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How the election of 1861 happened with intense debate on the issues of the day. Issues ranged from corruption, Southern Democrats dominating the government, and slavery. A amazing picture of the Capitol building from March 4,1861 and Lincoln's inauguration shows what it looked like at the time. Lincoln won about 40% of the vote and had to build his legitimacy which we now take as given when we see the Lincoln Memorial and the words- "In this temple as in the hearts of the people for whom he saved the Union, the memory of Abraham Lincoln is enshrined forever." Throughout it all Lincoln retained his poise and calm demeanor and his faith in the Bible.

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Jobs in the fracking industry replaced the old steel industry that went into decline in Pennsylvania. The county in the area around Pittsburgh depends on jobs in fracking in the oil and gas industry, and in Pittsburgh itself by contrast jobs have shifted to high tech. The fracking industry has emerged as an alternative for jobs after its rapid growth and the U.S. emergence as an exporter of oil and gas for many who do not have the backgrounds suited for high tech jobs.

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U.S. daily coronavirus cases reach a high of 88,000 on October 29. About 46,000 people are hospitalized in the U.S. Increases in following states - Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota and Maine. About 1000 daily deaths are reported.

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Third quarter growth in the European Union was 12.7% higher in the third quarter of 2020 than in the second quarter. The decline from coronavirus was 11.8% in the second quarter. The French economy growth was 16% after a decline of 13.8% in the second quarter. The second wave of the coronavirus could lead to a smaller contraction this time of 3-4% for the quarter because the lockdown is partial and companies will continue operating.

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In this excellent report from the WSJ reporters talk to people in key counties in battleground states. Issues people see as important are covered to get a feel for how they think. The four topics on people's minds are-

1.  Business and the Economy

2.  Race and Policing

3. Climate

4. Agriculture and Trade

5. Coronavirus

President Trump has popular support for work on the economy, and in agriculture and trade. He faces criticism for the surge in the coronavirus cases during the second wave.

States selected for understanding people's views and thinking- In Pennsylvania, Philadelphia county. In Wisconsin, Sauk County. In Michigan Macomb and Wayne counties. In Florida Lee county. In Georgia, Peach county. In North Carolina, Watauga county. In Arizona, Maricopa county. Other states include Maine, Iowa, and Colorado.

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This WSJ report looks at the situation in American cities where black people suffer disproportionately from the lack of resources to build better lives. Detroit, Milwaukee, St. Paul and St Louis are some of the worst hit cities in the lack of decent housing in the cities. Lenders once used redlining during the Depression era when most of the white population was still in the city so that the areas with black people were burdened with more restrictions and higher rates on loans. This report shows that the situation has changed little after the 1950's after 70 years of alternating Republican and Democratic administrations.   Now that most of the wealth and the white population has left the city of Detroit the population has declined from about 1.8 million to about 700,000. Only 1700 mortgages were made in the city because banks do not make money on tiny mortgages with the declining value of houses in black areas of the city. Black residents are largely shut out of financing, making home ownership harder, says this WSJ report.. Banks made subprime loans in the city and other cities in the U.S. before 2008 with politicians in both political parties supporting this in the name of home ownership. But these loans lacked financial due diligence as loans were made without attention to lender ability to pay off mortgages. After 2008 a financial crisis and higher unemployment hit the U.S. economy from the impact of these bad mortgages packaged and sold as assets. These loans ended up with foreclosure on homes leading to a drop in home ownership from 50% to 40% after a slight increase from 50%. Lacking genuine good intentions with sound financial sense these intentions of improving home ownership fell by the way side, worsening instead of improving things. The pandemic has hit black people and cities particularly hard. With the situation in Detroit continuing to languish from a lack of resources and a system that is failing, says this report in the WSJ.  The loss of manufacturing jobs has hurt black Americans particularly hard and a reversal of the manufacturing decline in the U.S. of the past three decades is needed for the situation to improve. This loss of manufacturing jobs has only increased the gap between the white and black unemployment rates in urban areas of the U.S., as it has also increased the gap in unemployment rates between white professionals with college degrees and whites lacking college education.  This ripping apart of the social fabric is a problem also seen in Europe with decline in manufacturing and other  problems leading to economic decay, coupled with housing and other issues inside cities.      ...

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Hospitals in Europe are filling up quickly in the second wave of coronavirus. Coronavirus patients had to be transferred by helicopter to Germany from the Netherlands because of overburdened Dutch intensive care units. National Guard troops were flown in from the U.S. to the Czech Republic to help. In France as cases approach cumulative 1 million about 2000 patients are admitted to hospital for coronavirus every day on October 29. At some point French hospitals could be overwhelmed this winter, and doctors having to choose which patients to save, says president Macron. In the Czech Republic a collapse of the health system is expected by mid-November says the prime minister. No one expected this to be this severe, he says.  About 40,000 patients are hospitalized for coronavirus in the U.S. During the last week the case are increasing by over 40% in the U.S. and increase in hospitalizations are expected. Recovery rate is improving from the first wave. At NYU Langone hospital system in New York with 5000 coronavirus patients hospitalized recovery rate is improving from 25% in March to 7% in October. Better handling of cases and knowledge gained by doctors is a big part of this. ...

