hotair--2020-05-25--You bet I believe Tara Reade, says ...

You bet I believe Tara Reade, says ...

If this appeared in the umpteenth paragraph of an American newspaper , it would serve as a great example of burying the lede .
Even for the Times of London , Rep. Ilhan Omar ’ s declaration of solidarity with Tara Reade seems a lot more newsworthy than her dully predictable feelings about Donald Trump — or “ Cheetoh , ” as she calls the president .
Way down deep into a profile springboarding off of Omar ’ s new autobiography , readers discover that Omar believes Reade ’ s story — and would prefer another candidate lead the Democratic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Say what you like about Omar , and people have , and people will , she is undeniably a woman doing it on her own terms .
“ I am a natural starter of fires , ” she writes in the book and she finishes with one more burst of flame , emphasising that she believes the sexual assault allegations made by Tara Reade against Joe Biden , the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee , which Biden has denied .
“ I do believe Reade , ” she says .
“ Justice can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ denied.
” If it was up to her , she says , Biden wouldn ’ t be the candidate .
I bet she doesn ’ t , and that may be a large part of what is driving Omar ’ s embrace of Reade .
Omar had backed Bernie Sanders for nomination , don ’ t forget , and had called a Biden nomination “ tragic ” last October .
Reade ’ s allegations came out several weeks ago , but Omar ’ s gripe about Biden goes back at least months , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s comments on Omar ’ s beloved BDS Movement will not make Omar much more positively inclined toward Biden , although those didn ’ t come up in the interview .
In fact , Biden doesn ’ t come up much at all , which makes this big reveal seem rather inconsequential .
Omar says she ’ d prefer Biden not be the candidate , but that ’ s nothing new , and that ’ s not saying much either — especially if she actually believes Reade .
Reade is alleging a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ strict definition .
If Omar now says she thinks Reade is telling the truth , then why hasn ’ t Omar demanded Biden ’ s withdrawal from the race ?
Wouldn ’ t that be cause for a major protest , not just a footnote , as the Times treats it ?
Joe Biden ’ s name only comes up three times in this article , all three in the one paragraph excerpted above .
In contrast , Trump comes up as a recurring theme throughout with ten different mentions in the text @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Omar ’ s focus on Trump makes it appear that Omar ’ s belief in Reade is rather , ah … superficial .
One might even cast her solidarity with Reade as a bit of a cheat — or a Cheetoh , so to speak .
In case you ’ re thinking that the book might be worth a read , though , be sure you know what you ’ re buying : Being in Omar ’ s family sounds fairly intense .
Being in her company for 90 minutes is pretty intense @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and leftist screeds , demands for pandemic rent cancellations and free healthcare for all .
Yet for once , this fiercely private congresswoman is in the mood to open up .
She ’ s written a memoir , This Is What America Looks Like , about her journey from bullet-ridden Mogadishu to marble-clad Capitol Hill .
I ’ ll pass .
And pass some Cheetohs instead .

If this appeared in the umpteenth paragraph of an American newspaper, it would serve as a great example of burying the lede. Even for the Times of London, Rep. Ilhan Omar’s declaration of solidarity with Tara Reade seems a lot more newsworthy than her dully predictable feelings about Donald Trump — or “Cheetoh,” as she calls the president. Way down deep into a profile springboarding off of Omar’s new autobiography, readers discover that Omar believes Reade’s story — and would prefer another candidate lead the Democratic ticket in November (via Twitchy):
Say what you like about Omar, and people have, and people will, she is undeniably a woman doing it on her own terms. “I am a natural starter of fires,” she writes in the book and she finishes with one more burst of flame, emphasising that she believes the sexual assault allegations made by Tara Reade against Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, which Biden has denied. “I do believe Reade,” she says. “Justice can be delayed, but should never be denied.” If it was up to her, she says, Biden wouldn’t be the candidate.
I bet she doesn’t, and that may be a large part of what is driving Omar’s embrace of Reade. Omar had backed Bernie Sanders for nomination, don’t forget, and had called a Biden nomination “tragic” last October. Reade’s allegations came out several weeks ago, but Omar’s gripe about Biden goes back at least months, if not longer. Plus, Biden’s comments on Omar’s beloved BDS Movement will not make Omar much more positively inclined toward Biden, although those didn’t come up in the interview.
In fact, Biden doesn’t come up much at all, which makes this big reveal seem rather inconsequential. Omar says she’d prefer Biden not be the candidate, but that’s nothing new, and that’s not saying much either — especially if she actually believes Reade. Reade is alleging a sexual assault, even a rape by strict definition. If Omar now says she thinks Reade is telling the truth, then why hasn’t Omar demanded Biden’s withdrawal from the race? Wouldn’t that be cause for a major protest, not just a footnote, as the Times treats it? Joe Biden’s name only comes up three times in this article, all three in the one paragraph excerpted above. In contrast, Trump comes up as a recurring theme throughout with ten different mentions in the text and another three in photo captions. Omar’s focus on Trump makes it appear that Omar’s belief in Reade is rather, ah … superficial.
One might even cast her solidarity with Reade as a bit of a cheat — or a Cheetoh, so to speak.
In case you’re thinking that the book might be worth a read, though, be sure you know what you’re buying:
Being in Omar’s family sounds fairly intense. Being in her company for 90 minutes is pretty intense too, a barrage of war stories and leftist screeds, demands for pandemic rent cancellations and free healthcare for all. Yet for once, this fiercely private congresswoman is in the mood to open up. She’s written a memoir, This Is What America Looks Like, about her journey from bullet-ridden Mogadishu to marble-clad Capitol Hill.
I’ll pass. And pass some Cheetohs instead.


hotair--2020-05-25--A growing tide among Democrats against Klobuchar as VP

It ’ s hard to tell if Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar is actively angling for a shot at being Joe Biden ’ s veep pick .
She ’ s certainly never said she would turn down the honor , but if she ’ s pushing for it , she ’ s doing it in the background and far more subtly than Stacey Abrams .
( Of course , that ’ s a pretty low bar to surmount . )
The two seem to get along well enough , and they had one of the least acerbic relationships during the debates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ under a lot of pressure to keep her off the ticket .
And at least according to some recent reporting from Politico , that pressure is coming almost entirely from Black voters , activists and strategists .
So how does race factor into Klobuchar ’ s popularity or lack thereof ?
Amy Klobuchar performed abysmally among black voters in the Democratic primary .
It ’ s haunting her now as Joe Biden decides on a running mate .
The Minnesota Democrat has the governing experience and ideological profile to mesh well with Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a surrogate and a fundraiser for him , raking in more than $ 1.5 million for a single event she headlined .
The pair have a warm relationship , trading phone calls when her husband was hospitalized with Covid-19 and they didn ’ t tangle publicly during the primary .
But more than a dozen black and Latino strategists and activists warned in interviews that selecting Klobuchar would not help Biden excite black voters — and might have the opposite effect .
Klobuchar would “ risk losing the very base the Democrats @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Allison , founder of She the People , which promotes women of color in politics .
They pointed to her poor performance among non-white voters during the presidential primary , as well as her record as a prosecutor in Minnesota .
Looking over the full list of complaints against Klobuchar , none of the stated reasons seem to carry much weight .
The claim that she “ performed abysmally ” among Black voters during the primary may be true in terms of the raw numbers , but that ’ s a statistic that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doing well with any demographic group except for Biden and Sanders toward the end .
And even before that , when a few others were challenging for the lead ( Buttigieg and Warren , for example ) , Klobuchar was rarely in the mix in a serious fashion .
She may not have been drawing a lot of support among Black voters , but that ’ s probably because she wasn ’ t getting much support from anyone .
And Joe Biden was sucking all the air out of the room in terms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agenda item being bandied about here is her time as a county prosecutor in Minnesota .
For some reason , people are still bringing up the Myon Burrell case .
But as I previously pointed out in great detail , they ’ re going after the wrong target .
Klobuchar was the County Prosecutor for Burrell ’ s first trial , but that took place long before the potentially exculpatory evidence had ever come to light .
And the first conviction was thrown out anyway .
Her replacement in that job who handled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ life sentence is the person they should be talking to .
Aside from that , Klobuchar offers very little to kvetch over among those complaining about criminal justice reform and prior relationships between the various candidates and the Black community .
Both Kamala Harris and Pete Buttigieg had far more “ sins ” on their record in that regard .
And I don ’ t see anyone trying to block Kamala Harris from the veepstakes .
Klobuchar was more in the moderate lane , so Biden ’ s presence in the race always @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also make them a fairly good fit in terms of being aligned on policy .
As a bonus , she ’ s at least a woman , if not a person of color .
In the end , the only real complaint I hear coming from the “ dozen black and Latino strategists and activists ” that Politico spoke with seems to boil down to one thing .
Klobuchar isn ’ t Black .
And if that ’ s your only gripe , I would question how much of a grasp you have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But there is one aspect of the upcoming race that could indeed make Klobuchar problematic for Biden in these terms .
He ’ s walking a fine line as he tries not to turn off the Black voters that helped push Obama over the finish line in 2008 and 2012 and the angry Sanders supporters in the progressive base .
As a white moderate , Klobuchar fills neither half of the bill .
So in that regard , she might be considered the worst of both worlds .

