Author: A.T.

Episode 6 And DeSantis

Rachel Maddow’s ULTRA is so worth your time.  Episode 6 has dropped.

The parallels between America First’s attempt to overthrow our democracy — with the help of sitting Senators and Representatives manipulated by the Germans — and the January 6 crew’s attempt manipulated by the Russians . . . and the attempts then and now to shut down Justice Department investigations thereof . . . are nothing short of jaw-dropping.

Start with Episode 1, if you haven’t already, and binge.

Fortunately, there are signs the former president — “Toxic Trump,” as Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post now calls him — may be replaced on the right by the newly reelected governor of Florida.

And yet . . . well, the time may thus have come to find out who he is:  The greatest threat to Donald Trump’s hold on the GOP comes from Ron DeSantis, who may be more MAGA than the MAGA king himself.

One thing to keep in mind if Joe Biden runs again is that — yes — he’s old.  But with him comes his team of more than a thousand appointees who have restored competence to the government and helped America regain the respect of the free world.  That — and the infrastructure bill, the CHIPs bill, the bill to lower prescription drug prices and confront climate, and much more — would be a lot to throw away to take a chance on someone new.

Have a great day.

 

Stay Tuned

It could be a very long month. Or two.

But as I post this, we still have a shot at defeating those who pretend to believe the election was stolen from Trump.

(Now that J.D. Vance has secured a six-year Senate term, will he go back to characterizing Trump as “America’s Hitler”?)

Thanks for all you did to — at the very least — defy predictions of a “red wave.”

 

Will Putin Win Today?

Just as Hitler — with the help of numerous U.S. Senators and Congressmen — tried to overturn American democracy to keep us from blocking his conquest of the Ukraine (among other places) — so Putin has been attempting much the same thing.

The only plank in the 2016 Republican platform Trump had changed was the language supporting Ukraine.

Even so (“Russia, are you listening?”), many who haven’t read the Mueller report think the whole Russia thing is a hoax.

Not this guy:

Russia’s Prigozhin Admits Interfering in U.S. elections

LONDON, Nov 7 (Reuters) – Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin said on Monday he had interfered in U.S. elections and would continue doing so in future, the first such admission from a figure implicated by Washington in efforts to influence American politics.

In comments posted by the press service of his Concord catering firm on Russia’s Facebook equivalent VKontakte, Prigozhin said: “We have interfered (in U.S. elections), we are interfering and we will continue to interfere. Carefully, accurately, surgically and in our own way, as we know how to do.”

The remark by the close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin was posted on the eve of the U.S. midterm elections in response to a request for comment from a Russian news site.

“During our pinpoint operations, we will remove both kidneys and the liver at once,” Prigozhin said. He did not elaborate on the cryptic comment.

Prigozhin, who is often referred to as “Putin’s chef” because his catering company operates Kremlin contracts, has been formally accused of sponsoring Russia-based “troll farms” that seek to influence U.S. politics. . . .

So . . . what if Putin and the Republicans do win?

From the indispensable New York Times . . . Maureen Dowd:

Are we ready for our new Republican overlords?

Are we ready for an empowered Marjorie Taylor Greene?

Are we ready for a pumped-up, pistol-packing Lauren Boebert?

“How many AR-15s do you think Jesus would have had?” Boebert asked a crowd at a Christian campaign event in June. I’m going with none, honestly, but her answer was, “Well, he didn’t have enough to keep his government from killing him.”

The Denver Post pleaded: “We beg voters in western and southern Colorado not to give Rep. Lauren Boebert their vote.”

The freshman representative has recently been predicting happily that we’re in the end times, “the last of the last days.” If Lauren Boebert is in charge, we may want to be in the end times. I’m feeling not so Rapturous about the prospect.

And then there’s the future first female president, Kari Lake, who lulls you into believing, with her mellifluous voice, statements that seem to emanate from Lucifer. She’s dangerous because, like Donald Trump, she has real skills from her years in TV. And she really believes this stuff, unlike Trump and Kevin McCarthy, who are faking it.

