Pelosi wins re-election as House speaker with slim majority
Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., was re-elected speaker of the House on Sunday despite a shrinking Democratic majority in the House. With Democrats holding a smaller majority than in the previous Congress, Pelosi could afford to have only a handful of lawmakers peel off and opt to write in someone else. The final count was 216 to […]
Trump begs Georgia secretary of state to overturn election results in remarkable hourlong phone call
President Donald Trump begged Georgia’s secretary of state to overturn the election results in an astounding hourlong phone call obtained Sunday by NBC News in which the president offered a smorgasbord of false claims about voter fraud and repeatedly berated state officials. “So look,” Trump told Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. “All I want to […]
Americans breathe a sigh of relief as $600 Covid payments roll in
Many Americans are waking up this week to at least $600 more in their bank accounts as the federal government begins to disburse the newest round of Covid-19 relief funds. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Tuesday that direct deposit payments could appear any time from that night to next week. Paper checks were mailed out […]
U.S. coronavirus cases eclipse 20 million
Documented Covid-19 cases in the United States surged past 20 million on Friday amid record hospitalizations and staggering numbers of daily deaths, according to a tracker maintained by Johns Hopkins University. The 20 millionth case comes less than two months after the country tallied its 10 millionth. The U.S. leads the globe in Covid-19 deaths, […]
Rep. Louie Gohmert Backpedals On ‘Be Violent’ Comments After Election Lawsuit Loss
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) issued a statement Saturday backpedaling on his controversial comments indicating that street violence is the only recourse in the wake of his lawsuit loss to overturn the results of the democratic presidential election. Gohmert made the remarks about violence Friday on the far-right news channel Newsmax. He spoke after U.S. District Judge Jeremy Kernodle […]
Growing number of Trump loyalists in the Senate vow to fruitlessly challenge Biden’s victory
A last-ditch effort by President Trump and his allies to overturn the election thrust Washington into chaos Saturday as a growing coalition of Republican senators announced plans to rebel against Senate leaders by seeking to block formal certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. The push to subvert the vote is all but certain to fail […]
Top lawmakers say pandemic relief deal with aid to individuals, businesses is ‘close’
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, speaking on the Senate floor Thursday, said he believes a “bipartisan, bicameral agreement appears to be close at hand” on a COVID-19 relief deal. “I’m encouraged that our Democratic colleagues have now embraced this framework, that’s been the right solution for our country all this time,” he said. Lawmakers are […]
Pelosi, McConnell To Get Coronavirus Vaccine, Urge Members To Do Same
The top leaders of the U.S. House and Senate will be receiving the coronavirus vaccine this week, and Congress’ attending physician has informed members that they are all eligible for the shots under “government continuity” guidelines. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell both said Thursday that they will get vaccinated in […]
Millions Of COVID-19 Vaccine Doses Stuck In Warehouses Until Federal Orders, Pfizer Says
Millions of doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are languishing in warehouses awaiting shipment instructions from the Trump administration — even as states are clamoring for them — vaccine manufacturer Pzifer said in a statement Thursday. The startling bottleneck is occurring as America is breaking daily COVID-19 death tolls. The U.S. lost more people on Wednesday alone (3,611) than […]
FDA advisers recommend Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine, bringing second vaccine closer to reality
An independent panel of advisers to the Food and Drug Administration overwhelmingly recommended that the agency authorize Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use on Thursday, bringing the United States one step closer to adding a second vaccine to its toolkit in fighting the pandemic. Members of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee voted […]
Direct cash payments likely as lawmakers near Covid aid deal
Congressional leaders and the White House are nearing agreement on a roughly $900 billion coronavirus relief dealthat will likely include a new round of direct payments, three sources familiar with the negotiations said Wednesday. The emerging package will include enhanced federal jobless benefits, small-business funding, and money to distribute Covid-19 vaccines. The dollar amount of […]
Senate Republican uses hearing to pursue baseless election fraud claims as Trump tweets approval
A Republican Senate committee chairman on Wednesday used his panel to keep pressing allegations of what he called “election irregularities” as President Donald Trump appeared to watch from the White House, as Democrats decried the hearing as lending credence to Trump’s baseless claims of fraud. While Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson, a strong Trump supporter who […]
French President Macron tests positive for COVID-19
French President Emmanuel Macron has tested positive for COVID-19, the presidential Elysee Palace announced on Thursday. It said the president took a test “as soon as the first symptoms appeared.” The brief statement did not say what symptoms Macron experienced. It said he would isolate himself for seven days. “He will continue to work and […]
US on track to get 2nd COVID vaccine as FDA panel reviews Moderna data
The U.S. is on the cusp of a second vaccine for COVID-19, with independent federal advisers set to review data Thursday from Moderna that suggests its two-dose vaccine is safe and 94% effective. An endorsement from the panel paves the way for an official green light by federal regulators to begin distributing next week some […]
Campaigning in Georgia, Biden Presses for the Senate Majority He Will Need
President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. on Tuesday urged Georgia voters to cast ballots for two Democratic Senate candidates in a pair of critical runoffs early next month that he hopes will give his party control of the Senate and help Democrats advance the agenda he promised during his campaign. “You all did something extraordinary in […]
Buttigieg would make history if confirmed as Biden’s transportation secretary
President-elect Joe Biden is expected to name former 2020 rival and South Bend Mayor, Pete Buttigieg to head the Department of Transportation, sources familiar with the transition told ABC News Tuesday. If confirmed, Buttigieg would bring new diversity to the administration Biden has promised will “look like America,” as the first openly gay Cabinet secretary […]
McConnell Asks GOP Senators Not To Object To Certifying Biden’s Electoral Votes
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday urged GOP senators not to object to Congress’ formal certification of the Electoral College vote next month prior to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration. An objection would force a “terrible vote” on Senate Republicans by putting them in a position of having to oppose President Donald Trump, McConnell […]
Capitol Hill leaders nearing long-sought COVID stimulus deal
Congressional leaders closed in on an agreement to provide a new tranche of coronavirus relief on Tuesday, haggling deep into the night over how to spend hundreds of billions of dollars before adjourning for the year. “We’re making significant progress and I’m optimistic that we are going to be able to complete an understanding some […]
Bob Cesca: Ready for Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago shadow presidency? That’s where all this is heading
On Monday morning’s edition of “Fox & Friends,” Donald Trump’s personal Wormtongue, white supremacist Stephen Miller, announced Trump’s latest and most ludicrous attempt to remain president despite the incontrovertible results of the election. Also on Monday, the Electoral College officially affirmed Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as the winners of the election, 306-232. This, Miller seemed to suggest, […]
Charlie Pierce: There Is No End to the Grift
One hesitates to paraphrase the genius of Robert Earl Keen, but it seems the grift goes on forever and the thievery never ends. The folks at CREW got their hot little hands on some of the financial details describing how high Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has been living on the hog belonging to the […]
US administers 1st doses of Pfizer coronavirus vaccine
The rollout of the first coronavirus vaccine began Monday morning and marked a major turning point in the U.S.’s battle against surging case numbers as the first doses of the Pfizer medication was administered to health care workers and nursing home staffers. Sandra Lindsay, a critical care nurse from Northwell Long Island Jewish Medical Center […]
Congressman cites Trump’s efforts to overturn election in announcing decision to quit GOP
In an exclusive interview, Rep. Paul Mitchell, Republican of Michigan, told CNN that his disgust and disappointment with President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the election have led him to request that the Clerk of the House change his party affiliation to “independent,” and to notify GOP leaders in a letter that […]
William Barr Resigns After DOJ Throws Cold Water On Voter Fraud Claims
President Donald Trump said Monday that Attorney General William Barr had resigned, after the nation’s top law enforcement official refused to back up discredited claims of widespread fraud in the Nov. 3 election and reportedly worked to avoid public disclosure of investigations into President-elect Joe Biden’s son. Trump said in a tweet that he had “a […]
After Electoral College cements win, Biden unleashes scathing attack on Trump’s refusal to concede
President-elect Joe Biden on Monday gave his most scathing indictment yet of the attempts by President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn November’s election, hours after the Electoral College officially sealed Biden’s victory. Biden called the election, which Trump and his supporters have tried to overturn with scores of failed legal challenges, “honest, free […]
Pro-Trump rally descends into chaos as Proud Boys roam D.C. looking to fight
Nearly three dozen people were arrested during a night of unrest in downtown Washington that began Saturday with rallies supporting President Trump and descended into chaos and violence as a group with ties to white nationalism roamed the streets looking to fight. One of those arrested was 29-year-old Phillip Johnson of the District, who was […]
Electors meeting today to formally choose Biden as next president
Presidential electors are meeting across the United States on Monday to formally choose Joe Biden as the nation’s next president. Monday is the day set by law for the meeting of the Electoral College. In reality, electors meet in all 50 states and the District of Columbia to cast their ballots. The results will be […]
Russian hackers breach U.S. government, targeting agencies, private companies
Hackers who targeted the federal government appear to be part of a Russian intelligence campaign aimed at multiple U.S. agencies and companies, including the cybersecurity company FireEye, officials said Sunday. A Commerce Department spokesman confirmed a breach, saying it occurred at an unidentified bureau. Department officials alerted the FBI and a cybersecurity agency within the […]
Hospitals Prepare for First Shots as Virus Vaccine Shipments Blanket U.S.
Trucks and cargo planes packed with the first of nearly three million doses of coronavirus vaccine fanned out across the country on Sunday as hospitals rushed to set up injection sites and their anxious workers tracked each shipment hour by hour. The distribution of the first federally approved vaccine marked the start of the most […]
Eric Boehlert: Why Fox News’ ratings are tanking
Trump isn’t the only one with the post-election hangover. Fox News is facing its most pressing ratings challenge in years, as Trump fuels a schism within the conservative media. This Monday, between 4 pm and 11 pm, just two Fox News programs scored as the top-rated in their hours. In the other six, one-hour time […]
The Rude Pundit: Note to Hopeful MAGA Cretins… You’ll Be Much Happier If You Give Up Now. I Know.
