up its mind .
National and state polls have been remarkably stable through a series of crises and changed campaign messages .
Trump ’ s approval rating of around 44 % has been basically steady across his presidency .
The number of voters considering a third-party candidate or who are still firmly undecided is not what it was in September 2016 .
It ’ s basically impossible to imagine the person who is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Trump insisting Tuesday night that Biden is on drugs .
This dynamic , even if it ’ s more obvious this year , isn ’ t unique .
There ’ s a compelling reason to think general election presidential debates don ’ t move voters much even in a normal time .
John Sides , a political scientist who has written loads about American elections , wrote in a 2012 survey of the research that “ presidential debates have rarely , if ever , mattered.
” Republicans typically believe the Republican candidate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Democrat won , at most a candidate sees a slight polling bump and some days of positive or negative media attention , we all march on .
That said !
I here propose why it makes sense to go through with this exercise anyway , even if it doesn ’ t all-caps MATTER for the election itself .
And not just because of America ’ s pandemic-starved need for new television or our ever-accelerating drive toward masochism .
One thing that has been distinctly different about this year and election is just how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presidential candidates outside of highly controlled environments .
The debates are very possibly going to be the only exception to that until deep into next year , well after one of the two is inaugurated .
Biden has rarely appeared in front of a group of more than a dozen people since March , always careful to role-model safe public behavior during the pandemic .
Unless you ’ re diligently watching his livestreams , the most you ’ ve seen of the Democratic presidential nominee has been in his own ads or when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with national press have been rare .
He ’ s not , as Trump would have it , hiding in his basement , but he ’ s also not the constant fixture in public life you ’ d expect a presidential candidate to be this close to an election .
And even though Trump is everywhere , he ’ s really only in the places he wants to be , speaking about the things he wants to speak about .
Trump does regular news conferences , but still in an environment he controls @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unwanted question and move on to whatever One America News wants to ask him about .
He has spent the vast majority of his presidency gliding from White House bubble to campaign rally bubble to Fox News bubble with only rare interruptions .
It ’ s what made his interviews this summer with Chris Wallace and Jonathan Swan so compelling — in his nearly four years as president , we ’ ve barely ever seen Trump somewhere where he is not in charge .
The reasons each candidate has for being cloistered are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to pandemic protocol , Trump with a strict adherence to ego maintenance .
But you learn something to actually see what a president or candidate is like when they ’ re directly challenged and can ’ t easily change the subject or leave the room .
It is rare to see either Biden or Trump forced to deal with discomfort .
It ’ s probably not going to change your vote this year .
But as we work and live through a pandemic without a known end , seeing a candidate in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be in reveals something about how that person actually is — how this year , or the last four , may have changed them .
The debates are still an opportunity to learn a little more about these very sheltered men .
That should still matter .

