vox--2020-03-05--California primary live results

California primary live results

California , with its whopping 415 pledged delegates , is Super Tuesday ’ s biggest prize .
Because of its new primary date , the populous Western state takes on greater significance in the nomination process this year .
Previously , California wasn ’ t slated to vote until early June , when the nominee had typically already been chosen .
But to increase its influence , state officials moved its primary up to Super Tuesday for 2020 .
The presidential race was far from the only thing on the ballot , though .
All 53 congressional districts held House @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also conducted a closely watched special election to replace former Rep. Katie Hill .
Of the primaries , a few are particularly contentious : In the state ’ s 16th District , progressive challenger and Fresno City Council member Esmeralda Soria is attempting to unseat eight-term Democratic incumbent Jim Costa .
And in the 50th District , a slew of Democrats and Republicans are vying for Duncan Hunter ’ s old seat , which will remain empty until next year .
Polls in the state were open until 8 pm PT ( 11 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to mail in their ballots until midnight on Election Day .
Because of its mail-in voting , getting full results from California might take a while .
When they are in , they could have some major implications for the 2020 race and several key House seats .
Vox has live results below , courtesy of our friends at Decision Desk .
Follow the rest of our live results here .
Democratic primary : Sanders leads polls — with a lot of delegates at stake California ’ s 415 pledged delegates , effectively @ @ @ @ @ @ @ order to win the Democratic nomination , make the state a major target this year .
Because of California ’ s proportional allocation rules , candidates can earn delegates by hitting either the 15 percent threshold of support statewide or the same threshold in an individual congressional district .
According to the RealClearPolitics polling average , Sen. Bernie Sanders led the field statewide before Super Tuesday with 35 percent voter support , followed by former Vice President Joe Biden , who has 23 percent , and Sen. Elizabeth Warren , who has 16 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its progressive and diverse electorate : 31 percent of eligible voters are Latino , and 15 percent are Asian American or Pacific Islander .
For the candidates that are able to clear the necessary thresholds , the state could be a windfall of delegates — and momentum .
Eight-term incumbent and Blue Dog Democrat Jim Costa is facing a formidable challenge from the left this cycle .
Costa represents California ’ s 16th District , which includes Fresno and part of the state ’ s heavily agricultural Central Valley .
He ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conservative Democrats in the House , particularly on environmental issues .
In the past , he ’ s been called out by liberals for the donations he ’ s taken from corporate agricultural interests and oil companies , as well as for a state bill he authored which severely limited rent control in California .
Fresno City Council member Esmeralda Soria , former diplomat Kim Williams , and Republican Kevin Cookingham are all running for Costa ’ s seat .
Soria and Williams both have highlighted themselves as more progressive alternatives to Costa @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also the member of a statewide task force on addressing homelessness , has picked up support from local organizers and activists including SEIU California .
Williams , meanwhile , has gotten the backing of the Democratic Socialists of America and Our Revolution .
Because of the top-two primary system in California , the top two finishers will advance to the general election taking place in November , regardless of party affiliation .
California ’ s 25th , the southern swing district that Katie Hill flipped last cycle , is open once again , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wake of allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a staffer and a smear campaign involving revenge porn .
A staggering 13 candidates are running in a primary for the seat , which is currently rated as “ Likely Democratic , ” by Cook Political Report .
Again , because of the top-two primary system in California , the top two finishers will advance to the general election taking place in November , regardless of party affiliation .
In addition to the primary , however , the district is also holding a special election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out her existing term through this year .
Ten candidates will participate in both races — and one will have to secure a majority of the vote to win the special election .
Otherwise , the top two candidates will head to a runoff set to take place on May 12 .
The individuals vying for the seat in the primary and special election run the gamut of familiar names across both parties .
The Democrats include Young Turks co-founder Cenk Uygur and state Assembly member Christy Smith , while the Republicans include @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Hill unseated just two years ago ) , former fighter pilot Mike Garcia , and former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos .
California ’ s 50th District primary : Members of both parties — including former Rep. Darrell Issa — are duking it out for Duncan Hunter ’ s old seat California ’ s southern 50th District , which includes part of San Diego County , is now vacant after former Rep. Duncan Hunter , who pleaded guilty to violations of campaign finance laws , resigned .
A longtime Republican district that ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the race has still attracted candidates from both sides of the aisle who will be competing in the primary .
Ten candidates faced off on Super Tuesday in an attempt to qualify for the general election ballot .
Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar is trying once more to flip the seat , and he ’ s joined this time by businesswoman Marisa Calderon .
Notable Republicans competing for the seat include former Rep. Darrell Issa and former San Diego City Council member Carl DeMaio .

California, with its whopping 415 pledged delegates, is Super Tuesday’s biggest prize.
Because of its new primary date, the populous Western state takes on greater significance in the nomination process this year. Previously, California wasn’t slated to vote until early June, when the nominee had typically already been chosen. But to increase its influence, state officials moved its primary up to Super Tuesday for 2020.
The presidential race was far from the only thing on the ballot, though. All 53 congressional districts held House primaries, and the 25th Congressional District also conducted a closely watched special election to replace former Rep. Katie Hill.
Of the primaries, a few are particularly contentious: In the state’s 16th District, progressive challenger and Fresno City Council member Esmeralda Soria is attempting to unseat eight-term Democratic incumbent Jim Costa. And in the 50th District, a slew of Democrats and Republicans are vying for Duncan Hunter’s old seat, which will remain empty until next year.
Polls in the state were open until 8 pm PT (11 Eastern), and voters were able to mail in their ballots until midnight on Election Day.
Because of its mail-in voting, getting full results from California might take a while. When they are in, they could have some major implications for the 2020 race and several key House seats. Vox has live results below, courtesy of our friends at Decision Desk. Follow the rest of our live results here.
Democratic primary: Sanders leads polls — with a lot of delegates at stake
California’s 415 pledged delegates, effectively a fifth of what candidates need in order to win the Democratic nomination, make the state a major target this year.
Because of California’s proportional allocation rules, candidates can earn delegates by hitting either the 15 percent threshold of support statewide or the same threshold in an individual congressional district.
According to the RealClearPolitics polling average, Sen. Bernie Sanders led the field statewide before Super Tuesday with 35 percent voter support, followed by former Vice President Joe Biden, who has 23 percent, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who has 16 percent. The state is known for its progressive and diverse electorate: 31 percent of eligible voters are Latino, and 15 percent are Asian American or Pacific Islander.
For the candidates that are able to clear the necessary thresholds, the state could be a windfall of delegates — and momentum.
California’s 16th District primary: Longtime incumbent Jim Costa faces a challenge from the left
Eight-term incumbent and Blue Dog Democrat Jim Costa is facing a formidable challenge from the left this cycle.
Costa represents California’s 16th District, which includes Fresno and part of the state’s heavily agricultural Central Valley. He’s known for being one of the more conservative Democrats in the House, particularly on environmental issues. In the past, he’s been called out by liberals for the donations he’s taken from corporate agricultural interests and oil companies, as well as for a state bill he authored which severely limited rent control in California.
Fresno City Council member Esmeralda Soria, former diplomat Kim Williams, and Republican Kevin Cookingham are all running for Costa’s seat. Soria and Williams both have highlighted themselves as more progressive alternatives to Costa. And Soria, who’s also the member of a statewide task force on addressing homelessness, has picked up support from local organizers and activists including SEIU California. Williams, meanwhile, has gotten the backing of the Democratic Socialists of America and Our Revolution.
Because of the top-two primary system in California, the top two finishers will advance to the general election taking place in November, regardless of party affiliation.
California’s 25th: A primary and a special election for Katie Hill’s district
California’s 25th, the southern swing district that Katie Hill flipped last cycle, is open once again, after she decided to resign in the wake of allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a staffer and a smear campaign involving revenge porn.
A staggering 13 candidates are running in a primary for the seat, which is currently rated as “Likely Democratic,” by Cook Political Report.
Again, because of the top-two primary system in California, the top two finishers will advance to the general election taking place in November, regardless of party affiliation.
In addition to the primary, however, the district is also holding a special election for someone to replace Hill and serve out her existing term through this year.
Ten candidates will participate in both races — and one will have to secure a majority of the vote to win the special election. Otherwise, the top two candidates will head to a runoff set to take place on May 12.
