rawstory--2020-10-10--Republicans are waging all-out war on democracy — and now they’re openly admitting it

Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah sparked a backlash this week when made an undercurrent of the modern conservative movement and the driving ideology of the Republican Party explicit .
Twitter ’ s not exactly known for the capacity to have in-depth discussions on political philosophy , but Lee hadn ’ t even come close to using up his 280 characters .
After significant outrage stirred by his first tweet , Lee expanded on the idea the following day with a slightly longer message .
“ Democracy isn ’ t the objective ; liberty , peace , and [ prosperity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We want the human condition to flourish .
Rank democracy can thwart that.
” Again , it was a striking sentiment , and it inflamed critics who have accused the Lee and the GOP of systematically trying to disenfranchise constituencies they believe won ’ t vote for Republicans .
But Lee didn ’ t back down .
He went to the conservative outlet the Washington Examiner , which essentially transcribed his own defense of his claims with little analysis or reflection .
He shared a piece from DeseretNews , which offered a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And Conn Carroll , a spokesperson for Lee , provided a statement to Vox further defending the comments : But none of the defenses could shield from the fact that the senator ’ s sentiments reflect a growing and dangerous anti-democratic element on the modern right-wing .
The instinct has always been there , in some form or another , but you would nevertheless hear Republicans pay lip-service to the idea of democracy .
Cynically , though , they began pushing extremely anti-democratic policies , such as restrictive voter ID laws and racial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ minorities and Democrats .
They offered pro-forma excuses for these policies , such as voting the virtually non-existent problem of voter fraud , but many surely knew that they were just taking whatever advantage they could to keep power .
Lee ’ s remarks , however , show how those cynical power grabs can merge with an ideology that is intrinsically elitist and whose adherents know it ’ s deeply unpopular .
This creates a strong incentive to rationalize opposition to democracy and justify restricting the influence of ordinary citizens on the government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be openly dismissive of democracy may signal that his party will be increasingly willing to not even espouse traditional democratic values .
This isn ’ t likely to be a popular stance , but if they get their way , that won ’ t matter .
Republicans , after all , already know they need to distort the playing field win and rule .
That ’ s why they concoct bizarre and ad hoc excuses for preserving the Electoral College , despite the fact that it was a ham-fisted compromise at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to put the more unpopular candidate in the White House twice in living memory .
That ’ s why they ’ re thrilled to appoint conservative Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court , breaking the countless promises they made to leave seats open during a presidential campaign and rushing the process in the weeks before an election .
They want their 6-3 conservative court , which can theoretically stand in the way of Democratic majorities in Congress and a Democratic president from enacting a popular agenda .
Loren Culp , Republican @ @ @ @ @ @ @ objection to democracy in a recent video : This is exactly the point .
Republicans fear that , if the people are adequately represented in government , the government will have to do things they like , such as providing for basic needs like health care and housing .
They deride providing such services as “ socialism , ” which the Republican mind can not abide .
In a recent column , the New York Times ’ Jamelle Bouie dispelled the frequently touted nonsense that the United States isn ’ t a “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : For the founders , “ democracy ” did not mean majority rule in a system of representation .
The men who led the revolution and devised the Constitution were immersed in classical literature and political theory .
Ancient Greece , in particular , was a cautionary tale .
When James Madison critiqued “ democracy ” in Federalist No .
10 , he meant the Athenian sort : “ a society consisting of a small number of citizens , who assemble and administer the government in person.
” This he contrasted with a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in which the scheme of representation takes place.
” Likewise , in a 1788 speech to the New York ratification convention , Alexander Hamilton disavowed “ the ancient democracies in which the people themselves deliberated.
” They “ never possessed one good feature of government , ” he said .
“ Their very character was tyranny ; their figure deformity.
” In more modern terms , the founders feared “ direct democracy ” and accounted for its dangers with a system of “ representative democracy.
” Yes , this “ republic ” had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ states in the Senate , the presidential veto and the Supreme Court .
But it was not designed for minority rule .
If there ’ s substance behind “ We ’ re a republic , not a democracy , ” it ’ s not as a description of American government .
There ’ s really no difference , in the present , between a “ republic ” and a “ democracy ” : Both connote systems of representation in which sovereignty and authority derive from the public at large .
The point of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who we are , but to claim and co-opt the founding for right-wing politics — to naturalize political inequality and make it the proper order of things .
What lies behind that quip , in other words , is an impulse against democratic representation .
It is part and parcel of the drive to make American government a closed domain for a select , privileged few .
The anti-democratic impulse is commonplace on the right .
GOP Chair Ronna McDaniel , for example , celebrated on Thursday a series of court rulings that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to vote :

Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah sparked a backlash this week when made an undercurrent of the modern conservative movement and the driving ideology of the Republican Party explicit.
"We're not a democracy," Lee tweeted on Oct. 7.
Twitter's not exactly known for the capacity to have in-depth discussions on political philosophy, but Lee hadn't even come close to using up his 280 characters. After significant outrage stirred by his first tweet, Lee expanded on the idea the following day with a slightly longer message.
"Democracy isn't the objective; liberty, peace, and [prosperity] are," he wrote. "We want the human condition to flourish. Rank democracy can thwart that."
Again, it was a striking sentiment, and it inflamed critics who have accused the Lee and the GOP of systematically trying to disenfranchise constituencies they believe won't vote for Republicans. But Lee didn't back down. He went to the conservative outlet the Washington Examiner, which essentially transcribed his own defense of his claims with little analysis or reflection. He shared a piece from DeseretNews, which offered a more balanced take on the controversy. And Conn Carroll, a spokesperson for Lee, provided a statement to Vox further defending the comments:
At a time when Democrats want to pack the Court, eliminate the Electoral College, and turn the Senate into the House, it is very good that Americans are re-reading The Federalist Papers to rediscover why the founders put these specific republican checks on democratic passion into the Constitution.
But none of the defenses could shield from the fact that the senator's sentiments reflect a growing and dangerous anti-democratic element on the modern right-wing. The instinct has always been there, in some form or another, but you would nevertheless hear Republicans pay lip-service to the idea of democracy. Cynically, though, they began pushing extremely anti-democratic policies, such as restrictive voter ID laws and racial gerrymandering meant to dilute the votes of minorities and Democrats. They offered pro-forma excuses for these policies, such as voting the virtually non-existent problem of voter fraud, but many surely knew that they were just taking whatever advantage they could to keep power.
Lee's remarks, however, show how those cynical power grabs can merge with an ideology that is intrinsically elitist and whose adherents know it's deeply unpopular. This creates a strong incentive to rationalize opposition to democracy and justify restricting the influence of ordinary citizens on the government. The Utah senator's willingness to be openly dismissive of democracy may signal that his party will be increasingly willing to not even espouse traditional democratic values. This isn't likely to be a popular stance, but if they get their way, that won't matter.
Republicans, after all, already know they need to distort the playing field win and rule. That's why they concoct bizarre and ad hoc excuses for preserving the Electoral College, despite the fact that it was a ham-fisted compromise at the country's founding that has served to put the more unpopular candidate in the White House twice in living memory. That's why they're thrilled to appoint conservative Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, breaking the countless promises they made to leave seats open during a presidential campaign and rushing the process in the weeks before an election. They want their 6-3 conservative court, which can theoretically stand in the way of Democratic majorities in Congress and a Democratic president from enacting a popular agenda.
Loren Culp, Republican candidate for Washington Governor, articulated the objection to democracy in a recent video:
This is exactly the point. Republicans fear that, if the people are adequately represented in government, the government will have to do things they like, such as providing for basic needs like health care and housing. They deride providing such services as "socialism," which the Republican mind cannot abide.
In a recent column, the New York Times' Jamelle Bouie dispelled the frequently touted nonsense that the United States isn't a "democracy" but a "republic":
For the founders, "democracy" did not mean majority rule in a system of representation. The men who led the revolution and devised the Constitution were immersed in classical literature and political theory. Ancient Greece, in particular, was a cautionary tale. When James Madison critiqued "democracy" in Federalist No. 10, he meant the Athenian sort: "a society consisting of a small number of citizens, who assemble and administer the government in person." This he contrasted with a "republic" or "a government in which the scheme of representation takes place." Likewise, in a 1788 speech to the New York ratification convention, Alexander Hamilton disavowed "the ancient democracies in which the people themselves deliberated." They "never possessed one good feature of government," he said. "Their very character was tyranny; their figure deformity." In more modern terms, the founders feared "direct democracy" and accounted for its dangers with a system of "representative democracy." Yes, this "republic" had counter-majoritarian aspects, like equal representation of states in the Senate, the presidential veto and the Supreme Court. But it was not designed for minority rule. If there's substance behind "We're a republic, not a democracy," it's not as a description of American government. There's really no difference, in the present, between a "republic" and a "democracy": Both connote systems of representation in which sovereignty and authority derive from the public at large. The point of the slogan isn't to describe who we are, but to claim and co-opt the founding for right-wing politics — to naturalize political inequality and make it the proper order of things. What lies behind that quip, in other words, is an impulse against democratic representation. It is part and parcel of the drive to make American government a closed domain for a select, privileged few.
The anti-democratic impulse is commonplace on the right. GOP Chair Ronna McDaniel, for example, celebrated on Thursday a series of court rulings that make it harder for the American people to vote:
Meanwhile, Trump has explicitly said he thinks he needs Barrett to be approved by the Senate because he expects the Supreme Court to determine the result of the November election. He's not satisfied with simply competing in the Electoral College which, at least in 2016, was tilted in his favor. He's run a months-long disinformation campaign attacking mail-in voting, claiming the election will be rigged, and demanding that his supporters become poll-watchers — likely as an attempt to intimidate Democrats who want to cast ballots. He wants chaos, and then he wants his hand-picked justices to hand him the election, regardless of the will of the people.
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a Trump sycophant, seems to agree.
"Now, we may have litigation about who won the election, but the court will decide," he said last month. "And, if the Republicans lose, we will accept that result. But we need a full court, and I think that's possible before the election."
So it should be clear that it's not just a Trump phenomenon. Republicans are committed to limiting the power of the voters to keep their hold on power. And in turn, the fact that Republicans need to persuade a minority of the country to win allows them to become more radicalized, thus pushing them to dilute voters' power even more.
And since gutting the Voting Rights Act, the conservative-dominated Supreme Court has repeatedly declined to act to preserve voting rights or increase access to the ballot. With Barrett on the bench, that attitude is almost certain to be further entrenched.


