Eliana Willis

US elections 2020

Duke and Duchess of Sussex call on voters to ‘reject hate speech and misinformation’ in video More

FBI

Intelligence bureau encouraged Americans to be patient and ensure they are getting information from trusted sources More

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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have urged Americans to ‘reject hate speech, misinformation and online negativity’ and register to vote in the 2020 US election. 
In a Time 100 video message, Meghan Markle said: ‘When we vote, our values are put into action and our voices are heard.’
‘Your voice is a reminder that you matter,’ she added. ‘Because you do. And you deserve to be heard.’
The clip has sparked criticism for potentially breaching royal protocol demanding political impartiality
Harry and Meghan criticised after video urging Americans to vote

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Prince Harry

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex

US elections 2020 More

Cindy McCain

McCain on Wednesday said: ‘Joe Biden represents the kind of values and integrity and courage we want in a president’ More

US elections 2020

McCain was motivated in part by Trump’s recent comments on the military, where he called war heroes ‘losers’ and ‘suckers’ More

Weeks after after Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, won a court victory to keep felons from voting until they have paid off fines, restitution and court fees, the billionaire and former candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination Mike Bloomberg has stepped in to help them pay off the debts.Bloomberg is part of an effort that raised more than $20m to help felons who have completed sentences vote in the presidential election. That’s in addition to the $100m he has pledged to help Joe Biden win Florida, a crucial state with 29 electoral college votes that Donald Trump hopes will keep him in the White House.A federal appellate court ruled on 11 September that in addition to serving their sentences, Florida felons must pay all fines, restitution and legal fees before they can regain the vote. The case could have broad implications for the November elections.Under Amendment 4, which Florida voters passed overwhelmingly in 2018, felons who have completed their sentences would have voting rights restored. Republican lawmakers then moved to define what it means to complete a sentence.Before the measure passed, Florida was one of four states that permanently banned all people convicted of felonies for life. The ban, rooted in the Jim Crow south, affected an estimated 1.4 million people, including more than one in five eligible Black voters.In addition to time served, lawmakers directed that all legal financial obligations, including unpaid fines and restitution, would also have to be settled. Civil rights groups challenged the law in 2019, saying it amounted to requiring a tax on voting.During a federal trial earlier this year, Florida officials testified that it was extremely difficult to tell people exactly how much money they owe. There is no centralized database for people with felonies to look up how much money is owed and record-keeping can be spotty, especially for crimes that go back decades.In a searing May ruling, US district judge Robert Hinkle said Florida had to allow people to vote if they could not afford to pay outstanding financial obligations. He also ordered the state to come up with a formal way of telling people how much they owe. But the appeals court this month reversed Hinkle’s ruling, even saying Florida had no obligation to tell people how much they owe.With Bloomberg’s help, the Florida Rights Restitution Council (FRRC) is trying to make it easier to pay off fines and fees. The group had raised about $5m before Bloomberg made calls to raise almost $17m more, according to Bloomberg advisers.The FRRC said other donors include John Legend, LeBron James, Michael Jordan, MTV, Comedy Central, VH1, Ben & Jerry’s, Levi Strauss, the Miami Dolphins, the Orlando Magic, the Miami Heat and Steven Spielberg.The money is targeted for felons who registered to vote while the law was in question and who owe $1,500 or less. That accounts for about 31,100 people, Bloomberg advisers say. In a state that decided the 2000 presidential election by 537 votes, that could be critical in a year when polls show Trump and Joe Biden in a dead heat.There are about 774,000 people with felony convictions who cannot vote because they owe money, according to an estimate by an expert for the American Civil Liberties Union, which challenged the law.Even with an influx of money, it will be an uphill battle to get people registered ahead of Florida’s 5 October voter registration deadline for the 2020 election. There is still widespread confusion about the law in the state and it can be difficult for people to figure out how much they owe.Organizers say they are not targeting people registered with a particular political party.“To hell with politics, to hell with any other implications or insinuations, at the end of the day it’s about real people, real lives, American citizens who want to be a part of this,” said Desmond Meade, the group’s executive director. “People with felony convictions have had their voices silenced for so long.” More

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Joe Biden said Donald Trump’s ‘lies and incompetence’ since the start of the coronavirus pandemic had led to the ‘one of the greatest losses in American history’ as he spoke at an aluminum plant in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.
The Democratic presidential nominee noted the country was about to hit the ‘tragic milestone’ of recording 200,000 deaths from Covid-19, adding that number represented many ‘empty chairs’ for families who had lost loved ones to the virus
Trump says he wants supreme court seat filled ‘before the election’ – live

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Joe Biden

US politics

Coronavirus outbreak More

Donald Trump has attempted to cast doubt on Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dying wish, baselessly claiming a statement released by the supreme court justice’s family was written by Adam Schiff, Nancy Pelosi or Chuck Schumer, prominent Democrats in Congress.The move is likely to anger many who will see it as disrespectful to the millions of Americans mourning Ginsburg’s death, as well as a tasteless attack on the legacy of the pioneering woman justice.Ginsburg died on Friday, from pancreatic cancer at the age of 87. NPR reported that she had dictated a statement to her granddaughter.“My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed,” it said.Trump and Republican Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell have vowed to press on with a nomination to replace Ginsburg before the election on 3 November or the inauguration on 20 January, even should Trump lose the presidency to Joe Biden and the Democrats retake the Senate.This is low. Even for you. No, I didn’t write Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dying wish to a nation she served so wellAdam SchiffOn Monday morning, Trump told Fox & Friends he would announce his nominee, a woman, on Friday or Saturday, after services in memory of Ginsburg.He also called Ginsburg a “legend” who “represented something different than you or I”, and said of her statement: “I don’t know that she said that, or was that written out by Adam Schiff or Pelosi?“I would be more inclined to the second, OK – you know, that came out of the wind. That sounds so beautiful, but that sounds like a Schumer deal, or maybe Pelosi or for Shifty Schiff. So that came out of the wind, let’s say. I mean, maybe she did, and maybe she didn’t.”Schiff, the chair of the House intelligence committee, and Pelosi, the House speaker, played prominent roles in Trump’s impeachment. Schumer, the Senate minority leader, will lead efforts to defeat Trump’s nomination. He has promised that in terms of tactics, “nothing is off the table”.Schiff responded with a tweet, writing: “Mr President, this is low. Even for you. No, I didn’t write Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dying wish to a nation she served so well, and spent her whole life making a more perfect union.“But I am going to fight like hell to make it come true. No confirmation before inauguration.” More