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'It Bothered Me': Michigan House Race Tests Whether Democrats' Meddling In GOP Primaries Will Pay Off Or Backfire | News Channel 3-12 https://digitalalaskanews.com/it-bothered-me-michigan-house-race-tests-whether-democrats-meddling-in-gop-primaries-will-pay-off-or-backfire-news-channel-3-12/ By Eric Bradner, Omar Jimenez and Donald Judd, CNN In the battleground Michigan congressional district that might be the most controversial example of Democrats’ meddling in Republican primaries, Democratic-leaning voters are fretting that the strategy could leave them with an election-denying Republican in Congress. “Politics sucks,” said Erick Davis, 31, who runs a coffee business in Grand Rapids and said he is an independent who typically votes for Democrats. Michigan’s 3rd District is among the congressional contests that will decide which party controls the House in 2023. It could also be the clearest test of whether national Democrats’ decision to pump money into ads in GOP primaries elevating candidates the party views as unelectable — including John Gibbs, an official in Donald Trump‘s administration who has backed the former President’s lies about widespread fraud in the 2020 election, in this district — will backfire. Democrats, whose narrow House majority is on the line, are already facing historic headwinds and economic factors that could tilt competitive races in the GOP’s favor. Freshman Rep. Peter Meijer, one of the 10 House Republicans to vote to impeach Trump in the wake of the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol, was seeking a second term in the Grand Rapids-based district. But Trump, who has spent much of 2022 seeking political retribution against those Republicans, endorsed Gibbs. And the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee — expecting that Gibbs would be easier to defeat in what, after last year’s redistricting process, now looks like a battleground district — spent $450,000 on television advertising labeling him “too conservative.” It might have been the difference: Gibbs defeated Meijer by 3.6 percentage points, less than 4,000 votes. He is now taking on Democrat Hillary Scholten, an attorney, in the general election. “I understand the strategy,” Davis said. “I think Gibbs is a much weaker candidate, and … Pete Meijer is someone that’s in the community, he’s someone that you see around — like, his family has done like a lot for this community. So, like, the strategy is not something I would have spent money on. But like, tactically, I guess I get it.” There is no evidence in the district of backlash against Scholten over her national party’s tactics in the race. But some Democratic-leaning voters’ discomfort with the DCCC’s approach underscores why Meijer was broadly seen as poised to win re-election if he survived the GOP primary. “It bothered me, and I know it bothered others,” said Ruth Kelly, a retired teacher and former Grand Rapids city commissioner. “I just think, you know, Peter Meijer had a lot to offer here. However, I’m still really excited about Hillary.” “They had to make some choices, some very difficult choices, and I disagree with that,” Janice Lanting, a retired teacher from Grand Rapids, said of national Democrats’ involvement in the race. “But I guess I’m not the one to make decisions, and we just want Hillary to do well in the polls.” ‘Risky and unethical’ Michigan’s 3rd District offered a window into a strategy Democratic political groups employed across the map. Democrats also pumped money into similar ads temporarily boosting what would become winning candidates in gubernatorial primaries in Illinois, Maryland and Pennsylvania, as well as House and Senate primaries in New Hampshire. The practice helped elevate a series of election deniers in key races in November’s midterm elections. Democratic officials have defended the practice, arguing that it is the most effective way of defeating GOP candidates. But some in the party have warned that helping Republicans who have attempted to erode Americans’ faith in its election system — particularly at the cost of helping the GOP purge figures such as Meijer, who sided with Democrats on Trump’s impeachment — could have serious consequences. “These destructive primary tactics aim to elevate Republican candidates who Democrats hope they can more easily beat in November,” former Indiana Rep. Tim Roemer wrote in an August letter signed by 35 former Democratic lawmakers criticizing the party’s strategy. “But it is risky and unethical to promote any candidate whose campaign is based on eroding trust in our elections. We must stop this practice, and stop today.” Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, one of two Republicans on the largely Democratic House panel investigating the insurrection, said the DCCC’s actions in Michigan were “terrible.” “All of us, again, across party lines, have got to make sure that we are supporting people who believe fundamentally in our democratic system,” she said. “And so I think that it’s inexplicable and wrong for the Democrats to be funding election deniers, particularly against one of the 10 Republicans who so bravely stood up and did the right thing.” Meijer said on CNN in the days after the election that that Democrats’ tactic in the Michigan 3rd District primary showed that “there is no incentive to try to be a productive member” of Congress while working in Washington, and that “it all will come down to partisan benefit no matter what the consequence.” “Any party that pretends to have a set of principles, any party that pretends to have a set of values and that comes in and boosts exactly the same type of candidate that they claim is … a threat to democracy, don’t expect to be able to hold on to that sense of self-righteousness and sanctimony,” Meijer said. ‘A much better opponent’ In Michigan, Scholten said she does not see Gibbs as necessarily being easier to defeat than Meijer would have been. “At the end of the day, Republicans decided who their standard bearer was going to be in this race, and they chose Mr. Gibbs. The voters came out, and they elected Mr. Gibbs, and national Republicans wanted him too,” she said in an interview with CNN. “You know, they didn’t spend a dime to try to support Peter Meijer or to keep Mr. Gibbs out of this race.” Gibbs, meanwhile, has tapped into a Republican base that remains energized by Trump and the former President’s lies about election fraud. He campaigned in recent days alongside GOP gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon, the former President’s son Donald Trump Jr. and former top Trump White House aide Kellyanne Conway. “My opponent’s name happens to be Hillary. And no matter what, not another Hillary,” Gibbs said recently at an event held by the Muskegon County GOP, to cheers from the crowd. “I’m losing the country I grew up in. It’s crazy to see what’s happening, but we got to take it back,” he said. He called the race a “civilizational fight.” “This is a big deal, we got to let them know that they’re not going to take us down a path of China, North Korea, Iran, whatever it might be, whatever it might be. We are a free country, we have to remain that way,” Gibbs said. On the Democratic side, Scholten believes the stakes are similar. “This election is a referendum on our democratic ideals as a state and as a nation,” she told CNN. “There is nothing easy about this race, let me tell you, this is going to be a fight to the finish.” Gibbs, who worked in Trump’s administration, has wrongly called the results of the 2020 election “mathematically impossible.” He is also under fire after CNN reported that he wrote as a college student in the early 2000s that the United States has “suffered as a result of women’s suffrage.” He’s insisted the writings were satirical. While Democratic voters fretted about the consequences of helping elevate Gibbs in the primary, some Republican voters said they saw him as the better candidate for November’s general election. Vicki Ware, a Republican from Norton Shores, said she believes Gibbs is a stronger candidate than Meijer was. She said Meijer had betrayed the GOP by voting to impeach Trump, and that she wants to see Trump run for president again. “Everyone knew, obviously, that Peter Meijer was a RINO,” Ware said, using an acronym that refers to the phrase “Republican in name only.” “He got into office promising one thing and then completely flipped and so everybody wanted him out, and John Gibbs is the person that beat him and can win.” Diana Blais, a retiree from Muskegon, said Meijer “was not a good fit for Michigan” and that Gibbs is, in her view, “going to be a much better opponent” against Scholten. “I think just because his values line up with what we’re looking to gain back again — that we’ve, you know, been under attack by this administration in a lot of different ways; our freedoms are being taken away, kind of slowly but surely, they have been,” Blais said. “And he’s going to help get us lined back up again.” The-CNN-Wire & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. Read More Here

McConnell, Schumer Back Bill To Prevent Efforts To Subvert Presidential Election Results https://digitalalaskanews.com/mcconnell-schumer-back-bill-to-prevent-efforts-to-subvert-presidential-election-results-2/ Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) have endorsed a bipartisan electoral count reform bill in the Senate, all but cementing its passage and giving the legislation a boost as Congress seeks to prevent future efforts to subvert presidential election results. The endorsements followed House passage of a similar bill last week. Both measures aim to stop future presidents from trying to overturn election results through Congress and were driven by the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a mob of Donald Trump supporters seeking to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s win. The Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, sponsored by Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), would amend the Electoral Count Act of 1887 and reaffirm that the vice president has only a ministerial role at the joint session of Congress to count electoral votes, as well as raise the threshold necessary for members of Congress to object to a state’s electors. Speaking on the Senate floor Tuesday afternoon, McConnell said there was a need to make “modest” updates to the Electoral Count Act. “Congress’s process for counting their presidential electors’ votes was written 135 years ago. The chaos that came to a head on January 6th of last year certainly underscored the need for an update,” McConnell said. “The Electoral Count Act ultimately produced the right conclusion … but it’s clear the country needs a more predictable path.” In a statement, Schumer said, “Make no mistake: as our country continues to face the threat of the anti-democracy MAGA Republican movement — propelled by many GOP leaders who either refused to take a stand or actively stoked the flames of division in our country — reforming the Electoral Count Act ought to be the bare minimum of action the Congress takes.” The Senate Rules Committee, of which Schumer and McConnell are both members, later voted to advance the bill. Schumer voted yes by proxy, while Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) was the lone no vote. Speaking minutes after McConnell had expressed his support for the legislation in committee, Cruz went against his party leader and blasted the bill as “bad policy and … bad for democracy.” “I understand why Democrats are supporting this bill,” Cruz said. “What I don’t understand is why Republicans are.” The bill already enjoyed strong bipartisan support, with 11 Democratic and 11 Republican senators signing on to co-sponsor it before Tuesday. “We are pleased that bipartisan support continues to grow for these sensible and much-needed reforms to the Electoral Count Act of 1887,” Collins and Manchin said in a joint statement last week. “Our bill is backed by election law experts and organizations across the ideological spectrum. We will keep working to increase bipartisan support for our legislation that would correct the flaws in this archaic and ambiguous law.” Later Tuesday evening in the Capitol, Collins passed Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), the ranking member of Rules, in the hallway. She stopped, put her hand on his shoulder and said: “Thank you. Good job. Thank you. Thank you.” After the 2020 election, Trump had falsely told his supporters that Vice President Mike Pence had the power to reject electoral votes already certified by the states. Pence did not do so — and has repeatedly emphasized that the Constitution provides the vice president with no such authority. But on Jan. 6, many in the mob that overran the Capitol began chanting, “Hang Mike Pence!” on the mistaken belief that the vice president could have stopped Congress from certifying Biden’s victory. The House last week passed the similar Presidential Election Reform Act, written by Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), on a 229-203 vote. Cheney and Lofgren argued that the risk of another effort to steal a presidential election remains high, as Trump continues to spread baseless claims of widespread election fraud, and as pro-Trump candidates in state and local elections around the country have embraced those falsehoods. The Senate and House bills differ chiefly in how much they would change the threshold necessary for members of both chambers to object to a state’s results. Currently, only one member each from the House and Senate are required to object to a state’s electors. The House electoral reform bill would raise that threshold to at least one-third of the members of both the House and Senate, while the Senate version would raise that threshold to at least one-fifth of the members of both the House and Senate. Schumer had withheld his support because he preferred Democrats’ sweeping voting bill that also addressed access to the polls. But after that bill failed in the Senate because of a lack of Republican support this year, the bipartisan working group forged ahead on a narrower bill that would implement guardrails and clarifications regarding how presidential electors are appointed, submitted and approved. Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Rules panel who had worked on his own electoral bill, said Monday that it was “critical” they pass legislation as soon as possible. “This isn’t comprehensive voting rights reforms, but it is important because of the danger that we experienced on January 6th,” King told The Washington Post. “It’s critical we do this before next year when we are in the throes of the presidential election.” Unlike the Senate bill, the House bill saw little support from GOP lawmakers. Only nine Republicans joined Democrats in supporting the measure, and none of those nine will be members of Congress next year — either because they lost their primaries or chose to retire. Several of the Republicans who opposed the bill, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), criticized it as unconstitutional. On Tuesday, McConnell called the House bill a “non-starter” because of its lack of support from GOP lawmakers. “It’s clear that only a bipartisan compromise originating in the Senate can actually become law,” he said. “One party going it alone would be a non-starter. In my view, the House bill is a non-starter. We have one shot to get this right.” The Biden administration issued a statement last week in support of the House bill, calling it another step in “critically needed reform of the 135-year-old Electoral Count Act.” “Americans deserve greater clarity in the process by which their votes will result in the election of a President and Vice President,” the Office of Management and Budget said. “As [the Presidential Election Reform Act] proceeds through the legislative process, the Administration looks forward to working with the Congress to ensure lasting reform consistent with Congress’ constitutional authority to protect voting rights, tally electoral votes, and strengthen our democracy.” The Senate is widely expected to vote on the measure in a lame-duck session in December. Leigh Ann Caldwell contributed to this report. Read More Here

All-Female Crew Fights Fires, Gender Stereotypes In Alaska https://digitalalaskanews.com/all-female-crew-fights-fires-gender-stereotypes-in-alaska/ ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – This summer, the National Park Service welcomed the first all-female fire crew to Denali National Park & Preserve, with the seven-woman team spending months training and working in Alaska. The 2022 team of six crew members and one crew lead — who hail from all over the country — trained mostly within the boundaries of Katmai National Park and Preserve. That was before moving into Denali to finish out the season during a year that’s already seen a whopping 3 million acres burned statewide, more than triple the average burn area, according to NPS. “We are just super psyched to have the women up here this year,” said National Park Service Fire Communication and Education Specialist Caron McKee. “We’re already starting to plan the logistics of having another women’s crew next year.” McKee said the program is bringing more resources to fires across Alaska while serving as a chance for people to see more women in the wildland firefighting field and providing those involved with mentorship and support. “These all-female fire crews allow women to see other women working in fire,” McKee said, “which can help them to envision their own opportunities.” The success of a 2021 NPS pilot program — which was based in Yosemite National Park in California and Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming — helped lead the group to Alaska, a state with ample options for firefighting training locations, to be part of the all-women conservation corps fire crew. As of press time, Alaska had seen nearly 600 wildfires so far in 2022, according to Alaska Interagency Coordination Center data, with 68 shown as still active. “We’ve been doing fuels reduction for the majority of our time here,” said crew member Helene Tracey, who explained that a large part of the job entails cutting down trees and removing dead brush to help reduce and even prevent wildfire impacts. “But we also did have a sabbatical where we were in a fire module and fought fire in Allakaket.” The crew’s training included various courses both in the classroom and in the field, including but not limited to studies on fire behavior, instruction on chainsaw use, and learning about the incident command system as a whole, along with the fitness test required as part of standards set by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group. “I feel like every person on this team brings something different, and we all are strong-willed and strong with different skill sets,” said Olivia Lawrence, also a crew member for 2022. “That really makes it a great team that can do a lot. We’ve achieved a lot this season, and just seeing how we all can work together and have such a great experience together has been great.” Starting in May, the seven women began their work as part of the NPS-hosted team, soon finding themselves out in the wilderness both near to and far away from other fire crews across the state. “For about our first week, we were camped out several miles down from any other crew,” said crew member Sophie Kuehn. “We created our own heli-spot and then got bumped back to a camp in between two other crews, right next to our ICP, incident command post. So it was really interesting to spend some time on our own out there, and then also be with other crews and interact with them, learn from them, and make new friends.” Paige Myers, the crew lead, had spent time in Alaska already but said she had to accept the offer to guide the six other women on the team. “Leading a crew wasn’t really something I wanted to pursue again,” Myers said. “I was working at Katmai for the Park Service last summer, but when I heard about the opportunity to lead the first female fire crew, I couldn’t say no.” In addition to the work experience, she said, “it gave me the opportunity to meet all these awesome ladies, meet awesome people and make great connections, and see more parts of Alaska I haven’t visited.” While the statistics can vary depending on the source, a 2021 report from the National Fire Protection Association shows just 8% of all firefighters across America were female as of three years ago. When it comes to wildland firefighters, data typically shows women making up only a few percentage points more, if that. For the National Park Service specifically, less than 5% of those who are part of its wildland fire program leadership at the park level are women, the agency said. The hope is that its all-women program will help build a stronger representation of women in leadership roles in wildland firefighting. “We really just want to provide this opportunity for women everywhere,” McKee said, “to see that they can absolutely be part of wildland fire. It’s not just a male field.” You can learn more about the NPS wildland firefighter application process here, or check out the annual Women in Fire Training Exchange program at this link. Copyright 2022 KTUU. All rights reserved. Read More Here

