Song of the Day 10/19: The Beach Boys, “‘Til I Die”
Mike Love is still adding to his resume as rock 'n' roll's biggest asshole, this time by headlining a Trump fund-raising concert in Orange County without telling Brian Wilson and…
The first question Tapper asked Coons was whether he would vote to “expand the number of justices on the Supreme Court,” to which Coons said he was in line with Joe Biden’s position that this nomination process was bad all across the board, and that Amy Coney Barrett was unqualified “because of her extreme judicial philosophy.” He made sure to specify that this move on the part of Republicans was an attempt to destroy millions of Americans healthcare coverage in the middle of a pandemic. Coons finished by saying he was ready along with the Democratic Party to help re-balance the “federal judiciary” however that may look over the next few weeks. Jake Tapper then asked what passes for a gotcha question against Democratic officials these days in traditional media minds, asking “So you are open to expanding the court?” “Yes.” That’s big. When traditionalist Democrats like Coons are open to expanding the court, and publicly saying as much just weeks before election, that means the political will is clearly there to make that happen. It also means that Sen. Coons’ internal polling is showing that the will of the people is there as well.
Asked by Kamala Harris if she were aware — before she got the nomination — of Trump’s vows to choose a Supreme Court nominee who would strike down the ACA, Amy Coney Barrett said: “I don’t recall seeing or hearing those statements.”I mean, unless you want unscrupulous liars on the court. then it makes sense.
With about 7.5 million coronavirus cases, the US has the highest number of confirmed infections in the world - about 20% of the global total despite having only 4% of the population. After the initial spike in late March, social distancing restrictions gradually brought infections to heel. By May, case numbers had stabilised. But as states peeled back lockdown measures, cases began to rise, reaching a countrywide high in July.