The individuals vying for the seat in the primary and special election run the gamut of familiar names across both parties. The Democrats include Young Turks co-founder Cenk Uygur and state Assembly member Christy Smith, while the Republicans include former district Rep. Steve Knight (whom Hill unseated just two years ago), former fighter pilot Mike Garcia, and former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos.
California’s 50th District primary: Members of both parties — including former Rep. Darrell Issa — are duking it out for Duncan Hunter’s old seat
California’s southern 50th District, which includes part of San Diego County, is now vacant after former Rep. Duncan Hunter, who pleaded guilty to violations of campaign finance laws, resigned.
A longtime Republican district that’s poised to stay that way, the race has still attracted candidates from both sides of the aisle who will be competing in the primary.
Ten candidates faced off on Super Tuesday in an attempt to qualify for the general election ballot. Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar is trying once more to flip the seat, and he’s joined this time by businesswoman Marisa Calderon. Notable Republicans competing for the seat include former Rep. Darrell Issa and former San Diego City Council member Carl DeMaio.


vox--2020-03-06--Turkey and Russia reached a ceasefire in Syria. Will it hold?

At midnight Friday local time , a Turkey-Russia brokered ceasefire went into effect in Idlib , Syria .
The agreement looks to be holding so far , if shakily .
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to the deal during talks in Moscow on Thursday , after a Turkish offensive into northwestern Syria against the Syrian regime dramatically escalated fighting in Idlib province this week .
The ceasefire deal will largely halt the warfare in Idlib , but it also concedes territorial gains for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad , who has been waging a bloody @ @ @ @ @ @ @ major outpost held by opposition fighters in Syria .
The deal establishes a security corridor six kilometers to the north and south of the M4 , a key east-west roadway that , along with the M5 , effectively reconnects the major cities under the Syrian regime ’ s control .
Turkey and Russia also agreed to conduct joint patrols in this area , starting March 15 .
The deal is a win for both Assad and Russia , and a major loss for Turkey and the anti-Syrian regime rebels in Idlib , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tied to al-Qaeda , specifically Hay ’ at Tahrir al-Sham , or HTS , are also active in the area . )
Turkey was basically forced to accept the reality of Assad ’ s gains in Idlib , which includes those strategic highways .
Assad ’ s offensive to reclaim Idlib began last spring and has since intensified , displacing about 1 million Syrians since December 2019 .
In just the past few weeks , Idlib has witnessed one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in the entire nine-year civil war .
The civilians @ @ @ @ @ @ @ toward an ever-shrinking area near Turkey ’ s border , which remains closed to refugees .
Erdoğan can not politically afford to accept additional Syrian refugees , as the country already hosts close to 4 million .
Last week , a Syrian government airstrike killed about three dozen Turkish troops , pushing Turkey to invade and directly challenge Syria ’ s forces .
Russia ( along with Iran ) backs Assad , and has aided the regime ’ s attempts to wrest Idlib back into his control .
As Turkey and Syria continued @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the prospect of a direct confrontation between Turkey , a NATO ally , and Russia looked more plausible than ever .
This ceasefire deal takes the two sides away from the brink , at least for now .
Ankara and Moscow reached a ceasefire deal in Idlib in September 2018 , which largely held until the spring of 2019 .
After that , Erdoğan and Putin tried to reinstate truces , but they quickly fell apart .
Assad amped up the ferocity of his offensive late last year and has relentlessly bombarded Idlib @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which the international community , including Turkey ’ s NATO allies , encouraged — looked like the only way to stop the immediate humanitarian disaster .
Though the question remains of how long this one will hold .
Will this ceasefire hold ?
Maybe , but the long-term solution is still unclear .
The ceasefire deal did not completely stop the fighting in Idlib .
Turkey said it killed 21 Syrian troops in retaliation for the death of two of its soldiers .
Al-Jazeera noted reports of sporadic fighting in Idlib , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , largely ceased .
“ There has been no aerial bombardment so far but the situation is very tense , with all sides wary of how long the ceasefire will last , ” Mohammed al-Ali , an activist from Idlib , told Al Jazeera .
The ceasefire does avert the urgent humanitarian crisis for now , hopefully putting a stop to most of the violence and intense fighting .
But it is still very wobbly and does not solve the fundamental conundrum Idlib faces .
Approximately 3.5 million Syrians live in Idlib , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other parts of Syria during the years of civil war .
Assad wants to retake all Syrian territory captured during the civil war , as both a symbolic and strategic victory .
That ’ s forced millions to flee , but they have nowhere to go , as Turkey ’ s borders are sealed .
This ceasefire may quiet the violence , but it essentially freezes the conflict in place .
And it offers no solution for the millions of refugees who ’ ve been displaced and lack shelter , adequate medical treatment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the World Food Program , in the northern part of Idlib province , more than half a million children have been displaced in the past three months , an average of 6,000 a day .
What is clear is that Russia — and , by proxy , Assad — seems to have the upper hand here .
Turkey sought NATO support for its offensive into Syria but did not get what it really wanted : missiles and a possible no-fly zone .
The United States offered public support and promised $ 100 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ efforts this week but did not send Ankara the Patriot missiles it really wanted .
Turkey also tried pressure the European Union by using desperate refugees as political cudgels , ceasing to block Syrians from traveling to the content .
Greece , the main landing for those attempting to come to Europe , pushed back the refugees and kept its border sealed .
Greek border officials clashed with migrants , and Europe accused Turkey of using “ migratory pressure for political purposes.
” Turkey absolutely , and grossly , did this — but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in any more refugees or get deeply involved in the crisis in Idlib .
The US , with its strict limits on refugees , has also failed here .
But this all leaves Turkey with a lot less leverage than it could have in negotiations with Russia , which has proven , once again , that it is the power broker in Syria .

At midnight Friday local time, a Turkey-Russia brokered ceasefire went into effect in Idlib, Syria. The agreement looks to be holding so far, if shakily.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to the deal during talks in Moscow on Thursday, after a Turkish offensive into northwestern Syria against the Syrian regime dramatically escalated fighting in Idlib province this week.
The ceasefire deal will largely halt the warfare in Idlib, but it also concedes territorial gains for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who has been waging a bloody campaign to retake Idlib, the last major outpost held by opposition fighters in Syria.
The deal establishes a security corridor six kilometers to the north and south of the M4, a key east-west roadway that, along with the M5, effectively reconnects the major cities under the Syrian regime’s control. Turkey and Russia also agreed to conduct joint patrols in this area, starting March 15.
The deal is a win for both Assad and Russia, and a major loss for Turkey and the anti-Syrian regime rebels in Idlib, which oppose Assad. (Islamist extremist groups tied to al-Qaeda, specifically Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, are also active in the area.) Turkey was basically forced to accept the reality of Assad’s gains in Idlib, which includes those strategic highways.
Assad’s offensive to reclaim Idlib began last spring and has since intensified, displacing about 1 million Syrians since December 2019. In just the past few weeks, Idlib has witnessed one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in the entire nine-year civil war.
The civilians fleeing Assad’s violence are pushing toward an ever-shrinking area near Turkey’s border, which remains closed to refugees. Erdoğan cannot politically afford to accept additional Syrian refugees, as the country already hosts close to 4 million.
Last week, a Syrian government airstrike killed about three dozen Turkish troops, pushing Turkey to invade and directly challenge Syria’s forces. Russia (along with Iran) backs Assad, and has aided the regime’s attempts to wrest Idlib back into his control. As Turkey and Syria continued to provoke each other last week, the prospect of a direct confrontation between Turkey, a NATO ally, and Russia looked more plausible than ever.
This ceasefire deal takes the two sides away from the brink, at least for now. Ankara and Moscow reached a ceasefire deal in Idlib in September 2018, which largely held until the spring of 2019.
After that, Erdoğan and Putin tried to reinstate truces, but they quickly fell apart. Assad amped up the ferocity of his offensive late last year and has relentlessly bombarded Idlib province ever since.
Another ceasefire — which the international community, including Turkey’s NATO allies, encouraged — looked like the only way to stop the immediate humanitarian disaster.
Though the question remains of how long this one will hold.
Will this ceasefire hold? Maybe, but the long-term solution is still unclear.
The ceasefire deal did not completely stop the fighting in Idlib. Turkey said it killed 21 Syrian troops in retaliation for the death of two of its soldiers. Al-Jazeera noted reports of sporadic fighting in Idlib, but the air raids have, for now, largely ceased.
