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      What can Democrats push through Congress in the lame-duck session?

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      AnalysisWhat can Democrats push through Congress in the lame-duck session?Lauren Gambinoin WashingtonLegislation on the debt ceiling, civil liberties and elections is still possible before Republican House majority kicks in As a new era of divided government looms in the US, Democrats are rushing to complete a lengthy legislative to-do list that includes landmark civil liberties legislation, a routine but critical spending package and a bill to prevent another January 6.Trump is now effectively in control of the US House of Representatives | Sidney BlumenthalRead moreThere are only a handful of working days left before the balance of power in Congress shifts and Democrats’ unified control of government in Washington ends. In January, Republicans will claim the gavel in the House, giving them veto power over much of Joe Biden’s agenda.Meanwhile, Democrats will retain – and possibly expand, depending on the outcome of a runoff election in Georgia – their majority in the Senate, allowing them to continue confirming Biden’s judicial and administrative nominees.With a narrowing window to act, Democrats intend to use the end-of-year “lame duck” session to leave a legislative mark while they still control all the levers of power in Washington. But they are also under mounting pressure to act to raise the statutory debt limit, staving off a partisan showdown next year that many fear could lead to economic calamity.“We are going to try to have as productive a lame-duck session as possible,” the Senate majority leader, Chuck Schumer, said at a post-election press conference. “It’s going to be heavy work, long hours to try and get much done.”Among the unfinished business is enacting legislation to keep the federal government funded past a 16 December deadline. Failure to do so would result in a government shutdown. Lawmakers must also reauthorize the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a must-pass bill that sets US military policy for the coming year.Democrats must also decide whether to confront the debt limit. House Republicans have threatened to use the debt ceiling as leverage to extract deep spending cuts, a prospect that has raised alarm among economists and policymakers who are pleading with Democrats to defuse a dangerous fiscal standoff.In an interview with CNN, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, who is poised to succeed Nancy Pelosi when she steps down as the House Democratic leader in January, said raising the debt ceiling before Republicans take control of the House was probably “the right thing to do” as a way to prevent conservatives “from being able to hold the American economy hostage”.The debt ceiling now stands at $31.4tn, a level that will need to be addressed by the third quarter of 2023, according to projections.Yet Democratic leaders have suggested that it is unlikely Congress will address the borrowing limit in the next few weeks.Schumer said last week that he would like to “get a debt ceiling done in this work period” but insisted that it would require Republican support, effectively ruling out a go-it-alone approach that would allow Democrats to unilaterally raise the debt limit. Speaking to reporters on the same day, the Senate Republican leader, Mitch McConnell, said he didn’t think Congress would take up the issue until “sometime next year”.In a Washington Post op-ed, Peter Orszag, the former director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Congressional Budget Office, implored Democrats to prioritize the issue, even if it takes up precious floor time to accomplish.“Any Democrats averse to taking such a painful vote now should consider how much leverage their party will lose once Republicans control the House – and how much higher the risk of default will be then,” he wrote. “It’s generally not a good idea to enter a negotiation with a ticking timebomb and a counter-party willing to let it go off.”While fiscal matters are at the center of negotiations on Capitol Hill, there are many more legislative items on the agenda.Schumer said the Senate will take a final vote on legislation to protect same-sex and interracial marriages when the chamber returns after the Thanksgiving recess. Earlier this month, 12 Republicans joined all Democrats to clear a major procedural hurdle that put the historic measure on track to passage.“Passing the Respect for Marriage Act is no longer a matter of if but only of when,” he said in recent remarks. A version of the bill passed the House earlier this year, with support from dozens of Republicans.Meanwhile, the Senate also hopes to enact reforms to a 19th-century elections law that Donald Trump attempted to exploit to reverse his defeat in 2020, which led to the insurrection at the Capitol.A bipartisan proposal would overhaul the Electoral Count Act, clarifying that the role of the vice-president, who presides over the certification of the electoral votes as president of the Senate, is purely ceremonial. That means the vice-president could not unilaterally throw out electoral votes, as Trump and his allies pressured his vice-president, Mike Pence, to do. If the bill passes, it would be the most substantive legislative response to the events of January 6.The White House is also eager for Congress to approve additional financial support for Ukraine, as the nation defends itself against a Russian invasion. The House Republican leader, Kevin McCarthy, who could be the next speaker if he can survive a revolt among hardline conservatives in his caucus, signaled that Republicans would use their majority to limit – or possibly oppose – future spending on the war.Previous aid packages to Ukraine have been approved with overwhelming bipartisan support, and the president and Democratic leaders are hopeful that a new package can be achieved. Fears that Republicans could cut off aid just as Ukraine forces Russia into retreat with the assistance of US weaponry may motivate lawmakers to authorize vast new spending for Ukraine. The White House has also asked for additional funding to prepare for a possible winter surge of coronavirus infections, though Republicans are unlikely to back the request.Constrained by the calendar and their narrow majorities, a host of other Democratic priorities will probably remain out of reach as the sun sets on their power in Washington.A group of Democrats is urging Congress to pass immigration reform and ensure legal protections for Dreamers, undocumented immigrants brought to the US as children, while efforts are under way to reach an agreement on cannabis-related legislation. Senator Raphael Warnock, whose Georgia runoff election will determine the margin of Democrats’ control next year, has continued his push to cap the cost of insulin.TopicsUS CongressHouse of RepresentativesUS SenateUS politicsRepublicansDemocratsUS domestic policyanalysisReuse this content More

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      How Republicans and Democrats are missing the mark with Latino voters

