hotair--2020-10-19--Trump: We found some amazing scandal material on Biden and gave it to the Wall Street Journal

Anything ’ s possible .
It could be that the dirt that ’ s finally going to sink Joe Biden went undiscovered during his 800 years in the Senate , eight as VP , a competitive Democratic presidential primary , and 95 percent of a bitter presidential campaign , only to come to light in the nick of time to save Trump from defeat .
It ’ s 2020 .
Anything .
Is .
Possible .
I just wouldn ’ t get my hopes up .
It ’ s extremely Trumpy to reveal that you ’ re the source for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ especially before that piece is even published .
Usually campaigns don ’ t want their fingerprints on oppo research that appears in the news lest the partisan motive shift voters ’ focus from the story itself to the ratf***ing involved in circulating it .
If he ’ s willing to admit that he gave the Journal dirt on Biden , why doesn ’ t he just share the details himself ?
And why didn ’ t he do it sooner ?
Presumably they ’ ve had whatever they gave to the paper for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ voting has already begun .
The time to drop a Biden scandal was October 1 , to let it fully circulate among the public , not this late in the process .
As it is , it ’ s anyone ’ s guess at the moment whether the story will be ready before Thursday ’ s debate .
That ’ s Trump ’ s last chance to give it a big spotlight .
Another question : Is it the Journal ’ s well-respected news section that ’ s working on this story or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to some lackey like Rudy Giuliani to put in a column on the Journal ’ s op-ed page ?
If it ’ s the former , the news section will come under heavy industry pressure to make sure whatever they have is authentic and not the product of some foreign dirty trick .
Reportedly the staff at the New York Post was concerned enough about the provenance of the Hunter Biden laptop story they ran last week that the editors had to scramble to find someone willing to put their byline on it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Rupert Murdoch-owned tabloid since 2007 , did not allow his byline to be used because he had concerns over the article ’ s credibility , the two Post employees said , speaking on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation… Many Post staff members questioned whether the paper had done enough to verify the authenticity of the hard drive ’ s contents , said five people with knowledge of the tabloid ’ s inner workings .
Staff members also had concerns about the reliability of its sources and its timing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ named two sources : Stephen K. Bannon , the former adviser to President Trump now facing federal fraud charges , who was said to have made the paper aware of the hard drive last month ; and Rudolph W. Giuliani , the president ’ s personal lawyer , who was said to have given the paper “ a copy ” of the hard drive on Oct. 11 .
There was reportedly at least one other writer on staff besides Golding who refused to let their byline be used on the piece .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Morris , a deputy editor , and reporter Gabrielle Fonrouge , who “ had little to do with the reporting or writing of the article ” and “ learned that her byline was on the story only after it was published.
” Hoo boy .
The Post wasn ’ t the first choice for the scoop either , if you believe Mediaite .
Supposedly it was offered to Fox News — and Fox ’ s news division passed because they didn ’ t like the smell of it either , wanting to hold @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the emails could be proved .
( Fox ’ s primetime bloc has been talking about the story nonstop for days , of course . )
I don ’ t think it ’ s the anti-Biden nature of the scoop that ’ s giving these people pause : Even if you believe that most of the news staff at Fox and the Post lean Democratic , a juicy scandal is a juicy scandal , especially in the final weeks of a major election .
What ’ s making them wary is Giuliani ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a year ago that Rudy was the target of a Russian influence operation .
When the Daily Beast recently asked Giuliani if he ’ s concerned that Andrii Derkach , his Ukrainian associate in the hunt for Biden dirt , has been accused by the Treasury Department of being a Russian agent , he cheerily replied , “ The chance that Derkach is a Russian spy is no better than 50/50.
” A 50/50 chance that he ’ s working with Russian operatives .
By his own admission .
There ’ s no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with Russia or that the contents of the emails are fake .
But , having lived through 2016 and having observed Giuliani behave ever more erratically over the past few years , no media outlet wants to bet its credibility on a suspiciously timed and suspiciously sourced revelation emanating from Trump , Bannon , and Rudy .
If Team Trump is behind the laptop story , they should have kept Giuliani a thousand miles away from it .
And if they want whatever ’ s brewing at the WSJ to be taken semi-seriously @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ten thousand miles away from that .
For what it ’ s worth , the Hunter laptop story hasn ’ t made any dent in the polls yet .
It ’ s what you ’ d expect .
The Ukraine saga ( on both sides ) has always been too complicated for the average voter to follow , I think .
Trump got impeached for his dealings with the Ukrainian government and his job approval barely moved .
Now he ’ s going to turn around and ask voters to choose him decisively @ @ @ @ @ @ @ C ’ mon .
Frankly , that ’ s why any dirt they might have on Biden will be a hard sell to the public .
Whatever Trump might realistically accuse him of , there ’ s some sort of “ tu quoque ” response for Dems right at hand .
Sex scandal ?
Biden will point to Stormy Daniels and the 20+ women who ’ ve accused Trump of sexual misconduct .
Family profiting from his public office ?
Biden will point to the Trump hotel in D.C. and the various business @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the past four years .
Influence peddling ?
Biden will point to John Bolton ’ s wariness about Trump ’ s dealings with Turkey .
Trump had a reasonable chance of beating Biden if he ’ d stuck to a policy campaign against him , especially economic policy .
Instead he ’ s spent most of his time trying to demonize Biden as crooked , addled , or sinister — “ where ’ s Hunter ?
” , Sleepy Joe has dementia , Antifa will run riot if Biden is in charge , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ something truly dynamite on him .
But they ’ d better hurry up .
Here ’ s righty Marc Thiessen becoming the second person on Fox News today to urge Trump to pivot away from the Hunter Biden stuff and focus .
He has one argument that might realistically win him the election — economic growth , especially if he and Pelosi can get a new stimulus done at the last second .
Everything else is noise .