“There has been no aerial bombardment so far but the situation is very tense, with all sides wary of how long the ceasefire will last,” Mohammed al-Ali, an activist from Idlib, told Al Jazeera.
The ceasefire does avert the urgent humanitarian crisis for now, hopefully putting a stop to most of the violence and intense fighting. But it is still very wobbly and does not solve the fundamental conundrum Idlib faces.
Approximately 3.5 million Syrians live in Idlib, about half of whom were displaced from other parts of Syria during the years of civil war. Assad wants to retake all Syrian territory captured during the civil war, as both a symbolic and strategic victory. That’s forced millions to flee, but they have nowhere to go, as Turkey’s borders are sealed.
This ceasefire may quiet the violence, but it essentially freezes the conflict in place. And it offers no solution for the millions of refugees who’ve been displaced and lack shelter, adequate medical treatment, and food. According to UNICEF and the World Food Program, in the northern part of Idlib province, more than half a million children have been displaced in the past three months, an average of 6,000 a day.
What is clear is that Russia — and, by proxy, Assad — seems to have the upper hand here. Turkey sought NATO support for its offensive into Syria but did not get what it really wanted: missiles and a possible no-fly zone. The United States offered public support and promised $100 million for the United Nations’ humanitarian efforts this week but did not send Ankara the Patriot missiles it really wanted.
Turkey also tried pressure the European Union by using desperate refugees as political cudgels, ceasing to block Syrians from traveling to the content. Greece, the main landing for those attempting to come to Europe, pushed back the refugees and kept its border sealed.
Greek border officials clashed with migrants, and Europe accused Turkey of using “migratory pressure for political purposes.” Turkey absolutely, and grossly, did this — but the EU is also reluctant to take in any more refugees or get deeply involved in the crisis in Idlib. The US, with its strict limits on refugees, has also failed here.
But this all leaves Turkey with a lot less leverage than it could have in negotiations with Russia, which has proven, once again, that it is the power broker in Syria.


vox--2020-03-06--The 3 Democrats running for president and everything else you should know about 2020

The 3 Democrats running for president and everything else you should know about 2020 Share All sharing options for : The 3 Democrats running for president and everything else you should know about 2020 The 2020 Democratic presidential primary election candidates are basically down to former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders .
In early March , Elizabeth Warren , Mike Bloomberg , Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar exited from the race .
Sanders showed strength in the early states , and then Biden surged on South Carolina and outperformed Sanders in the Super Tuesday primaries a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Gabbard is running a symbolic campaign at this point , though she did win at least one delegate on Super Tuesday .
When the 2020 campaign started , any Democrat with dreams of occupying the Oval Office saw Donald Trump is a vulnerable president who hasn ’ t broadened his appeal beyond his base .
A lot of them decided to run for their party ’ s nomination to be its standard-bearer in the 2020 election .
Two candidates were stronger than the rest : Biden and Sanders , especially after their respective @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Massachusetts senator who rose to join the top of the field but then faded , ended her bid on March 5 and essentially narrowed the field to those final two .
By that point , most candidates had dropped out : Recent exits include Bloomberg , the former New York City mayor ; former South Bend , Indiana , Mayor Pete Buttigieg , who won the most delegates in the Iowa caucuses and finished a close second in New Hampshire ; and Sen. Klobuchar of Minnesota , who couldn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Hampshire into momentum anywhere else .
Billionaire activist Tom Steyer also dropped out after the South Carolina contest .
The Democratic field once included a record number of women and nonwhite candidates , a mix of high-wattage stars and lesser-known contenders who believed they could navigate a fractured field to victory .
It ends with two 70-something white men .
The debates started in June , with most candidates getting a chance to appear , but the stage has repeatedly shrunk since then .
The next Democratic debate will be held on March @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden and Sanders .
Whoever emerges from the Democratic primary will face Trump , who along with the Republican National Committee has already raised more than $ 300 million for his reelection campaign .
Recent history tells us Americans usually give their presidents another four years , which should lend Trump an advantage .
But the president has been historically unpopular during his first term , and Biden and Sanders look competitive in a hypothetical general election matchup .
The past few months have demonstrated that really anything can happen .
It ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this contest is going to end , and the 2016 election should have humbled all political prognosticators .
Still , the 2020 campaign is well underway .
Here is what you need to know to get oriented .
Who is running for president in the 2020 election ?
On the Republican side , there is of course President Donald Trump .
A few prominent Republican officials had hinted they might challenge the president , though that ’ s very unlikely now .
Any primary challenger would have been a huge underdog against the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they want to protect Trump by having state parties change the rules for their primaries to guard against an insurgency .
The GOPer trying to supplant him is former Massachusetts Gov .
Bill Weld , a libertarian-leaning Republican .
Two others dropped out of the race : onetime radio host and former Rep. Joe Walsh , who has apologized for saying racist things on Twitter , and former Rep. Mark Sanford , an ideological conservative who was a member of the Freedom Caucus while he was in the House .
No other Republican @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can safely say .
On the Democratic side , the field is finally down to three .
The contenders , in rough order of standing , are : Former Vice President Joe Biden : Biden thought hard about running in 2016 , but he decided against it , being so soon after his son Beau ’ s death and with the party establishment uniformly behind Hillary Clinton .
He ’ s still very popular with Democratic voters , and the former veep apparently wasn ’ t sure any of the other potential candidates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by name recognition , Biden had a sizable early lead in the early Democratic national polls and had a resurgence around Super Tuesday .
Sen. Bernie Sanders ( I-VT ) : The 2016 runner-up is running again .
He has the biggest grassroots base of any potential candidate and has led the push to move the party leftward .
A more competitive field has presented Sanders with a very different race this time .
The senator had a heart attack while on the campaign trail in late 2019 but has since recovered .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sanders is the only candidate with the credibility to pursue their top-tier issues , like Medicare-for-all .
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard ( D-HI ) : Gabbard fires up a certain strain of antiwar progressive .
She ’ s faced tough questions , though , about her apparent friendliness with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and her past comments on LGBTQ rights .
She has gained little traction in polls or early primaries .
Who has dropped out of the 2020 presidential campaign ?
Quite a few Democrats have already given up the ghost , with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they faltered in the primaries .
Sen. Elizabeth Warren ( D-MA ) : The Massachusetts senator is proudly progressive , though she tended to position herself as wanting to fix capitalism rather than replace it .
As a candidate , she wanted to outflank Trump on trade , give workers seats on corporate boards , and tax extreme wealth .
Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg : Bloomberg had toyed with a Democratic presidential run , even though he governed the country ’ s biggest city as an independent for a while @ @ @ @ @ @ @ finally decided to take a shot .
He had a few policy wins that he can tout to Democratic voters , most notably on guns .
But a centrist billionaire didn ’ t click with voters when they went to vote .
Former South Bend , Indiana , Mayor Pete Buttigieg : Something of a viral political star , though he led a city of “ just ” 100,000 people , Buttigieg is a military veteran and a Rhodes scholar , and he would have been the first openly LGBTQ president in American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) : She tried to blend her folksy , Midwestern manner with some crossover appeal , given her history of working across the aisle with Republicans and winning elections handily in a purplish state .
Tom Steyer : The billionaire Democratic donor first rose to political prominence for his focus on combating climate change , and started a crusade to convince congressional Democrats to impeach Trump .
Sen. Cory Booker ( D-NJ ) : The former Newark , New Jersey , mayor and part-time firefighter was a fresh face with big ideas like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work promoting charter schools ( not a favorite of the teachers unions ) and the perception that he ’ s close with Wall Street both posed challenges to his candidacy from the start .
Sen. Kamala Harris ( D-CA ) : The former California attorney general started generating White House hype almost as soon as she got to the Senate in 2017 .
As a younger black woman , she personified the Democratic Party ’ s changing nature .
Harris made a big splash in early polls , but she dropped after stumbles @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Andrew Yang : A humanitarian-minded entrepreneur who also served in the Obama administration , he ran on a policy platform that includes , among other things , a universal basic income that would pay out $ 1,000 a month to every American over 18 .
Former Rep. Beto O ’ Rourke : The former Texas Congress member was once 2020 ’ s biggest wild card .