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      How Republicans and Democrats are missing the mark with Latino votersStrategists, pollsters and advocacy groups say both parties continue to treat Latino voters like a monolithic group In the 2022 midterms, Latino voters reinforced their power as the second-largest voting bloc in the United States.These voters, who account for nearly 35 million people, or 14%, of the US voting electorate, both tilted the balance for Democrats in key battleground state Senate races in Pennsylvania, Arizona and Nevada and secured a Republican hold in Florida. Since 2018, the number of Latino voters has grown by nearly 5 million people, accounting for more than 60% of newly eligible voters.But Latino strategists, pollsters and advocacy groups say both parties are still missing the mark. They argue Democratic and Republican campaigns continue to treat Latino voters like a monolithic group, failing to contact and reach out to voters early and invest in ads grounded in what communities themselves care about. As Latino operatives ascend the ranks in independent political action committees and campaigns, that’s steadily changing. But those who plan to continue with the status quo could make or break party election results in 2024.Bar chart of battleground states’ total and Latino population growth.Beyond politicsCampaigns need to take a page from independent groups, according to Latino political strategists, pollsters and voter mobilization groups. They said political parties need to build trust with voters, listen to what they care about and use that data to tailor culturally relevant messaging to different communities in different states.According to the 2022 Midterm Election Voter Poll, a comprehensive exit polling of thousands of voters led by the African American Research Collaborative and other groups, nearly two-thirds of Latino voters voted with Democrats. Even as Republicans gained ground, the data shows that there wasn’t a drastic shift in Latino voters’ support for political parties.But that doesn’t mean the party will maintain its popularity.“Hispanic voters are sending a message to both parties: they see their own values and policy positions align with the Democratic side but the message to Democrats isn’t so much that they are treating it as a bloc. They are neglecting it,” Clarissa Martinez de Castro, vice president of the Latino vote initiative at UnidosUS, says.Meanwhile, De Castro says that if Republicans want to maintain and grow Latino support they need to realize they’re “radically out of step with what Latinos want”.As the number of Latinos in the United States nearly doubled in the last two decades, strategists say reaching out and contacting Latino voters, and uplifting Latino consultants who are mindful of the electorate’s nuance, will be key to critical elections. “We’re outpacing everyone,” Colin Rogero, a Democratic strategist and partner of the political consulting firm 76 Words, says. “There’s no choice. If you want to win campaigns in the future, the Latino electorate has got to be a significant portion of who you are targeting and communicating with.”But Chuck Rocha, a longtime Democratic political strategist focused on Latino voters and founder of Solidarity Strategies, says that the lack of diversity in the ranks of political consultants – and the predominant whiteness – frames how Latino voters are often seen.“When you start talking about ‘the Latino vote’, there aren’t Latinos in the room to make the corrective,” said Rocha, a former senior adviser to Senator Bernie Sanders in his presidential bid. He argued that the political strategies from consultants have not adjusted to speaking to Latino voters in culturally or regionally specific ways, despite the fact that these voters have been the fastest growing group within the American electorate for decades.That work, however, was on display from independent advocacy groups that supported Democratic candidates, and civic mobilization organizations that focused on galvanizing Latino voters, Rocha said. They invested in showing up in communities, even during off-election years, and built trust over time. He pointed to Nevada, where super Pacs and groups like the Culinary Workers Union and Somos Votantes canvassed neighborhoods across the state and spent millions of dollars in ads that specifically targeted Spanish-speaking voters.“Our universe wasn’t just reaching Democrats. We were reaching eligible voters. It was about turning out Latinos to vote,” Cecia Alvarado, executive director of Somos Votantes’ Nevada division, says. Issues and immigration patternsClaudia Lopez, who volunteered with the Culinary Workers Union and voted for the first time in Nevada’s midterms. She frequently heard about the rising costs of rents in Las Vegas and heard fears of being evicted. That focus became a centerpiece of the union’s messaging in the weeks ahead of the election.“I care about a change in a good way. I don’t care who’s elected. I don’t care who wins I just want it changed for the for the better,” she told the Guardian in October.Lopez’s perspective – caring less about party politics and more about candidates’ actions – reflects a common thread among Latino voters, said Gabe Sanchez, a fellow at the Brookings Institution and vice president of research at BSP Research.“Because so many Latinos are first-time voters and US born with foreign born parents, you don’t have the same party loyalists,” Sanchez says. “A lot of people describe party politics like sports in the US. I just don’t think that fits the majority of Latino voters.”Beeswarm chart of policy priorities of Latino’s in battleground statesMaría Teresa Kumar, president and CEO of Voto Latino, says that there is a generational divide: Latino voters are, on average, younger than the rest of the electorate, consisting of people who are newer to the country as immigrants and migrants compared to other voters of color. And Sanchez found that two-thirds of Latino voters under age 40 supported Democrats compared to 60% of Latino voters over that age. That will play a key role in the upcoming presidential race as campaigns attempt to figure out how to court young voters and make sure they turn out.Kumar said her group addressed this in the midterm by investing in registration in eight battleground states in 2020, registering 650,000 voters. But she said that campaigns did not invest in the same way because Democratic donors and campaigns internalized the idea that they were losing Latino support to Republicans.“For politics, it’s important to think about the issues that are driving individuals and the life experiences they are having in pockets that were once not Latino,” Kumar says.“We are a holistic fabric of all these aspirations, wants and needs but if we are living in a society where our policy issues are not being met that allow our children to thrive, it doesn’t matter if I like arepas or pupusas if I have a politician enacting bad legislation if I have a politician say ‘I can’t invest in you because you’re not a monolith.’”Matt Barreto, a political science professor at UCLA and co-founder of BSP Research, notes that in public opinion polling, Latinos often express shared culture, values, language and customs but politically, they vary depending on the political environment they live in.The 2022 Midterm Election Voter Poll, which Barreto worked on, found that Latino voters described sharing similar issues of concern: cost of living, gas prices, reproductive rights, healthcare costs and gun violence. But when broken down by Latino voters in states polled, those issues vary depending on the state, with the consensus concern over the economy.Midterm resultsThe midterm results offer a roadmap of how parties approached different Latino communities.Carlos Odio, co-founder of EquisResearch, a data firm focused on Latinos, wrote on Twitter that Republicans failed to make the projected “Latino red wave” a reality. It took Dems a great deal of toil & treasure to battle to a point of stability with Latino voters. Right now they should celebrate. Next week they should start putting in the work to strengthen their coalition for the ‘24 election. FL shows what happens when you don’t.— Carlos Odio (@carlosodio) November 21, 2022
      In key races in Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Michigan and Pennsylvania, Latino voter support for Democrats played a significant role. In Arizona, where two-thirds of Latino voters supported Senator Mark Kelly, he capitalized on an already influential long-term investment in Latino voter outreach by grassroots groups to capture wins in Maricopa and Pima counties.“In Arizona, it’s a dual community effort,” Sanchez said. “They’ve been working with these communities and building trust. It’s not something you can just do when the election cycle happens.”Alvarado, of Somos Votantes, said the group spent $14m on digital, TV and radio ads and voter outreach such as canvassing neighborhoods in support of Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto, the first Latina in Congress who narrowly won re-election.Alvarado, the daughter of Costa Rican immigrants who moved to the US as a teenager, says that without Latino voters, “you don’t win elections in Nevada”. In the state, 64% of Latino voters supported Cortez-Masto over Republican Adam Laxalt, according to the 2022 Midterm Election Voter Poll.In Colorado, where the Latino population has grown 72% since 2000, Sanchez worked with the Latino Victory Fund to survey Latino voters about their concerns, particularly in rural areas. That influenced voter outreach efforts and aided in Yadira Caraveo becoming the first Latina to be elected to Congress from the state.In New Mexico, Rogero, who worked with Democratic campaigns in several states, says his team worked with Democratic congressman-elect Gabe Vasquez’s campaign against Republican incumbent Yvette Herrell to invest heavily and early in Spanish-language ads, particularly in the district’s southern region, framed around Vasquez’s upbringing. That, Rogero says, was key to “not lose a majority” of Latino voters in the state’s largest Latino district, Vasquez edged out a win, and flipped the seat by just over 1,000 votes.Florida represented an outlier, where Latino voters made a shift toward supporting Republicans, with the largest gains among Cuban and non-Puerto Rican voters, allowing incumbents Governor Ron DeSantis and Senator Marco Rubio to win re-elections by wide margins. But Baretto points out that the strategy remained the same: Long-term investment from Republicans in Florida in English and Spanish ads targeting Latinos since 2020.Rogero, who grew up in south Florida and worked on several races in the state, argued that Democrats’ losses there were a “direct reflection of investment”, He pointed to the recent loss by Democratic incumbent Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, the first South American immigrant elected to Congress, against former Miami-Dade county mayor Carlos Giménez. In that race, Powell became one of the few Democrats nationally to outperform Biden among Latino voters, crediting voter outreach, ad investment, and door-knocking.“I don’t think the [Democratic] national infrastructure, the donors, the major party committees understands Florida because it’s a complicated place,” Rogero said. “Miami is not a lost cause. It’s just Republicans have been spending a lot of money there where Democrats have not.”That investment strategy among Latino voters could become important in the Georgia runoff between Senator Raphael Warnock and Republican candidate Herschel Walker, where the Latino population is on the rise. While white voters largely supported Walker and Black voters overwhelmingly supported Warnock, Warnock captured 67% of Latino voters, according to exit polling.Somos Votantes, the national Latino mobilization group that supported Cortez-Masto in Nevada, announced it would invest $2m in the runoff.“It used to be that one side would neglect it and would take it for granted, and the other one would just simply ignore it,” Clarissa Martinez de Castro of UnidosUS says. “We’ve seen signs of progress of more outreach happening. But I think there’s still some way to go.”TopicsUS politicsUS midterm elections 2022RepublicansDemocratsRacefeaturesReuse this content More

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      Five new members of the House of Representatives to watch

