2020 Election

[*bfine32*]

Refreshing to know that PnR is not the only place this type of exchange happens:
https://www.yahoo.com/huffpost/cnn-jake-tapper-peter-navarro-154749061.html

Quote: TAPPER: Why wasn’t the president straightforward with the American people?

NAVARRO: He was straightforward.

TAPPER: No, he wasn’t. ... Just answer the question. It’s a very basic question. ... He was not honest with the American people. You’re not answering the question ―

NAVARRO: You’re wrong. You’re not honest with the American people. CNN is not honest with the American people. CNN ― you wanna go there?

TAPPER: I said you’re not answering the question. Here’s the thing. Thank you, Peter Navarro. We just played tape ― you didn’t answer the question.

NAVARRO: You can’t say that. I answered the question repeatedly. You just didn’t like the answer.

I've personally heard that last one word for word numerous times. Hell might have used it a time or 2.

[hollodero]

(09-14-2020, 03:21 PM)bfine32 Wrote: Refreshing to know that PnR is not the only place this type of exchange happens:
https://www.yahoo.com/huffpost/cnn-jake-tapper-peter-navarro-154749061.html

I've personally heard that last one word for word numerous times. Hell might have used it a time or 2.

I don't quite the point of that. Navarro did indeed not answer the question, after all.

[*bfine32*]

(09-14-2020, 03:46 PM)hollodero Wrote: I don't quite the point of that. Navarro did indeed not answer the question, after all

Then you did get the point.

[oncemoreuntothejimbreech]

(09-14-2020, 03:46 PM)hollodero Wrote: I don't quite the point of that. Navarro did indeed not answer the question, after all.

Actually, Navarro did answer the question. His answer was just totally dishonest. In fact, he lied. Now where have I witness that type of dishonesty before?

[fredtoast]

(09-14-2020, 03:46 PM)hollodero Wrote: I don't quite the point of that. Navarro did indeed not answer the question, after all.

He gave an answer that was not based on reality. And i agree with Bfine's comments on those type of answers.

[Belsnickel]

Scientific American endorses Joe Biden https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientific-american-endorses-joe-biden/

Quote:Scientific American has never endorsed a presidential candidate in its 175-year history. This year we are compelled to do so. We do not do this lightly.

The evidence and the science show that Donald Trump has badly damaged the U.S. and its people—because he rejects evidence and science. The most devastating example is his dishonest and inept response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which cost more than 190,000 Americans their lives by the middle of September. He has also attacked environmental protections, medical care, and the researchers and public science agencies that help this country prepare for its greatest challenges. That is why we urge you to vote for Joe Biden, who is offering fact-based plans to protect our health, our economy and the environment. These and other proposals he has put forth can set the country back on course for a safer, more prosperous and more equitable future.

The pandemic would strain any nation and system, but Trump's rejection of evidence and public health measures have been catastrophic in the U.S. He was warned many times in January and February about the onrushing disease, yet he did not develop a national strategy to provide protective equipment, coronavirus testing or clear health guidelines. Testing people for the virus, and tracing those they may have infected, is how countries in Europe and Asia have gained control over their outbreaks, saved lives, and successfully reopened businesses and schools. But in the U.S., Trump claimed, falsely, that “anybody that wants a test can get a test.” That was untrue in March and remained untrue through the summer. Trump opposed $25 billion for increased testing and tracing that was in a pandemic relief bill as late as July. These lapses accelerated the spread of disease through the country—particularly in highly vulnerable communities that include people of color, where deaths climbed disproportionately to those in the rest of the population.

It wasn't just a testing problem: if almost everyone in the U.S. wore masks in public, it could save about 66,000 lives by the beginning of December, according to projections from the University of Washington School of Medicine. Such a strategy would hurt no one. It would close no business. It would cost next to nothing. But Trump and his vice president flouted local mask rules, making it a point not to wear masks themselves in public appearances. Trump has openly supported people who ignored governors in Michigan and California and elsewhere as they tried to impose social distancing and restrict public activities to control the virus. He encouraged governors in Florida, Arizona and Texas who resisted these public health measures, saying in April—again, falsely—that “the worst days of the pandemic are behind us” and ignoring infectious disease experts who warned at the time of a dangerous rebound if safety measures were loosened.

