;)
The Commentariat -- Sept. 1, 2016
Afternoonish Update:
Nate Silver of 538: "The race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump has tightened." And the Electoral College won't save Clinton because her position in important swing states is about the same as it is in the national polls.
Katie Glueck & Kyle Cheney of Politico: "Several major Latino surrogates for Donald Trump are reconsidering their support for him following the Republican nominee’s hardline speech on immigration Wednesday night. Jacob Monty, a member of Trump’s National Hispanic Advisory Council, quickly resigned after the speech. Another member, Ramiro Pena, a Texas pastor, said Trump's speech likely cost him the election and said he'd have to reconsider being part of a 'scam.' And Alfonso Aguilar, the president of the Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles, said in an interview that he is 'inclined' to pull his support." -- CW
Jessica Hopper of ABC News: "Sen. Tim Kaine ... today called Donald Trump a 'diplomatic embarrassment' when asked on 'Good Morning America' about the real estate mogul’s trip to Mexico Wednesday. 'I think it was kind of a diplomatic embarrassment,' Kaine said of Trump’s unexpected meeting with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto. 'He’s been talking for a year about we’re going to build a wall and Mexico is going to pay for it and then he goes and he sits down and goes eyeball to eyeball with the president of Mexico and, what, he forgets suddenly to bring it up or he’s too afraid to bring it up or he chokes in the meeting. It’s just kind of an indication that the guy talks out of both sides of his mouth.'” -- CW
Jo Becker, et al., of the New York Times: "... a New York Times examination of WikiLeaks’ activities during Mr. Assange’s years in exile found ... [that] whether by conviction, convenience or coincidence, WikiLeaks’ document releases, along with many of Mr. Assange’s statements, have often benefited Russia, at the expense of the West." -- CW
Rachel Swarns of the New York Times: "Nearly two centuries after profited from the sale of 272 slaves, it will embark on a series of steps to atone for the past, including awarding preferential status in the admissions process to descendants of the enslaved, officials said on Wednesday. Georgetown’s president, John J. DeGioia, who will discuss the measures in a speech on Thursday afternoon, also plans to offer a formal apology, create an institute for the study of slavery and erect a public memorial to the slaves whose labor benefited the institution, including those who were sold in 1838 to help keep the university afloat." CW: Just you wait; some aggrieved white kid who doesn't get accepted to Georgetown will start screaming "discrimination."
*****
Presidential Race
Anne Gearan of the Washington Post: "Democrat Hillary Clinton scoffed at the capabilities and worldview of Republican opponent Donald Trump on Wednesday, including his hasty trip to Mexico, as she courted support from veterans and conservatives concerned about national security.... Trump, she said, understands little about how American alliances operate or the principles of U.S. engagement abroad. She appealed to the patriotism and military experience of a conservative-leaning audience, many of whom she jokingly observed, had probably never voted for a Democrat.... The crowd of mostly elderly men gave Clinton a polite if somewhat tepid reception, and there were numerous empty seats. She drew applause when she said that if elected president she would never insult the families of war dead or prisoners of war, a reference to Trump's remarks about the family of Humayun Khan and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)." -- CW ...
... Guardian: "Hillary Clinton took a withering swipe at Donald Trump’s impromptu visit to Mexico on Wednesday, during an address to the American Legion convention in Cincinnati that was nonetheless once again upstaged by her opponent’s unpredictable antics. 'You can’t make up for a year of insults by dropping in on our neighbours for a few hours and flying home again,' insisted the former secretary of state, famed for clocking up hundreds of thousands of diplomatic air miles. 'That’s not how it works.' Instead Clinton stressed her experience in office and expertise on foreign affairs, in a speech that leaned heavily on the same patriotic tone she adopted at the Democratic convention last month.” -- CW ...
... Clinton's campaign produced a list of some of the incendiary tweets Trump has written about Mexico, the Mexican people & the Mexican government (especially the court system). -- CW
Washington Post Editors: "HILLARY CLINTON made one of the most consequential announcements of her campaign on Monday — and hardly anyone is talking about it. The Democratic presidential nominee released a wide-ranging mental-health strategy — and, unlike much of what she has proposed this election season, it has a real chance of becoming law." -- CW
Thanks, Al! Burgess Everett of Politico: "Sen. Al Franken let his comedic past get the better of him on Wednesday, apologizing after joking that an injury to a Minnesota Vikings player was akin to [finding out] Hillary Clinton having an 'affair with Anthony Weiner.' New York Times writer Mark Leibovich tweeted Franken's (D-Minn.) response to a gruesome leg injury to Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater that shocked onlookers in practice on Tuesday.... [Franken] quickly walked back his remark. 'Pretty insensitive and stupid of me. Regret it and sincerely apologize,' Franken said on Twitter." -- CW
Alexander Burns & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "In Arizona, Mr. Trump made his most brazen attempt yet to back away from his pledge to deport all 11 million undocumented immigrants, denouncing illegal immigration in vehement terms, while at the same time revising his policy agenda. Where he has, in the past, suggested creating a special force to achieve that goal, Mr. Trump said on Wednesday that a new 'deportation task force' would focus on rounding up only the 'most dangerous criminal illegal immigrants.'... On Wednesday night, as the crowd in Phoenix grew more energized, he could not resist returning to his fiery form, even as he outlined his new approach to immigration control.... At one point, referring to Mrs. Clinton, he told the crowd that perhaps he should 'deport her.' And Mr. Trump, as is his pattern, created confusion for even his closest supporters as he appeared to embrace opposite sides of important issues as the day unfolded.” ...
