Corrupt “ REMEMBER when @statedept said they had 448 pages of records showing what they’d paid to @realdonaldtrump’s businesses...but nobody could see them until after Election Day? We got their receipts, anyway. Here’s what they wanted to keep hidden.” With a tweet like that, you know it’s David Fahrenthold, checking in from the grifter beat. In his latest for The Washington Post, with Josh Dawsey, Jonathan O’Connell and Anu Narayanswamy, Fahrenthold reveals the details on the ballrooms, candles and luxury cottages: During Trump’s term, millions of government and GOP dollars have flowed to his properties.  According to documents obtained by the Post, Trump’s company has been paid at least $2.5 million by the U.S. government since he took office. “But the weirdest payment was the smallest. Trump once charged taxpayers $3 to serve *himself* a glass of water,” tweets Fahrenthold. Quentin Hardy points out, “$3 water is funny corrupt, but not when you think that it probably cost $20-$50 to create and process that tab. No consideration for real costs.”
Dodgy property developer  Oh right, The New York Times still has his taxes. “NEW: @realDonaldTrump’s tax records show that big banks and hedge funds gave him hundreds of millions of dollars of financial breaks. Trump managed to avoid paying taxes on almost all of it.”
David Enrich links to his new piece with Russ Buettner, Mike McIntire and Susanne Craig on How Trump Maneuvered His Way Out of Trouble in Chicago. Or as Beuttner puts it, “how to not repay $270 million and largely avoid paying taxes on it.” “So, Trump is just another dodgy property developer who failed to repay his debts, in this case for a total of $US287m. Staggering,” tweets Stephen Mayne. John Schwartz calls it “A case study in doing business the Trump way.” As Glenn Kessler says, “It was ever this: over and over, bankers have cut Trump breaks that most businesses can only dream of.” Not to mention, “The President talks a lot about Chicago crime, but he’s quiet about massive debt after a failed project,” notes Robbin Simmons. For the record, “The story of how me, Clayton, maneuvered my way out of trouble in Chicago is far less compelling,” shares Clayton Guse. Stochastic terrorist Greg Miller and Isaac Stanley-Becker of The Washington Post report that Trump’s attacks on political adversaries are often followed by threats to their safety. Stanley-Becker notes, “In a dynamic without apparent precedent, public servants are getting taxpayer-funded security protection because of threats traced to the president’s Twitter diatribes.” “About as dangerous and dysfunctional as things get,” says Bianna Golodryga, of their reporting that government agencies are “taking extraordinary measures to protect their people from strains of seething hostility stoked by a sitting president.” “The president* is a stochastic terrorist,” says Joshua Holland. Really doesn’t care, do u? About this next one, Alan Zilberman admits, “Normally I would say this metaphor is a little too on the nose, but this is not a normal year.” The headline (which is a “Pre-election headache for Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon, who was at the rally,” Josh Kraushaar points out): Hundreds of Trump supporters stuck in the cold for hours when buses can’t reach Omaha rally. As Tim Elfrink writes at The Washington Post, “as long lines of MAGA-clad attendees queued up for buses to take them to distant parking lots, it quickly became clear something was wrong.”  “First he exposes them to coronavirus and then to hypothermia. No one hates Trump supporters more than Trump,” Amanda Marcotte notices. Elfrink reports that at least seven people were taken to hospitals, according to Omaha Scanner, which monitors official radio traffic.
Aaron Sanderford has the Omaha World-Herald’s coverage, Hundreds of people waited hours in the cold for buses after Trump rally at Eppley. He spoke with one volunteer who finally made it back to her car at 12:15 a.m. and told him she would do it all again: “I would go up early and stand there all those hours.” Add this to the rest Jan Ellen Spiegel links to the story from Christopher Flavelle and Lisa Friedman at The New York Times, As Election Nears, Trump Makes a Final Push Against Climate Science. They report that the administration is imposing new limits on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that would undercut action against global warming. “Trump climate-denying apparatchiks fired NOAA’s chief scientist for showing them the agency's integrity of science policy, and those political appointees are now censoring all agency communications. These are climate criminals,” tweets Peter Gleick. As Neel V. Patel says, “Even if Trump loses and is persuaded to accept the results and leave, he's going to light bombs on his way out the building.” 21st century poll tax Speaking of the election, Voting during the 19th Amendment’s centennial wasn’t supposed to be this way, writes The 19th’s Errin Haines. On Twitter, she shares, “It has never taken me more than 20 minutes to cast my ballot. On Monday, I voted early in Philadelphia. It took four hours. In the place where democracy was born. In the centennial year of suffrage. I am enraged for the Americans who deserve better.” Adds Jamelle Bouie, “i will scream this every time it comes up: an hours-long wait to vote is a poll tax.” The final stretch Scott Clement, Dan Balz and Emily Guskin of The Washington Post have new Post-ABC News polling data that shows Biden leads Trump narrowly in Michigan, significantly in Wisconsin. Biden’s up 51%-44% in Michigan and 57%-40% in Wisconsin. They note that Biden’s margins in both states are driven by overwhelming support among female likely voters, and in Wisconsin, climbing coronavirus cases are hurting Trump. Cameron Joseph offers this take: “A) the @washingtonpost headline on this story is misleading. Biden up 51-44 in Michigan isn't a ‘narrow’ lead it’s outside the MOE. B) And Biden up 57-40 in Wisconsin is probably an outlier yet that possibility isn't discussed ’til graf 7. Smh.” Here’s ABC News’ Gary Langer’s analysis of the data. He highlights the fact that Biden has sizable leads among women, moderates and independents in both states. Langer also looks at the early voting stats, noting, “The share planning to vote on Election Day -- broadly for Trump -- has fallen from 51% last month to 39% now in Wisconsin. It’s 43% in Michigan.”  Meanwhile, a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News study has found no evidence, so far, of the kind of late surge toward President Trump among undecided voters that helped produce his unexpected wins in 2016. Aaron Zitner, Gerald Seib, Alex Leary and the team at The Wall Street Journal have ongoing live coverage there of campaign news nationwide.
