Could President Trump defy even a landslide This is, increasingly, a serious question, as the polls have widened in favor of Democratic nominee Joe Biden and the president refuses to commit to accepting that result if he loses. The answer, if it comes to that, will depend on the response of Trump’s fellow Republicans. It’s one thing if the numbers on election night, or in the days afterward, show Biden winning handily and Senate Republicans make clear they acknowledge that reality. Then there will be no suspense over the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress that will serve as official confirmation of the result. But if Senate Republicans hesitate, waiting to see how things play out, then the responsibility will shift to Republicans in battleground states, where Trump could encourage GOP-controlled state legislatures to overturn their voters’ judgment. Here, the impact of partisan gerrymandering, and the legacy of Trump’s impeachment, both come into play. The notion of a state’s elected politicians acting to subvert the will of their own citizens should be unthinkable. But that’s, in effect, what gerrymandering is. Elections are supposed to be held for the benefit of voters so that the public obtains the officeholders it wants. Gerrymandering is premised on the contrary approach: letting incumbent politicians manipulate the electoral system to defy the popular will for partisan advantage. Soon, the country may be forced to confront the question of whether this anti-democracy attitude has so taken hold that it could actually undo a presidential election. The challenge is whether the politicians who currently hold the reins of power truly want the outcome of the presidential election to turn on the preferences of the voters. That’s where impeachment comes in. The House’s impeachment of Trump, and the Senate’s near-party-line vote to acquit him, impose a particular responsibility on Republicans, both in state government and the Senate. Although it may seem like ancient history, the impeachment was about the election. Trump was impeached for attempting to abuse the powers of incumbency to subvert a fair fight against Biden, his expected, and eventual, opponent. By his behavior, Trump made clear his willingness to cling to power at all costs. Democrats consequently argued for conviction because, they said, he was too dangerous to be allowed to remain in office. Senate Republicans were correct to resist that move. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) argued to “let the people decide” the president’s fate in November, and I supported that approach. It does not help democracy to deprive one party of its chosen candidate. The logical consequence of that acquittal is that Alexander and his party now shoulder a responsibility to ensure that their admonition is put into practice. Letting the voters decide now really means letting the voters decide — not attempting to subvert their choice. It means that if Trump tries to secure a second term despite a landslide against him, other elected Republicans must resist that move even if they have the raw power to help Trump’s effort. One would think decisive results would tamp down the hyperpartisan forces that might try to defy the popular vote. But given the current political culture of the battleground states, where Republicans hold majorities in the legislatures — and do so after the most aggressive cycle of hyper-partisan gerrymandering in U.S. history — there are reasons to worry.
If the race tightens at the end, there’s even more cause for concern, since any temptation toward a power grab will face less counterpressure.The result could look like this: A majority of voters in a battleground state — Pennsylvania is one potential example — back former vice president Joe Biden. The state’s Democratic governor certifies that result and approves a slate of electors pledged to support Biden. But the state legislature, controlled by Republicans, agrees with Trump that the results are rigged and approves a competing slate of Trump electors. Undoubtedly, if Republicans attempt to use their gerrymandered power to subvert the popular vote for president this way, they will face lawsuits and massive protests from Democrats.
However, if state legislatures refuse to accept the certified results of their popular votes, the fight will come to Congress in January. And Republicans — including Mike Pence as president of the Senate — will have to decide whether they remain true to Alexander’s principle.
