The Ledes

Friday, October 11, 2024

Washington Post: “Floridians began returning to damaged and waterlogged homes on Thursday after Hurricane Milton carved a path of destruction and grief across the state, the second massive storm to strike Florida in as many weeks. At least 14 storm-related deaths were attributed to the hurricane, which made landfall south of Sarasota at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, officials said. Six of them were killed when two tornadoes touched down ahead of the storm in St. Lucie County on Florida’s central Atlantic coast. The deadly tornadoes, rising waters, torrential rain and punishing winds battered the state from coast to coast as Milton churned eastward before heading out to sea early Thursday.”

Washington Post: “Twelve people were rescued from an inactive Colorado gold mine after they were trapped 1,000 feet underground for about six hours following an elevator malfunction. One person was killed in the accident, which happened about 500 feet underground at the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine near Cripple Creek, Colo., Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell said at a Thursday news conference. The site is a tourist attraction. Eleven other people aboard the elevator at the time, including two children, were rescued shortly after the mechanical malfunction, which Mikesell said 'created a severe danger for the participants.' He said four suffered minor injuries.... Twelve others in a separate group remained trapped in a mine shaft 1,000 feet underground for several hours after the incident, before they were rescued Thursday evening, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said.”

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The Ledes

Thursday, October 10, 2024

CNBC: “The pace of price increases over the past year was higher than forecast in September while jobless claims posted an unexpected jump following Hurricane Helene and the Boeing strike, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The consumer price index, a broad gauge measuring the costs of goods and services across the U.S. economy, increased a seasonally adjusted 0.2% for the month, putting the annual inflation rate at 2.4%. Both readings were 0.1 percentage point above the Dow Jones consensus. The annual inflation rate was 0.1 percentage point lower than August and is the lowest since February 2021.”

The New York Times' live updates of Hurrucane Milton consequences Thursday are here: “Milton was still producing damaging hurricane-force winds and heavy rainfall to parts of East and Central Florida, forecasters said early Thursday, even as the powerful storm roared away from the Atlantic coast and left deaths and widespread damage across the state. Cities along Florida’s east coast are now facing flash flooding, damaging winds and storm surges. Some had already been battered by powerful tornadoes spun out by the storm before it made landfall on the Gulf Coast on Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane. In [St. Lucie] county [Fort Pierce], several people in a retirement community were killed by a tornado, the police said.... More than three million customers were without power in Florida as of early Thursday.” ~~~

     ~~~ Here are the Weater Channel's live updates.

CNN: “The 2024 Nobel Prize in literature has been awarded to Han Kang, a South Korean author, for her 'intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life.' Han, 53, began her career with a group of poems in a South Korean magazine, before making her prose debut in 1995 with a short story collection. She later began writing longer prose works, most notably 'The Vegetarian,' one of her first books to be translated into English. The novel, which won the Man Booker International Prize in 2016, charts a young woman’s attempt to live a more 'plant-like' existence after suffering macabre nightmares about human cruelty. Han is the first South Korean author to win the literature prize, and just the 18th woman out of the 117 prizes awarded since 1901.” The New York Times story is here.

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Public Service Announcement

Washington Post: "Americans can again order free rapid coronavirus tests by mail, the Biden administration announced Thursday. People can request four free at-home tests per household through covidtests.gov. They will begin shipping Monday. The move comes ahead of an expected winter wave of coronavirus cases. The September revival of the free testing program is in line with the Biden administration’s strategy to respond to the coronavirus as part of a broader public health campaign to protect Americans from respiratory viruses, including influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), that surge every fall and winter. But free tests were not mailed during the summer wave, which wastewater surveillance data shows is now receding."

Washington Post: “Comedy news outlet the Onion — reinvigorated by new ownership over this year — is bringing back its once-popular video parodies of cable news. But this time, there’s someone with real news anchor experience in the chair. When the first episodes appear online Monday, former WAMU and MSNBC host Joshua Johnson will be the face of the resurrected 'Onion News Network.' Playing an ONN anchor character named Dwight Richmond, Johnson says he’s bringing a real anchor’s sense of clarity — and self-importance — to the job. 'If ONN is anything, it’s a news organization that is so unaware of its own ridiculousness that it has the confidence of a serial killer,' says Johnson, 44.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I'll be darned if I can figured out how to watch ONN. If anybody knows, do tell. Thanks.

Washington Post: “First came the surprising discovery that Earth’s atmosphere is leaking. But for roughly 60 years, the reason remained a mystery. Since the late 1960s, satellites over the poles detected an extremely fast flow of particles escaping into space — at speeds of 20 kilometers per second. Scientists suspected that gravity and the magnetic field alone could not fully explain the stream. There had to be another source creating this leaky faucet. It turns out the mysterious force is a previously undiscovered global electric field, a recent study found. The field is only about the strength of a watch battery — but it’s enough to thrust lighter ions from our atmosphere into space. It’s also generated unlike other electric fields on Earth. This newly discovered aspect of our planet provides clues about the evolution of our atmosphere, perhaps explaining why Earth is habitable. The electric field is 'an agent of chaos,' said Glyn Collinson, a NASA rocket scientist and lead author of the study. 'It undoes gravity.... Without it, Earth would be very different.'”

The New York Times lists Emmy winners. The AP has an overview story here.

