National

Senate confirms Amy Coney Barrett to Supreme Court

(The Center Square) – The U.S. Senate confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to be an associate justice on the nation’s highest court Monday. Barrett fills the vacancy of the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in September at the age of 87 from complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer. The Senate approved Barrett in a 52-48 vote Monday evening after a full day of final arguments in the upper chamber. Barrett, who was a Notre Dame University law professor before becoming a judge for the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2017, gives Republicans a 6-3 majority on the Supreme Court. She also…

Accusations and arguments fly at final debate between Trump and Biden

Just 12 days before election day and with millions of people having already voted, Trump squared off against Democratic challenger Joe Biden in the final presidential debate at Belmont University. According to Real Clear Politics’ polling average, Biden led Trump by 7.9 points nationally and by 4.6 points in the swing states. The FiveThirtyEight election forecast gave Biden an 87 percent chance of winning heading into the debate. Analysts have been quick to point out that Democrat Hillary Clinton also was ahead in the polls at this point in 2016, though not by Biden’s decisive margin. And, unlike 2016, there…

COVID, Hunter Biden Likely to Light Up Last Debate

The coronavirus may finally fulfill the most enduring cliché of modern politics now that the coming presidential election is widely considered the “most important ever.” But it took 220,000 dead Americans. Donald Trump and Joe Biden will soon meet for a final debate on Thursday in Tennessee to discuss that pandemic and to argue over who is better suited to lead the country through that crisis and for the next four years. The moderator will have a mute button. This is unusual, as the Commission on Presidential Debates is not in the business of silencing speech. But the chaos of…

Feds foil militia plot to kidnap Michigan’s governor

(The Center Square) – The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Michigan State Police, and other law enforcement officials say they foiled a plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. A months-long investigation led to arrests and charges of several people from across Michigan this week. Thirteen individuals are accused of a litany of separate state and federal charges. Nessel filed 19 state felony charges against seven individuals known to be members or associated of the militia group, Wolverine Watchmen. Paul Bellar, 21, of Milford:Shawn Fix, 38, of BellevilleEric Molitor, 36, of Cadillac:Michael Null, 38, of Plainwell:William Null, 38, of ShelbyvillePete Musico, 42,…

56% of Americans expect election to result in violence

Today Braver Angels, a nonprofit dedicated to political depolarization, released a public letter, "What We Will Do to Hold America Together," that calls on Americans to reject violence and work to hold the country together in the event of an election crisis. Braver Angels also released a poll with YouGov concerning Americans' attitudes about the election. The poll found that nearly half -- 47% -- disagree with the idea that the election "is likely to be fair and honest" and that slightly more than half -- 51% -- won't "generally agree on who is the legitimately elected president of the United States." The…

Trump tests positive for COVID-19

(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump say they’ve tested positive for COVID-19. News broke late Wednesday that Hope Hicks, one of Trump’s senior advisors, had tested positive for COVID-19. Trump tweeted at 10:44 p.m Eastern Standard Time that he and Melania had learned of Hicks’ positive test and had begun a 14-day quarantine. “Hope Hicks, who has been working so hard without even taking a small break, has just tested positive for Covid 19. Terrible! The First Lady and I are waiting for our test results. In the meantime, we will begin our quarantine…

Interruptions and Insults: A look at the first debate between Trump and Biden

(The Center Square) – An argumentative and contentious first presidential debate Tuesday night was filled with interruptions, personal insults and frequent requests by moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News for the candidates to adhere to the rules their campaigns agreed to abide by. President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden squared off against each other over 90 minutes at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, often talking over each other and ignoring time limits for their responses and counterpoints. At one point, Trump said “there is nothing smart about you” to Biden, followed by Biden later calling Trump…