Hey, MAGA jerks, I don’t like you, and, from your tweets and messages, I’ve got a pretty good idea that you don’t like me. Still, I feel compelled to give you some advice, if only in the hope that it will calm down the overdramatic rhetoric that makes it seem like you’re gonna start some […]
Trump Administration Executes Brandon Bernard After Jurors Plead For His Life
The Trump administration executed 40-year-old Brandon Bernard on Thursday, his punishment for acting as an accomplice to a crime when he was 18 years old. The government went through with the killing despite high-profile opposition from 5 of 9 surviving jurors who sentenced Bernard to death, the prosecutor who defended his death sentence on appeal, several members […]
States blast Texas bid to overturn election as ‘seditious abuse of judicial process’
Four states sued by Texas in a bid to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election asked the U.S. Supreme Court Thursday to swiftly reject the case and avoid legitimizing “a cacophony of bogus claims” that would upend the will of millions of American voters. In court filings Thursday afternoon, the attorneys general of […]
Chances for COVID-19 relief compromise grow dimmer
Sources on both sides of the aisle in the Senate told ABC News that chances for a grand compromise on a COVID-19 relief package are growing dimmer, though some aides to negotiators insist there is still hope. The major sticking point? A shield against lawsuits for businesses, health care facilities, and schools — a top […]
HHS secretary Alex Azar says Pfizer vaccine will be approved, vaccinations could start next week
HHS Secretary Alex Azar said on “Good Morning America” Friday morning that COVID-19 vaccinations could come Monday or Tuesday. He said the Pfizer vaccine will be approved, they are just working out the details. “We weren’t counting on it in terms of getting to the projections that you and I have talked about about having […]
Hunter Biden, long a GOP political target, reveals he is subject of federal tax probe
Hunter Biden, the president-elect’s embattled son, announced Wednesday that federal prosecutors in Delaware are investigating his “tax affairs,” a development that marks the latest controversy surrounding the Biden family’s private business endeavors. In his statement, Hunter Biden, 50, said he and his attorney learned of the investigation on Tuesday, and that he remains “confident that […]
More Than 3,100 Dead From COVID-19 In U.S. In Grim Single-Day Record
At least 3,124 people in the United States died from COVID-19 on Wednesday, a grim new record as the country grapples with the worst phase of the pandemic thus far. Johns Hopkins University reported the figure late Wednesday amid a surge in infections around the nation following the Thanksgiving Day holiday period. More than 220,000 […]
FDA panel meeting today could lead to approval of Pfizer vaccine for emergency use
Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine faces one final hurdle as it races to become the first shot greenlighted in the U.S. — a panel of experts who will scrutinize the company’s data for any red flags. Thursday’s meeting of the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory panel is likely the last step before a U.S. decision to […]
Supreme Court Rejects GOP Bid To Reverse Joe Biden’s Pennsylvania Win
The Supreme Court has rejected Republicans’ last-gasp bid to reverse Pennsylvania’s certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the electoral battleground. The court without comment Tuesday refused to call into question the the certification process in Pennsylvania. Gov. Tom Wolf already has certified Biden’s victory and the state’s 20 electors are to meet on Dec. […]
Biden Selects Marcia Fudge As Housing Secretary, Tom Vilsack For Agriculture
President-elect Joe Biden has selected Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge as his housing and urban development secretary and former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to reprise that role in his administration, according to five people familiar with the decisions. Fudge, a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, was just elected to a seventh term representing a […]
House Approves $731 Billion Defense Bill With Veto-Proof Majority
The Democratic-controlled House on Tuesday easily approved a wide-ranging defense policy bill, defying a veto threat from President Donald Trump and setting up a possible showdown with the Republican president in the waning days of his administration. The 335-78 vote in favor of the $731 billion defense measure came hours after Trump renewed his threat to […]
Biden Vows 100 Million Vaccinations In His First 100 Days
The first doses of the coronavirus vaccine were given in the U.K. on Tuesday, as cases continue to surge in the United States. To date, more than 15.1 million Americans have contracted the coronavirus, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. More than 1.55 million people worldwide, including more than 286,000 in the U.S., […]
Bob Cesca: Is Trump staging a coup or just running a con? No reason he can’t do both
It’s pretty damn obvious what’s going on with Donald Trump and the election, and it’s probably not an attempted coup. At least, that’s not necessarily Trump’s primary intention with his laughably unserious procession of 50-some failed legal challenges to the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. Trump and his Republican enablers lost five cases on […]
Trump Administration Declined Summer Offer To Buy More Of Pfizer’s Vaccine: Reports
The Trump administration declined an offer from Pfizer to buy more doses of its COVID-19 vaccine at the end of the summer, according to several reports. The New York Times first reported Monday that Pfizer offered to sell the U.S. government more of its promising vaccine candidate, developed in partnership with the German company BioNTech. […]
Florida authorities raid home of ex-official who said she was ousted over coronavirus data
Authorities in Florida on Monday raided the home of Rebekah Jones, a former state official who has said she was ousted this year for refusing to censor the state’s coronavirus data. In a search warrant, an investigator with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement said a person at Jones’ home who was using her email […]
Biden to nominate retired Gen. Lloyd Austin for defense secretary, a first for an African American
President-elect Joe Biden is expected to nominate retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin to be defense secretary, according to three people familiar with the decision. If confirmed, Austin, 67, a retired four-star general and former head of U.S. Central Command, or CENTCOM, would be the first African American to lead the Defense Department. He was also […]
Britain becomes first to roll out clinically approved BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine, first recipient is a 90-year-old woman
At 6.31 a.m. local timeTuesday, 334 days after the first reported Covid-19 death in China, Margaret Keenan, 90, became the first person in the world to receive a clinically approved vaccine. It was a landmark moment in the global fight against the most destructive pandemic in 100 years. In approving and delivering the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine, […]
Charlie Pierce: I Wish the Rolling Blunder Express Would Sit Down and Let Us Enjoy the Holidays
Shit’s getting real in Michigan again. From the Detroit Free Press: One caller told state Rep. Cynthia A. Johnson, D-Detroit, that she should be “swinging from a … rope.” That echoed another call received by Johnson, who is Black, that predicted the lawmaker would be lynched, according to multiple voicemails Johnson posted on her Facebook […]
Loeffler doesn’t acknowledge Trump’s defeat in only Georgia runoff debate
Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) declined multiple times to answer whether President Donald Trump lost the November election while repeatedly attacking her opponent, Rev. Raphael Warnock, as a radical during the sole debate of their special election runoff next month. Warnock, the pastor of the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, countered Loeffler’s attacks by repeatedly […]
Biden will pick California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to lead Health and Human Services
President-elect Joe Biden will nominate California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, three sources familiar with the decision said. Becerra, 62, served 12 terms in the House of Representatives and was a vigorous defender of the Affordable Care Act who led the defense of the law in the […]
Trump tells supporters to vote in Georgia runoffs, refuses to accept reality of his loss
President Donald Trump emphatically called on Georgia voters to cast ballots for Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler in next month’s runoff Senate elections but spent much of his first rally since losing the presidency denying the new reality. The president several times falsely claimed he had won Georgia and the presidency, lambasted top Georgia […]
Trump announces Rudy Giuliani has Covid
President Donald Trump announced Sunday that former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who has led his efforts to overturn last month’s election, has tested positive for Covid-19. “Get better soon Rudy, we will carry on!!!” Trump wrote on Twitter. Giuliani, Trump’s personal attorney, has crisscrossed the country in recent days pushing Trump’s unverified claims of […]
Brian Karem: Michael Cohen on What Trump Wants Now
Donald Trump is Captain Chaos. Michael Cohen, Trump’s former fixer, pinned that label on him and it has stuck. Now, with less than seven weeks to go before he is escorted from the White House, Captain Chaos is still trampling norms and harming institutions. He is a dangerous con man and is all about the […]
Eric Boehlert: Trump’s mob takes aim at GOP, Fox News
Prowling a rally stage in Atlanta on Wednesday afternoon, and decked out in a Make America Great Again hat, lawyer and conspiracy enthusiast Lin Wood beseeched the crowd of Trump supporters to not vote in the Georgia’s two upcoming run-off elections, which will determine control of the Senate. Pushing washed-up claims about how the Georgia […]
The Rude Pundit: Kelly Loeffler and the GOP’s Bullsh** Hyperbole
According to Republican Georgia Senator Kelly Loeffler, her run-off opponent for her seat, the affable and slightly left-of-center Democrat Raphael Warnock, “is the most radical candidate for Senate our country has ever seen.” He is “dangerous” and embraces “anti-American values,” according to a website that Loeffler has put out called, no, really, radicalraphael.com. It’s filled […]
Justice Department Probed ‘Bribery-For-Pardon Scheme’ As Trump Campaigned, Court Reveals
The Justice Department has spent months investigating a “bribery-for-pardon scheme,” even as President Donald Trump was running for reelection, according to court documents unsealed Tuesday. In a 20-page heavily redacted opinion, dated Aug. 28 but posted Tuesday evening, U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell wrote that attorney-client privilege didn’t protect certain communications if they were alleged […]
Barr says no evidence of widespread voter fraud, defying Trump
Attorney General William Barr said Tuesday that there was no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election, defying President Donald Trump’s ongoing efforts to reverse the results. “To date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election,” Barr said in an interview with […]
U.K. becomes first country to approve Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine
The United Kingdom became the first country Wednesday to formally approve the Pfizer and BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, a huge symbolic milestone in the fight against the pandemic. The first inoculations are set to be rolled out next week, the government said, although the initial batch of 800,000 will cover a relatively small number of healthcare […]
President Trump has discussed possibility of pardons for family members, sources say
President Donald Trump has been discussing the possibility of issuing pardons for his family members and some close associates, multiple sources familiar with the matter told NBC News. One source said the conversations in recent days were within the context of a president who feels embattled, and not because Trump believes he or any of […]
Stephanie Miller on “The Michael Harrison Interview” Podcast
Michael Harrison interviews progressive talk radio star Stephanie Miller about her terrestrial radio show, as well as her groundbreaking Sexy Liberal Virtual Tour, and opinions about the state of presidential politics in America. Listen to the podcast here.
Trump is Now Demanding Republicans ‘Call Off’ the Georgia Special Election: ‘It Won’t Be Needed’
President Donald Trump seemed to demand a “call off” for the upcoming Senate runoff election in Georgia, are race that is set to determine control of the Senate. “Do something Brian Kemp,” Trump tweeted at the Republican governor of the state. “You allowed your state to be scammed. We must check signatures and count signed […]
Scott Atlas Resigns After Whispering Controversial COVID-19 Advice Into Trump’s Ear
Dr. Scott Atlas, a controversial pandemic adviser to President Donald Trump who was lambasted for supporting the idea of herd immunity to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, resigned from his role on Monday. “I worked hard with a singular focus — to save lives and help Americans through this pandemic,” Atlas, a neuroradiology professor, said […]
Fired cybersecurity chief hints at legal action after Trump campaign lawyer said he should be executed
Christopher Krebs, who was recently fired by President Donald Trump as the head of the federal government’s election cybersecurity efforts, suggested Tuesday that he might take legal action against one of Trump’s lawyers who said that Krebs should be executed. In an interview on NBC’s “TODAY” show, host Savannah Guthrie asked Krebs how concerned he […]
Trump falls short in Wisconsin recount he paid $3 million for
Wisconsin finished a recount of its presidential results on Sunday, confirming Democrat Joe Biden’s victory over President Donald Trump in the key battleground state. Trump vowed to challenge the outcome in court even before the recount concluded. Dane County was the second and last county to finish its recount, reporting a 45-vote gain for Trump. […]
Biden and Harris announce all-female communications team
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris announced an all-female communications team Sunday aimed at bringing “diverse perspectives” to the White House. Jen Psaki, a top member of the transition team who served in the Obama-Biden administration, was chosen as White House press secretary. Kate Bedingfield, who was deputy Biden-Harris campaign manager, will be […]
Covid-19: Moderna submits vaccine for FDA regulatory approval
Moderna will submit its coronavirus vaccine for regulatory approval on Monday, the company said — the second leading drug to pass the milestone this month. The Massachusetts biotech firm said it will ask the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use authorization after completing its Phase 3 trial, finding the vaccine was 94.1 percent effective […]
Supreme Court blocks NY from enforcing Covid limits on churches
The U.S. Supreme Court issued an injunction late Wednesday blocking New York’s governor from enforcing 10- and 25-person occupancy limits on religious institutions, granting a request from the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and Agudath Israel. The state had told the court there was no need to act because the restrictions, which were adopted as a […]
Trump Pardons Former Adviser Michael Flynn, Who Pleaded Guilty In Russia Probe
President Donald Trump pardoned Michael Flynn on Wednesday, more than two years after the former national security adviser pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI during an explosive investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Flynn was accused of “willfully and knowingly” making “materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements” in a Jan. 24, 2017, interview with FBI agents […]
Obama memoir sells a record 1.7 million copies in first week
Former President Barack Obama’s “A Promised Land” sold more than 1.7 million copies in North America in its first week, roughly equal to the combined first week sales of memoirs by his two immediate predecessors and among the highest ever for a nonfiction book. Crown announced Tuesday that it had increased its initial print run […]
Trump pops into White House briefing room for incredibly weird one-minute impromptu speech
President Donald Trump has kept an unusually low profile since his election defeat, making few public appearances and hardly speaking except for on Twitter. But when the Dow Jones Industrial Average crossed 30,000 for the first time on Tuesday, Trump emerged to take a victory lap. “That is a sacred number,” said Trump, who has […]
A U.S. Record: Two Million New Virus Cases in Two Weeks
For the first time since the coronavirus outbreak hit the United States, the country has added more than one million cases in each of the past two consecutive weeks. Covid deaths, which lag reported cases by weeks, are also at a level not seen since the spring. Some epidemiologists project that the number of […]
Trump Reportedly Planning To Pardon Michael Flynn, Start Of Spree
President Donald Trump is planning to pardon Michael Flynn, his former national security adviser who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI, according to several media reports on Tuesday evening. Both Axios and The New York Times said Trump has privately told aides Flynn will benefit from a series of pardons the president will issue […]
Bob Cesca: Enough cowardice… Democrats must forge ahead, without caring what the Trumpers say
