Category Archives: Democrat

It was a shocking margin of victory in what was expected to be a close race: an 11-point blowout by a liberal judge over a conservative incumbent for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Now Wisconsin Democrats are working to export their template for success intense digital outreach and a well-coordinated vote-by-mail operation to other states in the hope that it will improve the partys chances in local and statewide elections and in the quest to unseat President Trump in November.

Their top officials have gone on a virtual nationwide tour, extolling the virtues of their digital campaign efforts in hopes Democrats and liberal activists elsewhere can replicate their victory, when Jill Karofsky, a liberal judge, ousted State Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly.

The first chance comes Tuesday in a special election for a Republican-heavy House district that covers the northern third of the state. It is the nations first partisan contest since Wisconsins April 7 election, and it will provide more evidence as to whether Democratic vote-by-mail success in that race is repeatable.

State party officials have spoken regularly with counterparts in other states, addressed a national virtual gathering of union activists and wrote a public memo with Stacey Abramss Fair Fight Action detailing lessons learned that can be applied elsewhere.

You do get to learn from these things, said Ramsey Reid, the battleground states director for the Democratic National Committee, who has facilitated calls between Wisconsin officials and their counterparts in other states. You get to train more volunteers, you get to build habits around voters and apply lessons learned to states that have challenges.

While officials are publicly bragging about tactics like video calls with voters who need hand-holding to navigate often-cumbersome absentee ballot request forms, theyve been more circumspect about efforts theyve employed in the event of a narrow defeat.

In Wisconsin, Georgia, Pennsylvania and other states with upcoming June primary elections, state parties, along with Ms. Abramss organization, are collecting hundreds of legal affidavits from Democratic voters who have trouble acquiring and casting a ballot. The documents are intended to be used for court battles ahead of the November general election and in Wisconsin that tactic would have been employed to challenge the results of the Supreme Court race had the conservative candidate prevailed.

Like in Wisconsin, Democrats in other battleground states with virtually no history of mail voting have for now shifted overnight to an all-mail get-out-the-vote effort. President Trump, on the other hand, has repeatedly attacked mail voting, and Republicans have said they would push ahead with plans to limit its expansion in Michigan, Minnesota and other key states.

In Georgia, more than 1.2 million people have requested absentee ballots for the states June 9 primary compared to just 36,200 requests for the 2016 presidential primary. Nearly as many Georgians have applied to vote by mail in the Democratic primary as cast ballots in the partys 2016 contest, when there were still competitive races for both parties nominations.

New Hampshire has no history of significant numbers of voting by mail. The state has no online portal to request an absentee ballot some municipal clerks accept requests via email while others do not. Democratic Party officials have been warned by their Wisconsin counterparts that, if hundreds of thousands of voters seek to vote by mail, local clerks will quickly become overwhelmed by the volume.

The New Hampshire Democratic Party has always run a voter protection hotline on Election Day and the few days before, but we are going to need to have that running for a much longer period of time, said Liz Wester, the director of the New Hampshire Democrats coordinated campaign, who has spoken extensively with officials in Wisconsin since April 7. It will be for months.

And Pennsylvania Democrats have found themselves struggling to convince wary voters that sending ballots through the mail is safe.

There is something about voting on Election Day, said Sincer Harris, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. Its something theyve known, theyre comfortable doing it, especially in the African-American community, you can count on it. Theres a little hesitancy when it comes to the mail system.

Last month in Wisconsin, a New York Times analysis found that Ms. Karofsky, the liberal candidate in the states nonpartisan Supreme Court race, performed about 10 percentage points better in mail voting than she did at the polls, suggesting Democratic voters were more likely than Republicans to request and return absentee ballots.

Republicans who control the state legislature have refused to allow all-mail elections, despite the pandemic. Health officials in Milwaukee said this week that 26 voters may have contracted the coronavirus while voting in April though the study said it was unclear precisely how they became infected.

The first test of whether Wisconsin Democrats April 7 methods can be repeated comes Tuesday, in the special House election that pits the Democrat Tricia Zunker, a school board president from Wausau who is an associate justice on the Ho-Chunk Nation Supreme Court, against Tom Tiffany, a two-term Republican state senator who has campaigned as a supporter of President Trump.

Officials say the contest is less about which candidate will hold the seat for eight months the two candidates are expected to face off again in November for a full two-year term than it is an exercise in training volunteers and voters in how to vote by mail. Each of the 110,000 voters who requested an absentee ballot for the Tuesday election had the chance to opt in to receive a mail ballot for the November general election. Its not known how many Wisconsin voters have already requested ballots for November, a spokesman for the Wisconsin Elections Commission said.

Our county only had four cases of Covid-19 and I think they are recovered by now, said Jim Kurz, the Democratic Party chairman in Rusk County. Most other counties in this district also had few cases, so I dont think fear of disease will keep voter turnout down.

