By Holly Thomas
Monday, September 21
TRUMP ‘COUNTING ON’ COURTS TO TIP ELECTION SCALES President Donald Trump said at a weekend rally that he is “counting on the federal court system” to ensure that the winner of the November presidential election is called just hours after the polls close, despite rules across the country allowing ballots to be counted several days to weeks after the election. He added that he plans to nominate a new Supreme Court associate justice “next week” to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat following her death on Friday. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Sunday left open the possibility of using the impeachment process to prevent the Senate from confirming a new Supreme Court associate justice in the next few months. [HuffPost]
MURKOWSKI OPPOSES SCOTUS NOMINEE VOTE BEFORE ELECTION Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she opposes the Senate voting on a Supreme Court nominee ahead of the November election. Murkowski joins Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) in breaking with Trump and many Republicans who have called for the vacant seat left by Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death to be filled quickly. Fox News host Chris Wallace reminded Sen. Tom Cotton (R), who was making that case, that — like other GOP leaders — he had blocked Barack Obama’s pick in 2016 because he claimed to believe then that voters should first choose their next president. [HuffPost]
BIDEN BLASTS CONSERVATIVES PUSHING TO FILL SCOTUS SEAT BEFORE ELECTION Joe Biden spoke in Philadelphia on Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s legacy and her death and what it means for the future of the conservative-leaning high court. Biden called out Trump and Senate Republicans for responding to the death by announcing their intention to fill the vacancy as fast as possible, even as general election voting in some states already begins. “To jam this nomination through the Senate is just an exercise in raw political power, and I don’t believe the people of this nation will stand for it,” Biden said. “President Trump has already made it clear: This is about power. Pure and simple.” [HuffPost]
THE 2020 EMMYS WERE A VIRTUAL DELIGHT Deemed “The Pand-Emmys” by lacklustre host Jimmy Kimmel, this year’s Emmys were like no other. Ditching the red carpet, it kicked off with the ever-present opening monologue, and old footage of A-list crowds was interspersed with Kimmel’s dad jokes about COVID-19. Kimmel eventually alerted viewers at home: “Of course we don’t have an audience. This isn’t a MAGA rally, it’s the Emmys.” HBO’s “Watchmen” dominated the night, while “Schitt’s Creek” made a historic sweep in the comedy categories. Zendaya made history as the youngest Best Drama Actress ever. [HuffPost]
TIKTOK OWNER ‘WASN’T AWARE’ DEAL INCLUDED $5 BILLION ‘EDUCATION’ FUND ByteDance, the China-based company that owns TikTok, said it was not told that $5 billion of its deal with Walmart and Oracle would go to Trump’s so-called patriotic education initiative. Trump told a campaign rally that money from TikTok’s sale would fund his proposal to educate children about “the real history of our country … not the fake history.” Trump also gave his blessing to the sale of TikTok’s U.S. operation to Walmart and Oracle, corporations with major Trump campaign donors in senior positions. [HuffPost]
HUNDREDS PROTEST FELONY CHARGES AGAINST DENVER ANTI-RACISM LEADERS People gathered at the Colorado state Capitol in Denver over the weekend to protest the filing of felony charges against several leaders of racial justice demonstrations. Six protesters, including organisers of demonstrations over the killing of Black 23-year-old Elijah McClain in Aurora, could face years in prison over what critics say are trumped-up charges representing an attack on the Black Lives Matter movement. McClain died in 2019 when police used a stranglehold to arrest him and paramedics injected him with an excessive dose of a powerful sedative. [AP]