As Cecily Strong said on “Saturday Night Live” last weekend, embodying Lake, “If the people of Arizona elect me, I’ll make sure they never have to vote ever again.”

Speaking of “Paradise Lost,” how about Ron DeSantis? The governor of Florida, who’s running for a second term, is airing an ad that suggests that he was literally anointed by God to fight Democrats. God almighty, that’s some high-level endorsement.

Much to our national shame, it looks like these over-the-top and way, way, way out-of-the mainstream Republicans — and the formerly normie and now creepy Republicans who have bent the knee to the wackos out of political expediency — are going to be running the House, maybe the Senate and certainly some states, perhaps even some that Joe Biden won two years ago.

And it looks as if Kevin McCarthy will finally realize his goal of becoming speaker, but when he speaks, it will be Marjorie Taylor Greene, Jim Jordan and Lauren Boebert doing the spewing. It will be like the devil growling through Linda Blair in “The Exorcist” — except it will be our heads spinning.

Welcome to a rogue’s gallery of crazy: Clay Higgins, who’s spouting conspiracy theories about Paul Pelosi, wants to run the House Homeland Security Committee; Paul Gosar, whose own family has begged Arizonans to eject him from Congress, will be persona grata in the new majority.

In North Carolina, Bo Hines, a Republican candidate for the House, wants community panels to decide whether rape victims are able to get abortions or not. He’s building on Dr. Oz’s dictum that local politicians should help make that call. Even Oprah turned on her creation, Dr. Odd.

J.D. Vance, the Yale-educated, former Silicon Valley venture capitalist and author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” who called Trump “America’s Hitler” in 2016, before saluting him to gain public office, could join the Senate in January. Talk about American Elegy.

Even though he wrote in his best seller that Yale Law School was his “dream school,” he now trashes the very system that birthed him. Last year, he gave a speech titled “The Universities Are the Enemy”: His mother-in-law is a provost at the University of California San Diego.

It’s disturbing to think of Vance side by side with Herschel Walker. Walker was backed by Mitch McConnell, who countenanced an obviously troubled and flawed individual even if it meant degrading the once illustrious Senate chamber.

Overall, there are nearly 300 election deniers on the ballot, but they will be all too happy to accept the results if they win.

People voting for these crazies think they’re punishing Biden, Barack Obama and the Democrats. They’re really punishing themselves.

These extreme Republicans don’t have a plan. Their only idea is to get in, make trouble for President Biden, drag Hunter into the dock, start a bunch of stupid investigations, shut down the government, abandon Ukraine and hold the debt limit hostage.

Democrats are partly to blame. They haven’t explained how they plan to get a grip on the things people are worried about: crime and inflation. Voters weren’t hearing what they needed to hear from Biden, who felt morally obligated to talk about the threat to democracy, even though that’s not what people are voting on.

As it turns out, a woman’s right to control her body has been overshadowed by uneasiness over safety and economic security.

To top it off, Trump is promising a return. We’ll see if DeSantis really is the chosen one. In Iowa on Thursday night, Trump urged the crowd to “crush the communists” at the ballot box and said that he was “very, very, very” close to deciding to “do it again.”

Trump, the modern Pandora, released the evil spirits swirling around us — racism, antisemitism, violence, hatred, conspiracy theories, and Trump mini-mes who should be nowhere near the levers of power.

Heaven help us.

And for heaven’s sake, vote.

[ParkerVision scores another win, adding nicely to last week’s news about their new board member . . . who presumably sees merit in their claims.]

 

Maher Versus Moore

Bill Maher: Well, we had a good run.  This “new rules” clip is deeply bleak but, I fear, all too true.

Don’t spare yourself — watch.

Not to mention Rachel Maddow’s ULTRA podcast.  Where Hitler’s propaganda effort failed to overthrow our democracy and keep us from entering the war (so he could grab, among other things, Ukraine), Putin seems to be having more success.  The parallels to America First, and the Congressmen and Senators who were secretly aiding and abetting his effort, are chilling.

