The Commentariat -- October 14, 2020

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Caitlin Oprysko of Politico: "Sen. Lindsey Graham on Wednesday clarified that he was being sarcastic when he referred to the 'good old days of segregation' and blasted his opponent for seeking to capitalize on the comments. During a recess in the confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, Graham (R-S.C.) insisted to reporters that his comments were made in jest and accused Jaime Harrison of launching a disingenuous attack. 'It was with deep sarcasm that I suggested that some legislative body would want to yearn for the good old days of segregationism,' the senator said. 'The point that I'm trying to make, there's nobody in America in the legislative arena wanting to take us back to that dark period in American history and for my opponent to suggest that says far more about him than me.'" Here's the clip from Wednesday morning's hearing. Given the context, I think he was being sarcastic. You decide:

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Wednesday are here.

Matt Viser of the Washington Post: "Joe Biden often crosses himself and looks toward the sky when saying something he jokingly might need to apologize for, regularly referring to the nuns who taught him during 12 years in Catholic school. Now, several recent TV ads from Biden's campaign show him standing with Pope Francis or huddled with a Jesuit priest. He's reading from a pulpit, bowing his head in prayer, or standing solemnly in front of a church's stained-glass window. And a radio spot includes a parishioner from Biden's home church talking about how the Democratic presidential nominee is a regular at Sunday Mass.... In the final stretch of a campaign in which Catholic voters are seen by both parties as a decisive bloc in several battleground states, Biden's campaign has increasingly highlighted his direct connection to the faith -- and his potential to make history as the country's second Catholic president, 60 years after John F. Kennedy became the first. The strategy comes as President Trump and his allies have sought to portray Democrats as anti-Catholic...."

Michael Grynbaum & Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times: "NBC said on Wednesday that it would broadcast a televised town hall with Mr. Trump from Miami on Thursday at 8 p.m. Eastern -- the exact time that Mr. Biden will appear on ABC for his own town-hall-style event in Philadelphia. Mr. Biden's town hall has been on the books since last week, after Mr. Trump, who had recently contracted the coronavirus, rejected plans to convert the second formal presidential debate into a virtual matchup; the debate was eventually canceled. Mr. Trump's campaign then sought its own telecast to rival Mr. Biden's, leading to a lengthy negotiation with NBC officials who wanted independent proof that the president would not pose a safety risk to other participants.... On Wednesday, NBC said the town hall would occur 'in accordance with the guidelines set forth by health officials' and proffered a statement from Clifford Lane, a clinical director at the National Institutes of Health. In the statement, Dr. Lane said he and Dr. Anthony S. Fauci ... had reviewed medical data about Mr. Trump's condition, including a P.C.R. test that the N.I.H. 'collected and analyzed' on Tuesday.... Dr. Lane concluded 'with a high degree of confidence' that the president is 'not shedding infectious virus,' NBC said." Here's an NBC News report. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: So Thursday night, I'm tuning the teevee to ABC, whether I listen on not, just in case the gremlins come through my tubes & wires & make note of what channel I'm watching. ~~~

     ~~~ Update. David Edwards of the Raw Story: "Staffers at NBC, CNBC and MSNBC were said to be angry this week after learning that ... Donald Trump was offered the opportunity to hold a solo town hall event.... Others on Twitter also lashed out at NBC for 'rewarding' Trump ... [for refusing to cooperate with the presidential debate committee's rules]." And Edward-Isaac Dovere can't figured out why is willing to share so much information w/NBC about the president's health so as to make this Thursday town hall happen, but releasing when the last time pre-diagnosis that he had tested negative would violate his privacy[.]"9

Meet Your Trump Voter. Amanda Burke & Larry Parnass of the Berkshire Eagle: "In the hour before he admits he burned a political message he deplored, Lonnie Durfee stopped at a convenience store in his town.... He told another shopper he planned to set fire to hay bales across from Holiday Brook Farm that had been painted with an endorsement of the Biden-Harris presidential ticket, according to a Dalton police report. Minutes before that encounter Friday evening, he said the same thing to people inside Paddy's, a Dalton bar.... Not long after, Durfee pulled out of the Cumberland Farms on Main Street with containers of gasoline and headed for the small mountain of hay bales, and the message they displayed, though one container fell out of the back of his yellow GMC pickup onto the road, and was left behind." Read on Thanks very much to unwashed for the link. Mrs. McC: There's a country & Western song in here somewheres, along the lines of the last verse of this'un here:

The Court Proposes, Trump Disposes. Mrs. McCrabbie: Despite her pretense that she won't be a "pawn" for Trump, it is beginning to appear that Judge Amy, like many a Republican witness, is testifying for an audience of one. Here's an excerpt from the Washington Post's live coverage of Wednesday's hearing:"Barrett stated unequivocally Wednesday morning that 'no one is above the law' -- but she warned that the Supreme Court has no real recourse to make sure people, including the president, obeyed its orders.... Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) had asked Barrett whether a president could refuse to comply with a court order. Barrett's bleak assessment, in a word, was yes. 'The Supreme Court can't control what the president obeys,' she said flatly. When Leahy then asked whether the president could pardon himself for a crime, Barrett was circumspect. 'So far as I know, that question has never been litigated,' she said. 'That question may or may not arise, but it's one that calls for legal analysis about what the scope of the pardon power is.'"

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Stacking the Court

The New York Times' live updates of Amy Coney Barrett's Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday are here. They include live video of the proceedings, but you can shut down the audio. The Washington Post's live video for Wednesday are here. Live video also included, but you have to activate it.

Mark Sherman, et al., of the AP: "Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett ... declined to commit to recusing herself from any cases arising from [the presidential] election. 'I can't offer an opinion on recusal without short-circuiting that entire process,' she said." Mrs. McC: Looks as if Judge Amy is signaling she plans to join the massive right-wing conspiracy (and, no, I'm not kidding) to steal the election. These people truly believe they have a right to "win" by any means necessary, the will of the voters be damned. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Tom Hamburger of the Washington Post: "When asked at last month's presidential debate by moderator Chris Wallace if he was counting on the Supreme Court, including a potential Justice Barrett, to settle an election dispute, Trump responded: 'Yeah. I think I'm counting on them to look at the ballots, definitely.' Democrats and ethics experts point to a federal statute that requires judges to recuse themselves from any proceeding in which their 'impartiality might reasonably be questioned' by the public. 'In light of Trump's public statements, it will reasonably appear to the public that Trump offered her the job with the implicit understanding that just weeks later she would help him keep his,' said Stephen Gillers, an expert on judicial ethics at New York University Law School." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