rawstory--2020-10-09--Trump blocked CDC from requiring COVID masks on public transit

An order by President Donald J. Trump diverted a draft memo by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) that would have required all passengers and employees to wear masks on all forms of public and commercial transportation across the nation , according to two federal health officials .
More than 40,000 Americans per day become infected with COVID-19 and the CDC mask mandate would have been a tough federal guideline to help curb or stop the spread of transmission , decreasing the overall viral load in cities and states in a uniform manner .
The order @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ quarantine powers , ” which had the support of the secretary of health and human services , Alex M. Azar II .
However , the head of the Coronavirus Task Force , U.S. Vice President Mike Pence , denied to hear it .
A task force official said who wished to speak anonymously said , “ The approach the task force has taken with any mask mandate is , the response in New York City is different than Montana , or Tuscaloosa , Alabama .
Local and state authorities need to determine @ @ @ @ @ @ @ depending on how the coronavirus is impacting their area.
” “ I think masks are the most powerful weapon we have to confront COVID and we all need to embrace masks and set the example for each other , ” said CDC Director Dr. Robert R. Redfield .
Representative Peter A. DeFazio , Democrat of Oregon and chairman of the House committee on transportation and infrastructure , said , “ It ’ s especially outrageous because the science is so clear : masks safe lives .
The millions of Americans who work in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — from bus drivers , train conductors and flight attendants , to the frontline workers who rely on public transit — deserve to know their president is relying on experts ’ best advice and doing everything possible to keep them safe .
”

An order by President Donald J. Trump diverted a draft memo by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that would have required all passengers and employees to wear masks on all forms of public and commercial transportation across the nation, according to two federal health officials.
More than 40,000 Americans per day become infected with COVID-19 and the CDC mask mandate would have been a tough federal guideline to help curb or stop the spread of transmission, decreasing the overall viral load in cities and states in a uniform manner. The order was drafted under the CDC's "quarantine powers," which had the support of the secretary of health and human services, Alex M. Azar II. However, the head of the Coronavirus Task Force, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, denied to hear it.
A task force official who wished to speak anonymously said, “The approach the task force has taken with any mask mandate is, the response in New York City is different than Montana, or Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Local and state authorities need to determine the best approach for their responsive effort depending on how the coronavirus is impacting their area.”
“I think masks are the most powerful weapon we have to confront COVID and we all need to embrace masks and set the example for each other,” said CDC Director Dr. Robert R. Redfield.
Representative Peter A. DeFazio, a Democrat from Oregon and chairman of the House committee on transportation and infrastructure, said, “It’s especially outrageous because the science is so clear: masks save lives. The millions of Americans who work in and use our transportation systems every day — from bus drivers, train conductors and flight attendants, to the frontline workers who rely on public transit — deserve to know their president is relying on experts’ best advice and doing everything possible to keep them safe.”


rawstory--2020-10-09--Delaware governor pardoned the man who attempted to kidnap Gretchen Whitmer: report

Gov .
John Carney ( D-DE ) signed off on a pardon last year for one of the conspirators who attempted the kidnapping of Gov .
Gretchen Whitmer ( D-MI ) Thursday .
Barry Gordon Croft , Jr. , 44 , of Bear , Delaware was pardoned for crimes between 1994-1997 that included possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and assault and burglary .
Additional charges were conspiracy , receiving stolen property and disorderly conduct .
The 44-year-old Bear , Dela .
native was arrested and charged in a federal court in Michigan following the foiled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Justice spokesman Mat Marshall said , “ Needless to say , nobody — neither the DOJ nor the bipartisan Board of Pardons — would have endorsed a pardon had they known what the future held.
” Carney issued a written statement through a spokesman calling Croft ’ s new charges “ disturbing.
” He said anyone involved in the kidnapping plot should be “ prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
” “ The charges brought in Michigan are disturbing and everyone charged in this plot should be prosecuted to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Carney spokesman Jonathan Starkey said .
“ This is also another warning sign about the growing threat of violence and radicalization in our politics.
” Croft awaits a court hearing on Tuesday that will decide if he ’ s being extradited to Michigan .
The extreme militia group Wolverine Watchmen attempted a terrorism plot involving Whitmer after pre-meditated planning and training for an attack on the Capitol as well .
Six others were charged in U.S. District Court with federal conspiracy to commit kidnapping .
In addition to Croft , federal charges were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Kaleb Franks , Daniel Harris , and Brandon Caserta .

And the Monsanto trade was just one of 136 stock and other financial transactions — totaling between $3.05 million and $8.56 million — that Allen failed to properly report, according to an exclusive Raw Story analysis of federal financial disclosures.
"The omissions are so extensive that I'm just in suspense for what the possible explanation could be,” said Kedric Payne, vice president, general counsel and senior director of ethics for the Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan government watchdog group. “I haven't seen anything like this before with it going back this far."
ALSO READ: Revealed: Marjorie Taylor Greene's post-divorce finances — from Trump to Disney
The Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act requires key government officials, including members of Congress, to publicly report within 45 days most purchases, sales and exchanges of stocks, bonds, commodity futures, securities and cryptocurrencies.
Passed by Congress in 2012, the STOCK Act is designed to stop insider trading, curb conflicts-of-interest and enhance transparency.
But many of the financial trades Allen reported earlier this month were at least three years past the STOCK Act’s reporting deadline. In response to a series of questions from Raw Story, Allen’s congressional office acknowledged in an emailed statement that the congressman experienced “reporting issues” and blamed them on a financial adviser who no longer works for the Georgia lawmaker.
“Congressman Allen’s investment decisions are handled by a financial adviser, who uses investment managers to implement trades at their own discretion, without consulting with or getting input from the Congressman,” said Carlton Norwood Jr., a spokesperson for Allen. “In May of this year, Congressman Allen became aware of some reporting issues and omissions that were caused by a compliance firm he had engaged. At that point, he hired counsel and a new compliance firm to start working with the House Ethics Committee to ensure all trades have been properly reported.”
Rep. Rick Allen (R-GA). Source: U.S. House of Representatives
Members of Congress are required to file what are known as “periodic transaction reports,” or PTRs, each time they make certain financial transactions worth more than $1,000.
The periodic transaction reports are due within 45 days of a trade being executed, whether by a member of Congress personally, or a financial adviser working on the member’s behalf. Lawmakers are only required by law to disclose the value of the trades in broad ranges.
“The [Aug. 10] PTR was filed as part of that process in consultation with House Ethics Committee counsel – who understands that it was the compliance firm, and not Congressman Allen, who was responsible for these errors and that additional action and amendments to his financial disclosure statements may be necessary,” Norwood said in a statement.
However, Payne says it’s ultimately up to the legislator to ensure that such reports are filed in a timely manner.
“It's always been clear that the member has the ultimate responsibility of filing the PTRs, and it cannot be simply blamed on any outside adviser,” Payne said.
The standard fine for violating the STOCK Act is $200. But the House Committee on Ethics and Senate Select Committee on Ethics have historically waived the fees for many violators.
"It's a black hole when it goes to the Ethics Committee, and we don't know if they will assess penalties, or they just don't do anything about it.” Payne said.
Tom Rust, staff director and chief counsel for the House Committee on Ethics, which is tasked with investigating alleged STOCK Act violations, said “no comment” when reached by Raw Story.
Asked by Raw Story whether Allen has paid a fine, Norwood did not respond.
ALSO READ: Sold! Wealthy N.Y. congressman dumps up to $37 million in stocks and bonds amid pressure to divest
Demian Brady, vice president of research for the National Taxpayers Union Foundation, said there should be more transparency from the congressional ethics committees “to see how they're enforcing the laws that they're responsible for administering.”
“It shouldn’t be so difficult to figure out whether a member’s getting fined or not for late compliance with these basic, it seems to me, fairly straightforward and simple reporting requirements,” Brady said.
Allen is appointed to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and its Subcommittees on Communications and Technology; Innovation, Data, and Commerce; and Environment, Manufacturing and Critical Materials. He is also appointed to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and its Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions.
Allen’s stock transactions span dozens of companies including energy companies like Dominion Energy, General Electric, ExxonMobil, NextEra Energy and Phillips 66, technology companies such as Microsoft and Verizon and mining company Freeport-McMo-Ran.
This is at least the third separate time Allen has violated the STOCK Act.
Raw Story reported in June that Allen was late in disclosing his spouse’s March 27 sale — valued between $100,001 to $250,000 — of stock in SouthState Corporation, a financial services company.
In 2021, Insider reported that Allen has several financial filing flubs related to his stock trade activity from 2019 and 2020.
Epidemic of violations
Dozens of members of Congress have failed to comply with the STOCK Act. During the 117th Congress from 2021 to 2022, at least 78 members of Congress — Democrats and Republicans alike — were found to have violated the STOCK Act's disclosure provisions, according to a tally maintained by Insider.
Raw Story has this year identified 19 members of the 118th Congress who have broken the federal conflicts of interest law.
In recent weeks, repeat violators like Allen have broken the federal disclosure law again — Rep. Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) violated the STOCK Act for the third time in 14 months, Rep. Kathy Manning (D-N.C.) became a two-time offender and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) was several months late disclosing a family stock sale — again.
The ongoing violations come at a time when a bipartisan group of lawmakers have introduced several similar bills aimed at banning congressional stock trading.
"We see that the STOCK Act is not complied with the way it's intended to be, and if there are no consequences for the late filings, you continue to see that there probably will be less compliance with the law,” Payne said.
Campaign Legal Center supports legislation that would require members of Congress to divest of any stocks in individual companies, he said.
The most recent legislation introduced is the Ban Stock Trading for Government Officials Act, which would prohibit members of Congress, the president, the vice president, senior executive branch officials, their spouses and children from trading stocks and would require greater transparency with financial disclosures, The Hill reported.
Another two-party bill, the Bipartisan Restoring Faith in Government Act was introduced in May and is co-sponsored in part by political rivals in Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL).
Other materially similar bills include the Ending Trading and Holdings in Congressional Stocks (ETHICS) Act, the TRUST in Congress Act and the Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments (PELOSI) Act. In the decade since the STOCK Act’s passage, the push for a total ban on lawmakers trading stocks while in office gained but then lost momentum last year when the Democratic-led House, then led by Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, decided not to conduct a hearing on any of the stock-ban bills and never brought it to the House floor for a vote.
News organizations including the New York Times, Insider, NPR and Sludge have documented rampant financial conflicts of interests among dozens of members of Congress, such as those who bought and sold defense contractor stock while occupying positions on congressional armed services committees or otherwise voting on measures to send such companies billions of federal dollars. The executive and judicial branches are riddled with similar financial conflict issues, too, as the Wall Street Journal hasreported.
The Wall Street Journal won a 2023 Pulitzer Prize for its investigation into financial conflicts among officials who work in federal agencies while Insider won the Society of Professional Journalists’ Sunshine Award for its reporting on congressional financial conflicts.