It’s hard to tell if Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar is actively angling for a shot at being Joe Biden’s veep pick. She’s certainly never said she would turn down the honor, but if she’s pushing for it, she’s doing it in the background and far more subtly than Stacey Abrams. (Of course, that’s a pretty low bar to surmount.) The two seem to get along well enough, and they had one of the least acerbic relationships during the debates. But Joe Biden is reportedly coming under a lot of pressure to keep her off the ticket. And at least according to some recent reporting from Politico, that pressure is coming almost entirely from Black voters, activists and strategists. So how does race factor into Klobuchar’s popularity or lack thereof?
Amy Klobuchar performed abysmally among black voters in the Democratic primary. It’s haunting her now as Joe Biden decides on a running mate. The Minnesota Democrat has the governing experience and ideological profile to mesh well with Biden, and she’s regularly appeared as a surrogate and a fundraiser for him, raking in more than $1.5 million for a single event she headlined. The pair have a warm relationship, trading phone calls when her husband was hospitalized with Covid-19 and they didn’t tangle publicly during the primary. But more than a dozen black and Latino strategists and activists warned in interviews that selecting Klobuchar would not help Biden excite black voters — and might have the opposite effect. Klobuchar would “risk losing the very base the Democrats need to win,” said Aimee Allison, founder of She the People, which promotes women of color in politics. They pointed to her poor performance among non-white voters during the presidential primary, as well as her record as a prosecutor in Minnesota.
Looking over the full list of complaints against Klobuchar, none of the stated reasons seem to carry much weight. The claim that she “performed abysmally” among Black voters during the primary may be true in terms of the raw numbers, but that’s a statistic that requires some context. Almost nobody was doing well with any demographic group except for Biden and Sanders toward the end. And even before that, when a few others were challenging for the lead (Buttigieg and Warren, for example), Klobuchar was rarely in the mix in a serious fashion. She may not have been drawing a lot of support among Black voters, but that’s probably because she wasn’t getting much support from anyone. And Joe Biden was sucking all the air out of the room in terms of Black support anyway.
The other agenda item being bandied about here is her time as a county prosecutor in Minnesota. For some reason, people are still bringing up the Myon Burrell case. But as I previously pointed out in great detail, they’re going after the wrong target. Klobuchar was the County Prosecutor for Burrell’s first trial, but that took place long before the potentially exculpatory evidence had ever come to light. And the first conviction was thrown out anyway. Her replacement in that job who handled the second trial where Burrell received a life sentence is the person they should be talking to.
Aside from that, Klobuchar offers very little to kvetch over among those complaining about criminal justice reform and prior relationships between the various candidates and the Black community. Both Kamala Harris and Pete Buttigieg had far more “sins” on their record in that regard. And I don’t see anyone trying to block Kamala Harris from the veepstakes.
Klobuchar was more in the moderate lane, so Biden’s presence in the race always dampened her chances. But it would also make them a fairly good fit in terms of being aligned on policy. As a bonus, she’s at least a woman, if not a person of color.
In the end, the only real complaint I hear coming from the “dozen black and Latino strategists and activists” that Politico spoke with seems to boil down to one thing. Klobuchar isn’t Black. And if that’s your only gripe, I would question how much of a grasp you have on policy issues or electoral strategy. But there is one aspect of the upcoming race that could indeed make Klobuchar problematic for Biden in these terms. He’s walking a fine line as he tries not to turn off the Black voters that helped push Obama over the finish line in 2008 and 2012 and the angry Sanders supporters in the progressive base. As a white moderate, Klobuchar fills neither half of the bill. So in that regard, she might be considered the worst of both worlds.


hotair--2020-05-26--Study finds amazing predictor of timing and scale of coronavirus outbreaks: Feces

Finally , finally , we know how to avert a second wave of the disease .
And not a moment too soon .
Tell Fauci to put on some gloves and hip waders , grab a bunch of plastic baggies , and head down into the nearest manhole .
The answer lies below .
Stories have been , uh , trickling out for weeks about the promising possibility of detecting new outbreaks early by analyzing a local community ’ s … output , shall we say .
The idea isn ’ t novel , as scientists have used sewage for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Stat noted in a story last month that one biotech start-up had taken to scrutinizing sewage to measure the extent of opioid use locally .
Some European scientists have examined sewage to gauge the spread of antibiotic resistance via wastewaster .
And , yes , other scientists have tracked viruses in the stuff .
Once it became known that people infected with coronavirus shed it in excrement , it was a logical next step to try to detect new outbreaks by tracking the amount of aggregate virus in community wastewater .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Times explained in a story a few weeks ago , with noteworthy results : “ The researchers then went to remote towns without any known cases of Covid-19 .
They discovered the coronavirus up to six days before the first confirmed cases were found there.
” French scientists tried the same thing in Paris for several weeks throughout March and early April .
Another striking outcome : For the Paris study , Wurtzer and his colleagues sampled wastewater from up to five Paris-area plants twice a week between 5 March and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ concentrations ” of viral RNA several days before 10 March , the first day that Paris recorded multiple deaths from COVID-19 .
Concentrations continued to rise a few days ahead of an acceleration in clinical cases and deaths in Paris .
“ We have a very clear curve that precedes the curve in numbers of clinical cases , and now with confinement , we see a flattening of that curve , ” says Laurent Moulin , a study co-author and a microbiologist also at Eau de Paris .
He estimates it took between @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the sewage to move from toilets to the treatment plants .
It ’ s like peering into a crystal ball .
Except in this case we ’ re peering into a toilet .
The latest study comes from Yale and involves wastewater from New Haven and surrounding communities .
Scientists wanted to know how well they could predict the rise and fall of confirmed cases in the community based on the rise and fall of the amount of virus in what they delicately describe as “ sludge.
” You ready ?
SARS-CoV-2 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leading indicator of community outbreak dynamics over hospitalization and compiled COVID-19 testing data .
SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentrations led hospital admissions by 3 days and COVID-19 cases by 7 days .
Hospital admissions to Yale New Haven Hospital from the four towns served by the wastewater treatment facility both rose and fell more slowly than the observed RNA concentrations .
The rates of SARS-CoV-2 RNA increases and decreases were similar to the COVID-19 testing data , and reflect the very concentrated outbreak that took place within New Haven and its neighboring towns .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 case data provides an approach to independently evaluate the local SARS-CoV-2 testing rate and to estimate the number of new cases .
While the results here demonstrate the potential utility of such an approach , we note that these relationships could be treatment plant specific , as primary sludge process trains are not uniform , and that compiled COVID-19 testing is prompted by symptoms , thus underestimating the true number of cases .
If that ’ s too jargon-y , feast your eyes on the respective curves they ’ re describing .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ amount of virus in the “ sludge ” gave them almost perfect insight into how many new cases there would be a week later .
The implications are obvious .
By tracking the presence of virus in sewage day to day , local health authorities can potentially detect new outbreaks as they happen rather than wait for a bunch of sick — and contagious — people to show up at doctor ’ s offices days after they ’ ve already unwittingly begun infecting others .
That would be especially useful in communities that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same access to conventional PCR testing to warn them that the virus is spreading locally .
Spotting an increase in the volume of virus in dookie would also provide notice to nearby hospitals to get ready and could give federal and state officials time to ship testing components and PPE to that community .
And of course it would allow the local government to warn residents that the virus is surging and that they should immediately practice stringent social distancing to reduce the risk to themselves .
With an early alarm like that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ off an outbreak before it gets going .
Remember how exciting that Kinsa “ health weather ” map was because of its potential for detecting infections early ?
This is even better .
Kinsa draws conclusions based on a single symptom ( fever ) among a select population ( people who own Kinsa smart thermometers ) .
It misses people who don ’ t use those thermometers and people who are asymptomatic .
And since many COVID-19 patients are infectious before they show symptoms , even Kinsa ’ s technology may be picking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ retard a developing outbreak .
Sampling wastewaster , by contrast , means sampling the entire population , including asymptomatics , and logically should be able to detect community spread as soon as viral shedding has begun .
As an aggregate measure of the virus ’ s presence in a community , it ’ s better in every way .
I don ’ t mean to overhype it .
All I ’ m saying is that we just might sh*t our way to suppressing this contagion .
Let that thought encourage you as we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of an exit question , here ’ s Scott Gottlieb yesterday making a point I hadn ’ t heard before , that although China is competitive with western countries in the race to be the first to develop a vaccine , there ’ s reason to believe western vaccines will provide more robust protection from COVID-19 because of their innovations .

