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(Mark Meadows attribution added) UPDATE: Just minutes after President Donald Trumps physician presented a relatively rosy picture of his COVID-19 condition, a source familiar with the presidents health gave a much more concerning picture.

The presidents vitals over the last 24 hours were very concerning and the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care. Were still not on a clear path to a full recovery, the source said in the statement, which was sent to members of the White House pool.

In point of fact that source is White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. In a rookie move at best, the ex-Congressman was captured on camera earlier today walking over to reporters right after the doctors press conference and asking to be off the record.

Additionally, the New York Times and the AP is reporting that sources tells them Trump was given supplemental oxygen at the White House on Friday before being choppered over to Walter Reed Medical Center later that day. The question of oxygen being administered was deflected by Dr. Sean Conley during the brief presser in front of Walter Reed this morning.

The latest head spinning near 180-degree turn comes as former New Jersey Governor and Trump confidante Chris Christine also revealed he had tested positive with the coronavirus. Gov. Christie had been deeply involved in Trumps prep for the first Presidential debate and had traveled on Air Force One to Cleveland for that event.

In further acknowledgement of how far literally and figuratively the spread of the virus is effecting Washington DC. Now that Sen. Ron Johnson (R- Wis) has become the third GOP member of the body to contract COVID-19, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has had to confront some political and mathematical realities. With the Republican majority of 53 hobbled by the temporary loss of Johnson as well as Sens. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah), McConnell had put the business of the Senate on hold, sort of.

On Monday, I intend to obtain a consent agreement for the Senate to meet in pro forma sessions for the next two weeks, the Kentucky Senators office said Saturday. Previously-scheduled floor activity will be rescheduled until after October 19th.

At this point while the full Senate wont meet, the effort to push through the SCOTUS conformation of Judge Amy Coney Barrett wont stop, at least for now.

The important work of the Senates committees can and will continue as each committee sees fit, McConnell said today The Senate Judiciary Committee will convene on October 12th as Chairman Graham has scheduled to begin confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barretts nomination to the Supreme Court. The Senates floor schedule will not interrupt the thorough, fair, and historically supported confirmation process previously laid out by Chairman Graham.

As it becomes more and more likely that the September 26 Rose Garden event for Barretts nomination was the superspreader that is taking more and more members of the GOP elite into quarantine, McConnell could be dealt a hand of even fewer active members soon.

PREVIOUSLY: President Donald Trumps physician said that he has been doing very well, and was not on supplemental oxygen at the present time.

But Dr. Sean Conley, appearing with a team of physicians treating the president, still left some questions as to the timeline of when Trump last tested negative and when he first learned that he tested positive.

Conley said that it was 72 hours since Trumps diagnosis, but Trump revealed that he tested positive around 1 AM ET on Friday morning, less than two days ago.

If Trump was diagnosed earlier than was revealed, it raises concerns on whether he continued to maintain an active schedule of travel and campaign appearances. That included a trip to Minnesota on Wednesday evening. Already there are questions of why Trump forward with a trip to Bedminster, NJ, for a fundraiser on Thursday afternoon, after White House officials had already learned that one of his closest aides, Hope Hicks, had tested positive.

Conley put forth a positive message about the presidents recovery, but would not say how long Trump would remain at Walter National Military Medical Center, where he was taken early on Friday evening.

We are monitoring him very closely for any evidence of complications, Conley told reporters at the Bethesda facility.

Conley said that Trump was not on oxygen, but pressed by reporters, the doctor was a bit opaque on the question of whether the president had been on any kind of assisted breathing device since he was diagnosed.

Donley said that Trump had a mild cough and nasal congestion but was improving and in exceptionally good spirits. As Conley revealed on Friday, Trump is being treated with the antiviral drug Remdesivir.

Conley said that the president has been fever free for over 24 hours and that they remain cautiously optimistic. He said that he had a fever Thursday into Friday, but Conley would not say exactly what his temperature was.