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      Five new members of the House of Representatives to watchMaxwell Frost, Becca Balint, Monica De La Cruz, Mike Lawler and Max Miller are standouts among the 2022 midterms intake Roughly 80 new members will join the House of Representatives when the 118th Congress convenes in January.How Democratic wins in key toss-up seats helped stave off the ‘red wave’Read moreAlong with their more seasoned colleagues, they will have to navigate the potentially tricky terrain of a narrow Republican majority in the House as Democrats control the White House and the Senate.The new members come from every part of the county, and they vary dramatically in terms of political ideology. Some are progressives who have demanded universal healthcare coverage, while others have embraced Donald Trump and his lies about widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.As the final ballots are counted and Americans prepare for another significant shift in the political landscape, here are five new members of the House to keep an eye on:Maxwell Frost, a Democrat of FloridaMaxwell Frost will become the first Gen Z member of Congress when he takes the oath of office in January. Just 25 years old, Frost won his Orlando-area seat by campaigning on implementing Medicare for all and reforming America’s gun laws.Frost, a March for Our Lives organizer who first became involved in politics after the shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school in 2012, has made it clear that he will be aggressive in addressing gun violence. After the recent shooting at an LGBTQ night club in Colorado Springs, Frost has repeated his call for Congress to advance an assault weapons ban.The House passed an assault weapons ban in July, but the bill stalled in the Senate. With Republicans now in control of the House, it will be nearly impossible to resuscitate the proposal, but Frost is undeterred.“I think it’s important to put it up for a vote even if it doesn’t pass because it gets people on the record,” Frost told NBC News on Monday. “We have to show the American people that this is a problem that our government is working on and we’re going to solve.”Frost’s determination to take action on his top policy priorities could ruffle some feathers within the House, but his persistence could also help keep Democrats motivated in the face of Republican obstruction.Becca Balint, a Democrat of VermontOne of Frost’s new colleagues in the Congressional Progressive Caucus will be Becca Balint, a Democrat of Vermont. Balint’s victory earlier this month made history; she will be the first woman and the first openly LGBTQ person to represent Vermont in Congress. Once Balint is sworn in, all 50 US states will have sent a woman to Congress, as Vermont was previously the sole outlier on that metric.Balint has described herself as “a scrappy little queer lady” who was initially written off in Vermont’s crowded Democratic congressional primary because of her lack of widespread name recognition or political connections.“What I did have was an amazing team that believed that I could do this if I got in front of enough Vermonters and spread a message of courage and strength and hope,” Balint said at a press conference earlier this month.“We did it because we tapped into the courage of working people across Vermont, regular people who want to have a voice again. That’s who I am. That’s who I will be in Congress.”Frost and Balint are just two members of an expanded progressive caucus that may be able to exert more influence over Democratic leaders starting in January.Monica De La Cruz, a Republican of TexasDe La Cruz’s win was a bright spot for Republicans on a generally disappointing election night. De La Cruz will be the first Republican to represent the 15th congressional district in southern Texas, where the party has been trying to make gains among Latino voters.Party leaders had hoped to win two other south Texas districts with Latina Republicans, reflecting their broader strategy this year of attempting to flip seats by running a more diverse slate of candidates. Mayra Flores ran in the 34th district, while Cassy Garcia competed in the 28th district. Together with De La Cruz, the three women were often dubbed the “Triple Threat” in conservative media, but of that group, only De La Cruz won her race.Overall, De La Cruz will be one of at least 45 Latino lawmakers serving in the 118th Congress, marking a new record for the US. Several newly elected members – including Democrat Yadira Caraveo in Colorado and Democrat Delia Ramirez in Illinois – will be the first Latinas to represent their states in Congress.Despite Republicans’ efforts to diversify their House caucus, they still trail Democrats on that front. At least 34 Latino Democrats will serve in the House starting in January, compared with at least 11 Latino Republicans. With the victories of John James in Michigan and Wesley Hunt in Texas, the number of Black Republicans in the House will also double in January – from two to four. In comparison, 58 Black Democrats are currently serving in the House.Mike Lawler, a Republican of New YorkMike Lawler’s victory made national headlines, as he defeated the incumbent congressman Sean Patrick Maloney, who served as the chair of House Democrats’ campaign arm this election cycle.Lawler was one of four Republicans who flipped House seats in New York, and those wins ultimately proved crucial in determining control of the lower chamber. When the “red wave” that many Republicans had expected failed to materialize on election day, the success of Lawler’s group helped them win back a narrow majority.Because of that slim majority, the incoming Republican speaker will be able to afford only a few defections within the party when trying to pass legislation. There are already signs of tension and disagreement within the House Republican caucus, and Lawler is one example of this. While most House Republicans continue to wholeheartedly embrace Trump and his divisive brand, Lawler has suggested that it may be time to move on from the former president, particularly after his endorsed candidates fared so poorly on election day.“I would like to see the party move forward,” Lawler told CNN earlier this month. “I think more focus needs to be on the issues and the substance of those issues than on personalities.”But many of Lawler’s new colleagues may not be ready to start a new chapter for the Republican party.Max Miller, a Republican of OhioMax Miller, who won the race to represent a newly reconfigured House district in Ohio, personifies Trump’s enduring hold on the Republican party and the House Republican caucus in particular.Most of Miller’s district is currently represented by Anthony Gonzalez, a lawmaker who was once considered a rising star in the Republican party but became a target of scorn after he voted to impeach Trump for inciting the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Following that vote, Miller received Trump’s endorsement to launch a primary challenge against Gonzalez, and the incumbent congressman later announced he would not seek re-election.Miller has his own connection to the January 6 insurrection, as he appeared before the House select committee investigating the Capitol attack over the summer. According to the committee, Miller participated in a meeting two days before the attack to discuss the rally that Trump held on the Ellipse immediately before a group of his supporters stormed the Capitol.Miller won his seat in Congress partly thanks to Trump’s endorsement, and he will probably be quite hesitant to distance himself from the former president. That hesitation could put him and his allies on a collision course with colleagues like Lawler, who say they want to chart a new course for the Republican party.The incoming Republican speaker will need to keep all factions of the caucus unified to get anything done. That task already appears immense.TopicsHouse of RepresentativesUS politicsRepublicansDemocratsUS midterm elections 2022featuresReuse this content More

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      Who’s really in charge of the House of Representatives? Politics Weekly America

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      There was no red wave, but come January next year, the Republicans will officially be in control of the House of Representatives. What will they do? Who will be in charge? Will they hold together or fall apart?
      Jonathan Freedland puts these questions and more to Marianna Sotomayor of The Washington Post. The pair also discuss the legacy of the outgoing Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi

      How to listen to podcasts: everything you need to know

      Archive: CBS News, CNN and CSPAN Listen to Susan Page look back at Nancy Pelosi’s career Send your questions and feedback to podcasts@theguardian.com Help support the Guardian by going to theguardian.com/supportpodcasts More

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      From homeless to city hall: the Hmong American mayor making history in Oakland

