Friday, December 11, 2020
Supreme Court rejects Texas' and Trump's bid to overturn election
By Ariane de Vogue and Maegan Vazquez
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a bid from Texas' attorney general -- supported by President Donald Trump -- to block the ballots of millions of voters in battleground states that went in favor of President-elect Joe Biden.
The court's order, issued with no public dissents, to dismiss the challenge is the strongest indication yet that Trump has no chance of overturning election results in court, and that even the justices whom he placed there have no interest in allowing his desperate legal bids to continue.
The Electoral College will convene Monday to affirm Biden's win.
The lawsuit, brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a staunch Trump ally, sought to sue Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia and Wisconsin -- which all went for Biden -- and invalidate their election results. And this week, with his options narrowing, Trump, accompanied by the support of several Republican attorneys general and GOP lawmakers, cranked up pressure to have the Supreme Court weigh in."From a legal perspective, the fat lady has sung," said Steve Vladeck, a CNN Supreme Court analyst and University of Texas Law professor. Trump and his legal team -- hamstrung by a series of coronavirus diagnoses among lawyers who had traveled across the country advocating on behalf of Trump's case -- have for weeks pushed increasingly desperate appeals and baseless conspiracy theories about his second term being stolen. Republican election lawyer Ben Ginsberg said that Trump's crusade to undermine the election's results through rhetoric and court challenges "put a huge stress test on our democracy." "The Republicans who did follow Donald Trump really have an obligation now to make the country strong again, to heal the chinks that Donald Trump tried to put in the foundation of the country and the democracy," Ginsberg told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on "The Situation Room." Texas denied for lack of standing The court's order Friday night was unsigned, and court did not provide a vote count, but there were no dissents to the order made public. In its short order, the court said that Texas had not demonstrated that it had the legal right to bring the suit because it had not demonstrated a "judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections." The order states: "The State of Texas's motion for leave to file a bill of complaint is denied for lack of standing under Article III of the Constitution. Texas has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections. All other pending motions are dismissed as moot." In a statement accompanying the order, Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas said they would have allowed the case to be filed, but would grant no other relief."Even Justice Thomas and Alito, who might otherwise have been sympathetic to these challenges, went out of their way to express that they would grant no relief on the merits," Vladeck said."Not only did the Court reject Texas's effort to challenge the results in four battleground states, but it did so on a ground that will prevent any other states from doing so," Vladeck added. Another big loss for Trump For the past five weeks, federal and state courts have rejected most of Trump's attempts thoroughly. Hastily-written filings have contained a multitude of elementary errors. Many of the pro-Trump arguments hinged on what was ultimately hearsay or conjecture. And in many of the cases, Trump backers have said they don't have evidence proving their allegations yet, but want to review ballots or confidential elections data more closely to see if they can find proof of fraud. And though Trump has refused to move on, those closest to him -- including the legal team and his family -- are working on their next steps. Multiple sources told CNN earlier this week that Trump's legal team and inside what remains of his campaign staff have been sensing that efforts to overturn or delay the results of the election are coming to an end. White House staffers are resigning or are out the door, and members of Trump's Cabinet have also begun meeting with their Biden administration counterparts. First lady Melania Trump, meanwhile, has begun overseeing shipments of family furniture and art to Mar-a-Lago. And Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner are in the final stages of purchasing a plot of land within a Miami enclave known for its privacy and high net worth residents. Presidential pressure Hours ahead of the court's decision, the President called on the Supreme Court to intervene in the election, but seemed to acknowledge that a Biden administration is on its way."Now that the Biden Administration will be a scandal plagued mess for years to come, it is much easier for the Supreme Court of the United States to follow the Constitution and do what everybody knows has to be done. They must show great Courage & Wisdom. Save the USA!!!" Trump tweeted Friday morning.Each of the four battleground states targeted by the lawsuit -- Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin -- issued blistering briefs on Thursday, with Pennsylvania officials going so far as to call the effort a "seditious abuse of the judicial process."And although the case started off with Texas challenging four states, it grew into a dispute featuring some 19 Republican attorneys general siding with Texas and 22 Democratic-led states and territories supporting the battleground states that Biden won. In addition, 126 House Republicans signed on to an amicus brief in support of Paxton's motion, including Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Still, several Republican lawmakers in Washington slammed the basis of the suit, citing federalism concerns and saying Texas shouldn't have a say in how other states hold their elections.
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/11/politics/supreme-court-texas-trump-biden/index.html
Fauci addresses Black Americans' vaccine concerns: This was 'developed by an African American woman'
BY CAMERON JENKINS
The nation's top infectious diseases expert, Anthony Fauci, recently addressed skepticism among the Black community surrounding the safety of a coronavirus vaccine, stating that one of the major vaccine candidates has been worked on by an African American woman. During a National Urban League event on Tuesday, Fauci acknowledged the history of government experimentation on communities of color and why there would be some distrust among the community surrounding the vaccine. “The very vaccine that’s one of the two that has absolutely exquisite levels — 94 to 95 percent efficacy against clinical disease and almost 100 percent efficacy against serious disease that are shown to be clearly safe — that vaccine was actually developed in my institute’s vaccine research center by a team of scientists led by Dr. Barney Graham and his close colleague, Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett, or Kizzy Corbett,” Fauci said, according to CNN. “So, the first thing you might want to say to my African American brothers and sisters is that the vaccine that you’re going to be taking was developed by an African American woman. And that is just a fact," he said, referring to a vaccine that will be released by Moderna, The Root reported. Corbett is the lead scientist for the National Institutes of Health’s coronavirus vaccine research and has addressed hesitancy within the Black community in the past. “I would say to people who are vaccine-hesitant that you’ve earned the right to ask the questions that you have around these vaccines and this vaccine development process,” Corbett said in the CNN podcast “Coronavirus: Fact vs. Fiction.” “Trust, especially when it has been stripped from people, has to be rebuilt in a brick-by-brick fashion,” Corbett said. “And so, what I say to people firstly is that I empathize, and then secondly is that I’m going to do my part in laying those bricks. And I think that if everyone on our side, as physicians and scientists, went about it that way, then the trust would start to be rebuilt.” Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) also recently emphasized the need to build trust in a coronavirus vaccine among the Black community. A Pew research study conducted in June showed that 54 percent of Black adults say they would definitely or probably get a coronavirus vaccine if one were available today, and 44 percent said they would not. The FDA is set to approve an emergency use authorization for a Pfizer vaccine in the next few days. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar says that the first vaccinations on the authorization could be administered as early as Monday or Tuesday.