Anything’s possible. It could be that the dirt that’s finally going to sink Joe Biden went undiscovered during his 800 years in the Senate, eight as VP, a competitive Democratic presidential primary, and 95 percent of a bitter presidential campaign, only to come to light in the nick of time to save Trump from defeat.
It’s 2020. Anything. Is. Possible.
I just wouldn’t get my hopes up.
The president tells staff on call the Wall Street Journal is “working on an important piece.” — Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) October 19, 2020
"I think Joe Biden has a scandal coming up that's going to make him almost an impotent candidate," Trump also told his staff during the call. “We found stuff yesterday we gave it to the press," he said. https://t.co/E9G5ijNrmd — Jill Colvin (@colvinj) October 19, 2020
It’s extremely Trumpy to reveal that you’re the source for a hit piece on your opponent, especially before that piece is even published. Usually campaigns don’t want their fingerprints on oppo research that appears in the news lest the partisan motive shift voters’ focus from the story itself to the ratf***ing involved in circulating it. If he’s willing to admit that he gave the Journal dirt on Biden, why doesn’t he just share the details himself?
And why didn’t he do it sooner? Presumably they’ve had whatever they gave to the paper for more than a few days. Early voting has already begun. The time to drop a Biden scandal was October 1, to let it fully circulate among the public, not this late in the process. As it is, it’s anyone’s guess at the moment whether the story will be ready before Thursday’s debate. That’s Trump’s last chance to give it a big spotlight.
Another question: Is it the Journal’s well-respected news section that’s working on this story or did the campaign give what they had to some lackey like Rudy Giuliani to put in a column on the Journal’s op-ed page? If it’s the former, the news section will come under heavy industry pressure to make sure whatever they have is authentic and not the product of some foreign dirty trick. Reportedly the staff at the New York Post was concerned enough about the provenance of the Hunter Biden laptop story they ran last week that the editors had to scramble to find someone willing to put their byline on it:
Bruce Golding, a reporter at the Rupert Murdoch-owned tabloid since 2007, did not allow his byline to be used because he had concerns over the article’s credibility, the two Post employees said, speaking on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation… Many Post staff members questioned whether the paper had done enough to verify the authenticity of the hard drive’s contents, said five people with knowledge of the tabloid’s inner workings. Staff members also had concerns about the reliability of its sources and its timing, the people said. The article named two sources: Stephen K. Bannon, the former adviser to President Trump now facing federal fraud charges, who was said to have made the paper aware of the hard drive last month; and Rudolph W. Giuliani, the president’s personal lawyer, who was said to have given the paper “a copy” of the hard drive on Oct. 11.
There was reportedly at least one other writer on staff besides Golding who refused to let their byline be used on the piece. In the end it was attributed to Emma-Jo Morris, a deputy editor, and reporter Gabrielle Fonrouge, who “had little to do with the reporting or writing of the article” and “learned that her byline was on the story only after it was published.” Hoo boy.
The Post wasn’t the first choice for the scoop either, if you believe Mediaite. Supposedly it was offered to Fox News — and Fox’s news division passed because they didn’t like the smell of it either, wanting to hold off until the sourcing and veracity of the emails could be proved. (Fox’s primetime bloc has been talking about the story nonstop for days, of course.) I don’t think it’s the anti-Biden nature of the scoop that’s giving these people pause: Even if you believe that most of the news staff at Fox and the Post lean Democratic, a juicy scandal is a juicy scandal, especially in the final weeks of a major election. What’s making them wary is Giuliani’s involvement. Trump himself was warned a year ago that Rudy was the target of a Russian influence operation. When the Daily Beast recently asked Giuliani if he’s concerned that Andrii Derkach, his Ukrainian associate in the hunt for Biden dirt, has been accused by the Treasury Department of being a Russian agent, he cheerily replied, “The chance that Derkach is a Russian spy is no better than 50/50.”
A 50/50 chance that he’s working with Russian operatives. By his own admission.
There’s no proof that the Biden laptop materials originated with Russia or that the contents of the emails are fake. But, having lived through 2016 and having observed Giuliani behave ever more erratically over the past few years, no media outlet wants to bet its credibility on a suspiciously timed and suspiciously sourced revelation emanating from Trump, Bannon, and Rudy. If Team Trump is behind the laptop story, they should have kept Giuliani a thousand miles away from it. And if they want whatever’s brewing at the WSJ to be taken semi-seriously, they’d better keep him ten thousand miles away from that.
For what it’s worth, the Hunter laptop story hasn’t made any dent in the polls yet.
There's no sign of tightening here, in other words. On average these polls (not a particularly good group for Biden) show Biden ahead by 9 points, exactly the same as before the NY Post story last Wednesday. — Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) October 19, 2020
It’s what you’d expect. The Ukraine saga (on both sides) has always been too complicated for the average voter to follow, I think. Trump got impeached for his dealings with the Ukrainian government and his job approval barely moved. Now he’s going to turn around and ask voters to choose him decisively over Biden on … good-government grounds? C’mon.
Frankly, that’s why any dirt they might have on Biden will be a hard sell to the public. Whatever Trump might realistically accuse him of, there’s some sort of “tu quoque” response for Dems right at hand. Sex scandal? Biden will point to Stormy Daniels and the 20+ women who’ve accused Trump of sexual misconduct. Family profiting from his public office? Biden will point to the Trump hotel in D.C. and the various business opportunities the Trump children have enjoyed over the past four years. Influence peddling? Biden will point to John Bolton’s wariness about Trump’s dealings with Turkey. Trump had a reasonable chance of beating Biden if he’d stuck to a policy campaign against him, especially economic policy. Instead he’s spent most of his time trying to demonize Biden as crooked, addled, or sinister — “where’s Hunter?”, Sleepy Joe has dementia, Antifa will run riot if Biden is in charge, etc. Maybe the Journal will have something truly dynamite on him. But they’d better hurry up.
Here’s righty Marc Thiessen becoming the second person on Fox News today to urge Trump to pivot away from the Hunter Biden stuff and focus. He has one argument that might realistically win him the election — economic growth, especially if he and Pelosi can get a new stimulus done at the last second. Everything else is noise.


