EFTA00047175 Record numbers vote in Hong Kong elections ## THE NEW WORLD ORDER: -- Hong Kong’s pro-democracy parties swept aside the pro-Beijing establishment during local council elections in a significant endorsement of the protest movement that’s shaken the territory. Shibani Mahtani, Simon Denyer, Tiffany Liang and Anna Kam report: “Voters took to the polls in record numbers to cast ballots in the only fully democratic election in the Chinese territory, an early sign that they wanted to send a strong message to their government and to the Communist Party in Beijing. Early results compiled by the South China Morning Post showed pro-democracy parties winning 278 of the first 344 seats to be declared, pro-Beijing parties taking 42, and independents 24. Many prominent figures in the protest movement won, and many leading pro-establishment figures were unseated. Pro-democrats look to be able to secure 12 of 18 district councils available in Hong Kong — before this vote, they did not have a majority in any. … The turnout — 2.94 million, or more than 71 percent of the 4.13 million eligible voters — was more than double the 1.4 million who voted in local elections in 2015. Voter registration was also a record high, driven in part by 390,000 first-time voters.” -- The election’s results will pressure Beijing to rethink its approach. Shibani, Simon and Tiffany report: “With this rebuke of its affiliates in the city, Beijing faces a choice among opening up politics as promised in Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, extending a crackdown on the pro-democracy protesters by the city’s police force and government, or trying to navigate a delicate middle path. Beijing can continue to dig in, but it would risk escalating and prolonging the conflict now that the electorate has spoken, said Ho-Fung Hung, an expert on the Chinese political economy and Hong Kong politics at the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International EFTA00047176 Studies. ... Reacting to the outcome on Monday, Chinese state media accused foreign forces, particularly the United States, of interfering. … [Carrie] Lam, Hong Kong’s embattled leader, said in a statement Monday that her government respects the election results and acknowledged ‘various analyses and interpretations.’ … Susan Shirk, a China expert and former official in the Clinton administration who is now at the University of California at San Diego, said it was possible that Chinese leader Xi Jinping had not been receiving accurate information from lower-level officials on the public dissatisfaction in Hong Kong, despite months of protests.” -- A growing body of evidence from former detainees, human rights groups and reporters details the Chinese government’s efforts to detain more than 1 million ethnic minorities in camps. Hannah Knowles, Kim Bellware and Lateshia Beachum report: “Papers released Sunday pierce a culture of intense secrecy to add a new piece of corroboration: the government’s own classified directives. Provided to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists by an anonymous source, the documents lay bare a crackdown in Xinjiang that has sought to stamp out minority culture, language and religion — with a particular focus on the Muslim Uighurs, whom the government blames for regional unrest. A manual, the first of its kind to be made public, details the inner workings of the three-year-old detention camps, while four intelligence briefings illuminate the mass surveillance that identifies people for internment on merely the suspicion that they may cause trouble. ... “Camps are heavily secured and full of surveillance, according to the manual signed by Zhu Hailun, who used to be in charge of security in Xinjiang. ... Some communication with outsiders is allowed to put family ‘at ease.’ Detainees are supposed to have phone conversations with relatives at least once a week and video chats every month.” -- A “phase two” trade deal between the U.S. and China is looking less likely. From Reuters: “Officials in Beijing say they don’t anticipate sitting down to discuss a phase two deal before the U.S. election, in part because they want to wait to see if Trump wins a second term. ‘It’s Trump who wants to sign these deals, not us. We can wait,’ one Chinese official told Reuters…. Trump’s main priority at the moment is to secure a big EFTA00047177 phase one announcement, locking in big-ticket Chinese purchases of U.S. agricultural goods that he can tout as an important win during his re-election campaign, according to a Trump administration official." -- Pope Francis called for the abolition of nuclear weapons while visiting Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Akiko Kashiwagi and Chico Harlan report: "Pope Francis called Sunday for a 'world without nuclear weapons,' which he said are 'immoral' for war or deterrence. 'We will be judged on this,' Francis said. In Hiroshima, the pope met with bomb survivors and spoke vividly of the 'black hole of death and destruction' atomic weapons could cause. Earlier, in a somber address in Nagasaki delivered in the driving rain, he spoke about the weapons in policy terms and expressed concern that a 'climate of distrust' was endangering international arms control efforts. ... Francis used the first papal trip to Japan since 1981 to emphasize one of his signature issues in cities that remain lasting symbols of atomic destruction (though both have been fully rebuilt in the decades since the 1945 attacks). ... After laying a wreath to the Nagasaki bombing's victims, the pope said the arms race creates a false sense of security, poisoning international relationships. He described nuclear weapons as wasteful and environmentally damaging. ... By saying that weapons shouldn't be held for deterrence — a stance he first outlined in 2017 — Francis has gone further than his predecessors. The only other pope to visit Japan, John Paul II, said during the Cold War that deterrence