https://thehill.com/homenews/news/529841-fauci-addresses-black-americans-vaccine-concerns-this-was-developed-by-an
Bilawal Bhutto, Maryam Nawaz discuss PDM's anti-govt rally in Lahore
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Friday has met Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) vice president Maryam Nawaz in Jati Umra in Lahore.
According to details, the PPP chairman offered condolences to PML-N vice president over the death of her grandmother Begum Shamim Akhtar.
Both the leaders discussed matters related to arrangements of Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) rally in Lahore and resignations of opposition’s lawmakers from provincial and national assemblies.
They also deliberated upon the ongoing political situation in the country.
Earlier, Maryam Nawaz had criticized Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and said that don’t take our revenge from the innocent people.
While reacting to the registration of a case against the owner of the hotel where she and other PML-N leaders had eaten food, Maryam Nawaz said that the incumbent government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-insaf (PTI) has crossed all the limits.
First, tent service and now hotel owner, the federation has lost its senses, she added.
The PML-N leader further said that the people of Lahore will come out of their houses on December 13 against such acts of the PTI government.
https://dunyanews.tv/en/Pakistan/577623-Bilawal-Bhutto,-Maryam-Nawaz-discuss-PDM%E2%80%99s-anti-govt-rally-in-Lahore
#PPP rejects dialogue offer from Imran Khan
When asked what he means by facilitators, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that he has given the media person so many beautiful words and they can call these facilitators as selectors and establishment. He said that he did not name them because he wants to keep their self-respect. He said that Aseefa Bhutto Zardari conquered Multan by her presence there. He said that facilitators should be warned that my sister Aseefa Bhutto Zardari is there to hold the democratic flag after him. He said that the biggest strength for a brother is the support of his sister. When asked that why was he surprised by Nawaz Sharif’s taking names of selectors, he said that it was a surprise for everyone but now there is no surprise left for the nation.
https://www.ppp.org.pk/pr/24158/
مریم نواز، بلاول بھٹو ملاقات کی اندرونی کہانی سامنے آگئی
پیپلز پارٹی کے چیئرمین بلاول بھٹو زرداری اور سابق وزیراعظم نواز شریف کی صاحبزادی مریم نواز کی ملاقات کی اندرونی کہانی سامنے آگئی ہے۔
ذرائع کے مطابق ملاقات میں ن لیگ اور پیپلز پارٹی کی قیادت نے اس بات پر اتفاق کیا کہ اب مل کر چلیں گے اور لڑانے والوں کی باتوں میں نہیں آئیں۔
ملاقات میں اس بات پر اتفاق ہوا کہ گرفتاریاں ہوئیں تو سخت احتجاج کیا جائے گا اور حکومت کے خلاف جارحانہ انداز اپنایا جائے گا۔
ذرائع کے مطابق بلاول بھٹو زرداری اور مریم نواز نے اپوزیشن اتحاد (پی ڈی ایم ) کے فیصلوں پر من و عن عمل کرنے پر بھی اتفاق کیا۔
ن لیگ اور پیپلز پارٹی کی قیادت نے کہا کہ دونوں جماعتوں میں اتحاد اور احترام کا رشتہ ہر روز مضبوط ہوگا۔
ذرائع کے مطابق مریم نواز سے بلاول بھٹو کی ملاقات میں پی ٹی آئی حکومت کے خلاف تحریک میں مزید تیزی لانے کا فیصلہ بھی کیا گیا۔
پی پی اور ن لیگ کی رہنماؤں نے حکومت کے خلاف تحریک کے دوسرے مرحلے میں رویہ اور انداز مزید جارحانہ کرنے پر اتفاق کیا۔
ذرائع کے مطابق اپوزیشن کی دونوں بڑی جماعتوں نے گرفتاریوں کی صورت میں سخت احتجاج کرنے اور 13 دسمبر کے جلسے کے بعد پی ڈی ایم کے اجلاس میں سخت موقف اورت احتجاج کی تجاویز دینے کا بھی فیصلہ کیا۔
پی پی اور ن لیگ اپوزیشن اتحاد ( پی ڈی ایم ) کے پلیٹ فارم پر مشترکہ موقف اپنانے پر بھی اتفاق کیا۔
ذرائع کے مطابق ملاقات میں پی ڈی ایم کے پلیٹ فارم کو انتخابی اتحاد میں بدلنے پر بھی بات چیت کی گئی۔
https://jang.com.pk/news/856964
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