Even after the landslide defeat of Donald Trump, Republicans across the board continue to be terrified by Trump’s disciples. Fear of the Red Hats has always been one of the primary reasons why the rest of Trump’s party has refused to speak out against his ongoing horror show. It’s not the only reason, but it’s […]
The Virus Surge, Once Centered in the Midwest, Is Accelerating in 45 U.S. States
When infections began rising sharply in the U.S. in September, the growth was driven largely by outbreaks in the Upper Midwest. States like North Dakota and Wisconsin soon became the hardest hit in the nation, relative to their size, and the region continues to struggle. Now, though, with the whole country’s daily average of new […]
Biden expected to tap history-making pick, Janet Yellen, for Treasury Department
President-elect Joe Biden is expected to name Janet Yellen as his pick for treasury secretary, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News. If confirmed by the Senate, Yellen, 74, will be the first woman to hold the top job. Biden’s selection of Yellen is a signal of stability at a time of economic fragility […]
First Latino tapped to head DHS signals shift from Trump’s hard-line immigration policies
Alejandro Mayorkas, the first Latino chosen for President-elect Joe Biden’s Cabinet, will head a Department of Homeland Security that is expected to drastically overhaul President Donald Trump’s hard-line immigration policies, as well as put Mayorkas at the forefront of the new administration’s anti-terrorism strategy. Mayorkas will be the first Latino and first immigrant to head […]
Trump Administration Finally Clears Way For Biden Transition To Begin
Emily Murphy, the administrator of the General Services Administration, said the transition between President Donald Trump and President-elect Joe Biden can begin, releasing millions of dollars in funds and clearing the way for a new administration. “I have dedicated much of my adult life to public service, and I have always strived to do what […]
Charlie Pierce: This Is the Beta Test for a Future Where Republicans Will Simply Never Accept a Democratic Victory
The latest episode of the administration*’s ongoing hit legal sitcom takes place in Wisconsin, where the campaign’s “observers” are pretty much super-spreading hecklers at this point, and where his legal teams continue their unparalleled performance as the biggest collection of boobs and yahoos to enter a courtroom since Curly was arraigned for the murder of […]
Incoming chief of staff says Biden will begin announcing Cabinet picks this week
Incoming White House chief of staff Ron Klain said Sunday that President-elect Joe Biden will begin announcing his Cabinet picksearly this week. Klain said on ABC News’ “This Week” that Americans will see the first of Biden’s nominees Tuesday. “Meeting the pace — beating, in fact, the pace that was set by the Obama/Biden transition, […]
Trump campaign cuts ties with attorney Sidney Powell after bizarre election fraud claims
President Donald Trump appears to have cut ties with Sidney Powell, a key member of his legal team who also represents former national security adviser Michael Flynn in his long-running attempt to unravel a guilty plea for lying about his 2016 contacts with Russia. The abrupt shake-up came in a terse Sunday-evening statement from the […]
AstraZeneca says its coronavirus vaccine can be around 90 percent effective
British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said on Monday that its vaccine for Covid-19 could be up to 90 percent effective in preventing the disease — the third promising breakthrough in the fight against a pandemic that has killed nearly 1.4 million people worldwide. “This vaccine’s efficacy and safety confirm that it will be highly effective against […]
Carl Bernstein Names Names: 21 Republican Senators Who’ve Privately Ripped Trump
Journalist Carl Bernstein on Sunday night called out Republicans in the Senate for remaining silent as President Donald Trump attempts to overthrow the results of the election and remain in office via lawsuits based on false claims. And he’s naming names. Bernstein identified 21 lawmakers who he said have “expressed extreme contempt for Trump & […]
Eric Boehlert: Biden White House should give Fox News the boot
Over the last four years, the Trump White House press briefing room has welcomed the right-wing media swamp, with conspiracy outlets like Gateway Pundit and OAN granted access to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. It was part of a Trump campaign to de-legitimize the press and turn the traditionally-serious briefings into partisan showdowns, where Trump’s far-right media […]
The Rude Pundit: Rudy Giuliani Is Sweating His Hair Color Off for America
Goddamn, why can’t we just be fucking done with Rudy Giuliani? At this point, his story should have ended in a fading Manhattan hotel room when the housekeeper finds his corpse hanging in a closet with a belt around his neck and no pants, his hand rigor-mortised around his dick. like he was choking a […]
Trump campaign asks for another Georgia recount
President Donald Trump’s campaign said Saturday it is seeking a second recount of presidential election votes in Georgia after the first one did not turn out in his favor. Under state election rules the campaign is within its rights; the first hand recount, completed Thursday and certified Friday, had been automatically triggered by a new […]
In blistering ruling, judge throws out Trump suit in Pennsylvania
A federal judge issued a scathing order Saturday dismissing the Trump campaign’s futile effort to block the certification of votes in Pennsylvania, shooting down claims of widespread irregularities with mail-in ballots. The case was always a long shot to stop President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, but it was President Donald Trump’s best hope to affect the […]
Congress heads home for Thanksgiving without pandemic relief deal
Congress will head home for a week-long Thanksgiving holiday recess without passing any sort of compromise coronavirus relief bill as the U.S. death toll passes 250,000 and millions of Americans remain on unemployment. But there is some hope that renewed talks could see some sort of coronavirus relief aid in the coming weeks even with […]
Promising more lawsuits, Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani recycles litany of debunked claims
President Donald Trump‘s legal team on Thursday staged a bizarre 90-minute press conference where they outlined plans to resurrect a crumbling legal strategy, in part by recycling a litany of false claims — including several that have already been rejected in the courts. Rudy Giuliani led the effort in a winding, and at times, angry […]
Rachel Maddow Reveals Partner’s Harrowing COVID-19 Battle On Return To MSNBC
Rachel Maddow made an emotional return to MSNBC airwaves Thursday night, revealing that she has spent the past two weeks caring for her partner, whose COVID-19 infection was so serious they thought it might kill her. The 47-year-old anchor told viewers in a from-home broadcast that the COVID-19 exposure from a close contact that has […]
Georgia hand count of votes affirms Biden’s narrow victory over Trump
A hand tally of the presidential race in Georgia is complete, and the results affirm Democrat Joe Biden’s lead over Republican President Donald Trump. Biden went into the recount with a margin of 13,558 votes, according to votes tallied by NBC News. Previously uncounted ballots discovered during the hand count reduced the margin to 12,284 […]
Harry Litman: Why not sue the GSA to get the transition going? Wouldn’t be prudent.
Occupants of the real world recognize that Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election. His lead is far too large to reverse, and President’s Trump’s disingenuous defenders haven’t even offered a legal theory, much less any evidence, that would so much as dent it. But the president and his appointed administrator of the General Services […]
Trump Campaign Attorneys Admit ‘There Is No Evidence’ of ‘Any Fraud’ in Connection with Challenged Ballots in Bucks County, Pa.
Attorneys representing President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign in challenging thousands of ballots in Bucks County, Pennsylvania agreed to sign court documents on Wednesday informing the court that there was no evidence of fraud or misconduct pertaining to those ballots. The lawsuit—filed last week by the campaign as well as the Republican National Committee and two […]
‘You Got Me Emotional’: Biden Gets Choked Up During Video Chat With Pandemic Health Care Workers
President-elect Joe Biden got emotional during a video conference with a group of health care workers treating Covid-19 patients, getting teary-eyed after hearing a heartbreaking story from an ICU nurse. CNN’s Brooke Baldwin played a clip of the discussion Wednesday, introducing the video as part of a segment with reporter Arlette Saenz about the challenges […]
Two MI GOP Election Officials Now Want to ‘Rescind’ Their Vote Approving Wayne County Results
The two Republicans on the Wayne County (Mich.) Board of Canvassers now want to “rescind” their vote to certify the 2020 election results in their county, releasing an affidavit late on Wednesday night that seeks to double back on their flip-flop from just one day earlier. On Tuesday night, Monica Palmer and William Hartmann initially […]
U.S. surpasses 250,000 coronavirus deaths as virus mortality rate surges
The United States has recorded a quarter-million Covid-19 deaths, the latest NBC News numbers showed Wednesday, and the death rate has been accelerating in recent weeks as cases have been surging across the country. The 250,000th death was logged Wednesday morning, the data revealed. In the last four weeks there has been a 42 percent […]
Pentagon announces troop reductions in Afghanistan and Iraq
The U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan and Iraq will be reduced to 2,500 in each country by mid-January, acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller announced on Tuesday. Miller made the announcement in remarks to Pentagon reporters that highlighted the next step in what he called “President Trump’s plan to bring the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq […]
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) tests positive for coronavirus
Sen. Chuck Grassley, the second-oldest member of the Senate, has tested positive for coronavirus. The 87-year-old Iowa Republican said in a statement that he learned he was exposed to the coronavirus Tuesday morning and received a positive test. “While I still feel fine, the test came back positive for the coronavirus,” Grassley said. “I am […]
Michigan GOPers Try To Steal Election For Trump, Change Minds At The Last Minute
The two Republicans on Michigan’s Wayne County Board of Canvassers initially refused on Tuesday to certify the county’s election results, which show former Vice President Joe Biden defeating President Donald Trump. But they suddenly reversed their decision after hours of phone calls from the public lambasting them for trying to exclude predominantly Black Detroit from […]
Trump fires head of election cybersecurity who debunked conspiracy theories
Christopher Krebs, who led the federal government’s election cybersecurity efforts, has been fired by President Donald Trump via Twitter. Krebs, the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA, has been the target of public criticism from Trump since the Nov. 3 election over his agency’s Rumor Control blog, which rebuts a list […]
Charlie Pierce: I’m Not Going to Be Comfortable Until Joe Biden’s Hand Comes Off the Bible
Because I do not believe that everything that’s bad crazy in American conservatism, and in the Republican Party into which it injected its prion disease decades ago, began on Election Night, 2016, I can remind people that the Republicans floated this notion in 2000, if things in Florida had turned sour on George W. Bush. […]
Strict New Limits Imposed Coast To Coast In U.S. As COVID-19 Surge Continues
The city of Philadelphia and several large U.S. states on Monday announced strict new limits on social gatherings and commercial activity to tamp down a coronavirus surge threatening to overwhelm healthcare systems and claim thousands more lives in the weeks ahead. New Jersey, California, Ohio and Pennsylvania’s largest city joined a growing list of states […]
Trump Reportedly Talked Out of Plan to Strike Iranian Nuclear Facility Before He Leaves Office
President Donald Trump was talked out of nascent plans to strike at Iran’s main nuclear site in the few remaining weeks of his administration. Per a report in the New York Times, Trump asked about options to hit the country during an Oval Office meeting last week, just one day after the International Atomic Energy Agency […]
Georgia Sec of State Speaks Out: Lindsey Graham Implied That I ‘Look Hard and See How Many Ballots You Can Throw Out’
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger appeared on CNN Monday night to talk about the attacks he’s gotten from fellow Republicans and to clarify a stunning claim he made about his conversation with Senator Lindsey Graham. In a new Washington Post interview, Raffensperger claimed that Graham suggested he exclude legal ballots Read the rest of […]
Biden warns ‘more people may die’ because of Trump’s transition delays
President-elect Joe Biden on Monday warned that the biggest threat to the country and to his transition posed by President Donald Trump’s refusal to concede the 2020 race is that “more people may die.” Biden made the stark warning during remarks about the economy from Wilmington, Delaware, during which he was asked by NBC News’s […]
Thousands rally behind Trump, insisting he won a race that he lost
Fervent supporters of President Donald Trump rallied in Washington on Saturday behind his spurious claim of a stolen election and swarmed his motorcade in adulation when he detoured for a drive-by on his way out of town. Hours later, after night fell in the nation’s capital, demonstrators favoring Trump clashed in the streets with counterprotesters, […]
Trump seems to suggest Biden ‘won’ but later says he’s not conceding
President Donald Trump suggested Sunday that Joe Biden had “won” the presidential election while saying that the election was rigged — a claim that has been widely debunked. “He won because the Election was Rigged,” Trump wrote before falsely claiming that no watchers or observers had been allowed. It was not clear whether the tweet […]
Incoming Biden chief of staff warns transition delay puts vaccine distribution at risk
President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming chief of staff, Ron Klain, urged the Trump administration Sunday to reverse course and begin working on a presidential transition so “nothing drops in this change of power” that would jeopardize the new administration’s ability to distribute a coronavirus vaccine. President Donald Trump and his campaign continue to pursue legal challenges […]
U.S. hits 11 million Covid cases as restrictions increase and holiday worries mount
The United States surpassed more than 11 million Covid-19 on Sunday, as the third wave of the virus continued its uncontrolled spread, new restrictions were introduced, and Americans weighed whether and how they can celebrate Thanksgiving. The U.S. recorded more than 1 million new cases this past week alone, including 156,416 on Saturday, which marked […]
Eric Boehlert: Trump’s election madness… The press gives Republicans a pass
As Trump continues to thrash around, ordering his lawyers to file absurd lawsuits in an attempt to overturn free and fair election results nationwide, the press once again is giving Republicans a pass. Refusing to hold the GOP accountable for truly outrageous and destructive behavior from the head of its party, the Beltway media continue […]
The Rude Pundit: Relax. It’s Okay to Be Panicky About Trump’s Attempt to Steal the Election
I know how it is. You’re sitting there watching Trump refuse to concede, file lawsuits over nonexistent voting fraud, do weird shit with the military and intelligence leadership, and more, and you’re thinking, “What the fuck is he up to?” And then you read things that tell you to shit yourself in terror and other […]
Virus Cases Reach New Highs in U.S., Prompting Talk of More Lockdowns
The coronavirus pandemic is spreading with frightening speed throughout the United States, shattering records on a daily basis, stretching medical resources to breaking point and once again prompting states, counties and cities to consider economically devastating lockdowns. On Thursday, public health officials recorded more than 150,000 new cases in a day for the first time […]
Election officials, including Dept. of Homeland Security, contradict Trump’s voter-fraud conspiracy theories
A group of national, state and private election officials said in a joint statement Thursday that there is no evidence of any voting system being compromised in the 2020 election despite President Donald Trump’s deluge of election fraud conspiracies. “The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history. Right now, across the country, […]
President Trump’s GOP wall of support is cracking
As President Donald Trump’s lawyers cling to their far-fetched schemes to overturn the presidential election, it was increasingly clear Thursday that cracks are forming in Trump’s Republican wall of support, as more GOP members stepped forward to say that President-elect Joe Biden should receive national intelligence briefings and others began to acknowledge the long-shot nature […]
Biden Wins Arizona, Padding His Electoral College Margin Over Trump
President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. has narrowly won Arizona, capturing the state’s 11 electoral votes and strengthening his Electoral College margin as President Trump continues to make baseless attacks on the vote counts favoring Mr. Biden. Mr. Biden, whose margin in Arizona is currently about 11,000 votes, or 0.3 percentage points, is the first Democratic […]
