hotair--2020-09-18--California family to Kamala: Get your Timberlands off our property

Much like her running mate , Kamala Harris hasn ’ t really been out and about very much as a vice-presidential candidate .
She ’ s a Californian , though , so she took advantage of the state ’ s horrendous wildfires to make a pitch for one the left ’ s favorite causes – climate change .
She let Governor Gavin Newsom tag along as she surveyed the damage .
In Auberry , California , the duo roamed around the burned-out property of one family , which included the remains of the family home and a pick-up truck .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the owners didn ’ t appreciate the visit made at the expense of the family ’ s privacy .
It was all just a photo-op and the politicians were trespassing , they say .
The home is across the street from an elementary school that Newsom and Kamala visited .
For dramatic effect , the senator used a ghoulish reference in her observations .
‘ The fire just swept through .
So everything is gone except the chimney , ’ Harris told reporters .
‘ Those chimneys , they remind me – when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s been wiped out , those chimneys remind me of tombstones.
’ Trampas Patten , the homeowner ’ s son , accused Harris and Newsom of using his family ’ s tragedy for their own political gain .
In a post on Facebook , he notes that his parents have not been allowed back on their property due to evacuation orders .
That ’ s quite a professional-looking pose by Kamala , right ?
Trampas ’ sister weighed in , too , with an emotional reaction .
His sister Bailee , stated , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it was – there aren ’ t words , because it ’ s like , we haven ’ t even seen our house .
We haven ’ t seen our property .
There is no house , we haven ’ t even seen our property … This isn ’ t just devastation , this is our lives .
This is where we grew up , these are our memories .
And to not have that – to feel so helpless – and I guess that ’ s what we ’ ve all been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helpless .
Because we weren ’ t there , we haven ’ t gotten to deal with our loss .
Instead , we ’ re having to watch it play out on social media and news , ” FOX26 News reported .
It ’ s hard to imagine how it must have felt for them to check in on social media and see their family home and property being exploited for political gain .
Oh , did I mention that they are registered Republicans ?
Those two Democrat politicians picked the wrong property @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Facebook : Dear Governor Newsom you don ’ t know me but I ’ m one of your CA citizens .
That truck you are standing by is my dads work truck .
He has had that thing for as long as I can remember .
That land with all the rubble your standing next too , that ’ s my house I grew up in .
You never got my parents permission to go on our property , nor did you ask if we needed help .
What you did do is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all over social media and news networks to push your agenda .
That agenda can wait , right now you should be caring about the families of this state .
Thankfully this community is # mountainstrong and we will thrive .
Patten concluded , “ We ’ re survivors .
We ’ re gon na get through this , but the whole community has lost .
And to just take a picture of one loss , it ’ s not enough.
” When asked for a response to the brother and sister , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ‘ I ’ m not going to have anything about that.
” She refused any further comment .
That ’ s the thing about Team Biden – they shield Biden and Kamala from answering any uncomfortable questions .
Or , really , any questions at all .
Here is the governor using his Twitter account to promote his climate change propaganda alongside the property owner ’ s truck : Gavin Newsom can rant about those who deny the overwrought hysteria about climate change all he wants .
So can Kamala .
The fact @ @ @ @ @ @ @ temperatures are edged up a bit in recent years , as weather comes in cycles , but the wildfires are mostly a by-product of some really crappy Democrat land management policy .
If the governor and his minions in Sacramento would wake up and manage forests properly , like clearing brush , for example , the wildfires would be less likely of an event .
That ’ s science , too , Mr .
Governor .
Kamala , you might have noticed , dresses casually as she goes about her business during these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shoes , in particular .
Her choice in footwear is being heralded as woke .
I ’ m not kidding .
Whether she is wearing sneakers with her pants suits or as in this case , Timberlands , the journalists make note of it .
This is where I mention that the press treats Melania Trump very differently when she puts on a pair of Timberlands , even if it is to visit a military base overseas .
And , yeah , it ’ s not about the boots .
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Team Biden thinly disguised as reporting .
It is what it is .

Much like her running mate, Kamala Harris hasn’t really been out and about very much as a vice-presidential candidate. She’s a Californian, though, so she took advantage of the state’s horrendous wildfires to make a pitch for one the left’s favorite causes – climate change. She let Governor Gavin Newsom tag along as she surveyed the damage.
In Auberry, California, the duo roamed around the burned-out property of one family, which included the remains of the family home and a pick-up truck. It turns out the grown children of the owners didn’t appreciate the visit made at the expense of the family’s privacy. It was all just a photo-op and the politicians were trespassing, they say. The home is across the street from an elementary school that Newsom and Kamala visited. For dramatic effect, the senator used a ghoulish reference in her observations. ‘The fire just swept through. So everything is gone except the chimney,’ Harris told reporters. ‘Those chimneys, they remind me – when you look at a neighborhood that’s been wiped out, those chimneys remind me of tombstones.’
Trampas Patten, the homeowner’s son, accused Harris and Newsom of using his family’s tragedy for their own political gain. In a post on Facebook, he notes that his parents have not been allowed back on their property due to evacuation orders.
https://www.facebook.com/trampas.patten/posts/1606171236213007
That’s quite a professional-looking pose by Kamala, right? Trampas’ sister weighed in, too, with an emotional reaction.
His sister Bailee, stated, “When we saw those photos, it was – there aren’t words, because it’s like, we haven’t even seen our house. We haven’t seen our property. There is no house, we haven’t even seen our property … This isn’t just devastation, this is our lives. This is where we grew up, these are our memories. And to not have that – to feel so helpless – and I guess that’s what we’ve all been thinking, is that we were so helpless. Because we weren’t there, we haven’t gotten to deal with our loss. Instead, we’re having to watch it play out on social media and news,” FOX26 News reported.
It’s hard to imagine how it must have felt for them to check in on social media and see their family home and property being exploited for political gain. Oh, did I mention that they are registered Republicans? Those two Democrat politicians picked the wrong property to tour. Then Bailee posted on Facebook:
Dear Governor Newsom you don’t know me but I’m one of your CA citizens. That truck you are standing by is my dads work truck. He has had that thing for as long as I can remember. That land with all the rubble your standing next too, that’s my house I grew up in. You never got my parents permission to go on our property, nor did you ask if we needed help. What you did do is take my families loss and parade it all over social media and news networks to push your agenda. That agenda can wait, right now you should be caring about the families of this state. Thankfully this community is #mountainstrong and we will thrive. Patten concluded, “We’re survivors. We’re gonna get through this, but the whole community has lost. And to just take a picture of one loss, it’s not enough.”
When asked for a response to the brother and sister, Senator Harris’s Communications Director said ‘I’m not going to have anything about that.” She refused any further comment. That’s the thing about Team Biden – they shield Biden and Kamala from answering any uncomfortable questions. Or, really, any questions at all.
Here is the governor using his Twitter account to promote his climate change propaganda alongside the property owner’s truck:
Climate change is real. pic.twitter.com/iy1uuRpyQr — Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) September 15, 2020
Gavin Newsom can rant about those who deny the overwrought hysteria about climate change all he wants. So can Kamala. The fact of the matter is that yes, temperatures are edged up a bit in recent years, as weather comes in cycles, but the wildfires are mostly a by-product of some really crappy Democrat land management policy. If the governor and his minions in Sacramento would wake up and manage forests properly, like clearing brush, for example, the wildfires would be less likely of an event. That’s science, too, Mr. Governor.
Kamala, you might have noticed, dresses casually as she goes about her business during these campaign stops. The media loves her shoes, in particular. Her choice in footwear is being heralded as woke. I’m not kidding. Whether she is wearing sneakers with her pants suits or as in this case, Timberlands, the journalists make note of it. This is where I mention that the press treats Melania Trump very differently when she puts on a pair of Timberlands, even if it is to visit a military base overseas.
I’ve never see such media bias in my life… Over #timberland boots! Freaking shoes people. Shoes!#Timbs pic.twitter.com/6TowVLbkbN — Amy Kremer (@AmyKremer) September 17, 2020
And, yeah, it’s not about the boots. It’s the media and their continued in-kind donations to Team Biden thinly disguised as reporting.
I know this isn’t really about the boots. But the boots show the extreme #mediabias. The media will go to any length to push their own agenda. This is disgusting. As I said in an earlier tweet, it’s no wonder Americans don’t trust them. — Amy Kremer (@AmyKremer) September 17, 2020
It is what it is.


hotair--2020-09-18--Biden: If Trump had done his job on COVID from the start, "all the people would still be alive"