O ’ Rourke built a historically successful fundraising apparatus during his losing 2018 Senate run against Ted Cruz but couldn ’ t translate it into a viable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bill de Blasio : De Blasio , the mayor of America ’ s biggest city and already the unlikely victor of a contentious Democratic primary to get there , touted his progressive achievements in the Big Apple as a model for the nation : enacting universal pre-K , ending stop-and-frisk , and creating an ambitious local health care program .
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand ( D-NY ) : Gillibrand had evolved over the years from a centrist Democrat in the House to a progressive .
She was presenting herself as a young mom in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Democratic women who powered the party to historic wins in the 2018 midterms .
Sen. Michael Bennet ( D-CO ) : Bennet is a well-regarded but nationally little-known senator .
He tacks toward the center ideologically , and the passion that fueled his candidacy was a fervent frustration with the way Washington works now .
Former San Antonio mayor and HUD Secretary Julián Castro : Castro got VP buzz in prior elections ; this time , he ran his own campaign after serving in Obama ’ s Cabinet on an aspirational message @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Colorado Gov .
John Hickenlooper : Hickenlooper is a moderate ex-governor who pitched his ability to work across the aisle .
After dropping out of the presidential race , he decided to run for the Democratic nomination to challenge GOP Sen. Cory Gardner in 2020 instead .
Washington Gov .
Jay Inslee : Inslee centered his work on environmental issues and the threat of climate change .
He has pushed a bill to get his home state off coal energy and all other carbon-producing energy sources by 2045 .
He has opted instead @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Rep. Seth Moulton ( D-MA ) : Another Nancy Pelosi skeptic who helped lead the unsuccessful rebellion to stop her from becoming House speaker again in 2016 .
The Massachusetts representative , who is an Iraq War veteran , positioned himself as a moderate in contrast to the socialist energy animating the left and seeking to take over his party .
Rep. Tim Ryan ( D-OH ) : The Ohio Congress member pitched himself as the Democratic answer for Trump country , arguing he can connect with the blue-collar workers the party @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sen. Mike Gravel : The 88-year-old former senator , famed for reading the Pentagon Papers into the congressional record , ran 2020 ’ s oddest campaign .
Two teenagers convinced Gravel to launch a protest candidacy targeting the center left and the forever wars of mainstream American foreign policy .
He endorsed Gabbard and Sanders after he exited the race .
Miramar , Florida , Mayor Wayne Messam : The mayor of a Miami suburb , Messam had perhaps the lowest name recognition of any Democrat in the race .
The son of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wages for city workers as mayor and confronted the Republican-led state government over gun control .
Former Rep. Joe Sestak : The retired three-star admiral and former Pennsylvania representative in Congress was a late entry to the race , announcing his campaign three days before the first Democratic debates .
Sestak pitched himself heavily on his naval experience — his campaign logo prominently features the moniker “ Adm .
Joe ” — and the global leadership experience he says it provides .
Marianne Williamson : A self-proclaimed “ bitch for God ” who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Her previous political experience was a failed run for Congress as an independent in 2014 .
Former Rep. John Delaney : The most notable thing about Delaney was he ran for president for more than two years , more or less living in Iowa , the first state on the presidential calendar .
But he rarely polled above 1 percent there or anywhere else .
Former Massachusetts Gov .
Deval Patrick : Patrick had sworn off a presidential bid initially , but he reversed course and jumped into the campaign in November @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
When are the next 2020 Democratic presidential primary election debates ?
The Democratic National Committee announced it would hold 12 debates , starting in June 2019 and extending into 2020 .
The next Democratic debate is March 15 and will be held in Phoenix , Arizona .
To qualify , candidates will need at least 20 percent of all delegates available from the primary so far .
Only two candidates have made the stage : former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders .
When are the 2020 Democratic presidential primary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is always critical , especially in a big field with so many candidates trying to prove that they ’ re viable .
With that in mind , here are the next two months of the Democratic primary schedule : How do you win the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination ?
The short version is you have to win a majority of the delegates .
Every state has different rules for its primary elections or caucuses in terms of allocating delegates .
Candidates win delegates proportional to where they finish in the results , though @ @ @ @ @ @ @ threshold of 15 percent to be awarded any delegates .
In terms of numbers , there will be an estimated 3,979 delegates for the 2020 Democratic National Convention ( where the nominee will be formally selected ) up for grabs during the primary elections .
One candidate needs to win at least 1,991 delegates to be nominated .
You might hear talk of a “ brokered ” or “ contested ” convention if no candidate gets the necessary delegates to win on the first ballot .
That currently seems unlikely .
The FiveThirtyEight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thinks there ’ s a one-in-10 chance of no candidate getting a majority of votes ( which doesn ’ t necessarily mean a contested convention ) .
But if that should happen , all bets are off .
There hasn ’ t been a brokered convention in decades .
Democrats have made one major change from the 2016 primary on “ superdelegates ” — elected officials , party leaders , and other prominent Democrats who have votes in addition to the regular delegates awarded by state elections .
In the past , superdelegates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rules and could back whichever candidate they desire and make up their minds at any point in the process .
When most of them endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016 , it gave her a built-in delegate advantage over Bernie Sanders , though she still won enough votes independent of the superdelegates to secure the nomination .
In a series of reforms , the DNC has stripped superdelegates of a vote on the first ballot .
So unless the convention has to move to second or third votes because no candidate has a sufficient @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t happened since the 1950s — superdelegates won ’ t matter in 2020 .
( Arguably , they never did .
Many pointed out it was unlikely for superdelegates to use their power to overturn the outcome of the primary system , but it nevertheless created consternation within the party . )
Okay .
So who will be the next president ?
Ha !
You almost got me .

The 2 Democrats running for president and everything else you should know about 2020
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The 2020 Democratic presidential primary election candidates are officially down to former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) has announced she is leaving the race, after polling in low single digits for months and winning just two primary delegates. Gabbard has joined a large field of prominent former candidates: In early March, Elizabeth Warren, Mike Bloomberg, Pete Buttigieg, and Amy Klobuchar exited from the race. Sanders showed strength in the early states, and then Biden surged on South Carolina and has outperformed Sanders in most of the March contests. Biden is the clear frontrunner at this point in the primary, having received over 1,100 delegates (he needs 1,991 to win the nomination).
When the 2020 campaign started, any Democrat with dreams of occupying the Oval Office saw Donald Trump as a vulnerable president who hasn’t broadened his appeal beyond his base. A lot of them decided to run for their party’s nomination to be its standard-bearer in the 2020 election.
Two candidates were stronger than the rest: Biden and Sanders, especially after their respective delegate hauls on Super Tuesday. Warren, the Massachusetts senator who rose to join the top of the field but then faded, ended her bid on March 5 and essentially narrowed the field to those final two.
By that point, most candidates had dropped out: Recent exits include Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii; Warren, the progressive senator from Massachusetts; Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor; former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who won the most delegates in the Iowa caucuses and finished a close second in New Hampshire; and Sen. Klobuchar of Minnesota, who couldn’t parlay a strong third-place finish in New Hampshire into momentum anywhere else. Billionaire activist Tom Steyer also dropped out after the South Carolina contest.
The Democratic field once included a record number of women and nonwhite candidates, a mix of high-wattage stars and lesser-known contenders who believed they could navigate a fractured field to victory. It ends with two 70-something white men. The debates started in June, with most candidates getting a chance to appear, but the stage has repeatedly shrunk since then.
The impact of the coronavirus pandemic is a big question mark hanging over the rest of the nomination process; coronavirus has already forced five states to postpone their primaries, and caused both Biden and Sanders to largely suspend the physical aspects of their campaigns like rallies and in-person field organizing.
Whoever emerges from the Democratic primary will face Trump, who along with the Republican National Committee has already raised more than $300 million for his reelection campaign. Recent history tells us Americans usually give their presidents another four years, which should lend Trump an advantage. But the president has been historically unpopular during his first term, and Biden and Sanders look competitive in a hypothetical general election matchup.
The past few months — and days — have demonstrated that really anything can happen. It’s silly to pretend anybody knows how this contest is going to end, and the 2016 election should have humbled all political prognosticators. Still, the 2020 campaign is well underway. Here is what you need to know to get oriented.
Who is running for president in the 2020 election?
On the Republican side, there is, of course, President Donald Trump.
