The Conversation -- October 23, 2024

I have a long history of working with leaders across the political spectrum, but this election is different, with unprecedented significance for Americans and the most vulnerable people around the world. -- Bill Gates ~~~

~~~ Theodore Schleifer of the New York Times: “After decades of sitting on the sidelines of politics, Bill Gates, one of the richest people in the world, has said privately that he recently donated about $50 million to a nonprofit organization that is supporting Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential run.... The donation was meant to stay under wraps. Mr. Gates ... has not publicly endorsed Ms. Harris, and his donation would represent a significant change in the strategy that has previously kept him away from gifts like this. In private calls this year to friends and others, Mr. Gates has expressed concern about what a second Donald Trump presidency would look like..., although he has stressed that he could work with either candidate.... Mr. Gates’s donation went specifically to Future Forward’s nonprofit arm, Future Forward USA Action, which as a 501(c)(4) 'dark money' organization does not disclose its donors, according to the people briefed.”

Rob Copeland of the New York Times: Jamie Dimon, “the usually outspoken chief executive of JPMorgan, the nation’s largest bank, has been uncharacteristically vague about his political leanings of late. In an interview last week, he even left open the door to endorsing Mr. Trump — whose behavior in the aftermath of the last election Mr. Dimon once described as 'treason.' In private, however, Mr. Dimon has made clear that he supports Vice President Kamala Harris and would consider a role, perhaps Treasury secretary, in her administration. He has also told his associates that the former president’s 2020 election denialism remains close to a disqualifying factor.... Mr. Dimon isn’t making his stance known publicly because he’s fearful that if Mr. Trump is victorious, he could retaliate against the people and companies who publicly opposed his run, his associates said. That’s a concern shared by other powerful corporate executives, and not without reason: Mr. Trump has begun to increase threats of political retribution in recent weeks.... Mr. Trump once — falsely — declared that he had [Mr. Dimon's support].” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I don't know how many votes Dimon would move, though he might be able to knock down, in the minds of the slightly rational, the false notion that Donald Trump would be "good for business." The fact that this extremely wealthy man has not got the guts to stand up to Trump is shocking. ~~~

~~~ Update. David Firestone of the New York Times: “The latest example of the power of [Donald Trump's] threats is Jamie Dimon.... Dimon’s fear is certainly legitimate; Trump has openly mused about using the military and the power of the executive branch against his enemies. But that’s all the more reason someone of Dimon’s stature should stand up to Trump’s public bullying. No doubt Dimon is concerned about his employees and his stockholders, but he would do them a better service by doing everything possible to prevent Trump’s election.”

Kellen Browning of the New York Times: “Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota raced across battleground Wisconsin on Tuesday, exhorting voters to get to the polls on the state’s first day of early voting and just two weeks before Election Day. At a rally in Madison, Mr. Walz appeared alongside former President Barack Obama for the first time on the campaign trail, giving Mr. Obama a bro hug onstage. The two took turns, in successive speeches, laying into ... Donald J. Trump and stressing the urgency of the moment to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, who leads the Democratic presidential ticket with Mr. Walz.... In Racine on Tuesday night, [Gov. Walz] addressed comments from John Kelly, a former Trump chief of staff, who said recently that Mr. Trump had told him during his presidency that he wished he had generals like Adolf Hitler’s. 'As a 24-year veteran of our military, that makes me sick as hell,' Mr. Walz said. 'The guardrails are gone. Trump is descending into this madness.'” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: President Obama is of course a gifted speaker, and you can hear the remarks he made in Madison in this YouTube video. But I wish less-talented speakers could nonetheless muster the sort of enthusiasm and authenticity that Tim Walz brings to the podium. Obama's plane was grounded, so he was late to the event, perhaps causing Walz to run a bit long, but he still managed to be engaging, entertaining, and informative. It seems he knows what "rally" means: ~~~

Joseph Menn & David Nakamura of the Washington Post: “U.S. intelligence officials on Tuesday said Russians seeking to disrupt the U.S. elections created a faked video and other material smearing Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Walz with abuse allegations.... The faked content accused Walz of inappropriate interactions with students while a teacher and coach. The posts drew millions of views on social media, falsely tarring the Minnesota governor ahead of Nov. 5. The officials said the Russian videos were part of the most active attempt by another country to tilt the 2024 election. They added that Russian government agencies and contractors, which generally seek to boost ... Donald Trump’s campaign, are considering trying to instigate physical violence in the fraught period after voters cast their ballots.”

