I admit I am demoralized and frightened. Until now I was reasonably certain Trump will lose, even if in a tight election. After last night, I believe the odds he will win shot up considerably. And I need to get my head out of politics for a few hours, but do please carry on in the comments.
The Mahablog
Politics. Society. Group Therapy.
I haven't watched a debate in decades. I don't see the point they are about as useful as polls and only really exist to provide content for the drive by cable booble-head industry. I don't really care how poorly Biden did in the debate, I would vote for a ham sandwich over that draft dodging piece of shit and I believe most voters will do the same. As far as being on the ledge, well get back on the floor. We democrats seem quick to abandon old Joe whenever he has a slip, trip, bad memory moment while the magats gleefully back a convicted felon. Think about that democrats are wondering if Joe can win because of a bad debate but the GOP is enthusiastic about electing a convicted sexual abuser and felon awaiting sentencing in New York. I have sort of checked out of politics (at least watching that msnbc) because all they do is go on and on about Stump. I don't care anymore he's a piece of shit we know all there is to know it really means very little anymore. All I can do is vote. So don't despair get out there on November 5th and vote!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPwq0YoOy4g
Well, voting is important (of course), but there is much more we can do. I am writing "get out the vote" post cards because I live far away from battleground states and my impaired hearing makes phone banking more frustrating than useful. We can also contribute – in my case, small donations, but together we can make a difference. I volunteered to be a poll worker for my town – elections are labor intensive operations. No doubt, there is more work involved citizens can do.
Better get the nazi uniforms to the cleaners. Fascism is coming to town.
I was expecting Demented Babbling Old Fart Drumpf.
However, Donnie Demento's handlers found whatever drug or cocktail of drugs they needed to reincarnate 2016 Donnie temporarily, for about two hours.
CNN allowed DD to spout the standard Elephascist Gish Gallop of lies, without real-time refutation.
DD also had the good luck for Biden to get a cold or whatever.
DD remains a convicted felon.
He's still facing more charges in the future.
He still stole our nation's secrets, and probably sold them to our enemies.
He still wants to send non-white and non-straight Americans back to the 19th Century.
He also wants to send women back to that century, but Roevember is still coming.
He still bungled the response to COVID-19 horribly.
Reality will settle back in next week.
To quote the late Wicked Witch of Westminster, this is no time to go wobbly.
Donnie Demento's handlers found whatever drug or cocktail of drugs they needed to reincarnate 2016 Donnie temporarily, for about two hours.
CNN allowed DD to spout the standard Elephascist Gish Gallop of lies, without real-time refutation.
DD also had the good luck for Biden to get a cold or whatever.
DD remains a convicted felon.
He's still facing more charges in the future.
He still stole our nation's secrets, and probably sold them to our enemies.
He still wants to send non-white and non-straight Americans back to the 19th Century.
He also wants to send women back to that century, but Roevember is still coming.
He still bungled the response to COVID-19 horribly.
Reality will settle back in next week.
To quote the late Wicked Witch of Westminster, this is no time to go wobbly.
Well, voting is important (of course), but there is much more we can do. I am writing "get out the vote" post cards because I live far away from battleground states and my impaired hearing makes phone banking more frustrating than useful. We can also contribute – in my case, small donations, but together we can make a difference. I volunteered to be a poll worker for my town – elections are labor intensive operations. No doubt, there is more work involved citizens can do.
Play a little rope a dope and check out his shots, then give the party a wake up call they desperately need. Then come out hard and show them you are not dead yet.
Monty Python – "Not Dead Yet" Scene (HD) (youtube.com)
Biden could literally be dead, still on the ballet, and I'd vote for him over Trump. I have, however, prepared myself for the inevitability that Trump gets back in office since 01/06. This is the #1 reason I have done a 180 degree turn on 2nd amendment issues after the pandemic.
– George Mason, Address to the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 4, 1788
This is my list of what I wish Biden would say. He has months to do it and Joe has the pulpit if he decides to use it. Biden can also chide the press if they DON'T cover in-your-face statements about Trump when/if it's front-page news every time the tub of lard farts. But this is what I'd like to hear.
I feel I have to explain my performance if not apologize for the debacle last night. A debate is supposed to be an exchange of ideas. What happened last night was not a debate – only one side was tethered to the truth and objective reality. The magnitude of the disadvantage I was under resulted in the poor showing.
Donald Trump is a BS artist. To give credit where due, he's a master of lying straight-faced with no hint of remorse. This is his superpower. Faced with the simultaneous tasks of refuting the fire-hose of misinformation he spewed AND presenting objective facts about the differences between his administration and mine, I was overwhelmed and it showed.
Speaking clearly is not an essential skill of governing – thinking clearly is. Appreciation of the subtleties of an issue and the sometimes complex facets of possible solutions requires clarity and compassion. It helps to have a staff of competent experts eager to solve something rather than exact racist and xenophobic vengeance. Hindsight has 20-20 vision so let me say now what I failed to communicate last night.
