The Ledes

Thursday, September 19, 2024

New York Times: “A body believed to be of the suspect in a Kentucky highway shooting that left five people seriously injured this month was found on Wednesday, the authorities said, ending a manhunt that stretched into a second week and set the local community on edge. The Kentucky State Police commissioner, Phillip Burnett Jr., said in a Wednesday night news conference that at approximately 3:30 p.m., two troopers and two civilians found an unidentified body in the brush behind the highway exit where the shooting occurred.... The police have identified the suspect of the shooting as Joseph A. Couch, 32. They said that on Sept. 7, Mr. Couch perched on a cliff overlooking Interstate 75 about eight miles north of London, Ky., and opened fire. One of the wounded was shot in the face, and another was shot in the chest. A dozen vehicles were riddled with gunfire.”

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The New York Times lists Emmy winners. The AP has an overview story here.

New York Times: “Hvaldimir, a beluga whale who had captured the public’s imagination since 2019 after he was spotted wearing a harness seemingly designed for a camera, was found dead on Saturday in Norway, according to a nonprofit that worked to protect the whale.... [Hvaldimir] was wearing a harness that identified it as “equipment” from St. Petersburg. There also appeared to be a camera mount. Some wondered if the whale was on a Russian reconnaissance mission. Russia has never claimed ownership of the whale. If Hvaldimir was a spy, he was an exceptionally friendly one. The whale showed signs of domestication, and was comfortable around people. He remained in busier waters than are typical for belugas....” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, Lord, do not let Bobby Kennedy, Jr., near that carcass. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: “There’s no evidence that a well-known beluga whale that lived off Norway’s coast and whose harness ignited speculation it was a Russian spy was shot to death last month as claimed by animal rights groups, Norwegian police said Monday.... Police said that the Norwegian Veterinary Institute conducted a preliminary autopsy on the animal, which was become known as 'Hvaldimir,' combining the Norwegian word for whale — hval — and the first name of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'There are no findings from the autopsy that indicate that Hvaldimir has been shot,' police said in a statement.”

New York Times: Botswana's “President Mokgweetsi Masisi grinned as he lifted the diamond, a 2,492-carat stone that is the biggest diamond unearthed in more than a century and the second-largest ever found, according to the Vancouver-based mining operator Lucara, which owns the mine where it was found. This exceptional discovery could bring back the luster of the natural diamond mining industry, mining companies and experts say. The diamond was discovered in the same relatively small mine in northeastern Botswana that has produced several of the largest such stones in living memory. Such gemstones typically surface as a result of volcanic activity.... The diamond will likely sell in the range of tens of millions of dollars....”