Staged Referendums Yield Expected Result As Russia Readies Annexations https://digitalalaskanews.com/staged-referendums-yield-expected-result-as-russia-readies-annexations/ Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plan to illegally annex four partially occupied regions in eastern and southern Ukraine lurched forward Tuesday, as Russian officials and Kremlin proxy leaders claimed that staged referendums showed residents in favor of joining Russia by absurd margins of more than 95 percent. Defying international condemnation and threats of additional Western economic sanctions, Putin could declare Russia’s absorption of the four regions — Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia — as soon as Friday, the British Defense Ministry said. Western leaders, including President Biden, have denounced the staged referendums, which are illegal under Ukrainian and international law, as a “sham.” Moscow does not fully control any of the four Ukrainian regions, either militarily or politically. And its war against Ukraine has taken another disastrous turn in recent days, as Putin’s declaration of a partial military mobilization has led more than 180,000 Russians to leave the country to escape potential conscription, according to the neighboring countries of Georgia, Kazakhstan and Finland. The total is likely much higher. Putin has signaled that, upon annexation of the four territories, he would consider any attack on Russian forces in them to be an attack on Russia itself, potentially justifying a ferocious response. Former president Dmitry Medvedev on Tuesday reiterated threats that Russia could use a nuclear weapon. “I have to remind you again — for those deaf who hear only themselves. Russia has the right to use nuclear weapons if necessary,” Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel, adding a taunt that NATO countries would not intervene even if Russia used a nuclear weapon against Ukraine. “The security of Washington, London, and Brussels is much more important for the North Atlantic alliance than the fate of a dying Ukraine, which no one needs,” wrote Medvedev, who is now deputy head of Russia’s security council. “Overseas and European demagogues are not going to perish in a nuclear apocalypse,” he added. “Therefore, they will swallow the use of any weapon in the current conflict.” The referendums in many areas were carried out at gunpoint, with residents visited in their homes and forced to answer a single question about joining Russia. A woman who lives in the city of Luhansk — the regional capital of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic, which has been controlled by Kremlin proxies since 2014 — said armed individuals had been going door to door and visiting businesses to collect ballots on which residents could check “yes” or “no” on joining Russia. The woman spoke to The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal. Tuesday was announced as a day off, with schools closed, and the woman said voting stations were set up around town for anyone who had not already gotten a chance to vote. People were asked only for their names and addresses instead of any passport data, which the woman said she suspected made the results easier to falsify. She said some residents expected to be protected if part of a nuclear-armed Russia. “People understand that everything has been decided,” she said. “They think that this will end something, because a ‘republic’ is easy to hit with all of the support of NATO. But people think it’ll be different if it’s Russia. I hear people saying that Ukraine doesn’t have nuclear weapons, and Ukraine won’t shell here anymore if we’re part of a country that does.” Despite the obviously rigged nature of the vote, Russian officials insisted it was legitimate. “Both by turnout and by the absence of serious violations, the referendums can be considered valid,” Sergey Tsekov, a former Ukrainian politician turned Russian senator from Crimea, which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014, told RIA Novosti. “The referendums were held in accordance with international norms, legislation, and can be recognized as legitimate.” Tsekov also said the Russian government was considering forming a new federal district that would serve as a governing umbrella for the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions. Russia currently has eight federal districts. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Moscow’s referendums will not change his military’s defense of Ukrainian sovereign territory, and he has pledged to recapture all occupied areas, including Crimea. In an address by video link at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Zelensky stressed Tuesday that Western leaders must take “preventive” actions now rather than waiting to see what Russia will do in the future. He accused Putin of “nuclear blackmail” and warned of the potential of a cataclysmic attack. Although Ukraine has agreed not to strike territorial Russia with U.S.-made weapons, U.S. officials have said that restriction would not apply to illegally annexed territory. Ukrainian forces have regularly struck targets in Crimea as well as in the northern Russian Belgorod region, which they can now reach with Ukraine’s own weapons after taking ground during a successful counteroffensive in northeast Kharkiv. The war continues to draw in other targets. On Monday, dual explosions damaged the underwater pipelines of the Nord Stream projects that were built to carry natural gas from Russia to Europe. Leaders in Europe called the actions sabotage, with some blaming Moscow. The Kremlin denied responsibility. The referendums remained the greatest focus, however. Pro-Kremlin leaders in Luhansk quickly declared theirs “accomplished” on Tuesday, and the leader of the Luhansk People’s Republic, Leonid Pasechnik, said he hoped to travel to Moscow to give Putin a written request to absorb the territory. Valentina Matviyenko, the speaker of the Federation Council, the Russian parliament’s upper house, floated the possibility that lawmakers would ratify the annexation on Oct. 4. With fears in Russia that Putin’s impending annexation announcement could be accompanied by a declaration of martial law, the exodus from Russia of fighting-age men trying to escape military mobilization appeared to be reaching critical levels Tuesday. Border crossings and checkpoints saw traffic jams, some with thousands of cars, and equally extraordinary lines. Authorities of the North Ossetia region that borders Georgia, which has been one of the main transit hubs for fleeing Russians, said Tuesday that they were considering whether to declare a state of emergency. “The influx is too big,” the head of the region, Sergey Menyailo, said in an interview on a social media channel run by Vladimir Solovyov, a Russian television presenter and Kremlin propagandist. “We can’t close the passage to the republic,” Menyailo said. “But the issue is very complicated, and, most likely, I will decide to introduce a partial state of emergency.” The North Ossetia branch of the Russian Interior Ministry said it would set up a makeshift enlistment office next to the Verkhny Lars crossing. “Russia’s leaders almost certainly hope that any accession announcement will be seen as a vindication of the ‘special military operation’ and will consolidate patriotic support for the conflict,” the British Defense Ministry said in its Tuesday report on the Ukraine war. Yet the chaos surrounding the “partial mobilization” would undermine the Kremlin’s claims of success in the war effort, the ministry noted. In the latest sign of the botched mobilization, Sergei Nosov, governor of the Magadan region in Russia’s Far East, announced Tuesday that the local military commissar had been dismissed after dozens of men were mistakenly summoned for duty despite being too old or otherwise being exempt. Human rights groups reported that some Russians have been turned back from border posts, citing decisions passed down from their local military commissariats banning departures from the country. Georgia said it had bolstered the number of guards at the checkpoint but saw no reason to close the border. Internal Affairs Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri said about 10,000 Russians are arriving in the country daily, almost double the number on Sept. 21, when the mobilization was announced. In Kazakhstan, another neighboring country that permits visa-free entry for individuals with Russian passports, residents of the border city of Uralsk refurbished a movie theater into a temporary shelter for those who could not find hotel rooms or apartments to rent. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said Tuesday that his country has an obligation to help the arriving Russians. The Kazakh Interior Ministry estimated that 98,000 people had come in less than a week, with 64,000 then leaving for other destinations. “In recent days, many people from Russia have been coming to us,” Tokayev said. “Most of them are forced to leave because of the current hopeless situation. We must take care of them and ensure their safety. This is a political and humanitarian issue.” Underscoring a growing rift with the Kremlin over the invasion of Ukraine, the Kazakh leader also called for respect for territorial integrity, alluding to the annexation referendums. And he took an indirect swipe at Putin, who has been in power since 2000, saying that if just one person rules a country for years, “this does not do honor either to this country or its leader.” Paul Sonne contributed to this report. War in Ukraine: What you need to know The latest: Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a “partial mobilization” of troops in an address to the nation on Sept. 21, framing the move as an attempt to defend Russian sovereignty against a West that seeks to use Ukraine as a tool to “divide and destroy Russia.” Follow our live updates here. The fight: A successful Ukrainian counteroffensive has forced a major Russian retreat ...

Reusable Contact Lenses https://digitalalaskanews.com/reusable-contact-lenses/ Just In St. Mary’s High School in south St. Louis to close in Catholic downsizing Sep 27, 2022 38 min ago 0 Researchers from University College London have identified multiple factors that increase the risk of Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK), a condition that results in inflammation of the cornea, including reusing lenses or wearing them overnight or in the shower. Tags Dcc Wire Lvs Lifestyles Health Science Covervideo Shower Ak Reusable Acanthamoeba-keratitis Cornea Wash-hands Dailies Cps1640159 Contact-lense Triple-risk Monthly’s Videoelephant Latest video Countries condemn Russia for Ukraine referendum Biden administration announces new rules for getting rid of hidden airline fees Tampa residents flee to avoid Hurricane Ian Rare cloned horse learns ways of the wild at zoo Simu Liu reveals he is ‘going through a breakup’ RAW: GA: HURRICANE IAN/GEMA PRESSER RAW: SC: HURRICANE IAN/GOV MCMASTER BRIEFING Reusable contact lenses ‘more than triple risk’ of rare eye infection 0 Comments Read More Here

Exclusive: Fannie Mae To Announce Plan To Bolster Renters https://digitalalaskanews.com/exclusive-fannie-mae-to-announce-plan-to-bolster-renters/ Only positive payments of renters will be reported (those who fall behind will be unenrolled) and renters can chose to opt out at any time. One in ten adults in the U.S., or about 26 million people, are “credit invisible,” meaning they do not have a credit history with one of the three nationwide credit reporting companies. Renters are seven times more likely than homeowners to lack a credit score, according to a study the Urban Institute When it comes to credit scores, renters are at a distinct disadvantage compared to homeowners. While mortgage payments are reported by lenders to credit bureaus, landlords typically don’t report rental payments  – and that can hamper renters’ ability to build a credit history. Fannie Mae plans to subsidize the cost for landlords of multifamily properties it finances to help renters build their credit starting Tuesday , the mortgage giant shared exclusively with USA TODAY. Fannie Mae will partner with three firms that serve as intermediaries between landlords and credit bureaus to report on-time rental payments.  “Given the reach that we have across the country, we’re trying to be a catalyst to accelerate this adoption,” says MicheleEvans, executive vice president and head of Multifamily, at Fannie Mae. “We’re incentivizing borrowers (landlords) so it benefits historically underserved groups who just disproportionately have no credit scores or lower credit scores.” Credit scores: How this single mom raised her credit score despite losing her job Housing: Home prices decline at rates seen close to a decade ago While mortgage payments are considered for credit scores – which can determine one’s ability to obtain a loan for a house, a car, or college –  of the roughly 80 million U.S. adults who live in rental housing, just 1.8 million (2.3%) have rental payments reported in their traditional credit file, according to FICO, which calculates credit scores based on information collected by credit reporting agencies. How will Fannie Mae’s plan work? Only positive payments of renters will be reported (those who fall behind will be unenrolled) and renters can choose to opt out at any time. Eligible multifamily property owners (those with at least five years worth of outstanding loans) can share timely rent payment data through vendors to the three major credit bureaus for incorporation in the renter’s credit profile. The vendors who have been tapped to work with Fannie Mae are three New York-City-based companies Esusu Financial Inc., Jetty Credit and Rent Dynamics. In the last five years, Fannie Mae has financed over 3.7 million units of multifamily housing. Last year, it provided financing for approximately 694,000 units of multifamily housing in 2021, with nearly 95% of those units affordable to families earning at or below 120% of the area median income, providing support for both affordable and workforce housing. ‘Credit invisibles’ and credit scores One in 10 adults in the U.S., or about 26 million people, are “credit invisible,” meaning they do not have a credit history with one of the three nationwide credit reporting companies, according to a 2015 study by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. An additional 19 million consumers have “unscorable” credit files, which means that their file is thin and has an insufficient credit history. In total, 20% of the U.S. adult population, or some 45 million consumers, may be denied access to credit because they don’t have scorable credit records. Renters are seven times more likely than homeowners to lack a credit score, according to a study by the Urban Institute. These gaps disproportionately affect Black and Latino households, who, compared with white households, are about twice as likely to rent and to lack a credit score. And these factors contribute, in turn, to the nation’s persistent racial disparities, the study found. “I think this is an enormous positive because for most renters, their rental payments are the single largest payment they make each month and not getting credit for rental payments in their credit prevents them from building a credit history as quickly as they could,” says Laurie Goodman, founder of the Housing Finance Policy Center at the Urban Institute. Positive rental payments Last September, Fannie Mae began considering positive rental payment history in their automated mortgage underwriting process for single-family homes through applicants’ bank statement data. However, that program had no bearing on the renter’s credit scores.  Since its launch, more than 2,800 first-time homebuyer loan applications have become eligible for purchase by Fannie Mae that otherwise would not have been, it says.  Esusu co-founder and co-CEO Wemimo Abbey knows a thing or two about being “credit invisible.” “I grew up in the slums of Lagos, Nigeria,” he says. When he moved to the U.S. to study at the University of Minnesota, his mother and Abbey were turned away by many banks as they had no credit history. “We had to get a loan from a payday lender at 400% interest,” he says. About five years ago, he co-founded Esusu with Samir Goel, a first-generation Indian American, whose parents struggled with the financial burdens of immigrating to a new country. “We have a system that treats you like you’re guilty until proven innocent,” says Abbey. “Because we didn’t have this three-digit number that’s called a credit score.” Today, Esusu has close to 3 million rental units on their platform owned by companies such as Related, Camden and Goldman Sachs’ real estate division. Of the 53,000 affordable apartments that are owned by Related Companies nationwide, 16,000 are financed by Fannie Mae, said Jeffrey Brodsky, vice chairman at Related. The company has worked with Esusu before and expects to roll out the program for all eligible renters. “Their program allows for tremendous measurable impact at scale, which is an unusual opportunity for us to serve the needs of our residents at the same time and measure the results of the benefits to them,” he says. After enrolling on the Esusu platform, 10,000 of the 53,000 residents who previously did not have credit scores now have them, says Brodsky. About 71% of the residents have seen their credit scores go up and the average resident credit score has improved by 28 points, he says. “Two-thirds of the residents in these apartments are people of color and they have very modest incomes. And so we see a tremendous benefit at scale.” Improving the credit score August Ortega, a renter in Long Beach, California, has been struggling with his credit score after a series of financial setbacks including his mother’s cancer diagnosis and a job loss. While his credit card bills piled up, one thing he didn’t fall behind on was his rental payment. But the fact that it didn’t count toward his credit score was frustrating, he says. “It was always silly to me that it wasn’t being reported because this is like a major bill,” says Ortega, a fashion designer and an instructor at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in LA. Last year, when Ortega’s landlord offered the Esusu service, he signed up. His credit score, which had plummeted to 520 is slowly on its way up now that his rental payments are being taken into consideration. “I think it’s up to about 540,” he says. “I hope to be a homeowner someday.” Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is a housing and economy correspondent for USA TODAY.  You can follow her on Twitter @SwapnaVenugopal and sign up for our Daily Money newsletter here. Read More Here

'It Bothered Me': Michigan House Race Tests Whether Democrats' Meddling In GOP Primaries Will Pay Off Or Backfire – KVIA https://digitalalaskanews.com/it-bothered-me-michigan-house-race-tests-whether-democrats-meddling-in-gop-primaries-will-pay-off-or-backfire-kvia/ By Eric Bradner, Omar Jimenez and Donald Judd, CNN In the battleground Michigan congressional district that might be the most controversial example of Democrats’ meddling in Republican primaries, Democratic-leaning voters are fretting that the strategy could leave them with an election-denying Republican in Congress. “Politics sucks,” said Erick Davis, 31, who runs a coffee business in Grand Rapids and said he is an independent who typically votes for Democrats. Michigan’s 3rd District is among the congressional contests that will decide which party controls the House in 2023. It could also be the clearest test of whether national Democrats’ decision to pump money into ads in GOP primaries elevating candidates the party views as unelectable — including John Gibbs, an official in Donald Trump‘s administration who has backed the former President’s lies about widespread fraud in the 2020 election, in this district — will backfire. Democrats, whose narrow House majority is on the line, are already facing historic headwinds and economic factors that could tilt competitive races in the GOP’s favor. Freshman Rep. Peter Meijer, one of the 10 House Republicans to vote to impeach Trump in the wake of the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol, was seeking a second term in the Grand Rapids-based district. But Trump, who has spent much of 2022 seeking political retribution against those Republicans, endorsed Gibbs. And the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee — expecting that Gibbs would be easier to defeat in what, after last year’s redistricting process, now looks like a battleground district — spent $450,000 on television advertising labeling him “too conservative.” It might have been the difference: Gibbs defeated Meijer by 3.6 percentage points, less than 4,000 votes. He is now taking on Democrat Hillary Scholten, an attorney, in the general election. “I understand the strategy,” Davis said. “I think Gibbs is a much weaker candidate, and … Pete Meijer is someone that’s in the community, he’s someone that you see around — like, his family has done like a lot for this community. So, like, the strategy is not something I would have spent money on. But like, tactically, I guess I get it.” There is no evidence in the district of backlash against Scholten over her national party’s tactics in the race. But some Democratic-leaning voters’ discomfort with the DCCC’s approach underscores why Meijer was broadly seen as poised to win re-election if he survived the GOP primary. “It bothered me, and I know it bothered others,” said Ruth Kelly, a retired teacher and former Grand Rapids city commissioner. “I just think, you know, Peter Meijer had a lot to offer here. However, I’m still really excited about Hillary.” “They had to make some choices, some very difficult choices, and I disagree with that,” Janice Lanting, a retired teacher from Grand Rapids, said of national Democrats’ involvement in the race. “But I guess I’m not the one to make decisions, and we just want Hillary to do well in the polls.” ‘Risky and unethical’ Michigan’s 3rd District offered a window into a strategy Democratic political groups employed across the map. Democrats also pumped money into similar ads temporarily boosting what would become winning candidates in gubernatorial primaries in Illinois, Maryland and Pennsylvania, as well as House and Senate primaries in New Hampshire. The practice helped elevate a series of election deniers in key races in November’s midterm elections. Democratic officials have defended the practice, arguing that it is the most effective way of defeating GOP candidates. But some in the party have warned that helping Republicans who have attempted to erode Americans’ faith in its election system — particularly at the cost of helping the GOP purge figures such as Meijer, who sided with Democrats on Trump’s impeachment — could have serious consequences. “These destructive primary tactics aim to elevate Republican candidates who Democrats hope they can more easily beat in November,” former Indiana Rep. Tim Roemer wrote in an August letter signed by 35 former Democratic lawmakers criticizing the party’s strategy. “But it is risky and unethical to promote any candidate whose campaign is based on eroding trust in our elections. We must stop this practice, and stop today.” Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, one of two Republicans on the largely Democratic House panel investigating the insurrection, said the DCCC’s actions in Michigan were “terrible.” “All of us, again, across party lines, have got to make sure that we are supporting people who believe fundamentally in our democratic system,” she said. “And so I think that it’s inexplicable and wrong for the Democrats to be funding election deniers, particularly against one of the 10 Republicans who so bravely stood up and did the right thing.” Meijer said on CNN in the days after the election that that Democrats’ tactic in the Michigan 3rd District primary showed that “there is no incentive to try to be a productive member” of Congress while working in Washington, and that “it all will come down to partisan benefit no matter what the consequence.” “Any party that pretends to have a set of principles, any party that pretends to have a set of values and that comes in and boosts exactly the same type of candidate that they claim is … a threat to democracy, don’t expect to be able to hold on to that sense of self-righteousness and sanctimony,” Meijer said. ‘A much better opponent’ In Michigan, Scholten said she does not see Gibbs as necessarily being easier to defeat than Meijer would have been. “At the end of the day, Republicans decided who their standard bearer was going to be in this race, and they chose Mr. Gibbs. The voters came out, and they elected Mr. Gibbs, and national Republicans wanted him too,” she said in an interview with CNN. “You know, they didn’t spend a dime to try to support Peter Meijer or to keep Mr. Gibbs out of this race.” Gibbs, meanwhile, has tapped into a Republican base that remains energized by Trump and the former President’s lies about election fraud. He campaigned in recent days alongside GOP gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon, the former President’s son Donald Trump Jr. and former top Trump White House aide Kellyanne Conway. “My opponent’s name happens to be Hillary. And no matter what, not another Hillary,” Gibbs said recently at an event held by the Muskegon County GOP, to cheers from the crowd. “I’m losing the country I grew up in. It’s crazy to see what’s happening, but we got to take it back,” he said. He called the race a “civilizational fight.” “This is a big deal, we got to let them know that they’re not going to take us down a path of China, North Korea, Iran, whatever it might be, whatever it might be. We are a free country, we have to remain that way,” Gibbs said. On the Democratic side, Scholten believes the stakes are similar. “This election is a referendum on our democratic ideals as a state and as a nation,” she told CNN. “There is nothing easy about this race, let me tell you, this is going to be a fight to the finish.” Gibbs, who worked in Trump’s administration, has wrongly called the results of the 2020 election “mathematically impossible.” He is also under fire after CNN reported that he wrote as a college student in the early 2000s that the United States has “suffered as a result of women’s suffrage.” He’s insisted the writings were satirical. While Democratic voters fretted about the consequences of helping elevate Gibbs in the primary, some Republican voters said they saw him as the better candidate for November’s general election. Vicki Ware, a Republican from Norton Shores, said she believes Gibbs is a stronger candidate than Meijer was. She said Meijer had betrayed the GOP by voting to impeach Trump, and that she wants to see Trump run for president again. “Everyone knew, obviously, that Peter Meijer was a RINO,” Ware said, using an acronym that refers to the phrase “Republican in name only.” “He got into office promising one thing and then completely flipped and so everybody wanted him out, and John Gibbs is the person that beat him and can win.” Diana Blais, a retiree from Muskegon, said Meijer “was not a good fit for Michigan” and that Gibbs is, in her view, “going to be a much better opponent” against Scholten. “I think just because his values line up with what we’re looking to gain back again — that we’ve, you know, been under attack by this administration in a lot of different ways; our freedoms are being taken away, kind of slowly but surely, they have been,” Blais said. “And he’s going to help get us lined back up again.” The-CNN-Wire & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. Read More Here