Continued here:
White House Chief Of Staff Says Next 48 Hours Will Be Critical For Donald Trumps Care: Were Still Not On A Clear Path To A Full Recovery - Deadline

We were a little over 24 hours into October before it gave us this surprise. The news that Donald TrumpDonald John TrumpState Department revokes visa of Giuliani-linked Ukrainian ally: report White House Gift Shop selling 'Trump Defeats COVID' commemorative coin Biden says he should not have called Trump a clown in first debate MORE and the first lady have tested positive for the coronavirus shows the reach of the pandemic. It will provide another test of our national institutions. Immediate issues are raised on the continuity of government as the president is in isolation. Hopefully preparations for incapacity are unnecessary, but they have to be considered.

On the domestic front, there are matters of the campaign narrative, but the international stage also needs careful signaling. Already reshaped by the pandemic, the campaign now faces uncertainty over future debates, and the worst case scenario with incapacity of a candidate in an election with voting underway. These coming days will not only set precedents in the future of our government norms, but will also remind us of the shaky foundations on which many authorities and procedures rest.

The current concern is over the health of all those affected. Separate from politics, this is the process of tracing and testing those in contact with the president, isolating the infected, and providing the treatments needed to overcome this illness. Hopefully the lessons learned, some tragically, over the last several months of fighting this disease will assist the outcomes of those who are diagnosed in the aftermath of this situation.

Yet there are many unknowns of the coronavirus, as many of the issues discussed depend on the course of the health of the president. History showed us that leaders like Woodrow Wilson and John Kennedy did not disclose health information to the public and, in an election year, there will be concerns about transparency of the diagnosis of the president. Both candidates are in the age range considered higher risk, while the history of the president downplaying the magnitude of this crisis have created skepticism over White House statements about it.

As the president heads to Walter Reed Medical Center, there will be some disruption to the operations in the administration. But the president is still able to operate from anywhere on earth, so a few days in the hospital will hardly isolate him. Should the current situation unfortunately worsen, the 25th Amendment would be considered, which would allow the president to transfer authorities to the vice president or, should the president have incapacity, allow the transfer of authorities if the vice president as well as a majority of the cabinet declare such an incapacity exists.

Social media will allow the president to engage with the public, while the technology of the military retains the commander in chief in charge. The Constitution and our laws provide clear guidance for handling incapacity and the continuity of government. It will be important in the coming days for the vice president and military leaders to send resolute confidence in our vigilance to any potential of adversaries trying to take advantage. But the issue remains of how an administration so dependent on the whims of one man will stand up to this stress test. Will such institutions relied on by our leaders to shore up our government system be resilient?

The future of the campaign is even more uncertain. It was transformed in the pandemic, even as the president sought to return to more traditional rallies. The next debate is less than a week away and will take on a newly important narrative. Both Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Kamala Harris have tested negative, but will that debate take place as scheduled and will it be in person? Will future debates take place at all? Some might be relieved that a virtual debate could feature a mute button.

A greater challenge would arise should the situation worsen. The election is underway in several states with early voting and, while the parties have procedures for replacing candidates, that would have to face the various systems for ballots and voting used across the United States. It is another instance of how many terrible yet realistic events, from an incapacity of a candidate to a tragedy that impacts a significant number of the members of Congress, test the foundation of our laws and institutions.

It also reveals the perils of partisan politics in voting systems. Denigration of our methods for delivering the will of the voters during an election that is underway have set this contest on a path of declining faith. Introducing novel concepts of the power of electors into a skeptical public could lead to alarming levels of mistrust from Americans in the eventual outcome, a damaging scenario which we have been working to avoid.

The course of events will revolve around the condition of the president. Whether it can shock steady polling remains doubtful. The momentous events for 2020 have done very little to sway the tribalism of Americans. Nearly everything is viewed through partisan lenses. The same will likely be true with the health of the president and of the country.

Glenn Nye is the chief executive officer and Dan Mahaffee is senior vice president with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress.

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Donald Trump coronavirus news gives another test of institutions | TheHill - The Hill

Going into the debate, Democrats feared he would change the election dynamics by either discombobulating Biden or by somehow switching to moderation and reasonableness. Instead, my guess is that Biden supporters felt utter disgust during the debate but relief and perhaps even elation afterwards.

All in all, it seemed like Trump was starting to get what he deserved, hence the schadenfreude that preceded the shock of the COVID-19 diagnosis in Trumps Twitter feed.

(OK, I admit to a bit of schadenfreude about the many health report references to Trump as obese after hes spent his entire life commenting on women based on their physical appearance. Im human.)

