A single House race in Montana could determine the presidential election.
Or it could be one in Minnesota. Or Pennsylvania, Florida, Michigan or even Alaska — all districts where Speaker Nancy Pelosi has set out to not only expand the House majority but to tip party control of the states’ congressional delegations in case a disputed presidential election needs to be decided by the House.
It’s a stunning campaign strategy to match the extraordinary times. Under election law the House would intervene if the Electoral College gave no presidential candidate the majority Jan. 6. Preparing for that unthinkable reality, Pelosi is openly working to block President Donald Trump’s advantage if, as he has suggested, he ties up the results of the Nov. 3 election.
Pelosi has been issuing stark public warnings to the president not to go down this path.
“There ain’t no light at the end of the tunnel in the House of Representatives,” Pelosi said at a recent press conference.
“Just skip it,” she said again Tuesday. “It is a train coming right down at him.”
Not since the 1800s has a presidential election ended up being decided by the House. But in the visceral political climate of 2020, there’s a growing concern about various chaotic scenarios in the race between Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
1:03 Coronavirus: Pelosi says she prays for Trump, wife Melania following COVID-19 diagnosis
Coronavirus: Pelosi says she prays for Trump, wife Melania following COVID-19 diagnosis
Ahead of the election, Trump has refused to say whether he would uphold the nation’s tradition of a peaceful transfer of power in the event he loses to Biden — prompting some in his own party to vow that voters’ wishes will be followed.
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At a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, Trump suggested he might lean on his “advantage” in the House to help deliver him a second term.
“We are going to be counting ballots for the next two years,” Trump said at the Sept. 26 rally following a Rose Garden event at the White House days before he was diagnosed with COVID-19 .
“I don’t want to end up in the Supreme Court and I don’t want to end up in Congress either _ even though we have the advantage if we go back to Congress,” Trump said. “Does everyone understand that?”
The House is already controlled by Democrats, and not expected to switch this fall, but Republicans actually control of the majority of 50 state delegations to the House. That’s what Pelosi is out to flip.
Pelosi said she had been working “sub rosa” on her plan for some time but decided to go public once Trump did, too.
“We’re ready,” she said Wednesday on ABC’s “The View.”
Under the 12th amendment to the Constitution, each of the nation’s 50 states gets one vote for president for their House delegation. The president can be selected by a House majority — 26 states — if the Electoral College deadlocks or is unable to agree on the winner. Jan. 6 is set by federal law as the date for the tabulation of the electors’ votes.
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1:13 Coronavirus: Pelosi calls to not politicize coronavirus response during COVID-19 memorial visit
Coronavirus: Pelosi calls to not politicize coronavirus response during COVID-19 memorial visit
As it stands, 26 of the state congressional delegations in the House are controlled by Republicans, 22 by Democrats. Two — Pennsylvania and Michigan — are essentially tied.
Since it’s the new Congress seated Jan. 3 that would be called on to resolve an Electoral College dispute, Democrats are eyeing states that are tied or where Republicans hold a slim majority to deny Trump’s hold on the delegations. Under Pelosi’s strategy, Democrats don’t need to reach 26 states, they just need to knock Republicans down by one — to 25 — to prevent Trump from having the majority.
Their map includes about a dozen races that dovetail with candidates in the Democrats’ “Red-to-Blue” program that’s trying to flip Republican-held seats, according to a Democratic strategist granted anonymity to discuss the planning.
The most likely options are in Pennsylvania, where Republican Rep. Scott Perry faces a tough reelection against Democrat Eugene DePasquale, the state’s auditor general, in the Harrisburg-area district. There’s also Michigan, where Democrats are trying to tilt the delegation by seizing the Grand Rapids-area district where Rep. Justin Amash, the independent aligned with Republicans, is retiring.
There are opportunities in Florida, where Republicans have a one-seat majority, and in Texas, where Democrats would need to sweep five seats to tip the state. And in states with a single at-large House representative.
Pelosi mentioned Alaska at her press conference last week — where longtime Rep. Don Young faces a tough reelection against independent Alyse Galvin — as an example.
Another is Montana, where Democratic former state Rep. Kathleen Williams and Republican state Auditor Matt Rosendale are vying for the state’s lone at-large seat.
Jacob Rubashkin, an analyst at the nonpartisan Inside Elections, said the at-large races could be Democrats’ two “best targets” in what otherwise is an “uphill climb.”
