Trump Loses Mail Voting Ruling as Judge Blocks Midterm Scheme

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1:21Bucket of the Day deal. Every weekday. Only at KFC. It's finger licking good. Prices and participation variable. Supplies last not available on third party ordering platforms. Tax extra. We have this breaking legal news. This is in the biggest legal midterm issue that we've been tracking. This is the big one. And you know, there's Friday news dumps. We've heard about that. And sometimes the courts are just keeping up with it. This is a big loss for the Trump administration on the midterm ballot clash. I'm holding the ruling. We've just been going through it. I got guests standing by. So we're going to get you what you need to know about this.

1:55I've got some other politics and midterm coverage coming later in the hour. But the top story right now is the breaking news. The federal judge here granting relief to the states that were fighting Trump. This is a win for the states and a loss for the Trump administration and its plot to try to use or abuse the mail system, the Postal Service, to interfere with the midterms. There have been many developments in this case. The Supreme Court at one point weighed in, but this is the big new one because this is the direct court proceeding. The judge that was overseeing whether this Trump rule, this new rule they just hatched, could actually take effect.

2:31And late today, the judge says, no, it can't. I want to bring in our guests on this breaking news, New York Times Molly Jong-Fast and Michelle Goldberg, a New York Times columnist, both analysts for us. Michelle, what I'm going to do, because it's a breaking story, is read a couple of the points here from the ruling and then get both of your reactions. I'll tell folks, because, again, we just got this moments ago. The judge says this will be an injunction. It prohibits the Postal Service, quote, from implementing mandatory sections of that final Trump rule, which was technically called the ballot mail for federal elections rule by the Trump administration.

3:10The court notes something that is basic. This is not complex law school stuff here. I'll just read it straight up. Quote, Congress has always respected the Constitution's reservation of power to the states for elections. It explicitly permits the states and, quote, not federal agencies to legislate on these matters. Michelle, this is pretty straightforward. It's a big loss for Trump. It reiterates what we already knew, which is that states and localities do elections in this country, not the president and certainly not the postal service. Right. I mean, as you said, this was something that we already knew.

3:50This was a sort of quite a shocking thing that Trump was trying to do. I mean, particularly because mail-in ballots have already gone out, at least in North Carolina. They're about to go out in several other states. I mean, it's astonishing that we're already this close to the midterms. But this is, You know, it would have been absolute chaos if they tried to actually put this executive order into effect. Although I am not sure. And like you said, this is a breaking story. I think that we will still need some assurance that the post office, that the Trump lackeys in the post office are going to follow the law and ensure that the ballots are delivered.

4:34Yeah, I think that's a great point. There's been a whistleblower complaint and reporting from the news section of your paper and other outlets about allegations that they were already efforts to sort of build this secret plot system in case they got cleared or illegally. And so we're talking about the whole enchilada, Molly. I want to read further into the ruling here. This is from page 45. Again, we just got this where the court says that implementing the final Trump rule, quote, less than 70 days before the election threatens disenfranchisement of millions of citizens who would vote by mail.

5:11that sort of when courts do what's called a balancing test or a, hey, how do how do we balance the issues? They're saying very much directly siding against Trump and with the states that this could disenfranchise millions. So obviously the rule falls. The rule is, according to the court, illegal and wrong. Molly. Yeah, I mean, you know, about a third of all Americans vote by mail, including Donald Trump. So the idea that it would disenfranchise a ton of people right before an election. Look, this was Trump's Hail Mary pass. Right. First, he tried redistricting. Then he you know, this is sort of him trying to make it harder to vote because he can see the polls.

5:53And so this may end up going back to the Supreme Court, I think. But, you know, the and Katanji Brown Jackson wrote about this in her in her opinion, where she said, you know, that this has become, you know, a I think she said it was like, you know, a kind of, you know, that they should have just turned it down right away, that they made it into a kind of, you know, nightmare of law of going to judges and going to courts. When, in fact, it's very clear that the states administer elections. Right. And you're referring to the fact that the Supreme Court has been challenged by a lot of Trump tactics, ploys, DOJ deceit things, Michelle, that that were a problem in the first term, but didn't come this this fast and furious, so to speak.