Neither party considers the Wisconsin congressional election to be one Democrats have much chance of winning both Democratic and Republican internal polling shows Mr. Tiffany with a double-digit advantage but the margin between the two candidates could serve as an indicator of the state of the two parties enthusiasm.

In 2016, President Trump carried the district by 20 percentage points. But in last months Supreme Court race, the conservative candidate won the district by just 6 points while losing statewide by 11, according to an analysis by the University of Virginias Center for Politics.

Like the April 7 election, Tuesdays special election will take place with polling places open across the districts 700 municipalities in 26 counties. The Wisconsin National Guard will once again dispatch its members to help communities staff poll sites.

Mr. Tiffany, a two-term state senator who works as a dam tender on the Willow Flowage in northern Wisconsin, served as a poll worker during the April 7 election and said voters across the congressional district are less afraid of contracting and spreading the coronavirus than their counterparts in the states urban centers to the south.

People in the cities and suburban areas tend to vote more absentee, he said. With this being a more rural district, youll probably see fewer absentees than you did in the April 7 election.

Ms. Zunker had put thousands of miles on her car driving across the 26-county district before travel and public gatherings were restricted. Her campaign manager only moved to Wausau three days before Gov. Tony Evers of Wisconsin implemented the states Safer at Home ordinance that effectively ended all in-person campaigning.

She painted her race Tuesday as the first step toward former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. carrying Wisconsin in November.

When we put this seat back to blue, the state is blue again. The pathway to winning the presidential race starts on May 12, Ms. Zunker said in an interview last week.

Anything less than a double-digit victory for Mr. Tiffany will be seen as yet another indicator of Democratic momentum in what is certain to be among the most contested states on the presidential map.

The district is loaded with people who became tired of being looked down upon by urban people and so that has been exploitable by the Republican candidates in the past three elections or so, said David R. Obey, a Democrat who represented northern Wisconsin in Congress for 42 years before retiring after the 2010 election. Trump, he turns the dial a little bit, and I just dont know how much.

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Democrats Vote-By-Mail Effort Won in Wisconsin: Will It Work Elsewhere? - The New York Times

Addressing the inequalities in the United States exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic served as a major motivational force for Democrats running for Congress in central Virginia.

Political campaigns have had to adjust how they get the word out to voters while maintaining social distancing. So instead of a forum held at a high school or community center before a crowd of voters, the four Democrats participated in an online forum on Saturday.

The candidates all brought the issues they discussed, from health care to voting rights, back to the coronavirus pandemic as a reason to make bold improvements to policy at the federal level.

The four candidates are:

n Roger Dean Huffstetler, Marine veteran and Charlottesville entrepreneur who lost the Democratic nomination for the same seat two years ago

n John Lesinski, Marine veteran and former Rappahannock County supervisor who works in commercial real estate

n Claire Russo, Marine veteran and Albemarle County resident

n Cameron Webb, director of health policy and equity at University of Virginia

Voters will choose their nominee June 23. The Democrat will face Rep. Denver Riggleman, R-Nelson, or Bob Good, who are competing in a heated convention that will take place in the next several weeks at a date still to be determined. While the district is favorable to Republicans, House Democrats are targeting the seat.

The 5th Congressional District is Virginias largest district, stretching from Fauquier County to the North Carolina border and including Franklin County and part of Bedford County.

Health care and economic inequality emerged as two of the most pressing issues during the forum, moderated by Del. Elizabeth Guzman, D-Prince William.

This coronavirus pandemic has told us one thing: 2020 will be the health care election, said Webb, who has made fixing the health care system the main focus of his campaign.

Webb, an internal medicine doctor, said making sure people can access affordable health care is more complicated than a three-word slogan. He worked on a White House health care team during the Obama administration to help implement the Affordable Care Act. He said the country can do better than having health insurance tied to employers, and there should be a public option.

Weve got to fix private insurance so were putting people over profits, Webb said.

Huffstetler and Russo both supported a proposal U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., has reintroduced before called Medicare X, which would create a new public option for health insurance. Lesinksi also supported a public option.

This pandemic has clearly demonstrated to all of us that every American must have access to health care, Russo said.

The candidates said the pandemic has fueled a large growth in telemedicine. But Lesinski said people in rural areas dont have that same access because they lack broadband.

He said that as the country emerges from the coronavirus crisis and tries to rebuild its economy, rural America will fall behind unless it has the broadband needed to attract employers and to allow for people to work from home.

Its the rural electrification issue of our time, Lesinski said.

Huffstetler emphasized his familys working class roots and said his campaign is focused addressing economic inequality. He said the economy has been changing, and people dont always keep the same job for more than 30 years, and workers need to upgrade their skills. Hed like to work on developing a program so community colleges and industries partner together to maintain a skilled workforce.