rawstory--2020-10-09--Trump had the worst two-week stretch possible going into the final month of an election: GOP strateg

Trump had the worst two-week stretch possible going into the final month of an election: GOP strategist

A growing number of GOP operatives and donors are concerned that President Trump is letting his reelection chances slip away and are suggesting that the party shift its focus towards protecting seats in Congress , NBC News reports .
“ Vulnerable GOP candidates are currently tethered to an unpopular president , fighting for survival against a potential blue wave after Trump ’ s widely panned performance in the first debate , his coronavirus diagnosis and his erratic behavior on economic stimulus talks , ” NBC ’ s Sahil Kapur writes .
Kapur cites recent polling showing Joe Biden to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , adding that across the country , “ Trump is hemorrhaging support among seniors and faces widespread defections among white college graduates , particularly women.
” Speaking to NBC , Republican strategist Ken Spain agrees that the situation is dire .
“ The president has had possibly the worst two-week stretch that a candidate could have going into the final month of an election , ” he said .
“ In 2016 , the president was a buoy .
In 2020 he ’ s more of an anchor .
There ’ s no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down the ballot , ” Spain continued .
“ Six months ago , Republicans were hoping that we would be talking about Senate races in Colorado , Arizona and Maine .
Instead there ’ s concern about the potential outcomes in states like South Carolina , Georgia and Kansas.
” Read the full article over at NBC News .

Maui County officials updated that toll to 106 on Tuesday, with Green saying earlier that just over a quarter of the disaster zone had been searched by dogs trained to sniff for bodies.
Refrigerated containers were being pressed into use as makeshift morgues at the Maui police department's forensic facility, an AFP journalist observed, as the largely rural island struggled to cope with the sheer number of dead.
Biden and First Lady Jill Biden on Monday will "meet with first responders, survivors, as well as federal, state, and local officials" on Maui, the White House said in a statement.
The president then tweeted: "I remain committed to delivering everything the people of Hawaii need as they recover from this disaster."
Biden had quickly declared a "major disaster" in Hawaii after last week's inferno, allowing the deployment of emergency assistance from the federal government, and has talked several times with Green.
But he has been criticized by the Republican opposition for what they characterized as a timid response to the fires.
Though he has addressed the disaster in speeches, he did not speak publicly when the death toll soared over the weekend.
The White House said Biden had been in close contact with leaders in the Pacific archipelago and federal emergency officials, who had advised that "search and recovery efforts are expected to be at a stage early next week to allow for a presidential visit."
The announcement came as the difficult process of identifying the dead inched forwards, with officials saying Tuesday that they had collected DNA samples from 41 people whose relatives were missing.
Only five of the dead have been identified so far.
The island's police chief has said that many of the bodies are so badly charred that they are unrecognizable.
- 'Shocking to see' -
Stories of horrifying escapes continued to emerge, as did more testimony about the lack of official warning of the fast-moving blaze.
Annelise Cochran told AFP she had been reassured when officials said a small blaze in the hills had been contained last Tuesday morning.
But then it suddenly, and dramatically, flared.
"It was very, very fast; shocking to see," the 30-year-old said, adding no evacuation order had been issued.
After trying to flee by car only to find her way blocked by vehicles abandoned by their terrified drivers, some of which had begun exploding in the heat, she realized the ocean was her only escape option.
It was hours before she was plucked from the water.
- Toxic chemicals -
Green has warned against any attempt at a land grab in the devastated remains of Lahaina, as locals fret that deep-pocketed developers might take advantage of people's desperation and try to buy up plots that can be turned into luxury housing or more lucrative short-term rentals.
"Our goal is to have a local commitment -- forever -- to this community, as we rebuild," he said.
"So we will be making sure that we do all that we can to prevent that land from falling into the hands of people from the outside."
Meanwhile, residents desperate to get back to check on the homes they fled have expressed frustration at bans that have prevented people from getting into Lahaina.
Officials warned of the dangers of unstable buildings and potential airborne toxic chemicals in the area.
Questions are being asked about authorities' preparedness and response to the catastrophe.
Some fire hydrants ran dry in the early stages of the wildfire, and multiple warning systems either failed or were not activated.
A class-action lawsuit has been filed against Hawaiian Electric, the state's biggest power firm, claiming the company should have shut off its power lines to lower the risk of fire.


rawstory--2020-10-09--Trump’s answer to his campaign’s death spiral is to ‘do exactly what he’s been doing — only more’: o

Trump’s answer to his campaign’s death spiral is to ‘do exactly what he’s been doing — only more’: op-ed

Writing in the Washington Post this Friday , Paul Waldman says that polls are showing President Trump ’ s campaign is losing serious ground with key demographics .
But instead of trying to right the ship , Trump ’ s answer to his current political predicament is to “ do exactly what he ’ s been doing , only more.
” “ Any sane adviser would tell Trump to do a couple of things right now , ” Waldman writes .
“ Use the fact that he contracted covid-19 to show empathy with the millions of American families that have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ something , anything , to convince voters that he won ’ t be such a force for discord and division.
” Calling into Fox News , the rage tweeting , berating members of his own cabinet , claiming he was framed by Hillary Clinton — “ How many swing voters do you think Trump is going to find that way ?
” Waldman asks .
“ …Trump only ran for office once , ” he continues .
“ His formula in that race was to capture the nomination by appealing to the ugliest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the general election by continuing to play on fear and resentment .
Instead of working to win voters across the center , he found a latent Trump vote to activate.
” Read the full op-ed over at The Washington Post .

