A rising variety of present and former journalists at The Washington Publish are criticizing the legacy newspaper after proprietor Jeff Bezos determined to withhold a deliberate editorial endorsement for president for the primary time in 36 years.

“The Washington Publish’s choice to not make an endorsement within the presidential marketing campaign is a horrible mistake,” stated a joint column that had been signed by 17 Publish columnists as of Saturday afternoon.

The opinion piece, printed on the paper’s web site, argued that presidential endorsements function a reminder to readers of what the Publish stands for. It declared that the paper can’t retreat from the its duty to face up for core democratic values threatened by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Its editorials have repeatedly warned that Trump is unfit for workplace.

“An unbiased newspaper may sometime select to again away from making presidential endorsements. However this isn’t the appropriate second, when one candidate is advocating positions that immediately threaten freedom of the press and the values of the Structure,” the column added. It was signed by a number of the Publish‘s most outstanding writers, together with Pulitzer Prize winner Eugene Robinson, David Ignatius and Jennifer Rubin.

NPR first broke information of Bezos’ choice. The column arrived simply hours after writer William Lewis made the announcement Friday afternoon. In his personal opinion piece, Lewis defined that the Publish didn’t routinely make endorsements till 1976. He stated it was time to return to that custom and assist “readers’ potential to make up their very own minds.”

The Publish had drafted an editorial endorsement for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris earlier this month. But it surely was finally scrapped by the paper’s billionaire proprietor Bezos, additionally the Amazon founder, the Publish reported. The Publish’s revelation got here simply days after it was reported that the Los Angeles Occasions proprietor Patrick Quickly-Shiong blocked the paper’s Editorial Board from endorsing Harris.

Two different columns printed on Friday expressed frustration with the Publish’s choice. “I’ve by no means been extra upset within the newspaper than I’m in the present day,” wrote editor and columnist Ruth Marcus. “This isn’t the time to make such a shift. It’s the time to talk out, as loudly and convincingly as potential, to make the case that we made in 2016 and once more in 2020: that Trump is dangerously unfit to carry the very best workplace within the land.”

Editor and columnist Karen Tumulty wrote, “Editorial boards exist to make judgments and to talk for the establishment. If this alteration in coverage relating to presidential endorsements was a stand on some long-ignored precept of our previous, why did the newspaper wait till simply 11 days earlier than the election to announce it?”

In a chilling cartoon, Pulitzer Prize-winning artist Ann Telnaes depicted broad strokes of black paint with the title “Democracy Dies in Darkness.”

“I used to be in the midst of finishing the ultimate of one other cartoon and texted my editor that I needed to vary my concept,” she wrote on Substack. “Grabbing a bit of bristol and a big brush, I painted what I felt.”

The Washington Publish Guild management additionally stated they have been deeply troubled by the choice and the way administration interfered with the work of the Editorial Board. “We’re already seeing cancellations from as soon as loyal readers. This choice undercuts the work of our members at a time after we must be constructing our readers’ belief, not dropping it,” they wrote in an announcement.

Readers on social media stated they’d canceled their subscriptions to the Publish they usually got here at a quick clip after information of the choice broke. Greater than 1,600 individuals canceled digital subscriptions within the first three hours, in line with inner exchanges reviewed by NPR.

Publish editor-at-large Robert Kagan additionally introduced his resignation on Friday following the non-endorsement. In an interview with CNN, Kagan stated the transfer indicated Bezos’ regarding relationship with Trump. “That is clearly an effort by Bezos to attempt to get on Trump’s good facet prematurely of his presidency,” he stated.

Bezos holds important enterprise pursuits earlier than the federal authorities that contain billions of {dollars} annually, from Amazon’s transport enterprise and cloud computing providers to his Blue Origin area firm.

When Trump was in workplace, he threatened to personally overview Amazon’s submission to the Pentagon for a cloud computing contract price $10 billion — out of frustration of the Publish’s protection of him. The Protection Division as a substitute awarded the contract to Microsoft, shocking exterior trade analysts. It was later divvied up amongst 4 firms, together with Amazon, after it filed a lawsuit.

On Friday, simply hours after the Publish’s announcement to not endorse, The Related Press reported that Trump met with executives of Bezos’s Blue Origin, which has a multibillion-dollar contract with NASA.

Publish reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, who cracked the Watergate scandal, wrote in a joint assertion: “We respect the standard independence of the editorial web page, however this choice 11 days out from the 2024 presidential election ignores the Washington Publish’s personal overwhelming reportorial proof on the menace Donald Trump poses to democracy,” CNN’s Brian Stelter reported.

Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and editor David Maraniss — who has been on the paper since 1977 and describes himself as a “Washington Publish lifer” — wrote on X: “The choice on this of all years to not endorse when democracy is on the road is contemptible.”

He later added, “The paper I’ve liked working at for 47 years is dying in darkness.”

NPR’s David Folkenflik contributed reporting.

HOUSTON — In a star-studded night earlier than an electrified crowd of tens of 1000’s of supporters, Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday implored men and women to forged their ballots on Nov. 5 in protection of their freedoms and as a rejection to former President Donald Trump’s insurance policies.  

