Month: September 2020

Former FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday defended the bureau’s probe of links between Russia and President Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign against attacks by Republican senators over the secret monitoring of a former campaign […]

September 30, 2020 John Ganjei

LUNCHTIME POLITICS: Debate? What Debate?

Your Daily Polling Update for Wednesday, September 30, 2020 FIGHT NIGHTby Ron Faucheux How do you analyze an ax fight? Last night’s debate was a chaotic mess, a milestone that will mark the collapse of civility […]

Pelosi, Mnuchin Renew Talks as Democrats Release $2.2 Trillion Coronavirus Stimulus Bill

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke Tuesday morning after Democrats unveiled a coronavirus stimulus plan designed to restart progress toward a relief deal, CNBC informs. Democrats released the $2.2 trillion legislation […]

Manhattan District Attorney Won’t Try to Enforce Trump Tax Return Subpoena During Appeals

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said Tuesday it will not seek to enforce a subpoena for President Donald Trump’s income tax returns until the President’s appeal of the subpoena is resolved, CNBC reported. The grand […]

Global Stocks Pull Back as Acrimonious U.S. Debate Stokes Caution

U.S. equity futures fell and safer assets like the yen and dollar found buyers on Wednesday after a chaotic first U.S. presidential debate turned investors cautious, though strong factory surveys gave a boost to Chinese […]

Insults and Interruptions Mar First Trump-Biden Debate

President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden battled fiercely over Trump’s record on the coronavirus pandemic, healthcare and the economy in a chaotic and bad-tempered first debate marked by personal insults and Trump’s repeated […]

Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Appears Safe, Shows Signs of Working in Older Adults

Results from an early safety study of Moderna Inc’s coronavirus vaccine candidate in older adults showed that it produced virus-neutralizing antibodies at levels similar to those seen in younger adults, with side effects roughly on […]

Trump Deflects Debate Question About Whether He Condemns White Supremacists

President Donald Trump deflected an opportunity to condemn white supremacists during Tuesday’s presidential debate, briefly telling one group to “stand back and stand by” before pivoting to attacking left-wing activists, Reuters writes. During a segment […]

Defense Attorney Tells U.S. Court She Asked Trump Not to Pardon Michael Flynn

The lead attorney for U.S. President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser on Tuesday told a federal judge that she has discussed the ongoing criminal case with the President and asked him not to pardon […]

Republican Senators Say Supreme Court Nominee Should Not Recuse Herself From Election Cases

Republican senators meeting with U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett on Tuesday praised President Donald Trump’s pick for the lifetime post, rejecting Democrats’ assertion that she should recuse herself from potential election-related cases, Reuters […]

September 29, 2020 John Ganjei

LUNCHTIME POLITICS: Big Debate Audience – Florida, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin – Tuesday Trivia

Your Daily Polling Update for Tuesday, September 29, 2020 TRUMP JOB APPROVAL: AVERAGE 45%Same as yesterday RON’S COMMENT: Today’s average is based on six polls, ranging from 43% (Reuters) to 46% (NYT, Emerson, Rasmussen). Without […]

U.S. Intelligence Reports Warn of Extremist Threat Around Election

U.S. security officials are warning that violent domestic extremists pose a threat to the presidential election next month, amid what one official called a “witch’s brew” of rising political tensions, civil unrest and foreign disinformation […]

Former Amazon Manager Made $1.4 Million From Insider Trading, SEC Alleges

The Securities and Exchange Commission charged a former Amazon finance manager and two family members with insider trading, alleging Monday that they made approximately $1.4 million from unlawful trading, CNBC writes. The agency alleges that […]

Pelosi, Democrats Unveiling New $2.2 Trillion Coronavirus Aid Bill

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Monday that Democratic lawmakers unveiled a new, $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill, which she said was a compromise measure that reduces the costs of the economic […]

Shares Slip as U.S. Presidential Debate Looms

European shares slipped on Tuesday as investors awaited the first U.S. presidential debate and eyed progress of a fiscal stimulus package in Washington, Reuters informs. The broader Euro STOXX 600 fell 0.4%, eroding hefty gains from […]

