Watch Live:

President-elect Joe Biden attends virtual roundtable with front-line health care workers

Trump campaign will pay $3 million for a seemingly hopeless recount in 2 Wisconsin counties

Kathryn Krawczyk
·2 min read

President Trump's campaign is spending $3 million on a recount that won't change his fate.

Trump's campaign shifted from requesting a full recount in Wisconsin to paying for a recount in just Milwaukee and Dane counties on Wednesday. The Trump campaign said it chose those counties as they were home to the "worst irregularities" in the vote count, though there's no evidence that's true.

Even before President-elect Joe Biden was declared the winner of the 2020 election, Trump and his campaign began launching legal challenges and demanding recounts across states Biden won. That included in Wisconsin, a state Trump won in 2016 but Biden flipped by more than 20,000 votes this time around. A good portion of Biden's majority came from the Democratic strongholds of Milwaukee and Dane counties, home to Milwaukee and Madison, respectively.

The Trump campaign claims those counties were home to "illegally altered absentee ballots, illegally issued absentee ballots, and illegal advice given by government officials allowing Wisconsin’s Voter ID laws to be circumvented." State and local elections officials say there's no sign of the widespread fraud Trump's team is alleging.Trump's campaign is more likely zeroing on these counties because they contain a big chunk of the state's votes, went significantly for Biden this year, and are home to most of the state's Black voters.

Trump needs to flip more than 20,000 votes to put Wisconsin in his favor — a number a recount has never seen before. But even without Wisconsin's 10 electoral votes, Biden still has more than the 270 votes he needs to win the election.

More stories from theweek.com
7 scathingly funny cartoons about Trump's refusal to concede
Trump is reportedly 'very aware' he lost the election but is putting up a fight as 'theater'
Texas senator suggests it's too soon to declare Biden the winner because Puerto Rico is still counting votes

Latest Stories

  • The Trumps are refusing to turn over the keys to the Bidens — and Michelle and Barack Obama have had enough

    Two days after the 2016 election, the Obamas welcomed then-President-elect Donald Trump and Melania Trump to the White House in a symbolic gesture epitomizing the peaceful transfer of power. The Trumps have afforded the Bidens no such invitation.

  • Delaware Teens Lured a Classmate Into the Woods—Then Murdered Her With a Baseball Bat: Prosecutors

    A Delaware teenager has been charged with murder after allegedly luring her classmate into the woods and beating her to death with the girl’s ex-boyfriend, prosecutors said.Annika Stalczynski, 17, was arrested on Monday after a New Castle County grand jury indicted her on several charges—including first-degree murder, possession of a deadly weapon during commission of a felony, and conspiracy—for Madison Sparrow’s Oct. 2 slaying, according to the Delaware Attorney General’s office. Prosecutors allege Stalczynski, along with Sparrow’s ex-boyfriend, 19-year-old Noah Sharp, conspired to lure the teenager to the woods behind Maclary Elementary School, before they ambushed and fatally beat her with a metal baseball bat.The grand jury also indicted Sharp, who was arrested a few days after Sparrow’s death, on the same charges. The teenagers are in custody on $1 million bail.Utah Man Dies in Car Crash After Confessing He Killed His Wife: Authorities“Every murder is an outrage, but the murder of a child strikes at everything we hold dear,” Attorney General Kathy Jennings said in a statement. “Madison was stolen from her family and friends with her life and her dreams still ahead of her. A life has been taken and a cruel trauma has been inflicted on hundreds of people who knew and loved this kind, gentle young woman.”“My heart aches for Madi’s parents, the Sparrow family, and the entire Newark Charter community. We can never replace what these people have lost, but we can—and will—hold her killers accountable,” she added.According to court documents, prosecutors allege Sparrow, a junior at Newark Charter School, was reported missing by her mother at around 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 2 after she did not return from a trip to the store with a girlfriend.Another Fort Hood Soldier Has Been Arrested for Murder: AuthoritiesThe following day, police issued a Gold Alert for Sparrow—a notification that’s typically sent out when a senior citizen, suicidal person, or a person with a disability has gone missing. Investigators also spoke to friends and family, who revealed the 17-year-old had gone “to an area in Newark where her ex-boyfriend Noah, was located.”When authorities went to the “wooded area,” which was located behind Maclary Elementary School, they found an aluminum baseball bat, droplets of blood, and Sparrow’s clothing, according to court documents.Prosecutors state Sharp used the bat to fatally beat Sparrow to death—and that Stalczynski had planned the murder with the 19-year-old. An autopsy report confirmed Sparrow died of blunt force trauma to the head.It is not immediately clear why Stalczynski assisted Sharp in the grisly crime. But according to State Prosecutor A.J. Roop, Stalczynski and Sparrow were classmates at the Newark high school and had "known each other for some time."“I believe that they had a relationship going back over a number of years,” Roop said, according to Delaware Online. “I won't get into much more than that, or what the status was recently, but they were acquaintances, and they did know each other.”When investigators questioned Sharp on Oct. 5, following his arrest, the 19-year-old admitted he murdered his ex-girlfriend—confirming he used the bat to commit the crime, court documents state. Sharp added that after killing Sparrow, he moved her body to another “wooded area” about 20 minutes away from the elementary school off Route 896. Hours later, authorities found her body.Grand Jury Declines to Charge Officer Who Killed 21-Year-Old Dreasjon ReedSparrow’s death was met with an outcry of support online, where hundreds sent their condolences and shared stories about the 17-year-old and her family. Two vigils were also held in her honor—one in New Jersey and one at her high school—where hundreds of people met to honor the teenager described by her grandfather as “wise beyond her years.”“To think such a bright light is extinguished at such a young age senselessly,” Sparrow's grandfather, Tom Mason, said at one vigil last month. “This was not an illness. This was not even a car accident. It was an act of violence. It’s inconceivable.”Although prosecutors do not state in court documents why Sharp wanted to kill his ex-girlfriend, they do reveal the 19-year-old admitted the crime was premeditated and that he and Stalczynski murdered Sparrow “in the afternoon/evening hours” the day the teenager went missing.On Tuesday, Jennings stressed his office cannot reveal any possible motives or additional details about the grisly crime because prosecutors are “ethically restrained, for good reason.”“We want to make sure that fair trial rights are preserved, and quite frankly, we cannot imagine how painful this is for Madison's family and friends,” Jennings said. “We don't want them to suffer anymore.”Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

