Senate and House Latest, Confronting Racism in Florida: 12 Days to Go

@David Democrats - on the "high ground"? You must be joking. Pro-war. Pro-fracking. Pro-voter suppression. Pro-income-inequality. Sounds like the low ground to me.

@Jay Orchard Early voting reports show that GOP voters are turning out in large number for early voting. Knox County in Tennessee is strongly GOP and about half the population of Shelby County(Memphis) which is heavily democrat. Early numbers show that there have been almost the same number of early votes cast in both counties. Other states are reporting the same thing in their early voting.

@Jay Orchard I’m a Democrat and went to early vote today. Chatting up my fellow voters I heard from plenty of Red folks feeling oh so blue about the state of affairs in this Trump climate of chicanery and false inflated found less bravado. The community center I voted in was overrun with people. I have never gone voting - even on the assigned voting date of the last presidential election and witnessed such throngs of impassioned voters. This election without question is indeed the most important election of our lifetimes. Either we recover our basic allegiance to truth and the very real moral morass this enfant terrible has led our collective destinies into for the sole pleasure of his banal twisted, and psychotically malformed ego. It’s understandzble why so many equally uneducated and intellectually deficient masses adore him. He makes them feel loved, understood, and above all offers them a sanctuary to legitimize their own wildly paranoid souls so desperate to be told that they hold the truth in their hands. Let us hope those who are truly educated and learned and see the world outside the confines of these miscreant’s tiny universes of loathing and hate come out and vote to salvage what we can out of the global and domestic devastation this Category five Hurricane Trump has wrought through the daily evisceration of our highest visions for this once civilized land.

@Brannon Perkison...."Am I the only one who thinks we really need a viable third party?"....I sure hope so. Third parties only work when you have a parliamentary system where two or more parties can get together to form the government. In a presidential system as in the U.S. having a third party is a near guarantee that their will be a minority government. And very likely the least representative option because the third party is most likely to split the vote of what would otherwise have been the favored party..

@Brannon Perkison Correct, however, that does not deal with the most important problem in that powerful corporations and lobbyists are free to buy politicians whom ultimately strictly serve their interests, not the citizens.

I have felt the same for a long time. We need a third -- and forth and fifth -- party, for example like France. Unfortunately, we treat any semblance of a third party as "a spoiler" for the stranglehold we currently have.

@Gary F.S. McCaskill and Donnelly are the "poster children" for establishment democrats whose only interest they serve are those of their donors and will say or do anything to keep their jobs. There are reasons why that within the last ten years the democrats have lost almost 1000 seats at the state and federal levels with Republicans now controlling two-thirds of the states and all THREE executive branches of the government. McCaskill and Donnelly are just two of them.

@Steve C New Reports this week showed the Middle Class earned more money this past year under the Trump tax plan than in anytime in US history. 4 Million have been lifted off the food stamp roles.

@Alain James.....Did you know that Romney, who lost in Wisconsin to Obama in 2012, had more votes than Trump who won in Wisconsin in 2016. Do you know why? Because a lot of Bernie progressives didn't show up to vote. Seems to me it is the progressives that did not learn anything. The bottom line is that a progressive can talk to and work for change with a moderate Democrat. Whereas with a Republican they won't get the time of day. The problem with progressives is that unless they learn how to count they will never make any progress.

@W.A. Spitzer When you are willing to confront the corruption of the DNC, and what they did to undermine the Sanders campaign, let's talk.

@David Gregory......"I care not if she wins or loses".....So that means you prefer Trump. Great. Just great.

@W.A. Spitzer Trump is not running for the Senate from Missouri. That is quite a leap to make such an accusation. No, I do not like Mr Trump nor did I vote for him.

@Larry Eisenberg The voter registration hold ups are being done by the local election board and NOT at the state level. Most have errors that must be corrected. But AGAIN all of this is being done at the LOCAL level and NOT on the state level. the county in question above Kalb is 70% minority and is ran by democrats. The local election board holding up these registrations are DEMOCRATS.

@Larry Eisenberg Kemp implemented a process in which individuals getting new or renewal drivers licenses would automatically be registered to vote. This has resulted in the number of registered votes being higher than at any time in history. Does he get credit for increasing voter registration? No. The Democrats contend that some 4700 people made mail in requests for absentee ballots, and only 48 actually got absentee ballots, but cannot name a single one of the 4652 individuals who didn't get an absentee ballot. Something is off in the lawsuit.

