Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Maanvi Singh in San Francisco (now) and Joan E Greve in Washington (earlier)

'Fighting for the survival of planet Earth': Democrats tackle climate crisis in town hall – as it happened

Bernie Sanders is among the Democratic presidential challengers to speak at the climate town hall on CNN.
Bernie Sanders is among the Democratic presidential challengers to speak at the climate town hall on CNN. Photograph: Mary Schwalm/AP

Emily Holden’s wrap of the main developments at the town hall is now live here

Summary

Thanks, everyone, for tuning in to our live coverage of the 2020 presidential candidate town hall on climate change. The Guardian’s Emily Holden will have a story coming shortly analyzing the major candidate’s performance and summarizing their views and policies.

In other US politics news:

  • The Carolinas are bracing for intense flooding as Hurricane Dorian slowly makes its way up the east coast.
  • A watchdog report confirmed widely held suspicions that migrant children who were separated from their parents as part of Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy faced severe psychological repercussions.
  • Trump is facing questions over whether he used a Sharpie to alter a map of Dorian’s projected path to include Alabama after the president falsely claimed the state would be “hit (much) harder than anticipated” in a Sunday tweet.
  • House speaker Nancy Pelosi released a statement asserting that “Trump properties are a cesspool of corruption” and accusing the president of profiting off the presidency.

Aaaaaand, that’s a wrap!

Some memorable moments:

  • Joe Biden, confronted about his plans to attend a fundraiser hosted by the founder of a natural gas company, argued the host is “not a fossil fuel executive.”
  • Bernie Sanders, asked about his tweet calling Trump an idiot, said his wife disapproved but defended his words. He said Trump’s stance is “idiotic” and “dangerous”.
  • Asked if he would reinstate light bulb standards Trump is scrapping, Sanders responded with: “DUUUHHHH”.
  • Elizabeth Warren, who was also asked about whether the government should decide what light bulbs people use, exclaimed, “Oh come on, give me a break!” She said industries are more responsible for climate change than individuals and that systemic change is needed.
  • Kamala Harris, asked about reducing meat consumption, professed her love: To be perfectly honest with you, I love cheeseburgers from time to time. I do.

Updated

In contrast to fellow senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker supported the use of nuclear power.

But he said, “absolutely, yes”, he would ban offshore drilling. “When they drill, they spill.”

He also said he’d ban fracking on public lands, and, goaded on by a viewer shouting, “Do it, do it!” Booker said he’d phase out the export of fossil fuels.

Updated

Here are all the 2020 democratic candidates who’ve participated in the town hall, once again:

  • New Jersey senator Cory Booker
  • Former Vice President Joe Biden
  • South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg
  • Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar
  • Former Texas representative Beto O’Rourke
  • Vermont senator Bernie Sanders
  • Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren
  • Businessman Andrew Yang
  • California senator Kamala Harris
  • Former Housing and Urban Development secretary Julián Castro

And Cory Booker is the 10th, and final, candidate to take the CNN town halls stage tonight!

It’s all about “resiliency, resiliency, resiliency,” he said.

Of course, Booker, who is vegan was asked about burgers.

“Oh my gosh,” he said. “I hear about this all the time -- ‘Booker wants to take away your hamburger.’”

He transitioned to talking about industrial farms, and practices that harm animals and people. He pointed to the example of farms that spray hog refuse over fields as fertilizer. “I watched how the stuff fell on the fields and then misted into the black communities” that live nearby, he said. “Let’s talk about healthy food systems and the toxins that are in our community... we need to especially be looking at communities that are low income and vulnerable”

Like many of the candidates before him, O’Rourke was asked about meat consumption.

Which means the debate questions can, more or less, be summed up as such:

Oh my!

It’s Beto O’Rourke’s time to shine.

Asked about the hurricane in Puerto Rico, and the Trump administration’s response, he said: “It makes me angry... Fellow Americans were left in harm’s way.”

He criticized Trump’s attempts to redirect money from FEMA to building a border wall. His plan would be to fund disaster mitigation grants, and “make sure that the people of Puerto Rico can determine their future”, he said. “Whether that’s independence, whether they want to remain a territory, or whether that is statehood.”

He also addressed the issue retreat and rebuilding in areas — including in his state, Texas — that are prone to flooding. Americans should “rebuild where we can”, and “move where we must”, with government support, he said.

O’Rourke also said he supports taking in more climate refugees from the Bahamas, Guatemala and elsewhere. “It’s the right thing to do,” he said.

Updated

Bernie Sanders’ response to a question about curbing population growth has raised eyebrows.

Sanders was asked if he would be “courageous enough to discuss curbing population growth” as a feature of his climate plan.

He responded “Yes”, before quickly pivoting to women’s rights and access to birth control. “Especially in poor countries around the world where women do not necessarily want to have large numbers of babies”, he said, he supports access to family planning services.

But Sanders stopped short of discouraging people to have babies if they want children.

Buttigieg also addressed the issue of his own air travel and use of private planes.

