thebulwark--2020-09-02--The Broken Windows Presidency

The Broken Windows Presidency

Let me explain .
In 1982 , the Atlantic published an article that became legendary in conservative circles .
Authored by George Kelling and the late James Q. Wilson , “ Broken Windows ” argued for better community policing , specifically for a return to foot patrols as opposed to police patrolling neighborhoods in their cars .
The presence of police walking a beat , they urged , tended to reduce the quality of life crimes that degrade city life—public urination , aggressive panhandling , turnstile jumping .
“ Disorder and crime are usually inextricably linked , ” they wrote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tend to agree that if a window in a building is broken and is left unrepaired , all the rest of the windows will soon be broken.
” For the better part of two decades , “ broken windows policing ” was credited with the sharp drop in crime the nation experienced starting in the 1990s .
That may or may not have been justified ; the drop in crime has yet to be fully explained .
And the term itself has been stretched to cover a multiplicity of law enforcement tactics unapproved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Frontline in 2016 that when he hears that a particular city or police chief is going to adopt a “ broken windows ” approach , his first reaction is “ Oh s—.
” Whatever the problems of implementation may have been with broken windows policing , the insight on which it was based—that disorder begets more disorder—seemed sound , particularly to conservatives who are temperamentally more sensitive to disruptions of order than liberals .
If drug dealers are able to ply their trade unmolested on street corners and drunks are sleeping in vestibules @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more serious breakdowns of public order .
Oddly , conservatives seem not to have applied this insight to Donald Trump , who from the moment he entered the fray , has been hurling rocks through windows .
He smashed the window that required candidates to provide their tax returns .
He lobbed a brick through the norm that American public figures do not encourage vigilantism .
He demolished the principle that American presidents don ’ t dangle pardons before former aides caught in criminal activity .
Each and every time he has violated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no pushback from his party , he has made further violations of law and custom more likely .
Though it was hardly the most egregious infraction during his tenure , Trump used the White House as a political platform for the Republican National Convention .
This violates the Hatch Act , originally titled “ An Act to Prevent Pernicious Political Activities , ” which forbids most executive branch officials from engaging in political activity during their working hours.While the president and vice president are exempt , other executive branch officials who had to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ White House were covered .
The administration is openly contemptuous of the Hatch Act .
When Kellyanne Conway was rebuked by the Office of Special Counsel for numerous violations , her reply was , “ Blah , blah , blah .
Let me know when the jail sentence starts.
” When the president first floated the idea of holding the convention at the White House , a couple of Republican senators demurred .
Senator John Thune , the majority whip , said “ I think anything you do on federal property would seem @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Cornyn used nearly identical language : “ I would have to have somebody show me where it says he could do that .
I would think on government property would be problematic.
” But then Trump went ahead and did it and they were heard no more .
They were probably seated on the White House lawn when Trump delivered his Castro-length acceptance speech .
Mark Meadows , the insouciant White House chief of staff , didn ’ t bother to deny the violation .
“ Nobody outside the beltway really cares.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the original reporting of Trump ’ s extortionate demands on Ukraine , Axios asked Senator Lindsay Graham whether he could envision any circumstances under which he would vote to convict Trump .
“ Sure , ” he said , “ Show me something that is a crime .
If you could show me that Trump actually was engaging in a quid pro quo , outside the phone call , that would be very disturbing.
” But when the evidence was forthcoming , Graham was not .
Like every other Republican except Mitt Romney @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because the Republican party elites have overlooked so many violations of law and custom , the transgressions have become more flagrant .
The morning after Robert Mueller testified before Congress and was perceived to be ineffectual , Trump dialed up Volodymyr Zelensky and attempted to extort him .
When his pardon of Joe Arpaio received no outcry from Republicans , he upped the ante and pardoned outright war criminals .
When his invitation to supporters to rough up protesters went unrebutted by Republicans , he openly cheered vigilantes who strapped on long guns @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The irony is thick .
In 2016 , Donald Trump ran against what he called the “ corrupt ” Republican elites who had failed to stand up for the working man and shipped jobs overseas while inviting in Mexican rapists .
In reality , the true dereliction by Republican elites has come after Trump ’ s triumph , with their cringing accommodation of his escalating offenses .
Only Republicans were in a position to affect Trump ’ s conduct .
Any criticism by Democrats would be dismissed as partisan sniping .
Only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ upheld crucial standards of democratic governance , and they failed .
There have been one or two exceptions to this rule of Republican servility .
When Republicans joined Democrats to criticize the president ’ s policy of separating immigrant children from their parents at the border , Trump reversed the policy .
And when the president floated the idea of postponing the election , Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy both jumped to contradict him .
McConnell said , “ Never in the history of this country , through wars @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have we ever not had a federally scheduled election on time .
We will find a way to do that again this November third.
” Trump never mentioned it again .
But those examples are not comforting .
Quite the opposite .
They reveal how sensitive Trump actually was to pressure .
They show how very easy it would have been for Republicans to maintain a minimum of civic hygiene .
Instead , they ignored the political equivalent of turnstile jumping , public urination , and breaking windows .
They permitted an atmosphere @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump is openly inciting violence on the streets , fomenting distrust of the election results , and welcoming insane conspiracists into honored positions in American public life .
When one broken window goes unrepaired , the rest are soon broken as well .

President Trump is a broken windows president.
Let me explain. In 1982, the Atlantic published an article that became legendary in conservative circles. Authored by George Kelling and the late James Q. Wilson, “Broken Windows” argued for better community policing, specifically for a return to foot patrols as opposed to police patrolling neighborhoods in their cars. The presence of police walking a beat, they urged, tended to reduce the quality of life crimes that degrade city life—public urination, aggressive panhandling, turnstile jumping. “Disorder and crime are usually inextricably linked,” they wrote. “Social psychologists and police officers tend to agree that if a window in a building is broken and is left unrepaired, all the rest of the windows will soon be broken.”
For the better part of two decades, “broken windows policing” was credited with the sharp drop in crime the nation experienced starting in the 1990s. That may or may not have been justified; the drop in crime has yet to be fully explained. And the term itself has been stretched to cover a multiplicity of law enforcement tactics unapproved by the authors. George Kelling told Frontline in 2016 that when he hears that a particular city or police chief is going to adopt a “broken windows” approach, his first reaction is “Oh s—.”
Whatever the problems of implementation may have been with broken windows policing, the insight on which it was based—that disorder begets more disorder—seemed sound, particularly to conservatives who are temperamentally more sensitive to disruptions of order than liberals. If drug dealers are able to ply their trade unmolested on street corners and drunks are sleeping in vestibules, it’s an invitation to more serious breakdowns of public order.
Oddly, conservatives seem not to have applied this insight to Donald Trump, who from the moment he entered the fray, has been hurling rocks through windows. He smashed the window that required candidates to provide their tax returns. He lobbed a brick through the norm that American public figures do not encourage vigilantism. He demolished the principle that American presidents don’t dangle pardons before former aides caught in criminal activity. Each and every time he has violated a law or a norm and received no pushback from his party, he has made further violations of law and custom more likely.
Though it was hardly the most egregious infraction during his tenure, Trump used the White House as a political platform for the Republican National Convention. This violates the Hatch Act, originally titled “An Act to Prevent Pernicious Political Activities,” which forbids most executive branch officials from engaging in political activity during their working hours.While the president and vice president are exempt, other executive branch officials who had to participate in staging the events at the White House were covered. The administration is openly contemptuous of the Hatch Act. When Kellyanne Conway was rebuked by the Office of Special Counsel for numerous violations, her reply was, “Blah, blah, blah. Let me know when the jail sentence starts.”
When the president first floated the idea of holding the convention at the White House, a couple of Republican senators demurred. Senator John Thune, the majority whip, said “I think anything you do on federal property would seem to be problematic.” And Senator John Cornyn used nearly identical language: “I would have to have somebody show me where it says he could do that. I would think on government property would be problematic.”
But then Trump went ahead and did it and they were heard no more. They were probably seated on the White House lawn when Trump delivered his Castro-length acceptance speech. Mark Meadows, the insouciant White House chief of staff, didn’t bother to deny the violation. “Nobody outside the beltway really cares.” Sound familiar? Of course. During the original reporting of Trump’s extortionate demands on Ukraine, Axios asked Senator Lindsay Graham whether he could envision any circumstances under which he would vote to convict Trump. “Sure,” he said, “Show me something that is a crime. If you could show me that Trump actually was engaging in a quid pro quo, outside the phone call, that would be very disturbing.” But when the evidence was forthcoming, Graham was not. Like every other Republican except Mitt Romney, he let it go.
And because the Republican party elites have overlooked so many violations of law and custom, the transgressions have become more flagrant. The morning after Robert Mueller testified before Congress and was perceived to be ineffectual, Trump dialed up Volodymyr Zelensky and attempted to extort him. When his pardon of Joe Arpaio received no outcry from Republicans, he upped the ante and pardoned outright war criminals. When his invitation to supporters to rough up protesters went unrebutted by Republicans, he openly cheered vigilantes who strapped on long guns and went looking for violence in Kenosha.
The irony is thick. In 2016, Donald Trump ran against what he called the “corrupt” Republican elites who had failed to stand up for the working man and shipped jobs overseas while inviting in Mexican rapists. In reality, the true dereliction by Republican elites has come after Trump’s triumph, with their cringing accommodation of his escalating offenses. Only Republicans were in a position to affect Trump’s conduct. Any criticism by Democrats would be dismissed as partisan sniping. Only members of his own party could have upheld crucial standards of democratic governance, and they failed.
There have been one or two exceptions to this rule of Republican servility. When Republicans joined Democrats to criticize the president’s policy of separating immigrant children from their parents at the border, Trump reversed the policy. And when the president floated the idea of postponing the election, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy both jumped to contradict him. McConnell said, “Never in the history of this country, through wars, depressions and the Civil War, have we ever not had a federally scheduled election on time. We will find a way to do that again this November third.” Trump never mentioned it again.
But those examples are not comforting. Quite the opposite. They reveal how sensitive Trump actually was to pressure. They show how very easy it would have been for Republicans to maintain a minimum of civic hygiene. Instead, they ignored the political equivalent of turnstile jumping, public urination, and breaking windows. They permitted an atmosphere of disorder and lawlessness. And now Trump is openly inciting violence on the streets, fomenting distrust of the election results, and welcoming insane conspiracists into honored positions in American public life. When one broken window goes unrepaired, the rest are soon broken as well.