Look, inside Wisconsin, we still face a tricky road to return state politics from the wilderness of rule by big money. This fall, Democrats must prevent Republicans from gaining legislative supermajorities to override vetoes by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

It will also require successful campaigns both for the courts and the governors office to get fair political maps. Evers, a probable candidate, must win re-election in 2022 and a moderate or left-leaning candidate must win the next state Supreme Court seat in 2023, the next regularly scheduled election. And on from there.

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Paul Fanlund: Hoping for Donald Trumps recovery and then his defeat - Madison.com

As a Guardian subscriber, a Brit, and a US resident, I find myself in the unexpected place of living in a country that is slipping into a dictatorship. It felt unthinkable four years ago but so much of our daily lives now could not have been imagined back then (Donald Trumps plot against democracy could break America apart, 25 September).

Today, we have a president who looks set to not accept the election result if he loses, we have a Republican majority determined to abuse their power, we have a military that has been used against peaceful protesters, we have a rigged election where people are deliberately prevented from voting against Trump, we have political television that is a mouthpiece for the regime, and our free press is labelled the enemy. I firmly believe we are living in the final days of what was once US democracy.Darren ShortSeattle, Washington, US

I wonder if Trump is insane enough to push America into a military dictatorship and, at worst, a second American civil war. His manipulation of the US electoral system, and damage to democracy proves he is a narcissist with no compassion for the American people, and certainly no care for peace if he can win another term in office.

With the right promoting the weakening of gun control, the fuse is lit for armed conflict between Republicans and Democrats, stoked by Trump for his own ends. Gilead rising? Margaret Atwood was prescient in her depiction of a rightwing dictatorship driven by a pseudo religious cult. Trump could readily be indicted for his behaviour.Karen JacobOkehampton, Devon

When President Trump said that we need to get rid of the ballots and that there wont be a transfer of power, frankly, but a continuation, he made it clear that he will not accept an election loss, no matter how sizeable, and will foment civil war, if necessary, to keep his post (Donald in Blunderland: Trump wont commit to peaceful power transfer at surreal press briefing, 24 September). Though the election is still weeks away, the president has already declared himself re-elected. To Trump, democracy is not sacrosanct, nor are the 200,000 US lives lost so far to Covid-19. What is sacred is avoiding jail time, a plausible reality if he loses to Joe Biden.

The only result that will guarantee his removal from office is a blowout loss in the election one so lopsided that even if contested, the supreme court could not overrule. If every American votes with their heart and conscience, we can win back our country. If not, we will witness President Trump destroy our democracy, and replace it with a Putin-like kleptocracy. The man who penned The Art of the Deal has failed his constituents and pillaged a nation from inside the White House. Justice would see The Art of the Plea Deal written from inside a prison cell.Andrew GinsburgSouthport, Connecticut, US

Jonathan Freedlands excellent article perhaps misses an important point: Trump, with his anti-democratic policies, could legitimately win. America must then address the question, from a 1930s poster in the Topography of Terror museum in Berlin: What is a democracy to do when the majority of the population no longer wants it?Dr Nigel MellorNewcastle upon Tyne

Originally posted here:
Trump, tyranny and a warning from history - The Guardian

Joe Biden has consistently held a wide polling lead over US President Donald Trump ahead of Novembers election. But, despite Trumps botched response to the Covid-19 pandemic a failure that has left the economy far weaker than it otherwise would have been he has maintained a marginal edge on the question of which candidate would be better for the US economy. Thanks to Trump, a country with just 4% of the worlds population now accounts for more than 20% of total Covid-19 deaths an utterly shameful outcome, given Americas advanced (albeit expensive) healthcare system.

The presumption that Republicans are better than Democrats at economic stewardship is a longstanding myth that must be debunked. In our 1997 book, Political Cycles and the Macroeconomy, the late (and great) Alberto Alesina and I showed that Democratic administrations tend to preside over faster growth, lower unemployment and stronger stock markets than Republican presidents do.