You probably know how you feel about President Donald Trump. He has been the emcee of the last five years of American life. Depending on your view, he’s either the protagonist of your daily story or the uninvited guest who has been squatting in your one-bedroom apartment for years. It is a fun little joke to have with yourself to try to imagine the likely voter who just hasn’t heard enough about Donald Trump to have an opinion about him one way or the other.
So what is there to gain from the beginning of the presidential debates between Trump and Joe Biden?
Polling and reporting this summer showed an electorate that appears to have largely made up its mind. National and state polls have been remarkably stable through a series of crises and changed campaign messages. Trump’s approval rating of around 44% has been basically steady across his presidency. The number of voters considering a third-party candidate or who are still firmly undecided is not what it was in September 2016. It’s basically impossible to imagine the person who is going to be swayed in their vote by Trump insisting Tuesday night that Biden is on drugs.
This dynamic, even if it’s more obvious this year, isn’t unique. There’s a compelling reason to think general election presidential debates don’t move voters much even in a normal time. John Sides, a political scientist who has written loads about American elections, wrote in a 2012 survey of the research that “presidential debates have rarely, if ever, mattered.” Republicans typically believe the Republican candidate won the debate, Democrats believe the Democrat won, at most a candidate sees a slight polling bump and some days of positive or negative media attention, we all march on.
That said! I here propose why it makes sense to go through with this exercise anyway, even if it doesn’t all-caps MATTER for the election itself. And not just because of America’s pandemic-starved need for new television or our ever-accelerating drive toward masochism.
One thing that has been distinctly different about this year and election is just how little we’ve seen of the presidential candidates outside of highly controlled environments. The debates are very possibly going to be the only exception to that until deep into next year, well after one of the two is inaugurated.
Biden has rarely appeared in front of a group of more than a dozen people since March, always careful to role-model safe public behavior during the pandemic. Unless you’re diligently watching his livestreams, the most you’ve seen of the Democratic presidential nominee has been in his own ads or when he reads a speech. His interactions with national press have been rare. He’s not, as Trump would have it, hiding in his basement, but he’s also not the constant fixture in public life you’d expect a presidential candidate to be this close to an election.
And even though Trump is everywhere, he’s really only in the places he wants to be, speaking about the things he wants to speak about. Trump does regular news conferences, but still in an environment he controls, where he can safely disregard an unwanted question and move on to whatever One America News wants to ask him about. He has spent the vast majority of his presidency gliding from White House bubble to campaign rally bubble to Fox News bubble with only rare interruptions. It’s what made his interviews this summer with Chris Wallace and Jonathan Swan so compelling — in his nearly four years as president, we’ve barely ever seen Trump somewhere where he is not in charge.
The reasons each candidate has for being cloistered are different — Biden with a strict adherence to pandemic protocol, Trump with a strict adherence to ego maintenance. But you learn something to actually see what a president or candidate is like when they’re directly challenged and can’t easily change the subject or leave the room. It is rare to see either Biden or Trump forced to deal with discomfort.
It’s probably not going to change your vote this year. But as we work and live through a pandemic without a known end, seeing a candidate in a position they don’t want to be in reveals something about how that person actually is — how this year, or the last four, may have changed them. The debates are still an opportunity to learn a little more about these very sheltered men. That should still matter.


buzzfeed--2020-10-01--Jim Parsons Opened Up About Not Being Able To Taste Or Smell When He Had COVID-19, And It Sounds Tru

Jim Parsons Opened Up About Not Being Able To Taste Or Smell When He Had COVID-19, And It Sounds Truly Bizarre

`` We did n't know what it was , '' he went on .
`` We thought we had colds @ @ @ @ @ less likely [ that it was a cold ] .
And then we lost our @ @ @ @ @ and we were like ... yeah . ''

"We didn't know what it was," he went on. "We thought we had colds. And then it seemed less likely [that it was a cold]. And then we lost our sense of smell and taste and we were like...yeah."


buzzfeed--2020-09-30--Gwyneth Paltrow Posed In Her Birthday Suit To Celebrate Her 48th Birthday And Her Daughter Didn't He

Gwyneth Paltrow Posed In Her Birthday Suit To Celebrate Her 48th Birthday And Her Daughter Didn't Hesitate To Comment On It

And earlier this year she talked to Jimmy Kimmel about how her children have grown to appreciate her sex-positive lifestyle @ @ @ @ @ My son said to me the other day , he was like , ‘ At @ @ @ @ @ really embarrassing that there were vibrators on your website , and now I think it @ @ @ @ @ ! '
He ’ s like , ‘ You ’ re a feminist , Mom @ @ @ @ @ badass.
’ I was like , ‘ Thank you !
’ ”

And earlier this year she talked to Jimmy Kimmel about how her children have grown to appreciate her sex-positive lifestyle website, saying, "My son said to me the other day, he was like, ‘At first I thought it was really embarrassing that there were vibrators on your website, and now I think it’s a great thing!' He’s like, ‘You’re a feminist, Mom. You’re a badass.’ I was like, ‘Thank you!’”


buzzfeed--2020-10-01--The Proud Boys Got A Bunch Of New Followers After Trump Said To “Stand By”