“I took the subway today,” he said. “Sometimes I fly, because this is a very big country and I’m running to be president of the whole country.”

Air travel will always be necessary, he noted, but a solution might be to improve train systems. “I’m not even asking for Japanese level trains. I’m happy with Italian level trains,” he said, drawing a chuckle from the audience.

And Pete Buttigieg has taken the stage. He said that tackling climate change “is the hardest thing we will have done in my life time as a country... on par with winning World War II.”

“We have to unify the country,” around the issue, he said. “This is going to require action at every level of government and beyond government.”

Fielding a question about environmental injustice, he brought up his Douglass plan for dealing with systemic racism.

And asked what question he might pose to Donald Trump about climate change, Buttigieg initially responded, “Wow.”

Trump is “completely in a different reality,” Buttigieg said, coming out strongly against climate change denial.

But he added that to convince conservatives and Republicans to get on board, he’d use faith to frame the issue.

“If you believe that God is watching as poison is being belched into the air,” he said. “What do you think God thinks of that. I bet he thinks, that’s messed up.”

Updated

Back to the lightbulb question.

“Do you think the government should be in the business of telling you what kind of lightbulb you can have,” asked CNN’s Chris Cuomo, noting that the less-efficient “candle-shaped” bulbs are a popular favorite.

Warren’s response: “Oh come on, give me a break!”

“There are a lot of ways that we try to change our energy consumption and our pollution,” she said. “Some of it is with lightbulbs, some of it is on straws, some of it -- dang -- is on cheeseburgers.”

She pointed out that individual decisions to forgo incandescent lightbulbs or straws have a limited impact because industries, not individuals, are responsible for the majority of greenhouse gas emissions contributing to global heating.

Updated

Elizabeth Warren — asked what she would say if Trump called the Green New Deal a “dream” — quipped that what the president is doing now “is a nightmare.”

In a high-energy interview, she questioned how the crisis has escalated for this long despite repeated warning from scientists, blaming government corruption.

“We have a Washington that works great for the wealthy and well connected,” she said. “A Washington that is working great for giant oil companies who want to drill everywhere.”

Washington is not working, however, for Americans, she said.

Sanders reiterated climate change would be one of his first priorities. “I don’t know how any sane person cannot put it at the very top of the list,” he said. “We are fighting for the survival of planet earth.”

He slammed Donald Trump, calling it “idiotic” and “dangerous” for Trump to deny climate change and refuse to act. He said his recent tweets called Trump an idiot were “maybe harsh,” but said, “he’s called me worse.”

Hitting the third rail of climate policy, Sanders said he would make population growth —and a woman’s access to birth control — a key part of his climate plan.

He also wants to spend tens of billions of dollars helping workers in the transition away from fossil fuels. He would guarantee them an income for five years, as well as job training.

Updated

In a rather muscular opening salvo, Bernie Sanders has raised the specter of an uninhabitable planet if the US doesn’t move rapidly to address the climate crisis.

“The damage to the world will be irreparable,” the Vermont senator said, adding that he was proposing “the largest, most comprehensive climate plan presented by any presidential candidate in the history of the United States.”

Preempting questions on how he would pay for his $16 trillion climate plan, Sanders said he’d scrap tax breaks for fossil fuel companies and slash military spending. “Am I going to guarantee Jeff Bezos will pay no more in taxes?” he asked rhetorically. “No, I won’t.” Sanders said his plan, to radically ramp up renewable energy, would create 20 million jobs over a 15-year period.

“We are dealing with an existential threat to this planet, we must respond aggressively,” he said.

Bernie Sanders is now in the hot seat. When asked by CNN’s Anderson Cooper whether he’d reinstate the energy-saving lightbulb requirements that the Trump administration is rolling back, Sanders responded, “Duuuuhhhh.”

Joe Biden said he’ll reconsider his fundraiser scheduled for tomorrow after being confronted with its host’s ties to the fossil fuel industry during the CNN town hall.

Andrew Goldman is a co-founder of a natural gas company and has worked as an adviser for Biden in the past.

“I didn’t realize he does that,” Biden said during the town hall. “I’m going to look at what you just told me and find out if that’s accurate.”

Biden senior advisor Symone Sanders disputed Goldman’s characterization as a fossil fuel executive, tweeting: “Andrew Goldman isn’t a fossil fuel executive. He’s not involved in the day to day operation. He’s not on the board of the company, nor the board of the portfolio company.”

Democratic representative Susan Davis of California says she won't seek reelection

Susan Davis will be stepping down from Congress after nearly two decades. Davis is the fourth democratic member of congress who has decided to either resign or run for a different office, joining 15 republican members who are leaving.

In a letter to constituents, she wrote: “My decision today represents a desire to live and work “at home” in San Diego. I will continue to give my all for the next sixteen months and will work as earnestly and as enthusiastically as I have always tried to do.”