Via Red State , this is obviously grossly untrue .
Whether Biden said it as a sort of Trumpian lie , hoping to get a talking point circulating among his base whether it ’ s accurate or not , or whether his 77-year-old mouth was moving faster than his 77-year-old brain is unclear .
Either way , many , many , many thousands of Americans would have died regardless of who was in charge .
In fact , if this had come from a smoother politician , I ’ d wonder if there wasn ’ t an eight-dimensional-chess strategy behind @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s a sly way by Democrats to get Americans thinking about precisely how many additional deaths are due to Trump “ downplaying ” the virus and spouting endless inanities about how it ’ ll go away magically or how masks are “ politically correct ” or whatever .
Ten thousand ?
Fifty thousand ?
Not a good topic for POTUS either way .
But since it ’ s not a smoother politician , I think it ’ s just a case of Biden stumbling into a laughable smear amidst an aggressive attack @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ross Douthat wrote a column a few weeks ago asking this very question — how many U.S. deaths are *really* attributable to Trump ’ s leadership ?
— then had to write a follow-up column addressing the backlash to his answer , which was “ not as many as Trump-haters would like to believe.
” But he ’ s undeniably right .
I can think of three early catastrophes in the U.S. response off the top of my head that had nothing to do with Trump .
One was the CDC ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in February , a disaster the agency will never live down .
Another is the early opposition among public health authorities to Americans wearing masks , a “ noble lie ” they engineered because they feared that a run on surgical masks by the general population would leave doctors and nurses with a shortage .
And the third , of course , is Darth Cuomo ’ s decisions to wait until late March to lock down New York and then try to save bed space at hospitals by sending infected nursing-home patients back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s one key difference between the U.S. and Europe .
We live in a federalist system that grants general police powers to the states , not the president .
It ’ s your governor , by and large , who ’ ll determine how well your state responds to a crisis , which means Cuomo and others need to be incorporated into the blame equation .
Unless , that is , Biden thinks there was some way for Trump to prevent the virus from entering the U.S. in the first place , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him to look me in the eyes and tell me that he , as president , would have banned all travel into the United States on , say , January 1 , with all the attendant economic consequences of that decision , due to an outbreak in China which everyone assumed would be contained to the region the way SARS was .
No other western country moved that quickly to ban travel so why would a different U.S. president have done so ?
Relatedly , as Douthat noted in his column , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is comparable to the rates in various European and South American countries .
We ’ re behind Spain , the UK , and Brazil in that category and quite similar to Italy , Sweden , and Mexico .
That ’ s not a compliment to Trump — all of those countries have had *bad* outbreaks , with lots of death .
The point is simply that , going by the numbers , there ’ s no reason to see Trump ’ s management of the pandemic as uniquely bad relative to that of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the much-cited fact that the U.S. has four percent of the world ’ s population but some 20 percent of all COVID deaths , even that can be explained ( at least partly ) by factors unrelated to Trump .
Namely , we ’ re just not a very healthy country .
Earlier this year the percentage of U.S. adults who are obese passed 40 percent ; in European countries , according to the WHO , it ranges from 10-30 percent .
We ’ re all familiar by now with the fact @ @ @ @ @ @ @ obesity is an important one .
An international study published last month found that “ people with obesity who contracted SARS-CoV-2 were 113 % more likely than people of healthy weight to land in the hospital , 74 % more likely to be admitted to an ICU , and 48 % more likely to die.
” A population that ’ s larger around the middle will have a larger death toll .
Even on aspects of the pandemic where Trump really has been uniquely terrible relative to how any other president would have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and happy talk about the state of the pandemic , the extent of his influence on public behavior is exaggerated .
I noted in this post that anti-Trumpers sometimes tell themselves a comforting lie , that if only Trump started speaking responsibly about containing the virus in a forceful way his diehard fans would dutifully fall in line .
That just ain ’ t so .
The rebellion against precautions like masks can be reinforced by Trump ’ s irresponsibility but it doesn ’ t originate with him , a point Douthat recognized @ @ @ @ @ @ @ driving the antipathy to masks “ folk libertarianism.
” I ’ d call it “ spiteful populism ” ( or “ populist nihilism ” maybe ) but whatever : The first thing you see is that some failures in the American response are less about the president ’ s specific faults and more about a debilitating pre-existing condition in his coalition — a folk-libertarian hostility to all federal policymaking , a reflexive individualism disconnected from the common good .
What I ’ m calling folk libertarianism ( to distinguish it from the more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not just conservative , and its present expression has many antecedents in our history ( there were anti-mask leagues during the Great Influenza ) .
And some of its impulses are healthy curbs against public-health overreach and local tyranny .
But in the Republican coalition today these impulses have too much power , or too few checks .
Which is why conservatism as a culture has produced so much “ it ’ s just the flu ” contrarianism , so much social-Darwinist rubbish about the disease being harmful “ only ” to seniors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the way of policy innovation from its elected leaders — some of whom are currently impeding a new wave of coronavirus relief , to their own party ’ s likely detriment .
If President Ted Cruz had urged people to wear masks from the beginning — or , better yet , sent five reusable masks to every U.S. household — would the death toll be lower ?
I think so .
A lot lower ?
I ’ m less confident about that .
If President Hillary Clinton had urged people to wear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ death toll be lower ?
I ’ d answer that this way : It might be lower due to *other* policies implemented by her administration but I strongly doubt there ’ d have been a higher public buy-in on masks .
If anything , the buy-in might have been lower , as “ spiteful populism ” joined forces with basic partisan anti-Clintonism among Republicans to further discourage mask-wearing on the right .
Where I think Trump was uniquely bad in a way that really did drive infections was his insistent push to reopen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down in late March , and then not being a stickler about states following his own federal guidelines for reopening safely once lockdowns began to lift .
That sent all sorts of bad messages — that the pandemic would be over sooner than we think , that it was safe to congregate while community spread was still rampant , and most of all that containing the virus and restoring the economy were two contradictory rather than complementary goals .
Republican governors could have resisted him , but too many were lily-livered about being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they didn ’ t follow his “ orders ” on reopening .
On top of all that , Trump ’ s motives for reopening were inexcusably selfish .
As Olivia Troye acknowledged yesterday , all he cared about from the start was his reelection , and he concluded early on that an economic comeback ( specifically , a stock market comeback ) was an absolutely necessary prerequisite to victory .
So he pushed for reopening whether it was safe or not and now here we are , six months later , still skipping @ @ @ @ @ @ @ per day .
How that shakes out in terms of deaths attributable specifically to his leadership , I don ’ t know .
It ’ s certainly not “ all of them , ” contra Biden .
But it ain ’ t zero .

Via Red State, this is obviously grossly untrue. Whether Biden said it as a sort of Trumpian lie, hoping to get a talking point circulating among his base whether it’s accurate or not, or whether his 77-year-old mouth was moving faster than his 77-year-old brain is unclear. Either way, many, many, many thousands of Americans would have died regardless of who was in charge.
In fact, if this had come from a smoother politician, I’d wonder if there wasn’t an eight-dimensional-chess strategy behind it — that is, maybe it’s a sly way by Democrats to get Americans thinking about precisely how many additional deaths are due to Trump “downplaying” the virus and spouting endless inanities about how it’ll go away magically or how masks are “politically correct” or whatever. Ten thousand? Fifty thousand? Not a good topic for POTUS either way.
But since it’s not a smoother politician, I think it’s just a case of Biden stumbling into a laughable smear amidst an aggressive attack on Trump’s coronavirus record.
Biden claims Trump is responsible for every single person who has died from COVID-19: "If the president had done his job, had done his job from the beginning, all the people would still be alive. All the people — I’m not making this up. Just look at the data. Look at the data." pic.twitter.com/Z6tkk9NzHi — Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) September 18, 2020
Ross Douthat wrote a column a few weeks ago asking this very question — how many U.S. deaths are *really* attributable to Trump’s leadership? — then had to write a follow-up column addressing the backlash to his answer, which was “not as many as Trump-haters would like to believe.” But he’s undeniably right. I can think of three early catastrophes in the U.S. response off the top of my head that had nothing to do with Trump. One was the CDC’s screw-up in rolling out an effective test in February, a disaster the agency will never live down. Another is the early opposition among public health authorities to Americans wearing masks, a “noble lie” they engineered because they feared that a run on surgical masks by the general population would leave doctors and nurses with a shortage. And the third, of course, is Darth Cuomo’s decisions to wait until late March to lock down New York and then try to save bed space at hospitals by sending infected nursing-home patients back into their nursing homes.
That’s one key difference between the U.S. and Europe. We live in a federalist system that grants general police powers to the states, not the president. It’s your governor, by and large, who’ll determine how well your state responds to a crisis, which means Cuomo and others need to be incorporated into the blame equation. Unless, that is, Biden thinks there was some way for Trump to prevent the virus from entering the U.S. in the first place, which there wasn’t. I want him to look me in the eyes and tell me that he, as president, would have banned all travel into the United States on, say, January 1, with all the attendant economic consequences of that decision, due to an outbreak in China which everyone assumed would be contained to the region the way SARS was.
No other western country moved that quickly to ban travel so why would a different U.S. president have done so? Relatedly, as Douthat noted in his column, the death rate per capita in the U.S. is comparable to the rates in various European and South American countries. We’re behind Spain, the UK, and Brazil in that category and quite similar to Italy, Sweden, and Mexico. That’s not a compliment to Trump — all of those countries have had *bad* outbreaks, with lots of death. The point is simply that, going by the numbers, there’s no reason to see Trump’s management of the pandemic as uniquely bad relative to that of various other world leaders.
And as for the much-cited fact that the U.S. has four percent of the world’s population but some 20 percent of all COVID deaths, even that can be explained (at least partly) by factors unrelated to Trump. Namely, we’re just not a very healthy country. Earlier this year the percentage of U.S. adults who are obese passed 40 percent; in European countries, according to the WHO, it ranges from 10-30 percent. We’re all familiar by now with the fact that COVID preys on comorbidities, and obesity is an important one. An international study published last month found that “people with obesity who contracted SARS-CoV-2 were 113% more likely than people of healthy weight to land in the hospital, 74% more likely to be admitted to an ICU, and 48% more likely to die.” A population that’s larger around the middle will have a larger death toll.
Even on aspects of the pandemic where Trump really has been uniquely terrible relative to how any other president would have behaved, e.g. standoffishness about masks and happy talk about the state of the pandemic, the extent of his influence on public behavior is exaggerated. I noted in this post that anti-Trumpers sometimes tell themselves a comforting lie, that if only Trump started speaking responsibly about containing the virus in a forceful way his diehard fans would dutifully fall in line. That just ain’t so. The rebellion against precautions like masks can be reinforced by Trump’s irresponsibility but it doesn’t originate with him, a point Douthat recognized as well. He calls the impulse driving the antipathy to masks “folk libertarianism.” I’d call it “spiteful populism” (or “populist nihilism” maybe) but whatever:
The first thing you see is that some failures in the American response are less about the president’s specific faults and more about a debilitating pre-existing condition in his coalition — a folk-libertarian hostility to all federal policymaking, a reflexive individualism disconnected from the common good. What I’m calling folk libertarianism (to distinguish it from the more academic sort) is deeply American, not just conservative, and its present expression has many antecedents in our history (there were anti-mask leagues during the Great Influenza). And some of its impulses are healthy curbs against public-health overreach and local tyranny. But in the Republican coalition today these impulses have too much power, or too few checks. Which is why conservatism as a culture has produced so much “it’s just the flu” contrarianism, so much social-Darwinist rubbish about the disease being harmful “only” to seniors and the already-unwell, and so little in the way of policy innovation from its elected leaders — some of whom are currently impeding a new wave of coronavirus relief, to their own party’s likely detriment.
If President Ted Cruz had urged people to wear masks from the beginning — or, better yet, sent five reusable masks to every U.S. household — would the death toll be lower? I think so. A lot lower? I’m less confident about that. If President Hillary Clinton had urged people to wear masks from the beginning, would the death toll be lower? I’d answer that this way: It might be lower due to *other* policies implemented by her administration but I strongly doubt there’d have been a higher public buy-in on masks. If anything, the buy-in might have been lower, as “spiteful populism” joined forces with basic partisan anti-Clintonism among Republicans to further discourage mask-wearing on the right.
Where I think Trump was uniquely bad in a way that really did drive infections was his insistent push to reopen from the moment the country started locking down in late March, and then not being a stickler about states following his own federal guidelines for reopening safely once lockdowns began to lift. That sent all sorts of bad messages — that the pandemic would be over sooner than we think, that it was safe to congregate while community spread was still rampant, and most of all that containing the virus and restoring the economy were two contradictory rather than complementary goals. Republican governors could have resisted him, but too many were lily-livered about being lambasted by their own pro-Trump bases if they didn’t follow his “orders” on reopening. On top of all that, Trump’s motives for reopening were inexcusably selfish. As Olivia Troye acknowledged yesterday, all he cared about from the start was his reelection, and he concluded early on that an economic comeback (specifically, a stock market comeback) was an absolutely necessary prerequisite to victory. So he pushed for reopening whether it was safe or not and now here we are, six months later, still skipping along with 40,000 or so new cases per day. How that shakes out in terms of deaths attributable specifically to his leadership, I don’t know. It’s certainly not “all of them,” contra Biden. But it ain’t zero.