New York Times: “Hvaldimir, a beluga whale who had captured the public’s imagination since 2019 after he was spotted wearing a harness seemingly designed for a camera, was found dead on Saturday in Norway, according to a nonprofit that worked to protect the whale.... [Hvaldimir] was wearing a harness that identified it as “equipment” from St. Petersburg. There also appeared to be a camera mount. Some wondered if the whale was on a Russian reconnaissance mission. Russia has never claimed ownership of the whale. If Hvaldimir was a spy, he was an exceptionally friendly one. The whale showed signs of domestication, and was comfortable around people. He remained in busier waters than are typical for belugas....” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, Lord, do not let Bobby Kennedy, Jr., near that carcass. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: “There’s no evidence that a well-known beluga whale that lived off Norway’s coast and whose harness ignited speculation it was a Russian spy was shot to death last month as claimed by animal rights groups, Norwegian police said Monday.... Police said that the Norwegian Veterinary Institute conducted a preliminary autopsy on the animal, which was become known as 'Hvaldimir,' combining the Norwegian word for whale — hval — and the first name of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'There are no findings from the autopsy that indicate that Hvaldimir has been shot,' police said in a statement.”

New York Times: Botswana's “President Mokgweetsi Masisi grinned as he lifted the diamond, a 2,492-carat stone that is the biggest diamond unearthed in more than a century and the second-largest ever found, according to the Vancouver-based mining operator Lucara, which owns the mine where it was found. This exceptional discovery could bring back the luster of the natural diamond mining industry, mining companies and experts say. The diamond was discovered in the same relatively small mine in northeastern Botswana that has produced several of the largest such stones in living memory. Such gemstones typically surface as a result of volcanic activity.... The diamond will likely sell in the range of tens of millions of dollars....”

Click on photo to enlarge.

~~~ Guardian: "On a distant reef 16,000km from Paris, surfer Gabriel Medina has given Olympic viewers one of the most memorable images of the Games yet, with an airborne celebration so well poised it looked too good to be true. The Brazilian took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti on Monday, emerging from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard. The shot was taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet, who said “the conditions were perfect, the waves were taller than we expected”. He took the photo while aboard a boat nearby, capturing the surreal image with such accuracy that at first some suspected Photoshop or AI." 

Washington Post: “'Mary Cassatt at Work' is a large and mostly satisfying exhibition devoted to the career of the great American artist beloved for her sensitive and often sentimental views of family life. The 'at work' in the title of the Philadelphia Museum of Art show references the curators’ interest in Cassatt’s pioneering effort to establish herself as a professional artist within a male-dominated field. Throughout the show, which includes some 130 paintings, pastels, prints and drawings, the wall text and the art on view stresses Cassatt’s fixation on art as a career rather than a pastime.... Mary Cassatt at Work is on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art through Sept. 8. philamuseum.org”

New York Times: “Bob Newhart, who died on Thursday at the age of 94, has been such a beloved giant of popular culture for so long that it’s easy to forget how unlikely it was that he became one of the founding fathers of stand-up comedy. Before basically inventing the hit stand-up special, with the 1960 Grammy-winning album 'The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart' — that doesn’t even count his pay-per-view event broadcast on Canadian television that some cite as the first filmed special — he was a soft-spoken accountant who had never done a set in a nightclub. That he made a classic with so little preparation is one of the great miracles in the history of comedy.... Bob Newhart holds up. In fact, it’s hard to think of a stand-up from that era who is a better argument against the commonplace idea that comedy does not age well.”

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The Commentariat -- November 8, 2020

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Colin Campbell of Yahoo! News: "Former President George W. Bush issued a rare public statement on Sunday, congratulating President-elect Joe Biden on his victory and also giving a nod to President Trump's unsuccessful reelection bid. 'I just talked to the president-elect of the United States, Joe Biden. I extended my warm congratulations and thanked him for the patriotic message he delivered last night,' Bush said. 'I also called Kamala Harris to congratulate her on her historic election to the vice presidency,' Bush said of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.... But Trump has yet to acknowledge Biden's victory, as major party candidates have done throughout modern political history when it was clear they had lost. The incumbent president has alternated between silence and tweets promoting conspiracies falsely asserting that the election was rigged. 'No matter how you voted, your vote counted,' Bush said. 'The American people can have confidence that this election was fundamentally fair, its integrity will be upheld, and its outcome is clear.' The 43rd president added: 'I want to congratulate President Trump and his supporters on a hard-fought campaign. He earned the votes of more than 70 million Americans — an extraordinary political achievement. They have spoken, and their voices will continue to be heard through elected Republicans at every level of government.'"

How Joe Won. Alexander Burns, et al., of the New York Times: "Mr. Biden campaigned as a sober and conventional presence, rather than as an uplifting herald of change. For much of the general election, his candidacy was not an exercise in vigorous creativity, but rather a case study in discipline and restraint.... If Mr. Biden made numerous errors along the way, none of them mattered more in this election than the essential rightness of how he judged the character of his party, his country and his opponent. This account of his candidacy, based on interviews with four dozen advisers, supporters, elected officials and friends, reveals how fully Mr. Biden's campaign flowed from his own worldview and political intuition. During the primaries, Mr. Biden rebuffed pressure to move to the left, believing his party would embrace his pragmatism as its best chance to beat Mr. Trump. In the general election, Mr. Biden made Mr. Trump's erratic conduct and mismanagement of the coronavirus pandemic his overwhelming themes, shunning countless other issues as needless distractions."

Kyle Cheney & Andrew Desiderio of Politico: "In the end, 'the biggest political scandal in the history of our country' and 'the second biggest political scandal in our history' turned out to be neither.... Trump pushed two factually challenged narratives about Biden in the waning weeks of the campaign. In one, Biden was a mastermind of an effort to spy on Trump's 2016 campaign, collaborating with top intelligence officials to derail Trump's incoming administration. In the other, Biden was the secret beneficiary of multi-million-dollar business deals with shady foreign interests carried out by Hunter Biden. But both stories were riddled with falsehoods, exaggerations and assumptions, often pushed by unreliable narrators who revealed no evidence of wrongdoing by Biden.... And the months-long investigations by his Republican allies in the Senate failed to gain traction outside of the Trumpworld echo chamber as Trump hurtled toward an Election Day defeat. Now, Trump is facing his own mounting scandals that are likely to dog him post-presidency."

Ezra Klein of Vox: "Joe Biden has won the presidency. But the current president of the United States, Donald Trump, is attempting a coup in plain sight. 'I WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT!' he tweeted on Saturday morning. This came after he demanded that states cease counting votes when the total began to turn against him, after his press secretary shocked Fox News anchors by arguing that legally cast votes should be thrown out.... One of his legal advisers said, 'We're waiting for the United States Supreme Court -- of which the President has nominated three justices — to step in and do something. And hopefully Amy Coney Barrett will come through.'... That this coup probably will not work -- that it is being carried out farcically, erratically, ineffectively -- does not mean it is not happening, or that it will not have consequences. Millions will believe Trump, will see the election as stolen.... We are not seeing, in any way..., a wholesale rejection on the right of Trump's effort to delegitimize the election."

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Sunday are here: "The United States reported its 10 millionth coronavirus case on Sunday, with the latest million added in just 10 days, as most of the country struggled to contain outbreaks in the third and most widespread wave of infection since the pandemic began."

AP: "The U.S. has set another record for daily number of coronavirus cases. The country reported more than 126,000 positive cases and more than 1,000 deaths from COVID-19 on Saturday, according to the most recent data from Johns Hopkins University. It marked the fourth day in a row that new cases topped more than 100,000 as the country has broken its own record for daily cases with nearly every passing day this week."

