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Trump Dumps Oppo Research on Harris

Now that Vice President Kamala Harris has assumed the role as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump is quickly seeking to define her public image.

Managing Editor Lori Robertson and Staff Writer D'Angelo Gore wrote an article on Trump's July 27 rally in St. Cloud, Minnesota, where the former president dumped his campaign's opposition research on Harris. 

Here are some of the claims that Lori and D'Angelo wrote about:

  • Trump falsely claimed that Harris voted to “cut Medicare by $237 billion” and “betrayed American seniors.” The legislation allows Medicare to negotiate drug prices, which saves costs for some seniors and strengthens Medicare's finances.
  • He claimed that Harris “said that a 80% tax rate is a bold idea that should be discussed.” She didn’t endorse that rate. Rather, Harris said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s proposals, which included a rate that high for people making more than $10 million a year, “should be discussed,” adding that “when we are able to defend the status quo, then do it." If not, she said, "then let’s explore new ideas.”
  • He also claimed Harris “called for slashing consumption of red meat to fight climate change.” Harris once said she supported encouraging and incentivizing Americans to eat better, but she did not say she would restrict how much red meat is consumed.

Lori and D'Angelo write about nearly a dozen claims. Read the full story, "Trump Distorts the Facts in Attacks on Harris."
HOW WE KNOW
Not everything is online and free. In those cases, we rely on books and archived news reports kept by Lexis-Nexis, among other sources, to dig up the facts. That's what Deputy Managing Editor Robert Farley did to debunk former President Donald Trump's bogus claim that Vice President Kamala Harris "happened to turn Black" recently to gain a political advantage. Rob used excerpts from Harris' autobiography and dug up stories about Harris when she was elected as San Francisco district attorney in 2003. Read more.
FEATURED FACT
The worst inflation ever recorded in the United States occurred from June 1919 to June 1920, when the 12-month increase in the Consumer Price Index was 23.7%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. BLS has been keeping such records since 1913. During President Joe Biden's time in office, the largest increase was 9.1% for the 12 months ending June 2022. BLS said it was the biggest increase since November 1981. Inflation is currently running at 3% for the most recent 12-month period, ending in June. Read more.
WORTHY OF NOTE
The journal Judicature this week published a report by our parent organization -- the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania -- on the drop in the public's confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court.

The researchers drew on nearly 20 years of APPC survey data. They write that "from 2005 to 2019, large majorities of Americans across the political spectrum had either 'a fair amount' or 'a great deal' of trust in the U.S. Supreme Court to operate in the best interests of the American people."

But between 2019 and 2022, the researchers found "a considerable drop in trust." Only 46% percent of those surveyed said they had a "fair amount" or "great deal" of trust in the high court -- down from 68% in 2019.

In 2023, a year after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, 53% expressed “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of trust in the court -- although that is still below the historical norm, as the authors noted.

The piece concludes with a discussion of "the role of robust civics education" to rebuild "public confidence in the judiciary."

For more information, read "The Withering of Public Confidence in the Courts" in Judicature. 
REPLY ALL

Reader: Even though Trump was convicted, didn't they also have to throw it out of court after the supreme court overturned it??? Making it not!! A conviction??? because in my state when you take something to a higher court and win! Then it's not a conviction. So what's the truth?? And don't word play me.

FactCheck.org Director Eugene Kiely: Former President Donald Trump’s criminal conviction in New York state still stands – at least for now. 

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on July 1 that a president has a “presumption of immunity” when carrying out “official acts.” However, the court also said “[t]he President enjoys no immunity for his unofficial acts, and not everything the President does is official,” as Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the court’s 6-3 ruling. That court ruling involved a federal indictment in Washington, D.C., not the New York state case. (You can read more about the status of the federal case here.) 

Since then, there has been a flurry of legal papers filed in the New York case.

The day of the Supreme Court ruling, Trump’s lawyers sent a letter to acting Justice Juan Merchan in New York, asking him to “set aside the jury’s verdict” against Trump in light of the high court's ruling on immunity. On July 25, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg filed a 69-page opposition brief insisting that the verdict should stand, claiming the court ruling has "no bearing on this prosecution."

Trump’s lawyers responded to Bragg's brief on July 31, saying the verdict violates “the Presidential immunity doctrine and the Supremacy Clause.” The Supremacy Clause, as you note, refers to the principle that federal law takes precedence over state law when the two are in conflict.  

In an Aug. 1 article, the New York Times reported that Merchan has promised to rule on "Mr. Trump's bid to toss out the conviction" on Sept. 6. If he rejects Trump's request, the judge has set a sentencing date of Sept. 18.

That’s where we are at right now. 

Wrapping Up

Here's what else we've got for you this week:

Y lo que publicamos en español (English versions are accessible in each story):
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