In a statement, Sheldon Whitehouse, the Democratic senator who today released a report revealing the failures of the FBI’s investigation of Brett Kavanaugh during his supreme court confirmation process, had this to say:
In 2018, I pledged to Christine Blasey Ford that I’d keep digging, for however long it took, and not give up or move on from Senate Republicans and the Trump White House’s shameful confirmation process for Justice Kavanaugh. A full, proper investigation is the bare minimum that victims who come forward – like Dr. Ford and Deborah Ramirez – deserve. This report shows that the supplemental background investigation was a sham, controlled by the Trump White House, to give political cover to Senate Republicans and put Justice Kavanaugh back on the political track to confirmation.
The lack of FBI investigative standards helped the Trump White House thwart meaningful investigation of the allegations against Kavanaugh, denying Senators information needed to fulfill their constitutional duties. The FBI must create real protocols so Senators and the American people get real answers – not manufactured misdirection – the next time serious questions about a nominee emerge late in the confirmation process.
You can read the full report here.
FBI never investigated tips about supreme court justice Kavanaugh - report
After two women made allegations of sexual misconduct against Donald Trump’s second nominee to the supreme court, Brett Kavanaugh, the then-president publicly said that he wanted the FBI to investigate those and any other claims against him.
But the Washington Post reports today that a forthcoming report from Democratic senator Sheldon Whitehouse finds the FBI did not have authorization to fullly investigate the allegations, and that messages phoned into the agency’s tip line about Kavanaugh were sent directly to the White House, and never acted upon.
The Senate, which was controlled at the time by the GOP, wound up confirming Kavanaugh, who has since become part of the court’s conservative supermajority, supporting decisions to overturn Roe v Wade and grant Donald Trump immunity.
Here’s more on the report, from the Post:
The president’s comments came as a surprise to the FBI, according to a new report from a Democratic senator based on previously undisclosed correspondence between the agency and the White House. FBI officials — directed to conduct a very limited inquiry in a week’s time — requested “additional guidance” from the White House, citing the public remarks by Trump and other officials describing a freewheeling investigation. But the White House never authorized the agency to independently probe the sexual misconduct allegations, which Kavanaugh staunchly denied.
The report, which was produced by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), a Judiciary Committee member and leading critic of the Kavanaugh confirmation, and provided to The Washington Post ahead of a public release on Tuesday, provides additional evidence of the tight control exercised by the White House over the FBI investigation — despite Trump’s claims to the contrary.
The report found that messages to the FBI tip line regarding Kavanaugh were forwarded directly to the White House and never probed, and that the FBI had no written protocols for the supplemental background investigation ordered by the White House. It notes that the FBI was instructed by the White House to talk to 10 potential witnesses and was not given the leeway to pursue corroborating evidence — the absence of which was cited by senators as they narrowly voted to confirm Kavanaugh, marking a major triumph for the conservative movement and locking in a right-leaning majority that would later overturn the constitutional right to abortion.
Trump ordered the additional inquiry following nationally televised testimony by Christine Blasey Ford that Kavanaugh had groped her and tried to take off her clothes more than three decades earlier, when they were in high school at a party in suburban Maryland. Another accuser, Deborah Ramirez, had come forward in a New Yorker story, saying Kavanaugh had shoved his penis into her face during a dorm party when they were at Yale University in the early 1980s.
“The Congressional report published today confirms what we long suspected: the FBI supplemental investigation of then-nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh was, in fact, a sham effort directed by the Trump White House to silence brave victims and other witnesses who came forward and to hide the truth,” said Blasey Ford’s lawyers, Debra Katz and Lisa Banks.
Trump secretly sent Putin Covid testing machines, report says
Bob Woodward’s forthcoming book “War” also reveals that Donald Trump kept in touch with Vladimir Putin after his presidency ended, CNN reports.
Citing an aide to the former president, Woodward writes that there have been “maybe as many as seven” calls between the two since Trump left the White House.
Woodward also uncovers details of a moment from the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, when Trump secretly sent Putin testing machines:
But Putin — who infamously isolated himself over fears of Covid — told Trump on a phone call to keep the delivery of the Abbott machines quiet, Woodward reports.