thebulwark--2020-09-02--Don’t Shut Up and Dribble

Don’t Shut Up and Dribble

Wednesday evening ’ s “ Inside the NBA ” pre-game show on TNT caused some consternation following the cancellation of games by NBA players in reaction to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin .
Most paid attention to host and former NBA player Kenny Smith walking off the show in support of the players , saying “ right now my head is ready to explode , ” and that “ as a black man , as a former player , I think it ’ s best for me to support the players and just not be here tonight.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Neal said next was perhaps more important .
“ November is coming up , ” O ’ Neal said .
“ Make sure you get a new D.A .
Make sure you get a new chief of police .
Make sure you get a new mayor .
Make sure you get a new president .
Make sure you get a new sheriff .
It ’ s in our hands .
It ’ s always been in our hands.
” O ’ Neal ’ s focus—getting out to vote and electing a new president—is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ usually talk about the effectiveness of the pick-n-roll and make funny quips like he does on his weekly “ Shaqtin ’ a Fool ” segment , but not much more .
Athlete activism comes and goes in cycles .
In the 1960s and 1970s , athletes like Bill Russell , Jim Brown , Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , and Mohammed Ali were actively engaged a variety of cultural and political issues .
Later superstars like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods passed on all that .
Jordan ’ s famous line— “ Republicans buy sneakers too @ @ @ @ @ @ @ uninvolved .
The pendulum has swung once again .
It began with the shooting of Trayvon Martin in 2012 .
Then the deaths of Michael Brown and Tamir Rice and Eric Garner in 2014 .
Then Breonna Taylor and George Floyd in 2020 .
Combined with the perception that President Donald Trump is aligned with white nationalist groups , and a number of black athletes no longer wanted to stay silent .
The rise of social media has given athletes an avenue to reach fans that are free from interference by ownership or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the public on their own through Instagram or Twitter has moved the content distribution of their personal views out of the mainstream sports media orbit , where commentary on groin pulls has always been more important than players comments on police brutality .
Most pro athletes , particularly NBA players , make so much money now that any controversy over their involvement in political issues can not hurt them substantially in any monetary way .
Professor Kenneth Shropshire , CEO of the Global Sport Institute at Arizona State University , explained in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in media could have a big effect in the influence athletes have in future politics .
“ I think because of the huge vacuum that exists in leadership in the White House — and no matter what you think of Donald Trump , he ’ s certainly not uniting the country — so in the absence of that , it is a tremendous opportunity for these people : athletes , sports figures , leagues that do have the attention and do have the respect of people to hopefully say some of the right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ things as people are looking around for some wisdom , ” Shropshire said .
Lebron James was a little more succinct in how he filled that vacuum .
This is what he sent out in a tweet just after the NBA game boycott was announced last Wednesday .
Needless to say , Trump thinks the players should shut up and dribble .
“ It ’ s terrible .
I think what they ’ re doing to the NBA in particular is going to destroy basketball .
I can ’ t—I don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the press after his New Hampshire rally on Friday .
“ You know when you watch sports , you want to sort of relax , but this is a whole different world .
… You don ’ t want to stay in politics .
You want to relax .
… It ’ s going to be very bad for football and I think it ’ s very bad for the NBA .
Maybe even NBA threatening .
And it ’ s going to be very bad for baseball if they don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ campaigns for Joe Biden in Michigan , Michael Jordan does the same in North Carolina , and Marlins owner Derek Jeter chips in in Florida , their participation could have an impact in swing state races .
The question is whether or not this will alienate voters on the fence who might be getting tired of their hero athletes getting involved in politics .
This will be especially true in the Midwest “ Blue Wall ” states like Ohio , Michigan , Pennsylvania , and Wisconsin .
White House senior advisor and Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the White House might spin their newfound political awareness in a CNBC interview last week , noting that NBA players are fortunate “ they have the financial position where they ’ re able to take a night off from work without having to have the consequences to themselves financially.
” But it ’ s been more than a one-day work stoppage .
James ’ s “ More Than A Vote ” campaign is encouraging voter registration and turnout in minority communities .
It will concentrate in swing states ( Georgia , Wisconsin , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and some arenas and stadiums in big cities will be used for both registration campaigns and actual places to cast votes .
Activism has found a place in management as well .
In the past , coaches like Doc Rivers would have been encouraged by the team owner and league to avoid controversy — especially political controversy .
But this is what Rivers said after the Jacob Blake shooting in a post-game press conference this week .
“ All you hear is Donald Trump and all of them talking about fear , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Convention .
“ We ’ re the ones getting killed .
We ’ re the ones getting shot .
We ’ re the ones that we ’ re denied to live in certain communities .
We ’ ve been hung .
We ’ ve been shot .
And all you do is keep hearing about fear.
” “ It ’ s amazing why we keep loving this country , and this country does not love us back , ” Rivers said .
“ It ’ s really so sad .
Like , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ m so often reminded of my color .
It ’ s just really sad .
We got to do better .
But we got to demand better .
It ’ s funny .
We protest .
They send riot guards .
They send people in riot outfits .
They go up to Michigan with guns .
They ’ re spitting on cops .
Nothing happens.
” Whether or not the articulation of a man like Doc Rivers has influence in the voters ’ minds in November is anyone ’ s guess right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going on as we speak .
The racial issues at play and critical mass of athletes choosing to get involved seems to have more public support than not at this time .
The media platforms used now give their voices more weight .
The only question is whether or not the voters will listen to them—or change the channel .