The indictment describes Individual 1 as talking about a draft speech on or about Oct. 21, 2020, that falsely declared victory and alleged voter fraud. It matches what was found by the House Select Committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack and the attempt to overthrow the 2020 election. Fitton wrote a draft speech he emailed to Trump through two aides on Oct. 31.
POLL: Should Trump be allowed to run for office?
That matches material the Jan. 6 congressional committee released last year, revealing that Fitton had written a draft speech and emailed it to Trump via two aides on Oct. 31, noting he had recently discussed the draft with the then-president.
“Dear Mr. President,” the email begins. “Please see below a draft statement as you requested.”
They can't say with absolute certainty that Fitton is the one, but it's their best guess. Just Security agreed with the assessment, naming Fitton, too.
Individual 2, they believe, is a fake elector that was among one of the most engaged, based on the descriptions in the indictment, according to both sites. No name is included.
Individual 3 is likely Boris Epshteyn, one of Trump's longtime aides that has provided legal advice. The indictment says that he was on stage with Rudy Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, and Sidney Powell, which narrows things down.
He sent an email that investigators have from John Eastman where he admits to constitutional questions about the Electoral Count Act before the Senate Judiciary Committee, which “could invite counter views that we do not believe should constrain Pence.”
Just Security agreed that Epshteyn is Individual 3, specifically citing Act 109 of the indictment.
Individual 4, the Daily Beast confirmed is Robert Sinners, who ran operations for Election Day for the Trump campaign. Indicted co-conspirator David Shafer, former Republican Party chair of Georgia, and Sinners exchanged emails on Nov. 20, 2020, which claimed that indicted Georgia bail bondsman Scott Hall “has been looking into the election on behalf of the President at the request of [Trump adviser] David Bossie." He then asked Individual 4 to contact Hall and lend a hand.
Just Security also named Sinners, saying that "the same email is accounted for in Curling v. Raffensperger ."
Sinners now works "with an institutional bulwark that brooked some of the most severe abuse and violent threats while holding the Trump team’s anti-democratic efforts at bay—the office of Georgia’s GOP Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger," said the Beast.
Individuals 5 and 6 are likely Bernie Kerik (5), and Phil Waldron (6). Kerik is the longtime Rudy Giuliani pal that was in the war room at the Willard Hotel on Jan. 6. But he was also chatting with Waldron about a conspiracy theorist in Texas who had a PowerPoint roadmap to overturning the election using China and Venezuela.
Just Security agreed, too, noting that the two men are in some of the same places or meetings as previously known. Waldron, for example, told The Washington Post that he was at the Nov. 25 meeting.
"The indictment then puts Individuals 5 and 6 together during similar back-to-back presentations that Giuliani’s team made days later to a group of Arizona GOP lawmakers. Kerik describes those meetings in detail to the Jan. 6 committee, matching details in the indictment," the Beast concluded.
Individual 7 was unknown to the Daily Beast, but Just Security can narrow it down to five people: "G. Michael Brown or others on email chain: James Fitzpatrick, Shawn Flynn, Thomas Lane, Valerie McConahay."
"Act 77 of the indictment alleges that Mike Roman sent an email on 12/14/2020 to Robert Sinners, Individual 7, and others stating: 'Please send me an update as soon as the State Electoral College has adjourned and all paperwork is secured.'"
The House Select Committee had the email, showing the possible people that were also on the email.
Individual 8 appears to be Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, both sites said. He was a state senator at the time, and was one of the 16 fake electors.
"The indictment makes it easy to identify Individual 8, who is portrayed as a central figure in the alleged fake elector scheme, appearing in 11 overt acts," said the report. "But the glaring tip that Willis included might not sit well with the purportedly anonymous Individual 8. Last year, Jones successfully barred the DA from publicly naming him in connection with the grand jury probe."
Still, he was quoted from an identifiable Dec. 7 tweet, that Rudy Giuliani shared.
“Georgia Patriot Call to Action: today is the day we need you to call your state Senate & House Reps & ask them to sign the petition for a special session,” the tweet says. “We must have free & fair elections in GA & this is our only path to ensuring every legal vote is counted. @realDonaldTrump.”
Jones is the author, making it easy to identify him. He refused to comment, but did attack D.A. Fani Willis on Twitter for "pursuing 'political vendettas of the past' and spending 'millions of taxpayer dollars' on the sprawling criminal investigation for 'the sole purpose of the furthering of her own political career.'"
Individual 9 the Daily Beast thinks is former Georgia Republican Party treasurer Joseph Brannan, but Just Security isn't as certain. They only identify 9 as a fake elector.
"Individual 9 is alleged in the indictment to have been on the receiving end of a Dec. 10 email from indicted pro-Trump lawyer Ken Chesebro, who is said to also be unindicted co-conspirator 5 in Smith’s federal indictment," said the Beast.
The House Select committee has an email from that as well, showing Chesebro trying “to help coordinate with the other 5 contested States, to help with logistics of the electors in other States hopefully joining in casting their votes on Monday.”
The recipients match Brannan's description, the report explained, which also featured indicted former Georgia GOP chair David Shafer along with “unindicted co-conspirator Individual 9.” The two other people on the email are women, and 9 is referred to as male.
Individuals 10-19 are all fake electors both sides aid.
Individual 20, which was cited by some of the legal analysts after the indictment dropped, was someone that was in the Oval Office during one of the key meetings on 12/18/2020. While the Daily Beast won't say, Just Security narrows it down to Michael Flynn, Patrick Byrne, or Emily Newman.
Individual 21, the Beast said was unknown, but Just Security identifies Todd Sanders or Conan Hayes. They use Act 91, which refers to an email sent by Sidney Powell that mentions both men along with Waldron, who was identified as Individual 6. The email was also included in the records from Curling v. Raffensperger.
Individual 22 would reportedly be the other of Todd Sanders or Conan Hayes.
Individual 23, which the Beast also said was unknown. Citing Act 115, Just Security said that Individual 23 was on one of the phone calls with Harrison Floyd and others on Jan. 3, 2021, at 8:11 p.m. Act 27 also references a four-way call that included Floyd, Trevian Kutti, Stephen Lee, and individual 23 on Jan. 5, 2021.
Individual 24 is Alex Cruce, Just Security said, using Act 143 which references the individual flying into Coffee County with Scott Hall, something Cruce admitted in Curling v. Raffensperger.
Individual 25, both sites believe to be Doug Logan, the CEO of the Cyber Ninjas.
Act 154 refers to Misty Hampton, one of the people who allowed Individual 25 into non-public areas of the Coffee County Election Board offices on Jan. 18, 2021. The videos were reported by ABC News and showed Logan and Jeff Lenbert being allowed in on that time. Act 150 refers to Individual 25 downloading the information from the county and putting it on legal technology company Sullivan Strickler's ShareFile, which showed Logan downloading the data on several dates in Jan. 2021.
Individuals 26 and 27, Just Security writes are probably Michael Pospieszalski or Jovan Pulitzer. They cite Acts 151 and 152 accusing Individuals 26 and 27 of downloading Coffee County data. There were six people who did this according to Curling v. Raffensperger. Others have already been identified, leaving these two men.
Individual 28, both believe is Jim Penrose, a former National Security official who ultimately went to work for Sidney Powell. Act 155 alleging an email on April 22, 2021 to SullivanStrickler COO Paul Maggio, asking that the voting data taken from Coffee County be sent to an attorney working with Powell.
“On or about the 22nd day of April 2021, unindicted co-conspirator Individual 28, whose identity is known to the grand jury, sent an email to the chief operations officer of SullivanStrickler LLC directing him to transmit all data copied from Dominion Voting Systems equipment at the Coffee County Board of Elections & Registration Office in Coffee County, Georgia, to unindicted co-conspirator Individual 30, whose identity is known to the grand jury, an attorney associated with Sidney Katherine Powell and the Trump campaign,” the indictment says.
Individual 29 is likely Jeffrey Lenberg, the Beast and Just Security believes, citing Act 154 of the indictment. Lenberg was with Logan on Jan. 18, 2021, when going into the board of elections.
Individual 30 is probably Stefanie Lambert, the sites agree, citing Act 155.
Jim Pemrose, though to be Individual 28, sent an email that was available in Curling v. Raffensperger, indicating Stefanie Lambert was to get the data from Coffee County. Penrose wrote to send the materials to "the same address as before," and "[i]nvoice Stefanie Lambert for the work like last time."
The Daily Beast spoke to Lambert's lawyer, Michael Smith, who said, “My client is a brilliant and zealous advocate for her clients. Stefanie Lambert has done nothing illegal. Like all law firms, Lambert hires experts to opine on potential cases or cases in active litigation. She intends to file suit against any person or entity falsely implying her legal work was improper.”
Read both reports at Just Security and the Daily Beast for significantly more details.


rawstory--2020-10-10--Experts and White House aides fear Trump’s drugs have triggered manic behavior: report

A stunning report in the New York Times Thursday night described President Donald Trump lashing out and demanding his own appointees prosecute his enemies , an egregious breach of norms and real and present danger to American democracy .
Most shocking of all was the fact that this largely wasn ’ t some anonymously sourced bombshell — most of the comments the Times ’ report was based on Trump made publicly But far down in the report was a notable nugget about the White House that wasn ’ t based on publicly available information .
According to the Times reporters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ worried that his manic and erratic public behavior this week may be a result of his illness and the medications he ’ s been taking : White House aides privately expressed concern about whether the president ’ s animated mood in recent days stemmed from the dexamethasone .
Doctors not involved with the president ’ s care said it could have a significant effect on a patient ’ s behavior .
As I ’ ve reported , the president ’ s public behavior since taking the steroid dexamethasone has genuinely seemed even more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him .
I argued that there are multiple explanations for the president ’ s temperament , none of which are particularly comforting .
Unfortunately , the president ’ s physician , Dr. Sean Conley , has proven utterly unreliable about Trump ’ s health .
He ’ s refused to answer many questions and admitted to skirting the truth in order to provide an “ upbeat ” picture of the president ’ s condition .
But the Times ’ s report suggested experts and those around the president are highlighting the possibility that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mood : Dr. Negin Hajizadeh , a pulmonary/critical care physician at Northwell Health , noted that the majority of Covid patients receiving dexamethasone are on mechanical ventilation and in a state of induced coma , so they do not exhibit any behavioral side effects .
But , she said , large studies show that generally 28 to 30 percent of patients will exhibit mild to moderate psychiatric side effects like anxiety , insomnia , mania or delirium after receiving steroid treatments , and about 6 percent may develop psychosis .
“ When we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ‘ This may cause you to feel jittery , might cause you to feel irritable , ' ” Dr. Hajizadeh said .
“ We will tell family members , especially for our older patients , ‘ This may cause insomnia , this may cause changes in eating habits and , in extreme cases , mania and impaired decision making . '
” It ’ s hard to overstate how serious this is .
In addition to the usual national security concerns that arise when the stability of the president ’ s mental state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the power to impact people ’ s lives in myriad ways .
He ’ s negotiating future plans for debating his Democratic opponent Joe Biden , trying to set up new campaign events while he may still be infectious , and he ’ s thrown discussions about a potential second stimulus package into chaos .
The president is hardly the picture of stability under normal circumstances , but the prospect that drug-induced mania may be affecting his decision-making at this time is unacceptable .
That ’ s why many have argued he should @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transfer power to Vice President Mike Pence until it ’ s clear he ’ s through his case of COVID-19 and can carry out his duties unimpeded by the infection or its treatment .
In light of his behavior and his own aides ’ reported concerns , it should be a much bigger deal that the president has refused to relinquish control his office .