hotair--2020-09-18--More Biden: China's not an opponent of the US, just a "competitor"

The GOP has spent this morning pouncing on this clip from last night ’ s CNN town hall , and well they should .
Joe Biden wanted to sound tough on trade last night in Pennsylvania , but began quavering when it came to China — not just the worst abuser on trade , but on a number of other points , including human-rights abuses .
Biden had lots to say about Russia , much of it true , but suddenly decided to be more nuanced about the country that hacked US government and military systems at will during the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ask , FBI Director Chris Wray said just today that Russia has been , in his words , very active in its efforts to influence the election and “ denigrate ” you .
You said that that there would be economic price to pay for Russia , if they continue with this .
Can you be more specific ?
What do you – what do you – what is the price to pay ?
BIDEN : It wouldn ’ t be prudent for me to be more specific .
But I assure you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COOPER : Do you believe Russia is an enemy ?
BIDEN : I believe Russia is an opponent .
I really do .
And , look , Putin ’ s overwhelming objective is to break up NATO , to fundamentally alter the circumstance in Europe , so he doesn ’ t have to face an entire NATO contingent , any one country he is stronger than .
And he ’ s – look what ’ s happening now .
Look what ’ s happening in Belarus .
Look what ’ s happening in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happening , though , in countries like Romania .
Look what ’ s happening in terms of the authoritarian nature of some of the regimes changing .
COOPER : Do you view China as an opponent ?
Because the President says you ’ ve been too cozy with China , too accepting of them in the international community .
BIDEN : I ’ m not the guy .
Look , China , we now have a larger trade deficit with China than we ’ ve ever had with China .
And in our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he keeps going on about , just ruled that his trade policy violated the World Trade Organization , we sued .
We went to the World Trade Organization 16 times , 16 times .
COOPER : Do you view China as an opponent ?
BIDEN : A serious competitor .
That ’ s why , I think , we have to strengthen our relationships and our alliances in Asia .
That ’ s why we have to , in fact , make – I made it clear , as you may recall @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and Xi said to me that they ’ re setting up an air identification zone , I said – I was with the National Security team , I said we ’ re not going to pay attention .
It ’ s what he expect me to do , bring it down .
I said , “ We ’ re just not going to pay attention .
We ’ re going to fly right through it .
We ’ re going to abide by international norms .
That ’ s what we ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they do.
” It ’ s perfectly reasonable to consider Russia an opponent , if not an enemy .
However , let ’ s not forget that this point had to be repeatedly drilled into Barack Obama and Joe Biden , who laughed off the threat from Russia from 2008 all the way to July 2016 .
Obama ’ s first Secretary of State Hillary Clinton infamously offered Sergei Lavrov a “ reset button ” in early 2009 , blaming the Bush administration for sour relations just months after Putin ordered the invasion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mitt Romney called Russia the US ’ biggest geopolitical foe , Obama scoffed , quipping , “ The 80s called and they want their foreign policy back.
” The only reason Russia became Biden ’ s bete noire now is that Democrats have been shrieking hysterically about Russia as an excuse for losing the 2016 election .
But if Russia is an opponent , China ’ s an even bigger and more dangerous one .
Russia may have hacked the DNC and conducted Merry Prankster operations on social media during the election .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pentagon , the Office of Personnel Management , and Equifax , among other targets .
They are also conducting industrial espionage on a large scale to acquire western technology for the “ competition ” Biden cites , undermining the economic strength of the US and its allies .
FBI director Christopher Wray testified in July that China is determined to become “ the world ’ s only superpower by any means necessary.
” That ’ s not a competitor — that ’ s an opponent , and a much more potent one than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of energy prices created in large part by ramped-up US production .
Even on the economic front , China ’ s clearly more than a mere competitor to the Rust Belt voters Biden wants to reach , too .
It ’ s the “ competitor ” pose that created the trade agreements that sapped the Rust Belt of its manufacturing base , under policies championed by Biden during his decades in the Senate .
Those bipartisan policies didn ’ t change until Trump took office and decided to fight China ’ s trade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s true status as an opponent .
This answer from Biden more than suggests a return to the status quo ante .
It suggests a return to the surrender to China on cyberwarfare issues that characterized the Obama-Biden years .
Even without the Hunter Biden connection , the China issue is one worth highlighting for the GOP and Trump .

The GOP has spent this morning pouncing on this clip from last night’s CNN town hall, and well they should. Joe Biden wanted to sound tough on trade last night in Pennsylvania, but began quavering when it came to China — not just the worst abuser on trade, but on a number of other points, including human-rights abuses. Biden had lots to say about Russia, much of it true, but suddenly decided to be more nuanced about the country that hacked US government and military systems at will during the Obama-Biden years:
Joe Biden repeatedly refuses to call China an opponenthttps://t.co/9yJovWLuhR pic.twitter.com/50HcAeMaz3 — RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 18, 2020
COOPER: Let me ask, FBI Director Chris Wray said just today that Russia has been, in his words, very active in its efforts to influence the election and “denigrate” you. You said that that there would be economic price to pay for Russia, if they continue with this. Can you be more specific? What do you – what do you – what is the price to pay? BIDEN: It wouldn’t be prudent for me to be more specific. But I assure you, they will pay a price. COOPER: Do you believe Russia is an enemy? BIDEN: I believe Russia is an opponent. I really do. And, look, Putin’s overwhelming objective is to break up NATO, to fundamentally alter the circumstance in Europe, so he doesn’t have to face an entire NATO contingent, any one country he is stronger than. And he’s – look what’s happening now. Look what’s happening in Belarus. Look what’s happening in his response. Look what’s happening, though, in countries like Romania. Look what’s happening in terms of the authoritarian nature of some of the regimes changing. COOPER: Do you view China as an opponent? Because the President says you’ve been too cozy with China, too accepting of them in the international community. BIDEN: I’m not the guy. Look, China, we now have a larger trade deficit with China than we’ve ever had with China. And in our Administration, when the World Trade Organization, he keeps going on about, just ruled that his trade policy violated the World Trade Organization, we sued. We went to the World Trade Organization 16 times, 16 times. COOPER: Do you view China as an opponent? BIDEN: I view China as a competitor. COOPER: Competitor. BIDEN: A serious competitor. That’s why, I think, we have to strengthen our relationships and our alliances in Asia. That’s why we have to, in fact, make – I made it clear, as you may recall, that when I was in China, and Xi said to me that they’re setting up an air identification zone, I said – I was with the National Security team, I said we’re not going to pay attention. It’s what he expect me to do, bring it down. I said, “We’re just not going to pay attention. We’re going to fly right through it. We’re going to abide by international norms. That’s what we’re going to do and insist that they do.”
It’s perfectly reasonable to consider Russia an opponent, if not an enemy. However, let’s not forget that this point had to be repeatedly drilled into Barack Obama and Joe Biden, who laughed off the threat from Russia from 2008 all the way to July 2016. Obama’s first Secretary of State Hillary Clinton infamously offered Sergei Lavrov a “reset button” in early 2009, blaming the Bush administration for sour relations just months after Putin ordered the invasion of Georgia. In 2012, when Mitt Romney called Russia the US’ biggest geopolitical foe, Obama scoffed, quipping, “The 80s called and they want their foreign policy back.” The only reason Russia became Biden’s bete noire now is that Democrats have been shrieking hysterically about Russia as an excuse for losing the 2016 election.
But if Russia is an opponent, China’s an even bigger and more dangerous one. Russia may have hacked the DNC and conducted Merry Prankster operations on social media during the election. China’s military has hacked the Pentagon, the Office of Personnel Management, and Equifax, among other targets. They are also conducting industrial espionage on a large scale to acquire western technology for the “competition” Biden cites, undermining the economic strength of the US and its allies. FBI director Christopher Wray testified in July that China is determined to become “the world’s only superpower by any means necessary.” That’s not a competitor — that’s an opponent, and a much more potent one than a gassed-out Russia suffering under the decline of energy prices created in large part by ramped-up US production.
Even on the economic front, China’s clearly more than a mere competitor to the Rust Belt voters Biden wants to reach, too. It’s the “competitor” pose that created the trade agreements that sapped the Rust Belt of its manufacturing base, under policies championed by Biden during his decades in the Senate. Those bipartisan policies didn’t change until Trump took office and decided to fight China’s trade and intellectual-property abuses, and recognized China’s true status as an opponent.
This answer from Biden more than suggests a return to the status quo ante. It suggests a return to the surrender to China on cyberwarfare issues that characterized the Obama-Biden years. Even without the Hunter Biden connection, the China issue is one worth highlighting for the GOP and Trump.