Wednesday evening’s “Inside the NBA” pre-game show on TNT caused some consternation following the cancellation of games by NBA players in reaction to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin. Most paid attention to host and former NBA player Kenny Smith walking off the show in support of the players, saying “right now my head is ready to explode,” and that “as a black man, as a former player, I think it’s best for me to support the players and just not be here tonight.”
But what co-host Shaquille O’Neal said next was perhaps more important. “November is coming up,” O’Neal said. “Make sure you get a new D.A. Make sure you get a new chief of police. Make sure you get a new mayor. Make sure you get a new president. Make sure you get a new sheriff. It’s in our hands. It’s always been in our hands.”
O’Neal’s focus—getting out to vote and electing a new president—is almost unheard-of for a player-turned-analyst. They usually talk about the effectiveness of the pick-n-roll and make funny quips like he does on his weekly “Shaqtin’ a Fool” segment, but not much more.
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
Athlete activism comes and goes in cycles. In the 1960s and 1970s, athletes like Bill Russell, Jim Brown, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Mohammed Ali were actively engaged a variety of cultural and political issues. Later superstars like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods passed on all that. Jordan’s famous line—“Republicans buy sneakers too”—explained why he and others stayed uninvolved.
The pendulum has swung once again. It began with the shooting of Trayvon Martin in 2012. Then the deaths of Michael Brown and Tamir Rice and Eric Garner in 2014. Then Breonna Taylor and George Floyd in 2020. Combined with the perception that President Donald Trump is aligned with white nationalist groups, and a number of black athletes no longer wanted to stay silent.
The rise of social media has given athletes an avenue to reach fans that are free from interference by ownership or the media. The ability to communicate with the public on their own through Instagram or Twitter has moved the content distribution of their personal views out of the mainstream sports media orbit, where commentary on groin pulls has always been more important than players comments on police brutality.
Most pro athletes, particularly NBA players, make so much money now that any controversy over their involvement in political issues cannot hurt them substantially in any monetary way.
Professor Kenneth Shropshire, CEO of the Global Sport Institute at Arizona State University, explained in an interview this summer how this change in media could have a big effect in the influence athletes have in future politics.
“I think because of the huge vacuum that exists in leadership in the White House — and no matter what you think of Donald Trump, he’s certainly not uniting the country — so in the absence of that, it is a tremendous opportunity for these people: athletes, sports figures, leagues that do have the attention and do have the respect of people to hopefully say some of the right things and do some of the right things as people are looking around for some wisdom,” Shropshire said.
Lebron James was a little more succinct in how he filled that vacuum. This is what he sent out in a tweet just after the NBA game boycott was announced last Wednesday.
FUCK THIS MAN!!!! WE DEMAND CHANGE. SICK OF IT — LeBron James (@KingJames) August 26, 2020
Needless to say, Trump thinks the players should shut up and dribble.
“It’s terrible. I think what they’re doing to the NBA in particular is going to destroy basketball. I can’t—I don’t even watch it,” he said to the press after his New Hampshire rally on Friday. “You know when you watch sports, you want to sort of relax, but this is a whole different world. … You don’t want to stay in politics. You want to relax. … It’s going to be very bad for football and I think it’s very bad for the NBA. Maybe even NBA threatening. And it’s going to be very bad for baseball if they don’t get smarter.”
If Magic Johnson campaigns for Joe Biden in Michigan, Michael Jordan does the same in North Carolina, and Marlins owner Derek Jeter chips in in Florida, their participation could have an impact in swing state races. The question is whether or not this will alienate voters on the fence who might be getting tired of their hero athletes getting involved in politics. This will be especially true in the Midwest “Blue Wall” states like Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
White House senior advisor and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner suggested this is how the White House might spin their newfound political awareness in a CNBC interview last week, noting that NBA players are fortunate “they have the financial position where they’re able to take a night off from work without having to have the consequences to themselves financially.”
But it’s been more than a one-day work stoppage. James’s “More Than A Vote” campaign is encouraging voter registration and turnout in minority communities. It will concentrate in swing states (Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan, Florida, and Ohio), and some arenas and stadiums in big cities will be used for both registration campaigns and actual places to cast votes.
Activism has found a place in management as well. In the past, coaches like Doc Rivers would have been encouraged by the team owner and league to avoid controversy — especially political controversy.
But this is what Rivers said after the Jacob Blake shooting in a post-game press conference this week. “All you hear is Donald Trump and all of them talking about fear,” Rivers said of the Republican National Convention. “We’re the ones getting killed. We’re the ones getting shot. We’re the ones that we’re denied to live in certain communities. We’ve been hung. We’ve been shot. And all you do is keep hearing about fear.”
“It’s amazing why we keep loving this country, and this country does not love us back,” Rivers said. “It’s really so sad. Like, I should just be a coach. I’m so often reminded of my color. It’s just really sad. We got to do better. But we got to demand better. It’s funny. We protest. They send riot guards. They send people in riot outfits. They go up to Michigan with guns. They’re spitting on cops. Nothing happens.”
Whether or not the articulation of a man like Doc Rivers has influence in the voters’ minds in November is anyone’s guess right now. But there is a change going on as we speak. The racial issues at play and critical mass of athletes choosing to get involved seems to have more public support than not at this time. The media platforms used now give their voices more weight. The only question is whether or not the voters will listen to them—or change the channel.


thebulwark--2020-09-02--The Disorderly Contested Election That Changed American History

As our fractured republic contemplates the very real possibility that Election Day will not be the climactic ending of this long slog of a campaign season , but rather just the beginning of a new phase of contention , it is worth looking back at what happened in the aftermath of another contested election—that of 1876 , when 19 electoral votes remained in dispute and both sides claimed the presidency .
The Republican party was founded in 1854—a coalition of Whigs , Free-Soilers , wayward Democrats , and others who joined together in opposition to extending slavery into Western territories @ @ @ @ @ @ @ War , the first Republican president , Abraham Lincoln , issued the Emancipation Proclamation , freeing the slaves in the Confederacy .
In early 1865 , a Republican majority in Congress pushed through the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery ; it was ratified before the end of that year .
Lincoln ’ s successor , Andrew Johnson , a Democrat , was less supportive of equality for formerly enslaved Americans .
Congressional Republicans reacted by passing the Civil Rights Act of 1866 ( Johnson had vetoed the bill the year before ) , along @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The statute—which wouldn ’ t be enacted until after the 1868 ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment—mandated civil rights protections for persons of African descent in the United States .
In the 1868 election , Ulysses S. Grant , the general who had commanded the U.S. Army during the war , succeeded Johnson as president .
A Republican , Grant was committed to Reconstruction .
In 1870 , the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified , giving black men a constitutional right to vote .
By 1873 , America was in an economic depression ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the 1874 midterm elections , Democrats took control of the House of Representatives while Republicans held the Senate ( as happened in 2018 ) .
With Grant opting not to run for a third term in 1876 , the presidential race that year was between two governors : Democrat Samuel Tilden of New York and Republican Rutherford B. Hayes of Ohio .
The election returns from Louisiana , Florida , and South Carolina left 19 dispositive electoral votes in dispute , and no clear winner .
Both candidates submitted electors from these three @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a compromise , appointing a bipartisan commission of five House members , five Senate members and five Supreme Court justices to definitively award the contested electoral votes .
The commission worked to investigate the returns in public , as “ there was a great desire to witness a fair count , ” according to the New York Times .
The commission , in a series of party-line votes , handed Hayes the presidency by a single electoral vote .
But a handful of congressional Democrats continued to object and filibuster .
Their compliance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ secretly brokered a deal—dubbed by historians the Compromise of 1877—whereby Republicans agreed to abandon Reconstruction efforts by removing federal troops from the South and allowing “ home rule ” in exchange for Democrats accepting Hayes in the White House .
As a consequence of resolving the disputed presidential election , discrimination , disenfranchisement , and racial violence roared back to life in the South .
The RNC convention last week confirmed that the Republican party has embraced a platform of bigotry over policy , with Nikki Haley disavowing black Americans ’ experiences with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and with prominent placement given to the Missourians who brandished guns at a Black Lives Matter protest .
In a recent CBS News poll of registered voters , Republican respondents said they considered the death toll from COVID-19 in the United States to be “ acceptable ” by a 57-43 margin , and averred that America is “ better off ” than it was four years ago ( when tens of thousands of Americans hadn ’ t yet been killed by the coronavirus ) by a margin of 75-25 .
Asked if Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said that he will “ see what happens.
” When it comes to our polarized political and cultural climate , we have long moved beyond hyperbole .
The frailty of American democracy today increasingly begs comparison with the chapter of U.S. history in which Americans killed nearly 750,000 fellow Americans—due largely to racism , economic devastation , and differing views on what “ rights ” actually mean .
One huge difference between then and now : The Republican party is no longer the party of inclusion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the occupant of the White House is a far cry from the likes of Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant .

As our fractured republic contemplates the very real possibility that Election Day will not be the climactic ending of this long slog of a campaign season, but rather just the beginning of a new phase of contention, it is worth looking back at what happened in the aftermath of another contested election—that of 1876, when 19 electoral votes remained in dispute and both sides claimed the presidency.
The Republican party was founded in 1854—a coalition of Whigs, Free-Soilers, wayward Democrats, and others who joined together in opposition to extending slavery into Western territories. In 1863, during the Civil War, the first Republican president, Abraham Lincoln, issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing the slaves in the Confederacy. In early 1865, a Republican majority in Congress pushed through the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery; it was ratified before the end of that year.
Lincoln’s successor, Andrew Johnson, a Democrat, was less supportive of equality for formerly enslaved Americans. Congressional Republicans reacted by passing the Civil Rights Act of 1866 (Johnson had vetoed the bill the year before), along with other laws aimed at facilitating Reconstruction. The statute—which wouldn’t be enacted until after the 1868 ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment—mandated civil rights protections for persons of African descent in the United States.
In the 1868 election, Ulysses S. Grant, the general who had commanded the U.S. Army during the war, succeeded Johnson as president. A Republican, Grant was committed to Reconstruction. In 1870, the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified, giving black men a constitutional right to vote.
By 1873, America was in an economic depression (as it is now). In the 1874 midterm elections, Democrats took control of the House of Representatives while Republicans held the Senate (as happened in 2018). With Grant opting not to run for a third term in 1876, the presidential race that year was between two governors: Democrat Samuel Tilden of New York and Republican Rutherford B. Hayes of Ohio.
The election returns from Louisiana, Florida, and South Carolina left 19 dispositive electoral votes in dispute, and no clear winner. Both candidates submitted electors from these three states.
The split Congress came to a compromise, appointing a bipartisan commission of five House members, five Senate members and five Supreme Court justices to definitively award the contested electoral votes. The commission worked to investigate the returns in public, as “there was a great desire to witness a fair count,” according to the New York Times. The commission, in a series of party-line votes, handed Hayes the presidency by a single electoral vote. But a handful of congressional Democrats continued to object and filibuster. Their compliance was only obtained once national party leaders secretly brokered a deal—dubbed by historians the Compromise of 1877—whereby Republicans agreed to abandon Reconstruction efforts by removing federal troops from the South and allowing “home rule” in exchange for Democrats accepting Hayes in the White House. As a consequence of resolving the disputed presidential election, discrimination, disenfranchisement, and racial violence roared back to life in the South.
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
Fast forward to 2020.
The RNC convention last week confirmed that the Republican party has embraced a platform of bigotry over policy, with Nikki Haley disavowing black Americans’ experiences with racism as “a lie,” and with prominent placement given to the Missourians who brandished guns at a Black Lives Matter protest. In a recent CBS News poll of registered voters, Republican respondents said they considered the death toll from COVID-19 in the United States to be “acceptable” by a 57-43 margin, and averred that America is “better off” than it was four years ago (when tens of thousands of Americans hadn’t yet been killed by the coronavirus) by a margin of 75-25. Asked if Trump will accept the results of the election, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said that he will “see what happens.”
When it comes to our polarized political and cultural climate, we have long moved beyond hyperbole. The frailty of American democracy today increasingly begs comparison with the chapter of U.S. history in which Americans killed nearly 750,000 fellow Americans—due largely to racism, economic devastation, and differing views on what “rights” actually mean.
One huge difference between then and now: The Republican party is no longer the party of inclusion, unity, and tolerance. And the occupant of the White House is a far cry from the likes of Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant.


