Pro-Trump Voting Rules Are “Really Bad Idea,” Warn Georgia Officials

Georgia’s slate of pro-Trump election regulations are barreling forward, but their implementation is causing statewide problems that threaten to actually undermine the security of Georgia’s voting process.

With just 26 days until the election, finding people to actually enforce the new regulations remains one of the state’s biggest challenges, NOTUS reported Thursday.

“We actually, just yesterday, had a manager and an assistant manager quit,” Anne Dover, the election director in Cherokee County, told the outlet. “So yeah, it’s kind of challenging.”

Some of the new regulations—which passed with a 3–2 election board vote along MAGA lines and was fueled by a “wishlist” of documents from conservative county election officials—include handing county boards the authority to delay the certification of election results. The rules also mandate investigations into every vote count inconsistency, and, perhaps most troubling for the staffing problem, order all votes to be hand-counted after they’re electronically scanned.

“People don’t want to participate or even work in elections,” Cathy Hagans, the election director of Washington County, told NOTUS, which noted that finding people to hand-count ballots at the end of what will be an excruciatingly long day has become a serious concern for counties across the Peach State.

“Around here, in a little small town, it’s hard to recruit poll workers,” Hagans said.

On Wednesday, local Democrats lost their legal challenge against the swath of new “election integrity” rules, with a judge dismissing their effort to force Georgia Governor Brian Kemp to open an ethics investigation into the committee that crafted the regulations.

The new election certification rules set the stage for bedlam come November, especially considering that at least 70 election officials across 16 counties in key swing states, including Georgia, have been identified as pro-Trump election deniers.

Donald Trump praised the MAGA members of Georgia’s election board days before the August vote, describing Janice Johnston, Rick Jeffares, and Janelle King as “pit bulls fighting for victory.”

According to the state election board’s website, the body is “entrusted with a variety of responsibilities and authority to protect all Georgians’ right to cast a ballot.”

Georgia has had the largest number of certification refusals since 2020 of anywhere in the country. The five-person board has been accused of other ethics violations, including one instance in which its Trump-friendly majority failed to give proper notice to their Democratic colleagues about a meeting that they used to advance changes to state election rules.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Thursday got angry at a reporter who asked him about a Wall Street analyst’s estimate that Hurricane Milton could cost the state over $50 billion.

“How the hell would a Wall Street analyst be able to know? It’s been dark all day. What, you just going to know that you’re gonna do? I mean, give me a break on some of this stuff,” DeSantis said.

“I’m not saying there’s not going to be damage, there will be, [Hurricane Milton] cut across the state in a way that Helene did not,” DeSantis added.

Earlier this week, the discussion on Wall Street estimated the hurricane as having a “mid-double-digit billion dollar loss.” DeSantis downplayed the storm’s impact compared to Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Ian in 2022, while noting that certain areas did suffer heavy damage.

“In terms of just right now, the morning after, if I think back to, like, Hurricane Ian, I don’t think that you’re looking at similar amount of damage to Ian, and then, with Helene, there may end up being more overall damage, there may not, I don’t know, but definitely the surge did not reach Helene levels,” DeSantis added.

Earlier this week, DeSantis refused to speak on the phone with Kamala Harris, saying such an overture “seemed political.” The vice president called out the Florida governor for engaging in “political gamesmanship instead of doing the job that you took an oath to do, which is to put the people first.”

DeSantis does seem to be keeping politics in mind in his response to the storm, staying away from outright praising the Biden administration’s help even as he boasts of being able to “leverage any resources available to us.” But it’s puzzling as to why he would get upset at a reporter for a legitimate question regarding the financial impact of the hurricane.

After spending days calling for CBS to release a full transcript of Vice President Kamala Harris’s interview on 60 Minutes, Donald Trump woke up bright and early Thursday with a new idea: leverage the public appearance as a reason to call for the Democratic presidential nominee’s concession in the race.

“A giant Fake News Scam by CBS & 60 Minutes,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Her REAL ANSWER WAS CRAZY, OR DUMB, so they actually REPLACED it with another answer in order to save her or, at least, make her look better.”

“A FAKE NEWS SCAM, which is totally illegal,” he continued, baselessly claiming that a network choosing to make its own edits is akin to a crime. “TAKE AWAY THE CBS LICENSE. Election Interference. She is a Moron, and the Fake News Media wants to hide that fact. An UNPRECEDENTED SCANDAL!!! The Dems got them to do this and should be forced to concede the Election? WOW!”

