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Facebook and Twitter sanction Trump for post claiming kids are ‘virtually immune’ to coronavirus

Facebook and Twitter have sanctioned President Donald Trump for spreading misinformation on Covid-19 on Wednesday, including blocking his campaign from tweeting until it removed an offending post. Both social media giants acted in response to a video clip posted to both Trump’s Facebook and campaign Twitter accounts where he claims children were “virtually immune” to […]

Pence blasts Chief Justice John Roberts as ‘disappointment to conservatives’

Vice President Mike Pence described Chief Justice John Roberts in a new interview as a “disappointment” to conservative voters, explicitly seeking to cast the Supreme Court as a campaign issue ahead of the November election. “Look, we have great respect for the institution of the Supreme Court of the United States,” Pence told the Christian […]

Stephcast 8-5-20

Trump campaign sues Nevada over plan to mail ballots to all registered voters

The Trump campaign filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the state of Nevada over its plan to send absentee ballots to all active voters this November in a major expansion of mail-in voting in the battleground state. “The RNC has a vital interest in protecting the ability of Republican voters to cast, and Republican candidates to […]

Poll: Voters much more likely to trust family, Fauci than Trump on vaccine

Only 14 percent of voters said they would be more likely to take a coronavirus vaccine if President Donald Trump recommended it, according to a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll. Voters were far more likely to say they’d take a vaccine based on the advice of their family (46 percent), the CDC (43 percent) or the […]

Trump Tries To Recast Second Surge In COVID-19 Deaths As Achievement For U.S.

President Donald Trump once again pushed back against statistics showing an uptick in coronavirus death rates in the United States during an interview with Axios that aired Monday. The president sat down for a sweeping interview with the outlet’s Jonathan Swan on July 28. Swan pressed Trump on figures that showed a recent dramatic rise […]

Trump proposes attack theory to explain Beirut blast

President Donald Trump suggested on Tuesday that a bomb attack was behind the catastrophic explosion that rocked Beirut earlier in the day, seemingly contradicting Lebanese officials’ explanations that it was caused by confiscated explosives. The exact cause of the explosion was unclear Tuesday afternoon, but Abbas Ibrahim, chief of Lebanese General Security, said it was […]

Bob Cesca: Destroying the Postal Service… Is that Trump’s best shot at stealing the election?

In a time of instability and uncertainty, there’s one thing we can count on: Donald Trump will do everything he possibly can to retain power through the forthcoming election and beyond. His motives are well-known: If he loses the election, he’ll not only go down in history as a one-term loser, which is anathema to […]

Stephcast 8-4-20

Asked About John Lewis’ Legacy, Trump Gripes He Didn’t ‘Come To My Inauguration’

After a week of tributes and mourning for Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), President Donald Trump declined to offer any praise for the late civil rights icon and instead bemoaned the fact that he “didn’t come to my inauguration.” In an interview with Axios that aired Monday, Trump was asked how he thinks history will remember Lewis.  […]

Census Bureau To Cut Counting Efforts A Month Short, Raising Concerns That The Count Will Be Inaccurate

The Census Bureau will end its counting efforts for the 2020 census on Sept. 30, a month earlier than planned, the bureau’s director announced Monday.  The bureau had expected to continue field data collection, which includes door-knocking, phone calls and online responses, until Oct. 31. The date had been pushed back from a July 31 […]

Dr. Anthony Fauci starting to see ‘insidious’ rise in rate of positive coronavirus cases in some states

White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Monday that U.S. officials are beginning to see early signs of a new coronavirus surge in some states. The rate of coronavirus tests that come back positive in some states outside of the southern region of the nation is beginning to increase, Fauci, director of the National […]

Trump Organization under investigation for ‘insurance and bank fraud,’ filing suggests

Attorneys for Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance argued Monday that President Donald Trump should be forced to comply with a subpoena for his tax documents — and suggested that his company was under investigation for alleged insurance and bank fraud. The disclosure in a federal court filing adds a new dimension to the battle over […]

Charlie Pierce: ‘Congress’ Is Not Flailing. Republicans Are.

No, goddammit, Washington Post, Enough of this nonsense. “Congress” is not flailing. The Republican majority in the Senate is flailing, because the Republican majority is made up of Republicans, and the Republican Party is made up of hyper-ambitious lunatics. It’s not “Congress” that’s stiffing the millions of Americans who need relief in this perilous time […]

Stephcast 8-3-20

Poll: Biden slightly ahead in North Carolina, Georgia

Presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden has made inroads among white voters in two Southern states, improving his chances in North Carolina and Georgia, according to a CBS News poll released Sunday. The CBS News Battleground Tracker poll showed Biden leading President Donald Trump in North Carolina, 48 percent to 44, and edging Trump in Georgia […]

Nancy Pelosi Says She Does Not Have Confidence In Dr. Deborah Birx

House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Sunday said she does not have confidence in White House coronavirus task force member Dr. Deborah Birx, after reportedly bashing her during a closed-door meeting earlier this week. On ABC News’ “This Week,” host Martha Raddatz asked Pelosi about a Politico article from Friday, which reported that Pelosi […]

Eric Boehlert: When the press buried Obama for Ebola — and two Americans died

“The Ebola crisis in the United States has become an anchor threatening to sink the Obama presidency” — The Hill, October 16, 2014. Appearing on CNN last week, Washington Post reporter Abby Phillip expressed bewilderment that Trump was using his Twitter feed to spread wildly dangerous misinformation about the GOP’s supposed miracle cure for Covid-19. […]

The Rude Pundit: Barack Obama Reminds Us That We Are a Nation

There is a tone that Barack Obama has whenever he’s talking about something where you know he’s thinking, “This is so damn obvious that I can’t believe I have to say it out loud.” It’s a mixture of incredulity that people (generally Republicans and Fox “news” viewers) could be so fuckin’ stupid and disappointment that […]

Pelosi calls relief package discussions “productive” but no deal yet

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Saturday evening that discussions between congressional leadership and the White House were “productive,” but added “no agreement can be reached yet” on another coronavirus relief package. She said staffers will continue discussions on Saturday.     Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer met with White House chief of staff Mark Meadows […]

Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) tests positive for Covid-19 after meeting with Gohmert

House Natural Resources Chair Rep. Raul Grijalva announced Saturday he tested positive for Covid-19, days after chairing a hearing in which Rep. Louie Gohmert participated at length. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who has represented a Tuscon-area seat since 2003, is 73 and a heavy smoker. He said in a statement he is without symptoms and in quarantine. […]

Republican National Convention Says Press Not Welcome, Blames COVID-19

The vote to renominate President Donald Trump is set to be conducted in private later this month, without members of the press present, a spokeswoman for the Republican National Convention, citing the coronavirus. While Trump called off the public components of the convention in Florida last month, citing spiking cases of the virus across the […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 7-31-20 Carnie Wilson

Stephcast 7-31-20

Unsealed Documents Detail Damning Accusations Against Ghislaine Maxwell

Hundreds of pages of court documents involving British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, a longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein’s who has been accused of enabling the late financier’s sexual abuse of underage girls, were unsealed on Thursday night following a months-long court battle over the documents. Maxwell’s lawyers filed multiple challenges — most recently on Thursday — […]

GOP lets $600-a-week unemployment benefits expire during devastating financial week in U.S.

A crucial week on Capitol Hill that began with a rocky Republican rollout of a coronavirus relief package ended with a complete breakdown in negotiations, threatening to deepen the perils of an already embattled President Donald Trump. The Republican-led Senate adjourned Thursday for a long weekend with no action on COVID-19 relief, all but ensuring […]

Postal Service backlog sparks worries that ballot delivery could be delayed in November

The U.S. Postal Service is experiencing days-long backlogs of mail across the country after a top Trump donor running the agency put in place new procedures described as cost-cutting efforts, alarming postal workers who warn that the policies could undermine their ability to deliver ballots on time for the November election. As President Trump ramps […]

Stephcast 7-30-20

Trump floats delaying November election

President Trump suggested delaying November’s election in a Thursday tweet, again claiming without evidence that mail-in voting will lead to widespread voter fraud. The state of play: While this is the first time that Trump has actively floated changing Election Day, he does not have the power to do so. That lies exclusively with Congress, […]

Obama Reportedly To Deliver Eulogy At Rep. John Lewis’s Funeral Today

Former President Barack Obama will deliver the eulogy at Rep. John Lewis’s funeral on Thursday, according to CNN and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush are also expected to attend the service honoring the late Georgia congressman and civil rights icon, the news outlets said, citing sources familiar with the […]

Biden slams Trump for promoting false COVID-19 claims from ‘crazy woman’

Joe Biden on Wednesday excoriated President Donald Trump for promoting on Twitter the dubious claims of Dr. Stella Immanuel, the Houston doctor who’s claimed to have effectively treated hundreds of COVID-19 patients with hydroxychloroquine, who the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee called a “crazy woman.” In a virtual event with the UnidosUS Action Fund, a nonprofit […]

Rep. Louie Gohmert, who often went without a mask, tests positive for the coronavirus

Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, who has refused to wear a mask, tested positive for the coronavirus Wednesday shortly before he was expected to travel with President Donald Trump to Texas. Gohmert, 66, one of the most outspokenly conservative members of Congress, said he tested positive during the routine screening at the White House prior to […]

Stephcast 7-29-20

Trump doubles down on defense of hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19 despite efficacy concerns

As the U.S. neared 150,000 deaths from the novel coronavirus, President Donald Trump doubled down on his defense of an unproven drug to treat COVID-19 and offered a rosy picture of the growing public health crisis and of what is to come. “We’re seeing improvements across the major metro areas and most hot spots. You […]

Biden Says He’ll Choose His Running Mate Next Week

Joe Biden said Tuesday he’ll be making a long-anticipated announcement next week: The naming of a running mate on the Democratic presidential ticket he will head. After detailing in Wilmington, Delaware, his plan to combat racial inequality, the presumptive nominee told reporters he is “going to have a choice the first week in August, and […]

Defiant William Barr Denies Politicizing Justice For Trump’s Friends

Attorney General William Barr made a defiant appearance before a House committee on Tuesday, rejecting claims that he’d improperly interfered in the prosecutorial decision-making process to benefit President Donald Trump’s allies and defending the deployment of federal agents to cities against the wishes of local leaders. Barr, appearing before the House Judiciary Committee for the […]

Bob Cesca: American fascism has arrived, and the danger is real — but it’s not too late to defeat it

Ever since the beginning of the Trump crisis, I’ve written about Donald Trump’s obvious fetish for authoritarian dictatorships and how observing our nation’s most despotic president is an ongoing exercise in waiting for the other tyrannical shoe to drop.  Following the jackbooted nincompoopery of the Trump White House, as I’ve said multiple times before, is […]