My legislative priorities are making sure that when people work hard in this country, the country has their back, Huffstetler said.

Russo said the federal government did not prepare for the pandemic as it should have done. Citing her own background as a Marine officer training Marines and an intelligence officer learning lessons from past wars and applying them to the future, she said shes equipped to work on steering the country out of the crisis and preparing for future ones.

Its never been more clear that its going to take bold leadership to guide this country out of this crisis in a fair and just manner, Russo said.

Lesinski connected the poor planning for a viral outbreak to the lack of bold action on climate change. Climate change is a legislative priority for Lesinski, who said reducing the countrys carbon footprint and shifting to renewable energy will create new jobs.

Its a canary in the coal mine for fighting climate change, because if we dont get on this now, were going to lose a lot more lives, he said.

The candidates all agreed that the pandemic has highlighted the need to expand voting rights. Huffstetler said there should be automatic voter registration when people get their drivers license. He said working people cant always make it to the polls on Election Day, so he said being able to vote absentee without providing an excuse is essential.

There is no reason under the sun we should be making it harder to vote, Huffstetler said.

Lesinki said that even though states are making progress in expanding voting rights, more needs to be done at the federal level. He referenced the federal court decision this week to waive the witness requirement to cast absentee ballots in the June primaries in Virginia.

Republicans tried to retain the witness requirement, citing the risk of voter fraud. There is no evidence of widespread voter fraud with voting by mail.

The strategy here clearly is voter suppression, voter suppression of those individuals the Republican Party feels is going to be a continued threat to them winning or gaining a majority, Lesinski said.

During the last election, Riggleman defeated Democrat Leslie Cockburn by about 20,000 votes. Webb raised the issue of 38,000 black residents who arent registered to vote in the district, and more than 30,000 registered black voters didnt vote in the last election.

I think when we field the full team as Democrats, when we expand the electorate, we win, Webb said.

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Fixing inequities worsened by pandemic main issue for 5th Congressional District Democratic candidates - Roanoke Times

Provided by Washington Examiner

House Democrats want the next round of coronavirus aid to include a massive bailout of the U.S. Postal Service, which has, for years, experienced declining revenue exacerbated further by the coronavirus epidemic.

But Republicans and President Trump want significant reforms implemented before providing new funding.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, told reporters shell include a $25 billion bailout of the postal service in a massive economic aid package that is likely to top $1 trillion.

"We have to fight for the Postal Service," Pelosi said this week. "And people across the country are all tweeting and writing to me and stuff like that, saying we really protect our post office."

The post office bailout proposal is similar to a plan House Democrats proposed earlier this year. It was ultimately excluded from the $2.2 trillion spending bill passed by Congress on March 27.

House Democratic leaders are eager to get federal aid for the post office in the next round of economic aid.

It is an essential service that we need to maintain, and I think there is a consensus in the House of Representative's Democratic Party leadership and the members that that is necessary and appropriate, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat, said. So, we want to see that included.

Republicans and Trump say the post office is in need of significant reforms needed to boost revenue and cut costs.

A Government Accountability Office report released this week reported the USPS suffered a net loss of $78 billion from 2007 to 2019.

USPSs current business model is not financially sustainable due to declining mail volumes, increased compensation and benefits costs, and increased unfunded liabilities and debt, the GAO reported. Absent congressional action on critical foundational elements of the USPS business model, USPSs mission and financial solvency are increasingly in peril.

The GAO called on Congress to consider new reforms to the Postal Service to improve operations and financial health. Congress last implemented post office reforms in 2006, but Republicans say new measures are needed.

Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in January asked Postmaster General Megan Brennan for a 10-year business plan to restore financial stability to the USPS. Brennan has yet to produce that plan.

The top Republican on Oversight who requested the plan, former Rep. Mark Meadows, is now Trumps chief of staff.

House Oversight Republicans issued a statement Friday, urging Brennan to finally provide the Committee with the USPS proposal for a sustainable, long-term business plan that was promised over a year ago.

Hoyer told reporters this week he talked to White House officials in March about providing money to the post office.

Brennan warned Friday it cannot keep operating without a bailout due to accelerated revenue loss caused by the pandemic. The USPS calculates it will lose $13 billion this year due to the coronavirus and $54.3 billion in additional losses over the next decade.

"Although the pandemic did not have significant impact on our financial condition in our second quarter, we anticipate that our business will suffer potentially dire consequences for the remainder of the year, and we are already feeling those impacts during the last half of March, Brennan said Friday. At a time when America needs the Postal Service more than ever, the pandemic is starting to have a significant effect on our business with mail volumes plummeting as a result of the pandemic.