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      From homeless to city hall: the Hmong American mayor making history in OaklandSheng Thao says her experiences will help her lead the city through its severe housing crisis At the steps of city hall, surrounded by supporters and a gaggle of press, Oakland’s new mayor-elect Sheng Thao exhaled.“It’s been a long journey,” she began. “We’ve been through a lot to get to this moment right here.”Just 15 years ago, Thao was living in her car with her infant son. She had just escaped an abusive relationship and had nowhere to go. This week Thao, 37, became the first Hmong American woman to lead a major US city, the youngest Oakland mayor in 75 years and the first renter to hold the position.“There have been so many people in this beautiful city that have held our hands and lifted us up,” she said on Wednesday, in her first press conference since her history-making victory.The daughter of of refugees who fled Laos during a genocide, Thao was born and raised in Stockton, California, the seventh of 10 children. She left home at 17, and in her early 20s fled an abusive partner while pregnant with her son Ben. She spent months sleeping in her car or on stranger’s couches before she was able to secure a shelter.Now, as she steps into the role of mayor, Thao said her experiences with poverty and homelessness will help her lead the city through its own severe housing and homelessness crisis, and increasing gun violence. Over the past five years, Oakland saw a steeper rise in homelessness than any other city in the Bay Area.While many other Democratic midterm candidates across the state and country have responded to voters’ worries about homelessness and community violence with harsh, tough-on-crime rhetoric, Thao has promised policies that will treat unhoused people with dignity and investment in public health and violence prevention programs.Thao’s victory is a sign that voters “don’t want to vilify and punish poor people”, said Aimee Allison, founder of She the People, a national network elevating the political power of women of color.Allison, who lives in Oakland, said she has known Thao since she was an intern for Oakland vice-mayor Rebeecca Kaplan. Thao eventually became Kaplan’s chief of staff, before successfully running for city council herself. “Her values are clear,” said Allison. “It makes her very popular amongst lots of different people, because they feel seen and heard with her.”And Thao has built a long reputation of community involvement and action. At UC Berkeley, she organized the Bear Pantry – named after the university’s mascot – which collected food donations from local restaurants and grocers to help feed students in need. While working for Kaplan, she created a food delivery program for seniors and homebound residents. And amid the pandemic, she helped establish a mutual aid collective to distribute masks, hand sanitizer and public health information to underserved communities.“Sheng is a down to earth candidate who actually knows what it’s like for people who are marginalized in this city,” said Pamela Drake, a local activist who advised Thao’s campaign. “She’s not as progressive as I am,” Drake said. “I won’t always agree with her. But I do think what she’ll do is listen. And she won’t just ignore the people that are really in need.”Thao has hopes to see at least 30,000 new housing units built over the next eight years, provide safe RV parking sites for those who live in their vehicles and trash and sanitation services for encampments. Ultimately, Thao said, she wants the city to offer “adequate housing and shelter to all 3,300 unhoused residents in Oakland” over two four-year terms. She has also suggested stronger protections for renters, including rent controls, to keep people from ending up unhoused in the first place.The proposals had earned her the support of social justice group Oakland Rising, as well as a coalition of unhoused Oaklanders and homelessness advocates.To address public safety issues, Thao said she would like to fill vacancies in Oakland’s police force, which has been under federal oversight for nearly two decades following a corruption scandal. But she said she would also like to see more investment in education and violence prevention programs.In a ranked-choice election, she narrowly secured a victory by just 682 votes over the more moderate Democratic frontrunner Loren Taylor after nearly two weeks of ballot counting. Thao’s victory is considered something of an upset; while she had the backing of the local Democratic party, labor unions and progressive figures including California congressman Ro Khanna, her opponent Taylor was endorsed by key figures in Bay Area politics including Oakland’s outgoing mayor Libby Schaaf and San Francisco mayor London Breed.She is one of several newly elected progressive officials in Oakland, which will have a progressive majority in city council starting next year. And progressive civil rights attorney Pamela Price became the first Black district attorney of Alameda county, with encompasses Oakland.“We finally have the opportunity for progressive policies and changes to actually happen for the city,” Allison said.TopicsOaklandCaliforniaUS politicsUS midterm elections 2022DemocratsfeaturesReuse this content More

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      Supreme court allows Congress to see Donald Trump’s tax returns – as it happened