Tom Hamburger and Devlin Barrett of The Washington Post report that 24 former U.S. attorneys — all Republicans — back Biden, saying Trump threatens ‘the rule of law.’ The open letter was signed by prosecutors appointed by every GOP president from Eisenhower to Trump. And according to the reporting by Gregory Korte and Mario Parker of Bloomberg News, the Trump campaign has all but pulled its ads from Florida as it enters the final week of the race with little cash. Michael Del Moro highlights, “President Trump still has $350,275 budgeted to spend on ads in Florida through Election Day, but has *canceled* $5.5 million there, per Advertising Analytics.” Josh Kraushaar thinks, “This makes no sense, unless you're out of cash: Trump campaign spending on Minnesota but pulling out of FLORIDA.” Colin Wilhelm is “Kinda curious as to whether any of this might be shifting to digital, which arguably could be more effective for GOTV (i.e. the stage we’re at now).” A surreal ending to a surreal baseball season  Last night, the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Tampa Bay Rays to win their first World Series title since 1988. Jorge Castillo has the game coverage at the Los Angeles Times, and Jamil Smith shares, “I’ve fallen in love with this team since I moved here, but I didn’t expect to be sobbing tonight after the final out. Congratulations to the @Dodgers, and I’m happiest for all you native Angelenos who have cheered on this franchise for your entire lives.”
Uh, but…“In this oddest of years, this most peculiar of baseball seasons, there was perhaps no more telling snapshot of the United States, circa 2020, than a COVID-19-positive man sitting on the ground, maskless, next to a cancer survivor, maskless as well, with indelible grins spread across their faces.” That’s ESPN’s Jeff Passan, writing about how the oddest of World Series ended with the most 2020 moment of the season.  Kevin Merida highlights, “One GM: ‘A superspreader event on live TV. Welcome to 2020.’ A surreal ending to a surreal baseball season. @JeffPassan @espn with the gripping story, and questions that need to be answered.”
One of those questions: “Wait WHAT?!” tweets Daniel Drezner. But yes, you heard that right: The Dodgers’ Justin Turner Tested Positive for Covid-19. Then He Returned to the Field to Celebrate, as Jared Diamond reports at The Wall Street Journal. “Words utterly fail me on this one,” tweets Edward Alden. “I don’t think I understand people very well.” At the very least, he could have waited two weeks and then surprised the team with a trip to a private island where they could pretend things were normal just for a brief moment in time. Wednesday reads - An alarming report by Jane Lytvynenko of BuzzFeed News on how The White Extremist Group Patriot Front Is Preparing For A World After Donald Trump. On Twitter, she shares, “Hundreds chats leaked to BuzzFeed News from hate group Patriot Front show how they’re preparing for a life after Trump,” and adds, “Two members have also been arrested on weapons charges. And they are not fans of Donald Trump. For them, ‘Casting a ballot is a submissive gesture to legitimize tyranny.’ Please read this story.”
- “*Tipping point klaxon* This is really really bad,” tweets Tom Harrisson, who links to Jonathan Watts’ report at The Guardian, ‘Sleeping giant’ Arctic methane deposits starting to release, scientists find. “Researchers find evidence in Siberia that a new climate feedback loop may have been triggered that could accelerate the pace of global heating. Scary exclusive from @jonathanwatts,” as Patrick Greenfield says.
- If you’ve been watching the dueling docuseries (the oddly boring one and the better one, and I don’t need to tell you which is which), you’ll be pleased to see this news: Keith Raniere, Leader of Nxivm Sex Cult, Is Sentenced to 120 Years in Prison. Nicole Hong and Sean Piccoli of The New York Times report that more than a dozen victims gave wrenching testimony about how he manipulated and sexually abused them. As Casey Johnston puts it, “Rot in hell bitch!!!”
- Bob Tita and William Mauldin of The Wall Street Journal detail how Tariffs Didn’t Fuel a Revival for American Steel. Initial job growth withers as demand and prices sink, and older mills face a dim future.
- For the December cover of Vanity Fair, Michelle Ruiz profiles Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Her Rise to Political Power.
- And lastly today, read Chrissy Teigen at Medium.
| 
No comments:
Post a Comment