Nov 4, 2019

Trump sticks with "no quid pro quo" defense as testimonies mount

Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

President Trump continued to insist Sunday that no quid pro quo took place over Ukraine aid in the face of mounting testimonies in the impeachment inquiry.

Why it matters: The president is doubling down in an apparent message to Senate Republicans, some of whom have reportedly acknowledged the possibility that a quid pro quo may have taken place during Trump's July 25 call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

  • The Washington Post reports the senators concluded at a private lunch Wednesday that Trump's request for Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden in exchange for military aid was legal and standard foreign policy. Therefore, it wouldn't constitute an impeachable offense.

Between the lines: Republican leadership sources told Axios' Jonathan Swan and Jim VandeHei they expect many GOP senators to "ultimately settle on a talking point that Trump's actions were 'inappropriate but not impeachable.'" Republicans' strategy is to "stay unified, in votes and voice," they write.

Go deeper: Trump's new reality: the daily dump

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Rashaan Ayesh
40 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

Photo: Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

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Axios
Updated 2 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 6 p.m. ET: 11,921,616 — Total deaths: 546,318 — Total recoveries — 6,506,408 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 6 p.m. ET: 3,035,231 — Total deaths: 132,042 — Total recoveries: 936,476 — Total tested: 36,878,106 — Map.
  3. Public health: Deaths are rising in hotspots — Déjà vu sets in as testing issues rise and PPE dwindles.
  4. Travel: United warns employees it may furlough 45% of U.S. workforce — How the pandemic changed mobility habits, by state.
  5. Education: New York City schools will not fully reopen in fall — Harvard and MIT sue Trump administration over rule barring foreign students from online classes.
  6. 🎧 Podcast: A misinformation "infodemic" is here.
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Bryan Walsh
2 hours ago - Health

Fighting the coronavirus infodemic

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

An "infodemic" of misinformation and disinformation has helped cripple the response to the novel coronavirus.

Why it matters: High-powered social media accelerates the spread of lies and political polarization that motivates people to believe them. Unless the public health sphere can effectively counter misinformation, not even an effective vaccine may be enough to end the pandemic.

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