Oops! Peter Baker of the New York Times: “President Biden said on Tuesday that ... Donald J. Trump was a threat to democracy and should be locked up, before quickly amending his comment to say he meant locked up 'politically.' Mr. Biden was speaking at a local Democratic campaign office in Concord, N.H., when he appeared to slip by suggesting he wanted his predecessor put behind bars. While Mr. Trump as a candidate and president has regularly used such language about his opponents, Mr. Biden typically refrains from that kind of talk to avoid fueling Republicans’ claims that he is prosecuting his adversary. 'We got to lock him up,' Mr. Biden said at the campaign office, where he dropped by after a speech on health care elsewhere in Concord. Seeming to catch himself, he quickly added: 'Politically lock him up. Lock him out. That’s what we have to do.'” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Thanks, Joe. We needed that.

⭐ Charlie Savage, et al., of the New York Times: “Donald Trump and his closest allies are preparing a radical reshaping of American government if he regains the White House. Here are some of his plans for cracking down on immigration, directing the Justice Department to prosecute his adversaries, increasing presidential power, upending America’s economic policies, retreating militarily from Europe and unilaterally deploying troops to Democratic-run cities.” (Also linked yesterday.)

Marie: The other day I tried to call up an Atlantic story that I anticipated might be of interest to readers. I don't have an Atlantic subscription, but I thought maybe I could get a freebie, as I had tried to read only one other Atlantic story this month, supposedly a gift link, via a Realty Chex reader. Nothing doing. However, when I tried to call up the story below, the Atlantic let me past its firewall. I hope it works for you. Update: If my link below doesn't work, try this one, which comes courtesy of laura h., an Atlantic subscriber: ~~~

⭐  ~~~ Jeffrey Goldberg of the Atlantic in an article titled “Trump: I Need the Kind of Generals that Hitler Had”: (Of course Hitler's generals tried to assassinate him. When former Marine General John Kelly, Trump's chief of staff, told Trump about the generals' attacks on Hitler, Trump denied that was true. When Kelly told Trump that Gen. Rommel had committed suicide after his plot against Hitler failed, Trump didn't know who Rommel was.) “Former generals who have worked for Trump say that the sole military virtue he prizes is obedience. As his presidency drew to a close, and in the years since, he has become more and more interested in the advantages of dictatorship, and the absolute control over the military that he believes it would deliver.... Former officials have also cited other recurring themes: his denigration of military service, his ignorance of the provisions of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, his admiration for brutality and anti-democratic norms of behavior, and his contempt for wounded veterans and for soldiers who fell in battle.” Read on, if you can. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

He’s certainly the only president that has all but rejected what America is all about, and what makes America America, in terms of our Constitution, in terms of our values, the way we look at everything, to include family and government.... He just doesn’t understand the values — he pretends, he talks, he knows more about America than anybody, but he doesn’t. -- Retired Marine General John Kelly ~~~

⭐  ~~~ Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: Former Marine Gen. John Kelly “— deeply bothered by Mr. Trump’s recent comments about employing the military against his domestic opponents — agreed to three on-the-record, recorded discussions with a reporter for The New York Times about the former president, providing some of his most wide-ranging comments yet about Mr. Trump’s fitness and character.... He said that, in his opinion, Mr. Trump met the definition of a fascist, would govern like a dictator if allowed, and had no understanding of the Constitution or the concept of rule of law. He discussed and confirmed previous reports that Mr. Trump had made admiring statements about Hitler, had expressed contempt for disabled veterans and had characterized those who died on the battlefield for the United States as 'losers” and “suckers' — comments first reported in 2020 by The Atlantic.... Here are excerpts from, and audio of, Mr. Kelly’s comments.”

