The Commentariat -- August 7, 2019
Late Morning/Afternoon Update:
Michael Shear of the New York Times is following Trump on his no-apologies tour. "In a tweet on Wednesday morning, Mr. Trump quoted a conservative television news outlet's reporting that 'the Dayton, Ohio, shooter had a history of supporting political figures like Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and ANTIFA.'... Before he departed on Wednesday, he dismissed criticism about his use of divisive language. 'I think my rhetoric brings people together,' he said.... Before leaving, he lashed out at the mayor of Dayton, calling her a supporter of Senator Bernie Sanders and of antifa, a radical leftist group.' The president also rejected calls to abandon the way he talks about immigrants, saying that 'illegal immigration is a terrible thing for this country' and insisting that 'we have very many people coming in. They are pouring in to this country.' Mr. Trump also used language that echoed his 'both sides' comments after the neo-Nazi rallies in Charlottesville in 2017, saying on Wednesday that 'I'm concerned about the rise of any type of hate. I don't like it. Any type of supremacy, whether it's white supremacy or antifa.'" ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: The chance that Whaley is an Antifa supporter is somewhere around zero. But Trump is happy to condemn people for completely invented reasons. It's false charges like this, coming from a president*, that incite violence.
The Trump Family Idiots. Remember way back this morning when we read that Ivanka Trump tweeted made up stuff about Chicago, killing off people who had been wounded? Well, this morning Brother Junior went on Fox "News" & likened Julian Castro to the Dayton mass murderer because he had republished a publicly-available list of Trump donors in San Antonio. Of course there is nothing wrong or murderous with publicizing information the government provides, and even if there were, Julian Castro didn't do so. His brother Joaquin did, though. Philip Bump of the Washington Post reports. Worth a read, right to the end, where we learn Junior complained that Instagram "hit" him -- deleted his post -- just because he compared aspiring immigrants to animals in the zoo.
Darren Sands of BuzzFeed News: "Cory Booker stood in the well in the hallowed halls of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on Wednesday morning and challenged Americans to act on the country's gun violence epidemic, just days after mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, that killed at least 31 people and brought the country to a grieving halt. Booker offered a lyrical and, at times, spirited speech that presented an intersectional message on the dangers that white supremacy and gun violence pose to America."
Abha Bhattarai of the Washington Post: "Hundreds of white-collar Walmart employees are expected to walk out Wednesday afternoon to protest the retailer's gun policies after shootings at two company stores left 24 people dead. Workers at Walmart's e-commerce offices in San Bruno, Calif., Portland, Ore., and Brooklyn are taking action to urge the world's largest retailer to stop selling guns and discontinue donations to politicians who receive funding from the National Rifle Association. Walmart sells guns in about half of its 4,750 U.S. stores, making it one of the nation's largest retailers of firearms and ammunition.... Organizers also started a Change.org petition to call on company executives to stop selling firearms. As of Wednesday morning, it had more than 28,000 signatures." After learning of the employees' plans, Walmart suspended at least one of the organizers' email & Slack accounts. USA Today has the story here.
Brett Samuels of the Hill: "President Trump on Wednesday said he's 'all in favor' of background checks for weapon purchases in the wake of recent mass shootings, but threw cold water on the prospect of banning high-powered weapons that have been used in several massacres. 'I'm looking to do background checks,' he told reporters. 'I think background checks are important. I don't want to put guns into the hands of mentally unstable people or people with rage or hate. Sick people. I'm all in favor of it.' He indicated there would be little movement on legislation to ban high powered weapons like the one used in Dayton and other mass shootings. 'You have to have a political appetite within Congress and so far I haven't seen that,' Trump said." ...
... Anita Kumar of Politico: "... Donald Trump this week said his administration has done 'much more than most' to help curb mass shootings in the United States.... [But] his administration has actually eased gun restrictions over the past two and a half years. Federal agencies have implemented more than half a dozen policy changes -- primarily through little-noticed regulatory moves -- that expand access to guns by lifting firearms bans in certain locations and limiting the names on the national database designed to keep firearms away from dangerous people. The administration asked the Supreme Court to overturn New York City restrictions on transporting handguns outside homes. And it pushed to allow U.S. gunmakers to more easily sell firearms overseas, including the types used in mass shootings." In describing the minimal gun-control measures Trump did take in response to earlier mass murders, "William Vizzard, who spent nearly three decades at the ATF, described the restrictions as modest. 'On a scale of 1 to 100, they're about a 2,' he said."
