The Conversation -- August 17, 2024
Maureen Dowd of the New York Times, as she is wont to do, airs top Democrats' dirty laundry, even if she has to make up some stuff.
Presidential Race
Erica Green, et al., of the New York Times: "Vice President Kamala Harris unspooled her economic agenda on Friday in her first major policy address, casting her vision as one for the future and ... Donald J. Trump's as of the past, as she argued that she would improve the lives of middle-class Americans and benefit generations of their descendants. In a roughly 30-minute speech in Raleigh, N.C., she painted a sharp contrast between herself and Mr. Trump, who has spent more time attacking President Biden's economic policies than laying out his own.... In her speech, Ms. Harris emphasized middle-class Americans' everyday experiences, like sitting at the kitchen table paying their bills or browsing grocery-store shelves. She detailed how she would build what she called an 'opportunity economy' that would lower the cost of living, provide economic security and remove barriers to building generational wealth.... Much of Ms. Harris's agenda represents an expansion of policies proposed by Mr. Biden in his latest presidential budget and during his re-election campaign....
"On Friday, the Trump campaign called the vice president 'Comrade Kamala' and said she had gone 'full communist' in a news release." MB: Seems like a well-reasoned critique, dunnit? (Also linked yesterday.)
Alex Henderson of AlterNet: "During a lighthearted conversation about food with ... Kamala Harris, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz humorously said he likes 'white guy tacos' -- meaning hard taco shells with 'ground beef and cheese' as opposed to authentic Mexican tacos with soft corn tortillas. 'Black pepper is the top of the spice level in Minnesota,' Walz joked.... Walz's comments have been drawing fake outrage ... from MAGA Republicans who believe he is disparaging white people." MB: When the leader of your party is a humorless sociopath (have you ever seen him laugh?) who would never, ever, under any circumstance, engage in self-deprecating humor, you might be dumb enough to be outraged by self-deprecating humor. (Also linked yesterday.)
Remember the Emails! Marie: I'm almost surprised the WashPo editors didn't get upset about white guy tacos. But that could be next, because in today's paper they're "disappointed" that Walz's running mate -- as part of her foreshortened presidential campaign -- outlined economic policies that include some voter-popular gimmicks. "Even adjusted for the pandering standards of campaign economics..., Ms. Harris's speech Friday ranks as a disappointment." Hmmm. Are they disappointed that Donald Trump's economic plan is a Project 2025 disaster with the extra added attraction of an economy-busting 20 percent tariff on imports? Are they disappointed that Donald Trump doesn't think much of the Medal of Valor because recipients may be "losers" who have died or been severely injured in earning the medal? Are they disappointed that Donald Trump calls Kamala Harris names that are sexist, racist, obscene and generally disparaging? Or are they disappointed that Bobby Kennedy, Jr., dumped a dead bear in Central Park? I'll admit the editors' economic analysis is okay; I just don't think Kamala Harris is the candidate to target right now. But, hey, it's great the Post decided not to publish any juicy content from the purloined Trump emails. I hope they'll send me a back copy of John Podesta's tips for creamy risotto, though.* ~~~
~~~ * Truth be told, that's the way I've been making risotto for decades, and Podesta is right about breaking down the starch. I don't make risotto often because I have to stand at the stove for 45 minutes stirring stock into arborio rice. I think I got the recipe from the original Craig Claiborne NYT cookbook.
Ezra Klein of the New York Times: "... the 2024 election is ... about gender. In Donald Trump and in Tim Walz, you have two very different, but very explicit, archetypes, visions of what it means to be a man. Trump's pitch is built on what I would call an almost cartoonish overperformance of masculinity, which is aimed at alienated young men.... But in Tim Walz, Democrats have found their own version of a male archetype: a football coach, a soldier, a guy who will fix your car, but also an ally, a man comfortable being in the role of supporting women, a man unthreatened by social change, a man even excited by it. And then there's family.... What does it mean to be pro-family? Is it to support people in finding the life path they want to walk, whether that's becoming a parent or not?... Or is it to use policy and culture to push people to have children?" Klein interviews two writers, Christine Emba of the Atlantic & Zack Beauchamp of Vox, who have written on these topics. An interesting conversation.