McConnell Backs Post-Jan. 6 Revisions To Elections Law https://digitalalaskanews.com/mcconnell-backs-post-jan-6-revisions-to-elections-law/ By MARY CLARE JALONICK, Associated Press Published: September 27, 2022, 3:59pm 4 Photos Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., left, speaks to Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., as they attend a Senate Rules and Administration Committee meeting on the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2022. The bill is a response to the Jan. 6 insurrection and former President Donald Trump’s efforts to find a way around the 19th-century law that, along with the Constitution, governs how states and Congress certify electors and declare presidential election winners. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Photo Gallery WASHINGTON — Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday he will “proudly support” legislation to overhaul rules for certifying presidential elections, bolstering a bipartisan effort to revise a 19th century law and avoid another Jan. 6 insurrection. The legislation would clarify and expand parts of the 1887 Electoral Count Act, which, along with the Constitution, governs how states and Congress certify electors and declare presidential winners. The changes in the certification process are in response to unsuccessful efforts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to exploit loopholes in the law to overturn his 2020 defeat to Joe Biden. “Congress’ process for counting the presidential electors’ votes was written 135 years ago,” McConnell said. “The chaos that came to a head on Jan. 6 of last year certainly underscored the need for an update.” McConnell made the remarks just before the Senate Rules Committee voted 14-1 to approve the bill and send it to the Senate floor, where a vote is expected after the November election. The only senator to vote against the legislation was Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, one of two senators to stand and object to Biden’s certification last year. The GOP leader’s endorsement gave the legislation a major boost as the bipartisan group pushes to pass the bill before the end of the year and ahead of the next election cycle. Trump is still pushing false claims of election fraud and saying he won the election as he considers another run in 2024. Among the Republicans on the Rules panel who voted for the bill shortly after McConnell’s statement were Mississippi Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, one of only eight senators to vote against Biden’s certification, and Tennessee Sen. Bill Hagerty, a strong Trump ally. The House has already passed a more expansive bill overhauling the electoral rules, but it has far less Republican support. While the House bill received a handful of GOP votes, the Senate version already has the backing of at least 12 Republicans — more than enough to break a filibuster and pass the legislation in the 50-50 Senate. Senators made minor tweaks to the legislation at Tuesday’s meeting but kept the bill largely intact. The bill, written by Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, would make clear that the vice president only has a ceremonial role in the certification process, tighten the rules around states sending their votes to Congress and make it harder for lawmakers to object. The changes are a direct response to Trump, who publicly pressured several states, members of Congress and then-Vice President Mike Pence to aid him as he tried to undo Biden’s win. Even though Trump’s effort failed, lawmakers in both parties said his attacks on the election showed the need for stronger safeguards in the law. If it becomes law, the bill would be Congress’ strongest legislative response yet to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack, in which hundreds of Trump’s supporters beat police officers, broke into the Capitol and interrupted the joint session as lawmakers were counting the votes. Once the rioters were cleared, the House and Senate rejected GOP objections to the vote in two states. But more than 140 Republicans voted to sustain them. Differences between the House and Senate bills will have to be resolved before final passage, including language around congressional objections. While the Senate bill would require a fifth of both chambers to agree on an electoral objection to trigger a vote, the House bill would require agreement from at least a third of House members and a third of the Senate. Currently, only one member of each chamber is required for the House and Senate to vote on whether to reject a state’s electors. The House bill also lays out new grounds for objections, while the Senate does not. Associated Press writer Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report. Read More Here

PolitiFact – United Facts Of America: Experts Say Facts Alone Won't Bridge The Partisan Divide https://digitalalaskanews.com/politifact-united-facts-of-america-experts-say-facts-alone-wont-bridge-the-partisan-divide/ The 2020 presidential election result is clear: Donald Trump lost. But fighting his stolen election narrative is a problem that requires a multipronged solution, three experts said Sept. 27 at United Facts of America: A Festival of Fact-Checking. The three-day conference, presented by PolitiFact and the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, began Sept. 27 and continues through Sept. 29.  Washington Post White House Bureau Chief Toluse Olorunnipa, Gray Television White House Correspondent and Senior National Editor Jon Decker, and former FBI special agent and legal and national security analyst for CNN Asha Rangappa discussed “The Truth of Trump” in a round-table discussion with PolitiFact Senior Correspondent Jon Greenberg. The former president is the subject of multiple investigations, including federal probes into his attempt to overturn his 2020 election loss, his ties to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters and his potential mishandling of classified information after the FBI’s August search of his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.  However, even amid legal peril, Trump has managed to manipulate the framing of these major events, experts said, and facts alone won’t sway his supporters or bridge a widening partisan divide.  “When you have a strong group identity, you’re motivated not by accuracy, but really by signaling your belonging in the group,” Rangappa said. Can the House select committee hearings on the Jan. 6 Capitol riot shift public opinion? The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol has presented “explosive” information about Trump’s role in inciting the violence that took place.  But whether it has shifted public opinion remains to be seen, the panelists said.  “It has definitely illuminated public opinion about what happened,” Olorunnipa said. “When it comes to sort of the partisanship that has surrounded this issue for quite a while, people are still very much in their camp.” The scope of the committee’s work is massive, Olorunnipa said. “They have tried to make these hearings full of new information so that they can get the attention of the American public.” However, social media may still have an edge in shaping the public’s view of the former president’s push to overturn the 2020 election result. “Social media certainly amplifies the message in an instantaneous way,” Jon Decker of Gray TV said. “You don’t necessarily have to be in front of your television screen to get a false message sent to your phone.” Supporters of the former president tend to seek out narratives that support their existing viewpoints, whether the information in those narratives is true or not, Decker said. Rangappa also said that conservative media and social media often feed off one another, and most people equate repetition to credibility.  “If Fox News is the cigarette, social media is the secondhand smoke,” Rangappa said. “It’s just wafting everywhere, and people who may not have even chosen to be consumers of the original product are being confronted with it.” What can the mainstream media do? The pace of verifying and publishing information typically lags behind the virality of misinformation, the experts noted. To create a lasting impact, the media must rethink how to get reliable facts to the public.  “There’s a lot of misinformation out there, and there are only so many journalists,” Olorunnipa said. “It’s much harder to do that and verify and publish reliable information than it is to just cut out rumors and conspiracy theories.” Misinformation peddled by people in power, like Trump, can make clearing the disinformational fog complicated. “When you have people in power who see the power that they can amass through misinformation, through misleading the public, through casting aspersions on fair and accurate news,” Olorunnipa said, “it makes our job harder.” The first person who gets the narrative out also has a major advantage. So, news media must anticipate the misinformation that may surround a political event and “prebunk” it, that is, debunk it in advance.  “Once a narrative has taken root, fact-checking is not going to get people to change their mind,” Rangappa said. “You definitely want the facts out there, but the corrective information isn’t going to necessarily cure the problem.” The speakers encouraged journalists to break away from norms like “neutrality,” which they said bad actors have exploited to push disinformation. “It took a long time,” Rangappa said. “(But) many outlets were finally able to say Trump lied, you know, as opposed to using all of these euphemisms.” Read More Here

Beto O’Rourke, Stacey Abrams Struggle This Year To Recreate The Magic Of Their 2018 Campaigns https://digitalalaskanews.com/beto-orourke-stacey-abrams-struggle-this-year-to-recreate-the-magic-of-their-2018-campaigns/ Beto O’Rourke and Stacey Abrams shot into the political stratosphere four years ago when the fresh-faced Democrats electrified the party on their way to better-than-expected showings in statewide races in deep-red Texas and purple Georgia. But the pair is struggling to build on those near-success stories in a pair of gubernatorial races this year and are running out of time to seize the momentum away from Republican incumbent Govs. Gregg Abbott in and Brian Kemp. Less than two months out from Election Day, Mr. Kemp and Mr. Abbott are the clear frontrunners, according to political analysts who say the longer Mr. O’Rourke, 50, and Ms. Abrams, 48, have basked in the national limelight, the more polarizing they have become. “They would like to move up in the party clearly, but they are running in difficult states,” said Jessica Taylor, of the Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan election tracker. “The climate has improved for Democrats, but has it improved so much that candidates who seem even more liberal than they did four years ago can win?” “They are running in a much different environment,” she said. Indeed, the 2022 midterms offer voters their first opportunity to send President Biden and the Democrat-controlled Congress a message. The 2018 midterms served as a referendum on then-President Trump. Back in 2018, Mr. O’Rourke also benefited from running against Sen. Ted Cruz, the conservative firebrand whose political style and refusal to endorse Mr. Trump in 2020 irritated GOP voters. Fast-forward to 2022. Voters’ top concerns include the economy, inflation, crime, voting issues, immigration, gun control and abortion following the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe V Wade, the 1973 landmark ruling that provided constitutional right to the procedure. Mr. Biden’s approval rating, meanwhile, remains underwater — including in Texas and Georgia — creating headwinds for Mr. O’Rourke, Ms. Abrams and other Democrats running in tough races. Mr. Kemp and Mr. Abbott are making the most of the power of incumbency. They are touting the records they have compiled over the last four years as a way to distance themselves from their more untested rivals. Mr. O’Rourke, a former member of Congress, has focused his message on abortion, gun restrictions, energy and voting rights. He is seeking to tap into voter angst over the Supreme Court ruling, the Uvalde school shooting and the state’s power grid failure in 2021. But he has been haunted by his attempt to parlay the buzz from his Senate bid into a short-lived 2020 presidential run in which he staked out liberal positions on guns and immigration that got him crosswise with Texans. “He was running with a bunch of progressives and adopted a strategy he would run to the far-left and eventually ran off the stage,” said Dave Carney, a long-time Abbott strategist. “He is so extreme on every issue that people care about. He is not authentic anymore.” “I think people are tired of it,” he said. “He is like a pet rock. It was cool when it was a thing, but now it is in the bottom of the drawer.” The O’Rourke campaign did not respond to a request for comment for this report. Mr. O’Rourke received a bad sign Tuesday in an Emerson College survey of likely Texas voters that found Mr. Abbott held a 50% to 42% lead in their race. The governor was buoyed by a 25-point lead among white voters and a 4-point lead among Hispanic voters. Mr. O’Rourke’s net favorable rating is underwater with most Texas voters. The survey showed that 49% of respondents align with Mr. Abbott’s conservative view on abortion, compared to 44% who align themselves with Mr. O’Rourke’s liberal stance. The Real Clear Politics average of recent polls shows Mr. Abbott with an 8-point lead in the race. Mr. O’Rourke trailed Mr. Cruz by 4.5-points at this point in the 2018 Senate race and then came within 3 percentage points of winning. Speaking at The Texas Tribune Festival, Mr. O’Rourke said he takes the recent polls with a “grain of salt.” Ms. Abrams has faced a similar dose of troubling news in polls this month that pegged her running 6 to 11 percentage points behind Mr. Kemp. Polls released around this time four years ago showed Ms. Abrams and Mr. Kemp locked in a statistical tie and showed voters had a more favorable than unfavorable view of her. A recent Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll carried other warning signs for Ms. Abrams. Her support among Black voters stuck around 80% — lower than analysts say she needs to win statewide — and Mr. Kemp running neck-and-neck with female voters. Ms. Abrams was leading among independent voters. Ms. Abrams, a former minority leader of the Georgia House of Representatives, believed the second time would be the charm against Mr. Kemp after falling 55,000 votes shy in 2018. A voting rights activist who has focused on turning out minority communities, Ms. Abrams’ influence was felt in the 2020 election. She was credited with helping Mr. Biden become the first Democratic presidential candidate to carry Georgia since 1992 and Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff flip Georgia’s seats in the U.S. Senate. Mr. Trump, in turn, blamed Mr. Kemp for turning a blind eye to alleged voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election and urged former Sen. David Perdue to try to oust him in the GOP primary this year. Mr. Perdue’s challenge flamed out against Mr. Kemp. Mr. Kemp had notched a series of high-profile legislative victories on everything from guns to abortion and transgender athletes that pleased conservatives and insulated him from Mr. Trump’s attacks. “Governor Kemp’s record of putting Georgians first has created record economic growth and historically low unemployment in the Peach State,” said Tate Mitchell, a Kemp spokesperson. Mr. Mitchell said that contrasts with Ms. Abram’s liberal stances on cash bail, reallocating public safety funds and keeping the state “locked down during the pandemic.” “It’s not hard to see why Georgians are ready to reject her extreme agenda for the second time this fall,” he said. The Abrams campaign did not respond to a request for comment. Charles S. Bullock III, a political science professor at the University of Georgia, said Ms. Abrams may have entered the 2022 race hoping Mr. Perdue would defeat Mr. Kemp in the GOP primary race, and she could shift the focus of the election back on Mr. Trump. Mr. Bullock said Ms. Abrams’ strategy is much the same as it was four years ago: expand voter turnout with new voters and unlikely voters. “There are a million new voters since 2020, and 1.5 million since 2018,” he said. “There is a political constituency she might be able to reach out to and maybe not being tapped by the pollsters.” “If she could get all of them to vote, or a large chunk of them to vote, she wins,” he said. “My guess is her camp still says they see a path to victory.” Democrats say the races are far from over. Mr. O’Rourke is slated to have a chance to turn the tide Friday when he faces off against Mr. Abbott in their first — and likely only — debate. “So though we wish there were more than just one debate — on a Friday night no less — we’re looking forward to watching Beto expose Governor Abbott’s extremism, and the reckless, incompetent failure his tenure as Governor has been,” Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said in a news release Tuesday. “On Friday night, Texans will see a clear choice – Beto, who is here to fight for every Texan’s prosperity, freedom, and safety; or Greg Abbott, who continues to prioritize extreme policies, political theater, and his friends at the NRA.” Read More Here