And of course, the rebound came, with cases across the nation rising by 46 percent and deaths increasing by 21 percent in June. The states that followed Trump's misguidance posted new daily highs and higher percentages of positive tests than those that did not. By early July several hospitals in Texas were full of COVID-19 patients. States had to close up again, at tremendous economic cost. About 31 percent of workers were laid off a second time, following the giant wave of unemployment—more than 30 million people and countless shuttered businesses—that had already decimated the country. At every stage, Trump has rejected the unmistakable lesson that controlling the disease, not downplaying it, is the path to economic reopening and recovery.

Trump repeatedly lied to the public about the deadly threat of the disease, saying it was not a serious concern and “this is like a flu​” when he knew it was more lethal and highly transmissible, according to his taped statements to journalist Bob Woodward. His lies encouraged people to engage in risky behavior, spreading the virus further, and have driven wedges between Americans who take the threat seriously and those who believe Trump's falsehoods. The White House even produced a memo attacking the expertise of the nation's leading infectious disease physician, Anthony Fauci, in a despicable attempt to sow further distrust.

Trump's reaction to America's worst public health crisis in a century has been to say “I don't take responsibility at all.” Instead he blamed other countries and his White House predecessor, who left office three years before the pandemic began.

But Trump's refusal to look at the evidence and act accordingly extends beyond the virus. He has repeatedly tried to get rid of the Affordable Care Act while offering no alternative; comprehensive medical insurance is essential to reduce illness. Trump has proposed billion-dollar cuts to the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, agencies that increase our scientific knowledge and strengthen us for future challenges. Congress has countermanded his reductions. Yet he keeps trying, slashing programs that would ready us for future pandemics and withdrawing from the World Health Organization. These and other actions increase the risk that new diseases will surprise and devastate us again.

Trump also keeps pushing to eliminate health rules from the Environmental Protection Agency, putting people at more risk for heart and lung disease caused by pollution. He has replaced scientists on agency advisory boards with industry representatives. In his ongoing denial of reality, Trump has hobbled U.S. preparations for climate change, falsely claiming that it does not exist and pulling out of international agreements to mitigate it. The changing climate is already causing a rise in heat-related deaths and an increase in severe storms, wildfires and extreme flooding.

Joe Biden, in contrast, comes prepared with plans to control COVID-19, improve health care, reduce carbon emissions and restore the role of legitimate science in policy making. He solicits expertise and has turned that knowledge into solid policy proposals.

On COVID-19, he states correctly that “it is wrong to talk about ‘choosing' between our public health and our economy.... If we don't beat the virus, we will never get back to full economic strength.” Biden plans to ramp up a national testing board, a body that would have the authority to command both public and private resources to supply more tests and get them to all communities. He also wants to establish a Public Health Job Corps of 100,000 people, many of whom have been laid off during the pandemic crisis, to serve as contact tracers and in other health jobs. He will direct the Occupational Health and Safety Administration to enforce workplace safety standards to avoid the kind of deadly outbreaks that have occurred at meat-processing plants and nursing homes. While Trump threatened to withhold money from school districts that did not reopen, regardless of the danger from the virus, Biden wants to spend $34 billion to help schools conduct safe in-person instruction as well as remote learning.

Biden is getting advice on these public health issues from a group that includes David Kessler, epidemiologist, pediatrician and former U.S. Food and Drug Administration chief; Rebecca Katz, immunologist and global health security specialist at Georgetown University; and Ezekiel Emanuel, bioethicist at the University of Pennsylvania. It does not include physicians who believe in aliens and debunked virus therapies, one of whom Trump has called “very respected” and “spectacular.”

Biden has a family and caregiving initiative, recognizing this as key to a sustained public health and economic recovery. His plans include increased salaries for child care workers and construction of new facilities for children because the inability to afford quality care keeps workers out of the economy and places enormous strains on families.