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      The supreme court will allow a congressional committee to receive Donald Trump’s tax returns, the Associated Press reports, ending a three-year battle by the Democratic-led body to see the documents the former president has famously refused to release since his first White House bid.We’ll have more on this developing story as it happens.Three years of court battles came to a close today, when the supreme court allowed the Democratic-led House ways and means committee to receive Donald Trump’s tax returns over the former president’s opposition. Also ending today was Anthony Fauci’s streak of appearances at the White House. The top US public health official who became a household name during the Covid-19 pandemic made his last briefing to reporters before he steps down from the role, and implored Americans to get a booster shot to protect against the virus.Here’s what else happened today:
      Joe Biden extended the pause on federal student loan repayments until 30 June in order to give his administration time to defend his debt forgiveness plan at the supreme court.
      A former top prosecutor on Robert Mueller’s team investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 election has some thoughts for how newly appointed special counsel Jack Smith could approach the criminal investigations into Trump.
      Democrat Raphael Warnock has a narrow lead over GOP candidate Herschel Walker in the runoff election for Georgia’s Senate seat scheduled for 6 December.
      Florida’s legislature appears to be moving to change a law that would allow Governor Ron DeSantis make a much-expected run for president.
      Republican senator Lindsey Graham spoke to a special grand jury investigating meddling in Georgia’s 2020 election result, after months of trying to get out of it.
      The NAACP civil rights group is among those cheering Biden’s decision to extent the pause on federal student loan repayments.“In the face of extreme greed and hypocrisy by the far-right, President Biden today is standing up for all Americans – middle-class and low-income families – who carry the heavy burden of student loan debt,” the group’s president Derrick Johnson. “The impact this extension will have in the lives of those who have been targeted by predatory student loans cannot be overstated.”Progressive House Democrat Ro Khanna joined in:This is the right move from @POTUS and a victory for those fighting to cancel student debt. We must cancel debt and make public higher education and trade school free for all. https://t.co/2MoDdLzoPL— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) November 22, 2022
      Here’s Joe Biden in his own words, explaining his decision to extend the pause on federal student loan repayment:I’m confident that our student debt relief plan is legal. But it’s on hold because Republican officials want to block it.That’s why @SecCardona is extending the payment pause to no later than June 30, 2023, giving the Supreme Court time to hear the case in its current term. pic.twitter.com/873CurlHFZ— President Biden (@POTUS) November 22, 2022
      Biden first announced the plan in August, and said federal student loan payments would restart in January of next year, and no later. He’s now reversed that, and in the video above, cites recent court rulings putting his loan forgiveness program on hold as the reason.The Biden administration will extend its pause on student loan repayments until 30 June, Bloomberg News reports:WHITE HOUSE TO EXTEND STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENT HALT UP TO JUNE 30per @nancook— Josh Wingrove (@josh_wingrove) November 22, 2022
      The decision comes after Joe Biden’s plan to relieve as much as $20,000 of some borrowers’ federal student loan debt was blocked by a federal court. The White House is appealing that order before the supreme court.Lindsey Graham’s office has released a brief statement after the Republican senator appeared today before a special grand jury investigating attempts by Donald Trump and his allies to meddle in the state’s election results.“Today, Senator Graham appeared before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury for just over two hours and answered all questions. The Senator feels he was treated with respect, professionalism, and courtesy. Out of respect for the grand jury process he will not comment on the substance of the questions,” the statement read.No supreme court justices recorded dissents to the order lifting a stay on an appeals court ruling that allows the House ways and means committee to access Donald Trump’s tax returns.The Democratic-led committee in 2019 requested the then-president’s returns under federal law, saying they were part of their investigation into Trump’s compliance with Internal Revenue Service auditing. Trump has been fighting the matter in court ever since, and supreme court chief justice John Roberts had earlier this month put a stay on the most recent ruling from a federal appeals court in the committee’s favor.The Treasury department is now cleared to hand the documents the ways and means committee. Democrats currently control the House, but will lose it at the start of 2023, when the new Republican majority takes their seats.US supreme court blocks handover of Trump’s tax returns to CongressRead moreThe supreme court will allow a congressional committee to receive Donald Trump’s tax returns, the Associated Press reports, ending a three-year battle by the Democratic-led body to see the documents the former president has famously refused to release since his first White House bid.We’ll have more on this developing story as it happens.Donald Trump is having his day in court as the justice department challenges the appointment of a special master in the Mar-a-Lago case.Politico reports that the appeals panel hearing the matter is skeptical of why an official was appointed to filter out privileged documents from the trove seized by federal agents:HAPPENING NOW: Appeals court panel (with two Trump appointees and a GWB appointee) is sharply critical of Trump effort to save special master process. They think Trump is seeking special pre-indictment treatment as an ex-president.— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) November 22, 2022
      The special master review is seen as an attempt to frustrate and learn details of the investigation into alleged government secrets discovered at the former president’s south Florida resort.On another note:Trump attorney Jim TRUSTY says among the items seized from Trump’s home: a picture of Celine Dion.— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) November 22, 2022
      An interesting development from Florida, where the new leader of the Republican-controlled House appears ready to repeal the state’s “resign to run” law, currently an obstacle to Ron DeSantis’s expected campaign for the White House.As things stand, DeSantis, who was re-elected this month in a landslide to a second term, would have to step down if he were to challenge for his party’s 2024 presidential nomination. His supporters acknowledged as much by chanting “two more years!” at his election night party. Governors in Florida serve four year terms.It’s the same rule that required Charlie Crist, DeSantis’s beaten Democratic opponent, to resign his US House seat earlier this year to challenge him.Politico’s reports that state House speaker Paul Renner says he’s willing to change the law next year, and allow DeSantis to fulfil his four-year term as governor at the same time as pursuing a presidential campaign in 2024.Fla House Speaker @Paul_Renner says he’s willing to change state law during 2023 session so @GovRonDeSantis can run for president without having to resign. Called it a “good idea.”— Gary Fineout (@fineout) November 22, 2022
      And with a compliant, super-majority in both chambers of the state’s legislature, Republicans can pretty much do as they please.The US relationship with Saudi Arabia is still under review despite a Biden administration ruling that the Saudi crown prince has immunity from a lawsuit over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said today.Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist then living in the United States, was killed and dismembered in 2018 by Saudi agents in the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul, in an operation US intelligence believes was ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Reuters writes.The prince has denied ordering the killing, which has cast a pall over relations between the two countries.Khashoggi’s fiancee has sued the prince in US court, but in a ruling last week, US justice department lawyers concluded that the prince had immunity as a result of having been named prime minister in the Saudi government in September..css-knbk2a{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}The opinion that we provided does not in any way speak to the merits of the case or the status of the bilateral relationship.
      Our review of that relationship is ongoing,” Blinken told reporters at a news conference in Qatar after an annual US-Qatar strategic dialogue.Blinken also said there were no plans for the prince to visit the United States.Donald Trump today asked a federal court in Florida to provide him and his lawyers with a complete version of the affidavit that federal investigators used to obtain a search warrant for his Florida property in August.Prosecutors are conducting a criminal investigation into the retention of government records at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort after his presidency ended, Reuters reports.The request to unseal the search warrant affidavit was made to US District Judge Aileen Cannon in Florida.A redacted version of the affidavit was made public in August after media organizations sought its release, with sections blacked out that prosecutors said should remain secret.The Justice Department said the redactions included information from “a broad range of civilian witnesses” as well as investigative techniques that, if disclosed, could reveal how to obstruct the probe.US Attorney General Merrick Garland last Friday appointed a special counsel, Jack Smith, to preside over criminal investigations involving the former president after Trump announced he would run for president again.A federal appeals court later today will hear arguments on whether an outside arbiter appointed by Cannon should be allowed to continue a review of documents seized in the search and determine whether any of the records should be kept from criminal investigators.Juror are deliberating over whether to convict five Oath Keepers militia members of seditious conspiracy, in what would be a milestone for the government’s prosecution of alleged January 6 insurrectionists. Meanwhile, Anthony Fauci made what could be his last appearance at the White House podium and asked Americans to get the latest Covid-19 vaccine booster as the holiday travel season arrives.Here’s what else has happened today so far:
      Top House Republican Kevin McCarthy plans a “major” announcement around 4:30 pm eastern time during his visit to El Paso, Texas. This could be the start of a GOP effort to impeach homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over his handling of the surge in migrants to the US-Mexico border since Joe Biden took office.
      A former top prosecutor on Robert Mueller’s team investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 election has some thoughts for how newly appointed special counsel Jack Smith could approach the criminal investigations into Donald Trump.
      Democrat Raphael Warnock has a narrow lead over GOP candidate Herschel Walker in the run-off election for Georgia’s Senate seat scheduled for 6 December.
      Andrew Weissmann was one of the top members on special prosecutor Robert Mueller’s team looking into Russian interference in the 2016 election that brought Trump to power.Now another special prosecutor has been appointed to decide on whether to bring charges against Trump over the January 6 insurrection and the alleged government secrets found at Mar-a-Lago. Writing in the New York Times, Weissmann shares some advice for Jack Smith, the veteran prosecutor appointed to the role.Chief among these is the possibility of Smith bringing charges against Trump – an option Mueller didn’t have, Weissmann says. “Mr. Smith is stepping into a political context very different from the one that confronted Mr. Mueller. Most notably, because of Justice Department policy, Mr. Mueller was forbidden to charge a sitting president. Now that Mr. Trump is a former president, Mr. Smith is not subject to that limitation. (That policy does not apply to presidential candidates like Mr. Trump.),” Weissmann writes.He also notes that Smith has the option of taking a more transparent approach to his investigation than Mueller, who was famously tight-lipped about what he was finding.“Neither the current special counsel regulations nor Justice Department rules require Mr. Smith to take a vow of silence with the American public,” Weissmann writes. “His ability to explain and educate will be critical to the acceptance of the department’s mission by the American public. It will permit Mr. Smith to be heard directly and not through the gauze of pundits and TV anchors; it will allow the public to directly assess Mr. Smith, a heretofore little-known figure; and it will permit Mr. Smith to counteract those strong forces seeking to discredit or misleadingly shape the narrative about the investigations.”Under Joe Biden, the United States passed the first significant piece of legislation to fight climate change and reversed decades of opposition to creating a fund for poor countries suffering the worst effects of global rising temperatures. Now, it’s trying to portray China as the world’s climate change villain – but as Oliver Milman reports, activists aren’t buying it:The US, fresh from reversing its 30 years of opposition to a “loss and damage” fund for poorer countries suffering the worst impacts of the climate crisis, has signaled that its longstanding image as global climate villain should now be pinned on a new culprit: China.Following years of tumult in which the US refused to provide anything resembling compensation for climate damages, followed by Donald Trump’s removal of the US from the Paris climate agreement, there was a profound shift at the Cop27 UN talks in Egypt, with Joe Biden’s administration agreeing to the new loss and damage fund.The US also backed language in the new agreement, which finally concluded in the early hours of Sunday morning after an often fraught period of negotiations between governments, that would demand the phase-out of all unabated fossil fuels, only to be thwarted by major oil-producing nations such as Saudi Arabia and Russia.Despite these stances, the US continued to be the leading target of ire from climate activists who blame it for obstruction and for failing to reckon with its role as history’s largest ever emitter of planet-heating gases. On Friday, the US was given the unwanted title of “colossal fossil” by climate groups for supposedly failing to push through the loss and damage assistance at Cop27.The US delegation in Sharm el-Sheikh chafed at this image, with John Kerry, Biden’s climate envoy, using his closing remarks to shift the focus on to China, now the world’s largest emitter. Kerry said that “all nations have a stake in the choices China makes in this critical decade. The United States and China should be able to accelerate progress together, not only for our sake, but for future generations – and we are all hopeful that China will live up to its global responsibility.” US receives stinging criticism at Cop27 despite China’s growing emissionsRead moreAnthony Fauci is making his final appearance at the White House podium, ahead of his retirement next month as America’s top public health official:.⁦@PressSec⁩ says this is Dr Fauci’s last time at the podium pic.twitter.com/fgeE36pkzD— AlexGangitano (@AlexGangitano) November 22, 2022
      The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984, Fauci became a household name as the public face of the US government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic beginning in early 2020. Here’s where his parting words to reporters gathered at the White House:FAUCI: “So my message and my final message, may be the final message I give you from this podium, is that please for your own safety, for that of your family, get your updated COVID-19 shot as soon as you’re eligible to protect yourself, your family and your community.”— Molly Nagle (@MollyNagle3) November 22, 2022
      Fauci is appearing alongside the White House’s coronavirus response coordinator Ashish Jha to announce the Biden’s administration’s new six-week campaign to encourage Americans to get Covid-19 boosters in anticipation of the holidays.He’s in court, he’s on the campaign trail and he’s once again being investigated by a special prosecutor.Like it or not, Donald Trump will frequently be in the news for the next two years – at least – and the Guardian’s community team would like to hear your thoughts on how reporters should cover the former president. Weigh in at the link below:Tell us: how should the media cover Trump’s 2024 run?Read more More