Stephcast 7-28-20

Senate GOP, White House propose cutting $600 unemployment checks to $200 in coronavirus relief plan

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell introduced a new coronavirusrelief plan on the Senate floor after Senate Republican leaders and the White House appear to have overcome their differences. “I hope this strong proposal will occasion a real response, not partisan cheap shots. Not the predictable, tired old rhetoric as though these were ordinary times, and […]

Trump’s national security adviser Robert O’Brien tests positive for COVID-19, White House confirms

Robert O’Brien, President Donald Trump‘s national security adviser, has tested positive for COVID-19, making him the highest profile Trump official to contract the novel virus, the White House confirmed. “National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien tested positive for COVID-19. He has mild symptoms and has been self-isolating and working from a secure location off site. There […]

Joe Biden Urges Trump To Keep Coronavirus Vaccine Progress ‘Free From Political Pressure’

Former Vice President Joe Biden urged the Trump administration to take steps to ensure the development of a vaccine for the coronavirus will be “free from political pressure” and asked the White House to respect science as the nation reels from the COVID-19 pandemic. The presumptive Democratic nominee for president made the comments in a blog […]

Rep. John Lewis, ‘conscience of Congress,’ makes final trip to Capitol

Rep. John Lewis, the “conscience of Congress” who represented Georgia for more than three decades, made his final trip to the U.S. Capitol on Monday, lying in state in the building where his former colleagues said farewell to the civil rights giant. A military honor guard carried Lewis’ flag-draped casket up the stairs en route […]

Charlie Pierce: The President* Wants Chaos and Disunion. Don’t Give It to Him

The idea that people would resort to violence in support of Louie Gohmert, Padishah Emperor of the Crazy People, is bizarre enough to satisfy anyone’s taste for the odd. But coming as it does in the middle of a weekend in which the ongoing protests escalated into serious violence and gunfire, it stands out as […]

Stephcast 7-27-20

Top White House officials say Congress might need to rush narrow relief bill to avoid unemployment aid lapse

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said Sunday that Congress might have to pass a narrow piece of legislation this week to ensure enhanced unemployment benefits don’t expire for millions of Americans But they both also said the slimmed down legislation should include sweeping lawsuit protectionsdemanded by businesses, a […]

Poll: Trump trailing in battleground states 100 days out from the election

President Donald Trump continues to trail presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden in battleground states he won in 2016, according to a new poll. With just 100 days until Election Day, Trump is behind in Florida, Arizona and Michigan, according to a CNN-SSRS poll released Sunday. Trump trails Biden by 51 percent to 46 percent in […]

Workers Will Just ‘Sit Home’ On Unemployment Aid, Steve Mnuchin Complains

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin attacked continuing enhanced benefits for unemployed Americans by complaining that workers will “sit home” collecting the money. “It wouldn’t be fair to use taxpayer dollars to pay more people to sit home than they would get working and get a job,” Mnuchin told Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday in the video […]

John Lewis, civil rights giant, crosses Selma bridge on way to Montgomery one final time

Crowds watched solemnly Sunday as the body of Rep. John Lewis crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge one final time, 55 years after the civil rights icon marched for peace and was met with brutality in Selma, Alabama. Body bearers from the U.S. armed forces placed the late Georgia congressman and civil rights icon onto a […]

Eric Boehlert: Unplug the freak show — Trump’s pandemic briefings are back

Trump’s vow to return with his first pandemic press briefing in three months means the press faces a stark decision — is it in the nation’s best interest to provide nonstop, unedited coverage of his briefings knowing that Trump will lie and mislead the public about a national health emergency? Or is it time to […]

The Rude Pundit: AOC Fu**s the Patriarchy’s S**t Up

The line from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s calm evisceration of Rep. Ted Yoho yesterday on the floor of the House of Representatives that will likely be the one that is remembered is something that shouldn’t need to be said: “Having a daughter does not make a man decent. Having a wife does not make a decent […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 7-24-20

Stephcast 7-24-20

U.S. passes 4 million coronavirus cases as pace of new infections roughly doubles

The United States on Thursday passed the grim milestone of 4 million confirmed coronavirus infections, and President Trump announced he was canceling the public celebration of his nomination for a second term, as institutions from schools to airlines to Major League Baseball wrestled with the consequences of a pandemic still far from under control. The rapid […]

Ocasio-Cortez Lights Up Rep. Yoho For ‘Apology’ Over ‘F**king Bitch’ Insult

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took to the House floor on Thursday to respond to comments made by Rep. Ted Yoho the day before in an attempted apology after he reportedly called her a “fucking bitch” earlier in the week. The Florida Republican has repeatedly denied that he uttered vulgar language at the New York Democrat, which […]

Republicans Struggling To Finalize Their Next Coronavirus Relief Package

After days of intra-party squabbles and months of delays, Republicans on Thursday struggled to unify around another economic stimulus package that would help Americans reeling from the resurgent coronavirus pandemic. The proposal, which was initially expected to be made public on Thursday, now won’t be released until next week due to disagreements among Senate Republicans and […]

Trump cancels in-person Republican convention in Jacksonville, Florida

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will no longer hold a large, in-person Republican convention in Jacksonville, Florida, because of the coronavirus but that he will hold virtual events and still give an acceptance speech. “I told my team it’s time to cancel the Jacksonville, Florida, component of the GOP convention. We will be […]

Stephcast 7-23-20

The US reported more Covid-19 cases in the last two weeks than it did for all of June

In the past two weeks, the US recorded more than 915,000 new cases of coronavirus — that’s more than the cases reported across the country for the whole month of June. The staggering number signals the US is still far from containing the virus, which is running rampant across American communities, overwhelming hospitals and testing […]

Russian Allies Helping Trump Win Reelection Have A Partner In Wisconsin Republican

Allies of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin hoping to give President Donald Trump a second term in office appear to have a new partner: Republican Ron Johnson, who is using his Senate committee to renew debunked allegations against presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden. Johnson, a second-term senator from Wisconsin who chairs the Senate Homeland Security and […]

White House executive office cafeteria closed after positive coronavirus test

The White House is conducting contact tracing after a cafeteria worker tested positive for coronavirus, three Trump administration officials tell NBC News. The cafeteria and an eatery in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, or EEOB, were both closed this week after the case was discovered, officials said. It was unclear how long the facility will […]

Trump And Barr Expand Surge In Federal Officers To Chicago, Albuquerque

President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr announced Wednesday that federal agents will surge into Chicago and Albuquerque to help combat rising crime, expanding the administration’s intervention in local enforcement as Trump runs for reelection under a “law-and-order” mantle. Hundreds of federal agents already have been sent to Kansas City, Missouri, to help quell a record rise […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 7-22-20 Joy Reid

Stephcast 7-22-20

Federal agents, Portland protesters in standoff as chaos envelops parts of city

Even after tear gas choked downtown Portland in the early hours of Tuesday, Riots Ribs kept the food coming. A volunteer, who has been camped outside the Multnomah County Justice Center since demonstrations against police brutality began more than 50 days ago, slathered barbecue sauce on the meat cooking just a few yards from federal […]

Fauci: I was not invited to Trump’s coronavirus briefing

Anthony Fauci, one of the most recognized and trusted faces of the federal coronavirus response, said on Tuesday he was not invited to join President Donald Trump later in the day at a news briefing on the White House pandemic response. Trump announced on Monday he would return to the White House lectern to deliver […]

Trump on Ghislaine Maxwell: ‘I wish her well’

Ghislaine Maxwell has been accused of child sex trafficking in connection with her late friend Jeffrey Epstein, a financier and convicted sex offender. The charges against her include recruiting and grooming girls as young as 14 into a circle of sexual abuse with possible connections to powerful men around the world. President Donald Trump wishes […]

Trump, in a Shift, Finally Endorses Masks and Says Virus Will Get Worse

President Trump acknowledged on Tuesday that the coronavirus pandemic was growing more severe in the United States and endorsed mask wearing in a shift after weeks of playing down the seriousness of the crisis that has killed more than 140,000 Americans. Rather than just “embers” of the virus, as he has repeatedly characterized recent outbreaks […]

Bob Cesca: We all know Donald Trump is preparing to rig or steal the election — but exactly how?

By now, it’s relatively easy to forecast Donald Trump’s tyrannical moves. There are no advanced Frank Underwood-style chess gambits in play here. It’s barely Candyland, despite the fascistic goals involved. Trump is, on top of it all, a simple-minded, easily predictable Golgothan who telegraphs every move of self-preservation. Sometimes it can be reassuring to have a sense of […]

Stephcast 7-21-20

Three Coronavirus Vaccine Developers Report Promising Initial Results

The race for a vaccine against the coronavirus intensified on Monday as three competing laboratories released promising results from early trials in humans. Now comes the hard part: proving that any of the vaccines protects against the virus, and establishing how much immunity they provide — and for how long. “What this means is that […]

Democratic Mayors Urge Congress To Stop Federal Agents’ Use Of Force During Protests

Six Democratic mayors from across the country urged Congress to stop federal agents from interfering with protests in cities and called on the lawmakers to investigate the Trump administration’s deployment of them. In a letter Monday to congressional Democratic and Republican leaders, the mayors of Seattle, Atlanta, Chicago, Kansas City, Washington and Portland, Oregon, called the […]

Trump throws wrench into coronavirus bill negotiations with Senate Republicans

President Donald Trump is throwing a big wrench into negotiations between the White House and Senate Republicans over the next coronavirus relief bill by demanding a payroll tax cut be included and funding for testing be reduced or cut completely. Leaving meetings on Capitol Hill Monday night, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief […]

Charlie Pierce: Joe Biden Is Courting Trump Defectors In the Least Effective Way Imaginable

No. Just no. Not this time. Not running against this president*. Not at this time of national peril. And, for that matter, not this guy. From the AP: Former Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a Republican and frequent Trump critic, has been approached and is expected to speak at the Democratic National Convention on Biden’s behalf […]

Eric Boehlert: Gaslighter — Mika blames Hillary for not warning us about Trump

Astonished by a president who has deliberately made every wrong move when faced with a crippling pandemic, and who refuses to change course as the carnage mounts, media players continue to express shock at Trump’s behavior. Insisting it was impossible to tell in 2016 that Trump’s irrational and erratic behavior would create so much death […]

The Rude Pundit: Portland Becomes the Testing Ground for the Next Level of Trump F***ery

Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary Chad Wolf, who has the douche name and the douchier face stubble of the asshole Wall Streeter who gets punched in the dick by, say, Michael J. Fox in a late 1980s comedy, issued a statement on “the Rampant, Long-Lasting Violence in Portland.” The Portland is the one in […]