By Driftglass.... Eli Stokols of Politico: "After playing at diplomacy in Mexico following two weeks of muddled messaging on his signature issue, Donald Trump shed any pretense of a softer message or general election 'pivot' with a declaration of his fealty to the hardline positions and inflammatory rhetoric that propelled him to the Republican nomination. Having ditched his traveling press corps, Trump’s lie that he and President Enrique Pena Nieto didn’t discuss who would pay for his border wall wasn’t exposed until the Mexican president tweeted that they had a few hours later. And minutes after he stepped onto another stage [in Phoenix, Arizona,] Wednesday night and began to speak to his raucous supporters, it was even more clear that the sojourn across the southern border, much like his campaign's two-weeks of gentle walkbacks, was a ruse — that Trump and his campaign had used Pena Nieto as a prop in an opening act that served only to set up an evening stem-winder. The farce was, in hindsight, clear even before Trump approached the mic, as two of his warm-up speakers, Rudy Giuliani and Jeff Sessions, donned Trump hats that read 'Make Mexico Great Again.'” CW: This is a straight news report. ...
... Josh Marshall: "This was as wild and as unbridled a speech as I've seen from Trump. Even if you couldn't understand English, it would be stunning to watch the slashing hand gestures, the red face, the yelling. It's hard to imagine any presidential candidate in living memory giving such a speech.... Watching this speech, compared to the press conference today in Mexico City, what kept coming to my mind was the contrast between Hitler's uniformed rally speeches from the hustings and the suited, statesman Hitler we see in the old news reels.... On balance, Trump doubled-down on just about everything. He'll build the Wall and Mexico will pay for the Wall.... On mass deportation, there was more obfuscation than change. Trump said everyone without proper documentation is subject to deportation.... There is no path to citizenship or legal residency for any undocumented immigrants.... This is a blood soaked white nationalist politics that has caught fire with a significant minority of the electorate." Thanks to Haley S. for the link. -- CW ...
... Jeet Heer of the New Republic: "... the Trump we saw in Arizona was a return to form. His entire speech was a long nativist tirade about the dangers immigrants of all sorts (the undocumented, refugees, and those who come on legal work visas) pose to America. The themes were familiar to anyone who has paid attention to Trump over the last year, but the tone was, if anything, even more strident and desperate. To go by Trump’s words, immigrants were nothing less than an existential threat to America’s very integrity as a sovereign state." -- CW ...
... Dana Milbank: "Trump landed in Phoenix for what was supposed to be a detailed 'policy address' on immigration but was a familiar, nativist rant. Preceded at the lectern by Joe Arpaio, the Arizona sheriff and anti-immigration hard-liner, Trump launched into a lament for the 'countless Americans' who are 'victims of violence' by illegal immigrants who are 'dangerous, dangerous, dangerous criminals.'... Trump’s attempt at appearing diplomatic was only a feint.... It’s called America First! . . . There will be no amnesty! . . . You cannot obtain legal status or become a citizen of the United States by illegally entering our country. After a trip to Mexico, it was the return of a nativist son.” -- CW
Jose DelReal of the Washington Post: "Donald Trump’s latest deportation priorities could target more than six million individuals for immediate removal, according to a Washington Post analysis.... Trump spelled out hard-line immigration priorities in a fiery speech here in Phoenix. He not only called for removing all undocumented immigrants who had committed crimes, but also said he would prioritize those who have overstayed their visas for deportation.... [He] also said he would triple the number of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and create a “new special deportation task force” to track the most serious security threats. Together, those proposals represented his most specific comments on deportation policy — and they pointed to a massive undertaking.... If visa overstays are also included in the immediate priorities, as Trump said he would order during his speech, the number would grow by about 4.5 million individuals according to estimates that place overstays at about 40 percent of total undocumented population." -- CW ...
... CW: In other words, Trump would prioritize mass deportations, and he has changed the name of his "deportation force" to "deportation task force." Since every undocumented foreigner who lives permanently in the U.S. has "committed a crime" by entering or staying illegally -- a point you hear many "real Americans" make -- all undocumented Mexicans are technically "criminals." So I'd put the figure back at 11 million. Trump spokesperson Katrina Pierson was right: "He hasn’t changed his position. He has changed the word he is saying." ...
... One of These Men Is a Liar. Harper Neidig of the Hill: "Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto said he told Donald Trump that Mexico would not pay for the Republican nominee's proposed border wall, despite what Trump told the press after their meeting. 'At the start of the conversation with Donald Trump I made it clear that Mexico will not pay for the wall," [Peña Nieto] wrote on Twitter.... During a joint press conference following their surprise meeting in Mexico City Wednesday, Trump told reporters..., 'We did discuss the wall, we didn't discuss payment of the wall, that will be for a later date...,' Trump said. 'What the president said is that Mexico, as he has said on several occasions ... will not pay for that wall,' Peña's spokesman Eduardo Sanchez told Reuters." -- CW ...
