A poll by infratest-dimap on behalf of public broadcaster ARD has shown that 74% of German voters prefer US Democratic candidate Kamala Harris to Donald Trump, who polled 11% approval. Harris received 90% to 92% approval from supporters of the Social Democrats, the Christian Democratic Union and the Greens. Meanwhile, Trump received better approval amongst supporters of the far-right anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany party, with 41% approval. The polling results showed that a majority of Germans felt a Democratic victory would be better for relations and the economy. However, the respondents also expressed concerns about job security and Germany’s economic status.
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Puerto Rico’s GOP chair, who has announced a threat to withhold support for Trump unless he issues an apology regarding his past comments about the island, has provoked a mixed bag of reactions from me. On one hand, I can appreciate the sentiment. The audacity of Trump’s disrespect toward Puerto Rican people is undeniable. Since 2017, he has demonstrated a blatant disregard for the hardship faced by Puerto Ricans, particularly during the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. To now have a prominent member of the GOP state that they might not support him unless he acknowledges this only makes me roll my eyes—there’s so much irony steeped in these sentiments.… Continue reading
The latest data suggests that women, who historically outvote men, are dominating early voting in the 2020 US Presidential election. Nationally, around 62 million early votes had been cast by 29 October, with 54% of these ballots cast by women, compared to 44% by men. This trend is replicated across many battleground states, displaying a 10-point gender gap in early voting. It has further been highlighted that the new group of voters expected to decide the election are mainly female registered democrats, poised to favor the Biden-Harris ticket. Since 1980, the number of female votes has consistently surpassed the number of male votes in each presidential election.
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Former US President Donald Trump has sued CBS News for $10bn over an alleged embellished interview with Vice President Kamala Harris on the channel’s 60 Minutes show, which he deems as “election interference.” Trump contends that the interview was manipulated to present Harris positively, particularly her comments on Israel and the Gaza war, and claimed that this equates to unlawful voter interference. His filing in a US district court in Amarillo, Texas termed CBS’s actions as malicious and deceptive. CBS has dismissed the claim as “completely without merit.” The row follows Trump suggesting that CBS should lose its news broadcast license.
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Liz Cheney has encouraged George W. Bush to voice his concerns on the potential danger that Donald Trump poses. The call comes despite President Bush’s silence on Trump and his divisive rhetoric. The appeal follows recent remarks from Trump suggesting that he’d like to see Cheney facing gunfire. This incident seemed to affirm Cheney’s belief that Trump’s outlandish comments should be taken seriously and literally. Cheney’s father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, has openly criticized Trump and endorsed Kamala Harris for president.
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A lawsuit against Tesla CEO Elon Musk and his political action committee (PAC) regarding their $1 million daily giveaways to registered voters has been returned to a state court in Pennsylvania. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner alleges that Musk and the PAC are running an illegal lottery and attempting to sway voters in the presidential race. Krasner’s request to bar Musk and his PAC from awarding further prizes will be considered by a Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas judge. The defendants’ claim that the case should be adjudicated in federal court because it pertains to the upcoming election was dismissed by U.S. District Judge Gerald Pappert.
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A Federal judge has rejected an effort by Elon Musk-backed political action committee (PAC) America Pac to move a civil lawsuit brought by the Philadelphia District Attorney over a daily $1m prize draw for registered voters to federal court. The judge determined that the District Attorney’s motives are irrelevant, and his office could bring the case to state court. The lawsuit aims to halt the scheme in Pennsylvania and claims that a call for voters in battleground states to provide their phone numbers, addresses and emails in exchange for a cash sum and entry into the prize draw is illegal under state law. It also claims that the PAC and Musk breached state consumer protection laws by making misleading statements. Commentators have suggested that by alleging multiple winners turned up at Trump rallies, the District Attorney is arguing that winners are not chosen randomly as claimed.
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A video purported to depict voter fraud in Georgia has been debunked as fake and stated to be the product of “Russian influence actors” by U.S. intelligence officials. They warned that attempts to undermine the upcoming elections may persist, with Russia expected to create and release further media content that looks to undermine trust in the integrity of the U.S. electoral system. The video, developed by Russian disinformation network Storm-1516 (aka CopyCop), claimed to show a Haitian immigrant intending to vote multiple times using several fake Georgia IDs. The original video has since been taken offline but versions continue to be shared. Intelligence chiefs announced that another manufactured video falsely accusing someone associated with the Democratic candidate of taking a bribe from a U.S. performer has also been attributed to Russia.
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Former President Donald Trump echoed Ronald Reagan’s famous question at a recent campaign event, asking voters if they are better off now than four years ago – effectively prompting a comparison between the current state and Trump’s presidency during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, many scholars suggest that public amnesia may have distorted people’s memories, with only 4% of voters polled stating they most remember Trump’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis. Instead, responses focused on his ‘behavior’, economic policies, and stance on immigration. Experts argue that post-pandemic amnesia and a ‘misremembering’ of past events often happens after traumatic episodes. Furthermore, it’s contended that the Trump administration’s approach to the pandemic, characterized by denial, confusion, and misinformation, made it more challenging for the public to remember what happened accurately.
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In a discussion with journalist Michael Wolff, New York financier Eric Epstein criticised the management style of US President Donald J. Trump. Epstein paraphrased some of Mr Trump’s comments about former strategist Steve Bannon, former White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, and Trump Counselor Kellyanne Conway. Epstein also named JP Morgan chief Jamie Dimon and business magnate Carl Icahn as involuntarily entangled in the internal conflicts of the Trump administration.
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John Q. Hosedrinker