Republicans have boosted their chances of keeping Senate majority. Supreme Court appears unlikely to topple Affordable Care Act. It's Tuesday's news.
Republicans hoping to maintain control of the Senate are keeping a close eye on Georgia. The Supreme Court appears unlikely to topple the Affordable Care Act. And if you're in the market for a helicopter, President Donald Trump's got one up for sale. 🚁
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One step closer to keeping the Senate
Republicans have boosted their chances of keeping their Senate majority. Republican Sen. Thom Tillis was reelected to his North Carolina seat, fending off a tough battle to win a second term against Democrat Cal Cunningham. Democrats had hoped to win the race in their quest to recapture the majority. The loss means Democrats' only hopes of taking the majority are several longshot races. They still have a chance to take a seat in Alaska, though that appears slim, and two races in Georgia, which has been solidly red for about two decades.
Has Trump conceded to Biden? Not yet. President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday dismissed President Donald Trump's refusal to concede the election as not very consequential to his efforts to begin transition planning and said it did not reflect well on Trump. "How can I say this, tactfully? I think it will not help the president's legacy," Biden said (he mentioned the word "embarrassment," but we won't dive into that).
What do legal experts say about Trump's election lawsuits? Trump has claimed the election was stolen as his campaign mounts legal challenges in several states, including Michigan, Georgia and Nevada. In Pennsylvania, Trump's campaign has sued elections officials over mail balloting. But legal experts say the case is baseless.
Supreme Court appears unlikely to topple Affordable Care Act
The Supreme Court on Tuesday appeared likely to uphold the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) for the third time in eight years, even with the Trump administration urging its elimination. After upholding the health care law in 2012 and 2015, the court was faced with a new Republican challenge stemming from Congress' elimination in 2017 of the tax imposed on consumers who refuse to buy health insurance. Since the law was originally upheld as a tax, challengers argued it became unconstitutional without one. But even if the mandate to buy insurance has to be struck down, two key justices indicated that the rest of the law should be able to survive without it. The case is the most consequential one on the high court's 2020 docket, threatening health coverage for more than 20 million people and protections for millions more with preexisting conditions.
From left, Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., hold photographs of people who where saved due the Affordable Care Act (ACA) during a news conference, after the confirmation hearing of President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, in Washington, Monday, Oct. 12, 2020.
Friend who bought rifle Kyle Rittenhouse used in Kenosha shooting charged
A 19-year-old Kenosha man has been charged with illegally giving a rifle to Kyle Rittenhouse, which the 17-year-old used to kill two people during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August. Dominick Black faces two counts of intentionally giving a dangerous weapon to someone under 18, resulting in death. According to records, Black said he had purchased the rifle for Rittenhouse last summer, with money he supplied. Someone under 18 cannot legally purchase a firearm, but Black said he was buying the rifle for himself. Rittenhouse, a self-described militia member, has been charged with two counts of homicide and four other charges in connection with the shootings that killed Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, and injured Gaige Grosskreutz, 26. Rittenhouse's legal team has said he acted in self-defense.
Kyle Rittenhouse, left, with backward cap, walks along Sheridan Road in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Aug. 25 with another armed civilian. Prosecutors on Aug. 27 charged Rittenhouse, a 17-year-old from Illinois, in the fatal shooting of two protesters and the wounding of a third in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Adam Rogan / The Journal Times via AP
Anyone in the market for a helicopter?
President Donald Trump's helicopter is up for sale. No, not his presidential helicopter, Marine One, which he is also going to have to say goodbye to soon. The Trump Organization is reportedly selling Trump's iconic personal helicopter, which you may recognize from his reality show, "The Apprentice." The aircraft resale site JetEdgePartners.com says a deal is pending for the 1989 Sikorsky S76B with the distinctive registration number N76DT (the last two characters of which stand for Donald Trump) and recognizable black paint job with red pinstripes.
President Trump is unloading his personal 1989 Sikorsky S76B helicopter, seen here during his 2016 campaign. It was also featured on "The Apprentice."
FBI arrests Cincinnati councilman in 'brazen' bribery scheme
FBI agents arrested Cincinnati City Councilman Jeff Pastor on Tuesday in what authorities describe as a brazen bribery scheme involving payoffs for help with city development projects. (My goodness, 2020.) Pastor, a Republican who joined the council in January 2018, began soliciting money from developers within months of taking office and, in some instances, accepted bags of cash in return for his vote or other favorable treatment, prosecutors say. Undercover FBI agents and at least two whistleblowers helped to unravel the pay-to-play scheme, prosecutors say, which included a trip to Miami with a developer and solicitations by Pastor for cash, investment opportunities and jobs.
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