Florida Republican Governor Rick Scott, who is involved in a tight contest with incumbent Democratic US Senator Bill Nelson for one of the state's US Senate seat, made claims on Thursday that officials in two Florida counties are tampering with election results.

Scott, using his authority as governor, got involved in his own race by ordering law enforcement officials to investigate board of election actions in Broward and Palm Beach Counties.

Scott's US Senate campaign, along with the Republican Senate campaign arm, filed a lawsuit claiming that election officials in Broward County are refusing to release public records.

“Every Floridian should be concerned there may be rampant fraud happening in both Broward and Palm Beach counties,” the governor said.

https://www.wptv.com/news/florida-governor-claims-election-fraud-orders-law-enforcement-investigation

Saudi Arabia’s top government-funded think tank is studying the possible effects on oil markets of a breakup of OPEC, a remarkable research effort for a country that has dominated the oil cartel for nearly 60 years.
The effort coincides with new pressures on the Saudi government, including from the U.S., where President Trump has accused the cartel of pushing up oil prices, and from investors who distanced themselves from the kingdom after the brutal killing of a U.S.-based Saudi journalist.

While the think tank’s president, Adam Sieminski, said the study hadn’t been triggered by Mr. Trump’s statements, a senior adviser familiar with the project said it provided an opportunity to take into account the criticism from Washington. Depending on the findings, the study could offer a defense of the cartel and the Saudi role in it.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/saudi-arabia-opecs-anchor-ponders-a-future-without-the-cartel-1541703893

There are still votes left in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, which are very Democratic. But Gillum and Nelson are both down by about 1 percent, with more than 90 percent of the vote in. Gillum was consistently ahead of DeSantis in polls, while Nelson-Scott was expected to be very close. But the results right now suggest that Republicans may win both of those races.

https://fivethirtyeight.com/live-blog/2018-election-results-coverage/

Vice President Pence maintained in an interview with Hill.TV on Friday that Republicans will keep control of the House in next week's midterm elections.

"I think we're going to expand our majority in the United States Senate, and I think we're going to hold our Republican majority in the House of Representatives," Pence told Hill.TV's Buck Sexton.

https://thehill.com/hilltv/rising/414649-pence-declares-gop-will-retain-control-of-the-house


Something to be devoutly hoped for!...

... as they couldn't stay away from dragging politics in. Sad, sad...

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will quit as head of her Christian Democratic party after almost two decades, a person familiar with the matter said, a dramatic sign of her waning authority that will raise questions about her staying power as chancellor.

The unexpected reversal by Merkel, 64, signals the beginning of the end of an era during which her command of Germany put its stamp on Europe and beyond for more than a decade. Even so, Merkel’s term as chancellor runs until 2021 and Merkel has said she intends to serve it out. She is scheduled to speak to the media at 1 p.m. local time in Berlin.

The chancellor told a leadership meeting of her Christian Democratic Union on Monday that she won’t run again as party chairwoman at a convention in December, according to the person, who asked not to be identified because the meeting was closed.

https://www.bloombergquint.com/politics/merkel-is-said-to-give-up-cdu-party-leadership-in-dramatic-move#gs.UK3dvEc

http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/09/06/are-you-in-the-american-middle-class/