Republican Lawmakers Admit to Playing Politics with a Pandemic

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA– Today, during Minnesota’s 4th special legislative session, GOP Assistant Minority Leader Jon Koznick appeared to send an email intended for his GOP colleagues to House DFLers by mistake. In his email, Koznick said, in part:

a friendly, reminder (as discussed in caucus) to stay on message IF you speak today-
COVID issues are not our winning message. PUBLIC SAFETY is our ticket to the majority, let’s win with that.

Not only did Republicans admit they have nothing to say on the most important public safety issue of our time, COVID-19, they also appear to be using government resources to campaign.

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Some assertions Donald ‘I don’t want to create panic’ Trump has made since February

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President Trump’s defense for having privately admitted in early February that the novel coronavirusposed a significant threat to the United States — a message that he repeatedly undermined in the following months — was a simple one. He repeatedly downplayed the threat the virus posed because he didn’t want Americans to live in fear.

“The fact is, I’m a cheerleader for this country. I love our country,” Trump said during an event at the White House on Tuesday. “And I don’t want people to be frightened. I don’t want to create panic, as you say. And certainly, I’m not going to drive this country or the world into a frenzy.”

One can certainly argue that there is a difference between being honest with the public and instilling panic. It’s the difference between the phlebotomist saying that you’ll feel a slight pinch and his trying to get you to look in the other direction while he without warning jams a needle into your arm. My 3-year-old doesn’t like medicine, but we’re past the point where we pretend he’s just getting a funny-colored glass of apple juice. Continue reading.

Rep. Phillips introduces a bill to ban political use of White House grounds

WASHINGTON, DC— Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) has introduced a bill banning the use of White House grounds for political purposes – the Our Lawn Act.  

For nearly a century, the Hatch Act has existed to provide a clear distinction between public servants and electoral candidates. Both parties have observed and respected this law for decades and have condemned apparent Hatch Act violations.

Unfortunately, this administration has shown, through providing the White House and other federal property as a staging area for the Republican National Convention, that we must continue to work to ensure that officials are not misusing public property and the prestige of office for their own political gain.  These actions misappropriated public resources for the private benefit of the Republican Party and put federal employees in a position where their employers were ordering them to violate the law.

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DFL Party Statement on Trump’s Plan to Visit Minnesota Next Friday

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Today, DFL Party Chairman Ken Martin released the following statement in response to reports that President Trump will visit Minnesota next Friday:

“Just hours after Joe Biden announced his plans to visit Minnesota next Friday, Trump followed Biden’s lead and decided to do the same. While Biden will talk with voters about his plans to build back better after the pandemic, Donald Trump will undoubtedly spew dangerous lies about the state of our country in hopes to distract Minnesotans from the reality of his failed administration. Minnesotans won’t be fooled. From his attacks on Social Security and Medicare to his trade policies that hurt our farmers — we know that Trump is not on the side of hardworking Minnesotans. And to make matters worse, Donald Trump admitted that he lied to the American people from the very start of the pandemic for his own political gain. As result, over 80,000 Minnesotans have been infected by the virus and thousands are still left without work. Minnesotans deserve better. Starting on September 18th, the very day Trump is in Minnesota, voters will flock to vote early for Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Tina Smith and DFLers up and down the ballot.”

Swept up in the federal response to Portland protests: ‘I didn’t know if I was going to be seen again’

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PORTLAND, Ore. — The protest outside Portland’s federal courthouse had died down by 3:40 a.m. on July 29, when a green laser shined down from a seventh-floor balcony used as a lookout by federal agents.

The laser landed on John Hacker, an activist and citizen-journalist standing in a park about 170 feet away. It skittered across Hacker’s feet, head and torso for more than 45 seconds. Suddenly, an unmarked van pulled in front of him. Doors slid open. Heavily armed men in camouflage tactical gear surrounded Hacker and took him into custody.

Hacker, 36, is among nearly two dozen people arrested but not charged during the Trump administration’s five-week response, from July through early August, to the demonstrations against police brutality in Portland. Before letting Hacker go, federal agents collected a DNA swab, photographed him and confiscated a phone that has not been returned, he said. Continue reading.