... Patrick Healy of the New York Times: Trump "displayed an almost unrecognizable demeanor during his afternoon in Mexico, appearing measured and diplomatic, while hours later he took the stage at his campaign rally and denounced illegal immigrants on the whole as a criminally minded and dangerous group that sows terror in communities and commits murders, rapes and other heinous violence." Straight news story. -- CW ...
... As Haley S. notes in today's Comments, Healy appears to have written his story prior to Trump's giving his speech. (News organization often get advance copies of prepared speeches.) Haley says Healy did a major rewrite later.
... Charles Blow: "Donald Trump is the internet troll of presidential politics. When he’s securely removed from the objects of his scorn, he’s tough as nails; when he’s in their presence, he quivers like a bowl of Jell-O.... When he is surrounded by supporters who cheer his base nature, he amplifies the enmity. When the applause of hostility is out of earshot, he tones down his vitriol to a whimper. He is not only a bully, it seems to me, but also something of a coward, who lacks the force of his convictions — or who lacks basic convictions at all. He seems to be simply playing to the audience, whatever that audience may be." -- CW ...
... Steve M: "Trump talks a big game about confronting people, then he meets those people and wimps out. The art of the deal? Call it the art of the kneel." CW: In most cases, one would use the cliche, "He doesn't have the courage of his convictions. Trump, however, has no convictions. He has poses. ...
... Jessie Hellmann of the Hill: "A prominent Mexican TV news anchor is blasting Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto for inviting Donald Trump to Mexico City. Jorge Ramos, anchor for Univision and Fusion, criticized Peña Nieto for not holding Trump accountable for some of his previous rhetoric on illegal immigration and Mexican-Americans. Instead, during a joint press conference in Mexico Wednesday, Peña affirmed that the two men would work together to end illegal immigration if Trump is elected president. 'What a poor, lukewarm and fearful response by [Nieto] before Trump,' Ramos tweeted in Spanish Wednesday. Where is the indignation to Trump's insults?'" CW: Looks like Hellmann has the same view of "Mexicans" as Donald Trump does. Ramos, who was born in Mexico, is a naturalized American citizen, not a "Mexican." ...
... Alex Burns, et al., of the New York Times: " met in Mexico on Wednesday with President , who is being criticized by many Mexicans for holding the meeting. In a subdued joint appearance before the press in Mexico City, the two men described the meeting as warm, despite maintaining significant disagreements on issues of trade and immigration." The report contains "highlights from the day." -- CW ...
... Joshua Partlow, et al., of the Washington Post: "Addressing the media after the meeting alongside Peña Nieto, Trump said the two discussed trade, illegal immigration, and border security — issues where their views do not align. 'I was straighforward in presenting my view on the impact of current trade and immigration policies on the Untied States,' said Trump.... Trump said the two discussed his proposed wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, but, 'we didn’t discuss who pays for the wall.' Peña Nieto offered a polite and careful rebuke to many of Trump’s signature stances in his remarks. According to an interpreter, he said illegal immigration and border security is a shared challenge, but that undocumented immigration has slowed in recent years. He also praised the merits of free trade....” -- CW ...
... CW: The statements sounded like the kinds of remarks you hear when representatives of enemy states meet: "frank exchange of ideas," blah-blah. But, um, Mexico is an ally, not an enemy, of the U.S. ...
... "Mexican President Fact Checks Donald Trump to His Face." Alice Ollstein of Think Progress: “'Undocumented immigration from Mexico to the U.S. had its highest point 10 years ago and it has slowed down consistently, even to the point of being negative in a net effect at this point,' said Peña Nieto, referring to data that supports these claims. He added that Trump’s portrayal of the border as a one-way street is 'a clearly incomplete version' that 'doesn’t account for the illegal flow' of money and firearms that goes into Mexico from the United States. 'Every year, millions of dollars and weapons come in from the north that strengthen the cartels and other criminal organizations that generate violence in Mexico,' Peña Nieto pointed out, adding that criminals in the U.S. benefit from the sale of illegal drugs." -- CW ...
... Azad Ahmed of the New York Times: "... for many Mexicans, the surprising invitation from Mr. Peña Nieto — who has likened Mr. Trump’s language to that of Hitler and Mussolini in the past — is even worse [than Mr. Trump's many insults to the Mexican people]. Newspapers, television stations, social media and all manner of national communication were awash in vitriol at the idea of a meeting between the two men.... Protests were lined up for the day. Digital invitations designed like party fliers circulated on social media overnight, heralding the visit with a handwritten message: 'Trump, you are not welcome!'” -- CW ...
... Morgan Winsor of ABC News: "Donald Trump and Mexico’s former President Vicente Fox ... engaged in a bitter back-and-forth just hours before the Republican presidential nominee is scheduled to visit the country." -- CW ...
Hispanic citizens have been suffering under this president. Since President Obama came into office, another 2 million Hispanics have joined the ranks of those in poverty. … The number of Hispanic children living in poverty increased by 15 percent in that short period of time. — Donald Trump, at a rally in Tampa, Aug. 24
... we should be pleased that Trump’s statistics are based on an official government report. But he cherry-picks the year to inflate the figures — and then uses raw numbers, which is misleading, especially when discussing a fast-growing population such as Hispanics. The net result is a claim that the ranks of Hispanics in poverty have grown, when in fact by basic statistical analysis the status of Hispanics has improved under President Obama. -- Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post
Trump Won't Speak to Black Churchgoers. Kathleen Gray of the Detroit Free Press: "When ... Donald Trump comes to Detroit this weekend to try to strengthen his standing in the African-American community, he will be attending a service at a church and doing a one-on-one interview with the congregation's leader, Bishop Wayne T. Jackson. That's about it. Trump won't be speaking to the black congregation at Great Faith Ministries International.... And his Saturday interview with Jackson on the church's Impact Network — which will not be open to the public or the news media — won't air for at least a week after the event." -- CW: Maybe he'll "drink his little wine and have his little cracker," though.
