Beltway Insider: Trump Release, Pence Harris Debate, Stimulus Package, Militias, COVID-19, Stars and Stripes Shuttered

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President Trump announced he is COVID free, during the Peaceful Protest for Law and Order held from the White House where he reiterated to supporters his agenda, disdain of the media, and buoyancy in the polls.

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 11, 2020, decreased by 0.6 percentage points to 43.6% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness decreased by .09% at 53.2%. 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 8.8% percentage points in ten National Polls. With an average of 51.0% of the sample audience indicating they will be casting their vote for Biden, and 42.2% 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.

Pence, Harris Vice-Presidential Debate

Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic Vice-Presidential nominee Kamala Harris held the first and only debate of this campaign season, this week in Salt Lake City, UT. Moderated by USA Today Washington Bureau Chief Susan Page who kept the two as close to in check as possible.

The debate centered on a variety of hot button issues including COVID-19, ObamaCare, the Supreme Court and of course the age of both their party's leaders. The ninety minutes held few surprises for the American public, as a more civilized forum was expected after the Presidential debate debacle.

Both praised the agendas of their party and sharply criticized the agenda, and performances of the others. It was typical democratic verses republican, winner take all.


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The Elephant in the Room

When asked by Ms. Page on the age issue of each, President Trump and Democratic Challenger Joe Biden, both candidates deflected referring to the platforms and performances of the candidates as opposed to discussing the possibility of succession.

Succession in business and politics is now more than ever at the forefront of the election. Both presidential candidates are septuagenarian's, which doesn't negate competency, in fact, the decades of experience remain necessary when dealing with the free world.

Voting Population

"As of November 2016, an estimated 62 million Millennials (adults ages 20 to 35 in 2016) were voting-age U.S. citizens, surpassing the 57 million Generation X members (ages 36 to 51) in the nation's electorate and moving closer in number to the 70 million Baby Boomers (ages 52 to 70), according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. Millennials comprised 27% of the voting-eligible population in 2016, while Boomers made up 31%," Pew Research reported.

The largest voting demographic in the United States remains the Baby Boomers, at 70million plus, a rich voting population which falls into the age range of both candidates. Tapping into this demographic alone can secure the presidency for either candidate.

African American and Minority Demographic

In 2008 when Barack Obama led the ticket 66% of African Americans voted, the percentages have dropped with each election since.

Depending on the black vote to win an election will not win an election, especially a presidential election that is dependent on the electoral college.

Keeping minorities from voting through a variety of tactics, legal and illegal dates to the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Stopping black voters from registering to vote at the state and local levels was abolished with the Voting rights Act.

Keeping the minority vote from casting the deciding vote that would elect a minority keeps minorities from power, with 58% of the male prison population are minorities and for women the statics are similar.

"Although the data do not exist to break down the "whole pie" by race or ethnicity, overall Black and American Indian women are markedly overrepresented in prisons and jails: Incarcerated women are 53% White, 29% Black, 14% Hispanic, 2.5% American Indian and Alaskan Native, 0.9% Asian, and 0.4% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander," reports Prisonpolicy.org.

Depending on a single demographic to propel any candidate over the top is risky and unlikely especially, using the race card, as at its highest 66% showed up at the polls.

Packing the Supreme Court

With the recent appointment of Amy Coney Barret, the judicial pick by the Trump administration to fill the vacated seat left by the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the idea of court packing became a hot topic.


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This issue is a non-issue as it is a tactic each president will do if they are elected and the seats are open. At this point, moving forward with the nomination seems a bit like cheating the clock, as more than 7million Americans have already voted and as both parties appear confident in a November victory letting the American people chose the party that leads the nation should be the choice of both candidates.

Trump Release from Hospital

President Trump returned to the White House this week after a brief stay at Walter Reed Military Medical Center.

According to a memo from Physician to the President, Sean P. Conley, the president "is no longer considered a transmission risk to others" and no evidence of a "replicating virus."

Militias in Michigan

Militias, armed paramilitary groups, have been surfacing around the nation with many using the Second Amendment to support their open carry of automatic weapons, and other serious firepower usually reserved for SWAT and other police organizations.