Trump, Pressured Over Pandemic, Says States Will Receive 150 Million Tests

President Donald Trump, under fire over his handling of the coronavirus epidemic, announced on Monday the federal government would ship 150 million rapid tests to U.S. states and warned an increase in positive cases is […]

New Adviser Giving Trump Bad Information on Virus, Top U.S. Officials Say

Two senior U.S. public health experts have raised concerns that White House adviser Scott Atlas is providing misleading or incorrect information on the coronavirus pandemic to President Donald Trump, according to media reports on Monday, […]

Global Coronavirus Deaths Pass ‘Agonizing Milestone’ of 1 Million

The global death toll from COVID-19 rose past 1 million on Tuesday, according to a Reuters tally, a bleak milestone in a pandemic that has devastated the global economy, overloaded health systems and changed the […]

Pelosi Eyes Possible U.S. House Role in Calling Presidential Election

House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi is rallying Democrats to prepare for a once-in-a-century election scenario requiring Congress to decide the outcome of the presidential race if neither Democrat Joe Biden nor President Donald Trump […]

Biden Campaign Tees up Trump Tax Issue on Eve of First Debate

Joe Biden’s campaign seized on a fresh line of attack on the eve of the Democratic presidential nominee’s first debate with President Donald Trump, accusing the Republican incumbent of gaming the system to avoid paying […]

September 28, 2020 John Ganjei

LUNCHTIME POLITICS: Third-Party Voters, Risk for Biden – Lindsey Graham in tight race

Your Daily Polling Update for Monday, September 28, 2020 TRUMP JOB APPROVAL: AVERAGE 45%Down 1 from Friday RON’S COMMENT: Today’s average is based on six polls, ranging from 43% (Reuters) to 46% (NYT, Emerson, Rasmussen). […]

U.S.-China Tech Tensions Could Stay Even if Biden Wins Election, Analyst Claims

Tensions around technology will remain between the U.S. and China, even if Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden wins the U.S. election in November, according to an analyst, CNBC reported. Ties between the two economic giants […]

Pelosi Believes Coronavirus Stimulus Deal Still Possible as Democrats Prepare New Package

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday said another coronavirus stimulus plan is possible as House Democrats try to forge ahead on a smaller aid package costing about $2.4 trillion, roughly $1 trillion less than their […]

Final UK-EU Trade Talks Begin This Week as Officials Race to Seal a Brexit Deal

EU and U.K. officials are about to start what’s meant to be the final round of Brexit trade negotiations before a self-imposed deadline of Oct. 15, CNBC reports. Talks have been stalled over competition rules […]

Biden, Fellow Democrats Focus on Healthcare in Supreme Court Fight

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and fellow Democrats made it clear on Sunday that their opposition to President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, would focus on the possibility she could cast a […]

Positive COVID-19 Test Rates Top 25% in Some U.S. Midwest States

The number of tests coming back positive for COVID-19 is topping 25% in several states in the U.S. Midwest as cases and hospitalizations also surge in the region, according to a Reuters analysis. North Dakota’s […]

U.S. Judge Blocks Trump Administration’s Ban on New TikTok Downloads

A U.S. judge has temporarily blocked a Trump administration order that was set to bar Apple and Alphabet Inc’s Google from offering Chinese-owned short video-sharing app TikTok for download at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Reuters […]

U.S. Supreme Court Nominee Barrett Would Have Final Say on Recusal Calls

Democrats are urging U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett to recuse herself from any election-related cases because of President Donald Trump’s comments that he expects the justices to potentially decide the outcome, but there […]

Saudi Arabia Says G-20 Gathering of World Leaders Will Be Virtual

Saudi Arabia, which is presiding over the Group of 20 countries this year, said Monday that the upcoming November gathering of world leaders will be held virtually amid the coronavirus pandemic, The Associated Press reported. […]

NYT: Trump Frequently Paid No Federal Income Taxes in Years Leading up to Presidency

President Donald Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes in both 2016 and 2017, after years of reporting heavy losses from his business enterprises to offset hundreds of millions of dollars in income, the […]