If Democrats take control of the Senate, this won’t matter under the relevant statute. The Democratic House and Senate would reject the Trump elector slate from any state where the popular vote went to Biden. But if Republicans remain in control of the Senate, Republican senators would then have to choose whether to accept the certified results of the popular vote in that state or to jettison their “let the people decide” rhetoric in order to declare Trump the winner. America was founded on the basic idea of governments “deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,” as the Declaration of Independence extols. It would be the ultimate violation if GOP senators repudiated this most fundamental of national values solely for the sake of retaining power. Nick Note: This current crop of corrupt politicians will do ANYTHING to get and keep power. They know no bounds.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s and Democratic rival Joe Biden’s campaigns are assembling armies of powerful lawyers for the possibility that the race for the White House is decided not at the ballot box but in court. They have been engaging in a lawyer’s version of tabletop war games, churning out draft pleadings, briefs and memos to cover scenarios that read like the stuff of a law school hypothetical more than a real-life case in a democracy. Dozens of attorneys for the Republicans and the Democrats are already clashing in courts across the U.S. over mailed-in ballot deadlines and other issues brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. And as Trump tries to sow doubt in the legitimacy of the Nov. 3 election, both sides have built massive legal operations readying for a bitterly disputed race that lands at the Supreme Court “We’ve been preparing for this for well over a year,” Republican National Committee Chief Counsel Justin Riemer told The Associated Press. “We’ve been working with the campaign on our strategy for recount preparation, for Election Day operations and our litigation strategy.” On the Democratic side, the Biden campaign’s election protection program includes a special national litigation team involving hundreds of lawyers led by Walter Dellinger, acting solicitor general in the Clinton administration, and Donald Verrilli, a solicitor general under President Barack Obama, among others. Bob Bauer, a former White House counsel to Obama, and Biden campaign general counsel Dana Remus are focused on protecting the rights of voters, who have been enduring long lines at polling places around the country on the belief that the presidential election will be decided by their ballots. Both sides are informed by the experience of the 2000 election, which was ultimately decided by the Supreme Court in Bush v. Gore. But this year, because Trump has pushed unsubstantiated claims about the potential for voter fraud with increased voting by mail, sewing doubt about the integrity of the result, has lawyers are preparing for a return trip before the high court. And, in an extraordinary twist, the president has pushed for his nominee to the Supreme Court, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, to be seated as soon as possible if she is confirmed as expected on Monday, saying it’s important to have a ninth justice to decide any election disputes. The race is already thought to be the most litigated in American history, with some 260 lawsuits arising from the coronavirus by one tally. Behind the scenes, Trump and Republicans have been putting together a legal team that includes Jay Sekulow, one of the president’s lead attorneys during the impeachment trial and the special counsel’s Russia investigation, who is an experienced litigator before the Supreme Court. Republicans have hired dozens of attorneys and retained prominent national firms to challenge Democratic efforts to expand ballot access in key battleground states.
Thousands of volunteer lawyers have signed up to assist with Election Day operations and poll watching and other issues, Riemer said. A group called Lawyers for Trump, whose advisory board includes Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, is recruiting retired lawyers and law students. Jones Day is among the prominent global law firms expected to play a role. Attorney Will Consovoy, who has represented Trump in such cases as his long-running fight to prevent a top New York prosecutor from getting his tax returns, is also likely to be a key player in any election legal fights.
Riemer said it’s not as though the party is going to call up a random attorney on Election Day and say, “Hey, are you busy? Do you want to litigate a recount?” Biden has also created a legal war room that his campaign says is focused on combatting voter suppression at the polls and ensuring votes are correctly counted. Another team that’s fighting voter access issues in courts across the country is headed by well-known election lawyer Marc Elias of the law firm Perkins Coie, who is prominent in Democratic circles and has become a bête noire of Republicans. “When Democrats want to tilt elections in their favor outside the ballot box, who do they call? Marc Elias and Perkins Coie,” an RNC website says. Republicans accuse Elias and Democrats of trying to use the coronavirus pandemic to rig the election by doing away with safeguards against fraud. Elias and his team at have filed lawsuits seeking to force states to extend mailed-in ballot collection deadlines