More on Trump's exploitation of illegal immigrants:
Steven Shepard of Politico: "After months of being swamped on the swing-state airwaves by Hillary Clinton and her allies, Donald Trump’s campaign this week announced a broad and extensive television advertising campaign that included ads set to run in nearly all the battleground states. But Trump’s actual investment over the next week or so falls far short of his campaign’s claims." -- CW
A Messiah for Angry White Men. Paul Waldman: "If it's not about building walls and tossing out undocumented immigrants, Trumpism is about nothing at all, at least nothing having to do with anything he might actually do as president. His candidacy has transcended substance entirely. This isn't a 'pivot,' it's a kind of rapture, where Trump loses all flesh and becomes a being of pure affect." -- CW
Brian Stelter of CNN: Joe Scarborough "is promoting his new name for Trump, 'Amnesty Don,' with a music video posted to Facebook on Wednesday. The 'Amnesty Don' song is virulently anti-Trump, describing the GOP nominee as a 'soft and flaccid man' with 'tiny little hands.'" -- CW ...
... CW: Sorry, Joe, the "soft and flaccid man" is in evidence only while on Mexican soil.
Congressional Race
Heather Caygle of Politico: "Rep. Ed Whitfield, the Kentucky Republican dogged by ethics problems around 'special favors'” he granted his lobbyist wife, is resigning from Congress next week. Whitfield sent a letter to Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin and House Speaker Paul Ryan announcing his retirement, effective Sept. 6, the day Congress returns from August recess.... Bevin said in a statement he will hold a special election on Nov. 8, the same day as the general election, to fill the remaining two months of Whitfield’s term.... James Comer, the GOP nominee running for Whitfield’s seat, has already said he plans to run to fill the vacancy. Whitfield, first elected in 1994, had already planned to retire after this Congress...." -- CW
Other News & Views
Christopher Ingraham of the Washington Post: "How Americans feel about the state of their lives have improved markedly in the eight years since Barack Obama was elected president, according to Gallup data released Tuesday. In 2008, fewer than half of Americans said their life was good enough to be considered 'thriving,' according to Gallup. But that's changed: 'The 55.4% who are thriving so far in 2016 is on pace to be the highest recorded in the nine years Gallup and Healthways have tracked it,' according to the report." -- CW
Greg Stohr of Bloomberg: "An evenly divided U.S. Supreme Court refused to reinstate North Carolina’s Republican-backed voting restrictions for the November election, leaving intact a lower court’s conclusion that lawmakers intentionally discriminated against racial minorities. The high court rejected the state’s bid to halt much of the federal appeals court ruling, dividing 4-4 along ideological lines on the central questions. The rebuff -- issued without explanation -- is a victory for the Obama administration and civil rights groups, which challenged the North Carolina law and won a ruling that is likely to help Democrats in November." -- CW ...
... Robert Barnes' Washington Post report is here. -- CW ...
... Rick Hasen: "The fact that this petition got four votes should be very depressing to those who have been hoping that perhaps Justice Kennedy and the Chief Justice would have had a change of heart on voter id laws as Judge [Richard] Posner and Justice [John Paul] Stevens have since the Crawford case. The petition was exceptionally weak because North Carolina waited 17 days to file it and then claimed an emergency. So even apart from the merits, this was a weak case. And on the merits, we have a finding that the state of North Carolina engaged in intentionally racially discriminatory conduct.... [The deadlock in the Supreme Court] this really empowers the lower courts...." -- CW
Reversal of Fortunes. Linda Greenhouse: Bill Clinton, Ken Starr, and a word to the wise from Antonin Scalia. CW: Not only a fun read, but also a glimpse at Scalia's rare moment of good judgment.
New York Times Editors: " and the United States are crying foul over the ruling in Europe that Apple received illegal tax breaks from Ireland and must hand over 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion).... The money won’t be repatriated and taxed ... if Europeans ... get their hands on it first. And that ... is why members of Congress and Treasury officials are so upset about the Apple ruling.... But Apple and the United States have only themselves to blame for the situation. Apple has engaged in increasingly aggressive tax avoidance for at least a decade, including stashing some $100 billion in Ireland without paying taxes on much of it anywhere in the world, according to a Senate investigation in 2013. In a display of arrogance, the company seemed to believe that its arrangements in a known tax haven like Ireland would never be deemed illegal — even as European regulators cracked down in similar cases against ... multinational corporations.... Congress, for its part, has sat idly by as American corporations have indulged in increasingly intricate forms of tax avoidance.... The biggest tax dodge in need of reform involves deferral, in which American companies can defer paying taxes on foreign-held profits until those sums are repatriated." -- CW (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Beyond the Beltway
Eric Russell of the Portland (Maine) Press Herald: "Gov. Paul LePage apologized personally Wednesday to Democratic Rep. Drew Gattine for leaving a threatening and obscene voice mail on the lawmaker’s phone last week, but the governor said he will not resign and is ready to move on from the sustained controversy. Whether he’s successful, though, could depend on Senate Republicans, whose leader, President Mike Thibodeau, said he was glad the governor apologized but is still 'struggling' over LePage’s ability and willingness to change his behavior. 'I just know when something is wrong,' Thibodeau said of LePage’s actions. 'But what I’m sure of is that we can’t continue to have the explosiveness that we’ve seen. So we are in hopes that he is going to find a way to correct that.'” -- CW ...