Click on photo to enlarge.

~~~ Guardian: "On a distant reef 16,000km from Paris, surfer Gabriel Medina has given Olympic viewers one of the most memorable images of the Games yet, with an airborne celebration so well poised it looked too good to be true. The Brazilian took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti on Monday, emerging from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard. The shot was taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet, who said “the conditions were perfect, the waves were taller than we expected”. He took the photo while aboard a boat nearby, capturing the surreal image with such accuracy that at first some suspected Photoshop or AI." 

Washington Post: “'Mary Cassatt at Work' is a large and mostly satisfying exhibition devoted to the career of the great American artist beloved for her sensitive and often sentimental views of family life. The 'at work' in the title of the Philadelphia Museum of Art show references the curators’ interest in Cassatt’s pioneering effort to establish herself as a professional artist within a male-dominated field. Throughout the show, which includes some 130 paintings, pastels, prints and drawings, the wall text and the art on view stresses Cassatt’s fixation on art as a career rather than a pastime.... Mary Cassatt at Work is on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art through Sept. 8. philamuseum.org”

New York Times: “Bob Newhart, who died on Thursday at the age of 94, has been such a beloved giant of popular culture for so long that it’s easy to forget how unlikely it was that he became one of the founding fathers of stand-up comedy. Before basically inventing the hit stand-up special, with the 1960 Grammy-winning album 'The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart' — that doesn’t even count his pay-per-view event broadcast on Canadian television that some cite as the first filmed special — he was a soft-spoken accountant who had never done a set in a nightclub. That he made a classic with so little preparation is one of the great miracles in the history of comedy.... Bob Newhart holds up. In fact, it’s hard to think of a stand-up from that era who is a better argument against the commonplace idea that comedy does not age well.”

Washington Post: “An early Titian masterpiece — once looted by Napolean’s troops and a part of royal collections for centuries — caused a stir when it was stolen from the home of a British marquess in 1995. Seven years later, it was found inside an unassuming white and blue plastic bag at a bus stop in southwest London by an art detective, and returned. This week, the oil painting 'The Rest on the Flight into Egypt' sold for more than $22 million at Christie’s. It was a record for the Renaissance artist, whom museums describe as the greatest painter of 16th-century Venice. Ahead of the sale in April, the auction house billed it as 'the most important work by Titian to come to the auction market in more than a generation.'”

Washington Post: The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., which houses the world's largest collection of Shakespeare material, has undergone a major renovation. "The change to the building is pervasive, both subtle and transformational."

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The Conversation -- August 23, 2024

Trump to Wrestle Bear in Central Park. A Kook & a Crook Hook Up. Brittany Gibson of Politico: "Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in a court filing, endorsed ... Donald Trump, ahead of an announcement that will likely bring an end to his quixotic campaign just months before the November elections. Kennedy filed on Friday to officially have his name withdrawn from the Pennsylvania ballot 'as a result of today's endorsement of Donald Trump for the office of President of the United States,' according to a brief filed by Kennedy's campaign attorney. He also filed to withdraw from another swing state, Arizona, on Thursday evening.... The presidential election remains incredibly close, and if even a fraction of Kennedy's support moves to Trump, it could be decisive in swing states."

Maggie Haberman & Shane Goldmacher of the New York Times: "Donald J. Trump, who recently said he has 'no regrets' about appointing the Supreme Court supermajority that overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling on abortion rights, declared on social media on Friday that his administration will be 'great' for women's 'reproductive rights.' Mr. Trump's use of the specific phrase 'reproductive rights' -- the language used by abortion-rights advocates -- appeared to be an effort ... to refashion himself ... as a political moderate on an issue that has the potential to be damaging to him in November.... On Thursday night..., Mr. Trump once again falsely claimed that 'everyone' wanted Roe 'terminated' and brought back to the states.... At the Democratic National Convention, the end of Roe -- and Mr. Trump's professed pride in appointing the justices who eliminated it -- was a central focus.... Some 22 states have implemented bans on abortion at various stages of pregnancy since the end of Roe in 2022."

Jeanna Smialek of the New York Times: "Speaking in his most closely watched speech of the year, Jerome H. Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, clearly signaled on Friday that the central bank was poised to cut interest rates in September. And while Mr. Powell stopped short of giving a clear hint at just how large that move might be, he forcefully underscored that the central bank stands prepared to adjust policy to protect the job market from weakening further and to keep the economy on a path for a soft landing."

Stephen Colbert checks out Day 4 of the Democratic National Convention: ~~~

MEANWHILE, on the Sidelines. As Akhilleus points out in today's Comments, Republicans had a spy who sneaked into the "Democrat convention" to make a case for Trump. Alas, the spy -- a friend of Donald's -- came upon a 12-year-old, and things did not go well for Incognito Man from there: ~~~

Presidential Race

Toluse Olorunnipa & Tyler Pager of the Washington Post: "Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic presidential nomination Thursday, using the most consequential speech of her political career to cast herself as an avatar of America's middle class and an avenue to usher the country away from the abrasive style of politics embraced by Republican nominee Donald Trump.... Harris delivered a withering critique of Trump while also making several appeals to bipartisanship and patriotism during her speech, combating efforts by Trump and his allies to brand her as radical or somehow foreign. As she spoke, a packed, jubilant crowd of supporters clapped and waved American flags. Many were wearing white, the color associated with the suffragist movement. More than 100,000 red, white and blue balloons dropped at the end of her speech." ~~~

     ~~~ Katie Rogers & Reid Epstein of the New York Times: "Vice President Kamala Harris used her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday to present herself as a pragmatic leader who could unite all Americans behind a 'new way forward,' painting ... Donald J. Trump as a dangerous and 'unserious man' whose election would alter the foundation of American democracy. With a steady voice and a straightforward gaze, Ms. Harris, a former prosecutor, presented the lengthiest and most serious case she has made against Mr. Trump as a presidential candidate. At each turn of the nearly 40-minute address, Ms. Harris warned that the former president's truculent behavior belied a serious and substantive threat to Americans, whether they are seeking access to reproductive health care, concerned about the safety and stability of diplomatic relationships or worried about the flow of immigrants across the nation"s southern border." ~~~

New York Times reporters live-update the final night of the Democratic National Convention. Here are some entries & partial entries: ~~~

Jazmine Ulloa: "Representative Veronica Escobar, a Biden ally who represents a Texas district that includes the border city of El Paso, is chairing the Democratic National Convention tonight."

Jennifer Medina: "Senator Alex Padilla of California, who took over [Kamala] Harris's Senate seat after she became vice president, delivered a brief speech and promised Harris would restore the sueño Americano -- the American dream."

Maggie Astor: "'I'm impressed with how large this A.I.-generated crowd looks tonight,' quips Representative Ted Lieu of California, mocking Trump's false claim that a photo of a packed Harris rally was fake."

Catie Edmondson: "Representative Joe Neguse of Colorado, 40, is seen as a rising star in the House Democratic caucus. His speech appeared to be aimed at younger voters, arguing that Harris will fight to make college more affordable, invoking his own daughter in explaining his support for her.... Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, the top Democrat on the China Select Committee in the House, provides some of the first foreign policy remarks we've heard all week at the convention. China wants 'us to fight against ourselves,' Krishnamoorthi says."

Kellen Browning: "Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts got one of the biggest ovations I've seen this week as she took the stage. She appeared to tear up at the strength of her reception from the crowd."

Jonathan Weisman: "The current speaker, Representative Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, is running for the seat of the retiring Senator Debbie Stabenow, and it is one of the closest Senate races in the country." ~~~

