Beltway Insider: Trump/Biden Election, Stimulus, Gov’s Petition WH, COVID-19, France/ISIS, NZ PM

President Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden, each took to the airwaves this week, in what has been described as dueling townhalls, with the final debate of this election season schedule for October 22, 2020.

The President's job approval rating, according to the website fivethirtyeight.com, which tracked polls of likely or registered voters for the period ending October 18, 2020, decreased by 0.8 percentage points to 42.8% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness decreased by 1.0% at 54.2%. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.


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Election 2020, according to the website 270towin, which tracks the latest Presidential Poll averages have President Donald Trump trailing Democratic challenger Joe Biden by 10.6% percentage points in ten National Polls. With an average of 52.3% of the sample audience indicating they will be casting their vote for Biden, and 42.7% of the voters sampled indicating they will be casting their vote for Trump.

Based on the state poll projections, the 270towin offers a color coded electoral map which projects, based on current state polls, the expected November vote. The map can be seen here.

Trump, Biden Race Heats Up

The tale of two town halls took over the media as both ABC and NBC offered the American Public the opportunity to have each candidate clarify their statements and positions.

Trump responded much like his debate performance, interrupting and with his usual bravado and while unable to interject his "nasty" comment from the 2016 campaign debate, his openly antagonistic views on town hall moderator Savannah Guthrie were clear.

Biden, on ABC, received a warmer welcome although Senor political anchor George Stephanopoulos did manage to ask pointed questions on this week's buzz topics, including court-packing and his plan to combat the coronavirus.

By the end of the night, it became apparent that neither candidate appears to be willing to provide any answers that might jeopardize the election results.

Trump and Pence have been the underdogs in the past, the possibility remains they could pull out a victory, even with the national polls indicating a ten percent lead by Biden Harris.

Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Minnesota could pull Trump-Pence into a second term.

As all prognosticators predict a Biden landslide, complacency in an already secure outcome could contribute to an upset.

"The very searing truth is that Donald Trump can still win this race, and every indication we have shows that this thing is going to come down to the wire," Biden campaign manager Jen O'Malley Dillon wrote in a memo to supporters on Saturday," reported NPR.


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Coronavirus Continues to Impact Party Politics

A feared second wave of the coronavirus appears to be rolling across the nation, even as the most-hard hit areas on the eastern seaboard see a shift in quarantine lockdowns.

New York State, once known as the epicenter of COVID-19, has announced that movie theaters outside of Manhattan will open at 25% capacity. This news signals a shift in the states fight against the spread of the virus. New York City, comprised of five boroughs, is home to 8.39million people, and the population density creates the possibility of fast-moving cluster cells.

Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced that the Great White Way, will be closed until Memorial Day weekend, 2021. Cuomo has also announced restrictions regarding upstate ski resorts stating, "ski resorts can reopen with 50 percent indoor capacity and with strict health and safety protocols under state-issued guidance starting Friday, November 6."

National Governors Association Submits Coronavirus Vaccine Questions to Trump

The Nation's governors have continued to look toward Washington for guidance as the initial wave of the coronavirus, which have cost the lives of more than 200,000 Americans, has this week surged to totals not seen since July.

Democrats and republicans submitted questions to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who chairs the National Governors Association covering a myriad of questions from funding to vaccine delivery and federal assistance.

"The distribution and implementation of the vaccine is a massive undertaking that cannot be managed without significant logistical coordination, planning and financial assistance between states and the federal government. The list of questions, submitted from governors from around the country, covers funding for the administration of a vaccine, allocation and supply chain, and communication and information requirements. The National Governors Association, which I chair, sent a letter to the president of the United States last week. We asked to meet with the president to discuss how this is supposed to work between the federal government and the states," Governor Cuomo said

Hunter Biden Becomes Election Issue

Democratic Challenger Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden has somehow become the subject of the 2020 Election season as documents surfaced of possible professional nepotism. Biden allegedly introduced his father, the then Vice-President to the Ukrainian natural gas firm Burisma Holdings in 2015 at the younger Biden's request.

"Investigations by the press, during impeachment, and even by two Republican-led Senate committees whose work was decried as 'not legitimate' and political by a GOP colleague have all reached the same conclusion: that Joe Biden carried out official U.S. policy toward Ukraine and engaged in no wrongdoing. Trump administration officials have attested to these facts under oath," Biden campaign spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement," reported Fox News.


Noticias Telemundo Interview: Democratic Presidential Nominee Joe Biden (ENG. Text)


Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings

Senate confirmation hearings began and ended this week for trump Supreme Court Nominee Amy Coney Barret. With the republicans in control in the Senate the expected vote to confirm Coney-Barret as the next Supreme Court justice is expected.

Her participation in the People of Praise sect, did not become an issue, even as mainstream media reported she had once been a handmaid, which the interpretation of submission is unclear, to the group's leader, Kevin Ranaghan.

"Barrett's confirmation requires approval by majorities of the committee and the full Senate, both of which are controlled by Republicans.  The panel will meet once more – Thursday, Oct. 22 at 1 p.m. EDT – to officially vote on Barrett's confirmation. After the committee approves her nomination, which is likely to pass in a 12-10 party-line vote, the full Senate will consider her," USAToday.com reported.