In April, the Postal Service Board of Governors asked Congress to appropriate $25 billion to offset coronavirus-related losses, $25 billion to modernize the post office, and another $25 billion in unrestricted borrowing authority from the Treasury.

The White House has so far frowned on providing significant new revenue to the USPS without reforms.

Trump signaled last month he wants the Postal Service to find a way to increase revenue, suggesting they charge companies such as Amazon more money to deliver its packages.

Brennan is retiring next month. Trump has appointed Louis DeJoy, a North Carolina businessman and top Trump donor, to serve as the next postmaster general, beginning June 15.

The post office should raise the price of the packages to the companies, not to the people, Trump said on April 24. And if they did that, it would be a whole different story.

Trump added, If they dont raise the price, Im not signing anything.

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Democrats on collision course with Trump and Republicans over Postal Service bailout - msnNOW

WASHINGTON In January 2018, Senate Democrats took a politically risky stand, shutting down the government to insist on protections for hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants. Gleeful Republicans saw the obstruction strategy as a huge blunder and pounded the Democrats, who caved after only a few days of sharp attacks and cut a deal to reopen.

Times and circumstances have changed.

Democrats have now blocked two consecutive coronavirus rescue packages pushed by Republicans and withstood withering criticism to win concessions and hundreds of billions of dollars they said were vital. At nearly $500 billion, the latest measure to move through Congress this week ended up being almost twice the size and much broader in scope than the original bill Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the majority leader, tried to ram through two weeks earlier without negotiations.

It was a potentially dangerous strategy for Democrats, particularly in an election year, that left them open to accusations from President Trump and congressional Republicans that they were denying desperately needed money at a crucial moment for businesses trying to survive in the face of the pandemic. It may have also reduced their leverage in the next fight over a much larger stimulus measure that is likely to top $1 trillion.

But their willingness to take on those risks reflects Democrats confidence that the terrain of the current debate a public health crisis and economic disaster that will require the broadest government relief effort since the post-World War II era plays to their core strengths as a party. It is also based in part on their belief that Mr. Trump, whose re-election hopes are likely to rise or fall based on the public perception of his administrations response to the pandemic, has a strong incentive to compromise with them.

We think we are right, Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader, said in an interview explaining his partys stance. People were just united that this was a serious crisis, and it was sort of obvious what McConnell was trying to do.

The same was true last month, when Democrats twice voted to block a sweeping economic stimulus package that contained jobless aid, direct payments to Americans and business bailouts while they held out for their priorities, including stricter oversight requirements over how the Trump administration would spend the vast amounts of money. That $2.2 trillion measure passed unanimously.

My overall observation is its pretty hard to win a spending contest with a Democrat, Mr. McConnell said in a brief interview on Tuesday. They always want to spend more on everything.

Mr. McConnell has evidently had enough of a dynamic that seems to be empowering Democrats. After the latest aid bill passed the Senate on Tuesday, he cited mounting deficit spending Congress has now appropriated more than $2.7 trillion in only seven weeks to confront the pandemic and declared that Republicans would entertain no more coronavirus rescue packages until all lawmakers were back in Washington for a normal Senate session. That scenario could delay additional aid while allowing a fuller debate on emerging proposals, rather than negotiation and approval by a handful of top lawmakers in a nearly empty Capitol.

The Republican leader also sought to play down Democratic gains in the bill, emphasizing that they had failed to secure additional aid to state and local governments that they had aggressively sought.

Its unfortunate that it took our Democratic colleagues 12 days to agree to a deal that contains essentially nothing that Republicans ever opposed, Mr. McConnell said.

But the measure did contain multiple things that Mr. McConnell initially rejected as he sought approval of a bare-bones infusion of $250 billion into a small-business loan program that had quickly run dry of funds. Instead, that program got $320 billion in new funds, including $60 billion secured by Democrats to be funneled through smaller community lenders to reach businesses that can struggle to get loans from big banks.

Also included were $60 billion to replenish exhausted Small Business Administration disaster relief accounts, $75 billion for hospitals and $25 billion for Covid-19 testing, plus a mandate that the Trump administration establish a strategy to help states vastly step up the deployment of tests throughout the country a move Republicans had opposed.

Of the four major things we pushed for, we got three over Republican resistance, Mr. Schumer said. But they knew they needed us.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who early on warned Mr. McConnell that his proposal would not clear the Democratically controlled House, called the outcome a clear win for her partys priorities. She said the legislation would not have been delayed at all if Republicans had accepted a Democratic counteroffer two weeks ago.

They like to say, Oh, we held up, Ms. Pelosi told reporters. No, we didnt hold it up. They held up. And now we have prevailed.