Republican leaders have said they want to protect Trump by having state parties change the rules for their primaries to guard against an insurgency. The GOPer who lasted longest in the race to supplant him was former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld, a libertarian-leaning Republican. Weld announced on March 18 he was dropping out of the race.
On the Democratic side, the field is finally down to two.
Former Vice President Joe Biden: Biden thought hard about running in 2016, but he decided against it, being so soon after his son Beau’s death and with the party establishment uniformly behind Hillary Clinton. He’s still very popular with Democratic voters, and the former veep apparently wasn’t sure any of the other potential candidates would beat Trump. Biden had a sizable lead for much of the race in Democratic national polls and had a resurgence around Super Tuesday.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT): The 2016 runner-up is running again. He has the biggest grassroots base of any potential candidate and has led the push to move the party leftward. A more competitive field has presented Sanders with a very different race this time. The senator had a heart attack while on the campaign trail in late 2019 but has recovered. For many on the Democratic left, Sanders is the only candidate with the credibility to pursue their top-tier issues, like Medicare-for-all.
Who has dropped out of the 2020 presidential campaign?
Quite a few Democrats have already given up the ghost, with some of the big names withdrawing once they faltered in the primaries.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI): Gabbard fires up a certain strain of antiwar progressive. Throughout the primary, she faced tough questions, though, about her apparent friendliness with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and her past comments on LGBTQ rights. She gained little traction in polls or early primaries, but stuck in the race throughout the March contests — ultimately picking up two delegates.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA): The Massachusetts senator is proudly progressive, though she tended to position herself as wanting to fix capitalism rather than replace it. As a candidate, she wanted to outflank Trump on trade, give workers seats on corporate boards, and tax extreme wealth.
Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg: Bloomberg had toyed with a Democratic presidential run, even though he governed the country’s biggest city as an independent for a while. Late in the game, he finally decided to take a shot. He had a few policy wins that he can tout to Democratic voters, most notably on guns. But a centrist billionaire didn’t click with voters when they went to vote.
Former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg: Something of a viral political star, though he led a city of “just” 100,000 people, Buttigieg is a military veteran and a Rhodes scholar, and he would have been the first openly LGBTQ president in American history.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN): She tried to blend her folksy, Midwestern manner with some crossover appeal, given her history of working across the aisle with Republicans and winning elections handily in a purplish state.
Tom Steyer: The billionaire Democratic donor first rose to political prominence for his focus on combating climate change, and started a crusade to convince congressional Democrats to impeach Trump.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ): The former Newark, New Jersey, mayor and part-time firefighter was a fresh face with big ideas like savings accounts for newborns, but his work promoting charter schools (not a favorite of the teachers unions) and the perception that he’s close with Wall Street both posed challenges to his candidacy from the start.
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA): The former California attorney general started generating White House hype almost as soon as she got to the Senate in 2017. As a younger black woman, she personified the Democratic Party’s changing nature. Harris made a big splash in early polls, but she dropped after stumbles over health care and never recovered.
Andrew Yang: A humanitarian-minded entrepreneur who also served in the Obama administration, he ran on a policy platform that includes, among other things, a universal basic income that would pay out $1,000 a month to every American over 18.
Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke: The former Texas Congress member was once 2020’s biggest wild card. O’Rourke built a historically successful fundraising apparatus during his losing 2018 Senate run against Ted Cruz but couldn’t translate it into a viable presidential bid.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio: De Blasio, the mayor of America’s biggest city and already the unlikely victor of a contentious Democratic primary to get there, touted his progressive achievements in the Big Apple as a model for the nation: enacting universal pre-K, ending stop-and-frisk, and creating an ambitious local health care program.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY): Gillibrand had evolved over the years from a centrist Democrat in the House to a progressive. She was presenting herself as a young mom in tune with the Me Too era and the Democratic women who powered the party to historic wins in the 2018 midterms.
Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO): Bennet is a well-regarded but nationally little-known senator. He tacks toward the center ideologically, and the passion that fueled his candidacy was a fervent frustration with the way Washington works now.
Former San Antonio mayor and HUD Secretary Julián Castro: Castro got VP buzz in prior elections; this time, he ran his own campaign after serving in Obama’s Cabinet on an aspirational message as the grandson of immigrants.
Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper: Hickenlooper is a moderate ex-governor who pitched his ability to work across the aisle. After dropping out of the presidential race, he decided to run for the Democratic nomination to challenge GOP Sen. Cory Gardner in 2020 instead.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee: Inslee centered his work on environmental issues and the threat of climate change. He has pushed a bill to get his home state off coal energy and all other carbon-producing energy sources by 2045. He has opted instead to seek a third term as governor.
Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA): Another Nancy Pelosi skeptic who helped lead the unsuccessful rebellion to stop her from becoming House speaker again in 2016. The Massachusetts representative, who is an Iraq War veteran, positioned himself as a moderate in contrast to the socialist energy animating the left and seeking to take over his party.
Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH): The Ohio Congress member pitched himself as the Democratic answer for Trump country, arguing he can connect with the blue-collar workers the party has lost in the Midwest.
Former Sen. Mike Gravel: The 88-year-old former senator, famed for reading the Pentagon Papers into the congressional record, ran 2020’s oddest campaign. Two teenagers convinced Gravel to launch a protest candidacy targeting the center left and the forever wars of mainstream American foreign policy. He endorsed Gabbard and Sanders after he exited the race.
Miramar, Florida, Mayor Wayne Messam: The mayor of a Miami suburb, Messam had perhaps the lowest name recognition of any Democrat in the race. The son of Jamaican immigrants, he’s raised wages for city workers as mayor and confronted the Republican-led state government over gun control.
Former Rep. Joe Sestak: The retired three-star admiral and former Pennsylvania representative in Congress was a late entry to the race, announcing his campaign three days before the first Democratic debates. Sestak pitched himself heavily on his naval experience — his campaign logo prominently features the moniker “Adm. Joe” — and the global leadership experience he says it provides.
Marianne Williamson: A self-proclaimed “bitch for God” who has been a spiritual adviser to Oprah. Her previous political experience was a failed run for Congress as an independent in 2014.
Former Rep. John Delaney: The most notable thing about Delaney was he ran for president for more than two years, more or less living in Iowa, the first state on the presidential calendar. But he rarely polled above 1 percent there or anywhere else.
Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick: Patrick had sworn off a presidential bid initially, but he reversed course and jumped into the campaign in November 2019. He never made a mark.
When are the next 2020 Democratic presidential primary election debates?
The Democratic National Committee announced it would hold 12 debates, starting in June 2019 and extending into 2020.
The 11th debate of the Democratic primary was held on March 15 in Washington DC; the location was switched from Arizona and held without an audience to reduce the risk of coronavirus transmission. No future debates have been announced yet.
When are the 2020 Democratic presidential primary election and caucus nights?
Early momentum is always critical, especially in a big field with so many candidates trying to prove that they’re viable. With that in mind, here are the next two months of the Democratic primary schedule. Five states have postponed the dates of their contests due to coronavirus concerns: Ohio, Georgia, Maryland, Kentucky, and Louisiana.
March 29: Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico April 4: Alaska, Hawaii, Wyoming
Alaska, Hawaii, Wyoming April 7 : Wisconsin
: Wisconsin April 28: Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island
How do you win the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination?
The short version is you have to win a majority of the delegates.
Every state has different rules for its primary elections or caucuses in terms of allocating delegates. Candidates win delegates proportional to where they finish in the results, though they generally have to hit a minimum threshold of 15 percent to be awarded any delegates.
There will be an estimated 3,979 delegates for the 2020 Democratic National Convention (where the nominee will be formally selected) up for grabs during the primary elections. One candidate needs to win at least 1,991 delegates to be nominated.
You might hear talk of a “brokered” or “contested” convention if no candidate gets the necessary delegates to win on the first ballot. That currently seems very unlikely. The FiveThirtyEight forecast, as of March 19, projects that there’s a one-in-100 chance of no candidate getting a majority of votes (which also doesn’t necessarily mean a contested convention). There hasn’t been a brokered convention in decades.
Democrats have made one major change from the 2016 primary on “superdelegates” — elected officials, party leaders, and other prominent Democrats who have votes in addition to the regular delegates awarded by state elections. In the past, superdelegates didn’t have to follow any rules and could back whichever candidate they desire and make up their minds at any point in the process. When most of them endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016, it gave her a built-in delegate advantage over Bernie Sanders, though she still won enough votes independent of the superdelegates to secure the nomination.