Hundreds of new people have flooded the forums the white nationalist group uses to organize .
The Proud Boys , a far-right extremist group , has received a flood of new members in the hours since President Donald Trump refused to condemn the group on television during the first presidential debate Tuesday evening .
Moderator Chris Wallace , a Fox News host , repeatedly asked if the president would condemn white supremacists and militia groups .
When Democratic candidate Joe Biden chimed in with the Proud Boys as an example of a group Trump might disavow , Trump at first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ responded : “ Proud Boys , stand back and stand by.
” The remark immediately sparked enthusiastic responses from members of the male-only group , which the Southern Poverty Law Center said has “ affiliations with known extremists.
” Following the president 's comments , the group , founded by Vice cofounder Gavin McInnes , celebrated on the semi-private social media networks that they ’ ve been forced to inhabit after Facebook and Twitter banned them in 2018 .
They put the president ’ s words on their logo , posted a cheering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saying “ stand down stand by.
” “ Trump basically said to go fuck them up !
this makes me so happy , ” a Proud Boys organizer , whom BuzzFeed News is declining to name , wrote .
One of the channels showed over 600 new members in the last 24 hours , while another one showed roughly 700 .
BuzzFeed News is choosing not to name the networks on which the group organizes to avoid driving traffic to them .
Some of that traffic may have come not just from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the screenshots of those channels that reporters and commentators circulated during and after the debate on social media , according to anti-extremism researchers who spoke to BuzzFeed News after the debate .
Joan Donovan , director of the Technology and Social Change Research Project at Harvard ’ s Shorenstein Center , told BuzzFeed News , “ When journalists are sharing the names of groups ... that is another kind of resource , especially when it lacks so much context.
” “ It ’ s basically directing people toward hate , ” Megan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ professor who researches online extremism , told BuzzFeed News .
The Proud Boys are known for antagonizing protesters and members of the press , at times violently .
One member , 50-year-old Alan Swinney , was arrested on six charges the morning after the presidential debate .
Swinney allegedly pointed a gun at a person and was involved in a violent brawl in Portland , Oregon , in August .
Last night , Robert Evans , a Bellingcat reporter , said a member of the group broke Evans ' hand during a Portland @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , an associate professor in the School of Public Affairs at American University who studies political violence and extremism , told BuzzFeed News that Tuesday ’ s debate left him feeling distressed .
Trump ’ s comments were “ not a dog whistle but a foghorn for [ far-right extremist ] groups , ” he said .
Pro-Trump commentators and members of the president ’ s reelection campaign spent much of Wednesday trying to silence that foghorn .
`` Trump is bad at this , he ’ s awful with language , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Shapiro .
“ That is not Donald Trump defending white supremacy , that is a media lie.
” By the afternoon , Trump disclaimed knowledge of the Proud Boys , saying to a reporter , “ They have to stand down and let law enforcement do their work , ” adding , “ I don ’ t know who the Proud Boys are.
” Pressed , for the second time in less than 24 hours , about whether he welcomed support from white supremacists , the president again refused to disavow hate groups @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be a very important part , ” he said , “ it ’ s a very important part of my campaign.
” Despite the attempts to distance himself from the remarks and even though Trump 's comments last night only included the Proud Boys , other members of the far right also rejoiced at the exposure , mixed with some jealousy .
“ Some of them are giving props , ” said Squire , “ like , ‘ Respect , you got a shout-out from the president .
That ’ s pretty @ @ @ @

The Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group, has received a flood of new members in the hours since President Donald Trump refused to condemn the group on television during the first presidential debate Tuesday evening.
Moderator Chris Wallace, a Fox News host, repeatedly asked if the president would condemn white supremacists and militia groups. When Democratic candidate Joe Biden chimed in with the Proud Boys as an example of a group Trump might disavow, Trump at first interrupted Wallace in a back-and-forth, then responded: “Proud Boys, stand back and stand by.”
The remark immediately sparked enthusiastic responses from members of the male-only group, which the Southern Poverty Law Center said has “affiliations with known extremists.”
Following the president's comments, the group, founded by Vice cofounder Gavin McInnes, celebrated on the semi-private social media networks that they’ve been forced to inhabit after Facebook and Twitter banned them in 2018. They put the president’s words on their logo, posted a cheering video, and began to sell T-shirts saying “stand down stand by.”


buzzfeed--2020-09-30--Ukraine Is Investigating The Killing Of A US Embassy Employee In Kyiv

The passerby who discovered the American woman shows investigators how and where he found her on Wednesday .
Ukrainian police are investigating the killing of an American woman who was employed at the US Embassy in Kyiv , a police spokesperson told BuzzFeed News Wednesday .
The woman , who had suffered a large head injury , was found by a passerby on a street near Kyiv ’ s Nyvky Park outside the city center , Artem Shevchenko , a spokesperson for Ukraine ’ s Interior Ministry , said .
The US Embassy sits on the eastern edge of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from where the woman was found .
Shevchenko said police were working to track down at least one male suspect they believe to be responsible for what he called a `` deliberate murder . ''
Shevchenko said the woman , who has not yet been officially identified , was wearing jogging clothes and earbuds when she was found .
“ The unconscious woman was admitted to a hospital where she subsequently died .
During the examination of the victim ’ s belongings , an identity card of an employee of the US Embassy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a Kyiv Police statement said .
The embassy confirmed the death but said it did not have any new information about what had happened .
“ We are heartbroken to report the death of an American member of the U.S. Embassy Kyiv community .
Officials from U.S. Embassy Kyiv are currently working with authorities to determine the circumstances of the death , ” the embassy said in a statement to BuzzFeed News .