The New York Times' live updates of Judge Amy Coney Barrett's Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Tuesday are here. The Guardian's live updates are here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Every Question Is Too Hard for Judge Amy to Answer. Dana Milbank of the Washington Post: "... the most chilling moment of [Barrett's] Supreme Court confirmation testimony Tuesday came when she said she would 'need to hear arguments' about whether President Trump can postpone the election.... Sen. Dianne Feinstein (Calif.), the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, observed. 'Does the Constitution give the president of the United States the authority to unilaterally delay a general election under any circumstances? Does federal law?'... There was only one correct answer: No. But this is not the answer Barrett gave.... By the plain wording of the Constitution and the law, a president cannot unilaterally postpone an election. But this nominee, sounding more Trumpist than textualist, tells us it's debatable. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) ... ask[ed] Barrett: 'Under federal law, is it illegal to intimidate voters at the poll?' Again, an easy question with an obvious answer.... But Barrett ... [said,] 'I can't apply the law to a hypothetical set of facts.'..." Thanks to Ken W. for the link. ~~~

~~~ BUT a Bigoted, Right-Wing Answer Gives Her Away. Matthew Choi of Politico: "Amy Coney Barrett apologized Tuesday for referring to sexual orientation as a 'preference' during the second day of her Supreme Court confirmation hearing. 'I certainly didn't mean and would never mean to use a term that would cause any offense to the LGBTQ community,' Barrett said.... Barrett made the remark earlier in the day before the Senate Judiciary Committee when asked by the panel about Obergefell v. Hodges, the landmark Supreme Court case that led to the legalization of same-sex marriage across the country. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) had asked Barrett ... if she shared the late Supreme Court justice's dissenting views on the case. Barrett responded by saying she had 'no agenda' and that 'I have never discriminated on the basis of sexual preference and would not discriminate on the basis of sexual preference.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: What's amazing about Barrett's response is that she lives in such a cocoon that she had no idea that the world outside her cocoon has long rejected the naive, anti-scientific notion that sexual orientation is a "preference."

Good Luck, Profs! Jordan Williams of the Hill: "Faculty members of the University of Notre Dame wrote a letter asking Amy Coney Barrett to 'halt' her Supreme Court nomination process until after the November presidential election. In an open letter to Barret, the faculty noted her nomination comes amid a tense 2020 election in which voters are already casting ballots. More than 11 million ballots have been cast in the 2020 election, according to data from the United States Election Project. The members noted the 'rushed nature' of the nomination process, which 'may effectively deprive the American people of a voice in selecting the next Supreme Court justice.... You are not, of course, responsible for the anti-democratic machinations driving your nomination,' the letter read before mentioning Senate Republicans' refusal to take up former President Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland during the 2016 presidential election. The letter also stated that stopping the confirmation process now would fulfill Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's dying wish to leave her seat on the bench open until after the November election."

Whatever Donald Wants ~~~

~~~ Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed the Trump administration to shut down the census count ahead of schedule, a move that could allow the Census Bureau to submit tabulations excluding unauthorized immigrants by the end of the year. The court's brief, unsigned order gave no reasons, which is typical when the court acts on emergency applications. It said the count could stop while appeals moved forward. Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, saying that 'the harms associated with an inaccurate census are avoidable and intolerable.' The order was a major victory for the Trump administration, which had argued that it needed to shut down census field work to meet a statutory deadline. Critics argued that the administration's plan was aimed at diluting Democratic voting power and would hurt the accuracy of the count. The administration had proposed various deadlines for completing field work and submitting the results.... In August, [the administration ordered] the field work wrapped up by Sept. 30, and delivery of totals by Dec. 31. The move came not long after the announcement in July that the administration would seek to exclude undocumented immigrants from the population totals it will send to Congress for reapportioning seats in the House. The two developments appear to be related." ~~~

~~~ Jan Wolfe of Reuters: "The Supreme Court on Tuesday put an end to a lawsuit brought by congressional Democrats that accused ... Donald Trump of violating anti-corruption provisions in the U.S. Constitution with his business dealings. The justices refused to hear an appeal by 215 Senate and House of Representatives Democrats of a lower court ruling that found that the lawmakers lacked the necessary legal standing to bring the case that focused on the Republican president's ownership of the Trump International Hotel in Washington. The lawmakers accused Trump of violating the Constitution's rarely tested 'emoluments' clauses that bar presidents from taking gifts or payments from foreign and state governments without congressional approval. The lead plaintiff in the case is U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ AND Here's Another Reason Trump Needs Judge Amy. Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "Personal lawyers for President Trump, seeking to appeal their case to the Supreme Court for the second time in less than a year, asked the justices on Tuesday to delay a ruling that would allow the Manhattan district attorney to obtain Mr. Trump's financial records. In a 38-page 'emergency' application, Mr. Trump's legal team told the court that a Federal District Court judge was wrong to rule that the prosecutor, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., had a legal right to subpoena the materials -- and that an appeals court panel in New York was wrong to uphold that ruling this month." ~~~

~~~ MEANWHILE. DOJ Argues Trump's Crazy-Tweets Are Not Orders. Kyle Cheney of Politico: "When Donald Trump tweeted last week that he authorized the 'total declassification of any & all documents' related to the long-running Russia investigation and Hillary Clinton's emails -- 'No redactions!' he tweeted -- he really didn't mean it, the Justice Department argued in court Tuesday. DOJ attorneys told a judge that the White House Counsel's Office effectively told DOJ to disregard Trump's tweets on the matter. They weren't accompanied by an actual declassification order, and DOJ will proceed as though the tweets hadn't occurred, continuing to redact and release documents at its discretion."

Presidential Race, Etc.

Patricia Mazzei & Thomas Kaplan of the New York Times: "Joseph R. Biden Jr. turned his attention on Tuesday to older Americans, making a case in South Florida that President Trump viewed seniors as 'expendable' and that they were paying the price for the president's poor handling of the coronavirus pandemic. 'The only senior that Donald Trump cares about -- the only senior -- is senior Donald Trump,' Mr. Biden said in a speech at a community center in Pembroke Pines, a city in the vote-rich Democratic stronghold of Broward County.... Mr. Biden, who wore a mask during his speech, offered an unsparing critique of Mr. Trump's management of the nation's monthslong public health crisis and also assailed the president over his own behavior. 'I prayed for his recovery when he got Covid, and I had hoped at least he'd come out of it somewhat chastened,' Mr. Biden said. 'But what has he done? He's just doubled down on the misinformation he did before.' He went on to say that Mr. Trump's 'reckless personal conduct since his diagnosis is unconscionable.'"

     ~~~ Thanks to P.D. Pepe for the link.

What Trump thinks a "suburban housewife" looks like.At Rally, Trump Makes Another Direct Racist Appeal. Tal Axelrod of the Hill: "At a campaign rally in Johnstown, Pa., Trump touted his repeal of an Obama-era regulation meant to expand low-income housing in suburbs in an attempt to quash racial discrimination and his support for law enforcement as reasons suburban voters should flock to his campaign. '... I'm about law and order. I'm about having you safe. I'm about having your suburban communities. I don't want to build low-income housing next to your house.... Suburban women, they should like me more than anybody here tonight because I ended the regulation that destroyed your neighborhood. I ended the regulation that brought crime to the suburbs, and you're going to live the American dream,' he added. 'So can I ask you to do me a favor? Suburban women, will you please like me? I saved your damn neighborhood, OK?'"

Summer Concepcion of TPM: "... Rudy Giuliani went all in on President Trump's efforts to portray himself as an all-powerful strongman who has beat COVID-19 (he has not) during an indoors Italians for Trump rally in Philadelphia Monday night. Speaking to a crowd of about 75 Trump supporters at the campaign's Northeast Philadelphia office space -- which was originally scheduled to be held at the 15,000-square-foot 2300 Arena, but was forced to relocate when the arena's owners canceled the night before after finding out the event was a Trump rally -- Giuliani falsely declared victory over COVID-19 as the country tops more than 215,000 fatalities amid the pandemic. 'People don't die of this disease anymore,' Giuliani said, before baselessly insisting that 'young people don't die at all' and that 'middle age people die very little[.]... And even elderly people have only 1 percent chance of dying,' Giuliani said, without evidence." Mrs. McC: According to the lede of a Philadelphia Inquirer story (which I can't link), people at the event were "squeezed shoulder-to-shoulder" & many of them wore "Save Colombus" masks. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

** A Barr Plot to Smear Obama & Biden, et al., Collapses. Matt Zapotosky & Shane Harris of the Washington Post: "The federal prosecutor appointed by Attorney General William P. Barr to review whether Obama-era officials improperly requested the identities of individuals whose names were redacted in intelligence documents has completed his work without finding any substantive wrongdoing, according to people familiar with the matter. The revelation that U.S. Attorney John Bash, who left the department last week, had concluded his review without criminal charges or any public report will rankle President Trump at a moment when he is particularly upset at the Justice Department. The department has so far declined to release the results of Bash's work, though people familiar with his findings say they would likely disappoint conservatives who have tried to paint the 'unmasking' of names -- a common practice in government to help understand classified documents -- as a political conspiracy." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: The timing of this apparent leak could not be better -- for Biden. ~~~

     ~~~ BUT Bill Barr Is Still Trying. Reuters: "The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday accused Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, author of a tell-all book about first lady Melania Trump, of breaking their nondisclosure agreement and asked a court to set aside profits from the book in a government trust. In a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, Justice Department lawyers said Wolkoff, a former aide who fell out with the first lady, failed to submit to government review a draft of her book, 'Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady,' which offers an unflattering portrayal of ... Donald Trump's wife." Mrs. McC: This suit sounds like a joke and, in any event, a joke the DOJ should not have told. On the other hand, Amy Coney Barrett.

Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "The Trump campaign has suggested that Omarosa Manigault Newman, a former White House aide, pay for an ad campaign costing nearly $1 million as a 'corrective' remedy for her critical comments about President Trump in her 2018 book and in subsequent interviews." Trump's lawyers apparently are unconcerned that should Newman pay more than $2,800 for an ad campaign, she would be making an illegal campaign contribution.

Drop Boxes for Republicans But Not for Democrats. Glenn Thrush & Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "From lawsuits by the Trump campaign to a decree from the governor of Texas -- to the sudden appearance of boxes falsely labeled 'official' in California -- Republicans are intensifying efforts to eliminate the use of drop boxes to collect mail-in ballots, or using them in ways that undermine confidence in their security. In recent months, a handful of states and local governments, most of them controlled by Democrats, have expanded the use of drop boxes as a safe alternative to voting in person during the coronavirus pandemic."

Nick Corasaniti & Denise Lu of the New York Times chart when each state will process absentee ballots. "Some states begin this work weeks in advance and others are only allowed to begin on Election Day. States that begin early may have a lot more results counted by election night."

Davey Alba of the New York Times: Numerous right-wing social media figures are disseminating false stories that Democrats and/or "liberals" have various plans to steal the presidential election & effect a "left-wing coup." All of the rumors appeared to be having the same effect: Of riling up Mr. Trump's restive base, just as the president has publicly stoked the idea of election chaos. In comment after comment about the falsehoods, respondents said the only way to stop violence from the left was to respond in kind with force.... The misinformation, which has been amplified by right-wing media such as the Fox News host Mark Levin and outlets like Breitbart and The Daily Wire, adds contentiousness to an already powder-keg campaign season.... Distorted information about the election is also flowing in left-wing circles online, though to a lesser degree, according to a New York Times analysis."

Florida. Marc Caputo of Politico: "Republicans typically hold a slight edge in absentee ballot returns in Florida elections. But this year, there's been a stunning development. For the first time ever at this stage of a general election, Democrats here are outvoting Republicans -- and by a mammoth 384,000-vote margin through Tuesday."

Texas & Georgia. Devan Cole, et al., of CNN: "Early voting began in Texas on Tuesday with lines and hours-long wait times for thousands of voters at some locations.... The challenges facing voters in Texas echoed what happened a day earlier in Georgia, where some of the more than 126,000 Peach State voters who turned out for that state's first day of early voting on Monday had to stand in long lines at polling centers across the state.

Allan Smith of NBC News: "Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, said Tuesday he's fed up with how 'vile' and 'vituperative' American politics have become, placing the blame largely on ... Donald Trump. 'I have stayed quiet with the approach of the election,' Romney said in a statement posted to Twitter. 'But I'm troubled by our politics, as it has moved away from spirited debate to a vile, vituperative, hate-filled morass that is unbecoming of any free nation -- let alone the birthplace of modern democracy.... The president calls the Democratic vice presidential candidate "a monster;" he repeatedly labels the speaker of the House "crazy;" he calls for the Justice Department to put the prior president in jail; he attacks the governor of Michigan on the very day a plot is discovered to kidnap her,' Romney said of comments Trump has made within the last week in Fox News interviews and on Twitter. Romney then lamented commentary and actions on the left side of the aisle, saying Democrats 'launch blistering attacks of their own -- though their presidential nominee refuses to stoop as low as others.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Now here's a headline that looks unbelievable. But it's true: ~~~

~~~ Michigan Sheriff Defends Terrorists. Sara Sidner of CNN: "On May 18, the FBI was months into investigating an alleged terror plot targeting Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. On that day, a local sheriff was sharing a protest stage with one of the men who would be charged with providing material support to terrorist acts. Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf said he knew nothing of the alleged crimes being planned.... After 13 men were charged in connection with the plot, Leaf said some of their actions could have been lawful. 'A lot of people are angry with the governor and they want her arrested,' Leaf told CNN affiliate WXMI. At the May rally, Leaf had compared Whitmer's stay-at-home orders to mass detention, MLive reported. Leaf said to WXMI: 'So are they trying to arrest or was it a kidnap attempt?  Because you can still, in Michigan if it's a felony, you can still make a felony arrest.... And (it) doesn't say if you are in elected office that you are exempt from that arrest. So I have to look at it from that angle. And I am hoping that's more like what it is.'" Mrs. McC: We should not be surprised. As Mitt points out, the POTUS* used the occasion of the arrests by his own Justice Department, not to deplore the alleged planned terrorist attacks, but to criticize Whitmer.

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

Sheryl Stolberg of the New York Times: "The White House has embraced a declaration by a group of scientists arguing that authorities should allow the coronavirus to spread among young healthy people while protecting the elderly and the vulnerable -- an approach that would rely on arriving at 'herd immunity' through infections rather than a vaccine." Mrs. McC: Dr. Sanjay Gupta of A public health expert on CNN called this "a call for mass murder."

The Washington Post's live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here: "States across the West and Midwest are reporting record numbers of new coronavirus cases, a worrying sign of rapid transmission that could signal the arrival of a long-feared cold weather wave of infections. Since Saturday, more than 20 states have hit a new high in their seven-day average of reported case counts, and more than half of those states set records again on Tuesday, according to data tracked by The Washington Post. Midwestern states like Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio are driving the surge, while states farther west -- like Colorado, Idaho and the Dakotas -- have seen their cases rise steadily for weeks."

Carolyn Johnson of the Washington Post: "Pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson became the second vaccine maker to halt late-stage trials this week as investigators probe whether a participant's undisclosed illness may be linked to the vaccine. On Tuesday, Eli Lilly & Co. also paused a trial of its closely-watched monoclonal antibody drug -- the same class of medicine President Trump received and credited with his recovery — for safety concerns. Experts say the pauses of trials of vaccines from Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca and a treatment from Eli Lilly demonstrate the system to protect participants' safety is working as intended. But the intense scrutiny of the fast-moving covid-19 trials mean that the lack of transparency around possible adverse events could unintentionally help foster distrust of the scientific effort to develop ways to prevent and treat the disease."

Kaitlan Collins of CNN: "The Labor Department announced in a news release Tuesday night that Secretary Eugene Scalia's wife, Trish, has tested positive for coronavirus. The announcement said that Eugene Scalia has tested negative so far but will work from home 'for the time being.' Both Eugene and Trish Scalia attended the Rose Garden event where ... Donald Trump announced Judge Amy Coney Barrett was his pick to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court. They were seated in the second row, directly behind first lady Melania Trump and next to former White House counselor Kellyanne Conway -- both of whom would later test positive for Covid-19." Trish Scalia "is experiencing mild symptoms."

Donald Trump is running TV ads taking Dr. Fauci out of context and without his permission.

So, here’s a message from the President in his own words. pic.twitter.com/WCYbIfrQLR

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 12, 2020

     ~~~ Thanks to RAS for the link. ~~~

~~~ Why Is Trump Faking an Endorsement from a Man He Disses? David Nakamura, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Trump's long-fraught relationship with Anthony S. Fauci ... ruptured again this week in an ugly public dispute just as U.S. coronavirus cases have ticked past 50,000 per day and with three weeks left in a campaign dominated by the government's response to the pandemic. Trump on Tuesday responded to Fauci's warnings that the president's decision to resume campaign rallies this week was 'very troublesome' by mocking him in a tweet that unfavorably compared his medical guidance to his errant ceremonial first pitch at a Washington Nationals game in July. 'Actually, Tony's pitching arm is far more accurate than his prognostications,' Trump wrote, erroneously suggesting that Fauci's advice in the early days of the pandemic that the public need not wear masks meant that the doctor was playing down the novel coronavirus."

