The Truth About Crime, Oil, And Democracy October 28, 2022October 28, 2022 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.