Hurricane Ian Live Updates: Disney World, Universal Orlando Closed; Halloween Horror Nights Cancelled https://digitalalaskanews.com/hurricane-ian-live-updates-disney-world-universal-orlando-closed-halloween-horror-nights-cancelled/ Live updates will be posted here regarding the impacts of Hurricane Ian on our region. Check here for our hurricane preparedness stories to get ready for the storm. Get the latest updates on Hurricane Ian here. Walt Disney World theme and water parks will be closed Wednesday and Thursday. Additional information will be shared soon on DisneyWorld.com/weather. Central Florida hospitals are gathering supplies to ensure they can continue to provide service as Hurricane Ian inches closer to the region. AdventHealth Central Florida has stockpiled thousands of gallons of water and has generators ready to power its hospitals in the event power is lost, said spokesperson Jeff Grainger. “We do not anticipate any service interruptions,” he said. “Family members of patients can rest assured that the hospital will be a safe place for their loved ones during the storm. We will be fully staffed and continue to deliver our excellent standard of care.” Orlando Health is also making preparations to ensure sufficient staffing and medical supplies, said spokesperson Sabrina Childress. “Orlando Health takes each hurricane event seriously and prepares accordingly. Preparedness measures are underway and will continue to evolve in response to weather changes,” Childress said. “During inclement weather events, our priority remains the safety and care of all patients.” HCA Florida Healthcare, too, will have adequate staffing, medications, medical supplies, food and water during the storm for its five Central Florida hospitals, as well as backup generator power, said Richard Hammett, president of the HCA Healthcare North Florida Division. “We continue to monitor Hurricane Ian as it progresses and will be ready for any changes that may take place in the next 24-48 hours. With the support of HCA Healthcare’s National Command Center, HCA Florida Healthcare hospitals have access to information, resources, and support from a network of experts and care sites across the state and nation,” Hammett said in a statement. Florida residents should only come to hospitals if they need medical attention. They are not equipped to serve as emergency shelters. Seminole County opening emergency shelters Wednesday | 3:36 p.m. Tuesday Seminole County will open eight emergency shelters at 8 a.m. on Wednesday at area public schools for residents looking for refuge from Hurricane Ian. The county will then announce an evacuation order for residents who live in flood-prone areas, mobile homes and persons with disabilities. At the 3 p.m. press conference, however, county emergency officials held off naming the shelters and locations until they have them fully prepared for the influx of residents. But residents should first try to find shelter in other areas — such as at a family member’s home or friend’s house — before deciding on a county emergency shelter, officials said. “Shelters are places of last resort,” said Alan Harris, Seminole director of the county’s office for emergency services. Residents with special needs should call the county’s hurricane hotline at 407-665-0000 if they need to stay at a shelter. “Seminole County is planning for extremely high winds, heavy rains and possible tornadoes,” Harris said. Sheriff Dennis Lemma urged residents to stay off the roads during the storm because of the danger of flying debris and flooded roads. Lemma noted that his office has increased the number of deputies, along with city police officers, who will be patrolling the county. “Any person committing a crime during a state of emergency will be dealt with appropriately,” Lemma said. Shoppers looking for last-minute supplies and groceries from Publix in south Lake County as well as west of Kissimmee still have some time, but face a deadline as Hurricane Ian approaches. While the Lakeland-based grocer hasn’t revealed changed hours for many of its Orlando area stores yet, at least nine stores in Clermont, Groveland, Minneola, and Kissimmee are expected to close at 4 p.m. Wednesday, according to the grocer’s website as of Tuesday afternoon. They are currently set to reopen Friday. The stores were earlier listed as closing on Tuesday, and Publix has since updated its site with them closing Wednesday. Customers can check for updates on their stores at publix.com. Even more stores west and southwest of Kissimmee, including in Davenport, are also expected to temporarily shutter. Universal Orlando Resort, including CityWalk, will close on Wednesday and Thursday, with tentative plans to reopen on Friday as conditions permit. Universal Orlando said its hotels are currently at full capacity and will remain operational. The park planned two of its Halloween Horror Nights events on Wednesday and Thursday, both of which will be canceled. For more information and FAQs, visit https://www.universalorlando.com/web/en/us/plan-your-visit/weather-updates/severe-weather.html. Data from an Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicated Hurricane Ian’s minimum pressure has decreased to 952 MB. It is now located about 255 south of Sarasota.’ The next full update will be at 5 p.m. Residents fill sandbags in Osceola County ahead of Hurricane Ian. At Osceola County Heritage Park sandbag distribution, the line snakes around the entire park. Osceola County maintenance worker, Thomas Compton, hands out bundles of 25 bags to cars stopping at his pickup truck with a large blue tarp set up just behind. “It’s been a steady stream of cars the whole time we’ve been open,” Compton said. “It’s been crazy since Monday because I think that’s when people started to see the storm was coming.” Compton has worked since Sunday for ten-hour shifts handing out empty sandbag bundles to cars and telling them to “go around the pickup truck and then over there” as he points to a large grass area with various piles of sand and cars huddled around them. “I think all these people getting sandbags are overreacting,” Compton said as an Ice Cream truck pulls up to the crew of maintenance workers making bundles of sandbags. “Look at that, now we get ice cream.” Down the line at a sand pile is 57-year-old Ivette Aponte shoveling sand into a bag. “I’m worried because we live next to two lakes and they are already really full so we’re worried about it flooding into our house,” Aponte said. Aponte’s 24-year-old flight attendant daughter, Karalise Ferrer, said the family is planning on putting the sandbags in front of their garage door. “We’re going to fill all 25 sandbags,” Ferrer said. “About five years ago when Hurricane Irma hit we also got sandbags.” The family lift the heavy bags of sand into the bed of their pickup truck driven by Felix Ferrer, Aponte’s husband and Karalise’s dad. “I think we’re mostly worried about the rain,” Felix Ferrer said. “We have seen in the past a lot of flooding where we live and I’m worried it will happen again.” The Osceola County sandbag distribution center at the Osceola Heritage Park will close at 6 p.m. Tuesday with no official word yet if the site will continue operations on Wednesday. The gas station at 7235 University Blvd. east of Winter Park ran out of gas by 8 a.m. Tuesday after receiving a truck of fuel on Monday, said co-owner Khuram Pervez. He said he and his partners bought the former RaceTrac at the end of July and are rebranding it as “RaceStop.” “Yesterday [Monday] we were packed,” Pervez said. “Literally, the right side of the lane of the road, that’s where people were trying to come in because it was packed.” He hoped to get more fuel on Tuesday evening. “I’m hoping five o’clock,” Pervez said. “But last time when they said five o’clock, I got it at nine. But it is what it is, that’s all part of it. But I am on the list of getting the gas today.” The station was also out of cases of water. “We had about 30, 40 cases and they [were] all gone on I believe two days ago,” Pervez said. Gatorland is taking precautions for Hurricane Ian, but that doesn’t mean removing its namesake animals from its swamp. The South Orange Blossom Trail attraction posted a video showing employees placing animals, including birds and mammals such as big cats, into on-property shelters. They’re also seen caring for iguanas and snakes. Alligators and crocodiles take care of themselves, Gatorland President and CEO Mark McHugh said in the video. “Folks, they’ve been around for 75 million years. It ain’t their first rodeo with nasty storms,” he said while standing in front of a dozen gators. “They actually feel that barometric pressure changing. … They’ve learned to ride out big storms by just sitting on the bottom of the ponds. [They] come up with their nostrils and take a little breath every now and then,” he said. After the storm passes, Gatorland staff will make a sweep of the grounds to make sure enclosures haven’t been breached, McHugh said. “If you see an alligator swimming down your street or sitting in your pool, it ain’t one of ours,” he said. In anticipation of Hurricane Ian, Leu Gardens began boarding up the Leu House Museum and all historic buildings Tuesday morning. In addition, the urban green space announced it would close on Wednesday at noon and reopen “as quickly as possible,” following an assessment of the grounds and safety. For more updates, visit leugardens.org. Leu Gardens is boarding up in anticipation of Hurricane Ian. SeaWorld Orlando on Tuesday became the first major theme park in Orlando to announce it was shutting down because of Ian. A park spokesman said it would be closed Wednesday and Thursday. “We are taking all necessary precautions — including the implementation of our comprehensive weather preparedness plan — to keep guests, employees and animals safe,” spokesman Carl ...

Dems Light Up Airwaves In Key Secretary Of State Races https://digitalalaskanews.com/dems-light-up-airwaves-in-key-secretary-of-state-races/ The Democratic Association of Secretaries of State, the party’s main campaign arm for races for states’ chief election officers, is launching its largest-ever TV ad campaign, booking $11 million worth of TV ads across three critical battleground states. The spending from DASS — the first salvo in a general election spending program that will more than double in size before Nov. 8 — highlights the increasing amount of money and attention flowing into the secretary of state contests following former President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election. Since then, he and his allies have turned their attention to these once-obscure contests as they look to change the rules ahead of the 2024 election. The DASS-affiliated PAC, Safe Accessible Fair Elections, on Tuesday launched TV ads in Michigan, Minnesota and Nevada. Details of the buy were shared first with POLITICO. Incumbent Democratic secretaries — Michigan’s Jocelyn Benson and Minnesota’s Steve Simon — are facing off in the first two states against challengers that have cast doubt on the 2020 election. DASS’ Michigan TV ad attacks Republican Kristina Karamo, who has been endorsed by Trump after serving as a poll watcher in 2020 and spreading misinformation about the election. The spot quotes her talking extensively about abortion, calling it “child sacrifice” and “a very satanic practice.” “Why is Kristina Karamo running for secretary of state? That’s a good question,” the ad’s narrator asks. The Minnesota ad, meanwhile, focuses more on elections, promoting Simon and highlighting Republican Kim Crockett questioning mail voting. The Nevada ad is a contrast ad in the open-seat race, attacking Republican Jim Marchant over abortion and mail voting while promoting Democrat Cisco Aguilar as someone who will “make sure everyone’s vote is counted, regardless of their political party.” The group said the first round of buys is part of a larger $25 million program that will also include digital ads, mailers and canvassing. It will also include direct investments into state parties in Arizona and Georgia, two of the closest states in the 2020 presidential election, which also have major secretary contests. Other major Democratic organizations are targeting these races as well, with End Citizens United partnering with DASS in Michigan and Nevada. A spokesperson for ECU said there are plans “to spend more in these and other states” before the election. The Democratic group iVote previously announced its own $4 million TV buy. Republicans have not yet mounted a comparable national effort to back GOP secretary of state candidates. Read More Here

P https://digitalalaskanews.com/p-6/ Skip to main content This content is only available to subscribers. Get unlimited digital access. $1 for 6 months. Your subscription supports: Investigative reporting that makes our community a better place to work, live and play Expert coverage of high school sports teams The best tips on places to eat and things to do Daily newsletter with top news to know Mobile apps including immersive storytelling This content is only available to subscribers. Get unlimited digital access. $1 for 6 months. Your subscription supports: Investigative reporting that makes our community a better place to work, live and play Expert coverage of high school sports teams The best tips on places to eat and things to do Daily newsletter with top news to know Mobile apps including immersive storytelling Read More Here

S&P 500 Falls To Two-Year Low, Bear Market Rally Snuffed Out https://digitalalaskanews.com/sp-500-falls-to-two-year-low-bear-market-rally-snuffed-out/ Sept 27 (Reuters) – The S&P 500 (.SPX) fell to its lowest level in almost two years on Tuesday on worries about super aggressive Federal Reserve policy tightening, trading under its June trough and leaving investors appraising how much further stocks would have to fall before stabilizing. Stocks have been under pressure since late August after comments and aggressive actions by the U.S. Federal Reserve signaled the central bank’s top priority is to stamp out high inflation even at the risk of putting the economy into a recession. The S&P 500 touched a session low of 3,623.29, its lowest point on an intraday basis since Nov. 30, 2020. A late rally helped push the index off its worst level of the day, but the index still closed lower for a sixth straight session as it lost 7.75 points, or 0.21%, to 3,647.29 . Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com After the benchmark index fell more than 20% from its early January high to a low on June 16, which confirmed that the retreat was indeed a bear market, the S&P then rallied into mid-August before running out of gas. That bear-market rally is now over. “As long as the Fed continues to raise rates, and investors don’t anticipate an end of the rate hikes, I think this market is going to continue to be weak,” said Tim Ghriskey, Senior Portfolio Strategist, Ingalls & Snyder, New York. The big blow for the index that re-ignited selling pressure was Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole that confirmed the Fed’s resolve to fight inflation, followed by a third straight 75 basis point interest rate hike by the central bank last week. The index has tumbled more than 12% since Powell’s speech and has shown little signs of stabilizing. Many analysts had looked at 3,900 as a strong technical support level for the index. That gave way 11 days ago under four straight days of selling. A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., September 27, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid “When you have these cascades of selling like we’ve seen since the Fed, really, support doesn’t really matter, you can slice right through it,” said Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group in Omaha, Nebraska. “Fundamentals and logic are almost thrown out the window because we are all wondering just how hawkish is the Fed, and then you look around this week and all these central banks around the globe hiked rates.” Detrick said that coordinated hikes by multiple central banks left investors wondering how hawkish they all will end up being. Robert Pavlik, Senior Portfolio Manager at Dakota Wealth in Fairfield, Connecticut said he is looking at a worst case of 3,000 for the S&P as a support level. “People are concerned about the Federal Reserve, the direction of interest rates, the health of the economy, and also the next couple of weeks with earnings season coming up and companies reporting lower-than-expected earnings.” Analysts are still looking for signposts of investor capitulation that can show selling pressure is exhausted. But sell-offs this year have not contained all those ingredients — a sharp drop in prices, a day of unusually high volume and a jump in the CBOE Volatility index (.VIX) to 40 or above. So, many investors to conclude that selling has yet to be depleted. “It goes down, you get some decent volume but you don’t necessarily have the classic signs of capitulation,” said Brian Jacobsen, senior investment strategist at Allspring Global Investments in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. “Maybe enough has changed over the years that some of those indicators aren’t going to be a very good guide for the future.” That leaves investors looking for the next catalyst to help markets stabilize, or get cheap enough for to start buying again, such as signs the Fed’s actions may be starting to tame inflation, a weakening of the labor market, and what the upcoming corporate earnings season may bring about. “On (October 7), you get the employment situation report and the following week you get the inflation report so we will be on pins and needles waiting to see what those numbers say, and then you have earnings,” said Jacobsen. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; additional reporting by Noel Randewich and Ankika Biswas; Editing by Alden Bentley, Franklin Paul, Nick Zieminski, Chizu Nomiyama and David Gregorio Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. Read More Here

McConnell, Schumer Back Bill To Prevent Efforts To Subvert Presidential Election Results https://digitalalaskanews.com/mcconnell-schumer-back-bill-to-prevent-efforts-to-subvert-presidential-election-results/ Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) have endorsed a bipartisan electoral count reform bill in the Senate, all but cementing its passage in the Senate and giving the legislation a key boost over a similar bill the House passed last week. Both bills seek to prevent future presidents from trying to overturn election results through Congress, and were directly prompted by the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob seeking to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s electoral win. The Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, sponsored by Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), would amend the Electoral Count Act of 1887 and reaffirm that the vice president has only a ministerial role at the joint session of Congress to count electoral votes, as well as raise the threshold necessary for members of Congress to object to a state’s electors. Speaking on the Senate floor Tuesday afternoon, McConnell said there was a need to make “modest” updates to the Electoral Count Act. “Congress’s process for counting their presidential electors votes was written 135 ago. The chaos that came to a head on Jan. 6 of last year certainly underscored the need for an update,” McConnell said. “The Electoral Count Act ultimately produced the right conclusion … but it’s clear the country needs a more predictable path.” Later the Senate Rules Committee, of which Schumer and McConnell are both members, voted to advance the bill. Schumer voted yes by proxy, while Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) was the lone no vote. Speaking minutes after McConnell had expressed his support for the legislation in committee, Cruz went against his party leader and blasted the bill as “bad policy and… bad for democracy.” “I understand why Democrats are supporting this bill,” Cruz said. “What I don’t understand is why Republicans are.” The bill already enjoyed strong bipartisan support, with 11 Democratic and 11 Republican senators signing on to co-sponsor it before Tuesday. “We are pleased that bipartisan support continues to grow for these sensible and much-needed reforms to the Electoral Count Act of 1887,” Collins and Manchin said in a joint statement last week. “Our bill is backed by election law experts and organizations across the ideological spectrum. We will keep working to increase bipartisan support for our legislation that would correct the flaws in this archaic and ambiguous law.” After the 2020 election, President Donald Trump had falsely told his supporters that Vice President Mike Pence had the power to reject electoral votes already certified by the states. Pence did not do so — and has repeatedly emphasized that the Constitution provides the vice president with no such authority. But on Jan. 6, many in the pro-Trump mob that overran the Capitol began chanting, “Hang Mike Pence!” on the misguided belief that the vice president could have stopped Congress from certifying Biden’s victory. The House last week passed the similar Presidential Election Reform Act, written by Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), on a 229-203 vote. Cheney and Lofgren argued that the risk of another effort to steal a presidential election remains high, as Trump continues to spread baseless claims of widespread election fraud, and as pro-Trump candidates in state and local elections around the country have embraced those falsehoods. The Senate and House bills differ chiefly in how much they would change the threshold necessary for members of both chambers to object to a state’s results. Currently only one member each from the House and Senate are required to object to a state’s electors. The House electoral reform bill would raise that threshold to at least one-third of the members of both the House and the Senate, while the Senate version would raise that threshold to at least one-fifth of the members of both the House and the Senate. Schumer had withheld his support because he preferred Democrats’ sweeping voting bill that also addressed access to the polls. But after that bill failed in the Senate due to a lack of Republican support earlier this year, the bipartisan working group forged ahead on a narrower bill that would implement guardrails and clarifications regarding how presidential electors are appointed, submitted and approved. Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Rules panel who had worked on his own electoral bill, said Monday that it was “critical” they pass legislation as soon as possible. “This isn’t comprehensive voting rights reforms but it is important because of the danger that we experienced on Jan. 6,” King told The Washington Post. “It’s critical we do this before next year when we are in the throes of the presidential election.” Unlike the Senate bill, the House bill saw little support from GOP lawmakers. Only nine Republicans broke ranks and joined Democrats in supporting the measure, and none of those nine will be members of Congress next year — either because they lost their primaries or chose to retire. Several of the House Republicans who opposed the bill, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), criticized it as unconstitutional. On Tuesday, McConnell called the House bill a “non-starter” because of its lack of support from GOP lawmakers. “It’s clear that only a bipartisan compromise originating in the Senate can actually become law,” he said. “One party going it alone would be a non-starter. In my view, the House bill is a non-starter. We have one shot to get this right.” The Biden administration issued a statement last week in support of the House bill, calling it another step in “critically needed reform of the 135-year-old Electoral Count Act.” “Americans deserve greater clarity in the process by which their votes will result in the election of a President and Vice President,” the Office of Management and Budget said. “As [the Presidential Election Reform Act] proceeds through the legislative process, the Administration looks forward to working with the Congress to ensure lasting reform consistent with Congress’ constitutional authority to protect voting rights, tally electoral votes, and strengthen our democracy.” Leigh Ann Caldwell contributed to this report. Read More Here