... Nolan McCaskill of Politico: "Maine Gov. Paul LePage on Wednesday blamed a reporter in part for his fiery outburst to a state lawmaker last week and vowed never to speak with the press again. LePage last Thursday left an obscenity-laced voicemail on Democratic state Rep. Drew Gattine’s phone after he was told by a reporter that Gattine had called the governor a racist.... 'After speaking with Representative Gattine, I think that the reporter who put the mic in my face owes the people of Maine an apology as well, because [Gattine] never called me racist,' LePage told reporters.... 'I will no longer speak to the press ever again after today,' LePage said, prompting laughter from reporters. 'And I’m serious. Everything will be put in writing. I am tired of being caught — the gotcha moments.'” -- CW
Iowa Amateur Hour. Pat Rynard of Iowa Starting Line: "It seems all the targeted Republican state senate candidates had a big TV shoot recently, as they’ve all posted their first ads online in the past few weeks. The ads themselves are so-so at best.... However, one thing does stand out: each candidate is talking to the exact same group of students in the exact same school hallway." CW: I hope those kids earned better than scale for having to listen to all those dimwits.
Way Beyond
Marina Lopes & Dom Phillips of the Washington Post: "Brazil’s Senate ousted Dilma Rousseff as president Wednesday, voting overwhelmingly to impeach the leftist leader in the culmination of a protracted process that has divided the country. The vote to impeach Rousseff was 61 to 20." CW: This is an update of a story also linked yesterday.
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Reader Comments (41)
Notice that the quote from Trump is they did not discuss "who would pay for the wall", in contrast to a statement declaring support from President Nieto for going forward with the great, fabulous wall. Stay tuned, don't think Trump is anywhere near done spinning and/or lying.
Hallelujah! Maine Gov. LePage sez he plans to seek "spiritual guidance" Or to echo Kurt Vonnegut*: Blivit! Blivit! Blivit!...
*(Vonnegut coined the term blivit for his own combination of incommensurables: 'A blivit, he wrote, can be defined as ‘two pounds of shit in a one pound bag.’)
Governor LePage says he's ready to move on.
Well, good for him.
Reminded me of George Carlin's talk to the National Press Club.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fz4K-R8ZlhU
Nine minutes, and worth every moment. The LePage moment is near the end.
My goodness, do we ever miss George.
Trump was close to being out of control during his ranting tirade on immigration. I was well and truly frightened by the white nationalist "speech" he gave tonight. The after party on MSNBC was hosted by O'Donnell 1st then by Kornecki. I didn't watch Kornecki until the end. Of the 2 panels, the people of color; 2 Hispanic women( Kumar from Voto Latino & ?) and E.Robinson, readily identified the white nationalism. Kristol and Hewitt thought Trump had his best day and Costa was a bit more subdued. Kudos to reporter Hallie Jackson on the floor in Phoenix. Poor women looked traumatized, but she ran it down much like Kumar and Robinson.
So many jaw dropping statements. Even given Trump, up to now, it made your gut twist, as my husband said. My husband said he had heard that stuff all his life (Mexican American) thought never as full of vitriol, as clearly or from a candidate for US President.
To much attempt to focus on the Nieto -Trump meeting today and the wall issue. Prieto was a fool to allow the situation in the 1st place. As Robinson said that's his problem. Apparently Vincente Fox located Nieto's balls for him as he tweeted something appropriate after Trump's rant.
Hellofa piece on Trump speech from Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/blood-and-race-and-trump
Lefty blogs think NYT piece was written before the Phoenix speech. Got Phoenix entirely wrong - worth firing.
Kellyanne loved the NYT piece...
https://twitter.com/KellyannePolls/status/771199206123986944
Update: Major re-write on shameful Healy NYT piece.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/01/us/politics/donald-trump-immigration-speech.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=b-lede-package-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0
I listened to about half of Trump's Phoenix speech.
Present: The skewed and often blatantly false numbers about immigrants from Mexico and Muslim countries, particularly regarding the way we treat those already here with criminal records, all couched in the downright silly exaggerations to which the Donald is prone. He will deport all undocumented criminals the first day in office. Pleeese!
Aside from the silliness, his approach to undocumented criminals seems stolen from the Obama playbook. Wonder when he'll give credit.
The speech wouldn't have been complete without the patented swipes at and lies about "lying Hillary." Guess that would make him lying about a "liar." Odd when you think about it.
THE WALL, (very, very hard, not soft at all, believe me) which Mexico will pay for. (No, they won't.)
The ideological test for all immigrants, which of course won't work on any immigrant no more truthful than Trump. No wonder he came up with such a plan. He may not know what lying is.
