Trump news – live: Fauci issues stern warning to president's campaign on Covid as Amy Coney Barret grilled on guns, abortion

ACB says Roe v Wade not a ‘super precedent’

At her confirmation hearing, ACB said Roe v Wade is not a “super precedent”, ie: cases that are so well settled that no political actors and no people seriously push for their over-ruling.

“I’m answering a lot of questions about Roe, which I think indicates Roe doesn’t fall in that category, and scholars across the spectrum say that doesn’t mean that Roe should be overruled, but descriptively it does mean that it’s not a case that everyone has accepted and doesn’t call for its overruling,” she said.

She added: “Roe is not a super precedent because calls for its overruling have never ceased, but that doesn’t mean the Roe should be overruled.”

ACB and daughters ‘wept together’ after watching George Floyd death

On issue of race, ACB said it’s an obvious statement to say racism persists in the US, but that a broader diagnosis about the nature of the problem of racism is beyond her capabilities as a judge.

“My children to this point in their lives have had the benefit of growing up in a cocoon where they have not yet experienced hatred or violence, and for Vivian, to understand there would be a risk to her brother or her son some day of that kind of brutality has been an on-going conversation,” she said.

Watch the video, via Reuters.

Bloomberg gives $500,000 to juice Dem turnout in Miami-Dade

Billionaire former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg is donating $500,000 to juice Democratic turnout in Miami-Dade County, a place where the party must bank a massive number of votes if it hopes to win the pivotal swing state of Florida.

The donation, the largest ever made to the Miami-Dade County Democratic Party, could not only lift Joe Biden’s chances of winning the state, which would all but eliminate President Donald Trump’s path to a second term. The effort to increase turnout also could improve the fortunes of Daniella Levine Cava, the Democratic candidate for mayor of the county, whose victory could have statewide and national implications that transcend the local nature of the office.

In a statement, Bloomberg highlighted the importance of Miami-Dade County.

“As one of the most diverse counties in Florida, Miami-Dade County is a particularly important county for a Democratic victory in Florida,” he said. “I’m glad to support the Miami-Dade Democratic Executive Committee’s work to directly reach voters and urge them to cast their ballots.” - AP

Amy Coney Barrett claims landmark abortion case is not a 'super-precedent' and not settled law

The Independent’s Washington Bureau Chief John T Bennett goes deeper into this ACB’s view of super-precedent in relation to Roe v Wade.

BREAKING: Eli Lily pauses coronavirus antibody treatment due to safety concerns

A major antibody trial for a potential Covid-19 vaccine has been paused in the US amid safety concerns, a spokesperson for Eli Lilly has confirmed. The ACTIV-3 monoclonal antibody trial, backed by the Trump administration’s coronavirus vaccine initiative labelled Operation Warp Speed, was suspended “out of an abundance of caution” according to the spokesperson.

The Independent’s Chris Riotta is following the story as it unfolds.

Joe Biden speaking in Pembroke Pines, Florida

The Democratic candidate is discussing his vision for older Americans.

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New poll shows Biden ahead of Trump in Michigan, tied in North Carolina

Joe Biden maintained a significant lead over Donald Trump in Michigan, but the two candidates were neck and neck in North Carolina, Reuters/Ipsos opinion polls showed on Tuesday.

MICHIGAN (7-13 October):

Voting for Biden: 51 per cent

Voting for Trump: 43 per cent

(Result unchanged from prior week.)

NORTH CAROLINA (7-13 October):

Voting for Biden: 48 per cent

Voting for Trump: 47 per cent

(The race was tied the prior week at 47 per cent - 47 per cent).

Obama to hit campaign trail for Biden ‘soon’

Barack Obama will ‘soon’ hit the stump for Joe Biden, according to reports.

"President Obama plans to hit the trail soon, in addition to all the other activities he’s undertaken all year in support of electing VP Biden – as he’s said, we all have to do everything we can to win on November 3," an aide to the former president told ABC News.

While the former president has made some high-profile speeches attacking Donald Trump, including a primetime address at the DNC and at the funeral for John Lewis, as well as some fundraisers, he hasn’t yet hit the stump in key battleground states.

ACB Senate hearing has resumed after a short break

Richard Blumenthall has is first on the docket to question Amy Coney Barrett

Biden’s son-in-law advising Democrats on Covid-19 pandemic while investing in Covid-19 start-ups

The son-in-law of Joe Biden has been investing in start-ups focused on the Covid-19 pandemic response while acting as an adviser to the campaign of Joe Biden on its Covid-19 pandemic response, according to Politico.

Howard Krein is the chief medical officer of investment firm StartUp Health, which began soliciting pitches from entrepreneurs in March to invest $1 million in products that addressed the outbreak – a month before he began participating in daily calls to brief his father-in-law on health policy during the pandemic, Politico reported.

“I have little doubt that the relationship to Joe Biden, particularly if he becomes president, would attract the interest of some investors,” Avik Roy, founder investment research firm, Roy Healthcare Research, and a former adviser to the presidential campaigns of Mitt Romney and Marco Rubio, told the outlet.