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      Jury deliberates on Oath Keepers’ January 6 role in seditious conspiracy trial – live

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      The Oath Keepers don’t dispute that some of their members were around the Capitol on January 6, but jurors need to believe they entered the building in an attempt to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s election win. Whether prosecutors have succeeded at this will be key to determining if they win a conviction in the seditious conspiracy case. Here’s more from the Associated Press on what’s come out of the trial so far:As angry supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol, ready to smash through windows and beat police officers, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes extolled them as patriots and harked back to the battle that kicked off the American revolutionary war.“Next comes our Lexington,” Rhodes told his fellow far-right extremists in a message on 6 January 2021. “It’s coming.”Jurors will begin weighing his words and actions on Tuesday, after nearly two months of testimony and argument in the criminal trial of Rhodes and four codefendants. Final defense arguments wrapped up late Monday. Hundreds of people have been convicted in the attack that left dozens of officers injured, sent lawmakers running for their lives and shook the foundations of American democracy. Now jurors in the case against Rhodes and four associates will decide, for the first time, whether the actions of any January 6 defendants amount to seditious conspiracy – a rarely used charge that carries both significant prison time and political weight.The jury’s verdict may well address the false notion that the 2020 presidential election was stolen, coming soon after 2022 midterm results in which voters rejected Trump’s chosen Republican candidates who supported his baseless claims of fraud. The outcome could also shape the future of the justice department’s massive and costly prosecution of the insurrection that some conservatives have sought to portray as politically motivated.Failure to secure a seditious conspiracy conviction could spell trouble for another high-profile trial beginning next month of former Proud Boys national chairman Enrique Tarrio and other leaders of that extremist group. The justice department’s January 6 probe has also expanded beyond those who attacked the Capitol to focus on others linked to Trump’s efforts to overturn the election.In the Oath Keepers trial, prosecutors built their case using dozens of encrypted messages sent in the weeks leading up to January 6. They show Rhodes rallying his followers to fight to defend Trump and warning they might need to “rise up in insurrection”.“We aren’t getting through this without a civil war. Prepare your mind, body and spirit,” he wrote shortly after the 2020 election.Jury deliberations begin in January 6 sedition trial of Oath Keepers founderRead moreDemocratic incumbent Raphael Warnock has a slight lead over his Republican challenger Herschel Walker ahead of the 6 December run-off election for Georgia’s Senate seat, a poll released today finds.The survey by AARP Georgia finds Warnock has 51% support over Walker’s 47%. The Democrat has an edge among young voters, while Walker is more popular among people older than 50, which are a large part of the electorate.Walker and Warnock are battling for a Senate seat that Democrats took control of only last year in a special election. While Joe Biden’s allies have secured a majority in Congress’s upper chamber for another two years, a victory by Warnock would pad their margin of control. Republicans, meanwhile, hope Walker’s victory would put them in a better position to retake the chamber in the next elections set for 2024.Top House Republican Kevin McCarthy will make a “major” announcement about homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas today, Fox News reports:NEW: GOP Minority Leader/Speaker elect Kevin McCarthy tells me he will be making a “major” announcement regarding DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas at a press conference in El Paso, TX this afternoon. McCarthy is here w/ a GOP delegation touring the border & meeting w/ BP agents.— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) November 22, 2022
      The announcement will come during McCarthy’s visit to El Paso, Texas, where he will probably draw attention to the surge in migrant arrivals at the US-Mexico border since Joe Biden took office. Republicans have criticized the White House for its handling of the situation, and rightwing lawmakers in Congress have reportedly called for impeachment proceedings against Mayorkas, a rare step to take against a sitting cabinet secretary.McCarthy is hoping to be elected speaker of the House when Republicans take control next year, after winning a majority of seats in the 8 November midterms. But he is scrambling to find the votes after several of the chamber’s most conservative lawmakers said they would not support him.Republican Senator Lindsey Graham will today appear before a special grand jury investigating efforts by Donald Trump’s allies to meddle with Georgia’s election result, Fox 5 Atlanta reports.Graham has fought the subpoena from Fulton county district attorney Fani Willis for months, but exhausted his legal options when the supreme court turned down his challenge earlier this month. The South Carolina lawmaker’s appearance before jurors in an Atlanta courthouse will not be public, but Willis could use evidence he provides to bring charges in the case.The district attorney has said she wants to ask Graham about two calls he made to Georgia’s secretary of state Brad Raffensperger and his officials following the 2020 election, in which he alleged voter fraud in the state and asked about the possibility of “reexamining certain absentee ballots,” Fox 5 reports. Georgia was one of several states whose votes for Joe Biden proved crucial to his election victory two years ago.The Oath Keepers don’t dispute that some of their members were around the Capitol on January 6, but jurors need to believe they entered the building in an attempt to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s election win. Whether prosecutors have succeeded at this will be key to determining if they win a conviction in the seditious conspiracy case. Here’s more from the Associated Press on what’s come out of the trial so far:As angry supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol, ready to smash through windows and beat police officers, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes extolled them as patriots and harked back to the battle that kicked off the American revolutionary war.“Next comes our Lexington,” Rhodes told his fellow far-right extremists in a message on 6 January 2021. “It’s coming.”Jurors will begin weighing his words and actions on Tuesday, after nearly two months of testimony and argument in the criminal trial of Rhodes and four codefendants. Final defense arguments wrapped up late Monday. Hundreds of people have been convicted in the attack that left dozens of officers injured, sent lawmakers running for their lives and shook the foundations of American democracy. Now jurors in the case against Rhodes and four associates will decide, for the first time, whether the actions of any January 6 defendants amount to seditious conspiracy – a rarely used charge that carries both significant prison time and political weight.The jury’s verdict may well address the false notion that the 2020 presidential election was stolen, coming soon after 2022 midterm results in which voters rejected Trump’s chosen Republican candidates who supported his baseless claims of fraud. The outcome could also shape the future of the justice department’s massive and costly prosecution of the insurrection that some conservatives have sought to portray as politically motivated.Failure to secure a seditious conspiracy conviction could spell trouble for another high-profile trial beginning next month of former Proud Boys national chairman Enrique Tarrio and other leaders of that extremist group. The justice department’s January 6 probe has also expanded beyond those who attacked the Capitol to focus on others linked to Trump’s efforts to overturn the election.In the Oath Keepers trial, prosecutors built their case using dozens of encrypted messages sent in the weeks leading up to January 6. They show Rhodes rallying his followers to fight to defend Trump and warning they might need to “rise up in insurrection”.“We aren’t getting through this without a civil war. Prepare your mind, body and spirit,” he wrote shortly after the 2020 election.Jury deliberations begin in January 6 sedition trial of Oath Keepers founderRead moreGood morning, US politics blog readers. A Washington federal jury is starting deliberations in the trial of five members of the Oath Keepers militia, including its founder Stewart Rhodes. The group stands accused of seditious conspiracy, a rarely used charge that prosecutors say is an appropriate way to describe the alleged plot they attempted to carry out on January 6 to stop Joe Biden from taking office. The trial will be an important indicator of if the government can win convictions against the most violent actors in the insurrection, and a verdict could come at any time.Here’s what else is happening today:
      Top House Republican Kevin McCarthy is visiting border patrol personnel in El Paso, Texas. Expect him to talk up the GOP’s plan to address the surge of migrant arrivals at the US-Mexico border when they take control of the House next year, and criticize Joe Biden’s handling of the situation.
      Biden is heading to Nantucket, Massachusetts, this afternoon for the Thanksgiving holiday.
      Anthony Fauci and Covid-19 response coordinator Ashish Jha will appear at the daily White House press briefing at 11.30am eastern time, where they’ll likely talk about the threat of coronavirus during the holiday season. More