Trump’s Racist Referendum

The most striking aspect of Donald Trump ’ s re-election campaign is his eagerness to inflame the nerve ends of our racial discontents .
In the New York Times , Thomas B. Edsall suggests the roots of this strategy .
Trump ’ s GOP , Edsall opines , has “ two overarching goals ” : “ deregulation and reductions in corporate and other tax liabilities ” ; and “ preservation .
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of the privileged status of white Christian America.
” Trump apologists may bridle .
But beyond peradventure , four centuries of racial pathology are again disfiguring American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , author of The End of White Christian America , as to why : For blacks , racism is a lived experience ; for whites , empathy is a volitional act limited by individual comprehension .
Since the killing of George Floyd was captured on video for all to see , one race-based question has permeated the presidential campaign : What is the shelf-life of white concern over police violence against blacks—and will this hopeful moment of empathy be truncated by violence and disorder ?
In the rush of events , America ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
After police in Kenosha , Wisconsin shot Jacob Blake in the back seven times , his mother implored : “ Everybody , let ’ s use our hearts , our love , and our intelligence to work together to show the rest of the world how humans are supposed to treat each other.
” But in some locales what followed was looting and vandalism , vigilantism and confrontation .
Thuggish morons in Washington , D.C. harassed diners who refused to express solidarity with Black Lives Matter .
A teenage Trump supporter and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and wounded a third ; in Portland , a caravan of Trumpites in trucks fired paint guns and pepper spray at protesters before someone , perhaps an Antifa sympathizer , killed a member of a far-right , anti-Antifa group .
But to invoke the facile sloth of moral equivalency ignores two crucial differences .
First , the majority of protests over police violence against blacks have been peaceful .
Second , while Joe Biden condemns violence from both sides , Trump targets only protesters on the left , indiscriminately tarring them as anarchists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Where others see tragedy , Trump seizes opportunity .
By strip-mining America ’ s racial pathology , he means to shift the conversation from his lethal mishandling of COVID19—converting white guilt and defensiveness into an electorally animating rage against the supposedly menacing African Americans who not only despoil our cities , but threaten the serenity of racially homogenous suburbs .
Trump ’ s aim , quite obviously , is to weaponize white fears of demographic change through simplistic calls for law and order steeped in authoritarian rhetoric and McCarthyesque scapegoating .
Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a “ Marxist organization.
” Further , “ the violence is fueled by dangerous rhetoric from far-left politicians that demonize our nation and demonize our police .
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The violent rioters share Biden ’ s same talking points , and they share his same agenda for our nation.
” “ No one , ” he warns , “ will be safe in Biden ’ s America.
” The only bulwark is Donald Trump , who stands ready to dispatch the National Guard should pusillanimous Democratic governors or mayors but request it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of local officials , Trump said not a word about black victims of police violence .
Instead , he proclaimed , “ reckless , far-left politicians continue to push the destructive message that our nation and our law enforcement are oppressive or racist.
” Mendaciously , he claimed to have dispatched the National Guard to Kenosha in order to quell violence—when , in truth , they were activated by Wisconsin ’ s Democratic governor .
To the contrary Trump is America ’ s foremost fomenter of violence , hatred , and strife .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ who fired paint and pellet guns at protesters , he said “ paint is a defensive mechanism ” and “ the big backlash going on in Portland can not be unexpected.
” When one of the right-wing provocateurs in Portland was shot to death , Trump tweeted “ Rest In Peace Jay ” —a glaring contrast to his silence over Jacob Blake .
As Kyle Rittenhouse was lionized by pro-Trump media after killing two protesters , Trump suggested that it was an act of self-defense without saying whether the 17-year-old should have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ armed militiamen and violent clashes between extremists proliferated after Trump ’ s election .
Trump feeds on menace and disorder—indeed he needs them , never more than now .
Charlottesville was but a prelude .
Little wonder , too , that reputable historians perceive some disturbing , if inexact , parallels between Trump and the authoritarians who remade twentieth-century Europe in their image .
Harvard political scientist Steven Levitsky , co-author of How Democracies Die , told the New Yorker , “ I don ’ t normally like to make these comparisons , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for political purposes is worryingly similar to what the Fascist movement did in Europe during the nineteen-twenties and nineteen-thirties.
” Similarly , NYU historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat noted that Benito Mussolini used violence “ to destabilize Italian society , so he could position himself as the person to stop this violence ” —adding that this evokes what Trump is doing now .
As reported by Philip Bump in the Washington Post , research by Vanderbilt political scientist Larry Bartels brings such concerns closer to contemporary America .
Bartels asked survey respondents whether they agreed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ traditional American way of life is disappearing so fast that we may have to use force to save it.
” • “ A time will come when patriotic Americans have to take the law into their own hands.
” • “ Strong leaders sometimes have to bend the rules in order to get things done.
” • “ It is hard to trust the results of elections when so many people will vote for anyone who offers a handout.
” Crucially , Bartels told Bump , “ ethnic antagonism ” is “ the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ resort to force in pursuit of political ends and support for ‘ patriotic Americans ’ taking the law into their own hands and ‘ strong leaders ’ bending rules.
” In short , whether one credits historical analogies , racial animus remains a potent and destabilizing force in America ’ s political present—and in this campaign .
Trump exacerbates racial unrest ; Biden decries disorder .
Yet Biden is assailed by demands from Trump supporters and anxious Democrats alike to decry it again and again .
While—as a matter of politics and morality @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a pernicious double standard which bedevils him alone .
The least of this , though appalling , is that Democrats don ’ t expect any decency from Trump—and his followers don ’ t want it .
More disturbing is that whites ’ fear of blacks preempts blacks ’ all-too-real fear of whites .
Sadly , Trump ’ s strategic race-baiting may be making headway .
According to a Morning Consult poll following both conventions , Trump gained a few points among whites and suburbanites—although that bump “ was short-lived , with the three-day @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those groups.
” Other surveys show Biden slipping a bit in battleground states .
By rightly embracing black protests against systemic racism , Democrats may have become more vulnerable to the reflexive anxiety of wavering whites .
That also makes it awkward for Democrats to point out that unrest in cities has risen during Trump ’ s time in office , while opposing his interference in cities run by Democrats .
When it comes to looting and vandalism , too many voters live in nuance-free zones .
Rhetorically , Biden ’ s response @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he accused Trump of “ fanning the flames of hate and division ” and “ recklessly encouraging violence.
” His seminal speech in Pittsburgh on Monday drew salutary bright lines : “ Rioting is not protesting .
Looting is not protesting .
Setting fires is not protesting .
.
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It ’ s lawlessness , plain and simple .
And those who do it should be prosecuted.
” What America most needs , Biden emphasized , is to be “ safe from four more years of Donald Trump.
” Stingingly , he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ failure to combat the coronavirus : “ More cops have died from COVID this year than have been killed on patrol.
” That denotes the ground that Biden wants to fight on , and that the campaign should be fought on—the difference between decency and divisiveness , competence and callousness .
The question is whether Biden can surmount Trump ’ s efforts to maintain power by acting as sorcerer ’ s apprentice to our seeming ineradicable toxins of race .
Michael Gerson well describes this national reckoning : “ Will we allow the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its doctor ?
A healthy democracy will refuse to reward the author of its own discord.
” America desperately needs to do so—not only to protect our deteriorating democracy from further degradation at Trump ’ s hands but to win a national referendum on racism which , if lost , would become a tragedy all its own .

