Chief Justice Roberts Cartoons

Ben Shapiro praises NJ gym owners who 'destroyed' 'ignorant' Chris Cuomo in heated CNN interview

CNN primetime host Chris Cuomo was rhetorically "destroyed" by a pair of New Jersey gym owners during a wild interview, Ben Shapiro said Wednesday.
Discussing the contentious exchange, "The Ben Shapiro Show," host praised the co-owners of Atilis Gym in Bellmawr, N.J., who appeared on “Cuomo Prime Time” to share their story after they were arrested for reopening in violation of state and local coronavirus guidelines.
"How ignorant is Chris Cuomo?" Shapiro told listeners. "Chris Cuomo is so ignorant that he got owned by a couple of New Jersey gym owners ... who want to reopen their gym."
"These guys, I would hazard to say they are not epidemiologists [but] they just own Chris Cuomo, it's amazing," the outspoken conservative personality went on. "I mean, they start citing stats, pointing out that the people who are dying of COVID-19 are not generally young people going to gyms, and they say, 'We are taking all the measures necessary, we are doing social distancing' .. and Chris Cuomo just gets destroyed."
Co-owners Frank Trumbetti and Ian Smith argued that their gym is just as essential as liquor stores and other businesses that were allowed to remain open when New Jersey Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy forced gyms to shutter.
"This isn’t about opening up a gym, they have violated everyone’s constitutional rights,” Trumbetti said.
“We all have the right to make a living. We all have the right to actually do what we want to do as Americans. We are promised liberty,” he added. “They have actually put such oppressive restrictions on us that it’s just unacceptable to us.”
Cuomo, known for posting workout images on social media, countered that gyms could be a dangerous place amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“I would argue that the gym is a place to keep people safe, this is a place where people come to build their immune systems, the strength of their body on the outside and inside,” Smith fired back. “This is a place that saves lives.”
The CNN host eventually bickered with the gym owners over coronavirus statistics, with Trumbetti bashing Murphy in the process.
“We’re being villainized,” Smith said as Cuomo desperately tried to get a word in.
The gym owners and Cuomo then spoke over each other until Trumbetti used profanity live on air.
“Fifty-three point three percent of the deaths come from 0.6% of the population. Bottom line, that’s a f------g stat that nobody is talking about,” Trumbetti said.
Cuomo shot back, “Frank, watch your mouth, we’re on television,” despite CNN’s recent history of using profanity.
"This guy is just citing stats all over him and Cuomo has nothing," Shapiro said, "because his entire propaganda appeal has been 'Trump is a bad orange man ... [but] my brother, who completely blew it in New York, is the greatest governor in the history of the world.'"
"The political agenda is hard to miss here," Shapiro concluded. It really is."
Fox News' Brian Flood contributed to this report.

Pence rips Chief Justice Roberts in interview, calls him ‘disappointment to conservatives’

In a television interview scheduled to air Thursday, Vice President Mike Pence tears into U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Roberts, calling him a “disappointment to conservatives.”
The vice president’s comments – made during a discussion with Christian broadcaster CBN News – follow several cases before the court in which Roberts, a 2005 appointee of former President George W. Bush, has sided with the court’s liberals in majority opinions.
“We have great respect for the institution of the Supreme Court of the United States but Chief Justice Roberts has been a disappointment to conservatives,” Pence told CBN’s David Brody, according to the network’s website.
“I think several cases out of the Supreme Court are reminders of just how important this election is for the future of the Supreme Court,” the vice president added.

Vice President Mike Pence, left, had some sharp words regarding U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts during a TV interview scheduled to air Thursday.