Davis’ departure is unlikely to affect the balance of congress, even as the party scrambles to find a candidate to fill her seat. Her district leans heavily democratic.

At the CNN climate change town hall, Joe Biden’s pitch appears to be that he’s got the experience to haul other countries into line on climate change — notably Brazil — while reestablishing US leadership in climate negotiations.

“We should be organizing the world, demanding change, we need a diplomat-in-chief,” the former vice president said. “Look what’s happening now in the Amazon, what’s going on? Nothing.”

Asked about the Green New Deal, the goal set out by progressive Democrats to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions, Biden hedged slightly. The Green New Deal deserves “an enormous amount of credit” in bringing urgency to the climate crisis but lacks specifics, Biden said. “My plan brings more detail, it’s based on the science,” he said. Biden then reiterates his determination to prod other countries to do more.

Meanwhile, #Sharpie is still trending:

Updated

Biden was also asked about his plans tomorrow to attend a fundraiser hosted by a founder of a fossil fuel company.

The Intercept has more background on Andrew Goldman and his natural gas production company Western LNG:

Western’s major project is a floating production facility off the northern coast of British Columbia designed to provide Canadian gas to markets in northeast Asia.

Goldman and Biden have deep ties: Goldman served as an adviser to Biden while he was in the Senate and was the northeast director of finance for Biden’s 2008 campaign. He’s also an executive at the investment banking firm Hildred Capital Partners. He and his partner at the firm, David Solomon, along with their wives Renee and Sarah, will host a private fundraiser for Biden at the Solomon house, CNBC reported. Goldman also co-founded De Cordova Goldman Capital Management, which invested in “natural resources and energy.”

Back to the CNN town tall, where Joe Biden has taken the stage. Biden introduced the first Senate bill on climate change. But now, he’s facing tough questions about his policies.

The first question for Biden centered on whether his plan is aggressive enough. He aims for net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and spending of $1.7 trillion. Bernie Sanders, by comparison, would eliminate carbon emissions by 2050 and spend $16.3 trillion. Elizabeth Warren aims for a faster timeline and $10 trillion.

Biden defended his proposal, saying it has received good marks from environmental organizations. (He has a B+ from Greenpeace.) But he said he would love to move faster if possible.

He reminded that the US produces 15% of global emissions and that the rest of the world would need to follow suit, and he said he would push other nations to act.

“The first thing I’d do as president of the United States is call a meeting of all the nations that signed onto the [Paris] accord in Washington, DC, to up the ante,” he said.

Nancy Pelosi: "Trump properties are a cesspool of corruption"

Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi
 Photograph: Susan Walsh/AP

House speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office has released a statement alleging that Trump is violating the constitution by using his position to promote resorts and properties.

The president is violating the emoluments clause of the constitution by encouraging foreign officials to stay at his properties, the statement says. And Trump is lining his own pockets with taxpayer money by insisting that he and other US officials stay at Trump properties, calling out Mike Pence’s choice to stay at Trump’s Irish golf club, despite the property being an hour-long flight to and from the vice president’s meetings in Dublin.

Pelosi has so far resisted impeaching Trump despite mounting pressure from her fellow democrats. But her assertion that “Trump is violating the Constitution by making money off of his lavish, ritzy resort properties” is one of her strongest condemnations of the president yet.

Klobuchar defended taking the gray wolf off the endangered species list, arguing that once a species’ numbers bounce back, “then you should allow them to be delisted. Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense.”

In this thinking, she sides with Republicans who have been advocating for the gray wolf to be delisted. Populations dwindled to about 1,000 in the lower 48 states before receiving protection under the Endangered Species Act in 1975. Since then, wolves have rebounded to more than 5,000.

The Obama administration also proposed removing the wolves’ endangered status, but federal courts blocked the move.

The wolves have drawn ire from ranchers concerned with protecting their cattle and sheep, and from hunters who say the wolves have decimated game. But conservationists say the wolves are still vulnerable and serve an important purpose in keeping elk and other populations in check.

“Let me get very clear, I am strongly in favor of the Endangered Species Act,” Klobuchar said — separating herself from Trump and other republicans who want to dismantle it altogether.

Amy Klobuchar got questions on some of her controversial and less progressive climate proposals: allowing fracking for natural gas, supporting “safe” nuclear power and backing “cleaner” coal technology.

The senator has doubted the feasibility of quickly phasing fossil fuels out of the economy. Tonight, she again avoided committing to a timeline for the US to function without them. In her written climate plan says she would aim for carbon-neutrality by 2050, but it’s unclear how she would get there based on her answers.

Next up, we head into primetime interviews with Joe Biden at 8 EST, Bernie Sanders at 8:40 and Elizabeth Warren at 9:20.

The Trump campaign is already using clips of Kamala Harris saying that plastic straws should be banned to promote their candidate... and to sell branded straws.

More analysis from the CNN town hall, from The Guardian’s Emily Holden:

Kamala Harris insisted the US can tackle climate change without forcing Americans to make major sacrifices — a claim likely to come under attack from conservatives.