Ukrainian police are investigating the killing of an American woman who was employed at the US Embassy in Kyiv, a police spokesperson told BuzzFeed News Wednesday.
The woman, who had suffered a large head injury, was found by a passerby on a street near Kyiv’s Nyvky Park outside the city center, Artem Shevchenko, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, said. The US Embassy sits on the eastern edge of the park and is only a half-mile away from where the woman was found.
Shevchenko said police were working to track down at least one male suspect they believe to be responsible for what he called a "deliberate murder."
Shevchenko said the woman, who has not yet been officially identified, was wearing jogging clothes and earbuds when she was found.
“The unconscious woman was admitted to a hospital where she subsequently died. During the examination of the victim’s belongings, an identity card of an employee of the US Embassy in her name was found,” a Kyiv Police statement said.
The embassy confirmed the death but said it did not have any new information about what had happened. “We are heartbroken to report the death of an American member of the U.S. Embassy Kyiv community. Officials from U.S. Embassy Kyiv are currently working with authorities to determine the circumstances of the death,” the embassy said in a statement to BuzzFeed News.


buzzfeed--2020-10-01--Cleveland Hosted One Of The Worst Debates Of All Time. It's Just One More Weird Aspect Of This Year

Cleveland Hosted One Of The Worst Debates Of All Time. It's Just One More Weird Aspect Of This Year In Ohio.

