Manual recounting of votes begins in Georgia, media rush to
declare results |
Georgia had announced recount last weekend when the
margin in the presidential polls was thin, going by the State's
rule. Each State has its own rules for the conduct of polls
and certifying the results. Later Secretary of State Brad
Raffensperger announced on Wednesday the audit of the
results will be by hand count. "This will build confidence," he
said. |
ATLANTA, Nov 13: The manual recounting of votes cast in the presidential election
on November 3 in Georgia started 9 am Friday (7:30 pm IST Friday) and will continue
till Wednesday 11:59 pm (10:29 am IST Thursday). The counting was prompted by
a razor-thin margin between the winner and the loser. Democrat Joe Biden had
a majority of just 14,000 votes against incumbent Republican President Donald
Trump.
The first to start was Cobb County election staff who began the recount of
the presidential ballots at the Jim Miller Park Event Center in Marietta, with
80 workers. They have 4,14,000 ballots. Eight political party workers and some
citizens are keeping a watch of the recount. Social distancing is being maintained.
Some counties have live feeds. There are 5 million ballots in the State as a
whole.
By just afternoon NBC, ABC and CNN started making a call in Georgia, predicting
Biden as the undisputed winner.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has gone into self-quarantining
as his wife has tested positive for coronavirus. He is negative. This will not
affect the recounting work, his office said.
Raffensperger announced at a press confrence in Atlanta on Wednesday the audit
of the election results will be by band count. "This will build confidence."
"With margin being so close, it will require full by hand recount in each count."
Starting by weekend, it will culminate before November 20, the State's deadline
to certify its final vote count. He said, "Mathematically you actually have
to do a full hand by hand count of all because the margin is so close. We want
to start this before the week is up."
Fellow Republicans had asked him to resign over what they called mismanagement
of elections. But now with what he said Trump is happy with the recount. Raffensperger
said even after November 20 certification one can ask for a recount if the margin
is or below the set limit of 0.5% but then it will be by machine count.
Georgia had announced recount when the counting finished last weekend with
a thin margin for Joe Biden. Each State has its own rules for the conduct of
polls and certifying the results. In Georgia, the rule allows a candidate to
ask for recount when the margin is or below the set limit of 0.5%. This request is made after the certification of the results which is within 20 days of the election. In the
present case, the Secretary of State sought the recount before certification,
on his own.
The recount rules in some other States are: In Michigan it is a margin of less
than 2,000 votes; Wisconsin: margin less than 1%; Pennsylvania: 0.5%. Historically,
there has not been much change seen in recount.
Trump had been saying from day one of counting when he started losing the initial
lead as the counting of early ballots progressed that "election is far from
over". All the same he falsely declared victory in the wee hours of Wednesday,
November 4. He filed several lawsuits in the States like Georgia, Michigan,
Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, losing several of them without being even admitted.
He was alleging without evidence electoral malpractices in polling and counting
by the Democratic party, which he a month before the voting also forecast unmindful
of the office he occupies.
The funny side is, his most allegations of fraud relate to Republican-ruled
States. There are also differences within the party. At any rate it is an irony
that a President is accusing the Opposition of rigging the polls. It is usually
the other way round.
Trump is also on record saying stupid things things like he had "such a big
lead" on election night only to see the leads "miraculously disappearing" later
in the week.
However, much may be said on both sides. To the extent that the results have
not been officially certified by the States, Trump is legally right when he
does not accept Biden's premature victory speech and pronounce that "election
is far from over". Biden's celebration followed the announcement by the national
news agencies and networks although they are traditionally accepted entities
for the purpose of endorsing the results and this has been the custom in the
past.
Meanwhile, the General Services Administration of the White House refused facilities
and funds for Biden's transition team to start transition work as is the practice.
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SELECTIONS FROM OUR ARCHIVES |
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Top Govt officer thrashed, kicked inside Bhubaneswar office: Incident sparks a debate
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The incident has triggered a debate on social media whether the officer refused to take orders from a party leader or he was accused of any corruption, some netizens justifying the handling in either case, that Ratnakar was blocking public welfare work! It is true the Govt machinery has been the enemy Number One of the people of this country, existing for itself and for these politicians, for well over seven decades. India will never make an inch of progress - real progress, not make-believe-progress - unless and until this machinery is eliminated.
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UK's House of Commons votes to legalise assisted dying: What it means | |
ANALYSIS: There have been cases of Britons going to Switzerland to get rid of a miserable life. Now once the House of Lords also passes the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, terminally ill Britons can call it quits with the help of a medical practitioner here itself. But the measure when comes into practice, will have very serious social consequences, it is feared. There won't be comparisons, even as tropes in Latin American folklores. The worst case scenario is of those who are not terminally ill also trying to misuse the provision to leave this world early when life with dignity is not available. But that is, in fact, a political question and not a moral imbroglio!
