The latest on the 2020 election

In a statement to CNN, Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh confirmed President Trump plans to participate in the remaining two presidential debates. 

Yesterday, CNN’s Sarah Mucha reported that Biden campaign deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield told reporters on a call following the chaotic debate that Biden was committed to doing the same. 

“We are going to the debates, yes,” Bedingfield said, committing to the final two presidential debates. 

Hackers may use denial of service attacks to disrupt the election by preventing Americans from accessing information about voting, law enforcement and Homeland Security officials warn. But these types of attacks, which are generally unsophisticated, are unlikely to interrupt the polls themselves, they said.

In a public advisory published Wednesday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said distributed denial of service, or DDoS, attacks could theoretically block voters from finding out election results. 

DDoS attacks are a type of spam attack wherein a hacker will flood a server or webpage with bogus traffic, overwhelming it and forcing it to shut down. DDoS attacks are more akin to vandalism than a data breach, which involves the access or loss of data. 

Because of that distinction, CISA and the FBI said, the risk to ballots or polling systems due to DDoS attacks is low. 

The alert’s existence, however, highlights the ongoing concerns about whether the country is prepared for a chaotic election and adequately defended from foreign and domestic meddling. 

President Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden faced off in a chaotic presidential debate Tuesday night. They were grilled on the Supreme Court, economy, coronavirus, race and violence, among other topics.

We asked our viewers across the country for their reaction to the debate:

Read more reactions here.

Former FBI Director James Comey said President Trump’s failure to condemn white supremacists at Tuesday’s presidential debate was like “spraying gasoline with a fire hose.”

Sen. Cory Booker, a New Jersey Democrat, asked Comey at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing about Trump’s debate comments, in which Trump said “stand back and stand by” when asked to condemn the Proud Boys, a far-right collective that the Southern Poverty Law Center says is a hate group.

“So how do these shameful comments of the President of the United States is outright refusal to condemn white supremacy dangerous white supremacy affect the psychology of groups like the Proud Boys and other violent extremist groups like them, other white nationalist groups that we have seen conducted carry out such violence, how does it affect those the psychology of these groups?” Booker asked. 

Comey said he hoped the President would correct his remarks.

Comey added: “The FBI is fighting a fire of racist violence and with words like that, the President is using a fire hose to spray gasoline on that fire. And as maybe he misspoke maybe when he said, ‘stand down and stand by,’ he meant something else — I sure, for the sake of our whole country, he'll say that today what he really meant and condemn these groups.” 

In the aftermath of the off-the-rails debate, the Commission on Presidential Debates said in a Wednesday statement that it is mulling structural changes moving forward. 

The CPD added that it is grateful for Chris Wallace moderating the debate, despite his failure to keep control.

“The Commission is grateful to Chris Wallace for the professionalism and skill he brought to last night’s debate and intends to ensure that additional tools to maintain order are in place for the remaining debates.”

Moderator Chris Wallace steps in to restate debate rules: 

President Trump refused during last night's debate to condemn white supremacists for inciting violence at anti-police brutality demonstrations across the country, claiming instead during the presidential debate that violence was coming from "the left wing."

The stunning moment came when moderator Chris Wallace asked Trump if he was ready to condemn white supremacists and say they need to stand down during ongoing demonstrations across the country.

Here's a look at how some Republican lawmakers are reacting:

Sen. Tim Scott

Asked on Wednesday whether he finds it concerning that President Trump refused to condemn white supremacists at last night’s debate, Sen. Tim Scott, the lone Black Senate Republican, said “I think he misspoke.”

Off camera, CNN's Ted Barrett followed up with Sen. Scott after his meeting with Judge Amy Coney Barrett on Wednesday morning to see if he intended to speak directly with President Trump about whether he misspoke when he refused to condemn white supremacists last night.

“I’ve already sent my comments to the chief of staff,” Scott replied.

Scott said White House chief of staff Mark Meadows had no specific response other than saying thank you.

Sen. Mitt Romney

Asked by CNN’s Manu Raju whether he thinks the President should have condemned white supremacy at the presidential debate last night, Sen. Mitt Romney said, “Of course. Of course.”

When Raju followed up, asking what he thinks the impact will be of Trump refusing to denounce white supremacy, Romney replied, “I don't know what impact, I’m not a political pundit, so I can't tell you what impact that will have.”

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy

House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy argued President Trump condemned white supremacists during Tuesday night’s debate, although Trump refused to explicitly do so.

“I think the President has been very clear that he’s against anybody committing violence in the streets,” McCarthy said at an event Wednesday morning.

McCarthy noted that in Trump’s exchange with moderator Chris Wallace, Wallace asked if the President would denounce white supremacists, and Trump initially responded in the affirmative.

“How many times does he have to say it? If the question is would you denounce it and the answer is yes, he did that,” McCarthy said in response to a question from CNN’s Manu Raju.

But when pressed during the debate to condemn white supremacists and racists directly, Trump merely told members of the Proud Boys group to “stand back and stand by.”

McCarthy didn’t respond to Manu’s questions on whether that response was acceptable. He said Trump’s proposal to designate the KKK as a terrorist group shows his opposition to white supremacy. The plan unveiled by the President on Friday would also allow for the prosecution of Antifa as a terrorist organization.

“Not only did his words speak it, but his actions have taken it,” he said.

