Drop boxes are safe

Trump lies about them. I plan to place my ballot in one. This is just typical Republican voter suppression.

Half the country's voters can use a drop box: Heres the list of states that have them https://t.co/yDs8L2aaN0 pic.twitter.com/fJautdQsl4
— Yahoo News (@YahooNews) August 25, 2020

For the record: drop boxes are a secure, efficient way for voters to return their ballots on time & ensure they are counted. Period.

And: the primary reason we need drop boxes is due to the increasing inefficiency & unreliability of @USPS.

Don't like 'em? Fully fund the @USPS. https://t.co/8Ok3VMxgPC
— Jocelyn Benson (@JocelynBenson) August 23, 2020

Another big win for the @prioritiesUSA voting rights team & @marceelias. We are not done yet. Stay tuned. https://t.co/tmiw2mWxRf
— Guy Cecil (@guycecil) August 25, 2020

They want each county to be limited to a single dropbox, at the county board of elections. One dropbox for all ~1.1M voters in Philadelphia, one for all 900K voters in Allegheny. https://t.co/yRufITmxCt
— Adam Bonin (@adambonin) August 9, 2020

Recently I dropped my wife’s primary ballot off in a dropbox in front of the Bergen County, NJ municipal building. There were security officers there. The dropbox was clean, but I didn’t have to touch it because there was a narrow, clearly marked slot to put the ballot in! https://t.co/rrRlHEGQ8X
— George Conway (@gtconway3d) August 23, 2020

Ohio Democratic Party sues Secretary of State Frank LaRose over ballot dropbox limitationshttps://t.co/Gav1OzPQua
— Darrel Rowland (@darreldrowland) August 25, 2020

Send em out by October 20 (the latest but not guaranteed to arrive by Nov 4) OR drop them off in-person at an approved drop box! https://t.co/oskyRBv6CY
— Sarah Whittle 🥚 (@rudeunicorns) August 24, 2020

THREAD

We believe there is nothing in Ohio statute limiting drop boxes to one per county, so we filed suit in court today to prove it.

But I want to take a moment to highlight the pernicious impact of only one drop box per county for voters who rely on public transit.

1/ https://t.co/s2BFOZWVMh
— David Pepper (@DavidPepper) August 25, 2020

Covers: Help Me (Sonny Boy Williamson II song)

“Help Me” was originally recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson II in 1963. I know it best from the 1974 cover by Van Morrison.

Rich people own most of US stocks

Trump brags about the stock market but most people don’t benefit from it. Trump wants to cut taxes on capital gains which would benefit the wealthy.

To repeat:

The top 10% of earners own 87% of all U.S. stocks. https://t.co/JizWy97mho
— Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla) August 24, 2020

Your reminder that the richest 1 percent own half of the stock market, and the richest 10 percent own almost all (92 percent) of it.

So when Trump brags about the stock market, he's not talking about the economy that 90 percent of Americans inhabit.
— Robert Reich (@RBReich) August 24, 2020

One really encouraging thing about the past few days is that nobody seems to care about the stock market hitting new highs. Good judgment! The stock market is not the economy. Still, is there a puzzle here? Less than you might imagine 1/
— Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) August 19, 2020

1) Almost half of Americans don’t own stocks
2) 10% of Americans own 86% of all stocks
3) The stock market is not the economy
4) The deficit is exploding
5) 1 in 6 Americans can’t find work
6) 84 days until we beat you https://t.co/8yM2JNAa1l
— Andrew Weinstein (@Weinsteinlaw) August 11, 2020

Deere sales are down 25%. Yet it's making a $2.25 billion profit this year by doing mass job cuts.

Companies everywhere are doing this, which is how the stock market booms amid lower revenues.

Remember which companies valued profits over humanshttps://t.co/vP1tlQfGC5
— Dan Price (@DanPriceSeattle) August 24, 2020

Covers: Wheels

“Wheels” is a Flying Burrito Brothers song from 1969 written by Gram Parsons and Chris Hillman. There are many covers including versions by Emmylou Harris who recorded with Parsons.

Anodyne – Uncle Tupelo

This is a great album. To bad it was the last album by Uncle Tupelo. The band members then formed Son Volt and Wilco.

Very astute comment (as always) from The Paranoid Style. Follow them on Twitter.

Don’t mind me, just gonna drop this Anodyne oral history rightchere https://t.co/CEpOhL3tx5
— Jim Beaugez (@JimBeaugez) August 23, 2020

The final show

Anodyne at 30: Uncle Tupelo’s Long Cut to the Heart of Alt-Country

Covers: Is Anybody Goin’ to San Antone

“Is Anybody Goin’ to San Antone” was recorded by Charley Pride and was a number one country hit in 1970. I know it from Doug Sahm’s 1973 version.

Is it safe to reopen schools?

Trump is pushing for schools to reopen with classroom learning but it is not a good idea in many places. Some schools that opened had to close.