These 5 States Just Set Records For COVID-19 Deaths
Virtually every state in the union is trending in the wrong direction in the pandemic, setting grim records by the day as Americans prepare to spend a winter battling a virus that thrives indoors. At least five states ― Alaska, Missouri, North Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming ― set records for COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday, according […]
Trump’s Silent Public Veterans’ Day Outing Belies White House In Tumult
Donald Trump spent 10 minutes in public Wednesday honoring America’s war veterans — a veneer of normalcy for a White House that’s frozen by a defeated president mulling his options, mostly forgoing the mechanics of governing and blocking his inevitable successor. Trump’s appearance at the annual Veterans Day commemoration at Arlington National Cemetery was his […]
‘Devastating’: Top Pentagon leadership gutted as fears rise over national security
The firing of Defense Secretary Mark Esper kicked off a rapid-fire series of high-level departures at the Pentagon on Tuesday, setting off alarms on Capitol Hill that the White House was installing loyalists to carry out President Donald Trump’s wishes during an already tense transition. In quick succession, top officials overseeing policy, intelligence and the […]
President-elect Biden picks longtime aide Ron Klain as chief of staff
President-elect Joe Biden named Ron Klain, a veteran of Capitol Hill, to be his White House chief of staff, the transition said in a news release. Klain, 59, is a longtime Democratic operative who has strong ties to Biden, largely as his chief of staff during Biden’s first years as vice president. He also coordinated […]
U.S. Hits All-Time High For COVID-19 Hospitalizations, New Cases Hit All Time High
The number of hospitalizations linked to COVID-19 has hit an all-time high after medical facilities across the U.S. reported that 61,964 patients were hospitalized on Tuesday with serious cases of the virus, the latest sign that the worst of the pandemic may lie ahead. The figure was tallied by the COVID Tracking Project, an organization affiliated […]
Pompeo Says There Will Be Smooth Transition To ‘Second Trump Administration’
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo appeared to completely dismiss the results of the U.S. presidential election on Tuesday, saying “There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration.” Pompeo’s comment came in response to a reporter asking if the State Department is prepared to engage with President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team and if […]
Trump loyalists given top Pentagon roles after several officials resign following Esper’s ouster
Several loyalists to President Donald Trump were promoted to top roles in the Defense Department on Tuesday after officials resigned following the unceremonious ouster of Defense Secretary Mark Esper. The Pentagon confirmed the resignations of the department’s top officials for policy and intelligence in a statement. The resignations include those of James Anderson, the acting […]
President-elect Joe Biden calls Trump’s failure to concede ‘an embarrassment’
President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday called President Donald Trump’s failure to concede the election “an embarrassment,” but said neither that nor the Trump administration’s stonewalling would stop him from getting to work. Asked for his thoughts on the anxiety some Americans feel over the president’s refusal to publicly admit defeat, Biden said, “I just think […]
Bob Cesca: It’s Biden’s job to act like a grownup. But “unity” and “civility” are a long way off
If there’s one thing President-elect Joe Biden understands it’s that chief executives lead by example. Presidents set the tone for the nation. In that regard, there’s nothing wrong with the next president “going high” in the face of a soon-to-be ex-president whose entire business model is going low — underground septic-tank low. In fact, Biden’s sentiments […]
Charlie Pierce: Biden’s Commitment to Competence Is an Automatic Reproach to the Current Administration*
Serendipity: The Transition Team’s Friend. Monday morning, the president-elect named the members of his pandemic task force and, by comparison to the hacks and quacks to whom we’ve been treated over the past several months, this one looks like the A-Team. From the New York Times: On Monday morning, the president-elect announced the leadership of […]
After Baseless Trump Claims, Barr Says DOJ Can Investigate Voter Fraud Allegations
As high-ranking Republicans refuse to speak out against President Donald Trump’s baseless allegations of mass voter fraud, Attorney General William Barr sent top federal prosecutors a memo that will further feed the narrative that there are questions about last week’s election of President-elect Joe Biden. Barr’s memo, sent to U.S. attorneys across the country, authorizes […]
HUD’s Ben Carson, Trump adviser Bossie test positive for coronavirus
Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson and David Bossie, an outside White House adviser, have both tested positive for Covid-19, becoming the latest figures in President Donald Trump’s orbit to contract the virus. Bossie, a longtime Trump ally who was tapped to lead the effort to contest the presidential election, tested positive Sunday, according […]
Trump campaign adviser: Conceding ‘is not even in our vocabulary right now’
Jason Miller, a senior adviser to President Donald Trump’s reelection effort, said Monday that the campaign was not remotely considering conceding to President-elect Joe Biden after the Democratic nominee was declared the winner of the 2020 White House race. “That word is not even in our vocabulary right now,” Miller said in an interviewon Fox […]
Pandemic Reaches Grim Milestone as Biden Moves to Take Charge
Coronavirus cases surged to a new record on Monday, with the United States now averaging 111,000 cases each day for the past week, a grim milestone amid rising hospitalizations and deaths that cast a shadow on positive news about the effectiveness of a potential vaccine. As the number of infected Americans passed 10 million and […]
President-Elect Biden Names COVID-19 Advisory Board Stacked With Experts
President-elect Joe Biden announced Monday the members of a COVID-19 advisory board as he transitions into the White House. The roster of experts and doctors will help guide his administration as it confronts a rapidly worsening crisis that has already killed hundreds of thousands of Americans and infected millions more. The board will be co-chaired […]
A little-known Trump appointee is in charge of handing transition resources to Biden — and she isn’t budging
A Trump administration appointee is refusing to sign a letter allowing President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team to formally begin its work this week, in another sign the incumbent president has not acknowledged Biden’s victory and could disrupt the transfer of power. The administrator of the General Services Administration, the low-profile agency in charge of federal […]
Biden plans to move fast on the pandemic and the economy
President-elect Joe Biden and his advisers plan this week to demonstrate a far more assertive strategy against the coronavirus than President Trump’s, and Biden may take a more proactive role in coming weeks in congressional negotiations over an economic stimulus package. Biden’s proposals, some of which were posted on his new transition website, include aiming […]
Op-Ed: Adam Schiff: Biden has his work cut out for him
Under unprecedented circumstances, and amid the worst pandemic in a century, Americans voted in record numbers and delivered a clear result: On Jan. 20, 2021, Joe Biden will become the 46th president of the United States. Biden will take office with a mandate to address a range of urgent issues. He will need to quickly […]
Eric Boehlert: Indecision 2020 — TV networks lose their nerve
For a news industry traditionally obsessed with being first to land a big story, it’s disorienting to watch TV networks look like they don’t want to be the one to call the 2020 presidential election winner. Stuck in neutral since Friday morning (“Biden on the verge of winning”), when it appeared it would be just […]
The Rude Pundit: Trump to America Today… Democracy Is for Suckers and Losers
I gotta tell you: I watched Trump’s appearance today in the White House press room with enough burning schadenfreude to power a small city. As much as I wanted to be appalled and saddened and enraged, mostly what I thought was “Suffer, motherfucker.” If Biden ends up winning, as almost everyone seems to believe he […]
Kamala Harris, daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants, elected nation’s first female vice president
A vice president-elect stepped forward on Saturday, and, for the first time in American history, she was not a man. Kamala Devi Harris, a daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants, is set to become the highest-ranking woman in the nation’s 244-year existence, as well as a high-profile representation of the country’s increasingly diverse composition. Harris’s […]
Joe Biden triumphs over Trump, prompting celebration across the U.S. but no concession from the president
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was elected the nation’s 46th president Saturday in a repudiation of President Trump powered by legions of women and minority voters who rejected his handling of the coronavirus pandemic and his divisive, bullying conduct in office. Biden’s victory was the culmination of four years of struggle for Democrats and others who […]
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, Trump aide test positive for Covid-19
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows tested positive for Covid-19, a source familiar with the diagnosis told NBC News on Friday. The news, first reported by Bloomberg, comes as the U.S. recorded the third straight day of more than 100,000 new coronavirus cases, breaking previous records. It also comes as President Donald Trump and […]
Biden Confident About Victory: ‘The Numbers Tell Us It’s Clear… We’re Going to Win This Race
Joe Biden addressed the nation from Wilmington, DE late Friday evening, and with the votes in the remaining states continuing to trend in his direction but the networks yet to call the election, he was confident about his eventual victory, saying “we’re going to win this race with a clear majority.” “We don’t have a […]
Covid-19 cases break record for second day in a row, topping 120,000
A record number of coronavirus cases were reported Thursday, breaking a record set Wednesday of more than 100,000 cases in a single day. A total of 120,048 people tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday, nearly 16,000 more than on Wednesday, according to an NBC News tally. The United States has the highest number of coronavirus […]
‘This is getting insane’: Republicans push back against Trump’s false election claims
Republican lawmakers and officials are pushing back against President Donald Trump’s series of false claims Thursday night about the presidential election, although many did not mention him by name. Shortly before Trump made baseless claims at a news conference about massive voter fraud in Pennsylvania, Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., said in a statement that once […]
Biden predicts victory in 2020 race: ‘When the count is finished, we will be the winners’
Joe Biden predicted Wednesday that he would win the 2020 election over President Donald Trump when the final votes were counted. “After a long night of counting, it’s clear we’re winning enough statesto win 270 electoral votes to win the presidency,” Biden told a small group of reporters at the Chase Center on the Riverfront […]
Biden erases Trump lead in Georgia, margin shrinks in Pennsylvania
As an anxious nation watched into the wee hours of the morning Friday, Joe Biden took a slim lead in Georgia with the fate of the presidency remaining unknown and five closely watchedstates continuing to count ballots almost two days after polls closed. The unresolved election stoked tensions as voters — who turned out in […]
Joe Biden Receives Most Votes In Presidential Election History
There’s no clear winner yet in the 2020 presidential election, but Democratic nominee Joe Biden has already made history by winning the most votes a presidential candidate has ever received in a U.S. election. The former vice president has amassed more than 70 million votes so far, breaking the record Barack Obama nabbed in 2008 when […]
Trump eyes Supreme Court, but campaign takes election fight to state courts
When President Donald Trump vowed to ask the Supreme Court to halt ballot counting, he wasn’t actually outlining his campaign’s plan. In fact, some Republicans say, Trump didn’t even understand what he was calling for. But buried in Trump’s confusing claim was the seed of his campaign’s actual legal strategy, one they have been building […]
Republican allies break with Trump, say take time to count all the votes
Some Republicans are not falling in line behind President Donald Trump’s attempts to falsely declare victory and seek to halt some vote-counting in the presidential race, with several GOP leaders expressing rare public rebukes of the president. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., a Trump ally who usually avoids criticizing the president in public, told […]
BATTLEGROUNDS HANG IN BALANCE AS FINAL COUNTS GO ON
The presidential election remained undecided Wednesday evening, turning the nation’s attention to a handful of battleground states that continue to tabulate the crush of mail-in ballots that will decide whether Donald Trump or Joe Biden will be victorious. NBC News has projected the outcome in 44 states, giving Biden a narrow but growing lead over […]
Joe Biden Urges Supporters To ‘Keep The Faith’ Amid Slow Election Results
Democratic challenger Joe Biden urged his supporters to “keep the faith” amid slow results from a slate of battleground states in the presidential election, saying he believed he was on track to defeat President Donald Trump when all the votes are counted. “We knew this was going to go long, but who knew we were […]
Dems keep House, GOP holds key Senate seats
Democrats will maintain control of the House of Representatives, NBC News projects, but their path to taking control in the Senate narrowed as numerous Republican incumbents fended off strong opposition. Democrats, who were winning fewer House seats than they had hoped, failed to pick up some of the Senate seats they were banking on. Democratic […]
With nine states still counting millions of votes, Trump falsely claims he won
President Donald Trump made a series of false and misleading claims about the 2020 election and vote-counting processes early Wednesday morning, ranging from how he’s fared so far in the race to what will happen next. Here’s a look at his claims, including the states he incorrectly claimed to have won and baseless allegations that […]
TRUMP-BIDEN RACE REMAINS UNSETTLED AS LAST KEY STATES COUNT THEIR VOTES
President Donald Trump has won Florida and Ohio, NBC News projects, while Joe Biden picked up Minnesota and New Hampshire and leads in Arizona in Tuesday’s presidential election. Trump had to win Florida to have any real shot at re-election, most analysts agree, while Biden has multiple paths to victory that do not include the […]
Birx Internal Memo Reportedly Hits WH for Failing to Take ‘Aggressive Action’ Against Covid Third Wave: ‘This Is Not About Lockdowns’
Dr. Deborah Birx issued an internal report on Monday that took the White House to task for failing to take “much more aggressive action” as the country suffers from a massive resurgence in the coronavirus pandemic. According to the Washington Post, Birx, one of president’s key Covid-19 task force advisers repeatedly contradicted the president’s campaign “rounding […]
Undeterred by Pandemic, Americans Prepare to Deliver Verdict on Trump
Voters on both sides of the nation’s widening political divide prepared on Monday to render a verdict on President Trump’s four tumultuous years in the White House and, in particular, his management of the coronavirus pandemic that has upended American life for the past eight months. As Mr. Trump and Joseph R. Biden Jr. raced […]
Nancy Pelosi: ‘We’re Ready For It All’ If Trump Tries To Create Election Chaos
On the eve of an election in which the president of the United States is signaling he’ll do anything to win, including promoting violence and cheating, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) says she’s been methodically preparing for months for Donald Trump to try to steal the election and is confident Americans’ votes will be be […]
The First Election Day Results Are Already In in Dixville Notch, Thanks To A Quirky Old Law
Two small rural communities in New Hampshire cast their ballots just after midnight on Tuesday ― and, thanks to a quirk in state election law, they’ve also tallied the vote and released the results. All five voters in Dixville Notch chose Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden over President Donald Trump. The first ballot was cast by lifelong […]
Charlie Pierce: The Republican Party Went Around the Bend Before Trump, and It Will Stay There After
I am intrigued by this story in the New York Times, not necessarily for what it says, which is some prime Grade-A Both Sides ground beef, but for what it portends for the postgame analysis over the next several months. It’s all very ill-omened and it has made me doubt if, even now, anyone is […]
Federal court hears last-minute Republican bid Monday morning to toss ballots in Texas
A federal court in Houston is holding an emergency hearing Monday morning over a last-ditch effort by Republicans in Texas to toss out nearly 127,000 ballots in a Democratic-leaning county. U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Hanen will hear arguments on the bid by a quartet of Texas Republicans — three candidates and a conservative activist […]