hotair--2020-10-19--Jeffrey Toobin suspended over 'Zoom dick incident' (Update: He was 'touching his penis')

In a year that has shown us nothing but death and destruction , we finally have a reason to laugh out loud .
The New Yorker has suspended staff writer Jeffrey Toobin because of a “ Zoom dick incident ” which is exactly what it sounds like : Toobin said in a statement to Motherboard : “ I made an embarrassingly stupid mistake , believing I was off-camera .
I apologize to my wife , family , friends and co-workers.
” “ I believed I was not visible on Zoom .
I thought no one on the Zoom call could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ muted the Zoom video , ” he added .
It ’ s always a relief to discover the people who seem like they might be complete idiots are in fact complete idiots .
The fact that everyone Toobin works with will now by snickering behind his back about the Zoom dick incident forevermore is proof karma really is a bitch .
But I think his explanation is hiding a deeper mystery .
Yes , I understand that he thought the video was muted and , tragically for his co-workers who have all rushed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eye bleach , it was not .
But the real question is the one his statement doesn ’ t address… What were you doing , Jeffrey ?
We all know why he got caught .
What we don ’ t know is what prompted him to free willy when he was supposed to be on a work call .
Did he make a trip to the bathroom and not finish zipping up before returning to his home office ?
That would be stupid but the kind of thing one could explain as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as well .
Maybe this was intended as a private show of disrespect to co-workers , i.e .
you can ’ t see me but I ’ m waving Darth Sidious at all of you !
Or was he trying to , ahem , multi-task because the meeting was a bit boring ?
If so he wouldn ’ t be the first political commentator to get caught .
Hopefully you see my point .
There are degrees of bad here which depend on what Toobin thought he was doing when he got caught @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so at some point we ’ ll know for certain whether Toobin was treated fairly or just got the shaft from his employer .
While we await those answers , CNN has already decided the incident doesn ’ t do any real harm to Toobin ’ s reputation as a rock solid commentator .
He appeared on CNN over the weekend .
In my mind they added a chyron below him that said This Man Exposed His Winkie to Co-Workers but that didn ’ t actually happen .
In closing , I can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Robert George : Update : The Associated Press reports Toobin is stepping away from CNN as well : How will we manage without insightful commentary like this .
Update : Vice has updated the story to confirm exactly what Toobin was doing when he got caught : Both people , who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to speak freely , noted that it was unclear how much each person saw , but both said that they saw Toobin jerking off .
The two sources described a juncture in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ session , and the Democrats and Republicans went into their respective break out rooms for about 10 minutes .
At this point , they said , it seemed like Toobin was on a second video call .
The sources said that when the groups returned from their break out rooms , Toobin lowered the camera .
The people on the call said they could see Toobin touching his penis .
If ever there was a case to be made for someone ’ s last name becoming a generic description I think this is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ themselves on a video call were caught Toobin .