  • Fox & Friends guest compares holiday coronavirus restrictions to 'separation of families'

    Fox & Friends chatted about Americans' impending "revolt" against the "separation of families" -- but not the family separation crisis that has remained unsolved for the past two years.Over the past few weeks, medical experts around the country have warned Americans against having big gatherings this holiday season as COVID-19 case numbers break new records, with some officials putting express limits on how many people can gather in one private residence. But to Fox Business' Charles Payne, the real problem is the "isolation" that comes with these restrictions -- none of which exceed a limit of 10 people in a home. It's essentially the "separation of families," Payne continued, with host Steve Doocy agreeing. "Politicians don't care," host Brian Kilmeade chimed in.> Fox's Charles Payne on Thanksgiving: "One of the big, overarching stories with all of this has been the isolation story, the separation of families ... The notion that you're gonna come to my house and count how many people are there, that is separation of families." > > pic.twitter.com/OdYDM9FSau> > -- The Recount (@therecount) November 17, 2020Payne's choice of words is interesting considering family separation at the border split thousands of children from their parents over the past few years. And unlike the family separation brought about by an effort to slow the spread of a deadly disease, for at least 666 children, their separation may be permanent. Editor's note: This story has been updated.More stories from theweek.com 7 scathingly funny cartoons about Trump's refusal to concede Trump is reportedly 'very aware' he lost the election but is putting up a fight as 'theater' Texas senator suggests it's too soon to declare Biden the winner because Puerto Rico is still counting votes

  • Rights group condemns Iraq for execution of IS-linked men

    A prominent rights group condemned Iraq on Tuesday for the mass execution of 21 people, some with suspected links to the Islamic State group, who had been convicted on terrorism charges. The prisoners were hanged Monday in Nasiriyah Central Prison in southern Iraq, according to a semi-official provincial news site. There was no official confirmation of the executions by the Iraqi government and the judiciary has not issued a statement.