~~~ Medina: "For days, Democrats have invoked reclaiming patriotism, but few have made it as explicit as Slotkin. 'I want you to proudly claim your patriotism. You are here because you love your country. Do not give an inch to pretenders who wrap themselves in the flag but sit in the face of freedom it represents.'"

Astor: "Representative Pat Ryan of New York is continuing the national-security theme that has dominated the night so far. He is a combat veteran and notes that his district includes West Point, which he attended. He notes that cadets are forbidden to lie, steal, cheat 'or tolerate those who do,' and says Trump 'has violated every word in that code -- a serial liar, cheater, thief who looked soldiers in the eye, then turned around and called fallen heroes "suckers" and "losers."'"

Maggie Haberman: The Rev. Al "Sharpton is talking about Trump's full-page newspaper ad calling for the death penalty for the group, five Black and Latino teenagers who had been arrested -- but not tried -- in connection with the brutal gang rape of a white female jogger in Central Park. Those teenagers' convictions were later set aside, and their confessions found to have been coerced. One of those young men, Yusef Salaam, is now a New York city council member. Trump continues to insist he was right.... Four of the five of the 'Central Park Five' are now onstage.... Huge cheers for Yusef Salaam as he introduces himself as a New York City councilman. 'Forty-five wanted us un-alive,' Salaam says of Trump. 'He wanted us dead.'... Hearing from these men takes on a new meaning as Trump continues to insist he himself is being unfairly treated by the judicial system."

Maya King: "The Central Park Five's endorsement of Harris is significant on several levels. It draws a contrast with Trump.... It also pushes back against an ongoing narrative about how Black men view Harris, who is a prosecutor and faced real criticisms for the number of Black men who were incarcerated while she was California's attorney general."

Haberman: "The convention program has moved on to two women affirming Harris's tenure as a prosecutor, fighting sexual assault perpetrators, among others. The 'prosecutor' frame gives Harris, running for a chief executive job as a woman and facing sexist perceptions of women in those roles, an air of authority and of strength, Democratic strategists say."

Weisman: "Maura Healey, the governor of Massachusetts, is the first of a few friends of Harris who grew close as the attorneys general of their states.... Deb Haaland's confirmation as the first Native American secretary of the Interior was one of the most dramatic appointments of the Biden term. She has led an agency that was once devoted to all but eradicating Native American culture, and she brought a quiet reverance to environmental conservation. It now falls to her to attest to Harris's commitment to that vision.... The program now turns to two of the youngest, most dynamic Democrats of color in Congress, both fighting uphill battles in red states. First, Representative Maxwell Frost of Florida, the first Gen Z member of Congress, then Representative Colin Allred, who is running to defeat Ted Cruz and take his Senate seat in Texas.... [Allred] has insisted his secret weapon is the contempt that Texans of all political stripes hold for Ted Cruz, his opponent.... Allred's real secret weapon in Texas may actually be football. A linebacker from Dallas, he played for Baylor, then after going undrafted he earned a roster spot for the Tennessee Titans, where he played four seasons from 2007 to 2010."

Weisman: "Craig Sicknick's brother, Brian, died of a stroke after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. To this day, conservatives backing Trump have said Sicknick's death had nothing to do with the attack."