Pence pointed in particular to Roberts voting in 2012 to uphold ObamaCare, a more recent decision to uphold Nevada’s coronavirus-related limits on church gatherings and a Louisiana case in which Roberts agreed that abortion-clinic doctors should have admitting privileges at local hospitals, CBN reported.
Regarding the Louisiana case, Pence called it a “wake-up call” for pro-life voters.
“That’s a very modest restriction on abortion providers,” Pence told Brody. “But a narrow majority in the Supreme Court still said it was unacceptable. I think it’s been a wake-up call for pro-life voters around the country who understand, in a very real sense, the destiny of the Supreme Court is on the ballot in 2020.”
Future openings on the Supreme Court have been a topic of speculation in recent years as Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, deals with increasingly frequent health-related issues – spurring talk of her possible retirement – and other members of the court advance in age. Ginsburg is the oldest member of the court, followed by Associate Justices Stephen Breyer, who will turn 82 on Aug. 15; Clarence Thomas, who is 72; and Samuel Alito, who is 70.
The remaining members of the court, including Roberts, are all younger than 70.
Pence has been in what might be described as “attack mode” in recent days, with sharp critiques targeting New York’s Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Democrats serving on the House Judiciary Committee.
In a Monday night appearance on Fox News’ “The Ingraham Angle,” Pence fired back after Cuomo said the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic needed a “reset” from the “top.” (Pence heads President Trump’s Coronavirus Task Force.)
“Our hearts grieve for the fact that 1-in-5 of all the American lives that have been lost in the coronavirus pandemic were lost in the State of New York,” Pence told host Laura Ingraham, "and some of that was because of poor decisions by the state and by Governor Cuomo.”
Then on Fox News’ “The Story” on Tuesday, Pence told host Martha MacCallum that the House Judiciary Committee’s Democrats – including panel Chairman Jerrold Nadler of New York -- were grandstanding during a recent hearing with Attorney General William Barr.
“Bill Barr is leading the Justice Department in this country with great integrity and brings a lifetime commitment to the rule of law,” the vice president said. “But to see it today, in the little bit that I was able to watch, it was clear that the Democrats wanted to hear themselves talk more than they wanted to hear from the attorney general of the United States.”
The complete CBN News interview with Pence is scheduled to air Thursday on the network’s “The 700 Club” program. Check local listings for time and station.

Washington Post issues major correction after botching Trump-Twitter post

The Washington Post sparked massive confusion Wednesday evening after erroneously reporting that President Trump was banned from tweeting because of a claim he made about the coronavirus.
Both Facebook and Twitter were cracking down on clips that were shared from the president's interview on "Fox & Friends" earlier in the day, where he continued his push for schools to be reopened in the fall. However, the tech giants removed the clips of him asserting that children are "almost immune" to the virus, citing the claim was "misinformation."
The Team Trump campaign account had uploaded the video on Twitter, in a post that the president later shared on his personal account.
After Twitter disabled the video, the platform further punished Team Trump by forbidding the account from tweeting until it took down the original post.
However, the Post apparently got its wires crossed in reporting what happened.
"Breaking: Twitter said it will require President Trump to remove a post containing coronavirus misinformation, banning him from tweeting until he does so," the Post began its report in bold text. "Twitter hid the post and said he will not be able to tweet from his account until he deletes it, although he can appeal the decision."
The Post then shared a quote from a Twitter spokesperson that appeared to allude to the president instead of his campaign, saying the tweet was "in violation of the Twitter Rules on COVID-19 misinformation. The account owner will be required to remove the Tweet before they can Tweet again.”
Several Washington Post journalists shared the inaccurate information on Twitter, spreading the report across the platform. They later deleted their tweets.
The paper ultimately issued a correction, writing at the bottom of its report, "Twitter penalized Team Trump, the president’s campaign account. An earlier version of this article said that Twitter penalized President Trump’s account."
Facebook and Twitter confirmed to Fox News that they took action against the videos uploaded by the Trump campaign.
"This video includes false claims that a group of people is immune from COVID-19 which is a violation of our policies around harmful COVID misinformation," Facebook spokeswoman Liz Bourgeois told FOX News in a statement.
A Twitter spokesperson similarly told FOX News the tweet was "in violation of the Twitter rules on COVID-19 misinformation" and that the Trump campaign would "be required to remove the Tweet before they can Tweet again."
Trump campaign spokeswoman Courtney Parella told FOX News that President Trump was "stating a fact that children are less susceptible to the coronavirus."
"Another day, another display of Silicon Valley’s flagrant bias against this President, where the rules are only enforced in one direction," she added. "Social media companies are not the arbiters of truth.”
Fox News' Lucas Manfredi contributed to this story. 

Portland police chief says riots not helping cause of racial justice: ‘Enough is enough’