Sabrina Rodriguez & Isaac Arnsdorf of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump used a racist stereotype to attack Vice President Kamala Harris and described his desire to exercise 'extreme power' as president during an event Tuesday that was billed as a summit to highlight his support among Latinos.... 'She’s lazy as hell, and she’s got that reputation.' Harris recorded multiple media interviews on Tuesday, according to her public schedule, after campaigning in three battleground states on Monday.... 'Trump is reviving the old trope that Black women are unqualified for jobs historically held by White men,' [Democratic strategist Rachel Noerdlinger] said. 'Not having a campaign event while you’re in the middle of also governing isn’t “lazy” — making almost 300 trips to the golf course as president is.'” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I'll admit that participating in what was supposed to be some kind of Latino "summit" qualifies as campaign work. But holding that campaign event at your own golf resort where you have a private bungalow & other accommodations -- as Donald did -- is not the best place to accuse your opponent of being lazy. On the other hand, she is a Black lady. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Did you kow Donald Trump was an animal-lover? Years ago, I read that Donald hated dogs. [NYT link.] There's a good deal of evidence for his dislike of Man's Best Friend. But recently, he has repeatedly expessed deep concern for family pets: “They're eating the dogs! They're eating the cats!”) Then I found out he's worried about geese, too! This was weekend, when an interviewer debunked Trump's claims about pet-eating immigrants, Trump countered, “Well what about the goose, the geese?... What happened there? They’re all missing.” And it isn't just geese. He is concerned about wind turbines because they “kill all the birds.” (Actually, the No. 1 killers of birds are cats, so too bad those immigrants are not eating the cats.) Speaking of wind energy, Donald is also worried about all the whales offshore wind farms are killing. (Okay, there's no evidence for this.) And now, and now, I read that at the Latino summit, Trump expressed his deep concern for bunnies: “solar farms in the desert as a 'terrible' threat to rabbits,” he said. Makes you feel all warm and fuzzy, dunnit? ~~~

     ~~~ Oh, except strangely enough, this doesn't bother Donald at all: “Fossil fuels, primarily through activities like oil drilling, coal mining, and burning, harm a wide range of animals including birds, marine mammals like dolphins and whales, fish, polar bears, caribou, and other species living in habitats disrupted by fossil fuel extraction, primarily due to habitat destruction, pollution from chemicals released, and climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels.” Via the Googles.

Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post: “Elon Musk is trying to buy this election for Donald Trump, and everyone who loves our country should be alarmed. I realize, of course, that rich people try to buy elections all the time. But never quite like this. [Robinson lays out Musk's expenditures & the payoff he anticipates.]... The Wall Street Journal has reported that Musk’s rage at the Democratic Party began in 2021 when President Joe Biden launched his effort to shift the nation toward electric vehicles — and snubbed Tesla, by far the nation’s biggest maker of electric cars.... Why? Because Tesla’s factories are nonunion, and Musk has resisted workers’ efforts to organize.”