6:46And I'm curious, building on the point you raised earlier, Michelle, it's going to be incumbent on states and society at large to hold the light on this and to enforce it and to be ready. If there are individuals inside the government who are trying to do a slow rolling sort of illegal coup, midterm meddling from inside the Postal Service or where else, that has to be pursued. And of course, whether or not you have a fair election also goes to whether or not there'll be oversight after November, because anyone inside the government, within the sound of our voices or following the news and the law, they have an oath to uphold the Constitution.

7:22If they violate it, believe it or not, they still can get in trouble. Michelle? Well, I mean, I think that the good news, besides that there are still courts that are independent and, you know, kind of committed to enforcing the law, is that the Democrats, I think, are trying to see every angle. You know, I know that there have been war games where they try to game out every single thing that Trump and his allies and his minions could do to disrupt the vote. And when I've spoken to Norm Eisen, who I'm sure you've spoken to as well, he says that he feels pretty confident that they are not going to be six, that, you know, they're going to try to throw everything they can at this election, but ultimately they're not going to be successful.

8:12Yeah. And this describing this as sort of a Hail Mary, you know, Molly, the sitting president supported a violent insurrection and freed and helped people who attacked violently, police and federal officials. So that's where he stands. We know that. Whether everyone else, whether that is the powers that be in Congress, the courts we've just mentioned, which of course today are dealing Trump this loss for viewers who might be joining us a couple of minutes in the broadcast, the breaking news is Trump losing that big midterm ballot case. But Molly, we had a guest on this week, Ty Cobb, who served in the Trump White House, has become a real critic.

8:53But he warned, you know, there might be pressure by Trump on Mike Johnson to say, oh, well, can you play gimmicks and not seat new newly elected officials? Right. All of that stuff eventually gets back to the Hail Mary of Trump demanding things, as he did in the lead up to Jan 6. And what does everyone else do? Yeah, I mean, I think there's a real likelihood that He tries that. And again, what is what has been good about this moment? And I've also talked to a ton of different nonpartisan organizations have been ready to write, you know, to bring things back to the court immediately. And there are a bunch of different kinds of war games for what if he does this?

9:32What if he does that? There definitely is a lot of anxiety that he might try to bully Mike Johnson into not ceding, you know, people if Democrats flip the house. And I think that there are some contingency plans for that. I also think that, you know, if that if it gets that, then people are going to have to peacefully protest the way they have with the No Kings rally. And in fact, you know, I interviewed the No Kings people for my podcast just recently, and they were talking about how, you know, they have different activations ready for different scenarios of peaceful protest. And and that may be what it comes to.

10:08I mean, you'll remember on January 6th until, you know, Trump had to get phone calls from his, you know, his people to tell him to, you know, make sure that this to tell people to go home. So there is I mean, I think Trump may very well push this as far as he can. But the good news, I think, for all of us is that the law is on the side of free and fair elections. Right. And we're seeing these these developments. Some people understand they're getting ready for a long weekend. It's the official end of summer. But it is also a sign of how things work that the courts, they didn't blow this off or look at this as some mild thing they'll revisit next week.

10:45They obviously moved with all deliberate haste to write this 40-page ruling. Again, for folks joining us, I'll just read again. This is new, breaking in the last few moments. The federal judge issuing a preliminary injunction that, quote, prohibits the U.S. Postal Service under Trump from its efforts to implement those mandatory sections of the final rule, ballot mail for federal elections. Translation, Trump's midterm plot is now paused as illegal, dead on arrival in the courts. We will follow whether they appeal it up to the Supreme Court. This makes it much harder to do. That is the big news.

11:18Breaking news around here on a Friday, as I mentioned. Our guests are staying with me, and we turn from the securing of the midterm elections to how the midterms might go. Trump's job approval crashing to 32. And that is not the only problem. The disapproval, that's people who are angry, the revolt against him and his Republican Party, up to 64 percent, 68. When you look at the Iran war, gas prices up. And that's why we've had an August that was tough in a lot of ways for the economy with the affordability crisis and people hurting. The economy is robbing me blind every step of the way. The cost of living is absolutely insane.

11:59Feeding your kids should not feel this expensive. Gas went up one, a whole dollar. Gas prices finna go up, so y 'all need to work on your astral projections so you could just tell your boss, yo, I'm here at work, but in spirit. America is struggling because of two words. Donald Trump. Trump also on the wrong side of public opinion on big tech. We've been covering this story from a number of different angles. You look at the cost of data centers to communities, the concern about job losses. One Republican pollster saying the instant voter reaction to data centers is hell no. They are the physical manifestation.

