hotair--2020-08-18--Surprise: Cindy McCain to narrate Dem convention clip about Biden's friendship with McCain

The first real twist of the convention .
And one that makes you wonder whether Democrats have any other surprise endorsements from Republicans , or Republican allies , in store .
After all , a theme about Biden ’ s relationship with McCain logically should have aired last night , as part of the “ Republicans for Biden ” package featuring Kasich , Susan Molinari , Meg Whitman , and Christine Todd Whitman .
Maybe the Dems figured a quasi-endorsement from the McCain family was of sufficient notoriety that it shouldn ’ t be smothered in the reporting on Kasich @ @ @ @ @ @ @ set apart to stand out .
Or maybe they ’ re planning to do something like this every night of the convention .
It seems unlikely that all of the people who ’ ve served under Trump and then complained adamantly about him later would refuse an invitation from Democrats to officially endorse Biden .
What about Rex Tillerson ?
Military men like John Kelly and James Mattis might normally prefer to remain neutral , but they ’ re clearly not neutral about Trump and make no bones about it .
Mattis in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ threat to American democracy .
If he ’ s willing to say this in The Atlantic… Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try .
Instead he tries to divide us .
We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort .
We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership .
We can unite without him , drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society .
This will not be easy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shown , but we owe it to our fellow citizens ; to past generations that bled to defend our promise ; and to our children .
…logically he ’ d be willing to say it in a Zoom video for Biden , no ?
We ’ ll see .
As for Cindy McCain , it ’ s not news that she prefers Biden to Trump , especially after the various digs Trump ’ s taken at John McCain since his death .
But it is news that she ’ d do something endorsement-like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Because the McCain family retains political influence in Arizona , of course , and rumors abound that one of her children may seek office there before long .
“ One or two of them might end up running , ” she ’ s acknowledged before .
This isn ’ t going to help them in a Republican primary : Cindy McCain is going to bat for Joe Biden , lending her voice to a video set to air during Tuesday night ’ s Democratic National Convention programming focused on Biden ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona… McCain is not expected to offer an explicit endorsement , but her involvement in the video is her biggest public show of support yet for Biden ’ s candidacy .
McCain was the 2008 Republican presidential nominee against Democrat Barack Obama , who won the election with Biden as his vice presidential running mate… [ W ] hile Meghan suggested in April she ’ d be voting for Biden , Cindy has pointedly stayed out of the presidential race .
In April of last year , amid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the election in support of Biden , Cindy McCain tweeted that Biden is “ a wonderful man and a dear friend of the McCain family.
” “ However , ” she added at the time , “ I have no intention of getting involved in presidential politics.
” “ My husband and Vice President Biden enjoyed a 30+ year friendship dating back to before their years serving together in the Senate , so I was honored to accept the invitation from the Biden campaign to participate in a video celebrating their relationship , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ news broke .
It ’ s weird that she didn ’ t just pull the trigger and officially endorse him .
It ’ s not like pro-Trump Republicans in Arizona are going to rev up to defeat her kids in a primary and then think , “ Oh , wait , she never technically endorsed Biden so I guess there ’ s no problem.
” Cindy McCain isn ’ t naive about the political consequences of doing this , so why ’ d she do it ?
Maybe it ’ s as simple @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Joe and/or to John .
But I can also imagine her keeping an eye on the fortunes of George P. Bush in Texas and thinking there ’ s less risk to her kids ’ political futures in doing this than everyone thinks .
After all , Bush is the son of Jeb Bush , an old-guard Republican who attacked Trump repeatedly during the primaries in 2016 .
Even so , he won his primary for land commissioner comfortably in 2018 with more than 58 percent of the vote and then beat his Democratic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
How ’ d he do it ?
By kissing Trump ’ s ass enough publicly that he managed to separate his own fledgling political brand sufficiently from Jeb ’ s to make him acceptable to Texas Republicans .
If they ’ re willing to overlook Trump ’ s relentless nastiness towards their dad , up to and including disparaging his service in Vietnam , the McCain kids could follow the same path .
And if they ’ re unwilling to follow that path and genuflect before Trump ’ s greatness then it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ McCain does or doesn ’ t do .
They ’ ll be punished by primary voters for their insubordination .
Or will they ?
It must be weighing on McCain ’ s mind that her state isn ’ t as red as it used to be ; chances are very high , in fact , that Arizona will be represented by two Democrats in the Senate next year .
It ’ s not the worst idea in a state that ’ s trending blue to build a little goodwill among Democrats .
( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of John ’ s ObamaCare vote , of course . )
And if Trump goes on to lose this fall — especially if he loses badly — then being quietly anti-Trump won ’ t be quite the dealbreaker in Republican primaries going forward as it is now .
It ’ ll still be a liability , but any McCain kid who runs for office can always say , “ It was my mom who did Biden a favor at his convention , not me .
I ’ ve had my issues with Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ policy program was a much better vision for America than the Democrats ’ is.
” Look at it this way : After losing two Senate seats to Team Blue , Republican primary voters might *want* to nominate a McCain again .
It might be their best chance of taking Kyrsten Sinema out in 2024 .
Or … maybe I have it all wrong and the McCain kids are planning to run as Democrats ?
Hmmmm .
Exit question : Will Trump tweet something nasty about Cindy McCain or the McCain family when he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s apt to do him more harm than good ?
We all know the answer .

The first real twist of the convention. And one that makes you wonder whether Democrats have any other surprise endorsements from Republicans, or Republican allies, in store. After all, a theme about Biden’s relationship with McCain logically should have aired last night, as part of the “Republicans for Biden” package featuring Kasich, Susan Molinari, Meg Whitman, and Christine Todd Whitman.
Maybe the Dems figured a quasi-endorsement from the McCain family was of sufficient notoriety that it shouldn’t be smothered in the reporting on Kasich et al. It needed to be set apart to stand out.
Or maybe they’re planning to do something like this every night of the convention. It seems unlikely that all of the people who’ve served under Trump and then complained adamantly about him later would refuse an invitation from Democrats to officially endorse Biden. What about Rex Tillerson? Military men like John Kelly and James Mattis might normally prefer to remain neutral, but they’re clearly not neutral about Trump and make no bones about it. Mattis in particular has described the president as a threat to American democracy. If he’s willing to say this in The Atlantic…
Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try. Instead he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership. We can unite without him, drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society. This will not be easy, as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens; to past generations that bled to defend our promise; and to our children.
…logically he’d be willing to say it in a Zoom video for Biden, no?
We’ll see. As for Cindy McCain, it’s not news that she prefers Biden to Trump, especially after the various digs Trump’s taken at John McCain since his death. But it is news that she’d do something endorsement-like on Biden’s behalf. Why? Because the McCain family retains political influence in Arizona, of course, and rumors abound that one of her children may seek office there before long. “One or two of them might end up running,” she’s acknowledged before. This isn’t going to help them in a Republican primary:
Cindy McCain is going to bat for Joe Biden, lending her voice to a video set to air during Tuesday night’s Democratic National Convention programming focused on Biden’s close friendship with her late husband, Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona… McCain is not expected to offer an explicit endorsement, but her involvement in the video is her biggest public show of support yet for Biden’s candidacy. McCain was the 2008 Republican presidential nominee against Democrat Barack Obama, who won the election with Biden as his vice presidential running mate… [W]hile Meghan suggested in April she’d be voting for Biden, Cindy has pointedly stayed out of the presidential race. In April of last year, amid rumors that the McCains would wade into the election in support of Biden, Cindy McCain tweeted that Biden is “a wonderful man and a dear friend of the McCain family.” “However,” she added at the time, “I have no intention of getting involved in presidential politics.”
“My husband and Vice President Biden enjoyed a 30+ year friendship dating back to before their years serving together in the Senate, so I was honored to accept the invitation from the Biden campaign to participate in a video celebrating their relationship,” McCain tweeted this afternoon after the news broke. It’s weird that she didn’t just pull the trigger and officially endorse him. It’s not like pro-Trump Republicans in Arizona are going to rev up to defeat her kids in a primary and then think, “Oh, wait, she never technically endorsed Biden so I guess there’s no problem.”
Cindy McCain isn’t naive about the political consequences of doing this, so why’d she do it? Maybe it’s as simple as her feeling she owed it to Joe and/or to John. But I can also imagine her keeping an eye on the fortunes of George P. Bush in Texas and thinking there’s less risk to her kids’ political futures in doing this than everyone thinks. After all, Bush is the son of Jeb Bush, an old-guard Republican who attacked Trump repeatedly during the primaries in 2016. Even so, he won his primary for land commissioner comfortably in 2018 with more than 58 percent of the vote and then beat his Democratic opponent by 10 in the general election. How’d he do it? By kissing Trump’s ass enough publicly that he managed to separate his own fledgling political brand sufficiently from Jeb’s to make him acceptable to Texas Republicans. If they’re willing to overlook Trump’s relentless nastiness towards their dad, up to and including disparaging his service in Vietnam, the McCain kids could follow the same path.
And if they’re unwilling to follow that path and genuflect before Trump’s greatness then it doesn’t much matter what Cindy McCain does or doesn’t do. They’ll be punished by primary voters for their insubordination.
Or will they? It must be weighing on McCain’s mind that her state isn’t as red as it used to be; chances are very high, in fact, that Arizona will be represented by two Democrats in the Senate next year. It’s not the worst idea in a state that’s trending blue to build a little goodwill among Democrats. (The McCains already enjoy some by dint of John’s ObamaCare vote, of course.) And if Trump goes on to lose this fall — especially if he loses badly — then being quietly anti-Trump won’t be quite the dealbreaker in Republican primaries going forward as it is now. It’ll still be a liability, but any McCain kid who runs for office can always say, “It was my mom who did Biden a favor at his convention, not me. I’ve had my issues with Trump but in the end I think his policy program was a much better vision for America than the Democrats’ is.” Look at it this way: After losing two Senate seats to Team Blue, Republican primary voters might *want* to nominate a McCain again. It might be their best chance of taking Kyrsten Sinema out in 2024.
Or … maybe I have it all wrong and the McCain kids are planning to run as Democrats? Hmmmm.
Exit question: Will Trump tweet something nasty about Cindy McCain or the McCain family when he finds out about this, even though it’s apt to do him more harm than good? We all know the answer.


