CBS News
Two states’ top election officials talk about threats arising from election denialism — on “The Takeout”
As the Supreme Court weighs whether Colorado can bar former President Donald Trump from its primary, two secretaries of state, one Republican and one Democrat, agree that election denialism poses a threat to local officials but clash on whether Trump must be convicted of a criminal offense to be excluded from the ballot.
“He hasn’t been tried, and so I don’t want the arbitrary authority as a secretary of saying, ‘Well, I think you did so, therefore I can take you off the ballot,'” Kansas Secretary of State Scott Schwab, a Republican, said in a conversation recorded on Feb. 6, two days before the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in Trump’s 14th Amendment case. Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, a Democrat, disagreed, asserting that the law does not require Trump to be found guilty of insurrection to disqualify him from holding office.
Both secretaries, who were in Washington, D.C., to attend a conference, joined CBS News chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett on this week’s episode of “The Takeout” to discuss the heightened pressures on local election officials in both of their home states. While Fontes maintains that elections in Arizona remain fair and reliable, he acknowledged that general discontent has escalated because of the spread of misinformation, resulting in conspiracy theoriesand direct threats.
“We’ve got [a clerk] in Arizona who had two of her dogs poisoned as a means of intimidation,” Fontes said, revealing that his family has also been threatened. He added, “They’re destroying the faith that we have in one another as citizens, that civic faith that we should be able to share even across party lines.”
Schwab said many senior election officials resigned after the pandemic, leaving his state with a less experienced workforce running elections. There’s been a spike in threats in Kansas, too, he said, telling the story of one county clerk who received a phone call at her office from someone claiming to be parked outside her elderly parents’ home. “But it’s a county of 5,000 people,” he said. “I mean, who’s going to do a presidential fraud election in a county of 5,000?”
Fontes criticized the Department of Justice for an apparent lack of urgency in investigating and prosecuting individuals involved in harassing election officials. “I consider that to be domestic terrorism,” he said. “I mean, the definition of terrorism is the threat or use of violence against someone to reach a political end. And when you’re threatening election officials, it’s a political end.”
Both secretaries agreed that there’s money to be made in election denialism. “This has become an industry,” Schwab said. He mentioned Douglas Frank, a prominent election conspiracy theorist: “I know people that give Dr. Frank $200 a month to help his cause. I’m like — but he’s been disproven.”
He observed that profiting from election denial goes back to the 2000 Bush v. Gore election but noted that in that case, election lawyers were making all the money. Today’s denialists are notably different, he said. “Now it’s not the attorneys,” Schwab said. “Now, it’s people who can get clicks on YouTube and make money by spreading similar conspiracies that in a lawsuit never would get to court. But I don’t have to go to court, I just need public opinion to cut me a check.”
Fontes maintains that election officials are now entering the field “with eyes wide open” and a clear understanding of the heightened pressures in the current environment. “They are dedicated to making sure that democracy works,” he asserted. “Not just for Arizona, but for the rest of the country.”
Executive producer: Arden Farhi
Producers: Jamie Benson, Jacob Rosen, Sara Cook and Eleanor Watson
CBSN Production: Eric Soussanin
Show email: TakeoutPodcast@cbsnews.com
Twitter: @TakeoutPodcast
Instagram: @TakeoutPodcast
Facebook: Facebook.com/TakeoutPodcast
CBS News
Netanyahu sends 2 planes to Netherlands to bring out Israeli soccer fans after violence surrounding match in Amsterdam
Amsterdam — Leaders of Israel and the Netherlands on Friday condemned what they called antisemitic attacks on fans of soccer club Maccabi Tel Aviv before and after a Europa League soccer match between their team and Ajax, and Israel said it was sending planes to fly supporters home from the Dutch capital.
The violence erupted Thursday despite a ban on a pro-Palestinian demonstration near the soccer stadium imposed by Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema, who’d feared clashes would break out between protesters and supporters of the Israeli soccer club.
Amsterdam police had no immediate comment on the violence or numbers of arrests and injuries.
But Halsema said supporters of the Israeli team were hurt and the extent of the violence and number of arrests were still being sorted out, according to the Reuters news agency.
Agence France-Presse reported that a Dutch police spokesperson told the Dutch ANP news agency 57 people had been arrested.
AFP said social media platforms were inundated with unverified images supposedly showing the violence, but authorities offered few confirmed details.
AFP said AT5 reported that the clashes occurred around midnight with numerous fights and acts of vandalism in the center of Amsterdam. “A large number of mobile unit vehicles are present and reinforcements have also been called in,” AT5 said.
X/ iAnnet via REUTERS.
Details were unclear, but Israel ordered that two planes be sent to the Dutch capital to bring the Israelis home.
“The Prime Minister has directed that two rescue planes be sent immediately to assist our citizens,” said a statement from Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.
It added that “the harsh pictures of the assault on our citizens in Amsterdam will not be overlooked,” and that Netanyahu “views the premeditated antisemitic attack against Israeli citizens with utmost gravity.” He demanded that the Dutch government take “vigorous and swift action” against those involved.