Portland, Ore., police Chief Chuck Lovell on Wednesday morning decried violent instigators who he said are marring the message of mostly peaceful Black Lives Matter protesters.
"Portlanders need to send a strong message that enough is enough," Lovell told reporters at Tom McCall Waterfront Park, according to KGW-TV in Portland. "This is not forwarding the goals that are going to lead to better outcomes for people of color. This movement is really powerful, but the violence has taken away from it. ... This is not what Portland is about. This is not what we need in our city."
The protests, which have sometimes turned into late-night riots focused on the Multnomah County Justice Center and the federal courthouse, have continued unabated for more than two months since the May 25 death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis.
Lovell said there have been many large peaceful protests that required no police presence but the smaller offshoot actions -- setting fires, breaking windows and throwing objects at police -- are taking away from the larger message.
Late Wednesday, Portland police declared a riot and said they believe an explosive device had been left outside a precinct. People were ordered to disperse, and some streets were closed.
“I’ve never seen a summer like this,” Lovell, who was named police chief in early June, said.
He added that shooting have also spiked since the defunding of the Gun Violence Reduction Team over accusations of racism.
There were 99 shootings in July, up from 35 in July 2019, police said, according to OregonLive.com.
Lovell told reporters he doesn’t believe the team was racist even though it arrested more Black suspects than anyone else. He said the majority of victims are Black – 66% last month.
“A lot of those stops end with handshakes and conversation,” he said. “And there's a real familiarity and people miss it. We hear from a lot of people in the community saying hey we need the Gun Violence Reduction Team back. We need these officers that know our community, that know this issue of gun violence that we really relied on to help stay safe."
He added that taking police off patrol to cover protests has left fewer officers to respond to emergencies, according to KGW.
Downtown protests have become more peaceful since federal officers agreed to leave last week, so some instigators have moved to other police buildings across the city to cause problems.
Early Wednesday, police had declared a riot and made three arrests after saying demonstrators set fires, erected barricades in a street and broke into the police union headquarters. Police said someone also fired a gun during the unrest and a pickup truck accelerated into the crowd while pushing an unoccupied motorcycle in front of it.
Lovell wrote a New York Times op-ed Monday titled, “I’m the Police Chief in Portland. Violence Isn’t the Answer.”
“As a Black man and a public servant, I see that spectacle is drowning out the voices that need to be heard to make positive change,” he wrote. "I agree with a local pastor, E.D. Mondainé, who stated these 'spectacles' are drowning out the voices that need to be heard to make positive change. This violence is doing nothing to further the Black Lives Matter movement."
Lovell also praised officers’ “professionalism” and said he has confidence in his community.

Mazie Hirono Cartoons

Endangered GOP senators are driving force for virus deal

WASHINGTON (AP) — A small but singularly influential group is a driving force for an agreement on a stalled coronavirus relief bill: Endangered Senate GOP incumbents who need to win this fall if Republicans are going to retain control of the majority.

Confronted with a poisonous political environment, vulnerable Senate Republicans are rushing to endorse generous jobless benefits, child care grants, and more than $100 billion to help schools reopen. Several of them are refusing to allow the Senate to adjourn until Washington delivers a deal to their desperate constituents.

Sen. Martha McSally, who has fallen behind in polls in Arizona, is breaking with conservatives to endorse a temporary extension of a $600 per week supplemental benefits. Republicans up for reelection such as John Cornyn of Texas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina are demanding results before returning home to campaign. And Sen. Susan Collins is in overdrive, backing help for cash-starved states and local governments — and Maine’s shipbuilding industry.

The opinions of senators up for reelection are of more consequence to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell than those held by conservatives like Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., who are broadcasting their opposition to the emerging legislation as costly and ineffective. As other Republicans gripe that they’re going to have to swallow a deal brokered by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., the vulnerable Republicans are craving just such a bipartisan result.

“Maybe eight Republicans who are up in tough states have a bigger interest in getting this COVID-19 bill done,” said Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio. “I think that’s accurate.”

Republican strategists, grappling with a political environment for their party that has worsened over the summer, said it’s imperative for GOP lawmakers to be able to head back to their states and districts with a deal in hand to show voters they are taking the pandemic and the economic fallout seriously.

“GOP Senate candidates need a deal, a good deal ... so they can get home and campaign on helping small businesses get up and moving again,” said Scott Reed, the chief political strategist at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Republican operative Corry Bliss said it was crucial for incumbents facing tough re-election fights to “have wins” to highlight through the fall.

“This is the most important issue facing the country right now,” Bliss said. “There’s no better message for Congress to deliver heading into the election than a big bipartisan victory to help families and small businesses get through this difficult time.”

Republicans control the Senate by a 53-47 margin, meaning Democrats must gain at least three seats to capture Senate control. But Republicans are defending 25 of the 38 seats in play, and are on the defensive even in traditionally red states due to Trump’s deteriorating standings in polls.

Meanwhile, in blue and purple states like Iowa, Colorado, and Maine, GOP incumbents are lining up to break with party orthodoxy on issues like child care, unemployment benefits, and aid to cash-starved state and local governments.

In Colorado, Sen. Cory Gardner recently pushed for more virus relief after an appearance with Ivanka Trump at a child care facility in the Denver suburbs. “It needs to get done now,” he told reporters.

His opponent, Democrat John Hickenlooper, has been hammering Gardner over the GOP’s decision to “pause” the coronavirus negotiations for most of the summer. On Tuesday, his campaign held a virtual press conference to press for more relief. “We’ve seen Sen. Gardner stay silent while Mitch McConnell and President Trump refuse to help millions of Americans,” Hickenlooper said.

In South Carolina, Graham’s opponent has called out what he has characterized as the Republican’s flippant attitude toward real-world concerns over lost wages and unemployment. Jaime Harrison has said Graham is “leading the charge” to cut additional unemployment relief, referring to Graham’s April comment that Congress would extend the current benefits past July “over our dead bodies.”