Laura Vozzella of the Washington Post: "Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam criticized President Trump's 'cavalier' attitude toward coronavirus safety on Tuesday during his first public appearance since contracting the illness last month. Northam (D) and first lady Pam Northam began isolating in the Executive Mansion, with no staff except for a security detail, after announcing that they tested positive 18 days ago. They are believed to have contracted the virus from a mansion employee who works in the couple's private quarters. About 65 staff members who had close contact with the Northams were told to ­self-isolate for two weeks. Northam said none tested positive, which he called 'a testament' to the value of wearing masks. He noted that masks protected several staff members who could not physically distance from him before he tested positive.... He contrasted that with the largely mask-free Rose Garden ceremony last month that Anthony S. Fauci ... has called a superspreader event." This article is free to non-subscribers.

Jeff Stein & Erica Werner of the Washington Post: "Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announced on Tuesday that the Senate will take up a narrow economic relief bill when it comes back in session next week. President Trump immediately undermined the move, writing on Twitter: 'STIMULUS! Go big or go home!!!' The clashing messages were a stark display of GOP disunity just three weeks before the November election, as Senate Republicans balk at a $1.8 trillion relief package Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has offered to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Trump, though, has suggested Republicans should agree to an even bigger deal than what Democrats have offered." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

David Eggert & Kathleen Foody of the AP: "Members of anti-government paramilitary groups discussed kidnapping Virginia's governor [Ralph Northam (D)] during a June meeting in Ohio, an FBI agent testified Tuesday during a court hearing for a group of men accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan's governor. Special Agent Richard Trask also revealed new details about investigators' use of confidential informants, undercover agents and encrypted communication to arrest and charge six men last week in the plot aimed at Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer [Michigan]." A Washington Post story is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

The Commentariat -- October 13, 2020

Afternoon Update:

Jan Wolfe of Reuters: "The Supreme Court on Tuesday put an end to a lawsuit brought by congressional Democrats that accused ... Donald Trump of violating anti-corruption provisions in the U.S. Constitution with his business dealings. The justices refused to hear an appeal by 215 Senate and House of Representatives Democrats of a lower court ruling that found that the lawmakers lacked the necessary legal standing to bring the case that focused on the Republican president's ownership of the Trump International Hotel in Washington. The lawmakers accused Trump of violating the Constitution's rarely tested 'emoluments' clauses that bar presidents from taking gifts or payments from foreign and state governments without congressional approval. The lead plaintiff in the case is U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut."

David Eggert & Kathleen Foody of the AP: "Members of anti-government paramilitary groups discussed kidnapping Virginia's governor [Ralph Northam (D)] during a June meeting in Ohio, an FBI agent testified Tuesday during a court hearing for a group of men accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan's governor. Special Agent Richard Trask also revealed new details about investigators' use of confidential informants, undercover agents and encrypted communication to arrest and charge six men last week in the plot aimed at Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer [Michigan]." A Washington Post story is here.

Allan Smith of NBC News: "Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, said Tuesday he's fed up with how 'vile' and 'vituperative' American politics have become, placing the blame largely on ... Donald Trump. 'I have stayed quiet with the approach of the election,' Romney said in a statement posted to Twitter. 'But I'm troubled by our politics, as it has moved away from spirited debate to a vile, vituperative, hate-filled morass that is unbecoming of any free nation -- let alone the birthplace of modern democracy.... The president calls the Democratic vice presidential candidate "a monster;" he repeatedly labels the speaker of the House "crazy;" he calls for the Justice Department to put the prior president in jail; he attacks the governor of Michigan on the very day a plot is discovered to kidnap her,' Romney said of comments Trump has made within the last week in Fox News interviews and on Twitter. Romney then lamented commentary and actions on the left side of the aisle, saying Democrats 'launch blistering attacks of their own -- though their presidential nominee refuses to stoop as low as others.'"

Jeff Stein & Erica Werner of the Washington Post: "Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announced on Tuesday that the Senate will take up a narrow economic relief bill when it comes back in session next week. President Trump immediately undermined the move, writing on Twitter: 'STIMULUS! Go big or go home!!!' The clashing messages were a stark display of GOP disunity just three weeks before the November election, as Senate Republicans balk at a $1.8 trillion relief package Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has offered to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Trump, though, has suggested Republicans should agree to an even bigger deal than what Democrats have offered."

Mark Sherman, et al., of the AP: "Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett ... declined to commit to recusing herself from any cases arising from [the presidential] election. 'I can't offer an opinion on recusal without short-circuiting that entire process,' she said." Mrs. McC: Looks as if Judge Amy is signaling she plans to join the massive right-wing conspiracy (and, no, I'm not kidding) to steal the election. These people truly believe they have a right to "win" by any means necessary, the will of the voters be damned. ~~~

~~~ Tom Hamburger of the Washington Post: "When asked at last month's presidential debate by moderator Chris Wallace if he was counting on the Supreme Court, including a potential Justice Barrett, to settle an election dispute, Trump responded: 'Yeah. I think I'm counting on them to look at the ballots, definitely.' Democrats and ethics experts point to a federal statute that requires judges to recuse themselves from any proceeding in which their 'impartiality might reasonably be questioned' by the public. 'In light of Trump's public statements, it will reasonably appear to the public that Trump offered her the job with the implicit understanding that just weeks later she would help him keep his,' said Stephen Gillers, an expert on judicial ethics at New York University Law School."

Summer Concepcion of TPM: "... Rudy Giuliani went all in on President Trump's efforts to portray himself as an all-powerful strongman who has beat COVID-19 (he has not) during an indoors Italians for Trump rally in Philadelphia Monday night. Speaking to a crowd of about 75 Trump supporters at the campaign's Northeast Philadelphia office space -- which was originally scheduled to be held at the 15,000-square-foot 2300 Arena, but was forced to relocate when the arena's owners canceled the night before after finding out the event was a Trump rally -- Giuliani falsely declared victory over COVID-19 as the country tops more than 215,000 fatalities amid the pandemic. 'People don't die of this disease anymore,' Giuliani said, before baselessly insisting that 'young people don't die at all' and that 'middle age people die very little[.]... And even elderly people have only 1 percent chance of dying,' Giuliani said, without evidence." Mrs. McC: According to the lede of a Philadelphia Inquirer story (which I can't link), people at the event were "squeezed shoulder-to-shoulder" & many wore "Save Colombus" masks.

~~~~~~~~~~

Senate Confirmation Hearings

The New York Times' live updates of Judge Amy Coney Barrett's Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Tuesday are here. The Guardian's live updates are here.

Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "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 of opening statements, Democrats assailed Judge Barrett as a conservative ideologue who would overturn the Affordable Care Act and abortion rights, and whose nomination amounted to an illegitimate power grab by a president in the last days before the election. Republicans steered clear of addressing Judge Barrett's anticipated effect on the court, instead promoting her sterling qualifications and accusing Democrats of unjustly attacking her because of her Catholic faith, despite the fact that [Democrats] made no mention of it on Monday." ~~~

~~~ Mark Leibovich of the New York Times: "Senator Mike Lee, Republican of Utah, who attended the super spreader event -- the Rose Garden announcement of President Trump's nomination of Judge Barrett to the Supreme Court -- and tested positive soon after, delivered his opening statement sans mask. He had previously assured everyone that he had been 'cleared' by his doctor." Mrs. McC: The committee's chair, Lindsey Graham, has refused to be tested despite also attending the Rose Garden superspreader. And good news: Leibovich learned from talking to protesters that one can purchase a hazmat suit at Walgreens. Seems like an appropriate Halloween costume. ~~~

~~~ Paul Kane of the Washington Post: "On Sept. 29, Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) attended a party together to watch the first presidential debate. Two days later, feeling sick, Lee took a test for the novel coronavirus, receiving a positive diagnosis, the first of three GOP senators to announce in a 24-hour span that they contracted the virus. Less than 11 full days later, Lee participated in Monday's Supreme Court confirmation hearing for Judge Amy Coney Barrett, delivering an opening statement in person -- with no mask -- and periodically whispering to his GOP colleagues. Yet Cruz, who tested negative and has never had any symptoms, remained in quarantine at his Washington apartment and delivered his statement via videoconference technology.... Also in the room were the Senate's two oldest members -- Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), both 87.... Cruz is expected to attend Tuesday's question-and-answer session in person." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Frankly, it makes me feel sick just thinking of going to a party & finding Ted Cruz & Mike Lee there.