Netanyahu’s office added that he had called for increased security for the Jewish community in the Netherlands.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said on X that he followed reports of the violence “with horror.”
“Completely unacceptable antisemitic attacks on Israelis. I am in close contact with everyone involved,” he added, saying that he had spoken to Netanyahu and “emphasized that the perpetrators will be tracked down and prosecuted. It is now quiet in the capital.”
The Israeli Embassy in Washington said on the social media platform X that “hundreds” of Maccabi fans were “ambushed and attacked in Amsterdam tonight as they left the stadium following a game,” according to AFP. The embassy blamed the violence on a “mob who targeted innocent Israelis.”
Geert Wilders, the hard right nationalist lawmaker whose Party for Freedom won elections in the Netherlands last year and who is a staunch ally of Israel, reacted to a video apparently showing a Maccabi fan being surrounded by several men.
“Looks like a Jew hunt in the streets of Amsterdam. Arrest and deport the multicultural scum that attacked Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters in our streets. Ashamed that this can happen in The Netherlands. Totally unacceptable,” Wilders said.
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, also condemned the violence in a post on the social media platform X.
When Huntington Beach, Calif., detectives searched Rodney Alcala‘s Seattle storage locker during the murder investigation of 12-year-old Robin Samsoe in 1979, they discovered a cache of photos, many of them young women in suggestive, and even pornographic poses.
In March 2010, after a third jury in 30 years handed Alcala a death sentence, Huntington Beach police released more than 100 of those photos hoping to identify the women and some children, and learn if Alcala claimed still more victims.
Most of those who have been identified are alive and well.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
Unidentified women in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
Unidentified women in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified child in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified child in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
Unidentified women in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified child in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
Huntington Beach Police Dept.
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
Unidentified people in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified person in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified child in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
An unidentified woman in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
Serial Killer’s Secret Photos
Unidentified women in an image from Rodney Alcala’s photo cache.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed conceded the mayoral race to Daniel Lurie Thursday afternoon with a social media post that congratulated her competitor.
The mayor also thanked the city and its residents for “the opportunity to serve the City that raised me” in the post on X just after 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
There had been rumblings that Breed might concede the race earlier Thursday having come in behind Lurie in the last vote count released Wednesday morning.
“Today, I called Daniel Lurie and congratulated him on his victory in this election,” the post read. “Over the coming weeks, my staff and I will work to ensure a smooth transition as he takes on the honor of serving as Mayor of San Francisco. I know we are both committed to improving this City we love.”
Breed spoke at a press conference less than an hour after the social media post to answer questions from reporters about her decision, reiterating some of what she said in her social media post.
“The city is on the rise. The office is bigger than just one person, and I called Daniel Lurie earlier today to congratulate him,” the mayor said. “And made it very clear my team and I stand ready to support him during his transition. We will always do everything we can to ensure the success of the city and that there is a smooth transition, so that the important work that has been done and needs to continue in San Francisco moves forward.”
When asked if this was the hardest speech she’d ever given, Breed quickly dismissed that idea.
“No, it’s not. There’s been other harder speeches. I mean I had to make a hard decision to close the city down during a global pandemic. I had to deal with…the racial reckoning that happened after the tragic death of George Floyd. I had to go out in the middle of the night and tell people that Mayor Ed Lee had passed away. There are numerous occasions.”
Six years ago, incumbent London Breed became the first Black woman to serve as mayor of San Francisco after the death of Mayor Ed Lee in late 2017. The then president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors was automatically appointed as the city’s acting mayor early the morning after Lee’s death.
In June of 2018, Breed won the special election that was held to fill the office, defeating her main opponent, former state senator Mark Leno.
Breed faced a number of major challenges during her first term in office, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the city’s ongoing issues with drug abuse and homelessness, rising housing costs and a spike in retail crime that some chains cited as the reason behind closing stores in San Francisco.
While Breed has touted progress in reducing the number of homeless encampments and pushed programs to fill vacant business spaces downtown, the mayor’s struggles have led to 11 other candidates entering the race to challenge her for the job.
“Over the coming weeks, I plan to reflect on all the progress we’ve made. But today, I am proud that we have truly accomplished so much and my heart is filled with gratitude,” Breed’s message said in closing. “During my final two months as your Mayor, I will continue to lead this City as I have from Day One – as San Francisco’s biggest champion.”
Daniel Lurie has announced that he will speak to the media about the latest developments Friday morning.
Netanyahu sends 2 planes to Netherlands to bring out Israeli soccer fans after violence surrounding match in Amsterdam
Maccabi Tel Aviv fans clash with reported pro-Palestinian protesters at Ajax Europa League match
Naz Reid’s new mission is to help save lives
Netanyahu sends 2 planes to Netherlands to bring out Israeli soccer fans after violence surrounding match in Amsterdam
Maccabi Tel Aviv fans clash with reported pro-Palestinian protesters at Ajax Europa League match