Author: Data and Research Manager

CNN abruptly cuts interview after Trump aide refuses to offer evidence to back up their conspiracy theory

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On Tuesday, CNN anchor John Berman confronted President Donald Trump’s campaign communications strategist Tim Murtaugh about the president’s baseless claim about a plane “loaded with thugs” intent on causing riots.

“Tim, what specifically is he talking about there?” asked Berman.

“I don’t have access to the same information the president has,” said Murtaugh. “But John, let me ask you a question about this. The people we saw harassing folks outside the White House in Washington Thursday night, those people knew the names of regular Americans coming out of the White House—” Continue reading.

Tactics of fiery White House trade adviser draw new scrutiny as some of his pandemic moves unravel

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Peter Navarro has faced an internal investigation into his treatment of colleagues, and now two of his coronavirus-related actions are under internal scrutiny

Amid the Trump administration’s troubled response to the coronavirus pandemic, senior White House aide Peter Navarro has refashioned himself as a powerful government purchasing chief, operating far beyond his original role as an adviser on trade policy.

But U.S. officials say the abrasive figure’s shortcomings as a manager could influence how well prepared the United States is for a second wave of coronavirus infections expected this fall.

Navarro’s harsh manner and disregard for protocol have alienated numerous colleagues, corporate executives and prominent Republicans. In a previously undisclosed incident, the White House Counsel’s Office in 2018 investigated Navarro’s behavior in response to repeated complaints and found he routinely had been verbally abusive toward others. Navarro narrowly avoided losing his job, but the abuse has continued as the White House has grappled with the pandemic, multiple administration officials said. Continue reading.

White House social media director tweets manipulated video of Biden

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White House social media director Dan Scavino is no stranger to sharing manipulated video online. In March 2020, Twitter applied its “manipulated media” label for the first time to a deceptively edited video of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden that was posted by Scavino and retweeted by President Trump. The video was cut short to make it sound as though Biden inadvertently endorsed Trump for reelection.

On Sunday, Scavino shared another altered video targeting Biden. Let’s dig in.

The Facts

Scavino tweeted a manipulated video from his personal account that makes it look like Biden fell asleep during a TV interview. The video spliced together two different clips — one from a 2011 KBAK interview with actor Harry Belafonte and the other of Biden at a virtual town hall event with Hillary Clinton in April 2020.

The video has a photoshopped chyron that reads “On air: Joe Biden | The importance of this election.” A soundtrack of snoring has been added. Continue reading.

Health care worker COVID-19 infections underscore mask needs

Infections are occurring in clinics and hospitals, but state health leaders believe the majority of doctors and nurses are infected while away from work

Dr. Deepi Goyal had personally treated numerous COVID-19 patients, and yet the infectious disease surprised him last month when he lost taste, felt exhausted and endured soreness as part of his case.

“I consider myself quite healthy, and it really took me down,” the Mayo Clinic doctor said. “Not only did it take me down, but it took me a while to recover.”

Minnesota hasn’t suffered the doomsday scenario of COVID-19 knocking out large swaths of doctors and nurses — leaving infected patients with nobody to care for them — but new data show the toll of the pandemic on health care workers and the need for continued use of masks and personal protective equipment (PPE) to act as safeguards. Continue reading.

Why President Trump’s ‘surreal’ call likely won’t change the Big Ten’s course

Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren spoke by phone with President Donald Trump on Tuesday morning, a day after the White House reached out to set up the call. Both sides have since characterized the conversation as “productive.”

But that doesn’t mean the circumstances surrounding the league’s postponement of fall sports have dramatically changed.

“I think it was very productive about getting (the) Big Ten playing again and immediately,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Tuesday. “Let’s see what happens. He’s a great guy. It’s a great conference, tremendous teams. We’re pushing very hard. … I think they want to play, and the fans want to see it, and the players have a lot at stake, including possibly playing in the NFL. You have a lot of great players in that conference. Continue reading.

Trump Spread Multiple Conspiracy Theories on Monday. Here Are Their Roots.

