;)
The Conversation -- July 24, 2024
Ellen Knickmeyer, et al., of the AP: "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed 'total victory' against Hamas and condemned American opponents of the war in Gaza on Wednesday in a scathing speech to Congress boycotted by dozens of Democratic lawmakers and protested by thousands seeking an end to the war and the humanitarian crisis created by it. Netanyahu's combative speech offered no sign that his visit to the United States -- his first trip abroad since the war started -- could bring some progress in months of U.S.-led mediation for a cease-fire and hostage-release, as the Biden administration has hoped. Speaking for nearly an hour to frequent applause from U.S. lawmakers, as well as stony silence from many leading Democrats in the chamber, Netanyahu said the U.S. has a shared interest in his country's fight against Hamas and other Iran-backed armed groups."
The New York Times is liveblogging developments surrounding Benjamin Netanyahu's address to a joint session of Congress this afternoon. ~~~
Annie Karni & Erica Green: "Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu forcefully defended Israel's military campaign in Gaza during an address on Wednesday to a joint meeting of Congress, in which he praised the Israeli-American alliance and sought to portray the war as a battle between good and evil, civilization and barbarism. Mr. Netanyahu said the war against Hamas was part of a larger conflict between Iran and the United States, and he said America must stand with Israel to defend their common values." This is the pinned item Wednesday afternoon.
Shashank Benjali: "Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to forcefully defend Israel's military campaign in Gaza during an address on Wednesday to a joint meeting of Congress, a visit that is laying bare the divisions in Washington over a war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. Crowds of protesters gathered outside the Capitol in the hours before the speech. About 5,000 people, some wearing Palestinian scarves, chanted for the United States to stop arming Israel. Some carried signs calling Mr. Netanyahu a 'war criminal' and the 'prime minister of genocide.'" This was the pinned entry earlier Wednesday.
Adam Goldman of the New York Times: "Christopher A. Wray, the F.B.I. director, disclosed on Wednesday that a gunman who tried to assassinate ... Donald J. Trump searched on Google a week before the shooting for 'How far away was Oswald from Kennedy?' Mr. Wray added that the revelation appeared to be a possible first indication that the shooter began to contemplate an assassination. That same day, he registered to attend the rally in Butler, Pa., where Mr. Trump was set to speak. 'That's a search that obviously is significant in terms of his state of mind,' Mr. Wray said. In addition, Mr. Wray said the gunman had visited the area a week before the rally, spending about 20 minutes at the scene. He returned twice on the day of the shooting, for about 70 minutes in the morning and then later that afternoon, when he appeared to fly a drone in the vicinity for about 11 minutes."
Yes She Did. Shane Goldmacher of the New York Times on how Kamala Harris took hold of the Democratic party in 48 hours. "She worked the phones. Her team worked the delegates. When it was over, she had quickly locked down the nomination in a 'well-orchestrated cascade,' as one party leader put it.... The blitz demonstrated exactly the kind of vigor and energy that [President] Biden had lacked in recent weeks. Mr. Biden had reportedly made 20 calls to congressional Democrats in the first 10 or so days after the debate, while his candidacy hung in the balance. Ms. Harris made 100 calls in 10 hours."
Nancy Did It. Jessica Bennett of the New York Times: "As concerns mounted among Democrats about President Biden's mental fitness and his disastrous debate performance, and as Mr. Biden responded by digging in his heels, it was the 84-year-old [Nancy] Pelosi -- a fellow octogenarian, no longer in charge, yet as shrewd and formidable an operator as ever -- who took those concerns and helped organize them into a sustained pressure campaign." Thanks to laura h. for the link. MB: So let's presume that the reporting and the assumptions here are all true, and that the first female Speaker of the House also is responsible for clearing the way for the first female POTUS. Nancy Pelosi is already the most powerful woman in U.S. history; this would make her one of the most powerful people in U.S. history. And she did it dancing backwards in high heels.
Travis Gettys of the Raw Story: "New voter registration spiked to record levels in the first 48 hours after president Joe Biden ended his presidential campaign. The nonpartisan Vote.org website saw its highest level of new voter registrations of the 2024 election cycle in the first two days after Biden dropped out and endorsed vice president Kamala Harris, with 38,500 people signing up -- a 700 percent spike, reported Politico Playbook. That's even higher than when Taylor Swift made an Instagram post urging her fans to register, Playbook noted, and most of the new registrations came from voters who are 34 years old or younger."
Yes, Trump Is Worse. Linda Qiu of the New York Times: "A comparison of [Donald Trump's] addresses before the Republican National Convention in 2016 and 2024 demonstrates how his relationship to the truth has changed.... In 2016, when he accepted the nomination after a bitter primary campaign, with doubts and skepticism lingering over his candidacy, Mr. Trump hewed closely to his prepared remarks and paid some heed to the facts. Last Thursday..., the address Mr. Trump gave in 2024 was ... almost twice as long as his speech in 2016.... The number of inaccurate claims also doubled.... Many of his claims during his acceptance speech last week were flat-out false."