In a year that has shown us nothing but death and destruction, we finally have a reason to laugh out loud. The New Yorker has suspended staff writer Jeffrey Toobin because of a “Zoom dick incident” which is exactly what it sounds like:
Toobin said in a statement to Motherboard: “I made an embarrassingly stupid mistake, believing I was off-camera. I apologize to my wife, family, friends and co-workers.” “I believed I was not visible on Zoom. I thought no one on the Zoom call could see me. I thought I had muted the Zoom video,” he added.
It’s always a relief to discover the people who seem like they might be complete idiots are in fact complete idiots. The fact that everyone Toobin works with will now by snickering behind his back about the Zoom dick incident forevermore is proof karma really is a bitch.
But I think his explanation is hiding a deeper mystery. Yes, I understand that he thought the video was muted and, tragically for his co-workers who have all rushed out to buy a gallon jug of eye bleach, it was not. But the real question is the one his statement doesn’t address…
What were you doing, Jeffrey?
We all know why he got caught. What we don’t know is what prompted him to free willy when he was supposed to be on a work call.
Did he make a trip to the bathroom and not finish zipping up before returning to his home office? That would be stupid but the kind of thing one could explain as a mistake.
But there are darker possibilities as well. Maybe this was intended as a private show of disrespect to co-workers, i.e. you can’t see me but I’m waving Darth Sidious at all of you!
Or was he trying to, ahem, multi-task because the meeting was a bit boring? If so he wouldn’t be the first political commentator to get caught.
Hopefully you see my point. There are degrees of bad here which depend on what Toobin thought he was doing when he got caught. The New Yorker is reportedly investigating so at some point we’ll know for certain whether Toobin was treated fairly or just got the shaft from his employer.
While we await those answers, CNN has already decided the incident doesn’t do any real harm to Toobin’s reputation as a rock solid commentator. He appeared on CNN over the weekend. In my mind they added a chyron below him that said This Man Exposed His Winkie to Co-Workers but that didn’t actually happen.
In closing, I can’t improve on this pun-intended tweet by Robert George:
The Jeffrey Toobin incident isn't really that big a thing: CNN always knew, with him, they were getting a package deal. — Robert A George (@RobGeorge) October 19, 2020
Update: The Associated Press reports Toobin is stepping away from CNN as well:
Author-commentator Jeffrey Toobin has been suspended by the New Yorker and is stepping away from his job as CNN’s senior legal analyst pending what the cable network is calling a “personal matter.”
How will we manage without insightful commentary like this.
Update: Vice has updated the story to confirm exactly what Toobin was doing when he got caught:
Both people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to speak freely, noted that it was unclear how much each person saw, but both said that they saw Toobin jerking off. The two sources described a juncture in the election simulation when there was a strategy session, and the Democrats and Republicans went into their respective break out rooms for about 10 minutes. At this point, they said, it seemed like Toobin was on a second video call. The sources said that when the groups returned from their break out rooms, Toobin lowered the camera. The people on the call said they could see Toobin touching his penis.
If ever there was a case to be made for someone’s last name becoming a generic description I think this is it. Henceforth, men caught touching themselves on a video call were caught Toobin.


hotair--2020-10-19--Bizarre poll: Marylanders support police, but back both funding and defunding them?