US Forecast https://digitalalaskanews.com/us-forecast-93/ City/Town, State;Yesterday’s High Temp (F);Yesterday’s Low Temp (F);Today’s High Temp (F);Today’s Low Temp (F);Weather Condition;Wind Direction;Wind Speed (MPH);Humidity (%);Chance of Precip. (%);UV Index Albany, NY;66;48;64;47;A shower in spots;NW;6;68%;60%;2 Albuquerque, NM;82;58;82;56;Mostly sunny;S;8;36%;0%;6 Anchorage, AK;52;41;51;43;A touch of rain;NE;7;70%;99%;1 Asheville, NC;67;40;65;41;Partly sunny;NNW;9;47%;3%;6 Atlanta, GA;75;49;75;51;Clouds and sun, nice;NE;8;36%;0%;6 Atlantic City, NJ;75;52;70;53;Some sun, pleasant;NNW;9;52%;12%;5 Austin, TX;91;59;91;59;Plenty of sunshine;SSE;5;30%;2%;7 Baltimore, MD;73;52;70;53;Clouds and sun;NNW;8;48%;6%;4 Baton Rouge, LA;85;57;83;52;Sunny and nice;NNE;9;43%;3%;7 Billings, MT;85;55;90;58;Very warm;SSW;9;29%;4%;4 Birmingham, AL;77;51;75;50;Sunny and nice;NNE;10;35%;0%;6 Bismarck, ND;68;42;77;50;Partly sunny, breezy;SE;14;45%;2%;4 Boise, ID;93;63;90;56;Partly sunny, warm;ESE;8;21%;3%;4 Boston, MA;73;55;72;53;Some sun;NW;9;50%;30%;4 Bridgeport, CT;71;51;70;50;Clouds and sun;NNW;8;53%;7%;4 Buffalo, NY;62;51;57;45;A morning shower;NNW;9;79%;62%;1 Burlington, VT;60;52;60;47;A shower or two;NW;7;79%;78%;2 Caribou, ME;66;48;61;44;A shower or two;WNW;7;74%;83%;1 Casper, WY;82;46;84;51;Breezy in the a.m.;SW;13;24%;5%;5 Charleston, SC;83;59;74;59;Not as warm;NNE;10;43%;27%;5 Charleston, WV;66;43;63;45;Partly sunny, cool;N;5;68%;4%;5 Charlotte, NC;78;47;71;49;Partly sunny;NNE;8;39%;0%;5 Cheyenne, WY;75;48;79;52;Partly sunny, warm;SSW;10;31%;3%;5 Chicago, IL;59;47;58;49;A cool breeze;NNE;15;64%;4%;2 Cleveland, OH;59;53;59;52;A couple of showers;NNE;13;70%;85%;1 Columbia, SC;83;52;75;53;Partly sunny, nice;NNE;7;34%;2%;6 Columbus, OH;61;44;62;46;Clouds and sun, cool;N;8;63%;25%;2 Concord, NH;72;46;67;46;Clouds and sun;NW;8;64%;36%;3 Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX;89;64;90;63;Plenty of sunshine;SE;9;32%;2%;6 Denver, CO;78;52;84;57;Partly sunny;S;5;32%;4%;5 Des Moines, IA;69;39;64;41;Plenty of sunshine;SE;7;47%;4%;4 Detroit, MI;63;48;60;45;Clouds and sunshine;N;10;68%;27%;2 Dodge City, KS;86;49;78;51;Partly sunny;ESE;13;36%;55%;5 Duluth, MN;54;35;57;42;Mostly sunny;SSW;6;65%;1%;4 El Paso, TX;86;61;86;59;Mostly sunny;ESE;9;28%;0%;7 Fairbanks, AK;45;31;53;33;Partly sunny;NE;7;62%;11%;1 Fargo, ND;60;35;66;49;Partly sunny, breezy;SSE;14;40%;17%;4 Grand Junction, CO;83;57;81;56;A stray t-shower;SE;9;33%;43%;5 Grand Rapids, MI;56;45;58;39;Rather cloudy, cool;N;9;73%;27%;1 Hartford, CT;73;50;71;50;Some sun;NW;7;56%;8%;4 Helena, MT;83;46;86;52;Very warm;SSE;5;34%;10%;4 Honolulu, HI;88;75;88;75;A morning shower;NE;12;56%;44%;9 Houston, TX;89;62;88;63;Plenty of sunshine;ENE;7;39%;4%;7 Indianapolis, IN;65;45;65;45;Partly sunny;NE;8;59%;2%;2 Jackson, MS;81;54;80;50;Sunny and nice;NNE;9;40%;3%;6 Jacksonville, FL;85;70;77;70;Rain and wind;NE;14;71%;100%;2 Juneau, AK;54;43;54;52;Rain and drizzle;ESE;9;87%;99%;1 Kansas City, MO;81;47;71;46;Sunny, not as warm;E;8;38%;6%;5 Knoxville, TN;72;43;69;45;Sunny and pleasant;NNE;7;49%;2%;5 Las Vegas, NV;96;73;96;73;Partly sunny;NNE;7;31%;8%;5 Lexington, KY;67;40;65;45;Partly sunny, cool;NNE;8;59%;3%;4 Little Rock, AR;84;53;80;48;Sunny and pleasant;NE;9;42%;3%;6 Long Beach, CA;89;68;88;66;Mostly sunny, warm;S;7;56%;0%;6 Los Angeles, CA;91;68;96;66;Sunny and hot;SSE;7;48%;0%;6 Louisville, KY;70;42;67;46;Partly sunny;NNE;7;55%;1%;4 Madison, WI;56;36;58;36;Sunny and breezy;ESE;15;60%;2%;4 Memphis, TN;80;55;76;50;Sunny and pleasant;NE;11;35%;1%;5 Miami, FL;81;79;86;79;Some wind and rain;SSW;23;80%;99%;2 Milwaukee, WI;58;44;56;43;Breezy;NNE;15;66%;5%;3 Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN;59;38;62;43;Partly sunny;SSE;7;44%;2%;4 Mobile, AL;83;58;83;54;Sunny, breezy, nice;N;14;34%;1%;7 Montgomery, AL;80;53;78;51;Mostly sunny;NNE;9;36%;0%;6 Mt. Washington, NH;41;32;39;30;Windy with a shower;NW;28;97%;85%;1 Nashville, TN;76;44;70;47;Sunny and pleasant;NNE;9;42%;0%;5 New Orleans, LA;83;66;82;61;Sunny, breezy, nice;NNE;15;40%;2%;7 New York, NY;70;55;70;53;Clouds and sun;NNW;9;45%;6%;5 Newark, NJ;71;51;70;51;Partly sunny;NNW;8;50%;8%;4 Norfolk, VA;80;56;70;59;Not as warm;N;9;45%;15%;5 Oklahoma City, OK;90;60;88;58;Plenty of sun;SE;10;36%;3%;5 Olympia, WA;75;52;66;55;A shower or two;SSE;6;80%;91%;1 Omaha, NE;78;40;68;44;Sunny, not as warm;SE;8;42%;3%;5 Orlando, FL;84;74;79;75;Rain and wind;E;17;92%;100%;2 Philadelphia, PA;73;54;70;54;Partly sunny;NNW;9;47%;10%;5 Phoenix, AZ;102;82;101;79;Clouds and sun, warm;ESE;8;25%;16%;5 Pittsburgh, PA;62;46;61;47;A passing shower;NNW;7;70%;81%;1 Portland, ME;71;51;67;49;Some sun;NW;7;65%;31%;4 Portland, OR;79;56;69;58;A shower or two;S;7;71%;88%;1 Providence, RI;74;50;71;49;Partly sunny;NW;7;54%;8%;4 Raleigh, NC;79;48;72;50;High clouds and nice;NNE;7;42%;3%;5 Reno, NV;88;53;84;49;Breezy in the p.m.;W;12;23%;0%;5 Richmond, VA;75;47;71;51;Some sun;NNW;7;48%;10%;5 Roswell, NM;88;56;87;55;Plenty of sun;SSW;8;35%;3%;6 Sacramento, CA;84;56;84;58;Sunshine;S;7;49%;3%;5 Salt Lake City, UT;87;62;85;60;A stray t-shower;SSE;15;32%;64%;5 San Antonio, TX;91;59;91;60;Plenty of sunshine;SSE;8;32%;3%;7 San Diego, CA;82;67;81;68;Partly sunny, humid;SW;7;73%;0%;6 San Francisco, CA;68;58;71;58;Clouds, then sun;W;13;67%;3%;5 Savannah, GA;83;61;75;60;Breezy and cooler;NNE;14;47%;56%;6 Seattle-Tacoma, WA;75;56;67;56;A shower or two;SSW;7;74%;86%;1 Sioux Falls, SD;72;35;67;46;Mostly sunny;SSE;9;39%;0%;4 Spokane, WA;90;53;82;55;Periods of sun, warm;SW;7;38%;26%;4 Springfield, IL;69;37;65;42;Mostly sunny, cool;ENE;6;55%;1%;5 St. Louis, MO;73;42;67;44;Sunny, but cool;NE;7;48%;2%;5 Tampa, FL;84;73;80;73;Rain and wind;ENE;39;91%;100%;1 Toledo, OH;60;46;60;44;Mostly cloudy, cool;N;8;70%;26%;1 Tucson, AZ;96;72;95;68;Partly sunny;E;10;32%;26%;6 Tulsa, OK;89;56;86;54;Sunshine;E;8;40%;5%;5 Vero Beach, FL;79;76;85;79;Rain and wind;SSE;21;85%;99%;2 Washington, DC;73;51;70;52;Clouds and sunshine;NNW;8;49%;4%;4 Wichita, KS;88;55;80;52;Mostly sunny, breezy;E;15;38%;3%;5 Wilmington, DE;72;50;70;51;Partly sunny;NNW;9;52%;8%;5 _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather Read More Here

US Forecast https://digitalalaskanews.com/us-forecast-92/ City/Town, State;Yesterday’s High Temp (F);Yesterday’s Low Temp (F);Today’s High Temp (F);Today’s Low Temp (F);Weather Condition;Wind Direction;Wind Speed (MPH);Humidity (%);Chance of Precip. (%);UV Index Albany, NY;66;48;64;47;A shower in spots;NW;6;68%;60%;2 Albuquerque, NM;82;58;82;56;Mostly sunny;S;8;36%;0%;6 Anchorage, AK;52;41;51;43;A touch of rain;NE;7;70%;99%;1 Asheville, NC;67;40;65;41;Partly sunny;NNW;9;47%;3%;6 Atlanta, GA;75;49;75;51;Clouds and sun, nice;NE;8;36%;0%;6 Atlantic City, NJ;75;52;70;53;Some sun, pleasant;NNW;9;52%;12%;5 Austin, TX;91;59;91;59;Plenty of sunshine;SSE;5;30%;2%;7 Baltimore, MD;73;52;70;53;Clouds and sun;NNW;8;48%;6%;4 Baton Rouge, LA;85;57;83;52;Sunny and nice;NNE;9;43%;3%;7 Billings, MT;85;55;90;58;Very warm;SSW;9;29%;4%;4 Birmingham, AL;77;51;75;50;Sunny and nice;NNE;10;35%;0%;6 Bismarck, ND;68;42;77;50;Partly sunny, breezy;SE;14;45%;2%;4 Boise, ID;93;63;90;56;Partly sunny, warm;ESE;8;21%;3%;4 Boston, MA;73;55;72;53;Some sun;NW;9;50%;30%;4 Bridgeport, CT;71;51;70;50;Clouds and sun;NNW;8;53%;7%;4 Buffalo, NY;62;51;57;45;A morning shower;NNW;9;79%;62%;1 Burlington, VT;60;52;60;47;A shower or two;NW;7;79%;78%;2 Caribou, ME;66;48;61;44;A shower or two;WNW;7;74%;83%;1 Casper, WY;82;46;84;51;Breezy in the a.m.;SW;13;24%;5%;5 Charleston, SC;83;59;74;59;Not as warm;NNE;10;43%;27%;5 Charleston, WV;66;43;63;45;Partly sunny, cool;N;5;68%;4%;5 Charlotte, NC;78;47;71;49;Partly sunny;NNE;8;39%;0%;5 Cheyenne, WY;75;48;79;52;Partly sunny, warm;SSW;10;31%;3%;5 Chicago, IL;59;47;58;49;A cool breeze;NNE;15;64%;4%;2 Cleveland, OH;59;53;59;52;A couple of showers;NNE;13;70%;85%;1 Columbia, SC;83;52;75;53;Partly sunny, nice;NNE;7;34%;2%;6 Columbus, OH;61;44;62;46;Clouds and sun, cool;N;8;63%;25%;2 Concord, NH;72;46;67;46;Clouds and sun;NW;8;64%;36%;3 Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX;89;64;90;63;Plenty of sunshine;SE;9;32%;2%;6 Denver, CO;78;52;84;57;Partly sunny;S;5;32%;4%;5 Des Moines, IA;69;39;64;41;Plenty of sunshine;SE;7;47%;4%;4 Detroit, MI;63;48;60;45;Clouds and sunshine;N;10;68%;27%;2 Dodge City, KS;86;49;78;51;Partly sunny;ESE;13;36%;55%;5 Duluth, MN;54;35;57;42;Mostly sunny;SSW;6;65%;1%;4 El Paso, TX;86;61;86;59;Mostly sunny;ESE;9;28%;0%;7 Fairbanks, AK;45;31;53;33;Partly sunny;NE;7;62%;11%;1 Fargo, ND;60;35;66;49;Partly sunny, breezy;SSE;14;40%;17%;4 Grand Junction, CO;83;57;81;56;A stray t-shower;SE;9;33%;43%;5 Grand Rapids, MI;56;45;58;39;Rather cloudy, cool;N;9;73%;27%;1 Hartford, CT;73;50;71;50;Some sun;NW;7;56%;8%;4 Helena, MT;83;46;86;52;Very warm;SSE;5;34%;10%;4 Honolulu, HI;88;75;88;75;A morning shower;NE;12;56%;44%;9 Houston, TX;89;62;88;63;Plenty of sunshine;ENE;7;39%;4%;7 Indianapolis, IN;65;45;65;45;Partly sunny;NE;8;59%;2%;2 Jackson, MS;81;54;80;50;Sunny and nice;NNE;9;40%;3%;6 Jacksonville, FL;85;70;77;70;Rain and wind;NE;14;71%;100%;2 Juneau, AK;54;43;54;52;Rain and drizzle;ESE;9;87%;99%;1 Kansas City, MO;81;47;71;46;Sunny, not as warm;E;8;38%;6%;5 Knoxville, TN;72;43;69;45;Sunny and pleasant;NNE;7;49%;2%;5 Las Vegas, NV;96;73;96;73;Partly sunny;NNE;7;31%;8%;5 Lexington, KY;67;40;65;45;Partly sunny, cool;NNE;8;59%;3%;4 Little Rock, AR;84;53;80;48;Sunny and pleasant;NE;9;42%;3%;6 Long Beach, CA;89;68;88;66;Mostly sunny, warm;S;7;56%;0%;6 Los Angeles, CA;91;68;96;66;Sunny and hot;SSE;7;48%;0%;6 Louisville, KY;70;42;67;46;Partly sunny;NNE;7;55%;1%;4 Madison, WI;56;36;58;36;Sunny and breezy;ESE;15;60%;2%;4 Memphis, TN;80;55;76;50;Sunny and pleasant;NE;11;35%;1%;5 Miami, FL;81;79;86;79;Some wind and rain;SSW;23;80%;99%;2 Milwaukee, WI;58;44;56;43;Breezy;NNE;15;66%;5%;3 Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN;59;38;62;43;Partly sunny;SSE;7;44%;2%;4 Mobile, AL;83;58;83;54;Sunny, breezy, nice;N;14;34%;1%;7 Montgomery, AL;80;53;78;51;Mostly sunny;NNE;9;36%;0%;6 Mt. Washington, NH;41;32;39;30;Windy with a shower;NW;28;97%;85%;1 Nashville, TN;76;44;70;47;Sunny and pleasant;NNE;9;42%;0%;5 New Orleans, LA;83;66;82;61;Sunny, breezy, nice;NNE;15;40%;2%;7 New York, NY;70;55;70;53;Clouds and sun;NNW;9;45%;6%;5 Newark, NJ;71;51;70;51;Partly sunny;NNW;8;50%;8%;4 Norfolk, VA;80;56;70;59;Not as warm;N;9;45%;15%;5 Oklahoma City, OK;90;60;88;58;Plenty of sun;SE;10;36%;3%;5 Olympia, WA;75;52;66;55;A shower or two;SSE;6;80%;91%;1 Omaha, NE;78;40;68;44;Sunny, not as warm;SE;8;42%;3%;5 Orlando, FL;84;74;79;75;Rain and wind;E;17;92%;100%;2 Philadelphia, PA;73;54;70;54;Partly sunny;NNW;9;47%;10%;5 Phoenix, AZ;102;82;101;79;Clouds and sun, warm;ESE;8;25%;16%;5 Pittsburgh, PA;62;46;61;47;A passing shower;NNW;7;70%;81%;1 Portland, ME;71;51;67;49;Some sun;NW;7;65%;31%;4 Portland, OR;79;56;69;58;A shower or two;S;7;71%;88%;1 Providence, RI;74;50;71;49;Partly sunny;NW;7;54%;8%;4 Raleigh, NC;79;48;72;50;High clouds and nice;NNE;7;42%;3%;5 Reno, NV;88;53;84;49;Breezy in the p.m.;W;12;23%;0%;5 Richmond, VA;75;47;71;51;Some sun;NNW;7;48%;10%;5 Roswell, NM;88;56;87;55;Plenty of sun;SSW;8;35%;3%;6 Sacramento, CA;84;56;84;58;Sunshine;S;7;49%;3%;5 Salt Lake City, UT;87;62;85;60;A stray t-shower;SSE;15;32%;64%;5 San Antonio, TX;91;59;91;60;Plenty of sunshine;SSE;8;32%;3%;7 San Diego, CA;82;67;81;68;Partly sunny, humid;SW;7;73%;0%;6 San Francisco, CA;68;58;71;58;Clouds, then sun;W;13;67%;3%;5 Savannah, GA;83;61;75;60;Breezy and cooler;NNE;14;47%;56%;6 Seattle-Tacoma, WA;75;56;67;56;A shower or two;SSW;7;74%;86%;1 Sioux Falls, SD;72;35;67;46;Mostly sunny;SSE;9;39%;0%;4 Spokane, WA;90;53;82;55;Periods of sun, warm;SW;7;38%;26%;4 Springfield, IL;69;37;65;42;Mostly sunny, cool;ENE;6;55%;1%;5 St. Louis, MO;73;42;67;44;Sunny, but cool;NE;7;48%;2%;5 Tampa, FL;84;73;80;73;Rain and wind;ENE;39;91%;100%;1 Toledo, OH;60;46;60;44;Mostly cloudy, cool;N;8;70%;26%;1 Tucson, AZ;96;72;95;68;Partly sunny;E;10;32%;26%;6 Tulsa, OK;89;56;86;54;Sunshine;E;8;40%;5%;5 Vero Beach, FL;79;76;85;79;Rain and wind;SSE;21;85%;99%;2 Washington, DC;73;51;70;52;Clouds and sunshine;NNW;8;49%;4%;4 Wichita, KS;88;55;80;52;Mostly sunny, breezy;E;15;38%;3%;5 Wilmington, DE;72;50;70;51;Partly sunny;NNW;9;52%;8%;5 _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather Read More Here