hotair--2020-09-18--CNN's Anderson Cooper and Joe Biden prove rules are for the little people

Joe Biden doesn ’ t have time in his very busy campaign schedule to do a town hall with ABC ’ s George Stephanopoulos , as President Trump subjected himself to , but he did have time to do one with CNN last night .
That is a little sarcasm there but shows that Biden isn ’ t up to the task .
Can you think of a more Biden-friendly network than CNN ?
Maybe MSNBC but , still , CNN is all-in for Biden .
Anderson Cooper hosted the town hall and I ’ ll say upfront I didn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of NYC was on and that show offered a better level of entertainment than CNN ’ s town hall with Sleepy Joe .
I have seen enough video clips of the town hall and read a bit about it to know that I made the right choice .
One thing that happened during the debate set off the hypocrisy alert on social media , though .
The town hall was described as a drive-in town hall .
Joe Biden ’ s first prime time town hall since his nomination was held in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Pennsylvania .
At the beginning of the town hall , Anderson Cooper told the viewing audience that he would keep his distance from Biden in order to adhere to coronavirus guidelines .
Neither man wore a face mask .
Never mind that this is exactly what the White House press corps dings Trump on during press briefings – refusing to wear a face mask and justifying it by saying he gets tested for the virus .
It turns out that when the camera wasn ’ t rolling , during a commercial break @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one-on-one bro time .
Biden approached Cooper and as he spoke , Cooper leaned in and Biden is seen speaking into his ear .
Interestingly enough , it was a former CNN employee who called the men out on social media .
Former CNN senior digital producer Steve Krakauer tweeted out the video .
Oops .
We all know that the whole outrage at Trump from not being more willing to mask-up in public is for the sake of headlines on critical stories about the president ’ s handling of the coronavirus .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the White House press corps .
The fact that it was a former CNN guy who first made some noise about it was worthy of a chef ’ s kiss .
The tweet spread quickly on Twitter .
The Trump campaign people and the RNC were on it .
This is the Biden campaign in a nutshell .
Biden is such a poor candidate that he has to be propped up by the likes of CNN with a town hall that was tailor-made for him .
Unlike the Trump town hall on ABC @ @ @ @ @ @ @ exact opposite – full of soft and fuzzy questions for the old boy .
Besides flip-flopping on fracking , Biden was trying to straddle the fence on his support of the Green New Deal , as well as the fact that he was busy accusing President Trump of murder .
His assertion that if Trump has handled the coronavirus pandemic competently , NONE of those who died would be dead now .
This was so outlandish that even the Washington Post couldn ’ t let it go .
“ If the president had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ job from the beginning , all the people would still be alive .
All the people — I ’ m not making this up .
Just look at the data .
Look at the data.
” Actually , Biden is making this up .
There is no data to support this , even if the president had moved rapidly in January to deal with the coronavirus and been able to persuade the Chinese leadership to be more forthcoming about the situation .
Even nations that have been praised for their handling of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New Zealand and Iceland , have suffered some deaths ( 377 in South Korea , 25 in New Zealand and 10 in Iceland ) .
In the United States , with 50 states run by governors , policies have varied greatly .
Trump has been faulted for not articulating a national plan , but he would have had trouble persuading every governor to follow the exact same path .
Biden doubled down on his anti-vax rhetoric because of the bad Orange Man , too .
The contrast and agenda are clear .
Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ while Biden is treated with kid gloves .
The media will do whatever it takes to drag their guy over the finish line .
While many in the press are heralding Biden today for his performance , Donna Brazile admitted on FNC this morning that the questions were softballs .
This is how it will be for the next 46 days .

Joe Biden doesn’t have time in his very busy campaign schedule to do a town hall with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, as President Trump subjected himself to, but he did have time to do one with CNN last night. That is a little sarcasm there but shows that Biden isn’t up to the task. Can you think of a more Biden-friendly network than CNN? Maybe MSNBC but, still, CNN is all-in for Biden.
Anderson Cooper hosted the town hall and I’ll say upfront I didn’t watch. The Real Housewives of NYC was on and that show offered a better level of entertainment than CNN’s town hall with Sleepy Joe. I have seen enough video clips of the town hall and read a bit about it to know that I made the right choice.
One thing that happened during the debate set off the hypocrisy alert on social media, though. The town hall was described as a drive-in town hall. Joe Biden’s first prime time town hall since his nomination was held in the parking lot of PNC Field in Moosic, Pennsylvania. At the beginning of the town hall, Anderson Cooper told the viewing audience that he would keep his distance from Biden in order to adhere to coronavirus guidelines. Neither man wore a face mask.
“As you can see, I’m not wearing a mask tonight. I tested negative for coronavirus this morning. Still, I’ll be keeping my distance, as will all of the participants in tonight’s town hall who are here,” Cooper said at the top of the drive-in town hall from Moosic, Pa.
Never mind that this is exactly what the White House press corps dings Trump on during press briefings – refusing to wear a face mask and justifying it by saying he gets tested for the virus. It turns out that when the camera wasn’t rolling, during a commercial break, Biden and Cooper had a little one-on-one bro time. Biden approached Cooper and as he spoke, Cooper leaned in and Biden is seen speaking into his ear. Interestingly enough, it was a former CNN employee who called the men out on social media. Former CNN senior digital producer Steve Krakauer tweeted out the video.
Joe Biden and Anderson Cooper are making a point of social distancing during the CNN Town Hall while on the stage. But when they think they’ve gone to commercial break, they get so close to each other that Biden is whispering in Cooper’s ear: pic.twitter.com/ClZXrxFfSo — Steve Krakauer (@SteveKrak) September 18, 2020
Oops. We all know that the whole outrage at Trump from not being more willing to mask-up in public is for the sake of headlines on critical stories about the president’s handling of the coronavirus. None virtue-signal stronger than the reporters in the White House press corps. The fact that it was a former CNN guy who first made some noise about it was worthy of a chef’s kiss.
LOL! @CNN, @AC360, and @JoeBiden are pretend practicing social distancing at tonight’s #CNNTownHall, but watch what happens when they think the cameras are off and you can’t see them anymore! Frauds! pic.twitter.com/eGeiJHonic — Reagan Battalion (@ReaganBattalion) September 18, 2020
The tweet spread quickly on Twitter. The Trump campaign people and the RNC were on it.
Where's the outdoor government court to issue them a fine???https://t.co/bWl2VmbogC — Liz Harrington (@realLizUSA) September 18, 2020
Just like Nancy Pelosi breaking the rules at the hair salon, radical Democrats are all about rules for thee – not for me. https://t.co/B7kEQsllrb — Marc Lotter (@marc_lotter) September 18, 2020
This is the Biden campaign in a nutshell. Biden is such a poor candidate that he has to be propped up by the likes of CNN with a town hall that was tailor-made for him. Unlike the Trump town hall on ABC, this one with Biden was the exact opposite – full of soft and fuzzy questions for the old boy. Besides flip-flopping on fracking, Biden was trying to straddle the fence on his support of the Green New Deal, as well as the fact that he was busy accusing President Trump of murder. His assertion that if Trump has handled the coronavirus pandemic competently, NONE of those who died would be dead now. This was so outlandish that even the Washington Post couldn’t let it go.
“If the president had done his job, had done his job from the beginning, all the people would still be alive. All the people — I’m not making this up. Just look at the data. Look at the data.” Actually, Biden is making this up. There is no data to support this, even if the president had moved rapidly in January to deal with the coronavirus and been able to persuade the Chinese leadership to be more forthcoming about the situation. Even nations that have been praised for their handling of the pandemic, such as South Korea, New Zealand and Iceland, have suffered some deaths (377 in South Korea, 25 in New Zealand and 10 in Iceland). In the United States, with 50 states run by governors, policies have varied greatly. Trump has been faulted for not articulating a national plan, but he would have had trouble persuading every governor to follow the exact same path.
Biden doubled down on his anti-vax rhetoric because of the bad Orange Man, too.
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Thursday blasted President Trump’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and said he would only trust a coronavirus vaccine’s safety if it were supported by the Trump administration’s top disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci. “I don’t trust the president on vaccines,” Biden said. “I trust Dr. Fauci,” who has served as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984.
The contrast and agenda are clear. Trump’s events are framed in hostility while Biden is treated with kid gloves. The media will do whatever it takes to drag their guy over the finish line. While many in the press are heralding Biden today for his performance, Donna Brazile admitted on FNC this morning that the questions were softballs. This is how it will be for the next 46 days.