Absent: At the end, the merest afterthought, the equivalent of a Friday night news dump, a major shift. No mass deportation of all undocumented immigrants. No, none. Just the baddies. We'll figure that mass deportation thing out later, and until we do ,we'll rely on Romney's self-deportation plan. That'll work.
Again, no surprise. In Trump World because there's no Congress and no courts, and no reality, everything he says will work.
Very depressing. Hard enough for me to listen to Trump, but hearing hundreds, thousands, cheering his drivel is truly disturbing.
One positive note: Bill Kristol on MSNBC thought Trump had a very good day and likely shored up his standing with undecided voters.
That he's been wrong about everything else for the last 15 years does provide some comfort.
Ken,
Perhaps I misunderstand, but I watched the entire speech and he said over and over and over that immigration laws (and they will be overhauled and made much stiffer) will be followed and anyone here illegally will be deported. That included people who overstayed their visas and anybody who fell under Obama's executive actions. I take that to include the Dreamers. It was more than just the 'baddies' although they would be the first to go on day one.
Really terrible. Let's hope those white suburban moms are as horrified as I am.
As one who has been an avid daily follower of the news and the print media for over 40 years, I have reached the point that I am simply sickened by the daily fixation on Trump and todays links above, accurately noted, fuels my feelings, 20 links to Trump related posts and 3 for Clinton. Endless attention to Trump wherever I look.
@ Ken Winkes
Your detailed observations and thoughts on the current political process in the United States, and those of Marie and other RC contributors, have been really helpful to this reader, happily mired for the past three months in the often glorious beauty of a Scandinavian summer.
You are in good company, in my opinion when you observe the absence of serious, consistent, debatable policy in a campaign to which invaluable amounts of time and treasure are being devoted by our corporate media, who seem to be unable themselves to lay out coherent, meaningful observations for their readers.
As a full time student at UC Berkeley and a 20 hour a week janitor in Emeryville, California in the very early 60s, the longshoreman/philosopher Eric Hoffer was one of my heroes. Quotes from his writing are all over the internet. Here is his formulation, published in 1951, of the paradox you observe:
“The quality of ideas seems to play a minor role in mass movement leadership. What counts is the arrogant gesture, the complete disregard of the opinion of others, the single handed defiance of the world.”
https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17715-the-true-believer-thoughts-on-the-nature-of-mass-movements.
Perhaps Marie has some thoughts on whether I am being unfair to the corporate media for what appears to me to be its lack of any historical depth.
@Uncle Luie: Apparently, like Nancy Reagan, you are unaware of what news is. It's the train-wrecks; it's not normal people enjoying a Sunday picnic in the park. In the case of Trump, it's a very important train-wreck; he is a dangerous loon who still has a good chance of becoming president (look at the direction of the polls).
I almost always put Clinton news at the top of the "Presidential Race" section, as I did today, but Clinton's saying normal things is what we expect -- Sunday in the park -- whereas a dangerous loon threatening the future of the nation is a fearsome thing.
If, on a Sunday morning, there were a train barreling down on you that you didn't hear or see, would you rather a passerby (a) warn you the train was 'a-coming, or (b) comment that it was a nice day for a picnic?
Marie
P.S. Always nice to have a visit from a troll who never contributes anything more than a complaint. Have a nice day, and look both ways before crossing the train tracks.
Simpler account for why all the DJT pieces:
He's a scab
We're five-year olds, can't leave it alone
If given a choice between walking over hot coals and listening to an entire Trump speech I might just choose the hot coals. I had never before last night listened to a Trump speech in its entirety. When Trump began with coining the Obama administration as "This current corrupt administration" throwing in Hillary for good measure I knew I'd be in for the long slog of vitriol. If you didn't know he was talking about human beings you might just think he was referring to "thousands and thousands" of rats whose infestation has ruined this country, has devoured small children, cleaned out everyone's cupboards while leaving their ugly smelly pellets strewn across hither and yon. And Hillary loves rats–-she lets them roam freely, raping, murdering, she is like the queen of rats. "Believe me, folks"––the ubiquitous plea always at the end of another lie.
At the end I felt dirty. The dangerous, unbridled rhetoric from this man–-this Pied Piper who really believes he can lead his followers into a glorified future is so pathetic, so very wrong headed and scary that I dread the night they bring him down. What happens to all those believers who bought all his tunes hook, line and sinker.
There is a piece in my brain that looks at the positive if we elect Trump. An opportunity to totally correct America by screwing it up big time. Nov. 9th 2016, Dow Jones loses 5000 points. Nov. 9th 2107, we break a record on jobs, 30% unemployed. Nov.9th 2018, ISIS launches 10 attacks on USA, our NATO partners ask 'who is USA?' Nov. 9, 2019 a 6 in high wall across the Mexican boarder is completed. Nov.9, 2020 Dem.s win election easily since there is no other party.
For those anxious for a break from Confederate secular authoritarianism, how 'bout some Confederate religious authoritarianism?
Sure, why not? Because wingnut policies are not just responsible for heinous realpolitik disasters, they're also being used as a shield against the legal consequences of beating a seven year old little boy to a pulp.
A woman in Indiana is wrapping the Mike Pence "religious nuts can do whatever they want (as long as they're far right Christians) law", aka the Religious Restoration Act (also known as the "icky gays stay away" law).