A stunning report in the New York Times Thursday night described President Donald Trump lashing out and demanding his own appointees prosecute his enemies, an egregious breach of norms and real and present danger to American democracy. Most shocking of all was the fact that this largely wasn't some anonymously sourced bombshell — most of the comments the Times' report was based on Trump made publicly
But far down in the report was a notable nugget about the White House that wasn't based on publicly available information. According to the Times reporters, Trump's own aides are worried that his manic and erratic public behavior this week may be a result of his illness and the medications he's been taking:
White House aides privately expressed concern about whether the president's animated mood in recent days stemmed from the dexamethasone. Doctors not involved with the president's care said it could have a significant effect on a patient's behavior.
As I've reported, the president's public behavior since taking the steroid dexamethasone has genuinely seemed even more heightened and frantic than is typical for him. I argued that there are multiple explanations for the president's temperament, none of which are particularly comforting.
Unfortunately, the president's physician, Dr. Sean Conley, has proven utterly unreliable about Trump's health. He's refused to answer many questions and admitted to skirting the truth in order to provide an "upbeat" picture of the president's condition. But the Times's report suggested experts and those around the president are highlighting the possibility that the steroids could be significantly altering his mood:
Dr. Negin Hajizadeh, a pulmonary/critical care physician at Northwell Health, noted that the majority of Covid patients receiving dexamethasone are on mechanical ventilation and in a state of induced coma, so they do not exhibit any behavioral side effects. But, she said, large studies show that generally 28 to 30 percent of patients will exhibit mild to moderate psychiatric side effects like anxiety, insomnia, mania or delirium after receiving steroid treatments, and about 6 percent may develop psychosis.
"When we prescribe steroids we warn our patients: 'This may cause you to feel jittery, might cause you to feel irritable,'" Dr. Hajizadeh said. "We will tell family members, especially for our older patients, 'This may cause insomnia, this may cause changes in eating habits and, in extreme cases, mania and impaired decision making.'"
It's hard to overstate how serious this is. In addition to the usual national security concerns that arise when the stability of the president's mental state is in question, he currently has the power to impact people's lives in myriad ways. He's negotiating future plans for debating his Democratic opponent Joe Biden, trying to set up new campaign events while he may still be infectious, and he's thrown discussions about a potential second stimulus package into chaos. The president is hardly the picture of stability under normal circumstances, but the prospect that drug-induced mania may be affecting his decision-making at this time is unacceptable.
That's why many have argued he should have already invoked the 25th Amendment to transfer power to Vice President Mike Pence until it's clear he's through his case of COVID-19 and can carry out his duties unimpeded by the infection or its treatment. In light of his behavior and his own aides' reported concerns, it should be a much bigger deal that the president has refused to relinquish control his office.


rawstory--2020-10-10--CNN’s Jake Tapper corners Trump campaign strategist over attack on MSNBC’s Chris Hayes

The director of strategic communications for the president ’ s 2020 re-election campaign was cornered by CNN ’ s Jake Tapper late Friday evening .
It all started with MSNBC ’ s Chris Hayes .
On his MSNBC show , Hayes on Friday gave voice to a topic of widespread speculation : Why is the White House refusing to say when President Donald Trump last tested negative before he contracted COVID-19 .
That information could be key to the contact tracing efforts going on in multiple states following the coronavirus “ super-spreader ” White House event for Amy Coney Barrett @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thinking .
“ The only reasonable conclusion to draw is that the president did not actually test negative before he got in a room with former Vice President Joe Biden , for last week ’ s debate , ” said the host of “ All in with Chris Hayes.
” Trump campaign strategist Marc Lotter lashed out at Hayes for the segment .
“ The only ‘ reasonable conclusion ’ is you FAILED Journalism 101 because your job is to report facts – not your opinion , ” Lotter claimed , falsely describing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
CNN ’ s Jake Tapper ended the conversation with one question .
Lotter did not reply within 30 minutes of Tapper asking the question .

In new allegations revealed Wednesday, Texas House investigators accused suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton of engaging in a complex cover-up to hide his relationship with real estate investor Nate Paul as senior aides grew increasingly concerned about Paxton’s willingness to use his office to benefit Paul.
The subterfuge allegedly included Paxton and Paul creating an Uber account under an alias so they could meet each other and so the attorney general could visit the woman with whom he was having an extramarital affair.
And once Paxton learned several high-ranking officials in his office reported his behavior to the FBI, the House impeachment managers alleged, he took immediate steps to cover up his relationship with Paul, including wiring a $122,000 payment to a Paul-affiliated company in an effort to hide home renovations that Paul had provided for free.
POLL: Should Trump be allowed to run for office?
The allegations, outlined in a series of filings with the Texas Senate’s court of impeachment, shed new light on the relationship between Paul and Paxton that is at the core of his impeachment proceedings.
Among the new claims: Top deputies in the attorney general’s office persistently warned Paxton that Paul was a “crook” and that there was no merit to his claims that he had been unfairly treated by law enforcement, and that the two met at least 20 times in spring and summer 2020, sometimes discussing the FBI investigation into Paul’s faltering real estate empire.
Paxton “blindly accepted Paul’s conspiracy,” impeachment managers alleged. “Senior Staff urged Paxton to stay away. But when it came to Paul, Paxton was immune to reason.”
Paul was arrested in June on federal felony charges of lying to financial institutions to secure business loans.
Responding to Paxton’s pretrial motions that seek to dismiss all 20 articles of impeachment, including four that will not be included in the Sept. 5 impeachment trial, House managers also detailed multiple actions in which Paxton allegedly sought to use his office to benefit Paul.
They alleged that Paxton conducted a “sham criminal investigation” into Paul’s “adversaries,” routinely overriding concerns from agency staff who told him that Paul was a “criminal” and that Paxton needed to “get away.”
Instead, House managers alleged, Paxton became increasingly “entangled in Paul’s web of deceit” and “went to great lengths” to hide his relationship with Paul — using a burner phone and secret email accounts, ditching his security detail and using the fake Uber name to be “ferried to his lover’s or Paul’s properties more than a dozen times.”
In response to Paul’s favors — including allegedly employing the woman and paying to remodel Paxton’s home — Paxton “continually abused the power of his office to advance Paul’s aims,” House managers alleged.
In one instance, Paxton allegedly told agency staff that he did not want the office to assist law enforcement “in any way” with an investigation into Paul, who Paxton claimed was being “railroaded” and needed “unprecedented” access to sensitive information about his case.
After meeting with “alarmed” senior staff, Paxton allegedly demanded files about Paul’s criminal case that included an unredacted FBI letter that identified individuals involved in a 2019 raid on Paul’s home and businesses.
“Paxton held onto the file for more than a week,” House managers wrote. “Ultimately, OAG did not disclose the information to Paul. But Paxton did.”
In another instance, Paxton was accused of issuing a legal opinion that staved off a pending foreclosure sale of Paul’s businesses at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. House investigators cited two agency employees who said they were forced to work through the night to produce the opinion while Paxton frequently called them.
Paxton “sounded like someone was holding him hostage,” one of the staffers told investigators.
The opinion, which Paxton allegedly edited himself, was published at 1 a.m. Aug. 2, 2020, and said foreclosure proceedings posed a public health threat — despite the state’s “open for business” mantra throughout the pandemic, managers said.
The next day, managers alleged, Paul cited the opinion to successfully delay the foreclosures.
“It is hard to imagine a more blatant abuse of Paxton’s office,” House managers wrote.
Paxton’s legal team had filed more than a dozen motions to dismiss all articles of impeachment, often arguing that the underlying allegations were baseless or fell under the legitimate duties of the attorney general’s office.
His attorneys also accused the Texas House of trying to “overturn the will of voters” who reelected Paxton to a third term last year despite various public scandals dating to 2015. One argument stressed that Paxton cannot be impeached for alleged misconduct that predated his most recent election under the so-called “prior-term doctrine.” And they downplayed some of the allegations he faces, saying that, even if true, they are not severe enough to warrant his removal from office.
Paxton’s lawyers also attacked two bribery-related impeachment articles, saying there was no evidence of a “quid pro quo” and that Paxton’s ties to Paul were nothing more than “a personal relationship with a constituent and that the constituent found something the Attorney General did to be agreeable in some way.”
Under rules adopted by the Senate, any pretrial motion to dismiss or quash an article of impeachment must be voted on by senators. A majority — 16 senators — can approve dismissal of an article, placing an early test on the determination of the chamber’s 19 Republicans to allow a trial on the allegations. Those votes are set to be taken shortly after the trial begins in September.
In a written response, filed with the Senate on Tuesday and made public Wednesday, the impeachment team challenged other pretrial assertions from Paxton’s lawyers, who claimed the articles of impeachment were deficient because they failed to list specific laws that Paxton allegedly broke.
“Impeachable offenses need not be indictable crimes,” the House team argued. “Impeachment in Texas seeks to protect against conduct that undermines the integrity of the office, disregards constitutional duties and oaths of office, abuses government process and power, and adversely impacts the system of government.”
What’s more, the team argued, many of the articles listed particular crimes, and several detailed “how Paxton abused his office for his own personal benefit or that of Nate Paul and business entities controlled by Paul.”
More broadly, the managers emphasized that the impeachment trial is not a criminal or civil proceeding, as Paxton’s side has implied. In one new filing, the managers wrote that an impeachment trial is “a unique, if not mostly Political, with a capital ‘P’, proceeding — i.e., an action by the representatives of the people challenging official actions that are contrary to the public interest.”
That view aligns with the view that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who leads the Senate and is acting as judge in the impeachment trial, offered in a TV interview Tuesday.
“It’s not a criminal trial. It’s not a civil trial. It’s a political trial,” Patrick told the Fox affiliate in Houston.
The House managers also asked the Senate to dismiss Paxton’s motion to quash the articles or return them to the House to add more detail to the allegations. The managers said the demand shows a “fundamental misunderstanding” of how impeachment works, arguing that the Texas Constitution does not require the level of detail common in a civil or criminal proceeding.
“A person can be impeached without an indictment, therefore Paxton does not have any right to demand more details,” the managers said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.


