HUD Secretary Ben Carson told the Washington Post that he took oleander extract, an unapproved herbal supplement that has been promoted by the CEO of MyPillow, after contracting COVID-19.
States Imposing Few Restrictions Have Worst Outbreaks
“Coronavirus cases are rising in almost every U.S. state. But the surge is worst now in places where leaders neglected to keep up forceful virus containment efforts or failed to implement basic measures like mask mandates in the first place,” the New York Times reports.
Trump Personally Called Two Michigan Canvassers
Associated Press: “In Wayne County, the two Republican canvassers at first balked at certifying the vote, winning praise from Trump, and then reversed course after widespread condemnation.”
“A person familiar with the matter said Trump reached out to the canvassers, Monica Palmer and William Hartmann, on Tuesday evening after the revised vote to express gratitude for their support. Then, on Wednesday, Palmer and Hartmann signed affidavits saying they believe the county vote ‘should not be certified.’”
Palmer told the Washington Post: “I did receive a call from President Trump, late Tuesday evening, after the meeting. He was checking in to make sure I was safe after hearing the threats and doxing that had occurred.”
Michigan Militia Also Planned Televised Executions
“There is new and disturbing information in the alleged militia plot against the governor of Michigan,” WLS reports.
“The 14 men charged had far more violent plans than just a kidnapping… New filings claim there was a Plan B the militiamen had drawn up, that involved a takeover of the Michigan capitol building by 200 combatants who would stage a week-long series of televised executions of public officials.”
“And, according to government documents now on file in lower Michigan court, there was also a Plan C — burning down the state house, leaving no survivors.”
Cincinnati Councilman Arrested for Taking Bribes
“FBI agents arrested Cincinnati City Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld (D) Thursday morning on federal charges accusing him of accepting bribes in exchange for favorable votes on development deals,” the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
“Sittenfeld, a Democrat and the presumptive front-runner in next year’s mayoral election, was arrested around 9:30 a.m.”
An Early Look at the 2022 Senate Map
Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “Democrats may have a better chance of winning the Senate in 2022 than holding the House, even if Democrats lose both Georgia special elections in January.”
“The president’s party often struggles in midterms, which gives the GOP a generic advantage in the battle for Congress.”
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Set to Drop to 1983 Levels
“Greenhouse gases generated by the U.S. economy will slide 9.2 percent this year, tumbling to the lowest level in at least three decades,” the Washington Post reports.
“Battered by the coronavirus pandemic, the stalled economy is projected to have generated 5.9 billion metric tons of emissions, about the same level as 1983.”
White House Killed Mental Health Care for Migrants
“The Trump White House blocked the Justice Department from making a deal in October 2019 to pay for mental health services for migrant families who had been separated by the Trump administration,” NBC News reports.
“Three sources involved in the discussions who requested anonymity said the Office of White House Counsel made the decision to reject the settlement of a federal lawsuit after consultation with senior adviser Stephen Miller, the driving force behind many of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, including family separations.”
Trump Has Abdicated in the Face of Disaster
David Graham: “Almost a quarter million Americans have died from COVID-19. Some 77,000 are now hospitalized, about a fifth of those in the ICU. The country has been reporting roughly 150,000 cases a day for a week, and the numbers seem likely to rise. Hospitals, and the people who work in them, are overwhelmed. The pandemic has been a catastrophe for months, but it seems to be reaching its worst moment in the United States, despite promising advances in vaccine development.”
“The nation cries out for leadership, yet amid one of the worst crises to face the country in decades, President Trump is nowhere to be found.”
“Before November 3, the question of what Trump might do in the likely event of a loss was a topic of speculation: Would he cling to office, denying the results of the election? Or would he quit and slink away? The answer, we now know, is both: He has abdicated nearly all of the work of the presidency, but without either putting a temporary successor, such as Vice President Mike Pence, in charge, or allowing the formal transition to President-elect Joe Biden to begin.”
Unemployment Claims Rise Amid Virus Surge
“The number of applications for unemployment benefits rose sharply last week, indicating continued challenges for the U.S. economic recovery as coronavirus infections increased around the country,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
‘Crazytown’ Cash Floods Georgia
“The two Georgia runoff elections that will determine control of the Senate, and much of President-elect Joe Biden’s ability to enact a Democratic agenda, are already drawing enormous sums of cash, with more than $125 million pouring into the state in only two weeks,” the New York Times reports.
“Unrelenting waves of negative ads have already begun. Roughly $135 million has already been booked in television spending during the nine-week sprint — even as some of the biggest expected spenders have not yet reserved time beyond the next week.”
Pompeo Visits Israeli Settlement
“America’s top diplomat Mike Pompeo made history Thursday becoming the first secretary of state and highest-ranking U.S. official to visit an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank,” NBC News reports.
“The visit is widely seen as the Pompeo’s last play to the Republicans’ evangelical base as the most pro-settler administration in U.S. history nears its end, and he looks ahead to a possible presidential run in 2024.”
Trump Claims ‘Clear and Viable’ Path to Victory
President Trump, who is projected to lose the electoral vote by 306 to 232 and trails Joe Biden in the popular vote by nearly 6 million votes, announced his lawyers will hold a press conference at 12 p.m. ET to outline “a very clear and viable path to victory.”
He added: “Pieces are very nicely falling into place.”
Trump Falsely Claims Voter Fraud In Detroit
President Trump on Twitter: “Voter Fraud in Detroit is rampant, and has been for many years!”
Glenn Kessler: “Funny he did not make this claim when he won Michigan in 2016 by only 10,000 votes. In a legal filing, his lawyers opposed a Jill-Stein request for recount then because ‘all available evidence suggests that the 2016 general election was not tainted by fraud or mistake.'”
Michigan Republicans Ask to ‘Rescind’ Certification
“After three hours of tense deadlock on Tuesday, the two Republicans on an election board in Michigan’s most populous county reversed course and voted to certify the results of the Nov. 3 election, a key step toward finalizing President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the state,” the Washington Post reports.
“Now, they both want to take back their votes.”
“In affidavits signed Wednesday evening, the two GOP members of the four-member Wayne County Board of Canvassers allege that they were improperly pressured into certifying the election and accused Democrats of reneging on a promise to audit votes in Detroit.”
Sowing Post-Election Chaos Is Trump’s Goal
“President Trump is trying to turn America’s free and fair election into a muddled mess of misinformation, specious legal claims and baseless attacks on the underpinnings of the nation’s democracy,” the AP reports.
“The resulting chaos and confusion that has created isn’t the byproduct of Trump’s strategy following his defeat to Democrat Joe Biden. The chaos and confusion is the strategy.”
CEOs Abandon Trump
Tom Donohue — CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and longtime confidant of Republican presidents — tells Axios that Joe Biden is president-elect, and President Trump “should not delay the transition a moment longer.”
Trump Challenges Cement Biden’s Triumph
“President Trump’s frantic post-election challenges are having the opposite effect of what he intended: He’s documenting his demise through a series of court fights and recounts showing Joe Biden’s victory to be all the more obvious and unassailable,” Axios reports.
Said election law expert Rick Hasen: “Each loss further cements Biden’s win.”