hotair--2020-09-18--Robot writers are stealing the jobs of Russian hackers

The other day we looked at the story of a “ robot journalist ” ( actually a clever Artificial Intelligence program ) that published a column and fooled quite a few people into thinking it had been written by a human being .
That ’ s obviously a worrisome trend if you happen to be in my line of work , but it still looked like something of an outlier .
But was it ?
There are more examples in the news these days of fancy algorithms managing to land bylines in popular publications .
The most recent one was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but this wasn ’ t a case of a robot writing an opinion piece on politics or current events .
The article appeared in an online newsletter and it was an analysis of personal productivity and how people tend to overthink things too much .
It ’ s a rather tame subject and the article wasn ’ t particularly noteworthy , but many people commented on it anyway .
A few , however , noted that something didn ’ t look quite right and it was later revealed that the article had indeed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ called Generative Pre-trained Transformer 3 , or GPT-3 .
The person directing the software was Liam Porr , a computer science student at the University of California , Berkeley .
“ With something like a language model , there ’ s not a good quantitative way to see how good it is because language and writing is qualitative , ” Porr said .
“ With this kind of experiment I can concretely say , 20,000 unique people came to my website and only three actually had the sense to say it was written @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the first natural language program of its kind , but it has already received widespread attention for how good it is at mimicking simple human writing .
But its release into the world , while not entirely public , has caused some concern that it could be used to quickly and cheaply generate misinformation or propaganda .
Porr ’ s post , while a harmless experiment , offered a concrete example of that risk .
And it adds GPT-3 to other pieces of advanced software that have been disseminated through the internet and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bells going off because of this development does involve the upcoming elections , but not in terms of pure punditry .
It ’ s being suggested that people could set up bogus social media accounts , blogs , etc .
and use GPT-3 to continually crank out bogus stories in an attempt to influence the election .
The software would be far more efficient ( and cheap ) than having humans come up with all of that content on their own .
If the masterminds behind this simply feed in the basic topics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , GPT-3 could do the rest while the boss tips off for a cold one at the pub .
This may not be all that widespread yet , but the day is clearly coming when this type of automated content creation will be all over the place .
While there were a couple of people who commented on the original article linked above possibly being generated by AI , they were only a few out of 20,000 people who viewed the article .
I ’ ll freely admit that if I didn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I wouldn ’ t have picked up on it having been generated by a bot .
Just take a look at a small sample .
In order to get something done , maybe we need to think less .
Seems counter-intuitive , but I believe sometimes our thoughts can get in the way of the creative process .
We can work better at times when we “ tune out ” the external world and focus on what ’ s in front of us .
I ’ ve been thinking about this lately , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to write an article about it .
So what exactly does this mean ?
Well , for starters , let ’ s start with some definitions .
The program isn ’ t pumping out perfect syntax in every line , but that only makes it seem more like a “ regular person ” wrote it .
The language is almost playful at points , asking leading questions and inserting some ( mildly ) humorous answers .
Again , this wasn ’ t some breakthrough work on the subject of human creativity , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from someone pondering the topic .
As I mentioned in the last column about robot writers , this is growing increasingly disturbing .
This still isn ’ t true Artificial Intelligence because the program still isn ’ t producing original thoughts , at least that we know of .
But it ’ s generating viable content .
Between this and all of the “ deep fake ” videos showing up around the web , it ’ s growing harder and harder to tell what is fact and what is science-fantasy .
Combining the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ writing , you could definitely launch an army of “ people ” who have never drawn a breath to barge into online discussions and potentially influence them .
As one final example in closing , I ’ ll introduce you to a Twitter account that I was recently pointed toward .
Every fake person needs a face and at least some sort of backstory , right ?
Well , the account This Person Does Not Exist generates a collection of them every hour of the day and I ’ ll confess that I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pictures weren ’ t selfies from real human beings .
Here ’ s just one recent example .

The other day we looked at the story of a “robot journalist” (actually a clever Artificial Intelligence program) that published a column and fooled quite a few people into thinking it had been written by a human being. That’s obviously a worrisome trend if you happen to be in my line of work, but it still looked like something of an outlier. But was it? There are more examples in the news these days of fancy algorithms managing to land bylines in popular publications.
The most recent one was featured at NBC News this week, but this wasn’t a case of a robot writing an opinion piece on politics or current events. The article appeared in an online newsletter and it was an analysis of personal productivity and how people tend to overthink things too much. It’s a rather tame subject and the article wasn’t particularly noteworthy, but many people commented on it anyway. A few, however, noted that something didn’t look quite right and it was later revealed that the article had indeed been written by a piece of software called Generative Pre-trained Transformer 3, or GPT-3. The person directing the software was Liam Porr, a computer science student at the University of California, Berkeley.
“With something like a language model, there’s not a good quantitative way to see how good it is because language and writing is qualitative,” Porr said. “With this kind of experiment I can concretely say, 20,000 unique people came to my website and only three actually had the sense to say it was written by a robot.” GPT-3 is not the first natural language program of its kind, but it has already received widespread attention for how good it is at mimicking simple human writing. But its release into the world, while not entirely public, has caused some concern that it could be used to quickly and cheaply generate misinformation or propaganda. Porr’s post, while a harmless experiment, offered a concrete example of that risk. And it adds GPT-3 to other pieces of advanced software that have been disseminated through the internet and caused alarm.
One of the alarm bells going off because of this development does involve the upcoming elections, but not in terms of pure punditry. It’s being suggested that people could set up bogus social media accounts, blogs, etc. and use GPT-3 to continually crank out bogus stories in an attempt to influence the election. The software would be far more efficient (and cheap) than having humans come up with all of that content on their own. If the masterminds behind this simply feed in the basic topics and false premises they want to promote, GPT-3 could do the rest while the boss tips off for a cold one at the pub.
This may not be all that widespread yet, but the day is clearly coming when this type of automated content creation will be all over the place. While there were a couple of people who commented on the original article linked above possibly being generated by AI, they were only a few out of 20,000 people who viewed the article. I’ll freely admit that if I didn’t already know the background story, I wouldn’t have picked up on it having been generated by a bot. Just take a look at a small sample.
In order to get something done, maybe we need to think less. Seems counter-intuitive, but I believe sometimes our thoughts can get in the way of the creative process. We can work better at times when we “tune out” the external world and focus on what’s in front of us. I’ve been thinking about this lately, so I thought it would be good to write an article about it. So what exactly does this mean? Well, for starters, let’s start with some definitions.
The program isn’t pumping out perfect syntax in every line, but that only makes it seem more like a “regular person” wrote it. The language is almost playful at points, asking leading questions and inserting some (mildly) humorous answers. Again, this wasn’t some breakthrough work on the subject of human creativity, but it looked like a legitimate blog entry from someone pondering the topic.
As I mentioned in the last column about robot writers, this is growing increasingly disturbing. This still isn’t true Artificial Intelligence because the program still isn’t producing original thoughts, at least that we know of. But it’s generating viable content. Between this and all of the “deep fake” videos showing up around the web, it’s growing harder and harder to tell what is fact and what is science-fantasy. Combining the fake graphics generation currently available with robot writing, you could definitely launch an army of “people” who have never drawn a breath to barge into online discussions and potentially influence them.
As one final example in closing, I’ll introduce you to a Twitter account that I was recently pointed toward. Every fake person needs a face and at least some sort of backstory, right? Well, the account This Person Does Not Exist generates a collection of them every hour of the day and I’ll confess that I couldn’t tell most of these pictures weren’t selfies from real human beings. Here’s just one recent example.
This person does not exist: Syuzanna Aalmers (20 years), Penn Hills (United States of America). Separated. pic.twitter.com/3VaIzHFD2e — This person does not exist (@wedontexisthere) September 17, 2020
Great news, guys. She’s available.


