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Trump 2020 campaign head in key state sought to fan flame of election denial
A senior member of Trump’s re-election campaign said that campaigners were going to “fan the flame” and spread the false claim that Democrats were “trying to steal this election” in a leaked November 2020 audio clip, the Associated Press first reported.
In the obtained audio recording, Andrew Iverson discussed the communications strategy for Trump’s reelection in Wisconsin, as Democrats outflanked Republicans in the region.
At the time, Iverson led reelection efforts in Wisconsin, a key battleground state which Biden eventually won by over 20,000 votes in 2020.
“Here’s the deal: comms is going to continue to fan the flame and get the word out about Democrats trying to steal this election. We’ll do whatever they need. Just be on standby if there’s any stunts we need to pull,” said Iverson.
The audio was given to the Associated Press by a former Trump operative, who withheld their name fearing political and personal retaliation. The unnamed operative was motivated as Trump prepares for a third reelection campaign for the US presidency.
Iverson, who is now the midwest regional director for the Republican National Committee (RNC), has deferred questions from the Associated Press to RNC spokesperson Keith Schipper.
Schipper declined to comment, saying that he has not heard the audio.
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Interim summary
Hello again, live blog readers, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are heading to Philadelphia this afternoon to talk about the economy and we’ll have that news for you as it happens, so do stick around.
It’s been a morning of mixed politics developments, here’s where things stand so far:
Biden and Harris are due to speak in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at 3.15pm ET, with remarks on the economy. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will “gaggle” with accompanying reporters aboard Air Force One en route to the city, available on audio via the White House Live link, expected around 1.40pm ET.
The US president tooted his horn over the better-than-expected latest jobs figures. “Today, I am happy to report that the state of our union and the state of our economy is strong,” said Biden, referring to the over 500,000 jobs that were created in January.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will postpone a scheduled trip to China after yesterday’s discovery of what is believed to be a Chinese spy balloon over the US, sailing above Montana within peering distance of a nuclear weapons installation.
A senior member of Donald Trump’s Wisconsin 2020 election campaign said their team should “fan the flame” of denial about Trump’s key loss there to Biden and and spread the false claim that Democrats were “trying to steal this election” in a leaked November 5, 2020 audio clip. The guy on tape is still a senior RNC figure.
Indiana representative Victoria Spartz announced in a statement today that she will not be seeking reelection or running for the US Senate.
“I will not run for any office in 2024,” said Spartz, who is Republican, in a statement.
The announcement comes as rumors circulated around a potential Senate run from Spartz given an open seat.
Spartz received wide attention for voting ‘present’ during House speaker elections, where House Speaker Kevin McCarthy required 15 votes to secure the position.
Senior state officials have commented on the postponement of Blinken’s trip to China after a Chinese spy balloon was discovered over the US yesterday, noting that conditions were no longer right for Blinken’s travel.
From Reuters’ reporter Hümeyra Pamuk:
NEW: Senior State Dept officials say presence of the Chinese balloon in U.S. airspace a 'clear violation" of U.S. sovereignty and describe the incident as "unacceptable". Say the conditions are not right for Blinken to travel to China.
— Hümeyra Pamuk (@humeyra_pamuk) February 3, 2023When asked why this balloon was different, the U.S. official said: "This is the first time it's happened on the eve of a planned secretary of state visit to the PRC" and added the incident would have narrowed the trip's agenda in an "unhelpful and unconstructive" way. https://t.co/6KEE8AJsbZ
— Hümeyra Pamuk (@humeyra_pamuk) February 3, 2023While attending the funeral of Tyre Nichols, the 29-year-old man beaten to death by police in Memphis, Tennessee, this week, Kamala Harris called on Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which passed in the House in 2021 but failed in the Senate.
Jonathan Freedland speaks to Dr David Thomas, former police officer and professor at Florida Gulf Coast University, about why lawmakers find police reform a difficult issue to legislate on.
Listen to the Guardian’s Politics Weekly America podcast here.
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Congress struggles with police reform: Politics Weekly America podcast
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Amid Biden’s boasts about his administration’s economic gains, the 80 year-old president has not confirmed if he is running for reelection in 2024.
Biden indicated last year that he will likely seek out the presidency again, but deferred any official announcements until early 2023.
“I think everybody wants me to run, but we’re going to have discussions about it,” said Biden to reporters during a November press conference. Biden added then that he would be using the holidays to discuss his decision with family.
More recently, Biden’s top advisors have indicated that he will seek out a second term.
Ron Klain, Biden’s outgoing chief of staff, said Biden will be running in 2024 during a transition ceremony on Wednesday for his successor Jeff Zients, reported the Hill.
“As I did in 1988, 2008 and 2020, I look forward to being on your side when you run for president in 2024,” said Klain.
Biden trumpets good news on jobs
Joe Biden gave brief remarks on the state of the economy following positive January job growth news.
“Today, I am happy to report that the state of our union and the state of our economy is strong,” said Biden, referring to the over 500,000 jobs that were created in January.
The president said that his administration has created more jobs than any other presidential term in history, adding that Black and Hispanic unemployment rates are also at record lows.
Biden boasted the economic growth as supporting working class communities in rural parts of America, adding “Trickle down economics work for one group of Americans, it doesn’t work for everybody.”