Browning: "NBA star Stephen Curry just appeared in a prerecorded video message, days after his head coach, Steve Kerr, addressed the convention. 'I believe that Kamala as president could bring that unity back and continue to move our country forward,' he said."

Weisman: "The choice of the Chicks to sing the national anthem is fascinating. Conservatives had once shunned them, but have recently adopted their in-your-face anthem 'Not Ready to Make Nice' as an answer to Democratic appeals for bipartisanship and support for Harris. But the theme was written after the Chicks, then called the Dixie Chicks, were all but banished from country music stations and booed by country audiences for disparaging then-President George W. Bush during the Iraq War. They are making their politics known again tonight."

Medina: "We're getting a lesson from two little nieces about how to pronounce Kamala -- comma, then 'lah.'" ~~~

~~~ Haberman: "Donald Trump has made a repeated bit out of mispronouncing Harris's first name, a way of othering her."

Rebecca O'Brien: "Meena Harris, Ella Emhoff, and Helena Hudlin -- Kamala Harris's niece, step-daughter, and goddaughter, respectively -- have taken the stage."

Haberman: "It's clear what [D.L.] Hughley is here as: He is a convert to Harris, after being a skeptic. That is a message Harris needs to communicate to a lot of people, that she's an acceptable alternative to Trump."

Mitch Smith: "Chris Swanson, the sheriff of the Michigan county that includes Flint, drew national attention in 2020 for walking with protesters following the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. He appeared this year in a campaign ad for President Biden that criticized Donald Trump's actions on Jan. 6, 2021."

King: "Representative Lucy McBath of Georgia rose to national prominence as a gun safety advocate after her son, Jordan, was shot and killed. She is a rising figure in Georgia politics...."

Edgar Sandoval: "ays after her daughter was killed at a mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, Kimberly Mata-Rubio told me that she was making a promise to never stop pushing for safer gun laws.... This appearance at the convention was her largest audience yet."

Haberman: "Gabby Giffords, the former congresswoman who was shot in the head more than a decade ago, is speaking now, with her astronaut and senator husband, Mark Kelly, next to her."

Nick Corasaniti: "Pink is doing an acoustic version of 'What About Us,' a ballad that she has called a political protest song."

Weisman: "Senator Mark Kelly's appearance must feel bittersweet. He was a finalist to be Harris's running mate. His supporters argued that he could secure the pivotal swing state of Arizona, lend strength on the border issue and appeal to working-class voters as the son of New Jersey cops who went to war and became an astronaut. He didn't make it -- in part because he's not a scintillating speaker.... After Kelly leans on his résumé as a combat pilot and astronaut, Leon Panetta, the former C.I.A. director and defense secretary, is attesting to Harris's foreign policy credentials, then Representative Ruben Gallego, an Iraq war combat veteran running for Senate in Arizona, will have stories to tell of valor that Trump can't compete with."

Lisa Lerer: Gov. Gretchen "Whitmer edits one of her campaign slogans for this national audience: GSD -- Get 'Stuff' Done."

Shane Goldmacher: "Democrats are trying to flip the strength vs. weakness frame that Trump had used for months against Biden. [Former Rep. Adam] Kinzinger [R-Ill.] is explicit, twice calling Trump 'weak' in his speech. 'Donald Trump is a weak man pretending to be strong,' he says."

Erica Green: "Maya Harris's remarks are largely a tribute to their mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, whom she described as having 'defied the odds, and defined herself."

King: "Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina is the last elected official scheduled to speak before Kamala Harris. His name was on the shortlist to be her vice-presidential pick before he removed himself from contention."

Lerer: "Harris is casting herself as a 'realistic, practical' leader with 'common sense.'"

Haberman: "In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man,' Harris says, part of a theme of trying to make him smaller. But she stresses that the consequences of electing him are 'extremely serious.'... While Harris is invoking Project 2025, a series of policy initiatives written by a consortium of conservative groups aligned with Trump, she is doing what most Democrats haven't done: focused on Trump's own language and proposals, which are plenty norm-shattering and radical on their own.... The only part of Biden's record that Harris is explicitly linking herself with is the effort to forge a coalition against the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It's the least controversial part of his record."

Ulloa: "Harris's calls for security and dignity for the people of Gaza drew one of the loudest responses of the night in the arena."

Jess Bidgood: "Since she has been running for President, Harris has presented herself as a 'joyful warrior.' But this is a sober speech, one that is focused broadly on how she would handle issues like the economy, abortion rights, border security and foreign policy as president."

Katie Glueck: "Harris is putting patriotism at the heart of her pitch. The crowd, waving American flags and quick to burst into chants of 'USA!', embraced it."

Oliver Darcy: "Bad news for Donald Trump: The Democratic National Convention is handily beating his Republican National Convention in the one area he cares about most: television ratings. After night one of the DNC bested night one of the RNC (an average of 20 million viewers to 18.1 million), night two saw the gap open up even wider. The Michelle and Barack Obama-powered evening averaged 20.8 million viewers across television, dwarfing the average of 14.8 million viewers who tuned into night two of Trump's coronation. The strong ratings are a reflection of the electric energy coursing through the Democratic Party after President Joe Biden stepped aside and passed the torch along to Vice President Kamala Harris. The last-minute handoff to Harris has rebooted the party, leading to viral memes, record fundraising, and now muscular television ratings."

Michael Grynbaum & Michael Gold of the New York Times: Donald Trump called in to Fox "News" during Kamala Harris's acceptance speech, "and the former president proceeded to issue a meandering, stream-of-consciousness rebuttal.... The impromptu call-in -- which lasted for 10 minutes, until Fox News informed Mr. Trump that the network had run out of time -- came shortly after he had taken to his social media platform, Truth Social, to provide real-time commentary on Ms. Harris's speech. His posts there, capitalized in a haphazard manner, were less directed at her specific remarks than at broader complaints.... At times, he digressed. 'WHERE'S HUNTER?' Mr. Trump asked as Ms. Harris came onstage.... At several points during the call, a familiar beeping sound interrupted Mr. Trump's remarks. It appeared that the former president was accidentally pressing buttons on the keypad of his phone." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: According to many reports, Trump doesn't drink, but this sure reads like a drunk dial-in.

On Wednesday night, the DNC played this devastating video, which speaks to Trump's actions and inaction on January 6, 2021: ~~~