~~~~~~~~~~

JOE BIDEN IS PRESIDENT-ELECT

Will Weissert of the AP: “Joe Biden used his first national address as president-elect to vow to heal a deeply divided nation, declaring it was time to 'let this grim era of demonization in America begin to end' and reaching out to the millions of people who voted against him to say, 'Let's give each other a chance.' His calls for reconciliation at a Saturday evening victory celebration came even as ... Donald Trump continued to argue that the election had been stolen from him, an indication that the divisive politics that have gripped the U.S. over the past four years are far from over."

Matt Viser, et al., of the Washington Post: "President-elect Joe Biden is planning to quickly sign a series of executive orders after being sworn into office on Jan. 20, immediately forecasting that the country's politics have shifted and that his presidency will be guided by radically different priorities. He will rejoin the Paris climate accords..., and he will reverse President Trump's withdrawal from the World Health Organization. He will repeal the ban on immigration from many Muslim-majority countries, and he will reinstate the program allowing 'dreamers,' who were brought to the United States illegally as children, to remain in the country.... Although transitions of power can always include abrupt changes, the shift from Trump to Biden -- from one president who sought to undermine established norms and institutions to another who has vowed to restore the established order -- will be among the most startling in American history. Biden's top advisers have spent months quietly working on how best to implement his agenda, with hundreds of transition officials preparing to get to work inside various federal agencies. They have assembled a book filled with his campaign commitments to help guide their early decisions."

~~~ AND the U.S. will soon have it's first female Vice President, the first Vice President of color, the first Black woman, the first Indian-American woman.

Benjamin Swasey of NPR: "President-elect Joe Biden said in a statement that 'it's time for America to unite,' after he was declared the winner of the presidency by The Associated Press. Biden will address the nation Saturday at 8 p.m. ET and will be joined by the vice president-elect, Kamala Harris, and their spouses." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

Nevada. Camila Domonoske of NPR: "The Associated Press has called Nevada for President-elect Joe Biden, bringing his bringing his electoral vote total to 290." (Also linked yesterday.)

Jonathan Martin & Alexander Burns of the New York Times: "Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was elected the 46th president of the United States on Saturday, promising to restore political normalcy and a spirit of national unity to confront raging health and economic crises, and making Donald J. Trump a one-term president after four years of tumult in the White House. Mr. Biden's victory amounted to a repudiation of Mr. Trump by millions of voters exhausted with his divisive conduct and chaotic administration, and was delivered by an unlikely alliance of women, people of color, old and young voters and a sliver of disaffected Republicans. Mr. Trump is the first incumbent to lose re-election in more than a quarter-century. The result also provided a history-making moment for Mr. Biden's running mate, Senator Kamala Harris of California, who will become the first woman to serve as vice president.... He offered a mainstream Democratic agenda, yet it was less his policy platform than his biography to which many voters gravitated. Seeking the nation's highest office a half-century after his first campaign, Mr. Biden -- a candidate in the late autumn of his career -- presented his life of setback and recovery to voters as a parable for a wounded country." (Also linked yesterday.)