hotair--2020-08-18--Portland police identify suspect in beating of truck driver, BLM protesters attempt to distance them

Portland police identify suspect in beating of truck driver, BLM protesters attempt to distance themselves

This morning police released a photo along with a name of the suspect in the vicious beating of a driver which took place Sunday night .
Police have asked Marquise Love to turn himself in but so far haven ’ t heard from him .
Yesterday , the Portland Police Bureau ( PPB ) began investigation of an assault that occurred in the downtown area where an adult male associated to a white pick-up truck was violently assaulted .
Investigators positively identified the suspect as 25 year-old Marquise Love .
Investigators made attempts to contact Love but could not locate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Love to turn himself in but will continue to look for him as there is probable cause for his arrest… PPB understands the high public interest in cases such as these .
The release of information may not be as timely as the public would like .
Social media platforms make it quick to circulate information but investigators often need to make other connections not seen in videos .
Investigators need to protect the integrity of the cases they are assigned in order to present the best case to prosecutors and sometimes an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that process .
The reason for that last paragraph above is that Love ’ s name and information were widely circulating online yesterday so to many people it appears police are way behind the curve .
But not everything posted online about this case has been accurate .
Another rumor I saw floating around yesterday was that the victim of the assault had died .
Today police made clear that was not the case .
In fact , he has been released from the hospital .
That ’ s good news .
Meanwhile @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is attempting to distance itself from the violence , calling what happened “ a stain on the movement.
” Two people were physically assaulted last night near a protest against police brutality in downtown Portland , with at least one sent to the hospital for his injuries .
These incidents , all caught on video , were perpetrated by a small group of people who regularly frequent the nightly demonstrations .
But longtime organizers with Portland ’ s protests against racist policing say these individuals are not associated with the main movement—and believe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Black Lives Matter .
“ We want the public to know that we ’ re not those folks beating people up and robbing them , ” said Danialle James , a community organizer with the group Moms United for Black Lives .
“ It ’ s a stain on the moment.
” James has been protesting the death of George Floyd in Portland since May 27 , and co-founded Moms United with fellow protester Demetria Hester in late July .
It is a stain on the movement .
They are right about that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the first one .
Two additional points about this .
First of all , for a group run by Demetria Hester to cry crocodile tears about the reputation of the movement is laughable .
Here ’ s the kind of behavior Hester finds acceptable : Taunting police officers by telling them their wives are at home cheating on them as one of her comrades waves a dildo at police .
She ’ s a class act : Second point , according to Drew Hernandez , one of the people who shot the footage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people involved in the assault came directly from the main protest which had explicitly encouraged violence .
Marquise Love was part of a small group escorting someone away from the main protest because that person was filming .
The group assaulted that man and then , when a a trans-woman tried to intervene , they turned the assault on her .
Finally , they turned on the truck driver when he tried to intervene to protect the trans-woman who was being beaten and robbed .
This was a string of assaults that started @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you don ’ t even need to know all of that because this group was repeatedly talking about Black Lives Matter during the assault .
Bottom line , the idea that these people weren ’ t part of the movement is a huge stretch .
Here ’ s a photo of Marquise Love which likely came from his Facebook page before it was locked down .
He seems pretty serious about his commitment to BLM to me .
Here ’ s Drew Hernandez recounting the entire story of what happened leading up to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ truck driver ( allegedly ) by Marquise Love .
This matches pretty well with the description I pieced together yesterday based on the video clips .
Finally , Hernandez announced a short time ago that he would be on Tucker Carlson ’ s show tonight .
I ’ ll try to add that video later if it ’ s available .

This morning police released a photo along with a name of the suspect in the vicious beating of a driver which took place Sunday night. Police have asked Marquise Love to turn himself in but so far haven’t heard from him.
Yesterday, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) began investigation of an assault that occurred in the downtown area where an adult male associated to a white pick-up truck was violently assaulted. Investigators positively identified the suspect as 25 year-old Marquise Love. Investigators made attempts to contact Love but could not locate him. Investigators have left messages for Love to turn himself in but will continue to look for him as there is probable cause for his arrest… PPB understands the high public interest in cases such as these. The release of information may not be as timely as the public would like. Social media platforms make it quick to circulate information but investigators often need to make other connections not seen in videos. Investigators need to protect the integrity of the cases they are assigned in order to present the best case to prosecutors and sometimes an early release of unverified information can hinder that process.
The reason for that last paragraph above is that Love’s name and information were widely circulating online yesterday so to many people it appears police are way behind the curve. But not everything posted online about this case has been accurate. Another rumor I saw floating around yesterday was that the victim of the assault had died. Today police made clear that was not the case. In fact, he has been released from the hospital.
Other reports around social media claim that the victim in this case is not recovering or has succumbed to the injuries. These reports are false. The victim has been released from the hospital and is recovering.
That’s good news. Meanwhile, leaders of a Portland BLM group is attempting to distance itself from the violence, calling what happened “a stain on the movement.”
Two people were physically assaulted last night near a protest against police brutality in downtown Portland, with at least one sent to the hospital for his injuries. These incidents, all caught on video, were perpetrated by a small group of people who regularly frequent the nightly demonstrations. But longtime organizers with Portland’s protests against racist policing say these individuals are not associated with the main movement—and believe their violence is tarnishing the message of Black Lives Matter. “We want the public to know that we’re not those folks beating people up and robbing them,” said Danialle James, a community organizer with the group Moms United for Black Lives. “It’s a stain on the moment.” James has been protesting the death of George Floyd in Portland since May 27, and co-founded Moms United with fellow protester Demetria Hester in late July.
It is a stain on the movement. They are right about that. But it’s far from the first one.
Two additional points about this. First of all, for a group run by Demetria Hester to cry crocodile tears about the reputation of the movement is laughable. Here’s the kind of behavior Hester finds acceptable: Taunting police officers by telling them their wives are at home cheating on them as one of her comrades waves a dildo at police. She’s a class act:
I should probably throw a warning up on this, but if you couldn't see what they were holding… here it is. Demetria Hester telling troopers that their wives are cheating on them "with something of that size." Now she's back to telling them that their moms/families/kids hate them pic.twitter.com/etngjhhT1H — Hannah Ray Lambert (@TheHannahRay) August 11, 2020
Second point, according to Drew Hernandez, one of the people who shot the footage of what happened Sunday night, the people involved in the assault came directly from the main protest which had explicitly encouraged violence. Marquise Love was part of a small group escorting someone away from the main protest because that person was filming. The group assaulted that man and then, when a a trans-woman tried to intervene, they turned the assault on her. Finally, they turned on the truck driver when he tried to intervene to protect the trans-woman who was being beaten and robbed. This was a string of assaults that started with people at the protest. But you don’t even need to know all of that because this group was repeatedly talking about Black Lives Matter during the assault.
Bottom line, the idea that these people weren’t part of the movement is a huge stretch. Here’s a photo of Marquise Love which likely came from his Facebook page before it was locked down. He seems pretty serious about his commitment to BLM to me.
Here’s Drew Hernandez recounting the entire story of what happened leading up to the kick to the face of the truck driver (allegedly) by Marquise Love. This matches pretty well with the description I pieced together yesterday based on the video clips. Finally, Hernandez announced a short time ago that he would be on Tucker Carlson’s show tonight. I’ll try to add that video later if it’s available.


hotair--2020-08-18--NY AG's efforts to dissolve NRA look even worse upon closer examination

When Allahpundit covered the announcement that New York Attorney General Letitia James was trying to dissolve the entire National Rifle Association , he found probable cause to look askance at Wayne LaPierre ’ s handling of the organization ’ s finances , but also noted that dissolving the entire organization would be nearly unprecedented .
It also stinks to high heaven when you consider that we ’ re in the final months of a presidential election and she ’ s set herself up as attempting to take out a political enemy rather than addressing any possible corruption in the group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ turns out , AP wasn ’ t the only one thinking along those lines .
The Free Beacon has a nice roundup of some of the legal authorities who have weighed in on the subject and find it equally troubling .
And that group includes liberals who go out of their way to bash the NRA and its pet cause while still saying that James is simply going too far .
Experts across the political spectrum are skeptical of New York attorney general Letitia James ’ s ( D. ) attempt to dissolve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ calling the move “ dangerous.
” Legal scholars told the Washington Free Beacon it was hard to see the massive gun-rights group being dissolved over James ’ s investigation into its finances .
Cato Institute legal fellow Walter Olson said the case presented amounted to a Democrat attempting to shut down a key political opponent .
“ Closing down opposition organizations , traditionally , was something that you heard of going on in strongman regimes and you did not have going on in the United States , ” Olson said .
“ And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ asking for is for : a major opposition organization to be closed down.
” Walter Olson of the Cato Institute ( quoted above ) is obviously no fan of the NRA .
But he provided some succinct examples of similar cases from the past .
One of the best was the investigation into the Teamsters in the 1970s and 80s .
What the government found when they dug into that union was enough to curl your toes .
It was basically owned by the mafia and had its fingers into everything from protection @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Teamsters weren ’ t dissolved entirely .
The government took over the operation of the union for three decades , but the Teamsters are still with us .
There were others .
Washington Post editor Ruth Marcus , Harvard Law professor Noah Feldman , and University of Minnesota law professor Alan Z. Rozenshtein have all checked in with their shared distaste for the NRA and everything it stands for but expressed even more dismay at how James is handling this .
It ’ s thuggery on an industrial scale , where we see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state with future dreams of national office using the power of the DA ’ s office to attempt what amounts to a hit job on a political opponent .
At a more basic level , who is Letitia James supposedly seeking to protect in this issue ?
The members of the NRA ?
I ’ d be willing to bet that more than a few of us were put off our feed by some of the extravagant spending that LaPierre was engaged in , along with the number of lawsuits the group was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That dilutes all of the money that supporters donate to them so there ’ s less left to fight expensive Second Amendment battles in the courts .
But if the members are unhappy , everyone is free to vote with their wallets or their feet by refusing to send in any more donations and letting their memberships lapse .
Frankly , the rank and file NRA members probably aren ’ t looking for a refund .
If there are any adjustments to be made in the group ’ s finances , they would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ channeled back into the efforts they were trying to support when they joined .
This may wind up coming back to bite Letitia James and her liberal allies in the backside .
If she had simply sought some sort of financial reckoning for the group , she would likely be enjoying much broader support , at least on the left .
But her entire case could be in danger if the people who should be most inclined to agree with her keep edging away sideways and saying that she ’ s basically going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
And that she ’ s doing it for baldly obvious political reasons .

