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Donald Trump has been on the receiving end of an extraordinary rebuke by a former president after Barack Obama denounced White House attempts to suppress postal voting in the upcoming election.
Mr Obama, who has generally avoided attacking his successor directly, told a US politics podcast Mr Trump was attempting to “discourage people from voting” by opposing additional funds for the US Postal Service (USPS), which is expected to face a surge of postal votes this November due to coronavirus.
“What we’ve seen in a way that is unique to modern political history is a president who is explicit in trying to discourage people from voting,” Mr Obama told his campaign manager David Plouffe.
“What we’ve never seen before is a president say, ‘I’m going to try to actively kneecap the postal service’.”
Mr Obama’s intervention came the same day the US was accused of an “historic humiliation” at the United Nations Security Council, after it failed rejected a US resolution to extend an arms embargo on Iran.
“This is an historic humiliation for the United States. We have never lost a vote this badly; never been so isolated on the global stage. Epic diplomatic malpractice,” tweeted Joe Cirincione, a national security expert and former official on Capitol Hill.
Donald Trump has added an evening press briefing to his light weekend schedule.
He’s expected to hold a news conference at 5pm from his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey before he holds a roundtable meeting with supporters.
Donald Trump’s appointee for the Bureau of Land Management, currently serving as its acting director, will be withdrawn from consideration, CNN reports.
William Perry Pendley, who has repeatedly denied the existence of a climate crisis and threats to the ozone and expressed anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant remarks, would oversee a crucial Interior Department agency responsible for millions of acres of American soil.
A host of senators and state and local officials have opposed his nomination and demanded his immediate resignation.
Taylor Swift has joined national outcry over the Trump administration’s cuts to the US Postal Service and the president’s threats to vote-by-mail efforts ahead of November’s election.
She said: “Trump’s calculated dismantling of USPS proves one thing clearly: He is WELL AWARE that we do not want him as our president. He’s chosen to blatantly cheat and put millions of Americans’ lives at risk in an effort to hold on to power.”
In another post, she added: “Donald Trump’s ineffective leadership gravely worsened the crisis that we are in and he is now taking advantage of it to subvert and destroy our right to vote and vote safely. Request a ballot early. Vote early.”
Following threats against his family after he clashed with Donald Trump over coronavirus warnings, Dr Anthony Fauci has claimed that Fox News host Tucker Carlson “triggers some of the crazies” by promoting the criticisms lobbed at him.
“I’m not concerned about what he [Carlson] says,” Dr Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, told The Washington Post during an interview on Friday. “I think you could say that when he does that, it triggers some of the crazies in society to start threatening me, actually threatening, which actually happens.”
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The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has discovered that more than 40 per cent of respondents in a recently released June assessment have reported at least one adverse mental or behavioral health condition, including symptoms of anxiety disorder or depressive disorder, within the 30 days prior to the survey.
The figures are more acute among young people – 25 per cent of people aged 18 to 24 are “seriously considered” suicide during the public health crisis. The figures are also disproportional among Hispanics (19 per cent), black Americans (15 per cent), essential workers (22 per cent), and unpaid caregivers (31 per cent), according to the report.
When life is difficult, Samaritans are here – day or night, 365 days a year. You can call them for free on 116 123, email them at jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.
In the US, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1 800 273 8255 or chat online for help.
California Rep Eric Swalwell has called for the creation of a “presidential crimes commission” to “look at those who enabled a corrupt president” following threats to the US Postal Service ahead of November’s election.
“Example 1: Sabotaging the mail to win an election,” he said on Friday.
A group of demonstrators in Washington DC gathered outside the condo building of postmaster general Louis DeJoy to demand that Donald Trump’s newly installed ally to save the beleaguered agency as steep cuts and the president’s own threats to mail-in ballots threaten November’s election.
Americans also have reported that cuts are delaying rent payments, bill processing and other vitally needed services amid the public health crisis from coronavirus that has led to the layoffs of millions of workers.
Furious with USPS cuts and election threats, demonstrators send ‘letters’ to home of postmaster general and Trump ally
Demonstrators gather outside of the condo of President Donald Trump donor and current U.S. Postmaster General Louis Dejoy on August 15 (Getty Images)
Demonstrators gather outside of the condo of President Donald Trump donor and current U.S. Postmaster General Louis Dejoy on August 15 (Getty Images)
Demonstrators gather outside of the condo of President Donald Trump donor and current U.S. Postmaster General Louis Dejoy on Saturday in DC (Getty Images)
Black Lives Matter and antiracist demonstrators have outnumbered a group of armed right-wing militia and white supremacists near Confederate monument Stone Mountain in Georgia, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
The rally also arrives on the anniversary of Donald Trump’s remarks that violent racists were among “very fine people” at a rally in Charlottesville in 2017. One woman, Heather Heyer, was killed and 28 others were injured after a white supremacist drove into a crowd. James Fields was sentenced to life in prison in 2019.