“Please don’t tell anybody you sent these to me,” Putin said to Trump, according to Woodward.
“I don’t care,” Trump replied. “Fine.”
“No, no,” Putin said. “I don’t want you to tell anybody because people will get mad at you, not me. They don’t care about me.”
Woodward writes that Trump has stayed in touch with Putin after leaving office.
In one scene, Woodward recounts a moment at Mar-a-Lago where Trump tells a senior aide to leave the room so “he could have what he said was a private phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.”
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New book reveals Biden's profanity laced comments on world leaders, fears of nuclear war - report
A forthcoming book by investigative journalist Bob Woodward, who has a long history of getting scoops involving US presidents and those around him, documents Joe Biden’s candid, often profane, assessments of world leaders, CNN reports.
“War”, which will be published 15 October, also reveals that US intelligence believed Russia was far more likely to use a nuclear weapon to gain the advantage in Ukraine than previously known.
But before we get into that, here’s who Biden likes to curse about:
“That son of a bitch, Bibi Netanyahu, he’s a bad guy. He’s a bad fucking guy!” Biden said earlier this year, as Israel’s invasion of Gaza ground on.
“That fucking Putin … Putin is evil. We are dealing with the epitome of evil.” Those were the president’s thoughts, sometime after Russia invaded Ukraine.
The fear of nuclear war spiked in September 2022, when it became clear to Russia that it would not easily triumph in Ukraine. US intelligence, which had learned of Moscow’s invasion plans months before Russian troops crossed the border, believed the likelihood that Vladimir Putin would order the use of a tactical nuclear weapon had spiked to 50%.
The re-election of Bob Casey is one of the must-win races for Democrats, if they want to keep control of the Senate. He faces Dave McCormick, a Trump-backed candidate who doesn’t agree with everything the former president has to say. Here’s more on the race in a swing state that could decide the election, from the Guardian’s Joan E Greve:
Pennsylvania has come into laser focus in the 2024 election as the must-win state of the presidential election. But further down the ballot is another race in the battleground state – one that could decide whether Democrats are able to hold on to a one-seat majority in the Senate.
With the party bracing to lose a seat in West Virginia and incumbent Jon Tester’s prospects looking grim in Montana, a lot of attention and money is flowing into the Senate race between Democrat Bob Casey and Republican Dave McCormick in Pennsylvania.
Casey, who is seeking a fourth term in the Senate, hopes to turn one of Democrats’ largest vulnerabilities – the cost of living – into a campaign asset. He has focused much of his messaging on rising prices, a primary concern for voters, and the so-called “greedflation” of large corporations. He accuses those companies of gouging consumers during the high inflationary period of Joe Biden’s early presidency and warns that McCormick will not take action to hold them accountable.
But McCormick holds Democrats like Casey and Kamala Harris responsible for those same high prices because of their “wasteful government spending”, and he is betting that voters will, too.
Democrats and Republicans alike appear keenly aware of the importance of the contest, as outside spending groups have dropped tens of millions of dollars into Pennsylvania and prominent members of both parties have traveled to the state for campaign events. Appearing at a recent event alongside Casey in the Philadelphia suburb of Ambler, Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts reminded supporters of the high stakes of the race.
“This is what control of the Senate is all about right now,” Warren told supporters. “If [Republicans] win on November 5, they are going to help the rich get richer and let everyone else eat dirt … We are all, as Democrats, in this fight because we will not let them take back the Senate.”
Biden set to visit key battleground states amid crucial Senate races for Democrats
The US president, Joe Biden, is set to campaign on Tuesday in Pennsylvania for a close ally, the Democratic senator Bob Casey, when he participates in a private campaign fundraiser.
Casey, an incumbent running against Dave McCormick, has a narrow lead in the race in CBS News polling from September.
Biden is also set to travel to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Tuesday to discuss his administration’s progress in replacing lead pipes and creating jobs.
Tammy Baldwin, the Democratic Wisconsin senator who was first elected in 2012 on a tide of progressive support, will be conspicuously absent. She is facing Eric Hovde, a real estate mogul and banker, in a critical Senate race for the Democrats.