Experts: US is experiencing a ‘K-shaped’ recovery that has troubling implications for the future of America’s economy

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During a Sunday appearance on “Fox News Sunday,” Symone Sanders, a senior campaign adviser to Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, lamented how recent economic gains were distributed unequally. “It is going well for folks at the top, but for folks who are middle class or below, it’s going down,” Sanders told host Bret Baier. “The question really is, is this [economy] working for working families, and the answer is no.”

The economic pickle Sanders described is sometimes called a “K-shaped” recovery — meaning one in which the wealthy benefit from the recovery while everyone else continues to suffer. Regardless of one’s feelings about the Biden campaign, Sanders’ analysis is echoed by economists — who say that the nascent K-shaped recovery has troubling implications for the future of America’s economy.

“I do think the USA is seeing a K-shaped recovery,” Dr. Gabriel Mathy, a macroeconomist at American University, told Salon by email. “The working class has to continue working, and the government transfers and additional unemployment insurance payments are falling. They must work outside the home, exposing themselves to the virus, and with schools opening they must find childcare. Richer groups have seen their stock portfolios rise and they are working from home, doing okay.” Continue reading.

As NFL reopens amid altered landscape, Trump resumes attacks on players who demonstrate for racial justice

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President Trump’s attempt to show that the nation is recovering from the economic damage of the coronavirus pandemic will clash head-on Thursday with his denunciations of social justice demonstrations when the National Football League kicks off its season in prime time.

Trump has lobbied heavily for sports leagues to restart despite the threat of the virus, but his demands have been incongruous when it comes to the NFL, an $8.8 billion juggernaut whose television ratings dwarf all competitors’.

Ahead of the season opener between the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and the Houston Texans, the president and his allies have resumed their long-standing bashing of NFL players for kneeling during the national anthem to call attention to police brutality affecting communities of color. Continue reading.

Joe Biden to make first campaign appearance in Minnesota

Visit follows those of surrogates and family members of both major candidates. 

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden will travel to Minnesota next week in a tour of Midwestern battleground states that could be critical in the 2020 election.

Biden’s campaign released no other details Thursday about the Sept. 18 visit to Minnesota, his first as a Democratic nominee for president.

The trip by the former vice president follows that of his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, who campaigned in Minnesota on Wednesday. Continue reading.

Trump’s overtures struggle to register with religious voters

New signs point to Trump losing a sizable chunk of his Christian voters, upending his path to reelection.

He recently renewed his promise to end federal funding for Planned Parenthood. He drew bipartisan praise for brokering an agreement that’s expected to boost Israel’s influence in the Middle East. And he released an updated list of Supreme Court nominees on Wednesday.

But so far, President Donald Trump’s overtures to religious voters appear to be falling flat.

Months after worries first exploded inside the Trump campaign over his eroding support among white evangelicals and Roman Catholics, some of the president’s top religious allies are now in a panic — concerned that Joe Biden’s attentiveness to Christian voters, whom Democrats largely ignored in 2016, is having an impact where the president can least afford it. Continue reading.

Most Americans support athletes speaking out, say anthem protests are appropriate, Post poll finds

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As a new National Football League season prepares to kick off Thursday night, a majority of Americans, including a majority of football fans, say it is acceptable for professional athletes to kneel during the national anthem, and an even larger percentage say athletes should use their platforms to tackle social issues, according to a Washington Post poll.

This summer, as widespread protests over racism and police violence roiled the nation, athletes across every major American sport have become increasingly vocal on social issues. They have sat out events, protested during the anthem and pushed for policy changes around policing, voting rights and other issues. While athlete activism promises to take center stage this week — starting with Thursday’s opener in Kansas City, Mo., and continuing through the full slate of NFL games this weekend — 56 percent of Americans now say it is appropriate for athletes to kneel during the national anthem to protest racial inequality; 42 percent say it is not appropriate.

Despite cries for athletes to “stick to sports,” particularly from conservative pundits and politicians, a 62 percent majority of Americans say professional athletes should use their platforms to express their views on national issues, including over 8 in 10 Black Americans and 7 in 10 adults under age 50. Continue reading.