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In a wide-ranging interview with the Fox News host Laura Ingraham on Monday night, President Trump spread multiple conspiracy theories about the protests that have erupted across the nation. Many of his unfounded claims can be traced back to narratives that have been swirling online for months.

Here are three of the baseless conspiracy theories that Mr. Trump spread and where they came from.

A plane ‘loaded with thugs’ headed to the Republican convention.

During the interview with Ms. Ingraham, Mr. Trump claimed that “we had somebody get on a plane from a certain city this weekend, and in the plane it was almost completely loaded with thugs, wearing these dark uniforms, black uniforms, with gear and this and that.” Continue reading.

‘Thugs’ on a plane: Trying to paint Biden as extreme, Trump ramps up promotion of conspiracy theories

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While trying to define Democratic rival Joe Biden as an avatar of lawless anarchists, President Trump has warned about rioters in the streets of liberal American cities. He has fanned fears of low-income minorities invading the suburbs.

And this week, he offered a new alert: “Thugs wearing dark uniforms,” he told Fox News host Laura Ingraham, had crowded en masse onto a plane to fly to Washington and wreak havoc at the Republican National Convention last week.

“A lot of people were on the plane to do big damage,” Trump declared in a prime-time interview Monday. Continue reading.

Trump Administration Promise to Focus on Extremism Remains Unfulfilled

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A year after the Department of Homeland Security promised to focus more on violent extremism, the plan to carry out that shift remains hidden while the atmosphere worsens.

WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security started an effort a year ago this month to address domestic terrorism, white nationalist threats and other acts of homegrown violence, a major shift for an agency created after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to protect the country from foreign terrorism.

Today the plan to carry out that new mission remains stalled in a bureaucratic morass as clashes between protesters and counterprotesters have escalated to precisely the violent acts that the plan was supposed to address.

Instead, a new crop of Department of Homeland Security leaders, led by the confrontational acting secretary, Chad F. Wolf, appear to be doing the opposite of what had been promised. Far from cooperating with local governments and citizens to combat domestic unrest, particularly from the far right, they have joined President Trump in lashing out at American mayors and governors while deploying federal tactical teams to cities — often expressly against the wishes of the local governments with which they had pledged to cooperate. Continue reading.

And that’s why Trump gives more interviews to Fox News than anyone else

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Part of President Trump’s appeal to his base is that he doesn’t speak like a normal politician. This is occasionally described as his being willing to tell it like it is, which isn’t true because he so frequently lies or says things that are misleading. But it does seem fairly obvious that his choice of words is generally not calculated, his phrasing not polished by concerns about how his comments will be interpreted.

But, of course, there’s a reason politicians generally try to communicate deliberately: It helps them avoid saying things that might offend voters or stir up controversy. This has never been a concern of Trump’s, often to the consternation of his staff and allies. They’re left cleaning up after him, as when White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Monday had to try to explain why Trump tweeted false claims about coronavirus-related deaths and why he expressed appreciation for a thread of comments defending a murder suspect in Wisconsin.

Having someone around to clean up any problematic comments is also why Trump has given more interviews to Fox News than any other outlet as president. Continue reading.

Chamber of Commerce backs freshmen House Dems, marking shift

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has decided to endorse 23 freshmen House Democrats in this fall’s elections, a bipartisan move by an organization that has long leaned strongly toward Republicans.

The country’s largest business group is also endorsing 29 freshmen House Republicans, said a person familiar with the organization’s decision who described the actions. Even so, the decision has prompted internal divisions, with some state chamber officials criticizing the national group’s decision to back freshmen Democrats in their areas.

The House freshmen the chamber is endorsing include several who face tough reelections, such as Reps. Abby Finkenauer and Cindy Axne of Iowa, Andy Kim of New Jersey, Xochitl Torres Small of New Mexico, Anthony Brindisi of New York, Kendra Horn of Oklahoma, Joe Cunningham of South Carolina and Elaine Luria and Abigail Spanberger of Virginia. Continue reading.