  • Navalny files defamation suit against Kremlin over spying claims

    Alexei Navalny is suing the Kremlin over claims that the Russian opposition leader has been working hand in hand with the US intelligence. Mr Navalny, who spent weeks in a coma after a nerve agent poisoning, said on Tuesday that he has filed a lawsuit against Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov over his remarks about Mr Navalny’s alleged ties to the CIA. “I don’t typically sue propagandists... but the important thing here is that Peskov is not merely a person whose job is to spread lies. He is a deputy chief of presidential staff,” Mr Navalny said in an Instagram post, calling Mr Peskov a “mustachioed liar.” Mr Peskov on Tuesday refused to comment on the lawsuit against him. The 44-year-old opposition leader who ran an impressive campaign across Russia before he was barred from running for president in 2018 fell suddenly ill on a plane from Siberia to Moscow in August and spent three weeks in a coma before recovering. Several European laboratories independently confirmed that Mr Navalny was poisoned with the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok which was used in the 2018 attack on former Soviet spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter. Mr Navalny has pointed the finger at President Vladimir Putin as the only person who could have ordered the Novichok attack. The European Union last month imposed sanctions on six top Russian officials and a chemical research centre over the Navalny poisoning. The Kremlin has denied any involvement in the attack and vowed to slap European officials with visa bans in retaliation. The original claim about Mr Navalny’s alleged ties to the US intelligence was made by Russian parliament speaker Vyacheslav Volodin who accused Mr Navalny of being a CIA spy. Mr Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, mentioned the allegations in September, claiming that Mr Navanly works with “CIA specialists” who “put in his mouth everything that he says.” President Putin’s most formidable foe, Mr Navalny was discharged from a Berlin hospital in September and remains in Germany to continue his treatment. He has vowed to return to Russia as soon as he has made a full recovery.

  • Trump in exile: How he will remain a force in the GOP, and a threat to Biden's politics of unity

    Barring something unforeseen, President Trump will leave the White House in January, but he can — and probably will — retain his grip on our politics.

  • Wisconsin police officer who fatally shot three people in the last five years is resigning

    Wauwatosa Police Officer Joseph Mensah, who had been suspended since July, is resigning from the department.

  • Photos Show California Gov. Newsom Flouting Coronavirus Precautions at Upscale Napa Restaurant

    Newly released photos appear to show California Governor Gavin Newsom and his wife in an unmasked group eating shoulder-to-shoulder indoors at a birthday party earlier this month.FOX 11 Los Angeles obtained photos from a 50th birthday party for Jason Kinney, a longtime lobbyist and Newsom adviser, at French Laundry on November 6, taken by a witness who told the outlet the group was so loud that open sliding glass doors near where they were seated had to be closed.> EXCLUSIVE: We've obtained photos of Governor Gavin Newsom at the Napa dinner party he's in hot water over. The photos call into question just how outdoors the dinner was. A witness who took photos tells us his group was so loud, the sliding doors had to be closed. 10pm on @FOXLA pic.twitter.com/gtOVEwa864> > -- Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) November 18, 2020On Monday, Newsom apologized for attending the party saying he made a “bad mistake.”“I should have stood up and … drove back to my house…The spirit of what I’m preaching all the time was contradicted,” he said. “ I need to preach and practice, not just preach.”Newsom said that he wanted to “own” his mistake because he was concerned his actions might undermine the message of caution he had sent to residents. The governor instituted new coronavirus restrictions this week, closing indoor dining across much of the state and urging residents to avoid large Thanksgiving gatherings."I’m doing my best every single day in trying to model better behavior,” he said.A spokesman for Kinney defended the gathering, telling FOX 11 that the seating at the upscale restaurant north of San Francisco was considered outdoors. “The guests and the restaurant followed all applicable state and county public health guidance," the spokesperson said. "The guests specifically required outdoor seating. And that’s outdoor seating, as confirmed and provided by the restaurant.”  The backlash comes as daily coronavirus cases in the state have doubled in the last 10 days, "the fastest increase California has seen since the beginning of this pandemic," Newsom said Monday. The state surpassed 1 million coronavirus cases last week.

  • The 7 Best Airbnbs in Austin, Texas

    From a vintage trailer to a lush 1950s bungalow, AD has you covered  Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

  • US House to offer regular virus testing for members, staff

    After months without internal testing protocols, members of the U.S. House and their staff will now have regular access to coronavirus testing at the Capitol physician’s office when they return to Washington from their home states. The new testing is voluntary, but is intended to prevent an outbreak in the sprawling Capitol complex as members fly back and forth from their districts and cases spike around the country. In a letter to members of Congress on Sunday, Attending Physician Brian Monahan wrote that his office is offering the testing “to be consistent with the spirit” of an order from Washington, D.C., that all travelers must obtain a coronavirus test prior to visiting the city and get a second test three to five days after arrival.