Finally, finally, we know how to avert a second wave of the disease. And not a moment too soon.
Tell Fauci to put on some gloves and hip waders, grab a bunch of plastic baggies, and head down into the nearest manhole. The answer lies below.
Stories have been, uh, trickling out for weeks about the promising possibility of detecting new outbreaks early by analyzing a local community’s … output, shall we say. The idea isn’t novel, as scientists have used sewage for years for all sorts of epidemiological purposes. Stat noted in a story last month that one biotech start-up had taken to scrutinizing sewage to measure the extent of opioid use locally. Some European scientists have examined sewage to gauge the spread of antibiotic resistance via wastewaster. And, yes, other scientists have tracked viruses in the stuff.
Once it became known that people infected with coronavirus shed it in excrement, it was a logical next step to try to detect new outbreaks by tracking the amount of aggregate virus in community wastewater. They did it in February in the Netherlands, the Times explained in a story a few weeks ago, with noteworthy results: “The researchers then went to remote towns without any known cases of Covid-19. They discovered the coronavirus up to six days before the first confirmed cases were found there.” French scientists tried the same thing in Paris for several weeks throughout March and early April. Another striking outcome:
For the Paris study, Wurtzer and his colleagues sampled wastewater from up to five Paris-area plants twice a week between 5 March and 7 April. They noted “high concentrations” of viral RNA several days before 10 March, the first day that Paris recorded multiple deaths from COVID-19. Concentrations continued to rise a few days ahead of an acceleration in clinical cases and deaths in Paris. “We have a very clear curve that precedes the curve in numbers of clinical cases, and now with confinement, we see a flattening of that curve,” says Laurent Moulin, a study co-author and a microbiologist also at Eau de Paris. He estimates it took between a half a day and 3 days for the sewage to move from toilets to the treatment plants.
It’s like peering into a crystal ball. Except in this case we’re peering into a toilet.
The latest study comes from Yale and involves wastewater from New Haven and surrounding communities. Scientists wanted to know how well they could predict the rise and fall of confirmed cases in the community based on the rise and fall of the amount of virus in what they delicately describe as “sludge.” You ready?
SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentrations in sewage sludge were a leading indicator of community outbreak dynamics over hospitalization and compiled COVID-19 testing data. SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentrations led hospital admissions by 3 days and COVID-19 cases by 7 days. Hospital admissions to Yale New Haven Hospital from the four towns served by the wastewater treatment facility both rose and fell more slowly than the observed RNA concentrations. The rates of SARS-CoV-2 RNA increases and decreases were similar to the COVID-19 testing data, and reflect the very concentrated outbreak that took place within New Haven and its neighboring towns. The strong correlation between the virus RNA and COVID-19 case data provides an approach to independently evaluate the local SARS-CoV-2 testing rate and to estimate the number of new cases. While the results here demonstrate the potential utility of such an approach, we note that these relationships could be treatment plant specific, as primary sludge process trains are not uniform, and that compiled COVID-19 testing is prompted by symptoms, thus underestimating the true number of cases.
If that’s too jargon-y, feast your eyes on the respective curves they’re describing.
This graph is amazing. It shows that measuring #SARSCoV2 levels in municipal sewage almost perfectly predicts forthcoming #COVID19 cases with a full week's notice (R=0.994). It's one of several discoveries in this new study from @Yale: https://t.co/hZVdXebx2D. C-19 is #InThePoop pic.twitter.com/shNzTKYoYP — Brennan Spiegel, MD, MSHS (@BrennanSpiegel) May 26, 2020
They’re nearly identical. The amount of virus in the “sludge” gave them almost perfect insight into how many new cases there would be a week later. The implications are obvious. By tracking the presence of virus in sewage day to day, local health authorities can potentially detect new outbreaks as they happen rather than wait for a bunch of sick — and contagious — people to show up at doctor’s offices days after they’ve already unwittingly begun infecting others. That would be especially useful in communities that are poor and might not have the same access to conventional PCR testing to warn them that the virus is spreading locally. Spotting an increase in the volume of virus in dookie would also provide notice to nearby hospitals to get ready and could give federal and state officials time to ship testing components and PPE to that community. And of course it would allow the local government to warn residents that the virus is surging and that they should immediately practice stringent social distancing to reduce the risk to themselves. With an early alarm like that, people might be able to choke off an outbreak before it gets going.
Remember how exciting that Kinsa “health weather” map was because of its potential for detecting infections early? This is even better. Kinsa draws conclusions based on a single symptom (fever) among a select population (people who own Kinsa smart thermometers). It misses people who don’t use those thermometers and people who are asymptomatic. And since many COVID-19 patients are infectious before they show symptoms, even Kinsa’s technology may be picking up symptomatic cases too slowly to meaningfully retard a developing outbreak. Sampling wastewaster, by contrast, means sampling the entire population, including asymptomatics, and logically should be able to detect community spread as soon as viral shedding has begun. As an aggregate measure of the virus’s presence in a community, it’s better in every way.
I don’t mean to overhype it. All I’m saying is that we just might sh*t our way to suppressing this contagion.
Let that thought encourage you as we wait for a vaccine. In lieu of an exit question, here’s Scott Gottlieb yesterday making a point I hadn’t heard before, that although China is competitive with western countries in the race to be the first to develop a vaccine, there’s reason to believe western vaccines will provide more robust protection from COVID-19 because of their innovations.


hotair--2020-05-26--Under fire, Twitter adds fact-check warning to some Trump tweets; <span class='red'>Update: Trump sl

Under fire, Twitter adds fact-check warning to some Trump tweets; Update: Trump slams Twitter

Interestingly , they decided to ding him not for his tweets about Joe Scarborough possibly having murdered someone that have caused such an uproar in media but for his tweets about mail-in voting .
Maybe they ’ re getting around to the Scarborough tweets .
If they ’ re going to systematically fact-check all of Trump ’ s recent Twitter musings , there ’ s a huge backlog to work through .
Where do they even start ?
I ’ m sure the president will receive this news with his usual equanimity and good cheer .
Click the fact-check link @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sent to this page , which claims among other things that “ fact-checkers say there is no evidence that mail-in ballots are linked to voter fraud.
” That ’ s … not quite true , per this NPR story from early April : “ Election experts say Trump is partially correct , that there is slightly more fraud in mail-voting than in-person voting.
” The key word is “ slightly , ” a small risk relative to the considerable risk that voting in-person this fall will intensify a second wave of COVID-19 .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ election fraud is extremely rare in all instances ” and that mail-in voting can be done safely and securely , a point even Mitt Romney has made recently .
Americans like the idea of voting by mail , favoring it by a nearly two-to-one margin in Fox ’ s latest poll , and more states are in the process of facilitating it .
But “ no evidence that mail-in ballots are linked to voter fraud ” ?
Not quite true , and that ’ s the headache Twitter has created for itself by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ demand , and rightly so , that the fact-checking function be applied to Democrats as well as Republicans even though the feature was obviously developed because one particular pol can ’ t stop smearing his enemies .
And Trumpers are going to fact-check the fact-checking done by Twitter in even more granular detail than I just did with their voter-fraud claim to try to vindicate him whenever Twitter calls him out .
Frankly , ranting about Twitter fact-checks is apt to become Trump ’ s new hobby on the platform .
Although maybe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the fact-check feature is just a clever diversion by Twitter to give him something to obsess about other than conspiracy theories about murder cold cases involving cable news hosts who criticize him .
He was asked at his press conference today about Scarborough and the letter from Lori Klausutis ’ s widower begging Twitter to delete Trump ’ s tweets on the subject .
Trump replied by suggesting that Klausutis ’ s husband was on his side in wanting to “ get to the bottom ” of what happened , which is the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ letter .
Peter Wehner ran through some of Trump ’ s greatest conspiracy hits to contextualize the Scarborough/Klausutis smear : That Donald Trump would resort to conspiracy theories to attack his perceived enemies is hardly a revelation .
After all , Trump employed a racist conspiracy theory against Barack Obama , which helped him gain political prominence in the Republican Party , and later claimed that President Obama had wiretapped his phones .
During the 2016 primary , Trump linked Ted Cruz ’ s father , Rafael , to the assassination of President @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who claimed that Marco Rubio was ineligible to run because his parents were not natural-born U.S. citizens .
Trump suggested that the suicide of Vince Foster , a former aide to President Bill Clinton , and the death of former Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia were murders ; that childhood vaccines cause autism ; and that windmills cause cancer .
He ’ s claimed that climate change is “ a total and very expensive hoax ” by China ’ s government , that a cybersecurity company framed Russia for election interference , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ missing emails , and that voter fraud cost him the popular vote in 2016 .
Right , but one thing that sets Trump apart from other conspiracy theorists is that it ’ s never clear whether he believes the theories he propagates or not .
They ’ re almost always directed at personal and/or political enemies to delegitimize them somehow — or , as with his theory about Ukraine framing Russia , to relegitimize himself .
( His vaccine skepticism may be a rare case of Trump embracing a conspiracy theory on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . )
It ’ s impossible to tell whether he sincerely believes that Scarborough murdered Klausutis but didn ’ t care so long as Scarborough was praising him or whether he doesn ’ t believe it but cynically revived the allegation to wound Scarborough as payback for all of the criticism aimed at him on “ Morning Joe.
” Trump himself may not know .
Maybe his mind vacillates between belief and disbelief depending on whether it serves his interests to believe or not .
When Scarborough was an ally , he might @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were nonsense .
Once Scarborough became an enemy , he may have talked himself into believing there was something to it because his ego needed assurance that anyone capable of criticizing Trump is capable of anything .
I don ’ t think that ’ s how he operates , though .
My guess is that he just doesn ’ t care whether Scarborough murdered Klausutis or not .
The subject is interesting to him only to the extent that he needs it for leverage of some kind .
Scarborough could have a body @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and so long as “ Morning Joe ” is onboard the Trump train , it ’ s of no concern to the president .
Here ’ s Kayleigh McEnany at today ’ s White House briefing insisting that “ our hearts are with Lori ’ s family.
” They aren ’ t or else Trump wouldn ’ t be doing this , needless to say .
Right now Pat Cipollone is trying to explain to him that he has no right of free speech on Twitter .