When Allahpundit covered the announcement that New York Attorney General Letitia James was trying to dissolve the entire National Rifle Association, he found probable cause to look askance at Wayne LaPierre’s handling of the organization’s finances, but also noted that dissolving the entire organization would be nearly unprecedented. It also stinks to high heaven when you consider that we’re in the final months of a presidential election and she’s set herself up as attempting to take out a political enemy rather than addressing any possible corruption in the group’s upper management. As it turns out, AP wasn’t the only one thinking along those lines. The Free Beacon has a nice roundup of some of the legal authorities who have weighed in on the subject and find it equally troubling. And that group includes liberals who go out of their way to bash the NRA and its pet cause while still saying that James is simply going too far.
Experts across the political spectrum are skeptical of New York attorney general Letitia James’s (D.) attempt to dissolve the NRA, with some liberals even calling the move “dangerous.” Legal scholars told the Washington Free Beacon it was hard to see the massive gun-rights group being dissolved over James’s investigation into its finances. Cato Institute legal fellow Walter Olson said the case presented amounted to a Democrat attempting to shut down a key political opponent. “Closing down opposition organizations, traditionally, was something that you heard of going on in strongman regimes and you did not have going on in the United States,” Olson said. “And that’s what she’s asking for is for: a major opposition organization to be closed down.”
Walter Olson of the Cato Institute (quoted above) is obviously no fan of the NRA. But he provided some succinct examples of similar cases from the past. One of the best was the investigation into the Teamsters in the 1970s and 80s. What the government found when they dug into that union was enough to curl your toes. It was basically owned by the mafia and had its fingers into everything from protection rackets to murder. But even the Teamsters weren’t dissolved entirely. The government took over the operation of the union for three decades, but the Teamsters are still with us.
There were others. Washington Post editor Ruth Marcus, Harvard Law professor Noah Feldman, and University of Minnesota law professor Alan Z. Rozenshtein have all checked in with their shared distaste for the NRA and everything it stands for but expressed even more dismay at how James is handling this. It’s thuggery on an industrial scale, where we see an ambitious Democrat in a very blue state with future dreams of national office using the power of the DA’s office to attempt what amounts to a hit job on a political opponent.
At a more basic level, who is Letitia James supposedly seeking to protect in this issue? The members of the NRA? I’d be willing to bet that more than a few of us were put off our feed by some of the extravagant spending that LaPierre was engaged in, along with the number of lawsuits the group was having to pay to fend off. That dilutes all of the money that supporters donate to them so there’s less left to fight expensive Second Amendment battles in the courts.
But if the members are unhappy, everyone is free to vote with their wallets or their feet by refusing to send in any more donations and letting their memberships lapse. Frankly, the rank and file NRA members probably aren’t looking for a refund. If there are any adjustments to be made in the group’s finances, they would probably prefer to see the cash be channeled back into the efforts they were trying to support when they joined.
This may wind up coming back to bite Letitia James and her liberal allies in the backside. If she had simply sought some sort of financial reckoning for the group, she would likely be enjoying much broader support, at least on the left. But her entire case could be in danger if the people who should be most inclined to agree with her keep edging away sideways and saying that she’s basically going after a mosquito with a shotgun here. And that she’s doing it for baldly obvious political reasons.


hotair--2020-08-18--Trump pardons Susan B. Anthony for illegal voting on anniversary of 19th Amendment

Last night he told reporters he ’ d be pardoning someone important today and that it wouldn ’ t be Mike Flynn or Edward Snowden .
That started a new round of political Twitter ’ s favorite guessing game , played every time there are rumblings about an act of clemency by Trump : Corrupt crony or war criminal ?
The truth turned out to be way better .
This is a righteous pardon , if a bit odd in the context of him complaining every day about about the risk of illegal voting this fall .
Anthony was convicted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ballot as a woman when the franchise belonged to men .
Today ’ s the centennial of the amendment that changed that and so POTUS decided to commemorate it by expunging Anthony ’ s record .
Because everything is stupid and hyper-polarized in America 2020 , New York ’ s lieutenant governor responded this morning by demanding that Trump ’ s pardon be … rescinded : He acted to cure an historical injustice , and immediately some grandstanding Democrat is accusing him of stealing the badge of honor Anthony wore from her unjust @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s grave , Hochul would be happy .
It ’ s clear as day what he ’ s hoping to gain from this , both short-term and long-term : I ’ m not sure a stunt pardon will do much to distract the media from the Democrats ’ convention but it can ’ t hurt .
Meanwhile , this is a bit of outreach to a demographic that ’ s killing him right now against Biden , women with college degrees .
He ’ s been courting them lately in ways large @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ll protect their suburban communities by keeping out the poors and offering to , uh… He ’ s thin on ideas besides that one at the moment , which is why he ’ s resorting to transparent panders like the Anthony pardon .
Here ’ s what he came up with a few days ago to try to impress them : That reminded me of what he said last week about Biden wanting to “ hurt the Bible ” and “ hurt God.
” Sometimes he knows that he has to pander to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sure of the nuances of how to do it , so he just skips the nuances and makes the pander as flagrant as possible .
Tell the evangelicals that Biden is anti-God , tell women college grads that feminists deserve their own statue or whatever .
Pardon Susan B. Anthony .
Maybe that ’ ll do it .
The timing of today ’ s action was clearly dictated by the centennial but it also operates as counterprogramming of Michelle Obama ’ s speech at the convention last night .
Obama ’ s a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When Barack left office in 2017 her favorable rating was higher than his , at 69/26 .
Among women it was 76/20 and among college grads 77/18 .
For the past two years she ’ s been Gallup ’ s most admired woman in America .
A new poll out today finds that her favorable rating is more than 20 points higher than Trump ’ s and nearly 15 points higher than Biden ’ s .
Her support for Clinton four years ago wasn ’ t enough to deliver suburban voters — Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ four points — but they ’ ve trended left since then , and her tearing into him last night on national television won ’ t do anything to halt that trend .
If nothing else , the pardon helps cut into the media noise about MObama ’ s speech this morning .
He mentioned her in this same press appearance , noting that if it weren ’ t for the Obamas there would have been no demand by voters for Trump .
That ’ s true , of course , although I think @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contempt for Hillary than for O .
He also dinged Michelle Obama for pre-recording her speech , which he knew because the U.S. coronavirus death toll she mentioned was lower by many thousands of people than the current death toll .
Which … maybe isn ’ t the greatest talking point for Trump .
“ The death toll is rising so rapidly that stuff recorded a week ago is already outdated ” is more of a Biden zinger Anyway , the important pardon that ’ s coming up is Trump ’ s potential @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will look the other way at him pardoning Flynn , if it comes to that , but pardoning Snowden will infuriate the hawks and embarrass other GOPers in the House and Senate who were critical of Snowden in the past .
The weird thing about Trump ’ s interest in pardoning Snowden is that it ’ s *not* a heavy-handed pander in the Susan B. Anthony mold .
The sort of people who would cheer that , hardcore libertarians and certain strains of leftists , are utterly lost to him electorally .
Not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ inexplicably for a famous spy who fled to Russia will only revive suspicions that something untoward is going on between Trump and the Kremlin .
It ’ d be idiotic to do it .
But he ’ ll probably do it .
Exit question : How many recipients of acts of clemency by Trump will be out on the trail raising money for him this fall ?
Are we going to get a Snowden fundraiser in October somewhere , maybe ?