No Surprise: Democrats and Republicans split on Trump’s Supreme Court nominee

Georgia Republicans and Democrats went to their respective corners after President Donald Trump nominated conservative appellate judge Amy Coney Barrett to succeed the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Supreme Court. The Peach State’s two Republican senators are all-in on the nomination and pushing for Senate confirmation of Barrett before the Nov. 3 election. “With her background as a former clerk to the late Justice [Antonin] Scalia and an originalist, Judge Barrett will protect individual liberties including the right to life, the Second Amendment and religious liberties by ensuring the Constitution and our laws are applied as written,”…

How to watch the first Presidential Debate of 2020

President Donald Trump and Vice-President Joe Biden are set to face off in the first presidential debate of 2020 Tuesday night. Here's everything you need to know to watch it. When: The debate is at 9 p.m. Tuesday. Where is it being held?: The debate will be coming to you live from Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio. How to watch it: It would actually be pretty difficult not to watch the debate. Every broadcast network will be airing it, as well as the major cable news networks like Fox, CNN, and MSNBC. The debate will…

Trump announces Supreme Court pick

Amy Coney Barrett was introduced Saturday as President Donald Trump's nominee to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Supreme Court. Barrett, 48, currently serves on the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, a position to which Trump appointed her. “Today it is my honor to nominate one of our nation's most brilliant and gifted legal minds to the Supreme Court," Trump said in introducing his selection. "She is a woman of unparalleled achievement, towering intellect, sterling credentials and unyielding loyalty to the Constitution – Judge Amy Coney Barrett.” If confirmed by the U.S. Senate,…

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg has died

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, the leading progressive on the nation's highest court, died Friday due to complications from pancreatic cancer. She was 87. Ginsberg was appointed by President Bill Clinton to the court in 1983 and quickly became a cult hero among liberals for her outspoken support of their causes. "Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature," Chief Justice John Roberts said in announcing her death. "We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a…

Biden picks Kamala Harris as running mate

(The Center Square) – Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden announced Tuesday that Kamala Harris will be his vice presidential running mate. A U.S. Senator from California and Biden's formal rival during early presidential primaries, Harris becomes the the first Black woman to run on a major political party’s presidential ticket. "I have the great honor to announce that I’ve picked @KamalaHarris – a fearless fighter for the little guy, and one of the country’s finest public servants – as my running mate," Biden tweeted. A former prosecutor and California attorney general, Harris was criticized by Biden and the political…

New York’s Attorney General takes aim at the NRA

(The Center Square) – New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit Thursday that seeks to have the National Rifle Association dissolved, saying the gun rights organization has been engaging in “illegal conduct” by funneling charitable donations to its leaders. James accuses longtime NRA leader Wayne LaPierre and a number of other executives at the nonprofit advocacy organization of diverting “millions of dollars away from the charitable mission of the organization for personal use by senior leadership, awarding contracts to the financial gain of close associates and family, and appearing to dole out lucrative no-show contracts to former employees in order to…

John Roberts joins liberal justices in striking down Louisiana abortion law

(The Center Square) – The U.S. Supreme Court has struck down a Louisiana law that required doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital. In the 5-4 decision released Monday, conservative Chief Justice John Roberts joined four of his more liberal colleagues in overturning the law. While supporters say the measure protects women’s health, critics said it was designed solely to restrict access to abortion and served no legitimate medical purpose. According to the Supreme Court opinion, Louisiana’s Act 620 is “almost word-for-word identical” to a Texas law the court already has struck down. In that…

Ring Video Doorbell’s ties to police departments under fire

(STATELINE) -- Amid nationwide protests against police abuses against black people, some civil liberties advocates are calling for Amazon to stop its partnerships with law enforcement agencies through its Ring home surveillance cameras. “These camera registries will only serve to exacerbate existing forms of discrimination that are rampant within policing and the criminal justice system,” said Evan Greer, deputy director of Fight for the Future, a civil rights advocacy nonprofit focused on technology. “They speed up and automate police procedures in ways that mean communities that are already overpoliced will be subject to even more law enforcement repression.” Amazon last…