Interestingly, they decided to ding him not for his tweets about Joe Scarborough possibly having murdered someone that have caused such an uproar in media but for his tweets about mail-in voting.
Maybe they’re getting around to the Scarborough tweets. If they’re going to systematically fact-check all of Trump’s recent Twitter musings, there’s a huge backlog to work through. Where do they even start?
I’m sure the president will receive this news with his usual equanimity and good cheer.
Click the fact-check link in those tweets and you’re sent to this page, which claims among other things that “fact-checkers say there is no evidence that mail-in ballots are linked to voter fraud.” That’s … not quite true, per this NPR story from early April: “Election experts say Trump is partially correct, that there is slightly more fraud in mail-voting than in-person voting.” The key word is “slightly,” a small risk relative to the considerable risk that voting in-person this fall will intensify a second wave of COVID-19. The same experts told NPR that “election fraud is extremely rare in all instances” and that mail-in voting can be done safely and securely, a point even Mitt Romney has made recently. Americans like the idea of voting by mail, favoring it by a nearly two-to-one margin in Fox’s latest poll, and more states are in the process of facilitating it.
But “no evidence that mail-in ballots are linked to voter fraud”? Not quite true, and that’s the headache Twitter has created for itself by launching this fact-check feature. Righties will demand, and rightly so, that the fact-checking function be applied to Democrats as well as Republicans even though the feature was obviously developed because one particular pol can’t stop smearing his enemies. And Trumpers are going to fact-check the fact-checking done by Twitter in even more granular detail than I just did with their voter-fraud claim to try to vindicate him whenever Twitter calls him out. Frankly, ranting about Twitter fact-checks is apt to become Trump’s new hobby on the platform.
Although maybe that’s by design. Maybe the fact-check feature is just a clever diversion by Twitter to give him something to obsess about other than conspiracy theories about murder cold cases involving cable news hosts who criticize him.
He was asked at his press conference today about Scarborough and the letter from Lori Klausutis’s widower begging Twitter to delete Trump’s tweets on the subject. Trump replied by suggesting that Klausutis’s husband was on his side in wanting to “get to the bottom” of what happened, which is the exact opposite of the point of the letter.
Question: Have you seen the letter written by her husband begging Twitter to delete your tweets, talking about how hard it’s been for his family?
Trump: Yeah I have but I’m sure ultimately they want to get to the bottom of it… there’s no statute of limitations pic.twitter.com/0udU76GwF9 — Acyn (@Acyn) May 26, 2020
Peter Wehner ran through some of Trump’s greatest conspiracy hits to contextualize the Scarborough/Klausutis smear:
That Donald Trump would resort to conspiracy theories to attack his perceived enemies is hardly a revelation. After all, Trump employed a racist conspiracy theory against Barack Obama, which helped him gain political prominence in the Republican Party, and later claimed that President Obama had wiretapped his phones. During the 2016 primary, Trump linked Ted Cruz’s father, Rafael, to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and retweeted a supporter who claimed that Marco Rubio was ineligible to run because his parents were not natural-born U.S. citizens. Trump suggested that the suicide of Vince Foster, a former aide to President Bill Clinton, and the death of former Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia were murders; that childhood vaccines cause autism; and that windmills cause cancer. He’s claimed that climate change is “a total and very expensive hoax” by China’s government, that a cybersecurity company framed Russia for election interference, that Ukraine was hiding Hillary Clinton’s missing emails, and that voter fraud cost him the popular vote in 2016.
Right, but one thing that sets Trump apart from other conspiracy theorists is that it’s never clear whether he believes the theories he propagates or not. They’re almost always directed at personal and/or political enemies to delegitimize them somehow — or, as with his theory about Ukraine framing Russia, to relegitimize himself. (His vaccine skepticism may be a rare case of Trump embracing a conspiracy theory on the merits, without an ulterior self-serving motive.) It’s impossible to tell whether he sincerely believes that Scarborough murdered Klausutis but didn’t care so long as Scarborough was praising him or whether he doesn’t believe it but cynically revived the allegation to wound Scarborough as payback for all of the criticism aimed at him on “Morning Joe.” Trump himself may not know. Maybe his mind vacillates between belief and disbelief depending on whether it serves his interests to believe or not. When Scarborough was an ally, he might have convinced himself that the Klausutis smears were nonsense. Once Scarborough became an enemy, he may have talked himself into believing there was something to it because his ego needed assurance that anyone capable of criticizing Trump is capable of anything.
I don’t think that’s how he operates, though. My guess is that he just doesn’t care whether Scarborough murdered Klausutis or not. The subject is interesting to him only to the extent that he needs it for leverage of some kind. Scarborough could have a body count that tops Ted Bundy’s and so long as “Morning Joe” is onboard the Trump train, it’s of no concern to the president.
Here’s Kayleigh McEnany at today’s White House briefing insisting that “our hearts are with Lori’s family.” They aren’t or else Trump wouldn’t be doing this, needless to say.
https://twitter.com/AlexThomasDC/status/1265351910397218817
Update: That didn’t take long.
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1265427539008380928
Right now Pat Cipollone is trying to explain to him that he has no right of free speech on Twitter.


hotair--2020-05-26--Jeffrey Epstein's IT guy claims he saw Bill Clinton on private island (also saw Prince Andrew with V

Jeffrey Epstein's IT guy claims he saw Bill Clinton on private island (also saw Prince Andrew with Virginia Roberts)

Netflix is promoting a new four-part special titled “ Jeffrey Epstein : Filthy Rich ” which premieres tomorrow .
The producers of the special interviewed Steve Scully , an IT guy who worked for Epstein on his private island Little St. James , and he has some interesting things to say about his time on the island .
For one thing , he claims to have seen Bill Clinton there with Epstein .
Steve Scully , now 70 , who maintained the phones and internet on the island , claims in the Netflix show that he saw Mr Clinton with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the island ’ s villa .
There were no other guests around at the time , he claims .
He also alleges he once saw another male guest of Epstein on the island completely naked surrounded by three topless girls , and he recalls seeing other “ important people ” coming and going from Little Saint James .
Mr Scully said : “ You tell yourself that you didn ’ t know for sure and you never really saw anything , but that ’ s all just rationalization .
“ Jeffrey Epstein , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deviance very well—but he didn ’ t conceal it that well.
” Clinton has admitted to flying on Epstein ’ s private plane on four occasions but said he was never on Little St. James and that he had no idea about Epstein ’ s “ terrible crimes.
” He released a statement about this last year : It ’ s worth noting that this new special seems to be based on the book by novelist James Patterson which is also titled “ Filthy Rich.
” Patterson also previously co-wrote a thriller with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on their book tour .
I mention that because it ’ s a little surprising to me that allegations involving Clinton wound up in this production .
I wonder if Patterson and Clinton are still on speaking terms .
Clinton ’ s secret service detail has claimed he never went anywhere without them ( and hence couldn ’ t have flown solo to Little St. James ) , so it seems someone in this scenario must be lying .
I ’ m long past giving Bill Clinton the benefit of the doubt .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a man who lost his law license over similar lies ?
And speaking of odious liars , Prince Andrew was allegedly also spotted on Epstein ’ s island by Scully .
He was seen making out with a woman whom Scully later identified as a very young Virginia Roberts .
Speaking as part of the documentary , he said : “ It was probably around 2004 , I saw Prince Andrew .
He was at the pool .
He was with at that time an unknown girl to me .
“ She was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any top on .
They were engaged in foreplay .
He was grabbing her , and grinding against her.
” Scully claims he later bumped into the two of them in a hallway and briefly spoke with the Prince : He said , ‘ All right , Steve the phone guy .
I saw you earlier .
.
.
it ’ s certainly a lovely place to work isn ’ t it.
’ “ This is where it struck me as how young the girl was , because she stood like a kid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thought she looked particularly young .
It bothered me .
I thought that it wasn ’ t appropriate.
” It ’ s not clear if Roberts has verified the specific claims made by Scully , i.e .
that she was the girl with Prince Andrew on this occasion , but Roberts has previously claimed that she slept with Prince Andrew on three occasions at Epstein ’ s behest .
The first time was in London ( when she was 17 ) , the second time in New York and the third time was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ special will renew some interest in pursuing some of the people who aided and abetted Epstein ’ s crimes against women .
Here ’ s a CBS This Morning segment about the new show including a portion of the interview with Scully .

Netflix is promoting a new four-part special titled “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich” which premieres tomorrow. The producers of the special interviewed Steve Scully, an IT guy who worked for Epstein on his private island Little St. James, and he has some interesting things to say about his time on the island. For one thing, he claims to have seen Bill Clinton there with Epstein.
Steve Scully, now 70, who maintained the phones and internet on the island, claims in the Netflix show that he saw Mr Clinton with Epstein sitting in the porch area of the island’s villa. There were no other guests around at the time, he claims. He also alleges he once saw another male guest of Epstein on the island completely naked surrounded by three topless girls, and he recalls seeing other “important people” coming and going from Little Saint James. Mr Scully said: “You tell yourself that you didn’t know for sure and you never really saw anything, but that’s all just rationalization. “Jeffrey Epstein, he was a guy who concealed his deviance very well—but he didn’t conceal it that well.”
Clinton has admitted to flying on Epstein’s private plane on four occasions but said he was never on Little St. James and that he had no idea about Epstein’s “terrible crimes.” He released a statement about this last year:
News: President Clinton has issued a statement on Jeffrey Epstein pic.twitter.com/LlTZC8j6pv — Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) July 8, 2019
It’s worth noting that this new special seems to be based on the book by novelist James Patterson which is also titled “Filthy Rich.” Patterson also previously co-wrote a thriller with Bill Clinton and the two appeared friendly on their book tour. I mention that because it’s a little surprising to me that allegations involving Clinton wound up in this production. I wonder if Patterson and Clinton are still on speaking terms.
Clinton’s secret service detail has claimed he never went anywhere without them (and hence couldn’t have flown solo to Little St. James), so it seems someone in this scenario must be lying. I’m long past giving Bill Clinton the benefit of the doubt. Why would anyone believe the denials of a man who lost his law license over similar lies?
And speaking of odious liars, Prince Andrew was allegedly also spotted on Epstein’s island by Scully. He was seen making out with a woman whom Scully later identified as a very young Virginia Roberts.
Speaking as part of the documentary, he said: “It was probably around 2004, I saw Prince Andrew. He was at the pool. He was with at that time an unknown girl to me. “She was young, She didn’t have any top on. They were engaged in foreplay. He was grabbing her, and grinding against her.”
Scully claims he later bumped into the two of them in a hallway and briefly spoke with the Prince:
He said, ‘All right, Steve the phone guy. I saw you earlier . . . it’s certainly a lovely place to work isn’t it.’ “This is where it struck me as how young the girl was, because she stood like a kid would stand behind a parent… “I thought she looked particularly young. It bothered me. I thought that it wasn’t appropriate.”
It’s not clear if Roberts has verified the specific claims made by Scully, i.e. that she was the girl with Prince Andrew on this occasion, but Roberts has previously claimed that she slept with Prince Andrew on three occasions at Epstein’s behest. The first time was in London (when she was 17), the second time in New York and the third time was on Little St. James.
Hopefully this special will renew some interest in pursuing some of the people who aided and abetted Epstein’s crimes against women. Here’s a CBS This Morning segment about the new show including a portion of the interview with Scully.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76jv5vdNtjA


hotair--2020-05-26--Hmmm... a look back at Joe Biden on some recent Memorial Days