rawstory--2020-10-10--Trump considered Superman costume ‘stunt’ while leaving Walter Reed after coronavirus hospitalizatio

Trump considered Superman costume ‘stunt’ while leaving Walter Reed after coronavirus hospitalization: NYT

Concerns about Donald Trump ’ s mental state are unlikely to decrease after a bizarre New York Times report the @ @ @ @ @ he was hospitalized with COVID-19 .
“ In several phone calls last weekend from the @ @ @ @ @ National Military Medical Center , Mr. Trump shared an idea he was considering : When @ @ @ @ @ he wanted to appear frail at first when people saw him , according to people @ @ @ @ @ .
But underneath his button-down dress shirt , he would wear a Superman T-shirt , @ @ @ @ @ a symbol of strength when he ripped open the top layer , ” The Times @ @ @ @ @ did not go ahead with the stunt , ” the newspaper added .


rawstory--2020-10-10--Israelis defy COVID lockdown to protest Trump pal Benjamin Netanyahu

Israelis kept up weekly protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday , defying lockdown restrictions imposed by authorities aimed at stemming a surge in coronavirus cases .
The parliament in Israel , which currently has one of the world ’ s highest Covid-19 infection rates per capita , last week approved a law restricting demonstrations during an emergency lockdown .
Part of draconian measures , it restricts people from moving more than one kilometre ( less than a mile ) from their homes .
Anti-Netanyahu protests have been staged each Saturday since July to denounce the prime minister ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the economy .
In the latest demonstration , people waved Israeli flags and held up signs addressed to Netanyahu , whom many accuse of corruption , saying “ Go away ” , AFP reporters said .
The demonstrators largely respected social distancing measures unlike in Tel Aviv where thousands took to the streets and clashed with police .
“ Police units at the scene are responding to the incidents and illegal protests , ” he added .
With more than 280,000 coronavirus infections confirmed so far and over 1,900 deaths in a population @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world ’ s highest weekly infection rate per capita .
Public anger has also deepened in recent days in Israel over a bitterly unpopular lockdown after high-profile figures reportedly violated the restrictions , including Netanhayu ’ s wife Sara who summoned a hairdresser to the premier ’ s official residence .
Only essential workers are allowed to leave their residences , adding further stress to an already battered economy , while Jews have been barred from gathering with friends and family over the High Holidays .
The health ministry meanwhile urged ultra-Orthodox @ @ @ @ @ @ @ distancing and hold prayers outdoors on Saturday night when they observe the Simhat Tora holiday .


rawstory--2020-10-10--Iraq vet provides Democrats with a roadmap to cripple Trump’s appeal to military voters

On MSNBC Saturday , Paul Rieckhoff , president of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America , weighed in on Joe Biden ’ s new ad featuring Cindy McCain — and said Democrats can seal the deal by focusing on the president ’ s disrespect for veterans and servicemembers .
“ How important is it that Cindy McCain , a Republican— her late husband was the 2008 Republican presidential nominee , but the fact she ’ s out there with a campaign ad in support of the Democratic presidential nominee , Joe Biden , says something , ” said anchor Jonathan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ endorsement ?
” “ I think it ’ s important , ” said Rieckhoff .
“ It ’ s not just moving people in the military and veterans — it ’ s moving people who care about the military and veterans .
Those can be people , maybe still some undecided folks especially , Pennsylvania , Florida , Arizona .
You might be able to move people with a powerful ad from Cindy McCain .
Arizona is in play … Cindy McCain could move the electorate in that state .
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ think there ’ s any more winning populist issue for the Democrats than this , ‘ losers and suckers , ’ veterans , Gold Star families , they are smart to ratchet it up , ” said Rieckhoff .
“ Kamala Harris was smart to go on the attack and Joe Biden is in a good position to do the same because his son actually went to Iraq .
Beau Biden served in Iraq while Trump ’ s kids were back home getting rich .
A cleavage smarter to expose and hammer and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ much bigger than about the election .
That ’ s the core here , Jonathan , that no matter who wins we ’ ll have a really volatile situation in this country , and we need someone we can trust and who understands and responsibly uses our military and the national defense of this country .
”

On MSNBC Saturday, Paul Rieckhoff, president of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, weighed in on Joe Biden's new ad featuring Cindy McCain — and said Democrats can seal the deal by focusing on the president's disrespect for veterans and servicemembers.
"How important is it that Cindy McCain, a Republican— her late husband was the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, but the fact she's out there with a campaign ad in support of the Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, says something," said anchor Jonathan Capehart. "How important is that endorsement?"
"I think it's important," said Rieckhoff. "It's not just moving people in the military and veterans — it's moving people who care about the military and veterans. Those can be people, maybe still some undecided folks especially, Pennsylvania, Florida, Arizona. You might be able to move people with a powerful ad from Cindy McCain. Arizona is in play ... Cindy McCain could move the electorate in that state. It's significant."
"I don't think there's any more winning populist issue for the Democrats than this, 'losers and suckers,' veterans, Gold Star families, they are smart to ratchet it up," said Rieckhoff. "Kamala Harris was smart to go on the attack and Joe Biden is in a good position to do the same because his son actually went to Iraq. Beau Biden served in Iraq while Trump's kids were back home getting rich. A cleavage smarter to expose and hammer and open up. And it's much bigger than about the election. That's the core here, Jonathan, that no matter who wins we'll have a really volatile situation in this country, and we need someone we can trust and who understands and responsibly uses our military and the national defense of this country."
Watch below:


rawstory--2020-10-10--‘Lunatic’ Trump is unraveling and has ‘become a danger to the country’: conservative columnist

In a column for the conservative Bulwark , Richard North Patterson compared Donald Trump to the Captain Philip Francis Queeg in The Caine Mutiny novel , saying Americans are watching the slow-motion crack-up of the president who has now become a legitimate danger to the country — and that he needs to be removed from office as soon as possible .
Noting the president ’ s actions over the past week and wondering how much of it is due to the heavy medications that the president is reportedly on due to his COVID-19 infection , Patterson said Trump has been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a “ lunatic.
” Writing , “ Over the last 24 hours , Trump ’ s statements provide an uncanny parallel to the behaviors which moved Queeg ’ s officers to consider turning him in .
The difference is that , for a president , there are no higher authorities .
There is only the Twenty-fifth Amendment , ” he added , “ The situation in Washington grows dire .
For Trump ’ s most recent ravings make Queeg look like a model of sanity and restraint.
” Citing Trump ’ s attacks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , his demand that his political enemies be “ locked up , ” his paranoid claim that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is planning a “ coup ” against him and his continuing obsession with Hillary Clinton ’ s emails — just in the past 24 hours — Patterson said it is obvious the president has “ gone around the bend.
” “ Obviously , Trump has long since has become an unacceptable danger to the country he is sworn to protect—not only to our spirit , but to our safety , security , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Until now , only in feverish political potboilers do lunatic presidents propose to jail the opposing candidate .
No man this unmoored should be permitted to hold—and abuse—such power , ” he wrote .
“ That this man has already threatened the peaceful transition of power—and clearly means it—is reason enough to remove him from office.
” Of greatest concern , the columnist warned , is the fact that the president still has the entire U.S. military at his command .
“ This need not involve that terrifying conceit of apocalyptic political fiction @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nuclear button .
But whatever dangers Trump may pose , one can not dismiss the deranged verbiage he used yesterday with Rush Limbaugh to threaten Iran , ” Patterson wrote before making the case for Trump ’ s removal .
“ When a president becomes mentally impaired , the Twenty-fifth Amendment empowers the vice president and majority of the cabinet to notify Congress that the president is unable to discharge his duties—requiring the vice president to immediately become acting president .
But , unlike the officers of the Caine , Mike Pence and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ death , and their fear of Trump ’ s restive base far outstrips their concern for our country .
In their catatonic cowardice , they can not speak the truth they know , ” he wrote before adding , “ Americans have but one recourse : to defeat Trump in November—by the decisive margin he so deeply fears .
Only then can we be assured that , despite his sickness , he can not defy the results.
” You can read more here .