“Just to be perfectly honest with you, I love cheeseburgers from time to time. I do,” she said. She did, however, agree that nutritional guidelines for meat should consider impacts on the environment.

Harris leaned on her record as a prosecutor, noting that she has sued ExxonMobil as the former attorney general of California. She also told a victim of the wildfire in Paradise, California — which destroyed his home — that he is a “real, living testament” of the devastation reaped by climate change.

Harris would spend $10 trillion ongoing carbon neutral by 2045, putting her plan among the most aggressive. But Harris dodged a question about whether she agreed with Bernie Sanders that nuclear power--which is about half of carbon-free electricity in the US--should be phased out.

Interviewer Erin Burnett, asked much broader questions than the first host, Wolf Blitzer. She also did not interrupt Harris’ answers or ask as many detailed follow-up questions.

Updated

Candidate Andrew Yang, one of the few in politics who has discussed the idea of managed retreat defended his plan to move Americans living in low lying areas to higher ground during the CNN town hall.

“There are already climate refugees in the United States of America, people that we relocated from an island that was essentially becoming uninhabitable in Louisiana and we moved those people,” he said.

Yang drew criticism previously for talking about retreat in the context of humans being “too late” to stop climate change.

Yang is perhaps the only candidate to include managed retreat, which experts say might be a necessary part of adapting to global heating, as part of his official policy.

The Trump administration has announced new rules to roll back Bush-era requirements for energy-saving lightbulbs.

From the New York Times:

The Energy Department’s filing in the Federal Register will prevent new efficiency standards from going into effect on Jan. 1 under a law passed in 2007.

The changes are likely to be challenged in court. “We will explore all options, including litigation, to stop this completely misguided and unlawful action,” said Noah Horowitz, director of the Center for Energy Efficiency Standards at the Natural Resources Defense Council, last week in anticipation of the move.

The gradual shift toward more efficient light bulbs is one of the largely unsung success stories in the fight to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. “U.S. household energy consumption is down 6 percent since 2010, and this is due in part to the increase in the use of energy-efficient lighting,” said Lucas Davis, a professor in the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley. ...

Congress passed legislation to phase out inefficient incandescent and halogen bulbs in 2007, during the administration of President George W. Bush.

House subpoenas Department of Homeland Security

The subpoena is related to Trump’s attempts to pardon officials at the border that violate the law in order to enforce his immigration policies.

Trump denies that he’s made any such offer, but the House judiciary committee cites news reports, including one from the New York Times that Trump urged the current acting DHS secretary, Kevin McAleenan, to close the US-Mexico border regardless of legal challenges, and one from the Washington Post that Trump offered to pardon officials who disregarded environmental rules and laws against seizing private property to construct a border fence.

“The dangling of pardons by the president to encourage government officials to violate federal law would constitute another reported example of the president’s disregard for the rule of law,” said the House judiciary committee leader, Jerrod Nadler, in a statement.

Updated

The Democratic town hall on the climate crisis is off to a strong start, with questions from voters for Julian Castro on flooding risks, threats to the next generation and commitments to phase out fossil fuels.

Castro received applause for his pitch for new civil rights legislation to address environmental injustice.

Interviewer Wolf Blitzer has been pushing Castro to expand on his answers, a tactic that will be key to an engaging and probing discussion in the absence of an official debate. The Democratic National Committee has refused to allow that kind of single-issue debate.

Here’s the full schedule:

Julián Castro – 5pm, interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer
Andrew Yang – 5:40pm, interview with Blitzer
Kamala Harris – 6:20pm, interview with CNN’s Erin Burnett
Amy Klobuchar – 7pm, interview with Burnett
Joe Biden – 8pm, interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper
Bernie Sanders – 8:40pm, interview with Cooper
Elizabeth Warren – 9:20pm, interview with CNN’s Chris Cuomo
Pete Buttigieg – 10pm, interview with Cuomo
Beto O’Rourke – 10:40pm, interview with CNN’s Don Lemon
Cory Booker – 11:20pm, interview with Lemon.

Updated

The marathon, seven-hour CNN climate town hall has begun.

First up, Julian Castro, who started with a shout out to the former candidate Jay Inslee “who did a fantastic job of bringing this issue to the forefront of this campaign”, Castro said.

Stay tuned for updates and analysis from the town hall throughout the afternoon and evening.

Updated

That’s it from me today. My west coast colleague, Maanvi Singh, will be taking over the blog for the next few hours.

Here’s where the day stands so far:

  • The Carolinas are bracing for intense flooding as Hurricane Dorian slowly makes its way up the east coast. Follow our live coverage of the storm’s progress.
  • Trump is facing questions over whether he used a Sharpie to alter a map of Dorian’s projected path to include Alabama after the president falsely claimed the state would be “hit (much) harder than anticipated” in a Sunday tweet.
  • Britain’s Parliament passed a bill meant to avoid a no-deal Brexit, marking another significant loss for Boris Johnson. The prime minister also seems to have failed in his effort to call snap elections, as our UK politics live blog reports.
  • A watchdog report confirmed widely held suspicions that migrant children who were separated from their parents as part of Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy faced severe psychological repercussions.
  • More Democratic presidential candidates released their plans to confront the climate crisis in advance of tonight’s climate-focused town hall, which is starting now on CNN.