~~~ Marie: A topic Klein & his guests don't discuss is the accessibility of the three types of masculinity the writers define: Trump's comic he-man, Vance's "neopatriarchy" & Walz's strong nice guy. The appeal of Trump's phony persona is precisely that it is not realistically achievable. Even the quasi-delusional realize they are not likely to become masters of the universe. But it's fun to watch supermen in movies and associate yourself with someone who appears to be super-rich and who posed as the leader of the free world. On the other hand, a man could be expected to achieve Vance's or Walz's masculine ideal, so these images of masculinity present real challenges. They require hard, sustained work. And even then, for many reasons, a man might not get there. He cannot fail at being Trump because he doesn't have to try. He can fail at being Vance or Walz, because to many people, he should be like one or the other of them. If Vance brings down Trump, or irony of ironies, it will be because he turns off the lazy, good-for-nothing hillbillies he condemns in his best-selling book.
Maggie Haberman & Jonathan Swan of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump has begun preparing for his debate with Vice President Kamala Harris and has brought in the former Democratic congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard to help sharpen his attacks in a recent practice session at his private club and home, Mar-a-Lago.... Ms. Gabbard, who left the Democratic Party after her 2020 presidential run and has rebranded herself as a celebrity among Trump's base of support, has long been friendly with Mr. Trump and was briefly considered to be his running mate. But her involvement in Mr. Trump's debate preparation ... was partly because of her own performance in a 2019 Democratic presidential primary debate, when Ms. Gabbard eviscerated Ms. Harris in a memorable onstage encounter.... Ms. Gabbard's attacks in that July 2019 debate, however, all came from the left. Ms. Gabbard said during that debate that Ms. Harris, when she was a district attorney in San Francisco, 'put over 1,500 people in jail for marijuana violations and then laughed about it when she was asked if she ever smoked marijuana." The Hill's story is here.
Michael Gold of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump on Thursday described the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which honors civilians, as being 'much better' than the Medal of Honor, because service members who receive the nation's highest military honor are often severely wounded or dead. Mr. Trump's remarks follow a yearslong series of comments in which he has appeared to mock, attack or express disdain for service members who are wounded, captured or killed, even as he portrays himself as the ultimate champion of the armed forces. At a campaign event at his golf club in Bedminster, N.J., billed as a discussion about fighting antisemitism, Mr. Trump recounted how he awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Miriam Adelson, the Israeli-American widow of the casino magnate Sheldon Adelson. Ms. Adelson, who attended the event, is among his top donors. 'It's actually much better, because everyone gets the Congressional Medal of Honor, that's soldiers, they're either in very bad shape because they've been hit so many times by bullets, or they're dead.' Mr. Trump said, using a common misnomer for the military award. 'She gets it, and she's a healthy, beautiful woman.'" The Guardian's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
No, the Medal of Honor is not the equivalent of the medal Trump gave to Rush Limbaugh and Jim Jordan. No, they are not 'rated equal.' Not even close. Every single member of the military knows the significance of the MEDAL OF HONOR. Every single Commander in Chief in the history of America knows the significance of this medal ... except Donald Trump -- Amy McGrath, former Marine pilot, in a tweet
Marie: Trump may think troops are suckers & losers, but he plans to make those suckers and losers work on his little domestic projects: ~~~
~~~ Charlie Savage, et al., of the New York Times: "In his first term in office, Mr. Trump never realized his expansive vision of using troops to enforce the law on U.S. soil. But as he has sought a return to power, he has made clear that he intends to use the military for a range of domestic law enforcement purposes, including patrolling the border, suppressing protests that he deems to have turned into riots and even fighting crime in big cities run by Democrats.... During his time out of power, allies of Mr. Trump have worked on policy papers to provide legal justifications for the former president' intent to use the military to enforce the law domestically -- particularly on immigration.... But ... an internal email from a group closely aligned with Mr. Trump ... shows that, privately, the group was also exploring using troops to 'stop riots' by protesters....
"A post-Civil War law called the Posse Comitatus Act generally makes it a crime to use regular federal troops for domestic policing purposes. However, an 1807 law called the Insurrection Act creates an exception to that ban. It grants presidents the emergency power to use federal troops on domestic soil to restore law and order when they believe a situation warrants it. Those federal troops could either be regular active-duty military or state National Guard soldiers the federal government has assumed control over."
