If you’re going to argue about politics this Thanksgiving and want to sound like you know what you’re talking about, here’s a guide on how to do it. Here’s what’s happening on four of the most pressing political questions right now.
Politics
How to argue about politics this Thanksgiving
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Yes, it’s possible: Americans are worried about his age. They aren’t giving him credit for the economic recovery after the pandemic. And from his unwavering public support for Israel, to his struggles to forgive as many student loans as he promised, to his failure address the climate crisis as fully as environmentalists want, as well as Congress’s inability to pass voting protections, Democrats worry he’s alienated his supporters.
“I am very concerned that the Democratic base — particularly younger Democrats — may decide to stay home in the next presidential election,” Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) told The Washington Post’s Early 202 newsletter. (Elections in such an ideologically split America are more about bringing out your own voters than winning over the other side.)
The case for Biden winning: The threat of a national abortion ban under a Republican president, plus a second Trump presidency, may be enough to motivate liberals to go vote.
“Joe Biden is going to be the nominee, and he is the best bet to beat Donald Trump, and people have to help us make that happen because the alternative is Donald Trump and is a catastrophe for American democracy,” a top Democratic strategist, Dmitri Mehlhorn, told The Washington Post.
He has promised to exact retribution on his enemies, and he’s called them “vermin” like fascist leaders of the past. Trump is scaring a lot of Republican leaders.
“This is an existential moment for the country,” the former head of the Republican National Committee, Michael Steele, told me. “Do you really want to live in a country where the president of the United States is going after his political enemies?”
Many Republicans who worked for Trump are aghast that millions of voters still support him when he’s been crystal clear about his plans to turn away from democracy if elected.
“What’s going on in the country that a single person thinks this guy would still be a good president when he’s said the things he’s said and done the things he’s done?” Trump’s former chief of staff John F. Kelly told The Washington Post’s Josh Dawsey.
Steele added that he’s frustrated that the media sometimes equates concerns about how Trump and Biden would do their jobs. For instance, is Biden’s age really in the same risk category as Trump’s authoritarian tendencies?
“Voters must take Trump seriously and literally,” reads the headline on an analysis by The Washington Post’s chief political correspondent, Dan Balz. “The stakes are that high.”
The president’s son is charged by the federal government with illegally buying a gun. He could face charges soon on dodging taxes. But he’s facing accusations — without evidence — from Republicans that he and his father improperly enriched themselves. Here’s what we know he did.
Hunter Biden did trade on his father’s name: He made ethically and politically questionable business deals with the Chinese and Ukrainians while his father was vice president. He would put his father on speakerphone during business dinners, as an apparent power flex. He knew opportunities came to him because of his connections to his dad, writes The Washington Post’s Matt Viser, who uncovered this 2011 email Hunter Biden wrote to a business partner: “It has nothing to do with me, and everything to do with my last name.”
There is no evidence Hunter Biden involved his father in business schemes: Now-President Biden didn’t try to hide that he knew about his son’s foreign business deals. And he didn’t appear to actively discourage his son’s work, writes Matt. But there remains no evidence that father and son were working together, in any way, to enrich themselves while Biden was vice president, or to improperly use the office of the vice presidency.
So did Hunter Biden do anything wrong? It depends how you define “wrong.” Making money isn’t illegal, and trading on connections is a time-honored tradition in Washington. But ethics experts have raised concerns that Hunter Biden’s work abroad allowed foreign companies to have a sheen of authority and presented a conflict of interest for his father.
Some Republicans say no way. The first votes in the primaries are cast in January. He has no criminal trials between now and then, and after 91 indictments, his lead over the rest of the Republican presidential field looks like this:
“What would make voters this past few months pull away from Trump when they haven’t the past year?” Steele, the former chair of the Republican Party, scoffed.
But Trump isn’t inevitable, says journalist Salena Zito, who covers conservative politics. She said Trump voters might tell pollsters they like him, but they tell her they’re still deciding who to vote for. “They have a hard time differentiating their respect for what he did and giving him their vote again,” she said.
Politics
New Brunswick election profile: Progressive Conservative Leader Blaine Higgs
FREDERICTON – A look at Blaine Higgs, leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick.
Born: March 1, 1954.
Early years: The son of a customs officer, he grew up in Forest City, N.B., near the Canada-U.S. border.
Education: Graduated from the University of New Brunswick with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1977.
Family: Married his high-school sweetheart, Marcia, and settled in Saint John, N.B., where they had four daughters: Lindsey, Laura, Sarah and Rachel.
Before politics: Hired by Irving Oil a week after he graduated from university and was eventually promoted to director of distribution. Worked for 33 years at the company.
Politics: Elected to the legislature in 2010 and later served as finance minister under former Progressive Conservative Premier David Alward. Elected Tory leader in 2016 and has been premier since 2018.
Quote: “I’ve always felt parents should play the main role in raising children. No one is denying gender diversity is real. But we need to figure out how to manage it.” — Blaine Higgs in a year-end interview in 2023, explaining changes to school policies about gender identity.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Politics
Climate, food security, Arctic among Canada’s intelligence priorities, Ottawa says
OTTAWA – The pressing issues of climate change and food security join more familiar ones like violent extremism and espionage on a new list of Canada’s intelligence priorities.
The federal government says publishing the list of priorities for the first time is an important step toward greater transparency.
The government revises the priorities every two years, based on recommendations from the national security adviser and the intelligence community.
Once the priorities are reviewed and approved by the federal cabinet, key ministers issue directives to federal agencies that produce intelligence.
Among the priorities are the security of global health, food, water and biodiversity, as well as the issues of climate change and global sustainability.
The new list also includes foreign interference and malign influence, cyberthreats, infrastructure security, Arctic sovereignty, border integrity and transnational organized crime.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Politics
Anita Anand taking on transport portfolio after Pablo Rodriguez leaves cabinet
GATINEAU, Que. – Treasury Board President Anita Anand will take on the additional role of transport minister this afternoon, after Pablo Rodriguez resigned from cabinet to run for the Quebec Liberal leadership.
A government source who was not authorized to speak publicly says Anand will be sworn in at a small ceremony at Rideau Hall.
Public Services and Procurement Minister Jean-Yves Duclos will become the government’s new Quebec lieutenant, but he is not expected to be at the ceremony because that is not an official role in cabinet.
Rodriguez announced this morning that he’s leaving cabinet and the federal Liberal caucus and will sit as an Independent member of Parliament until January.
That’s when the Quebec Liberal leadership race is set to officially begin.
Rodriguez says sitting as an Independent will allow him to focus on his own vision, but he plans to vote with the Liberals on a non-confidence motion next week.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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