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Bernie Says Vote, Kids - The Thursday AM Quickie 10/20/22

By Corey Pein —

I can understand widespread cynicism about the electoral process, but personally I'm getting anxious for my ballot to show up in the mail. – Corey

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THE BIG NEWS

Elections Extravaganza! Midterms Madness!

There wasn't one big story dominating the news yesterday but they're were a ton of headlines about the fast-approaching midterm elections, so today you're getting a roundup, folks.

  • Bernie Sanders is worried about turnout, especially among younger voters and progressives. So the Senator from Vermont is hitting the road to campaign for Democrats, but not every candidate he's setting out to help will appear onstage with him. Per the New York Times:
The first swing [beginning Oct. 27] will include stops in Oregon, California, Nevada (with events in both Reno and Las Vegas), Texas (including one in McAllen), and Orlando, Fla. The second weekend will focus on Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

A Teen Vogue poll conducted earlier this month "found that recent Democratic achievements are popular on paper with young voters, but that many of them remain unaware of the legislation that's been passed or wish the Democrats would do more."

  • Candidates are increasingly avoiding direct interactions with their opponents, journalists, and the public, in part due to security concerns, the Times reports. The paper of record doesn't say it so clearly, but what's fueling those security concerns is right-wing extremism. Vice News warns that online GOP activists and even some candidates are laying the groundwork to claim the election was stolen if Democrats win and to act out violently in response. A new Associated Press poll finds nearly half of Republicans claim "little to no confidence" in the upcoming elections, while two-thirds of Democrats are "highly confident" that the election results will be accurately counted.
  • Spending on Secretary of State races has broken all records this year, the AP reports. Republicans and Democrats alike are pouring millions of dollars into these campaigns for the job of top elections officer in most states. This is understandable with so many GOP election deniers on the ballot.
"We can't take any risks when it comes to our democracy, and frankly our volunteers and donors have met the moment," said Kim Rogers, executive director of the Democratic Association of Secretaries of State, which has pledged to spend at least $25 million on races this fall.

Meanwhile, "Reuters identified 44 counties in 15 states where local officials have faced efforts to change rules on voting since the 2020 election. All of them were led by Trump loyalists or Republican Party activists driven by false voter-fraud theories."

  • Pennsylvania Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman is fit for work after his stroke, his doctor says in a letter dated Oct. 15 and released yesterday.
  • An Arizona Republican candidate who wanted "our children protected [from] the progressive left" was arrested by police who say they found him "manipulating his genitals in a masturbatory manner" near a preschool. He suspended his campaign but it's too late to change the ballots.

New UK PM Already on Verge of Becoming Former PM

There's been a wave of resignations and firings (sorry, sackings) from the Cabinet of Conservative British Prime Minister Liz Truss, and following reports of further departures and chaotic scenes in the parliament yesterday, journalists are speculating that her government, established only six weeks ago, might soon fall apart completely. When I say chaotic, picture Truss grabbing her chief whip by the arm to keep her from quitting, hours after a key cabinet secretary resigned (or was forced out) citing "concerns about the direction of this government." One senior Tory member of parliament called Truss's government "a shambles and a disgrace" and, per the BBC, "a lot of confusion in Westminster tonight" about who's in and who's out. "Why is she still here?" Labour Party leader Keir Starmer asked. Why indeed? Truss has managed to make Boris Johnson seem like he had it together.

Feds Think They Have Enough Evidence to Charge Trump

Donald Trump was deposed yesterday in the civil defamation lawsuit brought by the writer E. Jean Carroll, who says Trump raped her in the 1990s. Separately, "people familiar with the matter" tell Bloomberg News that Justice Department prosecutors believe they have sufficient evidence to charge Trump with criminal obstruction of justice in the stolen documents case; however, they have not yet made a formal recommendation to Attorney General Merrick Garland, who will decide if and when to prosecute. Charges would not be filed before the midterm elections and perhaps not until after the Christmas holiday. Moreover, it's "unlikely officials would bring only obstruction charges amid several other Trump investigations into potential crimes." Speaking of which, Politico reports that U.S. District Court Judge David Carter says in a new opinion that emails from his inner circle prove that "Trump signed legal documents describing evidence of election fraud that he knew were false."

QUICKEST QUICKIES

  • White Americans Now More Likely Than Blacks, Latinos to Die of Covid The explanation boils down to vaccine hesitancy and anti-government attitudes. via the Washington Post.
  • U.S. Citizen Jailed for 16 Years Over Tweets Critical of Saudi Government The State Department says it has "consistently and intensively raised our concerns regarding the case" of Saad Ibrahim Almadi, 72, a dual citizen. via Vice News.
  • Texas Offers Parents DNA Kits to Help ID Kids' Remains "Our lawmakers have done nothing," one teacher and parent complains. "They seem to have no interest in addressing Uvalde or what happens every day [with gun violence] in the U.S." via the Washington Post.
  • Lawsuit Seeks Full Release of JFK Assassination Records The Mary Ferrell Foundation, a research group, says its in new lawsuit that both Trump and Biden violated the law in obstructing the release of 16,000 records related to President Kennedy's murder, most of them in CIA custody. via NBC News.

SOME NUMBER

61,000

That's how many rent-subsidized housing units in New York City were vacant at the end of last year, nearly doubling the previous year's count. Tenant advocates say landlords are holding these units "ransom" to create artificial scarcity and charge higher rents.

ON THE SHOW TODAY

10/20: Emma hosts Dr. Nicholas Kardaras to discuss his recent book Digital Madness: How Social Media Is Driving Our Mental Health Crisis-and How to Restore Our Sanity. Then, Emma is joined by Eugene Puryear, co-host of the Breakthrough News show, to discuss the recent civil and social unrest in Haiti.

DON'T MISS MR CLIPS

MAGA David Cross Expertly Trolls Republicans During Fox News 'Interview'

"If I win, I get to pick the winners!"

Grab Some Popcorn and Watch These Republicans Fight Each Other

Lots of fiery debates this season (when there are debates).

PARTING WORDS

"Now we're homeless. We have no pension for half a year now, no electricity, no gas. Putin is a f----r. He should stop killing civilians, God damn f-----g animal. I wish him death, God, please forgive me for this. He should come here, we will bury him. I will kill that God damn mother f----r with my bare hands."

-- Nina, a grandmother in her late 60s in a town near Kherson, Ukraine, which was until recently under Russian military occupation, speaking her mind to the UK Telegraph. There's unexploded ordinance embedded in what's left of her home.

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