12:38Billionaires build them. It feeds into big tech skepticism, symbolic of everyone's AI issues. That's another pollster talking to the Times. And you can see the backlash.

12:50This is a beautiful city of Maysville. Oh, sorry. Could you not hear me? That might just be the two pre-existing data centers right behind me. Georgia Power is expecting all of the tax citizens and the landowners here to subsidize their project. Go look into China and their data centers. They are using like windmills and not using water. 18 of these turbines put in here and they want to put 41 in place of this.

13:20From the beginning of the summer to the end, this is an issue that has completely caught fire. It's flipped around and it's put heat on Donald Trump and his billionaire tech buddies. Will it also change the outcome of these midterms? Well, as promised, now that we've covered the ballot protection of the midterms, we're going to talk big picture midterms with our guests after this break.

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14:29Cosentix secukinumab is prescribed for adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis 300 mg dose and adults with active psoriatic arthritis 150 mg dose. Don't use if you're allergic to Cosentix. Before starting, get checked for tuberculosis. An increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur, like tuberculosis or other serious bacterial, fungal, or viral infections. Some are fatal. Tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms like fevers, sweats, chills, muscle aches, or cough, had a vaccine or planned to, or if inflammatory bowel disease symptoms develop or worsen.

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15:48We're back with Molly and Michelle. Michelle, I went through just some of what is dragging down the GOP in these midterms. We come back from this holiday and it's the official homestretch. What is your basic midterm outlook? I mean, I think that the administration has very little to run on. things in this country are going wrong and frankly falling apart on a whole number of metrics. I mean, I know that the administration Republicans are quite happy about today's job report, but even in the job report, which is, you know, which is kind of good and more robust than people were expecting, it still shows that wage growth has slowed and wage growth is now less than Let me put it up and then let you build on it, because since you brought it up, though, I'll just remind folks, these are the new numbers over 160 K unemployment around 4.1.

16:46The Times calling that a stability that contrasts with the other problems like inflation. And then we were on the same page as you, because if you look at wages versus corporate profits over the years and recent inflation, you can see why people aren't necessarily feeling. this little blip improvement, which most economists say is better than the alternative. Great to have jobs up a bit. So go ahead. The floor is yours. We wanted to show people what you were talking about. Yeah, I mean, wage growth has slowed. I believe it's like kind of up 3.1%, which again is lower than the rate of inflation.

17:24So people are going to feel like they're real wages, which they already feel extremely stretched. They're going to feel even more so, right? I mean, nothing is getting better or nothing has at least been on track to get better in the next two months. The war in Iran, which has driven up gas prices and is also contributing to inflation. There's sort of no end in sight to that. Although I guess the best case scenario is that Donald Trump could just declare victory and leave. Although whether or not that opens up the Strait of Hormuz, I think we simply don't know. And so, you know, I mean, look, the first Trump administration ended in complete disaster.

18:06There was never any question that Donald Trump was going to be able to run the country well. You know, the first Trump administration and by the end of the first Trump administration, Donald Trump had, you know, kind of scared away or fired or driven out all of the people who kind of had some sense of professionalism and had some interest in restraining him. And we saw what that looked like in January 6th in the reaction to COVID. Now we're getting four years of that. And, you know, Americans maybe had some amnesia when they put Trump back in office, but now they are remembering what it's like.

18:46Yeah. It's so funny when you say that, Michelle, because you're so right on the political amnesia. We have debates in this country about the size of government, tax rates. But we didn't have a debate at the end of 2020. There was a rejection of Trump far and wide in places like Georgia and elsewhere. I showed tonight disapproval of over 60 percent worse than where he was then. Molly, as Michelle says, once people see the product, they're reminded what they forgot, which is they dislike this product and it doesn't help them. And that's happened on the right as well. For Molly's reaction, take a look at from the war to Epstein, just how loud the criticism has been lately.

19:30What would your message be to him about the economy right now, about prices, about day-to-day life? I would tell him, you promised us you would lower prices, bring back what it used to be. How do you get out of this? And then what does the exit look like? Do we have troops over there forever now? I don't trust a word President Trump says about this anymore. What American is this helping? He's told us 31 times that the Iran war is over. OK, only to then tweet about how we're going to bomb them into oblivion. It doesn't make sense. That's what our president's up to. And it's baffling. And it's sick and it feels like he's just been compromised.