Stimulus Package

Democratic House leader Nancy Pelosi, and Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin have had a series of telephone conversation which her Chief of Staff, Drew Hammill has provided a synopsis via twitter. All indication is that the two parties are continuing to speak, although hammering out a deal doesn't appear to be on the agenda.

"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday she and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin must reach an agreement within 48 hours if they want to pass a coronavirus stimulus relief bill before Election Day. "The 48 only relates to if we want to get it done before the election, which we do," Pelosi said in an interview on ABC's "This Week." "But we're saying to them we have to freeze the design on some of these things. Are we going with it or not? And what is the language," reported CNN.

With the election two weeks away, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, who is facing an unexpected close race in his state, has broke with his fellow republicans stating he believes that he thinks more money is needed.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said that Congress should go "big and smart" on the next coronavirus relief package. During a pre-recorded interview on "Full Court Press with Greta Van Susteren," to air Sunday, Graham said "The $2.2 trillion coming out of the House has a mandate for ballot harvesting. What's that got to do COVID?" Graham said. "And the $1,200 payment, which I support, doesn't require a Social Security number to get it, so a lot of the money would go to illegal immigrants," reported TheHill.com.

Coronavirus Totals

The infection rates of the coronavirus have continued to rise around the world. The weekly account confirms that the virus appears to have leveled out, while still increasing, the rate of infection remains constant, with sharp increases.

The importance of maintaining personal protective practices is imperative to controlling the spread.

For the week ending October 18, 2020, coronavirus cases increased globally by 2,480,300 confirmed cases, brings the total of confirmed cases worldwide to 39,833,800, with 1,111,200 deaths, an increase of 36,800.

Infections rates in the United States are also on the rise. For the week ending October 18, 2020, the total confirmed cases rose to 8,173,100 with new confirmed cases rising by 52,774. The coronavirus has claimed 219,428 total deaths, a weekly increase for 5,028 deaths. (Data from The New York Times).

With two weeks before the election, the sudden surge, hitting the highest daily totals recorded since July, in the coronavirus has caused many Americans, who have yet to vote to review more closely the plans that each candidate present to combat the expected second wave.

France: Islamic State Lone World Attack Paris Teacher

A lone wolf member of an Islamic State sleeper cell beheaded Professor Samuel Paty, 47, after the history and geography teacher showed his students caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad, in an effort to explain the Charlie Hebdo trial.

The brazen daylight attack, in a Parisian suburb, was captured on social media and the attacker, an 18-year-old Russian-Chechen immigrant, was shot and killed by police immediately.

"Paty's decision to show these drawings to teenage children raised eyebrows, with some Muslim parents complaining to the school's leadership, French media reported. One of the offended parents took his dispute to social media, which is probably how the suspect — who had no known ties to the school or to that parental dispute — learned of the issue, authorities suggested," reported The Washington Post.

Charlie Hebdo Attack

The January 2015 Charlie Hebdo attacks which left twelve journalists slaughtered by Islamic State terrorists after the satirical magazine published caricature of the Prophet Muhammad, have once again become the focus of Parisian attention.

The attack, which also left eleven others injured, shocked the world, and ushered in a season of brazen terrorist attacks, throughout Europe.

"Police killed all three perpetrators at the time; the trial is focused on 14 alleged accomplices, accused of obtaining weapons and providing other support. Still, the proceedings have captivated the nation and are seen as historically significant. Although not being broadcast live, the trial is the first of its kind to be filmed for archival purposes," reported The Washington Post.

The magazine honored the slain journalists by republishing the original cover published in January 2015 as the trial of those responsible began last month.


World News: France, Covid-19, and The Inevitable Second Wave


New Zealand: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern Overwhelmingly Re-Elected

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who through tragedy in the small island nation has become a global powerhouse, has sailed to an easy re-election as her Labour Party take nearly 49% of the vote and securing 64 seats in Parliament.

Ardern's first term has seen the worst of the world's ills show up on her shores with the Christchurch Mosque Mass Shooting which left 51 dead, the White Island volcano disaster, which left 21 dead, and the Coronavirus, which saw 1886 cases with 25 deaths.

Borrowing from the Biden Harris campaign, of Building Back Better, Ardern said to her constituents, "We will govern as we campaigned — positively," Ms. Ardern said in her acceptance speech in Auckland Saturday night, adding: "We will build back better from the Covid crisis. This is our opportunity,"' The New York Times reported.

Handling the carnage of the Friday, March 15, 2019 Christchurch massacre and following up with an immediate assault weapons ban, Ardern became an international symbol of good government in action.

One Vote Won't Make a Difference. Or Will It?

The question may not be the most talked about question of the campaign and yet many American citizens are refusing to even consider voting with the impression that the singular vote they cast will not make a difference. Each vote becomes a total of all votes cast, win or lose, exercising the right to vote is part of a free society.

This election will choose the leaders who present the blueprint for the future which bests aligns with each voter's vision.

Check USA.gov for the local election office in all fifty states and US territories. Register to vote today, opt for the mail in ballot, and send it in as soon as possible.

For more information on President Donald Trump www.whitehouse.gov.

Sources: Various © Articles covered by Copyright protection

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