It’s an amazing story — listen.

Speaking of which, the once almost amusing factoid that Trump kept Hitler’s My New Order by his bedside begins now to take your breath away.

So I guess I have one more day to indulge my happy gene and re-read Michael Moore’s glorious, confident prediction.

It’s absolutely possible he’ll be right!

(“Let us pray,” as my non-religious mother used to say.)

Even if he is, though, it’s hard not to expect Senate races (and others) that won’t by decided for days or weeks.

November is one of those months with just 30 days, but it’s likely to seem a lot longer.

Thanks for all so many of you have done to help save democracy and prove Bill Maher wrong.

 

Civil Discourse

But first . . .

THE PERFECT AD

Former Navy Commander Luria loves her country — as do we all.  I would argue that this 60-second spot speaks for virtually every Democrat on Tuesday’s ballot.

BUCK UP!

Michael Moore, who defied conventional wisdom in 2016 predicting Trump would win, now defies it again — with even more confidence. He predicts a blue tsunami. And offers action steps for your weekend, because tsunamis don’t just happen.

WILL THE COURT BLOCK HIM?

CREW alerts Trump they will sue under Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment to bar him from office if, as rumored, he kicks off his campaign this month.  It will be interesting to see how the Court rules.  I’m not sure it’s a forgone conclusion.  (The same would apply if he ran to be Speaker of the House.)

And now . . .

CIVIL DISCOURSE

In response to the last line of yesterday’s post — that Putin, et al, would be thrilled if America lost democracy “but what about the Greatest Generation, who fought so hard to preserve it?” — Fred C. writes:

My Dad was at Pearl Harbor when it was bombed and at various stations throughout WWII and I can guarantee you he would not be voting Democratic.  My former party has become the party to discontinue bail and let felons back on the street so they can murder, allow men to compete in women’s events completely negating all the years of training for many of these women, allow abortion on demand up to the point of birth, try to destroy the energy companies and allow gas prices to continue to rise, and completely forgive student loans even though most of us had to pay their way through college.  I could go on about inflation and wokeness but no need.

The only valid argument on your side is that democracy hangs in the balance.  As I’ve told you before, I don’t believe that to be the case but you’ve made your point.  The judges, in my opinion, are a wash.  Biden is loading the judiciary with far left loonies just as Trump did with the far right.

As for me, I hope the democrats get shellacked and maybe get rid of the woke nonsense and come back down to earth.  I would really like to see a party I can support.

I have enjoyed reading your column for many years now.  I was a moderate republican when I started, became a somewhat liberal democrat, and have morphed into a somewhat conservative independent.  It’s been a wild ride and you’ve been right there with me.

Take care, I have the deepest respect and fondness for you regardless of your views.  And I strongly support LBGT rights, I just believe it is very unfair for a person born a male to compete in women’s athletics.

My reply:

Thanks for the kind words.

I think there are very few instances of violent criminals being let out on bail. That’s the G.O.P. scare tactic. To the extent it does happen, I totally join you in opposing it – as would almost any Democrat running for office.

I also agree that it’s unfair for men to compete against women. That’s why I’m glad the NCAA and other sports authorities – who probably don’t lean wildly liberal – have studied this and set rules requiring that certain testosterone levels be met, and other safeguards. To the extent they may have set the bar too low, I have no problem with reexamining and readjusting. But in a nation of 330 million people, is this really an issue that affects more than a few thousand athletes?  Or is it something the G.O.P. has effectively seized upon to draw attention away from, say, keeping insulin wildly expensive for 20 million diabetics?  Denying tens of millions of women the protections of Roe v. Wade (which does NOT allow “abortion on demand up until the day of birth”).

I don’t think Dems are working to destroy energy companies (which are making record profits) OR “allowing gas prices to rise” — we don’t set the world oil price and at least so far have not limited those record profits.  But to Democrats, the slow-rolling climate crisis is real, and we owe it to future generations to try to balance today’s critical needs with tomorrow’s.

