2020-11-18: News Headlines

Stephen Lendman (2020-11-18). US Election 2020: The Moment of Truth Approaches. globalresearch.ca Joe Biden is not and never will be US president-elect legitimately. | Clear evidence shows significant election fraud in key swing states — favoring Biden/Harris over Trump. | If all US Election 2020 votes were tabulated accurately, Trump would carry key swing …

RT (2020-11-18). Pennsylvania Supreme Court shoots down Trump campaign claims of blocking Philadelphia election observers. rt.com The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has rejected allegations by President Donald Trump's campaign team that election observers in Philadelphia were deprived of "meaningful access" to the polls, overturning a lower court's ruling. | The state's liberal-leaning Supreme Court ruled 5-2 against Trump's lawsuit on Tuesday, rebuffing claims that local election officials barred Republican poll-watchers from standing close enough to the vote-counting process to see what was happening. | "We conclude the [Philadelphia County Board of Elections] did not act contrary to law… during the precanvassing and canvassing proces…

Staff (2020-11-18). As COVID Deaths Soar, El Paso at Breaking Point with Hospitals & Mobile Morgues Filling Up. 18.224.45.15 Some Republican governors are dropping their resistance to mask mandates, as public health officials in the United States brace for a COVID-19 surge from the Thanksgiving holiday amid already record-high infection rates. However, Republican resistance to other public health safety measures continues as coronavirus cases in Texas reach record highs for a second time during the pandemic. El Paso County, an area along the U.S.-Mexico border where 80% of residents are Latinx, is also facing one of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks in the U.S. and now has 10 mobile morgues to hold bodies. Some prisoners are being paid just…

Staff (2020-11-18). As North Dakota Faces World's Deadliest Outbreak, Native Communities Condemn States' COVID Response. 18.224.45.15 As COVID-19 rampages through the U.S., we look at how the rapid spread of the disease is affecting Native American communities, which have already faced disproportionate infection and death rates throughout the pandemic. "We're having a lot of people perish. We're having a lot of death, a lot of hospitalizations," says Jodi Archambault, a citizen of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and former special assistant to President Obama for Native American affairs. We also speak with Allie Young, founder of Protect the Sacred, who says the Navajo Nation has "worked hard to flatten the curve" of COVID-19 infections but is st…

Vijay Prashad (2020-11-18). Why Biden will keep the US-imposed Cold War rolling. peoplesdispatch.org Will US foreign policy change significantly under the incoming Biden administration? Vijay Prashad argues that this is unlikely, especially with regard to the Cold War on China…

Igor Derysh (2020-11-18). Democrats sound alarm over possible last-minute cuts to safety-net programs by Trump administration. salon.com The Trump administration has finalized a rule making it harder for individuals denied disability benefits to appeal…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-11-18). Defying police deployment, Greeks commemorate 47th anniversary of Polytechnic uprising. peoplesdispatch.org The Athens Polytechnic uprising of 1973 was a key moment in the resistance to the right-wing junta that then ruled Greece. This year, the New Democracy government had tried to ban commemorative gatherings citing COVID-19…

_____ (2020-11-18). More Money For Coup Groups From US Agency For International Development. popularresistance.org Organizations that led the coup attempt in 2018 against the constitutional government of President Daniel Ortega, continue to receive foreign funding from the United States and some European countries. The latest information on USAID funding of the US-directed opposition was made available by journalist William Grigsby on Radio La Primerísima's Sin Fronteras Magazine. | USAID fiscal year 2021 (Oct. 1, 2020-Sept. 30, 2021) foreign assistance includes "funds to support the restoration of democracy and human rights in the region."

Mehr News Agency (2020-11-18). 75 Democrats urge Trump to show leniency on Iran Sanctions. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Nov. 18 (MNA) — Democrats on Capitol Hill are pushing back on the Trump administration's plan to unveil stepped-up sanctions against Iran, urging the outgoing US president to be flexible and allow coronavirus aid to be sent.