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Young people in Europe are one of the hardest hit groups in this pandemic. They are overrepresented in sectors such as travel, retail and tourism. where loss of jobs is the highest, particularly now that a second wave of coronavirus is hitting Europe. The lockdowns in Europe shut down many of these same sectors again.

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U.S. economic growth in the third quarter of 2020 was 7.4%. This is a record and the closest to this was the economic growth in 1950 which was 3.9% a little over half of that. This is the equivalent of 33% on an annualized basis.

The economy is about 3.5% smaller than when the pandemic started. This record is better than the one in 2008 financial crisis when over a period of one and half years the economy declined by about 4%. By 2021 the U.S. economy will have recovered to where it was back to its original shape if recovery proceeds at this rate.

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Changes to a U.S. visa program so that fewer workers would be given visas at the entry level. Instead favoring the higher of four wage levels to give visas to foreign workers. The idea is to bring in more talented workers to the U.S. with less effect on depressing wages in the U.S. by bringing in foreign workers at the entry level as happened before.

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U.S. states face their biggest cash crisis since the Great Depression as a result of rapidly declining tax revenues with a state budget shortfall of $434 billion, says this report in the WSJ. This is larger than the 2019 K-12 education budget for every state combined, or more than twice the amount spent that year on state roads and transportation infrastructure. Rainy day funds will be exhausted by the loss in tax revenues after the pandemic closures of business. Nevada, Louisiana, New Jersey and Florida are the worst hit states. The result will be cutbacks in the future and more pressure on the retirement benefits for police, firefighters, teachers, government workers. Over 60% of the revenues of states come from sales and income taxes to meet the general operating funds. Drops in consumer spending and large job losses from the pandemic affect these revenues. Local government workforces were cut by 1 million people. In Michigan 31,000 state workers were furloughed 2 days per pay period for 10 weeks, and others were laid off. Rainy day funds set up after the 2008 crisis are exhausted. Only federal funds are keeping states afloat with a lot of uncertainty about 2021. The state budget director in Michigan calculated that even if the state got rid of 12 state departments including education environment and treasury, all reserves would be gone, and there would still be $1 billion budget shortfall. The rainy day funds set up after 2008 crisis accumulated $50 billion in U.S. states which have helped somewhat, with federal funds helping tackle shortfalls. Yet 2021 looms with huge shortfalls and expected cutbacks across the U.S. ...

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Pictures of paintings by William Turner at the Tate Museum in London. The paintings show Turner at his best with paintings of pictures of Britain through the Industrial Revolution, the Napoleonic Wars, and Britain in the nineteenth century.

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On October 28 France reported 36,000 daily coronavirus cases. French president Macron announced a new lockdown starting October 30 that last till December 1.  Under this second lockdown people can leave home only to go to work, to go to school, to give assistance to loved ones, for essential shopping and for 1 hour of physical exercize. People will have to show documentation when leaving home. Travel between regions is banned. Bars and restaurants and nonessential businesses will be closed. Universities and higher education will be done online. Schools will remain open, essential businesses will remain open. Most public services will be open. Factories, farms and construction sites can continue to operate. There will be extensive economic support for business and people. Small businesses will have access to 10,000 euros per month of assistance, employees get short term work assistance, and people having trouble with rent receive assistance. About half of intensive care beds are now taken in France. And Macron said transferring patients to other regions will not be possible as the virus is everywhere. ...

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German chancellor Merkel imposes a partial lockdown in Germany starting November 2. This is followed by an announcement of a lockdown across France by president Macron. On October 28 German daily cases went above 14,000. Only 25% of intensive care beds are now available, creating a very serious situation. Meetings in public will be restricted to just two households of up to 10 people total. No crowds at sports events. Restaurants and bars will close except for take away. Schools and kindergartens will remain open. Church services and protests will be allowed to continue. Shops will remain open with one customer for every 10 square meters or 108 square feet. Merkel called it a "very serious situation," and said "we must act now to avoid an acute national health emergency." She told Germans the number of people in intensive care units has doubled in last 10 days, and in many areas it was no longer possible to track and trace infection chains. In 75% of the cases the source of infection is unknown. People are encouraged to work from home and companies encouraged to make this happen. Companies with less than 50 employees and self-employed will get support from the government with  about 75%% of the income. Companies, institutions and clubs will also get federal aid. About $10 billion euros are set aside for this aid. ...