“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention drafted a sweeping order last month requiring all passengers and employees to wear masks on all forms of public and commercial transportation in the United States, but it was blocked by the White House,” the New York Times reports.
Trump May Ask Every Appointee for Resignation Letter
“The White House Presidential Personnel Office is considering asking nearly every political appointee in the Trump administration to write and tender provisional letters of resignation right before the election,” Politico reports.
“The personnel office would then decide which ones to accept and which to reject — giving President Trump maximum flexibility in choosing his team in a possible second term.”
GOP Begins to Distance from Trump
“As President Trump skids deeper into political peril, anxious Republicans have started to try to distance themselves from his fate, appealing to voters to elect them as a check on a Joe Biden administration,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
Said “I think Trump might cause us a tidal wave. He is ankle weights in a pool on Senate candidates.”
Chris Wallace Says Trump Made ‘Big Mistake’ on Debate
Fox News anchor Chris Wallace put in as stark as terms possible that, in his esteem, President Trump made a “big mistake” in bowing out of the virtual second debate, Mediaite reports.
Said Wallace: “Where I think the president made a mistake is maybe a virtual debate isn’t an in-person debate, but it’s better than no debate. That’s what the president will get now.”
He added: “He is behind in the polls. He has two opportunities; it seems to me two big opportunities to flip the script, which were the two debates, and he gave one of them away.”
GOP Operatives See Race Slipping Away
“A series of setbacks for President Trump has left some Republican operatives and donors fearing that the race for the White House is slipping away and proposing that the party shift focus to protecting seats in Congress,” NBC News reports.
Said GOP consultant Brendan Buck: “We need to protect the Senate and limit the damage in the House. They can’t say it out loud, but the president is likely toast.”
Pompeo Says He’ll Release Hillary Clinton’s Emails
Mike Pompeo told Fox News he has some of Hillary Clinton’s emails and is working to publicly release them before the election.
It’s not at all clear what emails he’s talking about.
Trump Will Hold White House Event on Saturday
More Battleground State Polls
From Redfield & Wilson:
- ARIZONA: Biden 49%, Trump 43%
- FLORIDA: Biden 49%, Trump 44%
- MICHIGAN: Biden 50%, Trump 42%
- NORTH CAROLINA: Biden 49%, Trump 44%
- PENNSYLVANIA: Biden 49%, Trump 42%
- WISCONSIN: Biden 51%, Trump 41%
For more, see our earlier round up.
And check out the consensus electoral map.
Trump Is Complicit
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) writes in the Washington Post:
When I addressed the people of Michigan on Thursday to comment on the unprecedented terrorism, conspiracy and weapons charges against 13 men, some of whom were preparing to kidnap and possibly kill me, I said, “Hatred, bigotry and violence have no place in the great state of Michigan.” I meant it. But just moments later, President Trump’s campaign adviser, Jason Miller, appeared on national television accusing me of fostering hatred.
I’m not going to waste my time arguing with the president. But I will always hold him accountable. Because when our leaders speak, their words carry weight.
When our leaders encourage domestic terrorists, they legitimize their actions. When they stoke and contribute to hate speech, they are complicit. And when a sitting president stands on a national stage refusing to condemn white supremacists and hate groups, as President Trump did when he told the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by” during the first presidential debate, he is complicit. Hate groups heard the president’s words not as a rebuke, but as a rallying cry. As a call to action.
‘We Had a Super-Spreader Event In the White House’
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S.’s top infectious-disease expert, said that a gathering in the White House Rose Garden last month was a “super-spreader event” for the novel coronavirus, Bloomberg reports.
Said Fauci: “The data speak for themselves. We had a super-spreader event in the White House. And it was in a situation where people were crowded together, were not wearing masks. So the data speaks for themselves.”
School of Barrett’s Children Reports Outbreak
“A school attended by some of the children of Amy Coney Barrett, the Supreme Court nominee who brought her family to a Rose Garden celebration at the White House on Sept. 26, notified parents on Thursday that one teacher and two high school students had tested positive for the coronavirus,” the New York Times reports.
“The outbreak at Trinity School, a small, private school in South Bend, Ind., is likely to intensify scrutiny of the White House event that some health experts fear led to the virus spreading among administration officials, guests and others who subsequently came in contact with them.”
Pence Requests Absentee Ballot
Vice President Mike Pence and second lady Karen Pence have requested mail-in absentee ballots from Indiana, WISH reports.
This comes after the vice president and his wife postponed a scheduled trip to Indianapolis in order to vote early on Friday. No reason was given.
Trump’s Interview with Limbaugh Lasted Two Hours
After two full hours of talking with President Trump on his radio show, it was Rush Limbaugh who finally tried to end the conversation saying: “I know you’ve got a jam-packed day left on your schedule…”
Extra Bonus Quote of the Day
“If you fuck around with us, if you do something bad to us, we are gonna do things to you that have never been done before.”
— President Trump, on the Rush Limbaugh Show.
Trump Cancels Weekend Rallies
“President Trump will remain at the White House this weekend, after he said he wanted to hold rallies in Florida and Pennsylvania despite questions over the stage of his recovery from Covid-19,” Bloomberg reports.
C-SPAN Anchor Claims Twitter Account Was Hacked
C-SPAN said that anchor Steve Scully, the next debate moderator, “believes his account has been hacked” and didn’t send a tweet asking advice from Anthony Scaramucci, Politico reports.
Trump Wants Arms Control Deal with Russia
“The Trump administration is pushing to get a nuclear arms control agreement with Russia ready for President Trump and Vladimir Putin to apply their signatures before election day,” Axios reports.
“The Russians have not yet sounded such an optimistic note, or signaled they’re prepared to engage in such expedited negotiations.”
Dreaming of a Landslide
Andrew Sullivan: “I know it’s tempting fate to mention the idea, foolish to entertain it, mad to expect it, but the possibility of a landslide is now real. There are about ten points between the two candidates with three weeks to go, and the momentum is overwhelmingly with the challenger. Among the likeliest scenarios in 538’s poll of polls is now a Biden Electoral College victory of over 400. Texas is in play. The Harris-Pence debate changed nothing, but firmly established Harris’ credentials as a possible president.”
“And all this changes a huge amount. A Biden win would be a reprieve for the country; a Biden landslide would be an American miracle.”
“Unlike anything else, it would cauterize the wound of Trump, preventing further infection. It would say to posterity: we made this hideous mistake, for understandable reasons, but after four years, we saw what we did and decisively changed course. It would turn the Trump era of nihilism, tribalism and cruelty into a cautionary tale of extremism, illiberalism and, above all, failure… A landslide loss for Trump would mitigate, if not remove, the deep damage he has done.”