20:06How come you redact some people and you don't redact other people? Like, what is this? This is not good. None of this is good for this administration. It looks terrible. It's the way they've handled the scandal has been so bad. Completely agree. This is self-inflicted. Current DOJ under Pambandi is covering up crimes, very serious crimes. It looks terrible. It looks terrible for Trump when he was saying that none of this was real. This is all a hoax. This is not a hoax. There is something there and it's being covered up and the president blessed it. The system is rigged. Kids feel like there are no options other than to burn it down.

20:48Nolly. You have no historical precedent for a president polling under 40 percent as low as 32 percent who has, you know, run on. He said he was going to end foreign wars. He said he was going to make things cheaper. He has done more than seven foreign adventures. He can't you know, we're six months into this war with Iran. We never were given any explanation as to why the closest we got was Marco Rubio saying that maybe this Netanyahu had wanted him. I mean, it's just completely, you know, that they're trying to end nukes, but there were no nukes. I mean, it's just nonsensical. And then you have gas prices and inflation.

21:29And I think the thing that I think is really the worst for Republicans right now, though, is that Donald Trump really wants them to stay tied to him into the midterm. And if you look back historically, Biden and Bill Clinton and Obama all said, when you're running in the midterms, you can run against me because I know that a lot of times midterms, right, are referendums on the incumbent. And here you have Trump saying, no, if you want any of this 400 million plus dollars from MAGA Inc., you have to run in, you know, hand in hand with a wildly unpopular president. And I think it's a disaster for them.

22:07Yeah. As you say, even the Republicans talk about, oh, the incumbents are hurting. That's why we usually lose, kind of doing expectations management, but not able to deal with what Karl Rove called the narcissist in chief because they can't deal with the fact that he wants to be about everything, even if it hurts everyone. And that's sort of the bind they're in. And that comes with our sort of midterm summary here that I promised viewers, as well as that breaking news tonight, the midterm ballot case, a win for states, a loss for Trump. Again, my thanks to Molly and Michelle across those stories.

22:42We have a lot more in the program, including Byron Allen. As part of our summit series tonight, we're going to get into civil rights and what he said is important for building black power in America. and that other issue I mentioned, the AI bubble, the business inequality. Special guest coming up.

23:07There are new warning signs that the U.S. stock market and these data centers could be gearing up for an AI bubble. Tech is a big part of the economy, which now means that your retirement funds are automatically in it and these AI companies, whether you like it or not. Now we have Goldman Sachs veteran Lloyd Blankenfein, who knows all about both bubbles and how to survive them, given their experience in the 08 financial crisis. He has no idea how bad it is out there. He has no idea. He has no idea. Bear Stearns today leading the tumble on Wall Street. The stock plunging 45 percent. Lehman Brothers is going bankrupt.

23:47The news from Wall Street has shaken the American people's faith in our economy. Meltdown. The American financial system is rocked to its foundation. History in the making. The Dow plummets more than 777 points. Its biggest one day point drop. You know that Kramer was Harvard College, Harvard Law and Goldman Sachs, just like me. Yeah. Yeah. How do you like that? How do you like that? And we go to the same barber. what was the day you remember appreciating that the risk was rising because it was clearly before the crash based on global way before the crash and one of the things look you know i don't want you to think i'm overly humble i think we did very well in in in red in it registering we saw signs of it early why did we see signs of it early we mark our balance sheet we mark our assets.

24:38What does that mean? Everything we own every day, we try to, we figure out what the price of that is worth and record that. And so we do that every day. And we're very, very, very, very rigorous about that. Not everybody was as rigorous as we were. And we put out, you know, the word in the organization. And when I say that's not casual, we instructed people, let's get closer to home. So in other words, everybody has a lot of different parts of our firm in New York, in Japan, Singapore, China, everywhere else in different assets, in stock market, bond markets, commodity markets. We trade everything and we trade everything all over the world.

25:17Do your business, stay close to your customers, but try to keep your risks closer to home. If you're going, if you're being asked by your clients to take an extraordinary risk in something, try to hedge it quickly. So you get closer to even closer to neutral as much as you can. And that's how we try to run ourselves. There's two macro big stories here, two big narratives. One is the financial data and results that show you led a firm that handled this better than most other competitors, came out ahead. That was good for anyone who invested in you. That's kind of your job. Right. Landed with, you know, Warren Buffett money like that kind of outcome.