The victory lap comes as Biden and US vice president Kamala Harris prepare to visit Philadelphia later today and speak on $500m investments the city will be using to upgrade the its water system.
Guardian US reporter Lauren Aratani writes: The US job market added 517,000 jobs in January, a huge gain for the labor market even as the Federal Reserve has pushed up interest rates to bring down inflation and try to temper hiring. You can read her full report here.
Here’s more context on the Biden administration’s decision to delay Blinken’s trip to China, from Washington Post reporter John Hudson.
The decision came just hours before Blinken was scheduled to depart for Beijing. It's dramatic indication of how seriously the Biden administration takes the incident but also how nervous the administration is about appearing soft on China.
— John Hudson (@John_Hudson) February 3, 2023Biden has been sensitive to GOP criticisms, though on the issue of cancelling the trip, Republicans were divided on the matter. Cotton pushed to cancel the trip while McCarthy demanded a briefing. HFAC GOP encouraged Blinken to use the trip to send a tough message to China
— John Hudson (@John_Hudson) February 3, 2023Blinken delays trip to Beijing amid spy balloon puzzle
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will postpone a scheduled trip to China after yesterday’s discovery of a Chinese spy balloon over the US.
Here’s more on the discovery of the spy balloon, from the Guardian’s Julian Borger:
The Pentagon has said it is tracking a Chinese spy balloon flying over the US but decided against shooting it down for safety reasons.
Defence officials said the balloon had been watched since it entered US airspace at high altitude a couple of days ago. It has been monitored by several methods including crewed aircraft, and has most recently been tracked crossing Montana, where the US has silo-based nuclear missiles.
As a precaution, flights from Billings Logan airport were suspended on Wednesday.
The Chinese government has not confirmed if it owns the balloon, and state-backed media have used the incident to taunt the US.
Joe Biden will be giving remarks shortly about new figures released on the January job market report.
The US added 517,000 jobs in January, bringing the unemployment rate to a 53-year low of 3.4%.
The latest news on the job market signified significant growth for the labor sector, even as the Federal reserve increases interest rates to address rising inflation costs.
Experts had expected the unemployment rate to rise slightly last month, but the rate continued to decrease to levels seen pre-pandemic.
223,000 jobs were added to the labor market in December, an overall gain but lower than the 539,000 new jobs added each month since the start of 2022.
In the November 2020 clip taken two days after the 2020 election, Iverson praised Republicans’ efforts in Wisconsin while admitting that Democrats won the most votes in the state.
From the Associated Press:
At the end of the day, this operation received more votes than any other Republican in Wisconsin history…Say what you want, our operation turned out Republican or DJT supporters. Democrats have got 20,000 more than us, out of Dane County and other shenanigans in Milwaukee, Green Bay and Dane. There’s a lot that people can learn from this campaign.
Despite Iverson’s private comments that Republicans had lost Wisconsin in the 2020 US presidential election, Trump allies continued to spread the false claim that the election was stolen.
Trump 2020 campaign head in key state sought to fan flame of election denial
A senior member of Trump’s re-election campaign said that campaigners were going to “fan the flame” and spread the false claim that Democrats were “trying to steal this election” in a leaked November 2020 audio clip, the Associated Press first reported.
In the obtained audio recording, Andrew Iverson discussed the communications strategy for Trump’s reelection in Wisconsin, as Democrats outflanked Republicans in the region.
At the time, Iverson led reelection efforts in Wisconsin, a key battleground state which Biden eventually won by over 20,000 votes in 2020.
“Here’s the deal: comms is going to continue to fan the flame and get the word out about Democrats trying to steal this election. We’ll do whatever they need. Just be on standby if there’s any stunts we need to pull,” said Iverson.
The audio was given to the Associated Press by a former Trump operative, who withheld their name fearing political and personal retaliation. The unnamed operative was motivated as Trump prepares for a third reelection campaign for the US presidency.
Iverson, who is now the midwest regional director for the Republican National Committee (RNC), has deferred questions from the Associated Press to RNC spokesperson Keith Schipper.
Schipper declined to comment, saying that he has not heard the audio.
Audio shows Trump campaign bid to 'fan the flames'
Good morning, US politics live blog readers.
In a newly released audio recording from November 2020, a top member of Donald Trump’s re-election campaign noted that team members were going to “fan the flame” and spread word that Democrats were “trying to steal this election”, reported the Associated Press.
The recording focuses on Andrew Iverson, who led the re-election campaign in Wisconsin and is now the midwest regional director for the Republican National Committee.
In the audio clip, Iverson focused on the communication strategy for Trump’s reelection campaign in Wisconsin, as Democrats were outperforming Republicans in the vital battleground state.
“Here’s the deal: comms is going to continue to fan the flame and get the word out about Democrats trying to steal this election. We’ll do whatever they need. Just be on standby if there’s any stunts we need to pull,” said Iverson.
Here’s what else we can expect today:
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will travel to Philadelphia today to announced $500m that will be used to upgrade water pipes in the region. The two will also address the Democratic National Committee during its winter meeting.
Jeff Zients is gearing up to begin his tenure as Biden’s new chief of staff, succeeding Ron Klain.
Advocates and Black lawmakers have urged Biden to discuss police reform during his State of the Union address next week, as several high-profile police brutality incidents have occurred in recent months.
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