Baldwin, who has managed to keep a support base among farmers and rural voters, has previously refrained from campaigning with Biden when he made stops in Wisconsin. You can read more about her up-to-now successful electoral coalition here.
Casey’s and Baldwin’s races are seen as must-wins for Democrats who are trying to maintain their razor-tight control of the Senate. As the presidential campaign has played out, Biden has largely stayed on the sidelines as he’s remained a flawed surrogate (in the eyes of many) for Harris and down-ballot Democrats.
Pennsylvania (which narrowly voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and for Biden in 2020) and Wisconsin (which voted for Trump in 2016 and Biden in 2020) are both critical swing states that Trump and Kamala Harris are fiercely trying to appeal to.
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Project 2025 would ‘unequivocally’ lead to more hurricane deaths, experts warn
With communities still reeling from Hurricane Helene, one of the deadliest storms ever to hit the US, further pain in the form of Hurricane Milton is about to hit Florida. Experts warn such disasters will be deepened if Donald Trump is elected and follows the policy plans of the controversial rightwing Project 2025 manifesto.
Under Project 2025, authored by numerous former Trump officials but disavowed by the former president himself, the federal forecasting of severe storms and aid given to shattered towns and cities would be drastically scaled back. Emergency management officials say the cuts would severely worsen the outcomes from a storm like Helene.
Project 2025 calls for “breaking up and downsizing” the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which it calls a primary component “of the climate change alarm industry”. The agency’s climate research is “harmful to future US prosperity” and should be disbanded, the document says.
You can read the full story by my colleagues Dharna Noor and Oliver Milman here:
Donal Trump is set to hold a rally in Aurora, Colorado, on Friday, according to a release from his campaign. Trump is due to speak at the Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center at 1pm (MDT). The Republican presidential candidate has repeated the false claim that Venezuelan street gangs have overtaken Aurora, where he has said deportations would begin if he wins the election next month.
Trump has said members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang have “taken over” apartment complexes and “overrun” the city, a false claim refuted by the Aurora police department.
In the press release announcing his campaign stop in Colorado on Friday, Trump made several references to the gang, adding at the bottom of his statement:
Kamala’s border bloodbath has made every state a border state, leaving Colorado families at the mercy of criminals. The only solution to stop the border crisis is to elect President Trump, who will secure the border, deport dangerous criminals, and Make America Safe Again.
Joe Biden won 55.4% of the vote in Colorado on his way to winning the presidency in 2020, while Trump got 41.9% of the votes in the state, which he is not expected to win this year.
Key event
In a release on its website, the White House said the Biden administration is mobilising additional resources and personnel to prepare for the impacts of Hurricane Milton, and has contacted over 15 local officials in cities and counties in areas that will likely be hit by the storm.
The White House also said the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) has enough money to support disaster relief for both Milton and Hurricane Helene.
Biden yesterday approved Florida governor Ron DeSantis’ request for an emergency declaration, the White House said. This means the federal government will provide additional funding to designated counties, and federal support for emergency responses such as evacuation, sheltering and search and rescue missions.
Tonight, I spoke with Florida Governor DeSantis and Tampa Mayor Castor for firsthand reports on Hurricane Helene recovery and preparations for Hurricane Milton.
— President Biden (@POTUS) October 8, 2024
My Administration is ready to support both leaders and the people of Florida with any further resources they may need. pic.twitter.com/imXXVXQnoD
NBC News reported on Monday that DeSantis, who unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination earlier this year, was ignoring calls from the US vice president, Kamala Harris, because they “seemed political”. “Kamala was trying to reach out, and we didn’t answer,” the DeSantis aide told the outlet.
“We have to assume this is going to be a monster,” DeSantis told reporters on Monday afternoon, as he warned of a potentially higher storm surge and more power outages from Milton compared to Helene.
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Hurricane Milton delays Washington DC reception between Joe Biden and Irish PM
Joe Biden is expected to receive a briefing from homeland security advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall today as Hurricane Milton heads across the Gulf of Mexico.
Biden is reported to be delaying a reception in Washington DC with the Irish Taoiseach, Simon Harris, to deal with the response to the category 4 hurricane.
