Irony Is Dead & Assorted Other 2020 Election Musings
If Tuesday’s performance art coming out of the White House is any indication, the next two weeks are going to be a wild ride. Democrats everywhere are (privately) grateful for President Trump's assistance in the campaign to elect Biden/Harris.
I’m sure the attacks on Dr. Fauci will only solidify public perceptions of the President, and not in a good way. Storming out of an CBS 60 Minutes interview because he can’t stand Leslie Stahl asking tough questions isn’t likely to help Trump’s popularity with suburban women voters.
I expect the final Presidential debate (if it happens) to be a real sh*tshow, with Trump ignoring moderator questions and using his time to spew conspiracy theories about Hunter Biden, Nancy Pelosi, and Antifa.
Get ready. Or, better yet, don’t watch. Life’s too short.
Meanwhile, over at the Biden campaign:
https://twitter.com/JTHVerhovek/status/1318719921631727617?s=20
Here’s Will Saletan’s take:
The power of this ad is in how little it asks of undecided voters. It separates them from Trump without requiring any ideology.
“if we choose to take on problems and not each other”
"doesn’t need everyone in this country to always agree. Just to agree we all love this country"
Here’s the latest GOP push back on former Vice President Joe Biden:
https://twitter.com/daveweigel/status/1318920619774410754?s=20
Part of Donald Trump’s stump speech is warning the crowd that, should Biden become President, life will be boring.
Puleese!
Another big part of the Trumpian rant is fear mongering over China. You know, Joe Biden is “weak” on China...yadda, yadda.
https://twitter.com/RepRaskin/status/1318916895882551296?s=20
I’ll let you in on a non-very secret: Trump’s BOFFO rallies are being staged to keep him out of real trouble. They keep him away from watching non-stop Fox News and impulsively acting on whatever outrage is presented by Hannity, et, al..
From Politico:
Trump views rallies in battleground states as the linchpin of his closing argument, a means to excite his supporters and ensure they vote on Nov. 3. But many Republicans close to the White House, former senior administration officials and political advisers say the rallies are largely a way to keep the unscripted and undisciplined president occupied, since they do little to persuade new Trump voters. Rallies, they note, do not woo senior citizens, independents or suburban women, many of whom have moved away from the Trump ticket this election cycle. Most of Trump’s rallies are no longer televised nationally as they once were.
And with coronavirus infection rates climbing, the Trump rallies often draw negative headlines in local news markets because the packed events defy public health guidelines, featuring few masks and almost no social distancing. After Trump’s recent rallies in Bemidji and Duluth, Minn. — both in counties the Trump campaign hopes to win — local health authorities connected roughly 24 new Covid-19 cases to the rallies and protests outside of them.
“I don’t think he has a lot of other options, if they are trying to figure out a way for him to spend his time,” said one former senior administration official. “The president easily gets stuck in things of the past and tries to repeat them. Rallies are the best thing they have for him. He wants to be on the road, and you can’t tell him to do something different.”
While the President is on the road, Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell is giving the nation a preview of what life will be like during a Biden administration should Democrats fail to take the Senate.
Although Democrats (who passed a COVID-relief bill over a hundred days ago) and the administration are into hot and heavy negotiations for a second stimulus, McConnell is willing to block any legislation that emerges, saying it will impede the confirmation of the Supreme Court justice.
Guilty as charged! Senator Lindsey Graham, facing a tough re-election race in South Carolina, is calling for an investigation into Act Blue, the fundraising mechanism used by Democrats to handle small donors.
(True Fact: the few donations I’ve scraped together for candidates this season have gone through Act Blue.)
Republicans have been unable to create their own system, as previous attempts have stalled thanks to infighting and grifting.
From the Hill:
ActBlue funneled a stunning $1.5 billion in small-dollar contributions to Democratic candidates and allied groups in the third quarter of 2020. It helped rake in $500 million in the two weeks after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Senate Republicans quickly vowed to fast-track the confirmation proceedings for President Trump’s nominee to replace her, conservative Judge Amy Coney Barrett, angering the left.
If the GOP hadn’t already killed irony as a literary device, I’d tell readers here that Sen. Graham voted against the DISCLOSE Act, which would have dramatically increased transparency for campaign spending and contributions while strengthening the ban on foreign donations in elections.
https://twitter.com/BrianKarem/status/1318924929220431878?s=20
Finally, a look at what polling says Americans think is important:
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