On the environment and climate change, Biden wants to spend $2 trillion on an emissions-free power sector by 2035, build energy-efficient structures and vehicles, push solar and wind power, establish research agencies to develop safe nuclear power and carbon capture technologies, and more. The investment will produce two million jobs for U.S. workers, his campaign claims, and the climate plan will be partly paid by eliminating Trump's corporate tax cuts. Historically disadvantaged communities in the U.S. will receive 40 percent of these energy and infrastructure benefits.

It is not certain how many of these and his other ambitions Biden will be able to accomplish; much depends on laws to be written and passed by Congress. But he is acutely aware that we must heed the abundant research showing ways to recover from our present crises and successfully cope with future challenges.

Although Trump and his allies have tried to create obstacles that prevent people from casting ballots safely in November, either by mail or in person, it is crucial that we surmount them and vote. It's time to move Trump out and elect Biden, who has a record of following the data and being guided by science.

People can dismiss this all they want, but consider how they have gone for 175 years without endorsing a presidential candidate. This includes candidates that don't always agree with the scientific community. Endorsements are almost always pointless and they never really sway anyone's opinion, but the significance of this is hard to ignore.

[BigPapaKain]

(09-16-2020, 08:42 AM)Belsnickel Wrote: Scientific American endorses Joe Biden https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientific-american-endorses-joe-biden/


People can dismiss this all they want, but consider how they have gone for 175 years without endorsing a presidential candidate. This includes candidates that don't always agree with the scientific community. Endorsements are almost always pointless and they never really sway anyone's opinion, but the significance of this is hard to ignore.

I get the why, but this is a bold move. Science should remain apolitical.

[Belsnickel]

(09-16-2020, 08:53 AM)BigPapaKain Wrote: I get the why, but this is a bold move. Science should remain apolitical.

I don't think you can say that SA made it political, though. Elected officials have been making science a political topic for decades, now, and the current occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue has ratcheted that up.

Science shouldn't be political. It is a method of discovery and its results should guide policy actors in their decision processes. But when someone not only ignores scientific findings but actively hamstrings the abilities of our scientific communities they politicize science.

[*Nately120*]

(09-16-2020, 08:53 AM)BigPapaKain Wrote: I get the why, but this is a bold move. Science should remain apolitical.

Trump literally and figuratively sneering at science shouldn't be as popular as it is with his voter base, either. 

[*bfine32*]

(09-16-2020, 09:07 AM)Belsnickel Wrote: I don't think you can say that SA made it political, though. Elected officials have been making science a political topic for decades, now, and the current occupant of 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue has ratcheted that up.

Science shouldn't be political. It is a method of discovery and its results should guide policy actors in their decision processes. But when someone not only ignores scientific findings but actively hamstrings the abilities of our scientific communities they politicize science.

What have Trump's neighbors done?

[Belsnickel]

(09-16-2020, 10:11 AM)bfine32 Wrote: What have Trump's neighbors done?

lol, good catch.

[*Nately120*]

(09-16-2020, 10:11 AM)bfine32 Wrote: What have Trump's neighbors done?

If they're in DC they've done something dirty...mark my words. 

[oncemoreuntothejimbreech]

(09-16-2020, 08:53 AM)BigPapaKain Wrote: I get the why, but this is a bold move. Science should remain apolitical.

Yet, Trump has weaponized the NIH and the CDC for political purposes during the pandemic to provide political coverage for his inept response.

I won’t even bring up the EPA since conservatives think it is government over reach because industry can police its own pollution. (LMAO)

[GMDino]

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/19/us/politics/trump-supporters-early-voting-virginia.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur

Quote:Trump Supporters Disrupt Early Voting in Virginia

A group waving Trump flags and chanting “four more years” created a commotion at a polling location in Fairfax, Va. A county official said some voters and staff members felt intimidated.

Supporters of President Trump gathered outside the Fairfax County Government Center with flags and banners, chanting near residents who were waiting in line for early voting.