The state of Maryland in general and the City of Baltimore , in particular , appear to have a twisted love-hate relationship with their police departments .
Or at least that ’ s the takeaway I ’ m getting from a new Goucher College poll that was released this week .
An extensive survey asked residents about their various attitudes toward the police , the Black Lives Matter movement and proposed reforms to law enforcement procedures and training .
No matter which side of the ideological fence you may sit on , there are some figures in there that might @ @ @ @ @ @ @ constantly hear from Antifa rioters and social justice warriors that are a staple of cable news these days , most people actually support the police .
But at the same time , they also support a variety of reforms .
( CBS Baltimore ) In a new Goucher College poll , most Marylanders say they want to see some type of police reform even though most are favorable toward police .
This new Goucher Poll asked Maryland residents about their thoughts on police , police reform and the Black Lives Matter movement… “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police reforms that are currently being discussed by state lawmakers and have dominated our national discourse .
Some of these proposals , like creating statewide use-of-force policies and requiring police officers to undergo racial bias training , earn support from majorities of Democrats and Republicans , ” said Mileah Kromer , director of the Sarah T. Hughes Field Politics Center at Goucher College .
On the question of whether people “ view the police favorably , ” 66 % were favorable and only 30 % were unfavorable .
There was a rather stark @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
73 % of White respondents were in the favorable camp , while a slim majority of 54 % of Black residents said the same .
The Black Lives Matter movement was in nearly the same boat at 69/25 favorability .
But , again , Black respondents were far more inclined to see it favorably while Whites favored it by a slim majority .
The area where the conflicting responses showed up was on the question of funding .
I ’ ve gone through the results several times and it ’ s been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if they supported a movement to “ defund the police , ” 68 percent opposed the idea while only 28 percent supported it .
So far , so good .
But when asked if they supported “ reducing the budget for the police department and shifting the funds to social programs , ” 54 % said they supported that and 43 % were opposed .
Excuse me , folks , but has anyone mentioned to you that “ reducing the budget ” is the same thing as “ defunding ?
” They were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for police to hire more or better-trained officers.
” A whopping 79 % agreed with that proposal .
These people are all over the place .
I don ’ t think they even understood the questions , to say nothing of the implications .
The one positive takeaway that the media should take note of from this survey is the one pointed out above .
Even in Black communities , a majority of people still support the police and apparently know what life would be like if they went away .
And if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would need to look no further than the horror shows found in the “ CHOP ” zones in Portland and Minneapolis .
A warning about how you ’ ll miss the police if they go away doesn ’ t go nearly far enough .
I ’ m going to go out on a limb and say that Maryland probably isn ’ t an outlier here .
The media has largely done such a ridiculously bad job of covering all the “ peaceful protests ” and the BLM movement and calls to defund the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Hatred of the police is popular in leftist media circles and activist marches , but it ’ s far from a majority position in the country .
But to listen to most of the talking heads on CNN , you get the impression that the country is ready to scrap the cops entirely and fend for themselves .
Good luck with that .
We ’ ve been hearing all sorts of accusations of supposed “ vigilante justice ” around the country lately .
If you lose the police , you ’ ll @ @ @ @ @ @ @ justice looks like .
And it won ’ t be pretty .

The state of Maryland in general and the City of Baltimore, in particular, appear to have a twisted love-hate relationship with their police departments. Or at least that’s the takeaway I’m getting from a new Goucher College poll that was released this week. An extensive survey asked residents about their various attitudes toward the police, the Black Lives Matter movement and proposed reforms to law enforcement procedures and training. No matter which side of the ideological fence you may sit on, there are some figures in there that might surprise you. Unlike the claptrap we constantly hear from Antifa rioters and social justice warriors that are a staple of cable news these days, most people actually support the police. But at the same time, they also support a variety of reforms. (CBS Baltimore)
In a new Goucher College poll, most Marylanders say they want to see some type of police reform even though most are favorable toward police. This new Goucher Poll asked Maryland residents about their thoughts on police, police reform and the Black Lives Matter movement… “Maryland residents are largely supportive of key police reforms that are currently being discussed by state lawmakers and have dominated our national discourse. Some of these proposals, like creating statewide use-of-force policies and requiring police officers to undergo racial bias training, earn support from majorities of Democrats and Republicans,” said Mileah Kromer, director of the Sarah T. Hughes Field Politics Center at Goucher College.
On the question of whether people “view the police favorably,” 66% were favorable and only 30% were unfavorable. There was a rather stark racial divide on that question, though. 73% of White respondents were in the favorable camp, while a slim majority of 54% of Black residents said the same. The Black Lives Matter movement was in nearly the same boat at 69/25 favorability. But, again, Black respondents were far more inclined to see it favorably while Whites favored it by a slim majority.
The area where the conflicting responses showed up was on the question of funding. I’ve gone through the results several times and it’s been giving me a headache. When asked if they supported a movement to “defund the police,” 68 percent opposed the idea while only 28 percent supported it. So far, so good. But when asked if they supported “reducing the budget for the police department and shifting the funds to social programs,” 54% said they supported that and 43% were opposed. Excuse me, folks, but has anyone mentioned to you that “reducing the budget” is the same thing as “defunding?”
They were also asked if they supported “funding for police to hire more or better-trained officers.” A whopping 79% agreed with that proposal. These people are all over the place. I don’t think they even understood the questions, to say nothing of the implications.
The one positive takeaway that the media should take note of from this survey is the one pointed out above. Even in Black communities, a majority of people still support the police and apparently know what life would be like if they went away. And if they didn’t know, they would need to look no further than the horror shows found in the “CHOP” zones in Portland and Minneapolis. A warning about how you’ll miss the police if they go away doesn’t go nearly far enough.
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Maryland probably isn’t an outlier here. The media has largely done such a ridiculously bad job of covering all the “peaceful protests” and the BLM movement and calls to defund the police that voters could understandably be confused. Hatred of the police is popular in leftist media circles and activist marches, but it’s far from a majority position in the country. But to listen to most of the talking heads on CNN, you get the impression that the country is ready to scrap the cops entirely and fend for themselves. Good luck with that. We’ve been hearing all sorts of accusations of supposed “vigilante justice” around the country lately. If you lose the police, you’ll get a look at what actual vigilante justice looks like. And it won’t be pretty.