_____ (2020-11-18). A Typical Democratic Official On The Pentagon And War. popularresistance.org Jeh Johnson, formerly homeland security secretary under President Obama, showed how a typical Democratic official approaches the Pentagon and war as he spoke on ABC's This Week on Sunday (11/15). For Johnson, the Pentagon "is typically an island of stability" in the U.S. government, but President Trump was destabilizing that island because of recent changes to Pentagon personnel. Trump's changes could be driven by his desire to get U.S. troops out of Afghanistan, speculated Johnson, which was not a good thing:…

Andrew Corbley (2020-11-18). Trump's New Pentagon — Divisive Duo Will Frustrate Doves and Hawks Alike. globalresearch.ca After last week's firing of various Pentagon officials including Sec. of Defense Mark Esper, the Undersecretaries of Intelligence and Policy, and Chief of Staff to the Sec of Defense, Democrats and Republicans, eager to get back to a status …

Peoples Dispatch (2020-11-18). Several injured in police action against pro-democracy protesters in Thailand. peoplesdispatch.org Protesters in Thailand are demanding a curb on the monarchy's power. The government led by prime minister Prayush Cha-ocha has resorted to repression of the protesters and arrested several leaders…

Edmund Phelps (2020-11-18). The US economy needs Joe Biden. indybay.org The economic and socio-political record of US President Donald Trump is devastating. Wages stagnated even before the Corona crisis. Instead, the national debt increased because he lowered taxes for the rich – without any economic benefit. Joe Biden knows the reasons for the misery and knows what to do.

_____ (2020-11-18). Order Out of Chaos: Who Will Replace 'President Biden'? strategic-culture.org Mathew MAAVAK | "If you count the legal votes, I easily win. If you count the illegal votes, they can try to steal the election from us." That statement by US President Donald J. Trump is actually posted on the official White House Before the 46th President o…

Editor (2020-11-18). There's One Issue Joe Biden Has Refused to Follow the Science On. scheerpost.com jlhervàs / CC BY 2.0] By Jeff Cohen One of the keys to Joe Biden's victory over Donald Trump was his constant and accurate accusation that Trump "refuses to follow the science" on COVID-19 — that "he won't listen to the scientists." It proved to be a winning campaign theme. Indeed, it's sobering to realize that without COVID — both Trump's mishandling of it and the accompanying economic downturn… |

Thomas Hon Wing Polin (2020-11-18). Hong Kong: Beijing Presses the Cleanup. counterpunch.org Is China a sovereign country? The question may seem ludicrous. But it must be asked of the US and other Western politicians and media objecting loudly to Beijing's disqualification of four opposition lawmakers in Hong Kong. That act has sparked the resignation of 15 other "pro-democracy" legislators. A sovereign nation has the unchallengeable right to

Roger Sollenberger (2020-11-18). Ted Cruz calls Democratic senator "a complete ass" for asking Republican colleague to wear a mask. salon.com GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley, who is 87 years old, revealed the following day that he had tested positive for COVID-19…

Norman Solomon (2020-11-17). Corporate Democrats Are to Blame for Congressional Losses. indybay.org So Naturally They're Blaming Progressives…

Norman Solomon (2020-11-17). Corporate Democrats are to blame for congressional losses — so naturally they're blaming progressives. nationofchange.org Those who denounce the fight for a progressive agenda are telling us that, in essence, they don't want much to change.

Mark Gruenberg (2020-11-17). Newly revealed documents show Nixon, Kissinger plotted Allende overthrow from day one. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON—Almost from the very minute elected Socialist/Marxist President Salvador Allende took office in Chile in November 1970, Republican U.S. President Richard Nixon and his top officials were scared of his example and his impact—and determined to oust him. That's the conclusion that can be drawn from a new group of memos on the U.S. campaign …

Staff (2020-11-17). Indigenous Communities on the Frontline as Two Climate Change-Fueled Hurricanes Slam Central America. 18.224.45.15 Hurricane Iota made landfall in Nicaragua Monday as a Category 4 storm, just two weeks after Hurricane Eta devastated communities across Central America and caused widespread destruction. Iota is the strongest November hurricane to ever hit Nicaragua. "It's caused a lot of damages to the most vulnerable peoples, which tends to be Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendants and Black communities all across Central America," says Giovanni Batz, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Native American Studies at the University of California, Davis, who has been in touch with people reeling from Hurricane Eta.