and other things. In one of those cases, the Supreme Court this week allowed Pennsylvania to count mailed-in ballots received up to three days after the Nov. 3 election, rejecting a Republican bid to block the extension. Elias has long been the public face of Democratic legal contests, serving as general counsel to Hillary Clinton’s campaign in 2016 and John Kerry’s in 2004. He pushes regular updates about developments in his lawsuits to nearly 150,000 followers on Twitter, as well as guidance for voting and the occasional jibe at the president and his Republican counterparts. “Being called a ‘partisan hack’ by a lawyer for Donald Trump is a badge of honor I will wear proudly for a lifetime,” he wrote in a tweet this week. But lawyers on both sides say they are preparing to be ready for much more than a fight on Twitter. Nick Note: This election is very very close. THe issue is we have 2 very dark candidates. Reality is sleepy Joe has been co-opted by the commies. Trump once a liberal has sold out to the fascists. The truly ugly part of what we face is their is a third person in the room. Mr Corona and his is the dominate voice. America cannot survive another lock down. All All the politicians strategy is to support the economy for a year. While they await the vaccine and their will not be an effective one for years into the future. Reality is Mr Corona is not leaving town any tine soon. Social distancing with the new strain means COMPLETE distancing. No 10 feet 50 feet but hundreds of feet. All masks unless they are a powered air suit or a P4 nanometer filter will not work. Around the world in societies which did social distance and did mask up infections and DEATHS are at records. I need no more prrof then that. The vaccines even the best of them are a 90 day protective measure at best. Bottom line is we are FUCKED. Well not you and me but the masses. Unless they use a proper ULPA mask, Extreme isolation and build their immune system they are in big trouble. We are headed for a global depression with the masses rioting in the streets, As bad as it will be the elections are little more then the warm up to the main event
United States House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi claimed on Friday that the Democrats and Republicans are capable of reaching an agreement on the country’s fourth coronavirus stimulus package before the November election “if the president [Donald Trump] wants it.” She noted that Trump “has to talk to the Senate Republicans” in order to move forward towards reaching a deal. “The President is delusional when he says we’ve turned a corner on this. We haven’t. We have miles to go. We can’t have less than keeping Americans healthy, address the climate change, and crush the pandemic,” Pelosi asserted in an interview with MSNBC, referring to a potential size of the package.
Rudy Giuliani is featured in a new mockumentary by comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, in a scene in which the former New York mayor is shown with his hands down his pants. Shot in a New York hotel room in July, the scene — which is part of the sequel to Cohen’s hit movie Borat — resulted in Giuliani calling police. The scene culminates in a moment with Giuliani lying on a bed with his shirt untucked, while an actress posing as a journalist stands nearby. Giuliani went to the hotel room thinking he was being interviewed about U.S. President Donald Trump’s COVID-19 response. In the film, the young woman invites him to the bedroom, which is rigged with hidden cameras. Giuliani then asks for her phone number and address. He lies back on the bed and has his hands in his pants. The hotel room scene ends when Baron Cohen, who was disguised as part of the crew, bursts into the room in an outlandish outfit, screaming that the young woman is 15. Up to that point, there is no indication she is underage. The character — Borat’s daughter in the movie — is played by actress Maria Bakalova, and is 24 years old according to a birth date listed on IMDb.
WATCH | Borat’s outrageous antics continue in latest film
Giuliani had no immediate comment. Though he called police after that encounter, there is no indication an investigation was launched. Giuliani spoke to the New York Post’s Page Six column about the incident in July, but did not mention the bedroom aspect of the encounter. New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, who profiled Baron Cohen ahead of the the film’s release, tweeted Wednesday about the scene: “It’s even wilder than it sounds. Beyond cringe.” Trolling those close to Trump is a central theme of the new Borat film, a sequel to the 2006 mockumentary that saw Baron Cohen’s character travel the United States, espousing sexist, racist and anti-Semitic views, and eliciting similar responses from unwitting subjects.
For Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, Baron Cohen returns as his alter-ego from Kazakhstan in a plot that involves trying to give his daughter as a gift to U.S. Vice President Mike Pence.
The closest Borat gets is the Conservative Political Action Conference, where he shouts to Pence that he’s brought a woman for him. Dressed in a Donald Trump costume and with Bakalova, slung over his shoulder, Baron Cohen is swiftly escorted out by security. That leads to a second scheme involving Giuliani that ends up in the hotel room scene.
Giuliani finalized his divorce from his wife of 15 years last December.