The New York Times' live updates of Monday's confirmation hearing for Judge Amy Coney Barrett are here. The Washington Post's live updates are here. CNN's live updates are here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: So here's the only part of the hearing I watched. Judge Amy looks very mean:

~~~ Marissa Lang of the Washington Post: "More than a dozen protesters calling on senators to reject the confirmation of ... Judge Amy Coney Barrett were arrested Monday moments before the first day of Senate Judiciary Committee hearings began. Unlike in past years, the public was not allowed to watch the hearings in person because of the coronavirus pandemic. Demonstrators instead took their dissent to the entrances of Senate office buildings and the marble steps of the Supreme Court. About 8:45 a.m., anti-Barrett protesters were handcuffed and removed from the doorway of the Dirksen Senate Office Building, where a sit-in was underway. They carried signs and wore cloth face masks bearing the likeness of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.... Across the street, conservative women cheered as they held up signs that said 'confirm Amy' and 'women for Amy.' The group, dotted with maskless students and women holding their children, chanted 'law and order' from behind a police line as officers lifted protesters to their feet, one at a time. For hours, competing chants of 'let the people decide' and 'fill that seat' filled the cold, wet air outside government buildings. Tense debates broke out among members of the two groups as others resorted to shouting." (Also linked yesterday.)

Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: "Republicans once insisted that Merrick Garland, Obama's final Supreme Court nominee, didn't deserve a hearing because the election was only 11 months away.... In October 2016, Senator Ted Cruz suggested that the Senate ... wouldn't move on a Clinton nominee either, essentially reducing the court to eight judges.... Throughout Obama's administration, Republicans went to extraordinary lengths to stop the president from appointing federal judges, describing his ordinary attempts to fill vacant seats as 'court packing.' Senator Tom Cotton, then in the House, even sponsored a bill, the Stop Court-Packing Act, that would have shrunk the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 11 judges to eight.... Now, facing another presidential election that they expect to lose, Republicans are caterwauling about Democratic calls to expand the court. As they prepare to jam through ... Amy Coney Barrett, Republicans are shocked -- shocked! -- that Democrats would contemplate playing constitutional hardball just as Republicans do."

Dana Milbank of the Washington Post: "Confidence in the Supreme Court has fallen dramatically since Justice Clarence Thomas's confirmation. Fifty-six percent of Americans had high confidence in the high court back in 1985, according to Gallup. That figure has averaged in the high 30s lately. Views are overwhelmingly partisan: Fifty-three percent of Republicans have confidence, compared with 33 percent of Democrats. And that was before President Trump proposed, as Ruth Bader Ginsburg lay in state, to replace the liberal icon with her jurisprudential opposite, forming the most right-wing court in 70 years. On top of this is the rank hypocrisy of Republicans breaking their promises not to hold confirmation hearings so close to an election.... This confirmation is indefensible. Republicans shut down the Senate floor because of a covid-19 outbreak that apparently began at Barrett's nomination ceremony at the White House. But they are still pushing through, mere days before an election that Trump appears likely to lose, a nominee who Trump hopes, by his own account, will help him delegitimize the election result."

Presidential Race, Etc.

Scott Wartman & Sharon Coolidge of the Cincinnati Enquirer: "The path to the White House could begin in Cincinnati, former Vice President Joe Biden said Monday during a campaign stop at Union Terminal. Biden called Cincinnati the 'starting gate' to winning Ohio.... 'You here in Cincinnati can make all the difference and all the difference in Ohio,' Biden said.... Biden spoke for about 35 minutes to about 20 local Democrats and union leaders in the massive rotunda of Cincinnati's Union Terminal.... It was the second of two campaign events in Ohio on Monday, the first being at a union hall in Toledo. Biden's speech [in Cincinnati] was invitation-only to keep crowds small and protect against the spread of COVID-19. All 20 attendees wore masks and had their temperatures checked before entering.... Biden portrayed a message of unity, which he contrasted with Trump.... Biden raised his voice at the end for the first time urging people to vote. 'It's time to stand up, take back our democracy and unite,' Biden said. 'Let's for the first time in awhile reflect the values a vast majority hold.'"

Wall Street Welcomes Democrats. Mark Phillips of the New York Times: Wall Street "investors and analysts have begun to take into account the possibility that Mr. Trump's time in the White House may soon be over, as Democratic presidential candidate Joseph R. Biden Jr. continues to pull ahead in polls just weeks before the election. And that is producing some optimism on Wall Street, because many investors believe that the higher Mr. Biden climbs in polls, the lower the chance of a contested presidential election.... Largely, investors are of the view that a 'blue wave' victory -- in which Democrats retain the House of Representatives and retake the Senate as well as the presidency -- represents the best chance to get another large injection of federal money into an economy that continues to struggle. Economists and policymakers, including the Federal Reserve chair, Jerome H. Powell, say such assistance is sorely needed...."

David Jackson of USA Today: "Faced with a daunting new political environment..., Donald Trump returned to the campaign trail Monday as he proclaimed himself healthy and took the podium maskless at a Florida rally just a week-and-a-half after testing positive for COVID-19.... While claiming himself cured of COVID, Trump also asserted he is 'immune' from the virus moving forward, though some medical professionals said there is no guarantee of that. 'Now they say I'm immune. I just feel so powerful,' Trump said. 'I'll kiss everyone in that audience. I'll kiss the guys and the beautiful women and the... I'll just give you a big, fat kiss.' Trump also returned to familiar themes, attacking Biden and the 'Washington establishment,' talking up the stock market and Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, and savaging the media for reporting on his illness. He pledged to have new COVID-19 vaccines soon, though doctors said that are still months away.... Trump said the new polls showing Biden expanding his lead are 'fake,' and he continued to attack mail-in voting as potential 'fraud.'... Trump's comeback rally lasted a little more than an hour...." ~~~

~~~ Maggie Haberman & Annie Karni of the New York Times: "Mr. Trump, whose voice sounded hoarse and strained as he began to speak onstage at a hangar at Orlando Sanford International Airport, claimed he was fully recovered and therefore immune to the coronavirus -- a claim for which there is no conclusive scientific backing.... Mr. Trump arrived in Florida only hours after the White House physician, Dr. Sean P. Conley, said that the president had tested negative 'on consecutive days' using a rapid antigen coronavirus test not intended for that purpose. Experts cautioned that the test's accuracy had not been investigated enough to be sure that the president was virus-free or, as his doctor claimed, 'not infectious to others.'" Also, see Bobby Lee's comment below. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: An infectious disease expert appearing on MSNBC called Dr. Conley's memo a "campaign document" rather than a medical report. She said she regarded it as proof that Trump had failed recent PCR tests. Although Conley has previously written, without providing the results, that Trump took a recent PCR test, he did not release those results in yesterday's memo, either. Instead, he released only the rapid antigen test results, a test which gives false negatives in as many of 30% of cases.