hotair--2020-09-18--Bad omen: Another poll shows Susan Collins trailing in Maine

It probably shouldn ’ t be considered an omen that Collins is trailing .
She ’ s a Republican who represents a blue state , and not just any blue state .
Maine is a state that ’ s well-matched to Biden ’ s strengths this year , as the population is old and exceedingly white .
Four years ago those groups were Trump constituencies but Sleepy Joe has been running stronger among them than Hillary did .
Go figure that a Republican running on the other side of the ballot from him would be having trouble .
Even so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for nearly 25 years , longer than most of her colleagues on the ballot elsewhere across the country this fall .
Apart from her first election , she ’ s won every race with ease .
( And even the first one wasn ’ t super-tight .
She won by five . )
Name recognition plus her status as a well-known centrist would , one might think , give her a slight edge — especially with Republican voters in Maine mindful of the fact that control of the Senate might depend on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ voters there recognize that too , of course .
And according to this NYT poll , 70 percent ( ! )
of Maine voters want the same party to control the presidency and the Senate majority , with 53 percent saying they want the Democrats to have that majority .
In a state where Biden is whipping Trump , that desire for unified control of government makes things even more difficult for Collins .
The topline number : Democrat Sara Gideon 49 , Collins 44 .
A large share of voters appear determined @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with Mr. Trump : Fifty-five percent of voters said they disapproved both of her vote against impeaching Mr. Trump and her vote to approve Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh ’ s nomination for the Supreme Court… Ginger Cazan , 69 , of Swanville , is the kind of Maine voter whom Ms. Collins might once have been able to draw into her column .
A self-described moderate Democrat , she said that she personally “ would never have an abortion , ” but that she was dismayed by Ms. Collins ’ s vote for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ change the law and take women ’ s rights away.
” Ms. Cazan said she planned to vote for Mr. Biden and called Mr. Trump a “ dictator in waiting ” — which reminded her of another reason she opposed her Republican senator : Ms. Collins , she recalled , “ did not impeach Trump when she had the chance.
” Kavanaugh and impeachment were the two biggest votes Collins has taken during Trump ’ s presidency .
She tried to finesse the latter by joining Romney in calling for the Senate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that got lost in the shuffle of the final vote to acquit , which she joined .
There was no good option for her : If she had joined Romney as well in voting to remove , her Republican base in Maine would have collapsed .
Both in this poll and in a recent one from Quinnipiac , Collins is running ahead of Trump — just not by enough to actually put her in front of Gideon .
Biden leads the president 55/38 in the Times survey and 59/38 in the Quinnipiac poll @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) in that latter one .
That result was an outlier , but note that Gideon has led Collins in every public poll of Maine taken this year , typically by five points or so , which is unsurprising given the margins Biden consistently enjoys over Trump there .
Clearly the president is weighing down Collins , not just on culture-war stuff like Kavanaugh or impeachment but on the pandemic too .
The Times finds that Maine voters favor Biden 60/35 when asked whether he or Trump would handle COVID best .
What @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the Senate ?
As of this morning FiveThirtyEight ’ s model sees Democrats as a favorite to have a majority next year : The same model gives Gideon a 53 percent chance of winning , which feels low at first blush in light of the polling but is probably a function of Collins ’ s long incumbency .
Four-term senators who are competing aggressively and reasonably well-matched ideologically with their state typically don ’ t lose .
It takes a lot to drag them down , but the pandemic plus some unpopular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are heavy loads to bear .
Maine wasn ’ t the only battleground polled by the Times .
They also surveyed Arizona and found Biden leading by nine points and Mark Kelly ahead of Martha McSally by eight .
Lots of attention has been paid lately to the polls tightening in Florida ( thanks to Trump ’ s surprising strength with Latinos there ) and in Pennsylvania , but less has been paid to the fact that Biden ’ s lead in Wisconsin and Arizona seems to be widening .
He led Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in AZ on August 22 ; today he leads by five , which is surprising not just because of Arizona ’ s heritage as Goldwater and McCain country but because the state has overcome its brutal summer wave of COVID .
You would expect that to soften opinion on Trump , as it seems to have done in Florida .
Not so .
And losing Arizona would be a very big deal : By “ Omaha , ” Alberta is referring to the fact that Nebraska awards its electoral votes by congressional district @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most votes statewide .
Trump won Nebraska ’ s Second District , worth a single electoral vote , by three points in 2016 .
If Biden flips that this year , that could give him exactly enough to get to 270 and the presidency .
But there ’ s another possibility .
Remember that Collins ’ s home state of Maine also awards its electoral votes by congressional district and that Trump swiped a single vote from Hillary there by winning ME-2 four years ago .
The Times ’ s new poll of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ different this time : Biden is up two points in the district right now .
Even if NE-2 ends up tilting Trump again , Sleepy Joe ’ s strength statewide with Maine ’ s older , whiter population could get him to 270 there too .
In lieu of an exit question , read this excellent John McCormack look at why Arizona , of all places , is bedeviling Trump this year .
It ’ s not just a matter of the state trending blue over time or the pandemic hurting him .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ unfavorable to him — fewer rural voters , large Mexican and Mormon populations , Biden overperforming with seniors , and transplants from deep-blue California .
Worth noting : Apart from the Mormon bloc , those same factors also apply to Texas , which still favors Trump but not comfortably according to the latest poll .
Stay tuned .

It probably shouldn’t be considered an omen that Collins is trailing. She’s a Republican who represents a blue state, and not just any blue state. Maine is a state that’s well-matched to Biden’s strengths this year, as the population is old and exceedingly white. Four years ago those groups were Trump constituencies but Sleepy Joe has been running stronger among them than Hillary did. Go figure that a Republican running on the other side of the ballot from him would be having trouble.
Even so, Collins has been in the Senate for nearly 25 years, longer than most of her colleagues on the ballot elsewhere across the country this fall. Apart from her first election, she’s won every race with ease. (And even the first one wasn’t super-tight. She won by five.) Name recognition plus her status as a well-known centrist would, one might think, give her a slight edge — especially with Republican voters in Maine mindful of the fact that control of the Senate might depend on the outcome of her race.
But Democratic voters there recognize that too, of course. And according to this NYT poll, 70 percent(!) of Maine voters want the same party to control the presidency and the Senate majority, with 53 percent saying they want the Democrats to have that majority. In a state where Biden is whipping Trump, that desire for unified control of government makes things even more difficult for Collins. The topline number: Democrat Sara Gideon 49, Collins 44.
A large share of voters appear determined to punish Ms. Collins for her affiliation with Mr. Trump: Fifty-five percent of voters said they disapproved both of her vote against impeaching Mr. Trump and her vote to approve Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh’s nomination for the Supreme Court… Ginger Cazan, 69, of Swanville, is the kind of Maine voter whom Ms. Collins might once have been able to draw into her column. A self-described moderate Democrat, she said that she personally “would never have an abortion,” but that she was dismayed by Ms. Collins’s vote for Justice Kavanaugh because she believed he would “change the law and take women’s rights away.” Ms. Cazan said she planned to vote for Mr. Biden and called Mr. Trump a “dictator in waiting” — which reminded her of another reason she opposed her Republican senator: Ms. Collins, she recalled, “did not impeach Trump when she had the chance.”
Kavanaugh and impeachment were the two biggest votes Collins has taken during Trump’s presidency. She tried to finesse the latter by joining Romney in calling for the Senate to hear testimony from witnesses, but that got lost in the shuffle of the final vote to acquit, which she joined. There was no good option for her: If she had joined Romney as well in voting to remove, her Republican base in Maine would have collapsed.
Both in this poll and in a recent one from Quinnipiac, Collins is running ahead of Trump — just not by enough to actually put her in front of Gideon. Biden leads the president 55/38 in the Times survey and 59/38 in the Quinnipiac poll; Gideon led Collins 54/42(!) in that latter one. That result was an outlier, but note that Gideon has led Collins in every public poll of Maine taken this year, typically by five points or so, which is unsurprising given the margins Biden consistently enjoys over Trump there. Clearly the president is weighing down Collins, not just on culture-war stuff like Kavanaugh or impeachment but on the pandemic too. The Times finds that Maine voters favor Biden 60/35 when asked whether he or Trump would handle COVID best.
What does this mean for the big picture in the Senate? As of this morning FiveThirtyEight’s model sees Democrats as a favorite to have a majority next year:
The same model gives Gideon a 53 percent chance of winning, which feels low at first blush in light of the polling but is probably a function of Collins’s long incumbency. Four-term senators who are competing aggressively and reasonably well-matched ideologically with their state typically don’t lose. It takes a lot to drag them down, but the pandemic plus some unpopular marquee votes Collins has taken since 2018 are heavy loads to bear.
Maine wasn’t the only battleground polled by the Times. They also surveyed Arizona and found Biden leading by nine points and Mark Kelly ahead of Martha McSally by eight. Lots of attention has been paid lately to the polls tightening in Florida (thanks to Trump’s surprising strength with Latinos there) and in Pennsylvania, but less has been paid to the fact that Biden’s lead in Wisconsin and Arizona seems to be widening. He led Trump by an average of just two points in AZ on August 22; today he leads by five, which is surprising not just because of Arizona’s heritage as Goldwater and McCain country but because the state has overcome its brutal summer wave of COVID. You would expect that to soften opinion on Trump, as it seems to have done in Florida. Not so.
And losing Arizona would be a very big deal:
A reality that's getting harder to escape: The 2 states Trump World knows have slipped, and may be unrecoverable, are AZ & MI. WI isn't far behind. If Biden flips all 3, and Trump holds everywhere else, it's 269 apiece. Omaha could soon be the center of the political universe. — Tim Alberta (@TimAlberta) September 18, 2020
By “Omaha,” Alberta is referring to the fact that Nebraska awards its electoral votes by congressional district, not winner-take-all to whoever gets the most votes statewide. Trump won Nebraska’s Second District, worth a single electoral vote, by three points in 2016. If Biden flips that this year, that could give him exactly enough to get to 270 and the presidency.
But there’s another possibility. Remember that Collins’s home state of Maine also awards its electoral votes by congressional district and that Trump swiped a single vote from Hillary there by winning ME-2 four years ago. The Times’s new poll of Maine today suggests the outcome could be different this time: Biden is up two points in the district right now. Even if NE-2 ends up tilting Trump again, Sleepy Joe’s strength statewide with Maine’s older, whiter population could get him to 270 there too.
In lieu of an exit question, read this excellent John McCormack look at why Arizona, of all places, is bedeviling Trump this year. It’s not just a matter of the state trending blue over time or the pandemic hurting him. It’s a confluence of factors unfavorable to him — fewer rural voters, large Mexican and Mormon populations, Biden overperforming with seniors, and transplants from deep-blue California. Worth noting: Apart from the Mormon bloc, those same factors also apply to Texas, which still favors Trump but not comfortably according to the latest poll. Stay tuned.


hotair--2020-09-18--No, America doesn't need international observers for the election