In updated guidance, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention says Covid-19 cases among children have been “steadily increasing” from March to July, while mitigation efforts may have actually reduced the rate of infections. Health officials are unable to determine the true scale of infections without adequate testing measures.
“Recent evidence suggests that children likely have the same or higher viral loads in their nasopharynx compared with adults and that children can spread the virus effectively in households and camp settings,” the CDC says.
The guidance follows the Trump administration’s push to reopen schools to in-person instruction this semester, while White House officials have downplayed reports that children and school staff could transmit the virus to others, and the president has repeatedly and falsely claimed that children are effectively “immune” to Covid-19 or less likely to become sick.
The inspector general’s office at the US Postal Service has opened an investigation into complaints against the agency’s postmaster general Louis DeJoy, according to Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Democrats and election advocates have accused DeJoy, a staunch ally of and donor to the president, of imposing devastating cuts to intentionally sabotage the agency and undermine the results of November’s election to ensure the president’s re-election.
“Women Against Patriarchy (WAP) 2020,” Ms Ocasio-Cortez responded, in a playful nod to Cardi B’s new single, WAP.
A Virginia mayor has issued an apology following racist comments he made on social media referring to Kamala Harris as “Aunt Jemima”.
Barry Presgraves, the mayor of Luray, Virginia, made a Facebook post on 2 August saying that “Joe Biden has just announced Aunt Jemima as his VP pick”.
The social media post came just over a week before presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden finalised Senator Harris as his choice for his running mate.
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US secretary of state Mike Pompeo on Saturday sealed a defence cooperation deal with Polish officials that will pave the way for the redeployment of American troops from Germany to Poland.
In Warsaw at the end of a four-nation tour of central and eastern Europe, Mr Pompeo and Polish defence minister Mariusz Blaszczak signed an Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement that sets out the legal framework for the additional troop presence.
“This is going to be an extended guarantee: a guarantee that in case of a threat our soldiers are going to stand arm-in-arm,” Poland’s president Andrzej Duda said during the signing ceremony. “It will also serve to increase the security of other countries in our part of Europe,” Mr Duda said.
The deal would also further other aspects of US-Polish cooperation, he added, citing primarily investment and trade ties.
The pact supplements an existing Nato Status of Forces Agreement and allows for the enhancement and modernisation of existing capabilities and facilities by allowing US forces to access additional Polish military installations. It also sets out a formula for sharing the logistical and infrastructure costs of an expanded US presence in the country.
Associated Press
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said both he and Pentagon officials warned Russia not to offer bounties on US troops in Afghanistan.
Mr Pompeo discussed the exchange during an interview on Wednesday with Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty.
“If the Russians are offering money to kill Americans or, for that matter, other Westerners as well, there will be an enormous price to pay. That’s what I shared with Foreign Minister Lavrov,” Mr Pompeo said. “I know our military has talked to their senior leaders, as well. We won’t brook that. We won’t tolerate that.”
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The US Postal Service cannot guarantee absentee ballots will arrive in time to be counted for November’s elections in 46 states and Washington DC, signalling the possibility of mass disenfranchisement amid political turmoil and the uncertain financial fate of the beleaguered agency.
Drafted prior to the appointment of Donald Trump‘s ally Louis DeJoy as the agency’s postmaster general, letters obtained by The Washington Post and CNN warn election officials and secretaries of state that states’s election laws may not necessarily guarantee ballots will arrive in time to be counted.
On Thursday, the president – who has cast doubt about the agency’s ability to “handle” an increase in absentee ballots – said he opposed efforts to fund the Postal Service because it would lead to an increase in mail-in voting, despite fears that crowding at the polls during the coronavirus pandemic could lead to infections.
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It turns out this is his public schedule for Saturday.
Mr Shaub suggests Mr Trump is attempting a “coup” that could turn violent, before criticising Mitt Romney for remaining silent on Republican attempts to suppress mail-in voting.
Mr Shaub then raises the possibility Americans may have to protest in force in ways reminiscent of Belarus today.
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