In a series of reforms, the DNC has stripped superdelegates of a vote on the first ballot. So unless the convention has to move to second or third votes because no candidate has a sufficient number of delegates — something that hasn’t happened since the 1950s — superdelegates won’t matter in 2020. (Arguably, they never did. Many pointed out it was unlikely for superdelegates to use their power to overturn the outcome of the primary system, but it nevertheless created consternation within the party.)
Okay. So who will be the next president?
Ha! You almost got me.


vox--2020-03-06--Understand the unfolding coronavirus outbreak with these Vox podcast episodes

The coronavirus outbreak that causes the Covid-19 illness continues to spread as a health threat across the globe .
As new coronavirus cases are discovered , questions keep popping up about how to prepare for an outbreak , how to travel , and the difference between quarantine , isolation , and social distancing — to name a few .
That ’ s where Vox podcasts come in .
From what it ’ s like to be quarantined with coronavirus to how prepared the US is set up to respond to this outbreak to how AI warned about coronavirus before the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , The Weeds , Worldy , and Reset episodes will help you understand the situation as it unfolds .
So you think you have Covid-19 Thus far , the United States hasn ’ t been doing the best job of testing for the novel coronavirus .
ProPublica ’ s Caroline Chen explains why .
March 6 , 2020 | The Kaiser Foundation ’ s Josh Michaud explains what the US is — and should be — doing to fight coronavirus .
March 5 , 2020 | Can we stop the spread of coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ explained by Carl ( who has it ) March 3 , 2020 | Carl Goldman was on the Diamond Princess cruise ship and now he has Covid-19 .
He speaks to Sean Rameswaram from a CDC quarantine in Omaha , Nebraska .
March 3 , 2020 | Jane Coaston , Dara Lind , and Brian Resnick talk about Covid-19 — how it started , its potential impact , and where we go from here .
February 26 , 2020 | Covid-19 may be on the brink of becoming a pandemic .
Vox ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ means and Brian Resnick breaks down what an outbreak response might look like in the United States .
February 18 , 2020 | One coronavirus .
Two cruise ships .
Lots of mistakes .
The Japanese case shows us that quarantining people on a cruise ship to stop the spread of Covid-19 can backfire , while the Cambodia case suggests that letting people disembark and disperse around the world can create a public health nightmare .
Find out what these cruise ship emergencies reveal about the largest outbreak .
February 13 , 2020 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about the politics of the coronavirus outbreak in China : Why the Chinese government botched the initial response , why Chinese citizens are so angry about it , and the reasons why the problems with this response are inherent to the current Chinese governance model .
They then debate the claim from many analysts that this is the most serious crisis for China ’ s regime since the 1989 Tiananmen Square uprising — and the ( low ) probability that this could trigger another revolution-minded uprising .
How will the coronavirus outbreak end @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2015 , Dr. Vineet Menachery said a SARS-like virus could spread to humans more easily than previously believed .
Now he explains what we can do to stop it .
An AI warned about coronavirus before the CDC February 4 , 2020 | How AI could predict the next big outbreak .
You can check out our guide to news of the coronavirus outbreak here .

The coronavirus outbreak that causes the Covid-19 illness continues to spread as a health threat across the globe. As new coronavirus cases are discovered, questions keep popping up about how to prepare for an outbreak, how to travel, and the difference between quarantine, isolation, and social distancing — to name a few.
That’s where Vox podcasts come in. From what it’s like to be quarantined with coronavirus to how prepared the US is set up to respond to this outbreak to how AI warned about coronavirus before the CDC, the following Today, Explained, The Weeds, Worldy, Reset, and Recode Decode episodes will help you understand the situation as it unfolds.
How coronavirus is impacting education
April 23, 2020 | Teachers and students are still struggling with online education.
Conspiracy-19
April 23, 2020 | Vox’s science editor, Eliza Barclay, arms you with the facts you need to fight your uncle’s favorite coronavirus conspiracy theories.
This one’s for Earth
April 22, 2020 | Cryptic treehunters. Unknown apples. Flowers fighting back. On the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Vox’s Umair Irfan and Brian Resnick explain what we learned about the planet in the last year.
Opening up
April 21, 2020 | Dara, Jane, and Matt on conservatives’ desire for a rapid reopening of American businesses, and a ‘feel good’ white paper about air pollution.
The 5G coronavirus conspiracy theory
April 21, 2020 | A coronavirus conspiracy theory has led to arson attacks in the UK. And - how to talk to friends and family about coronavirus misinformation.
One day, three healthcare workers
April 21, 2020 | A nurse, a paramedic, and a physician’s assistant record themselves throughout the course of a day in the fight against Covid-19.
The epicenter of the epicenter
April 20, 2020 | Covid-19’s victims, and the people they leave behind.
The year 2038 problem
April 19, 2020 | What’s the deal with January 19th, 2038? Why remembering Y2K correctly matters.
Help is on the way (sort of)
April 17, 2020 | Ezra and Matt break down the implementation problems that have bedeviled the CARES Act.
Long shot
April 17, 2020 | It could be a year or more before the vaccine is ready, but there’s a radical plan to speed up the process.
Contact Tracing, Explained
April 16, 2020 | Public health’s “tried and true” tactic against infectious disease, and how Google and Apple want to help end the lockdown.
Zeke Emanuel’s exit strategy
April 16, 2020 | President Trump wants to reopen the country yesterday. Bioethicist Zeke Emanuel, who served as a health policy advisor to former President Obama, offers a safe path.
Death Cab for The Postal Service?
April 15, 2020 | The United States Postal Service is on the brink of collapse. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias explains how and why the country should save it.
How indie bookstores might survive the pandemic
April 14, 2020 | There’s a new online bookseller in town that’s trying to save your local indie bookstore.
All praise, no pay
April 14, 2020 | Essential workers in the food, transportation, and retail industries are being called American heroes. They want to be paid as such.
The corporate bailout watchdog
April 14, 2020 | Congressional oversight committee member Bharat Ramamurti joins Matt to explain his new job and what’s wrong with shareholder capitalism.
Elizabeth Warren has a plan for this, too
April 13, 2020 | Friend of the show Ezra Klein speaks to Sen. Elizabeth Warren about several plans she has proposed to combat this pandemic.
The Internet Has a Crush on Dr. Fauci
April 12, 2020 | From fan pages to food pics, Dr. Anthony Fauci is everywhere. The Verge’s Makena Kelly explains the person behind the meme.
How does this end?
April 10, 2020 | Ezra and Matt review four major plans for after social distancing; plus the Democratic primary finally ends.
The loneliness pandemic
April 10, 2020 | Coronavirus has led to another pandemic: social isolation. Vox’s Ezra Klein says this sickness has a cure.
Six feet away from God
April 9, 2020 | While a few religious leaders flout shelter in place ordinances, Easter, Passover, and Ramadan are inspiring most to get creative with worship.
Toby Ord on existential risk, Donald Trump, and thinking in probabilities
April 9, 2020 | Oxford philosopher Toby Ord spent the early part of his career spearheading the effective altruism movement, founding Giving What We Can, and focusing his attention primarily on issue areas like global public health and extreme poverty. Ord’s new book The Precipice is about something entirely different: the biggest existential risks to the future of humanity. In it, he predicts that humanity has approximately a 1 in 6 chance of going completely extinct by the end of the 21st century. The coronavirus pandemic is a reminder that tail risk is real. We always knew a zoological respiratory virus could become a global pandemic. But, collectively, we didn’t want to think about it, and so we didn’t. The result is the reality we live in now.
But for all the current moment’s horror, there are worse risks than coronavirus out there. One silver lining of the current crisis might be that it gets us to take them seriously, and avert them before they become unstoppable. That’s what Ord’s book is about, and it is, in a strange way, a comfort.
This, then, is a conversation about the risks that threaten humanity’s future, and what we can do about them. It’s a conversation about thinking in probabilities, about the ethics of taking future human lives seriously, about how we weigh the risks we don’t yet understand.
Will your favorite restaurant survive?
April 9, 2020 | Why the pandemic is exposing the complicated relationship between delivery apps and restaurants and how a restaurateur and app developer is helping keep his industry alive.