California Congresswoman Karen Bass ( D ) is still enjoying the opportunity to stretch out her fifteen minutes of fame in the runup to the election .
She was rumored to have been on Joe Biden ’ s shortlist in the veepstakes and her position as Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus gives her a larger megaphone than many of the backbench members of the House Democratic Caucus .
She was invited back on MSNBC yesterday ( where else ? )
to comment on the 2020 presidential race .
Rather than talking up the Biden-Harris ticket or trotting out the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Bass decided to make a more bizarre demand than usual .
She called for international observers to be brought in to oversee the election and avoid any sort of skullduggery by the Republicans .
Of course , the Democrats are as pure as the driven snow .
( Free Beacon ) Congressional Black Caucus chairwoman Karen Bass ( D. , Calif. ) called for “ international observers ” of the 2020 election on Thursday , comparing the United States to African nations that recently held elections in need of outside legitimation .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ observers for this election , ” Bass said on MSNBC .
“ I have gone to Kenya , I ’ ve gone to Zimbabwe .
I have been an international observer , and I think we could use that here.
” Bass , who was on the shortlist to be Joe Biden ’ s 2020 running mate , said she wanted to go beyond former director of national intelligence Dan Coats ’ s call for a bipartisan , domestic commission to oversee the 2020 race , saying Republicans could not be trusted because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” This insulting suggestion really shouldn ’ t come as any sort of surprise at this point , but it ’ s still pretty offensive .
International observers are used in many countries where abusive regimes put on sham elections as window-dressing while knowing that they ’ re going to remain in power no matter how the people vote .
These observers generally don ’ t do all that much good , of course , as was seen in Venezuela during their last round of voting .
You can stand around and watch @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day long , but that doesn ’ t give you a very good look at what ’ s happening under the covers when the actual votes are being counted .
But even that isn ’ t the real issue .
The point here is that you can ’ t , in one breath , accuse the President of fomenting doubt over the validity of the election and then , in the next , demand international observers .
Either you ’ re concerned over the security of the electoral process or you aren ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ accuse Republicans of trying to “ suppress the vote ” by ensuring the voter rolls are up to date and people aren ’ t cheating are the ones who insist that voter fraud is rarer than unicorns and the GOP is fearmongering over nothing .
Congresswoman Bass falls into this category .
Of course , we ’ ve already seen more than ample proof that fraud taking place in mail-in voting has not only happened , but it ’ s taken place on a large scale over many years and people have gone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ listen to people like Bass and her media enablers , you ’ d think that such things are a virtual impossibility .
What they try to define as efforts at “ voter suppression ” don ’ t hold a candle to the number of votes that will be “ suppressed ” if the states begin mailing millions of ballots to addresses where voters no longer live .
( Or , for that matter , if some of the ballots turned out to be spoiled because of incorrect candidate information on them . )
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ve had time to mull it over , perhaps Karen Bass is correct .
Maybe we could use some international observers in November .
But instead of the polling places , they should be keeping an eye on the Post Office .

California Congresswoman Karen Bass (D) is still enjoying the opportunity to stretch out her fifteen minutes of fame in the runup to the election. She was rumored to have been on Joe Biden’s shortlist in the veepstakes and her position as Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus gives her a larger megaphone than many of the backbench members of the House Democratic Caucus. She was invited back on MSNBC yesterday (where else?) to comment on the 2020 presidential race. Rather than talking up the Biden-Harris ticket or trotting out the usual list of accusations against President Trump, Bass decided to make a more bizarre demand than usual. She called for international observers to be brought in to oversee the election and avoid any sort of skullduggery by the Republicans. Of course, the Democrats are as pure as the driven snow. (Free Beacon)
Congressional Black Caucus chairwoman Karen Bass (D., Calif.) called for “international observers” of the 2020 election on Thursday, comparing the United States to African nations that recently held elections in need of outside legitimation. “I frankly think we need international observers for this election,” Bass said on MSNBC. “I have gone to Kenya, I’ve gone to Zimbabwe. I have been an international observer, and I think we could use that here.” Bass, who was on the shortlist to be Joe Biden’s 2020 running mate, said she wanted to go beyond former director of national intelligence Dan Coats’s call for a bipartisan, domestic commission to oversee the 2020 race, saying Republicans could not be trusted because of their push for “voter suppression.”
This insulting suggestion really shouldn’t come as any sort of surprise at this point, but it’s still pretty offensive. International observers are used in many countries where abusive regimes put on sham elections as window-dressing while knowing that they’re going to remain in power no matter how the people vote. These observers generally don’t do all that much good, of course, as was seen in Venezuela during their last round of voting. You can stand around and watch people voting at their polling places all day long, but that doesn’t give you a very good look at what’s happening under the covers when the actual votes are being counted.
But even that isn’t the real issue. The point here is that you can’t, in one breath, accuse the President of fomenting doubt over the validity of the election and then, in the next, demand international observers. Either you’re concerned over the security of the electoral process or you aren’t. The same people who continually accuse Republicans of trying to “suppress the vote” by ensuring the voter rolls are up to date and people aren’t cheating are the ones who insist that voter fraud is rarer than unicorns and the GOP is fearmongering over nothing. Congresswoman Bass falls into this category.
Of course, we’ve already seen more than ample proof that fraud taking place in mail-in voting has not only happened, but it’s taken place on a large scale over many years and people have gone to jail for it. But to listen to people like Bass and her media enablers, you’d think that such things are a virtual impossibility. What they try to define as efforts at “voter suppression” don’t hold a candle to the number of votes that will be “suppressed” if the states begin mailing millions of ballots to addresses where voters no longer live. (Or, for that matter, if some of the ballots turned out to be spoiled because of incorrect candidate information on them.)
You know, now that I’ve had time to mull it over, perhaps Karen Bass is correct. Maybe we could use some international observers in November. But instead of the polling places, they should be keeping an eye on the Post Office.


hotair--2020-09-18--Texas re-opening continues for most businesses, but not this kind of business...

Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced on Thursday afternoon that most Texas restaurants and retail stores can expand capacity starting Monday .
There is one glaring exception to this good news , though .
Sorry bar owners , you have to wait longer before you can open up your bars .
Bars will remain closed statewide for now .
According to Governor Abbott ’ s decision , restaurants , retail stores , office buildings , manufacturing facilities , museums , libraries , and gyms will be allowed to go from 50 % capacity to 75 % capacity starting Monday .
There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do not benefit from this decision .
Their current restrictions remain in place .
Abbott ’ s Strike Force to Open Texas carved out 22 hospital regions in the state and will only allow the expanded capacity in regions with COVID-19 hospitalizations under 15 percent of the region ’ s capacity for seven days straight .
Only three regions – Rio Grande , Laredo and Victoria – are over the threshold as of Thursday .
“ That level of hospitalization shows COVID is spreading too much for those regions to expand their openings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other 19 regions are able to open at the expanded capacity announced today.
” Abbott is convinced that to re-open bars at this point is too dangerous .
He said they are focused on finding a way to do it and working with bar owners to find a process to do it .
In other good news , starting on September 24 hospitals in the safe regions can now do elective surgery .
Nursing homes and long-term care facilities can allow visitation again and allow essential caregiver visits , too .
Re-opening can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
According to a recent survey , up to half of Texas restaurants will have to permanently close if a significant amount of money from the government isn ’ t made available .
No doubt business owners are all keeping an eye on what is finally decided in the next coronavirus stimulus package coming out of Congress .
The Texas Restaurant Association released results of a survey this week predicting half percent of Texas restaurants will close within the next six months if they don ’ t receive federal funding .
In Texas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ financial toll on the restaurant industry , leaving many of the restaurants to shutter their doors .
The industry lost an estimated $ 4.2 billion in sales and nearly 700,000 jobs from March to April , according to the TRA .
Houston , for example , takes pride in being a restaurant town .
Some old favorites have already had to announce permanent closures because they simply couldn ’ t hold on until they are allowed to re-open and customers feel comfortable going out again .
The uncertainty of when life may return @ @ @ @ @ @ @ heavy of a burden to bear , especially for smaller local businesses .
The survey reports that 71 % restaurant operators don ’ t believe that the restaurant business will return to more normal pre-pandemic levels in the next six months .
73 % say operational costs have risen , too .
Many restaurants have moved sales online to survive and offer delivery , curbside pick-up or purchases through third-party delivery apps .
77 % of businesses say that off-site sales currently outweigh in-store sales .
Abbott says most of Texas is on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It isn ’ t time to fully re-open yet , though .
He doesn ’ t want to go back to giving the green light to re-opening only to have to backtrack and shut businesses back down .
He did that in late June after allowing businesses , including bars , to re-open in May at limited capacities but the Memorial Day weekend caused a spike back up in positive cases .
“ Since late July , the spread of Covid-19 has steadily and significantly declined .
The number of new cases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than two-thirds .
Just yesterday we had the lowest number of hospitalizations in the past three months , ” Abbott said .
“ Covid does still exist and most Texans remain susceptible , ” Abbott said during a news conference .
“ If we fully reopen Texas without limits , without safe practices , it can lead to an unsustainable increase in Covid that would require the possibility of being forced to ratchet back down.
” Governor Abbott reminded Texans that safe practices put into place to mitigate the spread of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mask , social distancing , and practicing proper sanitation strategies .

Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced on Thursday afternoon that most Texas restaurants and retail stores can expand capacity starting Monday. There is one glaring exception to this good news, though. Sorry bar owners, you have to wait longer before you can open up your bars. Bars will remain closed statewide for now.
According to Governor Abbott’s decision, restaurants, retail stores, office buildings, manufacturing facilities, museums, libraries, and gyms will be allowed to go from 50% capacity to 75% capacity starting Monday. There are, however, three regions that do not benefit from this decision. Their current restrictions remain in place.
Abbott’s Strike Force to Open Texas carved out 22 hospital regions in the state and will only allow the expanded capacity in regions with COVID-19 hospitalizations under 15 percent of the region’s capacity for seven days straight. The expanded capacity rules start Monday. Only three regions – Rio Grande, Laredo and Victoria – are over the threshold as of Thursday. “That level of hospitalization shows COVID is spreading too much for those regions to expand their openings,” Abbott said. “The other 19 regions are able to open at the expanded capacity announced today.”
Abbott is convinced that to re-open bars at this point is too dangerous. He said they are focused on finding a way to do it and working with bar owners to find a process to do it.
In other good news, starting on September 24 hospitals in the safe regions can now do elective surgery. Nursing homes and long-term care facilities can allow visitation again and allow essential caregiver visits, too.
Re-opening cannot come soon enough for restaurant owners. According to a recent survey, up to half of Texas restaurants will have to permanently close if a significant amount of money from the government isn’t made available. No doubt business owners are all keeping an eye on what is finally decided in the next coronavirus stimulus package coming out of Congress.
The Texas Restaurant Association released results of a survey this week predicting half percent of Texas restaurants will close within the next six months if they don’t receive federal funding. In Texas, the pandemic took a particularly heavy financial toll on the restaurant industry, leaving many of the restaurants to shutter their doors. The industry lost an estimated $4.2 billion in sales and nearly 700,000 jobs from March to April, according to the TRA.
Houston, for example, takes pride in being a restaurant town. Some old favorites have already had to announce permanent closures because they simply couldn’t hold on until they are allowed to re-open and customers feel comfortable going out again. The uncertainty of when life may return to a more normal existence is too heavy of a burden to bear, especially for smaller local businesses.
The survey reports that 71% restaurant operators don’t believe that the restaurant business will return to more normal pre-pandemic levels in the next six months. 73% say operational costs have risen, too. Many restaurants have moved sales online to survive and offer delivery, curbside pick-up or purchases through third-party delivery apps. 77% of businesses say that off-site sales currently outweigh in-store sales.
Abbott says most of Texas is on the downward trend with the coronavirus pandemic. It isn’t time to fully re-open yet, though. He doesn’t want to go back to giving the green light to re-opening only to have to backtrack and shut businesses back down. He did that in late June after allowing businesses, including bars, to re-open in May at limited capacities but the Memorial Day weekend caused a spike back up in positive cases.
“Since late July, the spread of Covid-19 has steadily and significantly declined. The number of new cases and new hospitalizations have been cut by more than two-thirds. Just yesterday we had the lowest number of hospitalizations in the past three months,” Abbott said. “Covid does still exist and most Texans remain susceptible,” Abbott said during a news conference. “If we fully reopen Texas without limits, without safe practices, it can lead to an unsustainable increase in Covid that would require the possibility of being forced to ratchet back down.”
Governor Abbott reminded Texans that safe practices put into place to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus remain in place – wearing a mask, social distancing, and practicing proper sanitation strategies.


