Raffi Piliero: “Instead of discussing the relative merits or demerits of the Electoral College, I’ll pose a different question: For those who want to change the system, what next?”
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Support Grows for Allowing Border Refugees Into U.S.
A new Gallup poll shows growing support for allowing refugees from Central America into the United States. In December, 51% of Americans approved of accepting refugees from the countries in the Northern Triangle — Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Now it’s 57%.
Federal Judges Will Decide on McSally’s Appointment
“Federal appeals-court judges have agreed to decide whether Sen. Martha McSally (R-AZ) can continue to serve until the 2020 election without having been elected to her seat by voters,” the Arizona Republic reports.
“In December 2018, McSally was appointed by Gov. Doug Ducey (R) to fill the Senate seat vacated by the Aug. 25, 2018, death of veteran Sen. John McCain (R-AZ). Now, McSally and Ducey are defendants in a lawsuit filed by a small group of Arizona voters from across the political spectrum that claims it’s unconstitutional for McSally to serve as senator for 27 months without being elected.”
Sanders Accuses Washington Post of Biased Coverage
Sen. Bernie Sanders took aim at The Washington Post at two separate town hall meetings, accusing the newspaper of being biased against his campaign due to his criticism of Amazon’s labor practices and tax record, the Washington Post reports.
Sanders did not cite any evidence for his claims.
At Least Eight States Will Use Paperless Voting
“At least eight states are on course to not use any form of paper ballots or machines with paper records during the 2020 elections, a report published Tuesday by New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice found,” The Hill reports.
The states: Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky and New Jersey.
Shrieking Heard from Jeffrey Epstein’s Cell
CBS News has learned that the morning of Jeffrey Epstein’s death there was shouting and shrieking from his jail cell. Guards attempted to revive him while saying “breathe, Epstein, breathe.”
“Congress is the latest to start investigating Epstein’s apparent suicide over the weekend, with new reports raising questions about the federal jail where he was being held.”
How ‘Socialism’ Charges Play With Voters
Playbook: “The American Action Network — a center-right group that supports House GOP-linked policies — just conducted a relatively major research project, in which they polled 30 House districts: 10 that were Trump districts in 2016, 12 that were battlegrounds and eight suburban districts.”
“The main takeaways are that socialism, broadly speaking, is unpopular, but Republicans have work to do if they want to tarnish some key Democratic proposals. Once voters hear about the agenda as framed by Republicans, 61% say it is socialist. Calling Democrats’ policies ‘socialist’ causes a 10-point drop in their popularity.”
Trump Delays Some Tariffs on China
“The White House on Tuesday said it would delay imposing tariffs on Chinese imports of cellphones, laptop computers, video game consoles, and certain types of footwear and clothing until Dec. 15, significantly later than the Sept. 1 deadline President Trump had repeatedly threatened,” the Washington Post reports.
The announcement, which came from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, likely ensures that Apple products and other major consumer goods would be shielded from the import tax until at least December, potentially keeping costs on these products down during the holiday shopping season.
The Last Election of 2018
Roll Call: “McCready lost this district, which President Trump carried by 11 points in 2016, by less than a thousand votes last fall. But because of alleged election fraud tied to his 2018 GOP opponent’s campaign, he’s still at it, running against a different Republican in a redo election to be held Sept. 10.”
“It’s a special election with unique factors, but as the only competitive federal race in 2019, the contest is also a test of the messages Democrats and Republicans will use in 2020 — especially in a crucial battleground state.”
“Just as Democrats were in 2018, McCready is focused on health care. His Republican opponent, state Sen. Dan Bishop, who won a 10-way primary earlier this year, is trying to tie him to socialism and ‘the squad’ — four freshman House Democrats who have become the new GOP boogeywomen.”
The Cost of a ‘Strong’ Economy
“Despite massive amounts of money being pumped into the economy by both fiscal and monetary policy, U.S. growth is slowing, not accelerating,” Axios reports.
“Last year Congress signed a 2-year agreement to increase spending $300 billion, in part to pull the economy out of its slow-growth malaise following the financial crisis and put the U.S. back on track for 3% annual growth or higher.”