The Guardian will be covering the climate town hall, and Maanvi will have more on the news of the day, so stay tuned.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is redirecting questions about the altered Hurricane Dorian map to the White House. But the White House seems to be avoiding the issue.

The map, which appeared to be altered with a Sharpie to include Alabama in Dorian’s projected path, was shown by Trump during a hurricane briefing in the Oval Office.

When asked later whether the map had been altered, Trump deflected the question and insisted that Alabama was a part of the forecast when he first tweeted his concern for the state on Sunday. As many fact checks have confirmed, that is not true.

The AP reports:

In fact, forecasts from overnight last Friday showed a small sliver of Alabama at the edge of the five-day cone of uncertainty. But by Saturday morning — more than 24 hours before Trump’s warning about Alabama — the storm was predicted to pose no threat to the state. Trump was getting multiple daily briefings about the storm.

Military construction projects to be defunded for border wall are revealed

A list has emerged of the military construction projects that will be defunded to pay for Trump’s border wall. The list includes planned projects in 23 states and three territories.

The defense secretary, Mark Esper, said in a letter to Congress that the $3.6 billion in diverted funding would be used to build 11 wall projects along the US-Mexico border. Justifying the funding change, Esper cited the national emergency Trump declared at the border in February.

Democrats have unsurprisingly slammed the move as Trump’s blatantly political attempt to fulfill a key campaign promise at the cost of US service members.

But more surprisingly, some Republican lawmakers have also voiced criticism of the plan, complaining that the diversion of funds would prevent their states from pursuing vitally important projects.

Trump once again appeared noncommittal about tackling gun violence when lawmakers return to Capitol Hill next week.

Donald Trump makes an announcement about state opioid response grants at the White House.
Donald Trump makes an announcement about state opioid response grants at the White House. Photograph: Pete Marovich/POOL/EPA

During a White House event on the opioid crisis, Trump said he was considering “many different concepts and many different things including mental health” to reduce gun violence. He went on to specifically voice support for building more mental institutions to “get these people off the streets.”

But the American Psychological Statement said after last month’s shootings in Dayton and El Paso that blaming the mentally ill for gun violence is “unfounded and stigmatizing.”

Mitch McConnell told radio host Hugh Hewitt yesterday that he would not take up any gun bill in the Senate without Trump’s explicit endorsement. With the president being so vague on his opinion, that seems unlikely.

Elizabeth Warren’s campaign said the Democratic presidential candidate fully supports a national fracking ban, even though her newly released climate plan did not specify that.

The comments from the Warren campaign came after Bernie Sanders issued a statement challenging all of his fellow presidential contenders to back a ban.

All of the participants in tonight’s climate-focused CNN town hall will likely be asked about a potential fracking ban. The town hall begins in just under an hour, at 5 p.m. E.T., and the blog will be covering the event.

Trump appears to show Dorian map altered with a Sharpie to include Alabama

Trump said he did not know if a Hurricane Dorian map he showed in the Oval Office had been altered with a Sharpie.

While receiving a hurricane briefing this afternoon, Trump presented a map of the storm’s projected path, but the map appeared to be edited with a Sharpie to include Alabama.

Trump falsely claimed this weekend that Alabama was at risk of being hit by Dorian, and he repeated the assertion even after it was refuted by the National Weather Service. But the president seems unwilling to let go of the false information.

Former Obama counsel acquitted in case originating from Mueller's investigation

Greg Craig, a former White House counsel to Barack Obama, was acquitted on a felony false-statement charge in a case that grew out of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.

The Wall Street Journal has more:

The jury acquitted Mr. Craig, who served as a top counselor to two Democratic presidents and a secretary of state, after a day of closed-door deliberations at a courthouse in downtown Washington, D.C.

The acquittal lifts a pall over Mr. Craig’s otherwise distinguished career at the upper echelons of law and politics, and represents a major setback for the Justice Department, which sought to make an example of Mr. Craig as it ramped up its enforcement of the laws governing work on behalf of foreign governments.

The charge against Mr. Craig stemmed from legal work Mr. Craig performed for the government of Ukraine in 2012. He and his then-law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP were hired to write an independent report for the Ukrainian Ministry of Justice evaluating the fairness of the trial of an opposition politician. ...

The investigation into Mr. Craig grew out of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and was referred to federal prosecutors in Washington.

Trump claims 'no involvement' with Pence's stay at his Irish golf club

Trump claimed he had “no involvement” with Mike Pence choosing to stay at his Irish golf club, despite the property being an hour-long flight to and from the vice president’s meetings in Dublin.