~~~ S.V. Date of the Huffington Post: "Donald Trump is hosting a fundraiser for domestic terrorists convicted of assaulting police officers, and some defendants still facing those charges, as part of his Jan. 6, 2021, coup attempt to remain in power. The event is to take place on Sept. 5 at his country club in Bedminster, New Jersey, and is being staged by The America Project, a pro-Trump nonprofit based in Florida that is calling the reception and dinner 'the J6 Awards Gala.'"

Isabella Ramirez of Politico: "... Donald Trump, in a wide-ranging and unfocused 'Fox and Friends' interview on Thursday morning, slammed Tim Walz as a 'total lightweight' after the Minnesota governor delivered his vice presidential nomination acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention [Wednesday] night. In the live phone interview, Trump attacked Walz and Vice President Kamala Harris while also distancing himself from Project 2025.... The hosts struggled to keep him on topic as Trump spoke for more than 30 minutes on issues including crime, the border, Russia-Ukraine, abortion, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. -- with one of his favorite subjects being bashing Chicago, the DNC host city.... At his speech on Wednesday, Walz leaned into his background as a coach and hit Trump on attempting to separate himself from Project 2025, telling the crowd, 'When someone takes the time to draw up a playbook, they're going to use it.' Trump told 'Fox and Friends' that Walz connecting him to Project 2025 was 'disgraceful' and throughout the interview, repeatedly said he had 'no idea' what it was." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: If Trump has "no idea" what Project 2025 is, why is it "disgraceful" for Walz to connect him with it?

Fierce Cruelty Is a Feature of the Right-Wing Ecosystem. Julia Metraux of Mother Jones: After Gus Walz --Tim Walz's teenaged son who suffers from complex intellectual disabilities -- responded emotionally to Tim's DNC address, right-wing commentators mocked the young man.

