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Trump and Biden ready for first TV showdown – as it happened

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Tue 29 Sep 2020 20.25 EDTFirst published on Tue 29 Sep 2020 06.02 EDT
'Will you shut up, man?': Biden and Trump clash in first US presidential debate – video

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Summary

We’re closing down this blog, but Joan E Greve and I will be covering the presidential debate tonight. Follow along here:

  • The debate will start at 9 pm ET tonight, and it will take place at the Samson Pavillion, an academic building shared by Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic.
  • Seven former FDA commissioners have issued a sharp rebuke of the Trump administration for politicizing the approval and development process for Covid-19 vaccines and treatments. “At risk is the FDA’s ability to make the independent, science-based decisions that are key to combating the pandemic and so much more,” they wrote, in an op-ed published by the Washington Post.
  • A federal appeals court has upheld a deadline extension for counting ballots in Wisconsin. National and state Republican leaders have been fighting efforts to count every vote, challenging a provision that would allow votes postmarked by election day to get counted even if they arrive up to 6 days late. Even as the administration seeks to undermine the post office, Republicans are expected to fight this provision to count delayed ballots in the Supreme Court.
  • Amy Coney Barrett’s supreme court nomination was officially sent to the Senate. The announcement comes on the same day that Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose seat Barrett would be filling, was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell met with Barrett earlier today.
  • Biden and Kamala Harris released their 2019 tax returns. The move was clearly meant to criticize Trump for not yet having released any of his tax returns. The documents showed Biden and his wife paid nearly $300,000 in federal income tax last year. According to the New York Times, Trump paid only $750 in federal income tax in 2016 and 2017.
  • New York City plans to impose fines on people who refuse to wear a face covering, as it was announced that the rate of positive tests for coronavirus climbed above 3% in the city for the first time in months.
  • Former special counsel Robert Mueller responded to criticism from one of his former colleagues. In his new book, Andrew Weissmann, a former prosecutor in the special counsel’s office, argues Mueller’s team did not do enough to hold Trump accountable in the Russia investigation. Mueller said in a statement that he made his investigation-related decisions “without any interest in currying favor or fear of the consequences”. Mueller added, “I stand by those decisions and by the conclusions of our investigation.”
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A federal appeals court upheld a ruling – contested by Republicans - that extends the deadline for counting absentee ballots in Wisconsin.

The decision means that ballots postmarked by 3 November will be so long as they arrive before 9 November. The Republican National Committee and state Republican leaders and legislators had argued against the extension - arguing that people would have plenty of time to return their ballots.

But the state this year is expecting as many as 2m people to vote by mail. The sheer volume of ballots that election officials are expecting, combined with the fact that the Trump administration has sought to undermine the postal service means that a 3 November cutoff could disenfranchise thousands of voters.

Republicans are expected to challenge this decision in the Supreme Court - which the party is currently rushing to fill following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg.

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Seven former Food and Drug commissioners have written an op-ed in the Washington Post, rebuking the Trump administration.

The commissioners accuse Trump of politicizing the Covid-19 vaccine and drug approval process, asserting: “At risk is the FDA’s ability to make the independent, science-based decisions that are key to combating the pandemic and so much more.”

The former commissioners include Scott Gottlieb and Mark McClellan, who serve on the boards of Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson – which are both developing a Covid-19 vaccine. Robert Califf, Margaret Hamburg, Jane Henney, David Kessler and Andy von Eschenbach have also signed the op-ed. Kessler is an adviser for the Biden campaign.

They write:

In 1906, when President Theodore Roosevelt signed a bill to create what is now the FDA, one of his first actions was to delegate the oversight of food and drug safety to the agency’s scientists. In the 114 years since, FDA professionals have created a consumer safety net that has been a worldwide model for evidence-based public health policy. Indeed, for decades, when we and our predecessors spoke as FDA commissioners about issues of regulation and people’s health, the public knew we were speaking on behalf of experts whose judgments were grounded in science.