Everyone was trying to keep busy ( and keep their spirits up ) on our nation ’ s somber holiday yesterday and presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden was no exception .
He and his wife , Dr. Jill Biden , left their home for the first time in months ( well , for Joe , anyway ) , and went to lay a ceremonial wreath at a local veterans ’ memorial .
The press was quick to point out how the Bidens were wearing the proscribed facemasks of the novel coronavirus era while President Trump chose not to do so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his home for the first time in months on Monday , sporting a face mask to lay a wreath at the Delaware Memorial Bridge Veteran ’ s Memorial Park .
The former vice president , who has not left his home in months for a public event due to the coronavirus pandemic , laid a wreath alongside roughly a dozen veterans and his wife , Jill , per a pool report .
“ Never forget the sacrifices that these men and women made , ” Biden told reporters before leaving the memorial .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ First of all , I will say with complete sincerity that I appreciate it when I see public figures going out on Memorial Day to pay their respects to those we have lost in battle .
The fact that the Bidens joined with other local veterans for the occasion probably came as a boost to their morale .
Of course , with all of that said , this performance did have the sense of being a bit “ stage-managed , ” didn ’ t it ?
Also , after staying in the basement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a mask , wasn ’ t it a bit risky to go out with that group before the virus monster has been slain ?
Perhaps not .
Maybe this is just what Joe Biden always does on Memorial Day .
Sure , when he was Vice President he was sort of obligated to do this sort of thing .
But now he ’ s a private citizen and he ’ s still taking care of these honorable functions .
Good for him !
With that in mind , let ’ s see how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leaving office .
Last year on Memorial Day , Monday , May 27 , 2019 , what was Joe up to ?
( NBC News , emphasis added ) Huh .
I guess he was otherwise occupied .
And before any of you point out that he ’ s now a candidate so it makes sense for him to do this , he officially became a candidate ten days before Memorial Day last year , so that dog won ’ t hunt .
Moving on , let ’ s check in on Uncle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fell on Monday , May 28 .
Um… there was plenty of press coverage of President Trump making what they felt was an inappropriate Tweet on that holiday .
There ’ s even reference to a “ better ” tweet from Barack Obama .
I couldn ’ t find a peep in the news about Joe Biden on Monday or Tuesday of that week .
Okay , so how about Monday , May 29 , 2017 ?
That ’ s the ticket .
Now we ’ ve hit pay dirt .
Uncle Joe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Memorial Day weekend .
Which veterans ’ memorial did he visit then ?
Oh , wait… my bad .
It wasn ’ t a veterans ’ memorial .
He was officiating a gay wedding .
( HuffPo ) Well , at least it sounds like everyone had a fabulous time .
So let me see if I ’ ve got this .
Since leaving office , when Memorial Day came around , even when there wasn ’ t a pandemic raging , Joe Biden either didn ’ t have any events scheduled or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even when he was already an official candidate in 2019 ) .
But now that we ’ re in the heat of both the general election campaign and a plague , he broke quarantine to go lay a wreath .
Fair enough , sir .
Make of that what you will .

Everyone was trying to keep busy (and keep their spirits up) on our nation’s somber holiday yesterday and presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden was no exception. He and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, left their home for the first time in months (well, for Joe, anyway), and went to lay a ceremonial wreath at a local veterans’ memorial. The press was quick to point out how the Bidens were wearing the proscribed facemasks of the novel coronavirus era while President Trump chose not to do so. (CNN)
Joe Biden left his home for the first time in months on Monday, sporting a face mask to lay a wreath at the Delaware Memorial Bridge Veteran’s Memorial Park. The former vice president, who has not left his home in months for a public event due to the coronavirus pandemic, laid a wreath alongside roughly a dozen veterans and his wife, Jill, per a pool report.
“Never forget the sacrifices that these men and women made,” Biden told reporters before leaving the memorial. “Never, ever, forget.”
First of all, I will say with complete sincerity that I appreciate it when I see public figures going out on Memorial Day to pay their respects to those we have lost in battle. The fact that the Bidens joined with other local veterans for the occasion probably came as a boost to their morale. Of course, with all of that said, this performance did have the sense of being a bit “stage-managed,” didn’t it? Also, after staying in the basement for so long, with or without a mask, wasn’t it a bit risky to go out with that group before the virus monster has been slain?
Perhaps not. Maybe this is just what Joe Biden always does on Memorial Day. Sure, when he was Vice President he was sort of obligated to do this sort of thing. But now he’s a private citizen and he’s still taking care of these honorable functions. Good for him! With that in mind, let’s see how Joe spent some previous Memorial Days since leaving office.
Last year on Memorial Day, Monday, May 27, 2019, what was Joe up to? (NBC News, emphasis added)
Democratic rivals ran in parades or appeared at other events, but Biden spent Memorial Day weekend off the campaign trail. His official campaign guidance read, “Joe Biden has no public events scheduled.”
Huh. I guess he was otherwise occupied. And before any of you point out that he’s now a candidate so it makes sense for him to do this, he officially became a candidate ten days before Memorial Day last year, so that dog won’t hunt.
Moving on, let’s check in on Uncle Joe on Memorial Day 2018, which fell on Monday, May 28. Um… there was plenty of press coverage of President Trump making what they felt was an inappropriate Tweet on that holiday. There’s even reference to a “better” tweet from Barack Obama. I couldn’t find a peep in the news about Joe Biden on Monday or Tuesday of that week.
Okay, so how about Monday, May 29, 2017? That’s the ticket. Now we’ve hit pay dirt. Uncle Joe was definitely out and about on that Memorial Day weekend. Which veterans’ memorial did he visit then? Oh, wait… my bad. It wasn’t a veterans’ memorial. He was officiating a gay wedding. (HuffPo)
Joe Biden kicked off his Memorial Day weekend by helping a same-sex couple tie the knot. On Saturday, the former vice president presided over the nuptials of Democratic National Committee Finance Chair Henry Muñoz III and his husband, Kyle Ferrari, People magazine reported. Details of the actual ceremony are scarce, but one of the wedding’s high-profile guests was none other than Melanie Griffith. The “Working Girl” star, 59, posted a photo of the nuptials to her Instagram account Monday.
Well, at least it sounds like everyone had a fabulous time.
So let me see if I’ve got this. Since leaving office, when Memorial Day came around, even when there wasn’t a pandemic raging, Joe Biden either didn’t have any events scheduled or he had something better to do (even when he was already an official candidate in 2019). But now that we’re in the heat of both the general election campaign and a plague, he broke quarantine to go lay a wreath. Fair enough, sir. Make of that what you will.


hotair--2020-05-26--Meghan McCain: I've supported reopening, but I'm disheartened by these scenes of mass gatherings wit

Meghan McCain: I've supported reopening, but I'm disheartened by these scenes of mass gatherings with no precautions

She ’ s discouraged by the videos over the weekend of people crowding into pools , most without masks , as if the whole world had just been vaccinated and the virus finally conquered .
I ’ ll give you the glass-half-full and the glass-half-empty views of that .
Glass half full : The videos are extreme outliers .
They went viral because they ’ re unusual .
Poll Americans and you ’ ll find that the great majority continue to practice social distancing and wear masks around strangers most of the time , including Republicans .
Don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ A-holes convince you that Americans are cavalier about the threat .
Glass half empty : Americans are cavalier about the threat .
They know the right answer to give when a pollster asks them a question about proper behavior but privately they ’ ve talked themselves into believing that the absence of any apocalyptic new outbreaks over the last month means the virus is on summer vacation .
Plus , many a selfish young A-hole has concluded that so long as they ’ re not infecting their own grandparents they don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of transmission that eventually leads to a bunch of old people dying .
Their pool party is worth more than the life of their friend ’ s friend ’ s friend ’ s grandmother .
America , baby .
You know our motto : Look out for number one .
The mayor of St. Louis watched the same pool footage McCain did and pronounced it “ deeply disturbing , ” adding , “ Now , these folks will be coming home to St. Louis and counties all over Missouri and the Midwest , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ positive cases , hospitalizations , and tragically , deaths.
” It wasn ’ t just the Ozarks , though : At a flashy club in Houston , dozens splashed around the pool and sipped on drinks on the patio .
In rural North Carolina , thousands packed the stands shoulder to shoulder at Ace Speedway on its opening night , where face masks were the exception .
And in Daytona Beach , Florida , even after an event called “ Orlando Invades Daytona ” was canceled , hundreds still danced in the street @ @ @ @ @ @ @ boardwalk… Elsewhere , even if executive orders are in place , some local sheriffs have refused to enforce them .
Such was the case in Alamance County , North Carolina , where Ace Speedway is located .
Although Democratic Gov .
Roy Cooper ’ s second phase of reopening North Carolina limits outdoor gatherings to 25 people , Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson said he would refuse to “ enforce an unconstitutional law , ” allowing the speedway ’ s opening night to proceed as planned on Saturday night , WTVD reported .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the behavior : People won ’ t believe that New York and New Jersey aren ’ t sui generis until an outbreak explodes in some other region of the country .
I remember one doctor making the case on Twitter a few weeks ago that most Americans have a blind spot right now in which statistically they have a reasonably high chance of being infected and yet a low chance of knowing anyone who ’ s been infected so far .
( People in the New York tri-state area are different , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of us are underestimating the danger facing us personally , which means we ’ re apt to take more risks than we rationally should .
To put that another way , for many of us there ’ ll be no reason to believe that a second wave is coming until that second wave is already here and crashing down on us — which sounds familiar , as it ’ s the same view many of us had about the first wave in February .
Trump is the ultimate exemplar , having spent February @ @ @ @ @ @ @ away soon and then spending yesterday morning demanding that the Republican convention be held at full capacity in August even though that ’ s insanely reckless and literally no doctor would recommend it , even if case counts are low at the time .
Hence America ’ s other motto : We only learn the hard way .
As for McCain , most of her comments on Twitter to this point about reopening have been to demand that it happen faster , warning that deaths from despair caused by economic destruction are every @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
At first blush it ’ s surprising to see her giving ammo to the “ slow down ” crowd on reopening by highlighting irresponsible behavior on “ The View ” today , but there ’ s no contradiction , really .
What Meg understands and what the pool doofuses do not is that a second wave is going to shut everything down again , and the sooner it comes the sooner those shutdowns will begin .
They may not come from the top this time in the form of lockdown orders but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bottom as frightened consumers decide to abandon unnecessary commercial activity .
There won ’ t be enough pool doofuses to keep businesses afloat .
And when they shut down next time because they can ’ t make rent , chances are they won ’ t reopen .