Sen. Todd Young

Indiana Sen. Todd Young, who chairs the election committee for Senate Republicans, repeatedly refused to criticize President Trump for not condemning White supremacy at Tuesday's debate.

But, standing before cameras Wednesday, Young loudly declared that he opposes “White supremacy” and “all extremist groups,” separating himself — and perhaps the vulnerable GOP candidates he’s trying to help get re-elected — from the President’s controversial comments.

Young, who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, also refused to say if Trump’s comments or combative approach at the debate would hurt Republicans’ ability to maintain control of the White House or Senate and kept turning the conversation back to how Republicans are energized by the Supreme Court nomination.

Although, at one point, Young acknowledged that “we did not great clarity about the difference in vision for the future of the country and I did think that was unfortunate.” 

Sen. John Thune

CNN's Manu Raju asked Senate Majority Whip John Thune, the No. 2 Republican, if Trump should have condemned white supremacists at Tuesday night's debate. "In his mind he did," Thune said on Wednesday.

Asked if it were appropriate for Trump to tell the Proud Boys to "stand by," Thune said: "That's a question you'll have to ask to them. I think it's probably important for them to clear up that statement." 

President Trump, seizing a ballot misprint in New York, is falsely claiming "Big Fraud" as he continues to sow doubt and spread disinformation about the US election and discourage people from mail-in voting. 

"Wow! 100,000 Mail In Ballots in New York City a total MESS. Mayor and Governor have no idea what to do. Big Fraud, Unfixable! Cancel Ballots and go out and VOTE, just like in past decades, when there were no problems!" the President tweeted Wednesday.

Remember: CNN reported Tuesday that a misprint by a third-party vendor has caused roughly 100,000 Brooklyn voters to receive absentee ballot return envelopes with the wrong address and names. 

On Wednesday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office made a recommendation to the New York City board of elections to send corrected envelopes rather than new ballots to the affected voters, according to his senior adviser.

Problems with misprints are more likely to lead to voter disenfranchisement than voter fraud since there are multiple protections within the voting process to prevent someone from voting with someone else's ballot.

Following last night's first presidential debate, Democratic nominee Joe Biden said he's "looking forward" to the next two.

The former vice president noted how often Trump interrupted him and moderator Chris Wallace and suggested debate organizers should find a solution.

"I just hope there's a way in which the debate commission can control the ability of us to answer the question without interruption," he said.

"But I'm looking forward to it," Biden added.

Here's what we know about the next two debates:

Watch:

Young Americans told CNN they were disappointed but not surprised that the first presidential debate turned to chaos Tuesday.

While young voters were struck by President Donald Trump’s failure to condemn white supremacy, they say his rhetoric wasn’t shocking given his track record. 

“I expected nothing different,” Zyahna Bryant, 19-year-old community organizer and activist in Charlottesville, Virginia, said of Trump’s rhetoric Tuesday.

Bryant, a Black woman, was in Charlottesville during the white nationalist Unite the Right rally in 2017.

“I remember being out on August 12 in Charlottesville, and watching [Trump] speak on the TV immediately following the car attack in downtown. I remember him equating social justice activists to vile white supremacists and racists who took to the streets that day. I have no high expectations for this president. I never have,” she told CNN.

Still, she noted: “Nevertheless, we must continue to fight and organize in our communities, because we keep us safe.”

Bryant and a number of other young voters say that while the President intends to stoke fear and division, young people can’t shy away from what’s at stake in the 2020 election.

“This debate reminds me that Generation Z knows better. We know better, and therefore must expect better. We cannot be convinced that it is not important for us to show up, in all ways, to the polls, and in our communities. Our work is not done,” Bryant said.

Sanaa Abrar, a 29-year-old Pakistani immigrant and the advocacy director for United We Dream Action PAC, said that while Trump continues to “operate on an agenda of fear,” young and first time voters must stay engaged.

“We know what’s at stake. You know what your parents and families are going through in this Covid crisis. You know what’s at stake with climate change and immigrant rights. We’re fighting for those issues,” Abrar said.

Young voters on both the left and the right say they are committed to fighting for a brighter future.

According to Mike Brodo, 20 and a co-founder of gen z gop, an organization which seeks to provide a home for young Republicans who feel lost in the current political landscape, the debate set a “bad precedent for young voters looking to formulate a positive vision for the country’s future.”

“I hope Gen Z voters can cut through this noise, now and in the future,” Brodo told CNN. He added that “the lack of respect” at the debate is motivating him to remain involved.

Parker Stohlton, 23 and a member of College Republicans for Biden, says the debate encouraged him to keep fighting for Biden.

“I’m feeling motivated to keep fighting for Biden. Tonight, Trump displayed his incompetency as leader of the free world. I found it especially concerning that he didn’t condemn white supremacy, and that he continued to sow seeds of doubt in the democratic process. I’m fed up with his lies and lack of decency,” Stohlton said.

Across the board, young voters felt a lack of representation during Tuesday’s debate and would have liked to hear more about issues pertaining to young people. According to Pew Research, one in 10 eligible voters in the 2020 election is a member of Gen Z and one in three eligible voters is non white.

While many young people appreciated moderator Chris Wallace’s question about climate change and Biden’s response — during which he expressed his commitment to fighting climate change — young voters would have liked to hear more from the candidates about gun violence, affordable health care, access to affordable education and immigration.

“I was disappointed that once again, the young people were left unaddressed,” Mana Shooshtari, 20 and a field organizer with Grassroots Democrats HQ, said.