Staff (2020-11-17). "No End in Sight": 9 Months into Pandemic, Nurses Are Tired, Demoralized & Still Lack Adequate PPE. democracynow.org As the COVID-19 pandemic enters its ninth month, a new report by National Nurses United, the largest nurses' union in the United States, finds hospitals are still failing to provide adequate PPE and are unprepared as the surge is expected to get worse during the flu season. Nurses also report mental health struggles related to the pandemic. The union estimates at least 2,000 frontline healthcare workers have died due to COVID-19, with nurses of color accounting for half of those deaths, even though they're less than a quarter of the workforce. Jean Ross, president of National Nurses United, says the lack of prepa…

Staff (2020-11-17). With COVID Vaccines on the Horizon, U.S. Urged to Help Ensure Equitable Distribution Across Globe. 18.224.45.15 As the U.S. COVID-19 death toll nears 250,000, drugmakers Pfizer and Moderna have both announced promising vaccine trial results showing over 90% effectiveness in preventing illness. But officials and health experts warn widespread distribution of a vaccine for the coronavirus — which has killed 1.2 million people across the globe — will be tremendously difficult to store and distribute. Vaccine researcher Dr. Saad Omer calls the recent news "reassuring" but says drugmakers need to be much more transparent about their data and issue more than just press releases. "There should be a little bit more det…

Binoy Kampmark (2020-11-17). A Dedicated Obsession: Washington's Continuing Iran Sanctions Regime. counterpunch.org One dogma that is likely to persist in US foreign policy during a Biden presidency will be the sanctions regime adopted towards Iran. Every messianic state craves clearly scripted enemies, and the demonology about the Islamic Republic is not going to go begging. Elliot Abrams, the current US special representative for Iran, told Associated Press

Mark Gruenberg (2020-11-17). Robert Reich: Capitalism makes it hard to keep democracy going. peoplesworld.org BERKELEY, Calif.—Rising income inequality, to levels unseen for almost a century, makes it "hard to keep an economy" and a democracy going, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich says. Ditto for the U.S. version of the capitalist system, he adds. Reich, now a professor at the University of California at Berkeley, said the growing chasm between …

_____ (2020-11-17). Biden's transition team is filled with war profiteers, Beltway chickenhawks, and corporate consultants. strategic-culture.org A glance at the Biden-Harris agency review teams should provide a rude awakening to anyone who believed a Biden administration could be "pushed to the left." | Kevin GOSZTOLA | An eye-popping array of corporate consultants, war profiteers, and national security hawks have been appointed by President-elect Joe Biden to agency review teams that will set the agenda for his administration. A substantial percentage of them worked in the United States government when Barack Obama was president. | The

Raul Diego (2020-11-17). Yes, Election Fraud is Real. And its a Longstanding Tradition on Both Sides of the Aisle. mintpressnews.com As allegations of election fraud continue to swirl almost two weeks since the 2020 election, the contours of a galvanized bipartisan ruling class in America are beginning to emerge in the wake of democracy's demise…

Thomas Knapp (2020-11-17). How Joe Biden Can Score a Major Foreign Policy Win on Day One of his Presidency. counterpunch.org "President-elect Joe Biden has promised to rejoin the Iran nuclear deal," writes Tom O'Connor at Newsweek. "But a return is set to face challenges on both sides as they attempt to rebuild trust in a radically different environment than five years ago."

Alex MacDonald (2020-11-17). Barack Obama's legacy in the Middle East: Six things we learned from 'A Promised Land'. middleeasteye.net Barack Obama's legacy in the Middle East: Six things we learned from 'A Promised Land' | In his latest memoir, the former president discusses being pressured by the Israel lobby, Bahrain's assault on the pro-democracy movement, and the vagaries of having 12 wives | Tue, 11/17/2020 – 16: 21 | Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak (R) and his US counterpart Barack Obama take part in a welcoming ceremon…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-11-17). 'Today Feels Like a Betrayal': Sunrise Movement Blasts Biden Pick of Big Oil-Backed Cedric Richmond for Key Post. commondreams.org "President-elect Biden assured our movement he understands the urgency of this crisis; now, it's time for him to act like it." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-12293092451.jpg

teleSUR (2020-11-17). Biden Says US and Its Allies Need To Counter Chinese Influence. telesurenglish.net Only days away after China signed a major trade deal in the Asia Pacific area that encompasses roughly one-third of the world's gross domestic product and population, making it the largest free-trade agreement ever signed, the U.S. President-elect reacted during a news conference in Wilmington, Delaware. | RELATED: | On Monday, Biden said the United States needed to negotiate with allies to set global trading rules to…

