All the President’s Debts ; What if a State Can’t Agree Which Presidential Candidate Won? ; and More Picks 10/29
How Transgender Voters Are Fighting to Make Their Votes Count (Dan)
The author writes, “Of the estimated 1.4 million adults who identify as transgender in the U.S., nearly a million are eligible to vote. But according to a study … about 42% of those voters could face barriers to casting a ballot in November, because they lack photo IDs that match their gender or their correct name. … Legally, poll workers cannot turn voters away for being transgender or non-binary, or for having an outdated photo on their license. But that doesn’t necessarily stop poorly trained or discriminatory poll workers from challenging the rights of transgender voters if the picture or gender identity indicated on their ID doesn’t match their perceived presentation.”
What if a State Can’t Agree Which Presidential Candidate Won? (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “Imagine this scenario: It’s been weeks since election day, and in one state, it’s not clear which presidential candidate won. In an initial count, the Democrat won by roughly 100 votes. Then an audit found a counting error that put the Republican ahead. Officials launch a recount, but it’s not finished by the December deadline for the electoral college to cast votes. So the state’s Democratic and Republican electors each declare victory and cast competing sets of electoral votes for their candidates. Outlandish? Not really. This happened in Hawaii in 1960, when John F. Kennedy faced then-Vice President Richard Nixon in a high-turnout election marked nationally by voting irregularities and allegations of fraud.”
All the President’s Debts: To Whom Donald Trump Owes Money (Dana)
From the Financial Times: “These are tough times in the real estate market. The Covid-19 crisis has hit asset values, particularly commercial real estate in cities such as New York. Investors holding debt with upcoming maturities are preparing for tricky negotiations with their debtors. The negotiations will be trickier if the debtor is the president of the United States. Virtually all of Donald Trump’s debt — there is at least $1.1bn of it, according to his government financial disclosures and other documents — is backed by real estate, mostly linked to a small number of buildings and golf courses that form the core of the Trump business empire. About $900m of that debt will come due in Mr Trump’s second term, should he win the November 3 presidential election.”
The White Extremist Group Patriot Front Is Preparing for a World After Donald Trump (Peg)
From BuzzFeed News: “As the United States hurtles toward the presidential election, the country seems ready to forget that its own homegrown fascism predated President Donald Trump — and to ignore that it will last after he leaves office. Yet for its part, Patriot Front couldn’t care less about the results of the upcoming election.”
Flowers Are Changing Color in Response to Climate Change (Dana)
The author writes, “To adapt to climate change, some flowers are darkening their hue to protect themselves from the sun’s radiation, new research shows. … A new study published in the journal Current Biology suggests that over the past 75 years, the ultraviolet (UV) pigments in flowers have increased in response to rising temperatures and a thinning ozone layer. … The flowers won’t look any different to humans, since we can’t see UV radiation, but pollinators perceive the higher levels of pigment as a darker hue, which could be confusing when they try to scope out colorful flowers to land on.”
Your Dog Knows Exactly What You’re Saying (Mili)
The author writes, “It doesn’t take a scientific study for dog owners to believe that their pets know what they’re saying. (We cat owners are a little less certain.) But it’s not always clear exactly what Fido is paying attention to. When we say ‘Good dog!’ dogs hear both the words we say and how we say them, new brain scans show. For people, both the word and intonation are important, but no one knew — until now — whether that was also the case for dogs.”