MAGA ‘Trump Trains’ Jam Roadways In Several States
Make America Great Again “Trump trains” jammed traffic on highways Sunday in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Texas, Indiana and Virginia in an effort to support President Donald Trump. Trump supporters, several in pickup trucks and vans, shut down lanes on the busy Garden State Parkway near Lakeland, New Jersey, and clogged the nearby Marion Cuomo […]
Trump Suggests He Will Fire Anthony Fauci ‘A Little Bit After’ Election
President Donald Trump suggested Sunday he would fire Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert and a touchstone of scientific wisdom during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, shortly after the election. Trump made the comments to a crowd of supporters in Florida late Sunday, the latest campaign stop in his frantic final push before […]
Biden Responds To Reports Trump Will Declare Early Victory: ‘Not Going To Steal This’
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said Sunday President Donald Trump will not “steal” the election amid reports he planned to declare a premature victory on election night if early counts show him ahead, despite a mountain of mail-in votes that may take days or weeks to count. The comments come amid theWhite House’s ongoing efforts […]
Eric Boehlert: America turns on Trump — we’re not “polarized” after all
As Trump’s failed presidency limps into the final stages of its first term and he trails Joe Biden by historic margins, a key media myth is being burst right before our eyes. Instead of the deeply “polarized,” bitterly divided country the press insists we have become, where every hot-button issue divides the nation by a […]
The Rude Pundit: Donald Trump, See You Next Tuesday
Donald Trump is a cunt. He has been a cunt for his entire worthless life. He might not be the most racist president, but he is certainly the cuntiest. He is campaigning by being as cunty as any human being has ever been, buoyed by the barbaric whoops of his crowds of cunts. He surrounds […]
Donald Trump Jr. dismisses coronavirus deaths: ‘The number is almost nothing’
Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, falsely claimed on Thursday that the number of Americans dying from the coronavirus amounts to “almost nothing.” More than 8.9 million people in the United States have been infected with Covid-19, according to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University, resulting in more than 228,000 deaths. The U.S. […]
More People Have Now Voted Early In Texas Than In All Of 2016
Texans have already cast more ballots in the presidential election than they did during all of 2016, an unprecedented surge of early voting in a state that was once the country’s most reliably Republican, but may now be drifting toward battleground status. More than 9 million ballots have been cast as of Friday morning in […]
‘American fiasco’: House coronavirus oversight report rips Trump admin’s pandemic response
A House subcommittee on the coronavirus crisis issued a report Friday blasting the Trump administration’s response to the pandemic, calling it “among the worst failures of leadership in American history.” “The virus is a global scourge, but it has been an American fiasco, killing more people in the United States than in any other country,” […]
U.S. records more than 90,000 Covid-19 cases in one day for the first time
The United States reached a daily record for coronavirus when more than 90,000 cases were reported on Thursday, according to the latest NBC News tally. More than 30 states reported more than 1,000 cases. It was the first time the U.S. has crossed 90,000 cases in one day, almost 10,000 more than the previous high […]
‘Anonymous’ Author Behind Anti-Trump ‘Resistance’ Op-Ed And Book Identified
Miles Taylor has been identified as the author of a notorious anonymous op-ed in The New York Times in 2018 that claimed he was part of a secret “resistance” inside President Donald Trump’s administration. Taylor revealed himself Wednesday in a tweet. In a statement accompanying the announcement, Taylor observed that “Trump sees personal criticism as subversive,” adding, […]
Supreme Court won’t block mail ballots in North Carolina arriving up to six days after Election Day
The Supreme Court late Wednesday declined to block lower court rulings that allow six extra days for accepting ballots sent by mail in North Carolina. The justices left the later deadline in place, a victory for Democrats in a presidential battleground state. Earlier in the day, in a defeat for Republicans, the court declined to […]
US may not be back to normal until 2022, Fauci says
As Covid-19 cases continue to jump during the fall surge, Dr. Anthony Fauci says there’s little chance of normalcy on the horizon. The US will have a vaccine in the next few months, but there’s a chance a “substantial proportion of the people” won’t be vaccinated until the second or third quarter of 2021, Fauci […]
Mission Accomplished? White House Science Office Credits Trump for ‘Ending the Covid-19 Pandemic’ as a First-Term Accomplishment
Fact-check: False…x 70,000 a day. The White House Science Policy Office made an outrageously inaccurate claim on Tuesday, sending out a press release with a list of President Donald Trump’s first-term accomplishments. Among them: “ending the Covid-19 pandemic.” That is, of course, patently absurd. The nation is currently the throes of a third wave of […]
U.S. Early Voting Tops 70 Million, Continuing Historic Pace
More than 70 million Americans have cast ballots in the U.S. presidential election, more than half the total turnout of the 2016 election with one week to go until Election Day, according to a Tuesday tally from the U.S. Elections Project. The tally, which shows a record-breaking pace that could lead to the highest voter […]
Obama slams Trump over coronavirus: ‘He’s jealous of Covid’s media coverage’
Former President Barack Obama on Tuesday harshly criticized President Donald Trump‘s response to the coronavirus pandemic and faulted him for turning the White House into a “hot zone.” “More than 225,000 people in this country are dead. More than 100,000 small businesses have closed. Half a million jobs are gone in Florida alone. Think about that,” Obama said, speaking from Orlando […]
Trump To Women: ‘We’re Getting Your Husbands Back To Work’
President Donald Trump might need a refresher on what century he’s living in. In yet another appeal to female voters ahead of Election Day, Trump pledged on Tuesday that if reelected, he’d be sure to get their “husbands back to work.” He made the astonishing remark during a campaign rally in Lansing, Michigan, after falsely […]
Bob Cesca: Time to dump the presidential dilettante — he’s a cruel and incompetent failure
In the earliest days of the Trump crisis, just about a month after the inauguration, I received the horrifying news that my best friend and podcast partner, Chez Pazienza, had died of a drug overdose. It was the evening of Feb. 25, 2017, and the shock still hasn’t quite worn off. In fact, I ask myself […]
President Trump falsely declares coronavirus is ‘ending’ as virus rates spike and financial markets dip
Faced with record levels of U.S. coronavirus infections and a new White House outbreak, President Trump declared Monday that the pandemic was “ending anyway,” further tying his reelection bid to his ability to convince voters, including those at large rallies that defy health authorities, that the viral danger is fading. Financial markets fell as he […]
Jared Kushner Mocks Black Lives Matter Activists: They ‘Go On Instagram And Cry’
Jared Kusher, a top aide and son-in-law to President Donald Trump, appeared to mock Black Lives Matter activists on Monday, claiming many people who spoke out against George Floyd’s death in May were simply “virtue signaling.” “Fox & Friends” host Brian Kilmeade asked Kushner about working with rapper Ice Cube ― who has faced backlash […]
Supreme Court won’t let late mail ballots count in Wisconsin
Wisconsin cannot count mail ballots that arrive well after the polls close under an order issued Monday by the Supreme Court, a defeat for Democrats in a battleground state. By a vote of 5-3, the justices declined to lift a lower court ruling preventing the state from counting mail ballots that arrive as much as […]
Senate confirms Amy Coney Barrett, heralding new conservative era for Supreme Court
The Republican-led Senate voted narrowly Monday to confirm Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, ending an acrimonious confirmation process and handing President Donald Trump a political victory days before the election. Barrett, 48, a federal appeals judge, will fill the seat left vacant by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the liberal icon who died Sept. […]
Charlie Pierce: Trump’s Executive Order on Federal Employees Would Be a Win for the Swamp
Last Wednesday, El Caudillo Del Mar-a-Lago gave us yet another very good reason to vote him toward his date with the federal courts next week, albeit an obscure one, and one that has been obscured by the campaign, the Amy Coney Barrett railroad in the Senate, and the pandemic. Read the rest of Charlie Pierce’s piece at […]
Putin rejects Trump’s criticism of Hunter Biden’s business
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday that he saw nothing criminal in Hunter Biden’s past business ties with Ukraine or Russia, marking out his disagreement with one of Donald Trump’s attack lines in the U.S. presidential election. Putin was responding to comments made by Trump during televised debates with Democratic challenger Joe Biden ahead […]
Barrett nomination clears Senate hurdle, putting her on course to confirmation to Supreme Court
Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination broke through one more hurdle ahead of her all-but-assured installation to the Supreme Court as the coronavirus pandemic — which has inextricably been intertwined with the story of her nomination — once again intersected with her confirmation fight. Senators voted about 1:30 p.m. in a rare Sunday session, 51 to […]
White House signals defeat in pandemic as coronavirus outbreak roils Pence’s office
The presidential campaign was roiled this weekend by a fresh outbreak of the novel coronavirus at the White House that infected at least five aides or advisers to Vice President Pence, a spread that President Trump’s top staffer acknowledged Sunday he had tried to avoid disclosing to the public. With the election a little over […]
The Rude Pundit: Biden Wipes Trump’s Cards Off the Table
Last night’s presidential debate at Christian institution Belmont University in Nashville, TN, was notable for President Donald Trump calmly lying and being an asshole for the whole thing. Sure, he wasn’t a bellowing shit-blower like he was in the first debate, where he desperately tried and failed through sheer belligerent motherfuckery to provoke Democratic nominee […]
Eric Boehlert: Getting away with it — Trump’s debate lies greeted with media shrugs
Trump’s first sentence in the debate last night was a lie, when he claimed more than two million Americans were “expected” to die form the Covid-19 virus, therefore America’s current death toll of 220,000 isn’t so bad. From that point on, Trump lied without pause during the 90 minute debate. He lied about the Russia […]
CDC warns of ‘distressing trend’ in Covid-19 cases as country heads into fall
The government’s top public health officials warned that the number of Covid-19 cases is rising across a majority of the country in a rare briefing Wednesday afternoon. Dr. Jay Butler, deputy director for infectious diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the agency has noted a “distressing trend” in which coronavirus case […]
Pence chief of staff, senior political adviser both test positive for Covid-19
Two of Vice President Mike Pence’s closest political advisers have tested positive for Covid-19. Pence’s office said in a statement Saturday night that his chief of staff, Marc Short, “began quarantine” after learning of the diagnosis and was cooperating with a contact-tracing effort. “Vice President Pence and Mrs. Pence both tested negative for COVID-19 today, […]
GOP to high court: Halt longer N. Carolina absentee deadline
President Donald Trump’s campaign and North Carolina’s Republican legislative leaders asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to return the state to a shorter deadline for accepting late-arriving absentee ballots postmarked by Election Day. The legislative leaders argue in their appeal that the longer deadline, which was extended after early voting had begun, will result […]
More Than 47 Million Ballots Cast In U.S. Election, Eclipsing 2016 Early Turnout
U.S. voters have cast more than 47 million votes for the Nov. 3 presidential election, eclipsing total early voting from the 2016 election with 12 days to go, according to data compiled by the U.S. Elections Project. Some 47.5 million Americans have turned in ballots, roughly eight times the number of early votes cast at […]
Man with van full of guns had checklist to ‘execute’ Joe Biden, authorities say
A man who was arrested in North Carolina on child pornography charges this year had a van full of guns and drove within 4 miles of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s home with a checklist to “execute” him, authorities alleged. The allegations against the man, Alexander Treisman, were in a detention order filed this month […]
4 takeaways from the last presidential debate of 2020
It was probably as normal as things could get this election cycle. After the last faceoff turned into a name-calling shouting match, Thursday night’s presidential debate, moderated by NBC News correspondent Kristen Welker, resembled a much more traditional matchup and provided one the clearest contrasts yet between President Donald Trump and his Democratic opponent, former […]
Pope Francis becomes 1st pope to endorse same-sex civil unions
Pope Francis became the first pontiff to endorse same-sex civil unions in comments for a documentary that premiered Wednesday, sparking cheers from gay Catholics and demands for clarification from conservatives, given the Vatican’s official teaching on the issue. The papal thumbs-up came midway through the feature-length documentary “Francesco,” which premiered at the Rome Film Festival. […]
Russia, Iran have obtained voter data in election interference campaign, according to the DNI
Senior national security officials alerted the American public Wednesday that Iran and Russia have both obtained voter data in their efforts to interfere in the 2020 U.S. election. “This data can be used by foreign actors to attempt to communicate false information to registered voters that they hope will cause confusion, sow chaos, and undermine […]
In rare gloves-off moment, Obama calls on voters to hand Trump a clear defeat
Former President Barack Obama tore into President Donald Trumpin a fiery speech Wednesday as being unable to take “the job seriously,” faulting him for lacking a plan to address the coronavirus, emboldening racism, working to rip away health care protections without an alternative, tweeting conspiracy theories and engaging regularly in lies and indecent behavior. It […]
Rudy Giuliani denies inappropriate behavior in upcoming ‘Borat’ movie
Rudy Giuliani on Wednesday denied touching himself inappropriately in the upcoming “Borat” movie, insisting that a reported clip from the film was taken out of context. “The Borat video is a complete fabrication,” Giuliani wrote on Twitter. “I was tucking in my shirt after taking off the recording equipment. At no time before, during, or […]
Trump Records Shed New Light on Chinese Business Pursuits
President Trump and his allies have tried to paint the Democratic nominee, Joseph R. Biden Jr., as soft on China, in part by pointing to his son’s business dealings there. Senate Republicans produced a report asserting, among other things, that Mr. Biden’s son Hunter “opened a bank account” with a Chinese businessman, part of what […]
With coronavirus concerns a factor, it’s all tied up in North Carolina: Poll
Coronavirus concerns lift former Vice President Joe Biden in North Carolina while the state’s sizable evangelical and rural populations pull for President Donald Trump, producing a dead-heat contest in a state that’s backed Democratic presidential candidates just twice in the last half century. Biden has 49% support among likely voters in a new ABC News/Washington […]
McConnell signals Senate Republicans don’t want bigger Covid-19 relief bill before election
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told his fellow Republican members in a closed-door meeting Tuesday that he is “encouraging” the White House to wait until after the Nov. 3 election to reach an agreement on a Covid-19 relief package with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, according to three sources familiar with the conversation. McConnell, R-Ky., was […]
Trump abruptly ends ’60 Minutes’ interview, taunts CBS’ Lesley Stahl
President Donald Trump abruptly ended a taped interview at the White House with “60 Minutes” reporter Lesley Stahl on Tuesday then taunted the veteran CBS News journalist in tweets. “I am pleased to inform you that, for the sake of accuracy in reporting, I am considering posting my interview with Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes, […]
Bob Cesca: Let’s imagine the unimaginable… A second term for Donald Trump
With the high-water mark of the election just 14 days away, the tragedy of Nov. 8, 2016, haunts me more and more. Four years ago, nearly everyone, including Donald Trump himself, was convinced Hillary Clinton was all but guaranteed a resounding victory. I remember articles predicting that Clinton would win the entire East Coast, including South Carolina. […]
Esquire Politics Zoom Meeting with Charlie Pierce!! Subscribe and Register Here!