Richard Kreitner (2020-11-17). American Democracy Was Never Supposed to Work. thenation.com American Democracy Was Never Supposed to Work…

Kenny Stancil, staff writer (2020-11-17). With Pandemic as National Emergency, Biden Could Enact Medicare for All by Executive Action—But Will He? commondreams.org "I do not expect Joe Biden to use this power on Inauguration Day to instantly turn the United States into a single-payer country. But there's nothing in the law that would appear to prevent him from doing it." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/biden_7.jpg

Elijah Magnier (2020-11-17). Trump is not preparing a new war in the Middle East. thealtworld.com There remains little doubt about the controversial politics and personality of President Donald Trump, who has continually surprised both the west and the Middle East with his unpredictable behaviour throughout his years in office. He is not a Democrat, and the Republicans

Phil Galewitz (2020-11-17). Red States' case against ACA hinges on whether they were actually harmed by the law. salon.com The Republican-led states are trying to prove they were harmed by the 2010 health law…

Ruth Conniff (2020-11-17). Trump Team Seeks to 'Delay the Inevitable'. progressive.org In Wisconsin, as elsewhere, the Republicans' false claims of voter fraud are becoming undone.

Amanda Marcotte (2020-11-17). Hey, Republicans — your guy lost. Can you please take the coronavirus seriously now?>. salon.com Coronavirus denialism was entirely about helping Trump win the election — so can his voters move on now it's over?>

Julia Conley, staff writer (2020-11-17). To 'Save Countless Lives,' US Medical Groups Demand Trump Share Covid-19 Data With Biden Team. commondreams.org "More people may die if we don't coordinate," President-elect Joe Biden said this week. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-1229625080_1.jpg

Sam Pizzigati (2020-11-17). Why Can't Inner-Ring Democrats Just Say 'No' to Billionaires? counterpunch.org Have you heard the latest about the strategic political genius of billionaire Michael Bloomberg? The political brilliance, you might skeptically ask, of Michael Bloomberg? The same Michael Bloomberg who had to spend a record $99 per vote to get himself elected mayor of New York in 2001, another $112 per vote four years later to

sputniknews (2020-11-17). Joe Biden Pledges 'Deep Commitment' to Israel in Call With PM Netanyahu. sputniknews.com Former vice-president Joe Biden has pledged to break with US President Donald Trump's 'America First' policy, but pundits fear his projected election could see a return to the military interventionist policies of the Barack Obama administration.

Shane Quinn (2020-11-17). Will Biden Seek to De-escalate Tensions with China and Russia? globalresearch.ca A crucial advantage that China enjoys over its Western rivals, principally the United States, is the country's rebuffing of neoliberalism. Under its present leadership, Beijing's influence over corporations and private power has increased substantially. | By contrast to America, almost all …

commondreams (2020-11-17). Public Citizen Delivers Robust Transition Agenda Demands to President-Elect Joe Bidenp. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Zoya Teirstein (2020-11-17). These freshman House Republicans might actually care about climate change. salon.com Republicans made gains in Congress. But it's not all bad news for future climate legislation…

Editor (2020-11-17). The New Politics of the Poor in Biden's (and McConnell's) USA. scheerpost.com McConnell Center / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0] By Liz Theoharis / TomDispatch In the two weeks since Election 2020, the country has oscillated between joy and anger, hope and dread in an era of polarization sharpened by the forces of racism, nativism, and hate. Still, truth be told, though the divisive tone of this moment may only be sharpening, division in the United States of America is not a new… |

commondreams (2020-11-17). 160+ Organizations Urge President-Elect Biden to Withdraw Heidi Heitkamp from Consideration for USDA Secretary. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-11-16). 'Absolutely Sickening': US Military Buys Location Data Harvested From Apps, Including One for Muslim Prayers. commondreams.org "The military industrial complex and the surveillance state have always had a cozy relationship with tech. Buying bulk data in order to profile Muslims is par for the course for them," says Rep. Ilhan Omar. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-8973754621.jpg