Baron Cohen has made a history of poking fun at conservative figures. For his 2018 Showtime series Who Is America, the British comedian got former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney to sign a waterboarding kit. A sketch with former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore involved the comedian administering a “pedophile test.” Moore has sued over the encounter. Nick Note: Some sick shit! How low the mighty have fallen
PARIS (Reuters) – The COVID-19 virus is spreading more quickly than during its initial outbreak in the spring, French government scientific advisor Arnaud Fontanet said on Friday, in one of the starkest warnings yet about the scale of the disease’s resurgence engulfing Europe. “The virus is circulating more quickly …The resurgence of the pandemic started in August”, Fontanet, an epidemiologist, told BFM TV, adding the fight against the disease would be a “marathon”. He spoke the day after France published a record 41,622 daily tally of new COVID-19 infections, bringing the country just shy, at 999,043, of a million cases. France will go over that threshold this Friday, becoming the second Western European country to do after Spain. Like many other European countries facing a renewed spike in the number of cases since early September, France has ramped up restrictions to contain the disease, announcing Thursday a widening of a curfew, initially put in place in nine cities including Paris, to more than two thirds of its population.,
Fontanet said French authorities had managed to bring the virus under control by the end of the June, adding the hospitalisations figure staying low until the end of August had given a false sense of security despite cases already going up at the time.
“And then there was one cold week in September and all the indicators went the wrong way again all over Europe. The virus spreads better in the cold because we live more inside”, he said. After reaching a peak of 32,292 on April 14, when France was in the midst of one of Europe’s strictest lockdowns, COVID-19 hospitalisations fell to a 4,530 low on August 29. After increasing daily by more than 700 over the last four days, the tally now stands at 14,032, a level unseen since early June.
“Hospitals and medical staff will find themselves in a situation they’ve already known”, Fontanet said, referring to end March-early April peak, when the hospital system was on the verge of collapse.
“We have a lot of tools to protect ourselves against the virus but we’re facing a difficult period”, he added, echoing Prime Minister Jean Castex, who predicted a “tough November” when detailing the new curfew measures. Like other medical experts, Fontanet said it takes about two weeks for containment measures to have some impact. Nick Note: Something has defientely changes with the coronavirus. Things just got a lot uglier!
NASHVILLE, TENN. — Hunter Biden’s ex-business associate Tony Bobulinski accused Democratic nominee Joe Biden of lying about his involvement in his family’s overseas dealings in a stunning appearance just 90 minutes before Thursday evening’s presidential debate.
“I have heard Joe Biden say he has never discussed his dealings with Hunter. That is false. I have firsthand knowledge about this because I directly dealt with the Biden family, including Joe Biden,” Bobulinski said following The Post’s bombshell reporting on Hunter Biden’s private emails.
Bobulinski, who will be a guest of President Trump at the debate, showed three phones spanning 2015 to 2018 as evidence and said he would be meeting with the Senate and the FBI to hand over electronics.
The US Navy veteran said he was introduced to the former veep in May 2, 2017 by Hunter Biden and the lawmaker’s brother Jim Biden before the Global Milken Conference in Beverly Hills, Calif. “That night, we discussed the Biden’s history, the Biden family’s plans with the Chinese, with which he was plainly familiar, at least at a high level,” he said in Memphis, Tenn., ahead of the final debate between President Trump and Biden.
“I have no wish to bury anyone. I’ve never been political. The few contributions I have made have been to Democrats. But what I am is a patriot, and a veteran, to protect my family name, and my business reputation. I need to ensure that the true facts are out there,” he said, batting away accusations that he was part of a misinformation plot.
Bobulinski came forward earlier Thursday to corroborate emails revealed exclusively by The Post last week about the Biden family’s murky overseas dealings in China involving both Hunter Biden and uncle Jim Biden. The US Navy veteran accused former vice president Joe Biden of being directly involved in a plot to make millions of dollars, identifying to him as “the big guy” named in the May 13, 2017 email. That email showed the four partners each getting 20 percent shares in the business, with 10 percent going to “Jim” and the remaining 10 percent “held by H for the big guy?” The US Navy veteran said he was approached in late 2015 by James Gilliar, a man he had known “for many years,” about joining him in a deal with Chinese-state owned energy company CEFC and “what he called one of the most prominent families in the United States.” The whistleblower said he was told the Biden family wanted to form a new entity with CEFC to invest in infrastructure, real estate, and technology in the US and around the world.