“Well, I had no involvement other than it’s a great place,” Trump said. “People like my product. What can I tell you?”

But Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, previously said that president had made a “suggestion” that the vice president stay at the Doonbeg club. The comment immediately sparked concerns that the president was trying to profit off the official trip.

Parliament approves bill meant to prevent no-deal Brexit

The British House of Commons has passed a bill meant to prevent a no-deal Brexit, marking another significant loss for Boris Johnson.

But Johnson reiterated his commitment to leaving the European Union by Oct. 31, calling for elections to be held on Oct. 15.

“I think it’s very sad that MPs have voted like this,” Johnson said. “I think it’s a great dereliction of their duty.”

For the latest on the debate, follow the Guardian’s UK politics live blog.

Wisconsin poll shows Trump trailing Biden, Sanders

A new Wisconsin poll found that Trump was either trailing or tied with all of the Democratic front-runners in hypothetical match-ups.

According to the well-respected Marquette Law School poll, Joe Biden leads Trump by nine points in the crucial battleground state. Bernie Sanders bests Trump by four points, while Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris are tied with the president.

The poll could ring alarm bells in Trump’s camp. The president’s 2016 victory was charged by his strength in the Midwest and he is counting on a repeat showing to secure re-election.

Given that Trump beat Hillary Clinton there by just one point in 2016, it would only take a sliver of his supporters defecting to make Wisconsin blue again.

Sanders calls on all Democratic candidates to commit to fracking ban

Ahead of tonight’s climate-focused CNN town hall, Bernie Sanders has put out a statement calling on his fellow Democratic presidential candidates to commit to a fracking ban.

“Any proposal to avert the climate crisis must include a full fracking ban on public and private lands,” Sanders said in a statement. “Fracking is a danger to our water supply. It’s a danger to the air we breathe.

“It causes earthquakes. It’s highly explosive. Safe fracking is, like clean coal, pure fiction. But, most importantly, methane from natural gas contributes to climate change and is setting us on a path to disaster. When we are in the White House, we will end the era of fossil fuels, and that includes fracking.”

Sanders has previously gone after his opponents, namely Joe Biden, for not proposing more sweeping plans to combat the climate crisis. The Vermont senator has called for spending $16 trillion to eliminate carbon emissions by 2050.

Mike Pence is also still facing questions about his decision to stay at the president’s golf course in Ireland, despite the property requiring an hour-long flight to and from the vice president’s meetings in Dublin.

Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, initially said Trump had made a “suggestion” that the vice president stay at his golf club, which immediately sparked concerns that the president was trying to profit off the official government trip.

Pence tried to clear that up by claiming that the property was best suited for his large security detail, given that Trump has stayed there before. But the White House denied Trump had made the suggestion at all, leading Short to blame the incident on “misreporting.” Reminder: the reporting was based on his comments to journalists.

Now CNN is reporting that Trump was irritated that he was ensnared in the ethical quagmire:

Trump had been irked that he was being blamed for the fallout for Pence’s accommodations, sources told CNN, and Pence -- who keeps a close eye on his media coverage -- was also exasperated by the negative attention.

Trump has suggested before that Cabinet officials and advisers stay at his properties while they are traveling. ...

In the past, however, aides have typically ignored the recommendations, knowing it would result in a firestorm of ethics questions.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, multiple White House officials expressed disbelief that Pence’s office thought spending two nights at the Trump International Golf Links & Hotel was good idea.

The president and the vice president appear to be on very different pages when it comes to Brexit.

Mike Pence, who is traveling to London this week and plans to meet with Boris Johnson, emphasized the complexity of the issue, while Trump stressed his personal rapport with the prime minister.

During his visit to Ireland yesterday, Pence ruffled some feathers by urging the Irish prime minister, Leo Varadkar, to work toward a deal that “respects the United Kingdom’s sovereignty and minimises the disruption to commerce.”

While speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump also expressed confidence in Britain’s embattled prime minister, Boris Johnson.

Donald Trump and Boris Johnson speak before a working breakfast at the G7 Summit in Biarritz, France.
Donald Trump and Boris Johnson speak before a working breakfast at the G7 Summit in Biarritz, France. Photograph: Erin Schaff/AFP/Getty Images

“He’s a friend of mine, and he’s going at it, there’s no question about it,” Trump said. “Boris knows how to win. Don’t worry about him.”

But the prime minister is facing a crucial test of his government less than two months into his tenure. After losing his first key Brexit vote in Parliament, Johnson is now calling for snap elections. (Follow Andrew Sparrow’s live blog to get the latest from London.)

Trump receives hurricane update

Trump was briefed by the acting DHS secretary, Kevin McAleenan, and FEMA’s acting administrator, Peter Gaynor, on the progress of Hurricane Dorian.

The president said Florida was in “fantastic shape,” despite initial concerns that the state would suffer a “direct hit” from Dorian, and he reassured Americans that the government was “very well-prepared” for the storm.