She’s discouraged by the videos over the weekend of people crowding into pools, most without masks, as if the whole world had just been vaccinated and the virus finally conquered. I’ll give you the glass-half-full and the glass-half-empty views of that.
Glass half full: The videos are extreme outliers. They went viral because they’re unusual. Poll Americans and you’ll find that the great majority continue to practice social distancing and wear masks around strangers most of the time, including Republicans. Don’t let the behavior of a few selfish A-holes convince you that Americans are cavalier about the threat.
Glass half empty: Americans are cavalier about the threat. They know the right answer to give when a pollster asks them a question about proper behavior but privately they’ve talked themselves into believing that the absence of any apocalyptic new outbreaks over the last month means the virus is on summer vacation. Plus, many a selfish young A-hole has concluded that so long as they’re not infecting their own grandparents they don’t much care if they start a chain of transmission that eventually leads to a bunch of old people dying. Their pool party is worth more than the life of their friend’s friend’s friend’s grandmother.
America, baby. You know our motto: Look out for number one.
.@MeghanMcCain on images of thousands not social distancing: “To see people sort of like rubbing their nose at all the sacrifices of our first responders and there’s still so much unknown about this virus, look, I’ve been very, very disheartened.” https://t.co/f8u2wbJuik pic.twitter.com/jnOBIIcRqA — The View (@TheView) May 26, 2020
The mayor of St. Louis watched the same pool footage McCain did and pronounced it “deeply disturbing,” adding, “Now, these folks will be coming home to St. Louis and counties all over Missouri and the Midwest, raising concerns about the potential of more positive cases, hospitalizations, and tragically, deaths.” It wasn’t just the Ozarks, though:
At a flashy club in Houston, dozens splashed around the pool and sipped on drinks on the patio. In rural North Carolina, thousands packed the stands shoulder to shoulder at Ace Speedway on its opening night, where face masks were the exception. And in Daytona Beach, Florida, even after an event called “Orlando Invades Daytona” was canceled, hundreds still danced in the street and on top of cars near the boardwalk… Elsewhere, even if executive orders are in place, some local sheriffs have refused to enforce them. Such was the case in Alamance County, North Carolina, where Ace Speedway is located. Although Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s second phase of reopening North Carolina limits outdoor gatherings to 25 people, Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson said he would refuse to “enforce an unconstitutional law,” allowing the speedway’s opening night to proceed as planned on Saturday night, WTVD reported.
Honestly, I think this explains most of the behavior:
FUNDSTRAT: Thirteen states have been open for more than three weeks now (prior to 5/1) and these states have since seen daily cases fall 29% to 2,497.@fundstrat pic.twitter.com/VZLQT5fjSM — Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla) May 26, 2020
People won’t believe that New York and New Jersey aren’t sui generis until an outbreak explodes in some other region of the country. I remember one doctor making the case on Twitter a few weeks ago that most Americans have a blind spot right now in which statistically they have a reasonably high chance of being infected and yet a low chance of knowing anyone who’s been infected so far. (People in the New York tri-state area are different, of course.) That means many of us are underestimating the danger facing us personally, which means we’re apt to take more risks than we rationally should.
To put that another way, for many of us there’ll be no reason to believe that a second wave is coming until that second wave is already here and crashing down on us — which sounds familiar, as it’s the same view many of us had about the first wave in February. Trump is the ultimate exemplar, having spent February chattering about how the virus would go away soon and then spending yesterday morning demanding that the Republican convention be held at full capacity in August even though that’s insanely reckless and literally no doctor would recommend it, even if case counts are low at the time.
Hence America’s other motto: We only learn the hard way.
As for McCain, most of her comments on Twitter to this point about reopening have been to demand that it happen faster, warning that deaths from despair caused by economic destruction are every bit as real as deaths from COVID-19. At first blush it’s surprising to see her giving ammo to the “slow down” crowd on reopening by highlighting irresponsible behavior on “The View” today, but there’s no contradiction, really. What Meg understands and what the pool doofuses do not is that a second wave is going to shut everything down again, and the sooner it comes the sooner those shutdowns will begin. They may not come from the top this time in the form of lockdown orders but they’ll certainly come from the bottom as frightened consumers decide to abandon unnecessary commercial activity. There won’t be enough pool doofuses to keep businesses afloat. And when they shut down next time because they can’t make rent, chances are they won’t reopen.


hotair--2020-05-26--"Poll tax"? Federal judge overturns FL law requiring felons to pay all fines and fees before voting

Did Florida create an illegal poll tax in requiring felons to not just complete their sentences but also pay their fines and fees before having their voting rights restored ?
A federal judge ruled on Sunday that the requirement to pay the bill amounted to a “ pay to vote ” system that violated the civil rights of those ex-cons .
For now , the ruling by Judge Robert Hinkle will open the door to potentially hundreds of thousands of new voters in November 2020 — theoretically , anyway .
In practice , more like November 2022 : A federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ requiring felons to pay all court fines and fees before they can register to vote , clearing the way for thousands of Floridians to register in time for the November presidential election .
Republican lawmakers and Gov .
Ron DeSantis ( R ) pushed the measure after Florida voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment in 2018 to expand voting rights to felons who have completed “ all terms of their sentence including probation and parole.
” The law ’ s backers said it was necessary to clarify the amendment , while critics said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of what would have been the largest expansion of the state ’ s electorate since poll taxes and literacy tests were outlawed during the civil rights era .
Theoretically , though , this makes sense .
A sentence can ’ t be complete while assessed fines and fees are left unpaid .
That isn ’ t about paying to vote — it ’ s a requirement to close out the sentence that got assessed in the criminal conviction .
In practice , however … Aaaaaaaand that ’ s where the judge is … @ @ @ @ @ @ @ few Florida voters knew that every Florida felony conviction results in an order to pay hundreds of dollars in fees and costs intended to fund the government , even when the judge does not choose to impose a fine as part of the punishment and there is no victim to whom restitution is owed , ” Judge Hinkle wrote in his 125-page opinion .
“ Surely very few Florida voters knew that fees and costs were imposed regardless of ability to pay , that the overwhelming majority of felons who would otherwise be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ amounts they were unable to pay , and that the State had no ability to determine who owed how much.
” He upbraided Florida for failing to come up with a satisfactory way for felons to check how much they might owe or show the state that they could not afford to pay .
Well … yeah .
If Florida has a system that has clear and accessible information as to the exact assessment still outstanding , then this requirement is no problem .
In fact , it ’ s tough to understand @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a system in place .
Failure to pay fines and fees can result in further incarceration .
Shouldn ’ t that threat in itself force the state to provide such an accounting , even without the voting-rights restoration issue at hand now ?
In this context , though , it sounds like the state is setting up a catch-22 .
You can ’ t vote until you pay , but you can ’ t pay because we don ’ t know what you owe .
But now that we know you owe something @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for further investigation .
At the very least , it looks like a way to ensure that most of the people whom voters intended to re-enfranchise remain locked out ( the law excepted convicted murderers and sex offenders from re-enfranchisement ) .
It ’ s an arbitrary exercise of power rather than a fair implementation of due process .
And it isn ’ t as if the judge didn ’ t offer a solution , of sorts .
Theoretically , anyway : Hinkle noted that the state would almost certainly appeal this decision @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with this fix , though , the question of whether indigent Floridians would get locked out of voting forever remains .
That is likely to make up a large portion of the estimated 774,000 former felons excluded by existing financial obligations .
Even if Florida did have such a system in place , in practice it would still produce the same result , and it ’ s tough to imagine Hinkle signing off on it .
Will the appeal work ?
Maybe not even theoretically , as Hinkle explained in his ruling .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Circuit precedent in Jones v Florida on similar grounds : The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed , squarely holding that Florida can not prevent an otherwise-eligible felon from voting just because the felon has failed to pay LFOs the felon is genuinely unable to pay .
Jones v. Governor of Fla. , 950 F.3d 795 ( 11th Cir .
2020 ) .
This order of course follows the Eleventh Circuit ’ s decision—and would reach the same result anyway .
… The State went further in its appeal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interests allegedly served by the pay-to-vote system , including punishment , enforcing its laws , debt collection , and administrative convenience .
But the Eleventh Circuit held they all fell short .
The evidence now in the record after a full trial further support the Eleventh Circuit ’ s analysis .
The State has not identified any additional interests allegedly served by the pay-to-vote system .
When reminded , late in closing argument at the end of the trial , that the State had identified interests on appeal but nothing more in this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it stood by whatever it said on appeal.80 Jones thus settles the question whether the pay-to-vote system , as applied to citizens who are genuinely unable to pay their LFOs , survives heightened scrutiny .
It does not .
The plaintiffs are entitled to prevail on their claim that they can not be denied the right to vote based on failure to pay amounts they are genuinely unable to pay .
If Florida wants to overturn this , they will likely have to push it all the way to the Supreme Court — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no guarantee they will succeed .
They can , however , almost certainly get delays while higher courts take up these questions .
It might take a couple of more years to settle this , but Florida has low odds of winning this case while it can ’ t even make its own accounting transparent .