Vote and die
April 8, 2020 | Wisconsinites had to choose between catching Covid-19 and voting on Tuesday. Is the rest of the country next?
Your phone knows if you’re staying at home
April 7, 2020 | And it is telling the government. The Verge’s Casey Newton explains how location data is helping fight coronavirus, and why even privacy advocates don’t think that’s such a bad thing. Featuring Casey Newton, Silicon Valley Editor at the Verge.
“The Great Equalizer”
April 7, 2020 | Madonna was wrong. Covid-19 isn’t an equalizer. It’s coming for America’s most vulnerable populations.
The immunity test
April 6, 2020 | A vaccine will take a while, but Vox’s Umair Irfan says the global effort to test for immunity and treat Covid-19 is well underway.
Elizabeth Warren has a plan for this, too
April 6, 2020 | In January, Sen. Elizabeth Warren was the first presidential candidate to release a plan for combatting coronavirus. In March, she released a second plan. Days later, with the scale of economic damage increasing, she released a third. Warren’s proposals track the spread of the virus: from a problem happening elsewhere and demanding a surge in global health resources to a pandemic happening here, demanding not just a public health response, but an all-out effort to save the US economy. Warren’s penchant for planning stands in particular stark contrast to this administration, which still has not released a clear coronavirus plan. There is no document you can download, no web site you can visit, that details our national strategy to slow the disease and rebuild the economy.
So I asked Warren to return to the show to explain what the plan should be, given the cold reality we face. We discussed what, specifically, the federal government should do; the roots of the testing debacle; her idea for mobilizing the economy around building affordable housing; why she thinks that this is exactly the right time to cancel student loan debt; why America spends so much money preparing for war and so little defending itself against pandemics and climate change; whether she thinks the Democratic primary focused on the wrong issues; and how this crisis is making a grim mockery of Ronald Reagan’s old saw about “the scariest words in the English language.”
The two types of tests we need to end this
April 5, 2020 | How testing technology will help end the spread of covid-19.
Mask on? Mask off?
April 3, 2020 | In an about-face, the Centers for Disease Control would now like you to cover your mouth and nose when you go outside.
Coronavirus meets health reform
April 3, 2020 | Ezra and Matt discuss Covid-19’s impact on insurance premiums, the case for single-payer, and more.
6.6 million more unemployed
April 2, 2020 | Last week’s unemployment numbers shattered all records. This week, they doubled. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias, host of The Weeds podcast, proposes a way out of this mess.
The race to make more ventilators
April 2, 2020 | Why life-saving ventilators for Covid-19 patients are in short supply, and how people like Dr. Richard Boyer are trying to fix that.
What social solidarity demands of us in a pandemic
April 2, 2020 | There is no doubt that social distancing is the best way to slow the spread of the coronavirus. But the efficacy of social distancing (or really any other public health measure) relies on something much deeper and harder to measure: social solidarity.
“Solidarity,” writes Eric Klinenberg, “motivates us to promote public health, not just our own personal security. It keeps us from hoarding medicine, toughing out a cold in the workplace or sending a sick child to school. It compels us to let a ship of stranded people dock in our safe harbors, to knock on our older neighbor’s door.” Klinenberg, a sociologist by trade, is the director of the Institute for Public Knowledge at New York University. His first book, Heat Wave, found that social connection was, at times, literally the difference between life and death during Chicago’s 1995 heat wave. Since then, he’s spent his career studying trends in American social life, from the rise of adults living alone to the importance of “social infrastructure” in holding together our civic bonds.
This conversation is about what happens when a country mired in a mythos of individualism collides with a pandemic that demands social solidarity and collective sacrifice. It’s about preventing an epidemic of loneliness and social isolation from overwhelming the most vulnerable among us. We discuss the underlying social trends that predated coronavirus, what kind of leadership it takes to actually bring people together, the irony of asking young people and essential workers to sacrifice for the rest of us, whether there’s an opportunity to build a different kind of society in the aftermath of Covid-19, and much more.
Lockdown while locked up
April 1, 2020 | Arthur Longworth calls Sean from Washington State Reformatory to explain what it’s like to serve a life sentence at a prison where the coronavirus is spreading.
There’s no social distancing in Animal Crossing
March 31, 2020 | Nintendo’s new game New Horizons has become a place to escape the reality of a global pandemic, gather with friends online - and even get married.
The trouble with Trump’s daily briefings
March 31, 2020 | Part rally, part media-bashing, part critical updates on the coronavirus crisis, President Trump’s daily press briefings are muddying the message.
Coronavirus has pushed US-China relations to their worst point since Mao
March 30, 2020 | The COVID-19 pandemic is a grim reminder that the worst really can happen. Tail risk is real risk. Political leaders fumble, miscalculate, and bluster into avoidable disaster. And even as we try to deal with this catastrophe, the seeds of another are sprouting.
The US-China relationship will define geopolitics in the 21st century. If we collapse into rivalry, conflict, and politically opportunistic nationalism, the results could be hellish. And we are, right now, collapsing into rivalry, conflict, and politically opportunistic nationalism.
The Trump administration, and key congressional Republicans, are calling COVID-19 “the Chinese virus,” and trying to gin up tensions to distract from their domestic failures. Chinese government officials, beset by their own domestic problems, are claiming the US military brought the virus to China. The US-China relationship was in a bad way six months ago, but this is a new level of threat.
Evan Osnos covers the US-China relationship for the New Yorker, and is author of the National Book Award winner, The Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth and Faith in the New China. In this conversation, we discuss the past, present and future of the US-China relationship. What are the chances of armed conflict? What might deescalation look like? And we know what the US wants — what, in truth, does China want?
Airborne, Explained
March 29, 2020 | What do we mean when we say “airborne?”; plus, the most important unanswered questions about how coronavirus is transmitted.
Your coronavirus questions, answered (Part II)
March 27, 2020 | On today’s show, more listener questions: Why isn’t everyone social distancing? Will I be immune after I get it? When will this end? My anxiety is spiking!
When $2 trillion isn’t enough
March 27, 2020 | Ezra and Matt analyze the huge but inadequate stimulus bill.
Deepak Chopra: “If this doesn’t bring us together, then we deserve whatever happens”
March 27, 2020 | Dr. Deepak Chopra talks with Recode’s Kara Swisher about how to cope with the global threat posed by coronavirus, the parallel “pandemic of panic,” and how to not be overwhelmed by fear and anxiety.
Is the cure worse than the disease?
March 26, 2020 | “We cannot let the cure be worse than the problem itself!” That was President Donald Trump, this week, explaining why he was thinking about lifting coronavirus guidelines earlier than public-health experts recommended. The “cure,” in this case, is social distancing, and the mass economic stoppage it forces. The problem, of course, is COVID-19, and the millions of deaths it could cause.
This is a debate that needs to be taken seriously. Slowing coronavirus will impose real costs, and immense suffering, on society. Are those costs worth it? This is the most important public policy question right now. And if the discussion isn’t had well, then it will be had, as we’re already seeing, poorly, and dangerously.
What this coronavirus does to your body
March 26, 2020 | Why does it spread so easily? And could it mutate into something worse? The Atlantic’s Ed Yong explains the science so far.
The two trillion dollar question
March 25, 2020 | Congress has settled on a historic stimulus package, but Ezra Klein is worried it might not be enough.
Chamath Palihapitiya: “The investing landscape is done,” taxes will go up, and a two-week lockdown is inevitable
March 25, 2020 | Social Capital CEO Chamath Palihapitiya talks with Recode’s Kara Swisher about how long it will take to recover from the coronavirus crisis, its impact on startups, and how the US government should and will react — including by tracking individuals via their technology and repatriating cash from tech companies like Apple. Palihapitiya says businesses should make sure they have at least 36 months worth of cash on hand to weather this recession and its slow recovery period and predicts the US will need to devote an entire year’s GDP to combat covid-19. He criticizes the corporate “shenanigans” that will make economic recovery harder says he’s done investing for at least nine months, because anyone trying to do deals now will be “decapitated.” Plus: What we can all learn right now from the histories of the Great Depression and the 2008 financial crisis, and which industries will come out of this crisis stronger than before?
Asia’s second wave
March 24, 2020 | Social Capital CEO Chamath Palihapitiya talks with Recode’s Kara Swisher about how long it will take to recover from the coronavirus crisis, its impact on startups,
Is Amazon primed for coronavirus?