1:52 Nancy Pelosi praises California officials, first responders in wildfire response
Nancy Pelosi praises California officials, first responders in wildfire response
One new uncertainty emerged in Minnesota, where Rep. Angie Craig, a Democratic freshman seeking reelection, is suing to prevent her race from being postponed to February after the death of the Legal Marijuana Now Party candidate. Under state law, if a candidate with major party status dies within 79 days of Election Day, the contest shifts to February. That could cost Democrats control of the Minnesota delegation.
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Pelosi’s strategy is one of many scenarios playing out as the parties brace for an election like none other, punctuated by the coronavirus pandemic, grave economic stress and president’s refusal to adhere to governing traditions and norms.
Rather than calm the nation before a heated election, the president is fuelling doubts about the legitimacy of the vote. He repeatedly says the election is “rigged” as election officials brace for an onslaught of mail-in ballots, even though one study showed voter fraud is so rare there’s a greater chance of being struck by lightning.
Veteran GOP election lawyer Ben Ginsberg said there’s a long ways to go from election day Nov. 3 and a potential House vote on Jan. 6.
“History is that you do know on election day,” he said. He says there’s a less than 50-50 chance the election drags on for week and gives the “chaos theories” a less than 1 per cent probability.
“It’s a low number,” he said. But, “it’s much higher than people have ever contemplated.”
TORONTO – Roots Corp. may have built its brand on all things comfy and cosy, but its CEO says activewear is now “really becoming a core part” of the brand.
The category, which at Roots spans leggings, tracksuits, sports bras and bike shorts, has seen such sustained double-digit growth that Meghan Roach plans to make it a key part of the business’ future.
“It’s an area … you will see us continue to expand upon,” she told analysts on a Friday call.
The Toronto-based retailer’s push into activewear has taken shape over many years and included several turns as the official designer and supplier of Team Canada’s Olympic uniform.
But consumers have had plenty of choice when it comes to workout gear and other apparel suited to their sporting needs. On top of the slew of athletic brands like Nike and Adidas, shoppers have also gravitated toward Lululemon Athletica Inc., Alo and Vuori, ramping up competition in the activewear category.
Roach feels Roots’ toehold in the category stems from the fit, feel and following its merchandise has cultivated.
“Our product really resonates with (shoppers) because you can wear it through multiple different use cases and occasions,” she said.
“We’ve been seeing customers come back again and again for some of these core products in our activewear collection.”
Her remarks came the same day as Roots revealed it lost $5.2 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $5.3 million in the same quarter last year.
The company said the second-quarter loss amounted to 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 3, the same as a year earlier.
In presenting the results, Roach reminded analysts that the first half of the year is usually “seasonally small,” representing just 30 per cent of the company’s annual sales.
Sales for the second quarter totalled $47.7 million, down from $49.4 million in the same quarter last year.
The move lower came as direct-to-consumer sales amounted to $36.4 million, down from $37.1 million a year earlier, as comparable sales edged down 0.2 per cent.
The numbers reflect the fact that Roots continued to grapple with inventory challenges in the company’s Cooper fleece line that first cropped up in its previous quarter.
Roots recently began to use artificial intelligence to assist with daily inventory replenishments and said more tools helping with allocation will go live in the next quarter.
Beyond that time period, the company intends to keep exploring AI and renovate more of its stores.
It will also re-evaluate its design ranks.
Roots announced Friday that chief product officer Karuna Scheinfeld has stepped down.
Rather than fill the role, the company plans to hire senior level design talent with international experience in the outdoor and activewear sectors who will take on tasks previously done by the chief product officer.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, are set to resume today as a strike that has stopped most services drags into a second week.
No timeline has been set for the length of the negotiations, but Joe McCann, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they are willing to stay there as long as it takes, even if talks drag on all night.
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people unable to navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last Tuesday, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
Hundreds of drivers rallied outside TransLink’s head office earlier this week, calling for the transportation provider to intervene in the dispute with Transdev, which was contracted to oversee HandyDART service.
Transdev said earlier this week that it will provide a reply to the union’s latest proposal on Thursday.
A statement from the company said it “strongly believes” that their employees deserve fair wages, and that a fair contract “must balance the needs of their employees, clients and taxpayers.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – Travel company Transat AT Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year earlier as its revenue edged lower.
The parent company of Air Transat says it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31.
The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue in what was the company’s third quarter totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
Transat chief executive Annick Guérard says demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