@Nostradamus Said So These hardcore are violent people and they alone are his "base", they alone are "loyal" to him above all else, including their nation and their communities. Reach out to them with soft words and they will leap at your jugular to tear out your throat. Remain silent and they will leap at your jugular to tear out your throat. Call them what they are and they will leap at your jugular to tear out your throat. Even without the powerful calling for impeachment,, here is where we have arrived: One butchered reporter of a newspaper named often and libeled by Trump as his enemy -- by a Prince who must have known that Trump would defend his highness, praise him, as in fact trump has -- predictably. One more congratulations to a trump cultist who knew he'd incur only trump's praise, never disapprobation, for assaulting a reporter. CNN named as the "enemy" 21 months ago, followed by a "presidential statement" of a cartoon showing the enemy being beaten up by trump, has received a bomb. And the foiled murderers defended by trump as "angry" at his enemy. Freedom itself his enemy., his and his cultists' true target. Democratic elected officials and the most influential of the Press have been feeble w/ tsk-tsk responses to trump's calls to violence against his Him-defined treasonous enemies, all who oppose him inc. you and I, with the bomb recipients having been named by name by him. Time to say it, in vain or not: His words are High Crimes: IMPEACH.

@EGD"extremists to destroy Kavanaugh as a part of a deliberately false and malicious character assassination campaign". You have your opinion, what evidence do you have? I agree with my (R) Senator Lisa Murkowski that Kavanaugh was not SCOTUS material because of his temperament that he exhibited while being under oath in front of the Senate. Klobuchar gave him a chance to deny an allegation made against him; his response, if the situation had happened in HIS court, would have earned him a swift Contempt of Court. His opening statement demonstrated his serious lack of judicial temperament.

@EGD If a Supreme Court nominee can't handle tough questions with grace and courage do we want him as final arbiter of our nation's laws? So even if you're right about falsehoods, he still failed miserably. It was Republicans that chose speed rather than substance.

@EGD I'm not sure there even is a list of decent Republicans anymore. Marching in lockstep with Trump pretty much took care of decent Republicans. All Democrats do not march in lockstep with the progressive wing, which we see reported in the news every day. I think it is a good thing that Democrats stand for mostly the same things, but at various levels of commitment. That's okay, as they represent different constituents, some more conservative than others. that used to be part of the greatness of the Democratic party, the big tent, the squabbles, etc. Bring it back so the people can see that all issues aren't as simple as Trump tells the Trumpists they are. Fewer lies, too! Vote blue on Nov. 6!

@Erica Smythe The worst public school systems in the nations are mostly in red states, while the best are mostly in blue states. And not California, but Louisiana is #50. The US in general is in the bottom third and even quarter of the PISA tests of all OECD in reading, math and science. Difference is that in those nations that fare much better, teachers loving their profession don't pay school material out of pocket, but have much higher salaries. Furthermore, teachers in other countries need a masters degree in subject they are teaching in high-schools that run from grade 6 through 12, and many have a Ph.D. in their field to boot.

@Sarah Teachers in the countries you love are paid lower salaries than American public school teachers, as are their medical professionals. Facts matter. Americans pay twice as much per capita for public education and get poorer outcomes. We also pay twice as much for medical care, but at least our outcomes are better.

@Pdxtran It is really no different than the Republicans who look to enjoy some of the advantages of having a Republican president but also distancing themselves from the more inflammatory things Trump is saying and doing. Ultimately to be successful as a politician and to stay in office or advance to higher levels you have to be able to help both sides to some degree. Being completely to one side or the other does not work long term. Keep Roe vs. Wade, keep protections for LGBTs, keep a national healthcare program, protect Social Security, but also protect our borders/do a much better job of managing immigration, don't tax the heck out of corporations and individuals, maintain a strong military, keep a capitalist based society, do something about the infrastructure, etc. You have to help both sides.

@DC: "Don't tax the heck out of corporations and individuals, maintain a strong military"?-- We have some of the least taxed rich people in the industrialized world. Any corporation that pays the "list price" for taxes has a lousy accounting staff. How strong does the U.S. military have to be? At the moment, it is stronger than the militaries of the next several biggest-spending countries *combined.* It is far beyond actual defensive needs and for most of my six decades has been used almost entirely in attempts to impose America's will on other countries. And it's the children of the working class, not the children of the planners of these arrogant ventures, who die in the naive belief that they're "serving their country." You're asking the Democrats to coast on their previous accomplishments but not to make any bold proposals that might offend the Republicans. Note that the Republicans NEVER hesitate to make bold proposals, and in case you haven't noticed, they control most of the state legislatures, both houses of Congress, the White House, and now, the Supreme Court. Voters have to be able to tell the difference between the two parties.

@Pdxtran You are confusing our arch-right wingers with facts. As naturalized citizen from oh-so-supposedly socialist Europe, I always considered the Democratic Party smack in the centre of the political spectrum. Democrats compared to Republicans have moved very little, while the latter have now arrived in goose step at the abyss of fascism.

@MR Sorry , but Yes it certainly does appear to be part of the Nationalist movement that both trump and desantis give support too /period .

@MR...the mere (and constant) accusation of racism (about all things, all events, all outcomes - real or imagined or 'possible') in no way proves racism. That is the difference and that is why "racism" is not a deal breaker for many people. And it shouldn't be.