Attached to the post was a clip of Harris’s interview on the show compared to a teaser clip distributed by the network. The teaser clip spliced a section of another answer the vice president gave to a question related to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Between the edited and unedited version of Harris’s response to the original question, the two answers are starkly different.

But ultimately, that choice was not Harris’s.

“We do not control CBS’s production decisions and refer questions to CBS,” an unidentified aide for the Harris campaign said in a statement to Variety.

And, at minimum, at least the vice president actually engaged in the sit-down interview with the legacy network. During its Monday night broadcast, CBS News’s Scott Pelley said that Trump backed out of his own scheduled interview with 60 Minutes at the last minute—the first time a presidential candidate had rebuffed the long-standing October tradition since 1968—revealing that the Trump campaign had “complained that we would fact-check the interview.”

“We fact-check every story,” Pelley said.

Meanwhile, Trump has threatened to pull the broadcast licenses of major networks when he disagrees with their coverage of himself or his campaign. But that doesn’t mean his perspective on editing and censorship is buttoned up: Trump has enjoyed more than his share of selectively edited interviews on Fox, some of which have gone so far as to swap out his answers when discussing heavy topics such as serial sex offender and human trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

The New York Times has taken the mainstream media’s sanewashing of Donald Trump to the next level, this time with an innocuous-sounding headline: “Trump’s Remarks on Migrants Illustrate His Obsession With Genes.”

The headline and corresponding article, published Wednesday evening, are actually obfuscating a far darker reality: Trump’s obsession with eugenics.

Speaking on conservative radio on Monday, Trump went on an incredibly racist rant about bloodlines while speaking about immigrants. “You know, now a murderer, I believe this, it’s in their genes. And we got a lot of bad genes in our country right now. They left, they had 425,000 people come into our country that shouldn’t be here, that are criminals.”

But the paper of record minimized the true horror of that comment, summarizing that Trump was “invoking his long-held fascination with genes and genetics.”

The Times received plenty of flack online for its whitewashing of the Republican nominee’s dangerous lies about immigrants and his white supremacist rhetoric.

Several paragraphs in the Times article mentioned Trump’s remark last year about immigrants “poisoning the blood of our country,” with the article’s author calling it “a phrase criticized by many for evoking the ideology of eugenics promulgated by Nazis.” The author then discussed the role of the eugenics movement in politics in the past, without acknowledging its role in the present.

As Trump vows to enforce “bloody” mass deportations in a second term, what’s the point of painting his racist “bad genes” comments as benign?

North Carolina’s Republicans apparently don’t think that hurricane victims should have more time to mail in ballots or register to vote.

Democrats in the North Carolina House of Representatives filed a bill to extend the state’s voter registration deadline by five days to October 16, and to allow absentee ballots three more days to arrive in order to make sure victims of Hurricane Helene could do their civic duty. Every single House Republican voted no on the measure on Wednesday.

Democrats made a motion to suspend the rules on the bill in the state House, but Republicans voted unanimously against the motion, stopping the bill from a final vote. According to Democratic State Representative Julie von Haefen, only one Republican, Representative Destin Hall, debated the motion, accusing Democrats of playing “partisan games.”

The state election board did grant some leeway to 13 counties affected by the storm. Voters in those counties can request mail-in ballots in person until November 4, the day before Election Day, and they’ll be able to drop off their ballots at any county board of elections in the state, or any of the polling stations in their county. But those ballots must still be received by 7:30 p.m. E.T. on November 5.

About 16.6 percent of North Carolina’s registered voters live in areas affected by Hurricane Helene, totaling 1,275,054 people in 25 counties. Of that number, 292,836 people are registered Democrats, 480,097 Republicans, and 490,140 unaffiliated. The rest of the voters are registered with third parties like the Green Party, Justice for All, Libertarian, No Labels, and We The People.

The right has pushed a number of conspiracies on the hurricane, from claims that Democrats are withholding aid from Republican areas to a far more outrageous conspiracy that the federal government controls the weather. Some local Republicans have taken steps to debunk these lies, but it doesn’t help that Donald Trump is pushing them himself. If Republicans in North Carolina end up having difficulty voting as they recover from Hurricane Helene, they should probably blame their own elected officials.

Amid active devastation in the American South wrought by unprecedented hurricanes, Republicans are busy with one thing: attacking Vice President Kamala Harris for dismantling their weather-related conspiracies.

Speaking with Fox News on Wednesday, Missouri Senator Eric Schmitt seemingly torched Harris for actually responding to the disaster, going so far as to claim it was “really awkward” that the vice president would “insert herself” into phone calls to affected states about federal relief funds.