hotair--2020-10-19--CBS: Biden campaign calls a lid ... until Thursday night

“ Let ’ s finish strong , ” Joe Biden exhorted followers on Twitter this morning .
Finishing strong , in this instance , means spending four of the last 15 days before Election Day off the campaign trail .
CBS ’ Ed O ’ Keefe reported yesterday morning that Biden won ’ t be seen until Thursday night ’ s debate , taking rope-a-dope to an extreme : MARGARET BRENNAN : So , tell us about we just heard– what we just there .
I mean , when we look at Joe Biden ’ s schedule , we didn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ We will see him today .
What is his strategy ?
Because President Trump clearly feels he needs to be out and very visible .
ED O ’ KEEFE : And at this point , the Biden campaign doesn ’ t feel that way much at all .
He ’ s– he ’ s in North Carolina today .
The Tar Heel state has begun its early voting .
This is a state that the Biden campaign believes , hopes they can take back .
But they look at the same kind of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surveys .
Those are the only ones that matter at this point .
Don ’ t worry about national horse race numbers .
Look at those state by state numbers .
They see single-digit advantages , as we do , for Biden .
And they worry that if they can ’ t keep their base motivated , if they can ’ t keep convincing people to show up , whether it ’ s earlier on the day off they ’ re going to be in trouble .
This week is mostly about the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seen again after today until Thursday night in Nashville at that next debate .
So , they are going to keep him focused on that .
That ’ s a signal that they believe this is still a very big opportunity for them to provide one last big contrast with the President and that they have to prepare him for potential attacks from the President .
The other thing they ’ re going to continue to do is spend the record sums of money they ’ ve raised .
There isn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the trail for four full days for debate prep .
Biden ’ s been around for forty-seven years in Washington ; if he ’ s not prepared to debate issues by now , a month of debate prep wouldn ’ t help .
What presidential candidate in history left the campaign trail in the general election as often as Biden has ?
Say what you want about Hillary Clinton ’ s misbegotten campaign strategy , but she wasn ’ t calling 9 am lids and disappearing for days just to do debate prep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contest .
Neither is Donald Trump .
This isn ’ t about “ finishing strong.
” It ’ s part of Biden ’ s rope-a-dope strategy to keep the focus off of himself and his party ’ s increasingly radical policies , and instead firmly on Trump ’ s character .
To some extent , all re-election contests end up being referendums on the incumbents , but usually the other candidate puts some effort into campaigning .
Biden ’ s betting the house on a basement strategy with no ground game and nothing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advertising .
He ’ s not even bothering to make a case for himself , but instead only for removing Trump no matter what follows him .
Could it work ?
It might , but it would be one of the most cynical presidential campaigns in history .
It requires everyone to ignore the fact that Biden wants everyone else to “ finish strong ” while he naps in his basement .
That may be many things , but leadership it ain ’ t .