Election discussion with Charlie Pierce of Esquire Magazine! This Friday, October 23rd. Register and subscribe at the link below! Esquire Magazine
U.S. charges Russian intelligence officers in several high-profile cyberattacks
The United States on Monday unsealed criminal charges against six Russian intelligence officers in connection with some of the world’s most damaging cyberattacks, including disruption of Ukraine’s power grid and the release of a mock ransomware virus that infected computers globally and caused billions of dollars in damage. That group, authorities alleged, also hacked computers […]
Trump calls Fauci a ‘disaster’ and says it would be a ‘bomb’ if he fired him
President Donald Trump on Monday attacked Dr. Anthony Fauci during a phone call with campaign staff, calling the infectious disease specialist a “disaster” and saying every time he goes on television there is a “bomb,” but there would be “a bigger bomb if you fire him,” according to a recording of the call obtained by […]
Supreme Court Tie Blocks GOP Effort To Limit Mail-In Voting In Pennsylvania
The U.S. Supreme Court delivered a blow to Republicans on Monday with a split vote that effectively allows Pennsylvania to keep its extended mail-in voting period. The justices’ 4-4 tie leaves in place a lower court ruling that will let state officials count ballots received after Election Day unless there’s evidence they were sent after the deadline. Election […]
Presidential Debate Commission Adopts New Rules To Mute Microphones
President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden will have their microphones cut off in Thursday’s debate while their rival delivers their opening two-minute answer to each of the debate topics. The 90-minute debate is divided into six 15-minute segments, with each candidate granted two minutes to deliver uninterrupted remarks before proceeding to an open debate. […]
Fauci admits administration has restricted his media appearances, says he’s not surprised Trump got COVID
This weekend, Americans face another surge in the COVID-19 pandemic. Infections have passed the 8 million mark and are rising rapidly. There are more than 218,000 dead. During the course of the pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci has been the physician most Americans have relied upon for their information. But now, instead of worrying soley about […]
More than 27 million ballots have already been cast. Here’s where early voting opens this week
Election Day is still 16 days away and more than 27 million ballots have already been cast, according to a survey of election officials by CNN, Edison Research, and Catalist. Voters in the 45 states and the District of Columbia that make pre-Election Day data available are already setting records. The ballots cast so […]
Nancy Pelosi: Pandemic Relief Needs A Deal By Tuesday To Pass By Election Day
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Sunday that the U.S. House and the Trump administration would need to come to an agreement on the next phase of pandemic-related economic stimulus by Tuesday for a coronavirus relief package to have any chance of passing before Election Day. “We have to freeze the design on some of […]
Eric Boehlert: Enablers — NBC rewards Trump for blowing up Biden debate
One week after refusing to participate in the officially sanctioned presidential debate, an unprecedented move in modern American politics, NBC News has rewarded Trump by clearing its Thursday primetime schedule to air a last-minute town hall with the previously Covid-19-infected president. As Trump stumbles to the end of his re-election campaign and denounces the press […]
The Rude Pundit: Trump Has Faced Less Punishment Than Three Women in Mississippi Arrested for Getting Health Care for Their Kids
I can’t stop thinking about this story. The Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration announced last month that law enforcement had arrested and charged three separate women for committing fraud against the state’s health insurance system, which falls under its TennCare program. Two of the women, Nikki Carr and Nakina Brooks, face 24 years in […]
Michigan Gov. Lashes Trump For Endangering Her Life After Rally ‘Lock Her Up’ Chant
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer demanded an end to President Donald Trump inciting violence against her after she accused him of doing it yet again at his latest rally in her state on Saturday. Whitmer, the target of an alleged kidnap plot by Trump-supporting militia members, called out at the president after he attacked her at […]
Global Coronavirus Cases Rise By One-Day Record Of 400,000
Global coronavirus cases rose by more than 400,000 for the first time late on Friday, a record one-day increase as much of Europe enacts new restrictions to curb the outbreak. Europe, which successfully tamped down the first surge of infections, has emerged as the new coronavirus epicentre in recent weeks and is reporting on average […]
Biden routs Trump in September fundraising, $383M to $248M
President Donald Trump, the Republican National Committee and affiliated joint fundraising committees raised $247.8 million in September, Trump’s campaign announced, leaving him at a significant cash deficit to former Vice President Joe Biden entering the final stretch of the 2020 election. Biden’s campaign and affiliated committees raised a record $383 million in September, and they […]
Chris Christie, out of hospital after battling Covid, urges Trump to go further on masks
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, newly recovered from the coronavirus, urged President Donald Trump on Friday to encourage the wearing of face masks among Americans. In his first TV interview since contracting Covid-19 earlier this month, Christie — a close ally of the White House who served as the president’s debate coach last month […]
In Town Halls, Trump Defends Dangerous Theories As Biden Paints Vision For Future
President Donald Trump refused to denounce dangerous conspiracy theories and undercut efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19 as former Vice President Joe Biden called for a national strategy to combat the pandemic and painted his vision for America as the two held dueling town halls Thursday night that forced viewers to choose whom to […]
Kamala Harris suspends travel after staffer tests COVID-19 positive
Joe Biden’s presidential campaign said Thursday that vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris will suspend in-person events until Monday after two people associated with the campaign tested positive for coronavirus. The campaign said Biden had no exposure, though he and Harris spent several hours campaigning together in Arizona on Oct. 8. Harris was scheduled to travel […]
Senate Judiciary Sets Oct. 22 Vote On Amy Coney Barrett’s Nomination
The Senate Judiciary Committee convened on Thursday set an Oct. 22 vote on Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination as Republicans race to confirm President Donald Trump’s pick before the Nov. 3 election. The session is without Barrett after two long days of public testimony in which she stressed that she would be her own […]
Anthony Fauci Urges Americans To Reconsider Thanksgiving Gatherings Amid Pandemic
Dr. Anthony Fauci on Wednesday revealed that his family’s Thanksgiving “is going to look very different this year” and said Americans “may have to bite the bullet” and rethink holiday gatherings as the coronavirus pandemic continues raging. Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, told “CBS Evening News” anchor Norah O’Donnell that his children, who live in […]
Trump ‘not happy’ with Barr, won’t commit to keeping AG in potential second term
President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he is “not happy” with Attorney General William Barr after the Justice Department’s investigation of the Obama administration found no wrongdoing and quietly concluded with no criminal charges. Trump made the comments to Newsmax TV. He also declined to say whether he would keep Barr on as attorney general […]
Biden continues to hold double-digit national lead over Trump in NBC News/WSJ poll
Less than three weeks before Election Day, Joe Biden maintains a double-digit national lead over President Donald Trump, with 6 in 10 voters saying that the country is on the wrong track and that it is worse off than it was four years ago. What’s more, a majority of voters say they have major concerns […]
Dr. Irwin Redlener: It’s Time for Trump’s Top Doctors to Step Down and Speak Up
Dear Colleagues, I certainly don’t need to tell any of you how unprecedented and difficult these past eight months have been. As I write this, more than 7.5 million Americans have tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. The tragedy of what the country has been through is what you all have been living non-stop. Most tragic, of […]
Trump’s Probe Into ‘Unmasking’ Conspiracy Ends With No Wrongdoing Found: Report
A federal investigation meant to target Obama administration officials for “unmasking” the names of individuals in classified intelligence reports ended recently without finding any wrongdoing that the Trump administration could use as political ammunition, The Washington Post reported Tuesday. Attorney General William Barr appointed Texas U.S. Attorney John Bash in May to look into the […]
Obama to hit the campaign trail for Biden ‘soon’ as race enters final weeks
Former President Barack Obama is expected to hit the campaign trail “soon” for Joe Biden, his former vice president — a move that could help animate Democrats as the presidential race enters its pivotal final weeks. “President Obama plans to hit the trail soon, in addition to all the other activities he’s undertaken all year […]
Key takeaways from the 2nd day of the SCOTUS nomination hearing
The Senate Judiciary Committee spent Tuesday questioning Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett, in a marathon session that featured exchanges about judicial independence, the future of the Affordable Care Act and any election-related cases that could come before the Supreme Court later this year. Here are the key takeaways from the second day of […]
Supreme Court allows Trump administration to end census count early
The Supreme Court on Tuesday effectively allowed the government to stop the census count immediately, blocking a lower court order that would have required the Trump administration to continue gathering census information in the field until the end of October. The Census Bureau said it wanted to stop the count so that it could start […]
Bob Cesca: Why the Democrats must fight to stop Barrett… With her on the court, the ACA is toast
Donald Trump and his henchmen keep promising to protect health insurance coverage for Americans with pre-existing conditions. They’re lying to you, probably because it’s what they do best and also because the president has no idea how to spell “ACA,” much less describe what’s in the law. The truth is that Trump’s entire agenda circulates around […]
White House doctor says Trump tested negative for coronavirus ‘on consecutive days’
Sean P. Conley, Trump’s doctor, said Monday that the president recently tested negative for the coronavirus on “consecutive days,” although he did not specify which days. Conley added that the negative tests were one of several factors contributing to the conclusion by Trump’s medical team that the president “is not infectious to others.” “In response […]
Two Parties Offer Dueling Views of Amy Coney Barrett as Confirmation Fight Begins
Republicans and Democrats offered sharply divergent arguments on Monday in a Supreme Court confirmation fight whose outcome is likely to steer the court to the right for years, vying to define Judge Amy Coney Barrett and frame the political stakes of President Trump’s rush to install her before he faces voters. In a marathon day […]
Johnson & Johnson pauses clinical trials for a Covid-19 vaccine over participant’s illness
Johnson & Johnson has paused its clinical trials for a Covid-19 vaccine candidate after a participant fell ill, just weeks after it announced that trials were in their final stage. A pause is not entirely unexpected in vaccine trials. When another vaccine trial was temporarily stopped last month, experts hailed the move as an example […]
Trump tells Florida rally he feels ‘powerful’ and wants to ‘kiss’ everyone after Covid-19 battle
President Donald Trump returned to the campaign trail on Monday, his first since he was hospitalized for Covid-19, taking familiar hits at his Democratic rival Joe Biden and urging his supporters in the crucial battleground state to vote . At Trump’s Florida rally, the president was also cavalier about his battle with Covid-19, telling the […]
Charlie Pierce: Amy Coney Barrett’s Nomination Is the Culmination of Various Long-Term Right-Wing Projects
If the Senate Judiciary Committee were to eliminate the roundelay involving opening statements and get right to the questioning of Judge Amy Coney Barrett, I, for one, would not be sad about that. I realize they’re aimed at the greater world outside the hearing room, and I realize that the historic basis for having a […]
Poll: Lead among women fuels Biden’s 12-point edge
A huge edge among likely female voters is fueling a 12-point national lead for Democratic nominee Joe Biden over President Donald Trump, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released Sunday. The Post/ABC poll showed Biden leading Trump among likely voters, 54 percent to 42 percent. The lead is consistent with other national polls conducted […]
Anthony Fauci Says He Didn’t Consent To Trump Ad That Takes His Words Out Of Context
A campaign ad that appears to show Dr. Anthony Fauci endorsing President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic used a clip taken out of context and was not approved by Fauci before it aired, the doctor told media outlets Sunday. “They did this without my permission and my comments were taken out of context,” […]
Eric Trump Says Nonexistent COVID-19 Vaccine His Dad ‘Took’ Worked Really ‘Well’
Eric Trump on Sunday touted a nonexistent “vaccine” that he claimed dramatically helped his father, President Donald Trump, recover from COVID-19 after the president “worked” hard to get it developed. The president didn’t get a vaccine, nor has he developed one, nor is it clear he’s recovered. In fact, doctors administered a steroid, an antiviral drug […]
Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s Hearings Begin Today. Here’s What to Watch For.