Still, McAleenan warned that the storm could still cause major damage along the east coast. “The hurricane remains a category 2 — a very powerful, very large storm. We are worried about significant impacts to South Carolina,” McAleenan said.

Trump added that the US government would assist with the recovery efforts in the Bahamas, but he somewhat oddly compared the devastation there to other past major storms that have struck the US.

“I must tell you, over the years there have been some hurricanes that were bigger and stronger and more powerful that hit us very hard also,” Trump said.

Here’s where the day stands so far:

  • A government watchdog report confirmed long-held suspicions that the migrant children who were separated from their families due to Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy experienced “heightened feelings of anxiety and loss.”
  • More Democratic presidential candidates, including Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg and Kamala Harris, have released their climate plans in advance of tonight’s CNN town hall.
  • Another House Republican, Bill Flores of Texas, announced he would not seek re-election next year, continuing a trend of GOP retirements in recent weeks.
  • Hurricane Dorian is moving northward toward Georgia and the Carolinas, where it could unleash intense rainfall and flooding.

The blog is still covering storm preparations and the lead-up to tonight’s town hall, so stay tuned.

Bernie Sanders dismissed concerns that there was not enough room in the Democratic presidential primary for both him and Elizabeth Warren, given that the two progressive senators espouse similar ideals.

“Elizabeth is a friend of mine. She and I have known each other well over 20 years. She’s going to run her campaign and I will run my campaign,” Sanders told ABC’s “The View.”

Despite common assumptions that Warren and Sanders’ supporters are quite similar, data indicates the two groups are actually rather distinct.

Our colleague David Smith reported last week:

Imagined as a Venn diagram, there is common ground between Warren and Sanders voters but each has their own distinct base. A survey by the Pew Research Center this month found that about seven in 10 of Warren’s supporters are white, compared to about half of Sanders’ backers. Warren’s supporters are substantially more likely to have a college degree compared with supporters of [Joe] Biden and Sanders.

John Zogby, a pollster and author, said: ‘Because of progressive ideology there is some sort of overlap, but they are different. Warren picks up support among women that ordinarily Sanders would not get, including former Clinton supporters who regard her as the bearer of the torch to get a woman elected.’

Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson sent (and deleted) a tweet implying that the path of Hurricane Dorian could be altered with “the power of the mind.”

The self-help author has attracted fascination with her campaign promises to “harness love for political purposes” and spark a “moral and spiritual awakening” in the country.

But the idea that those in Hurricane Dorian’s path can think away the storm’s effects might be a step too far for most people ⁠— particularly given the devastation Dorian unleashed in the Bahamas.

Williamson later appeared to replace the original tweet with one simply offering prayers to those affected by the hurricane.

House Democrats’ campaign arm took a victory lap after representative Bill Flores, a Republican of Texas, announced he would not seek re-election next year.

“Congressman Flores is now the fifth Texas Republican to retire as the DCCC’s early and aggressive investment in Texas’s swing districts lays the groundwork for victory in 2020,” DCCC Chair Cheri Bustos said in a statement.

She added: “As more and more of their colleagues consider leaving Washington early, it’s become increasingly clear that the Texodus will continue.”

Democrats are unlikely to flip Flores’ seat, given that he won re-election by 16 points last year. But the growing trend of Republican departures could signal trouble for the GOP ⁠— which is perhaps why Republican strategists expressed surprise at Flores’ announcement, as a Texas Tribune reporter noted.

Beto O’Rourke said the report on separated migrant children confirmed the expected psychological toll from their experiences.

The Democratic presidential candidate, who previously represented El Paso in the House, has repeatedly drawn upon his exposure to the southern border to bolster his credibility.

O’Rourke has also said that, if Trump manages to get his border wall constructed, he would take it down as president.

A separate report released today by the Health and Human Services inspector general found that migrant detention facilities were woefully substandard.

Specifically, many case managers did not meet the minimum education requirements for the Office of Refugee Resettlement.

“Specifically, of the 194 case managers included in our review, 67 individuals across 31 facilities did not meet the education requirement,” the report reads. “Most of these case managers did have a bachelor’s degree, but in a field of study other than those specified by ORR.”

The facilities also had difficulties training and retaining employees. The report said, “At the time of our visits in August and September 2018, 28 of the 45 facilities reported current staffing shortages for mental health clinicians or case managers.”

The Health and Human Services inspector general also noted in its report on separated migrant children how the emotional toll of the experience triggered health complaints.

Three migrants walk along a border wall as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.
Three migrants walk along a border wall as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Photograph: Christian Chavez/AP

“Physical symptoms felt by separated children are manifestations of their psychological pain,” one doctor said. “You get a lot of ‘my chest hurts,’ even though everything is fine [medically]. Children describe symptoms, ‘Every heartbeat hurts,’ ‘I can’t feel my heart,’ of emotional pain.”

Children also feared for the well-being of their parents after they were separated from each other at the US-Mexico border.