Staff (2020-11-16). "I Need That Pardon": Ronnie Long, Free After 44 Years, Demands Justice for His Wrongful Conviction. democracynow.org "It's a blessing within itself for me to even be sitting here right now," says Ronnie Long, free after 44 years behind bars for a crime he did not commit. Long, who is African American, was convicted in 1976 of raping a white woman by an all-white jury and sentenced to 80 years in prison. In 2015, his lawyers learned that investigators had withheld exculpatory evidence proving his innocence — including semen samples and fingerprints taken from the crime scene that did not match his own — and witnesses for the state committed perjury at his trial. It would take several more years and a ruling by the 4t…

Staff (2020-11-16). Ceasefire Ends in Occupied Western Sahara After U.S.-Backed Moroccan Military Launches Operation. democracynow.org A nearly three-decade-old ceasefire has ended in occupied Western Sahara — what many consider to be Africa's last colony. Fighting has broken out in several areas between the Moroccan military and the Polisario Front, the Sahrawi liberation movement seeking independence, after the Moroccan military broke into a no-go buffer zone in southern Western Sahara. For the past three weeks, Sahrawi civilian protesters had blocked a Morocco-built road in the area that Sahrawis consider to be illegal. The peaceful blockade backed up traffic for miles and cut off trade between Morocco and Mauritania to the south. The P…

RT (2020-11-16). Biden says 'ONLY REASON' Americans question Covid-19 vaccines is Trump. rt.com Saying he would personally take a coronavirus vaccine if Dr. Anthony Fauci and its makers told him it was safe, Democrat Joe Biden claimed the only reason Americans would distrust the jab is — President Donald Trump. | "I wouldn't hesitate to get the vaccine, if in fact Dr. Fauci [and Moderna or Pfizer] conclude it's safe," Biden said on Monday in Wilmington, Delaware, addressing the media who have anointed him president-elect. | Pfizer announced a "90 percent effective" jab last week, followed by Moderna's

Staff (2020-11-16). Florida 'rights of nature' amendment protects ecosystems and the right to clean water. therealnews.com Chuck O'Neal of the Florida Rights of Nature Network and Thomas Linzey of the Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights joined TRNN on Election Day to discuss how regulation of environmental destruction isn't enough to protect ecosystems for future generations.

Editor (2020-11-16). There's Still No Evidence Hunter Biden's Emails Are 'Russian Disinformation'. scheerpost.com Wikimedia Commons] By Glenn Greenwald / Substack Congressman Adam Schiff, the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and, not coincidentally, the single most shameless pathological liar in the U.S. Congress by a good margin, appeared on CNN with Wolf Blitzer on October 16 to discuss The New York Post story about Hunter Biden's emails. The CNN host asked him a rhetorical question embedded… |

Igor Derysh (2020-11-16). Perdue backs out of debate after being called a "crook," Ossoff will face off against empty podium. salon.com Ahead of their runoff election in Georgia, Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff calls Sen. David Perdue "a coward, too"

Matthew Rozsa (2020-11-16). Can Joe Biden find a student loan forgiveness plan that will make everyone happy?>. salon.com Biden confidants are advising the president-elect to forgive student debt in some form. Is there one right answer?>

teleSUR (2020-11-16). Bolsonaro-Backed Candidates Defeated in Brazil's Local Elections. telesurenglish.net The electoral results of the main Brazilian cities show the defeat of the candidates supported by President Jair Bolsonaro, favoring the candidates of the center and the moderate right. | RELATED: | In Sao Paulo, the city with the most voters in the country, the current mayor, Bruno Covas, of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB), took the lead with nearly a third of the votes, 32.8 percent. | However, Covas will…

commondreams (2020-11-16). Greenpeace Urges Joe Biden To Reject Ernest Moniz and Choose Climate Champions for Cabinet. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-11-16). How the Biden Administration Should Prepare for the Next Pandemic. commondreams.org ______________________________…