Trump attacks kidnap plot victim Gretchen Whitmer as campaign heads to Wisconsin and Michigan
Both states break records for coronavirus cases as nation enters third ‘surge’
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Donald Trump launched a fresh attack on governor of Michigan Gretchen Whitmer just weeks after she was the victim of a right-wing militia kidnap plot.
Earlier Mr Trump lashed out at a Republican senator who warned that the president will inspire a GOP “blood bath” on Election Day.
He said that the president “regularly sells out our allies under his leadership” while he “spends like a drunken sailor."
“He mocks evangelicals behind closed doors," Senator Sasse said. "He's flirted with white supremacists."
Mr Trump hit back in a pair of tweets comparing “little” Sasse to Bob Corker and Jeff Flake, two other GOP senators who feuded with the president.
He said: “Both Senators became totally unelectable, couldn’t come even close to winning their primaries, and decided to drop out of politics and gracefully “RETIRE”. @SenSasse could be next, or perhaps the Republicans should find a new and more viable candidate?”
Meanwhile, with less than three weeks so Election Day, the president said he “won’t feel so good” if he loses to Joe Biden, as more than 25 million voters have already cast their ballots.
“Could you imagine if I lose?” he told rallygoers on 16 October. “I’m not going to feel so good. Maybe I’ll have to leave the country, I don’t know.”
The president headed to rallies in Wisconsin and Michigan on Saturday, despite both states reporting their largest single-day case counts since the onset of the public health crisis.
As the nation surpasses 8 million infections and is climbing its way into a third “surge" of cases and hospitalisations, Michigan reported its second consecutive day of more than 2,000 confirmed cases on Friday.
Wisconsin health officials reported three consecutive days with more than 3,000 cases. On Friday, the state recorded more than 4,000.
Nearly 70,000 coronavirus infections were reported in the US on Friday, marking the nation’s single highest confirmed daily case count since July.
Two-thirds of Latino voters confident Biden will tackle key issues
Two in three registered Latino voters are confident that the Democratic candidate will deal with the key issues, according to a new poll, while trust in Donald Trump remained low.
The survey, by Pew Research Centre, saw an increase in confidence in Mr Biden on the key issues compared to polling in June. Here’s what support for the former vice president looked like on the big topics.
- 71 per cent think Mr Biden will handle the public health impact of the coronavirus pandemic
- 70 per cent think he’ll bring the country closer together
- 68 per cent think the Democrat will make good foreign policy decisions
- 66 per cent trust him on law enforcement and criminal justice
- 66 per cent believe Mr Biden make good economic policy choices
US coronavirus figures
A quick snapshot of the coronavirus situation in the US, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker.
The country has the highest number of cases and deaths globally.
- The US has registered 8,050,420 coronavirus cases
- There have been 218,602 coronavirus deaths reported, including: 33,337 in New York, 17,375 in Texas, 16,923 in California.
This photo of Georgia Rep. Vernon Jones crowd surfing at Friday’s Trump rally in Macon has emerged.
There have been 7,556 coronavirus deaths in Georgia, according to Johns Hopkins University tracker.
Donald Trump says he might leave US if he loses to Joe Biden
Donald Trump has said he might leave the US if he loses the White House to Joe Biden on election day.
Mr Trump was talking about the prospect of his Democratic rival winning the upcoming election during his latest Make America Great Again campaign rally in Macon, Georgia.
Donald Trump says he might leave US if he loses to Joe Biden
President says he cannot face defeat by former vice president
With less than three weeks to go until the US heads to the polls, here’s a look at where the two rivals stand on the key issues.
This explainer looks at the candidates’ positions regarding voters’ main concerns, including the economy, health care, foreign policy – as well as, crucially, their attitudes towards tackling the coronavirus pandemic.
Where does Trump and Biden stand on abortion, coronavirus and taxes?
President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden both promise sweeping progress over the next four years -– via starkly different paths
Scammers seize on US election, but it's not votes they want
The email from a political action committee seemed harmless: if you support Joe Biden, it urged, click here to make sure you're registered to vote.
But Harvard University graduate student Maya James did not click. Instead, she Googled the name of the soliciting PAC. It didn’t exist -- a clue the email was a phishing scam from swindlers trying to exploit the U.S. presidential election as a way to steal peoples' personal information.
Scammers seize on US election, but it's not votes they want
Scam artists are taking notice as American voters face an especially polarized November election
25 million Americans have already voted in 2020 elections
More than 25 million Americans have voted so far in 2020 elections, as state elections officials report massive turnouts at early voting centres and a growing demand for mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic.
The United States Elections Project has reported at least 25 million ballots have been cast, with several states nearing or exceeding 2016 early voting figures from the same timeframe in that election.
25 million Americans have already voted in 2020 elections
As early voting begins across US, total ballots cast represent nearly 20 per cent of total votes in 2016 – with more than two weeks left to Election Day
Second presidential debate topics announced
The topics for the 22 October presidential debate have been published by the Commission on Presidential Debates.
Joe Biden and Donald Trump will battle it out over the following subjects in Nashville, Tennessee:
- Fighting Covid-19
- American families
- Race in America
- Climate change
- National security
- Leadership
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