“Your reaction to what seems to be this preemptive attempt by Biden and Harris and the media to silence critics of any aspect of the government’s response by calling it all disinformation?” asked host Laura Ingraham.

“Yeah, this is a kind of a standard playbook now, Laura, for anything they don’t like to hear,” Schmitt said. “They label it misinformation or disinformation. They’ve tried to censor this stuff before during Covid because … it wasn’t the regime’s narrative, and here we go again.”

“There are real stories, there are people hurting who are not getting help,” the MAGA Republican continued. “In fact, you know, relief efforts by private citizens were being blocked.... The federal government’s response here, led by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, have completely failed the people of North Carolina.”

Republicans have launched a host of lies and disinformation throughout the 2024 hurricane season. So far, conservative leaders in heavily affected regions, including Florida and Georgia, have accused the Biden administration of diverting funds from FEMA to assist undocumented immigrants entering the country (a charge that FEMA has fervently rejected), claimed that working with the White House to expedite disaster relief “seemed political,” and conspiratorially suggested that the hurricanes are a government manipulation.

Some of those lies have had real-world consequences, convincing Americans in heavily affected regions that they shouldn’t apply for FEMA’s disaster relief based on the lie that the agency is out of money.

Speaking with CNN on Tuesday, former Republican communications strategist Douglas Heye lamented how Donald Trump’s own supporters were bearing the brunt of the misinformation.

“The area of North Carolina that was hit is overwhelmingly Republican,” Heye, a North Carolinian, told the network. “By spreading this misinformation, you’re hurting your own voters first. And we know Donald Trump takes his people sort of as a special case, he’s damaging them for his own political good. That’s malicious.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson sent his thoughts and prayers to hurricane victims, as Democratic lawmakers begged him to call Congress back into session to pass emergency funding to address Hurricanes Helene and Milton.

More than 60 House Democrats signed a letter Wednesday urging Johnson to assemble lawmakers to pass additional funding on top of last month’s stopgap bill, which provided the Federal Emergency Management Agency with $20 billion.

“The funds previously allocated were a necessary first step, allowing for an initial response to the immediate aftermath of these disasters,” read the letter. “However, as recovery efforts continue, it is abundantly clear that these funds will not suffice.”

While FEMA has said that it has enough money “for immediate response and recovery needs,” it’s not clear how long this funding will last, given the frequency and intensity of this season’s storms.

FEMA “must be equipped not only to respond to current disasters but also to adequately prepare for future events,” the letter said. “This requires substantial funding that ensures FEMA can maintain a state of readiness and provide immediate assistance when disasters strike.”

The letter was not signed by a single Republican.

Johnson doesn’t seem interested in calling Congress back into session any time soon. During a visit to North Carolina Wednesday, Johnson claimed that there was little Congress could do until the storms had passed.

“What happens next after a storm like this is that the states then do their individual assessments and calculations of the damages and then they submit that need to the federal government. Then Congress acts,” Johnson said. “So as soon as those calculations are prepared, Congress will act in a bipartisan fashion to supply what is needed to help these communities recover, the appropriate amount that the federal government should do.”

“But it will take some time, sadly and unfortunately, for those calculations to be made. In the meantime, again, literally billions of dollars are sitting in accounts at FEMA with the administration to address the immediate needs,” Johnson explained.

“When I last checked, as of Monday, only one percent of those funds had actually been distributed. There’s concern that the federal response was a little too slow, and that needs to be addressed.”

Later that evening, Johnson posted on X. “Our prayers are with the people of Florida tonight as they endure Hurricane Milton,” he wrote.

Kari Lake tried to run from her MAGA record during a Wednesday night Arizona Senate debate against Democrat Ruben Gallego. But she flailed spectacularly when asked one crucial question.

While discussing Lake’s climate change denial on Wednesday night, Gallego also called her out over her election denialism.

“She’s still in denial about climate change. We should not be surprised by this. She’s still in denial about the 2022 election. And now, I give you one minute. You have one minute. Will you finally tell the people of Arizona, did you win or lose that election?”

“Can we, can I talk about water really quickly?” replied Lake, dodging the question. “Because I thought we were gonna do water.”

Like Trump, Lake continues to claim she won the 2022 gubernatorial election—and two years later, is still attempting to overturn the election results.

Wednesday’s Senate debate was a disaster for Lake in other ways as well. She also tried to avoid harsh questioning about her stance on abortion. Following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Lake wanted the state to implement an 1864 abortion ban and then complained when the ban wasn’t able to be enforced to her liking. During her Senate run, she has tried to flip-flop and hide from this fact, but Gallego reminded Arizonans of the truth.

