(Reuters) – The fight over Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s successor injected another volatile element into the 43-day final stretch of the U.S. presidential race. Democratic candidate Joe Biden dubbed President Donald Trump’s plan for a quick vote to replace the liberal justice “an exercise of raw political power.” U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski became the second Republican to voice objections, while some Democrats talked of expanding the number of SCOTUS justices using “court packing.”
– As Supreme Court flags were set to fly at half staff for 30 days and creative memorials sprung up across the country, Ginsburg’s death appeared to energize voters left and right, especially women.
– Democratic donors smashed fundraising records, funneling more than $90 million in just more than 24 hours.
– At a Trump rally in North Carolina, 59-year-old Paulette Fittshur viewed the justice’s passing as divine providence. “It was God’s perfect timing in this election,” she said Fittshur. “It’s a golden opportunity for conservatives.”
– All eyes were on Trump and Senate Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to signal whether they will attempt a vote on her successor before or after the Nov. 3 election. Trump has voiced a preference to nominate a woman with Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Amy Coney Barrett and federal District Judge Barbara Lagoa, a Cuban-American from Florida, seen as front-runners. Both have demonstrated right-leaning views in rulings.
INVESTOR VIEW
A leading liberal think-tank has begun drawing up a list of Wall Street-friendly rules that could be swiftly repealed if the Democratic Party wins big. The list by the Center for American Progress, shared exclusively with Reuters, would reverse rules that eased speculative bank investments, reduced swap capital cushions, and overhauled fair lending regulation.
GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE
China’s ByteDance said a newly formed TikTok global business with Oracle and Walmart would remain its subsidiary after the White House appeared to compromise on a push for an outright sale of the popular app. On Friday, Trump said he would ban all new downloads of the popular app but appeared to avoid a total ban for existing users ahead of the election. On Monday, he said his administration would not approve the sale if ByteDance maintains any control.
BY THE NUMBERS 62% of American adults agree the Supreme Court vacancy should be filled by the election victor, while 23% disagreed and the rest said they were unsure.
ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL
Expected Reuters election coverage for Sept. 21:
– Reuters/Ipsos will begin releasing public opinion polls in each of six battleground states: Arizona, Florida, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and North Carolina (USA-ELECTION/BATTLEGROUND-POLL (TV, GRAPHIC) 1700 ET/2100GMT)
– Trump and Biden will campaign in two election battlegrounds as they spar over the president’s plan to fill a vacant Supreme Court seat with only weeks before voters choose between them (USA-ELECTION/ (PIX, TV) 1200ET/1600GMT)
– Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris attends fundraising events, including one with Biden campaign national co-chair and Rep. Cedric Richmond as well as another with California state elected officials
– New fund-raising reports reveal details on race for control of U.S. Senate (1000ET/1400GMT)
– Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden delivers a speech in Manitowoc in the battleground state of Wisconsin (1115ET/1515GMT)
– Oregon Governor Kate Brown, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan and Tucson Mayor Regina Romero, all Democrats, discuss “States and Cities Must Lead on Voting: Governors and Mayors Talk Elections During COVID-19,” during online forum hosted by Center for American Progress (CAP) Action Fund. (1330ET/1730GMT)
Refinitiv customers can find more 2020 U.S. Election content on the Election App (USPOL) on Eikon or Workspace.
Media customers can find complete multimedia coverage on the Reuters Connect planning calendar here https://www.reutersconnect.com/planning?search=all%3Ausa-election
(Editing by Leela de Kretser and Howard Goller)
