BREAKING NEWS!!!
Biden, Trump Face Off in Final Presidential Debate
by Xavier Branch
Oct. 23, 2020
President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden discussed the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare, and foreign polices at their second presidential debate in Nashville, Tenn. on Thursday, October 23.
This marks the final debate between the two candidates, as the prior debate was cancelled two weeks ago. NBC News correspondent Kristen Welker oversaw the debate to make sure both candidates had an opportunity to speak without interrupting each other.
The coronavirus has been and still is one of the most important factors surrounding the 2020 presidential election and both candidates decided to take different stances on the matter. While President Trump believes the country is rounding the corner with the virus going away, Biden is optimistic about the current plan the Trump administration has in place.
"He says ... we're learning to live with it. People are learning to die with it," said Biden.
Trump claims he has done the right things for our country throughout the whole COVID-19 pandemic—including opening the country back up from the shutdown.
"I don't know if we're going to have a dark winter… We're opening up our country. We've learned and studied and understand the disease,” said Trump.
President Trump is also hopeful that a vaccine will become available and distributed out to the American people by the end of this year, but it is still not a guarantee.
One thing Biden set out to make clear to the American people was his plan for the Affordable Care Act, which has been dubbed the name “Bidencare”. This policy would lower premiums, deductibles, and drug prices while offering everyone a choice of receiving some type of coverage.
"People deserve to have affordable health care, period. Period. Period. Period," said Biden.
Trump argued against Biden’s policy and continued his criticism against the current Affordable Care Act.
"What we'd like to do is terminate it. We have the individual mandate done. I don't know that it's going to work. If we don't win... we'll have Obamacare, but it will be better run," said Trump.
The polls have been open for two weeks now allowing people the opportunity for early voting. However, the last day to vote on the presidential election is less than two weeks away on Tuesday, November 3.
Commission Cancels Second Presidential Debate
by Shelton Jackson
Oct. 9, 2020
The Commission on Presidential Debates has canceled the second presidential debate scheduled for October 15 after President Trump rejected the virtual format planned for the debate.
According to a CNN article, the cancellation comes after a 48-hour back and forth between the commission and both campaigns. This means that the third debate scheduled for October 22 in Nashville will likely be the last meeting between the two candidates before the election.
"It is now apparent there will be no debate on October 15, and the CPD will turn its attention to preparations for the final presidential debate scheduled for October 22," the commission said in a statement in the CNN article.
A previous article from CNN stated that Trump told Fox Business that he was “not going to waste his time on a virtual debate.” This statement came after the commission announced that the second debate scheduled for next week would be held virtually due to the President and First Lady’s positive COVID-19 tests.
The CNN report also states that the Biden campaign would have to agree to the virtual format knowing the current status of the President and First Lady.
The article said that the Trump campaign was willing to push the October 15 debate back a week and move the third debate to October 29 which will be days before the election. However, the Biden campaign has rejected their proposal.
"Donald Trump doesn't make the debate schedule; the Debate Commission does," said Biden campaign spokeswoman Kate Bedingfield.
The cancellation of the debate could be detrimental to Trump’s chances of re-election. According to CNN, he is currently trailing in every national poll and in some key swing states and one less debate means one less opportunity to convince voters to choose him.
President Trump, First Lady Test Positive for COVID-19
by Brandy McDonald-Johnson
Oct. 2, 2020
President Donald Trump took to Twitter early Friday morning to announce that he and first lady Melania Trump have tested positive for COVID-19-- just shortly after news broke that his adviser Hope Hicks tested positive.
According to ABC, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said that President Trump is experiencing "mild symptoms," but that doctors are constantly monitoring him and the first lady.
"As a precautionary measure, he [President Trump] received a single eight gram dose of Regeneron's polyclonal antibody cocktail. In addition...the president has been taking zinc, vitamin D, famotidine, melatonin, and a daily aspirin," White House Physician Sean Conley said.
In regards to symptoms, Conley said the president has been fatigued and the first lady is experiencing a mild cough and headache.
The Trump children, Joe and Jill Biden, and Vice President Pence have all tested negative.
Following the announcement, Reuters Business reported that U.S. and European stock markets took a dip when investors moved into "safer" gold options and the Japanese yen.
The U.S. is just 32 days away from the presidential election, which has made some people skeptical that President Trump will use the news to win sympathy points with voters.
Presidential Debate Turns Heads for Republicans
by Roxanne Cortner
Sept. 30, 2020
Trump and Biden met for the first presidential debate of 2020 on Tuesday in Cleveland, Ohio, and a lack of answers and professionalism may have swayed republicans away from the Trump campaign.
“As president of the United states it's his job to show decorum and common decency and he did not show that last night,” Anna Marie Reich, a Trump supporter since 2016, said.
Trump and Biden were asked to debate topics such as racial injustice, COVID-19 and climate change. Trump was asked to condemn white supremacists and instead told them to “stand back and stand by.”
Trump’s comment turned heads for voters on both sides. Democrats were not surprised and did not expect Trump to follow through with the request, while republicans did not agree with his decision.
“It showed {his} lack of leadership,” Karen Heller, a democratic voter, said.
While Biden did not fully give substance to his answers either, he did call out the Proud Boys, a right-wing extremist group, and asked Trump to condemn them.
Trump's refusal to do so mixed with past behaviors may have swayed republicans to reconsider their candidate. First time voters may have also been turned-off from the Trump campaign.