That is changing in deeply troubling ways. The White House has said it might try to influence the scientific standards for vaccine approval put forward by the FDA or block the agency from issuing further written guidance on its criteria for judging the safety and benefits of a potential Covid-19 vaccine. This pronouncement came just after key leaders at the FDA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health all publicly supported that guidance.

Trump has promised a vaccine before the elections, despite CDC director Robert Redfield’s suggestion that it wouldn’t be available widely until “late second quarter, third quarter 2021”.

Tensions and insults in the battle for Florida lay bare America’s divisions

Oliver Laughland
Oliver Laughland

Decisions in this vital swing state are made in two different realities, one adherent to facts and science, the other rooted in conspiracies and political dogma

Troubled Florida, divided America: will Donald Trump hold this vital swing state? - video

If you wanted a symbol for Donald Trump’s complete takeover of the Republican party, you could do little better than a nondescript shopping mall on the outskirts of Largo in west Florida.

This is a usually quiet intersection in Florida’s quintessential bellwether county, Pinellas, which has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election since 1980 (bar the disputed 2000 race won by George W Bush).

But eight months ago Cliff Gephart, an enthusiastic Trump supporter and local entrepreneur, transformed a vacant lot – formerly a strip club – into a thriving coffee shop devoted to the president. Business at Conservative Grounds is roaring, despite the pandemic, with hundreds and, they claim, occasionally over a thousand customers, dropping by each day for a cup of coffee, a chat about politics and to purchase from a plethora of Trump themed merchandise. No-one is social distancing or wearing a facemask.

In 2016, the narrative of the so-called “secretive Trump voter” went part of the way to explaining the billionaire property magnate’s unexpected pathway to the White House. But now, in Pinellas as in many parts of the country, Trump supporters are out in force, unafraid, empowered and organised.

Read more:

The House intelligence committee has subpoenaed the Department of Homeland security, as part of an ongoing investigation into whether top officials at the agency pressured DHS officials to modify intelligence reports to fit the president’s agenda.

A whistleblower has accused Trump appointees at the agency of downplaying Russian interference and white supremacist threats.

The House intelligence committee has subpoenaed the Department of Homeland Security over documents and testimony related to an ongoing investigation into the agency’s intelligence office, the panel’s chairman, congressman Adam Schiff, announced Tuesday.

Adam Schiff, the California representative who heads the intelligence committee, accused the agency of blocking the whistleblower from testifying and failing to provide key documents.

BREAKING: @HouseIntel just subpoenaed DHS and the acting head of its intelligence office.

They are effectively blocking the whistleblower from testifying and have failed to provide key documents.

We will not tolerate DHS's obstruction and attempts to run out the clock.

— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) September 29, 2020
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Hi, there - It’s Maanvi Singh, blogging from the West Coast.

This weekend, Donald Trump is scheduled to hold two events in Wisconsin as coronavirus cases and hospitalizations in the state are surging.

In Green Bay, which Trump will visiting on Saturday evening, a major hospital reported that Covid-19 patients are occupying three-fourths of intensive care unit beds, and is at 94% capacity.

The Green Bay Press-Gazette reported that last week, the Bellin Hospital emergency room was so overwhelmed that workers were treating patients in gurneys in the hospital hallways.

Bellin Health nurses asked residents to “show compassion and concern for your fellow human beings, especially those at high risk, by staying home” and requested the locals wear masks to slow the spread of disease.

Please show compassion and concern for your fellow human beings, especially those at high risk, by staying home and encouraging your friends and family to do the same. If you do go out, avoid large gatherings and please wear masks! We’re all in this together. Thank you! pic.twitter.com/yp0spk3jG8

— Bellin Health (@BellinHealth) September 29, 2020

Today so far

That’s it from me for now. I’ll be back later tonight to cover the first presidential debate between Trump and Biden.