@Philip S. Wenz Oh, so there’s ‘talk.’ Let’s call it what it is: paranoid, hyperbolic nonsense.

@EGD The "talk" comes from the White House, not me or random sources. Go read the quote from Bernstein in the Newsweek article. The "paranoid" in this situation is Con Man Don — and he has good reason to be frightened if the House begins real, as opposed to faux investigations into his nefarious business dealings.

@EGD This is why the republican party is being voted from office both California and Colorado . thier will not any republicans office holder in either state in the future /and the future starts Nov 6th .

@Teddi When are people going to stop thinking of "women's issues" as a fringe group? Women make up 50.8% of the population of this country. Women's issues are middle class issues. Women's issues are issues, period.

@Teddi Bernie might have been "wildly" popular in his local venues; he was that nationally. I would love to see free education up through university; universal basic health care; a living wage guaranteed by a decent minimum wage; repair and maintenance of valuable infrastructure, across State lines. I regret the recent installation of a Catholic ideologue on the Supreme Court, confirmed by a GOP Congress. Bernie is too old to accomplish what we need. He is also compromised by all that "Independent Socialist" baggage. He had a lot to do with a bunch of kids who stormed a Convention on his behalf. Hillary Clinton was qualified, established, known here and abroad, respected by those women whose benefits she fought for, and would have brought a master pol, Bill Clinton, with her. The kids who surrounded her managed a terrible campaign. So, the take away is that there need to adults in the room, political mentors who have been through a few campaigns, who know the art of the possible. Passion is needed; however, all politics is local. Get out the vote by recognizing what is important in local venues, and campaign on those issues. Ted Kennedy was another master pol. Both Kennedy and Clinton knew how to walk the street, talk with people, and listen to them. Big rallies are like Nascar races. Town Halls are real forums. I attended many in CT.

@Teddi, actually they all talk about health care not any of the other issues you raise. You are significantly misinformed.

@Not Amused The conservatives want a return to 1950? More like a return to the 1860's.

@kraidstar right you are...I was trying to be kind

@c harris I can't speak for McCaskill. However, I can speak as a Democrat who has voted for many decades. My parents took me to a country school house near my grandfather's ranch to vote for Truman; they taught me that voting was really important. They were the FDR generation; they had been through a world war and a Depression. As I recall my history, FDR was also accused of being a "Socialist"; he was, if Social Security is socialism. Truman was accused of being a "Socialist"; he was, if Medicare is socialism. The Democratic Party believes in The Social Contract which includes all citizens and their well being. It does not include adversaries, as is Putin and the Russian financiers who have bankrolled Trump. FDR did not do business with Krupp. Truman did not do business with Mao. Trump does business with Putin, and with the bloody 7thC sheiks in Saudi Arabia. He is a transactional failed businessman, a propagandist, a con man. I can't watch or listen to him; he is cringe making on so many levels.

@Linda Miilu Medicare was brought to us by yet another New Dealer, Lyndon Baines Johnson. Otherwise I agree entirely.

@Linda Miilu Medicare was not created, along with Medicaid, until the mid 1960's. Truman, who was president from 1947-1953, had nothing to do with it. The Russians bankrolled Bill Clinton and the Clinton Foundation while Hillary was Secretary of State. She coincidentally approved the sale of Uranium One to Russian oligarchs. Truman abandoned Eastern Europe to the USSR and abandoned China to Mao.

@Lydia The radical elements our the republican party /period Signed an Independent voters against trump .

@Lydia I disagree. In some cases we need centrists, and in the future we will need centrists. But at this particular time, we need more populists on the Left who actually stand for something, will use plain-speak to convey those positions to ordinary people, and will aggressively take down Republicans. In the 2020 presidential election Democrats need an attack dog, someone not afraid to get down in the mud with tRump. If we put up a centrist who will only "go high" we will lose again.

@Lydia: Left or centrist, we need candidates who understand their local voters and what issues will move them.

@anna gilbert I couldn't agree more. The NYT made another historic blunder (not the first in its history) during the run up to 2016 by its (non) coverage of the Sanders campaign and its hysterical harping on those profoundly inconsequential emails. Stop with the breathless coverage of every dumb thing that comes out of Trump's mouth or off his teeny-tiny fingers. Button Mushroom's tweets are not the most important story out there right now...voter suppression may be. How many column inches of real information could have been fit into the hole created for the photograph of the orange thing? Might be important to calculate that before it's too late for us all.

@njglea The Times reported on the stock market on the front page of today's hard copy. Polls are not predictions; they are attempts to evaluate voters' positions. The media have not tried to call elections. They are doing their job: reporting on the news, reporting on what's happening. I don't understand why you think any media organization should stop reporting on one aspect of the news. Why do you think this would be a good thing? Why is it a bad thing? I don't get your reasoning.