Last night he told reporters he’d be pardoning someone important today and that it wouldn’t be Mike Flynn or Edward Snowden. That started a new round of political Twitter’s favorite guessing game, played every time there are rumblings about an act of clemency by Trump: Corrupt crony or war criminal?
The truth turned out to be way better.
This is a righteous pardon, if a bit odd in the context of him complaining every day about about the risk of illegal voting this fall. Anthony was convicted of … illegal voting, casting a ballot as a woman when the franchise belonged to men. Today’s the centennial of the amendment that changed that and so POTUS decided to commemorate it by expunging Anthony’s record.
President Trump: "I will be signing a full and complete pardon for Susan B. Anthony." https://t.co/UsGxngj4Us pic.twitter.com/i52ioCW9Ju — The Hill (@thehill) August 18, 2020
Because everything is stupid and hyper-polarized in America 2020, New York’s lieutenant governor responded this morning by demanding that Trump’s pardon be … rescinded:
As highest ranking woman elected official in New York and on behalf of Susan B. Anthony’s legacy we demand Trump rescind his pardon. She was proud of her arrest to draw attention to the cause for women’s rights, and never paid her fine. Let her Rest In Peace, @realDonaldTrump. — Kathy Hochul (@LtGovHochulNY) August 18, 2020
He acted to cure an historical injustice, and immediately some grandstanding Democrat is accusing him of stealing the badge of honor Anthony wore from her unjust arrest. Maybe if he drone-striked Anthony’s grave, Hochul would be happy.
It’s clear as day what he’s hoping to gain from this, both short-term and long-term:
People close to the president said that Mr. Trump was seeking to create a news story during the Democrats’ convention, where Mr. Biden will be nominated. Advisers believe that unlike some of Mr. Trump’s other pardons or grants of clemency, it will be harder to criticize an action benefiting a woman whose actions helped lead to women’s right to vote.
I’m not sure a stunt pardon will do much to distract the media from the Democrats’ convention but it can’t hurt. Meanwhile, this is a bit of outreach to a demographic that’s killing him right now against Biden, women with college degrees. He’s been courting them lately in ways large and small, vowing that he’ll protect their suburban communities by keeping out the poors and offering to, uh…
He’s thin on ideas besides that one at the moment, which is why he’s resorting to transparent panders like the Anthony pardon. Here’s what he came up with a few days ago to try to impress them:
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1294307884055040001
That reminded me of what he said last week about Biden wanting to “hurt the Bible” and “hurt God.” Sometimes he knows that he has to pander to a certain group but isn’t sure of the nuances of how to do it, so he just skips the nuances and makes the pander as flagrant as possible. Tell the evangelicals that Biden is anti-God, tell women college grads that feminists deserve their own statue or whatever. Pardon Susan B. Anthony. Maybe that’ll do it.
The timing of today’s action was clearly dictated by the centennial but it also operates as counterprogramming of Michelle Obama’s speech at the convention last night. Obama’s a popular figure, especially with women: When Barack left office in 2017 her favorable rating was higher than his, at 69/26. Among women it was 76/20 and among college grads 77/18. For the past two years she’s been Gallup’s most admired woman in America. A new poll out today finds that her favorable rating is more than 20 points higher than Trump’s and nearly 15 points higher than Biden’s. Her support for Clinton four years ago wasn’t enough to deliver suburban voters — Trump won them although only narrowly, by four points — but they’ve trended left since then, and her tearing into him last night on national television won’t do anything to halt that trend. If nothing else, the pardon helps cut into the media noise about MObama’s speech this morning.
He mentioned her in this same press appearance, noting that if it weren’t for the Obamas there would have been no demand by voters for Trump. That’s true, of course, although I think he owes his 2016 victory more to contempt for Hillary than for O. He also dinged Michelle Obama for pre-recording her speech, which he knew because the U.S. coronavirus death toll she mentioned was lower by many thousands of people than the current death toll. Which … maybe isn’t the greatest talking point for Trump. “The death toll is rising so rapidly that stuff recorded a week ago is already outdated” is more of a Biden zinger
Trump disses Michelle Obama: “She was over her head, and frankly, she should’ve made the speech live, which she didn’t do, she taped it. And it was not only taped, it was tape a long time ago, because she had the wrong [coronavirus] deaths.” pic.twitter.com/Ckyj3wtoWq — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 18, 2020
Anyway, the important pardon that’s coming up is Trump’s potential clemency for Snowden. Republicans in Congress will look the other way at him pardoning Flynn, if it comes to that, but pardoning Snowden will infuriate the hawks and embarrass other GOPers in the House and Senate who were critical of Snowden in the past.
Edward Snowden is a traitor. He is responsible for the largest and most damaging release of classified info in US history. He handed over US secrets to Russian and Chinese intelligence putting our troops and our nation at risk. Pardoning him would be unconscionable. — Liz Cheney (@Liz_Cheney) August 16, 2020
I’m confident President Trump understands the crimes committed by Snowden resulted in American forces – and those who assisted us throughout the world – being placed in greater danger. Specifically, information released by Snowden jeopardized operations in Iraq & Afghanistan. — Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) August 17, 2020
The weird thing about Trump’s interest in pardoning Snowden is that it’s *not* a heavy-handed pander in the Susan B. Anthony mold. The sort of people who would cheer that, hardcore libertarians and certain strains of leftists, are utterly lost to him electorally. Not only that, but doing a favor inexplicably for a famous spy who fled to Russia will only revive suspicions that something untoward is going on between Trump and the Kremlin. It’d be idiotic to do it. But he’ll probably do it.
Exit question: How many recipients of acts of clemency by Trump will be out on the trail raising money for him this fall? Are we going to get a Snowden fundraiser in October somewhere, maybe?


hotair--2020-08-18--Portland police officer on nightly protests: 'They've been hijacked by anarchists'

This won ’ t come as a surprise to anyone who has been paying attention but the nightly riots/unlawful assemblies in Portland are being driven by a hard core group of anarchists .
That ’ s the conclusion of Sgt .
Brent Maxey who has spent many nights facing off against the group over the past two months .
He gave an exclusive interview to KGW last Thursday which was published yesterday .
The 18-year veteran of PPB , who spent 13 of those years on the bureau ’ s Rapid Response Team , sat down for an in-depth , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take on the demonstrations .
Maxey said the demonstrations “ started off as protests… but these have now devolved .
They ’ ve been hijacked by anarchists , essentially .
And they ’ ve just kind of devolved into these masses of people that are just bent on destruction and hurting , mainly hurting police or anybody that really disagrees with that message.
” In the full interview , which KGW posted on You Tube , Sgt .
Maxey went on to say , “ It ’ s a continuous cycle where this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it might not have been called Antifa at the time but they did it with Occupy .
They did it with the inauguration stuff in 2016 .
They do it with May Day every year .
They tried to do it with the Women ’ s March but the Women ’ s March had enough people where they actually were able to push them out .
“ These things that are happening , they ’ re not peaceful .
The words that are out there are ‘ These are peaceful protesters.
’ They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that every night as the gatherings escalate to unlawful assemblies and then to riots the police give multiple warnings and time to allow any actual peaceful protesters to leave the area .
The people who stay clearly aren ’ t interested in peace .
“ The people that choose to stay , in my view , are complicit in the overall action that ’ s happening , ” Sgt .
Maxey said .
He added that it was often people in the back throwing things at officers while people in the front are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ truth is that these entire crowds that are left at the end of the night…in my observation , almost without exception , every single one of those people is involved in this criminal activity , ” he said .
At this point the KGW reporter pushed back and argued that in some cases police have pushed back on people who were reporters .
Sgt .
Maxey admitted that sometimes people get caught in between the two groups but he added , “ Not everybody who is out there wearing a press badge or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helmet is press.
” He said officers had seen the rioters handing out badges that said press .
He said he had personally seen people with press written on their bodies throw objects at the police .
He has also seen some of these self-identified people interfere with arrests .
Later the reporter asked about a recommendation by Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty that police not be sent to deal with protests at all .
The idea behind this is that without police there the “ peaceful protests ” would never become @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Maxey what would happen if police were called off .
“ I believe that we would have buildings on fire .
I truly do , ” Maxey replied .
He continued , “ The people that have been coming out to the justice center and to the police precincts , they want to abolish the police…They ’ re basically trying to bankrupt the Portland Police Bureau .
I think if we didn ’ t respond to these things I think that we would have buildings on fire.
” As for what Sgt .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ongoing situation , he says it has to be about conversations rather than screaming matches .
He describes one incident where someone shouted something vulgar at him .
He engaged the person and they wound up speaking for 90 minutes .
He said that at the end they didn ’ t agree but they both shook hands and he felt like there was some mutual understanding .
“ All I see anymore is screaming .
We go out and nobody is interested in a dialogue , ” he said .
He added , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wants to talk , other people come and shut them down.
” At this point I would just interject that there are reasons the woke won ’ t debate people , including the officers they are protesting .
As James Lindsay put it , “ Conversation and debate are part of our game , and they are not part of their game.
” Their game , in the case of the Portland protests , is tactics of conflict and “ direct action.
” Conversation is counter to that goal .
Here ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It ’ s more than an hour long but worthwhile .
If you want to see the briefer ( 11-minute ) version of this interview that ran on KGW it ’ s here .