Here’s where the day stands so far:

  • Trump has arrived in Cleveland, Ohio, and Biden is en route. The debate will start at 9 pm ET tonight, and it will take place at the Samson Pavillion, an academic building shared by Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic.
  • Amy Coney Barrett’s supreme court nomination was officially sent to the Senate. The announcement comes on the same day that Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose seat Barrett would be filling, was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell met with Barrett earlier today.
  • Biden and Kamala Harris released their 2019 tax returns. The move was clearly meant to criticize Trump for not yet having released any of his tax returns. The documents showed Biden and his wife paid nearly $300,000 in federal income tax last year. According to the New York Times, Trump paid only $750 in federal income tax in 2016 and 2017.
  • New York City plans to impose fines on people who refuse to wear a face covering, as it was announced that the rate of positive tests for coronavirus climbed above 3% in the city for the first time in months.
  • Former special counsel Robert Mueller responded to criticism from one of his former colleagues. In his new book, Andrew Weissmann, a former prosecutor in the special counsel’s office, argues Mueller’s team did not do enough to hold Trump accountable in the Russia investigation. Mueller said in a statement that he made his investigation-related decisions “without any interest in currying favor or fear of the consequences”. Mueller added, “I stand by those decisions and by the conclusions of our investigation.”

My west coast colleague, Maanvi Singh, will have more coming up, so stay tuned.

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Trump has arrived at the debate venue in Cleveland, Ohio, to conduct the traditional walk-through of the site.

Each presidential candidate is allowed to walk through the venue to get a sense of the debate stage before the event begins.

. @realDonaldTrump arrives at the debate site in Cleveland pic.twitter.com/iyfvCpw2Yf

— Mike Memoli (@mikememoli) September 29, 2020

Tonight’s debate, which will begin at 9 pm ET, is being held at the Samson Pavillion, an academic building shared by Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic.

Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell dismissed the suggestion that Amy Coney Barrett would vote to scrap the Affordable Care Act.

“This mother of seven, including multiple children who were born or adopted facing preexisting condition medical challenges, is just itching to block families like hers from accessing medical care. What a joke,” McConnell said, per an NBC News reporter.

McConnell mocks claims that Barrett could vote to take away health care.

"This mother of 7 including multiple children who were born or adopted facing pre-existing condition medical challenges is just itching to block families like hers from accessing medical care. What a joke."

— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) September 29, 2020

However, Barrett has previously criticized the decision to uphold the ACA, saying chief justice John Roberts “pushed the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute” when the issue came before the supreme court in 2012.

Democrats have consistently warned that, if Barrett is confirmed, the ACA could be on the chopping block, which could cause healthcare costs to soar for those with preexisting conditions.

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Barrett's nomination officially sent to Senate

The supreme court nomination of Amy Coney Barrett has been officially sent to the Senate, with five weeks to go until election day.

Barrett’s nomination has now been officially sent to the Senate pic.twitter.com/ceRoSUWVdJ

— Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) September 29, 2020

The announcement comes on the same day that Barrett met with Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell on Capitol Hill.

I had the opportunity to meet with Judge Barrett earlier today. President Trump has nominated exactly the kind of outstanding person whom the American people deserve to have on their highest Court. pic.twitter.com/0tTJqPwpeP

— Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) September 29, 2020

Senate Republicans are seeking to get Barrett confirmed before the November 3 elections, representing a far tighter timeline than other recent supreme court confirmations.

The nomination was also sent to the Senate on the same day that Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose death opened up the supreme court seat Republicans are rushing to fill, was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Ginsburg’s reported dying wish was that her supreme court seat not be filled until after the presidential election, a request that Republicans have ignored.

Joanna Walters
Joanna Walters

In another bitter symbol for rattled liberals, on the morning that arch conservative Amy Coney Barrett paid a visit to Mitch McConnell on Capitol Hill, prior to her expected swift confirmation and ascension to the supreme court, the woman she will replace was laid to rest.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, aka the Notorious RBG, feminist and left-leaning icon, was buried this morning in Arlington National Cemetery, in Virginia, just on the outskirts of Washington.

She was to be buried next to her late husband, Marty, who died in 2010, and the event took place four days after Ginsburg was afforded the honor last Friday of being the first woman to lie in state in the US Capitol.

Meanwhile, demonstrations continue in Washington, DC.