Stephen Brown of the New York Daily News: "The founder of Students for Trump pleaded guilty Tuesday to running a $46,000 scam in which he posed as a lawyer and gave legal advice. John Lambert, 23, created a website for a fake law firm called Pope & Dunn and claimed to be Eric Pope a graduate of NYU Law School with a finance degree from the University of Pennsylvania and 15 years of experience in corporate and patent law, prosecutors said."
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Jill Colvin of the AP: "... Donald Trump is bringing a message aimed at national unity and healing to the sites of the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton [today]. But the words he offers for a divided America will be complicated by his own incendiary, anti-immigrant rhetoric that mirrors language linked to one of the shooters. It is a highly unusual predicament for an American president to at once try to console a community and a nation at the same time he is being criticized as contributing to a combustible climate that can spawn violence.... Trump, who often seems most comfortable on rally stages with deeply partisan crowds, has not excelled at projecting empathy, mixing what can sound like perfunctory expressions of grief with awkward offhand remarks.... In ... El Paso, some residents and local Democratic lawmakers said Trump was not welcome and urged him to stay away.... In Dayton, Mayor Nan Whaley said she would be meeting with Trump on Wednesday, but she told reporters she was disappointed with his scripted remarks Monday responding to the shootings." ...
... Brett Samuels of the Hill: "President Trump may face a cool reception Wednesday from local leaders in Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso, Texas, when he travels to each city in the wake of back-to-back mass shootings. Democrats in both cities have indicated they're not crazy about the president visiting, particularly in El Paso, where the suspected gunman allegedly published an anti-immigrant manifesto that echoed some of Trump's own language. Mayors of both cities said they intend to greet Trump out of respect for his office, but appeared less than enthusiastic about welcoming him.... 'He is the president of the United States,' El Paso Mayor Dee Margo (R) told reporters on Monday. 'In that capacity I will fulfill my obligations as mayor of El Paso to meet with the president and discuss whatever our needs are in this community.' Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley (D) struck a similar tone Tuesday, telling reporters she will greet Trump in her official capacity as mayor and offering a biting response when asked if the president was visiting too soon. 'He's the& president of the United States,' she said. 'He does his calendar, I do mine.'" ...
... Paul LeBlanc of CNN: "Democratic Rep. Veronica Escobar of Texas on Tuesday said she declined an invitation to join ... Donald Trump on his upcoming visit to El Paso, Texas, as the city recovers from a mass shooting. 'I declined the invitation because I refuse to be an accessory to his visit, said Escobar, who represents El Paso. 'I refuse to join without a dialogue about the pain his racist and hateful words & actions have caused our community and country.'... Escobar, who told MSNBC Monday that Trump wasn't welcome in her community, tweeted that she requested a phone call with the President to 'share what I have now heard from many constituents' but was told he was 'too busy.'" ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: "Too busy"? Why, just the day before Trump had promised his "unfailing support" for the people of El Paso & Dayton/Toledo. That executive time sure keeps Trump "busy." ...
... Toluse Olorunnipa, et al., of the Washington Post: "The grief and sorrow in Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso have begun to give way to anger and frustration in advance of President Trump's planned visits Wednesday, with local leaders and residents increasingly vocal in their assertions that presidential condolences, thoughts and prayers will not be enough. People are signing petitions, planning protests and, in Dayton, organizing a demonstration featuring an inflated 'Baby Trump' to express their discontent with a president whose anti-immigrant rhetoric was echoed by a gunman who killed 22 people in El Paso.... The open repudiation of a visiting president in the aftermath of a mass tragedy was striking Tuesday as a growing chorus of critics made clear that Trump would not be universally welcome during a pair of condolence visits that will take Air Force One from the Rust Belt to the southern order." ...
... The Unwelcome, Deadbeat Visitor from Hell. Matthew Adams & Robert Garrett of the Dallas Morning News: "Ahead of a Wednesday visit to El Paso..., Donald Trump still owes the city more than $500,000 for his expenses related to his February rally. Trump is scheduled to visit El Paso in the wake of the Aug. 3 shooting that left at least 22 people dead. The Federal Aviation Administration advised pilots of a presidential visit later this week to El Paso and Dayton, Ohio.... The Center for Public Integrity ... reports that the total with late fees is now $569,204, according to a July 18 invoice to the Trump campaign. 'It's ridiculous and unconscionable. The city of El Paso is an economically challenged community,' El Paso County Commissioner Dave Stout said of the Trump camp's failure to pay.... 'He's going to be throwing salt into the wound -- a very, very deep wound. And this community needs healing, not Donald Trump, Stout said.... Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat who represents El Paso [and former Rep. Beto O'Rourke], also said Trump isn't welcome." (Also linked yesterday.) ...