This won’t come as a surprise to anyone who has been paying attention but the nightly riots/unlawful assemblies in Portland are being driven by a hard core group of anarchists. That’s the conclusion of Sgt. Brent Maxey who has spent many nights facing off against the group over the past two months. He gave an exclusive interview to KGW last Thursday which was published yesterday.
The 18-year veteran of PPB, who spent 13 of those years on the bureau’s Rapid Response Team, sat down for an in-depth, one-on-one interview with KGW to give his take on the demonstrations. Maxey said the demonstrations “started off as protests… but these have now devolved. They’ve been hijacked by anarchists, essentially. And they’ve just kind of devolved into these masses of people that are just bent on destruction and hurting, mainly hurting police or anybody that really disagrees with that message.”
In the full interview, which KGW posted on You Tube, Sgt. Maxey went on to say, “It’s a continuous cycle where this group hijacks whatever they really can…You know it might not have been called Antifa at the time but they did it with Occupy. They did it with the inauguration stuff in 2016. They do it with May Day every year. They tried to do it with the Women’s March but the Women’s March had enough people where they actually were able to push them out.
“These things that are happening, they’re not peaceful. The words that are out there are ‘These are peaceful protesters.’ They’re not.”
He pointed out that every night as the gatherings escalate to unlawful assemblies and then to riots the police give multiple warnings and time to allow any actual peaceful protesters to leave the area. The people who stay clearly aren’t interested in peace. “The people that choose to stay, in my view, are complicit in the overall action that’s happening,” Sgt. Maxey said. He added that it was often people in the back throwing things at officers while people in the front are shielding them from arrest.
“The truth is that these entire crowds that are left at the end of the night…in my observation, almost without exception, every single one of those people is involved in this criminal activity,” he said.
At this point the KGW reporter pushed back and argued that in some cases police have pushed back on people who were reporters. Sgt. Maxey admitted that sometimes people get caught in between the two groups but he added, “Not everybody who is out there wearing a press badge or has ‘press’ written across their helmet is press.” He said officers had seen the rioters handing out badges that said press. He said he had personally seen people with press written on their bodies throw objects at the police. He has also seen some of these self-identified people interfere with arrests.
Later the reporter asked about a recommendation by Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty that police not be sent to deal with protests at all. The idea behind this is that without police there the “peaceful protests” would never become riots. The reporter asked Sgt. Maxey what would happen if police were called off.
“I believe that we would have buildings on fire. I truly do,” Maxey replied. He continued, “The people that have been coming out to the justice center and to the police precincts, they want to abolish the police…They’re basically trying to bankrupt the Portland Police Bureau. I think if we didn’t respond to these things I think that we would have buildings on fire.”
As for what Sgt. Maxey sees as the solution to this ongoing situation, he says it has to be about conversations rather than screaming matches. He describes one incident where someone shouted something vulgar at him. He engaged the person and they wound up speaking for 90 minutes. He said that at the end they didn’t agree but they both shook hands and he felt like there was some mutual understanding. “All I see anymore is screaming. We go out and nobody is interested in a dialogue,” he said. He added, “If I do find somebody who wants to talk, other people come and shut them down.”
At this point I would just interject that there are reasons the woke won’t debate people, including the officers they are protesting. As James Lindsay put it, “Conversation and debate are part of our game, and they are not part of their game.” Their game, in the case of the Portland protests, is tactics of conflict and “direct action.” Conversation is counter to that goal.
Here’s the full interview with Sgt. Maxey. It’s more than an hour long but worthwhile. If you want to see the briefer (11-minute) version of this interview that ran on KGW it’s here.


hotair--2020-08-18--Anti-Trump political ad uses Melania to encourage voters to 'divorce Trump'

I do not often agree with much of anything that is published by Jezebel .
There is a piece up now though that can almost be considered fair to First Lady Melania Trump .
That is a really rare occurrence because liberal women ’ s publications go out of their way to trash Melania Trump .
The piece addresses the obsession on the left with the Trump marriage .
Liberal women desperately want Melania Trump to divorce her husband .
It isn ’ t so much that they are actually concerned about Melania , it just that they hate Donald @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t deserve a loyal wife .
So , nothing pleases the haters more than watching a video where it looks like Melania is swatting away President Trump ’ s hand .
The latest such video went viral Sunday as the Trumps traveled back to the White House after a weekend in New Jersey .
Their son Barron was with them .
First I ’ ll show you the video , then I ’ ll continue .
The caption on the video is typical of the tweets sent out to call attention to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take her husband ’ s hand .
What I saw was a husband extending his hand as his wife ( who wears very high heels ) descends stairs .
Then , because it is windy , her hair is flopping in her face and she is holding the hem of her dress down with her Birkin handbag .
That is the hand closest to Trump .
With her other hand , she is holding on to the railing .
She doesn ’ t have a free hand .
She didn ’ t swat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her body just a bit toward the railing .
Good heavens .
She ’ s just trying to get down the stairs without her dress flying up over her head .
What I also see in the video is that as the Trumps move from Air Force One towards Marine One , I see that the First Couple is holding hands .
It all looks perfectly normal .
I also notice how dang tall Barron is but that is neither here nor there .
So , as the piece in Jezebel points out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ video but took away from it that the First Lady is so repulsed by her husband that she can ’ t even hold his hand .
It ’ s a whole lot of projection if you ask me .
They are repulsed by him so certainly , she must be , too , right ?
The article , while going on to note other tweets about the incident goes on to say that for Democrats , it is easier to think that Melania is a long-suffering wife than that she is “ being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and sexually abusive behavior .
I told you the piece is almost a fair one .
Don ’ t expect this publication to support Melania without bringing up standard criticism of him .
While there ’ s some fun to be had in the concept of a perpetually disdainful Melania Trump , it ’ s not one that seems all that tethered to reality .
But that didn ’ t stop Sky News from blaring the headline “ Melania Trump pulls her hand away from Donald Trump ’ s as they step off @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stop Vox journalist Aaron Rupar either , who tweeted , “ Hard not to notice Trump repeatedly trying to hold Melania ’ s hand on their way down the steps and her having none of it.
” It also didn ’ t stop a few Democrats with a large following on Twitter from crassly joking that Melania , a sex worker , charges extra for hand-holding .
It ’ s 2020 , and clickbait tabloids and Resistance™ Democrats are still clinging to the notion that Melania Trump actually hates her husband ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This characterization kicked off in earnest during Trump ’ s inauguration , when every twitch of Melania ’ s lips were psychoanalyzed .
For some Democrats , it was easier to imagine Melania as a long-suffering wife rather than a woman with a history of being complicit in Trump ’ s racism and dismissive of those who have accused him of sexual assault .
Like clockwork , an ad popped up on social media that includes the stairs .
A progressive PAC , MeidasTouch , founded by Colin Kaepernick ’ s attorney , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the message that it is time to for Melania ( and America ) to divorce Trump .
I ’ ve written about the Meidas Touch PAC .
There is a history of using female members of the Trump family against President Trump .
Other than this one using Melania , there was also one using Ivanka in June .
The wackos on social media regularly speculate that Melania is a victim of sexual abuse , even a rape survivor .
It ’ s a sick obsession .
Divorce Trump is a new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agree with the conclusion of the piece .
Leave Melania alone .
She ’ s fine and living her best life .

I do not often agree with much of anything that is published by Jezebel. There is a piece up now though that can almost be considered fair to First Lady Melania Trump. That is a really rare occurrence because liberal women’s publications go out of their way to trash Melania Trump.
The piece addresses the obsession on the left with the Trump marriage. Liberal women desperately want Melania Trump to divorce her husband. It isn’t so much that they are actually concerned about Melania, it just that they hate Donald Trump so much that surely he doesn’t deserve a loyal wife. So, nothing pleases the haters more than watching a video where it looks like Melania is swatting away President Trump’s hand. The latest such video went viral Sunday as the Trumps traveled back to the White House after a weekend in New Jersey. Their son Barron was with them. First I’ll show you the video, then I’ll continue.
Hard not to notice Trump repeatedly trying to hold Melania’s hand on their way down the steps and her having none of it https://t.co/SXwkhgUagh — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 17, 2020
The caption on the video is typical of the tweets sent out to call attention to what is hyped as Melania refusing to take her husband’s hand. What I saw was a husband extending his hand as his wife (who wears very high heels) descends stairs. Then, because it is windy, her hair is flopping in her face and she is holding the hem of her dress down with her Birkin handbag. That is the hand closest to Trump. With her other hand, she is holding on to the railing. She doesn’t have a free hand. She didn’t swat his hand away, she simply turned her body just a bit toward the railing. Good heavens. She’s just trying to get down the stairs without her dress flying up over her head.
What I also see in the video is that as the Trumps move from Air Force One towards Marine One, I see that the First Couple is holding hands. It all looks perfectly normal. I also notice how dang tall Barron is but that is neither here nor there.
So, as the piece in Jezebel points out, the Trump haters saw the same video but took away from it that the First Lady is so repulsed by her husband that she can’t even hold his hand. It’s a whole lot of projection if you ask me. They are repulsed by him so certainly, she must be, too, right? The article, while going on to note other tweets about the incident goes on to say that for Democrats, it is easier to think that Melania is a long-suffering wife than that she is “being complicit” to Trump’s racism and sexually abusive behavior. I told you the piece is almost a fair one. Don’t expect this publication to support Melania without bringing up standard criticism of him.
While there’s some fun to be had in the concept of a perpetually disdainful Melania Trump, it’s not one that seems all that tethered to reality. But that didn’t stop Sky News from blaring the headline “Melania Trump pulls her hand away from Donald Trump’s as they step off Air Force One.” Nor did it stop Vox journalist Aaron Rupar either, who tweeted, “Hard not to notice Trump repeatedly trying to hold Melania’s hand on their way down the steps and her having none of it.” It also didn’t stop a few Democrats with a large following on Twitter from crassly joking that Melania, a sex worker, charges extra for hand-holding. It’s 2020, and clickbait tabloids and Resistance™ Democrats are still clinging to the notion that Melania Trump actually hates her husband’s guts, just as they do. This characterization kicked off in earnest during Trump’s inauguration, when every twitch of Melania’s lips were psychoanalyzed. For some Democrats, it was easier to imagine Melania as a long-suffering wife rather than a woman with a history of being complicit in Trump’s racism and dismissive of those who have accused him of sexual assault.
Like clockwork, an ad popped up on social media that includes the stairs. A progressive PAC, MeidasTouch, founded by Colin Kaepernick’s attorney, included it among other clips of Melania with the message that it is time to for Melania (and America) to divorce Trump.
“He’s been lying to you,” the narrator hisses, as if whispering to Melania, just before showing footage of Trump fumbling his way through a presser. “He’s a cheat,” the narrator continues, flashing a clip of Melania seemingly rejecting Trump’s grasp before transitioning to a recent photo of stockpiled United States Post Office mailboxes—an alleged voter suppression tactic by the Trump administration.
BREAKING: Melania Trump swats away Trump's hand again. It's time for both Melania and America to divorce Donald Trump! Who's with me?#DivorceTrump pic.twitter.com/MCcLBk0DAh — Mrs. Krassenstein (@HKrassenstein) August 17, 2020
I’ve written about the Meidas Touch PAC. There is a history of using female members of the Trump family against President Trump. Other than this one using Melania, there was also one using Ivanka in June. The wackos on social media regularly speculate that Melania is a victim of sexual abuse, even a rape survivor. It’s a sick obsession. Divorce Trump is a new get out the vote campaign.
I agree with the conclusion of the piece.
Any cleverness this ad might have possessed was drowned by the melodramatic victim narrative it bestowed upon Melania, one that we have little reason to believe is even valid. Instead of believing Melania Trump is an unwitting victim of Trump’s abject cruelty, perhaps it’s better to ask why so many are eager to save a woman who has made her bed and appears more than happy to lie in it.
Leave Melania alone. She’s fine and living her best life.