Rebecca O'Brien & Kellen Browning of the New York Times: "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has filed paperwork to withdraw from the presidential race in Arizona, a spokesman for the Arizona secretary of state's office said on Thursday night. The move comes a day before Mr. Kennedy, an independent candidate, is set to give an address in Arizona about the future of his struggling campaign. He is expected to end his candidacy and possibly to endorse ... Donald. J. Trump following weeks of discussion between their camps, although people close to Mr. Kennedy say an endorsement is not yet certain. On Thursday Mr. Trump's campaign announced that the former president would have a 'special guest' at his rally in Glendale, Ariz., on Friday."

~~~~~~~~~~

Arizona. Supreme Suppress Votes in Battleground State. Charlie Savage & Abbie VanSickle of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed Arizona, at least for now, to toughen some voting requirements, saying that people registering to vote before the coming election must show proof of citizenship. The decision, issued in a terse, unsigned order, handed a partial victory to Republicans who supported a 2022 Arizona law imposing new restrictions on voting. But the court declined to allow Arizona to put into effect another part of that law, which could have prohibited tens of thousands of voters who are already registered from participating in the presidential election or casting any ballots by mail, unless they provided proof of citizenship.... There were signs that the court was divided over the issue, and that Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh may have split their votes between two factions. The order ... said four justices had wanted to keep the state from enforcing both measures: Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson. It named three as wanting to let the state put both provisions into effect: Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Neil M. Gorsuch."

Arkansas. Daniel Wu of the Washington Post: "The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that abortion will not be on the ballot in November, upholding the state's rejection of a petition to bring an abortion access measure before voters because organizers had failed to submit the required paperwork on time. In a narrow 4-3 ruling, the court's majority sided with Secretary of State John Thurston (R), who in July rejected a petition submitted by Arkansans for Limited Government that carried over 100,000 signatures because the group had not submitted training certifications for paid canvassers it used."

Comments Off

Reader Comments (20)

Brought forward from the end of yesterday's Comments:

Not Both Sides…

Okay, I know this is a big night. We’re getting to hear the woman who could bring down the most vile, vicious, dangerous lying piece of dog shit in American history.

BUT (to employ the Both Sides media’s favorite qualifying conjunction), if corporate media has its way, we’ll be getting plenty of reasons that Kamala Harris has a lot to answer for (no three hour sit downs with Both Sides “journalists”) and hearing that poor Donald Trump is being unfairly treated by lib’rul Democrat schemers.

You think I’m exaggerating? (I know you guys don’t, but I do want to offer the latest example of why we can never trust these fucking people.)

So, I’ve been listening to the radio interview show Fresh Air for many years. It’s generally an excellent show. Love Terry Gross. Today I listened, slack jawed, to almost an hour of infuriatingly Both Sides balderdash, presented as a program looking at how Donald Trump weaponized the Justice Department and co-opted the FBI.

Okay, I thought, I could probably write this one, but okay, maybe I’ll learn something new.

What I “learned” was both sides do it. Both sides are to blame.

Here’s the guest:

“David Rohde is a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize, who has worked for The New York Times, The New Yorker and other publications. He was twice kidnapped and held in captivity, covering conflict zones, once in Bosnia and once in Afghanistan. He's now the national security editor at NBC News. His new book is ‘Where Tyranny Begins: The Justice Department, The FBI, And The War On Democracy.’”

New York Times, NBC…other corporate media both sides outposts…I should have known.

It was billed as a look at how the Orange Monster fucked with Justice and the FBI. You have to listen to about 25 minutes before you get to that, and then it’s all about Bill Barr. But get this…Barr, according to this fucking guy, was only doing what he thought was right when he put his fat ass on the scales of Justice to help an insurrectionist asshole. He was doing what he thought he had to. On the other hand…Jamie Raskin is a partisan “firebrand”, ie, someone who isn’t really trustworthy!

What the actual fuck?!?!

It gets worse. He says no one trusts the justice department now because Both Sides believe the other side is corrupt. But he has zero examples of how Democrats are at fault.

Oh…wait. Yes he does. He rips Democrats for daring to complain about Robert Hur’s horrific report on Biden. “When he said Biden was a little demented, he was just giving his honest opinion. Democrats were wrong to ATTACK him.” Hey. Asshole. That wasn’t his fucking job. He’s not a psychiatrist. He was tasked with saying whether or not Biden had willfully retained a couple of top secret documents. That’s it! His excuse for defending Hur is “See? Biden did terrible in that debate. So I’m right! Harrumph!”

He also defends Fatty attacking the FBI for searching Mar-a-Lardo.

“Well, Trump was right to be upset and claim he was being set up.”

Why?