~~~ Lisa Lerer & Sydney Ember of the New York Times: "With her ascension to the vice presidency, [Kamala] Harris will become the first woman and first woman of color to hold that office, a milestone for a nation in upheaval, grappling with a damaging history of racial injustice exposed, yet again, in a divisive election. Ms. Harris, 56, embodies the future of a country that is growing more racially diverse, even if the person voters picked for the top of the ticket is a 77-year-old white man. That she has risen higher in the country's leadership than any woman ever has underscores the extraordinary arc of her political career. A former San Francisco district attorney, she was elected as the first Black woman to serve as California's attorney general. When she was elected a United States senator in 2016, she became only the second Black woman in the chamber's history."

Amy Wang, et al., of the Washington Post: "Almost as soon as television networks called the presidential race Saturday morning for former vice president Joe Biden, his supporters began flocking to the streets. The celebrations that ensued -- unbridled jubilation, dancing, singing and chanting -- represented a release of emotions after an excruciating four-day wait for the election results, but also of a release of four years of pent-up frustration and anger at President Trump, some said. The widespread sound of cheering, honking, pot-banging and more erupted in New York City, Philadelphia, Washington, Minneapolis and other largely Democratic cities Trump has disparaged. Some rejoiced at the imminent departure of Trump from the White House, while others touted the historic ascendancy of Biden's running mate, Kamala D. Harris, who will become the nation's first Black and first Asian American woman vice president. 'No more years! No more years!' a crowd of hundreds chanted in Philadelphia." ~~~

~~~ MEANWHILE. From the New York Times' election updates Saturday: "As some supporters of President Trump rejected the outcome of the election during events across the country on Saturday, a series of demonstrations at state capitol buildings devolved into violence that included punches and pepper spray.... [In Sacramento, Calif. & Salem, Ore.,] some of the people involved appeared to be wearing apparel of the Proud Boys, a far-right group notorious for engaging in violence."

Joe McDonald of the AP: “World leaders on Sunday cheered Joe Biden's election as U.S. president as a chance to enhance cooperation on climate change, the coronavirus and other problems after four years of ... Donald Trump's rejection of international alliances. Trump had yet to concede defeat, but Western and Asian allies expressed hoped for a fresh start following Trump's 'American First' trade policies, withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement and attacks on NATO and the World Health Organization. In Asia, a region on edge about the strategic ambitions of China's ruling Communist Party, the elected leaders of Japan, South Korea and Taiwan invoked 'shared values' with Washington and expressed hope for close relations."

Catherine Thorbecke of ABC News: "Around the globe, world leaders on Saturday reacted to news from the U.S. that Former Vice President Joe Biden is the apparent winner of the presidency. Many allies tweeted their congratulations and well-wishes to Biden and his running mate Sen. Kamala Harris, who is set to become the U.S.' first female vice president and woman of color in the White House. Leaders also expressed excitement about collaborating with the new administration soon. Here is a roundup of how the rest of the world is responding to the U.S. presidential election." ~~~

~~~ Zamira Rahim & Martin Goillandeau of CNN: "A stream of world leaders have congratulated President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris Saturday on their victory in the 2020 US presidential election, with many striking a jubilant tone on social media....In France Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo also reacted on Twitter, declaring 'Welcome back America!' London mayor Sadiq Khan said Biden and Harris' win meant it was 'time to get back to building bridges, not walls.'... The sense of Biden's election strengthening the US global role was also echoed in other European statements. Norbert Röttgen, Chairman of the German Foreign Affairs Committee, said he was 'very happy for all my American friends and for this great chance to revive our transatlantic friendship,' while Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Germany wanted 'to invest in our cooperation for a new transatlantic beginning, a new deal.'... In Colombia, mayor of Bogota Claudia Lopez had a particularly exuberant reaction on Twitter. 'How proud that a woman, Afro, Indian, Jamaican, great professional and extraordinary leader, became the Vice Presidency of the United States for the first time!' Lopez wrote. 'With every woman who wins, we all win!'" ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Interesting that so many leaders around the globe know enough to completely ignore & dismiss Trump's protestations that "I WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT!"

Jonathan Lemire & Zeke Miller of the AP: "Democrat Joe Biden defeated ... Donald Trump to become the 46th president of the United States on Saturday, positioning himself to lead a nation gripped by the historic pandemic and a confluence of economic and social turmoil." (Also linked yesterday.)

The Washington Post's live election updates Saturday are here: "The state of Biden's birth, where he was affectionately deemed an honorary third senator over his decades representing neighboring Delaware, is now projected to deliver him the presidency according to Edison Research. Pennsylvania's 20 electoral votes will put Biden over the 270 votes needed even with a handful of other states still too close to call." (Also linked yesterday.)

The Wall Street Journal & Fox "News" have also projected Biden to win Pennsylvania, putting him over 270 Electoral College votes.

CNN: "Joe Biden will become the 46th president of the United States, CNN projects, after a victory in the state where he was born put him over the 270 electoral votes needed to win. With Pennsylvania's 20 electoral votes, Biden now has a total of 273 electoral votes." According to the NYT, CNN was first to call the race for Biden. (Also linked yesterday.)

Pennsylvania. A small dump (about 2,800 ballots) from Philadelphia increases Biden's lead in the state to 30,908. Apparently on the basis of this small report, NBC News has called Pennsylvania for Biden. (Also linked yesterday.) As of Sunday morning, Biden is ahead by about 37,000 votes.

Georgia. As of Sunday morning, Biden is ahead by more than 10,000 votes. Even though there will likely be a recount, some networks soon may call Georgia for Biden.

