Odds and Ends — 10 September 2024

in #oddsandends9 days ago

Coronavirus News, Analysis, and Opinion:

The summer COVID-19 surge may be dipping — just like life expectancy

Politics:


Ex-Project 2025 Leader Accuses Trump of ‘Malpractice’

The former director of Project 2025, a right-wing plan for what Donald Trump could do in a second term as president, is sharply criticizing Mr. Trump’s campaign, accusing its two top advisers of a series of missteps, lack of preparation and overconfidence that he says have jeopardized Mr. Trump’s chances in November.
The critique is the first public statement from Paul Dans, a longtime supporter of Mr. Trump, since he announced his departure from Project 2025 in late July. Mr. Dans oversaw the project for more than two years until Democrats publicized its proposals and turned it into a political liability for Mr. Trump.

Trump Steps Up Threats to Imprison His Foes

Donald Trump has long used strongman-style threats to prosecute people he vilifies as a campaign tactic, dating back to encouraging his 2016 rallygoers to chant ‘lock her up’ about Hillary Clinton. And during his term as president, he repeatedly pressed the Justice Department to open investigations into his political adversaries.
But as November nears, the former president has escalated his vows to use the raw power of the state to impose and maintain control and to intimidate and punish anyone he perceives as working against him.
After Democrats replaced President Biden with Vice President Kamala Harris as their 2024 nominee — and Mr. Trump’s lead in the polls eroded — Mr. Trump’s targets expanded.

David Knowles, journalist behind Telegraph’s Ukraine war podcast, dies aged 32

There’s a nonzero chance that he was murdered by the FSB.

Conservative activist launches $1bn crusade to ‘crush’ liberal America

The conservative activist who led the crusade to overhaul the US legal system is making a $1bn push to “crush liberal dominance” across corporate America and in the country’s news and entertainment sectors.