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      Trump in apparent Twitter snub after Musk lifts ban – as it happened

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      A brief recap of how Donald Trump’s return to Twitter happened:The first, and most pivotal event, is Elon Musk’s purchase of the platform. The Tesla boss announced his intention months ago then tried to back out, before finally taking over Twitter last month. Musk said he would reverse Trump’s ban if he took over the platform, but decided to first put it to a vote on Friday:Reinstate former President Trump— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 19, 2022
      The 52% in favor of his return is the type of popular vote margin Trump can only dream of.Anyway, Musk made good on his promise and reinstated the former president on Saturday: The people have spoken. Trump will be reinstated.Vox Populi, Vox Dei. https://t.co/jmkhFuyfkv— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 20, 2022
      Trump has not yet tweeted. Musk has, perhaps seeking to distract attention from the chaos that appears to be engulfing Twitter since he took it over:And lead us not into temptation … pic.twitter.com/8qNOXzwXS9— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 21, 2022
      After being booted from Twitter following the January 6 insurrection, Trump started Truth, a competing social network that never really took off, and on which he was its most famous denizen. Last month, Trump told Fox News that he planned to remain there. A regulatory filing from Truth indicates that even if Trump intends to return to Twitter, he has comittments to take care of first:.css-knbk2a{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}President Trump is generally obligated to make any social media post on TruthSocial and may not make the same post on another social media site for 6 hours. Thereafter, he is free to post on any site to which he has access. … In addition, he may make a post from a personal account related to political messaging, political fundraising or get-out-the-vote efforts on any social media site at any time.Donald Trump’s Twitter account was reactivated but remained quiet, though the former president aired grievances in other venues. Meanwhile, Joe Biden carried out the customary pardon of a pair of turkeys ahead of Thursday’s Thanksgiving holiday, but his administration may soon have another labor headache to deal with.Here’s what else happened today:
      Manhattan’s district attorney is revitalizing a criminal investigation into Trump, but it appears to have long odds of success.
      Biden said he had no advance knowledge of the decision to appoint a special counsel to decide whether to charge Trump over the January 6 insurrection and Mar-a-Lago documents case.
      Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows is continuing to fight his subpoena from a special grand jury investigating the 2020 election meddling campaign in Georgia.
      The head of progressive Democrats in the House said Biden should stand for re-election, and called on Republicans to stop attacking Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, accusing them of stoking xenophobia.
      Another January 6 rioter is going to jail.
      Barack Obama will return to Georgia on 1 December to campaign for Democratic senator Raphael Warnock, who is fighting to keep his seat in a contest with Republican challenger Herschel Walker, FOX 5 Atlanta reports.Warnock and Walker will stand in a runoff election on 6 December after neither won a majority in the midterm elections held earlier this month. Obama campaigned for Warnock in late October, and the senator ended up winning slightly more votes than Walker in the 8 November election.Democrats have already won narrow control of the Senate for another two years, but Warnock’s re-election would pad their majority and allow them smoother operation of the chamber. A win by Walker would give Republicans an easier path to regaining the Senate when the next elections are held in 2024.Another January 6 rioter has been convicted, Politico reports:JUST IN: A jury finds Riley Williams — 22-year-old woman who joined Jan. 6 mob that breached Speaker Pelosi’s office — *guilty* of participating in a civil disorder and of impeding police.Jury hung on obstruction/aiding theft of Pelosi laptop.Details TK— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) November 21, 2022
      Kevin McCarthy’s criticism of Ilhan Omar is more indicative of his problems than hers.While Republicans may prevail in ousting Omar from the foreign affairs committee, McCarthy is embroiled in a high-stakes contest to win the post of House speaker – and may not have the votes to get the job.Last week, the California lawmaker was selected as the party’s candidate for House speaker, but to prevail he will need the support of a majority in the chamber. With the GOP likely to have only a tiny majority in the House and Democrats not expected to lend any support, he can afford to lose very few Republican votes. But several conservative lawmakers have said they won’t vote for McCarthy, imperiling his bid.Politico reports that dynamic has presented an opportunity for centrist lawmakers to make demands of McCarthy in return for their support, such as steps to promote bipartisan legislation. Some Democrats are even working on a plan to extract their own concessions, in case their votes become necessary for McCarthy to win, according to Politico.McCarthy, meanwhile, has announced a trip to the southern border, which has seen a big uptick in migrant arrivals since Joe Biden took office. That’s likely a signal McCarthy is trying to burnish his bona fides on conservative immigration policy as he looks to consolidate support:Headed to the Southern border this week, where I’ll share our gratitude for brave border patrol personnel and send a message to Joe Biden that a Republican majority will use every tool at our disposal—from the power of the purse to power of the subpoena—to secure the border.— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) November 20, 2022
      The chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Pramila Jayapal, has called for Republicans, particularly their leader in the House, Kevin McCarthy, to tone down their rhetoric toward Congresswoman Ilhan Omar.Omar, a Democratic House representative from Minnesota who was born in Somalia and is a practising Muslim, has been a frequent target of attacks from rightwing lawmakers since she arrived in the chamber in 2019:Islamophobia has no place in our country or our government.@Ilhan is a dedicated Congresswoman and a powerful member of @USProgressives. But since the moment she arrived in Washington, the Republican Party has weaponized xenophobia and racism to undermine her voice. (1/2)— Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) November 21, 2022
      It is clear that Kevin McCarthy did not hear the American people when they unequivocally rejected MAGA extremism and hatred in the midterms.It’s time to turn down the temperature. (2/2)— Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) November 21, 2022
      Over the weekend, McCarthy pledged that if he was elected House speaker, he would remove Omar from the House foreign affairs committee, citing remarks she made about Israel:Last year, I promised that when I became Speaker, I would remove Rep. Ilhan Omar from the House Foreign Affairs Committee based on her repeated anti-semitic and anti-American remarks.I’m keeping that promise. pic.twitter.com/04blBx3neD— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) November 19, 2022
      Removing lawmakers from House committees requires approval from a majority of the chamber, which Republicans are set to control next year.The United States just took a 1-0 lead over Wales in the Americans’ first World Cup match in eight years.Joe Biden must be pleased. Before the match, he gave the national team a pep talk, and here’s footage from the White House of what he said:President Biden called the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team to wish them luck in the 2022 World Cup. pic.twitter.com/Z9UhWurzNu— The White House (@WhiteHouse) November 21, 2022
      Follow along here for more of the Guardian’s live coverage of the match:USA v Wales: World Cup 2022 – liveRead morePramila Jayapal, the Washington state Democratic congresswoman and chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus has joined the ranks of those who think Jo Biden should run for a second term in the White House term, despite the fact he turned 80 yesterday..css-knbk2a{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}He was not my first or second choice for president, but I am a convert. I never thought I would say this, but I believe he should run for another term and finish this agenda we laid out.