“Let’s finish strong,” Joe Biden exhorted followers on Twitter this morning. Finishing strong, in this instance, means spending four of the last 15 days before Election Day off the campaign trail. CBS’ Ed O’Keefe reported yesterday morning that Biden won’t be seen until Thursday night’s debate, taking rope-a-dope to an extreme:
MARGARET BRENNAN: So, tell us about we just heard– what we just there. I mean, when we look at Joe Biden’s schedule, we didn’t see him campaign yesterday. We will see him today. What is his strategy? Because President Trump clearly feels he needs to be out and very visible. ED O’KEEFE: And at this point, the Biden campaign doesn’t feel that way much at all. He’s– he’s in North Carolina today. The Tar Heel state has begun its early voting. This is a state that the Biden campaign believes, hopes they can take back. But they look at the same kind of polling we do, state by state surveys. Those are the only ones that matter at this point. Don’t worry about national horse race numbers. Look at those state by state numbers. They see single-digit advantages, as we do, for Biden. And they worry that if they can’t keep their base motivated, if they can’t keep convincing people to show up, whether it’s earlier on the day off they’re going to be in trouble. This week is mostly about the big prep. He will not be seen again after today until Thursday night in Nashville at that next debate. So, they are going to keep him focused on that. That’s a signal that they believe this is still a very big opportunity for them to provide one last big contrast with the President and that they have to prepare him for potential attacks from the President. The other thing they’re going to continue to do is spend the record sums of money they’ve raised.
There isn’t any reason to pull a candidate off the trail for four full days for debate prep. Biden’s been around for forty-seven years in Washington; if he’s not prepared to debate issues by now, a month of debate prep wouldn’t help. What presidential candidate in history left the campaign trail in the general election as often as Biden has? Say what you want about Hillary Clinton’s misbegotten campaign strategy, but she wasn’t calling 9 am lids and disappearing for days just to do debate prep in the last two weeks of the contest. Neither is Donald Trump.
This isn’t about “finishing strong.” It’s part of Biden’s rope-a-dope strategy to keep the focus off of himself and his party’s increasingly radical policies, and instead firmly on Trump’s character. To some extent, all re-election contests end up being referendums on the incumbents, but usually the other candidate puts some effort into campaigning. Biden’s betting the house on a basement strategy with no ground game and nothing but a blizzard of TV and radio advertising. He’s not even bothering to make a case for himself, but instead only for removing Trump no matter what follows him.
Could it work? It might, but it would be one of the most cynical presidential campaigns in history. It requires everyone to ignore the fact that Biden wants everyone else to “finish strong” while he naps in his basement. That may be many things, but leadership it ain’t.


hotair--2020-10-19--After beheading of French teacher, mass rallies and police raids of suspected radicals

Last Friday a French teacher named Samuel Paty was beheaded in the street by an 18-year-old Islamic radical who was subsequently shot and killed by police .
Authorities believe Paty was murdered because he had showed his class the Charlie Hebdo cartoons of Muhammad as part of a lesson on free expression .
Sunday there were mass demonstrations across France in support of the teacher and the values he represented : French Prime Minister Jean Castex stood with citizens , associations and unions demonstrating Sunday on the Place de la Republique in Paris in support of freedom of speech and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Some held placards reading “ I am Samuel ” that echoed the “ I am Charlie ” rallying cry after the 2015 attack on the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo , which published caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad .
A moment ’ s silence was observed across the square , broken by applause and a rousing rendition of La Marseillaise , the French national anthem .
Demonstrators also gathered in major cities including Lyon , Toulouse , Strasbourg , Nantes , Marseille , Lille and Bordeaux .
This image above shows the scale @ @ @ @ @ @ @ addition to the strong reaction from the populace , there is also some significant police action taking place today : Already , 11 people have been arrested , including family members of the suspect , an 18-year-old Chechen refugee named Abdullakh Anzorov , who was shot dead by the police Friday night after the killing .
Also in custody is the father of a student at the school who had denounced Mr. Paty online for showing the caricatures , and demanded his dismissal .
The video circulated widely and may have been seen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also announced on Monday the expulsion of 231 foreign citizens identified for their radicalism , including 180 who were already in prison .
Those not imprisoned would soon be arrested , officials said .
Interior Minister Gerald Darminin is also taking aim at dozens of Muslim aid organizations including one , the Collective Against Islamophobia in France ( CCIF ) , that compiles lists of anti-Muslim hate crimes in France .
Today Darminin labeled that group and another one “ enemies of the Republic ” : “ I am going to propose the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which are enemies of the Republic .
We must stop being naive and face the truth : there is no possible accommodation with radical Islamism .
Any compromise is a compromise.
” The Financial Times has more on what Darmanin said : Gérald Darmanin , interior minister , said on Monday he would propose a ban on several organisations deemed “ separatist ” for seeking to bypass the secular institutions of the French republic , including the Collective against Islamophobia in France ( CCIF ) , and a humanitarian aid group called BarakaCity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Islam combines with radical Islam and so eventually leads to terrorism , ” Mr Darmanin said on Europe 1 radio .
“ We must fight political Islam with the same determination as we fight terrorism.
” He said 51 organisations would be inspected by the state this week .
Mr Macron , who had already announced tighter controls on Islamist radicals in a speech at the start of the month , is now under pressure from politicians from left to right to take an even harder line against militants .
President Trump expressed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Saturday : All of this is happening as a trial of people involved in the Charlie Hebdo killings in 2015 is ongoing .
In fact , the trial was why Samuel Paty was doing a lesson using the Charlie Hebdo cartoons .

