Comey defends probe of Trump and Russia as Republicans insist it was biased

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Former FBI director James B. Comey on Wednesday defended the bureau’s 2016 investigation into possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia, pushing back on Senate Republicans’ skeptical questions about the probe and taking particular aim at Attorney General William P. Barr’s assertion that it was unfounded.

Testifying before the Republican-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee as part of that panel’s latest review of the Russia probe, Comey repeatedly told GOP lawmakers he disagreed with the “preamble” to their questions and expressed unfamiliarity with recently released information that they claim discredits the investigation.

He grew particularly exasperated when asked about Barr’s criticism that the FBI’s decision to open the investigation into the 2016 Trump campaign was based on insufficient evidence, saying he had “no idea what on earth” the attorney general was talking about. Continue reading.

These 5 Republicans refused to vote for a resolution committing to a peaceful transition

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Claiming that Democrats are trying to use mail-in voting to promote voter fraud, President Donald Trump has refused to say that he will accept the election results if former Vice President Joe Biden wins in November. The U.S. House of Representatives, in response, adopted a resolution on Tuesday calling for a peaceful transfer of power in the presidential election — and it passed 379-5. Most House Republicans voted in favor of the resolution, but five didn’t: Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas, Rep. Steve King of Iowa, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana.

Gaetz, according to Axios reporter Rebecca Falconer, views the resolution as a Democratic attack on Trump even though many Republicans voted for it. Falconer quotes the Florida congressman as saying: “This resolution is a way for Democrats to attack the president and disguise the fact that they will refuse to accept the election results unless they win. Professional loser Hillary Clinton has told Joe Biden that he should not concede — and I’m quoting — ‘under any circumstances.'”

Gaetz is taking Clinton’s words out of context. During an August interview with Jennifer Palmierifor Showtime, Clinton stressed that under no circumstances should Biden, in a close election, concede until he is certain that all of the votes have been counted. Clinton fears that Trump will prematurely claim victory on Election Night before all of the votes have been counted in key swing states such as Pennsylvania, Florida and Arizona. Continue reading.

Misinformation about Biden’s health spreads after debate

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TikTok videos and Trump ads with false information got more than 700,000 views and clicks

False stories about Joe Biden’s health continued to spread on social platforms the day after the first presidential debate, including misleading Facebook ads by the Trump campaign and a viral video on TikTok.

A false story about Biden wearing an earpiece that emerged on Tuesday continued to get traction on Facebook after the debate. The Trump campaign ad, which encourages people to “Check Joe’s Ears,” and asked “Why won’t Sleepy Joe commit to an earpiece inspection,” was viewed between 200 to 250,000 times and marketed primarily to people over 55 in Texas and Florida. The implication of the ad, the content of which originated from a tweet by a New York Post reporter who cited a single anonymous source, is that Biden needed the assistance of an earpiece so someone could pass him information during the debates.

And on the video platform TikTok, four grainy videos alleging that Biden was wearing a wire to “cheat” during the debate racked up more than half a million combined views on Wednesday, according to research by the left-leaning media watchdog group Media Matters. One of the videos shows a still of Biden with his hand inside his suit, while another overlays an arrow over Biden’s tie, but neither video shows any visual evidence of Biden wearing an electronic device of any kind. Continue reading.

Trump says Proud Boys should ‘stand down’ after backlash to debate comments

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President Trump on Wednesday said he didn’t know about the Proud Boys but that the group should “stand down” amid intense criticism of his remarks at the previous night’s presidential debate that the far-right group should “stand back and stand by.”

Trump on Wednesday faced blowback from a number of Republicans who said he should have forcefully denounced white supremacy when he was given the chance.

“I don’t know who the Proud Boys are,” Trump told reporters when departing for a campaign trip to Minnesota. “I can only say they have to stand down. Let law enforcement do their work.” Continue reading.

Trump official stalls polar bear study that could affect oil drilling in Alaska

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U.S. Geological Survey Director James Reilly has blocked the release of his own scientists’ findings for months

A top official at the Interior Department has delayed the release of a study that shows how oil and gas drilling in Alaska could encroach upon the territory of polar bears — which are already struggling for survival as a warming planet melts their habitat — according to documents obtained by The Washington Post.