could be 'morally acceptable,' so long as it was a step toward disarmament." -- A couple kidnapped by Islamists was rescued in the Philippines during a military operation. Regine Cabato reports: “Allan Hyrons, 71, and Wilma Hyrons, 59, were abducted last month by Abu Sayyaf fighters at a beach resort the couple owned in the southern Philippines. They were rescued around 8 a.m. Monday in the island province of Sulu after a 20-minute firefight, said regional military commander Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, who attributed the operation’s success to support from the public. … The rescue of the Hyrons came at the end of a three-day operation, which the military said left six militant fighters dead.” -- The White House asked Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to block the resolution that would have formally recognized Turkey’s genocide of the Armenian people. EFTA00047178 From Axios: Graham was leaving the Oval Office after he joined a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan when a senior White House staff asked him to object on the floor to the resolution that had passed the House to avoid upsetting Erdogan. "Graham confirmed this in a phone interview on Saturday. ... A White House legislative affairs official told Graham that Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) was going to bring up his Armenian genocide resolution and asked if Graham could ‘please object.’ ‘I said sure,’ Graham said. ‘The only reason I did it is because he [Erdoğan] was still in town. ... That would've been poor timing. I'm trying to salvage the relationship if possible.’ Asked whether he felt uncomfortable blocking the Armenian genocide resolution, Graham replied: ‘Yeah. ... I'm not going to object next time,’ Graham added." The White House prodded Sen. Perdue (R-Ga.) to object the next time, and he obliged. -- Threatening more arrests, Iran restored Internet access in large parts of the country after a weeklong shutdown aimed at nationwide protests. From the Journal: “Tehran’s response to the unrest indicates its willingness to resort to deadly force to push back against what it sees as U.S. attempts to weaken and eventually oust the country’s leaders. It also comes amid a growing pushback in the region, where Iraqi and Lebanese protesters have railed against the influence of Iran and its local allies. … Iranian authorities haven't released an official number of arrests, but state media said authorities had arrested 180 ‘ringleaders’ and ‘rioters’ connected with such disparate groups as Islamic State, the MeK and Kurdish militants. Iran's internet blackout stemmed the sharing of videos and photos of the demonstrations, helping contain coverage to inside Iran, while making it difficult for those outside the country to assess the state of the protests and the brutal crackdown.” -- Reuters chronicles the role Iran’s leaders had in plotting the September attacks on the world’s biggest oil processing facility in Saudi Arabia. “This account [was] described to Reuters by three officials familiar with the meetings and a fourth close to Iran’s decision making … These people said Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei approved the operation, but with strict conditions: Iranian forces must avoid hitting any civilians or Americans. … The plan by Iranian military leaders to strike Saudi oil installations developed over several months, according to the official close to Iran’s decision making. … The official close to Iran’s decision making said the group settled on EFTA00047179 the plan to attack Saudi Arabia's oil installations because it could grab big headlines, inflict economic pain on an adversary and still deliver a strong message to Washington." -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces his first serious leadership challenge from his own party. Ruth Eglash reports: “The first public cracks in [Netanyahu]’s Likud party appeared over the weekend, days after the country’s attorney general indicted the longtime leader on charges of bribery and fraud in three criminal cases. The move comes after a year of political limbo that could send Israelis back to the polls for an unprecedented third general election in less than a year. Gideon Saar, Netanyahu’s most outspoken challenger within Likud, told an Israeli news show Saturday that it was time for the party to hold primaries to decide its leader and keep it from losing power. Saar, a 52-year-old former minister who returned to politics last year after a four-year hiatus, said he himself could end the political crisis. On Sunday, he submitted a request to the party’s central committee calling for a leadership vote to be held in the next three weeks — the deadline for the country’s lawmakers to form a long-elusive government before another general election must be called.” -- Uber lost its license to operate in London after authorities discovered that more than 14,000 trips were taken with uninsured drivers. From the Guardian: “Transport for London announced the decision not to renew the global ride-hailing firm’s licence at the end of a two-month probationary extension granted in September. Uber was then told it needed to address issues with checks on drivers, insurance and safety, but has apparently failed to satisfy the capital’s transport authorities. … The decision is unlikely to see Uber cars disappear from London, as the firm is expected to appeal, and can continue to operate pending the outcome, provided it launches official proceedings within 21 days.” -- Not only will England’s Prince Andrew stand aside from all of his 230 patronages after a scandalous interview about his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, he also won’t be able to throw a birthday bash next year, under orders from the Queen. From the Guardian: “The blanket move represents a key step in Buckingham Palace’s attempts to limit the damage to the British monarchy from the prince’s association with