“But 2019’s slowdown in GDP growth has shown that even hundreds of billions in deficit spending combined with trillions in tax cuts and bond buying aren’t enough.”
Swing Vote Is Much Different Than Trump’s Base
Harry Enten: “President Donald Trump’s chief problem heading into the 2020 campaign can be boiled down to ‘like him on the economy, but not overall.’ Aggregating our last three CNN polls, Trump has a 44% approval rating and 52% disapproval rating among voters. On the economy, it’s been the inverse: 53% approval and 42% disapproval.”
“If 2020 turns out to be a referendum on Trump’s overall performance, he’s an underdog. Trump, though, would up his odds significantly by winning over half of the 9% of voters who like him on the economy but not overall — and he would be a clear favorite if he won the votes of all those who approved of him on the economy but not overall.”
“So how can Trump pull of this feat? A look at the numbers suggests he’ll likely need to do something very different than continue with his current base-first, hardline-immigration and racial-resentment electoral strategy. Trump will probably need to appeal well beyond his older, less educated and white Republican base.”
Ivanka Trump Calling Lawmakers on Gun Control
“Ivanka Trump has quietly been calling lawmakers since the El Paso and Dayton massacres to gauge their openness to movement on gun legislation when Congress returns,” sources familiar with her conversations tell Axios.
“This is another sign that President Trump might support new gun control measures, despite the opposition of conservatives in his orbit.”
The Sprint To Qualify for the Next Debate
“It’s crunch time for the remaining Democrats to qualify for the third presidential debate: Two weeks before the qualification deadline, Democratic presidential candidates are racing — and spending money — for the right to make the third debate in September,” NBC News reports.
Democratic Group Backs Hickenlooper for Senate
The Democratic group 314 Action, which supports candidates with a science background, is launching a six-figure “Draft Hickenlooper” campaign Tuesday to encourage John Hickenlooper to drop out of the 2020 presidential race and instead run for Senate, Axios has learned.
New Tariffs Will Hit Women’s Clothing
“The Trump administration’s next round of tariffs on Chinese imports will for the first time target an array of apparel, and those shopping for women’s and girls’ clothes are more likely to see higher prices,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“All Chinese clothing and shoes face tariffs of 10% starting Sept. 1, but the value of women’s and girls’ clothing and shoes imported from the country is more than twice that for men and boys.”
Moscow Election Protest Attracts Huge Crowd
“Tens of thousands of people rallied Saturday against the exclusion of some city council candidates from Moscow’s upcoming election, turning out for one of the Russian capital’s biggest political protests in years,” ABC News reports.
“After the rally, which was officially sanctioned, hundreds of participants streamed to an area near the presidential administration building to continue with an unauthorized demonstration. They were confronted by phalanxes of riot police and the arrest-monitoring group OVD-Info said 136 people were detained.”
Castro Targets An Ad to Trump
“Julián Castro, a Democratic candidate for president, plans to release a television ad Wednesday directly addressing President Trump and faulting his incendiary rhetoric for the massacre in El Paso that left 22 dead and dozens more injured,” the New York Times reports.
“The ad, which the campaign will also promote on social media, is targeted specifically at the president. The campaign bought several television spots — a small buy of just $2,775 — throughout the day Wednesday on Fox News in Bedminster, N.J., where Trump is spending the week at his private golf club.”
“The ad will also appear in the Bedminster area that morning during ‘Fox & Friends,’ a show the president frequently watches.”
Why Evangelicals Are Delighted With Trump
Washington Post: “Trump enjoyed overwhelming support from white evangelicals in 2016, winning a higher percentage than George W. Bush, John McCain or Mitt Romney. That enthusiasm has scarcely dimmed. Almost 70 percent of white evangelicals approve of Trump’s performance in office, according to a 2019 Pew Research Center poll.”
“Interviews with 50 evangelical Christians in three battleground states — Florida, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — help explain why. In conversation, evangelical voters paint the portrait of the Trump they see: a president who acts like a bully but is fighting for them. A president who sees America like they do, a menacing place where white Christians feel mocked and threatened for their beliefs. A president who’s against abortion and gay rights and who has the economy humming to boot.”