Arizona. A Saturday morning ballot dump from Maricopa County has reduced Biden's lead to 20,573 votes. This is supposed to be Maricopa's last report of a significant number of ballots. The percentage of Trump's lead does not seem to be enough for him to overtake Biden. ~~~

Cindy Yurth of the Navajo Times: "For only the second time in the last 70 years, Arizona voters went for the Democratic candidate for president, and Navajo voters contributed to the swing. Apache, Navajo and Coconino counties, the three that overlap the Navajo Nation, went solidly for Joe Biden, with 73,954 votes compared to just 2,010 for ... Donald Trump -- a 97 percent turnout for Biden compared to 51 percent statewide. (Note: all the votes are not yet counted and all results listed are unofficial.) Most experts, however, were attributing the swing to a large increase in the number of young Latinx voters in the southern part of the state. Overall voter turnout in the state was actually down by nearly nine percentage points, which could reflect some disillusioned Republicans shying away from voting for Trump but not wanting to vote for Biden either." --s

America had a close call. -- Historian Michael Beschloss, on MSNBC, Saturday night ~~~

~~~ Julie Pace of the AP: "Biden carried some of the key battleground states, including Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, by narrow margins. He won more votes nationwide than any presidential candidate -- more than 74 million and counting -- but Trump's popular vote total also topped previous records, reflecting the president's hold not only on his core supporters but the Republican Party at large. With victory in hand, Biden has claimed a mandate. Whether he actually has one will soon be put to the test. Not only were Biden's margins of victory in the battleground states tight, but Democrats struggled in Senate races across the country. Their hopes of flipping the chamber and giving Biden the leverage he would need to pass major legislation will likely rest on a pair of Senate runoffs in Georgia in January. The 2020 campaign also made abundantly clear the depths of Trump's support, particularly among white, rural Americans."

David Brand of the Queens Daily Eagle: "A 74-year-old Jamaica Estates developer has less than three months left at his current address after Americans overwhelmingly voted him out of the White House, the AP projected Saturday."

Sour Grapes Discovered on Golf Course. Maggie Haberman & Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Trump's motorcade was just pulling into the Trump National Golf Club in suburban Virginia on Saturday morning when news organizations ended days of waiting and declared that he had lost the presidency to Joseph R. Biden Jr. Aides called Mr. Trump to let him know that their predictions over the past several days had come true: Every major news outlet had projected Mr. Biden to be the winner. But the president -- who an hour earlier had said on Twitter that 'I WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT!' -- was not surprised, they said. And he did not change his plans to go ahead with legal challenges to the election results that several of his own advisers warned him were long shots at best, or to play golf. The aides said Mr. Trump had no plans to immediately deliver the kind of concession speech that has become traditional in past presidential elections, and his campaign vowed to continue waging the legal battle across the country. In a statement issued while he was still on the golf course, Mr. Trump said Mr. Biden was trying to 'falsely pose' as the winner. 'The simple fact is this election is far from over,' the president said, 'Beginning Monday, our campaign will start prosecuting our case in court to ensure election laws are fully upheld and the rightful winner is seated.'" ~~~