Epstein and his interview with BBC Two’s Newsnight last EFTA00047180 weekend in which he was widely thought to have shown insufficient concern for Epstein’s victims. … Andrew’s withdrawal from public life coincides with Charles’s wish for a more streamlined and cost-effective monarchy when he becomes king. Sources close to the Prince of Wales, who is on an official visit to the Solomon Islands, denied reports that he was ‘angry and frustrated’ by the publicity his younger brother was attracting. It was also reported that the Queen has cancelled a planned 60th birthday party for Andrew in February and has downsized it to a small family gathering.” -- A small plane crashed in eastern Congo, killing at least 27 people. From Reuters: “The propeller plane, which was operated by local company Busy Bee, crashed shortly after take-off en route to the city of Beni.” Mike Bloomberg announces Democratic presidential run | Campaign 2020 ## 2020 WATCH: Former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg officially announced his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. Scherer reports: “Bloomberg has promised a disruptive campaign that could break spending records with a massive advertising buy aimed at states that vote in March and April. … Without offering specifics, the announcement video says he will push for the wealthy to pay more in taxes and to guarantee health care to all Americans without removing private insurance from anyone who wants it. His campaign has made more than $30 million in television advertising reservations to help introduce him as a candidate. The ads will start [today]. … Bloomberg has also announced a $100 million ad campaign to criticize Trump in key battleground states and a $15 million voter registration effort in those same places. Those initial spending plans are already double the amount raised by the top fundraiser in the Democratic field, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), through September.” -- The billionaire’s news outlet, Bloomberg News, announced it will stop writing unsigned editorials about its founder and its reporters will avoid investigating him EFTA00047181 or his Democratic rivals as long as he stays in the race. Paul Farhi reports: “In an extraordinary memo to his newsroom on Sunday, Bloomberg News Editor in Chief John Micklethwait outlined steps designed to steer his reporters through a potential journalistic minefield: how to cover the campaign of the man who owns the news organization that is covering him. … Bloomberg operates one of the world's largest media organizations, with about 2,700 journalists in TV, radio, magazine and digital operations … Micklethwait's memo Sunday laid out what he called ‘basic principles’ in covering Bloomberg’s political aspirations. Most notably, he said his newsroom would continue 'our tradition' of not investigating Bloomberg, his family and his wealth, ‘and we will extend the same policy to his rivals in the Democratic primaries.’ A Bloomberg News spokeswoman, Kerri Chyka, also said the company won't initiate stories about Bloomberg L.P., following a long-standing policy. The hands-off policy puts Bloomberg News in the awkward position of passing on such critical stories as Trump's unfounded allegations of corruption against [Biden] and his son Hunter. At the same time, Micklethwait said Bloomberg News would continue to investigate the Trump administration.”
--“America already elected a builder,” White House adviser Kellyanne Conway said of Bloomberg's announcement, which uses the tagline “Rebuild America.”“His new ad that he put millions behind is all unicorns and rainbows. Keep your health care if you'd like to — and if you don't, I have something better. Rebuild America. We heard that from Obama-Biden,” Conway said. (Politico)
-- Biden is struggling in Iowa and his supporters blame a lack of enthusiasm and a spotty campaign operation. From the Times: “Voters at Mr. Biden’s events, along with county chairs and party strategists, characterize his on-the-ground organization as scattershot, visibly present in some counties but barely detectable in others. His events are often relatively small and sometimes subdued affairs, and in a state where enthusiasm can make or break a candidate on caucus night — a big part of caucusing centers on persuading friends and neighbors — Mr. Biden’s operation has found it difficult to build contagious excitement, these Democrats say. … ‘This is prime political season in Iowa and most candidates are spending a good deal of time visiting Iowa,’ said Joey Norris, the Democratic chair in Montgomery County, Iowa, where [Pete] EFTA00047182 Buttigieg plans to campaign on Monday. ‘The Biden campaign has been notably absent.'” -- Sanders’s loyal voters could keep him in the race for months. From the Journal: “Sanders’s campaign has made it clear that to win the nomination, he would have to pull off an ambitious expansion of the electorate. His campaign says it is banking on turning out a coalition of young, working-class and minority voters. But polls show the Vermont independent’s base is more loyal than that of any other 2020 Democrat, and in interviews over the last four months, Mr. Sanders’s supporters [have said] that they wouldn’t support any other candidate as long as he is running. Those backers—and his massive fundraising—mean that, unlike many of his rivals, Mr. Sanders might not need a marquee win in an early state to stay in the presidential race for months.” -- Sen. Cory Booker keeps winning praise for his presidential campaign. What he’s not winning is much support. Cleve R. Wootson Jr. and Scherer report: “As he struggles with low-single-digit polling and the prospect of missing the cut for next month’s debate, Booker has become a symbol for the harsh reality of this year’s nominating process. It is just not enough to win plaudits for performance, as he has after multiple events, or to execute a clear campaign strategy. In the shadow of