When can schools safely reopen? The answer is part science, part guesswork. https://t.co/IzihZvRPWB
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) August 20, 2020

At least 15 states reporting Covid cases at colleges and universities

Almost 2,000 K-12 students in Mississippi have been quarantined in the state due to possible exposure to Covid-19, according to the state's department of health https://t.co/6Dmux66UPT pic.twitter.com/VTJVpKZQkM
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) August 19, 2020

Dear @realDonaldTrump

You are ACTIVELY refusing to listen to REAL MEDICAL EXPERTS and are doing EVERYTHING in your power to guarantee the DEATH OF MORE US CITIZENS.https://t.co/m8XYI6vsCE
— Don Winslow (@donwinslow) August 19, 2020

Last week, Mississippi had COVID outbreaks in schools in roughly half the counties in the state.

This week, the state health director says there are now outbreaks in schools in 71 out of the state’s 82 counties.

This really isn’t working. https://t.co/6EqoULHAFV
— Rachel Maddow MSNBC (@maddow) August 18, 2020

NEW: Coronavirus outbreaks in schools are mounting — but it is impossible to track all the cases.

The CDC isn't collecting any data on the virus in schools.

And least 9 states won't release any school outbreak data to the public.

w/@BenjySarlin: https://t.co/s1Vz6Xx88q
— Suzy Khimm (@SuzyKhimm) August 17, 2020

Which U.S. counties can safely open schools this fall? Times Opinion looked at the data to find out. https://t.co/bazribchFH
— New York Times Opinion (@nytopinion) August 14, 2020

97,000 children reportedly test positive for coronavirus in two weeks as schools gear up for instruction https://t.co/Z8OQePagmW
— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 8, 2020

"This is just another way we're flying blind in this epidemic."

— Laurie Garrett on coronavirus spreading in schools but the federal govt not keeping count. https://t.co/zL2Ybt7r7h
— MSNBC Live with Ayman Mohyeldin (@AymanMSNBC) August 20, 2020

No. Just no. If schools are going to reopen (now or in a few weeks or a few months), leaving teachers in the classroom who should be in quarantine will needlessly expose students and other staff. This is reckless, inhumane, and wrong. A pic.twitter.com/lp4duDLOPZ
— Elisa Cardnell (@ElisaCardnell) August 20, 2020

👀👀👀, more from Syracuse: "The students who gathered on the Quad last night may have done damage enough to shut down campus." https://t.co/zWnOOff6pB
— Chris Quintana (@CQuintanaDC) August 20, 2020

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — NC State University announces that all undergraduate courses will move to online instruction Monday amid virus pandemic.
— Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) August 20, 2020

More bad news for local newspapers

If you’re concerned that the media is concentrated in New York and Washington, this will just make it worse. Support your local newspaper.

Perspective | Every week, two more newspapers close — and ‘news deserts’ grow larger https://t.co/EkHfnOvIZ5
— Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) June 29, 2022

What's lost when newspapers close their newsrooms? ⁦@ElaheIzadi⁩ explains. https://t.co/dW2ZuuVcbd
— Paul Farhi (@farhip) August 18, 2020

There it is, mark the date in this already awful year: Wyoming is set to become the first state without a daily print newspaper. @MajorCBS marks the coming trend. https://t.co/aFcNUnastD
— Ed O'Keefe (@edokeefe) August 1, 2020

"If we in the 21st century are to remain true to [the Framers’] vision, we must find a way—indeed, many ways—to reinvent local journalism before it is too late," @Sulliview writes: https://t.co/Bwu4sfBKqP
— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) July 16, 2020

The Star-Tribune, the last daily paper in Wyoming to print seven days a week, will no longer print on Mondays and Tuesdays. Really devastating to our newsroom staff.
— Seth Klamann (@SethKlamann) July 14, 2020

How We Know Journalism is Good for Democracy

We don’t have the will to beat the virus

I blame Trump for this country’s terrible response to the coronavirus. But the public has to take some of the blame for being unwilling to make the sacrifices needed to beat the virus. Great tweet by Peter King.

The truth is, we do not have the will as a country to make the relatively tiny sacrifices (masks, no huge gatherings) to make this pandemic go away. That is why we just passed 5 million cases. That is why we can't resume normal lives.
— Peter King (@peter_king) August 10, 2020

So much of the political response to the virus has boiled down to "I want this thing [schools, football, a functioning economy, etc] but I am unwilling to do the work necessary to have the thing."
— Christopher Ingraham (@_cingraham) August 10, 2020

What I have learned in 2020 : During a pandemic, entire societies are held captive by the immovable certainties of its dumbest citizens.
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) August 10, 2020

I was sort of the opposite, LOL. I kind of assumed during that time Americans wouldn't put up with the sort of lockdowns they had in China. Then by March I thought lockdowns would last a few weeks then it would be a real struggle to get people to abide by them after that. https://t.co/0OyayYIEEq
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) August 22, 2020

Birtherism is back

Trump and his cult smear Kamala Harris and cowardly Republicans don’t stand up for her.