  • Black Californian family confronted by ‘racist white neighbour’ brandishing a taser: ‘Act like white people’

    Husband of woman accused of racially offensive comments says it was ‘a minor incident’

  • Anti-Trump Republican Gov. Larry Hogan appeals to 'exhausted majority' as he teases presidential bid

    Larry Hogan, the Republican governor of Maryland, has a simple message: There is another way. Arguing before the Ronald Reagan Institute that this is a nation of “civility and pragmatism,” he observed that “most of us are sick and tired of all the drama.”

  • U.S. drug charges against former Mexican defense minister are dropped

    A federal judge on Wednesday granted a U.S. government request to drop drug charges against former Mexican Defense Minister Salvador Cienfuegos and return him to Mexico, a move Mexico said would restore trust in the countries' severely strained security cooperation ties. The dismissal came one day after a surprise announcement by U.S. Attorney General William Barr and Mexican Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero that the U.S. case would end, just one month after being announced. Cienfuegos, 72, was Mexico's defense minister from 2012 to 2018 under former President Enrique Pena Nieto.

  • Pentagon says it shot down unarmed missile in sea-based test

    In a first for the Pentagon's push to develop defenses against intercontinental-range ballistic missiles capable of striking the United States, a missile interceptor launched from a U.S. Navy ship at sea hit and destroyed a mock ICBM in flight on Tuesday, officials said. Previous tests against ICBM targets had used interceptors launched from underground silos in the United States. If further, more challenging tests prove successful, the ship-based approach could add to the credibility and reliability of the Pentagon’s existing missile defense system.

  • UK will ban new gas-powered cars by 2030

    The UK has moved up its deadline for banning the sale of new gasoline and diesel-powered cars by five years, to 2030 - all part of what Prime Minister Boris Johnson has cast as the country's, quote, ''green revolution.'' Johnson, a member of the Conservative Party, wants to underscore his green credentials and also cut net emissions to zero by 2050. After Brexit battles, national lockdowns, and domestic political problems, he's hoping this will help reset his government, and its image with the public. Last year, Britain lbecame the first G7 country to set such a zero-emissions target, which will require major changes in the way Britons travel, use energy, and eat. Johnson says the plan will mobilize $16 billion of government money, with as much as three times that amount coming from the private sector, and create and support 250,000 highly skilled green jobs in the next decade. Under the new plan, the sale of hybrid cars and vans would also be banned from 2035.

  • Joe Biden announces who will be in his White House team

    The first round of senior staff appointments reflects a mix of longtime loyalist and Democratic operatives, as well as an absence of high-profile progressives far-left faction of the party.

  • Pennsylvania Supreme Court reverses rare Trump legal victory

    One of the rare legal victories President Trump's campaign picked up in its election challenge was taken away, dealing another blow to the increasingly long-shot effort.Pennsylvania's Supreme Court on Tuesday reversed a court order that required Philadelphia election officials to let observers within six feet of vote counters after the Trump campaign alleged observers were being kept too far away at 15 to 18 feet. The state's high court, in a 5-2 decision (two of the justices preferred to rule it as moot), said Pennsylvania law gives Philadelphia officials a lot of leeway to decide the rules for observers.Plus, even the two conservative justices who dissented acknowledged that the Trump campaign's argument that legitimate votes should be invalidated because of improper observation practices was "misguided," The Guardian reports.More stories from theweek.com 7 scathingly funny cartoons about Trump's refusal to concede Trump is reportedly 'very aware' he lost the election but is putting up a fight as 'theater' Texas senator suggests it's too soon to declare Biden the winner because Puerto Rico is still counting votes

  • A 61-year-old British diplomat jumped into a river in China to save a 24-year-old woman who fell in

    Stephen Ellison received praise for his actions after social media users shared the video far and wide online.

  • Taiwan refuses to renew pro-China news channel's license

    Taiwan’s government refused to renew the broadcast license of a leading pro-China cable news channel on Wednesday, prompting complaints of political interference. The National Communications Commission cited repeated violations of rules on accurate reporting in saying it had rejected CTiTV’s application to renew its license. The channel is owned by the Want Want China Times media group, which also publishes one of Taiwan’s main newspapers and has long been associated with a Beijing-friendly political view, partly attributed to its extensive business interests in China.

  • Canadian indigenous group to invest up to C$1 billion in Keystone oil pipeline

    Keystone XL (KXL) would carry 830,000 barrels per day of crude from Alberta to the U.S. Midwest. The investment by Natural Law Energy, a coalition of five First Nations, comes with KXL construction well underway in Canada.