Sept. 19, 2020

A group of Trump supporters waving campaign flags disrupted the second day of early voting in Fairfax, Va., on Saturday, chanting “four more years” as voters entered a polling location and, at one point, forming a line that voters had to walk around outside the site.

County election officials eventually were forced to open up a larger portion of the Fairfax County Government Center to allow voters to wait inside away from the Trump enthusiasts.

Election officials said that the group stayed about 100 feet from the entrance to the building and, contrary to posts on social media, were not directly blocking access to the building. But they acknowledged that some voters and polling staff members felt intimidated by what some saw as protesters.

“Citizens coming into and leaving the building did have to go by them,” Gary Scott, the general registrar of Fairfax County, said in a statement. “Those voters who were in line outside of the building were moved inside and we continued operations. Some voters, and elections staff, did feel intimidated by the crowd and we did provide escorts past the group. One of the escorts was the county executive.”


In an unnerved electorate, where concerns about voting rights and safely voting amid the coronavirus pandemic are at a fever pitch, the demonstration outside of a polling place served as preview of a likely contentious election season, and how groups may be utilizing tactics that rattle or even deter voters over the next six weeks.

The disruption came as President Trump has repeatedly sought to undermine confidence in the upcoming election, spreading falsehoods about voting by mail and declaring the election “rigged” before any votes have even been cast.

The demonstration originated from a “Trump Train” parade that began in nearby Prince William County and featured Tommy Hicks Jr., the current Republican National Committee co-chairman. The event was set to end in the parking lot of the government center, which was also serving as the polling location on Saturday. Some of the people who attended the parade walked over to vote. Others gathered outside and began chanting, “four more years, four more years!”

Sean Rastatter, a vice chair at the Fairfax County Republican Committee who was at the polling location, said that he did not think any actions came close to voter intimidation, and that many of the discussions from members of the group were with journalists.


“I don’t think there was any way to need or feel intimidated in any form,” Mr. Rastatter said. He added that county officials asked the group on several instances to back away from the curb, and that the group complied.

Bryan Graham, the chairman of the Fairfax County Democrats who was also at the polling center, saw it differently, writing on Twitter that “the Republicans are straight-up attempting to intimidate voters at the government center.”

In an interview, Mr. Graham said he’d “never seen or heard of anything like this happening before.”

“I was there when the county executive was there and I saw him walk multiple people through the crowd because they didn’t feel safe,” Mr. Graham said. “I don’t think it’s appropriate. We shouldn’t be doing things to make people feel unsafe.”

Steve Descano, the county attorney, did not directly address the demonstration in a statement posted to Facebook on Saturday, but said that he was “instructing my office to pursue cases of voter intimidation that may occur.”

Virginia election law states that it is illegal to “hinder or delay a qualified voter in entering or leaving a polling place,” and that it is also prohibited to perform any kind of political advocacy within 40 feet of any entrance to a polling place.

Videos of the demonstrators quickly went viral on social media, and show them gathering outside the entrance, holding up Trump campaign signs and chanting as voters walked past them.

Some election rights groups said that the Trump group might have still crossed a legal line.

“In Virginia, the safe zone around the polling location is only 40 feet, but that safe zone is for campaigning and trying to change a person’s vote,” said Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections at Common Cause, a voting rights group. “Outside of that, in general, there are laws against intimidation. So I would say that even if they have a right to campaign, which they absolutely do, they do not have a right to interfere with someone’s right to vote or to intimidate them.”

“To me, this went beyond campaigning and they should have been removed.”

The first two days of early voting in Virginia were marked by high turnout and long lines, with voters beginning to line up early in the morning, hours before polls opened. The state offered expanded early voting in an attempt to alleviate crowding at polling centers during the pandemic.

Ms. Albert added that the demonstration underscored the need for counties and municipalities to develop contingency voting plans for all situations.

“Contingency plans aren’t only if there is a hurricane or a pandemic,” she said. “It’s also if something is making my polling location inaccessible to voters. That could be power going down, that could be people protesting and blocking the door.”