And He Can't Remember What He Said Weeks Ago. Brett Samuels of the Hill: "Former President Trump said Tuesday he has not discussed Jamie Dimon as a potential Treasury secretary if he is reelected, despite saying himself he would consider the JPMorgan Chase CEO for the position. 'I don't know who said it, or where it came from, perhaps the Radical Left, but I never discussed, or thought of, Jamie Dimon or Larry Fink for Secretary of the Treasury,' Trump said, also ruling out the BlackRock CEO. But it was the former president who said Dimon was someone he would consider for a Cabinet post during an interview earlier this month with Bloomberg. 'I have a lot of respect for Jamie Dimon,' Trump told the outlet. Asked if he might consider Dimon as a future Treasury secretary, Trump said, 'He is somebody that I would consider, sure.'"
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Hottest. Day. Ever. Sarah Kaplan of the Washington Post: "Global temperatures hit the highest levels in recorded history on Sunday, according to preliminary data from Europe;s top climate monitor -- another worrying sign of how human-caused climate change is pushing the planet into dangerous new territory." a Guardian report is here.
Peter Baker of the New York Times: "... when his motorcade pulled into the White House gates on Tuesday for the first time since he withdrew from the race, [President] Biden returned to a vastly different presidency. He is now that creature most dreaded in the Oval Office: a lame duck.... He made clear in a phone call to his old campaign headquarters on Monday that he still harbors hope for progress. 'I've got six months left of my presidency, and I'm determined to get as much done as I possibly can, both foreign policy and domestic policy,' he said, citing initiatives to curb gun violence, expand child care and elder care, lower the cost of prescription drugs and stem climate change. He also mentioned efforts to broker a cease-fire in Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza.... But he will get a sense of how difficult that may be on Thursday, when he meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel.... While Mr. Biden has said he planned to campaign for Vice President Kamala Harris, the president has canceled his travel schedule for the rest of the week, including several campaign fund-raisers."
Presidential Race
Reid Epstein & Simon Levien of the New York Times: "Delivering a jolt of enthusiasm to a party reeling from weeks of infighting, Vice President Kamala Harris rallied Democrats on Tuesday in Wisconsin and laid out a fierce argument against ... Donald J. Trump. Ms. Harris vowed, in her first rally as the de facto Democratic presidential nominee, to defeat Mr. Trump by attacking him as a prosecutor would. She defined herself as a tribune of the middle class fighting against a tool of billionaires and as a champion of abortion rights against a man who would deny such rights to all Americans. Ms. Harris offered a far more energetic denunciation of Mr. Trump than President Biden, in front of a crowd that her campaign said was the largest she or Mr. Biden had addressed since their re-election bid began over a year ago. She walked out to cheers to the tune of Beyoncé's 'Freedom,' which the singer had allowed her to use. As one attendee put it, the moment felt like a release of months of pent-up Democratic energy." ~~~
~~~ Zeke Miller, et al., of the AP: "A roaring crowd of battleground state voters greeted Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday as she opened her public case against Republican ... Donald Trump by declaring November's election will be 'a choice between freedom and chaos.'"
Kamoola, Ctd.! Michael Scherer, et al., of the Washington Post: "Weeks of pent-up Democratic panic gave way to a historic flood of campaign cash for likely presidential nominee Vice President Harris this week, as allied groups reported massive fundraising hauls amid donor elation. The coordinated Harris campaign reported Tuesday morning that they had raised more than $100 million from 1.1 million donors in the first 41 hours after President Biden announced he was stepping aside. FF PAC, also known as Future Forward, the largest outside group supporting Biden, announced $150 million in commitments in the first 24 hours after Biden's Sunday afternoon announcement."
Here are the New York Times' live election updates for Tuesday. See yesterday's conversation for some reporters' updates and observations. Here's are a couple of late additions: ~~~
Maggie Haberman: "Donald J. Trump's campaign filed a complaint on Tuesday with the Federal Election Commission against President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, accusing them of violating campaign finance laws by rolling Mr. Biden's campaign funds over to Ms. Harris."
Nicholas Nehamas: "The Democratic National Committee offered new clarity on how the party will formalize its next nominee, who is almost certain to be Vice President Kamala Harris, in a set of draft rules released on Tuesday.... Candidates ... must demonstrate they have met the qualifying criteria by the evening of July 30, principally by having acquired the support of at least 300 delegates, with no more than 50 from a single state. If only one candidate meets that threshold -- that is, if Ms. Harris remains unchallenged -- delegates will begin voting virtually on Aug. 1."