In a column for the conservative Bulwark, Richard North Patterson compared Donald Trump to the Captain Philip Francis Queeg in The Caine Mutiny novel, saying Americans are watching the slow-motion crack-up of the president who has now become a legitimate danger to the country -- and that he needs to be removed from office as soon as possible.
Noting the president's actions over the past week and wondering how much of it is due to the heavy medications that the president is reportedly on due to his COVID-19 infection, Patterson said Trump has been making comments that could only come from a "lunatic."
Writing, "Over the last 24 hours, Trump’s statements provide an uncanny parallel to the behaviors which moved Queeg’s officers to consider turning him in. The difference is that, for a president, there are no higher authorities. There is only the Twenty-fifth Amendment," he added, "The situation in Washington grows dire. For Trump’s most recent ravings make Queeg look like a model of sanity and restraint."
Citing Trump's attacks on Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris, his demand that his political enemies be "locked up," his paranoid claim that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is planning a "coup" against him and his continuing obsession with Hillary Clinton's emails -- just in the past 24 hours -- Patterson said it is obvious the president has "gone around the bend."
"Obviously, Trump has long since become an unacceptable danger to the country he is sworn to protect—not only to our spirit, but to our safety, security, and the conduct of our democracy. Until now, only in feverish political potboilers do lunatic presidents propose to jail the opposing candidate. No man this unmoored should be permitted to hold—and abuse—such power," he wrote. "That this man has already threatened the peaceful transition of power—and clearly means it—is reason enough to remove him from office."
Of greatest concern, the columnist warned, is the fact that the president still has the entire U.S. military at his command.
"This need not involve that terrifying conceit of apocalyptic political fiction: the unhinged president reaching for the nuclear button. But whatever dangers Trump may pose, one cannot dismiss the deranged verbiage he used yesterday with Rush Limbaugh to threaten Iran," Patterson wrote before making the case for Trump's removal.
"When a president becomes mentally impaired, the Twenty-fifth Amendment empowers the vice president and majority of the cabinet to notify Congress that the president is unable to discharge his duties—requiring the vice president to immediately become acting president. But, unlike the officers of the Caine, Mike Pence and his fellow minions do not face imminent death, and their fear of Trump’s restive base far outstrips their concern for our country. In their catatonic cowardice, they cannot speak the truth they know," he wrote before adding, "Americans have but one recourse: to defeat Trump in November—by the decisive margin he so deeply fears. Only then can we be assured that, despite his sickness, he cannot defy the results."
You can read more here.


rawstory--2020-10-10--Trump has convinced his MAGA ‘death cult’ the apocalypse will follow if he loses: White House corres

Trump has convinced his MAGA ‘death cult’ the apocalypse will follow if he loses: White House correspondent

In a blistering column for the conservative Bulwark , Playboy ’ s White House correspondent Brian Karem recalled covering the Branch Davidian siege in Waco in 1993 and admitted that he sees disturbing similarities between followers of David Koresh and the MAGA hordes who idolize Donald Trump .
Days after militia members , reportedly incited by the president , were arrested for planning to kidnap Michigan Gov .
Gretchen Widmer ( D ) and put her on trial for “ treason , ” Karem warned that was the opening shot of what is to come should voters reject Trump on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump has all the characteristics of Koresh , pointing out an FBI spokesperson who said of the Branch Davidian leader , “ I don ’ t think he was a madman .
I think probably the best description of him is a master manipulator.
” “ Trump is , in his own perverse way , one of the greatest mystics of the 21st century .
He is a masterful manipulator who told everyone from the beginning of his political career how he could shoot someone in front of witnesses and not lose a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ calls the news media liars so people won ’ t believe us and will believe him , ” Karem explained .
“ He is the political messiah who will right all wrongs , drain the swamp , build a wall , make the economy better , and turn life into heaven on earth… Millions of his evangelical Christian admirers act as though he is a Christian ; they are unwilling or unable to see he clearly is not .
In truth , he ’ s merely a rich , pampered insecure man who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Karem then made the case that the current president of the United States exhibits many of the traits of Koresh , writing , “ Every violent paramilitary group in the United States flocks to him as Branch Davidians flocked to hear their messiah in Waco .
The language is nearly the same .
David Koresh spoke of an apocalypse at the hands of the federal government .
So does Trump .
Koresh said they were out to get him .
So does Trump .
Koresh violated the most basic forms of civility @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Karem then painted a frightening portrait should Trump lose in November .
“ In the end , the Branch Davidians , assuring themselves that the apocalypse was upon them , died in a fire inside their own compound .
Trump too says without his re-election , apocalypse could be upon us , ” he warned .
“ Here ’ s hoping Trump and his cult go a different route than the Branch Davidians should the president lose his bid for re-election.
” You can read the whole piece here .

In a blistering column for the conservative Bulwark, Playboy's White House correspondent Brian Karem recalled covering the Branch Davidian siege in Waco in 1993 and admitted that he sees disturbing similarities between followers of David Koresh and the MAGA hordes who idolize Donald Trump.
Days after militia members, reportedly incited by the president, were arrested for planning to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Widmer (D) and put her on trial for "treason," Karem warned that was the opening shot of what is to come should voters reject Trump on election day.
As Karem notes, Trump has all the characteristics of Koresh, pointing out an FBI spokesperson who said of the Branch Davidian leader, “I don’t think he was a madman. I think probably the best description of him is a master manipulator.”
"Trump is, in his own perverse way, one of the greatest mystics of the 21st century. He is a masterful manipulator who told everyone from the beginning of his political career how he could shoot someone in front of witnesses and not lose a voter. He also explained that he calls the news media liars so people won’t believe us and will believe him," Karem explained. "He is the political messiah who will right all wrongs, drain the swamp, build a wall, make the economy better, and turn life into heaven on earth... Millions of his evangelical Christian admirers act as though he is a Christian; they are unwilling or unable to see he clearly is not. In truth, he’s merely a rich, pampered insecure man who only worships himself."
Having said that, Karem then made the case that the current president of the United States exhibits many of the traits of Koresh, writing, "Every violent paramilitary group in the United States flocks to him as Branch Davidians flocked to hear their messiah in Waco. The language is nearly the same. David Koresh spoke of an apocalypse at the hands of the federal government. So does Trump. Koresh said they were out to get him. So does Trump. Koresh violated the most basic forms of civility to maintain control. So does Trump."
Karem then painted a frightening portrait should Trump lose in November.
"In the end, the Branch Davidians, assuring themselves that the apocalypse was upon them, died in a fire inside their own compound. Trump too says without his re-election, apocalypse could be upon us," he warned. "Here’s hoping Trump and his cult go a different route than the Branch Davidians should the president lose his bid for re-election."
You can read the whole piece here.


rawstory--2020-10-10--Psychedelic drugs may have played a role in the founding of Christianity: expert

On CNN Saturday with host Michael Smerconish , Brian Muraresku , an attorney advocating therapeutic access to marijuana and the author of “ The Immortality Key : The Secret History of the Religion with No Name , ” broke down his theory that Christian beliefs and traditions evolved in part from incorporating pagan rituals that used psychedelic drugs to connect with the realm of the spiritual .
“ Does science support the findings of your book ?
” asked Smerconish .
“ I basically followed a hypothesis from 1978 that claimed the Ancient Greeks using drugs to find God , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ academic community because there was no scientific data to prove it , ” said Muraresku.
” So , I spent years and years going through these archeobotany journals looking for evidence of spiked beer or spiked wine — beer and wine that could have been hallucinogenic .
And believe it or not , I did find some data published 20 years ago , that either was ignored or underreported by the academic community.
” “ So if the original Eucharist was a psychedelic , does that mean that Catholics have been getting a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Well , I wouldn ’ t say that , ” said Muraresku .
“ I cite a paper that said something like 69 percent of American Catholics do not believe in transsubstantiation .
For those that don ’ t know the doctrine of the bread and wine , the Eucharist literally becomes the blood and body of Jesus in the mass .
There was proof to prove that by going into this , we ’ re now unearthing evidence , actual evidence , for wine that was spiked with all kinds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Well , if Christianity then was born of psychedelic experience , are you saying it was all created out of whole cloth ?
” asked Smerconish .
“ No , ” said Muraresku .
“ I think at the roots of Christianity , which I thought Paleo-Christianity , the most exciting of the faith was to the Ancient Greeks the idea of spiked wine wasn ’ t that uncommon .
There was a wine god , Dionysus , the god of fear and ecstasy and rapture .
And to drink the wine @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of God .
For them , for early Christians , I argue that it would not have been unthinkable for them to associate the wine of Dionysus with the wine of Jesus in what was largely a pagan practice.
” “ I ’ ve never tried psychedelics , ” added Muraresku .
“ To me it was very important that I approached this topic as objectively as possible .
Of course , I ’ m interested in the experience , but I ’ m more experienced in creating these conversations at the highest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the U.S. and elsewhere .
And with religious institutions .
Because of the data that I unearthed , I think this is a topic that is right for a very sober discussion at a very large level .
”