Mitch Smith, et al., of the New York Times: "The gunman who killed three people and injured 13 in Gilroy, Calif., had a 'target list' of religious institutions, Democratic and Republican political organizations, and federal buildings, the F.B.I. said Tuesday, announcing that it had opened a domestic terrorism investigation. The suspect had been exploring several 'competing' violent ideologies, said John F. Bennett, the F.B.I. special agent in charge in San Francisco, at a news conference. Mr. Bennett said investigators had not yet uncovered a motive and were trying to determine which ideology, if any, the gunman had ultimately subscribed to, and if anyone had helped him prepare for the shooting. The list also included courthouses and the garlic festival, Mr. Bennett said.... The gunman, Santino William Legan, 19, fired 39 rounds in the shooting at the garlic festival on July 28, Scot Smithee, the Gilroy police chief, said Tuesday. Police found a 75-round drum magazine and five 40-round magazines near the gunman, who killed himself after being shot multiple times by the police, Chief Smithee said." This linked article is a liveblog also containing updates on the El Paso & Dayton massacres. ...
... Dayton: "Todd Wickerham, the special agent in charge of the F.B.I.'s Cincinnati field office, told reporters Tuesday afternoon that the investigation into the mass shooting in Dayton on Sunday had 'uncovered evidence that the shooter was exploring violent ideologies.' He added that no evidence had been found suggesting a racial motivation for the shooting." Mrs. McC: I heard on a news broadcast that six of the Dayton victims were black.
Annals of "Journalism," Ctd.
Lloyd Grove of the Daily Beast: "New York Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet acknowledged Tuesday that his newspaper messed up with a front-page headline over its lead story on ... Donald Trump's Monday televised address.... 'TRUMP URGES UNITY VS. RACISM,' blazoned the four-column headline at the top-right of the front page of the Times' first edition -- a strangely credulous framing of an appropriately skeptical story by Michael Crowley and Maggie Haberman.... Trump, who spent the weekend offering 'thoughts and prayers' and tweeting attacks on 'fake news' among other perceived enemies from his New Jersey golf club, gave his stiffly delivered speech on TelePrompTer in the aftermath of two mass shootings that have left 31 dead in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio -- to which the 45th president mistakenly referred as 'Toledo' at one point in his remarks.... [The headline] was a mistake that immediately prompted widespread criticism from high-profile Trump detractors once images of the paper's front page surfaced online Monday night; it also provoked attacks on the Times'; political coverage generally, and even vows to cancel subscriptions.... A Times spokesperson emailed: 'The original print headline was clearly flawed and was changed for all editions after the first' -- the earliest edition of the ink-on-paper Times that is distributed out of state and nationally." The story contains remarks from several prominent opinionators. ...
... Amanda Marcotte of Salon: "No one actually believes Donald Trump opposes racism. Not his critics. Not his supporters. Not anyone who tries to live in the zone of 'objectivity.' Trump's racism is a immoveable fact of life.... And yet, somehow, the media continues to struggle to accurately convey to American audiences this reality, which is that when Trump, a racist and a liar, says anti-racist things, he's just a racist who is currently lying. This problem was illustrated Monday, when the New York Times previewed a headline about Trump's response to two recent mass shootings that read, 'Trump Urges Unity Vs. Racism', causing an explosion of outrage in response, and causing the newspaper of record to scramble, changing it to 'Assailing Hate But Not Guns' in the second print edition and the much more accurate 'Shootings Spur Debate on Extremism and Guns, With Trump on Defense' for the online edition.... It wasn't just the New York Times. CBS, NBC, ABC, and the Washington Post all ran headlines saying Trump condemned racism without noting that he didn't really mean it.... One exception that points the way for other outlets was the CNN headline that read, 'Trump condemns "racist hate" and white supremacy but does not acknowledge his own rhetoric.'" ...
... "Members of the Press, What the Fuck?" ...
... Brandon Conradis of the Hill: "President Trump late Tuesday night responded to criticism from former Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas), who has repeatedly assailed the president in the wake of a mass shooting in El Paso, Texas. 'Beto (phony name to indicate Hispanic heritage) O'Rourke, who is embarrassed by my last visit to the Great State of Texas, where I trounced him, and is now even more embarrassed by polling at 1% in the Democrat Primary, should respect the victims & law enforcement - & be quiet!' Trump tweeted.... The president's remarks come shortly after O'Rourke, a 2020 presidential contender, announced he would be attending an event on Wednesday to pay tribute to the shooting victims and counter Trump's visit to the city.... In response to Trump's tweet, O'Rourke said, '22 people in my hometown are dead after an act of terror inspired by your racism. El Paso will not be quiet and neither will I.'" Mrs. McC: Beto has had his "phony name" since his parents gave it to him when he was an infant. Here's Beto pretending to be Hispanic ca. 1974:
A vast swath of Democratic voters are pretty angry at the media. They see a racist liar in the White House and a media too afraid to call him a racist or a liar. They see a media obsessed with Trump voters who like his rhetoric and little interest in those targeted by his rhetoric. I think Beto's comments spoke to a feeling that media as currently constructed is not up to the moment we are living in. -- Dan Pfeiffer, former Obama advisor ...