Dana Milbank of the Washington Post: "Republicans [-- like strong> Kellyanne Conway, Peter Navarro, Kevin McCarthy, Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy & Frank Luntz --] are begging Donald Trump to stop being so insulting.... They all might as well ask Trump to abandon Mar-a-Lago and move into a double-wide. Trump abandon insults? They are the very essence of the man." MB: Milbank's column is worth reading if you have a WashPo subscription. I experimented here with what the Post calls a "gift link." I don't know how or if it works. It may count against the number of articles/month you can access. Anyway, Milbank puts in one place quite a few of the insults Trump has dished out recently and a number of the more outlandish lies Trump has told. (Also linked yesterday.)
Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "... Trump's delusions have gotten wilder, his thinking more scattered.... A glitch-plagued X interview (unable to start for 45 minutes) with Elon Musk ... only made things worse. People on social media reflected shock at hearing him slur and ramble his way through a softball interview. His obsession with President Joe Biden, who is no longer running, sounds like Trump cannot cope with his actual opponents. A much less alarming performance in the debate effectively ended President Biden's campaign. Had the media been conscientiously covering Trump, the public would understand these bizarre outings as part of his noticeable cognitive decline.... The media's refusal to convey Trump's unfitness amounts to misleading the public." (Also linked yesterday.)
Say, here is a news story that might help Donald Trump understand that rising sea levels do not create more waterfront property. It involves a multimillionaire, a disappearing beachfront, a lawsuit, and a sports franchise. Maybe some aspect of all that could pique Trump's attention. ~~~
~~~ Broad Beach Is Not So Broad Anymore. Maria Paúl of the Washington Post: "... in recent years, sea level rise and erosion have washed away nearly all of the dunes in [the] Malibu neighborhood [of Broad Beach,] turning sand into a premium commodity and a source of conflict between neighbors. Now, the Milwaukee Brewers baseball team's principal owner, multimillionaire Mark Attanasio, is up to bat in the dispute. His neighbor accused him in court last week of stealing the neighborhood's scarce public sand and using it for an ongoing construction project at his home.... Between June and July, the suit alleges, construction machinery descended into the neighborhood -- and 'at times restricted public access to the entirety of Broad Beach.' The 'enormous excavators' transferred large amounts of sand from the beach's tidal zone to Attanasio's property, leaving traces of gasoline residue in the water and sand, the lawsuit states.... According to a research article published in the Pacific Historical Review in 2023, the high tide line in Broad Beach began moving landward about two feet each year starting in 1974 -- resulting in 'a loss of sixty-five feet of beach by the start of the twenty-first century.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ In yesterday's Comments, both NiskyGuy & Patrick provided plausible explanations as to why Trump thinks rising seas create more waterfront property. One of the reasons, as Patrick noted in passing, is that Trump is a moron. But Patrick's main point, which appears at the end of the Comments, well may be the "real reason" Trump is so confused. In all seriousness, it sometimes takes a very nimble mind to understand a simple one. So thank you, gentlemen.
Marie: You know how we all say we like government to be transparent? Well, you couldn't get much more transparent than sleazeball Rep. Jim Comer (R-Ky.) ~~~
~~~ Jordain Carney of Politico: "Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) on Friday announced that he is opening an investigation into [Gov. Tim] Walz's work related to China, including coordinating student trips, and sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray requesting a swath of documents and any correspondence with Walz related to China. 'Americans should be deeply concerned that Governor Walz, Kamala Harris's vice-presidential running mate, has a longstanding and cozy relationship with China.... The American people deserve to fully understand how deep Governor Walz's relationship with China goes,' Comer said in a statement. Walz in 1989 went to China as part of a teach-abroad program. He also helped coordinate trips for students and has visited China more than 30 times -- two details highlighted by Comer as part of the groundwork for his investigation.... Walz has also been critical of China, particularly on human rights. During his time in Congress he served on the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, which focuses on the issue." The Washington Post's story is here.
Will Sommer of the Washington Post: Premise for a sitcom episode: a Marxist writer finds a Project 2025 dufflebag at a Washington, D.C. corner where people leave free stuff. That really happened, but other than the Heritage Foundation siccing the cops on the writer, the story ends not with a bang but a whimper.