Adam Wren of Politico: "So much for the new Donald Trump. The former president is back, after a brief pause, to the insults and personal attacks that characterized his last two presidential campaigns -- less than two weeks after the attempted assassination that allies and aides insisted had left him a changed man.... He called [Vice President] Harris 'dumb as a Rock,' 'crazy,' 'nuts' and 'Laughing Kamala.'... He even repurposed an old insult of President Joe Biden, labeling his new opponent 'Lyin' Kamala.'"
Maggie Haberman & Jonathan Swan of the New York Times: "Allies of [Vice President] Harris have already telegraphed that she will run a campaign framed around a 'prosecutor versus felon' theme.... The ... approach ... may ... goad Mr. Trump, who reacts strongly to criticism, into resurrecting the language he has used against other Black female prosecutors, such as Letitia James in New York and Fani Willis in Georgia.... Over many years, he has turned off a sizable proportion of college-educated voters and suburban women with his rhetoric on gender and race.... Mr. Trump has a long history of attacking female rivals and critics in personal terms, usually describing them as mentally unstable or worse.... Publicly, Mr. Trump has described [Harris] as 'nasty,' 'crazy' and 'disrespectful,' mocked her laugh, mispronounced her name and promoted a false claim that Ms. Harris is constitutionally ineligible to serve as vice president, echoing his racist 'birther' campaign against Barack Obama....
"On Sunday, Mr. Trump, who has insisted he would debate [President] Biden anytime and anywhere, appeared to try to change the terms of the second debate. On Truth Social, he posted that the debate should be moved to Fox News, a channel on which he receives favorable coverage, from the agreed-upon ABC." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Martin Pengelly of the Guardian: "In a new book, Donald Trump's nephew recalls the future US president, at the start of his New York real estate career, surveying damage to a beloved car and furiously using the N-word. The shocking scene appears in All in the Family: The Trumps and How We Got This Way by Fred C Trump III, which will be published in the US next Tuesday. The Guardian obtained a copy. '"Niggers," I recall him saying disgustedly. "Look what the niggers did,"' Fred Trump writes, describing his uncle's racist outburst." ~~~
~~~ Emmanuel Felton of the Washington Post: "During her short-lived 2020 presidential campaign, conservatives described Kamala Harris as 'angry,' 'mean' and 'aggressive,' attacks that her supporters likened to the racist trope about angry Black women. One small town Virginia mayor called Harris 'Aunt Jemima.'... After three-and-a-half years as vice president, the racial attacks on Harris, the daughter of immigrants from Jamaica and India, have continued but are now tied to the broader culture war over corporate diversity and affirmative action programs.... In the wake of Biden's announcement that he would not run for a second term, attacks based on Harris's racial identity were the most common form of criticism of her on X, according to data from PeakMetrics, a data firm.... It is difficult to untangle the racism from the sexism that Harris is likely to face in this election, said Koritha Mitchell, author of 'From Slave Cabins to the White House.' 'Americans are not honest with the fact that they have a hard time seeing merit when it doesn't come in a straight, White male package,' she said." ~~~
~~~ Marie: A comment from Patrick yesterday afternoon surprised me, and while I was thinking about it, other contributors endorsed his argument. You should read his comment in full, but the gist of it is that "prosecutor" is a bad look for a woman. I must admit that never crossed my mind, demonstrating, I reckon, what a silly Pollyanna I am -- and how far women have to go to attain a reasonable degree of professional parity with white men. Worse, this prejudice is nothing Harris can "fix" by, I don't know, campaigning in flowered housedresses and frilly aprons. If men cannot handle women in positions of power -- like law enforcement officials -- then they cannot abide one in the ultimate power position: POTUS. I'm not trying to "correct" anyone's "feelings" here; I'm trying to articulate how dismaying it is to see how far American women are from achieving equal respect as human beings. ~~~
~~~ Update. Amanda Marcotte of Salon doesn't get it any more than I did: "Having a candidate who can talk about [sexual violence] without squirming or tripping over words is especially important in a race where abortion is a central issue.... The Republican vice presidential nominee wants a national standard of forced childbirth for rape victims. Having a candidate who can speak about the horrors of this in an experienced and concise manner may matter a lot.... She can do one interview and speech after another where she reminds female voters that Trump is a sexual predator and that he and his team would ban abortions, even for rape victims. With her background, she may be in a better position to push this issue than any other potential Democratic nominee could have been." ~~~
~~~ Oh, and here's Monica Hesse of the Washington Post: "Listen, nearly everything you need to know about the presidential candidacy of Kamala Harris can be summed up by 19 words she uttered at the 2018 confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh.... 'Can you think of any laws,' she asked the nominee, 'that give the government the power to make decisions about the male body?'... Laws related to reproductive health care only impact female bodies.... The most compelling version of Kamala is that of a savvy practitioner at the top of her game, asking the right questions even when the answers never arrived."