A deeply divided Senate Judiciary Committee will kick off four days of contentious confirmation hearings on Monday for Judge Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court, drawing battle lines that could reverberate through the election. Democrats will arrive ready to go on the offensive, portraying Judge Barrett’s nomination as an election-season power […]
Debate Commission Cancels 2nd Trump-Biden Debate After Campaign Disputes Over Covid Safety Protocols
The Commission on Presidential Debates officially canceled its second candidate forum between President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden, scheduled for next Thursday, October 15th. According to a statement from the CPD, the bipartisan group has scrapped next week’s town hall after Trump refused to participate after the commission insisted on holding the debate […]
White House, Congress continue pressing on economic relief package but Pelosi bristles over Trump approach
The White House sent mixed signals Thursday about the direction of renewed stimulus talks, resulting in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi confronting Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin over who speaks for the president. The developments occurred two days after President Trump ordered Mnuchin to stop negotiating with Pelosi, only to announce Thursday that talks were back on. […]
Rasping And Coughing Trump Insists He’s ‘In Great Shape’ As Voice Cracks In Crazy Rant On Hannity
President Donald Trump was hoarse throughout an extended telephone interview on Fox News with Sean Hannity on Thursday, yet insisted he was feeling great. At one point, Trump lost his voice while accusing former Vice President Joe Biden of “choking like a dog” during their debate last week. He also struggled with his voice while discussing […]
McConnell says he’s avoided the White House for months because of Covid concerns
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday he hasn’t gone to the White House since August because their approach to safety during the coronavirus pandemic “is different than mine.” Speaking at an event in Erlanger, Kentucky, McConnell, the most powerful Republican in Congress, suggested he didn’t think the Trump administration had been doing enough to […]
‘Just Grab The Bitch’: Militia Plotted To Kidnap Michigan Governor, Feds Say
A Michigan militia was plotting to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat who has come under fire from President Donald Trump, according to the FBI. Defendants Adam Fox, Barry Croft, Ty Garbin, Kaleb Franks, Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta were charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping, according to court documents. The domestic terrorism investigation involved […]
Trump vows not to participate in virtual debate with Biden
President Donald Trump vowed Thursday not to participate in next week’s debate with Democratic nominee Joe Biden after organizers announced it will take place virtually because of the president’s diagnosis of COVID-19. “I’m not going to do a virtual debate” with Biden, Trump told Fox News, moments after the Commission on Presidential Debates announced the […]
Second Presidential Debate Will Go ‘Virtual,’ With Candidates in Remote Locations
The second presidential debate between President Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Joe Biden will be “virtual,” with the two participants holding forth from separate remote locations, a new twist to the event added in the wake of the president being exposed to the coronavirus. The debate’s “town hall” format will remain in place, the Commission […]
5 Takeaways From The Vice Presidential Debate
Vice President Mike Pence didn’t come to the first vice presidential debate against Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) to answer questions about what’s going on right now. Since the train wreck of a presidential debate last week, the nation’s government has been in a total frenzy. President Donald Trump was just hospitalized for several days after […]
Justice officials drove family separation policy, draft watchdog report says
Top former Justice Department officials, including U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and deputy Rod Rosenstein, helped drive a Trump administration policy that resulted in the separation of children from their parents, a draft inspector general report shows. The “zero tolerance” policy ultimately separated nearly 3,000 children from their parents for crossing the border illegally, which […]
Pence, Harris to debate in sole VP matchup of 2020 amid heightened COVID-19 concerns – Pence agrees to Plexiglass divider
With plexiglass and more than 12 feet of distance separating them, Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic nominee Sen. Kamala Harris of California will debate in Salt Lake City on Wednesday night in the first and only one-on-one matchup between the vice presidential candidates. The showdown comes as President Donald Trump and several in his […]
Stephen Miller, top White House aide, tests positive for coronavirus
Stephen Miller, a senior policy aide to President Donald Trump tested positive for coronavirus, he said in a statement on Tuesday. “Today, I tested positive for COVID-19 and am in quarantine,” said Miller, who has been one of the chief architects of Trump’s immigration policies. He added he has been working remotely for the last […]
Trump chaotically reverses course on coronavirus relief talks, dangles new $1,200 stimulus checks
President Donald Trump reversed course Tuesday night and urged Congress to approve a series of coronavirus relief measures that he would sign, including a new round of $1,200 stimulus checks for Americans. Earlier in the day, he had halted talks between top Democrats and Republicans until “after I win” the election, which appeared to have […]
Bob Cesca: Trump’s Chernobyl moment… Phony patriotism can’t defeat this virus
There are so many scenes in Craig Mazin’s brilliant HBO miniseries “Chernobyl” that remind me of what’s happened here and now, in the United States, in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Obviously, there are myriad similarities between the Soviet Union’s deceptive response to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and the White House’s deceptive response to COVID-19 — principally, Donald […]
Kamala Harris And Mike Pence To Be Separated By Plexiglass During Tomorrow’s Debate
Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic challenger Kamala Harris will be separated by a plexiglass barrier during their debate on Wednesday, a source familiar with the matter said, in an effort to lower the risk of coronavirus transmission. The debate, the only one scheduled between the vice presidential candidates, is scheduled for Salt Lake City, […]
Biden says he’s not surprised Trump contracted the coronavirus
Joe Biden said Monday that he wasn’t surprised that President Donald Trump contracted Covid-19 because the president hasn’t followed health experts’ guidelines to wear a mask and social distance. “Quite frankly, I wasn’t surprised,” the 2020 Democratic presidential nominee said during an NBC News town hall with host Lester Holt in Miami. Read the rest […]
Trump returns to White House after leaving hospital, sheds mask for photo opportunity
President Donald Trump returned to the White House on Monday evening after being treated for Covid-19 for three days at Walter Reed Medical Center — and immediately took off his mask to pose for pictures before walking in. The highly choreographed moment on the Truman Balcony came hours after Trump suggested online that the disease […]
CNN Poll: Biden expands lead over Trump after contentious debate and President’s Covid diagnosis
Joe Biden’s advantage over President Donald Trump has expanded and the former vice president now holds his widest lead of the cycle with less than a month remaining before Election Day, according to a new nationwide CNN Poll conducted by SSRS. Among likely voters, 57% say they back Biden and 41% Trump in the poll […]
Charlie Pierce: Trump’s Little Sunday Road Trip Is Another Failure of His Ego
This was unprecedented in the long history of the human ego. Quarantined because he has a serious case of a deadly and highly contagious disease, the president* of the United States on Sunday decided to throw himself a parade. So he arranged to be locked in an airtight vehicle with a couple of sacrificial lambs […]
New Jersey Health Officials Say Hundreds Of Trump Fundraiser Guests Exposed To COVID-19
New Jersey health officials said Sunday that at least 206 guests may have been exposed to COVID-19 at President Donald Trump’s campaign fundraiser on Thursday, just hours before he announced his positive test result. The White House gave state officials the names of 206 people who attended the high-dollar event at the Trump National Golf […]
Pence and Harris prep for a debate with suddenly higher stakes
Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris are expected to take the debate stage Wednesday night against an extraordinary backdrop that has raised the stakes of an event that for decades has been a routine, inconsequential fixture of presidential elections. No vice president has debated while the president is known to be sick and […]
Doctors say Trump on steroid therapy, health improving after brief ‘episodes’
President Donald Trump’s medical team said Sunday that Trump’s condition was improving after multiple “episodes” over the weekend while also disclosing that Trump was placed on a steroid therapy typically used in more severe Covid-19 cases. The update came as Trump sought to portray himself as unaffected by the deadly disease, posting photos of himself […]
Trump criticized by medical experts after leaving hospital to drive by supporters
President Donald Trump on Sunday briefly left his hospital room at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he is being treated for Covid-19, to drive past a group of supporters, a move medical experts and Democrats swiftly criticized as “insanity.” The president posted a video to his Twitter account around 5:15 p.m. announcing that […]
Eric Boehlert: Trump has Covid-19… How Fox News infected America
News that Trump and first lady Melania have tested positive for the coronavirus means our national health emergency has taken an extraordinary turn. “If he becomes sick, it could raise questions about whether he should remain on the ballot at all,” the New York Times reported early Friday morning. After months of purposefully downplaying the […]
The Rude Pundit: Donald Trump Is Sick and I Really Wish I Could Feel Good About That
You’re gonna hear from a lot of people today imploring you to offer sympathy, thoughts, and prayers to President Donald Trump and Christmas-hating wife Melania since they have tested positive for COVID-19. You’re gonna hear how Democrats should show how above politics we are when it comes to the human pain of our opponents. And […]
Stock Shares, Oil Prices Sink After Trump Tests Positive For Virus
U.S. stock futures and Asian shares fell Friday after President Donald Trump said he and first lady Melania Trump had tested positive for the new coronavirus. The future contracts for both the S&P 500 and the Dow industrials lost 1.9%. Oil prices also slipped. Trump tweeted news of his test results just hours after the […]
Hope Hicks Tests Positive For Coronavirus After Traveling With Trump
Hope Hicks, a counselor and senior adviser to President Donald Trump, has tested positive for COVID-19, the president said Thursday night. Hicks, one of Trump’s closest and most trusted aides, traveled on Air Force One with the president to Cleveland for Tuesday’s presidential debate and to Minnesota for a rally on Wednesday, Bloomberg said. She […]
House passes Democratic pandemic relief measure as bipartisan talks continue
The House of Representatives passed a $2.2 trillion Covid-19 relief bill Thursday night as negotiations between the administration and Democrats have failed to yield a bipartisan deal and the time to pass new relief measures ahead of November’s election ticks away. The measure passed 214-207. No Republicans supported it and 18 Democrats voted against it. […]
Donald Trump, first lady test positive for Covid-19
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump tested positive for the coronavirus, he announced on Twitter early Friday. “Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!” Trump, 74, tweeted. Trump’s doctor, Sean Conley, said, “The President and First Lady […]
New York City’s daily positivity rate tops 3% amid ‘alarming increase’ in COVID-19 cases
New York City reported its highest daily positivity rate since June on Tuesday, the same day elementary schools started welcoming students back in person and a day before restaurants began indoor dining. The number — 3.25% — has been driven by rising cases in nine neighborhoods in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, officials said. […]
Chaos of 1st presidential debate prompts reactions of dismay, disappointment
Viewers from across the country let out their frustrations on social media while watching the first presidential debate as the face-off between President Trump and former Vice President Biden was marked by interruptions, name-calling and shouting from both candidates and moderator Chris Wallace. Many Twitter users were critical of Wallace for his moderating skills and […]
Trump Refuses To Condemn White Supremacists — Tells Proud Boys To ‘Stand By’
President Donald Trump refused to condemn white supremacist violence on Tuesday night, insisting without evidence that violence is a left-wing problem. During the first presidential debate, moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News asked Trump if he was willing to condemn “white supremacists and militia groups” and tell them to “stand down” in places like Kenosha, […]
‘Will you shut up, man?’: Debate devolves to name-calling as Trump derails with interruptions
The first presidential debate Tuesday devolved into name-calling, shouting and insults as President Donald Trump derailed the discussion with constant interruptions, unfettered by a moderator who struggled to keep calm. Trump talked constantly through the 90-minute debate, sometimes incoherently and other times rattling off unfounded and baseless attacks against Democrat Joe Biden while refusing to […]
Bob Cesca: Trump’s resort business is collapsing — is that why he pushed to reopen the economy?