Bobulinski also released hundreds of text messages and emails from his time as CEO of the company being formed between the Biden family and China’s largest private energy company, named SinoHawk Holdings.
In one message sent on May 20, 2017, Gilliar warned Bobulinski not to mention the Democratic nominee’s involvement in the SinoHawk deal. “Don’t mention Joe being involved, it’s only when u [sic] are face to face, I know u [sic] know that but they are paranoid,” a screenshot of the message from Gilliar read. Bobulinski said Gilliar and fellow partner Rob Walker of being “paranoid about keeping Joe Biden’s involvement secret.” The famous family has been dogged for years by allegations of impropriety following Hunter Biden’s lucrative role on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma while his father was vice president. A tranche of emails from a hard drive belonging to Hunter Biden — published exclusively by The Post last week — revealed how the scandal-scarred son tried to leverage his family connections to land lucrative deals overseas and boost his Burisma pay. Speaking before reporters at a Marriott hotel near the debate site Thursday evening, Bobulinski claimed he had a falling out with the Biden family when Hunter Biden wanted to pocket $5 million from an initial $10 million cash injection into SinoHawk, ponied up by CEFC. “He said, referring to ‘the chairman,’ his father, that CEFC was really investing in the Biden family, that he held the Trump card and that he was the one putting his family legacy on the time,” said Bobulinski, who declined to take questions afterwards. “During these negotiations I repeated to Hunter and others that SinoHawk could not be Hunter’s personal piggy bank,” he went on.
“CEFC through July 2017 was assuring me the funds would be transferred to SinoHawk, but they were never sent to our company. Instead, I found out from Senator Johnson’s September report that the $5 million was sent in August 2017 to entities affiliated with Hunter,” he said, referring to the Wisconsin senator’s congressional probe into potential corruption in the Biden family.
Ending the press conference, the former Navy lieutenant said he would be meeting with Johnson’s Senate Homeland Security Committee on Friday.
“Tomorrow I will be meeting with the Senate committee members concerning this matter and I will be providing the FBI the devices which contain the evidence corroborating what I have said, so I will not be taking any questions at this time.”
“Can you tell us a little more about this evidence?” a reporter asked.
“The evidence sits on these three phones, I don’t want to go into anything any further. This will all be discussed with Senator Johnson and his committee and the American people can decide what’s fact,” he said. Nick Note: This is a smoking cannon. And yes it Proves the corruption of Biden. Trump is a asshole. Biden is simply a corrupt political hack The election choice is yours death by the electric chair or lethal injection. I say we cut all their noses off Roman style!
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks gained ground on Thursday after oscillating for much of the session as growing optimism about an imminent U.S. coronavirus relief deal helped offset concern about a global surge in COVID-19 cases. All three major U.S. stock indexes closed higher and long-dated Treasury yields rose on news of two opposing sides in Washington nearing agreement on a new fiscal aid package. “There’s a lot of volatility in the market,” said Peter Tuz, president of Chase Investment Counsel in Charlottesville, Virginia. “If Mnuchin and Pelosi come out this evening and say ‘we’re not talking any more’ and the market will sell off.” Amid talks with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, said negotiations were progressing and that legislation could be hammered out “pretty soon.” While a White House spokesman added a further note of optimism, saying “this is really the most optimistic we’ve felt about getting a deal,” President Donald Trump’s economic adviser Larry Kudlow said “significant policy differences” remain. “There are some positive signs that maybe we’ll get stimulus reasonably soon,” Tuz added. “I think we’ll see some kind of deal between now and sometime next week.” The United States was on the brink of a widespread coronavirus outbreak, with nearly two-thirds of states in a danger zone and six, including election battleground Wisconsin, reported a record one-day increase in COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday. U.S. economic data surprised to the upside, as jobless claims fell more than expected and existing home sales blew past estimates to more than a 14-year high. t record increases.