~~~ The Biggest Loser. Ashley Parker & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "On Saturday, Donald Trump finally became the one thing he hates the most: a loser. President Trump had just arrived at his namesake golf course in Sterling, Va., on Saturday morning -- whizzing past signs blaring 'Biden/Harris' and 'Good Riddance' -- when Democratic nominee Joe Biden pulled so far ahead in the Pennsylvania vote count that, four days after Election Day, he was finally declared the next president of the United States. That Trump was pummeling drives off a tee box as Biden made the transition from former vice president to president-elect was a fitting coda for a leader who craved the perks and power of the office but often seemed reluctant to do the job." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Much of the story is about what Trump's aides are doing to make him feel better: bringing lawsuits (some at our expense, I suspect) & arranging protests against Biden & sundry malevolent public servants. Like doting grandparents trying to soothe a screaming toddler.

~~~ Philip Bump of the Washington Post: "The man who said he wouldn't play golf as president learned that he would no longer serve as president while he was playing golf. An almost Shakespearean coda.... Trump has visited a Trump Organization property on about 2 out of every 7 days he's been president.... By The Washington Post's count, he's likely played [golf] on at least 247 occasions...."

Jill Colvin, et al., of the AP: "... Donald Trump never admits defeat. But he faces a stark choice now that Democrat Joe Biden has won the White House: Concede graciously for the sake of the nation or don't -- and get evicted anyway.... Trump is not expected to ever formally concede, according to people close to him, but is likely to grudgingly vacate the White House at the end of his term. His ongoing efforts to paint the election as unfair are seen both as an effort to soothe a bruised ego and to show his loyal base of supporters that he is still fighting.... That the peaceful transfer of power was even in doubt reflected the norm-shattering habits of the now-lame duck president, who even in victory never admitted that he had lost the popular vote in 2016."

Hannah Knowles, et al., of the Washington Post: "Activists and supporters of President Trump insisted Saturday that the presidential election was not finished, displaying defiance after Joe Biden secured victory in the closely fought race. From [Phoenix] ... to Philadelphia, Trump backers echoed the president's attacks on the integrity of the election, which continued Saturday with his statement that 'this election is far from over.' They made baseless allegations of voter fraud and pledged to keep fighting in court while claiming Biden did not legitimately win.... They gathered at so-called 'Stop the Steal' rallies at state capitols across the country to claim, without evidence, that ballot counts favorable to Biden stem from a sprawling, multistate conspiracy to hijack the vote through fraud."

Michael Shear of the New York Times: "Twitter flagged all of President Trump's early-morning tweets on Saturday as disputed and potentially misleading after he made baseless claims about election irregularities. In a series of posts, Mr. Trump focused his ire on Pennsylvania...." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Shear doesn't reveal what-all Trump tweeted, so I checked. Here's a good one: "I WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT!" Yeah, "potentially misleading."

Jim Rutenberg, et al., of the New York Times: "President Trump's bellicose pledge to fight the outcome of the election in the courts crashed on Friday into skeptical judges, daunting Electoral College math and a lack of evidence for his claims of fraud. On a day that began with vote tallies in Georgia and Pennsylvania tipping in Joseph R. Biden Jr.'s favor, Mr. Trump's campaign declared, 'This election is not over,' as the Republican National Committee announced it had activated 'legal challenge teams' in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania. And the Trump forces named a new general to lead the effort, the hardened conservative political combatant David Bossie. But none of the dozen or so lawsuits they had brought in battleground states appeared to be gaining any traction in the courts. And in any case, none seemed likely to give Mr. Trump the edge he would need in vote counts in the states that will determine the outcome." (Also linked yesterday.)

Ashley Parker of the Washington Post: "Trump was the most unpopular president of modern times: Divisive and alienating, he rarely sought to reach out to the middle and his erratic behavior and harder-edged policies were strongly opposed by most Americans. Even before this year, his reelection would have been difficult. But the president finally lost, aides and allies said, because of how he mismanaged the virus. He lost, they said, over the summer, when the virus didn't go away as he promised; when racial unrest roiled the nation in the wake of George Floyd's death and protesters ran rampant through the streets; and when federal and local authorities gassed largely peaceful demonstrators in Lafayette Square across from the White House so Trump could stage a photo op. And he lost, they said, during a roughly three-week stretch from late September to mid-October, when an angry and brooding Trump heckled and interrupted his way through the first debate and then, several days later, announced he had tested positive for the coronavirus. He also lost, aides added, after years of confrontational and incendiary conduct turned off independent voters, who finally said they had seen enough. The same impulses that helped lift him to victory in 2016 -- the outsider ethos; the angry, burn-it-all-down cri de coeur; the fiery and controversial rants; the false reality forged through untruths and deception -- contributed to his undoing just four years later." ~~~

~~~ Natasha Korecki, et al., of Politico: "This account of the 2020 presidential campaign is based on conversations with more than 75 people in and around both campaigns. It is the story of two candidates with completely divergent views on how the nation would respond to a deadly virus outbreak -- and acted accordingly, setting up a stark choice for voters. Among the findings: Communication between the Trump campaign and Republican National Committee broke down for much of the final stretch, and the two sides clashed over strategy. The RNC thought Trump's ads were of such low quality that it created its own commercials.... Senior campaign and GOP officials vented that Trump's finance team, led by former Fox TV host and Donald Trump Jr. girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle, underperformed and was an HR nightmare. Trump couldn't compete with Biden's small-dollar fundraising machine, and some donors were horrified by what they described as Guilfoyle's lack of professionalism: She frequently joked about her sex life and, at one fundraiser, offered a lap dance to the donor who gave the most money.... Trump's campaign was dictated by the whims of the candidate -- in other words, by instinct and impulse. Like the president's four years in the White House, there was constant disarray and no consistent strategy." ~~~

~~~ BUT no prior incident in the Trump campaign matched its last hurrah: ~~~

~~~ ** The Perfect Finale to the Trump Campaign. Jose Martinez of Complex Media: "As he continued to be in a state of denial about the impending results of the 2020 presidential election, Donald Trump teased a 'big' press conference at the Four Seasons in Philadelphia on Twitter Saturday morning.... Turns out, Trump's lawyers were going to be speaking at Four Seasons Total Landscaping, a business located in the outskirts of Philadelphia, and nestled nicely between an adult bookstore and a cremation center." As nearly as anyone could guess, the campaign had thought they were booking Philadelphia's Four Seasons Hotel but booked the landscaping firm's parking lot instead. So Rudy Giuliani stood next to a garden hose to declare Donald Trump would not concede. Mrs. McC: Just to be clear, I'm not making this up. There are photos.

Jason Hanna, et al., of CNN: "Two armed Virginia men who were arrested Thursday outside the Philadelphia Convention Center were 'coming to deliver a truck full of fake ballots' to the city, CNN affiliate KYW reported, citing prosecutors." Mrs. McC: See, those armed men weren't dangerous shoot-'em-up cowboys as we assumed; they were just patriotic Americans delivering fake votes for Donald Trump. (Also linked yesterday.)

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Saturday are here: "President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. plans to announce a Covid-19 task force as early as Monday, a source familiar with the plans of the Biden transition team said Saturday. Mr. Biden, who made President Trump's mishandling of the pandemic a centerpiece of his campaign, is expected to name three co-chairs of the 12-member panel: Vivek Murthy, a former surgeon general; David Kessler, the former commissioner of the F.D.A.; and Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, a Yale University professor. The announcement of the task force is part of a weeklong focus that Mr. Biden intends to place on health care and the pandemic as he begins the process of building his administration, a person close to the transition said."