“Texas, what we’re experiencing here’s a well being care disaster, and Donald Trump is the architect of it,” Harris mentioned. 

“We all know freedom is to not be given. It’s not to be bestowed. It’s ours by proper, and we’re ready to combat for it,” she added. “We have to be loud. We should manage. We should mobilize. We should energize.”

The biggest occasion that Harris has held throughout her abbreviated run for president featured cameos from Houston native Beyoncè Knowles-Carter and Texas legend Willie Nelson.  

Beyoncé despatched the stadium right into a frenzy when she took the stage with Kelly Rowland, who was within the group Future’s Baby together with her. The celebrity, whose music “Freedom” has served as an anthem to Harris’ marketing campaign, didn’t carry out. She mentioned she there not as an entertainer or a politician however as a mom. 

“Think about our daughters rising up, seeing what’s potential, with no ceilings, no limitations,” she mentioned, including that she wished a world the place “my youngsters and all of our kids, we now have the liberty to manage our our bodies, a world the place we’re not divided.”

“It’s time for America to sing a brand new music. Our voices sing a refrain of unity. They sing a music of dignity and alternative. Are y’all prepared so as to add your voice to the brand new American music?” she mentioned to cheers earlier than introducing Harris to the stage. 

With simply 11 days left within the race and Democrats and Republicans competing to interrupt by means of to voters, Harris’ group noticed the Friday rally as a option to seize the eye of voters throughout the nation. 

On the identical time, the vice chairman used the occasion to underscore what she mentioned is the intense alternative for Individuals on the poll field, and that included sending former President Donald Trump a message for pushing by means of Supreme Court docket justices who overturned Roe v. Wade. Selecting the crimson state of Texas because the stage for the occasion was meant to focus on that it has among the most stringent legal guidelines limiting abortion within the nation. 

The night was partly somber, focusing closely with reference to reproductive rights and first-person tales about how restrictive legal guidelines practically brought on ladies’s deaths — or had brought on them. At one level taking the stage was a big group of medical doctors sporting white medical coats who mentioned they have been on the entrance traces of reproductive care.

They mentioned ladies’s well being was at stake and urged the gang to vote. In between audio system, clips have been performed of Trump taking credit score for the autumn of Roe, which elicited boos. 

Harris’ group believes that the deal with reproductive rights additionally speaks to males, citing a marketing campaign advert that examined effectively with males.

On Friday, Harris particularly known as out males, saying they didn’t need to see their daughters or wives’ lives put in danger due to restricted well being care selections. 

“I see the boys right here and I thanks!” Harris mentioned. “The boys of America don’t need this.” 

Harris at one level famous that Trump has refused to reveal his medical data however some locations like Texas, after Roe was overturned, wished to enact necessities that girls should report if they’ve an abortion or miscarriage. 

“Merely put, they’re out of their minds!” Harris mentioned. 

A part of the evening was meant to shine a lightweight on Democratic Rep. Colin Allred, who’s in a decent race in opposition to Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. 

Chants of “Beat Ted Cruz! Beat Ted Cruz!” erupted after the congressman requested the gang for his or her vote. 

“All the things is huge in Texas, however Ted Cruz is simply too small for Texas,” he mentioned to a different crowd eruption. 

The tens of 1000’s streamed into the world for hours and reworked the venue into a large dance social gathering, transferring alongside to a DJ. The marketing campaign estimated that roughly 30,000 folks confirmed up. 

Within the crowd, Vicki Lewis was sporting a crimson, white and blue shirt that learn “Vote” in giant letters. Lewis mentioned her message to different voters was to vote early.

“You haven’t any proper to be on the fence. It’s best to already know. It’s best to vote for who represents you and your future,” mentioned Lewis, who already voted for Harris. She cited well being care, reproductive rights and concern about her retirement. “I want any individual who’s going to combat for me and symbolize me.”

She took challenge with Trump bashing Harris and calling her “dumb.” 

“She has a resume. He wants to take a look at her resume,” she mentioned. “He’s the one who’s unqualified. She serves the folks. She is a folks individual and he doesn’t. It’s all about him and his cronies.”

Austin Valdezstapp mentioned he turned out particularly to fortify ladies. 

“It’s a big cause I’m right here is to assist ladies, and ensure that the issues and the rights that they’re speculated to have proceed to be put in place, and I feel these are in risk right here in Texas proper now so it’s very important,” Valdezstapp mentioned.

One other attendee, Michael White,, mentioned he had grown bored with the outrageous issues Trump says and does.

“Among the stuff he will get away with — if I mentioned what he mentioned, if Obama mentioned what he mentioned, if Harris did — do you assume we’d get away with it?” White mentioned, saying it particularly bothered him that Trump was “disrespectful to ladies.” 

CORRECTION (Oct. 26, 2024, 11:13 a.m.): A earlier model of this text misstated who appeared onstage with Beyoncé. It was Kelly Rowland, whom Beyoncé known as her sister, not her precise sister.