The most striking aspect of Donald Trump’s re-election campaign is his eagerness to inflame the nerve ends of our racial discontents.
In the New York Times, Thomas B. Edsall suggests the roots of this strategy. Trump’s GOP, Edsall opines, has “two overarching goals”: “deregulation and reductions in corporate and other tax liabilities”; and “preservation . . . of the privileged status of white Christian America.”
Trump apologists may bridle. But beyond peradventure, four centuries of racial pathology are again disfiguring American politics. Edsall quotes Robert P. Jones, author of The End of White Christian America, as to why:
America’s still segregated modern life is marked by three realities: First, geographic segregation has meant that . . . most white Americans continue to live in locales that insulate them from the obstacles facing many majority-black communities. Second . . . the overwhelming majority of white Americans don’t have a single close relationship with a person who isn’t white. Third, there are virtually no American institutions positioned to resolve these problems.
For blacks, racism is a lived experience; for whites, empathy is a volitional act limited by individual comprehension. Since the killing of George Floyd was captured on video for all to see, one race-based question has permeated the presidential campaign: What is the shelf-life of white concern over police violence against blacks—and will this hopeful moment of empathy be truncated by violence and disorder?
In the rush of events, America’s racial anxieties become ever more volatile. After police in Kenosha, Wisconsin shot Jacob Blake in the back seven times, his mother implored: “Everybody, let’s use our hearts, our love, and our intelligence to work together to show the rest of the world how humans are supposed to treat each other.”
But in some locales what followed was looting and vandalism, vigilantism and confrontation. Thuggish morons in Washington, D.C. harassed diners who refused to express solidarity with Black Lives Matter. A teenage Trump supporter and self-appointed vigilante killed two protesters in Kenosha and wounded a third; in Portland, a caravan of Trumpites in trucks fired paint guns and pepper spray at protesters before someone, perhaps an Antifa sympathizer, killed a member of a far-right, anti-Antifa group.
But to invoke the facile sloth of moral equivalency ignores two crucial differences. First, the majority of protests over police violence against blacks have been peaceful. Second, while Joe Biden condemns violence from both sides, Trump targets only protesters on the left, indiscriminately tarring them as anarchists, agitators, looters, and rioters.
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
Where others see tragedy, Trump seizes opportunity. By strip-mining America’s racial pathology, he means to shift the conversation from his lethal mishandling of COVID19—converting white guilt and defensiveness into an electorally animating rage against the supposedly menacing African Americans who not only despoil our cities, but threaten the serenity of racially homogenous suburbs.
Trump’s aim, quite obviously, is to weaponize white fears of demographic change through simplistic calls for law and order steeped in authoritarian rhetoric and McCarthyesque scapegoating. Black Lives Matter, he trumpets, is a “Marxist organization.” Further, “the violence is fueled by dangerous rhetoric from far-left politicians that demonize our nation and demonize our police. . . . The violent rioters share Biden’s same talking points, and they share his same agenda for our nation.”
“No one,” he warns, “will be safe in Biden’s America.” The only bulwark is Donald Trump, who stands ready to dispatch the National Guard should pusillanimous Democratic governors or mayors but request it.
Traveling to Kenosha despite the pleas of local officials, Trump said not a word about black victims of police violence. Instead, he proclaimed, “reckless, far-left politicians continue to push the destructive message that our nation and our law enforcement are oppressive or racist.” Mendaciously, he claimed to have dispatched the National Guard to Kenosha in order to quell violence—when, in truth, they were activated by Wisconsin’s Democratic governor.
To the contrary Trump is America’s foremost fomenter of violence, hatred, and strife. Regarding the far-right goon squads in Portland who fired paint and pellet guns at protesters, he said “paint is a defensive mechanism” and “the big backlash going on in Portland cannot be unexpected.” When one of the right-wing provocateurs in Portland was shot to death, Trump tweeted “Rest In Peace Jay”—a glaring contrast to his silence over Jacob Blake. As Kyle Rittenhouse was lionized by pro-Trump media after killing two protesters, Trump suggested that it was an act of self-defense without saying whether the 17-year-old should have been there.
Little wonder that street-fighting, armed militiamen and violent clashes between extremists proliferated after Trump’s election. Trump feeds on menace and disorder—indeed he needs them, never more than now. Charlottesville was but a prelude.
Little wonder, too, that reputable historians perceive some disturbing, if inexact, parallels between Trump and the authoritarians who remade twentieth-century Europe in their image. Harvard political scientist Steven Levitsky, co-author of How Democracies Die, told the New Yorker, “I don’t normally like to make these comparisons, but this sort of encouragement of violence for political purposes is worryingly similar to what the Fascist movement did in Europe during the nineteen-twenties and nineteen-thirties.” Similarly, NYU historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat noted that Benito Mussolini used violence “to destabilize Italian society, so he could position himself as the person to stop this violence”—adding that this evokes what Trump is doing now.
As reported by Philip Bump in the Washington Post, research by Vanderbilt political scientist Larry Bartels brings such concerns closer to contemporary America. Bartels asked survey respondents whether they agreed with four statements:
“The traditional American way of life is disappearing so fast that we may have to use force to save it.”
“A time will come when patriotic Americans have to take the law into their own hands.”
“Strong leaders sometimes have to bend the rules in order to get things done.”
“It is hard to trust the results of elections when so many people will vote for anyone who offers a handout.”
Reports Bump:
Most Republicans and Republican-leaning independents agreed with the first statement. . . . Nearly three-quarters agreed that election results should be treated with skepticism. . . . Respondents were significantly more likely to say they agreed with the other two statements than that they disagreed.
Crucially, Bartels told Bump, “ethnic antagonism” is “the most powerful factor associated with willingness to resort to force in pursuit of political ends and support for ‘patriotic Americans’ taking the law into their own hands and ‘strong leaders’ bending rules.”
In short, whether one credits historical analogies, racial animus remains a potent and destabilizing force in America’s political present—and in this campaign.
Trump exacerbates racial unrest; Biden decries disorder. Yet Biden is assailed by demands from Trump supporters and anxious Democrats alike to decry it again and again. While—as a matter of politics and morality alike—Biden must do so, this underscores a pernicious double standard which bedevils him alone. The least of this, though appalling, is that Democrats don’t expect any decency from Trump—and his followers don’t want it. More disturbing is that whites’ fear of blacks preempts blacks’ all-too-real fear of whites.
Sadly, Trump’s strategic race-baiting may be making headway. According to a Morning Consult poll following both conventions, Trump gained a few points among whites and suburbanites—although that bump “was short-lived, with the three-day survey showing no significant national shifts among those groups.” Other surveys show Biden slipping a bit in battleground states.
By rightly embracing black protests against systemic racism, Democrats may have become more vulnerable to the reflexive anxiety of wavering whites. That also makes it awkward for Democrats to point out that unrest in cities has risen during Trump’s time in office, while opposing his interference in cities run by Democrats. When it comes to looting and vandalism, too many voters live in nuance-free zones.
Rhetorically, Biden’s response has been well-judged. Over the weekend he accused Trump of “fanning the flames of hate and division” and “recklessly encouraging violence.” His seminal speech in Pittsburgh on Monday drew salutary bright lines: “Rioting is not protesting. Looting is not protesting. Setting fires is not protesting. . . . It’s lawlessness, plain and simple. And those who do it should be prosecuted.”
What America most needs, Biden emphasized, is to be “safe from four more years of Donald Trump.” Stingingly, he reminded Americans of Trump’s colossal failure to combat the coronavirus: “More cops have died from COVID this year than have been killed on patrol.”
That denotes the ground that Biden wants to fight on, and that the campaign should be fought on—the difference between decency and divisiveness, competence and callousness. The question is whether Biden can surmount Trump’s efforts to maintain power by acting as sorcerer’s apprentice to our seeming ineradicable toxins of race.
Michael Gerson well describes this national reckoning: “Will we allow the poisoner of our civic culture to be its doctor? A healthy democracy will refuse to reward the author of its own discord.”
America desperately needs to do so—not only to protect our deteriorating democracy from further degradation at Trump’s hands but to win a national referendum on racism which, if lost, would become a tragedy all its own.