“She was disappointed to find out the 1864 law, again the one that had no exceptions for rape or incest, was not going to get enforced, she said I hope the sheriffs will do their jobs,” said Gallego during the debate.

“That’s not true,” responded Lake under her breath.

“We have it on tape,” Gallego shot back. 

While backtracking on the issues, Lake bragged about her relationship with the former president several times on the debate stage to try and save her performance. “President Trump, my good friend, has called me ‘Border Kari,’” said Lake. “I love the nickname, and I’m going to go there to Washington, D.C., and help him build that border wall and secure the border.”

“You’ve been to Mar-a-Lago more than you have to the border,” said Gallego.

Lake and Gallego are competing for the seat currently occupied by Senator Kyrsten Sinema, who opted not to run for reelection. The latest polls show Gallego up seven points against Lake. The result of the election could determine if the Democrats can hold on to their majority in the Senate.

Donald Trump still hasn’t come to terms with his crowd size.

On Wednesday, the Republican presidential nominee’s appearance in Reading, Pennsylvania, featured a slew of plainly false, misleading claims, including that there were no terrorist attacks during his administration, and that school-aged children were receiving gender-affirming surgery without their parents’ consent.

But one mistruth that Trump couldn’t seem to let go of was the reality of how many people are actually turning out to his repetitive events.

“You know, we get up and we talk, we talk, and I noticed something, somebody was telling me the other day, we do a lot of these beautiful rallies and it’s so great. We never have an empty seat. Never have—Look at them, 100,000 people or more. Never have an empty,” Trump said.

But beyond the scope of the camera, there were empty seats—and a lot of them.

The arena reportedly had a capacity of 7,200 seats, according to The Washington Post’s Dana Milbank, but even as Trump began to speak, a couple hundred of them remained empty behind the press risers.

And even in the middle of Trump’s speech, people began to leave, leaving chair gaps directly behind him while on camera.

Trump’s low turnout is significant for a candidate who has frequently attacked his political opponents for their inability to draw as many people as he’s historically attracted to his boisterous, sprawling campaign stops.

In 2016 and 2020, Trump relied on the visual logic of his loaded rallies—and, by extension, the relatively lackluster crowds attending his opponents’—as evidence of his titanic popularity among everyday Americans. But whether Trump is on a high or a low note with his supporters, he’s equally likely to stretch the numbers, even going so far in August as to claim that his January 6 crowd size was bigger than Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington (photographic evidence proves it wasn’t even close.)

It turns out, Elon Musk’s gracious offer of “free” Starlink high-speed internet services for those affected by Hurricane Helene isn’t free at all, and may be a ploy to trap new customers.

Last week, Starlink posted a link on X to a website explaining its offer to those seeking Hurricane Helene relief. “For those impacted by Hurricane Helene, or looking to support response and recovery efforts in affected areas, Starlink is now free for 30 days,” the post read.

Musk reshared the post, adding, “Starlink terminals will now work automatically without need for payment in the areas affected by Hurricane Helene.”

A closer look at the website, though, shows that the offer comes with a few caveats.

“Please note: A Starlink kit is required to access this free service. If you do not already have a Starlink kit, you will need to purchase one,” the site explains.

So how much exactly does a Starlink kit cost? New customers will still have to pay close to $400 for a Starlink kit, including shipping and tax, according to Gizmodo. Starlink has also warned of significant delays that may prevent orders from arriving for weeks, and encouraged those seeking its services to buy a kit from retailers such as Best Buy or Home Depot. There, the kit will cost more like $350 not including tax.

But that’s not all users will have to pay. “After 30 days, we will move you to a paid Residential subscription,” the SpaceX site reads. A paid residential subscription costs $120 per month, a significant upcharge from a typical internet service, which could cost around $40 per month.

So Musk’s offer isn’t much different from a typical free trial for his expensive internet service.

Earlier this week, Donald Trump patted himself on the back for getting Musk to provide Starlink services to the areas affected by Hurricane Helene, noting that he wasn’t actually sure “what the hell it is.”

Last week, SpaceX sent more than 10,000 Starlink terminals to North Carolina and other areas affected by Helene, according to The Hill. One Starlink terminal was planned to be deployed in each county.

In response to Hurricane Milton, Musk announced Wednesday that SpaceX and T-Mobile had accelerated the rollout of their direct-to-cell services, which will be “provided free of charge” to those “affected by hurricanes.”

Like Trump, Musk has been smearing federal hurricane relief efforts, claiming on X last week that FEMA employees were “actively blocking” Starlink terminals from being deployed.