In an unusual move, U.S. Geological Survey Director James Reilly has refused to make public the study, by his own scientists, of the number of female polar bears that den and give birth on land near the southern Beaufort Sea. That is the same area that overlaps with federal land the Trump administration has opened up to oil and natural-gas development.

The study has been ready for at least three months. But Reilly — a geologist by training and former astronaut — has questioned why it uses data collected by a former agency scientist now working for an advocacy group and why it does not count each polar bear den individually, among other things, according to internal memos obtained by The Post. Continue reading.

Debates panel says changes under consideration ‘to ensure a more orderly discussion’

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Organizers are considering changes for the next two debates between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden after their first meeting Tuesday night descended into chaos. 

The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), a bipartisan body that helps plan and execute the quadrennial meetings between presidential and vice presidential contenders, said Wednesday that the messiness of the first debate made clear that changes need to be made to make the next event more “orderly.”

“The Commission on Presidential Debates sponsors televised debates for the benefit of the American electorate. Last night’s debate made clear that additional structure should be added to the format of the remaining debates to ensure a more orderly discussion of the issues. The CPD will be carefully considering the changes that it will adopt and will announce those measures shortly,” the group said in a statement.  Continue reading.

The covid-19 recession is the most unequal in modern U.S. history

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Job losses from the pandemic overwhelmingly affected low-wage, minority workers most. Seven months into the recovery, Black women, Black men and mothers of school-age children are taking the longest time to regain their employment.

The economic collapse sparked by the pandemic is triggering the most unequal recession in modern U.S. history, delivering a mild setback for those at or near the top and a depression-like blow for those at the bottom, according to a Washington Post analysis of job losses across the income spectrum.

Recessions often hit poorer households harder, but this one is doing so at a scale that is the worst in generations, the analysis shows.

While the nation overall has regained nearly half of the lost jobs, several key demographic groups have recovered more slowly, including mothers of school-age children, Black men, Black women, Hispanic men, Asian Americans, younger Americans (ages 25 to 34) and people without college degrees. Continue reading.

Trump aides struggle to defend Proud Boys remarks at debate

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White House and campaign aides on Wednesday struggled to clean up President Trump‘s comments a night earlier in which he declined to explicitly condemn white supremacy, instead directing a far-right group to “stand back and stand by” during the first presidential debate.

Trump’s comments about the Proud Boys, a far-right militia group, dominated headlines the morning after the debate.

Multiple Trump surrogates faced questions about the remarks during cable news hits, where they downplayed his calls for the group to “stand by” and pointed to the president’s past denunciations of white supremacists. Continue reading.

Dean Phillips Chooses Optimism Over Fear, Invites Voters to Join Him

Phillips turns heads and opens hearts with creative new

MINNETONKA, MN – Today, Dean Phillips (D, MN-03) released a new digital ad that is unlike anything else voters are seeing in the ugly and offensive political ad wars staining Minnesota and national airwaves. “Optimism vs. Fear” is a refreshing alternative to the lies, doom, gloom, name calling, and personal political attacks from candidates and dark money groups – and offers an antidote to dangerous fear mongering. 

CLICK HERE TO WATCH “OPTIMISM VS. FEAR”

“Americans are being presented a clear choice in this election,” said Phillips. “The current president – and those who enable him – employ scare tactics and division to spread fear and disengage voters. That’s anything but presidential leadership; it’s cowardice. I choose democracy over division, conversation over chaos, optimism over fear, and I invite Minnesotans and Americans to join me.” 

Phillips credits his optimistic outlook for opening the door to the signature accomplishments of his first term in Congress. Whether it was finally winning a pathway to citizenship for Liberian refugees on DED, passing his bipartisan PPP reform bill into law for struggling small business, or standing up to party leaders to break the impasse on COVID-19 relief negotiations, Phillips dwells in possibility. His commitment to listening and forging trusting relationships with Democrats, Republicans, and independents is the key to his successes – and it all begins with optimism. 

Continue reading “Dean Phillips Chooses Optimism Over Fear, Invites Voters to Join Him”