thebulwark--2020-09-03--It’s Still All About Russia—and It’s Outrageous

On Tuesday , Facebook announced that it had recently detected and defeated an online attack by the Russians , a disinformation campaign using “ 13 Facebook accounts and two Pages linked to individuals associated with past activity by the Russian Internet Research Agency ” —the very troll farm the Kremlin used in 2016 to harm the candidacy of Hillary Clinton .
What a crazy coincidence , just after the director of national intelligence decided to stop briefing members of Congress in person about election security threats .
This is the same DNI whose top counterintelligence official that warned in August @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had already been tainted by the Russians : “ We assess that Russia is using a range of measures to primarily denigrate former Vice President Biden and what it sees as an anti-Russia ‘ establishment.
’ ” The statement added that “ some Kremlin-linked actors are also seeking to boost President Trump ’ s candidacy on social media and Russian television.
” ABC News reported Wednesday that the Department of Homeland Security blocked publication of an intelligence warning to law enforcement about a Russian campaign to hype “ allegations about the poor mental @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the director of national intelligence have decided Russian election interference is no big deal .
Hey , it ’ s not like it ’ s new .
Russia has never stopped working to help Trump , and in four years he has never once rejected their help , instead he has relished it .
He has denied intelligence findings , politicized intelligence , sided with Vladimir Putin on the world stage in Helsinki over our intelligence community , and made clear in an interview with George Stephanopoulos last year that any foreign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ considered .
At every turn Trump has not only helped Putin but thwarted the examination of Russia ’ s attack on the 2016 election .
Trump told White House counsel Don McGahn to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller and likely obstructed justice in many other ways all recounted in the Mueller report .
Even before there was a special counsel investigation , Trump welcomed Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Russian ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak to the Oval Office by boasting that firing FBI Director James Comey had relieved “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more alarming revelations about Russia have seeped into the news , making even more clear the disturbing picture of how Trump seeks to retain his hold on power and continues to undermine U.S. national security with Putin ’ s assistance .
The Russia news has been drowned out by headlines about the national party conventions , the pandemic , and clashes in Kenosha and Portland—but it is equally consequential .
Russia has grown more emboldened recently with military provocations to which there has been little to no response from the Trump administration : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ service members after an intentional crash into a U.S. vehicle in Syria .
In two separate incidents last Friday , Russian aircraft intercepted U.S. Air Force bombers—in one case , flying dangerously near a B-52 over the Black Sea , in another case violating the airspace of a NATO member .
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week issued a statement saying the United States would agree with the EU ’ s call for an investigation into the apparent poisoning of Russian opposition leader Aleksey Navalny “ if the reports prove accurate ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a Russian military nerve agent that was used on him .
Meanwhile Trump has been lobbying for Russia to join the G7 for a year and wants Putin to visit the White House before the election .
Trump ’ s silence on bounties on American troops Russians paid the Taliban for is now 69 days old—Sen .
Tammy Duckworth has been keeping watch on Twitter—though Trump has known about them far longer than that .
But Trump has never criticized Putin , why would he start now ?
He has shown no concern @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recently that in his numerous conversations with Putin , bounties on U.S. troops just hasn ’ t come up and he doesn ’ t believe it anyway .
It is a breathtaking betrayal of our men and women in uniform .
And the whole world has been watching with confusion Trump ’ s love affair with Putin .
Consider a recent report in the Independent quoting a British official present at a meeting with President Trump in 2017 describing Trump unloading on then-National Security Advisor Michael Flynn because he missed an opportunity to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Somebody just mentioned in passing that Vladimir Putin had asked for a call with him , and right in front of [ U.K. government officials ] he absolutely shouted down Mike Flynn , ” said Nick Timothy , who served as chief of staff under former prime minister Theresa May .
“ Like really shouted .
This was at a formal dinner with butlers and fancy crockery—and he was properly shouting at him down the table.
” Stunning findings in a new report show Russiagate was never a witch hunt or a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ massive bipartisan report from the Senate Intelligence Committee , released last month , reveals that Paul Manafort , Trump ’ s campaign manager in 2016 , was working with a Russian spy—sharing campaign data with Konstantin Kilimnik , an intelligence officer who was presumably passing it directly to the Kremlin—representing “ a grave counterintelligence threat.
” Manafort , later convicted of bank fraud and tax fraud , lied to the special counsel and destroyed the communications he had by encrypted messaging with Kilimnik and others , preventing investigators from being able to learn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Senate report also found that Trump had spoken with Roger Stone about WikiLeaks , though he had told the special counsel in written responses he had “ no recollections ” of doing so .
The committee reported “ significant evidence ” showed WikiLeaks was “ knowingly collaborating with Russian government officials.
” To Trump , Putin is a once and future client .
In 2015-16 , Trump was trying to negotiate a deal to build a Trump Tower in Moscow—a goal going back more than 20 years—even while he was running for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the cooperation of the Russian government .
Trump ’ s lawyer , Michael Cohen , made direct contacts with the Kremlin about the Trump Tower plans , so Vladimir Putin knew Trump was lying about it to the American people all along .
Yet a new book by New York Times reporter Michael Schmidt reveals that the Department of Justice moved early on to protect Trump from an examination of his financial and business ties to Russia—what would likely be his motive for wittingly or unwittingly working with the Russians both during his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ career counterintelligence officials believed Trump ’ s ties to Russia “ posed such a national security threat that they took the extraordinary step of opening an inquiry into them , ” wrote Schmidt , Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein immediately narrowed the probe , “ all but ensuring it would go nowhere.
” With abundant contacts that all—yes—did amount to collusion , Mueller ’ s hands would be tied : He was tasked with proving a criminal conspiracy with evidence that could stand up in court .
Back when they could boast about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be bankrolled by the Russian oligarchs .
In 2008 , Don Jr. said at a real-estate conference that “ Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets.
” In 2014 , Eric Trump told a golf publication the family didn ’ t need American banks because “ we have all the funding we need out of Russia.
” Trump ’ s tax returns and financial records detailing his Russian loans , or gifts , still remain secret .
Secrets and Russian connections followed Team Trump from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kushner , Trump ’ s son-in-law , was in touch with Russian ambassador Kislyak before Trump was elected and then , during the transition , established a back channel through which he communicated with the Russians in secret .
Kushner—who , by the accounts of every national security official who has left the White House , is essentially second in command to the president—has run a national security apparatus outside the official channels for four years .
For example , during the early stages of the pandemic Kushner was buying ventilators from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be faulty ) much to the surprise of officials at the State Department .
Kushner worked on the transaction with Kirill Dmitriev , a Putin ally the Russian president tasked with ingratiating himself with the Trump transition team in 2016 , according to the Senate intelligence report .
Beyond Kushner , Trump has plenty of other helpful lieutenants making sure the Russians aren ’ t held accountable for attacking the 2016 election , let alone attacking this coming election .
Why else would Republicans who control the Senate refuse to address the staggering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Senate intelligence report—released last year—which found that while no votes were changed in voting machines in 2016 , there was “ an unprecedented level of activity against state election infrastructure.
” Russia may have “ intended to exploit vulnerabilities in the election infrastructure during the 2016 elections and , for unknown reasons , decided not to execute those options.
” Perhaps , the report said , Russia intended to exploit those vulnerabilities “ at a later date.
” Seems alarming , but not to DNI John Ratcliffe , who decided Congress would no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ threats despite what his intelligence experts have concluded .
Republican lawmakers not only talk up Trump ’ s “ hoax ” BS in television interviews but use Russian disinformation in their rhetoric and in probes designed to harm Biden .
Trump ’ s false narrative—echoed by Republican senators throughout the impeachment proceedings—that Ukraine , not Russia , meddled in the 2016 election was shot down by the Senate Intelligence Committee report , which said there was no reliable evidence of it .
“ The American people ought to know what Russia is doing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Adam Schiff .
“ They ought to know their president is unwilling to stand up to Vladimir Putin .
They ought to know that Senators like Ron Johnson are pushing a Kremlin false narrative about Joe Biden , and doing it knowingly.
” ( It is worth reminding everyone of Sen. Johnson ’ s quiet-part-out-loud boast that his investigations—aided by information from pro-Russian Ukrainian oligarchs— “ would certainly help president Trump win re-election and certainly be pretty good .
.
.
evidence about not voting for Vice President Biden.
” ) Even if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he has cashed in mightily in just four years—a weakened America , both domestically and internationally , a weakened NATO , a weakened European Union , and a much stronger position for Russian across the Middle East .
On Syria and Ukraine , Putin has scored his greatest wins , gifts from Trump for which he was asked nothing in return .
We learned from the impeachment investigation Trump has never defended Ukraine from the Russia annexation of Crimea or its continued aggression and instead labeled Ukraine “ corrupt.
” American withdrawals @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Russia ’ s wish list as well .
Early on the “ grownups ” in the administration subverted Trump ’ s pro-Putin agenda , but much of that collapsed after National Security Advisor H.R .
McMaster left the administration , Trump sided with Putin in Helsinki over American intelligence officials including his then-DNI Dan Coats , and then decided—in defiance of allies , Congress and his own cabinet—to remove troops from Syria , prompting James Mattis ’ s resignation as secretary of defense .
By the time his third national security advisor , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plays Trump “ like a fiddle , ” had himself resigned , Trump had started talking about relaxing sanctions on Iran ( a gift to Russia ) and had invited the Taliban to Camp David .
Earlier this year Trump sacked Joseph Maguire as DNI , because a deputy of Maguire ’ s had briefed members of Congress on—yep—the Russians trying to interfere to help re-elect President Trump .
Following Maguire ’ s firing , Admiral William McRaven wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post that quoted Edmund Burke ’ s famous line @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
” McRaven praised Maguire as “ a man whose integrity was more important than his future employment , ” said “ there is no better officer , no better man and no greater patriot , ” and warned that Maguire ’ s punishment for telling the truth should make Americans “ deeply afraid for the future of the nation.
” McRaven concluded : American voters may not know or care how damaging it is that we have become a satellite of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who have devoted their careers to serving our country do .
They know it ’ s just as pernicious if it wasn ’ t intentional as if it was .
Either Trump duped the United States or the Russians duped him .
Before Election Day , we need Maguire , Mueller , McMaster , Mattis , and Coats to explain to the American public what will happen to our nation if we allow the triumph of Putin .

