Amy Coney Barrett committee vote due before Trump and Biden head for debate – US politics live

There’s been quite the online reaction to the scenes of Rudy Giuliani in the new Borat movie. In the film the former New York mayor and current personal attorney to Donald Trump is seen reaching into his trousers and apparently touching his genitals while reclining on a bed in the presence of the actor playing Borat’s daughter, who is posing as a TV journalist.

It’s just one release in the run-up to the US election seeking to make a political impact. Charles Bramesco writes for us this morning asking can entertainment really affect an election?

The run-up to the presidential election has brought about an explosion of topical projects announcing themselves as a noble bulwark against the encroaching threat of another Trump term. And with them, the age-old debate over what any of this actually accomplishes has been reignited. Every time a film introduces itself as the one we need right now, it must first answer the question of whether a film is what we really need. As of late, the arguments have not been especially compelling.

Related: Borat v Trump: can entertainment really affect an election?

The Washington Post’s over-worked fact-checkers have written this morning that in the run-up to the election, Trump is averaging more than 50 false or misleading claims a day. You’ve got to feel for them…

As President Trump entered the final stretch of the election season, he began making more than 50 false or misleading claims a day. It’s only gotten worse — so much so that the Fact Checker team cannot keep up.

As of 27 August, the tally in our database that tracks every errant claim by the president stood at 22,247 claims in 1,316 days.

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Trump responds to Barack Obama’s speech at Biden-Harris rally – video

Donald Trump has responded to Barack Obama's speech at a campaign rally for Joe Biden, saying the former president underestimated him in 2016. "I think the only one, the only one more unhappy than crooked Hillary that night was Barack Hussein Obama," Trump said. Less than two weeks from the election, Trump's campaign took him to North Carolina, where he told supporters "I love this particular state, but I might not have come here so often. I've been all over your state, you better let me win"

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Russia and Iran obtained US voter data in bid to sow unrest before election, FBI warns

In rare news conference, the director of national security says Iran has sent spoofed emails to intimidate voters

Russia and Iran have obtained some US voting registration information and are attempting to sow unrest in the upcoming election, the government’s national intelligence director said in a rare news conference Wednesday night.

“We have already seen Iran sending spoofed emails, designed to intimidate voters, incite social unrest and damage President Trump,” said John Ratcliffe, the director of national intelligence.

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Barack Obama likens Donald Trump to ‘crazy uncle’ in Joe Biden rally speech – video

Barack Obama has delivered a stinging rebuke of president Donald Trump in a speech delivered in Philadelphia while campaigning for Joe Biden. Obama criticised Trump's handling of the coronavirus crisis as well as divisive behaviour including retweeting conspiracy theories that you wouldn't tolerate from  anyone “except from a crazy uncle". The former president also praised the positivity shown during the pandemic and recent Black Lives Matter movement . "We see that what is best is us is still there, but we've got to give it voice."

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‘Trump isn’t going to protect us’: Obama returns to campaign trail for Biden

Former president told voters in swing state Pennsylvania: ‘What we do now these next 13 days will matter for decades to come’

Barack Obama returned to the campaign trail on Wednesday to deliver a scathing – and occasionally humorous – condemnation of his successor while envisioning an America led by his former vice-president, Joe Biden.

Sleeves rolled and wearing a black mask that read VOTE, Obama assailed Donald Trump over his response to the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 220,000 Americans and infected millions more, including the president.

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Rudy Giuliani faces questions after compromising scene in new Borat film

Trump’s personal attorney has indiscreet encounter with actor playing Borat’s daughter in hotel room during pandemic

The reputation of Rudy Giuliani could be set for a further blow with the release of highly embarrassing footage in Sacha Baron Cohen’s follow-up to Borat.

In the film, released on Friday, the former New York mayor and current personal attorney to Donald Trump is seen reaching into his trousers and apparently touching his genitals while reclining on a bed in the presence of the actor playing Borat’s daughter, who is posing as a TV journalist.