US Forecast https://digitalalaskanews.com/us-forecast-91/ City/Town, State;Yesterday’s High Temp (F);Yesterday’s Low Temp (F);Today’s High Temp (F);Today’s Low Temp (F);Weather Condition;Wind Direction;Wind Speed (MPH);Humidity (%);Chance of Precip. (%);UV Index Albany, NY;66;48;64;47;A shower in spots;NW;6;68%;60%;2 Albuquerque, NM;82;58;82;56;Mostly sunny;S;8;36%;0%;6 Anchorage, AK;52;41;51;43;A touch of rain;NE;7;70%;99%;1 Asheville, NC;67;40;65;41;Partly sunny;NNW;9;47%;3%;6 Atlanta, GA;75;49;75;51;Clouds and sun, nice;NE;8;36%;0%;6 Atlantic City, NJ;75;52;70;53;Some sun, pleasant;NNW;9;52%;12%;5 Austin, TX;91;59;91;59;Plenty of sunshine;SSE;5;30%;2%;7 Baltimore, MD;73;52;70;53;Clouds and sun;NNW;8;48%;6%;4 Baton Rouge, LA;85;57;83;52;Sunny and nice;NNE;9;43%;3%;7 Billings, MT;85;55;90;58;Very warm;SSW;9;29%;4%;4 Birmingham, AL;77;51;75;50;Sunny and nice;NNE;10;35%;0%;6 Bismarck, ND;68;42;77;50;Partly sunny, breezy;SE;14;45%;2%;4 Boise, ID;93;63;90;56;Partly sunny, warm;ESE;8;21%;3%;4 Boston, MA;73;55;72;53;Some sun;NW;9;50%;30%;4 Bridgeport, CT;71;51;70;50;Clouds and sun;NNW;8;53%;7%;4 Buffalo, NY;62;51;57;45;A morning shower;NNW;9;79%;62%;1 Burlington, VT;60;52;60;47;A shower or two;NW;7;79%;78%;2 Caribou, ME;66;48;61;44;A shower or two;WNW;7;74%;83%;1 Casper, WY;82;46;84;51;Breezy in the a.m.;SW;13;24%;5%;5 Charleston, SC;83;59;74;59;Not as warm;NNE;10;43%;27%;5 Charleston, WV;66;43;63;45;Partly sunny, cool;N;5;68%;4%;5 Charlotte, NC;78;47;71;49;Partly sunny;NNE;8;39%;0%;5 Cheyenne, WY;75;48;79;52;Partly sunny, warm;SSW;10;31%;3%;5 Chicago, IL;59;47;58;49;A cool breeze;NNE;15;64%;4%;2 Cleveland, OH;59;53;59;52;A couple of showers;NNE;13;70%;85%;1 Columbia, SC;83;52;75;53;Partly sunny, nice;NNE;7;34%;2%;6 Columbus, OH;61;44;62;46;Clouds and sun, cool;N;8;63%;25%;2 Concord, NH;72;46;67;46;Clouds and sun;NW;8;64%;36%;3 Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX;89;64;90;63;Plenty of sunshine;SE;9;32%;2%;6 Denver, CO;78;52;84;57;Partly sunny;S;5;32%;4%;5 Des Moines, IA;69;39;64;41;Plenty of sunshine;SE;7;47%;4%;4 Detroit, MI;63;48;60;45;Clouds and sunshine;N;10;68%;27%;2 Dodge City, KS;86;49;78;51;Partly sunny;ESE;13;36%;55%;5 Duluth, MN;54;35;57;42;Mostly sunny;SSW;6;65%;1%;4 El Paso, TX;86;61;86;59;Mostly sunny;ESE;9;28%;0%;7 Fairbanks, AK;45;31;53;33;Partly sunny;NE;7;62%;11%;1 Fargo, ND;60;35;66;49;Partly sunny, breezy;SSE;14;40%;17%;4 Grand Junction, CO;83;57;81;56;A stray t-shower;SE;9;33%;43%;5 Grand Rapids, MI;56;45;58;39;Rather cloudy, cool;N;9;73%;27%;1 Hartford, CT;73;50;71;50;Some sun;NW;7;56%;8%;4 Helena, MT;83;46;86;52;Very warm;SSE;5;34%;10%;4 Honolulu, HI;88;75;88;75;A morning shower;NE;12;56%;44%;9 Houston, TX;89;62;88;63;Plenty of sunshine;ENE;7;39%;4%;7 Indianapolis, IN;65;45;65;45;Partly sunny;NE;8;59%;2%;2 Jackson, MS;81;54;80;50;Sunny and nice;NNE;9;40%;3%;6 Jacksonville, FL;85;70;77;70;Rain and wind;NE;14;71%;100%;2 Juneau, AK;54;43;54;52;Rain and drizzle;ESE;9;87%;99%;1 Kansas City, MO;81;47;71;46;Sunny, not as warm;E;8;38%;6%;5 Knoxville, TN;72;43;69;45;Sunny and pleasant;NNE;7;49%;2%;5 Las Vegas, NV;96;73;96;73;Partly sunny;NNE;7;31%;8%;5 Lexington, KY;67;40;65;45;Partly sunny, cool;NNE;8;59%;3%;4 Little Rock, AR;84;53;80;48;Sunny and pleasant;NE;9;42%;3%;6 Long Beach, CA;89;68;88;66;Mostly sunny, warm;S;7;56%;0%;6 Los Angeles, CA;91;68;96;66;Sunny and hot;SSE;7;48%;0%;6 Louisville, KY;70;42;67;46;Partly sunny;NNE;7;55%;1%;4 Madison, WI;56;36;58;36;Sunny and breezy;ESE;15;60%;2%;4 Memphis, TN;80;55;76;50;Sunny and pleasant;NE;11;35%;1%;5 Miami, FL;81;79;86;79;Some wind and rain;SSW;23;80%;99%;2 Milwaukee, WI;58;44;56;43;Breezy;NNE;15;66%;5%;3 Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN;59;38;62;43;Partly sunny;SSE;7;44%;2%;4 Mobile, AL;83;58;83;54;Sunny, breezy, nice;N;14;34%;1%;7 Montgomery, AL;80;53;78;51;Mostly sunny;NNE;9;36%;0%;6 Mt. Washington, NH;41;32;39;30;Windy with a shower;NW;28;97%;85%;1 Nashville, TN;76;44;70;47;Sunny and pleasant;NNE;9;42%;0%;5 New Orleans, LA;83;66;82;61;Sunny, breezy, nice;NNE;15;40%;2%;7 New York, NY;70;55;70;53;Clouds and sun;NNW;9;45%;6%;5 Newark, NJ;71;51;70;51;Partly sunny;NNW;8;50%;8%;4 Norfolk, VA;80;56;70;59;Not as warm;N;9;45%;15%;5 Oklahoma City, OK;90;60;88;58;Plenty of sun;SE;10;36%;3%;5 Olympia, WA;75;52;66;55;A shower or two;SSE;6;80%;91%;1 Omaha, NE;78;40;68;44;Sunny, not as warm;SE;8;42%;3%;5 Orlando, FL;84;74;79;75;Rain and wind;E;17;92%;100%;2 Philadelphia, PA;73;54;70;54;Partly sunny;NNW;9;47%;10%;5 Phoenix, AZ;102;82;101;79;Clouds and sun, warm;ESE;8;25%;16%;5 Pittsburgh, PA;62;46;61;47;A passing shower;NNW;7;70%;81%;1 Portland, ME;71;51;67;49;Some sun;NW;7;65%;31%;4 Portland, OR;79;56;69;58;A shower or two;S;7;71%;88%;1 Providence, RI;74;50;71;49;Partly sunny;NW;7;54%;8%;4 Raleigh, NC;79;48;72;50;High clouds and nice;NNE;7;42%;3%;5 Reno, NV;88;53;84;49;Breezy in the p.m.;W;12;23%;0%;5 Richmond, VA;75;47;71;51;Some sun;NNW;7;48%;10%;5 Roswell, NM;88;56;87;55;Plenty of sun;SSW;8;35%;3%;6 Sacramento, CA;84;56;84;58;Sunshine;S;7;49%;3%;5 Salt Lake City, UT;87;62;85;60;A stray t-shower;SSE;15;32%;64%;5 San Antonio, TX;91;59;91;60;Plenty of sunshine;SSE;8;32%;3%;7 San Diego, CA;82;67;81;68;Partly sunny, humid;SW;7;73%;0%;6 San Francisco, CA;68;58;71;58;Clouds, then sun;W;13;67%;3%;5 Savannah, GA;83;61;75;60;Breezy and cooler;NNE;14;47%;56%;6 Seattle-Tacoma, WA;75;56;67;56;A shower or two;SSW;7;74%;86%;1 Sioux Falls, SD;72;35;67;46;Mostly sunny;SSE;9;39%;0%;4 Spokane, WA;90;53;82;55;Periods of sun, warm;SW;7;38%;26%;4 Springfield, IL;69;37;65;42;Mostly sunny, cool;ENE;6;55%;1%;5 St. Louis, MO;73;42;67;44;Sunny, but cool;NE;7;48%;2%;5 Tampa, FL;84;73;80;73;Rain and wind;ENE;39;91%;100%;1 Toledo, OH;60;46;60;44;Mostly cloudy, cool;N;8;70%;26%;1 Tucson, AZ;96;72;95;68;Partly sunny;E;10;32%;26%;6 Tulsa, OK;89;56;86;54;Sunshine;E;8;40%;5%;5 Vero Beach, FL;79;76;85;79;Rain and wind;SSE;21;85%;99%;2 Washington, DC;73;51;70;52;Clouds and sunshine;NNW;8;49%;4%;4 Wichita, KS;88;55;80;52;Mostly sunny, breezy;E;15;38%;3%;5 Wilmington, DE;72;50;70;51;Partly sunny;NNW;9;52%;8%;5 _____ Copyright 2022 AccuWeather Read More Here

Jan. 6 Panel Delays Hearing As Hurricane Ian Aims At Florida https://digitalalaskanews.com/jan-6-panel-delays-hearing-as-hurricane-ian-aims-at-florida/ WASHINGTON (AP) — The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol announced Tuesday that it had postponed a hearing scheduled for Wednesday as a hurricane hurtled toward the Florida coast. The committee had planned to hold what was likely to be its final investigative hearing Wednesday afternoon, but members decided at the last minute to delay it as it became clear that Hurricane Ian was churning on a collision course toward Florida, where it was expected to strengthen into a catastrophic Category 4 storm. “We’re praying for the safety of all those in the storm’s path,” committee chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and vice chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., said in a statement Tuesday afternoon. “The Select Committee’s investigation goes forward and we will soon announce a date for the postponed proceedings.” The committee had not yet provided a specific agenda for the Wednesday hearing, but Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said over the weekend it would “tell the story about a key element of Donald Trump’s plot to overturn the election.” This week’s hearing was intended to close the series of public hearings the nine-member panel embarked on in early June. Throughout eight hearings, the committee — comprised of seven Democrats and two Republicans — sought to show the American public in great detail how former President Trump ignored many of his closest advisers and amplified his false claims of election fraud after he lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden. Some of the more than 1,000 witnesses interviewed by the panel — a number of them Trump’s closest allies — recounted in videotaped testimony how the former president declined to act when hundreds of his supporters violently attacked the Capitol as Congress certified Biden’s victory on Jan. 6, 2021. But the committee has said its work isn’t done. During the August recess, congressional investigators continued to interview witnesses, including several of Trump’s cabinet members, some of whom had discussed invoking the constitutional process in the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office after the insurrection. Cheney had previously said the committee “has far more evidence to share with the American people and more to gather.” There are also many questions surrounding the effort to overturn the election that remain unanswered as the committee goes into its final three months of work. The committee wants to get to the bottom of missing Secret Service texts from Jan. 5-6, 2021, which could shed further light on Trump’s actions during the insurrection, particularly after earlier testimony about his confrontation with security as he tried to join supporters at the Capitol. Thompson said earlier this month that the committee has recently obtained “thousands” of documents from the Secret Service. The committee has also secured an interview with conservative activist Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, who’s married to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Lawmakers want to know more about her role in trying to help Trump overturn the election. She contacted lawmakers in Arizona and Wisconsin as part of that effort. The committee is expected to turn over a comprehensive report by the end of the year that will include legislative reforms to help prevent a future attempt to subvert democracy. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Read More Here

Trump May Get Government Stand-In For Suit On Rape Allegations https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-may-get-government-stand-in-for-suit-on-rape-allegations/ One judge on the panel dissented, maintaining that such relief is meant for “low-level, rank-and-file government employees,” not the president of the United States. MANHATTAN (CN) — Punting the final decision to an appeals court in Washington, the Second Circuit left the door open Tuesday for the U.S. government to take the place of former President Donald Trump in litigation brought by a woman who says Trump raped her.  E. Jean Carroll, who used to be a columnist at Elle magazine, first went public with her allegations while Trump was still in office. She wrote a book alleging that Trump raped her in a dressing room at Bergdorf Goodman in the 1990s, then filed suit in fall 2019 after Trump denied having ever met Carroll and depicted her accusations as part of a political conspiracy.  “I’ll say it with great respect: Number one, she’s not my type,” Trump had said that summer. “Number two, it never happened. It never happened.”   Despite there being photographs that show Carroll and Trump together, Trump argues that he had no choice but to respond publicly to the allegations. Because he claims to have done so in his official capacity, moreover, Trump says the 1988 Westfall Act, which falls under the Federal Tort Claims Act, allows the federal government to replace him as the defendant.  The Second Circuit in turn considered two questions: whether the act applies to the position of president, and whether Trump was in fact on the job when he made the comments about Carroll. Reversing a district court ruling on the first issue, the Second Circuit decided 2-1 Tuesday that a U.S. president is indeed a government employee as defined by Westfall.  “For, as Trump points out in his brief, the President is a government employee in the most basic sense of the term: He renders service to his employer, the United States government, in exchange for a salary and other job-related benefits,” U.S. Circuit Judge Guido Calabresi wrote in the 57-page majority opinion.  U.S. Circuit Judge Denny Chin dissented.  “The hallmark of whether someone is an employee is the extent to which another controls him,” wrote Chin, an Obama appointee. “Congress surely did not have the President in mind when it passed the Westfall Act, a statute intended to protect low-level, rank-and-file government employees and not the chief executive of the country who was already absolutely immune from damages for official acts.” The Second Circuit panel says that the second question, whether Trump’s comments were part of a presidential act, is up to the D.C. Court of Appeals.  Should that court determine that Trump is in this case protected by Westfall, Carroll’s defamation suit cannot go forward since the U.S. government has absolute immunity from defamation lawsuits.  “The [Federal Tort Claims Act], expressly, does not waive the sovereign immunity of the United States for the tort of defamation,” the Second Circuit opinion states. “So substituting the United States in place of Trump means the failure of Carroll’s defamation lawsuit.”  As the judges acknowledged during oral arguments last December, the decision will impact the U.S. government’s ability to stand in as a defendant for future U.S. presidents. Getting to the case’s significance, Calabresi, a Clinton appointee, tacked on his own concurring opinion. He hailed the case as important because courts have not previously weighed in on when a government employee is on the job, and doing so opens the door to inconsistent meanings — perhaps as a means to hold someone liable.  “The same term ‘scope of employment’ would be given different, inconsistent meanings, solely because of the different liability result of applying a consistent meaning. And that is certainly troublesome,” Calabresi wrote. “But courts may nonetheless be tempted to do this, if the reason their jurisdiction had broadened the meaning of scope of employment was, in part, to achieve a liability-placing result.” Citing his 70 years as a torts scholar, Calabresi noted that the “ultimate decision will affect ordinary people, parties who are neither presidents nor controversial.”  U.S. Circuit Judge William Nardini, appointed by Trump himself, completed the panel.  Trump attorney Alina Habba pointed to the precedent set by Tuesday’s ruling in celebrating the opinion.  “This decision will protect the ability of all future Presidents to effectively govern without hindrance,” Habba said in a statement. “We are confident that the D.C. Court of Appeals will find that our client was acting within the scope of his employment when properly repudiating Ms. Carroll’s allegations.”  A representative for Carroll did not immediately respond to a request for comment.  In addition to the lawsuit, Carroll plans to file a claim against Trump under the Adult Survivor’s Act, as soon as the law goes into effect on November 24. The two suits overlap enough that Carroll’s team wants them to be taken together when the already-pending lawsuit goes to trial next year. Read the Top 8 Sign up for the Top 8, a roundup of the day’s top stories delivered directly to your inbox Monday through Friday. Read More Here