Denmark. Matt Miller of Slate: "Officials in Denmark announced Wednesday that they would be euthanizing every last mink in the country's fur farms, some 17 million animals. The news came after a discovery by Danish scientists that SARS-CoV-2, the official name for the virus that causes COVID-19, had mutated in captive minks, producing a strain of the coronavirus that is not readily stopped by antibodies to the dominant strain of the virus. More troublingly, this new strain is still transmissible from minks to humans, raising dire concerns about the efficacy of vaccines currently in development worldwide." --s

News Lede

AP: "Alex Trebek who presided over the beloved quiz show 'Jeopardy!' for more than 30 years with dapper charm and a touch of schoolmaster strictness, died Sunday. He was 80. Trebek, who announced in 2019 that he had advanced pancreatic cancer, died at his Los Angeles home, surrounded by family and friends, 'Jeopardy!' studio Sony said." Update: The New York Times' obituary is here.

Comments Off

Reader Comments (25)

After four years, I feel like I can finally breathe again.

November 7, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterRockyGirl

Sounds like Biden intends to begin his presidency by being the anti-Pretender, reversing by executive order as much as he can of the damage the Pretender did, kinda like the Pretender styled himself the anti-Obama.

One difference: This time it's OK with me. It's a fine place to start.

November 7, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

Euphoria reigns!

But leave us not forget that had the Orange Menace been just a teensy bit competent, a little less inconsistent, not as childishly impulsive, and surrounded by fewer spineless sycophants and sniveling grifters, this election might have had a much different ending.

We’ve mentioned it before, but it bears repeating that a much improved (ie, not as demented) Trump v.2.0 is out there somewhere, and more gun packing thugs are ready and eager to deliver truckloads of fake ballots to help him. Democrats need to get their act together, and quickly, to regain those lost House seats and control the Senate.

In the meantime though, let’s enjoy this incredible moment. We were about to go under for the third time when the USS Biden-Harris picked us out of the brine, sat us in front of a warm fire and served us chocolate cake and champagne.

As for Fatty and his grifting, gristle-brained crime family, and all those self-serving, chiseling cabinet jamokes, (bye-bye, Barr; tata, DeVos...) Schadenfreude Supreme is the Blue Plate Special for the next couple of months. Time for all of you losers to write your books, to be published by Regnery, or some other fly by night winger “publisher”. Half Price Books, here they come!

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Soooo...it all ends for the thousand year reich in front of a place that sells fertilizer, with dildos on one side and burning bodies on the other.

Wow. Too much winning.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Given the way that COVID has been allowed to run rampant through the White House (lookin’ at you Mark Meadows), Biden should wait 14 days before moving in to allow for a thorough fumigation of the premises.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterRockyGirl

From above: "Biden’s top advisers have spent months quietly working on how best to implement his agenda, with hundreds of transition officials preparing to get to work inside various federal agencies.”

trump and company were surprised to learn they had to fill White House staff positions, that Obama's crew wasn't staying on.

I love competence.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterNiskyGuy

My mister and the whole of my family was ecstatic yesterday–-the Germans zoomed us with champagne (in the good glasses) in hand and even when I watched all those people shouting, singing, and dancing in the streets I somehow felt numb. I think I've been so angry, so frustrated, so deeply worried for so long that this win is a shock to the system. But this morning, awakening to a new dawn, I feel fresh, invigorated, and new born–––it's as though a great burden has been lifted ––I can breathe again!


EPITAPH on a TYRANT

Perfection, of a kind, was what he was after,
And the poetry he invented was easy to understand;
He knew human folly like the back of his hand,
And was greatly interested in armies and fleets;
When he laughed, respectable senators burst with laughter, And when he cried the little children died in the streets. (W.H. Auden)

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterPD Pepe

Rockygirl,

Good idea. I’m afraid it will take much longer than two weeks to eradicate the stench of greed, stupidity, narcissism, and treason from the People’s House.

Plus, giant molecules of the Orange Plague have no doubt embedded themselves into every porous surface in the place. Like those scientists who recovered samples of the 1918 Influenza virus in a corpse buried in permafrost near the Arctic Circle, workers pulling up carpets in the residence at the White House 75 years from now, may be stricken with Covid-19.

By then, the descendants of right wing media will still be attempting to resuscitate the reputation of their Dear Leader, portraying him as a “misunderestimated” genius.

Trump’s descendants, of course, will still be on the grift, albeit in a much reduced state. I see Donald Trump IV on 7th Ave. trying to sell Feiko watches, while a few blocks away, his cousin, Jared Kushner III will be trying to fleece tourists with his three card monte scam.

Never an honest day’s work for a single member of that filthy clan over a hundred years.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

I hope there's someone in the White House in charge of making sure all the furnishings remain for the new tenants.
Double check the silver and china. The evictees are the type who would steal anything not nailed down.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterForrest Morris

@AK: I see the whole filthy clan leave the America they made a mess of and hot foot it over to one of those "shit=hole countries", the only ones that will take them–-maybe––cuz they be ripe for that building with high walls and tight security. OR if Bibi is still willing to be their buddy, let them in HIS house of cards.

Years ago I envisioned a couple traveling along a deserted road in Florida and spotting an oversized, bent over, orange colored man walking with a limp holding a sign that says "I'm gonna build a wall and Mexico is gonna pay for it," stop and ask the man if he needs help. When they realize who he is, they say, "Sorry, Bud, thought you were worthy–-never mind." Man continues his endless journey towards nowhere.