One More Reason Kamala Cannot Be President. Adriana Licon of the AP: "Comments JD Vance made in 2021 questioning Vice President Kamala Harris' leadership because she did not have biological children have resurfaced.... During Vance's bid for the Senate in Ohio, he said in a Fox News interview that ... Democrats ... [were] 'a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.' He said that included Harris, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.... 'How does it make any sense that we've turned our country over to people who don't really have a direct stake in it?' asked Vance.... Harris became stepmother to two teenagers when she married ... Douglas Emhoff in 2014. And Buttigieg announced he and his husband adopted infant twins in September 2021, more than a month before Vance made those comments.... The recirculated comment may be a sign of the GOP ticket's troubles appealing to women voters, and on the issue of reproductive rights." ~~~
~~~ Marie: As far as I know, no men holding high public office -- including J.D. & Donald Trump -- have given birth, so are they all unqualified to lead?
It's been the saddest part of this entire drama to see a man of great integrity and competency and almost heroic political engagement put in this position.... I want to see him regaled as an American hero, not an American tragedy. So it's really hard. -- Dean Phillips, on President Biden ~~~
~~~ ** Peter Baker of the New York Times: "For Dean Phillips, the modern Cassandra of American politics, this I-told-you-so moment brings no joy. A little vindication, yes. Sadness, too, and sympathy for a man who gave his life to public service and deserved a better finale.... 'Vindication,' he said, 'has never felt so unfulfilling.'... His decision to challenge Mr. Biden had its roots in the president's visits to Capitol Hill in 2021 to push for his domestic program. What Mr. Phillips saw was what much of the country would see three years later in the disastrous debate that doomed Mr. Biden's campaign: an aging politician who had trouble articulating his own agenda." MB: I found this piece surprisingly interesting, including the parts about Dear Abby & Talenti gelato. (Also linked yesterday.)
Michael Gold & Jim Rutenberg of the New York Times: "Ahead of President Biden's planned prime-time address from the Oval Office on Wednesday night..., Donald J. Trump and his campaign sent a letter to ABC, NBC and CBS on Tuesday demanding that Mr. Trump be given equal airtime. Mr. Biden is expected to address his decision to end his re-election campaign and outline his plans for the rest of his time in office. In a social media post, he wrote that he would discuss 'what lies ahead, and how I will finish the job for the American people.'... The Trump campaign's letter was a throwback to an earlier, pre-cable era in television, when the broadcast networks were held to strict 'public interest' standards.... None of the broadcast networks responded to a request for comment on Tuesday night.... Mr. Trump has received intense news coverage over the last two weeks, first after an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania, and then with his nightly appearances at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee."
Dan Mangan of CNBC: "... Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would be willing to debate Vice President Kamala Harris multiple times if she is nominated, as expected, by the Democratic National Convention as the party's presidential candidate."
Em Steck & Andrew Kaczynski of CNN: "... JD Vance ... repeatedly indicated in 2016 that he believed Donald Trump had committed sexual assault, even suggesting in one TV segment that in a 'he said, she said' situation Trump was less credible than one of his accusers.... 'At a fundamental level, this is sort of a "he said, she said," right? And at the end of the day, do you believe Donald Trump, who always tells the truth? Just kidding,' said Vance sarcastically. 'Or do you believe that woman on that tape?' he said, referring to [Trump accuser Jessica] Leeds. But by May 2023..., Vance's position changed entirely ... just after the former president was found liable by a jury for sexual abuse against author E. Jean Carroll. '... It's a "he said, she said" situation. And I trust my friend and the guy that I've known and gotten to know,' the Ohio Republican told CNN's Wolf Blitzer, about six months after winning his US Senate race with Trump's endorsement."
Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "Secret Service officials encouraged Donald Trump's campaign to stop scheduling large outdoor rallies and other outdoor events with big crowds after the assassination attempt on the former president in Butler, Pa.... The campaign is not currently planning any large outdoor events, a person close to Trump said.... Trump has held hundreds of outdoor rallies since launching his first presidential bid, often bragging about -- and sometimes falsely inflating -- his large crowds."
Hamed Aleaziz, et al., of the New York Times: "The director of the Secret Service, Kimberly A. Cheatle, resigned on Tuesday, after security failures surrounding the attempted assassination of ... Donald J. Trump and calls for her to step down from prominent Republican lawmakers. According to an email sent to Secret Service agents on Tuesday, Ms. Cheatle said that one of the Secret Service's foremost duties is to protect the nation's leaders and that the agency 'fell short of that mission' during the assassination attempt.... The resignation is a rapid fall for the agency veteran who protected Dick Cheney and Joseph R. Biden Jr. in their vice-presidential tenures and was publicly supported by Biden administration officials after a gunman shot at Mr. Trump at a rally on July 13. The glaring security mistakes before the shooting, however, and the heated criticism that Ms. Cheatle faced in the days since had left her position increasingly in doubt." (Also linked yesterday.) CNN's report is here.