The two leaders are still planning to meet in the Oval Office – to mark the centenary of diplomatic relations between Ireland and the US - but the reception in the Rose Garden has been postponed, BBC News reports.
Officials warn Hurricane Milton poses an 'extremely serious threat' to Florida
The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) has warned that Hurricane Milton, expected to bring heavy rainfall and storm surges as high as 15 feet, “poses an extremely serious threat to Florida”.
The densely populated west coast of the state is braced for landfall of the category 4 storm on Wednesday. More than a million people were ordered to evacuate from its path.
The NHC projected the storm was likely to hit near the Tampa Bay metropolitan area, home to more than 3 million people.
It comes days after Hurricane Helene caused devastation and destruction through large swaths of Florida and other parts of the south-east of the US.
The death toll from Helene- which made landfall on the Florida Gulf coast on 26 September – stands at about 230 people, but this is expected to increase.
It then ripped through Georgia and North Carolina, both of which are swing states and essentially must wins for the Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump. Both Trump and the US vice president, Kamala Harris, are targeting these states hard.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) has already had to respond to rife misinformation concerning its response to Helene, amplified on the presidential campaign trail by Trump and some of his supporters.
Trump has falsely accused the US president, Joe Biden, and Harris of favouring migrants over disaster-hit areas. “They stole the Fema money, just like they stole it from a bank, so they could give it to their illegal immigrants that they want to have vote for them this season,” Trump has said.
“Kamala spent all her Fema money, billions of dollars, on housing for illegal immigrants.” Trump added the places worst hit are “largely a Republican area so some people say they did it for that reason”.
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Harris takes narrow lead in NY Times poll over Trump as she embarks on media blitz
Good morning, US politics readers.
The Democratic US vice-president, Kamala Harris, has taken a narrow national lead over her Republican rival, Donald Trump, in the race for the White House, according to the latest New York Times/Siena College poll, conducted between 29 September and 6 October.
It is the first time Harris led Trump in the Times/Siena poll since July, when Joe Biden dramatically dropped out of the presidential race and urged fellow Democrats to support Harris after his disastrous debate performance against Trump on 27 June.
The poll – which surveyed 3,385 likely voters – shows Harris leading Trump by 49% to 46%. In mid-September, after the presidential debate between the two, which Harris was viewed by many to have won, the two candidates were both at 47%.
Here are some other main takeaways from the latest New York Times/Siena College poll:
Harris has gained support from Republican voters – 9% said this time round they would support her, an increase from 5% last month.
46% of respondents said Harris, 59, represented change this election, compared to 44% for Trump, 78.
61% of non-white voters see Harris as the change candidate, while 29% view Trump this way.
Trump was still viewed by more people as a “strong leader”, though this was by a small amount.
Trump is leading among male voters by 11 points. 42% of voters surveyed said they personally benefited from Trump’s policies, when he was president between 2016 and 2020, compared to Biden’s policies.
Respondents trusted Trump more than Harris to manage the economy, which 75% of the likely voters described as in a “fair or poor condition”, the same as last month.
The percentage of voters holding favorable or unfavorable views of Trump and Harris has not changed since September.
The margin of sampling error among likely voters in the poll was plus or minus 2.4 points for the national poll and about plus or minus five points for each state poll.
Despite Harris edging Trump in some polls, the race is essentially deadlocked, both nationally and in so-called battleground states. The victory on 5 November will be decided by the slimmest of margins. In order to appeal to voters in the critical swing states (Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin), Harris has embarked on a week-long media blitz, appearing largely in front of politically sympathetic interviewers.
Harris has already talked to the CBS News show 60 Minutes, along with the popular podcast Call Her Daddy. In the CBS News interview, Harris was pressed on issues including the Middle East, Ukraine, gun ownership and immigration. Trump was invited on the programme too, but declined to participate in it.
As Ed Pilkington, Guardian US’ chief reporter, notes in this story, on Tuesday Harris hits New York for appearances on ABC News’s daytime behemoth The View and the Howard Stern Show, followed by a recording with the late-night host Stephen Colbert. We will bring you all the latest news from these media appearances as they happen.
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