Trump’s potential reelection, Democratic voters have become focused on winning and are unforgiving with their doubts. Booker has sought to answer that concern by preaching the power of empathy. He appeals to white Iowa and New Hampshire voters by talking about the problems of inner cities and poverty. He has confronted Trump by explaining his compassion for his supporters. And unlike other campaigns that have pivoted on message and policy, he has made clear he will not change his strategy to win.” Sanders left Washington less than six months ago. Now the former White House press secretary has returned to Arkansas in search for a new political role. From the Times: “There are two types of people who run for office,’ Ms. Sanders said over breakfast tacos at a diner in downtown Little Rock last week. ‘People that are called and people that just want to be a senator or governor. I feel like I’ve been called.’ … As the daughter of Mike Huckabee, who served as governor from 1996 to 2007 and twice ran for president, she is seen as political royalty in Arkansas, and Mr. Trump himself EFTA00047183 urged her to run for governor when she left the West Wing. That job will open in 2023, when Gov. Asa Hutchinson's term is up, and Ms. Sanders is giving every indication that she plans to run. ... “In the 23 months that Ms. Sanders served as Mr. Trump’s chief spokeswoman, her battles with the White House press corps were epic. … Ms. Sanders’s relationship with reporters reached a nadir in April after it was revealed that she had admitted under oath to investigators working for the special counsel, S. Mueller III, that her claim at a press briefing that ‘countless members of the F.B.I.’ told her they had lost confidence in the bureau’s director, B. Comey, was a ‘slip of the tongue’ that was not based on any facts. … ‘I was attacked for everything, not just my performance,’ she said of her time in Washington. ‘I was called a fat soccer mom, my kids were threatened, my life was threatened. It was a lot. I hate harping on it, but to be in the position I’m in and to have Secret Service, that’s not normal.’ Ms. Sanders paused. ‘I don’t like being called a liar,’ she said.” -- Doctors who previously worked at the White House and those who are currently in touch with the White House said the mysterious and unannounced visit Trump made to the hospital last weekend was highly unusual. From CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta: "Given that the White House had previously given plenty of advance notice about the President's past physical exams, last weekend's visit to Walter Reed reportedly took everyone by surprise, including much of the staff at the hospital itself. Whenever the President is planning a visit to Walter Reed, an institution-wide notice goes out, making staff aware of certain road and corridor closings. According to a person familiar with the matter, that didn't happen last weekend. Also striking: the fact that the president's physician, Dr. Sean Conley, rode with Trump in the presidential motorcade. Typically, the doctor rides separately from the President for security reasons. A former White House doctor [said] it had never happened during their time there. ... "All tests Conley described could've been performed at the White House instead of the hospital. Many blood tests require the patient to fast overnight and are thus performed first thing in the morning -- not in the middle of the afternoon, as apparently happened with the President. And remember, the President had these tests just nine EFTA00047184 months ago. One of the reasons doctors wait a year to order labs for a routine physical is to better assess the impact of medication and lifestyle changes over a consistent interval of time. There is no benefit to drawing the blood early, unless there is a concern about something. Finally, there is no such thing as a phased physical exam, as Trump had described it in his tweet from last weekend.” -- Another health scare: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was released from the hospital on Sunday after going in with chills and a fever. Barnes reports: "The court announced in a news release Saturday evening that the 86-year-old had been seen at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington and then transferred to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, where doctors were more familiar with her medical history. She was treated for a possible infection. 'With intravenous antibiotics and fluids, her symptoms have abated,' the court said in the Saturday release. The court provided no other details." ## SOCIAL MEDIA SPEED READ: The Intelligence chairman reacted to The Post's scoop: The Post's Shane Harris had this reminder after an assertion by Sen. John Neely Kennedy (R-La.) on "Fox News Sunday": On Saturday, Rudy Giuliani made this comparison: EFTA00047185 This scandal from a decade ago seems so quaint: Bernie Sanders went out dancing: It's almost Thanksgiving, which means a pair of turkeys are having the time of their lives in D.C.: And border officials detained a shipment of illegal cold cuts, which led to this killer lede: ## VIDEOS OF THE DAY: Taylor Swift broke Jackson's record for winning the most American Music Awards of all time. Jackson won 24. Swift has 29 after last night: (Find the complete list of winners here.) "Saturday Night Live" spoofed last week's Democratic debate: EFTA00047186 “Weekend Update” pointed out that testimony on impeachment concluded in the House last week and “now the debate will shift to your house for Thanksgiving": "The Daily Show" set out to investigate who will win the black vote in 2020: ## And Trevor Noah interviewed Hillary and Chelsea Clinton: You received this email because you signed up for The Daily 202 or because it is included in your subscription. Manage my email newsletters and alerts | Unsubscribe from The Daily 202 Privacy Policy | Help ©2019 The Washington Post | 1301 K St NW, Washington DC 20071