Stephcast 7-20-20

Trump Won’t Say Whether He Will Accept 2020 Election Results: ‘I Have To See’

President Donald Trump wouldn’t say whether he will accept the results of the general election in November during an interview with “Fox News Sunday,” claiming again without evidence that the process is rigged before any votes have been cast. Host Chris Wallace asked Trump if he was a good loser, to which the president responded […]

Trump Doubles Down On Claim Coronavirus Will Disappear: ‘I’ll Be Right Eventually’

As coronavirus infections continue to surge nationwide, President Donald Trump repeated his unsubstantiated claim that the pathogen will simply “disappear” one day. During an interview with “Fox News Sunday,” host Chris Wallace suggested Trump had made a mistake when he stated in January and February that the virus had largely been contained.  On Feb. 10, […]

Federal Judge in Deutche Bank case’s Husband Shot, Son Killed By Gunman Reportedly Dressed As FedEx Driver

Two family members of a federal judge were shot at their home in New Jersey on Sunday by an unknown assailant, officials said. NBC New York reported a gunman arrived at the home of Judge Esther Salas in North Brunswick, New Jersey, around 5 p.m. The person shot Salas’ 20-year-old son, Daniel Anderl, when he […]

Oregon Senators Demand Probe Into ‘Paramilitary Assaults’ By ‘Occupying Army’

Oregon’s U.S. senators and two representatives demanded an investigation Friday into “paramilitary assaults” in Portland by Department of Homeland Security forces that the lawmakers say have invaded the city and are snatching protesters off the streets in unmarked vans. The stunned, angry reactions followed reports earlier this week that troops in military fatigues with “police” patches […]

John Lewis, civil rights icon and longtime congressman, dies

Rep. John Lewis, an iconic pioneer of the civil rights movement who famously shed his blood at the foot of a Selma, Ala., bridge in the fight for Black voting rights and went on to become a 17-term Democratic member of Congress, died Friday. He was 80. One of the last survivors among leaders of […]

Stephcast 7-17-20

Georgia Governor Sues Atlanta Mayor To Block Citywide Mask Mandate

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is suing Atlanta’s mayor and city council to block the city from enforcing its mandate to wear a mask in public and other rules related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kemp and Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, in a suit filed in state court late Thursday in Atlanta, argue that Atlanta Mayor […]

Virus Prompts Drastic Measures As Death Tolls Set Records

The coronavirus kept surging in hot spots around the U.S. on Thursday, with one city in South Carolina urging people to pray it into submission, a hospital in Texas bringing in military medical personnel and morgues running out of space in Phoenix. Record numbers of confirmed infections and deaths emerged again in states in the […]

Biden opens up 11-point national lead over Trump in NBC News/WSJ poll

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden holds a double-digit lead nationally over President Donald Trump, with 7 in 10 voters saying the country is on the wrong track and majorities disapproving of the president’s handling of the coronavirus and race relations. Those are the major findings of a new national NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll […]

Stephcast 7-16-20

US, UK and Canada claim Russia tried to hack coronavirus vaccine research

“A cyber espionage group, almost certainly part of the Russian intelligence services” attempted to hack coronavirus vaccine research, according to a statement from the U.K.’s National Cyber Security Center. The U.S. National Security Agency agreed with that report. Read updates on this story at ABC News

Oklahoma governor tests positive for coronavirus after hosting Trump rally

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt has tested positive for coronavirus, he said Wednesday, as cases in his state hit record numbers just a month after his state hosted President Donald Trump’s first campaign rally amid the pandemic. In a news conference he attended virtually, Stitt, a Republican, revealed that he had been getting tested for the […]

Confirmed Coronavirus Cases In The US Rise Amid New Global Restrictions

California, Arizona, Texas and Florida together reported about 36,000 new coronavirus cases Wednesday as restrictions aimed at combating the spread of the pandemic took hold in the United States and around the world in an unsettling sign reminiscent of the dark days of April. The soaring counts of confirmed infections and a mounting death toll […]

Dr. Fauci Pushes Back On ‘Bizarre’ White House Attempts To Discredit Him

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading expert on infectious disease, has responded to the White House’s recent efforts to discredit him as the coronavirus crisis worsens across wide swaths of the United States ― calling it “bizarre.”  “Ultimately, it hurts the president to do that,” Fauci told The Atlantic Wednesday. He explained: “I think if you talk […]

Trump Campaign Manager Brad Parscale Demoted, Deputy Bill Stepien to Replace Him

Trump 2020 campaign manager Brad Parscale has been demoted, less than four weeks after an embarrassing, poorly attended Trump rally in Tulsa that Parscale had boasted beforehand could have up to one million in attendance. On Trump’s Facebook account, the president announced on Wednesday that he is promoting deputy campaign manager Bill Stepien to run […]

Stephcast 7-15-20

Trump’s niece calls on him to resign

President Donald Trump’s niece has one word of advice for her uncle: “Resign.” Mary Trump issued the direct call to her uncle during an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos that aired Tuesday, her first time speaking out about her new tell-all book. “If you’re in the Oval Office today, what would you say to him?” […]

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg hospitalized with infection

Supreme Court Justice Ruther Ginsburg was admitted to The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore on Tuesday for treatment of a possible infection. Ginsburg was initially evaluated at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, D.C., on Monday night after experiencing fever and chills. She underwent an endoscopic procedure at Johns Hopkins on Tuesday afternoon to clean out […]

Moderna coronavirus vaccine shows ‘promising’ safety and immune response results in published Phase 1 study, but more research is needed

A Covid-19 vaccine developed by the biotechnology company Moderna in partnership with the National Institutes of Health has been found to induce immune responses in all of the volunteers who received it in a Phase 1 study. These early results, published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Tuesday, showed that the vaccine worked […]

Trump Administration Rescinds Rule On Foreign Students

Facing eight federal lawsuits and opposition from hundreds of universities, the Trump administration on Tuesday rescinded a rule that would have required international students to transfer or leave the country if their schools held classes entirely online because of the pandemic. The decision was announced at the start of a hearing in a federal lawsuit […]

Bob Cesca: Why is the stock market soaring amid a pandemic? Because Trump thinks that may save him

Donald Trump isn’t a smart man, but he knows how to manipulate the stock market. Not only is he allegedly engaging in market manipulation while president, but it’s a Trump con that goes back decades.  Back in October 2018, the New York Times published a Pulitzer Prize-winning profile of Trump’s extensive tax fraud schemes, and […]

Federal stockpile is thin amid coronavirus surge, internal documents show

The federal government may not have the capacity to supply medical professionals with personal protective equipment amid the latest surge in coronavirus cases, according to internal administration documents obtained by NBC News. For example, the Strategic National Stockpile and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have fewer than 900,000 gloves in reserve after shipping 82.7 million […]

Stephcast 7-14-20

Trump defends Fauci relationship despite White House efforts to discredit him

President Donald Trump insisted on Monday that he “personally” likes Dr. Anthony Fauci, as press secretary Kayleigh McEnany denied the White House was working to discredit the country’s leading infectious disease expert. “I don’t always agree with him,” Trump said at a White House event. “We get along very well, I like him personally.” The […]

WHO chief: Pandemic ‘going to get worse and worse and worse’

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned Monday that the coronavirus pandemic is raging out of control in North and South America, and that the virus will continue spreading unimpeded unless governments and individuals take the steps needed to suppress its transmission. Nearly 13 million people worldwide have tested positive for COVID-19, and about half of […]

Charlie Pierce: This Was a Straight-Up Mob-Style Transaction

The commutation of Roger Stone’s prison sentence by the president* was sadly predictable on two levels. One of them is obvious, the other, less so. As to the first, Stone was a conduit between Russian ratfckers, WikiLeaks, and the president*’s 2016 campaign. Subsequently, he lied to law enforcement and to Congress, and he attempted to […]

Stephcast 7-13-20

DeVos defends push to reopen schools as Trump administration is accused of ‘messing with’ children’s health

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos defended the Trump administration’s aggressive push to reopen schools in the fall amid the worsening coronavirus pandemic, saying Sunday that a hybrid of virtual and in-person learning is “not a valid choice for families.” Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” DeVos also refused to saywhether the Centers for Disease Control […]

In op-ed, Robert Mueller says Roger Stone remains a convicted felon and ‘rightfully so’

Less than 24 hours after President Donald Trump commuted the prison sentence of former campaign aide Roger Stone, former Department of Justice special counsel Robert S. Mueller III defended the investigation into Russian meddling and said Stone “remains a convicted felon, and rightfully so.” Mueller, who led the federal investigation into Russian interference in the […]

White House seeks to discredit Fauci as coronavirus surges

The White House is seeking to discredit Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s leading infectious disease expert, as President Donald Trump works to marginalize him and his dire warnings about the shortcomings of the U.S. coronavirus response. In a remarkable broadside by the Trump administration against one of its own, a White House official said Sunday […]

Greg Palast: Roger Stone is not just an impotent trickster

Roger Stone is not just an impotent trickster. He’s a violent, evil man who had a lot to do with fixing the vote in Florida in 2000. George Bush supposedly officially won the presidency by 537 votes in Florida — just 537 votes! But 178,000 ballots were disqualified, considered unreadable. A hundred and seventy-eight thousand!!! […]

Eric Boehlert: Is Barron Trump returning to in-person classes this fall? The press needs to find out

Trump, Fox News, and the entire conservative movement are moving aggressively to politicize the re-opening of America’s schools during the pandemic. Trying to turn the topic into a partisan one, they’re demanding schools across the country not only open for in-person education, but that 50-plus million American students be forced to sit should-to-shoulder in classrooms. […]

The Rude Pundit: Hey, Where the F*** Are You?

I’m taking the full week off because I’m in Louisiana visiting family. Gotta tell you: It’s weird to go into a restaurant and eat a meal like a real person. Hell, they’ve even spaced the tables a responsible distance apart.  Of course, mask-wearing isn’t mandatory here in Cajun Country.  Lafayette Mayor Josh Guillory refuses to […]

Florida Reports Over 15,000 COVID-19 Cases In Single-Day Record

Florida reported a record increase of more than 15,000 new cases of COVID-19 in 24 hours on Sunday, as the Trump administration renewed its push for schools to reopen and anti-mask protests were planned in Michigan and Missouri. If Florida were a country, it would rank fourth in the world for the most new cases […]

Tucker Carlson’s Top Writer Quits After Secretly Posting Racist, Sexist Messages: Report

The top writer for Tucker Carlson’s Fox News program has resigned after it was revealed he’d secretly posted racist and sexist messages for five years on an online forum, CNN Business reported Friday. Blake Neff, who worked for the right-wing Daily Caller before moving over to Fox News four years ago, had been posting the messages […]

Trump commutes prison sentence of longtime adviser Roger Stone

President Donald Trump on Friday commuted the prison sentence of longtime adviser Roger Stone, who was found guilty of seeking to thwart congressional and FBI investigations into alleged ties between the Trump campaign and Russia. Stone, 67, was sentenced in February to three years and four months in prison after a trial late last year […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 7-10-20 Sarah Cooper

Stephcast 7-10-20

Stephanie Miller on List of Radio Hall Of Fame 2020 Nominees.