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Broken promises and alternative facts: how Donald Trump failed Ohio – video

After winning the 2016 election, Donald Trump promised to deliver new jobs and economic prosperity to Youngstown, Ohio, a city suffering from decades of decline. But four years on those promises never manifested. Oliver Laughland and Tom Silverstone meet residents who lost their jobs and had their families split by economic necessity, and witness how the demise of the city’s only newspaper made it harder to hold politicians accountable for their failures

More from the Anywhere but Washington series: 




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Obama stumps for Biden in Philadelphia as polls show Trump trailing in state – live

Meanwhile, it seems Trump supporters in North Carolina were asked to avoid QAnon clothing.

The president refused to disavow QAnon during an NBC town hall last week. “I don’t know about QAnon,” he insisted.

A Trump campaign worker ahead of the President’s rally in Gastonia, NC, is informing attendees as they arrive at the main entrance that they cannot wear any QAnon attire.

“No flags, no signs, no e-cigarettes, no clothing with obscenities, no QAnon attire...” w/ @carolelee pic.twitter.com/vnddhTewH1

Joe Biden is leading by an average of 5 points in Pennsylvania – but Trump won the state by less than one point in 2016.

Here’s how the candidates are polling in swing states:

Related: US election polls tracker: who is leading in the swing states?

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Trump says US is ‘crushing’ coronavirus as country passes 220,000 deaths – video

The president is 'crushing' Covid-19 as the country surpasses 220,000 deaths from the virus. Speaking at a campaign rally in Erie, Pennsylvania, Trump told voters 'If you want depression, doom and despair. Vote for sleepy Joe Biden. And boredom'. Trump blamed former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton when his microphone cut out during the rally and also claimed that if the virus had not struck he would not have needed to campign very hard to win re-election.

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Joe Biden criticises Donald Trump for renewed Fauci attack over Covid – US politics live

It’s worth noting that Mitch McConnell said the Senate would consider a coronavirus relief bill “at some point” if a deal is reached between House speaker Nancy Pelosi and treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin.

That phrasing leaves it very unclear when the Senate would take up a coronavirus relief package if an agreement is reached.

Mitch McConnell said he would put a coronavirus relief bill on the Senate floor for a vote, if the White House and congressional Democrats can reach a deal on the package.

House speaker Nancy Pelosi and treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin are expected to discuss the negotiations again in about a half an hour, and Pelosi has said she is “optimistic” about reaching an agreement.

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US elections 2020: Joe Biden and Donald Trump’s possible paths to power – podcast

Lauren Gambino, political correspondent for Guardian US, discusses which states Biden will need to win to take the White House, and what Trump will need to do to retain the presidency

What matters on 3 November is not which candidate gets more votes in the US election, but who secures the 270 electoral college votes needed to get to the White House. Lauren Gambino, political correspondent for Guardian US, talks to Anushka Asthana about Joe Biden and Donald Trump’s possible paths to power.

In 2016, Trump pulled off a shock victory by becoming the first Republican presidential candidate in 28 years to win Michigan, Pennsylvania or Wisconsin - but by razor-thin victories says Lauren. Biden wants to get a higher turnout among African American voters and he wants to try and win back white, working-class former Democrat voters. Biden is also looking for support from the suburbs, particularly college-educated women and men who are increasingly turning away from Trump, and seniors. Biden has been trying to take back the narrative by reframing the race as “a campaign between Scranton and Park Avenue” and polls currently have Biden leading in these battleground states. The president is also struggling to maintain control of states he won a bit more easily in 2016 – namely Florida, Arizona and North Carolina. If Trump loses Florida, where Biden has a marginal lead, it will be almost impossible for him to win the White House.

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Presidential debate commission adopts rules to mute microphones

Candidates will be muted while the other has the floor and any interruptions will count toward their time

When Donald Trump and Joe Biden face off on Thursday for a final televised debate, each candidate will have their microphones cut off while the other is delivering responses to questions.

The 90-minute debate is divided into six 15-minute segments, with each candidate granted two minutes to deliver uninterrupted remarks before proceeding to an open debate.

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Donald Trump heads to Arizona as coronavirus surge grips US – US politics live

President Donald Trump is appearing today in both Prescott and Tucson in Arizona. Reid Wilson last night for the Hill previewed the trip, saying that undecided voters in the state are wary of Trump and craving stablility. Wilson writes:

The few Arizona voters still struggling to make up their minds between Trump and Biden are weighing a conservative agenda they generally favor led by a candidate they do not like against a more liberal agenda they do not entirely support led by a candidate who comes across as far more empathetic.