Campbell Robertson & David Fahrenthold of the New York Times: On Tuesday, Pennsylvania state police commander Colonel Christopher Paris testified before the House Homeland Security Committee about the security preparation and response for the Butler, Pa., rally for Donald Trump. "He described a security situation that was disastrously undermined by breakdowns in communications and responsibilities, by the complex manner in which a photo of a suspicious man was relayed among the various law enforcement agencies, and by the last-minute decision for local snipers to leave an elevated vantage point to search for the suspicious man on foot.... Colonel Paris's appearance was far different in substance and tone than the one a day earlier by Kimberly A. Cheatle, then director of the Secret Service, in a hearing in front of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. Ms. Cheatle, though acknowledging the failure of her agency, frustrated the committee by repeatedly refusing to answer questions...."
~~~ Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "Speaker Mike Johnson and Representative Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader, have struck a deal to form a bipartisan task force to lead the congressional investigations into the attempted assassination of ... Donald J. Trump. The two leaders planned to announce their deal for the task force, which would be led by Republicans who control the House but would be nearly evenly divided between them and Democrats, later Tuesday morning. 'The security failures that allowed an assassination attempt on Donald Trump's life are shocking,' Mr. Johnson, of Louisiana, and Mr. Jeffries, of New York, said in a joint statement. 'The task force will be empowered with subpoena authority and will move quickly to find the facts, ensure accountability, and make certain such failures never happen again.'" (Also linked yesterday.)
Leanne Abraham, et al., of the New York Times: "The New York Times used drone photography to build a 3-D model and recreate the lines of sight for both the gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, and three teams of countersnipers -- two federal and one local. The analysis shows that Mr. Crooks, 20, who appears to have flown a drone to survey the site the morning of the rally, exploited one of the few blind spots within a rifle's range of Mr. Trump, raising questions about serious lapses in security planning for the event.... The gunman was largely concealed by two trees and the slope of a warehouse building roof, which he used as his perch." Lots of graphics. (Also linked yesterday.)
Nicholas Fandos & Tracey Tully of the New York Times: "Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey announced on Tuesday that he would resign from Congress effective in late August, bowing to intense pressure from Democratic colleagues who had pushed him to step down after his conviction in a vast international bribery scheme or face an expulsion vote. Mr. Menendez has maintained his innocence and vowed to appeal a guilty verdict returned last week by a federal jury in Manhattan. But with his own party fast-tracking a vote to expel him, he chose to spare his party an ugly fight and avoid becoming the first senator ousted since the Civil War by quitting with months to go in his term. The senator made his intention to resign official in a letter to Gov. Philip D. Murphy of New Jersey, shortly after he shared the news with what remained of his staff. Mr. Murphy, a Democrat, is expected to quickly appoint a replacement who would serve until January." (Also linked yesterday.)
Alex Horton of the Washington Post: "The Army disciplined three officers for inaction and administrative failures before military reservist Robert Card killed 18 people last year in Maine, but officials found no evidence connecting the violence to his work in the service, according to the findings of an investigation made public Tuesday.... Card's part-time military career has been the subject of intense scrutiny since it was learned in the days after the massacre that a soldier in his unit warned local authorities weeks earlier that Card might 'snap and commit a mass shooting.'... He was briefly hospitalized at a psychiatric facility in the months before the rampage.... The Army report stops short of positing what Card's motive was or whether investigators believe his military job, which included work on a grenade range, contributed to his mental health decline. A separate study of his brain concluded traumatic injuries 'likely played a role' in his behavioral changes, and his family has said that Card was probably exposed to thousands of low-level blasts."
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Annie Karni of the New York Times: "When Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel arrives on Capitol Hill on Wednesday afternoon to address a joint meeting of Congress, he will confront a legislative body divided over his leadership in the face of international censure over the war in Gaza, with some showing open hostility to the government of a country that is supposed to be among the United States' closest allies.... Vice President Kamala Harris will be absent from the rostrum.... She is only the most high-profile Democrat who will be absent -- empty seats on one side of the chamber will represent the deep anger from the party's progressive base about Mr. Netanyahu's conduct of the war with Hamas.... In the Senate, several members of the Democratic caucus plan to skip the address, including Senators Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 leader, and Patty Murray of Washington, the president pro tempore."
Ellie Silverman of the Washington Post: "U.S. Capitol Police arrested around 200 people protesting U.S. weapons sales to Israel inside the rotunda of the Cannon House Office Building on Tuesday afternoon, just a day before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to speak to Congress. The protest, organized by Jewish Voice for Peace, a national Jewish anti-Zionist organization, included rabbis, students, Israeli Americans and descendants of Holocaust survivors."