In fact, US recessions almost always occur under Republican administrations a pattern that has persisted since our book appeared. The recessions of 1970, 1980-82, 1990, 2001, 2008-09, and, now, 2020 all occurred when a Republican was in the White House (with the exception of the double-dip recession of 1980-82, which started under Jimmy Carter but continued under Ronald Reagan). Likewise, the Great Recession of 2008-09 was triggered by the 2007-08 financial crisis, which also occurred on the GOPs watch.

This tendency is not random: loose regulatory policies lead to financial crises and recessions. And, compounding matters, Republicans consistently pursue reckless fiscal policies, spending as much as Democrats do, but refusing to raise taxes to make up for the resulting budget shortfalls.

Owing to such mismanagement under the George W Bush presidency, President Barack Obama and Vice-president Biden inherited the worst recession since the Great Depression. In early 2009, the US unemployment rate surpassed 10%, growth was in free fall, the budget deficit had already exceeded $1.2tn, and the stock market was down almost 60%. Yet, by the end of Obamas second term in early 2017, all of those indicators had massively improved.

In fact, even before the Covid-19 recession, US employment and GDP growth, as well as the stock markets performance, were better under Obama than under Trump. Just as Trump inherited millions from his father, only to squander it on business failures, so he inherited a strong economy from his predecessor, only to wreck it within a single term.

The rally in equity prices this past August coincided with a hardening of Bidens polling lead, suggesting that markets are not nervous about a Biden presidency, or about the prospects of a Democratic sweep of Congress. The reason is simple: a Biden administration would be unlikely to pursue radical economic policies. Biden may be surrounded by progressive advisers, but they are all fully within the political mainstream. Moreover, his vice-presidential pick, US Senator Kamala Harris of California, is a proven moderate, and most of the Democratic senators who would be seated in a new Congress are more centrist than the leftwing of their party.

Yes, a Biden administration might raise marginal tax rates on corporations and the top 1% of households, which Trump and congressional Republicans cut merely to give wealthy donors and corporations a $1.5tn handout. But a higher tax rate would result in only a modest hit to corporate profits. And any costs to the economy would be more than offset by closing the loopholes that allow for tax avoidance and shifting profits and production abroad, and with Bidens proposed Made in America policies to bring more jobs, profits, and production home.

Moreover, while Trump and his fellow Republicans have not even bothered to formulate a policy platform for this election, Biden has proposed a suite of fiscal policies designed to boost economic growth. If Democrats take control of both houses of Congress and the White House, a Biden administration would pursue a larger fiscal stimulus targeted at households, workers, and small businesses that need it, as well as job-creating infrastructure spending and investments in the green economy. They would not invest in tax cuts for billionaires, but rather in education and worker retraining, and in proactive industrial and innovation policies to ensure future competitiveness. Private business would no longer be terrorised by the president in Twitter tantrums.

Democrats also are calling for higher minimum wages to boost labour income and consumption, along with more sensible regulations to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. They would push for policies to restore some bargaining power to workers, and to protect savers from predatory financial institutions. And they would have a much more sensible approach to trade, immigration, and foreign policy, repairing US alliances and partnerships and pursuing a policy of coop-etition rather than lose-lose containment vis--vis China. All these measures would be good for jobs, growth, and markets.

Although Trump ran as a populist, he is a wannabe plutocrat a pluto-populist and that is how he has governed. His economic policies have been disastrous for US workers and long-term economic competitiveness. Trade and immigration policies that were billed as measures to restore US jobs have had the opposite effect. The deaths of despair that disproportionately afflict white blue-collar and precariat workers have not fallen under Trump; with more than 70,000 drug overdose deaths in 2019, this American carnage continues. If the US is to fill the high-value jobs of the future, it will need to train its workers, not embrace self-destructive protectionism and xenophobia.

The choice for US voters who are concerned about Americas economic prospects could not be clearer. Biden, who has long tapped into blue-collar concerns, is the only presidential candidate in recent history without an Ivy League background. He has a better chance than anyone of rebuilding the Democratic coalition and winning back the support of disaffected, working-class voters. For all Americans who care about their and their childrens future, the right choice this November could not be clearer.

Nouriel Roubini is professor of economics at New York Universitys Stern School of Business. He has worked for the International Monetary Fund, the US Federal Reserve and the World Bank.

Project Syndicate

Original post:
Why Joe Biden is better than Donald Trump for the US economy - The Guardian