... Charles Pierce: "There was a loud banging on pots and pans all over the electric Twitter machine last night when The New York Times front page coverage of Monday's presidential* address popped up with the headline: Trump Urges Unity Against Racism[.] For reasons that are plainly obvious -- and for people who are plainly oblivious -- this headline is dangerously unmoored from our present reality.... I wasn't worried because I knew the president* and the rest of the folks down at Camp Runamuck quickly would squander the free ride given to them by the Times. Sure enough, the president checked in with his favorite morning show, Three Dolts On A Divan, and retweeted some wisdom from Dolt No. 3." Thanks to MAG for the link. ...
... Here's What Brassilocks & the Three Dolts Were Complaining About. Quint Forgey of Politico: "... Donald Trump on Tuesday attacked former President Barack Obama over the latter's statement on the weekend's mass shootings in Texas and Ohio, tweeting edited quotes from Fox News hosts to make his point and again claiming he is 'the least racist person' in the world. '"Did George Bush ever condemn President Obama after Sandy Hook. President Obama had 32 mass shootings during his reign. Not many people said Obama is out of Control,"' Trump wrote online. '"Mass shootings were happening before the President even thought about running for Pres." @kilmeade @foxandfriends'." Mrs. McC: Uh, Donnie, I think you & your Fox Friends missed the point: President Obama never stoked white nationalist wet dreams. Also, Obama didn't name you; you & your Friends clearly decided the shoe fits. For once you-all were right about something. See also Akhilleus' commentary in yesterday's Comments thread. (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: As for the Toledo speech itself, Akhilleus had the best characterization yet of Trump's delivery: "He read like he was trying to translate an eye chart.... The whole thing looked like a hostage video." See Akhilleus' full comment in yesterday's Comments. ...
... Justin Baragona of the Daily Beast: "Three days after a Texas man allegedly killed 22 people in El Paso after apparently posting a manifesto complaining of a 'Hispanic invasion,' Fox News host Tucker Carlson said white supremacy is not a problem in the United States and is actually a 'hoax' and a 'conspiracy theory.' Carlson, who regularly spouts the same anti-immigrant 'invasion' rhetoric the El Paso shooter is believed to have espoused in a racist manifesto, hit back against those who say President Trump's rhetoric on immigration may have emboldened the suspected shooter.... The FBI said last month that the majority of domestic terrorism cases they've recently investigated are versions of white supremacist violence." ...
... Sabrina Tavernise, et al., of the New York Times: "Law enforcement officials have sounded the alarm for months: Homegrown terrorism, including by white supremacists, is now as big a threat as terrorism from abroad. But the mass shooting in El Paso last weekend, the largest domestic terrorist attack against Hispanics in modern history, has made it glaringly clear how poorly prepared the country is to fight it.... Even before the shootings [last weekend], which left at least 31 people dead, officials said that preventing attacks from white supremacists and nationalists would require adopting the same type of broad and aggressive approach used to battle international extremism. 'We need to catch them and incarcerate them before they act on their plans,' Rod Rosenstein, the former deputy attorney general, said in an email interview. 'We need to be proactive by identifying and disrupting potential terrorists before they strike, and we can accomplish that by monitoring terrorist propaganda and communications.' Under current federal law, that is difficult." Mrs. McC: Sorry, Tucker. ...
... Quint Forgey of Politico: "The FBI Agents Association on Tuesday demanded that members of Congress codify domestic terrorism as a federal crime, warning it poses 'a threat to the American people and our democracy.'... The statement from the association, which represents more than 14,000 active and former FBI special agents, follows the Justice Department's announcement Sunday that it is treating the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, as a case of domestic terrorism.... In a televised address Monday..., Donald Trump said the administration has 'asked the FBI to identify all further resources they need to investigate and disrupt hate crimes and domestic terrorism.'" Mrs. McC: Sorry, Tucker.