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Reader Comments (17)
(Brought forward from the end of yesterday's thread.)
Hatred + Stupidity = Party of Traitors/Trumpish logic…
So…according to PoT screechers (a group that includes both Fatty and his Peter Thiel financed, Hillbilly Scatology bobble head VP), President Biden needs to resign IMMEDIATELY!!! because something, something, something, he’s not running.
Yeah! Great idea. That makes Kamala Harris the first female President of color. Then the Orange Monster, a convicted felon and rapist will be running against a sitting president.
The droolers are also screaming that she can’t use any of the money collected by the Biden-HARRIS re-election campaign. It’s a FRAUD!! Another bleating pile of bullshit is that Joe Biden has disenfranchised millions of voters by electing to not run.
Hey, Trump and the Traitors know all about fraud and disenfranchising voters. They must know what they’re talking about.
Really, they just have no idea what to do now besides toss out racist, misogynistic brickbats. Fatty believes he is the only one who can be disruptive. How dare anyone else try it.
Gotta say, kids, I am incredibly charged up and optimistic today, more so than I’ve been in a long time. The fascists are running scared. That fat fuck will slither out of the next debate because now he’s the demented old loser who can’t put three words together.
Oh, wait. He’s been that guy for years. Think The NY Times will acknowledge that now?
No. The New York Times is a mess-- it doesn't quite know what to write about any of it. But you can bet it will all have that ol' familiar whiff of bothsideserism, if not outright giving any benefit possible to Fatso McLiar. I'm sure it will have a lot to say about the lawsuits issuing with regularity from Bible Mike, Gym Jordan and their pals.
When they aren't babbling about made-up "legalise," there will be lotsa sexism and racism to entertain us all. Bring it on.
I don't know what to say with regard to Patrick's view on women as lawyers, law enforcement members, prosecutors and attorneys general. Women ARE these things all over the world. The glitch for Kamala is not her profession, it's pure misogyny in the form of perception and projection. It's okay that she is these things-- she just has to be "ladylike" about it. No offense intended for Patrick-- he has his opinion. And this is mine. I see no conflict. People may have to get used to women campaigning for her, too, like Big Grech and Kathy Hochul. Strong women rock!
@Marie
My endorsement of Patrick's comment from yesterday stemmed more from my concern that the prosecutor-felon meme would only further fuel the MAGA paranoia machine...the deep state gummint's out to get me fantasy that already seems to sell so well.
That said, kinda liked this one. Had the feeling that once Biden lost Pelosi's (and Obama's) support he was toast. This op-ed has some detail.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/24/opinion/nancy-pelosi-joe-biden.html
Elie Mystal
"I reject the programming that’s designed to make me think a woman of color can’t win, and I embrace the fact that she can.
I really don’t give a damn if other people won’t vote for Harris because of who she is, because those other people were never on my side to begin with. We were always going to have to defeat those other people if we were going to stop the re-installation of Trump. Don’t let them lie to you. Most of the people who aren’t going to vote for Harris weren’t going to vote for Joe Biden and wouldn’t have voted for whatever hypothetical white male liberal you’ve dreamed up in your head as more appealing than the accomplished woman of color standing right in your face. But, as the last 36 hours have shown, plenty of people who weren’t thrilled about showing up for Biden seem pretty damn stoked to get out and vote for Harris."
JD Vance
"This spring, HHS finalized new regulations under HIPAA to limit law enforcement access to medical records tied to reproductive health.
Now when this rule was first proposed back in 2023, a group of 28 members of Congress wrote to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra demanding he withdraw the proposed rule “immediately.” (I was reminded of this letter when I saw this write up this morning.) They argued that the proposed rule “unlawfully thwarts the enforcement of compassionate laws” and “creates special protections for abortion that limit cooperation with law enforcement, undermine the ability to report abuse, restrict the provision of public health information … erase the humanity of unborn children” and “interfere with valid state laws protecting life.”
Now, I said 28 members of Congress. That’s not very many. You’ll remember there are 535 of them, or which 100 are senators. Vance was one of only eight Republican senators willing to go this hard for menstrual surveillance by state law enforcement agencies."
Republicans
"Florida Republican called pregnant women 'host bodies' five times while discussing anti-abortion bill"
Trying
"A group of senators led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) has introduced a bill to combat the Supreme Court’s seismic pro-corporate decision last month to overturn a precedent known as Chevron deference that has enabled federal agencies to issue regulations for decades.
Ten senators joined Warren on Tuesday in introducing the bill that would codify the Chevron doctrine and reform regulatory processes to make them more transparent and streamlined."
RAS,
Menstrual surveillance: The very definition of the (very) deep state?
I followed Marie's pointer to a commentary post from yesterday, and felt a need to respond to each point it considered. I can only imagine the arguments among the campaign advisors!
Point: the President should be a simplified model to a complex society, but the image should not be distilled down into "prosecutor".