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What caused Air India Boeing 787 crash? Some questions, some answers | |
The CCTV footage and the video circulating on social media do not indicate any serious abnormalities in takeoff or descent, it has been confirmed. The disaster is becoming curiouser and curiouser. The flight path was not curvy. And the aircraft maintained a steady, gliding descent with its nose straight and the wings perfectly level. The pilot's distress call does not specify what prevented lift and climb-out. Here are some expert opinions. The sole purpose is to raise travellers' awareness about air travel.
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Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla line brings Kashmir Valley on India's rail map |
- The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla line provides Kashmir with all-weather connectivity and integrates the Valley with the rest of India.
- The saying 'Kashmir to Kanyakumari' is now a dream come true.
- The Chenab bridge on the line, an engineering marvel, is the world's highest
railway bridge, taller than the Eiffel Tower. (Video: File)
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Work done, Elon Musk steps down from DOGE, leaves White House | |
Musk wrote: "My scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end... The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government." Now on it will be on auto-pilot.
PROGNOSIS: DOGE was prematurely born to protect the country by aborting an impending socio-economic disaster which very few people could see coming.
Although its immediate job was to save American taxpayers billions by slashing waste, eliminating fraud, cutting Government bloat and ensuring utmost efficiency in administration for the good of the people.
(Today's headlines )
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Ailing Asiatic lion Pataudi too dies of bird flu at Kanpur zoo
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Originally from Junagadh, Gujarat, Pataudi was relocated to Etawah Lion Safari in September 2019 before being transferred to Gorakhpur Zoo in 2021. Recently it was receiving treatment for pancreatic and liver infections. After tigress Shakti died in the zoo on May 7 due to bird flu, Pataudi was shifted to Kanpur. Some birds are also reported to have died mysteriously around Gorakhpur. All zoos in UP are closed for fear of a bird flu outbreak.
Three other animals too had died - a tiger, a leopardess and a female wolf. Wolf Bhairavi died last Saturday, leopardess Mona died the Thursday before that and tiger Kesari died on March 30. Some of them had Shakti's symptoms but the cause of death has not been confirmed yet.
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48 tourist destinations closed in Kashmir following Pahalgam terror attack
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As tourist inflow is an indicator of normalcy returning to an erstwhile terrorist infested Valley, the Government has been trying hard to make everything travel-friendly, launching lot many projects and bringing Kashmir on the national rail map that physically completes the process of Kashmir's integration with the rest of India. And that defeats the designs of Pakistan eyeing Kashmir and simply explains a recrudescence of terrorism in J&K.
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Trump slaps ‘kind’, ‘reciprocal’ tariffs on trading partners; a 'lenient' 26% on India!
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ANALYSIS: There is a lot of hue and cry around the world over Trump's tariffs. But tariff, simply put, is a tax. But unlike tax, it affects the exporting country too. Domestic prices will go up for some time. Nothing more will happen, good or bad!
What motivated Trump's newfound policy, apart from being a stunt to justify his existence in the White House, is a false realisation that increased tariff will make foreign goods prohibitive, thereby boosting local production, and create more jobs, and more prosperity will ring in! If that is true, India would have been shining by now: Producing own Rolls-Royce La Rose Noire Droptail and Scotch Whiskies! And what about coconut and palm oil by America!
(Today's headlines )
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Trump signs order to shut Education Dept - And the contrast with India
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PROGNOSIS: It looks a Real New Trump is emerging - courageous, balanced, powerful and disinterested. Determined to save his country from the cliff, he has done quite a few draconian things that will reduce the burden of debts of the Federal entity, like the golden handshake, stopping senseless funding, pulling out of a worthless WHO. Shutting the Education Department is another. On the other hand, running it is also not the Centre's job either (We will convincingly elaborate it in the next chapter).
In India the scene is just the opposite. Centralisation is the core agenda and identity of the ruling dispensation without which it has no existence, or in other words, it exists for that set of schemes only. A realisation of this never dawned upon any Opposition party in 2014 or any time thereafter, what to talk of being able to see it coming 70 years ago! The consequence of all this violation of basic natural law of the universe we cannot predict.
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Sunita, Wilmore's Dragon splashes down in Gulf: What delayed their return? |
THE AMERICAN CONUNDRUM: Political venom has migrated to top echelons in the US. It was reported last year NASA has become politicised, vitiated. But NASA refuted the charge. How Boeing developed a glitch but its unmanned return was smooth. When Suni-Wilmore were stranded last June, why the return was set for February? Because that comes only after January 20! SpaceX called the shots, for itself and for Trump. Then the mission was manipulated for March for a better bargain! In between, what made Elon Musk 'predict' during campaign if Kamala Harris wins he would be in jail. In politics, it is said, "the only rule is there are no rules." Difficult times for Americans too.
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All 80k health workers in US offered $25,000 voluntary buyout: Administering wrong prescriptions!
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The terminations are part of a large-scale exercise going on all across Fed departments and organisations to reduce wasteful Government expenditure as decided by a Trump in a mess gone berserk, and improve administrative efficiency following the whims of billionaire and his associate Elon MusK and his DOGE. It has not been shared how terminations are going to raise the efficiency bar! It looks like Trump has stolen some of the prescriptions meant for India. But the American problems are quite different.
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