"law and order"

[BigPapaKain]

(09-21-2020, 01:11 PM)GMDino Wrote: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/19/us/politics/trump-supporters-early-voting-virginia.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur



"law and order"

Felonies going unpunished? That would never happen under Commander in Chief Bone Spurs McLawandOrder.

[Belsnickel]

(09-21-2020, 01:14 PM)BigPapaKain Wrote: Felonies going unpunished? That would never happen under Commander in Chief Bone Spurs McLawandOrder.

This is state law, not federal, and our state government is Democratic. I don't think it is smart to do anything to them unless they are within the 40 ft zone or they are unquestionably intimidating voters. If you don't have the objective proof, then it is a political disaster to do anything to them.

[GMDino]

(09-21-2020, 01:22 PM)Belsnickel Wrote: This is state law, not federal, and our state government is Democratic. I don't think it is smart to do anything to them unless they are within the 40 ft zone or they are unquestionably intimidating voters. If you don't have the objective proof, then it is a political disaster to do anything to them.

I believe they had to be moved outside of that zone and were also blocking the entrance at one point.

I'm not saying they should be charged with sedition as Barr wants to do with other protesters. 

[GMDino]

(09-21-2020, 01:25 PM)GMDino Wrote: I believe they had to be moved outside of that zone and were also blocking the entrance at one point.

I'm not saying they should be charged with sedition as Barr wants to do with other protesters. 

https://www.fox5dc.com/news/trump-supporters-protest-outside-fairfax-early-voting-site

Quote:FAIRFAX, Va. - First it was mail-in voting.

Now some of President Trump's supporters are protesting in-person, early voting in Virginia.
  



Filmmaker Anthony Tilghman shared video of the protest Saturday in Fairfax with FOX 5:

As you can see here they are blocking the entrance to the voting site. #EarlyVoting #VA #FairFax pic.twitter.com/KJ6fbLdP3G

— Anthony Tilghman (@AnthonyTilghman) September 19, 2020

 

Trump supporters protest outside Fairfax early voting site
Video credit: Anthony Tilgman

Tilghman tells FOX 5 that the protesters first blocked the entrance to the polling site before officials forced them to move 40 feet away as required by law:

Tilghman reported that election officials eventually moved voters waiting in line inside because of the protests.
President Trump has repeatedly attacked mail-in voting on the campaign trail, saying without credible evidence the practice is ripe for fraud.


Officials in many states are boosting availability for early, dropoff and mail-in voting in light of the need for social distance during the coronavirus pandemic. 


Early voting in Virginia began Friday and will last till Saturday, Oct. 31.

[*PhilHos*]

(09-21-2020, 01:11 PM)GMDino Wrote: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/19/us/politics/trump-supporters-early-voting-virginia.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur



"law and order"

From YOUR article (emphasis mine):

Quote:Election officials said that the group stayed about 100 feet from the entrance to the building and, contrary to posts on social media, were not directly blocking access to the building.

[Sociopathicsteelerfan]

(09-21-2020, 01:22 PM)Belsnickel Wrote: This is state law, not federal, and our state government is Democratic. I don't think it is smart to do anything to them unless they are within the 40 ft zone or they are unquestionably intimidating voters. If you don't have the objective proof, then it is a political disaster to do anything to them.

Yeah, "feeling intimidated" wasn't accepted for the McCluskey's, it's a much harder sell here.

(09-21-2020, 01:25 PM)GMDino Wrote: I believe they had to be moved outside of that zone and were also blocking the entrance at one point.

Did you not even read your own source?

Election officials said that the group stayed about 100 feet from the entrance to the building and, contrary to posts on social media, were not directly blocking access to the building. But they acknowledged that some voters and polling staff members felt intimidated by what some saw as protesters.

Quote:I'm not saying they should be charged with sedition as Barr wants to do with other protesters. 

Why, were the Trump supporters hurling molotov cocktails or blinding people trying to vote with lasers?