We needed to make sure they were working for everybody, not just the most-connected businesses, said Senator Chris Van Hollen, Democrat of Maryland, who said the business owners he consulted wanted Democrats to institute changes in the loan effort, not rush to inject more funding into a flawed program.

Even after the final agreement was struck, Republicans continued to slam Democrats for the delay. Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming, the chambers No. 3 Republican, called it disgraceful.

For Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi to hold up that money for these people and hold them all hostage to create leverage is unconscionable to me, he said. They seemed to have no sense of urgency or sense of the crisis that is hitting this country.

The Trump campaign released a scathing ad on Monday attacking Ms. Pelosi for blocking the funding, juxtaposing footage of poor Americans struggling in the pandemic with clips of an appearance the speaker made on late-night TV in which she showed off her favorite ice creams. Nancy Antoinette, it called her.

Even as congressional Democrats were celebrating their gains in the legislation, they were under fire from progressive lawmakers and advocacy groups who saw the package as insufficient. Some on the left faulted Democrats for not extracting more from the Republicans, particularly for states and cities that are being pushed to the financial brink by the pandemic, or winning more direct aid for beleaguered Americans wondering how to pay rent when they cannot expect another check from the government.

This is a win for McConnell and Trump, said Ezra Levin, an executive director of the group Indivisible. This Covid 3.5 package is nothing close to what families and workers need right now.

Mr. Schumer and Ms. Pelosi disputed that notion and promised a robust Phase 4 of the pandemic relief effort. They noted that the Trump administration was also already mapping plans for another bill that would include infrastructure investments and aid for states. Democrats said that action would become inevitable as states and cities face decisions on laying off emergency workers and cutting other services and as the public clamors for help.

Mr. McConnell appears to be digging in, telling the conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Wednesday that he wanted to push the pause button on coronavirus relief legislation, and that this whole business of additional assistance for state and local governments needs to be thoroughly evaluated.

But with the pandemic continuing to roil the economy and facing intense pressure to respond from Democrats, the White House, governors of both parties and some of his own lawmakers, Mr. McConnell may once again find himself in the unusual position of struggling to hold the line.

Emily Cochrane contributed reporting.

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Risky Strategy Has Produced Wins for Democrats in Fights Over Pandemic Aid - The New York Times

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez questions Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan as he testifies before the House Oversight and Reform Committee, July 18, 2019. (Joshua Roberts/Reuters)

The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the $484 billion coronavirus relief package to replenish the depleted small business loan program, with Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) being the only Democrat in both the House or Senate to oppose the bill.

The House passed the bill, which includes $310 billion for the governments phase-three Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), by a 388-5 margin sending it to President Trumps desk after the Senate passed the bill on Tuesday. Four House Republicans Andy Biggs of Arizona, Ken Buck of Colorado, Jody Hice of Georgia, and Thomas Massie of Kentucky along with former Republican Justin Amash (I., Mich.) joined Ocasio-Cortez in voting against the bill.

Speaking to CNNs Manu Raju, Ocasio-Cortez explained that her problem with the bill was giving Republicans what they want.

McConnell is already talking about the deficit the moment we talk about getting people relief, she said. . . . That to me is a signal that Republicans are done.

The new funding includes $60 billion $50 billion in loans and $10 billion in grants for companies with less than $50 billion in total assets, with $30 billion of that for firms with less than $10 billion. The bill also includes $75 billion in additional funding for hospitals and health care providers, and $25 billion to help fund the nationwide effort to expand coronavirus testing.

Republicans and Democrats have sparred over the draining of SBA funding, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) saying Wednesday that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) delayed the bill, but admitted that Democrats did reject a simple reauthorization proposed by Republicans.

Democrats should never have made the Paycheck Protection Program lapse. The House must follow the Senates lead and vote today to re-open it, McConnell tweeted ahead of the House vote Thursday.

Ocasio-Cortez drew criticism earlier this week for tweeting, and then deleting, praise over the U.S. oil market reaching negative territory for the first time ever. Over four million Americans applied for unemployment last week, according to data released Thursday, bringing the number of coronavirus jobless claims to over 26 million since last month.

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AOC Only Democrat to Vote Against $484 Billion Coronavirus Relief Package - National Review

The Democratic Party still expects to hold an in-person convention to nominate Joe Biden for president.

The event is currently scheduled to take place in Milwaukee during the week of Aug. 17. Exact dates are unclear since party brass scrapped the original plans to host the convention from July 13-16.

We expect to hold an in-person convention in Milwaukee. We are planning for that, Democratic Party Chairman Tom Perez told reporters Thursday. At the same time, we do not put our public health heads in the sand. We dont do that right now. We wont do that in the run-up.

Perez left open the idea that part of the convention would be conducted virtually but was hopeful that it will be safe to congregate at the designated venue, the Milwaukee Bucks basketball arena, by August.