Trump's Final Appeal Is to Racism & Sexism. Kathleen Ronayne of the AP: "Grasping for a comeback..., Donald Trump and his Republican allies are intensifying their focus ... on Sen. Kamala Harris -- arguing without evidence that it's Harris, the first Black woman on a major party ticket, who would really be in charge if Democrats win the White House. The effort is laced with sexist and racist undertones, and one that is aimed at winning back Republicans and independents who are comfortable with Biden's more moderate record, but may associate Harris with Democrats' left flank, despite her own more centrist positions on some major issues. During the past week, Trump told Sean Hannity of Fox News that Harris would assume the presidency within 'three months' of Biden's inauguration. During a conversation with Rush Limbaugh, he warned that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would 'replace' Biden with Harris.... Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich ... call[ed] Biden 'docile' and Harris 'aggressive.'"

Erin Banco & Justin Baragona of the Daily Beast: "... Dr. Anthony Fauci demanded that the Trump campaign refrain from using him in future campaign ads, saying Monday that it would be 'outrageous' and 'terrible' if he was featured in another commercial and it could 'come back to backfire' on Team Trump.... 'By doing this against my will they are, in effect, harassing me,' Fauci said. [CNN's Jake] Tapper..., [in an interview of Fauci], suggested that the Trump campaign was already planning on using Fauci again, without his permission, in another political commercial." ~~~

~~~ Lara Seligman of Politico: "... Donald Trump's campaign is running an online political ad that uses an image of his vice president, his Pentagon chief and his most senior military adviser watching the raid on ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi from the Situation Room on Oct. 29, 2019.... But the campaign didn't seek approval from Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley to use his image in the ad, a defense official said. 'This photo, like many others, was not used with [Milley's] knowledge or consent,' said the official, who requested anonymity.... The military has strict rules against uniformed service members participating in political campaigns, and the ad is just the latest example of the president or those around him pulling the nation's highest-ranking officer and other Defense Department officials into the political realm."

SN.AFU. WDIV Detroit: "Eric Trump has canceled a Michigan based campaign event scheduled to take place Tuesday at Huron Valley Guns in New Hudson after one of its former employees was linked to the domestic terror plot against the state's governor [and others]. Just last week 13 men were charged in a domestic terror plot to kidnap [Michigan Gov. Gretchen] Whitmer and overthrow the government." Mrs. McC: So Eric & the Trump campaign thought it was a good idea to hold a campaign event at a gun shop, but backed out when they found out the shop previously employed a terrorist, who according to the shop, "would show up for work in a LOT of tactical gear." See, the Trumpies do have standards.

Trump Bribes Farmers (With Your Money, Of Course). Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "For the American farmers President Trump counts on for support, the government money is flowing faster than ever. Federal payments to farmers are projected to hit a record $46 billion this year as the White House funnels money to Mr. Trump's rural base in the South and Midwest ahead of Election Day. The gush of funds has accelerated in recent weeks as the president looks to help his core supporters who have been hit hard by the double whammy of his combative trade practices and the coronavirus pandemic. According to the American Farm Bureau, debt in the farm sector is projected to increase by 4 percent to a record $434 billion this year and farm bankruptcies have continued to rise across the country.... Government support will account for about 40 percent of total farm income this year.... Last week, the Office of Special Counsel determined that Mr. Trump's Agriculture secretary, Sonny Perdue, had improperly used his position to push the president's re-election by promising more help for farmers." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Nice to know that you've paid 40 percent more for much of what you eat.

Today in GOP Vote-Stealing & Voter-Suppression

** California. IOKIYAR. Glenn Thrush & Jennifer Medina of the New York Times: "The California Republican Party has admitted responsibility for placing more than 50 deceptively labeled 'official' drop boxes for mail-in ballots in Los Angeles, Fresno and Orange Counties -- an action that state officials said was illegal and could lead to voter fraud. The dark gray metal boxes have been popping up over the past two weeks near churches, gun shops and Republican Party offices, mostly in conservative areas of a deep-blue state, affixed with a white paper label identifying them as either an 'Official Ballot Drop off Box' or a 'Ballot Drop Box.' To the average voter, they are virtually indistinguishable from drop-off sites sanctioned by the state, which are governed by strict regulations intended to prevent the partisan manipulation of ballots.... California Attorney General Xavier Becerra ... called the boxes 'fake.'... He warned that anyone 'engaging in this activity' could be subject to criminal prosecution or civil action. Hector Barajas, a spokesman for the California Republican Party, said the party would continue to distribute the boxes, without adding any label identifying them explicitly as Republican ballot drops.... [He] said the party's actions were legal because state law did not restrict 'ballot harvesting,' a practice that allows a third party to collect voters' completed ballots. Mr. Trump and his supporters have decried the practice as corrupt when Democrats have been accused of collecting bundles of ballots...." ~~~

~~~ Georgia. Sam Levine of the Guardian & Agencies: "Voters in Georgia faced hours-long lines on Monday as people flocked to the polls for the first day of early voting in the state, which has developed a national reputation in recent years for voting issues.... In Atlanta, some voters reported waiting more than 10 hours for their chance to cast an early ballot." Mrs. McC: In all of the photos & videoclips I've seen, the majority of voters standing in line appear to be black. I wonder why that is.

Michigan Senate Race. Jaclyn Peiser of the Washington Post: "In the late 1980s, Sen. Gary Peters's wife at the time, Heidi, was four months pregnant when her water broke. leaving the baby with no chance of survival. The hospital in Detroit wouldn't allow Heidi's doctor to perform an abortion, so the physician told them to go home and wait for a miscarriage. 'The mental anguish someone goes through is intense,' Peters, a Michigan Democrat, said in an interview with Elle magazine published on Monday, 'trying to have a miscarriage for a child that was wanted.' But the situation became more critical when Heidi's health deteriorated, so the couple found a doctor at another hospital who agreed to do the procedure.... Peters joins a small group of members of Congress who have spoken about their personal experiences with abortion.... Peters [is fighting] to retain his seat in the Senate in a battleground state that President Trump narrowly won in 2016. Peters faces John James, a well-funded Republican businessman...."

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live Covid-19 updates for Tuesday are here.

Matthew Herper of STAT: "The study of Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine has been paused due to an unexplained illness in a study participant. A document sent to outside researchers running the 60,000-patient clinical trial states that a 'pausing rule' has been met, that the online system used to enroll patients in the study has been closed, and that the data and safety monitoring board -- an independent committee that watches over the safety of patients in the clinical trial -- would be convened."

India. Hannah Ellis-Peterson & Manoj Chaurasia of the Guardian: "While the coronavirus pandemic has wreaked devastation on India, no one has suffered worse than its children. In the space of seven months, the country has been set back decades in the fight against child labour, child trafficking and child marriage, with the lockdown and the economic collapse that followed creating a perfect storm of poverty and exploitation. Schools, which are not only vital for education but act as an essential surveillance mechanism to ensure that children are kept out of the hands of child traffickers and not pushed into arranged underage marriages, have been closed since March." --s

