How the Government Can Lose a Criminal Case and Punish a Defendant Anyway
A look at the use of acquitted and uncharged conduct in federal sentencing.
Today's Liberal News
Listening to Robert F. Kennedy
Fifty-two years ago last Saturday, Robert Kennedy was assassinated at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, after being declared the winner of the California presidential primary. He was 42 years old.I was too young to remember his death, but over the years I have become something of a Bobby Kennedy devotee. That might seem strange coming from a lifelong conservative who served in three Republican administrations.
One Wedding and a Political Funeral
Virginia Republicans have spent the past decade getting routed in elections. They lost three U.S. congressional seats and control of both chambers of the state legislature in 2018 alone. Yet today, with another tough election less than five months away, Republicans in Virginia’s Fifth District will gather in a church parking lot to decide whether to boot their incumbent congressman, Denver Riggleman, largely because he officiated a same-sex wedding last summer.
The Reason Starbucks Is Closing 400 Stores
The pandemic made it impossible for customers to hang out there—but they already weren’t.
Victoria’s Secret Has Only Itself to Blame
After years of scandal and declining sales, the iconic brand is struggling to survive the coronavirus.
American Indian tribes thwarted in efforts to get coronavirus data
The CDC has turned down tribal epidemiologists’ requests for data that it’s making freely available to states.
WHO warns of ‘accelerating’ pandemic in Africa
The WHO Africa chief said that community transmission has begun in more than half of Africa’s 54 countries and “this is a serious sign.
Fed’s dire outlook: GDP seen shrinking by 6.5 percent this year
The country’s unemployment rate will drop to 9.3 percent by the end of the year, according to the Fed’s forecasts.
Social distancing will suppress recovery despite emergency aid, CBO chief says
States grappling with budget shortfalls are slowly reopening and lifting stay-at-home orders.
Fed’s Powell walks tightrope as economy faces new uncertainty
The Fed chief will likely keep up his persistent advice to Congress to spend more to spur a meaningful recovery.
Lindsey Graham In New Ad: ‘Joe Biden Is As Good A Man As God Ever Created’
Senator’s old comments come back to haunt latest video by Republican Voters Against Trump.
Trump Moves Tulsa Rally So It Won’t Fall On Juneteenth
The president moved the campaign event in Tulsa, site of a 1921 racist massacre, that would have fallen on a holiday celebrating Black freedom from slavery.
Trump Moves Tulsa Rally So It Won’t Fall On Juneteenth
The president moved the campaign event in Tulsa, site of a 1921 racist massacre, that would have fallen on a holiday celebrating Black freedom from slavery.
Anti-Racism Protests Held Coast To Coast Across U.S.
Demonstrators took to the streets for the 18th day after George Floyd was killed by police, demanding an end to systemic racism and police violence.
Friday Night Owls: Excerpts from the July Harper’s Index
Night Owls, a themed open thread, appears at Daily Kos seven days a week
Excerpts from the July edition of the Harper’s Index:
Percentage by which U.S.
States already overwhelmed with unemployment claims combat alleged international fraud ring
About one-third of unemployment benefits owed to the millions of people out of work because of the coronavirus epidemic still hasn’t been paid—some $67 billion owed. Jay Shambaugh, an economist at Brookings Institution who has been tracking the funds, says there is “a huge hole. […] There’s a lot more money that should have gone out that has not gone out.
New York cop accused of zapping Black teen in face with stun gun
As protests continue across the country following the tragic police killing of George Floyd, reports of police-induced violence have also increased. Footage of officers violently responding to protesters, bystanders, and reporters is quickly making its rounds through social media. The New York Police Department (NYPD) has been depicted a number of times in various incidents, including one in which an officer was seen shoving a woman to the ground during a protest in Brooklyn.
Immigrants blocked from completing citizenship process due to pandemic sue for naturalization
Two immigrants who had nearly completed the U.S. citizenship process but whose naturalization ceremonies were cancelled due to the novel coronavirus pandemic have sued, demanding U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) allow them to immediately take the oath of allegiance in time to vote in November’s elections.
The Violent Extremist Threat That’s Growing During Nationwide Protests
As Donald Trump warns of antifa, far-right extremists linked to the Boogaloo movement have been repeatedly charged with attacks.
Right-wing media joins Trump in whipping up fear of a nonexistent antifa threat
Right-wing media is elevating hoax after hoax and misleading report after misleading report in its ongoing effort to make antifa the big deal Donald Trump wants it to be. Antifa may be a literal footnote to an intelligence bulletin on protest-related violence, but if you follow Fox News, Blaze TV, the Daily Caller, you’re hearing constantly what a giant scary threat it is.
Trump Reverses Rule Protecting Transgender Patients From Discrimination
This is the latest effort by the Trump administration to narrowly define sex discrimination.
The Atlantic Daily: This Pandemic Isn’t Over
Every weekday evening, our editors guide you through the biggest stories of the day, help you discover new ideas, and surprise you with moments of delight. Subscribe to get this delivered to your inbox.(TIMOTHY MULCARE“Americans are pretending that the pandemic is over,” Yascha Mounk writes. “It certainly is not.” The coronavirus, he argues, will win—and many will be to blame.Meanwhile, our collective understanding of this virus continues to evolve.
Why virtual care will outlast the pandemic
With millions of people suddenly video chatting their doctors, there’s pressure on Washington to make telehealth a permanent option.
Why CrossFit’s Leader Didn’t Have a Chance of Surviving the Social Workouts of Our Day
How a collision between libertarianism, pandemic, and protests brought down the leader of the fitness juggernaut CrossFit.
Trump finalizes rollback of LGBTQ patient protections
Advocates panned the new rules, which were released on the 4th anniversary of the Pulse nightclub shooting.
List For Biden’s VP Pick Narrows Down To Warren, Harris, Susan Rice And More
As few as six serious contenders are entering a second round of vetting to become a potential vice presidential nominee.
John Bolton Says Reelection Is ‘Only Thing That Mattered’ To Trump
The former national security adviser says the president has no problem “endangering or weakening the nation” if it helps him win reelection.
Behind the Byline With Ed Yong
In our series “Behind the Byline,” we’re chatting with Atlantic staffers to learn more about who they are and how they approach their work. Ed Yong is a staff writer who covers science. He writes about everything from hagfish slime to giraffe tackling, but since March, he has focused all his reportorial energy on the pandemic.This interview has been lightly edited and condensed.