And then there was the debate itself : gnarly and hard to follow .
You might have needed a drink when it was all over at 10:35 p.m. , but the Ohio governor ’ s coronavirus restrictions include a 10 o ’ clock curfew for alcohol sales .
Those who did travel to Cleveland — I commuted from my home in a neighboring county — spent their day or two before the debate getting COVID-19 tests and self-isolating while they awaited results , then returning to the testing site to receive their all-clear paper wristbands .
There wasn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the smaller contingent of campaign aides and political operatives here , to see the sights , write the human-interest stories , or repair to the local bars and restaurants that no doubt could use the business .
Because of the debate road closures , the much-admired Cleveland Museum of Art didn ’ t open Tuesday or Wednesday .
Cleveland ’ s awkward hosting duties began registering to me , a curious local for 15 years , when in the days and weeks before the debate I heard from friends and contacts who were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of visiting reporters .
These often are routine public relations inquiries : Would you consider writing about this company or that organization or including insight from the experts at the college or hospital ?
But social distancing guidelines and general cutbacks to travel in the middle of a pandemic meant fewer journalists came to town .
Most of the tables and chairs in the media filing center near the debate hall were empty Tuesday night .
The perimeter was tightly controlled , to guard against outbursts of violence that never materialized and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ events that attract presidents or vice presidents bring a high level of security .
Most also typically have Big Event Energy , a carnival atmosphere for political junkies and curious locals who take their pictures in front of the C-SPAN bus and people-watch for cable news celebrities in bars and hotel lobbies .
Not this time .
During my drive into the city Monday , the day before the debate , I cruised along a slow procession of military vehicles creeping up the interstate toward the Cleveland Clinic ’ s main campus .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden arrived , SWAT teams from suburban police departments and other law enforcement officers patrolled the streets and sidewalks outside as peaceful demonstrations popped up around the hospital and surrounding neighborhoods .
Into the cauldron this week came the first general election debate between President Donald Trump and Joe Biden .
The unrest in May was very much on the minds of city leaders who were worried that protesters and agitators would see the event — which was moved here from the University of Notre Dame because of coronavirus concerns — as an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bad .
Like with the debate itself , expectations were all over the place , but generally low .
And in an area historically segregated between the East Side ( Black ) and West Side ( white ) , the recent anti-racism protests and Black Lives Matter movement have reignited tribal tensions .
In late May , after the police killing of George Floyd in Minnesota , destructive demonstrations in downtown Cleveland divided those who felt a strong statement was needed to call attention to a crisis and those who felt broken storefront @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pay .
CLEVELAND — The pandemic , like it has everywhere else , triggered an unraveling in Cleveland .
Businesses are struggling through quarantines and work-from-home protocols .
Chefs who put the city on the hip foodie map wonder if their more casual customers will return once social distancing guidelines ease — or if they ’ ll still be open when they ’ re ready .
The Major League Baseball team , responding to years of complaints about its name , announced it was studying a change without committing to one .
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ maybe-soon-to-be-renamed Indians were in the midst of badly losing a playoff opener to the New York Yankees about 4 miles down Carnegie Avenue at the empty Progressive Field .
Cleveland ’ s longtime mayor , known for bland and uninspiring rhetoric like “ it is what it is ” long before Trump made it an unfortunate tagline , acknowledged in a national interview that his city is “ perceived to be the butthole of the world.
” After Floyd ’ s death in May — another instance of a white police officer killing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the kind of disruptive ( and damaging ) protests the city had largely dodged after its own high-profile police shootings in recent years , including the 2014 death of 12-year-old Tamir Rice .
Politics , too , has been disorienting .
A massive corruption scandal involving downstate Republicans hovers over the general election .
Ohio entered this presidential cycle without the premier battleground status it usually enjoys .
Trump won it in 2016 by a sizable enough margin to convince many national Democrats that it wasn ’ t worth much investment .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and perhaps a path for Biden to deal Trump an electoral blowout by adding Ohio to a list of other industrial and Midwest states he ’ s well positioned to win .
Trump has kept close tabs on the state ; he rallied in Toledo last week , and his son Don Jr. was set to visit Tipp City on Wednesday .
Sen. Sherrod Brown , a Clevelander , had been eager for the Biden campaign to make a bigger play here , and this week he got his wish .
The former @ @ @ @ @ @ @ morning in Cleveland and stopped briefly in Alliance , a conveniently named city in Stark County , a traditional bellwether that went decisively for Trump four years ago .
Tuesday ’ s debate was the type of event that can test the city ’ s fragile self-esteem — a real tree-falls-in-a-forest moment for people eager to demonstrate their can-do attitude .
Notre Dame and South Bend , Indiana , the original hosts , backed out after the coronavirus made a hash of logistics .
In swooped the leaders of the Cleveland Clinic and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ effort so closely held that it excluded the mayor .
“ Hosting the first presidential debate of 2020 was a unique opportunity for Cleveland in a unique time , ” David Gilbert , the president and chief executive of the Destination Cleveland tourism bureau , responded via email when I asked , through a publicist , if there was any disappointment that the pandemic meant fewer people were here to impress .
“ While the traditional hosting benefits of welcoming thousands of visitors and journalists to the city to see and experience it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and that ’ s certainly not ideal , Cleveland made the most of the opportunity available .
Just by stepping in and ultimately hosting a successful event , the city ’ s narrative received a boost and perceptions of the city were likely changed for the better.
” If you ’ ve spent enough time in and around Cleveland , this civic pride and boosterism — Destination Cleveland previously called itself `` Positively Cleveland '' — can , via the big public relations agencies and the local power brokers who use them , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care very much what people who don ’ t live here think about the region .
We also sell a lot of Cleveland-themed T-shirts that bear generations ’ worth of slogans .
In the 1940s it was the “ Best Location in the Nation , ” per an electric company ’ s marketing campaign that endured , without irony , over decades of job and population loss .
After the particularly bleak 1970s , a bumper sticker campaign promoted by the daily newspaper betrayed an inferiority complex : “ New York ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s a Plum.
” The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame built its museum near the waterfront , headlining a ’ 90s narrative of renaissance and ending a run of “ Mistake on the Lake ” takes .
By the aughts , Clevelanders needed another pep talk , and the corporate sloganeers responded with “ Believe in Cleveland.
” Things got bad again , though .
Foreclosures hollowed out neighborhoods .
Big employers downsized or left town .
The daily newspaper went mostly online .
A literally banner 2016 — when Northeast Ohio @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an NBA Championship , and the city hosted the Republican National Convention without a hitch — helped restore confidence .
A more recent slogan is downright minimalist and modest by the city ’ s standards : `` This Is Cleveland . ''
Gilbert , in his emailed statement , said the debate , which came and went without any violence or major disruptions in or around the city , could generate particularly good publicity for the Clinic , Case Western Reserve , and other healthcare institutions in the Cleveland area .
“ Hundreds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Cleveland Clinic leading up to the event — establishing or reinforcing for those journalists the vibrancy of Cleveland ’ s healthcare economy and health education expertise , ” Gilbert said .
“ Finding ways to continue to tell the story of how Cleveland hosted a successful event during a global pandemic will help the city to further benefit from the opportunity.
” The Clinic , and Cleveland ’ s healthcare community at large , is no stranger to good PR .
Cleveland ’ s economic despair is close by , though .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s main campus and you ’ ll be in neighborhoods that have long been struggling with drugs and joblessness .
I asked Chris Ronayne , who leads University Circle Inc. , a development group situated in Case Western Reserve ’ s neighborhood just beyond the Clinic ’ s footprint , if the debate-hosting gig was thankless work , given the lack of instant economic impact .
He flipped the question a bit , emphasizing how being pressed into service allowed Cleveland to showcase itself as multidimensional , even if concerns about the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ This is what we do , ” Ronayne told me by telephone as he watched a demonstration unfold before the debate Tuesday night in University Circle .
“ We are quick to rise to the challenge.
” “ I see peaceful protests right now , ” Ronayne , often mentioned as a future candidate for mayor , added .
“ I see beauty all around .
It actually turned out to be a great night in Cleveland .
”