Graham is now offering a jobless benefit proposal that is more generous than other GOP proposals.

Cornyn helped start a bandwagon of senators who are demanding the Senate stay at work in Washington until a coronavirus bill is passed. Voters expect a deal — including renewed unemployment benefits that have helped millions of people avert a descent into poverty — and returning home to campaign without one in hand could be a political disaster. With progress coming slowly in the talks, GOP leaders said the Senate will be extending its session into next week and possibly longer.

Back home, Cornyn is facing the first serious reelection challenge of his 18 years in the Senate as Trump’s sagging approval and Texas’ rapidly changing suburbs has the GOP nervous about their grip on America’s biggest red state. His opponent, Democrat M.J. Hegar, is attacking Cornyn for opposing the $600 per week benefit as too generous in a majority of cases since it pays most people more to not work than to work. He said in June that the benefit would not be reinstated.

At a closed-door GOP lunch last month, conservative Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., urged a freer-spending approach to the legislation that could help endangered colleagues keep their seats — and allow everyone else to hold onto their gavels.

It’s difficult to overstate the stakes. Republicans are in their sixth year holding the Senate, and that majority could be the only obstacle to all-Democratic control of Washington next year if Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, defeats Trump in November.

Democrats controlling the chamber could rubber-stamp Biden’s Cabinet and judicial picks, if he wins, including likely Supreme Court vacancies. Even a narrow Democratic majority could reverse the GOP’s 2017 tax cuts — and that’s before the party considers eliminating the legislative filibuster that has been the defining characteristic of the chamber for decades.

“This is the most important thing we need to be doing,” Cornyn said Tuesday of the coronavirus response measure.

___

Associated Press writers Paul J. Weber in Austin, Texas, Nicholas Riccardi in Denver and Meg Kinnard in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed to this report.

Kansas Republicans choose Rep. Marshall over firebrand Kobach for Senate seat

Rep. Roger Marshall defeated controversial former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach Tuesday evening to win the Republican nomination for a Senate seat being vacated by longtime Sen. Pat Roberts, R-KS.
The win in the GOP primary means that Republican voters in the Sunflower State heeded their party’s advice by choosing the more moderate Marshall over the conservative firebrand Kobach. Republican leadership was concerned that a Kobach win would could ultimately flip the generally safe Senate seat to the Democrats in November’s general election.
"Kansas Republicans knew what was at stake in this primary, and tonight's results prove voters will reject any Democrat efforts to buy this seat,” National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Chairman Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., said in a statement. “I'm more confident than ever Kansas will remain part of the Republican Senate Majority.”
Besides besting Kobach, Marshall prevailed in a crowded GOP primary field with the backing of major farm, business and anti-abortion groups but without an endorsement from President Trump.
Many Republicans’ fears about Kobach fueled ad campaigns that cost at least $15 million, with most of the spending by political action committees. Kobach is nationally known for advocating restrictive immigration policies and alienated independent and moderate GOP voters in losing the Kansas governor’s race in 2018.
The race for retiring Roberts’ seat had national implications even though the GOP hasn’t lost a Senate contest in Kansas since 1932.
Roberts declared his support for Marshall after the congressman had picked up endorsements from the U.S Chamber of Commerce, the Kansas Farm Bureau, the National Right to Life Committee and Kansans for Life, the state’s most influential anti-abortion group. Marshall also had the backing of 97-year-old political icon Bob Dole, the former U.S. Senate majority leader and 1996 GOP presidential nominee.
Even with Marshall as the nominee, the GOP faces a potentially competitive Senate race. The Democratic nominee, state Sen. Barbara Bollier has raised more than $8 million for her campaign, a big sum in a low-cost media state like Kansas, with donations flooding in from outside the state. Bollier is a retired Kansas City-area anethesiologist and former moderate Republican who garnered national headlines by switching parties at the end of 2018.
The NRSC’s Young has already painted Bollier as the “hand-picked” candidate of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
“Roger Marshall is a principled conservative who has, and will, deliver for Kansas families, and I look forward to him defeating Chuck Schumer's hand-picked candidate, Barbara Bollier, this November,” Young said.
For her part, Bollier said she doesn't care which candidate she's going up against and slammed the Republicans on their moves to do away with thee Affordable Care Act during the coronavirus pandemic.
"It doesn't matter who our opponent in #KSSen is, we know that they’ll be a hyper-partisan working to take healthcare coverage from thousands of Kansans in the middle of a pandemic. That’s for sure," Bollier tweeted.
Republicans are trying to keep their 53-47 Senate majority with competitive races in other states, including Arizona, Colorado and Maine.
Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser and The Associated Press contributed to this report.