Mitch McConnell Gives Big Boost To Electoral Bill In Response To January 6 Attack – Local News 8 https://digitalalaskanews.com/mitch-mcconnell-gives-big-boost-to-electoral-bill-in-response-to-january-6-attack-local-news-8/ By Alex Rogers and Manu Raju, CNN Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced Tuesday he would support legislation that would make it harder to overturn a certified presidential election, an endorsement that will bolster its chances for passage in his chamber and puts him at sharp odds with former President Donald Trump, who has called on GOP senators to sink the plan. McConnell said the “chaos” of the pro-Trump attack on the Capitol last year “certainly underscored the need for an update.” “I strongly support the modest changes that our colleagues in the working group have fleshed out after literally months of detailed discussions,” McConnell said. “I’ll proudly support the legislation, provided that nothing more than technical changes are made to its current form.” “Congress’ process for counting the presidential electors’ votes was written 135 years ago. The chaos that came to a head on January 6th of last year certainly underscored the need for an update,” added McConnell. “So did Januaries 2001, 2005 and 2017. In each of which, Democrats tried to challenge the lawful election of a Republican president.” Last week, House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy and the vast majority of House Republicans opposed their chamber’s version of the bill that would amend the Electoral Count Act of 1887. While the House bill has a number of similarities with the Senate’s version, including ensuring the vice president only has a ministerial role in overseeing a joint session of Congress approving state-certified electoral results, it differs in some of its details. Among the differences: The number of lawmakers who would be required to force the House and Senate to vote to overturn a state’s certified electoral results and the procedures for resolving election disputes in federal courts. Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins and West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin have already lined up 10 Republican co-sponsors for their so-called Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, enough support to surpass a filibuster with 50 Democratic votes. The Senate bill would make a number of changes to the Electoral Count Act, and the Presidential Transition Act of 1963, in an attempt to address ambiguity in electoral law that Trump tried to exploit. It would increase the number of House and Senate members required to raise an objection to election results when a joint session of Congress meets to certify them. One House member and one senator can currently object to electoral votes, sending them to a vote in Congress; If either chamber rejects the objection, the votes are counted. The Senate bill would require the support of one-fifth of each chamber to raise an objection. The House bill would raise the threshold even higher — to one-third of each chamber — to force both chambers to vote on whether to throw out a state’s electoral results. In an effort to respond to Trump allies who tried to send fake electors to Congress, both bills try to make it harder for there to be any confusion over the electors themselves. In the Senate bill, it states that each state’s governor would be responsible for submission of a certificate that identifies electors, eliminating the potential for multiple state officials sending multiple slates of electors. But the bills differ in how lawsuits challenging election results can be taken up in federal court, with the House bill offering new avenues to sue, something some key Senate Republicans oppose. In a clear response to Trump’s efforts to get then-Vice President Mike Pence to reject the electoral results of states that President Joe Biden won, both bills establish the vice president’s role as purely ceremonial. The Senate bill would deny the vice president the power to “solely determine, accept, reject, or otherwise adjudicate or resolve disputes over the proper list of electors, the validity of electors, or the votes of electors.” While constitutional experts say the vice president currently can’t disregard a state-certified electoral result, Trump pushed Pence to obstruct the Electoral College certification in Congress. But Pence refused to do so and, as a result, became a target of the former President and his mob of supporters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The Senate’s bill has been split into two separate proposals, one of which will be voted on by the Senate Rules Committee on Tuesday. The other package will go before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, which has yet to consider the measure. The full Senate is unlikely to act before the November midterms, punting the issue until a lame-duck session of Congress at year’s end. It remains uncertain if both chambers can reconcile their differences or if the House will be forced to simply accept the Senate’s version. Some House Republicans who opposed their chamber’s bill — drafted by California Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren and Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney — objected to how it did not go through the committee process and signaled they could support the Senate’s plan instead. “The resulting product — this bill, as introduced — is the only chance to get an outcome and to actually make law,” said McConnell on Tuesday. “It keeps what’s worked well and modestly updates what has not.” The-CNN-Wire & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. Read More Here

Weekly Review | Harper's Magazine https://digitalalaskanews.com/weekly-review-harpers-magazine/ Russian president Vladimir Putin—whose supporters ran presidential campaign ads that showed a 52-year-old man, played by a popular police sitcom star, being conscripted into the army if Putin wasn’t reelected—announced indefinite extensions of military contracts, increased penalties for desertion, and drafted approximately 300,000 reservists, although it was reported that 1 million people will eventually be conscripted.1 2 3 4 Eligible men fled for the borders, and protesters flooded the streets, resulting in the arrest of more than 1,000, some of whom were then drafted.5 Demonstrations erupted across Iran, as well as parts of Syria and Iraq, following the murder of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died while in custody of Tehran’s Guidance Patrol; Amini had been detained for wearing what authorities had deemed a loose headscarf.6 7 8 Elon Musk, who is currently being sued for sexual harassment by seven former female Tesla employees, persuaded the U.S. government to forgo sanctions if he could successfully install his Starlink satellite internet service in Iran, thereby allowing its citizens to bypass censorship.9 10 In a record-low turnout, Italy elected its first female prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, who uses the fascist-era slogan “God, homeland, family” and who openly praised Benito Mussolini in a television interview.11 12 13 14 The British pound reached an all-time low valuation against the U.S. dollar following the burial of Queen Elizabeth II, who was laid to rest at an estimated cost of $2.6 billion to the country’s economy.15 16 Ceremonies for the deceased monarch, who was immune from traffic laws and police searches for looted cultural artifacts, were broadcast in public parks, cinemas, and the Pleasuredrome Spa in Waterloo, which bills itself as “the only gay venue in the U.K. that never closes.”17 18 19 20 Crematoria, food banks, and public lavatories were shuttered for the funeral, which was attended by royalty from around the world, a woman who led a campaign to save a Mancunian soccer team, the repressive Rwandan president Paul Kagame, and the former Grey’s Anatomy star Sandra Oh.21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Puerto Ricans experienced ongoing blackouts in the wake of Hurricane Fiona, and scientists found that children who are exposed to natural disasters in the womb have a higher risk of depression and anxiety.28 29 “Who knows how many kids have died unnecessarily?” said Lara Trump of investigations into her family’s financial dealings; former president Donald Trump was sued by New York State for an amount of fraud described as “staggering.”30 31 A man who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, under the impression that it was the White House was convicted of all charges.32 “I’m not that smart,” said the Republican senate candidate Herschel Walker, of his chances in an upcoming debate against his Democratic opponent, who he said would “embarrass” him.33 It was reported that the doctors of a woman who terminated her pregnancy in 2018 are being sued by the embryo’s estate, and an Arizona judge ruled that a near-complete ban on abortion passed in 1864 must be enforced.34 35 have u been fucked by this /gov says tough shit, a vandal painted on the Washington Monument.36 After the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning against the cooking of “Sleepy Chicken”—poultry marinated in Nyquil—TikTok searches for the dish skyrocketed.37 38 A former paratrooper who was locked in a chicken coop by his three-year-old son was rescued by first responders, and it was reported that multiple American Airlines flights have been haunted by grunting, moaning, and groaning sounds, the source of which no one can identify.39 40 A Department of Transportation report revealed that there is no official map of U.S. time zones.41  “Well, you’ve fucked my cheesecake; game on!” an Australian man was reported to have said to a pair of home invaders who interrupted his baking.42 A Canadian who had glued himself to a bank was ordered to not possess adhesives outside his home.43 An accused serial burglar in Tulsa was identified by his SpongeBob SquarePants shorts and socks, and police announced that they had arrested a teenager in connection with a carjacking on Sesame Street.44 45 A University of Utah student was arrested after writing on social media that she would detonate the on-campus nuclear reactor if the school’s football team lost, and the chief operating officer of Beyond Meat was arrested for allegedly biting a man’s nose after a college football game.46 47 In Michigan, a cannibal pleaded guilty to killing and eating Kevin Bacon, a man he met on Grindr, and a Denver resident was found guilty of shooting a woman to death with an AK-47 in an argument over dog feces.48 49 The Crime Stoppers of Houston announced that they would no longer publicly read a list of the previous year’s murder victims because it had grown too long.50 It was revealed that Olympic National Park officials were relocating goats that had acquired a taste for human urine and that three chimpanzees had been kidnapped for ransom.51 52 Scientists announced that shy raccoons are better learners than aggressive ones, that kale is likelier to make fetuses grimace than carrots, and that a genetically modified form of herpes might kill cancer.53 54 55 It was reported that America does not have enough Adderall.56 —Jon Edelman Read More Here

North Dakota's Wrigley Advocated For Recounts In Contested States After 2020 Election, Book Says https://digitalalaskanews.com/north-dakotas-wrigley-advocated-for-recounts-in-contested-states-after-2020-election-book-says/ BISMARCK — North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley, then serving as a federal prosecutor, allegedly advocated for a “last ditch effort” to demand vote recounts in contested states after the 2020 election, according to a new book about the lead-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Wrigley’s idea eventually made it to former President Donald Trump’s right-hand man, former Republican Congressman Denver Riggleman writes in “The Breach.” The book published Tuesday, Sept. 27, says U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., forwarded a message from Wrigley about possible recounts to then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows as Trump and his legal team disputed the results of the November 2020 election. Riggleman argues Meadows was at the epicenter of a fight to overturn the election. Trump lost the election to Democratic challenger Joe Biden, but the former Republican president has continuously made unsupported claims that mass voter fraud occurred in the 2020 election. Wrigley and Cramer say they acted properly after the election and were not part of any effort to overturn its result, but critics say they are complicit in an attempt to dismantle the American democratic process. Riggleman, who worked as a staffer on a House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, writes: North Dakota senator Kevin Cramer forwarded Meadows a note from that state’s US attorney, Drew Wrigley, who felt “the Trump legal team has made a joke of this whole thing” and had his own idea for a “last ditch effort” in crucial states. “Demand state wide recount of absentee/mail-in ballots in line with pre-existing state law with regard to signature comparisons. Legislative leaders could pledge to abide by the results, no matter what. If state officials refuse that recount, the legislature would then act under the constitution, selecting the slate of electors,” Wrigley explained. Wrigley suggested a rejection of the demand for a recount would “call into question the vote itself” and lend “credibility” to any alternate electors. The book does not indicate when Wrigley wrote the note, but Wrigley and Cramer said it would have been after the Nov. 3 election and before the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters. Wrigley said he cannot recall crafting the message to Cramer and has not located record of the correspondence, but he does not dispute the characterization of his advocacy for “integrity in voting and compliance with state and federal law.” The Republican attorney general, who was appointed to the post in February after the death of Wayne Stenehjem, said he’s very confident he “did not and would never advocate for anything other than strict adherence” to pre-existing state and federal laws. Wrigley said once state legislatures in Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona, Pennsylvania and Georgia did not find evidence of mass fraud, the election was settled and Biden was the legitimate winner. Cramer said he does not recall passing along Wrigley’s note to Meadows and could not find any related text messages in his phone, but he did not deny receiving or forwarding the note. The Republican senator said he doesn’t understand why his or Wrigley’s actions would be considered dubious, adding that Wrigley was simply “stating obvious end-of-the-rope legal and constitutional measures.” “At the end of the day, the evidence was overwhelming there wasn’t anything illegal (with the election),” Cramer said. “My thinking was let’s just make sure we cross every ‘t,’ dot every ‘i’ and make sure we do what we can to give confidence to people that everything’s been done that can be done to count every vote. And that’s what we did.” U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., speaks at a rally in support of President Donald Trump in Bismarck on Saturday, Nov. 7. Kyle Martin / Forum News Service Cramer, along with all but six of his Republican Senate colleagues, voted to certify that Biden won the election following the Jan. 6 riot. Democratic-NPL Chairman Patrick Hart said the allegations of Wrigley’s post-election suggestion are damning. Hart said Wrigley was “definitely not staying in his lane” by involving himself in national politics while serving as a federal prosecutor. “In my opinion, (Wrigley) was working to push forward a coup that we saw on the national level,” Hart said. “There was violence at the Capitol, and when we have the discussion about who was involved in that, all of a sudden it’s our now-attorney general.” Hart called on Wrigley to release any record of his messages to Cramer in the wake of the election, noting that the attorney general recently expressed disappointment over the deletion of Stenehjem’s email account by a former staffer. A spokesman for Republican Gov. Doug Burgum did not respond to a request for comment. Burgum appointed Wrigley as attorney general. Jeremy Turley is a Bismarck-based reporter for Forum News Service, which provides news coverage to publications owned by Forum Communications Company. Read More Here

Jan. 6 Sedition Trial Underway For Oath Keepers Leader https://digitalalaskanews.com/jan-6-sedition-trial-underway-for-oath-keepers-leader/ WASHINGTON (AP) — Jury selection began Tuesday in the trial of the founder of the Oath Keepers extremist group and four associates charged with seditious conspiracy, one of the most serious cases to emerge from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Amid complaints by attorneys for Stewart Rhodes and the others that they can’t get a fair jury in Washington, the judge began winnowing the pool of potential jurors who will decide the fate of the first Jan. 6 defendants to stand trial on the rare Civil War-era charge. The case against Rhodes and his Oath Keeper associates is the biggest test yet for the Justice Department in its massive Jan. 6 prosecution and is being heard in federal court not far from the Capitol. Seditious conspiracy can be difficult to prove, and the last guilty trial verdict was nearly 30 years ago. Prosecutors have accused Rhodes of leading a weekslong plot to violently stop the transfer of presidential power from election-denier Donald Trump to Joe Biden that culminated with Oath Keepers dressed in battle gear storming the Capitol on Jan. 6. Jury selection could take several days and the trial is expected to last at least five weeks. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta on Tuesday denied defense attorney’s latest bid to move the trial out of Washington. The judge acknowledged that no juries have acquitted Jan. 6 defendants so far, but said that doesn’t tell him about “bias or inherent bias of jurors in the District of Columbia.” The court already had dismissed more than two dozen potential jurors before Tuesday, including a journalist who had covered the events of Jan. 6. and someone else who described that day “one of the single most treasonous acts in the history of this country.” The judge disqualified three additional jurors Tuesday based on concerns about their impartiality. One man recalled the fear and “trauma” that he experienced on Jan. 6. Mehta also disqualified a woman who said she used to work as a House staffer on Capitol Hill and still has many friends who work there. “I was really afraid for their lives that day,” she said. Phillip Linder, an attorney for Rhodes, urged the judge to disqualify a man who said he has a close family friend who works for a House member and recalled watching livestreamed video of the Capitol attack. The judge called it a “close call” but declined to disqualify the man who said he could set aside what he has heard about the Oath Keepers. Hundreds of people have already been convicted of joining the mob that overran police barriers, beat officers and smashed windows, sending lawmakers fleeing and halting the certification of Biden’s electoral victory. Prosecutors will try to show that an Oath Keepers’ plot to stop Biden from becoming president started well before that, in fact before all the votes in the 2020 race had even been counted. On trial with Rhodes, of Granbury Texas, are Thomas Caldwell, of Berryville, Virginia; Kenneth Harrelson, of Titusville, Florida; Jessica Watkins of Woodstock, Ohio, and Kelly Meggs of Dunnellon, Florida. Caldwell, a retired U.S. Navy intelligence officer and the only defendant released from jail ahead of trial, walked with a cane as he slowly entered the courthouse wearing a dark suit. Authorities say Rhodes, a former U.S. Army paratrooper and a Yale Law School graduate, spent weeks mobilizing his followers to prepare to take up arms to defend Trump. The Oath Keepers repeatedly wrote in chats about the prospect of violence, stockpiled guns and put “quick reaction force” teams on standby outside Washington to get weapons into the city quickly if needed, authorities say. On Jan. 6, Oath Keepers were captured on camera storming the Capitol in military-style “stack” formation. Rhodes isn’t accused of going inside the Capitol, but phone records show he was communicating with Oath Keepers who did enter around the time of the riot and he was seen with members outside afterward. Conviction for seditious conspiracy calls for up to 20 years behind bars. The last time prosecutors secured a seditious conspiracy conviction at trial was in 1995 in the case against Islamic militants who plotted to bomb New York City landmarks. Three of Rhodes’ Oath Keepers followers have pleaded guilty to the charge and are likely to testify against him at trial. Rhodes’ lawyers have claimed those Oath Keepers were pressured into pleading guilty and are lying to get a better sentencing deal from the government. On Tuesday, Rhodes’ lawyers asked the judge to bar prosecutors and witnesses from using words such as “antigovernment” or “extremists” in describing the Oath Keepers to jurors, saying in court documents that it would “add nothing but prejudice into what already promises to be an emotionally charged trial.” Rhodes’ attorneys have suggested that his defense will focus on his belief that Trump would invoke the Insurrection Act and call up a militia to support his bid to stay in power. Defense attorneys say Rhodes’ actions in the weeks leading up to Jan. 6 were in preparation for what he believed would have been lawful orders from Trump under the Insurrection Act, but never came. The defense has said that Oath Keepers were dressed in helmets and goggles to protect themselves from possible attacks from left-wing antifa activists and that the “quick reaction force” outside Washington was meant for defensive purposes if Trump invoked the Insurrection Act. Nearly 900 people have been charged so far in the Jan. 6 riot and more than 400 have pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial. Also on Tuesday, a Maine man accused of hurling an unstrung bow at officers and other assaults on law enforcement was found guilty of several felony and misdemeanor charges. Kyle Fitzsimons, who wore a white butcher’s jacket and a fur pelt during the riot, waived his right to a jury and was convicted by a judge in a bench trial in Washington. Sentences for the rioters so far have ranged from probation for low-level misdemeanor offenses to 10 years in prison for a retired New York City police officer who used a metal flagpole to assault an officer at the Capitol. Associated Press journalist Mike Pesoli contributed to this report from Washington. Follow the AP’s coverage of the Capitol riot at https://apnews.com/hub/capitol-siege. More on Donald Trump-related investigations: https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Read More Here