      What the president understands is you need this progressive base — young people, folks of color — and that progressives issues are popular. Whoever is in the White House should understand that, because it is a basic tenet now of how you win elections,” Jayapal told online news site Politico in an interview launched today.The Hill noted today that almost three-quarters of Democratic voters in a USA Today-Ipsos poll released yesterday said Biden could win if he runs for reelection, and half of Democrats think he deserves to win the White House again.The comments from Jayapal came in Politico’s piece about progressives also supporting Biden’s chief of staff Ron Klain continuing in that job. Amid talk that he might leave, Biden has reportedly asked him to stay on, too.Elon Musk has said he will not reinstate the conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on Twitter, saying he has “no mercy” for people who capitalise on the deaths of children for personal fame.Twitter permanently suspended the accounts of Jones and his Infowars website in September 2018 for violating the platform’s abusive behaviour policy.Jones, 48, gained notoriety for pushing a false conspiracy theory about the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting in 2012, which led to harassment of parents who lost their children in the massacre. Jones has been ordered by a US court to pay more than $1.4bn (£1.2bn) to people who suffered from his false claim that the shooting, in which 20 children and six educators died, was a hoax.Musk appeared to rule out a return for Jones in an interaction with Twitter users on Monday. The author and podcaster Sam Harris asked Twitter’s new owner if it was “time to let Alex Jones back on Twitter” and “if not, why not?”. Kim Dotcom, the internet entrepreneur, also asked if Jones could be reinstated in the interest of “real free speech”.Musk replied that he had lost a child – to sudden infant death syndrome in 2002 – and said Jones used the death of children to push his own agenda. He tweeted: “My firstborn child died in my arms. I felt his last heartbeat. I have no mercy for anyone who would use the deaths of children for gain, politics or fame.” Full story here.Prosecutors in the Trump Organization’s criminal tax fraud trial rested their case today, earlier than expected, pinning hopes for convicting Donald Trump’s company largely on the word of two top executives who cut deals before testifying in New York that they schemed to avoid taxes on company-paid perks.Allen Weisselberg, the company’s longtime finance chief, and Jeffrey McConney, a senior vice president and controller, testified for the bulk of the prosecution’s eight-day case, bringing the drama of their own admitted wrongdoing to a trial heavy on numbers, spreadsheets, tax returns and payroll records, the Associated Press writes.Weisselberg, who pleaded guilty in August to dodging taxes on $1.7 million in extras, was required to testify as a prosecution witness as part of a plea deal in exchange for a promised sentence of five months in jail. McConney was granted immunity to testify.The Trump Organization’s lawyers are expected to start calling witnesses Monday afternoon, likely beginning with an accountant who handled years of tax returns and other financial matters for Trump, the Trump Organization and hundreds of Trump entities.Prosecutors had considered calling the accountant, Mazars USA LLP partner Donald Bender, but decided not to. The defense indicated it would call him instead.Manhattan prosecutors allege that the Trump Organization helped top executives avoid paying taxes on company-paid perks and that it is liable for Weisselberg’s wrongdoing because he was a “high managerial agent” acting on its behalf.The tax fraud case is the only trial to arise from the Manhattan district attorney’s three-year investigation of Trump and his business practices. If convicted, the company could be fined more than $1 million and face difficulty making deals.In Arizona, Republican Liz Harris won her race for a seat in the state’s House of Representatives – but has pledged not to cast any votes until the entire 2022 election is redone, 12News reports.“Although I stand to win my Legislative District race it has become obvious that we need to hold a new election immediately. There are clear signs of foul play from machine malfunctions, chain of custody issues and just blatant mathematical impossibilities. How can a Republican State Treasurer receive more votes than a Republican Gubernatorial or Senate candidate?” Harris wrote in a statement.If Harris follows through on the threat, it could cause some serious problems for her Republican colleagues. They control the Arizona House, but only by two votes.Former Trump official Steve Bannon was a great promoter of his Maga ideology ahead of the midterms. But most of the candidates who appeared on his shows lost their races, a Media Matters for America analysis found.Of the 59 candidates who were interviewed by Bannon, 34, or 58%, lost their races, the left-leaning media watchdog found. His record among new aspirants for office was worse. Of the 48 non-incumbents Bannon hosted, 33 of them lost. Losers include Tudor Dixon, the GOP candidate for governor of Michigan, and Kari Lake, who stood for the same role in Arizona. Among Senate aspirants, Don Bolduc, Adam Laxalt, Blake Masters, Joe Pinion and Gerald Malloy were among the losers. JD Vance and Katie Britt, however, won their races. Other notable losers who Bannon spotlit were Mark Finchem, the election-denying secretary of state candidate in Arizona, as well as Doug Mastriano, Pennyslvania’s Republican candidate for governor who was known for his hardline anti-abortion views and involvement in the January 6 insurrection.Donald Trump’s Twitter account is reactivated but quiet, though the former president is airing grievances in other venues. Meanwhile, Joe Biden has carried out the customary pardon of a pair of turkeys ahead of Thursday’s thanksgiving holiday, but his administration may have another labor headache to soon deal with.Here’s what else is going on today:
      Manhattan’s district attorney is revitalizing a criminal investigation into Trump, but it appears to have long odds of success.
      Biden said he had no advance knowledge of the decision to appoint a special counsel to decide whether to charge Trump over the January 6 insurrection and Mar-a-Lago documents case.
      Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows is continuing to fight his subpoena from a special grand jury investigating the 2020 election meddling campaign in Georgia.
      Trump still hasn’t bothered to make use of his restored Twitter account, but has other ways of making his opinions known.Such as email. The former president periodically sends out statements to reporters that seem to be about whatever’s on his mind. Today, it’s Joe O’Dea, the unsuccessful Republican candidate for Senate in Colorado who clashed with Trump.“Joe O’Dea lost his race in Colorado by over 12 points because he campaigned against MAGA,” Trump wrote. “Likewise, candidates who shifted their ‘messaging’ after winning big in the Primaries (Bolduc!) saw big losses in the General. Will they ever learn their lesson? You can’t win without MAGA!”It’s also worth noting he didn’t bother with Twitter when it came to sharing his thoughts about the newly appointed special counsel. Instead, he used Truth to put out a statement that was about what you would expect if you’ve read anything the former president has written over the past six years:.css-knbk2a{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}The Polls are really strong, especially since Tuesday’s announcement, hence the appointment of a Radical Left Prosecutor, who is totally controlled by President Obama and his former A.G., Eric Holder. This is not Justice, this is just another Witch Hunt, and a very dangerous one at that! No way this Scam should be allowed to go forward!In a brief encounter with the press after the turkey pardon, Biden said he had no advance warning of attorney general Merrick Garland’s decision Friday to appoint a special counsel to handle the criminal investigations involving Donald Trump.“I learned about when you did,” Biden said.Garland last week announced the appointment of Jack Smith as special counsel to decide on whether to bring charges related to the Mar-a-Lago documents case and the January 6 insurrection.Joe Biden has just carried out one of the most solemn duties an American president must perform: pardoning the thanksgiving turkey.In a chilly morning ceremony on the White House lawn, Biden gave a reprieve to turkeys Chocolate and Chip, while finding a way to zing the Republicans for their underwhelming midterm performance:“The only red wave this season is gonna if our German Shepherd, Commander, knocks over the cranberry sauce.”— President Biden jokes about Republicans’ midterm performance at the annual Thanksgiving turkey pardon pic.twitter.com/Yw4YgHYLtz— The Recount (@therecount) November 21, 2022
      As happens sometimes, there was a heckler at the president’s speech, but on this occasion, it was his own dog:In this clip you can hear Commander bark and the turkey gobble back. pic.twitter.com/AaMOtZOiT4— Jeremy Art (@cspanJeremy) November 21, 2022
      The GOP was watching, and wasted no time in highlighting a gaffe made by the president:BIDEN: “9.5 million turkeys! I tell ya what, that’s like some of the countries I’ve been to and they — anyway… *looks at turkey* you wanna talk?” pic.twitter.com/GgsRkr23nZ— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) November 21, 2022 More