The woman, who beat her little boy with a coat hanger so God would be happy, is claiming that Pence's law lets her do whatever she wants because her religious beliefs include severe child abuse.
Thanks, Mike! Hope this provides some perspective on the hilarious (and dangerous) idea that Pence is the normal one. And here's a little more perspective: Trumpado has only bragged about how he'll give his most outrageous and unAmerican fever dreams the force of law. Mike Pence has already done that.
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_57c724e7e4b0a22de093b67c
Akhilleus, I have always wondered how come nobody ever seems to notice that the so-called 'religious freedom' laws only apply to Christians. No one seems to notice that if you have total freedom to practice your religion, you are a strong supporter if ISIS. This story is why I tell people that being an atheist creates a serious ethical problem. You can't find an excuse to hate or kill.
And BTW, this reminds me of something that I have seen on two very different locations in NYC. A painted statement on the sidewalk- "Thank God that I am an atheist".
So I see that Donaldo is going yo Detroit to speak to black voters but, er, he won't actually be speaking to them?
Ahhhh...I almost forgot we were talking about not just the biggest bully and braggart, but the biggest political coward in American presidential history. There may have been candidates with yellow streaks just as wide as Trump's but wider? I don't think so. But hey, all you Trumpbots, especially all you racists, pricks, and he-man woman haters, go right ahead and pull the lever for creampuff Casper Milquetoast. He'll make America cower again.
Haley,
As I said, I listened to only as much (and a little more) as I could stand, so might have gotten it wrong. As PD says, he makes me feel dirty. A real reporter with a stronger stomach than I have would have consulted the transcript.
Did think from what I heard, though, that following all the tough talk--whadda man!--about deporting criminals on day one and and screening for terrorists down to their DNA, and the tirades about trade deals and the bushels of promises about jobs to all those American workers desperate to replace the millions of undocumented workers on our farms, in our meat-packing plants and doing the scut work on construction sites for 8 bucks an hour, he said that only after all those initial steps were taken, the criminal deportations, the wall, the bevy of new terrific (my word this time) laws were in place, would the mass deportations occur, at some very uncertain future date.
For Trump, talk of "priortizing" has to pass as nuance.
But all that said, I could have gotten the whole thing wrong.
@ Islander
I also fondly remember Eric Hoffer. His dissection of true believers is never far from my mind. He was truly a wise man.
Unfortunately, my contact with him in the Bay Area was a little later than yours, in the late, not the early sixties, when I'm guessing his mind was not as sharp as it once had been and, as I remember, he had become an embarrassing tool of the Johnson administration.
I once heard him--might have reported this before in this space-- give a presentation to a relatively small group across the Bay from you, suggesting that inner city problems could be solved if only the blacks imitated the Mormons and moved to some remaining blank spaces on the Southwest map and built their own thriving communities....a kind of self-deportation if you will.
After reading and admiring his books, I was sorry that night to hear him speak, but disappointing as it was that evening had its own wisdom to impart.
Still in my immortal early 20's, it did me no harm at all to see a hero getting old.
Marvin,
I'm pretty sure agnostics and atheists, if so inclined (Stalin?) could find plenty of reasons to kill people. It just wouldn't be god. Nonetheless, you're correct about these laws being drafted for and by far-right Christians. Jews, Hindus, Muslims, or adherents of the Flying Spaghetti Monster need not apply.
Just realized why Trump would never have been awarded a Pupke Heart even if he had ever been in combat. The military, as far as I know, don't give out medals for skeedaddling. Not to mention the fact that tiny baby hands would have a hard time hanging on to a weapon, what with the trembling and all.
Sorry for all the typos. Doing this on an iPhone...
Akhilleus, you're right, atheist dictators do kill but they use the 'natural' excuse to protect themselves. I should have said that atheists have no excuse to hate or kill for fun!
@PDPepe: Saw Trump's tirade from about his Point Six on, totally cringeworthy.
But, I must say, I got wicked satisfaction from observing his unnatural reading from the teleprompters. Hehehehehe! He favored the one on his left...and you could almost read his mind as he reminded himself to look to the right and use that one. The entire time WHEN he stayed on the teleprompter script his eyeballs made no connection to his audience. But as soon as he felt ballsy 'enuff to go off script he became the 'real Donald" we've come to loathe & expect.
Very uneven. Definitely a Juggle and Hide performance!
I managed to peruse through one of the multitude of documents that WAPO has made available and that CW linked re: Donald. Looks like he gets a VERRRRY tidy (six figure) annual pension from the Screen Actors Guild. Probably because of his Apprentice TV performances?
@MAG: Not sure why Trump gets SAG payments, but he was in quite a number of movies playing himself -- something he's doing now for free -- so I'd guess that where the SAG pension comes from.
Marie
@Marvin S., et al.: Wrecking the country to prove once & forever that Donald Trump would wreck the country is not a reasonable plan. I can tell you from personal experience that -- at least up until recently -- there were still plenty of Italians who missed Mussolini, & I don't doubt there were plenty of Germans (and not just skinheads) who would welcome Hitler back.
There are always people who will fall for racist, nationalistic dictators, no matter the consequences, & they won't change their views just because the dictator causes a world-wide calamity. Certainly that's partly tribal, and as we've discussed in recent days, it's a lot like religion; you're not going to talk anybody out of his religious beliefs with "rational" arguments.