Response: Perhaps a simplified model is good for a presidential candidate, and that truly is a tragic commentary on the electorate and on our asinine liberal democracy electoral system. A President, however, should not be, and should not be seen as, a “simplified model”.
Point: it's still fine to identify DiJiT as a "felon", but the President of the US should not be perceived as the primary enforcer. DOJ, other agencies and states have police powers. The President should not direct them against individuals.
Response: I agree that the campaign should not be framed as a retrial of Mr. Trump, but for Harris to not use her prosecutorial skills in dealing with his lies, slander, scorn for rule of law, and general inhumane indecency would be falling into the same trap Democrats have tended to stick their feet into since Reagan.
Point: there is bad comic-book juju in women identifying as enforcer/avenger. Women candidates have enough prejudices working against them, Harris doesn't need this one.
Response: I’m not sure where this one comes from. The mass media I’ve seen lately has the woman enforcer/avenger as heroine. There is still the meme of the emasculating dragon lady floating around, but that is quite different. I’ll also note that mass media men are also portrayed as evil SOBs as well has heroic enforcer/avengers. The latter is what the GOP is trying to claim it is, with Trump as the main hero figure. That must be thoroughly debunked.
Point: She can still be "tough on crime" (a bullshit issue, but always out there) without the "enforcer v. felon frame.
Response: Again, not sure where this is coming from. Is it a general squeamishness on the part of Democrats about district attorneys and feelings of sympathy for the underdog? But any politician playing the tough-on-crime card is playing the enforcer, and I would argue that the kind of criminality that Trump represents is deserving of much attention and much tough rule-of-law enforcement.
Point: when a campaign tries to assign an image/role (e.g. "The Prosecutor") to its candidate, it quickly can become wrestlemania kayfabe. Those who are already fans may love it, but those the campaign seeks to convert are turned off by the fakery. Remember how phony it was when John Kerry "reported for duty." And then got swamped by the Swift Boat ambushers. Right now Harris' apparent genuineness is part of her attraction. Fake her up and she starts to look cheesy.
Response: I would argue that when Harris plays the nice, motherly, middle-class neighbor lady attending village fetes and pinning medals on local constables is when she looks, sounds, and acts the most fake. It is that kind of kayfabe that has turned me off to her since 2019. If she is to win, she must begin at last to exude great seriousness, intensity, self-confidence, high intelligence, deep knowledge, calmness, and rock-steady strength. Forget the nicey-nice stuff and, for chrissake, make the make-up go away! The Democratic Party should not try to stage-manage or fear a strong, capable woman.
Like pat in yesterday's comments, Jessica Bennett credits Pelosi for " working methodically behind the scenes, talking to lawmakers, members of her old leadership team and her large network of donors, who slowly and steadily kept piling on."
and ultimately persuading Biden to step down.
New York Times gift link:
The Most Ruthless Political Operator in the Country Is a Woman
Haven’t heard “kayfabe” in a while (an old wrestling WWE wrestling term referring to making fake bullshit look real—a Trump specialty), but that is exactly what we need to avoid at all costs.
Image is important, no question, but an image based on authenticity is best. Trump’s whole life has been one long carny show of invented bullshit: he’s tough! No, he’s a coward. He’s smart! All teh bess werds. He’s a great businessman. Bankruptcies galore, Trump Air, Trump Steaks, Trump University, one failed bullshit scam after another. World leaders fear him. No. They fear his farts and his stupidity. Remember when he went to the UN and bragged that in two years he had done more than any other President in history? Gales of derisive laughter from world leaders. He’s a great patriot who will protect our country! Cadet BONE SPURS?
You guys remember when the media was on Hillary Clinton (during Bill’s first run) demanding to know her favorite cookie recipe? I distinctly recall thinking “Don’t, don’t, don’t!” But she did. I’ll bet Hillary never baked a fucking cookie in her life. It was so inauthentic.
And now we have JD fucking Vance, almost Fatty’s equal in fakiness, screaming that Harris has no business being president, because…black? Woman? Oh yeah, but this fucking guy, who has been in politics for all of thirty minutes is exactly who we need as president when that fat asshole keels over.
Harris has decades of serious experience as a leader. She was putting bad guys in prison when Vance was making millions sucking up to democracy hating Peter Thiel as a Silicon Valley shill. Yeah. That’s the kind of background we need. A venture capitalist vulture with zero experience.
We don’t have time to screw around. Break out the big guns and go after those goddam Nazi pigs. The Party of Traitors, and Trump in particular, always—ALWAYS—expect to be able to game the system because they cheat and lie while Democrats take the high road.
I’m not suggesting Harris mimic their slippery mendaciousness, but let’s not pull any punches here. Go right at these pricks. And no fucking cookie recipes!
VP picks?