The Radio Hall of Fame has announced this year’s 24 nominees in a total of six categories. Industry voting in four of those categories begins Monday, July 13. Listener voting in the other two categories begins on July 20. Due to COVID-19 health and safety concerns, the 2020 induction ceremony will be a live radio […]

US COVID-19 deaths begin to climb again

A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 552,000 people worldwide. Over 12.2 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to datacompiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The actual numbers are believed to […]

Broad disapproval for Trump’s handling of coronavirus, race relations: POLL

President Donald Trump is facing broad disapproval for his management of the two major crises gripping the nation, with two-thirds of Americans giving him low marks for both his response to the coronavirus pandemic and his handling of race relations, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos pollreleased Friday. Evaluation of Trump’s oversight of the COVID-19 […]

Stephcast 7-9-20

Supreme Court deals Trump a defeat, upholds demand for his tax returns

The Supreme Court dealt President Trump a major defeat Thursday by rejecting his claims of presidential immunity and upholding subpoenas from New York prosecutors seeking his tax returns and financial records. In one of the most anticipated rulings on presidential privilege in years, the justices by a 7-2 vote ruled the nation’s chief executive is […]

Supreme Court upholds Trump’s rollback of birth control coverage mandate

The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the Trump administration’s broad rollback of Obamacare rules requiring employers to provide free birth control to women, in a major victory for religious groups allied with President Donald Trump. The Supreme Court, in its 7-2 ruling, sought to resolve a long-running legal battle that previously vexed the justices — […]

Trump disavows his own administration’s guidance for reopening schools

President Donald Trump on Wednesday publicly disavowed his own administration’s guidance for reopening schools amid the coronavirus pandemic, arguing the federal recommendations were too burdensome as he ramped up his bid to have students return to classrooms in the fall. “I disagree with @CDCgov on their very tough & expensive guidelines for opening schools,” Trump […]

Stephcast 7-8-20

Mary Trump’s scathing book claims Trump paid someone to take his SATs

Donald Trump’s niece Mary Trump levels scathing criticism at the President in her forthcoming book, accusing him of being a “sociopath” and charging that Trump’s “hubris and willful ignorance” dating back to his early days threatens the country. Mary Trump’s book, “Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man,” […]

Trump Leans on Schools to Reopen as Virus Continues Its Spread

President Trump demanded on Tuesday that schools reopen physically in the fall, pressing his drive to get the country moving again even as the coronavirus pandemic surged through much of the United States and threatened to overwhelm some health care facilities. In a daylong series of conference calls and public events at the White House, […]

U.S. has seen more than 3 million coronavirus cases

Amid a surge of new infections in many states, the number of coronavirus cases in the United States topped 3 million on Tuesday, according to an NBC News tally. More than 46,500 new cases were recorded across the country on Tuesday. Though some Northeastern states have seen a slowdown, many Southern states that reopened in […]

Stephcast 7-7-20

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms tests positive for Covid-19

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms of Atlanta, who is reportedly on Joe Biden’s vice presidential short list, said on Monday that she had tested positive for coronavirus. “COVID-19 has literally hit home,” she wrote on Twitter. “I have had NO symptoms and have tested positive.” In an MSNBC interview on Monday, Bottoms said that she got […]

Here are some of the billionaires who got PPP loans while small businesses went bankrupt

Billionaire property developer Joe Farrell, a prominent Republican fundraiser, received up to $1 million in taxpayer coronavirus relief funds, according to federal data released Monday. Other players in the world of celebrity and influence who took advantage of loans under the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP,to help struggling small businesses hurt by coronavirus shutdowns included […]

As COVID-19 Cases Surge, Fauci Says U.S. Is Still ‘Knee-Deep’ In First Wave

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the U.S., said Monday that the country is in a “serious situation” that needs immediate attention as the coronavirus surges in certain parts of the country. During a live interview streamed on Facebook, Fauci noted that the U.S. is “still knee-deep in the first wave” of […]

Stephcast 7-6-20

Supreme Court says states may require presidential electors to support popular-vote winner

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday that states may require presidential electors to support the winner of the popular vote and punish or replace those who don’t, settling a disputed issue in advance of this fall’s election. Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the court, and settled the disputed “faithless elector” issue before it affected the […]

Biden builds lead as Trump goes from trailing to flailing

As recently as one month ago, Donald Trump was merely losing. Now he is flailing, trudging into the Independence Day weekend at the nadir of his presidency, trailing by double digits in recent polls and in danger of dragging the Republican Senate down with him. But there are still four months before the election — […]

Prosecutors seek Friday court appearance for Jeffrey Epstein friend Ghislaine Maxwell

Prosecutors have asked a judge to schedule a Friday court appearance in New York for Ghislaine Maxwell, the former girlfriend and longtime associate of the late disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. Maxwell was arrested on Thursday on U.S. charges of luring underage girls so that Epstein could sexually abuse them. Read the rest of the story […]

Officials say states reopened too quickly after soaring Covid-19 cases

After a muted holiday weekend — which saw both measured celebrations and packed crowds — the country faces a deep coronavirus crisis as cases continue to climb and more hospitals report they’re nearing capacity. This week marks about two months since many states kicked off their reopening plans — which now officials across the country […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 7-3-20 Randy Rainbow

Stephcast 7-3-20

‘Garbage Bag’ Gowns And Flimsy Masks Among Items Given By FEMA, Nursing Homes Say

Plastic gowns without hand holes, masks with breakable straps and child-sized rubber gloves are among the bizarre items that nursing home officials say they are being given by the federal government to help protect them and their residents amid the coronavirus pandemic. “It’s all so terrible, really,” Brendan Williams, president of the New Hampshire Health […]

Secret Service agents preparing for Pence Arizona trip contracted coronavirus

Vice President Pence’s trip to Arizona this week had to be postponed by a day after several Secret Service agents who helped organize the visit either tested positive for coronavirus or were showing symptoms of being infected.   Pence was scheduled to go to Phoenix on Tuesday but went on Wednesday instead so that healthy […]

“What Do I Do? What Do I Do?”: Trump Desperate, Despondent as Numbers Crater, “Loser” Label Looms

With Donald Trump’s approval sinking to Jimmy Carter levels and coronavirus cases spiking across the country, Trump is reluctantly waking up to the grim reality that, if the current situation holds, his reelection is gone. Republicans that have spoken with Trump in recent days describe him as depressed and “down in the dumps.” “People around […]

Stephcast 7-2-20

Trump’s New Russia Problem: Unread Intelligence and Missing Strategy

The intelligence finding that Russia was most likely paying a bounty for the lives of American soldiers in Afghanistan has evoked a strange silence from President Trump and his top national security officials on the question of what to do about the Kremlin’s wave of aggression. Mr. Trump insists he never saw the intelligence, though […]

McConnell Planning to Ram Through Trump Pick if Clarence Thomas Retires Before Election: Report

Congressional officials and White House aides are preparing for the possibility Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, 72, will retire before the 2020 election, according to a Wednesday report, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) already has a replacement in mind. Aides to President Donald Trump view Thomas “as the most likely” justice to retire this […]

Fed officials raised concerns in June that U.S. could enter a much worse recession later this year if coronavirus cases continued to surge

Federal Reserve officials raised concerns about additional waves of coronavirusinfections disrupting an economic recovery and triggering a new spike in unemployment and a worse economic downturn, according to minutes released Wednesday by the central bank about its June 9-10 meeting. Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell has repeatedly said that the path out of this recession, […]

Testing czar says coronavirus surge is straining testing capacity

Brett Giroir, the coronavirus testing czar, said Wednesday that the United States’ coronavirus testing capacity is at risk of being overwhelmed in some states by a surge in new infections and increased surveillance efforts in nursing homes and jails. “It is absolutely correct that some labs across the country are reaching or near capacity,” Giroir […]

Stephcast 7-1-20

Dr. Fauci Tells Elizabeth Warren Coronavirus Death Toll Will Be ‘Very Disturbing,’ Predicts Up to 100k Cases Per Day

White House Coronavirus Task Force member Dr. Anthony Fauci told Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) on Tuesday that the final coronavirus death toll will be “very disturbing,” before predicting up to 100,000 new cases a day “if this does not turn around.” “We’ve already seen 126,000 deaths with infection rates rising rapidly. Dr. Fauci, based on […]

Biden slams Trump on coronavirus: ‘Our wartime president has surrendered’

(CNN) — Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden lambasted President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic Tuesday, saying that Trump is “in retreat” with more than 125,000 Americans dead and the virus worsening in many states. In a speech in Wilmington, Delaware, the former vice president recounted what he cast as Trump’s missteps, from […]

Kayleigh McEnany Says Trump ‘Does Read’ When Confronted on Intel Reports, Calls Him ‘Most Informed Person on Planet Earth’ About Threats to US

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany opened Tuesday’s White House briefing with a defense of President Donald Trump’s refusal to read the Presidential Daily Briefing (PDB) — and his claims that he wasn’t aware Russia had put bounties out for Taliban-linked militants to kill American troops. “The president does read, and also he consumes intelligence verbally. […]

Data on Financial Transfers Bolstered Suspicions That Russia Offered Bounties

American officials intercepted electronic data showing large financial transfers from a bank account controlled by Russia’s military intelligence agency to a Taliban-linked account, which was among the evidence that supported their conclusion that Russia covertly offered bounties for killing U.S. and coalition troops in Afghanistan, according to three officials familiar with the intelligence. Though the United States […]

Stephcast 6-30-20

McEnany Claims Trump Still Hasn’t Been Briefed on Russia Putting Bounties on Americans: ‘No Consensus’ on Intelligence

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said President Donald Trump has still not been briefed about a New York Times report that Russia put bounties on American troops. McEnany noted there’s still “no consensus” in the intelligence community, but said the Times’ claim that Trump knew about it was “erroneously reported.   ”The Times’ report, […]

Intelligence on Russian bounty plot was included in the President’s Daily Brief earlier this year, source says

(CNN) — The intelligence that assessed there was an effort by a Russian military intelligence unit to pay the Taliban to kill US soldiers was included in one of President Donald Trump’s daily briefings on intelligence matters sometime in the spring, according to a US official with direct knowledge of the latest information. That assessment, the source said, was backed up by “several […]

Chief Justice Roberts Sides with Liberal Justices in Louisiana Abortion Case, Cites Stare Decisis

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled that a Louisiana law requiring abortion clinic doctors to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital was unconstitutional, as it placed an undue burden on women’s access to the procedure.In a 5-4 decision, Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the court’s liberal bloc, providing the swing vote in […]

Not Even Republicans Are Buying This Latest Trump Tale

The first American frontier, which is to say everything west of Richmond, was settled partly by the practice of collecting the scalps of dead and dying Native Americans. It began in Massachusetts, quickly spread to New York and Pennsylvania, and, by the 1750s, when the revolutionary spirit was beginning to stir among the upper classes, […]

McConnell Picks a Side in GOP’s Battle Over Face Coverings: ‘We Must Have No Stigma’ Around Wearing Masks

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) endorsed face coverings on Monday, a position contrary to the apparent instincts of many House Republicans and President Donald Trump.   “We must have no stigma — none — about wearing masks when we leave our homes and come near other people,” McConnell said in a speech to the […]

Stephcast 6-29-20

Trump’s pandemic chaos — why’s he doing this?