Your point on student loans is definitely an important one.  The other side of it is: If you agree that inequality has gotten badly out of hand over the past four decades, then here is a measured, limited way — targeted largely to community college grads and students who took on debt but DIDN’T graduate — to provide a little boost. Even the score a little.

After all, not so long ago we bailed out the banks, with little outcry from the G.O.P. . . . and gave the richest Americans and corporations huge tax cuts at the BEHEST of the G.O.P.  So modest debt relief to a group who badly need it?   That’s the other side of the discussion.  Both sides make valid points I think, though I come down with the Dems.

I agree with you about wokeness — cancel culture has gone way too far — which is why I link to so many Bill Maher rants. I like to think the pendulum is beginning to shift back a bit.  And I would note that little of the Democratic leadership comes from the far left, whereas MOST of the Republican leadership now comes from the election-denying far right.

If I had to choose between being way too sensitive to things like racism and sexism or being way too INsensitive — a terrible choice we both agree should NOT have to be made, as a sensible center should be found – I would choose the former.

Have a great weekend and thanks again for your readership!  If everyone were a thoughtful independent like you, we’d have little to worry about.

You have a great weekend, too.

 

Shiny Objects

As much as we may be focused on the election and finding ways to help, we’re all human; and, well, distractions abound:

1. I couldn’t help notice that PRKR showing signs of life, climbing from 18 cents Monday to 38 cents Tuesday before settling back to 30 cents.  What happened?  My guess: PRKR’s new board member.  Given his credentials and background, one imagines he didn’t lend his name to the company lightly, thinking it would fail.  It may fail of course; but the Intel trial is set to begin 13 weeks from now.  And eventually the Qualcomm suit may be reinstated on appeal.  Someday in our lifetime, having enforced its patents, the company might even be able to bring new technology to market, getting paid this time.  So it remains a bet only for money we can truly afford to lose; but I still like the odds.

2. TV can cause dementia (or so suggests a 12-year study of 146,651 subjects).  Brain HQ can prevent it (or so suggests a 10-year study of 2,800 patients).  Carve 15 minutes from your weekly TV viewing for brain exercise?  Or suggest this to your parents?

3. Finally, an unusual way to make music that’s likely to brighten your day.  It did mine.

OK.   Break over.  Back to encouraging people to vote.  Inflation may last another year or three (I hope not!); but autocracies, once entrenched, can last for centuries.  Next Tuesday, if the election deniers take power, would be a huge step down that path.

Putin would be thrilled.  Trump would be thrilled.  Q-Anon would be thrilled.  Giuliani would be thrilled.  Tucker Carlson would be thrilled.  But what about the Greatest Generation, who fought so hard to preserve democracy?  What about their kids and grandkids?  Like me?

 

Paul Pelosi . . .

Yes, this is fascism.  Abetted by Elon Musk.  Watch.

If young people turn out to vote, we will win.  Do you have kids?  Grandchildren?  Nieces?  Nephews?  Know people who do?  Get on the phone!  The loss of democracy seems very abstract — until, let’s say, you have to fight World War II to preserve it.  Easier just to vote.

 

How Will The Stock Market Do If Republicans Win The House?

Norm Ornstein’s piece in the Atlantic doesn’t address that directly.  But if the U.S. defaulted on its debt for the first time in history, I’m thinking that would not be bullish.

If young people turn out to vote, we will win November 8.  Do you have children?  Grandchildren?  Nieces?  Nephews?  Know people who do?  Get on the phone!  The loss of democracy seems very abstract — until, let’s say, you have to fight World War II to preserve it.  Easier just to vote.

Did you see the lead segment on last night’s 60 Minutes?  Voter fraud in Arizona?  It turns out there was an instance of “voter harvesting” that led to an indictment.  Granted, it occurred in a primary, so Trump could not possibly have lost votes to Biden as a result.  And granted, the harvesting was someone dropping off a few other people’s ballots for them (“hey, if you’re driving past the drop box, anyway, would you do me a favor?”) . . . but . . . well, watch the segment and decide for yourself.  Arizona’s next secretary of state may well be an election denier who believes Satan is involved.

