Welcome to Monday, October 26th, heroes and villains...

Tonight, around 7:30pm ET, the Senate will hold a confirmation vote on sending Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AL) said Saturday that she'll vote to confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, despite her earlier opposition to the process of nominating a SCOTUS pick during an election year.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was unapologetic over the speed of the confirmation:

Former Vice President Joe Biden said that if he's elected this November, he'll form a bipartisan commission to consider changes to the nation's highest court:

“The last thing we need to do is turn the Supreme Court into just a political football [and] whoever has the most votes gets whatever they want,” Biden said in a “60 Minutes” interview that aired Sunday night. “Presidents come and go. Supreme Court justices stay for generations.”

“It’s not about court-packing. There’s a number of other things that our constitutional scholars have debated, and I’ve looked to see what recommendations that commission might make.”

Should the Senate confirm Barrett to the Supreme Court?

On the Radar

Weekly Jobless Claims Decline

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that initial unemployment claims declined this week to nearly their lowest level since the pandemic began, and the number of continuing unemployment claims dropped by more than 1 million week-over-week. 

This chart from USAFacts shows weekly unemployment insurance claims, including initial claims (pink) and continuing claims (blue), which surged in March and April amid economic lockdowns imposed to slow the spread of the coronavirus and have gradually declined:

Check more graphs here, then join the conversation:

Do you feel like the labor market has improved from earlier in the pandemic?

Under the Radar

Tobacco Tax Hikes on the Ballot

This fall, voters in a pair of states will have the opportunity to raise tobacco taxes and impose new taxes on e-cigarettes:

In Colorado, Proposition EE would incrementally raise taxes on cigarettes and tobacco products and impose a new tax on nicotine products such as e-cigarettes (which are currently not taxed).

In Oregon, Measure 108 would increase taxes on distributors of cigarettes and cigars and impose a new tax on e-cigarettes and other nicotine inhalants (which are currently not taxed).

Do you support tobacco tax hikes?

And, in the End...

And, in the End…

It's National Mule Day U.S.A.

Mules, if you forgot your cross-breeding, is a mix between a male donkey and a female horse.

Toast a Moscow Mule in honor of the equus,

—Josh Herman

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