The Trump Kids Are Bilking You Twice. David Fahrenthold, et al., of the Washington Post: "Eric Trump took his Secret Service agents to Trump golf courses in Scotland, as he led transatlantic tours for paying customers. Donald Trump Jr. took his protectors to the Trump hotel in Vancouver, stopping over on hunting trips to Canada. And Ivanka Trump took her Secret Service detail to the Trump golf club in Bedminster, N.J., again and again -- even after she asked other Americans to 'please, please' stay home during the coronavirus pandemic. On trips like these, Secret Service agents were there to protect Trump's children.... When Trump's adult children visited Trump properties, Trump's company charged the Secret Service for agents to come along. The president's company billed the U.S. government hundreds, or thousands, of dollars for rooms agents used on each trip, as the agency sometimes booked multiple rooms or a multiroom rental cottage on the property[.]" So not only do we pay Secret Service agents to protect Trump's children while they galavant around the world promoting Trump businesses, in many cases we're also paying directly into Trump's pockets. ~~~

~~~ You're Paying Trump to Wine, Dine & Entertain a Billionaire Aide. Martyn McLaughlin of The Scotsman (Oct. 7): "US federal government receipts show that Woody Johnson enjoyed a £426 dinner with his wife during a visit to the US president's Turnberry property, and spent several hundred pounds on its golf offerings. One leading ethics watchdog said it was 'simply embarrassing' that the 'multi-billionaire' diplomat, who is from one of the wealthiest families in America, would play golf at Mr Trump's course and leave the US public to pay for the privilege.... The new receipts [totalling £1,143] ... detail the extent of Mr Johnson's spending during his stay at the property, which coincided with Mr Trump's own two-night stay there in the summer of 2018.... The bill includes nearly £600 spent on 'golf retail', as well as green fees for Turnberry's Arran golf course, and a series of payments listed as 'refreshment centre'." --s

Patrick Wintour of the Guardian: "China, Russia, Cuba, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are expected to be elected to the board of the UN human rights council on Tuesday, leaving human rights campaigners in the countries aghast and pleading with EU states to commit to withholding their support. The Geneva-based monitoring NGO UN Watch described the situation as the equivalent of allowing five convicted arsonists to join the fire brigade.... Donald Trump withdrew the US from the council two years ago, which campaigners say has strengthened the authoritarian view that human rights should be measured through the prism of economics as opposed to individual freedom." --s

News Lede

New York Times: "Roberta McCain, whose son, Senator John McCain of Arizona, said she had inspired his will to survive as a prisoner of war in Vietnam -- and who at 96 campaigned spiritedly in his losing bid for the presidency against in 2008 -- died on Monday at her home in Washington. She was 108."

The Commentariat -- October 12, 2020

Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "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.... Monday's hearing will begin at 9 a.m., and is expected to take most of the day as each member of the Judiciary Committee gets 10 minutes to deliver an opening statement. Judge Barrett will be the last to speak, and is expected to give a short, mostly biographical statement before taking questions later in the week." ~~~

~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: I'm certain not to watch, but I'll link stories related to the proceedings. Also, how surprising that Trump didn't postpone the hearings so everyone could celebrate Indigenous Heritage Day. Why, he might even have invited Sen. Pocahontas to the White House for the corona cocktail hour to show that he had heh-heh buried the hatchet. ~~~

~~~ The New York Times' live updates of the hearing Monday are here. The Washington Post's live updates are here. CNN's live updates are here. ~~~

~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: So here's the only part of the hearing I watched. Judge Amy looks very mean:

~~~ Marissa Lang of the Washington Post: "More than a dozen protesters calling on senators to reject the confirmation of ... Judge Amy Coney Barrett were arrested Monday moments before the first day of Senate Judiciary Committee hearings began.... The public was not allowed to watch the hearings in person because of the coronavirus pandemic. Demonstrators instead took their dissent to the entrances of Senate office buildings and the marble steps of the Supreme Court. About 8:45 a.m., anti-Barrett protesters were handcuffed and removed from the doorway of the Dirksen Senate Office Building, where a sit-in was underway. They carried signs and wore cloth face masks bearing the likeness of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.... Across the street, conservative women cheered as they held up signs that said 'confirm Amy' and 'women for Amy.' The group, dotted with maskless students and women holding their children, chanted 'law and order' from behind a police line as officers lifted protesters to their feet, one at a time. For hours, competing chants of 'let the people decide' and 'fill that seat' filled the cold, wet air outside government buildings. Tense debates broke out among members of the two groups as others resorted to shouting."

Presidential Race, Etc.

Paul Sonne of the Washington Post: "When President Trump ... welcomed hundreds of people on Saturday to what resembled a campaign rally on the White House grounds, the guests filed onto the South Lawn past a military band in resplendent red, its horns blasting the tune 'America' from 'West Side Story.' The use of the United States Marine Band for a de facto political rally, where guests donned 'Make America Great Again' hats and 'Blexit' T-shirts -- backing a movement that urges Black Americans to exit the Democratic Party -- marked another instance of the president pushing the boundaries of U.S. law and the military tradition of political neutrality.... Federal regulations bar the use of government resources for, and the coercion of federal employees into, political activities aimed at a candidate's reelection -- and taxpayer-funded military bands cannot be used for campaign events. Members of the U.S. military are prohibited from wearing military uniforms at political campaign events.... 'The United States Marine Band provided musical support for the Peaceful Protest for Law and Order event, an official event on the South Lawn of the White House,' Capt. Joseph Butterfield, a spokesman for the Marine Corps, said in a statement." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: "Pushing the boundaries"? How about "stepping way over the line"? ~~~

     ~~~ Rachel Scott & Will Steakin of ABC News: "Some guests for Saturday's White House event on the South Lawn, which [was] President Donald Trump's first since testing positive for the coronavirus, had their travel and lodging paid for by controversial conservative activist Candace Owens' group BLEXIT, according to emails obtained by ABC News." --s

Kaitlin Collins of CNN: "The Trump campaign released [a] new ad last week after the President was discharged from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center following treatment for Covid-19. The 30-second ad, which is airing in Michigan, touts Trump's personal experience with the virus and uses a quote from [Dr. Anthony] Fauci in an attempt to make it appear as if he is praising Trump's response.... Fauci did not consent to being featured in .. [the] advertisement.... Instead, the nation's leading infectious disease expert told CNN his words were taken out of context. 'In my nearly five decades of public service, I have never publicly endorsed any political candidate. The comments attributed to me without my permission in the GOP campaign ad were taken out of context from a broad statement I made months ago about the efforts of federal public health officials,' Fauci said in a statement provided exclusively to CNN when asked if he agreed to be featured in the ad." ~~~