“I feel like people who were probably on the fence, {then} that was enough for them to probably not vote republican because he was a disgrace.” Reich said. “If he would just shut his mouth and let his job and his accomplishments speak for themselves, I think people would vote for him.”
Democrats have spoken on Biden not being their first choice for president in this election, but some republicans are also rethinking their votes.
“At least Biden had substance in his answers,” Heller said.
Biden tried to answer questions the best he could while Trump raced to speak over him. Neither side could give concrete answers to why they are better than their opponent.
Many voters said they are fearful for the future of the United States.
Social Distancing Brings Longer Wait Times for Early Voting
by Roxanne Cortner
Oct. 16, 2020
Bulloch County Annex opened Monday as the only early voting center in the county for the 2020 Presidential election.
Voters and poll workers reported longer wait times than in past elections.
“At 8 a.m. Monday, the line went down the sidewalk with maybe 60 people in line with a wait of an hour to an hour and 30 minutes,” Lauren Traum, poll worker, said.
Social distancing has limited the number of people that can be in the building voting at a time, including the inside poll workers. Voters and workers stay six-feet-apart and gloves are provided for voters when touching the machines.
“They can’t use all the machines that are right next to each other and they also have to space everyone out in a line, so that's why it takes so long,” Eduardo Delgado, voter, said.
For some, long wait times were not going to turn them away from casting their vote and having their voice heard.
“I know that there is trust in the mail-in ballots, but I just felt better coming in early and I know election day is probably going to be crowded,” Bethany Sauer, voter, said.
College students wanting to vote early should acknowledge that they may not be able to vote in their college town. Sean Yekel, a Georgia Southern student, is concerned that other students wanting to vote without mailing in a ballot will not know that they can’t vote in their college town if registered elsewhere.
“It’s kind of weird that as a college student we can’t go anywhere to vote because we live here basically, but we’re registered back home,” Yekel said.
Georgia Southern is hosting early voting beginning next week and students not registered in Bulloch County may not get their votes in.
Additional voting centers will open around Bulloch County beginning next week including on campus at Georgia Southern.
Pence and Harris spar at Vice Presidential Debate
by Amanda Arnold
Oct. 7, 2020
The Vice-Presidential candidates clashed Wednesday night at the 2020 Vice Presidential Debate, showcasing the difference between Democrat and Republican candidates on important issues such as the Covid-19, environment and the economy.
"The American people have witnessed what is the greatest failure of any presidential administration in the history of our country," Democratic Vice Presidential candidate, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA), said, when discussing the Coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 210,000 Americans, and infected more than 7 million people in the country.
Vice President Mike Pence, who heads the Trump Administrations Coronavirus task force, disagreed, adding the administration has continued to take the pandemic seriously since the health crisis began in February. He added the administration has continual listened to scientist on this and other matters.
Pence also argued that the Trump Administration has listened to scientists on environmental issues, with the United States enjoying the cleanest air and water ever, Pence said.
“The climate is changing,” Pence said. “The issue is, what’s the cause and what do we do about it? President Trump has made it clear that we’re going to continue to listen to the science.”
However, Harris indicated that if elected, she and former Vice President Joe Biden would implement the Green New Deal, similar to the $2 trillion Green New Deal Proposed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).
The two candidates also quarreled over how the country could recover following the pandemic. Harris indicated that Biden would eliminate the tax cuts implemented by the Trump Administration for those individuals who make more than $400,000, and implement a $2 trillion Coronavirus economic package to assist people and small businesses who have suffered as a result of the pandemic.
However, Pence disputed Harris’ comments, adding the Trump Administration had taken over the country in 2017, when the economy was weak, and strengthen it. The economy has since rebounded after the slow down as a result of the pandemic, he said.
This was the only Vice-Presidential Debate scheduled before the Nov. 3 election. There are two more Presidential Debates, including a debate scheduled Oct. 15.
Trump and Biden Clash in First Presidential Debate
by Shelton Jackson and Xavier Branch
Oct. 1, 2020
Many accusations and name calling took up most of the time during Tuesday’s first presidential debate, where the current President Donald Trump faced off against Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden in Cleveland, Ohio.
Despite all the disparaging remarks from both Trump and Biden, many important topics were attempted to be discussed.
In the debate, President Donald Trump refused to call out white supremacist groups, as he was solely focused on calling out radical left groups.
In a heated back and forth exchange between President Trump and Joe Biden, Chris Wallace, the moderator in Tuesday night’s presidential debate, asked President Trump if he would call out white supremacist groups while both candidates were discussing the issue of race and protests.
Instead, President Trump called out groups such as Antifa (an array of autonomous groups that have been responsible for turning protests violent) and racial sensitivity training that would address the issues of white privilege, saying that it was racist and a “radical revolution.”
As people have been facing one of the biggest crises the country has experienced in the COVID-19 pandemic, Biden pointed out the way Trump has continued to handle the crisis by stating the total amount of deaths and contracted cases in the United States.
Trump ended this topic by expressing how quickly his administration was in attempting to create a vaccine for the coronavirus.
Another thing Trump did address to the people was the New York Times report based around the amount of taxes he has been paying for the past couple of years. The report claims Trump only paid $750 for income taxes in 2016 and 2017. Before Trump claimed he has paid millions in taxes each year, he denied even wanting to pay taxes in the first place.
The next debate between the two candidates is set for October 15 at 9 p.m. in Miami, Florida and will give voters another shot at picking the next president.