March 24, 2020 | How the tech giant is responding to the pandemic, and what it says about Amazon as a company.
Fighting coronavirus with corporate conscription
March 24, 2020 | Jane, Dara, and Matt on the Defense Production Act, wartime mobilization, and pandemic-induced autarky.
Giving birth in a pandemic
March 23, 2020 | Vox’s Julia Belluz went from covering the global coronavirus pandemic to giving birth in the middle of it. (Transcript here.) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
An economic crisis like we’ve never seen
March 23, 2020 | “What is happening,” writes Annie Lowrey, “is a shock to the American economy more sudden and severe than anyone alive has ever experienced.”
It’s also different from what anyone alive has ever experienced. For many of us, the Great Recession is the closest analogue — but it’s not analogous at all. There, the economy’s potential was unchanged, but financial markets were in crisis. Here, we are purposefully freezing economic activity in order to slow a public health crisis. Early data suggests the economic crisis is going to far exceed any single week or quarter of the financial crisis. Multiple economists have told Ezra Klein that the nearest analogy to what we’re going through is the economy during World War II.
“I have a secret advantage when trying to understand moments of economic upheaval. I’m married to Annie Lowrey,” writes Ezra Klein. “I can give you the bio — staff writer at the Atlantic, author of Give People Money (which is proving particularly prophetic and influential right now) — but suffice to say she’s one of the clearest and most brilliant economic thinkers I know. Her viral piece on the affordability crisis is crucial for understanding what the economy really looked like before Covid-19, and she’s been doing some of the best work on the way Covid-19 will worsen the economic problems we had and create a slew of new ones. But this isn’t just a conversation about crisis. It’s also a conversation about how to respond. I wouldn’t call it hopeful — we’re not there yet. But constructive.”
The biggest experiment in online learning, ever
March 22, 2020 | COVID-19 has shut schools all over the country, and millions of American students are now learning at home, online. Are online tools enough to make up for lost classroom time?
Your coronavirus questions, answered
March 20, 2020 | On today’s show, we answer listener’s questions: Why is there no TP? Will we run out of food? Can I get the virus from sex? Should I finally write my will? How can I help?
How quickly can we treat covid-19?
March 19, 2020 | The scientific community is moving at unprecedented speed to develop a way to treat COVID-19. But how soon can a treatment or a vaccine be available to the public?
Six feet away
March 19, 2020 | Vox’s Brian Resnick (safely) meets Sean in a Washington, D.C. park to deliver the Five Commandments of social distancing.
“The virus is more patient than people are”
March 19, 2020 | Ron Klain served as the chief of staff to vice presidents Al Gore and Joe Biden. In 2014, President Barack Obama tapped him to lead the administration’s response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. He successfully oversaw a hellishly complex effort preparing domestically for an outbreak and surging health resources onto another continent to contain the disease.
But Klain is quick to say that the coronavirus is a harder challenge even than Ebola. The economy is in free fall. Entire cities have been told to shelter in place. And there’s no telling how long any of this will last. In this conversation, Klain answers Ezra Klein’s questions about the disease and how to respond to it, as well as questions many of you submitted.
TFW your dad gives you Covid-19
March 18, 2020 | Sean speaks to a Brooklyn family that has Covid-19, and Vox’s Dylan Scott explains how the United States is still trying to get its act together on testing.
Rescuing the economy from coronavirus
March 17, 2020 | Jane, Dara, and Matt discuss President Trump’s new more serious tone and competing economic stimulus proposals.
Can President Trump fix this?
March 17, 2020 | After dismissing coronavirus concerns for months, President Donald is pivoting to serious action to slow the crisis in the United States.
School’s out for Covid
March 16, 2020 | The country’s largest school district told a million kids to stay home during the coronavirus pandemic. It’s creating chaos for teachers, students, and parents.
Maggie Haberman: How coronavirus changes everything for President Trump
March 16, 2020 | Maggie Haberman, the White House correspondent for the New York Times, talks with Recode’s Kara Swisher about how the rest of the country has bypassed Trump’s failure to lead on the coronavirus outbreak; his exposure to COVID-19 at Mar-a-Lago and refusal to self-quarantine; and the toxic cocktail of practices in his administration: Infighting, tiptoeing, and sucking up.
She also discusses CDC director Anthony Fauci’s “unimpeachable” credibility vs. President Trump’s trust problem, how Vice President Pence is doing at the helm of the coronavirus task force, and how this period could have a bigger impact on Trump’s re-election chances than previous crises. Plus: Who is actually running things at the White House right now, and can Trump operate his campaign without mass rallies?
Weeds 2020: The coronavirus election
March 14, 2020 | Ezra and Matt on dueling pandemic response plans from Sanders and Biden, and Trump’s disastrous speech.
Living in lockdown
March 14, 2020 | Italy has quarantined the whole country in an effort to slow the spread of coronavirus. Vox’s Julia Belluz explains why the US might look like Italy soon.
Ron Klain: The coronavirus outbreak is just getting started in the US
March 13, 2020 | Epidemic co-host Ron Klain, who led the White House’s ebola response under President Obama, talks to Recode’s Kara Swisher about how the COVID-19 outbreak will strain America’s healthcare system; how President Trump downplayed the crisis, rattling public confidence and delaying the country’s response; and the way people who work in the gig economy — including Uber drivers and food delivery workers — will be especially hurt by the situation. He also discusses the logic behind travel bans and limits of their efficacy, why it’s impossible for the US to completely cut itself off from China, and what Trump didn’t say in his Oval Office address, but should have. Klain, an adviser and former chief of staff to Joe Biden, also talks about the ex-vice president’s surprisingly successful presidential campaign and how it’s reckoning with Biden’s history of verbal flubs.
How to slow down coronavirus
March 12, 2020 | President Trump has banned most Europeans from traveling to the US. Vox’s Jen Kirby explains why that won’t stop the novel coronavirus from spreading, and Eliza Barclay tells us what we can do to slow the spread.
Every country for itself
March 12, 2020 | Zack, Jenn, and Alex record an episode on coronavirus from their respective homes, under self-isolation. They talk about the politics of Trump’s ban on European travel to the US and explore why the European Union seems to be neglecting to help Italy in its time of need. They also explain how the virus has led to a massive drop in oil prices — and why, at this particular time, this could seriously destabilize political systems around the world.
Coronavirus hits the markets
March 10, 2020 | The stock market’s going haywire. Major companies are telling their employees to stay home. Austin has canceled SXSW. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias says governments across the world have to act fast to save the global economy.
Does stopping coronavirus require more surveillance?
March 10, 2020 | The cost of China’s high-tech response to contain the coronavirus.
So you think you have Covid-19
March 6, 2020 | Thus far, the United States hasn’t been doing the best job of testing for the novel coronavirus. ProPublica’s Caroline Chen explains why.
The coronavirus rumor mill
March 5, 2020 | Can we stop the spread of coronavirus misinformation on social media?
Covid-19, explained by Carl (who has it)
March 3, 2020 | Carl Goldman was on the Diamond Princess cruise ship and now he has Covid-19. He speaks to Sean Rameswaram from a CDC quarantine in Omaha, Nebraska.
The floating petri dish
February 18, 2020 | One coronavirus. Two cruise ships. Lots of mistakes. The Japanese case shows us that quarantining people on a cruise ship to stop the spread of Covid-19 can backfire, while the Cambodia case suggests that letting people disembark and disperse around the world can create a public health nightmare. Find out what these cruise ship emergencies reveal about the largest outbreak.
Could coronavirus collapse Chinese communism?
February 13, 2020 | Zack Beauchamp and Alex Ward talk about the politics of the coronavirus outbreak in China: Why the Chinese government botched the initial response, why Chinese citizens are so angry about it, and the reasons why the problems with this response are inherent to the current Chinese governance model. They then debate the claim from many analysts that this is the most serious crisis for China’s regime since the 1989 Tiananmen Square uprising — and the (low) probability that this could trigger another revolution-minded uprising.
How will the coronavirus outbreak end?
February 6, 2020 | In 2015, Dr. Vineet Menachery said a SARS-like virus could spread to humans more easily than previously believed. Now he explains what we can do to stop it.
An AI warned about coronavirus before the CDC
February 4, 2020 | How AI could predict the next big outbreak.
You can check out our guide to news of the coronavirus outbreak here.