Long-dated Treasury yields hit four-month highs and the yield curve steepened on news of progressing pandemic relief talks. Benchmark 10-year yields hit their highest since early June. Benchmark 10-year notes last fell 14/32 in price to yield 0.863%, from 0.816% late on Wednesday. The 30-year bond last fell 35/32 in price to yield 1.677%, versus 1.629% late on Wednesday.
Ongoing uncertainties surrounding the timing and size of a U.S. pandemic aid package helped the dollar edge up from a seven-week low against a basket of world currencies. Nick Note: As predicted the beloved 30 year bond has climbed from 0.88% to 1.7%. Yields are rising the yield cure will be the yield mountain. with the front end being negative and the back end OVER 3% on the 30 year. I am putting you on notice we will soon (not real soon) be starting our Beloved strip operations again.
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows (pictured) stated that the negotiations on the potential economic relief legislation have advanced to the next phase. Speaking in an interview for CNN, Meadows also revealed that the congressional committee chairs are in contact regarding “the technical language” of the stimulus legislation. The White House official said United States Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin made a bill offer worth $1.9 trillion, the largest government proposal since the bipartisan discussions had started. Meadows added that President Donald Trump would agree on a bigger deal that would also provide the American families with direct payments. Nick Note: My sniff is their will be a deal AND the markets will rally on such deal. So now you understand what i am doing…….
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (pictured) stated on Thursday that the Democrats wouldn’t hold negotiations on the coronavirus relief bill with the White House if they stalled. The official expressed optimism again regarding the possibility of passing the legislation but added that the two sides still have come to an agreement on state and local funding and liability.
However, Pelosi said that “the opportunity” to pass the bill lies in the fact that President Donald Trump also wants a deal.
Nick Note: Since i am a betting man my sniff is their will be a deal. And AND i do not believe the market is pricing in a deal. We shall see what they don’t see!
Germany is facing a “very serious” rise in COVID19 cases, the head of Robert Koch Institute said.Lothar Wieler said that it was because of private gatherings. Germany is facing a “very serious” rise in coronavirus cases, the head of Robert Koch Institute said on October 22. Addressing media reporters from Berlin, Lothar Wieler asserted that it was because of “private gatherings”, especially amongst the youth, that had led to the dramatic rise in the COVID-19 cases. However, touting a solution for the same he went on to reckon that “systematic compliance with restrictive measures” could help better the situation. Germany which was one of the initial countries to curb the spread coronavirus pandemic is currently witnessing a surge in cases. The EU nation on October 22, reported another high with over 11,287 new infections. As per statistics, Thursday’s caseload exceeds the previous record of 7,830 recorded on October 16 and a marks a steep jump from 7,595 cases reported on October 21. With the latest rise, the nationwide total now stands at 3,97,922 reported COVID-19 cases and 9,913 deaths, the latest tally of John Hopkins University revealed. In the city of Essen, the public assembly has been limited to 25, from the earlier 50, mandating the face-masks at all times in public buildings. Whereas, Berlin and Cologne a nightly curfew have been imposed following the surge. Last week, an aide to Chancellor Angela Merkel reportedly said that with hard months to come and a stricter clampdown, people will have to stop the travel and partying, where infection chains spread mostly. Chancellor’s chief of staff, Helge Braun, told public broadcaster ARD that the country had plans to cap the total number of people allowed in public premises, much like England, unfortunately, imposing sweeping measures to curb transmission rate as country battles the second wave. According to the sources of the local broadcaster Deutsche Welle, Germany’s western city of Essen exceeded far beyond the nation’s key coronavirus threshold, with Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt, and Stuttgart reporting daily alarming spikes in infections that prompted authorities to tighten measures. Nick Note: Germany during the first wave masked up, cleaned up, disinfected and isolated up the yang yang. It was the first in Europe to get things under control and had the lowest infection and death rates. Well Das Equallizer came to town and things are spinning out of control.