For the past several decades, Donald Trump has been widely regarded as a great big phony. Everything about him is a mirage. He steals credit for the accomplishments of others, especially his predecessor, Barack Obama. His business model is all about slapping his goofy name on properties built by others. Even his outward appearance is […]
House Democrats unveil new $2.2T proposal for virus aid
House Democrats unveiled a scaled-back $2.2 trillion aid measure Monday in an attempt to boost long-stalled talks on COVID-19 relief, though there was no sign of progress in continuing negotiations between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. The latest Democratic measure would revive a $600-per-week pandemic jobless benefit and send a second […]
White House Reportedly Pressured CDC to Downplay Risks of Reopening Schools to Align With Trump’s Re-Election Agenda
According to a report by the New York Times, multiple White House staffers spent this summer pressuring the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to relax its recommendations about restarting schools in the fall and succeeded in getting several key documents and communications edited, because President Donald Trump wanted schools reopened before the election. […]
Trump’s Tax Debt Could Make Him A National Security Risk, Ethics Experts Say
Revelations that President Donald Trump is personally liable for more than $400 million in debt are casting a shadow over his presidency that ethics experts say raises national security concerns he could be manipulated to sway U.S. policy by organizations or individuals he’s indebted to. New scrutiny of Trump, who claims great success as a […]
Coronavirus has now killed 1 million people around the world
More than 1 million people have died from Covid-19 since the coronavirus was first identified late last year in China, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. With more than 200,000 deaths, U.S. continues to lead the global death toll, followed by Brazil at 142,000 and India at 95,500, the tally on Monday showed. […]
Charlie Pierce: Trump’s Tax Returns Have Exposed Him as a Massive Failure Who Thrived in the Age of Plutocracy
By happy accident, the latest bombshell from The New York Times dropped one day after some nice folks in New York sent along a copy of Without Compromise, a collection of pieces written for the late, lamented Village Voice by the late (and equally lamented) Wayne Barrett, who wrote that newspaper’s “Runnin’ Scared” column for […]
Former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale hospitalized after threatening to harm himself: Police
President Trump‘s former 2020 campaign manager and current campaign senior advisor, Brad Parscale, was taken into custody Sunday evening by Fort Lauderdale Police after allegedly threatening to harm himself at his home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, ABC News has confirmed. According to a public information officer with the Ft. Lauderdale Police Department, a 911 call […]
Amy Coney Barrett Confirmation Hearings To Begin Oct. 12, Sen. Lindsey Graham Says
Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Saturday that confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett are scheduled to begin Oct. 12. “That’d be 16 days from nomination,” Graham told Fox News’ Jeanine Pirro, adding that confirmation hearings for 24 of the 42 Supreme Court justices were held within 16 days of their […]
Biden Campaign Mocks Trump’s Drug Test Puffery: He Can ‘Have At It’
Joe Biden’s campaign showered Donald Trump with mockery on Sunday after the president again demanded that his presidential opponent take a drug test before their first debate on Tuesday. Trump baselessly suggested, first in a Sunday morning tweet and then later during a press conference, that Biden was taking performance enhancing drugs. Trump has been making similar […]
Trump lashes out at New York Times report alleging years of tax avoidance
The New York Times obtained two decades of President Donald Trump’s tax information, reporting Sunday that the president paid only $750 in federal income taxes the year he won the presidency and again during his first year in office. The Times, which said it plans to publish additional stories based on the documents, reported that […]
Eric Boehlert: Trump trying to steal the election is the only campaign story that matters
Faced with an authoritarian ruler who proudly announced he has no intention of abiding the election outcome, the New York Times faced an editorial choice this week — how big to play the story? How much attention should the Times give to one of the most un-democratic things any sitting U.S. president has every said […]
The Rude Pundit: If Trump Was Telling the Truth About Voter Fraud, People Would Be Arrested (But He’s Not)
Donald Trump is currently the president of the United States, whether we like it or not. And that’s apparently his plan for the 2020 election, as he savagely sows doubt about the validity of the vote for the presidency. He keeps speaking in desperate but vague tones, with his accusations now having reached Trumpian shorthand […]
Trump booed while visiting Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s casket at Supreme Court
President Donald Trump was loudly booed by members of the public on Thursday while visiting the casket of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who has been lying in repose outside the Supreme Court. Trump, accompanied by first lady Melania Trump, stood behind the court’s massive columns at the top of the court steps as people from […]
2 vehicles hit protesters in Los Angeles as Breonna Taylor protests continue throughout US
A pickup truck hit a protester Thursday night in Hollywood, California, and moments later a second vehicle hit a car participating in the same protest as it tried to leave the area, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The “largely peaceful” group of protesters began marching around 7 p.m. local time with only isolated […]
Sexy Liberal Virtual Tour #4 is THIS SATURDAY!!
Stephanie Miller, John Fugelsang, Hal Sparks and Frangela…..the Sexy Liberal All Stars are comin’ back with ALL NEW and fully charged doses of hilarious insanity. And you don’t even need to mail in a ballot!! The perfect event for the run-up to the election….It’s ALL NEW…it’s badass…it’s the Sexy Liberal Virtual Tour #4!! Get your […]
Trump Announces Phony New Health Care ‘Plan’
President Donald Trump really, really wants to fool voters into thinking he has a plan to make the health care system great again. But he really, really doesn’t. In Charlotte, North Carolina, on Thursday, Trump signed executive orders he claims address two of the biggest concerns Americans have about the health care system: coverage for […]
Adam Schiff: Why major democracy reforms are necessary – Los Angeles Times
Having wrested hard-won independence from a monarch, the founders of our nation sought to form a new union where executive power was constrained by other branches of government. They did so knowing that men are not angels, and believing that through a system of checks and balances that set “ambition against ambition,” a fledgling democracy […]
Fauci Slaps Down Rand Paul’s Idiotic Coronavirus Claims: ‘You’re Not Listening’
Dr. Anthony Fauci slapped down Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), a former ophthalmologist with dubious qualifications, for “repeatedly” misrepresenting coronavirus data to support politically motivated attacks during a Senate hearing Wednesday. When Paul asked why Fauci is a “big fan” of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo despite the state having one of the world’s worst death […]
Public mourns Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as she lies in repose at Supreme Court
Three days of public mourning for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a champion of equality and pioneer of women’s rights, began Wednesday when her casket arrived at the Supreme Court for a dramatic procession up the steps that were lined by more than a hundred of her former law clerks. Her casket was placed on […]
Trump Refuses To Commit To A Peaceful Transfer Of Power Post-Election
President Donald Trump declined to say if he would accept the election results in November. Asked at a press conference Wednesday if he would “commit to a peaceful transferal of power” if he lost the election, Trump said: “Well, we’re gonna have to see what happens.” The president then tried, again, to delegitimize mail-in voting, […]
No Cops Charged With Murder In The Killing Of Breonna Taylor
A grand jury in Louisville, Kentucky, has indicted Detective Brett Hankison in the case of the shooting death of Breonna Taylor, charging him with three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment. No charges were filed against Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Officer Myles Cosgrove, the other two police officers who were at the scene the night Taylor was […]
Romney supports election-year Senate vote on Trump’s Supreme Court nominee
Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, a frequent critic of President Donald Trump, announced Tuesday that he will support a vote on his Supreme Court nominee this year — which could happen before the Nov. 3 presidential election. “The Constitution gives the President the power to nominate and the Senate the authority to provide advice and […]
As nation surpasses 200,000 deaths, Trump keeps downplaying coronavirus
President Donald Trump this week continued to minimize the severity of the coronavirus pandemic even as the United States surpassed the grim milestone of 200,000 reported deaths related to COVID-19. Months after admitting to intentionally “playing it down” in order to avoid “panic,” Trump has bucked public health experts’ warnings about the virus at an […]
Trump To Announce His Supreme Court Nominee On Saturday
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday the announcement of his nominee to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will likely be made at 5 p.m. EDT on Saturday. “We’re getting very close to having a final decision made,” Trump told reporters at the White House. He said the announcement will be “I […]
Cindy McCain endorses Biden for president in rebuke of Trump
Cindy McCain on Tuesday endorsed Democratic nominee Joe Biden for president, a stunning rebuke of President Donald Trump by the widow of the GOP’s 2008 nominee. Trump has had a fraught relationship with members of John McCain’s family since he disparaged the Arizona senator during his 2016 campaign. But the McCains have stopped short of […]
Bob Cesca: How bad will it get if Trump wins a second term? Let me count the ways
It’s been 160 years, almost to the day, since the last time American voters faced an election with consequences as grievous as this one. The 2020 contest is a referendum on Donald Trump’s fascist idiocracy and the rise of a tyrannical Putin-style kleptocracy. Here. In our time. This harrowing assessment includes the rise of an […]
Biden refuses to say whether he’d expand the Supreme Court if he wins
Joe Biden would not say whether he opposes the mounting calls in his party to add more members to the U.S. Supreme Court in retaliation for Republicans filling a vacancy right before the presidential election. Biden told a local Wisconsin TV station Monday that he wants to keep the focus on President Donald Trump and […]
‘We’ve Got The Votes’: Lindsey Graham Says Senate Will Fill Ginsburg’s Seat Before Election
Sen. Lindsey Graham, the powerful chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Monday that the Republican Party has the votes to confirm Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s replacement on the Supreme Court before the Nov. 3 election. “They tried to destroy Brett Kavanaugh so they could fill the seat,” Graham said Monday on Fox News, lambasting […]
Ruth Bader Ginsburg Will Be First Woman Ever To Lie In State At U.S. Capitol
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday at 87, will be the first woman to lie in state at the U.S. Capitol, allowing mourners to come pay tribute to the trailblazing feminist litigator. After civil rights legend Rosa Parks died in 2005, she lay in honor at the Capitol — a distinction given to […]
CDC Reverses Guidelines Stating The Coronavirus Is Airborne Virus, Further Undermining Its Credibility
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reversed an update made to its coronavirus guidance that stated COVID-19 is an airborne virus. The health agency said that update, posted to its website on Friday, was made in error. “A draft version of proposed changes to these recommendations was posted in error to the agency’s official website,” the […]
The 6 Republican senators who will decide the Supreme Court fight
Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death on Friday kicked off what is sure to be the most consequential Supreme Court confirmation fight in decades — and puts a spotlight on the handful of senators whose votes will determine the future of the court. The universe of potential swing votes in the Senate is surprisingly small considering how […]
Pelosi says Democrats will ‘use every arrow in our quiver’ to block Trump’s Supreme Court nominee
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi paid tribute to the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Sunday, calling her a “powerful, brilliant brain on the court” in an appearance on ABC’s “This Week,” while refusing to take another impeachment inquiry off the table in order to block President Donald Trump’s upcoming nominee to the Supreme Court. “We have […]
Republicans are usually more fired up over the Supreme Court. Now, polls say Democrats are.
For decades, Republicans have galvanized voters around reshaping the Supreme Court, and they have benefited from it at the ballot box. But in a stark reversal, polls indicate that Democrats have the edge this year. National and battleground state surveys taken before Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died Friday showed that voters trust Joe Biden more […]
Eric Boehlert: The press is desperate for a horse race
On Sunday, The New York Times released fresh polling data from four swing states. The results were so good for Democrat Joe Biden that his campaign may have allowed itself a cautious smile or two — Biden had huge lead in Minnesota, and was ahead in Wisconsin, Nevada, and New Hampshire. Accompanying the polling article, […]
The Rude Pundit: Blaming 2016 Voters for the Supreme Court Is Worthless
Last night, right after I checked my phone after a joyful happy hour with friends on a rooftop bar, my buzz disappeared and I went immediately from chilled out to furnace-on-full-blast rage and gut-churning sadness about the death of Supreme Court Justice and genuine giant of American jurisprudence Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I thought about how […]
McConnell: I will fill Ginsburg’s seat with Trump’s nominee. Schumer says don’t dare.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Friday night that he intends to allow for a floor vote in the Senate to confirm a new nominee made by President Donald Trump to replace the Supreme Court vacancy left by Ruth Bader Ginsburg. “In the last midterm election before Justice Scalia’s death in 2016, Americans elected […]