Four years ago, we were using freezer trucks as portable morgues. The daily death toll the day I took office was near its peak – near eighteen hundred fatalities per day. By March, it was down to 500 deaths per day. Having a competent administration and using the science of medicine, we got the pandemic under control. I give credit to the devoted staff we have – it wasn't anything magical
I did. I do blame my predecessor personally for trying to make the tragedy of Covid a reality show for his reelection – a show that ended, along with all press briefings, shortly after Trump suggested the virus could be cured if you drank Clorox and/or shoved a light bulb up your ass. Nobody has properly noted how the White House Press Office went totally dark at the end of the Trump presidency. Mine is open and has responded to questions and criticism. You want to talk about the border, which is serious, but the incidents of violence are not comparable to the million-plus US fatalities, many of which would not have happened with a competent response early in the pandemic.
But to talk about other lies, you continue to say your legal woes are my fault – happening at my direction. Always without any proof. I'm not "behind" any of the prosecutions you have faced, all or which seem to have finished with convictions or huge awards for damages. There's a strong indicator I haven't meddled in your legal problems – my son was recently convicted in federal court for charges that, if I was inclined to meddle, I might have ordered the DOJ to drop three years ago. No attempt to interfere with the DOJ was made – not for my family or friends nor to persecute you. If I had to state my opinion, your lawbreaking in 2020 was so blatant and egregious that law enforcement could not ignore your attempt to steal the election that you LOST!
Which brings us to the BIG lie. You continue to lie about the 2020 election. As have many of your surrogates. To their credit, some Republicans refused to support the groundless claims of massive fraud. Others are paying a high price for participating in the election fraud you designed (with others also facing criminal charges) What can be stated as a fact is that many of your surrogates have been disbarred and/or sued and sanctioned by the courts for the steaming pile of unsupported allegations made to support the BIG lie. Rudy Giuliani is bankrupt and disbarred for lies about election fraud in GA. John Eastman is disbarred and facing criminal charges in multiple jurisdictions. Kenneth Chesebro and Jenna Ellis pleaded guilty in Georgia to their roles in your scheme to steal that state. Steve Bannon will join Peter Navarro in prison for Obstruction of Congress in the investigation of the J8 insurrection. Fox News settled a law suit for almost 800 million for lies they knowingly broadcast in support of the Big lie. True the Vote was recently forced by a court to admit they have no evidence – none – to support their claims of election fraud. They said they had proof – but when forced by the court to produce, they caved. And space doesn't permit me to mention the dozens of people awaiting trial, potentially facing jail time, for their parts in YOUR election fraud. And space really doesn't exist to list the multiple felons who were in prison for crimes they committed for you while you were in office who you pardoned in the final hours of your term.
By way of contrast, no members of the Obama/Biden or Biden/Harris administrations have been charged or convicted of crimes. None.
You and your surrogates have tried to pin the same kind of criminality on me that you are guilty of in a court of law. It's said that you demanded my impeachment as soon as you had a majority in the House, presumably to lighten the sting of your two impeachments. For the last 18 months, the House has done VERY little legislating and a ton of investigating me and my family. The result – a big goose egg. They never brought Articles of Impeachment against me because there wasn't a single crime they could identify that might look plausible under any examination by the press and public. But there it is for any reasonable person to see – I'm not impeached, let alone charged and certainly not convicted. Because we don't bring people who are criminally inclined into my administration, there's no list of crimes committed by my cabinet or associates.
Abortion, contraception, same-sex marriage, non-traditional gender identity, are all under attack by the religious zealots of the right. They are wrong and the public will not allow a the US to become a theocracy. Abortion is nothing to celebrate but the moral and ethical decision is not for the government UNTIL the fetus is viable outside the womb. That's Roe. That's what I support. Contraception is not the government's business but religious tyrants want any act of sex to possibly produce a child. It's offensive to some men that women want control over their bodies. Democrats will defend women's rights. Love is love. Two humans who want to commit to each other have a right to do so in a fully respected marriage. That means Man-woman, man-man, woman-woman. It's their choice and allowing marriage protects the spouse in a host of legal circumstances. Gender identity can be complex and personal. Whether human plumbing is internal or external is NOT the main determinant of gender identity. It's for that person to find who they are, hopefully with the support of a respectful community, and family – plus the best input from medical professionals guided by the best information available. Not for government officials. Government can promote tolerance in school and in society. The message is simple – not everyone is like me. And that's OK.
The list of world leaders you admire is comprised of tyrants. North Korea is a despotism to live in and a source of arms for terrorists. Russia has clear aspirations to return to the empire it was, which requires they conquer or subdue multiple countries we have a contract to protect. That's NATO. That organization is largely why Europe hasn't had major wars in almost 80 years. Peace is cheaper than war but it's not free. The US must stand with countries who support democracy and encourage emerging countries to adopt democratic values. You are far to comfortable with tyrants and friends of the Swastika. There's plenty of video of foreign leaders mocking you behind your back – the world is laughing, but not at the US. They are laughing at you!