Sheryl Stolberg of the New York Times: "Congressional Republicans, under intense pressure to respond to this weekend's massacres, are coalescing around legislation to help law enforcement take guns from those who pose an imminent danger -- a measure that, if signed into law, would be the most significant gun control legislation enacted in 20 years.... The House, under Democratic control, passed far more ambitious bills in February that would require background checks for all gun purchasers, including those on the internet or at gun shows, and extend waiting limits for would-be gun buyers flagged by the instant check system. But those bills have run into a blockade that Senator Mitch McConnell, the majority leader, has erected for House bills he opposes." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: A "red flag" law (which Lindsey Graham is already trying to water down to ineffectual state grants) is basically a "mental health" law. It might not be a bad idea, but there's no reason to think such a law would have prevented the most recent mass murders, much less those that are inevitably in our future. Let's face it; most elected Republicans condone mass murder with assault weapons. Their "thoughts & prayers" are really centered on their hopes that the NRA will give them an "A" rating & a big campaign contribution. If you read Stolberg's full report, you'll discover another masterpiece of both-siderism. She treats Republicans' fake efforts to put a band-aid someplace on a bullet-ridden body as a perfectly legitimate way to address a domestic terrorism crisis. ...
... Andy Borowitz of the New Yorker: "There is a 'significant link' between gun violence and cowardly politicians, a new study from the University of Minnesota asserts. The study, which is raising eyebrows with its startling conclusions, finds that the most reliable predictor of gun violence is the 'prevalence of quiveringly fearful politicians in positions of power.'" ...
... A Tiny Crack in the Red Line. Jackie Borchardt of the Cincinnati Enquirer: "The Republican congressman who represents Dayton is calling for several gun control measures after nine were killed in a mass shooting there Sunday. Rep. Mike Turner said Tuesday he backs a ban on sales of military-style guns, magazine limits and 'red flag' legislation to identify dangerous individuals and remove their firearms. Turner has an 'A' rating from the National Rifle Association and last year earned the organization's support for opposing a ban on semi-automatic firearms, commonly called 'assault weapons.'... Turner's daughter and a family friend were at a bar across the street when the shooting unfolded." Mrs. McC: As is usual with Republicans, something bad has to happen to him or to a friend or family member before he moves to help others. ...
... MEANWHILE... Betsy Woodruff of The Daily Beast: "Just days after mass shootings left at least 31 people dead, a bipartisan group of congressional staffers is set to go on an outing to shoot skeet alongside gun lobbyists. The event comes every year.... According to its website, the event is scheduled for August 6.... A source familiar with the event said the 'associated industry supporters' typically include members of the firearms industry, officials from the NRA, NRA lobbyists, and lobbyists working for gun companies.' They routinely attend the event to socialize with congressional staff. A second source familiar said NRA officials are not expected to attend this year." --s (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: But will they use assault rifles? Okay, they might. Luckily, it's pretty hard to kill a clay pigeon. ...
... John Seewer of the AP: "Facing pressure to take action after the latest mass shooting in the U.S., Ohio's Republican governor urged the GOP-led state Legislature Tuesday to pass laws requiring background checks for nearly all gun sales and allowing courts to restrict firearms access for people perceived as threats. Gov. Mike DeWine said Ohio needs to do more while balancing people's rights to own firearms and have due process during a press conference Tuesday. He outlined a series of legislative actions he wants the Legislature to take up to address mental health and gun violence.... Protesters once again shouted 'do something' -- a refrain chanted during Sunday's vigil honoring the victims -- at DeWine at the start of his Tuesday announcement.... His calls for action could be an uphill battle for the Legislature, which has given little consideration this session to those and other gun-safety measures already introduced by Democrats. DeWine's Republican predecessor, John Kasich..., also unsuccessfully pushed for a so-called red flag law on restricting firearms for people considered threats." (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Sophia Tesfaye of Salon: "The Nebraska Republican Party called for Republican state Sen. John McCollister to register as a Democrat after he wrote that the GOP is 'enabling white supremacy.' Ryan Hamilton, the head of the state Republican Party, called for McCollister to 'tell the truth about his partisan views and re-register as a Democrat' on Monday after he called out the party for being 'complicit' to 'obvious racist and immoral activity inside our party.'... Hamilton's statement came just months after he vowed to crack down on racism in the party after an aide to Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts was caught posting wildly racist, anti-Semitic, and homophobic comments on a far-right YouTube page run by a far-right activist labeled a white nationalist. McCollister called out his own party after a shooter who published an anti-immigrant screed on the far-right hate repository 8chan killed 22 people and injured dozens of others at an El Paso Walmart in an attack he said was in response to the 'Hispanic invasion of Texas,' echoing the frequent rhetoric of President Trump and Fox News." ...