hotair--2020-08-18--In Chicago and San Francisco police are retiring at twice the normal rate

Two separate stories have popped up in the past two days and both of them point toward the same reality : Police in major cities are choosing retirement at a rate that is about double what it normally is .
The Chicago Sun Times reports the number of retirements so far this year is about the same as for all of 2018 : Michael Lappe , vice president of the board of trustees for the Policemen ’ s Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago , said 59 police officers are retiring in August , with another 51 retirements set for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unheard of , ” Lappe said .
“ We ’ re seeing double the average number of retirees each month .
The average is about 24 a month.
” … Retirements in 2020 are on pace to be higher than in any of the past few years .
There were 335 police retirements through the end of July , compared with 475 for all of 2019 and 339 for all of 2018 , according to pension records .
John Catanzara , president of the police union , says the reasons are obvious : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ environment ?
If you have the ability to leave , there is no incentive to stay anymore.
” He added , “ The mayor doesn ’ t back us .
If you have the financial ability to do so , I don ’ t blame a single soul for leaving.
” The San Francisco Chronicle reported the same thing a day earlier : In the first six months of the year , 23 sworn officers resigned , Police Department records show .
Of those , 19 took jobs at other law enforcement agencies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ By comparison , 26 officers resigned in all of 2019 .
And only 12 officers resigned in 2018… If the police exits continue at the current pace , the SFPD is on track to lose nearly twice as many cops this year as it did last year and close to four times as many as in 2018 .
In San Francisco , Tony Montoya is president of the Police Officers Association .
He told the Chronicle , “ The members are upset that the social experiment being conducted in San Francisco is failing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that values them.
” As mentioned above , many of the cops leaving their jobs in San Francisco are taking positions in smaller suburban areas where they get taxed less and have a shorter commute to work .
One officer interviewed for the story added , “ It ’ s also nice working at a place where everyone isn ’ t mad at you.
” He continued , “ In San Francisco , everyone was mad .
The homeowners would get mad because you didn ’ t move the homeless who were sleeping @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , when you tried to help the homeless , someone would start yelling about police brutality.
” We already know this is happening in other major cities .
In New York , there was a 400 % increase in the number of officers retiring starting at the end of June .
Citing the sudden rush , the city actually put a limit on the number of officers allowed to retire each day .
But not surprisingly the situation appears to be worst in Minneapolis .
In July there was a report in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ file PTSD disability claims and retire .
More recently the Star Tribune reported that up to a third of the Minneapolis police force could be gone by the end of this year .
Keep in mind all of this is happening as violent crime is up in these cities , probably because police have pulled back and are taking fewer risks .
When you add all of this up it ’ s really a perfect storm of bad news for major cities .
With the spread of the coronavirus , cities were already @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of people .
Now there ’ s a rise in crime and the retirement of officers .
Maybe those various factors will eventually reach some sort of new equilibrium but at the moment it looks like that could be hollowed out , violent cities on a long-term decline .
Maybe that ’ s too negative .
Maybe things will bounce back in six months or a year but right now the immediate outlook is pretty grim .

Two separate stories have popped up in the past two days and both of them point toward the same reality: Police in major cities are choosing retirement at a rate that is about double what it normally is. The Chicago Sun Times reports the number of retirements so far this year is about the same as for all of 2018:
Michael Lappe, vice president of the board of trustees for the Policemen’s Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago, said 59 police officers are retiring in August, with another 51 retirements set for next month. “That’s unheard of,” Lappe said. “We’re seeing double the average number of retirees each month. The average is about 24 a month.”… Retirements in 2020 are on pace to be higher than in any of the past few years. There were 335 police retirements through the end of July, compared with 475 for all of 2019 and 339 for all of 2018, according to pension records.
John Catanzara, president of the police union, says the reasons are obvious: “Who wants to stay in this environment? If you have the ability to leave, there is no incentive to stay anymore.” He added, “The mayor doesn’t back us. If you have the financial ability to do so, I don’t blame a single soul for leaving.”
The San Francisco Chronicle reported the same thing a day earlier:
In the first six months of the year, 23 sworn officers resigned, Police Department records show. Of those, 19 took jobs at other law enforcement agencies, both in California and elsewhere. By comparison, 26 officers resigned in all of 2019. And only 12 officers resigned in 2018… If the police exits continue at the current pace, the SFPD is on track to lose nearly twice as many cops this year as it did last year and close to four times as many as in 2018.
In San Francisco, Tony Montoya is president of the Police Officers Association. He told the Chronicle, “The members are upset that the social experiment being conducted in San Francisco is failing, and they would rather work someplace that values them.”
As mentioned above, many of the cops leaving their jobs in San Francisco are taking positions in smaller suburban areas where they get taxed less and have a shorter commute to work. One officer interviewed for the story added, “It’s also nice working at a place where everyone isn’t mad at you.” He continued, “In San Francisco, everyone was mad. The homeowners would get mad because you didn’t move the homeless who were sleeping in front of their house. Then, when you tried to help the homeless, someone would start yelling about police brutality.”
We already know this is happening in other major cities. In New York, there was a 400% increase in the number of officers retiring starting at the end of June. Citing the sudden rush, the city actually put a limit on the number of officers allowed to retire each day.
But not surprisingly the situation appears to be worst in Minneapolis. In July there was a report in the Washington Post that 150 officers planned to file PTSD disability claims and retire. More recently the Star Tribune reported that up to a third of the Minneapolis police force could be gone by the end of this year.
Keep in mind all of this is happening as violent crime is up in these cities, probably because police have pulled back and are taking fewer risks.
When you add all of this up it’s really a perfect storm of bad news for major cities. With the spread of the coronavirus, cities were already suffering loss of jobs and an exodus of people. Now there’s a rise in crime and the retirement of officers. Maybe those various factors will eventually reach some sort of new equilibrium but at the moment it looks like that could be hollowed out, violent cities on a long-term decline. Maybe that’s too negative. Maybe things will bounce back in six months or a year but right now the immediate outlook is pretty grim.


hotair--2020-08-18--NYC's "homeless hotel" experiment coming to an end

New York City was one of several large , urban centers that struggled with what to do about their homeless population when the novel coronavirus began tearing through their sidewalk encampments .
And like some others , the Big Apple decided to move many of the homeless into hotel rooms .
To say that this was a decision that wasn ’ t thought through very well is probably something of an understatement with the benefit of hindsight .
Be that as it may , Mayor Bill de Blasio , who was reluctant to make that move at first , went @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that summer is approaching its end and the numbers of new cases have flattened out at a much lower level , he ’ s getting ready to pull the plug on the plan after local residents began complaining about it .
( Politico ) The city will begin moving people experiencing homelessness who were given hotel rooms to protect against the coronavirus out of the hotels and back into shelters , Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday .
He did not give a timeline for the move , but said the city would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ complaints from residents in some neighborhoods about quality of life problems they blame on the facilities .
“ As the health situation has continued to improve , we ’ re going to start the process of figuring out where we can get homeless individuals back into safe shelter facilities , and reduce the reliance on hotels , ” de Blasio told reporters .
“ Hotels [ are ] certainly not where we want to be in general , and we ’ re going to start that process immediately.
” New York ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rooms worked out about as well as it did in Los Angeles and San Francisco , among other cities .
That is to say… not well at all .
To be fair , it ’ s almost forgivable how some people could have looked at this proposal initially and thought it might have some merit .
After all , getting the homeless off the streets has always been a goal for municipal governments and they would be protected from the elements in a hotel .
Also , the tourism industry took a total @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the hotels were losing money hand over fist with most of their rooms sitting empty .
This plan sounded like it would benefit both the homeless and the hotels , so it ’ s a win-win , right ?
But the problems that emerged should have been obvious from the beginning .
The people who were moved in quickly trashed the hotels , in some cases causing more damage than the amount of money the city was paying them could cover .
Also , the homeless weren ’ t receiving any sort of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ both of which are huge problems in that community .
Residents near the hotels began complaining about people urinating or defecating in the streets and openly using drugs in the alleys around the neighborhood .
In other words , they brought all of the problems associated with homeless encampments with them to the neighborhoods around the hotels .
This “ solution ” was implemented in Midtown , Hell ’ s Kitchen , and the Upper West Side .
These are all neighborhoods that have become considerably more upscale in recent decades and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their neighborhoods morphing into Skid Row while they waited out the pandemic .
There ’ s one more dirty little secret hiding beneath the surface of the Mayor ’ s announcement this week .
Hizzoner is talking about “ relocating ” the homeless from the hotels to “ shelters.
” But the fact is that there aren ’ t anywhere near enough rooms in qualified shelters for all the homeless and many of them refuse to stay in the shelters even if you take them there .
That ’ s why they were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into those nice hotel rooms .
The Mayor has no way to move them all into shelters , so they ’ re just going to wind up back in their old encampments on the sidewalks and in the parks .
A ton of money will have been flushed into this program and once it ’ s finished , basically nothing will have changed .
What a large percentage of the homeless population needs is far more than just a roof over their heads and a working bathroom .
( Though that need those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They need substance abuse counseling and support .
They need mental healthcare professionals .
And the ones capable of holding down a job need vocational support and education .
All of that costs money , and none of it was provided for the people they temporarily shuffled off to the hotels .
And once they ’ re back out on the streets , New York City still won ’ t have any way to provide those services to them there , either .