Did Florida create an illegal poll tax in requiring felons to not just complete their sentences but also pay their fines and fees before having their voting rights restored? A federal judge ruled on Sunday that the requirement to pay the bill amounted to a “pay to vote” system that violated the civil rights of those ex-cons. For now, the ruling by Judge Robert Hinkle will open the door to potentially hundreds of thousands of new voters in November 2020 — theoretically, anyway.
In practice, more like November 2022:
A federal judge has gutted a Florida state law requiring felons to pay all court fines and fees before they can register to vote, clearing the way for thousands of Floridians to register in time for the November presidential election. Republican lawmakers and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) pushed the measure after Florida voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment in 2018 to expand voting rights to felons who have completed “all terms of their sentence including probation and parole.” The law’s backers said it was necessary to clarify the amendment, while critics said Republicans were trying to limit the effects of what would have been the largest expansion of the state’s electorate since poll taxes and literacy tests were outlawed during the civil rights era.
Theoretically, though, this makes sense. A sentence can’t be complete while assessed fines and fees are left unpaid. That isn’t about paying to vote — it’s a requirement to close out the sentence that got assessed in the criminal conviction. In practice, however …
The law, critics said, had made it virtually impossible for most felons to register, either because of an inability to pay or because the state offered no way for them to know what they owed or whether they had already paid.
Aaaaaaaand that’s where the judge is … suddenly making sense:
“Surely very few Florida voters knew that every Florida felony conviction results in an order to pay hundreds of dollars in fees and costs intended to fund the government, even when the judge does not choose to impose a fine as part of the punishment and there is no victim to whom restitution is owed,” Judge Hinkle wrote in his 125-page opinion. “Surely very few Florida voters knew that fees and costs were imposed regardless of ability to pay, that the overwhelming majority of felons who would otherwise be eligible to vote under Amendment 4 owed amounts they were unable to pay, and that the State had no ability to determine who owed how much.” He upbraided Florida for failing to come up with a satisfactory way for felons to check how much they might owe or show the state that they could not afford to pay.
Well … yeah. If Florida has a system that has clear and accessible information as to the exact assessment still outstanding, then this requirement is no problem. In fact, it’s tough to understand why Florida wouldn’t have such a system in place. Failure to pay fines and fees can result in further incarceration. Shouldn’t that threat in itself force the state to provide such an accounting, even without the voting-rights restoration issue at hand now?
In this context, though, it sounds like the state is setting up a catch-22. You can’t vote until you pay, but you can’t pay because we don’t know what you owe. But now that we know you owe something, we may need to refer this for further investigation. At the very least, it looks like a way to ensure that most of the people whom voters intended to re-enfranchise remain locked out (the law excepted convicted murderers and sex offenders from re-enfranchisement). It’s an arbitrary exercise of power rather than a fair implementation of due process.
And it isn’t as if the judge didn’t offer a solution, of sorts. Theoretically, anyway:
The judge ordered the division of elections to issue a form with which felons might request an advisory opinion on their eligibility to vote. The felon would then be able to register to vote within 21 days unless the division finds that the applicant is ineligible.
Hinkle noted that the state would almost certainly appeal this decision rather than fix the problem. Even with this fix, though, the question of whether indigent Floridians would get locked out of voting forever remains. That is likely to make up a large portion of the estimated 774,000 former felons excluded by existing financial obligations. Even if Florida did have such a system in place, in practice it would still produce the same result, and it’s tough to imagine Hinkle signing off on it.
Will the appeal work? Maybe not even theoretically, as Hinkle explained in his ruling. His decision is based solidly on 11th Circuit precedent in Jones v Florida on similar grounds:
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed, squarely holding that Florida cannot prevent an otherwise-eligible felon from voting just because the felon has failed to pay LFOs the felon is genuinely unable to pay. Jones v. Governor of Fla., 950 F.3d 795 (11th Cir. 2020). This order of course follows the Eleventh Circuit’s decision—and would reach the same result anyway. … The State went further in its appeal of the preliminary injunction, identifying additional interests allegedly served by the pay-to-vote system, including punishment, enforcing its laws, debt collection, and administrative convenience. But the Eleventh Circuit held they all fell short. The evidence now in the record after a full trial further support the Eleventh Circuit’s analysis. The State has not identified any additional interests allegedly served by the pay-to-vote system. When reminded, late in closing argument at the end of the trial, that the State had identified interests on appeal but nothing more in this court, the State said only that it stood by whatever it said on appeal.80 Jones thus settles the question whether the pay-to-vote system, as applied to citizens who are genuinely unable to pay their LFOs, survives heightened scrutiny. It does not. The plaintiffs are entitled to prevail on their claim that they cannot be denied the right to vote based on failure to pay amounts they are genuinely unable to pay.
If Florida wants to overturn this, they will likely have to push it all the way to the Supreme Court — and even then, there’s no guarantee they will succeed. They can, however, almost certainly get delays while higher courts take up these questions. It might take a couple of more years to settle this, but Florida has low odds of winning this case while it can’t even make its own accounting transparent.


hotair--2020-05-26--Politico: Democrats are worried the economy is going to recover before the election

Earlier today Ed wrote about a concern that has spread among Democrats for several months that President Trump is gearing up to dispute the results of the 2020 election in the case that he loses .
But Democrats have another fear that is worrying them according to a story published today at Politico .
They worry that Trump might win the election thanks to a quick rebound of the economy .
The person stirring up that concern is Harvard professor Jason Furman who has been arguing since at least April that once the stay-at-home orders are lifted the economy will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see the best economic data we ’ ve seen in the history of this country , ” he said… Instead of forecasting a prolonged Depression-level economic catastrophe , Furman laid out a detailed case for why the months preceding the November election could offer Trump the chance to brag — truthfully — about the most explosive monthly employment numbers and gross domestic product growth ever… Furman ’ s counterintuitive pitch has caused some Democrats , especially Obama alumni , around Washington to panic .
“ This is my big worry , ” said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is still close to the former president .
Asked about the level of concern among top party officials , he said , “ It ’ s high — high , high , high , high.
” And top policy officials on the Biden campaign are preparing for a fall economic debate that might look very different than the one predicted at the start of the pandemic in March .
“ They are very much aware of this , ” said an informal adviser .
Furman ’ s argument is that the coronavirus-caused downturn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with a natural disaster than with the regular business cycle .
For instance , a hurricane might shut down an area for a matter of weeks but the recovery tends to be fairly quick .
Of course not everything will bounce back in this case .
Many companies have gone out of business and some , like airlines and movie theaters , may take a while to recover .
But the fact remains that there could be a big bounce from the very worst levels of unemployment we ’ re seeing now .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to make the case that things really are on the upswing .
“ In absolute terms , the economy will look historically terrible come November , ” said Kenneth Baer , a Democratic strategist who worked in a senior role at the Office of Management and Budget under Obama .
“ But relative to the depths of April , it will be on an upswing — 12 percent unemployment , for example , is better than 20 , but historically terrible .
On Election Day , we Democrats need voters to ask themselves @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you were four years ago ?
’ Republicans need voters to ask themselves , ‘ Are you better off than you were four months ago ?
’ ” Another progressive quoted in the piece points out that Trump is still beating Biden on the economy even now .
If we see a substantial recovery in the next few months , that could boost his numbers even futher and it ’ s no secret that a president in the middle of an economy perceived as good is more likely to be reelected .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but still .
A couple points about all of this .
First , the concern of Democrats seems warranted but this puts them in a very odd position .
On some level , they are rooting for a slow recovery to maximize their chances of taking the White House .
They want the country to suffer long enough to replace Trump with Biden , who can then be credited for reviving the economy once he takes office .
But rooting for failure is a pretty awkward position after a pandemic , especially when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is “ emo Joe , ” i.e .
the guy who cares .
Rooting for failure , even temporarily , isn ’ t caring about Americans .
Second , if you look at this from the other side , it really is a potentially perfect scenario for Trump ’ s campaign .
Not only can they genuinely celebrate any good news , this also puts the 2016 slogan back in play , albeit under unexpected circumstances .
If you think about it , “ Make America Great Again ” was always going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
By that point you have to show that you ’ ve at least made some progress toward the goal ( of making things great ) .
But in this case , because of the virus , Trump can legitimately claim that his progress he made was undone by an unforseen disaster .
Now he can argue he just needs time to recover what was lost .
As a message , it ’ s a hell of a lot better than secretly hoping the downturn lasts through October .

Earlier today Ed wrote about a concern that has spread among Democrats for several months that President Trump is gearing up to dispute the results of the 2020 election in the case that he loses. But Democrats have another fear that is worrying them according to a story published today at Politico. They worry that Trump might win the election thanks to a quick rebound of the economy.
The person stirring up that concern is Harvard professor Jason Furman who has been arguing since at least April that once the stay-at-home orders are lifted the economy will boom:
“We are about to see the best economic data we’ve seen in the history of this country,” he said… Instead of forecasting a prolonged Depression-level economic catastrophe, Furman laid out a detailed case for why the months preceding the November election could offer Trump the chance to brag — truthfully — about the most explosive monthly employment numbers and gross domestic product growth ever… Furman’s counterintuitive pitch has caused some Democrats, especially Obama alumni, around Washington to panic. “This is my big worry,” said a former Obama White House official who is still close to the former president. Asked about the level of concern among top party officials, he said, “It’s high — high, high, high, high.” And top policy officials on the Biden campaign are preparing for a fall economic debate that might look very different than the one predicted at the start of the pandemic in March. “They are very much aware of this,” said an informal adviser.
Furman’s argument is that the coronavirus-caused downturn in the economy has more in common with a natural disaster than with the regular business cycle. For instance, a hurricane might shut down an area for a matter of weeks but the recovery tends to be fairly quick. Of course not everything will bounce back in this case. Many companies have gone out of business and some, like airlines and movie theaters, may take a while to recover. But the fact remains that there could be a big bounce from the very worst levels of unemployment we’re seeing now. And that bounce will allow President Trump to make the case that things really are on the upswing.
“In absolute terms, the economy will look historically terrible come November,” said Kenneth Baer, a Democratic strategist who worked in a senior role at the Office of Management and Budget under Obama. “But relative to the depths of April, it will be on an upswing — 12 percent unemployment, for example, is better than 20, but historically terrible. On Election Day, we Democrats need voters to ask themselves, ‘Are you better off than you were four years ago?’ Republicans need voters to ask themselves, ‘Are you better off than you were four months ago?’”
Another progressive quoted in the piece points out that Trump is still beating Biden on the economy even now. If we see a substantial recovery in the next few months, that could boost his numbers even futher and it’s no secret that a president in the middle of an economy perceived as good is more likely to be reelected. In this case, good will be relative but still.
A couple points about all of this. First, the concern of Democrats seems warranted but this puts them in a very odd position. On some level, they are rooting for a slow recovery to maximize their chances of taking the White House. They want the country to suffer long enough to replace Trump with Biden, who can then be credited for reviving the economy once he takes office. But rooting for failure is a pretty awkward position after a pandemic, especially when the candidate you’re rallying behind is “emo Joe,” i.e. the guy who cares. Rooting for failure, even temporarily, isn’t caring about Americans.
Second, if you look at this from the other side, it really is a potentially perfect scenario for Trump’s campaign. Not only can they genuinely celebrate any good news, this also puts the 2016 slogan back in play, albeit under unexpected circumstances. If you think about it, “Make America Great Again” was always going to be a problem for a second term. By that point you have to show that you’ve at least made some progress toward the goal (of making things great). But in this case, because of the virus, Trump can legitimately claim that his progress he made was undone by an unforseen disaster. Now he can argue he just needs time to recover what was lost. As a message, it’s a hell of a lot better than secretly hoping the downturn lasts through October.