Graham’s unequivocal statement here is interesting since for at least a decade, he has supported revoking birthright citizenship https://t.co/6reHwxnaER https://t.co/2f8SLI4Xxn
— Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) August 14, 2020

Dear Republican Senators — @realDonaldTrump has smeared one of your colleagues suggesting she is not eligible to be President. Anyone of you want to stand up for your colleague? Any on of you have an ounce of respect for the Senate? Anyone still have any decency?
— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) August 14, 2020

Fact check: Trump promotes another birther lie, this time about Kamala Harris

Facts First: Harris was born in Oakland, California. She meets the Constitution's requirements to serve as vice president or president. There is no serious question about this. https://t.co/BwG86gRAbe pic.twitter.com/7AFuK3mGcW
— CNN (@CNN) August 14, 2020

Trump smeared Kamala Harris using appallingly racist, misogynistic language last night and it's not even a story https://t.co/YUXiNd2JRU
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 14, 2020

President Trump has suggested inaccurately that Kamala Harris isn’t eligible to be a vice presidential candidate. Jared Kushner, however, denies that Trump suggested anything of the sort. “Right now, you’re the ones spreading disinformation.” pic.twitter.com/jHrUL8dwO7
— Christiane Amanpour (@camanpour) August 14, 2020

Kamala Harris was born in California and is eligible for both the vice presidency and presidency. President Trump yesterday gave credence to a false and racist conspiracy theory that she's not eligible. https://t.co/1Ks7VLn1L2
— The Associated Press (@AP) August 14, 2020

Constitutional law scholars weigh in on the Newsweek op-ed and the Kamala Harris eligibility theory Trump parroted today. “I hadn’t wanted to comment on this because it’s such an idiotic theory. There is nothing to it.” See also: “Total bs.” https://t.co/Ocv87Ck2jW
— Katie Rogers (@katierogers) August 14, 2020

New #FactChecker —> Trump promotes false claim that Harris might not be a U.S. citizen https://t.co/3UgguufElq
— Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) August 14, 2020

The odious Birther Movement has been born again. Their claims about President Obama were nonsense. Their claims about Kamala Harris are false and malicious. Anyone who supports this smear is reprehensible. https://t.co/z6O7QzlE6U
— Larry Sabato (@LarrySabato) August 13, 2020

Appalling. And should be condemned by every single Republican elected official. But won’t be. https://t.co/BUtHzSlLBh
— Chris Cillizza (@CillizzaCNN) August 13, 2020

Q: Can you definitely say that Kamala Harris is eligible to be VP?

Pres Trump: "I heard it today that she doesn't meet the requirements. I have no idea if that is right…I would have assume that the Democrats have checked it out."

FACT CHECK: Harris is absolutely eligible.
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) August 13, 2020

Trump is pushing a new birther conspiracy lie. He knows full well that Kamala Harris is qualified to be president or Vice President.
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) August 13, 2020

We’re really doing this again as if this is real? He was forced to admit it was a lie that he had perpetuated about Obama in 2016. https://t.co/MduthtuOXF
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) August 13, 2020

This is how Trump does his birther lying – just-asking-questions, maybe-true-maybe-not, check-it-out. It’s garbage. https://t.co/jxYnNx4yCG
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) August 13, 2020

Trump, dipping his toe in Kamala Harris birtherism…
"I heard today that she doesn't meet the requirements…I have no idea if that's right."
— Jeremy Diamond (@JDiamond1) August 13, 2020

That article was not only nonsense—it was trying to stoke the same racist hate that Trump stoked years ago when he pushed his “birther” conspiracy theories. https://t.co/ZrPebpdcND
— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) August 13, 2020

That shadowy forces—George Soros, the Muslim Brotherhood—are secretly controlling the Democratic Party is a favorite theme of Fox News’s opinion-side programming. https://t.co/15HyflE9mj
— The New Republic (@newrepublic) August 13, 2020

Agreed. You've covered it. If so, hopefully you've noted that it's totally false. Now, we're done. Just because they tell the lie doesn't mean anyone needs to repeat it. https://t.co/uebiY5lr7m
— Christina Reynolds (@creynoldsnc) August 13, 2020

President Trump suggests that Kamala Harris, an American citizen who is 55 years old and was born in Oakland, Calif., might not be eligible to serve as Vice President.
— Matt Viser (@mviser) August 13, 2020

The birtherism smear is racist. It's a lie. And it's disgusting. It's the epitome of Donald Trump.

Kamala Harris is an American. She's ready to serve on day one. Period.
— The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) August 13, 2020

Newsweek: It’s not Birtherism per se, we believe Kamala’s birth certificate, we just wonder about about this other technicality that we never talk about when it's white candidates.
— Touré (@Toure) August 13, 2020

Reminder that the “birther” stuff was a loser for Trump in 2016, so much so that he awkwardly renounced it right before the election. https://t.co/sW1Kolf6Os
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) August 13, 2020

Can't believe we have to say this: Yes, Kamala Harris, a natural-born U.S. citizen from Oakland, California, is allowed to be both president or vice president no matter where her parents are from.https://t.co/LBdlSXKhJT
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) August 13, 2020

I did not expect that the Oakland-born Harris would be subject to a reprise of the "birther" attacks…But having had a front row seat to watch what my party has devolved into over the past decade, maybe I should not have been surprised. https://t.co/kG5Pg9d5Kk
— Doug Heye (@DougHeye) August 14, 2020