THE END IS NEAR.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterPD Pepe

Good lovely morning-- the birds are winging and singing still, the colored leaves are mostly still on the trees, and the relief is in waves all around us. Yes, we know thousands of people are still deranged and dangerous, and governing will be nigh on impossible until Mitch hotfoots it to the pearly gates, but for now, it's so good! Imagine not having to worry that the president has withdrawn us further from the world or spout lies from morning 'til night, and the odious family has been removed from our televisions... Well, that last is wishful thinking, and we still have supporters and cabinet officials and others perfectly willing to lie for him as a life occupation, but we are for now thinking positively. Yesterday was so fun, with teevee celebrations and actual people on porch and patio (masked and distanced)and visions of a "new world order" dancing in our heads. Reality today: our good neighbors' daughter had contact with a positive tested friend, so they are quarantining. It goes on, just with a better flavor in the whispy edges.. Thanks to all RCers and especially Marie for all the work and commentary. Enjoy at least one day of "normalcy!!"

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterJeanne

PD,

Fatty and Melanie and the stinky little Trumpy droppings can’t go to Europe. They allowed the Trump virus to spread unchecked and now Europe has closed its doors to all American travel. Oh, but wait...they’re not Americans, are they? Noooo...they’re Trumps.

Well, that settles it. No country will take these plague spreading losers.

It’s off to some flea-bitten golf course then, with fake magazine covers of a fake president* decorating the decrepit walls.

Wherever they go, good riddance. May their road always be crooked and potholed, may the wind always be in their faces, and may the devil be ready to grab their sin-riddled carcasses five minutes before they’re dead.

(Hey! Just realized. We won’t have to add an asterisk after the word President anymore! Yay!)

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

New York has a new parody of their signature song––this is good!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VTp-UFxEHA

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterPD Pepe

AK - Letitia James may have her own ideas about where Trump and fam end up. And it ain’t in a swanky golf club.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterRockygirl

Hey, what about the magic vaccine that was gonna get here at any minute, delivered by the armed forces commanded by “Trump’s generals”? Meh. Fuggedaboutit. He lost? Fuck it. Let ‘em die.

How long now before Fatty starts attacking Biden for all the deaths in red states. “He’s letting you die! He hates you! He knew I would have saved you all! Fauci, Harris, they’re all against you!”

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Rockygirl,

Can Melanie get an orange jumpsuit with “I really don’t care, do you?” on the back? So much more couture than DOC.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

@PD: Super catchy updated version of "New York, New York".

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterMAG

Via NPR: RIP Alex Trebek.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterNiskyGuy

Adam Serwer in The Atlantic: "The Crisis of American Democracy Is Not Over" Short piece.

"If Biden truly wishes to follow in FDR’s footsteps, if he seeks to restore faith in democracy, then he will have to be bolder than the Obama administration. If his ambitions begin and end with the restoration of the status quo ante, then he will leave the nation vulnerable to the next racist demagogue who comes along, who may not be as clownish, or as incompetent. American democracy must now prove itself worth saving. It will be an arduous task."

https://bit.ly/2GGLaxV

I couldn't help but wonder if the next Giuliani presser would be held at the massage parlor where Robert Kraft was busted. The landscape Co. is selling merchandise now. I'm anxious to see if their next door neighbor, Fantasy Island, will be marketing mushroom shaped dildos.

In regard to the latest WH COVID outbreak. Color me suspicious, but quarantine could easily be seen as a tactic to avoid commenting on Trump's pathetic behavior and lunatic tweets.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAnonymous

Thanks for Bea and everyone for keeping the embers going. We have to watch every single thing Orange poo on the shoe and his gang do in the next 2 months. Cheers!

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered Commentercitizen625

A note of class: When Biden dropped the mic yesterday, his crew playes Jackie Wilson: "Your Love Keeps L:iftin Me Higher"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9InUciFrVmM

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterPatrick

A little play in the yard visit from the grand daughters yesterday found a very happy 10-year-old (who cried bitter tears 4 years ago over Hilary's loss and the unfairness of the electoral college) who now can recite the number of electoral votes Kamala's state contributed to the win and exudes shear joy of having a woman win. Both girls took great delight in informing me that our country has a lame duck and his name is Donald.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterLinda in Denver

@Linda in Denver: What precocious granddaughters you have! I myself couldn't tell you how many Electoral College votes California has. (I made a guess, and I was off by 10.) Yes, Donald is quacked.

I had an old duck coop down by the lake on one of my properties. Since you can't build near the water, I had the coop substantially refurbished, so that it's now a cute lake-front pavilion. On the front, I put up a sign designating it "Duckingham Palace." If the Lame Duck in Chief drops by, I won't let him in.

November 8, 2020 | Registered CommenterMarie Burns

One word: Georgia!

Just waiting to see what sort of election shenanigans, vote suppression, and count rigging the Elderly Mutant Treason Turtle gets up to to make sure he can continue to ratfuck America.

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

@Linda in Denver: What a lovely story! To complement your granddaughter's bitter tears of 4 years ago, my 55-year-old daughter texted me that she cried tears of joy on hearing the election called for Biden. Her daughter and the younger of her two sons also voted Biden, but Trump still took Florida. So of course she was thrilled when we swing states swung to Biden this time around.
I love your granddaughters's clever epithet: "Lame Duck Donald." Not only do I plan to steal it, but I'm going to pass it around to friends and family -- with attribution, of course!

November 8, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterRose in MI
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