It's my opinion that you are not running FOR president of the United States. You are running to try to stay out of jail. When you lose the election, the trials you have delayed will be conducted. The law and punishment, if convicted, is for all, not just the poor and people of color.
Don't anyone misquote this – it's not what Biden did say, but it's not a bad list of what Biden needs to get out there in the swing states before the election.
On the subject of the odds in the election. IMO, nobody knows. Ever since Roe went down, elections where abortion is on the ballot have not been close to the poll predictions. Generally in Democrats favor,
National polling means nothing – we know where CA will go. We know where TX will go. Where will the swing states come down. I don't think anyone is getting poll numbers that reflect what's gonna happen. I don't think it's a grand conspiracy but I think our side isn't responding to polls. I know I use full call screening and it's eliminated spam calls – and polls.
Eric Root has some excellent suggestions for getting involved. Pushing back on Republicans in social situations is something I've done – not getting in fights – but pointing out Trump is a felon and a rapist. Those aren't my values.
This election isn't over by a long shot – there's stuff to be determined, including getting the DC trial back in gear. The fat lady isn't singing – she's not even on stage.
Oh, BFD that trump put on a good show. The reps have always been about making the false look like reality. We're not all as stupid as we look. I'm a believer that most will vote for the candidate that they trust over the entertainer that all the media love to focus on.
After watching in Florida events of the 2000 election, I'm more concerned about that party's dominance of the secretaries of state offices, not to mention the "Supreme Beings," who can do whatever they want to us.
Like it's big news that power corrupts. Que sera sera – protect yourself from the poison of worry.
I plead for all of you to read Maureen Dowd's column today in the NYT. She writes with great ability, knowledge, and connections well above any of our levels. She writes as a long time Biden mentor, supporter, and constructive critic. She is so correct. The Democratic Convention needs to be a showcase of talent, and it has a national treasure of it, I am currently reading a book by one of its new stars, a tome on the use of geoeconomic power and statesmanship as a supplement to war power. Biden has gathered quite a team, and we need to preserve and showcase it. The convention needs to showcase the young starts and the future. I am not quite as old as Biden, but I am well aware that I depend more and more on talented young people. Soon what old people created and cherished will need to be preserved by young people or perish. This is the true meaning of the word conserve, and it requires progressive and pragmatic components to work. Not the cadre of nut jobs the republican party will showcase at their convention.
I like Marci Wheeler's take on this. For what it's worth, so far the debate doesn't seem to have affected polling very much. Digby speculates that this may be because people had been prepped to expect Biden to be Old, but they'd forgotten just how nasty Trump is (he's gotten worse, hard though that is to imagine.)
I wonder if Trump has the sort of dementia that manifests in uncontrolled outbursts of anger. Such people can be very energetic, and very dangerous.
Beyond that, even if Biden doesn't have the energy he had even four years ago, he'd hardly be the first President whose staff had covered for his slips.
I may be quibbling over a detail but the last two SOTU addresses were stellar performances by Joe. Which isn't to say Biden did not disappoint. He did. And the following day, he was strong in a rally in NC.
I'm absolutely not in a position to judge if Biden has it together in his day-to-day performance in doing presidential stuff. If he has to rely on staff, I'm not bothered by that. They seem to be doing a good job.
The name of the game is putting Trump in the Big House, not the White House. We can work out the other problems one by one, USSC, etc.
Look how high the bar has been set for Biden. He's had two stellar SOTU's as you point out, his track record of accomplishment as president is damn near peerless, and he's exceeded expectations of where he could have the nation, post COVID. And yet, all it takes is one bad debate performance for erstwhile supporters, mostly in media but some in his own party to ignore all that and publicly pull the rug out from under him. Knowing full well that to introduce the kind of chaos and division into the race at this point will only be a net help to Trump.
Democratic voters don't like how Biden is being treated by some in his own party. I hope they don't do this.
CNN reports 20-year LOW viewership for the debate.
CNN reports 20-year record low debate viewership | Salon.com
Nobdy breaks down those numbers by viewers but I'd venture to guess that the low-info disconnected voter was absent. Yeah, he's heard some echos but he wasn't there in strong numbers. Which begs the question – how do we REACH the low-info voter. The debate may have done way less damage than we feared, but how does Trump get exposed as the threat to democracy that he is?
Someone needs to tell Bannon he doesn't have to pack a toothbrush. Or anything else. BOP will take everything he's wearing and supply a prison outfit. He can mail his clothes home at his expense or donate what he wears on Monday to charity.
Is this a viable attack avenue? So many of Trump's network are going to jail and/or under criminal charges and/or disbarred. You are known by the company you keep. This tenet rings true across the political spectrum.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDryx4EM0Xg
Triumph the insult dog interviewing undecided voters.
hopefully it will lighten up the atmosphere and emphasize the fact that the debate changed nobody's mind.
So let's keep our chin up.