J. Edgar Hoover did that sort of thing 70-80 years ago.

What?!?!?

J. Edgar Hoover!?

Why not blame yellow journalists from 1910? How ‘bout Nostradamus in the 16th century?

Sorry. I couldn’t make it all the way to the end. Several times he actually says it’s his job…his JOB!! to attack both sides equally. And he uses the expression “both sides” about four or five times.

And this guy has two Pulitzers.

But it’s not really Both Sides, is it? It’s give Trump and the traitors a pass and go after Democrats, blaming them for shit they have never done.

We can’t trust any of these assholes.

Not linking this crap. You can find it if you want. Just have a barf bag handy.

August 22, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

How is it that someone who constantly brags about how smart he is can be so stupid?

Easy. You just have to be named Donald Trump.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

The My Pillow guy, MAGA superstar Mike Lindell, tried to sneak into the DNC by shaving off his mustache, putting on a hat and wearing sunglasses. Very Spy v Spy stuff. Then, to show how manly he is, he starts screaming at a kid, but sadly, Pillow Head gets punked by a 12 year old.

This is the best the PoT has to offer. A clearly disturbed crazy person shouting at a child, a child who calmly listens to his bullshit, then drop kicks his ass.

Just sad.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

I’m sure RFK, Jr’s father, wherever he is now, must be so proud that his namesake, his son, is throwing his support and the family name behind a lifetime career criminal, a loathsome fraud, con man, liar, racist, and rapist. Way to tarnish the family legacy there, Bobby. If he thinks he’s going to wrangle a cabinet position out of of this endorsement, he hasn’t been paying attention to the Trump MO: weasel whatever you can out of someone, then kick him down the stairs and tell him his stuff stinks.

Too bad. Weird AND stupid, he’d fit right in. I’m guessing as Secretary of Health and Human Services, he’d be Johnny on the Spot for a return to less, shall we say, scientific treatments like leech therapy, bloodletting, and other assorted medieval practices. Anything but proven vaccines.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Things seem to be changing over on "X" according to this BBC artick=le, https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c86l4pl6072o.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterBobby Lee

Another Johnny on the Spot (or maybe Jimmy in the Shit) character is career investigator of imaginary right wing fever dreams, Jim Comer (PoT-KY), who hasn’t done a solitary millisecond of actual legislative work since coming to Washington. His sole preoccupation is heading up embarrassingly stoopid “investigation” thingies which all end like this.

His newest, wicked cool idea is investigatin’ Gov. Tim Walz for going to China. Jumpin’ Jim ain’t even a-goin’ ta wait til he gets ‘lected Vice President! He’s gonna get right on findin’ out whether Walz is a secret Chinese agent.

Guess who gave him the idea. The stupidest man in the Senate, the ever moronic Ron Johnson!

Ol’ Ron has evidence stuff too! Guess when Walz got married…the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square uprising.

Ha!! Gotcha, Walz, you Manchurian Candidate, you! That proves you were recruited by the Chinese guv’mint to undermine the Great State of MAGAstan! Harrumph!

The problem with this thinking, of course, is that the event that took place at Tiananmen Square was an uprising AGAINST the Chinese government. This is like saying getting married on the Fourth of July proves one’s loyalty to King George III.

But stupid never sleeps in the Party of Traitors. It just invades their tiny brains like that worm that ate RFK’s gray stuff.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Trump supporters attacking Tim Walz’s son for his reaction to a beloved parent’s big moment is below despicable. Don’t know what’s a lot worse than that, but they have managed it. It’s even worse when you learn that the boy has some emotional issues. Watching it live, I was so happy for the kid, “That’s my dad!” he cried. How can you not tear up watching such a touching moment, a kid who obviously loves his father so much and is so proud of him?

How?

Easy. Well, easy if you’re an inhuman scum-sucking MAGA pig. The Family Values Party, right?

But hey, I’m guessing the Trump spawn had their own reaction when Fatty was nominated. It went along with a “Ka-Ching!” sound effect.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Orange Crush

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterRAS

So the former environmental lawyer is choosing the guy who doesn't believe in climate change, loves oil, hates green energy and electric cars, and thinks corporations should be able to pollute with abandon. But crazy attracts crazy.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterRAS

Help! Help!
I read that Kamala's proposed tax cuts amount to five trillion dollars
(NY Times).
There are about 162 million taxpayers (Forbes Advisor).
My little calculator won't handle those numbers, so I had to lop off
lots of zeros.
I came up with something like thirty thousand dollars tax cut for
162 million taxpayers.
I'm living on three retirement income plans and they don't amount to
thirty thousand dollars per year.
Does that mean that millionaires and billionaires will benefit the
most, or am I missing something?

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterForrestMorris

@Forrest Morris:

I'm guessing that this is the Times article you're writing about.

If so, it's not $5 trillion in tax cuts; it's $5 trillion in tax increases over ten years. So, kind of the opposite of what you suggest.

