New Yorker scribe Ken Auletta is probably wishing he kept his AOL account. [AdWeek]
ruth bader ginsburg
RBG’s Death: Latest Updates on Reaction, Political Aftermath
THE FEED
Federal judge blocks Trump’s WeChat ban
A federal judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order banning WeChat downloads in the United States. In issuing the preliminary injunction, Judge Laurel Beeler wrote that the plaintiffs — a group of US-based WeChat users who stand to be affected by Trump’s ban — had shown “serious questions” in their claim that the executive order threatens the users’ First Amendment rights.
“The plaintiffs’ evidence reflects that WeChat is effectively the only means of communication for many in the community, not only because China bans other apps, but also because Chinese speakers with limited English proficiency have no options other than WeChat,” Beeler wrote.
Nor does the order escape First Amendment scrutiny under an easier standard known as intermediate scrutiny, the judge said, because the ban on WeChat does not provide enough evidence that it is narrowly tailored to resolve the US government’s national security concerns with respect to the app.
“And, as the plaintiffs point out,” Beeler wrote, “there are obvious alternatives to a complete ban, such as barring WeChat from government devices, as Australia has done, or taking other steps to address data security.”
It won’t be the last time this happens, or the worst instance
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.
rbg
Ginsburg’s Example Shows Us How to Save Our Democracy
Trump endorses the Oracle-TikTok deal
President Trump said he has agreed in concept to a deal under which Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok will partner with Oracle and Walmart to become a U.S.-based company, capping negotiations that have stirred debate over national security and the future of the internet.
“I have given the deal my blessing, if they get it done that’s OK too, if they don’t that’s fine too,” Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House on Saturday.
Under the terms of the deal, Walmart and Oracle would share a 20% stake in a new U.S.-based entity that will operate TikTok, with Oracle likely getting a somewhat larger piece between those two, according to a person familiar with the deal. The person said that under the deal, U.S. companies and investors would have a 53% ownership—satisfying U.S. demands for the new company to be under American control. Chinese investors would have a 36% stake, with other investors largely from Europe having 11%, this person said.
The president said the agreement will result in the creation of 25,000 jobs, mostly in Texas, adding that the new company will still be called TikTok and “will have nothing to do with China.”
abortion
We Could Lose Roe v. Wade Next Year. What Now?
the body politic
It Shouldn’t Have Come Down to Her
rbg
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Life Remembered in Pictures
ruth bader ginsburg
Why Mitch McConnell Will Try to Fill RBG’s Court Seat
supreme court
Will Trump Rush to Replace RBG on the Supreme Court?
scotus
How the Battle to Fill RBG’s SCOTUS Seat Could Spark a Constitutional Crisis
ruth bader ginsburg
Here’s Who Trump Might Nominate to Replace RBG on the Supreme Court
remembrance
The Glorious RBG
the national interest
Biden’s Campaign Has a New, Populist Theme. Will It Work?
extreme weather
The 2020 Hurricane Season Is Officially Out of Names
Based on what, exactly?
TRUMP: “We expect to have enough vaccines for every American by April.”
—@ryanstruyk
poll position
New, Highly Credible Polls Offer Bad News For Trump
The CDC’s credibility has taken a major hit
NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. health officials on Friday dropped a controversial piece of coronavirus guidance and said anyone who has been in close contact with an infected person should get tested.@CDCgov
—@carlquintanilla
the national interest
A White House Aide Just Warned Us That Donald Trump Is a Sociopath
vote by mail
How Democrats’ Reliance on Mail-In Voting Could Help Trump
Another good poll for Biden shows a mostly familiar picture
NPR/PBS/Marist national poll
LIKELY VOTERS
Biden/Harris 52%
Trump/Pence 43%
**
Men: Trump+4
Women: Biden+20
White no college: Trump+30
White college+: Biden+35
Independents: Biden+21
Suburban: Biden+14
White evangelicals: Trump+46
65 or older: Biden+4
—@sahilkapur
LIKELY VOTERS
Biden/Harris 52%
Trump/Pence 43%
**
Men: Trump+4
Women: Biden+20
White no college: Trump+30
White college+: Biden+35
Independents: Biden+21
Suburban: Biden+14
White evangelicals: Trump+46
65 or older: Biden+4
coronavirus stimulus
Trump Nibbles at Stimulus Compromise As Pressure for Deal Increases
Tell this to any parent
Mayor de Blasio tells @WNYC the reopening of schools was a “greater challenge than anyone foresaw.”
—@yoavgonen
McConnell has always been about a level playing field
MCCONNELL: “After they change the filibuster, they’re going to admit the District as a state. They’re going to admit Puerto Rico as a state. That’s four new Democratic senators in perpetuity. Once they get a hammerlock on the Senate, they’re going to then pack the Supreme Court.”
—@ryanstruyk
tech
Trump Administration to Ban WeChat and TikTok From App Stores
politics
Trump Announces a ‘National Commission to Support Patriotic Education’
vision 2020
Former Pence Aide Endorses Biden: ‘Trump Doesn’t Care About Anyone Else’
vision 2020
A Rational Case for How Trump Could Win the Election Without Stealing It
2020 elections
Overshadowed by 2020 Crises, California Ballot Initiatives Are Still a Big Deal
The USPS had planned to send millions of masks to Americans, but the White House killed the plan
Some top administration officials even hoped to tap the mail service’s vast network — and its unrivaled ability to reach every U.S. Zip code — to help Americans obtain personal protective equipment. The idea originated out of the Department of Health and Human Services, which suggested a pack of five reusable masks be sent to every residential address in the country, with the first shipments going to the hardest-hit areas.
At the time, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had been working on coronavirus guidance that recommended face coverings, a reversal of its previous position, in the face of mounting evidence that people could spread the coronavirus without experiencing symptoms. The Postal Service prepared for the possibility it might be deputized in the effort, drawing up a news release touting that it was “uniquely suited” to help. The service specifically identified Orleans and Jefferson parishes in Louisiana as the first areas to receive face coverings, with deliveries shortly thereafter to King County, Wash.; Wayne County, Mich.; and New York, according to the newly unearthed document, which is labeled a draft.
Before the news release was sent, however, the White House nixed the plan, according to senior administration officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share internal deliberations. Instead, HHS created Project America Strong, a $675 million effort to distribute “reusable cotton face masks to critical infrastructure sectors, companies, healthcare facilities, and faith-based and community organizations across the country.” About 600 million of the 650 million masks ordered have been distributed, according to an HHS spokesperson, including 125 million set aside for schools.
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