Scriptwriters, Here's Your Film Treatment: Powerful New Yorkers Donald Trump, the POTUS*, and Rudy Giuliani, the former NYC mayor, defame two temporary Georgia election workers -- a Black mother and daughter. The women, though of very modest means, sue Donald & Rudy. They win the suit, and the judge urges them to sue Donald for $2MM, and he gives them control of Giuliani's property, including his snazzy NYC apartment and his vintage Mercedes. The ladies -- Ruby & Shaye -- drive off in the luxury vehicle once owned by Lauren Bacall. Based on a true story. ~~~

~~~ Eileen Sullivan of the New York Times: “A federal judge on Tuesday ordered Rudolph W. Giuliani to turn over most of his possessions and available cash to a receivership controlled by the two Georgia election workers he defamed after the last presidential election. Mr. Giuliani, 80, has seven days to make the transfer, which includes his New York condominium and his vintage Mercedes-Benz, once owned by the actress Lauren Bacall. The judge also ordered him to turn over certain pieces of furniture, his television, sports memorabilia, jewelry and 26 watches, including one that Mr. Giuliani said his grandfather gave him. 'The watch may be distinctive to defendant as an item of sentimental value, but it is not distinctive to the law,' Judge Lewis J. Liman of Federal District Court in Manhattan wrote in the order issued on Tuesday. For now, Mr. Giuliani’s son, Andrew, can hold on to his father’s Yankee World Series rings while lawyers look into whether they were indeed a gift from father to son, as Andrew Giuliani has told the court. Once the transfers are made, the two election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Shaye Moss, can begin selling the assets and putting the proceeds toward the more than $148 million a federal jury determined he owes them. Judge Liman also said Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss could sue ... Donald J. Trump for the $2 million he owes Mr. Giuliani in unpaid legal bills.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

Rebecca Elliott of the New York Times: “Gasoline is approaching or has fallen below $3 a gallon in most states, returning to a national average not seen since February in one of the clearest examples of prices declining after a period of rapid inflation.... Gas prices have the added distinction of being prominently displayed almost everywhere, reminding drivers whether it’s more or less expensive to get to work or the grocery store. Americans are currently spending around 2 percent of their disposable income on gasoline, less than they did in the run-up to all recent presidential elections besides the 2020 contest, according to ClearView Energy Partners.... The Biden administration’s decisions to sell fuel from a national reserve and relax certain gasoline-making rules have helped to lower prices, the White House has said.” (Also linked yesterday.)

What if a cruel, misogynistic order by those smug control-freakish Supremes backfired? ~~~

~~~ ⭐ Claire Miller & Margot Sanger-Katz of the New York Times: “In nearly every state that has banned abortion, the number of women receiving abortions increased between 2020 and the end of 2023, according to the most comprehensive account of all abortions by state since the overturning of Roe v. Wade. In the 13 states that enacted near-total abortion bans, the number of women receiving abortions increased in all but three, according to the study.... The only states with bans where abortion fell during this period were Texas, where the decrease was small; Idaho, where it was larger; and Oklahoma, where the data showed an unusually large number of abortions in 2020.... Nationwide, the study also found that abortions have continued to rise. There were roughly 587,000 abortions in the first half of this year, an increase of more than 12 percent from the same period in 2023.... Telehealth abortions were a big driver of the increases.... [Also,] new clinics have opened, and a nationwide surge of publicity about the issue may have decreased stigma.”

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Georgia. Amy Gardner of the Washington Post: “The Georgia Supreme Court has declined to reinstate an array of rules approved this year by a pro-Trump majority of the state’s election board that a lower court judge had tossed last week after calling them unconstitutional and void. The decision all but ensures that the rules will not be in effect for the November vote. At issue were more than a half-dozen new rules, including one that would have mandated the hand-counting of ballots, which critics feared would delay certification of the election. The state Supreme Court’s decision is a victory for Democrats and voting rights groups.”

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Israel/Palestine, et al.

Michael Crowley, et al., of the New York Times: “Amid rocket attacks by the militant group Hezbollah into Israel and Israeli bombardment around Beirut, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken began a tour of the Middle East on Tuesday, making renewed calls for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip and a diplomatic solution to the escalating conflict in Lebanon. Meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, Mr. Blinken pressed Israel 'to capitalize on' the killing last week of Hamas’s leader, Yahya Sinwar, and to end the war with Hamas in Gaza, a State Department spokesman, Matthew Miller, said in a statement. On his 11th trip to the Middle East since the conflict began a little more than a year ago, Mr. Blinken met with Mr. Netanyahu for two and a half hours.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Yeah, well, as I think Akhilleus mentioned the other day, we're all waiting to see if Bibi has planned an October Surprise to help out his friend-of-convenience Donald.

Ephrat Livni of the New York Times: “The Israeli military said on Tuesday that it had weeks ago killed Hashem Safieddine, the presumed successor to Hezbollah’s recently assassinated leader, in an airstrike near Beirut, Lebanon.... The Israeli military said Mr. Safieddine was killed in a strike about three weeks ago. Mr. Safieddine had a significant influence over Hezbollah and served as the group’s leader when his cousin, [Hassan] Nasrallah, [Hezbollah's long-time leader,] was not in Lebanon, according to a statement from the Israeli military.”