Republicans face court setbacks, Trump law firm steps down
Philadelphia (US): Republicans suffered setbacks to court challenges over the presidential election in three battleground states on Friday while a law firm that came under fire for its work for President Donald Trump's campaign withdrew from a major Pennsylvania case.
The legal blows began when a federal appeals court rejected an effort to block about 9,300 mail-in ballots that arrived after Election Day in Pennsylvania.
The judges noted the vast disruption and unprecedented challenges facing the nation during the COVID-19 pandemic as they upheld the three-day extension.
Chief U.S. Circuit Judge D. Brooks Smith said the panel kept in mind "a proposition indisputable in our democratic process: that the lawfully cast vote of every citizen must count.
The ruling involves a Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision to accept mail-in ballots through Friday, Nov. 6, citing the pandemic and concerns about postal service delays.
Republicans have also asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the issue. However, there are not enough late-arriving ballots to change the results in Pennsylvania, given President-elect Joe Biden's lead.
The Democratic former vice president won the state by about 60,000 votes out of about 6.8 million cast.
The Trump campaign or Republican surrogates have filed more than 15 legal challenges in Pennsylvania as they seek to reclaim the state's 20 electoral votes, but have so far offered no evidence of any widespread voter fraud.
A Philadelphia judge found none as he refused late Friday to reject about 8,300 mail-in ballots there. The campaign has pursued similar litigation in other battleground states, with little to show for it.
In Michigan, a judge Friday refused to stop the certification of Detroit-area election results, rejecting claims the city had committed fraud and tainted the count with its handling of absentee ballots.
It's the third time a judge has declined to intervene in a statewide count that shows Biden up by more than 140,000 votes.
And, in Arizona, a judge dismissed a Trump campaign lawsuit seeking the inspection of ballots in metro Phoenix after the campaign's lawyers acknowledged the small number of ballots at issue wouldn't change the outcome of how the state voted for president.
The campaign had sought a postponement of Maricopa County's certification of election results until ballots containing overvotes instances in which people voted for more candidates than permitted were inspected.
Meanwhile, legal giant Porter Wright Morris & Arthur, which had come under fire for its work for the Trump campaign, withdrew from a lawsuit that seeks to stop Pennsylvania officials from certifying the election results.
Porter Wright filed the motion Thursday, as criticism grew that law firms backing the Republican election challenges were helping Trump defy the will of the American people.
Porter Wright, which has earned more than 700,000 from the Trump campaign, appeared to take down its Twitter feed Tuesday after it was inundated with attacks.
The payments include more than 140,000 paid through a Republican National Committee account for recount challenges, according to Federal Election Commission records.
The firm did not reply to specific questions about the posts or whether it would stop representing the Trump campaign entirely. In a statement earlier this week, the firm said it had a long history of handling election law cases for various parties.
At times, this calls for us to take on controversial cases. We expect criticism in such instances, and we affirm the right of all individuals to express concern and disagreement, the Ohio-based firm said.
The U.S. appeals court, in denying the request Friday for an injunction, said it was not ruling on the wisdom of the three-day extension or the state court's power to grant it. Instead, the court found the plaintiffs had no right to challenge ballots filed by dutiful voters trying to follow the rules in a chaotic year.
The COVID-19 pandemic ... has caused immense loss and vast disruption, Smith wrote for the three-judge panel, which concluded that mail-in voters may be disadvantaged by the process, not unfairly privileged.
Whereas in-person ballots that are timely cast will count, timely cast mail-in ballots may not count because, given mail delivery rates, they may not be received by 5:00 P.M. on November 6, Smith said.
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Tell US President Donald Trump to stop West Asia conflict: Owaisi to PM Modi
Hyderabad (PTI): AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Friday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "break his silence" on the conflict in West Asia and ask US President Donald Trump to end the war.
Addressing a gathering here, he also asked the PM to provide a full account of the sinking of an Iranian ship, IRIS Dena, off Sri Lanka by a US military submarine two days ago.
Taking strong exception to US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's recent announcement regarding Indian oil imports, he said the BJP-RSS should give a strong response to the American official and assert that India would purchase oil according to its own will.
He accused the BJP-RSS combine of being "scared" of US President Donald Trump.
"This war should end. Prime Minister should break his silence. Take the phone and tell Trump to stop this tamasha. They (US) are not suffering any losses. Our citizens are suffering. Who is dying there? Indians are dying. You maintained silence over Gaza," he said.
Owaisi dismissed the argument that the Iranian vessel sank outside the Indian waters, saying it is important to realise that it occurred close to India.
"If a Chinese ship comes close to our nation, what would you do? You say that it was not in Indian waters. Water does not have borders. You see how close the enemy has come. It is the Constitutional responsibility of the Prime Minister to tell the country what happened. We are with America in Quad," he said.
Pointing to India's strategic agreements with the US, the AIMIM leader said the Iranian frigate had visited Visakhapatnam at the invitation of India, while America had refused to participate in the naval exercise there.
Highlighting that one crore Indian citizens work in the Gulf region, a widening war lead to job losses for Indian diaspora.
He alleged that Israel aims to create a 'Greater Israel', encompassing much of the Arab region.
"The evil eye of these oppressors extends up to the holy city of Madinah."
Responding to US Treasury Secretary's comments that America is issuing a temporary 30-day waiver to allow Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil, Owaisi wondered if India truly is a sovereign country.
"Have you mortagaged India before US. Speak out BJP-RSS people. A (US)minister says you purchase for a month. Is this what we have secured freedom from the English that a white-skinned person says you purchase for a month ? But, they will not speak. They are scared of Trump," he said.
Quoting America's trade minister as saying that the US would not let India emerge like China, the AIMIM leader asked whether "India is a slave of America?"
He further questioned, "What is America's role in the progress of India?"
"BJP and RSS people are terrified of speaking against the white-skinned officials," he alleged.
He also hit out at the Centre for allegedly providing funds to a right-wing organisation to hold an event.
The organisation has openly favoured making India a 'Hindu Rashtra', "converting the religion of Muslims and throwing away 25 crore people," he alleged.
