This report via @GlennaWPLG and her team, who found evidence to suggest three candidates in three Florida Senate district races "were shill candidates whose presence in the races were meant to syphon votes from Democratic candidates" local10.com/news/local/202…
And here's @reporterannie on Oct. 26: "Recent mailers tout Jestine Iannotti, a third candidate in the District 9 race who has not sat for interviews and issued a press release requesting “privacy” during her campaign." orlandosentinel.com/politics/2020-…
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A BBC reporter on air last night described the debate as "almost Shakespearean" and a German commentator on World Service just called it "a very dirty discussion between two very aggressive men."
The rest of the world is watching and clearly doesn't know what to make of this.
Let's look at a few of today's front pages/reactions around the world.
Der Spiegel in Germany: "Was war das denn jetzt?" (basically, "what the hell was that?")
Spain's El País: "Chaos and personal attacks mark the first debate between Trump and Biden"
Trump's comments were "a huge win for the Proud Boys, which we should remember is a group who views its mission as literally ‘fighting Antifa’ as part of its ’defense of the West,'" @MeganSquire0, who tracks data on the group, tells TIME. time.com/5894497/donald…
Members of the far-right group "are even debating whether to go ‘back to Portland,’ and how to proceed."
“They’ve now been blessed by the President on the world stage and the data shows they are extremely excited by this." time.com/5894497/donald…
The Proud Boys have already fashioned Trump's remarks into a logo (h/t @AlKapDC)
“Trump basically said to go fuck them up!” Proud Boys leader Joe BiggsB wrote on Parler, an alternative social media network that courts conservatives, after Trump's comments. “This makes me so happy.”
Before tonight's debate, Fox News' Chris Wallace said his job as moderator was not to fact-check either candidate in real-time: “My job is to be as invisible as possible."
But Trump seems to be pushing him to do it whether he wants to or not.
Biden recounts the sobering toll of the COVID pandemic in the U.S. and says it happened on Trump's watch: "When he was presented with that number he said 'It is what it is.'
New with @wjhenn: Trump's mountain of debt, which would come due in his second term, is a massive national security vulnerability which would reframe all of his interactions with foreign actors with deep pockets & their own U.S. policy interests time.com/5894199/trump-…
“That has always been the suspicion about Trump—that the Russians were bankrolling him. If he were a ‘normal’ employee, that would certainly be a counter-intelligence vulnerability. It’s frightening all around," former DNI James Clapper tells TIME time.com/5894199/trump-…
"A second term for Trump would result in increased vulnerability" which would look less like traditional foreign influence, and more like “personal financial pressure [that] could adversely affect U.S. national security decisions," former NGA Director Cardillo tells TIME
Stark language in Don Jr.’s new “defend your ballot” ad: “We need every able-bodied man and woman to join Army for Trump’s election security operation...we need you to help us watch them”
This is the full text of Donald Trump Jr.'s ad rallying supporters to join "Army for Trump's election security operation," shared by the Trump campaign on Facebook and Twitter.
This isn't new - the Trump campaign has been pushing the "Defend Your Ballot" campaign since at least August