But any tax hikes, according to Harris' stated plan, would come only on the amount of annual family (or personal) income greater than $400,000. That is to say, most Americans won't get a tax increase.

So again, the opposite of what's worrying you. The increased taxes will be levied against the wealthiest Americans and corporations, not the middle class or poor people. Of course, most corporations probably would transfer as much as possible of the corporate tax increase to consumers, so if we buy anything, we'll be effectively paying that tax. (Some of the proposed tax increase would be on financial transactions, so transfer of that tax might go more to the wealthy than to others, though I suppose it could affect "average Americans'" retirement accounts.)

Moreover, some of the tax increases would apply only to people who had already accumulated great wealth -- a so-called "billionaires minimum tax." Sorry, but my heart is not bleeding for these guys. The more in taxes they pay, the better. I believe in taxes that serve as income levelers.

I think if you read the whole NYT article carefully, you'll get a better idea of where Harris proposes the money would come from. If you're a billionaire, you should know you will end up slightly less rich than you are now; otherwise, your tax liability should not rise.

Oh, and don't bother to get out your calculator. As with most political tax proposals, this one probably doesn't compute.

August 23, 2024 | Registered CommenterMarie Burns

@Marie: Thanks for setting me straight on Kamala's tax plan.
I must have caught one of those brain eating worms like Kennedy has.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterForrestMorris

Trying this post again. See it didn't make the trip.

Not recommending Balz's lengthy morning bloviating in the Post but one thing he said caught my eye.

After saying Harris has put the Pretender in a box that he's struggling to get out of, he goes on to say that per recent polls the former guy is still more trusted on inflation, the economy, immigration and the Israeli-Gaza war..

Will never understand anyone trusting the Pretender on anything at all, but that he has any credibility on the economy is beyond understanding. He has no idea how the economy works and has demonstrated his ignorance about it repeatedly. He doesn't even know how his favorite panacea, tariffs, work.

He may or may not be in a box. But I can't shake the fear that it is the nation that remains trapped in a box of stupidity. Hope we can get out of it by November.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/08/23/trump-harris-campaign-analysis/

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

Kennedy will endorse the Pretender, I see.

That means when Harris wins, she'll be killing two birdbrains with one stone.

Three, counting Vance.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

@RAS: As Forrest Morris pointed out yesterday in a post that echoed President Obama's implication about crowd size, Trump ordered Cheerios. But JayDee ordered doughnuts, where the holes are bigger. Does that tell us anything?

I do want to congratulate JayDee on his interpersonal skills and talent at small talk. He's probably honing them for when Trump sends him to international conferences with world leaders. "How long have you been president? ... Oh, you're prime minister? Okay. What country is that again?"

But this does also speak to the professionalism of his campaign. Normally, when a politician "serendipitously" pops into a local shop, their advance team has been there first to set up the meet-and-greet, ask permission to film there, maybe get releases from the workers, and so forth. That obviously has not happened here.

August 23, 2024 | Registered CommenterMarie Burns

Wowee…you can add that bizarre donut shop clusterfuck to Shady’s Greatest Hits, along with the cat lady interview, humping cushions, his decrees for post menopausal women, and existential flip flopping (Trump is Hitler, but now I go on donut runs for him).

I admit that he’s certainly got a distinctive style of ordering donuts though: “Gimme some glazed and a bunch of this other stuff.”

See, I usually say something like “I need four honey dipped, four jelly, and four plain (I’m a plain donut kinda guy).” I never thought of saying “Some of this and whatever else is over there.”

Must be how manly testicle-tanned venture capitalists order donuts.

Even his small talk is wooden and clumsy. It’s right up there with “Come here often?” and “What’s your sign?”

Smooooth.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Yeah, JD seems to get peeved after the worker doesn't know or doesn't care who he is. He is just radiating that "don't you know who I am, I'm famous" energy.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterRAS

Bring back the Tommy guns.

"A federal judge has dismissed charges against a Kansas man for possessing a machine gun, saying prosecutors failed to establish that a federal ban on owning such weapons is constitutional.
The decision, opens new tab by U.S. District Judge John Broomes in Wichita on Wednesday appeared to mark the first time a court has held that banning machine guns is unconstitutional after the conservative-majority U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 issued a landmark ruling that expanded gun rights.

Broomes, an appointee of Republican then-President Donald Trump"

Pretty soon we will be hearing about how rocket launchers are just big guns and the founding fathers never banned them so they are totally legal to own also.

August 23, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterRAS
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