Congressional Crime Blotter
Mark Morales of CNN: "Former New York Rep. George Santos is expected to plead guilty Monday to federal charges relating to fraudulent activity during his 2022 midterm campaign, according to multiple sources familiar with the deal. Santos, who was expelled from the House last year, previously pleaded not guilty to 23 federal charges, including allegations of fraud related to Covid-19 unemployment benefits, misusing campaign funds and lying about his personal finances on House disclosure reports."
Buh-Bye, Bob. Tracey Tully of the New York Times: "Senator Robert Menendez, a famously pugnacious Democrat whose five-decade political career came to a crashing halt last month when he was convicted of corruption, has run his final race for re-election. After resisting what felt all-but inevitable to people close to the senator, Mr. Menendez pulled his name from November's ballot hours before the Friday deadline. He had planned to run as an independent.... Mr. Menendez, 70, was found guilty of taking bribes and acting as an agent of Egypt after a two-month trial in Manhattan, and he had virtually no chance of winning re-election." (Also linked yesterday.) Politico's report is here.
So you thought the Supremes were away for the summer, some enjoying luxury vacations at exotic ports of call on somebody else's dime? Apparently, not entirely ~~~
~~~ Abbie VanSickle & Michael Shear of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Friday temporarily continued to block Education Department rules intended to protect transgender students from discrimination based on their gender identity in several Republican states that had mounted challenges. The emergency order allowed rulings by lower courts in Louisiana and Kentucky to remain in effect in about 10 states as litigation moves forward, maintaining a pause on new federal guidelines expanding protections for transgender students that had been enacted in nearly half the country on Aug. 1. The order came in response to a challenge by the Biden administration, which asked the Supreme Court to intervene after a number of Republican-led states sought to overturn the new rules. The decision was unsigned, as is typical in such emergency petitions. But all nine members of the court said that parts of the new rules -- including the protections for transgender students -- should not go into effect until the legal challenges are resolved."
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Florida Woman. Annie Correal of the New York Times: "A white woman in Florida who shot a Black neighbor who confronted her at the door of her home last year in a case that prompted national outrage was found guilty of manslaughter on Friday by a jury in Marion County, Fla. Susan Lorincz, now 60, shot Ajike (A.J.) Owens last June as the 35-year-old mother of four stood outside a door to Ms. Lorincz's home in Ocala, a city about 80 miles northwest of Orlando. The two neighbors had been involved in an ongoing dispute over neighborhood children -- including Ms. Owens's -- playing near Ms. Lorincz's home, the authorities said. After Ms. Lorincz argued with the children and threw things at them, Ms. Owens went to Ms. Lorincz's door to confront her, the police said. Ms. Lorincz fired a handgun through the door, striking Ms. Owens in the chest. She was not armed." ~~~
~~~ Marie: The story is fine, but the headline is of a genre that irritates me: "Florida Woman Found Guilty of Manslaughter in Fatal Shooting of Black Neighbor." Too often journalists -- but in this case, the headline writer -- assume that if a subject is an American person, s/he's a white person. Here, where race matters, that's what happens. A person shot a Black person. This elevates the perp -- "Florida woman" -- to being more important or more human or more relatable or something than the "Black neighbor" she shot dead. I wouldn't mention this, except that it's a common assumption among journalists, so I suppose among Americans. A "typical" or "average" or "normal" American is white. That isn't even statistically true anymore.
Georgia. The Times They Are A'Changin', After All. Ron Harris of the AP: "A large bronze statue of the late civil rights icon leader and Georgia congressman John Lewis was installed Friday, at the very spot where a contentious monument to the confederacy stood for more than 110 years in the town square before it was dismantled in 2020.... The obelisk [memorial to the Confederacy] was erected by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1908."
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Ukraine/Russia. Constant Méheut of the New York Times: "Ukraine has destroyed a critical bridge and appears to have targeted at least one more in Russia's western Kursk region as it tries to sever Russian supply lines and consolidate its territorial gains, a dozen days into its startling cross-border offensive. Analysts say the destruction of the bridge -- which spanned the Seym River near the town of Glushkovo, about 10 miles west of the battle zone in Kursk -- could hamper Russia's response to the Ukrainian attack by making it harder to move troops and materiel, although there are alternative routes."