On Tuesday, Facebook announced that it had recently detected and defeated an online attack by the Russians, a disinformation campaign using “13 Facebook accounts and two Pages linked to individuals associated with past activity by the Russian Internet Research Agency”—the very troll farm the Kremlin used in 2016 to harm the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.
What a crazy coincidence, just after the director of national intelligence decided to stop briefing members of Congress in person about election security threats. This is the same DNI whose top counterintelligence official that warned in August that the election then three months away had already been tainted by the Russians: “We assess that Russia is using a range of measures to primarily denigrate former Vice President Biden and what it sees as an anti-Russia ‘establishment.’” The statement added that “some Kremlin-linked actors are also seeking to boost President Trump’s candidacy on social media and Russian television.”
ABC News reported Wednesday that the Department of Homeland Security blocked publication of an intelligence warning to law enforcement about a Russian campaign to hype “allegations about the poor mental health” of Biden.
So DHS and the director of national intelligence have decided Russian election interference is no big deal. Hey, it’s not like it’s new. Russia has never stopped working to help Trump, and in four years he has never once rejected their help, instead he has relished it. He has denied intelligence findings, politicized intelligence, sided with Vladimir Putin on the world stage in Helsinki over our intelligence community, and made clear in an interview with George Stephanopoulos last year that any foreign assistance offered to his campaign would be considered.
At every turn Trump has not only helped Putin but thwarted the examination of Russia’s attack on the 2016 election. Trump told White House counsel Don McGahn to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller and likely obstructed justice in many other ways all recounted in the Mueller report. Even before there was a special counsel investigation, Trump welcomed Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Russian ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak to the Oval Office by boasting that firing FBI Director James Comey had relieved “great pressure.”
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
For weeks now, more alarming revelations about Russia have seeped into the news, making even more clear the disturbing picture of how Trump seeks to retain his hold on power and continues to undermine U.S. national security with Putin’s assistance. The Russia news has been drowned out by headlines about the national party conventions, the pandemic, and clashes in Kenosha and Portland—but it is equally consequential.
Russia has grown more emboldened recently with military provocations to which there has been little to no response from the Trump administration: a Russian armored vehicle wounded several U.S. service members after an intentional crash into a U.S. vehicle in Syria. In two separate incidents last Friday, Russian aircraft intercepted U.S. Air Force bombers—in one case, flying dangerously near a B-52 over the Black Sea, in another case violating the airspace of a NATO member. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week issued a statement saying the United States would agree with the EU’s call for an investigation into the apparent poisoning of Russian opposition leader Aleksey Navalny “if the reports prove accurate”; we now know that it was a Russian military nerve agent that was used on him. Meanwhile Trump has been lobbying for Russia to join the G7 for a year and wants Putin to visit the White House before the election.
Trump’s silence on bounties on American troops Russians paid the Taliban for is now 69 days old—Sen. Tammy Duckworth has been keeping watch on Twitter—though Trump has known about them far longer than that.
But Trump has never criticized Putin, why would he start now? He has shown no concern over the bounties story whatsoever and admitted recently that in his numerous conversations with Putin, bounties on U.S. troops just hasn’t come up and he doesn’t believe it anyway. It is a breathtaking betrayal of our men and women in uniform.
And the whole world has been watching with confusion Trump’s love affair with Putin. Consider a recent report in the Independent quoting a British official present at a meeting with President Trump in 2017 describing Trump unloading on then-National Security Advisor Michael Flynn because he missed an opportunity to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Somebody just mentioned in passing that Vladimir Putin had asked for a call with him, and right in front of [U.K. government officials] he absolutely shouted down Mike Flynn,” said Nick Timothy, who served as chief of staff under former prime minister Theresa May. “Like really shouted. This was at a formal dinner with butlers and fancy crockery—and he was properly shouting at him down the table.”
Stunning findings in a new report show Russiagate was never a witch hunt or a hoax. The final volume of a massive bipartisan report from the Senate Intelligence Committee, released last month, reveals that Paul Manafort, Trump’s campaign manager in 2016, was working with a Russian spy—sharing campaign data with Konstantin Kilimnik, an intelligence officer who was presumably passing it directly to the Kremlin—representing “a grave counterintelligence threat.” Manafort, later convicted of bank fraud and tax fraud, lied to the special counsel and destroyed the communications he had by encrypted messaging with Kilimnik and others, preventing investigators from being able to learn the full extent of his activities.
The Senate report also found that Trump had spoken with Roger Stone about WikiLeaks, though he had told the special counsel in written responses he had “no recollections” of doing so. The committee reported “significant evidence” showed WikiLeaks was “knowingly collaborating with Russian government officials.”
To Trump, Putin is a once and future client. In 2015-16, Trump was trying to negotiate a deal to build a Trump Tower in Moscow—a goal going back more than 20 years—even while he was running for the presidency. Such a project required the cooperation of the Russian government. Trump’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, made direct contacts with the Kremlin about the Trump Tower plans, so Vladimir Putin knew Trump was lying about it to the American people all along.
Yet a new book by New York Times reporter Michael Schmidt reveals that the Department of Justice moved early on to protect Trump from an examination of his financial and business ties to Russia—what would likely be his motive for wittingly or unwittingly working with the Russians both during his campaign and his presidency. Though some career counterintelligence officials believed Trump’s ties to Russia “posed such a national security threat that they took the extraordinary step of opening an inquiry into them,” wrote Schmidt, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein immediately narrowed the probe, “all but ensuring it would go nowhere.” With abundant contacts that all—yes—did amount to collusion, Mueller’s hands would be tied: He was tasked with proving a criminal conspiracy with evidence that could stand up in court.
Back when they could boast about it, the Trump sons were happy to be bankrolled by the Russian oligarchs. In 2008, Don Jr. said at a real-estate conference that “Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets.” In 2014, Eric Trump told a golf publication the family didn’t need American banks because “we have all the funding we need out of Russia.” Trump’s tax returns and financial records detailing his Russian loans, or gifts, still remain secret.
Secrets and Russian connections followed Team Trump from the campaign to the White House. Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, was in touch with Russian ambassador Kislyak before Trump was elected and then, during the transition, established a back channel through which he communicated with the Russians in secret. Kushner—who, by the accounts of every national security official who has left the White House, is essentially second in command to the president—has run a national security apparatus outside the official channels for four years.
For example, during the early stages of the pandemic Kushner was buying ventilators from the Russians (which later turned out to be faulty) much to the surprise of officials at the State Department. Kushner worked on the transaction with Kirill Dmitriev, a Putin ally the Russian president tasked with ingratiating himself with the Trump transition team in 2016, according to the Senate intelligence report.
Beyond Kushner, Trump has plenty of other helpful lieutenants making sure the Russians aren’t held accountable for attacking the 2016 election, let alone attacking this coming election. Why else would Republicans who control the Senate refuse to address the staggering finding of the first volume of the Senate intelligence report—released last year—which found that while no votes were changed in voting machines in 2016, there was “an unprecedented level of activity against state election infrastructure.” Russia may have “intended to exploit vulnerabilities in the election infrastructure during the 2016 elections and, for unknown reasons, decided not to execute those options.” Perhaps, the report said, Russia intended to exploit those vulnerabilities “at a later date.”
Seems alarming, but not to DNI John Ratcliffe, who decided Congress would no longer be briefed in person on election threats despite what his intelligence experts have concluded. Republican lawmakers not only talk up Trump’s “hoax” BS in television interviews but use Russian disinformation in their rhetoric and in probes designed to harm Biden. Trump’s false narrative—echoed by Republican senators throughout the impeachment proceedings—that Ukraine, not Russia, meddled in the 2016 election was shot down by the Senate Intelligence Committee report, which said there was no reliable evidence of it.
“The American people ought to know what Russia is doing,” said House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff. “They ought to know their president is unwilling to stand up to Vladimir Putin. They ought to know that Senators like Ron Johnson are pushing a Kremlin false narrative about Joe Biden, and doing it knowingly.” (It is worth reminding everyone of Sen. Johnson’s quiet-part-out-loud boast that his investigations—aided by information from pro-Russian Ukrainian oligarchs—“would certainly help president Trump win re-election and certainly be pretty good . . . evidence about not voting for Vice President Biden.”)
Even if Putin can’t help re-elect Trump, he has cashed in mightily in just four years—a weakened America, both domestically and internationally, a weakened NATO, a weakened European Union, and a much stronger position for Russian across the Middle East. On Syria and Ukraine, Putin has scored his greatest wins, gifts from Trump for which he was asked nothing in return. We learned from the impeachment investigation Trump has never defended Ukraine from the Russia annexation of Crimea or its continued aggression and instead labeled Ukraine “corrupt.” American withdrawals from Iraq and Afghanistan were high on Russia’s wish list as well.
Early on the “grownups” in the administration subverted Trump’s pro-Putin agenda, but much of that collapsed after National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster left the administration, Trump sided with Putin in Helsinki over American intelligence officials including his then-DNI Dan Coats, and then decided—in defiance of allies, Congress and his own cabinet—to remove troops from Syria, prompting James Mattis’s resignation as secretary of defense. By the time his third national security advisor, John Bolton, who has said Putin plays Trump “like a fiddle,” had himself resigned, Trump had started talking about relaxing sanctions on Iran (a gift to Russia) and had invited the Taliban to Camp David.
Earlier this year Trump sacked Joseph Maguire as DNI, because a deputy of Maguire’s had briefed members of Congress on—yep—the Russians trying to interfere to help re-elect President Trump. Following Maguire’s firing, Admiral William McRaven wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post that quoted Edmund Burke’s famous line, “the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” McRaven praised Maguire as “a man whose integrity was more important than his future employment,” said “there is no better officer, no better man and no greater patriot,” and warned that Maguire’s punishment for telling the truth should make Americans “deeply afraid for the future of the nation.” McRaven concluded:
When good men and women can’t speak the truth, when facts are inconvenient, when integrity and character no longer matter, when presidential ego and self-preservation are more important than national security—then there is nothing left to stop the triumph of evil.
American voters may not know or care how damaging it is that we have become a satellite of the Russian Federation, but many good men who have devoted their careers to serving our country do. They know it’s just as pernicious if it wasn’t intentional as if it was. Either Trump duped the United States or the Russians duped him. Before Election Day, we need
Maguire, Mueller, McMaster, Mattis, and Coats to explain to the American public what will happen to our nation if we allow the triumph of Putin.