With little regulation to control these groups, who are supported by President trump who defends the exactness of the second amendment, without considering the mindset of the framers at the time it was written, the evolution of modern weaponry, is not what the framers intended.

Modified magazines, automatic weapons which fire 900 round per minute are not what the framers meant when they described "A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

"The danger of these groups was brought home on Thursday with the announcement that the F.B.I. had thwarted a plot by people associated with an extremist group in Michigan to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and overthrow the government," reported The New York Times.

Trump Refuses Second Virtual Debate

A second debate between President Trump and Democratic Challenger Joe Biden had tentatively been scheduled for October 15, 2020. The President has refused the alternative of a virtual debate and neither have agreed to a Lucite booth which would allow them to debate on the same stage in front of a national audience with sufficient social distancing and precaution.

This situation is fluid and could change.

Trump Hits Touchpoints as Polls Show Him Behind

President Trump, who is trailing in both national and state polls, came out swinging this week hitting on the usual touchpoints to incite his constituents, reminding them of pre-pandemic Washington and the witch-hunt politics that he attests are behind the impeachment.

"All Russia Hoax Scandal information was Declassified by me long ago," Trump tweeted. "Unfortunately for our Country, people have acted very slowly, especially since it is perhaps the biggest political crime in the history of our Country." Fox News reported

Striking the Hillary Clinton vein, the collusion hoax, the soundbites that enrage and rile the president once again motivated his base to prove their devotion to America by casting their vote for him.

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 11, 2020, coronavirus cases increased globally by 2,346,800 confirmed cases, brings the total of confirmed cases worldwide to 37,353,500, with 1,074,400 deaths, an increase of 40,200.

Infections rates in the United States are also on the rise. For the week ending October 11, 2020, the total confirmed cases rose to 7,75,000 with new confirmed cases rising by 349,400. The coronavirus has claimed 214,400 total deaths, a weekly increase for 5,000 deaths. (Data from The New York Times).

Stimulus Package Resurrected

President Trump sent mixed messages to the nation this week, first indicting the economy was in such good shape he directed his team to stop all negotiations and then backtracked and announced on Fox News the possibility of an additional stimulus package.

The second stimulus package has continuously met with opposition from the house and the senate with the House passing the HEROES Act in May, which the GOP announced as bloated. The president signed an executive order providing additional funding to states.


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Each side attempted negotiations to which both sides were unable to put the needs of the people above partisan politics. The original 3trillion Heroes Act has been modified coming in at 2.2trillion while the White House is offering 1.8Trillion.

"The White House again pivoted its approach to stimulus negotiations on Sunday, with the president's aides pushing for immediate action on a narrow measure after the administration's $1.8 trillion proposal was rebuffed by members of both parties. In a letter to Congress sent Sunday, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin asked lawmakers to first pass legislation allowing the Trump administration to redirect about $130 billion in unused funding from the Paycheck Protection Program intended for small businesses while negotiations continue on a broader relief effort," reported The Washington Post.

At this point, while both sides are willing to negotiate Las Vegas oddsmakers put the passage of the stimulus package days before the November 3, 2020 election.

Broadway To Stay Dark

New York's famed great White Way will remain dark until May 30, 2021 according to The Broadway League.

"With nearly 97,000 workers who rely on Broadway for their livelihood and an annual economic impact of $14.8 billion to the city, our membership is committed to reopening as soon as conditions permit us to do so," said Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League," MSN reported.

Stars and Stripes, Military Newspaper, Defunded, Shuttered

The final issue of the military newspaper, Stars and Stripes, which has served the families and soldiers of America's armed forces for more than a century has rolled its last issue off the press.

Once known as a lifeline to soldiers around the world, the order to shutter the paper came as an effort to reduce funding and many believed is fueled by the presidents "animosity of media."

In a rare bi-partisan effort more than 51 senators from both parties signed a petition to attempt to keep the print publication rolling.

"Stars and Stripes is an essential part of our nations freedom of the press that serves the very population charged with defending that freedom," the senators said in the letter. And Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., in a separate letter to Esper in late August, also voiced opposition to the move, calling Stripes "a valued "hometown newspaper" for the members of the Armed Forces, their families, and civilian employees across the globe." He added that "as a veteran who has served overseas, I know the value that the Stars and Stripes brings to its readers," Politico reported.

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.

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