An exhaustive Associated Press review found a total of 475 cases of voter fraud out of 25 million votes cast in six of the states Trump disputed.

On the one hand, for every case caught there may have been 10 that were not.  On the other hand, it’s not just Biden supporters who might illegally have taken a friend’s ballot to the drop box or filled out a recently-deceased parent’s absentee ballot.  Indeed, “multiple reports by Newsweek and other outlets show that most of those charged with voter fraud were, in fact, Republican voters.”

If Trump supporters are willing to fly to DC and storm the Capitol for him, might that not, on rare occasion have committed voter fraud for him?  He has certainly encouraged it.  (“I just need you to find 11,780 votes . . .”)

So the more voter fraud there was — and every indication is there was vanishingly little — the greater Biden’s 7 million vote margin of victory.

I say again: If young people turn out to vote, we will win.  Do you have children?  Grandchildren?  Nieces?  Nephews?  Know people who do?  Get on the phone!

 

The Truth About Crime, Oil, And Democracy

VIOLENT CRIME

Take a look.

Down sharply under Clinton . . .

. . .  level under Bush 43 . . .

. . . down some more under Obama . . .

. . . level under Trump and Biden’s first year.

I totally agree with those who think (as who wouldn’t?) that every crime spike needs to be addressed.  In places like New York City (still one of the safest in the country), that process has begun.

Needless to say, ANY violent crime is too much.

(So, too, plain old subway harassment.)

Yet I’m not sure the solution is allowing teenagers to buy weapons of war — something the current Republican leadership currently insists on — nor loosening gun laws generally, as they have in Texas.  Witness this Texas man who killed a nine year old girl, all perfectly legal.

As previously posted, murder rates are higher in Trump-voting red states than in Biden-voting blue. And sometimes, highest in cities with Republican mayors.

You just don’t hear much about that from the red team.

OIL

From FORTUNE: Biden Is Making Real Progress On Energy.

. . . to the great chagrin of many environmental advocates, Biden has been laying the groundwork for a gradual transition to clean energy, not the overnight transformation that boogeyman industry critics have been urging him to make. His speech this week explicitly called for an increase in domestic oil and gas production as well as much-needed permitting reform to expedite the construction of energy infrastructure, particularly gas pipelines which can be converted to green hydrogen pipelines over time. . . .

From FORBES: U.S. Energy Independence Has Grown.

. . . President Trump didn’t make us energy independent. . . . But it would be fair to argue that President Trump’s energy policies slightly sped up the timeline in getting to the finish line of energy independence.  However, what isn’t true is that we lost that energy independence under President Biden. . . .

You don’t hear much about that from the red team, either.

DEMOCRACY

Former red-team operative Steve Schmidt:

Speaking of which, because you love this country and love democracy, you simply have to listen to this podcast. 

The parallels between Hitler’s attempts to sow discord and weaken our democracy and Putin’s to do the same — stunning.  To weaken our support for the countries he invaded — leading to that famous America First Nazi rally in Madison Square Garden — stunning. 

(Have I mentioned that the only thing Trump changed in the 2016 Republican Party Platform was its support for Ukraine?  Or that for years Trump — no big reader — kept a book of Hitler’s speeches by his bedside?) 

And what a story! 

Sitting members of Congress aiding and abetting a plot to overthrow the government. Insurrectionists criminally charged with plotting to end American democracy for good. Justice Department prosecutors under crushing political pressure. Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra is the all-but-forgotten true story of good, old-fashioned American extremism getting supercharged by proximity to power. When extremist elected officials get caught plotting against America with the violent ultra right, this is the story of the lengths they will go to… to cover their tracks.

I’m up to episode 4, which is perhaps the most powerful of all. 

Listen!

And have a great weekend.