... ** Jeff Toobin of the New Yorker: "Though the Supreme Court has been cautious since 2008 in expanding gun rights, there is every likelihood that the new conservative majority will frustrate federal or state legislative efforts to insure gun safety. In other words, even if Congress or states manage to pass laws restricting gun rights -- including limits on assault weapons or even requiring universal background checks -- there is a real possibility that a majority of the Justices will overturn these laws as violations of the Second Amendment.... But even the Court usually bends with public and political opinion over time, and that change may yet happen on guns. The grim lesson of recent weeks is that the need for that transformation has never been greater." See also Patrick's comment in yesterday's thread & Ian Millhiser's post on Bart O'Kavanaugh, also linked a couple of days ago.
Brianna Sacks & others of BuzzFeed News report on El Paso Walmart employee Gilbert Serna who shepherded about 150 people to safe places while the mass murderer was still shooting.
"Ivanka Trump: Let's Focus On the Shootings My Dad Isn't Responsible For." Bess Levin of Vanity Fair: "So on Tuesday..., [Ivanka Trump], attempting to shift the focus from shootings for which her dad can be directly blamed, to ones for which she thinks he bares [sic. "bears"] zero responsibility. 'As we grieve over the evil mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton, let us not overlook that Chicago experienced its deadliest weekend of the year,' Trump wrote on Twitter. 'With 7 dead and 52 wounded near a playground in the Windy City- and little national outrage or media coverage- we mustn't become numb to the violence faced by inner city communities every day.'... The first daughter's concern might've seemed at least slightly sincere had she expressed it at any other time than while her father is taking heat for whipping racists into a frenzy and creating an environment in which they believe it's okay to go on killing sprees if their targets are of the nonwhite variety. (Her previous mentions of the Windy City mostly center around promoting spa treatments and cocktails at the Trump Hotel Chicago, plus a photo op with the new mayor.) It would also carry a bit more weight if her father's comments about 'inner city communities' weren't filled with dog whistles, or if he actually had a plan to reduce the number of gun-related deaths in Chicago by restricting access to firearms, which of course he does not. ...
... [Oh. Wait:] "... Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Lori Lightfoot, the mayor of Chicago fact-checked Ivanka's tweets ('It wasn't a playground, it was a park. It wasn't seven dead. It wasn't 52 wounded in one incident, which is what this suggests'.)..." Mrs. McC: According to the Chicago Sun-Times, seven people were wounded in the drive-by shooting, not shot dead as Ivanka claims. I suppose Lightfoot & I look silly suggesting any member of the Trump Family Liars get her facts straight before Twitter-whining about something that didn't happen. The violence in Chicago is horrible, and I linked to a news story on the Chicago park shooting this weekend, but it is understandable that mass shootings with multiple fatalities receive more attention than has the Chicago drive-by.
Trump Negotiates Another Great Deal. Surprise! He Lied. You Lose. Ellen Ioanes of Business Insider: "According to Air Force Magazine..., Donald Trump's new Air Force One fleet will cost a total of $5.2 billion, up from the 2016 estimate of $3.2 billion. Two Boeing 747-8s are being converted into VC-25s.... They will serve as the 'flying White House' starting in 2024, although Trump requested that they be ready for use in 2021. Trump had boasted that he struck a deal with Boeing to lower the cost of renovating the jets, which were originally built for a now defunct Russian airline, by $1 billion. Boeing will be paid $3.9 billion to build the jets for the White House. The additional $1.3 billion comes from associated costs, like building hangars for the new jets."
Joshua Goodman & Deb Reichmann of the AP: "The Trump administration froze all Venezuelan government assets in a dramatic escalation of tensions with Nicolás Maduro that places his socialist administration alongside a short list of adversaries from Cuba, North Korea, Syria and Iran that have been targeted by such aggressive U.S. actions. The ban, blocking American companies and individuals from doing business with Maduro's government and its top supporters, took effect immediately Monday and is the first of its kind in the Western Hemisphere in more than three decades, following an asset freeze against Gen. Manuel Noriega's government in Panama and a trade embargo on the Sandinista leadership in Nicaragua in the 1980s." (Also linked yesterday.)
Vanessa Grioriadis of New York has a long bio on Ivanka Trump. Some highlights: "In her 20s, she said her favorite book was Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged and she had modeled herself on its capitalist heroine, Dagny Taggart.... [T]he No. 1 thing friends from her past say about her: She isn't a 'mean person' or a 'bad person' but is simply afflicted with the same disease of narcissism as her father.... In 2003, when Paris Hilton's sex tape was leaked on the internet, Donald wouldn't stop talking about it, saying, 'Paris is laughing all the way to the bank, she's got the last laugh, she's marvelous.' Ivanka could not believe her father was not only idolizing an airhead heiress caught blowing a guy on a night-vision video but encouraging her to follow Paris's lead.... [According to a friend] 'She really has no idea she's privileged. She genuinely thinks she's earned everything she has. She goes on and on all the time about how hard she works.'" --s (Also linked yesterday.) See commentary in yesterday's thread.
