JR
Joyce Rubenstein
Capstone National Partners
Jet Fumes, The Official Scent Of Congress
Meadows put the onus on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker Nancy Pelosi to reach a relief deal. On a funding bill … McConnell indicated that the White House prefers to do an omnibus instead of another continuing resolution.
SPEAKING of lame-duck items: the House and Senate have officially entered into formal negotiations on the annual defense policy bill. And Pelosi put out a statement suggesting the inclusion of language renaming Confederate military bases is a red line for Dems. Trump has threatened to veto such language, but both chambers passed defense bills with similar provisions — and had enough for a veto proof majority.
Define ‘Covid Relief Talks’
Politico “ON THURSDAY MORNING … representatives to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Chuck Schumer and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell met to discuss government funding and coronavirus relief. Turns out that this meeting was simply about the end-of-year government funding bill, which is due for renewal on Dec. 11. The two sides did in fact discuss the expiration of Covid relief-related items like pandemic unemployment assistance, student loan forbearance and the Paycheck Protection Program — but they did not talk about a new Covid relief deal. It’s entirely possible that some existing programs get renewed in or alongside a government funding bill.
SO, did they discuss coronavirus relief? it all depends how you define “Covid relief talks.”
House Democrats Wake Up
Who’s Holding Onto Her Gavel …
Shelbyovious
On An Island
Final 2020 Map
AP won’t call a race that’s subject to recount. AP called the race after state election officials said a hand-tallied audit of ballots confirmed Biden leads President Trump by 12,284 votes out of nearly 5 million counted.
The big picture: Georgia voters hadn’t swung for a Democratic presidential candidate since Bill Clinton in 1992. Trump beat Hillary Clinton there by five points.”
Biden’s Win – Reality Check
Reality check:
- In Georgia, the largest hand recount in U.S. history is underway (final count due this evening), with some counties finding exactly the same vote tallies they reported two weeks ago. AND Politico “Another bid by an ally of President Donald Trump to overturn the results of this month’s election was roundly rejected in court on Thursday, as a federal judge appointed by Trump turned down a bid to block the certification of President-elect Joe Biden as the victor in Georgia. At the conclusion of a three-hour virtual hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Steven Grimberg delivered a withering assessment of the suit … [he] also emphasized that evidence of improprieties seemed limited to isolated cases and far short of what would be needed to justify a federal judge stepping in to alter the state’s election results.”
- In Michigan, the Wayne County Board of Canvassers certified Detroit’s election results on the last day possible, after initially deadlocking in a party-line vote.
- In Wisconsin, the Trump campaign paid $3 million this week for recounts in two counties – Milwaukee and Dane.
- In Pennsylvania, the state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that Philadelphia did not violate the law by restricting poll observers’ proximity to ballots.
- In Arizona, the Trump campaign’s lead lawyer acknowledged last week that the vote count was not affected by fraud but “good-faith” errors that did not approach Biden’s 11,000-vote margin of victory.”
Unprecedented Subversion of Democracy
JR’s Vocabulary Word Of The Week (… just spoke to me)
Autogolpe
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Mitt And Ben Speak … Where Is The Rest of the Republican Party?
“President Trump lost Michigan by more than 100,000 votes, and the campaign and its allies have lost in or withdrawn from all five lawsuits in Michigan for being unable to produce any evidence. Wild press conferences erode public trust. So no, obviously Rudy and his buddies should not pressure electors to ignore their certification obligations under the statute. We are a nation of laws, not tweets.”
— Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Nebraska)
It’s Not Your Imagination …
Dirty Little Secret Of Polling
Double-or-Nothing In The Peachtree State
In the Senate, Republicans entered the cycle with 53 seats. The Nov. 3 results guarantee that the GOP will hold at least 50 Senate seats in the next Congress. Should they win at least one of the Georgia seats, Mitch McConnell will remain Senate majority leader. Only if Democrats win both, pushing the Senate to a 50-50 tie broken by the new vice president, Kamala Harris, would they take over control of the chamber. Under those circumstances, Harris had best not be looking forward to using Air Force Two much on days when the Senate will be in session.
Under any of these scenarios, we should probably use the word “majority” instead of “control.” There probably will not be a lot of controlling going on, whether it is Mitch McConnell or Chuck Schumer holding the title of majority leader.
Don’t expect much ticket splitting in the Peachtree State. Putting the Georgia races aside, in every Senate race this year, save the one in Maine, voters chose the same party for president and Senate. In 2016, every single Senate and presidential contest went the same way.
Simply put, anyone voting for Republican incumbent David Perdue in the race for the full-term, regularly scheduled Senate race is almost certainly going to vote for the appointed Senate incumbent, Kelly Loeffler, in the special-election runoff, and vice versa. Anyone voting for Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff in the regular-seat contest is also likely to vote for Raphael Warnock in the special, and vice versa. These two pairs are package deals.
And the races are going to be very, very close.
Factor in Joe Biden’s 14,000-vote win (pending the recount) in the state, and toss in the 1.4-point margin between Brian Kemp and Stacey Abrams in the gubernatorial race two years ago, and a good case can be made that Georgia is the most evenly divided state in the country.“
Pass The Gravy, Hold The Travel
11.7 Million Americans have tested positive for Coronavirus. 252,555 Americans have died.
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The CDC’s recommendation? Stay home. Many Skimm’s already got the memo and are planning to sit tight over the holiday. But one report found that up to 50 million Americans are still expected to travel. If you’re one of them, and considering having a tough conversation with family, here are some tips. If you can’t cancel plans, keep in mind that renting a car may be safer than traveling by train. And for air travel, pay extra attention to safety (think: masks, social distancing) at the airport. Yes, you can bring hand sanitizer.
I’ll be staying put, thanks. Good news then: If you were planning for a Zoom Thanksgiving, it can now last more than 40 minutes. Just enough time for another helping of dessert. There are also plenty of games and trivia you can play virtually as a group (see: Drawful, Among Us, and Kahoot). Also, now may be a great time to create new traditions, donate to orgs, or test out a new recipe.
- The end of the pandemic is in sight. “The most tenuous moment is over: The scientific uncertainty at the heart of COVID-19 vaccines is resolved,” Sarah Zhang reports.
- But how many Americans will die between now and then? “With cases rising as fast as they are, the U.S. could cross the threshold of 2,000 daily deaths within a month.
- That makes this the final surge—and it’s looking deadly. “Almost every major metric of the pandemic stands at or near record levels.”

Boeing’s Boarding Pass
So, the planes are safe now?
That’s what the FAA is saying since Boeing made software, design, and training changes. But don’t expect US airlines to be jetting off on these planes soon. … So far, only American Airlines expects to fly the planes as early as next month. Others like Southwest and United are holding off until next year. As for international travel, regulators in other countries are still working on their approval process for the Max.
Idk, I’m still a little wary.
You’re not the only one. … And Boeing recognizes the need to rebuild its reputation with the public. … Boeing was once sitting in first class in the world of aviation. But the devastating crashes that claimed hundreds of lives have tainted the company’s reputation. Now, it’s facing an uphill battle to build trust when people aren’t flying as much.”