~~~ Kelly O'Donnell of NBC News: "In the ad, a clip of Fauci plays in which the infectious disease expert says he 'can't imagine that anybody could be doing more.' That comment, however, came from a March interview Fauci conducted with Fox News in which the expert is speaking about the whole of government response, not specifically Trump's efforts.... Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh told NBC News that they will continue to run the ad despite Fauci's objections." Mrs. McC: I suppose at some time between 2009 & 2016, Joe Biden said, "The President did a great job." Expect that to end up in a Trump campaign ad touting Trump. ~~~

~~~ Fadel Allassan of Axios: "The White House refused to allow Anthony Fauci or any of the medical experts on the coronavirus task force to appear on ABC's 'This Week,' host Jon Karl said Sunday.... President Trump has previously faced criticism for silencing Fauci, and White House officials have refused to answer basic questions about President Trump's COVID test results, as it scrambles to respond to an outbreak within its own ranks."

... when Joe Biden was vice president, we had an opportunity to save Kayla Mueller. It breaks my heart to reflect on it, but the military came into the Oval Office, presented a plan. They said they knew where Kayla was. Baghdadi had held her for 18 months, abused her mercilessly before they killed her. But when Joe Biden was vice president, they hesitated for a month. And when armed forces finally went in, it was clear she'd been moved two days earlier. -- Vice President Pence, in remarks during his debate with Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.), October 7

There is no evidence that the military presented the plan to the 'Oval Office' and no action was taken by Obama for a month. Moreover, Pence ignored the most detailed report on the rescue mission, which states that Obama approved the plan as soon as it was presented to him in the Situation Room.... Whatever delays took place appear to have happened before Obama learned of the proposed rescue. -- Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post

South Carolina Senate Race. James Arkin of Politico: "South Carolina Democrat Jaime Harrison raised a staggering $57 million in the third quarter of this year, shattering the previous record for a Senate candidate as he seeks to unseat GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham. The haul only increases Harrison's massive financial advantage over Graham, who is seeking a fourth term in the Senate and facing the most competitive reelection race of his career."

California. Look Who's Stealing the Election. Alicia Robinson & Brooke Staggs of the Orange County Register: "The California Secretary of State has received reports in recent days about possible unauthorized ballot drop boxes in Fresno, Los Angeles and Orange counties.... Reports place such boxes at local political party offices, candidate headquarters and churches.... Reports came out Saturday night about a metal box in front of Freedom's Way Baptist Church in Castaic that had a sign matching the one on the Orange County box. The church posted on social media that the box was 'approved and brought by the GOP.' The post said church officials don't have a key to the box and that GOP officials picks up the ballots.... On its website, the Fresno County Republican Party also shared a list of 'secure' ballot collection locations. None are official county drop box sites, with the local GOP instead listing its own headquarters, multiple gun shops and other local businesses." --s  A Washington Post story is here.

Massachusetts. Arsonists for Trump. Teo Armus of the Washington Post: "After several Joe Biden yard signs went missing near his family farm, Dicken Crane decided to do one better. On the sprawling property in the Berkshires, Crane and his employees used more than a dozen bales of hay to erect a giant sign last Thursday in support of the Democratic presidential candidate. Wrapping the bundles in white plastic and stacking them 15 feet high, he wanted to ensure the endorsement stood out to the cars passing by on Route 9.... Police announced Sunday that they had arrested Lonnie Durfee, 49, and charged the local resident with burning personal property."

Nate White, a British writer, explains in the London Daily News what the Brits don't like about Donald Trump. Here's a sample: "He turns being artless into an art form; he is a Picasso of pettiness; a Shakespeare of shit. His faults are fractal: even his flaws have flaws, and so on ad infinitum.... Rarely has stupidity been so nasty, or nastiness so stupid. He makes Nixon look trustworthy and George W look smart. In fact, if Frankenstein decided to make a monster assembled entirely from human flaws -- he would make a Trump." Thanks to Ken W. for the link. Mrs. McC: Today we are all Brits.

Michael Rosenwald of the Washington Post finds a way Trump is like Abraham Lincoln, after all: they probably both transmitted deadly diseases to their "body men." This is a terrific story; I recommend it to anyone who has a WashPo subscription.

David Sanger & William Broad of the New York Times: "President Trump's long rants and seemingly erratic behavior last week -- which some doctors believe might have been fueled by his use of dexamethasone, a steroid, to treat Covid-19-- renewed a long-simmering debate among national security experts about whether it is time to retire one of the early inventions of the Cold War: the unchecked authority of the president to launch nuclear weapons. Mr. Trump has publicly threatened the use of those weapons only once in his presidency, during his first collision with North Korea in 2017. But it was his decision not to invoke the 25th Amendment and turn control over to Vice President Mike Pence last week that has prompted concern inside and outside the government. Among those who have long argued for the need to rethink presidents' 'sole authority' powers are former Defense Secretary William J. Perry, considered the dean of American nuclear strategists, who has cited the fragility of a nuclear-weapons control chain and the fear that it can be subject to errors of judgment or failure to ask the right questions under the pressure of a warning of an incoming attack.... The 'sole authority' tradition is unusual among the world's nine nuclear powers; even Russia requires two out of three designated officials to sign off on a nuclear launch."

Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha. Marshall Cohen, et al., of CNN: "While most of the nation was largely fixated over the past week on ... Donald Trump's coronavirus diagnosis, the President and his allies in right-wing media have been engrossed with something else entirely. Trump, with the help of outlets like Fox News, has been pushing a dishonest narrative in touting intelligence documents that his administration declassified last month on the eve of the first presidential debate. They claimed the information was a supposed smoking gun proving that Hillary Clinton and the Obama administration sought to frame Trump with a Russian collusion scandal. But when examined closely the documents indicate no such thing. In fact, by the Trump administration's own admission, they are based on unverified Russian intelligence that could be totally bogus. Which is to say that the President and Fox News personalities such as Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson are hyping and disseminating information that originates from a foreign adversary to bludgeon top Democratic officials."

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live Covid-19 updates for Monday are here.

Connor O'Brien of Politico: "Regeneron chief executive Leonard Schleifer on Sunday said ... Donald Trump's treatment with the company's experimental antibody cocktail is 'a case of one,'" but stressed ongoing clinical trials still need to show its efficacy. 'The president's case is a case of one, and that's what we call a case report, and it is evidence of what's happening, but it's kind of the weakest evidence that you can get,' Schleifer said in an interview on CBS' 'Face the Nation.'... 'The real evidence has to come about how good a drug is and what it will do on average has to come from these large clinical trials, these randomized clinical trials, which are the gold standard. And those are ongoing,' Schleifer said. 'We've got some preliminary evidence that we've talked with the FDA, and we're going for an emergency use authorization, because we think it's appropriate at this time.' Trump ... was treated with the experimental antibody drug and touted it as a 'cure.'"

Colorado. Bryan Pietsch & Christina Morales of the New York Times: "A private security guard hired by a Denver television news station was being held by the authorities in connection with a fatal shooting that happened on Saturday after opposing rallies between far-right and far-left activists. The guard, Matthew Dolloff, 30, was being investigated for first-degree murder, the Denver Police Department said on Twitter on Sunday. He was being held in the Denver County Jail, according to court records.... The security guard was contracted through the company Pinkerton, Mark A. Cornetta, president and general manager of 9News, said on Saturday.... Mr. Dolloff has never held the required license with Denver to work as a security guard, said Eric Escudero, a spokesman for the city and county licensing department. 'If he was operating as a security guard, he was in violation of the law, he said." The victim was identified as Lee Keltner; he owned a business in Brighton, Colorado.

Oregon. So-Called Liberals Are Idiots, Too. Shane Kavanaugh of the Oregonian: "A group of protesters toppled statues of former presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln and shattered the entrance to the Oregon Historical Society in Portland's South Park Blocks late Sunday before moving into other areas of downtown, smashing storefronts and engaging in other acts of destruction. Police declared the event a riot and ordered people rampaging through the city's streets to disperse but did not directly intervene until nearly an hour after the first statue fell. The crowd scattered when police cruisers flooded the area, and officers in tactical gear appeared to make several arrests. Protest organizers had promoted the event on social media as an 'Indigenous Peoples Day of Rage.'"

Pennsylvania. Jaclyn Peiser of the Washington Post: "Normally, state troopers accompany Pennsylvania's second lady whenever she leaves the house. But on Sunday, when Gisele Barreto Fetterman realized it was her last chance to get golden kiwis on sale at her neighborhood grocery store, she decided to run out for a few minutes on her own. While she waited in line, she said, a woman recognized her as the wife of Lt. Gov. John Fetterman (D) and began yelling insults at her, including racist slurs. 'She said, "There's that n-word that Fetterman married. You don't belong here. No one wants you here. You don't belong here,"' Fetterman, who was born in Brazil, said in an interview with The Washington Post. Upset and shaken, Fetterman managed to film the woman accosting her again outside her car. She posted a video of the abuse to Twitter Sunday night, along with a description of what happened." Fetterman also snapped a picture of the attacker's license plate.

** Damian Carrington of the Guardian: "One-fifth of the world's countries are at risk of their ecosystems collapsing because of the destruction of wildlife and their habitats, according to an analysis by the insurance firm Swiss Re..., one of the world's biggest reinsurers and a linchpin of the global insurance industry.... Natural 'services' such as food, clean water and air, and flood protection have already been damaged by human activity. More than half of global GDP -- $42tn (£32tn) -- depends on high-functioning biodiversity, according to the report, but the risk of tipping points is growing.... Among the G20 leading economies, South Africa and Australia were seen as being most at risk, with China 7th, the US 9th and the UK 16th." --s

News Lede

New York Times: "Two American economists, Paul R. Milgrom and Robert B. Wilson, were awarded the Nobel in economic science on Monday for improvements to auction theory and inventions of new auction formats -- innovations that have had huge practical applications when it comes to allocating scarce resources. The pair, close collaborators who are both affiliated with Stanford University, have pioneered new auction formats that governments have since used to auction off radio frequency."