Wisconsin has confirmed more than 5,000 coronavirus cases and more than 250 related deaths, with stay-at-home order running until May 26 under Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat.

Biden has been less optimistic, speculating the entire event might have to be virtual.

Party conventions can draw tens of thousands over the course of several days. Some Democrats have suggested that a limited crowd could attend, while the roughly 4,700 delegates would stick to an online gathering.

I am hopeful that we can have a very exciting convention in Milwaukee where we can highlight the vice president and his history-making running mate, whoever she turns out to be, Perez said, referring to Bidens pledge to select a woman running mate.

Republicans, meanwhile, have projected much more confidence that they will be able to host their party convention just a week later in Charlotte, North Carolina, from Aug. 24-27.

With Post wires

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Democratic Party still hopes to hold 'in-person' convention in August - New York Post

Amazon disputed the accuracy of the Journal's account and said it did not offer "intentionally misleading" testimony, but said it would conduct an internal investigation into the report.

The committee's leaders vowed Thursday evening to press the company for answers.

"At best, Amazons witness appears to have misrepresented key aspects of Amazons business practices while omitting important details in response to pointed questioning," said Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.), chairman of House Judiciary's antitrust subcommittee. "At worst, the witness Amazon sent to speak on its behalf may have lied to Congress.

Rep. David Cicilline. | Patrick Semansky/AP Photo

Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said the panel plans "to seek clarification from Amazon in short order, in light of this troubling report."

The Journal's story, based on documents and interviews with former workers, said Amazon employees have used data about independent sellers on the companys platform to develop competing products, even though that goes against both the companys stated policies and past pledges by its executives. The revelation immediately reignited long-standing concerns, previously expressed by regulators in Europe, that Amazon has used the vast reams of data it collects from third parties on its marketplace to unfairly benefit its own business.

The report comes as big tech companies increasingly face accusations of abuses of power ranging from predatory pricing to failing to protect user privacy. While Amazon has become a key supplier to homebound Americans during the coronavirus pandemic, the outbreak has also increased scrutiny of the company's worker safety conditions and the way it presents third-party products on its website.

At a hearing on antitrust concerns in July, Amazon associate general counsel Nate Sutton testified before Cicilline's subcommittee that the company does not "use individual seller data to directly compete with them. Suttons testimony at the hearing later drew scrutiny from Cicilline, who questioned the veracity of his remarks regarding third-party sellers.

Amazon said Thursday in a statement that it prohibits employees from using non-public, seller-specific data to determine which private label products to launch.

While we dont believe these claims are accurate, we take these allegations very seriously and have launched an internal investigation, the statement said.

The company also rejected Warren's characterization of its statements to Congress.

"Its simply incorrect to say that Amazon was intentionally misleading in our testimony," Amazon spokesperson Maxine Tagay said.

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But the Journal's report quickly prompted condemnation from an array of antitrust hawks.

The Committee should make a criminal referral for perjury, and the Department of Justice should investigate what Mr. Sutton knew and when he knew it," said Sarah Miller, executive director for the American Economic Liberties Project, a group that champions more stringent antitrust enforcement.

The House Judiciary Committee needs to call Jeff Bezos to testify, said Stacy Mitchell, co-director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.

Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), the libertarian-leaning chairman of the Senate Judiciary antitrust subcommittee, said in a statement that he expects the DOJ and the FTC to look into the allegations as part of their ongoing tech investigations.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), who sits on the subcommittee, joined Warren in accusing Amazon of misleading Congress, calling the Journal's revelation "damning" proof that Amazon has been "blatantly exploiting third-party sellers."

Warren last year called for Amazon and other tech giants to be broken up as part of her presidential campaign platform. She said she wanted to roll back Amazon's acquisition of Whole Foods and split apart business arms like Amazon Marketplace and AmazonBasics.

Leah Nylen contributed to this report.

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Democrats demand answers on whether Amazon 'lied' about data tactics - POLITICO

Democrats are pushing Joe BidenJoe BidenThe Hill's Campaign Report: States divided over when to reopen amid pandemic Poll: 62 percent of 18-34-year-olds support Sanders' endorsement of Biden Ex-Sanders campaign aide Nina Turner on why ideology is more important than race for Biden VP pick MORE to select his running mate sooner rather than later, saying this would give him more time to raise funds and unite the Democratic Party ahead of the general election fight against President TrumpDonald John TrumpNew Mexico governor extends stay-at-home order: 'We're not ready to ease up' Coronavirus culture war over reopening economy hits Capitol Hill Challenge China and the WHObut not while the pandemic rages MORE.

Presumptive Democratic nominees typically announce their pick before the partys convention.But with the coronavirus pandemic sidelining the campaign and pushing back the Democratic convention from July to August, Democrats say an early pick could boost Biden.