As America once again plunges into a pandemic crisis, with Covid-19 infections exploding across the country, and especially in red states, Trump continues to plot against America’s best interests. Refusing to provide any leadership over the last three months, he’s made the crisis actively worse by urging Americans not to wear masks,  promoting dangerous “cures,” […]

Democrats Decide to Wait Until After the Election to Fully Attack, Just Like They Did in 2016. How’d That Work Out?

There’s a reason why the campaign of Donald Trump and Trump himself can’t lay a glove on Joe Biden: we want Trump fucking gone. It’s pretty goddamn hilarious to see Trump throw everything he can at Biden, including the shit he got impeached for, and nothing sticks. Trump’s out there talking about Biden as a […]

Newsom orders bars closed in 7 California counties including L.A. due to coronavirus spread

Citing the rapid pace of coronavirus spread in some parts of California, Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered seven counties including Los Angeles on Sunday to immediately close any bars and nightspots that are open and recommended eight other counties take action on their own to close those businesses. The order shuts down any bar, brewery or pub that sells alcoholic […]

Trump Says ‘Nobody Briefed Or Told Me’ About Russian Bounties To Kill U.S. Soldiers

President Donald Trump on Sunday denied that U.S. intelligence officials had briefed him about an alleged plot by Russian operatives to pay Taliban-linked militants in Afghanistan to kill American troops.   “Nobody briefed me or told me, [Vice President] Pence, or Chief of Staff Mark Meadows about the so-called attacks on our troops in Afghanistan […]

Mississippi Lawmakers Vote To Remove Confederate Symbol From State Flag

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi lawmakers voted Sunday to surrender the Confederate battle emblem from their state flag, triggering raucous applause and cheers more than a century after white supremacist legislators adopted the design a generation after the South lost the Civil War. Mississippi’s House and Senate voted in quick succession Sunday afternoon to retire […]

Russian bounties to Taliban-linked militants resulted in deaths of U.S. troops, according to intelligence assessments

Russian bounties offered to Taliban-linked militants to kill coalition forces in Afghanistan are believed to have resulted in the deaths of several U.S. service members, according to intelligence gleaned from U.S. military interrogations of captured militants in recent months. Several people familiar with the matter said it was unclear exactly how many Americans or coalition […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 6-26-20 (Vintage) Ana Ortiz

StephCast 6-26-20

House passes wide-ranging Democratic police reform bill

The House approved a police reform bill proposed by Democrats on Thursday night, after Senate Democrats blocked a more modest proposal from moving forward in the Senate a day earlier. The bill passed with a vote of 236 to 181, with three Republicans — Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick, Will Hurd and Fred Upton — joining the […]

‘He’s like a child’: Biden slams Trump’s handling of coronavirus pandemic amid ‘heartless crusade’ to end Obamacare

In one of his sharpest rebukes of President Donald Trump to date, former Vice President Joe Biden lambasted the president’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, comparing Trump to a whining child. “(Trump’s) like a child who can’t believe this has happened to him — all his whining and self pity. This pandemic didn’t happen to […]

Trump administration asks Supreme Court to strike down Obamacare amid pandemic, recession

The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to wipe out Obamacare, arguing that the individual mandate is unconstitutional and that the rest of the law must be struck down with it. The late-night brief, filed Thursday in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, carries major implications for the presidential election. If the justices agree, […]

StephCast – 6-25-20

Federal prosecutor, alleging political interference in Stone case, names names

A federal prosecutor offered lawmakers on Wednesday a roadmap to investigate alleged political interference in the sentencing of longtime Donald Trump confidant Roger Stone. Aaron Zelinsky, one of four lead prosecutors in the Stone case, told the House Judiciary Committee that senior officials — including the head of the Justice Department’s public corruption unit — […]

Democratic National Convention Will Be Almost Entirely Virtual

Democrats will hold an almost entirely virtual presidential nominating convention Aug. 17-20 in Milwaukee using live broadcasts and online streaming, party officials said Wednesday. Joe Biden plans to accept the presidential nomination in person, but it remains to be seen whether there will be a significant in-person audience there to see it. The Democratic National […]

Dozens Of Secret Service Agents Reportedly Told To Quarantine After Tulsa Rally

Dozens of Secret Service agents have been instructed to self-quarantine after two officers who attended President Donald Trump’s rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday tested positive for the coronavirus, The Washington Post and CNN reported. The Secret Service told agents who worked at the Tulsa campaign event to stay home for 14 days following the weekend […]

U.S. hits highest single day of new coronavirus cases with more than 45,500, breaking April record

The U.S. saw a record number of new coronavirus cases in a single day, with 45,557 diagnoses reported Wednesday, according to a tally by NBC News. Wednesday’s cases top the previous highest daily count from April 26 — during the first peak of the pandemic in the U.S. — by more than 9,000 cases, according […]

StephCast 6-24-20

Bob Cesca: So much for the “Death Star”… After Tulsa and West Point, wheels are coming off Trump campaign

If we had been living in normal times, Donald Trump would have been relentlessly heckled off the national stage while he was still riding down that escalator five years ago. Instead, he managed to lie and finagle his way into the White House, where he remains the most dangerous, incompetent American president in history. The thing about Trump’s […]

Kentucky Senate Democratic primary between McGrath and Booker to decide who challenges McConnell too close to call

The Kentucky Senate Democratic primary race to determine who takes on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in November is too close to call, NBC News projects. Amy McGrath, a retired Marine lieutenant colonel, had a slight edge in a tougher-than-expected challenge from state Rep. Charles Booker. With 10 percent of the vote in by Wednesday […]

Coronavirus hospitalizations surge in Arizona, Texas

Coronavirus hospitalizations in Arizona and Texas have hit record numbers as cases continue to surge in states in the South and the West, overwhelming medical professionals. Arizona reported a record high of 3,591 new cases Tuesday, with nearly 60,000 known cases in the state overall. The swell in cases comes as President Donald Trump is […]

Trump Spends Phoenix Rally Downplaying Coronavirus And Making Racist Jokes

Speaking in a state where coronavirus cases are surging enough to repeatedly set new daily infection records, President Donald Trump told a crowd of young Arizona supporters that everything was under control.  “Someday it’ll be recognized by history,” he said of his pandemic response while speaking at a campaign-style event at Dream City Church, hosted […]

Dr. Fauci Testifies Next Couple Of Weeks Critical In Managing Coronavirus Surge

Four top U.S. public health officials and members of Donald Trump’s coronavirus task force said on Tuesday that he has not asked them to slow down testing for the virus after the president suggested at a rally that it was a “double-edged sword.” Testifying before the House Energy & Commerce Committee, National Institute of Allergy […]

New U.S. COVID-19 Cases Surge 25%

The United States saw a 25% increase in new cases of COVID-19 in the week ended June 21 compared to the previous seven days, with Arizona, Florida and Texas experiencing record surges in new infections, a Reuters analysis found. Twenty-five U.S. states reported more new cases last week than the previous week, including 10 states […]

StephCast 6-23-20

Charlie Pierce: It Seems Silly to Risk Your Lungs to Go to Cruisin’ Chubbys

Monday’s Hot Spot Spotlight falls on the vacation paradise that is Wisconsin Dells—or, as the natives call it, simply, “The Dells.” As the country comes slowly to the realization that reopening as a part of the president*’s Transition to Greatness reelection brand is not the smartest thing the United States ever did, we also realize that recreational […]

StephCast 6-22-20

Noose found in garage stall of Black NASCAR driver

A noose was found in the garage stall of Black driver Bubba Wallace at the NASCAR race in Alabama on Sunday, less than two weeks after he successfully pushed the auto racing series to ban the Confederate flag at its tracks and facilities. NASCAR announced the discovery late Sunday and said it had launched an […]

Trump ‘furious’ about ‘underwhelming’ crowd at Tulsa rally

President Donald Trump is “furious” at the “underwhelming” crowd at his rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday evening, a major disappointment for what had been expected to be a raucous return to the campaign trail after three months off because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to multiple people close to the White House. The president […]

Eric Boehlert: Why the press should boycott Trump’s “extraordinarily dangerous” Tulsa rally

Told that Trump loyalists must “assume a personal risk” to attend his Tulsa, Oklahoma, rally on Saturday amidst a local spike in Covid-19 cases, the White House and Trump have conceded people may get sick from the event. That likely includes journalists who will be herded into the city’s 20,000-seat indoor sports arena to cover […]

The Rude Pundit: Trump Doesn’t Know Sh** or Give a Sh** About African Americans or History or Anything, Really

It’s hard to pinpoint the most blitheringly fucked tangent that Donald Trump, our cracked vinyl beanbag chair of a president, went off on during his speech to announce a few bullshit, milquetoast little suggestions to the brutal, militarized police forces of America (seriously, if you think “reform the police” is weak, try the title of this pussy-ass executive order: […]

TikTok Teens and K-Pop Stans Say They Sank Trump Rally

President Trump’s campaign promised huge crowds at his rally in Tulsa, Okla., on Saturday, but it failed to deliver. Hundreds of teenage TikTok users and K-pop fans say they’re at least partially responsible. TikTok users and fans of Korean pop music groups claimed to have registered potentially hundreds of thousands of tickets for Trump’s campaign […]

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman agrees to step down after Trump fires him, House Democrats launch probe

Attorney General William Barr said Saturday that at his request, President Donald Trump had fired Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan. Shortly afterwards, Berman, who had defied Barr’s earlier demand for his resignation, announced that he would not resist the order and would step down, leaving the high-profile prosecutor’s office in the hands of […]