New York City was one of several large, urban centers that struggled with what to do about their homeless population when the novel coronavirus began tearing through their sidewalk encampments. And like some others, the Big Apple decided to move many of the homeless into hotel rooms. To say that this was a decision that wasn’t thought through very well is probably something of an understatement with the benefit of hindsight. Be that as it may, Mayor Bill de Blasio, who was reluctant to make that move at first, went ahead with the plan. But now that summer is approaching its end and the numbers of new cases have flattened out at a much lower level, he’s getting ready to pull the plug on the plan after local residents began complaining about it. (Politico)
The city will begin moving people experiencing homelessness who were given hotel rooms to protect against the coronavirus out of the hotels and back into shelters, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday. He did not give a timeline for the move, but said the city would back away from the hotel program after complaints from residents in some neighborhoods about quality of life problems they blame on the facilities. “As the health situation has continued to improve, we’re going to start the process of figuring out where we can get homeless individuals back into safe shelter facilities, and reduce the reliance on hotels,” de Blasio told reporters. “Hotels [are] certainly not where we want to be in general, and we’re going to start that process immediately.”
New York’s idea to move the homeless into hotel rooms worked out about as well as it did in Los Angeles and San Francisco, among other cities. That is to say… not well at all. To be fair, it’s almost forgivable how some people could have looked at this proposal initially and thought it might have some merit. After all, getting the homeless off the streets has always been a goal for municipal governments and they would be protected from the elements in a hotel. Also, the tourism industry took a total nose dive when the pandemic hit and the hotels were losing money hand over fist with most of their rooms sitting empty. This plan sounded like it would benefit both the homeless and the hotels, so it’s a win-win, right?
But the problems that emerged should have been obvious from the beginning. The people who were moved in quickly trashed the hotels, in some cases causing more damage than the amount of money the city was paying them could cover. Also, the homeless weren’t receiving any sort of treatment for addiction or mental illness, both of which are huge problems in that community. Residents near the hotels began complaining about people urinating or defecating in the streets and openly using drugs in the alleys around the neighborhood. In other words, they brought all of the problems associated with homeless encampments with them to the neighborhoods around the hotels.
This “solution” was implemented in Midtown, Hell’s Kitchen, and the Upper West Side. These are all neighborhoods that have become considerably more upscale in recent decades and the people living there were not anticipating seeing their neighborhoods morphing into Skid Row while they waited out the pandemic.
There’s one more dirty little secret hiding beneath the surface of the Mayor’s announcement this week. Hizzoner is talking about “relocating” the homeless from the hotels to “shelters.” But the fact is that there aren’t anywhere near enough rooms in qualified shelters for all the homeless and many of them refuse to stay in the shelters even if you take them there. That’s why they were all on the street before being moved into those nice hotel rooms. The Mayor has no way to move them all into shelters, so they’re just going to wind up back in their old encampments on the sidewalks and in the parks. A ton of money will have been flushed into this program and once it’s finished, basically nothing will have changed.
What a large percentage of the homeless population needs is far more than just a roof over their heads and a working bathroom. (Though that need those things too, of course.) They need substance abuse counseling and support. They need mental healthcare professionals. And the ones capable of holding down a job need vocational support and education. All of that costs money, and none of it was provided for the people they temporarily shuffled off to the hotels. And once they’re back out on the streets, New York City still won’t have any way to provide those services to them there, either.


hotair--2020-08-18--FDA issues warning to health care workers of false-positive coronavirus results

A month after Connecticut officials reported at least 90 false-positive test results , the FDA issued a warning to health care providers using a specific testing kit .
There has been a problem with false-positive coronavirus test results coming from the Thermo Fisher Scientific TaqPath COVID-19 Combo Kit .
The FDA approved Emergency Use Authorization ( EUA ) for the kit in March .
The problem is with the testing kit itself , as well as with an outdated software system .
The FDA released a warning to clinical laboratory staff and health care providers of the risk of false @ @ @ @ @ @ @ software , the problem should be fixed according to the FDA .
The first issue is related to inadequate vortexing and centrifugation of RT-PCR reaction plates .
Thermo Fisher Scientific ’ s conclusion from investigations of customer complaints indicate that inadequate vortexing or centrifugation can lead to false positive results .
Thermo Fisher Scientific has updated these instructions to reduce the risk of inaccurate results .
The updated instructions related to vortexing and centrifugation are important for both laboratories performing testing according to the authorized instructions for use and laboratories who are performing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The second issue is related to the assay Internal Positive Control ( IPC ) and requires laboratory staff to upgrade their software to reduce the risk of invalid , potential false negatives , or inconclusive tests and to decrease the potential need to retest .
The FDA went on to issue some specific recommendations to health care workers to increase accuracy with the testing kits .
The Thermo Fisher Scientific TaqPath COVID-19 Combo Kit received emergency authorization in March for use only in laboratories in the U.S .
It is certified to perform @ @ @ @ @ @ @ March and July , several modifications have been made through supplemental EUA requests .
The test is designed to detect the virus that causes COVID-19 using upper respiratory specimens , like nasal swabs .
The FDA encourages health care providers to report any adverse events or suspected adverse events experienced using the testing kits .
A month ago , Connecticut public health officials first reported that at least 90 people had received false-positive results for the coronavirus .
Most of those receiving false-positive results were residents of nursing homes or assisted living facilities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ kits are updated and improved so that false-positive results don ’ t become more common .
Lab tests are leaned upon as the backbone of U.S. screening for coronavirus .
More than half of the roughly 750,000 tests developed daily in labs are for the coronavirus .
This testing kit looks for traces of coronavirus genetic material in nasal swabs taken from patients .
The FDA recommends that in order to avoid false results , labs consider retesting certain positive results and take preexisting conditions into mind with positive tests .
The test @ @ @ @ @ @ @ used in hospitals , government , and commercial labs to look for diseases such as HIV , hepatitis , and flu .
The FDA has given its approval to more than 200 tests for the coronavirus since February .
False-positive results are to be expected in at least a small percentage of false negatives , as well as false positives .
Laboratories have continued to scramble to meet testing needs during the pandemic .
With so many tests approved on an emergency basis , we should probably be surprised that more stories like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Settings like nursing homes are ripe for incorrect results to be found in clusters .
It stands to reason if 90 cases of incorrect results were found in Connecticut nursing homes and assisted living facilities , there may be a larger problem , a larger amount of false-positives being reported elsewhere .
Dr. Albert Ko of Yale ’ s School of Public Health said the potential accuracy problems have “ pretty serious implications ” given that Thermo Fisher ’ s test is used widely both in the U.S. and around the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ statement did not provide any details on how many test results may have been affected by the problem .
Shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. ( tmo ) were down 0.1 % in premarket trading on Tuesday after the FDA released Monday ’ s statement .
Thermo CEO Marc Casper told investors during an earnings call in July the tests are considered the gold standard given their high level of accuracy .

A month after Connecticut officials reported at least 90 false-positive test results, the FDA issued a warning to health care providers using a specific testing kit. There has been a problem with false-positive coronavirus test results coming from the Thermo Fisher Scientific TaqPath COVID-19 Combo Kit. The FDA approved Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the kit in March.
The problem is with the testing kit itself, as well as with an outdated software system. The FDA released a warning to clinical laboratory staff and health care providers of the risk of false results. With updated instructions and updated software, the problem should be fixed according to the FDA.
The first issue is related to inadequate vortexing and centrifugation of RT-PCR reaction plates. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s conclusion from investigations of customer complaints indicate that inadequate vortexing or centrifugation can lead to false positive results. Thermo Fisher Scientific has updated these instructions to reduce the risk of inaccurate results. The updated instructions related to vortexing and centrifugation are important for both laboratories performing testing according to the authorized instructions for use and laboratories who are performing validated modifications outside of the authorization. The second issue is related to the assay Internal Positive Control (IPC) and requires laboratory staff to upgrade their software to reduce the risk of invalid, potential false negatives, or inconclusive tests and to decrease the potential need to retest.
The FDA went on to issue some specific recommendations to health care workers to increase accuracy with the testing kits. The Thermo Fisher Scientific TaqPath COVID-19 Combo Kit received emergency authorization in March for use only in laboratories in the U.S. It is certified to perform moderate and high complexity tests. Between March and July, several modifications have been made through supplemental EUA requests. The test is designed to detect the virus that causes COVID-19 using upper respiratory specimens, like nasal swabs. The FDA encourages health care providers to report any adverse events or suspected adverse events experienced using the testing kits.
A month ago, Connecticut public health officials first reported that at least 90 people had received false-positive results for the coronavirus. Most of those receiving false-positive results were residents of nursing homes or assisted living facilities. It’s important that testing kits are updated and improved so that false-positive results don’t become more common. Lab tests are leaned upon as the backbone of U.S. screening for coronavirus. More than half of the roughly 750,000 tests developed daily in labs are for the coronavirus. This testing kit looks for traces of coronavirus genetic material in nasal swabs taken from patients. The FDA recommends that in order to avoid false results, labs consider retesting certain positive results and take preexisting conditions into mind with positive tests.
The test runs on a large, automated machine used in hospitals, government, and commercial labs to look for diseases such as HIV, hepatitis, and flu. The FDA has given its approval to more than 200 tests for the coronavirus since February. False-positive results are to be expected in at least a small percentage of false negatives, as well as false positives. Laboratories have continued to scramble to meet testing needs during the pandemic. With so many tests approved on an emergency basis, we should probably be surprised that more stories like this one aren’t being reported. Settings like nursing homes are ripe for incorrect results to be found in clusters. It stands to reason if 90 cases of incorrect results were found in Connecticut nursing homes and assisted living facilities, there may be a larger problem, a larger amount of false-positives being reported elsewhere.
Dr. Albert Ko of Yale’s School of Public Health said the potential accuracy problems have “pretty serious implications” given that Thermo Fisher’s test is used widely both in the U.S. and around the world to screen for coronavirus. The FDA statement did not provide any details on how many test results may have been affected by the problem.
Shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (tmo) were down 0.1% in premarket trading on Tuesday after the FDA released Monday’s statement. Thermo CEO Marc Casper told investors during an earnings call in July the tests are considered the gold standard given their high level of accuracy.