Eric Tucker of the AP: "A veteran FBI agent who wrote derogatory text messages about Donald Trump filed a lawsuit Tuesday charging that the bureau caved to' unrelenting pressure' from the president when it fired him. The suit from Peter Strzok also alleges he was unfairly punished for expressing his political opinions, and that the Justice Department violated his privacy when it shared hundreds of his text messages with reporters."
Fred Imbert & Silvia Amaro of CNBC: "Stocks rebounded on Tuesday from their worst day of the year after China's central bank indicated it plans to keep its currency at a level stronger than some investors had first feared, easing tensions about the nation using the yuan as a weapon in the trade war. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 311.78 points higher at 26,029.52. The S&P 500 rose 1.3% to 2,881.77, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed nearly 1.4% to 7,833.27. Tuesday's gains helped the Dow snap a five-day losing streak, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose for the first time in seven sessions."
E. A. Crunden of ThinkProgress: "A government climate scientist who says the Trump administration buried a groundbreaking report he authored has left the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in protest over the 'political views' top officials allegedly imposed on his work. Politico reported Monday that Lewis Ziska, a plant physiologist who worked at USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) for more than 20 years, quit due to an increasingly political atmosphere at the agency.... USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue has similarly dismissed global warming as 'weather patterns.'... Ziska told Politico that the reason the study was buried is down to political ideology and the administration's unwillingness to embrace established climate science." --s (Also linked yesterday.)
Presidential Race 2020
Michael Brice-Saddler & Alex Horton of the Washington Post: "The 44 names Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Tex.) tweeted late Monday ... [are] all constituents in his district, and they all donated the maximum amount to President Trump's campaign this year. The congressman and brother of presidential hopeful Julián Castro said the people listed -- including retirees, business owners and other individuals whose names are public record -- were 'fueling a campaign of hate.'... Castro, who also serves as chairman for his brother's presidential campaign, spent much of Tuesday deflecting intense criticism from GOP lawmakers and others. They contended that Castro was 'targeting' the listed donors by tweeting their names to his thousands of followers, a serious accusation in the aftermath of two weekend mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton, Ohio, that left 31 people dead and many more wounded.... In several tweets Tuesday, [Joaquin] Castro said the names he posted were publicly accessible and that his tweet was not a 'call to action.'" A Politico story is here.
Will Sommer of the Daily Beast: "Two signs promoting the QAnon conspiracy theory are visible in a video from Donald Trump's presidential campaign, marking the latest link between the president and followers of the fringe movement that the FBI recently described as a potential source of domestic terror. The signs, which were first noticed by Vox reporter Aaron Rupar, appear in a close-up shot in a 'Women for Trump' video posted by Trump's campaign late in July. Around halfway into the video, the first sign appears, with Trump's 'Keep America Great' slogan and a 'Q' taped onto it. Another shows 'Q''s replacing the O's on a 'Women for Trump' sign.... The campaign video will ... be likely interpreted by the Q community as a cryptic acknowledgement by Trump that their beliefs are real." Mrs. McC: Look for KKK hoods in the next round of Trump campaign ads.
Ariane de Vogue of CNN: "... Donald Trump sued California Tuesday challenging a state law that requires candidates for president to disclose income tax returns before they can appear on the state's primary ballot. The federal lawsuit from Trump and his campaign is the latest move by the President to resist efforts to turn over his tax returns.... A second similar lawsuit was also filed Tuesday by Republican voters along with the Republican National Committee and the Republican Party of California who argue that this a political maneuver that takes voting rights away from Trump's supporters.... Legal expert Rick Hasen of the University of California, Irvine, said the state law is of 'uncertain constitutionality.'"
Presidential Race or Senate Race or Something. Jeff Zeleny & Alex Rogers of CNN: "John Hickenlooper, who has struggled to break through the crowded Democratic presidential field, spoke to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer late last week about running for the Senate from Colorado, a race he has resisted joining but is keeping an open mind about, a top aide tells CNN. 'He is still in the race for president, but he hasn't closed the door to anything,' said Peter Cunningham, the communications director for the former Colorado governor.... Schumer wants [Hickenlooper] to challenge Sen. Cory Gardner, who is among the potentially vulnerable Republicans in 2020."