A group of clergy, rabbis and imams march from the US Capitol to the Dirksen Senate Office Building during a demonstration to remember Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, earlier today. The group was led by Reverend Dr William Barber. Photograph: REX/Shutterstock

A group of clergy, rabbis and imams marched from the US Capitol to the Dirksen Senate Office Building during a demonstration to remember Supreme Court Ginsburg, earlier today. The group was led by Reverend Dr William Barber and they urged Americans to vote in her memory and that of Kentucky police shooting victim Breonna Taylor.

Reverend William Barber II, center, leads leaders of various faiths gathered near the US Capitol and march silently to the supreme court and towards the Dirksen Senate office building to remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Kentucky police shooting victim Breonna Taylor. They urged Americans to vote in their memory. Photograph: Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

Air Force One has arrived in Cleveland, with just hours to go until the first presidential debate between Trump and Biden.

According to the White House press pool, a senior Trump campaign official spoke to reporters during the short flight to Cleveland.

The official said the president is ready for the debate and would not be doing any last-minute prep work on the plane. “He’s ready to go,” the official said.

The person added that the president’s team expects his tax returns to be mentioned at the beginning of the debate. The New York Times reported Sunday that Trump only paid $750 in federal income taxes the year he won the presidency.

Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s personal lawyer, will also be one of the president’s guests for the debate, the official said.

Joe Biden is now en route to Cleveland as well, having boarded his campaign plane in Wilmington, Delaware, moments ago.

The Democratic nominee appears to have a new campaign plane with the Biden/Harris logo on its side.

Joe Biden boards a plane to Cleveland for his first debate with President Trump. The Biden campaign has a new plane with the Biden/Harris logo on the side. pic.twitter.com/Wc3mTUgSWb

— Tyler Pager (@tylerpager) September 29, 2020

Several of Trump’s family members joined him on Air Force One for the trip to Cleveland, Ohio, where the first presidential debate will be held tonight.

Two of the president’s children, Eric Trump and Tiffany Trump, were spotted boarding the plane.

Press pool on Air Force One reports WH Chief of Staff Mark Meadows says Pres Trump is in “a good mood’ as he heads to the debate. Also aboard are members of the Trump Family including Eric, Lara and Tiffany. along with Alice Johnson, who received a pardon from Trump last month. pic.twitter.com/LDJ2YwX0CG

— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) September 29, 2020

The White House press pool also saw Alice Johnson boarding Air Force One. In 2018, Trump commuted Johnson’s prison sentence for a non-violent drug offense. Johnson spoke at the Republican convention last month and then received a full pardon from Trump.

Speaking to reporters shortly before takeoff, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said Trump had completed his debate preparations and was in a good mood.

According to CNN, Trump did less than two hours of debate prep total to prepare for tonight’s event.

Mueller responds to former colleague's criticism

Former special counsel Robert Mueller has released a statement responding to criticism from one of his former colleagues.

In his new book, Andrew Weissmann, a former prosecutor in the special counsel’s office, argues Mueller’s team did not do enough to hold Trump accountable in the Russia investigation.

“It is not surprising that members of the Special Counsel’s Office did not always agree, but it is disappointing to hear criticism of our team based on incomplete information,” Mueller said in the statement, per the Washington Post.

“When important decisions had to be made, I made them,” Mueller added. “I did so as I have always done, without any interest in currying favor or fear of the consequences. I stand by those decisions and by the conclusions of our investigation.”

Mueller concluded his investigation last year and released a report on the team’s findings, which included significant evidence that Trump obstructed justice but did not come to an explicit conclusion on the matter.

Trump is now en route to Cleveland, Ohio, for the first presidential debate, which is about six hours away.

Hundreds of White House staffers gathered on the South Lawn to see Trump off, creating an unusual, made-for-television moment as he departed.

Leaving the White House with the first lady, the president ignored a question about to whom he owed money and whether the American people deserved to know the answer.

My shouted question to Trump, which he didn’t answer: “Mr. President, who do you owe money to? Don’t the American people deserve to know?” pic.twitter.com/dLCXCXl2e8

— Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) September 29, 2020

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