It's another edition of the Midday Newswrap, and this week we spotlight the simmering civil rights street protests in Portland, Oregon, and the forceful and controversial actions taken against demonstrators by teams of camouflaged federal Border Patrol agents, tactical units the Trump Administration deployed to the city against the wishes of the Portland mayor and Oregon's governor and legislators.
Tom talks first with Washington Post reporter Marissa Lang who's in Portland covering the unrest. She gives us an eyewitness update on this tense and developing situation. Lang connects with Midday via Zoom.
Then we broaden the focus to other Trump Administration-related news developments, as Tom is joined by Ayesha Rascoe, a White House reporter for NPR.
Rascoe shares her unique perspectives on the political strategy behind Trump's deployment of those militarized federal agents to US cities; the resumption of White House COVID-19 briefings and the president's changing tone on the pandemic; the cancellation of the Republican National Convention in Jacksonville, Florida; Trump's call for the 2020 Census to exclude undocumented immigrants; former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen's re-release from prison and his plans for a potentially explosive tell-all book; and the darkening mood at the White House as new poll numbers raise concerns about Donald Trump's re-election chances. Ayesha Rascoe joins us via Zoom.