Democratic strategist Michael Trujillo said hes all for an early announcement because it would give the Biden campaign an infusion of campaign donations and double the campaign teams power.

She can help raise more money, get activists engaged, do one-on-one interviews in key media markets and build more enthusiasm for the ticket immediately, Trujillo said of Bidens potential running mate, who the former vice president has said will be a woman.

Democratic strategist Adam Parkhomenko, who served as an aide on Hillary ClintonHillary Diane Rodham ClintonEXCLUSIVE: Voters in swing states trust governors over Trump on reopening economy, poll finds Biden holds wide lead over Trump in New Jersey: poll The Memo: Trump shores up base amid crisis MOREs 2016 presidential campaign, said it makes a lot of sense to go earlier than later.

People keep saying theyre not hearing from the Biden campaign lately, Parkhomenko said. This is something they could do to help break through.

He stressed that the Biden campaign is going to have to be creative in how they roll out a vice presidential pick to make sureit does providea needed boost to his campaign.

In an appearance on CBSs "The Late Late Show with James Corden" early Wednesday morning, Biden predicted the selection process for his running mate will take until sometime in July to winnow the process down to the one, two, three people.

Sources close to the campaign say the process is in the early stages, noting that advisers are not in the same room and that people are working remotely to set up a secure vetting process.

Not every Democrat thinks Biden needs to worry about moving fast with a VP pick.

The Vice President is doing pretty damn well under the circumstances, so what needs to be fixed? asked Philippe Reines, a longtime adviser to Clinton.

If Biden were to pick a superstar online fundraiser such as Sen. Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth WarrenWhat you need to know today on the coronavirus: House passes huge funding bill Poll: 62 percent of 18-34-year-olds support Sanders' endorsement of Biden Maxine Waters dedicates legislation to sister dying of coronavirus MORE (Mass.), that would be a reason to go early with the pick, Reines said. Trump has a big fundraising edge on Biden as things stand, and many do not believe the former vice president can catch up.

He needs money, one Democratic bundler said. And he needs a lot of it. Anything that helps move the needle is valuable. And the more time, the more money.

Democratic strategist Eddie Vale said he would lean toward a traditional approach. But he conceded that if the coronavirus pandemic stretches into the summer or pushes the convention online, it would be a reason for Biden to go early withthe VP selection.

[It] could be worth thinking about trying to do a slightly earlier and different digital VP rollout to try and get some more coverage to make up for a lack of convention, he said.

Democraticstrategist Chris Lehane, who served as a campaign aide to both Al GoreAlbert (Al) Arnold GoreThe Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Facebook - House set to pass 3B COVID bill; Lawmakers jockey over next package The Hill's Campaign Report: Florida in play as Biden takes lead in poll OVERNIGHT ENERGY: Trump says national parks to start reopening | Oil prices begin recovery amid pressure to finance struggling industry | Al Gore endorses Biden MORE and John KerryJohn Forbes KerryDemocrats want Biden to go early with VP pick Earth Day goes online amid coronavirus pandemic Sanders's fate sealed by the over 40 crowd MORE during their presidential bids, said he would be pushing to announce the pick sooner.

For starters, he said, it moves the dial because this is going to be a time where voters will value the presidential decision making differently by discerning whether this is a pick who makes the team materially better in terms of dealing with a historic crisis.

Lehane also said it would be a way for Biden to get media coverage.

I would produce this like it was a 10 episode Netflix series with surround sound on social media that allows Biden to really occupy media real estate and drive the message, create momentum [and] generate interest, said Lehane, who referenced ESPNs 10-part documentary on Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.

In a world devoid of live entertainment where people are shut in their homes and desperate for information, there is a huge opportunity to take something and rethink about how it could be adapted and deployed for the current times, he said. If there was ever a time to rethink the approach so as to help define and animate the candidacy, electorally position the campaign, and own the conversation by generating ratings, it is now.

Biden could even call this The First Dance, he quipped.

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Democrats want Biden to go early with VP pick | TheHill - The Hill

WASHINGTON Republican members of Congress were noticeably reluctant to wear masks on the House floor Thursday, sparking a sharp debate with Democrats, who readily accepted the federal guidance.

As lawmakers gathered for a morning debate on creating a coronavirus stimulus oversight committee, the GOP side of the chamber largely left their mouths and noses uncovered, while some Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, dropped their coverings while speaking.

Democrats nearly all entered the chamber wearing either bandannas or masks of many colors. At least two were orange. One wore a mask embroidered with a sparkly sequin American flag.

The sole Democratic exception asof mid-afternoon was recovered coronavirus patientRep. Joe Cunningham of South Carolina. He later put on a mask after The Post contacted his staff for comment. His aides did not comment.