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Reader Comments (9)
If the 'honorable' Jim Jordan is concerned about private citizen relationships with China, perhaps he could do his job and investigate those commercial deals the Trump family finagled out of China.
You know, a point by point analysis of cui bono might go pretty well in this election season: Democrats vs Republicans.
Ahh…and here we go.
The corporate media, stung that Harris has not given them the respect and honor they believe is theirs despit, years of incompetent, deleterious, and dishonest “reporting” has been looking high and low for some way to whack her with something less obviously racist and misogynistic than the PoT attacks. And now they think they have it: “She’s gonna WRECK the economy!”
Honestly, I don’t know what impact her plans for stopping price gouging and adjusting tax regulations will have, but you know what? Neither do these fuckers. These are the same “experts” who all predicted a yuuuge recession under Biden. When the opposite happened, they found a way to credit Trump, or market forces, or black magic, still insisting that any day now, the sky would fall and crush us all.
Are they suggesting that things would be better with a Trump economy? We have actual evidence for how that went. But never mind that now. Who cares if they help the forces of authoritarian, fascist grifting as long as they can stick it to Harris and show her who’s the boss?
Lots more of this crap to come. Now that perennial loser and stoopid hearing holder Jim Comer is ringing the PoT alarm bell about how Walz is a secret Chinese agent who hates ‘Merica, there’ll be plenty more cannon fodder for lazy-ass “journalists”. “Ooooh! Comer sez blah, blah, blah! Film at 11!”
Marie,
Good catch regarding that “Florida woman” headline. The underlying assumptions, that there’s no need to identify the race of the Florida woman because, obviously, she must be white, and that the Black neighbor is more of a stand in, a caricature ( very much NOT white) are probably glaringly obvious to non-white readers, but probably seem completely normal to many white readers, and obviously to that headline writer.
But no matter, I have no doubt that Fatty will announce a full pardon, if only the white supremacists will come out and vote for him, for that poor, mistreated Florida woman, who was just trying to keep her home safe (with a gun, natch) from some dark skinned interloper who, she might have honestly assumed, was some sneaky immigrant from a shithole country come to take stuff from real ‘Mericans.
It's gonna be really difficult for Kamala to control inflation after
she becomes President.
I call it 'Greedflation'. Corporations are sticking it to us consumers
so they can hand out those million dollar bonuses and then send
Donald what's left over since they want him to do what he did before-
tax cuts for the rich, even if they pay no taxes on their billions.
An example of 'greedflation': yesterday our little town held the annual
sidewalk sale. I don't normally shop but thought I'd saunter down and
see if I could replace my 5 year old work shoes, which I paid about
40 dollars for back then.
Big sale--list price 220 dollars for my shoes, marked down to 110
dollars. That's about a thousand percent greedflation.
And little childrens shoes for 60 dollars on sale for 15 dollars.
I came back home and polished my old shoes which have to last
another 5 years.
It must be about time to double the minimum wage.
Now that the Supreme Court says the president has immunity for official acts and you can not question their motives while they are in office that “post-Civil War law called the Posse Comitatus Act generally makes it a crime to use regular federal troops for domestic policing purposes" is another dead law that is basically unenforceable. The sweeping immunity ruling gets scarier and scarier the longer you think about it and consider all the awful things that no longer have potential consequences for a rogue/Republican president.
RAS,
Another small thing we've chosen to ignore: The equally "dead" emoluments clause.
"The clause provides that: No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State."
And another clear sign that corruption has our blessing. So much for Truth and Justice. Corruption is the American Way.
Another example of 'greedflation'. Our W. Michigan power company
notified us at the beginning of summer that electric rates will be
higher this summer between the hours of 11:00 A.M. and 7:00 P.M.
That coincides with the usual time that we run the air conditioning
if it's a really hot day.
Also, most people are cooking during that time, so a double whammy
if you have an electric stove.
Wonder who they paid off to let that go into effect.
Ken,
"Corruption is the American Way" is the motto of the Roberts Court, also the Republican Party. They think that lady justice is blind folded so she can ignore the payoffs.
Daily Show
""What is fascinating to me is [Republicans'] inability to hide their loathing of women." New York Magazine writer RebeccaTraister"