Trained in political science and the law, he has no formal education in disaster preparedness or response. And prior to his current role, he never held a full-time job dedicated to emergency management.
Instead, his main qualification was being chief of staff to then-mayor Alan Arakawa. But in that role, he told Civil Beat Tuesday, he assisted during emergency operations. And he said he participated in online FEMA trainings and workshops throughout the years.
In 2017, Andaya beat out 40 other applicants for the job, Maui Now reported at the time.
As the mayor’s administration was coming to a close, a panel of government officials – which said it was independent of the mayor – chose Andaya for the civil service role.
Civil Beat reviewed Andaya’s experience after historic Lahaina was swallowed by an inferno last week, killing scores of residents and visitors who never saw it coming.
The Maui Emergency Management Agency had the authority to issue siren warnings that might have alerted people. After Andaya’s agency decided not to sound them, many survivors reported they only became aware of the fire when they saw and smelled smoke.
Andaya said sounding the sirens wasn’t an option officials considered because they’re “mainly used for tsunamis.” That’s why they’re mostly located on the coast, he said.
But the state’s own website says the sirens are useful for many kinds of emergencies.
“The all-hazard siren system can be used for a variety of both natural and human-caused events; including tsunamis, hurricanes, dam breaches, flooding, wildfires, volcanic eruptions, terrorist threats, hazardous material incidents, and more,” the site states.
Andaya wasn’t on the island when the fires started, and he hasn’t made any appearances at press conferences since the disaster occurred.
Asked about Andaya’s resume, David Hafner, a retired telecommunications planner for the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, questioned whether his relative inexperience affected his agency’s performance in a crisis.
“It’s a good ol’ boy network,” Hafner said. “This time it cost lives.”
Hafner said it’s “absolutely essential” for emergency management leaders to have experience in the field so they make the right decisions both before and after disasters strike.
Not having it, he said, “can lead to grave mistakes in judgment.”
Andaya’s hiring came at a time when Hawaii’s counties had just taken on increased responsibility for disaster response, according to Hafner. State emergency management officials used to be the designated authority to respond to emergencies, he said, but an update to the law in 2014 put the counties in the driver’s seat.
Asked about Andaya’s LinkedIn resume, Colin Moore, a political scientist at the University of Hawaii, said he was shocked by the emergency administrator’s lack of relevant experience. He said the public is owed an explanation.
“It’s a legitimate question to ask why the person leading the county emergency services agency has no clear background in fire, police, public health, the usual emergency services backgrounds,” he said.
“Having that on-the-ground experience, you develop the instincts and the connections to be able to perform a job like this. And if you just have general government experience, there is just no opportunity to have that kind of on-the-ground knowledge that often is really useful in a crisis.”
Andaya said as a former member of the mayor’s cabinet, he was qualified for the job.
“Whenever there was an activation in the emergency operations center, we were involved,” he said. “To say that I have no experience or no background in emergency management is not correct.”
‘Political Influence’ A Concern
Andaya, 52, is from Maui and graduated from HP Baldwin High School.
He has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science from the University of Hawaii Manoa. He also has a law degree from the UH Richardson School of Law, although he never became a licensed attorney, according to the Hawaii State Bar Association’s online database.
He began his career clerking for Maui Judge Artemio Baxa. He then worked for the law office of Lynn Araki-Regan, an attorney who is the wife of Arakawa’s managing director, Keith Regan.
When Andaya vacated his position as chief of staff, it was filled by Araki-Regan, who was by then the county budget director. Regan said he had no involvement in Andaya’s hiring.
From the early 2000s onward, Andaya has held leadership positions in Maui’s Department of Housing and Human Concerns and worked as the assistant to the chancellor of UH’s Maui College, according to his LinkedIn resume. He is married to Rowena Dagdag-Andaya, a former elementary school teacher who served as Maui’s public works director and now works in Maui’s Office on Aging.
Andaya was Arakawa’s chief of staff from 2011 through 2017. That year, the mayor appointed him acting administrator of MEMA, and he became permanent by the end of that year.
In contrast, Honolulu’s emergency management director, Hiro Toiya, has technical training in emergency response, worked for years as a preparedness planner for the Hawaii health department and rose up the ranks of Honolulu’s Department of Emergency Management. He worked there for more than seven years before becoming the director.
Asked how he stood out among a pool of 40 job candidates, Andaya said Maui doesn’t have a lot of emergency management professionals to begin with. He noted that he had to take an exam and based on his score was determined to be a finalist.
“You would have to question the civil service process if you can believe that politics was involved,” he said. “This is something that my predecessors have to go through as well.”
Before Andaya was hired, there were concerns in Maui’s political scene that the county was considering someone who wasn’t qualified.
“In the past, this position has sometimes been filled by individuals without the proper emergency response background.”
Former Maui County Council Chairman Mike White
In July 2017, the chair of the Maui County Council at the time, Mike White, took the unusual step of writing a Maui News column warning that the job of emergency management was too important to be “subject to political influence.”
“In the past, this position has sometimes been filled by individuals without the proper emergency response background,” White wrote.
“The administration must search for well-qualified candidates who can make a seamless transition in leading our Emergency Management Agency. The stakes are too high and our community has grown to a point where emergency coordination has become quite sophisticated in its implementation.”
In his column, White praised the outgoing emergency management chief, Anna Foust, who had previously worked for years leading the Maui branch of the Red Cross. White emphasized her expertise.
“During her tenure, she used her emergency response experience and training to help guide the county to keep citizens safe during hurricane warnings and watches, flooding events and tsunami warnings,” White wrote.
Civil Beat wasn’t able to reach White for comment.
Panel Of Specialists Chose Andaya
On Tuesday, Arakawa’s former managing director, Keith Regan, said that politics was not a factor in Andaya’s hiring. Asked why Andaya was the best candidate, Regan said he didn’t know because he wasn’t on the hiring committee. But he was adamant there was “zero” political influence in the process.
“This was a straightforward civil service process,” said Regan, who is now the state comptroller.
When Regan ran for Maui County Council in 2015, Andaya was his campaign manager. This year, Andaya wrote a letter of support of Regan’s nomination to state comptroller.
Regan noted that the hiring panel included numerous experts in the field. Maui Now identified them at the time as then-Maui Police Chief Tivoli Faaumu; then-Maui Fire Chief Jeff Murray; Elton Ushio, administrator of the Kauai Emergency Management Agency; and Vern Miyagi, then-administrator of the Hawaii State Emergency Management Agency.
At the time, Ushio was quoted by Maui Now as saying Andaya’s “proven leadership abilities, executive level experience, and impressive knowledge of emergency management” made him a great fit for the job. Murray cited Andaya’s familiarity with government processes, his “institutional knowledge of the various emergency incidents” in recent years, and his then-recent work as acting leader of the department.
“These are not people that, you know, are just political people,” Regan said. “They’re people who understand emergency management and are going to make the right choice for the community.”
In a statement, former HI-EMA director Miyagi said the public’s focus should be on working together on response and recovery.
“Herman Andaya and his staff at MEMA are really good people,” he said. “They carried Maui successfully through numerous hurricanes, floods, and other disasters.”
He said the public should wait for the attorney general’s investigation before drawing conclusions.
Civil Beat left messages with the other hiring committee members on Tuesday, but they were not returned. Former mayor Arakawa also did not respond to a request for comment.
“Herman is a very skilled, experienced, knowledgeable, professional individual,” Regan said. “I trust that is making the right decisions … There is no question in my mind that he cares about that community, and he’s going to do everything he can to keep that community safe.”


rawstory--2020-10-11--McConnell’s judge hypocrisy reignites #MoscowMitch attacks: ‘Rich as a Russian-bought cheater’

An old clip of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-KY ) taking credit for the judge vacancies left behind @ @ @ @ @ putting the popular term “ Moscow Mitch ” back on the tip of everyone ’ @ @ @ @ @ Sunday .
Below , see some reactions from the Twittersphere as # MoscowMitch and his @ @ @ @ @ candidate Joe Biden as someone who will “ pack the courts ” if elected .
@ @ @ @ @ The far left has been threatening our basic institutions of government since long before this @ @ @ @ @ today ’ s Democrats lose one election or one vote on the Senate floor , @ @ @ @ @ up the rulebook.
” As Tomi T Ahonen Ruthlessly tweeted Sunday , “ Remember Mitch @ @ @ @ @ HATES to be referred to as Moscow Mitch – why ?
Because he took millions @ @ @ @ @ oligarch , Oleg Deripaska .
Putin OWNS the McTurtle .
So remember to ALWAYS use @ @ @ @ @

Molly Jong-Fast writes for Vanity Fair that: “Well, it’s now half way through said August recess, and Santos appears to have only faded into the background; he’s still in his congressional seat, tweeting about the Biden family (claiming he knows the 'players' and 'sources' behind some undefined Hunter Biden smoking gun), (expletive)-talking Michael Cohen, and complaining about mean people on Twitter ('I believe in Karma,' Santos tweeted)."
POLL: Should Trump be allowed to run for office?
"Of course, the words 'ethics committee' and 'move rapidly' do not really belong in the same sentence and perhaps we all knew deep down that this call for a rapid ethics investigation was merely a stalling tactic. After all, unlike the Office of Congressional Ethics, which has a fixed time frame for investigations, the House Ethics committee does not, and their probes can drag out for months. It’s possible Santos won’t actually be dealt with in the House until around or after the 2024 election.”
Santos remains an a House member despite indictment and House ethics probe, largely because House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, elected to his position by the narrowest of margins, can’t afford to risk losing another vote, Jong-Fast writes.
But although Santos’ presence in the House provides McCarthy some short-term breathing room, he could come back to haunt the GOP next year.
“Republicans nearly swept the tossup races in the 2022 midterms, playing a major role in clinching the House majority,” Jong-Fast writes. “But that also means five other Republican congressmen from the New York delegation now occupy swingy purple seats in districts that Joe Biden won or nearly won. Covering for Santos won’t do them any good.”
“Not that long ago all of them were going scorched earth against Santos—that is until House Republicans side-stepped an up-down vote on whether Santos should keep his seat.”
Read the full article right here.