hotair--2020-09-18--Biden on fracking: I won't close it down, but I won't let it continue either

And Joe Biden ’ s favorite color is plaid .
The Democratic nominee has tried to have it both ways during the 2020 campaign on fracking , but last night Biden tried having it both ways at the same time .
In his CNN town hall with Anderson Cooper , Biden initially told one questioner that he supporting the continuation of fracking , but Cooper objected to Biden trying to stake out two positions at once .
“ Politically , it ’ s understandable why you might say that , ” Cooper observed , but “ why should fracking continue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the transcript of the entire exchange , in which it was clear that Biden was hoping to get away with not addressing his climate-change position at all : TOM CALPIN , BUSINESS AGENT FOR IRONWORKS UNION : Good evening Mr. Vice President , Mr. Cooper .
With the abundance of natural gas in northeast Pennsylvania .
Do you support the continuation of fracking safely and with proper guidelines , of course , and growing the industry ( INAUDIBLE ) additional jobs to our region ?
BIDEN : Yes , I do .
I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we can provide for right now as you know , for thousands of uncapped wells because a lot of companies gone out of business , whether they ’ re gas or oil facilities , we can put to work right away 250,000 people from iron workers and other disciplines , making union wages .
Capping those wells that are leaking methane and their danger to the community .
And so , not only do I continue to support it .
Jobs , it ’ s an important for this community .
It ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and other states .
It ’ s an important , it ’ s an important business .
And it ’ s a lot of wages are involved in that .
But beyond that , beyond that , we can also get people working now , capping the wells that are left uncapped right now across this region and all the way there ’ s hundreds of thousands of them all across the nation .
And that put a lot of people to work .
COOPER : Let me just follow up on that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ban fracking but did you wanted to gradually move away from it ultimately .
It sounds like to some of you ’ re trying to have it both ways that that I mean , politically , it ’ s understandable why you might say that but it — if fracking contributes to climate change , and climate change is an existential threat .
Why should it fracking continue at all ?
BIDEN : Well , fracking has to continue because we have transition , we ’ re going to get to net zero @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ll get to net zero power admissions by 2035 .
But there ’ s no rationale to eliminate right now fracking , number one .
Number two , those jobs that are out there , whether it ’ s a IBW ( ph ) worker , or whether it ’ s an iron worker , or a steel worker .
What I ’ m proposing is that , you know , when Trump thinks about global warming , he thinks hoax .
When I hear global warming , I think jobs .
What @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we do is we could transition in a way for example .
We ’ re going to build 500 — the reason why all these unions have endorsed me is that they know my position , that I ’ m going to make sure that we have 500,000 charging stations in our highways so we can all the electric car market , creating a million jobs and we can lead the world .
And in Detroit , we can lead the world and making sure we move to electric vehicles As president of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one of the largest fleets — we spent $ 600 billion a year federal money for federal contracts , I got to make sure they ’ re all those contracts are all products made in America , including the chain that provides for every one of those products .
I ’ m going to do away with the tax break that the President gave people who send jobs abroad , to make sure that if you in fact , have a contract , if you with taxpayers my money , you must use @ @ @ @ @ @ @ products , and you must not be in a position where you ’ re exporting .
We have 25 — we have over 50 % more people moving jobs overseas as a consequence of these contracts , so it ’ s all backwards .
And this is going to provide a lot of good paying jobs for people in the trades .
In short , Biden plans to eliminate fracking .
He just doesn ’ t want to say that in the general election , especially not while in Pennsylvania .
His plans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ massive numbers of workers who will lose their jobs by having them build 500,000 charging stations for electric cars on the highways .
That ’ s not quite the same as Hillary Clinton ’ s “ learn to code ” riposte to coal miners , but it ’ s not that far off from it either .
And oh , by the way , where will all that electricity originate once we shut down fracking and drilling in the US ?
Ask California about the reliability of alternative energy , only make sure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blackouts aren ’ t sweeping the state .
As for moving jobs overseas , most of the union workers in the audience probably blame that on NAFTA , China ’ s admission to WTO , and globalization — all policies that Biden supported and Trump opposed .
If he wants to run on an “ America First ” platform , Biden will find it a little crowded .

And Joe Biden’s favorite color is plaid. The Democratic nominee has tried to have it both ways during the 2020 campaign on fracking, but last night Biden tried having it both ways at the same time. In his CNN town hall with Anderson Cooper, Biden initially told one questioner that he supporting the continuation of fracking, but Cooper objected to Biden trying to stake out two positions at once.
“Politically, it’s understandable why you might say that,” Cooper observed, but “why should fracking continue at all?”
WATCH: Joe Biden admits he won't "eliminate" fracking immediately but wants to "transition" hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvania fracking workers out of their jobs. pic.twitter.com/jGuFilymyh — Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) September 18, 2020
Here’s the transcript of the entire exchange, in which it was clear that Biden was hoping to get away with not addressing his climate-change position at all:
TOM CALPIN, BUSINESS AGENT FOR IRONWORKS UNION: Good evening Mr. Vice President, Mr. Cooper. With the abundance of natural gas in northeast Pennsylvania. Do you support the continuation of fracking safely and with proper guidelines, of course, and growing the industry (INAUDIBLE) additional jobs to our region? BIDEN: Yes, I do. I do. In addition to that, we can provide for right now as you know, for thousands of uncapped wells because a lot of companies gone out of business, whether they’re gas or oil facilities, we can put to work right away 250,000 people from iron workers and other disciplines, making union wages. Capping those wells that are leaking methane and their danger to the community. And so, not only do I continue to support it. Jobs, it’s an important for this community. It’s important for Pennsylvania, and Ohio and other states. It’s an important, it’s an important business. And it’s a lot of wages are involved in that. But beyond that, beyond that, we can also get people working now, capping the wells that are left uncapped right now across this region and all the way there’s hundreds of thousands of them all across the nation. And that put a lot of people to work. COOPER: Let me just follow up on that. You said you won’t ban fracking but did you wanted to gradually move away from it ultimately. It sounds like to some of you’re trying to have it both ways that that I mean, politically, it’s understandable why you might say that but it — if fracking contributes to climate change, and climate change is an existential threat. Why should it fracking continue at all? BIDEN: Well, fracking has to continue because we have transition, we’re going to get to net zero emissions by 2050. And we’ll get to net zero power admissions by 2035. But there’s no rationale to eliminate right now fracking, number one. Number two, those jobs that are out there, whether it’s a IBW (ph) worker, or whether it’s an iron worker, or a steel worker. What I’m proposing is that, you know, when Trump thinks about global warming, he thinks hoax. When I hear global warming, I think jobs. What I’m going to make sure we do is we could transition in a way for example. We’re going to build 500 — the reason why all these unions have endorsed me is that they know my position, that I’m going to make sure that we have 500,000 charging stations in our highways so we can all the electric car market, creating a million jobs and we can lead the world. And in Detroit, we can lead the world and making sure we move to electric vehicles As president of United States, I’ll have one of the largest fleets — we spent $600 billion a year federal money for federal contracts, I got to make sure they’re all those contracts are all products made in America, including the chain that provides for every one of those products. I’m going to do away with the tax break that the President gave people who send jobs abroad, to make sure that if you in fact, have a contract, if you with taxpayers my money, you must use American products, you must buy American products, and you must not be in a position where you’re exporting. We have 25 — we have over 50% more people moving jobs overseas as a consequence of these contracts, so it’s all backwards. And this is going to provide a lot of good paying jobs for people in the trades.
In short, Biden plans to eliminate fracking. He just doesn’t want to say that in the general election, especially not while in Pennsylvania. His plans for eliminating fracking include “transitioning” massive numbers of workers who will lose their jobs by having them build 500,000 charging stations for electric cars on the highways. That’s not quite the same as Hillary Clinton’s “learn to code” riposte to coal miners, but it’s not that far off from it either.
And oh, by the way, where will all that electricity originate once we shut down fracking and drilling in the US? Ask California about the reliability of alternative energy, only make sure to ask in the hours when rolling blackouts aren’t sweeping the state. As for moving jobs overseas, most of the union workers in the audience probably blame that on NAFTA, China’s admission to WTO, and globalization — all policies that Biden supported and Trump opposed. If he wants to run on an “America First” platform, Biden will find it a little crowded.