Trump Rally Fizzles as Attendance Falls Way Short of Campaign’s Expectations

President Trump’s attempt to revive his re-election campaign sputtered badly on Saturday night as he traveled to Tulsa for his first mass rally in months and found a far smaller crowd than his aides had promised him, then delivered a disjointed speech that did not address the multiple crises facing the nation or scandals battering […]

6 Trump campaign members in Tulsa test positive for the coronavirus ahead of rally

Six members of President Donald Trump’s campaign staff who are in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to set up for the president’s first campaign rally in months have tested positive for the coronavirus, the campaign announced Saturday. The president’s campaign said they had performed hundreds of tests before the rally, his first since March 2, and Tim Murtaugh, […]

Novel coronavirus hospitalizations increasing in 17 states

An ABC News analysis found that hospitalizations for COVID-19 are increasing in 17 states across the country, with experts warning that the U.S. is by no means out of the first wave. The states that saw the increases were Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, South […]

Tulsa Health Official Has A Stark Wake-Up Call For People Attending Trump Rally

People attending President Donald Trump’s indoor campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday should self-isolate for two weeks following the event, the city’s top health official has urged. Bruce Dart, executive director of the Tulsa Health Department, told CNN’s Don Lemon on Friday that attendees should also get tested for the coronavirus at least a […]

1 of 3 Louisville police officers in Breonna Taylor case to be fired, mayor says

One of the three police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Kentucky, is being fired, Mayor Greg Fischer announced Friday. The chief of the Louisville Metro Police Department, Rob Schroeder, is initiating termination procedures against the officer, Brett Hankison, the mayor said in a statement. It is the first significant […]

William Barr Says U.S. Attorney In Manhattan Is Resigning. U.S. Attorney Says No, He’s Not.

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman is leaving as head of the powerful Southern District of New York, Attorney General William Barr announced late Friday. The Manhattan office is one of the nation’s mightiest districts, trying major cases against the mobsters, terrorists — and allies of President Donald Trump, including his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen.  But Berman […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 6-19-20 Rob Reiner

Stephcast 6-19-20

Oklahoma Supreme Court to consider whether to delay Tulsa rally

The Oklahoma State Supreme Court will hear a lawsuit appeal to enforce safety measures at President Donald Trump’s rally on Saturday. Tulsa attorney Clark Brewster will make a court appearance before the Oklahoma Supreme Court on Thursday by phone at 3 p.m., according to court records. Earlier this week, a judge denied a lawsuit from […]

Trump lashes out at Supreme Court after DACA ruling doesn’t go his way

President Donald Trump lashed out at the Supreme Court on Thursday after the high court ruled in a 5-4 decision that his administration cannot carry out its plan to shut down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The Obama-era immigration program has allowed nearly 800,000 young people, known as Dreamers, to remain in the […]

Fox News poll: Biden extends lead over Trump amid protests

President Donald Trump is trailing his Democratic rival Joe Biden by the widest margin this year, according to a Fox News poll released Thursday. The poll, conducted from June 13 to 16, found 50 percent of respondents would vote for Biden, compared to 38 for Trump. That’s a sharp change from last month’s poll, which […]

Amy Klobuchar Withdraws From VP Search, Says Biden Should Select Woman of Color

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) removed herself from the running to be the Democratic vice presidential nominee, an acknowledgment that her chances at the slot had dwindled dramatically since the death of George Floyd at the hands of police officers in her home state late last month. Announcing her decision on MSNBC’s “The Last Word” on […]

Stephcast 6-18-20

Supreme Court rules Trump cannot end DACA in big win for ‘Dreamer’ legal immigrants

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Trump administration cannot carry out its plan to shut down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which has allowed nearly 800,000 young people, known as “Dreamers,” to avoid deportation and remain in the U.S. The decision is a big legal defeat for President Donald Trump on […]

Tulsa Health Official Urges Rally Postponement As Oklahoma Sees Spike In COVID-19 Cases

The top health official in Tulsa, Oklahoma, urged the Trump campaign Wednesday to postpone its upcoming rally in the city, pointing out that the state just saw its largest daily increase in COVID-19 cases and that a massive public gathering could cause another spike.  “I know so many people are over COVID, but COVID is […]

Trump’s Midnight Twitter Rant Against John Bolton Backfires Spectacularly

President Donald Trump fired off a late-night attack on John Bolton amid new allegations featured in the former national security advisor’s upcoming book. But given the nature of Trump’s attack, it didn’t go well. Trump, who famously vowed to hire only “the best and most serious people,” now says that Bolton was a “wacko,” a “dope,” “incompetent” […]

Ex-Atlanta police officer who shot Rayshard Brooks charged with felony murder

The former Atlanta police officer who fatally shot Rayshard Brooksin the parking lot of a Wendy’s restaurant has been charged with felony murder, the district attorney’s office announced Wednesday. The man, Garrett Rolfe, who was fired by the Atlanta Police Department after the June 12 shooting, faces 11 total counts, Fulton County District Attorney Paul […]

Jennifer Rubin: Republicans are in retreat — and look wimpy

Republicans must dimly understand how badly out of step with the country they are. Reports suggest that even the White House is now considering changing the names of military bases honoring Confederate figures. President Trump signed a toothless executive order Tuesday in a weak attempt to convey some concern about the deaths of African Americans […]

Bolton Says Trump Impeachment Inquiry Missed Other Troubling Actions

John R. Bolton, the former national security adviser, says in his new book that the House in its impeachment inquiry should have investigated President Trump not just for pressuring Ukraine to incriminate his domestic foes but for a variety of instances when he sought to intervene in law enforcement matters for political reasons. Mr. Bolton […]

Stephcast 6-17-20

Trump signs executive order on policing amid mounting pressure over lethal incidents

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on policing Tuesday amid increasing pressure and nationwide protests over the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks and other Black people in custody or at the hands of law enforcement officers. “Today is about pursuing common sense and fighting, fighting for a cause like we seldom […]

Trump Administration Sues To Block Release Of Bolton Book

The Trump administration sued former national security adviser John Bolton on Tuesday to block the publication of a book that the White House says contains classified information. The suit in Washington’s federal court follows warnings from President Donald Trump that Bolton could face a “criminal problem” if he doesn’t halt plans to publish the book. […]

McConnell rejects calls to ‘scrub out’ Confederate statues from Capitol

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday rebuffed Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s calls for nearly a dozen Confederate statues to be removed from the Capitol, saying it was an attempt to “airbrush” history. “What I do think is clearly a bridge too far is this nonsense that we need to airbrush the Capitol and scrub out […]

Florida, Arizona and Texas report record number of daily Covid-19 cases this week

Loosening restrictions and increasing public gatherings may make it seem as though the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic is over, but just this week Florida, Texas and Arizona set daily records for new cases. The states are among 18 across the nation seeing increasing trends in new cases from one week to the next. More […]

Bob Cesca: A brief history of the “Lost Cause”… Why this toxic myth still appeals to so many white Americans

By now it should be obvious to anyone paying attention that Donald Trump is one of the most notorious revisionists of any modern president, routinely authoring his own myths, lies and tall tales to counter the brutal reality of his incompetence, malevolence and despotism. It started from Day One, with his easily debunked insistence that his […]

Stephcast 6-16-20

Pence Misleadingly Blames Coronavirus Spikes on Rise in Testing

Vice President Mike Pence encouraged governors on Monday to adopt the administration’s explanation that a rise in testing was a reason behind new coronavirus outbreaks, even though testing data has shown that such a claim is misleading. “I would just encourage you all, as we talk about these things, to make sure and continue to […]

Charlie Pierce: This Is the Fire That the President* Is Willing to Play With for Political Advantage

The prion disease that has afflicted American conservatism—and the Republican Party, which is its outward expression—ever since Ronald Reagan fed the movement the monkey brains in 1979 now has reached full-blown epidemic proportions. It’s beyond even that which researchers anticipated would happen with the election of the current president* of the United States, although he […]

The Supreme Court’s Rejection of Sanctuary City Case Is a ‘Major Setback’ for the Trump Administration

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected the Trump administration’s request for the justices to hear arguments in a legal challenge to California’s “sanctuary city” laws, which protect undocumented immigrants from deportation. While the decision is likely to be overshadowed by the Court’s watershed civil rights ruling granting gay, lesbian, and transgender workers protection from […]

Stephcast 6-15-20

In landmark case, Supreme Court rules LGBTQ workers are protected from job discrimination

The Supreme Court ruled Monday that federal anti-discrimination laws protect gay and transgender employees, a major gay rights ruling written by one of the court’s most conservative justices. Justice Neil M. Gorsuch and Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. joined the court’s liberals in the 6 to 3 ruling. They said Title VII of the […]

Atlanta police officer fired, police chief resigns after Rayshard Brooks death during confrontation at Wendy’s drive-thru

The fatal shooting of an Atlanta man by a city police officer at a fast-food restaurant late Friday night launched a day of protests and the resignation of the department’s highest-ranking official on Saturday. Officials have identified the man as 27-year-old Rayshard Brooks. Read the rest of the story at ABC News.