House Rules Committee Chairman Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) lashed into his Republican colleagues who chose not to cover up after Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) spoke. Jordan, who coughed repeatedly while awaiting his turn to speak, did not wear a mask while seated on the floor, or at the lectern.

People can do what they want to do, McGovern scolded. But while we all want to show how fearless we are, we should be mindful of the people that are surrounding us. And so until Im advised otherwise, Im going to keep my mask on.

While face coverings are not mandatory, they are certainly recommended, McGovern said. The Office of the Attending Physician has also advised that a face cover will produce a minimal reduction in sound when using a microphone. The face covering is most useful in reducing viral spread while speaking.

Meanwhile, Republicans argued against the proposed new oversight committee, saying it would be a politicized weapon to attack President Trump. Later Thursday, lawmakers will vote on a half-trillion-dollar package of small-business loans, hospital aid and testing funds.

The House gathering was the first since March 27, when masks were rare or non-existent on the floor, as US health officials said at the time that masks were ineffective for the public to protect against the virus. The health guidance about-faced this month, with federal officials advising face coverings as an optional measure to prevent spread of the virus.

In several Asian countries, authorities credit universal mask wearing with preventing major outbreaks of COVID-19. In Taiwan, which has a larger population than New York, there are about 400 cases of the coronavirus after early widespread mask wearing.

Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) andMinority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) arrived on the House floor without masks, as did many GOP peers.

Nice mask! a colleague told Scalise.

Thanks! I wear it for Halloween, too! the second-ranking Republican said, laughing uproariously.

Those who did not wear masks included Reps. Jack Bergman (R-Mich.), Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), James Comer (R-Ky.), Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.), Jody Hice (R-Ga.), David Kustoff (R-Tenn.), Michael McCaul (R-Texas), Tom McClintock (R-Calif.), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Chip Roy (R-Texas).

Some Republicans did wear masks, and the number who did increased around noon when lawmakers pivoted to debating the fourth large coronavirus bill.

GOP Reps. Kevin Brady of Texas, Steve Chabot of Ohio, Tom Cole of Oklahoma, Debbie Lasko of Arizona and Thomas Massie of Kentucky were among those who wore masks.

Aside from Cunningham, the closest to an unmasked Democrat was Rep. Richard Neal of Massachusetts, who wore a mask tied around his neck. It did not appear that Neal ever raised the mask onto his face.

During House votes last month, many New York Democrats ignored guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which urged a 14-day self-quarantine for people recently in the New York metro area.

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House Republicans anger Democrats by refusing to wear protective masks - New York Post

Three Democratic senators on Friday urged the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to strengthen its fraud protections amid reports of scammers targeting coronavirus relief checks.

"These scams often involve criminals impersonating the IRS or suggesting that they can help get individuals their stimulus payments faster," Finance Committee members Sens.Maggie HassanMargaret (Maggie) HassanDemocrats urge Treasury to ensure Social Security recipients quickly receive full coronavirus rebates Tensions flare as Democrats press Pence over coronavirus testing The Hill's 12:30 Report: Trump turns to lawmakers to advise on reopening MORE (D-N.H.), Tom CarperThomas (Tom) Richard CarperEPA is abandoning those suffering from toxic PFAS pollution Infrastructure investments have never been so good Bipartisan senators announce .5B water infrastructure proposal MORE (D-Del.) and Ron WydenRonald (Ron) Lee WydenFree-flowing rivers help ecosystems, wildlife, people and the economy Key Democrat presses Mnuchin about Trump's name on coronavirus checks Bipartisan Senate report reaffirms intelligence findings that Russia meddled in 2016 elections MORE (D-Ore.) wrote to agency Commissioner Charles Rettig.

"Criminals ask for personal information in order to steal personal identities and stimulus payments," the senators explained.

Under the $2 trillion coronavirus relief packagePresident TrumpDonald John TrumpNew Mexico governor extends stay-at-home order: 'We're not ready to ease up' Coronavirus culture war over reopening economy hits Capitol Hill Challenge China and the WHObut not while the pandemic rages MOREsigned late last month, known as the CARES Act, mosthouseholds will receive direct payments of up to $1,200 per adult and $500 per child.

Scammers have taken advantage of the payments, redirecting the needed stimulus to themselves, according to multiple reports.

In Friday's letter, the Democratic lawmakers urged the IRS to boost fraud protections for online tools related to the checks.

They also called on the agency to work with the Federal Trade Commission and Federal Communications Commission to educate Americans on how to spot and avoid scams.

The IRS's watchdog warned earlier this month that people should be vigilant about scams relating to the checks because criminals have long devised schemes targeting government aid programs.

The agency itself has also issuedwarnings about coronavirus-related scams, saying that retirees in particular may be targeted.

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Democratic senators urge IRS to strengthen fraud protections | TheHill - The Hill