hotair--2020-05-26--New York Times appears to celebrate impending Taliban victory

What with the apparent “ progress ” of our peace talks with the Taliban and the prospect of US involvement in Afghanistan potentially coming to an end , journalists clearly feel a duty to put it all in perspective .
What was the meaning of America ’ s longest war and what comes next ?
There ’ s a really strange , long analysis at the New York Times this week , written by Mujib Mashal .
He ’ s the Gray Lady ’ s senior correspondent in Afghanistan .
Mashal has previously written for The Atlantic , Harper ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ So what does Mr. Mashal think of the current state of affairs in Afghanistan ?
He seems to be fairly impressed with the achievements of… the Taliban .
While not praising them directly or totally ignoring their horrific acts of terror over the years , the journalist treats the situation as if the Taliban were any other nation or global entity engaging in diplomatic negotiations and carving out their own piece of history .
Here ’ s a sample .
( Emphasis mine ) “ We see this fight as worship , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Taliban ’ s military commission in Laghman Province , as dozens of his fighters waited nearby on a hillside .
“ So if a brother is killed , the second brother won ’ t disappoint God ’ s wish — he ’ ll step into the brother ’ s shoes.
” It was March , and the Taliban had just signed a peace deal with the United States that now puts the movement on the brink of realizing its most fervent desire — the complete exit of American troops from Afghanistan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nearly 19 years of grinding war .
And dozens of interviews with Taliban officials and fighters in three countries , as well as with Afghan and Western officials , illuminated the melding of old and new approaches and generations that helped them do it .
Indeed .
The Taliban have “ outlasted a superpower.
” It ’ s difficult not to imagine at least a hint of admiration in this analysis .
Those scrappy little fighters from the Taliban have taken on the greatest military power the world has ever seen and they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forcing us to turn tail and leave the field of battle to them .
The sad thing about Mashal ’ s analysis is that he ’ s clearly correct .
The Taliban have kept fighting since day one , leaving blood and carnage in their wake and never even suggesting they might surrender .
And as he goes on to remind us later in the article , they ’ ve been using tactics that have served the Afghan overlords well since before most of those alive today were born .
The ruling Islamic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ another long , grinding war until they eventually withdrew in 1989 .
( Ironically , with the help of the United States . )
Those groups of guerrilla fighters then proceeded to overthrow what was left of the formal government under the Soviets and then fought each other for control .
The Taliban eventually emerged as the winners .
Mashal makes no bones about the fact that history is about to repeat itself .
He shares a quote from one of the highest ranking people in the Taliban regarding their plans for after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just chilling : “ But we also can ’ t just sit here when the prisons are filled with our people , when the system of government is the same Western system , and the Taliban should just go sit at home .
No logic accepts that — that everything stays the same after all this sacrifice .
The current government stands on foreign money , foreign weapons , on foreign funding.
” In other words , the “ current government ” has got to go .
And we all know it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ report from the New York Times , one might think they were just talking about the minor league baseball scores .
It ’ s very curious indeed .

What with the apparent “progress” of our peace talks with the Taliban and the prospect of US involvement in Afghanistan potentially coming to an end, journalists clearly feel a duty to put it all in perspective. What was the meaning of America’s longest war and what comes next? There’s a really strange, long analysis at the New York Times this week, written by Mujib Mashal. He’s the Gray Lady’s senior correspondent in Afghanistan. Mashal has previously written for The Atlantic, Harper’s andTime, among other outlets.
So what does Mr. Mashal think of the current state of affairs in Afghanistan? He seems to be fairly impressed with the achievements of… the Taliban. While not praising them directly or totally ignoring their horrific acts of terror over the years, the journalist treats the situation as if the Taliban were any other nation or global entity engaging in diplomatic negotiations and carving out their own piece of history. Here’s a sample. (Emphasis mine)
“We see this fight as worship,” said Mawlawi Mohammed Qais, the head of the Taliban’s military commission in Laghman Province, as dozens of his fighters waited nearby on a hillside. “So if a brother is killed, the second brother won’t disappoint God’s wish — he’ll step into the brother’s shoes.” It was March, and the Taliban had just signed a peace deal with the United States that now puts the movement on the brink of realizing its most fervent desire — the complete exit of American troops from Afghanistan. They have outlasted a superpower through nearly 19 years of grinding war. And dozens of interviews with Taliban officials and fighters in three countries, as well as with Afghan and Western officials, illuminated the melding of old and new approaches and generations that helped them do it.
Indeed. The Taliban have “outlasted a superpower.” It’s difficult not to imagine at least a hint of admiration in this analysis. Those scrappy little fighters from the Taliban have taken on the greatest military power the world has ever seen and they’re now on the verge of forcing us to turn tail and leave the field of battle to them.
The sad thing about Mashal’s analysis is that he’s clearly correct. The Taliban have kept fighting since day one, leaving blood and carnage in their wake and never even suggesting they might surrender. And as he goes on to remind us later in the article, they’ve been using tactics that have served the Afghan overlords well since before most of those alive today were born.
The ruling Islamic powers in Afghanistan outlasted the Soviets throughout another long, grinding war until they eventually withdrew in 1989. (Ironically, with the help of the United States.) Those groups of guerrilla fighters then proceeded to overthrow what was left of the formal government under the Soviets and then fought each other for control. The Taliban eventually emerged as the winners.
Mashal makes no bones about the fact that history is about to repeat itself. He shares a quote from one of the highest ranking people in the Taliban regarding their plans for after we are gone. And this is just chilling:
“But we also can’t just sit here when the prisons are filled with our people, when the system of government is the same Western system, and the Taliban should just go sit at home. No logic accepts that — that everything stays the same after all this sacrifice. The current government stands on foreign money, foreign weapons, on foreign funding.”
In other words, the “current government” has got to go. And we all know it’s coming. But to read this report from the New York Times, one might think they were just talking about the minor league baseball scores. It’s very curious indeed.


hotair--2020-05-26--Today's hot topics on #TEMS: Declassifying spree, Minneapolis PD, media/Dem election plea, Hollywood

Today's hot topics on #TEMS: Declassifying spree, Minneapolis PD, media/Dem election plea, Hollywood protest flee, and more!

Today on The Ed Morrissey Show ( 4 pm ET ) , we have another great lineup for the news of the day !
The show will be streamed on Hot Air ’ s Facebook page and embedded here and on the show page for those who are not on Facebook .
Join us as we welcome : • Andrew Malcolm joins us for Tuesdays with Andrew !
The Prince of Twitter and I will discuss all of the hot political stories of the day .
After three years of Russiagate , Democrats and the media now openly fret Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election .
What happened in Minneapolis to end George Floyd ’ s life ?
Plus Richard Grenell has declassified more intelligence , and now we ’ re waiting to see what John Ratcliffe will do .
• Will Netflix ’ s documentary on Jeffrey Epstein deliver the whole truth ?
Christian Toto joins us to preview “ Jeffrey Epstein : Filthy Rich , ” and we ’ ll also talk about Hollywood ’ s weird aversion to protesters … at least when it comes to the shutdowns .
And when will Hollywood ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — or will they ever ?
Plus , I ’ ll tell Christian why Capone was like a return to the gangster ’ s vault .
The Ed Morrissey Show and its dynamic chatroom can be seen on the permanent TEMS page .
Be sure to join us , and don ’ t forget to keep up with the debate on my Facebook page , too !
How can Republicans and conservatives keep the momentum going ?
Find out in GOING RED , published in April from Crown Forum !

Today on The Ed Morrissey Show (4 pm ET), we have another great lineup for the news of the day! The show will be streamed on Hot Air’s Facebook page and embedded here and on the show page for those who are not on Facebook.
Join us as we welcome:
Andrew Malcolm joins us for Tuesdays with Andrew! The Prince of Twitter and I will discuss all of the hot political stories of the day. After three years of Russiagate, Democrats and the media now openly fret Trump might not accept the results of an election. What happened in Minneapolis to end George Floyd’s life? Plus Richard Grenell has declassified more intelligence, and now we’re waiting to see what John Ratcliffe will do.
Will Netflix’s documentary on Jeffrey Epstein deliver the whole truth? Christian Toto joins us to preview “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich,” and we’ll also talk about Hollywood’s weird aversion to protesters … at least when it comes to the shutdowns. And when will Hollywood’s customers go back to the theaters — or will they ever? Plus, I’ll tell Christian why Capone was like a return to the gangster’s vault.
The Ed Morrissey Show and its dynamic chatroom can be seen on the permanent TEMS page. Be sure to join us, and don’t forget to keep up with the debate on my Facebook page, too!
How can Republicans and conservatives keep the momentum going? Find out in GOING RED, published in April from Crown Forum!