Marie
@Marvin: probably posted this before, but:
With or without religion, good people can behave well and bad people can do evil; but for good people to do evil — that takes religion.
Steven Weinberg
Marie, the last thing I want is Trump. But my guess is that half of his supporters are the various tribal forms that can never be changed. But the other half are just against Hillary for several reasons. Number one of course is her sex. Number two is the fact that she behaves like an American politician. The story for this group is we want serious change in American politics. What they don't get is the reality that democracy makes politics. Their voting created the mess they hate. They want something totally different and Trump certainly qualifies. The fact that he is a 'Republican' counts for nothing in this group. The fact that he is an incompetent
idiot is beyond their understanding. That is why they are the group whose votes created the current mess.
So absolutely no Trump. But there is a little piece in my brain that likes the thought that Trump would destroy his voters lives.
Whyte,
Another reason so many wingers hate scientists . That is , if they have any idea who Weinberg is, and if they do, they probably hate him for that book about the Big Bang which never even gives god credit for what happened in those first three minutes. The heathen.
I too am tired of Trump, Trump, Trump. I'd much rather hear Hillary et al rant about the REPUBLICANS!! Republicans from whom all evil flows. As it is I think the Democrat message can be read as "Trump bad but your Republican senator/representative not so much. I want them all out.
Ken
I'm sorry. There is no amnesty - no amnesty for anyone. If you're here without papers you are illegal and you will be deported. Only road to legalization is to leave our country, get vetted (extremely), pass our much stricter immigration laws, and get in line to come back. Also, too. Nobody gets in from Syria, Libya or Iraq. Also too. We will build safe zones in Syria for all the refugees. The Gulf States will pay for the safe zones. Not sure of this, but I think he wants our boots on the ground in the safe zones. We need to run them - like Bremmer did.
The speech should be watched. He is a very dangerous man. And no kidding - he could be our next president.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=usgVqBtCQq4
Like many of you, I could only stomach so much of Drumpf's hate rant. What scares me more than his vile outbursts and wild, dictator gesticulations are the delirious cheers for each new promise to mercilessly step on other human beings and the fanatical applause generated by screeching oaths to " round them all up" with special security forces and the vows to bend foreign governments to the will of the jaw jutting strongman. But, as Molly Ivins once observed, it probably sounded better in the original German.
Marshall has the most clear eyed take on the Trump speech in all its hate filled glory. The guiding hands of Bannon are all over this from Mexico visit to speech. Rather than statesman like, the visit to Mexico was bullying with a smile. Trump forced the time of the meeting, defied the President in taking press questions, and beat Nieto to the twitter feed. Yes, Nieto showed himself a fool, but Trumps main triumph was not shitting on the stage.
Trump is a narcissist and therefore a natural bully. Bannon's hand was up Trumps butt the whole time, making him think all this was his brilliant idea.
Considering that the Hispanics and the black guy on after-panels were the ones who got the jist of the speech, it's no surprise there were resignations from the Hispanic supporters/advisors.
Crooked Trump pays IRS penalty for illegal payoff to Florida AGr Bondi.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/09/01/trump-pays-irs-a-penalty-for-his-foundation-violating-rules-with-gift-to-florida-attorney-general/?postshare=7181472757279311&tid=ss_tw
Tonight's NBC News broadcast rips Clinton for talking to donors "behind closed doors" as if Trumpado begs donors for money on the sidewalk in Times Square. Pretty soon we'll be told that Hillary refuses to disclose whether she buys 2% or skim milk. Trey Gowdy is already preparing the Milkgate congressional investigation. Any bad news about Trump MUST be followed immediately by some specious "Look at what Hillary did today" report. I'm sure her potential donors will be happy to oblige Andrea Mitchell by meeting with Clinton while ordering smoothies at a 7-11.
AK
You're absolutely right about these constant attacks on Clinton. Unfortunately, they are, and have been, very effective. "Crooked" Hillary is firmly affixed to her and may be the reason she will lose the presidency. But even if she wins, the label stays and her administration will be battered by the branding. Only one thing comforts me. She will get to name the next supremes. The assholes won't be able to deny her that, although those will be bloody battles, too.
@Ak: For more in 'behind closed doors'...WAPO has the inside scope. How Trump "charms wealthy donors in private" — by seeking their advice.
Must be more of that durn both-siders do it, huh?
Here's a beautiful piece of journalism history that shows exactly how the NYT Healy article was edited once it became obvious that Healy hadn't heard the speech he was reporting.
http://newsdiffs.org/diff/1240899/1240928/www.nytimes.com/2016/09/01/us/politics/donald-trump-immigration-speech.html
But stay tuned! Trump has hired the sleeze behind Citizens United - David Bossie - the guy so scuzzy Newt Gingrich had to fire him. Great opportunities at sliming HRC to follow apace!
Can't wait until Trump hires James O'Keefe!
Marvelous takedown of Trump by Garrison Keillor.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ct-donald-trump-losing-garrison-keillor-20160831-story.html
Marie,
If you are in the path of that hurricane, stay safe.
Marie-- Thanks for the response. I was not at all criticizing the great job you do and have done, it is the MSM, print and TV media, that must present everything every day of what Trump says and does, mostly with a positive spin, not at all the same with Clinton.