hotair--2020-08-18--New Cuomo book to explain how to defeat the virus by letting it rampage through your population

“ A powerful testament to true leadership in times of extreme crisis , ” says Random House of the forthcoming book .
This guy underperformed Bill de Blasio in handling New York ’ s outbreak .
Imagine the reaction on both the left and the right if de Blasio farted out a book-length love letter to his own leadership on COVID .
The pandemic ’ s not even over .
It might be over for NYC but it ’ s almost certainly not over for New York State .
The book ’ s set for release on October 13 ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Cuomo decides he needs to shut down the schools because his reopening plan ended up seeding a massive new outbreak .
I guess he can always address that in the sequel to this book , “ American Crisis II : How I Defeated The Second Wave Of COVID That I Started.
” To this day , he can ’ t demonstrate one of the most basic functions of good leadership , which is accountability .
Ask him about his lethal deficiencies in moving too slowly early on to shut down the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ residents back into nursing homes and he ’ ll put up smokescreens endlessly .
Old people are gon na die no matter what , you know .
And it ’ s really the feds ’ fault for not telling Cuomo that the virus was coming in from Europe .
And it ’ s really Trump ’ s fault for not managing the national response better .
Those themes recurred in his DNC speech last night , as you ’ ll see below .
At one point Cuomo described SARS-CoV-2 as the “ European @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that he had no idea visitors from Europe were seeding an outbreak in NYC in February and early March even though Italy ’ s outbreak was headline news at the time .
“ The virus had been attacking us for months before they even knew it was here , ” he said at another point of the feds , a nod at the idea that they ’ re to blame for New York ’ s apocalypse .
But the feds couldn ’ t have stopped him from ordering a precautionary quarantine of European @ @ @ @ @ @ @ before Trump banned travel from Europe .
And the feds sure as hell didn ’ t force his nursing-home policy on him , or demand that he twiddle his thumbs for weeks in March as the virus spread throughout NYC .
“ In many ways COVID is just a metaphor , ” he said , adding later that “ Our way worked , and it was beautiful.
” His “ way ” was to allow unchecked exponential growth of the virus across the country ’ s biggest city , collect all the bodies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ burned itself out via herd immunity .
This guy really does view New York ’ s COVID experience as some sort of fond memory , though , a moment when the city and the state came together as a community or whatever .
Remember , he ’ s already produced a weird memento of it .
His book will be a second .
“ [ T ] hank you for your leadership and the example you ’ ve set for all Americans during this pandemic , ” said Joe Biden in a tweet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ President Joe intends to rely on Cuomo for COVID advice , we actually might be safer with Trump .
There ’ s a tiny bit of good news , though .
Criticizing Cuomo has been almost exclusively a right-wing pastime over the past five months but I ’ m seeing some grumbling about his convention cameo even among liberals this morning .
“ Cuomo is perhaps the single least credible person in the entire country to make this criticism ” that the federal COVID response was incompetent , said Ryan Cooper at The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ performance a “ world-historical catastrophe ” and concluding , “ In a sense , Governor Cuomo was right to say , ‘ government matters and leadership matters.
’ His record is an object lesson in what happens when that job is done poorly.
” At the Atlantic , Russell Berman ’ s also tired of the myth of Cuomo as some Churchill of the pandemic : “ Beautiful ” is an odd way to describe a virus that has killed more than 25,000 New Yorkers , or about 15 percent of the total @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 .
But Cuomo has long been a curious leader for Democrats to hold up as an emblem of successful leadership during the pandemic : He has somehow presided over the worst and deadliest coronavirus outbreak in the country while eluding the widespread criticism that has surrounded both President Donald Trump and New York City ’ s Democratic mayor , Bill de Blasio… Cuomo does have a good story to tell about New York ’ s stabilization and recovery—health-wise , if not yet economically—over the past few months .
But can a finally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when the initial spike was so severe , so deadly , and so preventable ?
Allowing himself to be featured at the convention as the party ’ s most authoritative voice on COVID was a case of overreach , enough so that even sympathetic commentators felt obliged to criticize him for it .
Cuomo putting out a book while the pandemic is still raging will alienate people further .
The Cuomo myth is slowly fading , undone by his own arrogance .
I wouldn ’ t bet against him in a primary in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it another year .
Even New Yorkers ’ patience with him isn ’ t limitless .

Am I awake?
NEWS: Gov. Andrew Cuomo will publish a book titled "American Crisis" on Oct. 13 that details his experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. pic.twitter.com/Vsk4vhQQUV — Dan Clark (@DanClarkReports) August 18, 2020
“A powerful testament to true leadership in times of extreme crisis,” says Random House of the forthcoming book.
Did Cuomo write about Mike DeWine?
This guy underperformed Bill de Blasio in handling New York’s outbreak. Imagine the reaction on both the left and the right if de Blasio farted out a book-length love letter to his own leadership on COVID.
The pandemic’s not even over. It might be over for NYC but it’s almost certainly not over for New York State. The book’s set for release on October 13; imagine if, the day it drops, Cuomo decides he needs to shut down the schools because his reopening plan ended up seeding a massive new outbreak.
I guess he can always address that in the sequel to this book, “American Crisis II: How I Defeated The Second Wave Of COVID That I Started.”
To this day, he can’t demonstrate one of the most basic functions of good leadership, which is accountability. Ask him about his lethal deficiencies in moving too slowly early on to shut down the state or his infamous policy of sending infected residents back into nursing homes and he’ll put up smokescreens endlessly. Old people are gonna die no matter what, you know. And it’s really the feds’ fault for not telling Cuomo that the virus was coming in from Europe. And it’s really Trump’s fault for not managing the national response better.
Those themes recurred in his DNC speech last night, as you’ll see below. At one point Cuomo described SARS-CoV-2 as the “European virus,” alluding to his claim that he had no idea visitors from Europe were seeding an outbreak in NYC in February and early March even though Italy’s outbreak was headline news at the time. “The virus had been attacking us for months before they even knew it was here,” he said at another point of the feds, a nod at the idea that they’re to blame for New York’s apocalypse. But the feds couldn’t have stopped him from ordering a precautionary quarantine of European visitors to New York early on, before Trump banned travel from Europe.
And the feds sure as hell didn’t force his nursing-home policy on him, or demand that he twiddle his thumbs for weeks in March as the virus spread throughout NYC.
“In many ways COVID is just a metaphor,” he said, adding later that “Our way worked, and it was beautiful.” His “way” was to allow unchecked exponential growth of the virus across the country’s biggest city, collect all the bodies, then declare victory once the spread burned itself out via herd immunity. This guy really does view New York’s COVID experience as some sort of fond memory, though, a moment when the city and the state came together as a community or whatever. Remember, he’s already produced a weird memento of it. His book will be a second.
“[T]hank you for your leadership and the example you’ve set for all Americans during this pandemic,” said Joe Biden in a tweet aimed at Cuomo this morning. If President Joe intends to rely on Cuomo for COVID advice, we actually might be safer with Trump.
There’s a tiny bit of good news, though. Criticizing Cuomo has been almost exclusively a right-wing pastime over the past five months but I’m seeing some grumbling about his convention cameo even among liberals this morning. “Cuomo is perhaps the single least credible person in the entire country to make this criticism” that the federal COVID response was incompetent, said Ryan Cooper at The Week, calling Cuomo’s early performance a “world-historical catastrophe” and concluding, “In a sense, Governor Cuomo was right to say, ‘government matters and leadership matters.’ His record is an object lesson in what happens when that job is done poorly.” At the Atlantic, Russell Berman’s also tired of the myth of Cuomo as some Churchill of the pandemic:
“Beautiful” is an odd way to describe a virus that has killed more than 25,000 New Yorkers, or about 15 percent of the total number of Americans who have died from COVID-19. But Cuomo has long been a curious leader for Democrats to hold up as an emblem of successful leadership during the pandemic: He has somehow presided over the worst and deadliest coronavirus outbreak in the country while eluding the widespread criticism that has surrounded both President Donald Trump and New York City’s Democratic mayor, Bill de Blasio… Cuomo does have a good story to tell about New York’s stabilization and recovery—health-wise, if not yet economically—over the past few months. But can a finally flattened curve really count as a success when the initial spike was so severe, so deadly, and so preventable?
Allowing himself to be featured at the convention as the party’s most authoritative voice on COVID was a case of overreach, enough so that even sympathetic commentators felt obliged to criticize him for it. Cuomo putting out a book while the pandemic is still raging will alienate people further. The Cuomo myth is slowly fading, undone by his own arrogance. I wouldn’t bet against him in a primary in New York right now, but give it another year. Even New Yorkers’ patience with him isn’t limitless.