ReAwaken America tour spreading the gospel of Trump

ReAwaken America tour spreading the gospel of Trump

Ed Pilkington reports: “There is a man by the name of Donald,” the voice on the recording says. “God said, ‘You have been determined through your prayers to influence this nation … I will open that door that you prayed about, and when it comes time for the election you will be elected.” Three thousand people are packed into an overflowing auditorium, many with arms raised and eyes closed in prayer. The recording to which they are listening is from…

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In undisclosed talks, U.S. keeps communications channels with Moscow open

In undisclosed talks, U.S. keeps communications channels with Moscow open

The Wall Street Journal reports: President Biden’s top national-security adviser has engaged in recent months in confidential conversations with top aides to Russian President Vladimir Putin in an effort to reduce the risk of a broader conflict over Ukraine and warn Moscow against using nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction, U.S. and allied officials said. The officials said that U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan has been in contact with Yuri Ushakov, a foreign-policy adviser to Mr. Putin. Mr. Sullivan…

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As trials loom on the horizon, Trump’s closest legal adviser has no trial experience

As trials loom on the horizon, Trump’s closest legal adviser has no trial experience

The Washington Post reports: Few people speak to former president Donald Trump more these days than Boris Epshteyn. The pugilistic communications consultant often has five or more conversations with Trump a day, advisers say, with the former president sometimes interrupting meetings with prominent elected officials to take his calls. A lawyer by training who has also worked as an investment banker, Epshteyn, 40, has morphed into one of the most influential figures in Trump’s orbit, winning his ear on how…

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Canada’s First Nations move to protect their lands

Canada’s First Nations move to protect their lands

Ed Struzik writes: On yet another unusually warm subarctic day last August, members of the Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ First Nation in the Northwest Territories of Canada held a fire-feeding ceremony, drummed, raised their eagle-emblazoned flag, and prepared a celebratory feast for themselves and a group of scientists 30 miles south of where they live in Fort Simpson. By the close of festivities, Laurier University’s 23-year-old Scotty Creek Research Station, which is monitoring the varied impacts of climate change and permafrost thaw,…

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Women under 25 could be the most influential voters of the midterms

Women under 25 could be the most influential voters of the midterms

Marisa Kabas writes: Polling for the upcoming midterm election has been teetering back and forth between which party will win the most seats, but the prevailing sentiment is that Democrats are in big trouble due to Republican-driven narratives on inflation, gas prices and crime. “Fearing a New Shellacking, Democrats Rush for Economic Message,” read a recent New York Times headline for an article that cites a Democratic pollster expressing worry that party support from the summer is “evaporating.” But while…

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Twitter layoffs gutted election information teams days before midterms

Twitter layoffs gutted election information teams days before midterms

The Washington Post reports: Devastating cuts to Twitter’s workforce on Friday, four days before the midterm elections, are fueling anxieties among political campaigns and election offices that have counted on the social network’s staff to help them combat violent threats and viral lies. The mass layoffs Friday gutted teams devoted to combating election misinformation, adding context to misleading tweets and communicating with journalists, public officials and campaign staff. The layoffs included a number of people who were scheduled to be…

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With Twitter in chaos, Mastodon is on fire

With Twitter in chaos, Mastodon is on fire

CNN reports: In the week since Elon Musk took over Twitter, the number of people signing up for a small social network called Mastodon has surged. You may not have heard of Mastodon, which has been around since 2016, but now it’s growing rapidly. Some are fleeing Twitter for it or at least seeking out a second place to post their thoughts online as the much more well-known social network faces layoffs, controversial product changes, an expected shift in its…

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Most Americans think they won’t be misled by election disinformation — but they worry about others falling victim

Most Americans think they won’t be misled by election disinformation — but they worry about others falling victim

Knight Foundation: More than half of all Americans (58%) say they are somewhat or very concerned that people in their community could be deceived by election disinformation. But at the same time, few think they will fall victim themselves: only 27% say they might fall victim to false or misleading information, while 25% say misleading information might sway their decisions at the polls. This pattern holds across party lines. Most Democrats, Republicans and Independents feel confident they won’t be misled…

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What if Biden does not run again?

What if Biden does not run again?

Reuters reports: The U.S. midterm elections on Tuesday will do much more than shape the next two years of Joe Biden’s presidency. They will also help determine whether he will run in 2024 as well, political analysts and advisers believe. While a new president’s party historically suffers losses in Congress during the midterm election, Biden, 79, faces extra scrutiny. He and advisers have said as recently as Nov. 2 that he wants to run again, and that they’re already making…

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The Pentagon says it will support Ukraine for ‘as long as it takes’

The Pentagon says it will support Ukraine for ‘as long as it takes’

The New York Times reports: The Defense Department is setting up a new command to oversee how the United States and its allies train and equip the Ukrainian military, the Pentagon announced on Friday along with a new package of $400 million in security assistance. The Pentagon’s commitment to supplying Ukraine with weaponry and the new command are clear signals that the United States expects the threat from Russia to Ukraine and its neighbors to persist for many years, current…

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The weird way language affects our sense of time and space

The weird way language affects our sense of time and space

Miriam Frankel and Matt Warren write: If you were asked to walk diagonally across a field, would you know what to do? Or what if you were offered £20 ($23) today or double that amount in a month, would you be willing to wait? And how would you line up 10 photos of your parents if you were instructed to sort them in chronological order? Would you place them horizontally or vertically? In which direction would the timeline move? These…

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Ukraine’s war has forced more than 14 million people to flee their homes, the UN says

Ukraine’s war has forced more than 14 million people to flee their homes, the UN says

The New York Times reports: Russia’s eight-month war in Ukraine has already created the largest and fastest refugee crisis in decades. But the United Nations and humanitarian agencies are warning that new fighting in the east and south, Moscow’s intensified targeting of power plants and other infrastructure, the approaching winter and fears of a nuclear attack could drive even more Ukrainians to flee their homes in the coming months. More than 14 million people have fled their homes since Russia’s…

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Why isn’t Trumpism hurting the GOP? Some Democrats see vexing answers

Why isn’t Trumpism hurting the GOP? Some Democrats see vexing answers

Greg Sargent writes: Something extraordinary just happened: In the space of just this week, a president and an ex-president warned that the opposition poses an existential threat to our political way of life. Joe Biden declared that “MAGA Republicans” have placed democracy “under threat.” Barack Obama warned that if GOP election deniers win in Arizona, “democracy may not survive.” Yet the ongoing MAGA threat to U.S. democracy, including from Donald Trump himself, isn’t harming Republican chances of winning the House…

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Days before the midterms, Twitter lays off employees who fight misinformation

Days before the midterms, Twitter lays off employees who fight misinformation

NBC News reports: Mass layoffs at Twitter on Friday battered the teams primarily responsible for keeping the platform free of misinformation, potentially hobbling the company’s capabilities four days before the end of voting in Tuesday’s midterm elections, one current and six former Twitter employees familiar with the cuts told NBC News, five of whom were recently laid off. Two former Twitter employees and one current employee warned that could bring chaos around the elections, as the layoffs hit especially hard…

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