“A 7- or 8-year-old boy was separated from his father, without any explanation as to why the separation occurred,” one program director is quoted in the report as saying. “The child was under the delusion that his father had been killed and believed that he would also be killed. This child ultimately required emergency psychiatric care to address his mental health distress.”

Updated

The Youth Climate Strike Coalition, a group of youth organizations, released a set of policy demands in advance of tonight’s climate-focused CNN town hall.

The demands include implementing a Green New Deal, respecting indigenous lands and investing in sustainable agriculture. The groups are also planning a week of climate action, beginning with a strike on September 20th.

“CNN’s town hall is not just a conversation about the future of America, it is a conversation about the future of our planet,” Nadia Nazar, of the climate group Zero Hour, said in a statement. “In the Climate Strike policy demands, we chart out a future for elected leaders to choose children rather than profit.”

Our climate correspondent, Emily Holden, has also written this helpful piece on comparing the 2020 Democrats’ climate plans.

More 2020 Democrats put out climate plans

In preparation for tonight’s climate-focused CNN town hall, more Democratic presidential candidates are releasing their plans on confronting the climate crisis.

Elizabeth Warren has embraced the ideas of her former opponent, Jay Inslee, and proposed spending $3tn to transition to a clean, green economy. (Inslee dropped out of the race last month but has also aided at least one other presidential candidate, Julián Castro, in crafting his climate plan.)

Pete Buttigieg has similarly committed to a 2050 timeline for the economy becoming carbon neutral and called for spending billions to develop greener technology and aid farmers impacted by the meteorological effects of the climate crisis.

Under Kamala Harris’ plan, half of all new cars sold would be zero-emission by 2030, with a push to reach 100% by 2035. She also envisioned a “new and improved ‘cash for clunkers’ program” to incentivize that shift.

All three of these candidates, along with seven others, will get the chance to discuss their plans tonight during the seven-hour (yes, seven-hour) CNN town hall, which begins at 5pm ET.

Separated migrant children experienced "heightened feelings of anxiety and loss," report says

A report from the Health and Human Services inspector general concluded that children affected by the Trump administration’s family separation policy experienced “heightened feelings of anxiety and loss.”

A young girl waves through the fence at the US-Mexico border wall in San Ysidro, California.
A young girl waves through the fence at the US-Mexico border wall in San Ysidro, California. Photograph: Sandy Huffaker/AFP/Getty Images

“According to program directors and mental health clinicians, separated children exhibited more fear, feelings of abandonment, and post-traumatic stress than did children who were not separated,” the report reads.

It adds: “For example, one program director noted that separated children could not distinguish facility staff from the immigration agents who separated them from their parents: ‘Every single separated kid has been terrified. We’re [seen as] the enemy.’”

The practice of separating families who attempted to cross the US-Mexico border was part of Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy. But the practice was quickly abandoned last June amid outcry over devastating reports of migrant children begging for their parents.

Updated

House Republicans head for the exits

Another House Republican, Bill Flores of Texas, has announced he will not run for re-election next year, the latest in a string of GOP departures.

Flores said in a statement that he was leaving office to spend “much more time with my family” and “resume business activities in the private sector.” Given that he won re-election by 16 points last year, the seat is likely to remain in Republican hands.

All of that makes his announcement seemingly unremarkable. But it does underscore a widening trend of exits among the House GOP caucus. Flores is the fifth Texas Republican and fifteenth House Republican overall to announce he would retire or seek higher office.

Having been first elected during the Tea Party wave of 2010, Flores has never experienced life in the House minority — until this session. His decision to leave, along with about a dozen of his colleagues’ similar moves, could indicate that they don’t expect the House to swing back to Republican control next year. And they’d rather not spend another two years under Democrats’ thumb.

Updated

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Meghan Markle Is Allegedly Being Sued by Chanel for $8 Million — But Is This a Scandal or a Social Media Trap?
Meghan Markle is at the centre of an $8 million Chanel lawsuit, but no court filings or official confirmations have surfaced.
International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
'God of War' Series Confirms Kratos Actor, Who Is Also Known For Being in 'God of War: Ragnarok'
Prime Video's God of War series has finally revealed who will play as Kratos in the Amazon Prime Video series.
Player One
Player One
Still refusing to announce the Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag remake, Ubisoft randomly uploads 18 songs from the soundtrack to YouTube
Sea Shanties, specifically
GamesRadar
GamesRadar
Black hole butterflies? James Webb telescope spots dozens of black hole 'cocoons' in early universe.
The gaseous cocoons surrounding "little red dots" hint at their true nature, a new James Webb telescope study hints.
LiveScience
LiveScience
Star Wars fans are debating Disney's "abandoned" saga decisions
From Grogu to Finn, fans are weighing in
Total Film
Total Film
Unusual 'ingredients' helped stars form in a galaxy near the Milky Way
Some newly found stars in a small galaxy called Sextans A are forming without some of the usual "ingredients," raising questions about how the early universe evolved.
Space
Space
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.
Download on the AppStore Get it on Google Play