Eric Boehlert: How Trump’s mental health became the third rail of American journalism

Trump woke Tuesday morning and decided to advertise his unstable mind again. Pointing to a niche cable TV conspiracy claim made by a former Sputnik reporter, Trump suggested the 75-year-old peace activists who was pushed to the ground in Buffalo last week by two police officers was possibly affiliated with an alleged terror ring. Trump […]

The Rude Pundit: Donald Trump Wants More Violence at the BLM Protests So He Can Pretend He’s Tough

Look, I’m just gonna spitball here on what I really think happened on Monday, June 1, when protesters at Lafayette Square, right near the White House, were pushed out by a bullshit combination of Park Police, National Guard, and Secret Service, along with various other law enforcement officers. Sure, sure, the story we’ve heard, that […]

Trump Struggles To Pronounce General Douglas MacArthur’s Name, Lift Water Glass During West Point Speech

President Donald Trump appeared to struggle several times during a commencement address he delivered Saturday afternoon at West Point, including stumbling over the pronunciation of the name of the legendary World War II General Douglas MacArthur and needing two hands to lift a glass of water. The New York Daily News described Trump’s delivery of the […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 6-12-20 Jill Wine-Banks

As coronavirus cases climb, some local officials put reopening on hold

A rise in coronavirus cases is spurring leaders in some cities and states to delay reopening additional businesses and warn that a return to stricter shutdown orders is possible should cases continue to climb. White House guidelines for reopening called for states to reevaluate after each phase and move backward if the virus spreads. Nationwide, […]

Trump moves Tulsa campaign rally scheduled for Juneteenth after facing backlash

President Trump has moved his campaign rally that was originally scheduled for June 19 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to the following day. The rally’s original date sparked criticism because June 19, otherwise known as Juneteenth, marks the day that slavery ended in the U.S. The rally also drew condemnation for taking place in Tulsa, the site […]

Stephcast 6-12-20

Seattle protesters set up ‘autonomous zone’ after police evacuate precinct

“THIS SPACE IS NOW PROPERTY OF THE SEATTLE PEOPLE” reads a giant black banner with red lettering at the “Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone,” an area around the abandoned police precinct that demonstrators moved into, setting up tents with plans to stay. The Seattle Police Department vacated the East Precinct on Monday night, and protesters against […]

Biden unveils proposal to reopen the economy, slams Trump’s ‘one-point plan’

Joe Biden on Thursday blasted President Donald Trump for failing to offer a comprehensive plan on how to reopen the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic, while also unveiling his own proposals on how how to do so safely. At an in-person round-table discussion with community leaders in Philadelphia, Biden said the federal government had “abdicated […]

Joint Chiefs Chairman Milley discussed resigning over role in Trump’s church photo op

The Pentagon’s top general discussed resigning amid criticism over his participation in President Donald Trump’s controversial photo opportunity at a Washington church, three defense officials familiar with the matter told NBC News. Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, apologized over the incident Thursday, saying, “I should not have been there.” […]

Dow sinks 1,800 as virus cases rise, deflating optimism

Stocks fell sharply on Wall Street on Thursday as coronavirus cases in the U.S. increased again, deflating recent optimism that the economy could recover quickly from its worst crisis in decades. The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank more than 1,800 points and the S&P 500 dropped 5.9%, its worst day since mid-March, when stocks had […]

Stephcast 6-11-20

Trump to resume campaign rallies with June 19 event in Tulsa without any pandemic protections

President Donald Trump’s signature campaign rallies are back in business, after a gap of more than three months because of the coronavirus pandemic. Trump announced on Wednesday that his reelection campaign would be holding a rally in Tulsa, Okla., on June 19 and would also be holding rallies in Florida, Texas and Arizona — as […]

Trump says he will ‘not even consider’ renaming military bases honoring Confederates

President Donald Trump said Wednesday he would “not even consider” renaming Army bases that honor Confederate leaders who fought to protect slavery and uphold white supremacy despite nationwide reckoning over racial discrimination in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd. “The United States of America trained and deployed our HEROES on these Hallowed Grounds, […]

‘It’s a lot of pain:’ George Floyd’s brother tearfully demands police reforms during emotional Congressional hearing

George Floyd’s brother Philonise pleaded in a highly emotional statement to members of Congress on Wednesday that they pass police reforms and listen to the calls around the world to “stop the pain.” During a particularly devastating moment during his testimony to members of the House Judiciary Committee, Floyd sobbed as he discussed how tragic […]

US hits over 2 million coronavirus cases as hospitalizations go up in some states

The US surpassed 2 million confirmed coronavirus cases Wednesday night as new hotspots emerge and hospitalizations go up in some states. Nearly 113,000 people have died from Covid-19 nationwide, according to Johns Hopkins University. The spike in numbers highlights how complicated it is to stop the spread of the virus despite improvement in early hotspots […]

Stephcast 6-10-20

‘Worst Nightmare’ Coronavirus Pandemic Far From Over, Fauci Warns

Describing COVID-19 as his “worst nightmare” come to life, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said Tuesday that a lot is still unknown about the coronavirus and warned the ongoing pandemic is far from over. “Oh my goodness. Where is it going to end? We’re still at the beginning of really understanding,” Fauci, […]

‘Haven’t read the damn thing’: Republican senators dodge questions about Trump’s conspiracy tweet

Republican senators don’t want to talk about President Donald Trump’s tweet. Some say they haven’t read it. Others say they don’t want to know about it. Yet others say they have a policy of not discussing what the president says on Twitter. That’s perennially true — but perhaps never more so than on Tuesday, when […]

A final farewell to George Floyd, whose death touched off national protests

Mourners vowing to be good Samaritans in the fight for racial justice packed a Houston church Tuesday and paid tribute to George Floyd, whose death while in police custody touched off worldwide protests against racism and police brutality. Capping a three-state, nearly weeklong memorial, Floyd’s loved ones said final goodbyes at The Fountain of Praise […]

Georgia election ‘catastrophe’ in largely minority areas sparks investigation

Hourslong waits, problems with new voting machines and a lack of available ballots plagued voters in majority minority counties in Georgia on Tuesday — conditions the secretary of state called “unacceptable” and vowed to investigate. Democrats and election watchers said voting issues in a state that has been plagued for years by similar problems, along […]

Bob Cesca: All the president’s garbagemen… Has Trump finally lit a dumpster fire his enablers can’t put out?

Donald Trump’s presidency has always been propped up with chicken wire and spit. Which is to say: this president is so grotesquely out of his depth that he requires copious backstopping in order to artificially appear as if he’s not quite as incompetent as he actually is. Since the beginning, my rule for observing the […]

Stephcast 6-9-20

AG Barr Contradicts Trump’s Claim of Bunker ‘Inspection,’ Says President Was Rushed to Bunker By Secret Service Amid Protests

During a Monday interview on Fox News, Attorney General Bill Barr contradicted President Donald Trump’s claim that he had merely visited visited the White House’s secure bunker as part of a dress rehearsal in case he should later need it. Trump was reportedly upset that the press reported of his retreat to the underground bunker during […]

Trump’s job approval falls amid racial unrest, while Biden jumps to 14-point lead

President Donald Trump’s overall job approval rating dropped 7 percentage points over the past month, according to a survey released Monday that also shows him trailing former Vice President Joe Biden by 14 points ahead of the general election in November. The CNN poll showed that 38 percent of respondents said they approve of the […]

Charlie Pierce: The Word ‘Reform’ Has Lost All Credibility When It Comes to Policing

Apparently, we’re going to squabble over the semantic difference between “defunding” the police and “dismantling” a renegade police force, as has happened in Minneapolis in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd. The White House is going all-in, beating the word “defunding” into a weapon in its upcoming retrograde and Nixonian “law ’n order” […]

Stephcast 6-8-20

Mitt Romney takes part in protest supporting Black Lives Matter near White House

Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, joined demonstrators Sunday marching to the White House in protest of George Floyd’s death in the custody of Minneapolis police. About 1,000 protesters marched through Washington. Read the rest of the story at NBC News

Colin Powell backs Biden, says Trump has ‘drifted’ from Constitution

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell criticized President Trump for threatening to use active-duty U.S. troops against protesters, saying it shows he has “drifted away” from the U.S. Constitution. In a CNN interview, Powell aimed a broad critique at Trump’s approach to the military, a foreign policy that he said was causing “disdain” abroad and […]

Majority of Minneapolis City Council commits to dismantling city’s police department

A majority of the Minneapolis City Council agreed Sunday to dismantle the city’s police department after the in-custody killing of George Floyd, a council member said. In an interview with NBC News, Councilman Jeremiah Ellison said the council would work to disband the department in its “current iteration.” “The plan has to start somewhere,” he […]

Eric Boehlert: Why New York Times and Facebook employees are rebelling

Even during a pandemic that has unleashed historic unemployment and at a time when media jobs are vanishing at a stunning rate, some brave employees at Facebook and New York Times have had enough, and risked their careers by calling out their employers over the way they constantly bow down to authoritarian Republican power in […]

The Rude Pundit: The Terrorist Cops of America

Black and brown and LGBTQ and so many other people know this already: What we call “policing” in too many places in the United States might more properly be called “government-sponsored terrorism.” For what else is the purpose of the way in which police around the country have responded to anti-racism and anti-police violence protesters […]

A ‘misclassification error’ made the May unemployment rate look better than it is. Here’s what happened.

When the U.S. government’s official jobs report for May came out on Friday, it included a note at the bottom saying there had been a major “error” indicating that the unemployment rate likely should be higher than the widely reported 13.3 percent rate. The special note said that if this “misclassification error” had not occurred, […]

Biden vows police reform after sealing Democratic nomination to challenge Trump

When Joe Biden announced he was running for president, he framed his campaign as “a battle for the soul of this nation,” saying President Trump threatened its core values by condoning the racism of torch-carrying neo-Nazis who marched in 2017 through Charlottesville, Va. The former vice president, who has captured the 1,991 delegates he needed […]

Trump demanded 10,000 active-duty troops deploy to streets in angry Oval Office rant

In a heated and contentious debate in the Oval Office last Monday morning, President Trump demanded the military put 10,000 active duty troops into the streets immediately, a senior administration official told CBS News. Attorney General William Barr, Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley objected to the demand, the official said. […]

TONIGHT’S THE NIGHT! THE VERY FIRST SEXY LIBERAL VIRTUAL TOUR SHOW!!

OMG…we’re BAAAACK! We’re bringing the tour to you! It’s Stephanie Miller’s Sexy Liberal Virtual Tour!  All the Sexy Liberals… Stephanie Miller, John Fugelsang, Frangela, and Hal Sparks will bring you a night of Sexy Liberal comedy into your own home!  The first show will be Saturday, June 6th at 9pm ET / 6pm PT.  We […]

Confirmed coronavirus cases are rising faster than ever

New cases of the novel coronavirus are rising faster than ever worldwide, at a rate of more than 100,000 a day over a seven-day average. In April, new cases never topped 100,000 in one day, but since May 21, there have only been less than 100,000 on five days, according to data from Johns Hopkins […]

Goodell says NFL was wrong not to encourage players to protest peacefully

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Friday apologized to players for not listening to their concerns regarding racism sooner. In a video posted to Twitter, Goodell offered his condolences to families who have endured “police brutality,” including George Floyd, a black man who died while in Minneapolis police custody last week; Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old woman […]

Biden secures Democratic presidential nomination for November showdown against Trump

Joe Biden won enough delegates on Saturday to become the Democratic presidential nominee in November’s election against President Donald Trump, NBC News projects. To win the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination on the first ballot at the party’s convention, a candidate must receive support from a majority of pledged delegates — at least 1,991 of the […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast 6-5-2020 Indigo Girls

Stephcast 6-5-20

Over 1,000 coronavirus deaths reported in the past 24 hours. Officials fear protests will bring new outbreaks

In a little over a week, Americans have gone from taking their first hesitant stepsoutside again to marching in tightly-packed crowds in cities all over the country. Any uncertainty about venturing out during a coronavirus pandemic has been seemingly cast aside to protest police brutality after watching the video of George Floyd pinned under an […]

Civil Rights Groups Sue Trump After Violent Dispersal Of Protesters Outside White House