Congressional Races 2020
Team Mitch on How to "Get Involved with Republican Politics." Shira Feder of the Daily Beast: "After Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) slammed Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for a photo posted on Facebook of a group of young men wearing 'Team Mitch' shirts shown choking and groping a cardboard cutout of the Democratic congresswoman, the Senate majority leader's campaig manager initially responded by saying, in essence, boys will be boys. The campaign ultimately ended up condemning the image as 'demeaning.' In a statement, Kevin Golden said the media is using the image to 'demonize, stereotype, and publicly castigate every young person who dares to get involved with Republican politics,' adding that 'these young men are not campaign staff, they are high schoolers.'" Mrs. McC: So "choking and groping a Congresswoman" = "getting involved with Republican politics." Good to know.
Top GOP Congressman Says Rich Jews Bought Congress. Marcy Oster of the Forward: "A letter sent by National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Emmer to party members identified three 'left-wing radicals' that he says 'bought control of Congress for the Democrats.' They are all Jewish. Emmer represents Minnesota’s Sixth District in the U.S. House. The Minneapolis-based American Jewish World newspaper first saw the letter, which is said appears to have been circulated in March, in July and reported on it Friday. The letter on Emmer's letterhead says 'the news of impactful, real progress on turning our nation around was undercut by biased media and hundreds of millions of dollars of anti-Republican propaganda put out by liberal special interests, funded by deep-pocketed far-left billionaires George Soros, Tom Steyer and Michael Bloomberg. ... These left-wing radicals essentially BOUGHT control of Congress for the Democrats.'... The letter employs the anti-Semitic trope that rich Jews use their money for power and control."
Gubernatorial Race 2020. Thomas Burr of the Salt Lake Tribune: "U.S. Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman is returning home to Utah, where he is reportedly weighing another run for governor. Huntsman sent ... Donald Trump a resignation letter Tuesday and plans to move back to the Beehive State in October.... The resignation is effective Oct. 3, Huntsman said."
... Un Magnifique Chateau pour LaPierre. Carol Leonnig & Beth Reinhard of the Washington Post: "Documents indicate that the National Rifle Association planned to purchase a luxury mansion in the Dallas area last year for the use of chief executive Wayne LaPierre, according to two people familiar with the records. The discussions about the roughly $6 million purchase, which was not completed, are now under scrutiny by New York investigators. The transaction was slated to be made through a corporate entity that received a wire of tens of thousands of dollars from the NRA in 2018, according to the people.... The New York attorney general's office is now examining the plan for an NRA-financed mansion as part of its ongoing investigation into the gun lobby's tax-exempt status, in which it has subpoenaed the group's financial records, the people said....
Via Carol Leonnig of the Washington Post.
... "One property that was considered, according to a person familiar with the plans, was a 10,000-square-foot French country estate with lakefront and golf course views. The four-bedroom, nine-bath home in a gated golf course community northwest of Dallas resembles a French chateau, with a stately boxwood-lined drive, a formal courtyard, vaulted ceilings and an antique marble fireplace, according to its online real estate listing." The Week has a story here. ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: Meanwhile, some of the dues-paying NRA members who would pay for the mansion probably live in shacks & trailers.
Way Beyond the Beltway
North Korea. Reuters: "North Korea has fired two unidentified projectiles into the sea from South Hwanghae province, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff.... The [North Korean] foreign ministry said the [U.S./South Korean] military drills were violations of diplomatic agreements and added that North Korea had remained unchanged in its commitment to resolve the issues through dialogue, but 'will be compelled to seek a new road as we have already indicated,' if South Korea and the United States continue with hostile military moves." --s (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Kim Tong-Hyung of the AP: "North Korea said Wednesday leader Kim Jong Un supervised a live-fire demonstration of newly developed, short-range ballistic missiles intended to send a warning to the United States and South Korea over their joint military exercises."
Poland. Vanessa Gera of the AP: "Claims that Russia orchestrated a political scandal that helped bring Poland's right-wing government to power are getting revisited as the country prepares for another election. Five years ago, unflattering recordings of Polish politicians secretly made at two Warsaw restaurants were leaked to newspapers. The resulting 'Waitergate' scandal helped topple a pro-EU government in 2015. An investigative Polish journalist and a formerly fugitive multimillionaire have recently provided fresh fuel for the idea that Waitergate was a prelude to Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. Reporter Grzegorz Rzeczkowski argues in a new book that Russian intelligence services bugged the restaurants on behalf of the Kremlin." --s (Also linked yesterday.)
Beyond the Beltway
New York. Vivian Wang of the New York Times: "The pitched six-week battle for the Democratic nomination for Queens district attorney finally ended on Tuesday, when Tiffany Cabán, whose bid galvanized progressive activists nationwide and exposed deep rifts within the left, conceded to Melinda Katz, the favorite of the state party's establishment. The result was a vindication for the Queens Democratic Party, which was left reeling last year after the defeat of former Representative Joseph Crowley by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez."
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