thebulwark--2020-09-03--How Big Tech Kept Me From Selling Masks

How Big Tech Kept Me From Selling Masks

Once upon a time people complained that the Internet was a cross between the Wild West and the pre-war cabaret scene : an unregulated mess where anything and everything is allowed .
I have some bad news for you .
The Internet heard our complaints .
Into this regulatory void tech companies have birthed the techno-nanny state .
And it ’ s just as bad .
Over the last few months , I ’ ve been assisting with a project to bring FFP2 masks—the European equivalent of N95 masks—into the United States for non-medical applications .
Before the coronavirus , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ masks was for people who did industrial jobs , such as welding or spraying pesticides .
When the pandemic hit , it became critical to shift these supplies to front-line medical workers .
But that didn ’ t obviate the needs of industrial workers for personal protective equipment .
Getting a lung full of pesticide is no picnic , either .
So our idea was to find a way to increase the availability of properly-certified protective masks without affecting the supply available for doctors and nurses .
As part of my group ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about another upcoming crisis : California wildfires .
California wildfires are a too-regular occurrence and the fires are only part of the problem .
For many people the smoke is more dangerous than the fire .
When a fire rages out of control , millions of people can be exposed to dangerously unhealthy air pollution levels , sometimes for months at a time .
Apart from general discomfort , wildfire smoke causes a sharp increase in emergency room visits and hospitalizations .
It can even kill .
One study concluded that smoke from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ emergency room visits and killed 226 people .
N95 masks are traditionally the first line of defense against wildfire smoke .
But we knew that during the pandemic , they simply wouldn ’ t be available .
With all this in mind , our project settled on a fully-certified FFP2 mask that is widely used in Europe for industrial applications—but not certified for use in medical applications .
Under current OSHA guidance , the FFP2 mask is considered an acceptable substitute when NIOSH N95 masks are unavailable .
Working with the factory and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of these FFP2s to America was both expensive and complicated .
But eventually , all the pieces fell into place .
The first shipment of masks arrived just a few days before the current batch of California wildfires broke out .
Which was what we had planned for .
With air quality levels veering into dangerously unhealthful levels up and down the state , we moved to the last mile of the project : getting these pieces of protective equipment into the hands of the people who needed them .
And that ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the internet .
The obvious solution was to use Facebook and target ads at the areas suffering the worst wildfire smoke emergencies .
But , as it turns out , Facebook has imposed a blanket ban on ads for smoke-filtering masks .
“ During this unprecedented time , we ’ re temporarily prohibiting ads commercially promoting certain medical supplies and other high-demand products related to COVID-19 as they have been associated with exploitative behavior .
This currently includes .
.
.
N95 masks , KN95 , P2 , DS2 , DL2 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other masks that claim health or preventative capabilities.
” Twitter and Google have similar policies .
Nanny states—even techno-nanny states—always start out with the best of intentions .
But inevitably , the world is more complicated than the planners imagine and even the best of intentions have unanticipated consequences.What began in the early days of the pandemic as a well-meaning policy to keep some vulnerable users from being exploited has now become a policy that keeps other vulnerable users from getting connected with the equipment they need .
When government regulates commerce , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , from lobbying officials to the ballot box to the courts .
But when Google and Facebook decide to impose private regulations , there is no recourse .
Many of these companies were built around the idea of “ increasing returns ” which is the idea that , in a networked world , the largest and most powerful companies will tend to become larger and more powerful .
And that is what has happened .
Google , for example , dominates search engine advertising in the United States .
If Google decides , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ your product isn ’ t going to be found , it isn ’ t going to be found .
Google ’ s dominance in search has the ability to turn your perfectly-legal product into de facto contraband .
Which is what our project wound up concluding .
We canceled orders that would have brought several hundred thousand certified FFP2 masks into California at the peak of the wildfire season .
A lot of people won ’ t get the equipment they need and this has real-world consequences : These people will put up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ may well end up in an emergency room , or worse .
At a minimum , because the supply of masks is constrained , the people who do get hold of respirators will pay more for them than they would have otherwise .
I ’ m sure it will be a great solace to all of them that Google and Facebook meant well .

Once upon a time people complained that the Internet was a cross between the Wild West and the pre-war cabaret scene: an unregulated mess where anything and everything is allowed.
I have some bad news for you. The Internet heard our complaints. Into this regulatory void tech companies have birthed the techno-nanny state. And it’s just as bad.
Over the last few months, I’ve been assisting with a project to bring FFP2 masks—the European equivalent of N95 masks—into the United States for non-medical applications.
Before the coronavirus, almost all of the demand for N95 masks was for people who did industrial jobs, such as welding or spraying pesticides. When the pandemic hit, it became critical to shift these supplies to front-line medical workers. But that didn’t obviate the needs of industrial workers for personal protective equipment. Getting a lung full of pesticide is no picnic, either.
So our idea was to find a way to increase the availability of properly-certified protective masks without affecting the supply available for doctors and nurses. As part of my group’s planning, we were also concerned about another upcoming crisis: California wildfires.
California wildfires are a too-regular occurrence and the fires are only part of the problem. For many people the smoke is more dangerous than the fire. When a fire rages out of control, millions of people can be exposed to dangerously unhealthy air pollution levels, sometimes for months at a time. Apart from general discomfort, wildfire smoke causes a sharp increase in emergency room visits and hospitalizations. It can even kill. One study concluded that smoke from the 2012 Oregon wildfires resulted in 1986 emergency room visits and killed 226 people.
N95 masks are traditionally the first line of defense against wildfire smoke. But we knew that during the pandemic, they simply wouldn’t be available.
With all this in mind, our project settled on a fully-certified FFP2 mask that is widely used in Europe for industrial applications—but not certified for use in medical applications.
Under current OSHA guidance, the FFP2 mask is considered an acceptable substitute when NIOSH N95 masks are unavailable. Working with the factory and setting up the logistics to get more of these FFP2s to America was both expensive and complicated. But eventually, all the pieces fell into place.
The first shipment of masks arrived just a few days before the current batch of California wildfires broke out.
Which was what we had planned for. With air quality levels veering into dangerously unhealthful levels up and down the state, we moved to the last mile of the project: getting these pieces of protective equipment into the hands of the people who needed them.
And that’s where everything went sideways, courtesy of the internet.
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
The obvious solution was to use Facebook and target ads at the areas suffering the worst wildfire smoke emergencies. But, as it turns out, Facebook has imposed a blanket ban on ads for smoke-filtering masks. “During this unprecedented time, we’re temporarily prohibiting ads commercially promoting certain medical supplies and other high-demand products related to COVID-19 as they have been associated with exploitative behavior. This currently includes . . . N95 masks, KN95, P2, DS2, DL2, KF94, N99, FFP2, or other masks that claim health or preventative capabilities.” Twitter and Google have similar policies.
Nanny states—even techno-nanny states—always start out with the best of intentions. But inevitably, the world is more complicated than the planners imagine and even the best of intentions have unanticipated consequences. What began in the early days of the pandemic as a well-meaning policy to keep some vulnerable users from being exploited has now become a policy that keeps other vulnerable users from getting connected with the equipment they need.
When government regulates commerce, there are multiple levels of correction available, from lobbying officials to the ballot box to the courts. But when Google and Facebook decide to impose private regulations, there is no recourse.
Many of these companies were built around the idea of “increasing returns” which is the idea that, in a networked world, the largest and most powerful companies will tend to become larger and more powerful. And that is what has happened. Google, for example, dominates search engine advertising in the United States. If Google decides, for good reason or bad, that your product isn’t going to be found, it isn’t going to be found. Google’s dominance in search has the ability to turn your perfectly-legal product into de facto contraband.
Which is what our project wound up concluding. We canceled orders that would have brought several hundred thousand certified FFP2 masks into California at the peak of the wildfire season. A lot of people won’t get the equipment they need and this has real-world consequences: These people will put up with unnecessary discomfort and some of them may well end up in an emergency room, or worse. At a minimum, because the supply of masks is constrained, the people who do get hold of respirators will pay more for them than they would have otherwise.
I’m sure it will be a great solace to all of them that Google and Facebook meant well.