CLEVELAND — The pandemic, like it has everywhere else, triggered an unraveling in Cleveland. Businesses are struggling through quarantines and work-from-home protocols. Chefs who put the city on the hip foodie map wonder if their more casual customers will return once social distancing guidelines ease — or if they’ll still be open when they’re ready.
And in an area historically segregated between the East Side (Black) and West Side (white), the recent anti-racism protests and Black Lives Matter movement have reignited tribal tensions. In late May, after the police killing of George Floyd in Minnesota, destructive demonstrations in downtown Cleveland divided those who felt a strong statement was needed to call attention to a crisis and those who felt broken storefront windows were too high a price to pay.
Into the cauldron this week came the first general election debate between President Donald Trump and Joe Biden. The unrest in May was very much on the minds of city leaders who were worried that protesters and agitators would see the event — which was moved here from the University of Notre Dame because of coronavirus concerns — as an opportunity to cause trouble, good or bad. Like with the debate itself, expectations were all over the place, but generally low.
“Cleveland’s gauge of a successful presidential debate: Enlightenment in the hall, peaceful protest outside,” read a headline this week on Cleveland.com, the Plain Dealer’s website.
During my drive into the city Monday, the day before the debate, I cruised along a slow procession of military vehicles creeping up the interstate toward the Cleveland Clinic’s main campus. On debate night, as Trump and Biden arrived, SWAT teams from suburban police departments and other law enforcement officers patrolled the streets and sidewalks outside as peaceful demonstrations popped up around the hospital and surrounding neighborhoods.
The perimeter was tightly controlled, to guard against outbursts of violence that never materialized and the spread of the coronavirus. All political events that attract presidents or vice presidents bring a high level of security. Most also typically have Big Event Energy, a carnival atmosphere for political junkies and curious locals who take their pictures in front of the C-SPAN bus and people-watch for cable news celebrities in bars and hotel lobbies. Not this time.
Cleveland’s awkward hosting duties began registering to me, a curious local for 15 years, when in the days and weeks before the debate I heard from friends and contacts who were wondering how to best get the attention of visiting reporters. These often are routine public relations inquiries: Would you consider writing about this company or that organization or including insight from the experts at the college or hospital? But social distancing guidelines and general cutbacks to travel in the middle of a pandemic meant fewer journalists came to town. Most of the tables and chairs in the media filing center near the debate hall were empty Tuesday night.
Those who did travel to Cleveland — I commuted from my home in a neighboring county — spent their day or two before the debate getting COVID-19 tests and self-isolating while they awaited results, then returning to the testing site to receive their all-clear paper wristbands. There wasn’t much time for them, or for the smaller contingent of campaign aides and political operatives here, to see the sights, write the human-interest stories, or repair to the local bars and restaurants that no doubt could use the business. Because of the debate road closures, the much-admired Cleveland Museum of Art didn’t open Tuesday or Wednesday.
And then there was the debate itself: gnarly and hard to follow. You might have needed a drink when it was all over at 10:35 p.m., but the Ohio governor’s coronavirus restrictions include a 10 o’clock curfew for alcohol sales.
It’s been a weird year in Cleveland, a town that always feels like it has something to prove.