The American Civil Liberties Union and Black Lives Matter sued the Trump administration for what the groups called an “unconstitutional” and “frankly criminal attack” on protesters outside the White House earlier this week. The federal lawsuit, filed on behalf of five demonstrators, comes after law enforcement used gas canisters and flash-bang grenades to disperse largely […]

George Floyd’s memorial filled with love, hope and calls for change

A memorial service for George Floyd on Thursday at North Central University in Minneapolis was filled with love, hope and calls for sweeping change. The first of a handful of services planned to honor Floyd’s life and mourn his death, hundreds of people, including family and civil rights leaders, were in attendance. Family remembered Floyd’s […]

Stephcast 6-4-20

Obama calls for police reforms, tells protesters to ‘make people in power uncomfortable’

Former President Barack Obama offered advice to demonstrators during a virtual town hall on Wednesday in his first on-camera remarks as growing unrest against police brutality continues across the country. “To bring about real change, we both have to highlight a problem and make people in power uncomfortable,” Obama said. “But we also have to […]

3 more Minneapolis officers charged in George Floyd death, Derek Chauvin charges elevated

Three more former Minneapolis police officers were charged Wednesday in the death of George Floyd, five days after charges were brought against a fourth officer who was seen in a video kneeling on Floyd’s neck. The three former officers, Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng, were charged with aiding and abetting murder, according […]

James Mattis Denounces President Trump, Describes Him as a Threat to the Constitution

James Mattis, the esteemed Marine general who resigned as secretary of defense in December 2018 to protest Donald Trump’s Syria policy, has, ever since, kept studiously silent about Trump’s performance as president. But he has now broken his silence, writing an extraordinary broadside in which he denounces the president for dividing the nation, and accuses […]

Stephcast 6-3-20

Joe Biden: George Floyd’s final words ‘I can’t breathe’ are a wake-up call ‘for all of us’

Joe Biden on Tuesday praised the nationwide peaceful protests following the death of George Floyd, calling his killing in police custody a “wake-up call for our nation” and accusing President Donald Trump of sowing division. In a speech from Philadelphia City Hall, Biden repeated Floyd’s final words before he died after a white Minneapolis police […]

Trump Says RNC Will Pull Republican Convention From North Carolina

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the Republican National Committee would relocate its upcoming nominating convention from North Carolina after the state’s governor refused to guarantee that tens of thousands of people could gather in an indoor arena during the coronavirus pandemic. “Governor [Roy] Cooper is still in Shelter-In-Place Mode, and not allowing us to occupy […]

Rep. Steve King (R-IA) ousted in Iowa GOP primary

Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, who has a long history of racist and outrageous remarks, lost his long-held House seat in a primary race Tuesday, NBC News projected. With 95 percent of the vote counted at 12:18 a.m. ET, King trailed his challenger, state Sen. Randy Feenstra, by 7,785 votes, or 45.8 percent to 35.8 percent. […]

Protests remain peaceful, show no sign of fading more than a week after the death of George Floyd

Americans hit the streets for a seventh day to decry the in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25, a shocking incident caught on video that has reanimated a nation paralyzed by a pandemic. Demonstrations that began in Minneapolis on May 26 spread across the nation over the following nights and, on Tuesday, […]

Bob Cesca: Donald Trump’s chaos and cruelty set the tone for the nation — and here we are

This is what it looks like when too many aggrieved Americans become deluded enough to elect a buffoonish, malicious, bigoted weirdo who tried to sell beef in Sharper Image mall stores. Yet it still manages to shock us, and rightfully so, when we observe how Donald Trump remains grossly out of his depth, incapable of […]

Stephcast 6-2-20

Peaceful Protesters Were Gassed Outside The White House So Trump Could Get A Photo Op At A Church

Police unloaded rounds of tear gas at peaceful protesters outside the White House on Monday evening, clearing the way for President Donald Trump to deliver an ominous speech against the nationwide protests sparked by the latest killings of unarmed black people. He then walked through the newly opened path to participate in a nearby photo […]

Independent autopsy and Minnesota officials say George Floyd’s death was homicide

Experts hired by George Floyd’s family and the Hennepin County Medical Examiner have concluded his death was a homicide, but they differ on what caused it. The independent autopsy says Floyd died of “asphyxiation from sustained pressure” when his neck and back were compressed by Minneapolis police officers during his arrest last week. The pressure […]

Trump, Barr tell governors to ‘dominate’ streets in response to unrest

In a call with the nation’s governors Monday, an angry President Donald Trump told state leaders they must “dominate” out-of-control protests, calling on law enforcement to get “much tougher” and blaming unrest erupting across many communities squarely on “the radical left.” The president and Attorney General William Barr used the word “dominate” nearly a dozen […]

As Protests Swell, Trump Vows To Unleash Military Against Anti-Racist Demonstrations

Speaking from the Rose Garden on Monday evening, Donald Trump issued an unprecedented threat from an American president: that he would send “thousands of heavily armed soldiers” into Washington, D.C., to quell protests and would follow by invoking the Insurrection Act to deploy the military into other U.S. cities if mass protests against police brutality […]

Charlie Pierce: The President* Is Right: He Has Nothing New to Say

The more leaks there are from Monday’s disastrous teleconference between El Caudillo del Mar-a-Lago and the nation’s governors, the more you realize exactly what a perilous moment this is in our history. As background, however, we should first look at another report that emerged prior to when everything hit the fan in Lafayette Park. Read […]

Stephcast 6-1-20

Newly Released Transcripts Show Michael Flynn Betrayed the United States

Michael Flynn did something far worse than lie to the FBI. He betrayed the United States. That’s the major revelation of the just-released transcripts of the conversations he had during the presidential transition with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.  Up until now, the Flynn scandal has generally centered on his criminal case, in which Flynn, Donald […]

Biden visits protest site in Delaware

Former Vice President Joe Biden on Sunday left his home for a site in Wilmington, Del., that has seen protests over the death of a black man at the hands of a white police officer. It was his second time in a week he ventured outside after having elected to campaign from his house since […]

Tanker Truck Barrels Toward Crowd Of Thousands Of Protesters In Minneapolis

A tanker truck sped toward thousands of protesters in Minneapolis on Sunday in a shocking moment as demonstrations over the death of George Floyd continue to spread around the nation. Local news outlets were broadcasting live from the protest on Minneapolis’ I-35 highway, the sixth day of demonstrations following the man’s death in police custody. […]

Unrest Overshadows Peaceful U.S. Protests For Another Night

With cities wounded by days of violent unrest, America headed into a new week with neighborhoods in shambles, urban streets on lockdown and shaken confidence about when leaders would find the answers to control the mayhem amid unrelenting raw emotion over police killings of black people. All of it smashed into a nation already bludgeoned […]

Trump White House in turmoil as top staffers battle over how to address massive street protests

According to a report from Politico, top aides to Donald Trump are at a loss over how to address the street protests over the death of George Floyd that have expanded right up to the White House gates. With reports that the Secret Service moved a “rattled” Trump to a secure bunker under the White […]

Elie Mystal: People Can Only Bear So Much Injustice Before Lashing Out

I would never throw a rock at the police. I would never throw a brick through the window of a big-box store. I would never set fire to an office building. But I want to. I understand why some people do. I know I am supposed to counsel nonviolence. I’m a 42-year-old man with a […]

George Floyd protest updates: Police arrest almost 1,700 people across 22 cities in 3 days

The death of George Floyd, a black man who died on Memorial Day after he was pinned down by a white Minnesota police officer, has sparked outrage and protests in Minneapolis and across the United States. City leaders have pleaded with communities to voice their outrage in a lawful manner, but the widespread escalation of […]

Eric Boehlert: America has a Mark Zuckerberg problem

If Trump has a chance of being re-elected this year, that chance runs right through Facebook and its compliant CEO, Mark Zuckerberg. He’s already given the Trump campaign a green light to lie incessantly on social media by announcing Facebook would not police false political content, and that candidates could post whatever misinformation they wanted. […]

The Rude Pundit: The President Is the Enemy

May 4 was the 50th anniversary of the Kent State Massacre, where the National Guard opened fire on Vietnam War protesters on the campus of Kent State University, killing 4 people. The authorities shooting unarmed protesting Americans was a thing that happened with ludicrous regularity in the 1960s and early 1970s. Really, for most of […]

Guest At Packed Memorial Day Weekend Pool Party in Lake of the Ozarks Tests Positive For Coronavirus

A person who attended a packed pool party in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri, over Memorial Day weekend — video of which went viral and drew widespread condemnation — has tested positive for the coronavirus. Camden County Health Department issued a health warning on Facebook on Friday, revealing an unidentified person from Boone County had […]

Ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin charged with murder in George Floyd case

The former Minneapolis police officer shown on video putting his knee on George Floyd’s neck for more than 8 1/2 minutes — as he pleaded for air and his mother — was arrested Friday and charged with murder, authorities said. Derek Chauvin, who was fired on Tuesday along with the three other officers involved in […]

A night of ‘absolute chaos’ as outrage over George Floyd’s death spreads across America

Protests raged across America on Friday on a brutal night in cities where people gathered to grieve and demand justice for George Floyd, a black man who died in police custody. Demonstrations that began peacefully turned chaotic and dangerous as the night wore on. They resulted in widespread property damage, numerous injuries and at least […]

SM Show Happy Hour Videocast 5-29-20 Clay Aiken

Stephcast 5-29-20

A CNN crew has been arrested live on television while covering Minneapolis protests

A CNN crew was arrested by police Friday morning while giving a live television report in Minneapolis, where the crew was covering ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd. The crew, including correspondent Omar Jimenez, were handcuffed and detained as Jimenez gave a live report on a Minneapolis street shortly after 5 a.m. CT […]

Minneapolis police precinct burns as protests rage on after death of George Floyd

A police precinct was burning in Minneapolis as protests over the death of George Floyd raged on for a third straight day. Protesters late Thursday focused their attention on the police department’s 3rd Precinct, the base of four officers who were firedafter Floyd’s death in their custody Monday. Read the rest of the story at […]

Twitter places warning on Trump post overnight, saying tweet glorifies violence

Twitter said Friday that President Donald Trump violated its rules against glorifying violence when he tweeted about protests over the death of George Floyd. The company, which is already embroiled in a dispute with the president over what is acceptable on the platform, did not remove the tweet. On Thursday, with fires burning in Minneapolis […]

Stephcast 5-28-20 (fixed)

White House Says Trump Plans to Sign Executive Order ‘Pertaining to Social Media’

President Donald Trump went on a tear against Twitter after the social media platform flagged his tweets on mail-in voting as misinformation. White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters this afternoon the president plans to sign an executive order “pertaining to social media.” Read the rest of the story at Mediaite.