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However you feel about him politically or personally, it’s hard to argue that former National Security Advisor John Bolton doesn’t know a thing or two about Donald Trump. Having served the administration for 17 months, when Bolton says he witnessed Donald Trump commit, at best, serious foreign policy blunders and, at worst, potentially impeachable offenses, I’m inclined to believe him. It all fits the same dangerous pattern we’ve seen over and over with Trump, who has repeatedly used the office to serve himself, even when it threatens the best interests of the country. As voters, it is our responsibility to ensure that we elect leaders who put the interests of the country and the American people first. —Evan McMullin
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4. Murder charges in Rayshard Brooks case
Fulton Co. District Attorney Paul Howard yesterday announced 11 charges, including felony murder, against Garrett Rolfe, the now-fired Atlanta police officer who fatally shot Rayshard Brooks last week. After Rolfe shot Brooks, he exclaimed, "I got him," kicked Brooks as he struggled for his life, and failed to give timely first aid, Howard said. Devin Brosnan, the other officer at the shooting, faces an aggravated assault charge for standing on Brooks in the parking lot. —CNN
More: Half brother of Palmdale hanging victim Robert Fuller is fatally shot by deputies (Los Angeles Times)
6. Mixed messages cause COVID confusion
In an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity yesterday, President Trump said the coronavirus is "fading away," even as cases increase nationwide. And while Trump refuses to wear a mask, Surgeon General Jerome Adams has done a round of television interviews imploring Americans to do so. Meanwhile, Vice President Mike Pence says panic over a second wave is "overblown," while Dr. Anthony Fauci says the U.S. is still in the first. The mixed messages are leading to confusion and, ultimately, more unnecessary cases of COVID-19. —The New York Times
- — Regardless of the dangers, Trump also said yesterday that the U.S. will not close businesses again. "We won't be closing the country again. We won't have to do that," he said. —Reuters
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- — Double standards. Top donors at Trump's two recent fundraisers had to have tested negative for the coronavirus, fill out a wellness questionnaire, and pass a temperature check to attend. But thousands of supporters who attend his upcoming rally in Tulsa won't be screened as thoroughly, getting only a temperature check as they enter an arena that holds 19,000 people. —NBC News
- — An impeachment threat in Pennsylvania. Republican State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe has introduced a resolution, with 24 co-sponsors, calling for the impeachment of Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf. GOP lawmakers, who control the state's General Assembly, argue that Wolf's management of the coronavirus pandemic has crippled the state's economy, and they say he has regularly exceeded his authority. —Penn Live
More: Doss & Ibrahim: Preventing COVID from killing democracy in Africa (The Economist)
7. Bolton: Trump's China non-policy
"In today's pre-2020 election climate, Trump has made a sharp turn to anti-China rhetoric. Frustrated in his search for the big China trade deal, and mortally afraid of the negative political effects of the coronavirus pandemic on his re-election prospects, Trump has now decided to blame China, with ample justification. Whether his actions will match his words remains to be seen. His administration has signaled that Beijing's suppression of dissent in Hong Kong will have consequences, but no actual consequences have yet been imposed.
Most important of all, will Trump's current China pose last beyond election day? The Trump presidency is not grounded in philosophy, grand strategy, or policy. It is grounded in Trump. That is something to think about for those, especially China realists, who believe they know what he will do in a second term." —The Wall Street Journal
Ed. Note: John Bolton is a former U.S. ambassador to the U.N., and served as national security advisor from April 2018 to September 2019.
More: Trump signs sanctions law over China's treatment of Uighurs (Voice of America)
De-funding the police is not the answer. It is a good idea to have mental health professionals and social workers paired up with police though. As a current law enforcement officer, I have seen very positive examples where this type of joint team is highly effective. The Child Advocacy Center in Wichita, Kansas, can be studied as a good model for how this can work. —Vance B., Kansas
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