“Regardless of what happens in 2020 Trump supporters will be a potent pro-authoritarian voting bloc in the years to come.”
washingtonpost.com/business/2020/… Study finds “shockingly high levels of anti-democratic beliefs and prejudicial attitudes among Trump backers.”

1/ Your questions, answered!

Q. Who are you voting for in November?
A. Joe Biden

Q. Aha! You're biased!
A. ? No, I'm just an American voter who supports Biden 2/
Q. Who should other people vote for?
A. Vote for whomever you prefer

Q. What do you want?
A. A free, fair and peaceful election in which all Americans accept the winner as the legitimate president

1/ Fun fact of the day!

Notwithstanding nutty extremist right wing media claims, I am not predicting a left wing coup against Trump, planning such a coup, fomenting such a coup or cheerleading for such a coup.

Sorry guys. 2/ I don’t have an army. I have a husband, a dog and two kids, and none of us can agree on what have for dinner, much less how to achieve world domination

'Nother thread:

1/ People keep asking me how likely it is that the November election will end in constitutional crisis. Answer: I don't know - it depends what we all do between now and then!
washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/0… 2 /It's a lot like asking, "How likely is it that Covid deaths will exceed 500,000 by January?" Answer: I don't know - it depends what we all do between now and then.

1/ Right wing critics of the Transition Integrity Project have been complaining that the exercises wasn't "really" bipartisan b/c GOP participants included people known to be critical of Trump. Last I checked, "bi-partisan" meant "both parties," not "Democrats & Trump loyalists." 2/ Their other complaint: people critical of Trump projected their own fears when playing on Team Trump in our exercises, having Team Trump do bad things that in real life, Trump would not do. But...

Important @peterbakernyt piece on how Trump is more and more openly casting himself as the defender of "white people." I sometimes think politics in this country comes down to how scary you find people who look different/talk different/act different. I like differences: to me, meeting people who are not like me is wonderful and eye-opening-

In my inbox this morning: “We have your [Transition Integrity Project] documents. You will be hung for treason. Documents given to every patriot. 10 million strong. Your going to gitmo. You will die soon.”

Just another day in Trump’s America. And that’s just one of the non-obscene messages. A lot of my newfound correspondents combine their threats with obscenities.

The election will likely spark violence — and a constitutional crisis washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/0… One really important thing to remember about the Transition Integrity Project's exercises: this kind of gaming exercise does not produce predictions! The exercises explored some "what ifs," that's all --

1/ The president of the United States is using the rhetoric of genocide and civil war to rally his base. He claims that if he doesn't win, there will be chaos and people "terminated":

"If our opponents prevail, no one will be safe in our country, and no one will be spared..." 2/ "No one will be spared, including the people that help fund. They think they’re going to be best pals; they’re not going to be best pals. They’ll be terminated, just like many others."

1/ The president of the United States is using the rhetoric of genocide and civil war to rally his base. He claims that if he doesn't trump, yesterday, actually, for real: "If our opponents prevail, no one will be safe in our country, and no one will be spared..." 2/ "No one will be spared, including the people that help fund.They think they’re going to be best pals; they’re not going to be best pals. They’ll be terminated, just like many others. I’m the only thing standing between the American Dream & total anarchy, madness, and chaos…"

1/ Here's how Trump & his team work:
- Announce something outrageous and illegal. Followers act on it. Critics scream & go to court. Court says "stop."
- Trump team announces some new variant, also outrageous and illegal. Same happens.
- Trump Team does same thing, over & over - 2/ Each time, critics challenge his words/acts. Each time, his followers (in & out of gov't) act on his directives. Each time, court challenges conclude at least some of what he's doing is unlawful. But each time, he retreats on one outrage and advances on another....

1/ Trump has no legal power to delay the 2020 election - but keep in mind that during the pandemic, some state officials postponed elections - even in defiance of court orders. 2/ What would happen in Nov, for instance, if GOP FL Gov DeSantis ordered state polling places in heavily democratic areas closed "for emergency public health reasons"?

Thread: 1/ When I warn that Trump might not accept an electoral loss, i get messages from Trump reporters saying, "So? Hillary Clinton never accepted her 2016 loss." But this misunderstands the nature of Trump's threats not to accept the 2020 election results. 2/ Hillary Clinton didn't LIKE the election results in 2016, & she objected to the fact that the winner of the popular vote didn't become president... in that sense, it's fair to say she did not accept the 2016 results as legitimate (&many of her supporters felt the same). BUT...

Thread: 1) I hate seeing headlines like this in WaPo:
"Police promised reforms. Every year, they still shoot and kill nearly 1,000 people."

Why? b/c there's no such thing as "the police" and that is a big part of why change is so difficult...

washingtonpost.com/investigations… 2) The US has about 18,000 law enforcement agencies, from the FBI to rural sheriffs' offices to the NYPD to university cops to to the federal Bureau of Engraving and Printing police...

When I went through the police academy, our instructors taught us that it’s a crime for police to shoot people for minor property crimes. If they die, we refer to that crime as “murder.”

I’m still stunned that Americans voted for this brainless, soul-less lunatic.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1266231100780744704

DC Metropolitan Police Dept General Order 901.07:
"No member shall discharge his or her firearm... as warning... into a crowd... [or] solely to protect property interests."

In case you were wondering.

@Christy_E_Lopez and I just co-authored this white paper on policing during the pandemic. It's a joint product of the Georgetown Law Innovative Policing Program and Harvard's Safra Center for Ethics. You can see it here: drive.google.com/file/d/1Ke6-Ma… Key points: Traditional law enforcement practices such as stops, searches, and arrests currently
create a substantial risk of infection for police, suspects and community members alike....

Why health insurance in America is all f'd up:
I call @Carefirst: "Do you cover CPT codes ___ in the following circumstance?"
Carefirst: Yes, we pay 70% of the allowed cost after the deductable."
Me: Ok great. What is the allowed cost?
Carefirst: We can't disclose that. Me: (six weeks later): Why aren't you covering these services?
@Carefirst: .... because we only cover 70% of the allowed cost after the deductable
Me: Right. Costs greatly exceeded the deductable. So what was the allowed cost?
Carefirst: we can't disclose that.

I think we have just taken several steps closer to "constitutional crisis." @djrothkopf @deepstateradio The FBI counterintelligence investigation - reported on by the NYT - seems factually justifiable (Trump's behavior suggests he might well be a Russian agent) and constitutionally problematic (career feds substitute their judgment for the elected president's w/r/t nat'l security)

1) ‘Twas the night before Christmas
When all through the White House
Not a creature was stirring
Aside from a Louse.
The shutdown was hung on the Democrats with care,
In hopes that a border wall soon would be there— 2)

The children were nestled all snug in their cages
Tucked in by border guards not getting their wages.
And all alone in the White House, the Louse cursed his fate
“Why, all that I wanted was to make this land Great!

Homage to Dr. Suess, After the Firing of Jeff Sessions:

Robert S. Mueller, Will You Please Go Now?

The time has come.
The time is now.
Just go.
Go.
GO!
I don't care how.

You can go by indictment
Or congressional report.
Robert S. Mueller, your time's running short --

1/2 2/2

You can go after Junior
You can go after Stone
Indict them all
Or Trump
Alone!

I don't care.
You can go after Jared
Ivanka too--
Just please go soon
Bob Mueller, do!

Tweet 1 of a bunch: I oppose Kavanaugh's nomination, think senators should vote no based on his judicial record, but am uncomfortable with asserting that his behavior as a teen tells us anything about his "character" now. Tweet 2 of a bunch: Yes, even if his behavior as a teen included doing exactly what Ford says he did. This is because...