Fact Check: Is Donald Trump https://digitalalaskanews.com/fact-check-is-donald-trump/ Twitter’s permanent suspension of Donald Trump was among the most startling decisions in both the platform’s history and that of social media at large. Citing its concerns that the former president risked inciting further violence in the wake of the January 6 riots, the move led to the birth of Trump’s Truth Social platform and provoked global discussions about online censorship. So it came as a surprise when rumors began circulating on social media in late September that the former president’s return to the platform is on the cards. A news wire service has reported that Twitter is planning to reinstate Donald Trump’s Twitter account after its suspension following the January 6 riots. The social media giant said at the time its decision was permanent. Pictured here, Donald Trump looks at his phone during a roundtable at the State Dining Room of the White House June 18, 2020; inset, a screenshot of the suspended @realDonaldTrump account. L-R: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images, Alex Wong/Getty Images The Claim A tweet posted on, September 26, 2022, by news wire First Squawk, which has more than 255,000 followers, stated “TWITTER INC SAID TO REINSTATE DONALD TRUMP TWITTER ACCOUNT.” The screengrab of the tweet has been shared on other platforms, including pro-Kremlin Telegram channels, which referenced the claim as fact. TWITTER INC SAID TO REINSTATE DONALD TRUMP TWITTER ACCOUNT — First Squawk (@FirstSquawk) September 26, 2022 The Facts While Truth Social has so far not been a huge boon for Trump and may soon lose out on a $1.3 billion merger deal, the former president has not yet abandoned the platform he set up after his Twitter exodus. In August 2022, ahead of the Department of Justice‘s release of court filings on the FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago, the former president posted 50 times on Truth Social in one day with a variety of accusations attacking (among other targets) the bureau and Hunter Biden. His departure from Twitter was not acrimonious either, with Trump after his suspension, decrying social media “banning free speech”; ironically, he used the official @POTUS Twitter account to make this criticism. So, have the wounds healed? The rumor about Trump’s reinstatement appears to have come from First Squawk alone. Newsweek could find no follow-up reports, verification attempts, or quoted sources attached to the tweet. The only news outlet to have reported on the same claim is right-leaning site Newsmax, which attributed First Squawk as its sole source. Newsweek has contacted Twitter and First Squawk for a response. As of now, we don’t know where the claim could have originated from or who First Squawk’s source may have been. It’s worth considering that, while First Squawk has more than 250,000 followers on its Twitter, much of its news is presented without reference to sources or external links. It’s also somewhat dubious (although not beyond the realm of possibility) that a relatively obscure newswire service based in (according to its Twitter) London, Mumbai and Singapore would have been the first to break what would be among the most significant news stories in social media and tech this year. There are other legitimate reports, however, which may have fueled speculation. In September 2022, Meta, which temporarily suspended Donald Trump’s Facebook account in 2021, said it would reevaluate its decision in 2023. Meta global affairs executive and former British politician Nick Clegg said it would not be “a capricious decision” and that Meta would “look at the signals related to real-world harm to make a decision whether at the two-year point—which is early January next year—whether Trump gets reinstated to the platform.” However, unlike Meta, Twitter said its suspension would be permanent, stating its decision was made “due to the risk of further incitement of violence” in the wake of the “horrific events” of January 6. Earlier this year, when Elon Musk was negotiating a purchase of Twitter, the Tesla billionaire said during a Financial Times livestream that he did not believe it was correct to ban Trump. “I think that was a mistake because it alienated a large part of the country and it did not ultimately result in Donald Trump not having a voice,” Musk told the outlet. Following the apparent collapse of the deal with Musk, it seems less likely again that the platform would bring back Trump. Ultimately, until Twitter confirms plans to end the suspension or a more reliable source proves its plans to do so, Trump remains tweetless. Furthermore, even if the ban were lifted it wouldn’t signal an imminent return. In a 2022 interview with SiriusXM’s Americano media, Trump said he “probably” wouldn’t return to Twitter if offered, remarking the site had “become very boring” and had “gotten rid of a lot of good voices on Twitter, a lot of their conservative voices” Newsweek has contacted Donald Trump for comment. The Ruling Unverified. The claim is based on one, unverified tweet that mentions no sources. While Meta says it may reconsider its temporary suspension of Donald Trump, Twitter’s permanent suspension remains in place as of the time of writing. FACT CHECK BY Newsweek’s Fact Check team Read More Here

Lawsuit Aims To Stop Biden’s Student Loan Forgiveness Plan https://digitalalaskanews.com/lawsuit-aims-to-stop-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-plan/ A public interest lawyer in Indiana is suing to block President Biden’s plan to cancel some student debt, arguing that the policy will force him to pay state taxes on the forgiven amount. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana on Tuesday, is the first significant legal action seeking to invalidate Biden’s policy before it takes effect. The Pacific Legal Foundation, the conservative public interest law firm in California that is backing the new lawsuit, asserts that the executive branch lacks the authority to create a new forgiveness policy and is usurping Congress’s power to make law. Plaintiff Frank Garrison works for the foundation. The argument is in line with other objections to Biden’s plan, but the foundation may have the one thing legal experts said was needed to make a legitimate case: a client with the standing to sue. Garrison said he has been working toward having his federal student loans canceled through a program that erases the debt of public servants after 10 years of payments and service. Participants in that Public Service Loan Forgiveness program do not have to pay federal or state taxes. However, Biden’s plan could result in borrowers in several states, including Indiana, being required to pay local tax bills. The plan would cancel up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt for borrowers who earn less than $125,000 per year, or less than $250,000 for married couples. Those who received Pell Grants, federal aid for lower-income students, could see up to $20,000 in forgiveness. Since Biden’s plan would take effect before Garrison’s debt is forgiven through the public service program, Garrison said he expects to pay more than $1,000 in state income taxes for the $20,000 of forgiven debt. “Frank is not only somebody who is harmed by this, but he’s also somebody who believes the cancellation plan is deeply wrong,” said Steve Simpson, a senior attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation representing Garrison. “One really big difference between the program Frank is participating in and the Biden program is that one was passed by Congress.” When asked about the lawsuit Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that “anyone who does not want to get debt relief can opt out.” The vast majority of eligible borrowers will have to apply for debt cancellation when the Education Department releases the form next month. Some 8 million people, whose income information is already on the department, may receive automatic relief. But they don’t have to accept it. Laurence Tribe, a Harvard University law professor close with the Biden administration, said the foundation’s theory of standing may be “a stretch but not beyond the realm of possibility.” While Garrison could prove that he would be better off if Biden’s plan were never created, Tribe said no one is forcing him to apply. He said the merits of the case are weak because the legal grounds for the plan are solid. The Justice Department released a 25-page memo last month the president’s action is allowable under a 2003 law that gives the executive branch broad authority to overhaul student loan programs. That law, known as the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act, was passed after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and gave the president the right to cancel student debt in connection with national emergencies. The White House says the ongoing coronavirus pandemic is a national emergency that more than meets the requirement. “The HEROES Act is a pretty solid foundation for what Biden has done,” Tribe said. Still, litigation could halt Biden’s policy just as it was set to go into effect. “When you look at this student loans relief program, it is going to help tens of millions of people,” Jean-Pierre told reporters Tuesday. “Opponents of the Biden-Harris administration student loan plan are trying to stop it because they know it will provide much-needed relief for working families.” Republican state attorneys general and lawmakers have been exploring the possibility of a lawsuit against Biden’s forgiveness plan, and the Job Creators Network pledged to sue the administration once the Education Department guidance has been released. Read More Here

Stock Market Coverage – Tuesday September 27 Yahoo Finance https://digitalalaskanews.com/stock-market-coverage-tuesday-september-27-yahoo-finance/ Stock Market Coverage – Tuesday September 27 Yahoo Finance  Yahoo Finance Declining stocks signal corporate earnings are starting ‘to deteriorate’: Strategist  Yahoo Finance Stocks trend lower heading into Monday’s close, consumer discretionary holds onto gains  Yahoo Finance Stocks moving in after hours: AMC, APE shares, Meta, Kimco Realty  Yahoo Finance Stock Market Coverage – Monday September 26 Yahoo Finance  Yahoo Finance View Full Coverage on Google News Read More Here

Annexation Of Ukraine Regions Will Be Quick; Nearly 100K Russians Flee To Kazakhstan: Live Updates https://digitalalaskanews.com/annexation-of-ukraine-regions-will-be-quick-nearly-100k-russians-flee-to-kazakhstan-live-updates/ The Russian Federation will quickly annex the Kherson region now that voting on the referendum to join Russia – dismissed as bogus by the West – is wrapping up, the head of the military-civilian administration of the region said Tuesday. Voting began last week and ends Tuesday in the Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk and Donetsk regions. Russia is expected to claim victory in all four. “The faster the institution of power begins to work, the easier it will be for people to live,” said Vladimir Saldo, who leads the Kherson ruling body. “There will be a transition period, of course, until we teach our officials … the laws of the Russian Federation. “There will be this period, but I expect that it will not last long,” he said. Saldo said region residents who are receiving Russian passports will not be subject to conscription for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s controversial “partial” military mobilization. The Kremlin plan to call up 300,000 additional soldiers has fueled protests in Russia and prompted long lines at the Russian-Georgia border as people try to flee. Other developments: ►More than 60 police officers raided a luxury yacht in northern Germany linked to  Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin. Prosecutors said they are investigating possible breaches of sanctions and money-laundering rules. ►The discovery of unusual leaks on two natural gas pipelines running under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany has led some European leaders and experts to point to possible sabotage during an energy standoff with Russia provoked by the war in Ukraine. ►A mission of French specialists has arrived in Ukraine to help document Russian war crimes near Izium. Nearly 100,000 Russians escape to Kazakhstan Nearly 100,000 Russians have fled to neighboring Kazakhstan since President Vladimir Putin announced a mobilization of 300,000 civilians last week as men of fighting age try to avoid being sent to the war in Ukraine. Kazakhstan Interior Minister Marat Akhmetzhanov said the approximately 98,000 Russians who have arrived in the past week will not be sent back home unless they’re on a list of fugitives wanted for criminal charges. “We must take care of them and ensure their safety,” Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said. “It is a political and a humanitarian issue.”  Kazakhstan, which has a large northern border abutting Russia, and fellow former Soviet republic Georgia seem to be the two most popular destinations for those crossing by car, bicycle or on foot from Russia. Planes tickets abroad sold out quickly despite steep prices. Some European countries have closed their doors to Russians seeking asylum to escape conscription; others have expressed a willingness to take them in. Russian Orthodox leader: Death in war ‘washes away all sins’ Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, told his followers that dying while carrying out military duty “washes away all sins.” Kirill preached support for mobilization in Russia, saying it will help “reconcile” Ukraine and Russia. Kirill is a Putin supporter who has stood behind the war. In May, Pope Francis urged Kirill not to justify the invasion. “The patriarch cannot transform himself into Putin’s altar boy,” Francis said. Contributing: The Associated Press Read More Here

Key Questions Remain Unanswered As Jan 6 Committee Enters Its Final Stage – KVIA https://digitalalaskanews.com/key-questions-remain-unanswered-as-jan-6-committee-enters-its-final-stage-kvia/ By Annie Grayer, CNN The House Select Committee investigating January 6 has been able to uncover much of the multi-faceted plot to subvert the 2020 presidential election. But as it heads into what is likely to be one of its final hearings this week, there are a few investigative threads that remain unanswered. The committee has presented evidence that former President Donald Trump wanted to go to the Capitol on January 6, eliciting testimony from numerous witnesses describing the former President’s urgent desire to be driven to the Capitol complex by his Secret Service detail following his speech on the Ellipse. It also has established that Trump anticipated staying in office. Yet the committee has not been able to uncover precisely what Trump planned to do upon arriving at the Capitol, a source familiar with its investigation says, and attributes the gap in knowledge to the limited subpoena power of the committee. It also has been unable to definitively conclude if Trump had a plan. Instead, the committee has developed a number of working theories, the source says. Understanding Trump’s intentions for going to the Capitol on January 6 would provide insight into his state of mind that day and could expose more potentially criminal activity, as the committee has sought to do throughout its investigation and hearings. Among the biggest questions hanging over the committee ahead of its hearing on Wednesday is whether it will make a criminal referral to the Justice Department. Multiple members on the committee tell CNN the panel has still not reached a decision. “I think we will certainly discuss whether we will make referrals” Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, who serves on the committee, told CNN. “In terms of whether we need to make referrals, not in the legal sense, but I think there is a very important element to Congress, finding evidence of criminal conduct and making sure the department is aware of it.” Speaking at the Texas Tribune festival over the weekend, Republican Rep. and committee vice-chair Liz Cheney said “I think we will be unanimous” when asked how the panel will approach the process of whether to make a criminal referral. There is also a growing sense among committee members that the Justice Department will be able to fill in some of the unanswered questions left by the committee’s investigation because of the subpoena power that comes with its ongoing criminal investigation, particularly when it comes to senior officials from Trump’s orbit like his former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and longtime confidante Roger Stone, who cited various claims of privilege to limit cooperation with the congressional panel. Schiff told CNN the House committee developed a strategy early on to focus on individuals it knew would cooperate, rather than become tied up in months of legal battles with individuals like House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy or GOP Rep. Jim Jordan, that could outrun the panel’s existence. “We made a decision that it was more important for us to get people through the door quickly than to go to court and challenge their assertions of privilege” Schiff said, adding that the panel always reserved the right to make challenges later. “But it’s getting pretty late in the day, and it would likely take months, if not years to challenge these claims of executive privilege or attorney client privilege or other things. So that’s probably the biggest category of evidence beyond our reach that should be within the Justice Department’s reach.” Mark Meadows has already complied with a DOJ subpoena by turning over the same materials he provided to the committee before he stopped cooperating. The committee and Meadows reached a standstill in June after DOJ declined to charge Meadows with contempt of Congress because of his compelling case for claiming executive privilege. “If the DOJ is successful in getting these obstructionist witnesses to testify, my guess is that we will likely not learn of the substance of the testimony until the public does” Schiff told CNN. “It’s time to wrap up” Because of the ticking clock, Schiff thinks time has run out to get compliance from the five Republican lawmakers, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and GOP Rep. Jim Jordan, who have refused to testify. “I think the reality is that in every large investigation, you reach a point where you know much of what you’re going to know, and it would just take too long to get the next valuable piece of evidence. And it’s time to wrap up.” But when it comes to Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence, Schiff is not ready to call it quits. “I think we have to reach out to every witness with relevant information. And in the case of the Vice President, I hope that he will choose to testify voluntarily. But speaking generally, I think the committee should seek the testimony of everyone who has relevant evidence” when asked about Trump and Pence. And as CNN has reported, this continues to be a topic the panel has not reached a conclusion on. DOJ making “rolling series of requests” to committee Members on the committee have in the past criticized DOJ’s investigation into January 6 as moving too slowly, but even now that the criminal investigations have ramped up, the committee is still cautious about how it shares its work product with DOJ. Schiff characterized DOJ’s requests to the committee as being a “rolling series of requests” with requests regularly getting “refined,” Previously, CNN reported the committee only intended to share 20 transcripts with DOJ. Members on the committee pushed back on DOJ’s initial request for all of the committee’s transcripts because members have wanted to maintain ownership over their work product and have been worried about handing over sensitive information from the committee’s investigation that could end up in a public court setting. “We are viewing on a sort of case by case basis” Schiff told CNN. “What is the department asking for? How specific is their ask, what is the risk to our own investigation if we essentially lose control of our own transcripts because they’re provided in court process? And so, we’re looking to find accommodations where we can. We want them to succeed. And over time, we’ll be able to accommodate more and more of the requests.” Schiff does not believe however that DOJ’s trial into the seditious conspiracy of Oath Keepers leader Steward Rhodes, which is slated to begin the day before the committee’s hearing, has any impact on what the committee presents publicly about Rhodes or other domestic extremist “I don’t think it’s a factor in what we present publicly” he told CNN. “But, you know, we are mindful of what the department is doing, and any impacts that our work has on the department.” The-CNN-Wire & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. Read More Here

Patent Poetry: Federal Circuit Allows “Trump Too Small” Trademark | JD Supra https://digitalalaskanews.com/patent-poetry-federal-circuit-allows-trump-too-small-trademark-jd-supra/ Federal Circuit: First Amendment allows the “Trump Too Small” trademark The Federal Circuit has denied a petition for a rehearing of its February decision reversing the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) rejection of registration for the proposed mark “TRUMP TOO SMALL.” In 2018, Steve Elster sought to register the phrase “TRUMP TOO SMALL” in standard characters for use on shirts in International Class 25. The class of goods encompasses: Shirts; Shirts and short-sleeved shirts; Graphic T-shirts; Long-sleeved shirts; Short-sleeve shirts; Short-sleeved shirts; Short-sleeved or long-sleeved t-shirts; Sweat shirts; T-shirts; Tee shirts; Tee-shirts; Wearable garments and clothing, namely, shirts. . . . According to Elster’s registration request, the phrase he sought to trademark invokes an exchange between President Trump and Senator Marco Rubio from a 2016 presidential primary debate, and aims to “convey[] that some features of President Trump and his policies are diminutive.” As NBC News reported at the time, In response to the property mogul calling him “little Rubio,” Rubio conceded that Trump was taller than him. However, the Florida senator suggested Trump had small hands for his height. “And you know what they say about guys with small hands,” Rubio said with a smile, prompting stunned laughter from the crowd. After a brief pause, he added: “You can’t trust ’em!” The crowd responded with applause. The USPTO examiner rejected the proposed mark on two grounds. First, the examiner concluded that the mark was not registrable because section 2(c) of the Lanham Act bars registration of a trademark that “[c]onsists of or comprises a name . . . identifying a particular living individual” without the individual’s “written consent.” The examiner concluded that it didn’t matter that the mark was “intended as political commentary” because there is no statutory or “case law carve[] out” for “political commentary.” As the court noted, The examiner rejected Elster’s contention that denying the application infringed his First Amendment rights, finding that the registration bars are not restrictions on speech, and in the alternative, that any such restriction would be permissible. Also, the examiner denied registration of the mark under the Lanham Act section 2(a)’s false association clause, which bars registration of trademarks that “falsely suggest a connection with persons, living or dead.” Elster appealed to Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB), arguing that sections 2(c) and 2(a) constituted impermissible content-based restrictions on speech under the First Amendment. The TTAB concluded that section 2(c) wasn’t an unconstitutional restriction on free speech. The Federal Circuit noted that a trademark represents “private, not government, speech” entitled to some form of First Amendment protection. It discussed two recent US Supreme Court trademark decisions, which each relied on a “core postulate of free speech law”—that “[t]he government may not discriminate against speech based on the ideas or opinions it conveys”…. It didn’t matter that Elster planned to sell his shirts, said the court: It is well established that speech ordinarily protected by the First Amendment does not lose its protection “because the [speech] sought to be distributed [is] sold rather than given away.” The court also noted that “the right to criticize public men” is “[o]ne of the prerogatives of American citizenship.” The question here said the court, is whether the government has an interest in limiting speech on privacy or publicity grounds if that speech involves criticism of government officials— speech that is otherwise at the heart of the First Amendment. The court noted that there can be no plausible claim that President Trump enjoys a right of privacy-protecting him from criticism in the absence of actual malice—the publication of false information “with knowledge of its falsity or in reckless disregard of the truth.” Also, The government, in protecting the right of publicity, also has an interest in preventing the issuance of marks that falsely suggest that an individual, including the President, has endorsed a particular product or service. But that is not the situation here. No plausible claim could be or has been made that the disputed mark suggests that President Trump has endorsed Elster’s product. The court concluded: The PTO’s refusal to register Elster’s mark cannot be sustained because the government does not have privacy or publicity interest in restricting speech critical of government officials or public figures in the trademark context—at least absent actual malice, which is not alleged here. Just like the haiku above, we like to keep our posts short and sweet. Hopefully, you found this bite-sized information helpful. Read More Here