In interviews with undecided and late-deciding voters here, many said they had supported Trump four years ago, but that his behavior had either disqualified him in their minds or raised serious questions about whether he is fit for another term in office.

A lawsuit seeking to prevent Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam from removing an enormous statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond is scheduled to go to trial Monday.

The plaintiffs, a group of Richmond residents who live near the monument, filed suit after Northam ordered the removal of the statue in June amid the outcry caused by the police killing of George Floyd.

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Global report: Fauci ‘absolutely not’ surprised Trump got Covid; Biden warns virus worsening

China’s economy grows 4.9%; ‘Situation is critical’ in Italy, says PM; restrictions ease in Australian city of Melbourne

Dr Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious diseases expert and sidelined White House coronavirus taskforce member, has said he was “absolutely not” surprised that Donald Trump contracted coronavirus, as Joe Biden warned that the coronavirus outbreak was worsening.

In an interview with 60 Minutes aired on Sunday, shortly before Trump held a rally in Nevada, Fauci said: “I was worried that he was going to get sick when I saw him in a completely precarious situation of crowded, no separation between people, and almost nobody wearing a mask.”

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Biden says Trump ‘gone round the bend if he thinks we’ve turned corner’ on Covid as cases surge – as it happened

Here’s a summary of today’s events:

The Washington Post is already looking ahead to the contest to become the Republican party’s presidential nominee in 2024, regardless of whether Donald Trump sinks or swims on 3 November.

In an opinion piece Sunday penned by the respected political analyst and talk show host Hugh Hewitt, the newspaper lists 20 names of prominent and not-so-prominent Republican governors, senators, congressmen and women and two Trumps – Don Jr and Ivanka – he thinks are likely to throw hats into what promises to be a crowded ring.

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Trump attempts to save himself in battleground states as Covid cases surge

With little more than two weeks to reverse his dismal standing in the polls, and amid a coronavirus resurgence that could sink his pursuit of a second term, Donald Trump has embarked on a tour of battleground states.

Related: Trump's hopes fade in Wisconsin as 'greatest economy' boast unravels

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Trump: If I lose, it will be to the worst candidate in history – video

Donald Trump has described his Democratic presidential rival, Joe Biden, as the 'worst candidate in history' at a rally in Wisconsin. 'If I lose … what do I do? I'd rather run against somebody who is extraordinarily talented, at least this way I can go and lead my life.' Trump again insisted that he was immune from Covid-19, saying he 'got better fast' and that he 'can now jump into the audience and give you all a big kiss, the women and the men'

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Biden accuses Trump of trying to wish away Covid ahead of Wisconsin rally – as it happened

Here’s a summary of the latest events:

Mitch McConnell announced Saturday that the Senate will vote Tuesday on a Paycheck Protection Plan funding bill and Wednesday on the same $500bn Covid-19 aid package that Democrats blocked last month on the grounds that it didn’t go far enough.

“It is long past time for the two parties to agree where we can and get more money out the door,” the Senate majority leader said in a statement.

I just announced the Senate will vote next week on hundreds of billions more dollars for relief programs that Democrats do not even oppose. Working families have already waited too long for Speaker Pelosi’s Marie Antoinette act to stop. Let's make law. pic.twitter.com/iR7OYKuCKw

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US records highest daily coronavirus case total since July

More than 68,000 new cases of Covid-19 were recorded in the US on Friday, the highest number in a single day since July, further confirmation the country is in the midst of a coronavirus resurgence.

Related: American Crisis review: Andrew Cuomo on Covid, Trump … and a job with Joe Biden?

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Trump blasts Sasse for predicting Senate Republican bloodbath

The president issued a familiar stream of insults on Twitter after the Nebraska senator heavily criticised him to constituents

Down in the polls to Joe Biden and campaigning through a surging pandemic, Donald Trump chose to devote time on Saturday morning to a Twitter rant against a member of his own party in the Senate, a chamber Republicans face losing on 3 November.

Related: Trump trails Biden with two weeks to go – but there could yet be surprises

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