I’m pretty much in on someone like Mark Kelly. He’s an ex-astronaut with a military background and has serious cred with gun control people. As the husband of Gabby Giffords, who was shot by another NRA hero, he could help balance Fatty’s hagiographic crap with his little ear wound. Plus he’s popular in a battleground state.
Democratic guvs like Roy Cooper and Andy Beshear need to stay where they are in deeply red states, although Beshear is someone to watch in the future. Josh Shapiro might be a good choice, but then we risk Pennsylvania going to PoT control.
I’d love, love, love to see Mayor Pete on the ticket (you’d hear Fox heads exploding 1,000 miles away…a black woman and a gay man?!) if for no other reason than watching him duke it out with lying opportunist, JD Vance, but he’s probably not gonna get the nod.
Pritzker? I dunno. The other side already has two rich guys. I’m gonna say no.
Whitmer? I’ve heard she doesn’t want it, besides, Trump nuts tried to kill her once already. She might not want to tempt fate.
One nice thing about this Veep sweepstakes is the fact that some lesser known Dems are getting national exposure. We need to gear up for the future.
Maybe there’s someone else out there, who knows? Hey, I hear Robert (a worm ate my brain) Kennedy is angling for a job. He asked Fatty for a cushy sinecure in his next administration should that unthinkable nightmare become a reality. Fatty, the ultimate “What’s in it for me?” asshole, said Ixnay on the objay. He already has plenty of crazies. He doesn’t need any more.
In any event, the very positive attention going to Democrats is a net gain. Plus it takes oxygen away from the whiny baby on the other side.
But let’s not drag it out too long.
Speaking of Hillbilly Scatology Man, JD Vance, it appears that the Orange Monster picked himself a dud…the worst pick in decades.
“Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, is making history as Donald Trump's 2024 running mate, but not in the way that the Trump campaign had hoped. According to a CNN survey taken after the Republican National Convention, Vance has an approval rating of -6 points, making him the first vice presidential nominee to enter the general election with a negative rating since 1980.
The average rating for a running mate after a party convention has been +19 points.”
The average is +19. Vulture Vance is a -6. That’s a 25 point difference from the average.
Oops! But in truth, the Fat Fascist wasn’t looking for someone to help him win. That would mean sharing credit for the victory, something he never does. He learned his lesson with the half-pence. Pence looked like a worm he could work, but he was a worm who turned, and at the wrong time for Trump’s plans for a dictatorial takeover.
Trump likely sees Vance as a nodding bobble head who will say “Thank you, sir, may I have another?” when spanked into submission. I tend to disagree with that opinion. I think Vance is a scheming climber who would throw his grandmother under a bus if he thought he’d benefit from the move.
Whatever. He’s another PoT snake, and a lot of people seem to think he’s a loser.
Vance VP
Impeach!!!!@#%€*+!!
The Traitors, completely befuddled by Kamala Harris, resort to the only thing they know to do when the Stoopid strikes: articles of impeachment against her. This will be the tenth time they’ve tried this magic trick against the Biden-Harris administration. It never works, but never mind. Keep trying, bozos.
“She has to be held accountable for the border!!! Aieeee!” they scream.
No accountability however for the Orange Monster, who scuttled a bipartisan border deal so’s he could continue to shout “Invasion! Brown people! Kill them! Deport them!”
Oh yeah, accountability is for other people. Never for them.
I guess every Republican that voted against the Biden immigration bill at Trump's orders has committed an impeachable offense according to their logic, not that they have any.
Compassionate conservatism
"Trump told his nephew to just let his disabled son die"
RAS,
Wow! Just…
Wow.
It’s too expensive to keep your disabled kid alive.
Just let him die. Move to Florida. Enjoy yourself. Have a margarita!
No wonder he thinks Hannibal Lecter (not a real person) is a great guy.
But here’s the thing. How many people will read this story? Not many, right? And of those who do read it, how many will believe it? Even fewer. And of the few who believe it, how many will really give a shit?
Had this been a story about Joe Biden telling a relative to just let a physically or mentally disabled son or daughter die so they can save some money, go to Florida and have fun, it would be headline material for six months straight. Five Netflix movies and documentaries would be made about it before it left the front page of NY Times.
But it’s Trump, so…
Seriously, how long before “Oh, it’s just Donald” doesn’t work anymore? Ever? How many more examples do people need before they acknowledge that this disgrace of a human being should not be given the eternal benefit of the doubt he’s always graced with?
Did “Oh, it’s just Jeffrey Dahmer” ever work? You think it’s unfair to compare Trump with Jeffrey Dahmer? How many people did Dahmer kill? Seventeen? Trump killed hundreds of thousands.
You think he thought any more of strangers dying of Covid than he thought of someone he knew personally?
But “Oh, it’s just Donald” still works.
And millions of equally sociopathic assholes will vote for him.