Last Friday a French teacher named Samuel Paty was beheaded in the street by an 18-year-old Islamic radical who was subsequently shot and killed by police. Authorities believe Paty was murdered because he had showed his class the Charlie Hebdo cartoons of Muhammad as part of a lesson on free expression. Sunday there were mass demonstrations across France in support of the teacher and the values he represented:
French Prime Minister Jean Castex stood with citizens, associations and unions demonstrating Sunday on the Place de la Republique in Paris in support of freedom of speech and in memory of the 47-year-old slain teacher. Some held placards reading “I am Samuel” that echoed the “I am Charlie” rallying cry after the 2015 attack on the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which published caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. A moment’s silence was observed across the square, broken by applause and a rousing rendition of La Marseillaise, the French national anthem. Demonstrators also gathered in major cities including Lyon, Toulouse, Strasbourg, Nantes, Marseille, Lille and Bordeaux.
This image above shows the scale of the demonstration in Paris. In addition to the strong reaction from the populace, there is also some significant police action taking place today:
Already, 11 people have been arrested, including family members of the suspect, an 18-year-old Chechen refugee named Abdullakh Anzorov, who was shot dead by the police Friday night after the killing. Also in custody is the father of a student at the school who had denounced Mr. Paty online for showing the caricatures, and demanded his dismissal. The video circulated widely and may have been seen by the killer. The interior minister also announced on Monday the expulsion of 231 foreign citizens identified for their radicalism, including 180 who were already in prison. Those not imprisoned would soon be arrested, officials said.
Interior Minister Gerald Darminin is also taking aim at dozens of Muslim aid organizations including one, the Collective Against Islamophobia in France (CCIF), that compiles lists of anti-Muslim hate crimes in France. Today Darminin labeled that group and another one “enemies of the Republic”: “I am going to propose the dissolution of CCIF and BarakaCity, associations which are enemies of the Republic. We must stop being naive and face the truth: there is no possible accommodation with radical Islamism. Any compromise is a compromise.”
Je vais proposer la dissolution du CCIF et de BarakaCity, des associations ennemies de la République.
Il faut arrêter d’être naïfs et voir la vérité en face : il n’y a aucun accommodement possible avec l’islamisme radical. Tout compromis est une compromission. #Europe1 — Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) October 19, 2020
The Financial Times has more on what Darmanin said:
Gérald Darmanin, interior minister, said on Monday he would propose a ban on several organisations deemed “separatist” for seeking to bypass the secular institutions of the French republic, including the Collective against Islamophobia in France (CCIF), and a humanitarian aid group called BarakaCity. “You can see how political Islam combines with radical Islam and so eventually leads to terrorism,” Mr Darmanin said on Europe 1 radio. “We must fight political Islam with the same determination as we fight terrorism.” He said 51 organisations would be inspected by the state this week. Mr Macron, who had already announced tighter controls on Islamist radicals in a speech at the start of the month, is now under pressure from politicians from left to right to take an even harder line against militants.
President Trump expressed support for France and for President Macron on Saturday:
“On behalf of the United States, I’d like to extend my really sincere condolences to a friend of mine, President (Emmanuel) Macron of France, where they just yesterday had a vicious, vicious Islamic terrorist attack — beheading an innocent teacher near Paris,” he said. “France is having a hard time and Macron’s a great guy.”
All of this is happening as a trial of people involved in the Charlie Hebdo killings in 2015 is ongoing. In fact, the trial was why Samuel Paty was doing a lesson using the Charlie Hebdo cartoons.


hotair--2020-10-19--Baltimore elected officials charged for somehow forgetting to pay their taxes

Now that a new Mayor is on the way to City Hall in Baltimore , Charm City will soon put its unpleasant history of corrupt elected officials behind them and begin a new era of honesty and transparency in politics .
Gone will be the days of Mayors and other top municipal officials going to prison for racketeering , embezzlement , and tax evasion .
And once that ’ s accomplished , they ’ ll be able to focus on quashing their massive gang violence and murder problems .
Trust me .
It ’ s going to be glorious .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ couple of final wrinkles to iron out of this plan .
It seems that the city ’ s top prosecutor , Marilyn Mosby , and her husband , incoming City Council President Nick Mosby , have received some unpleasant news from the IRS .
The power couple allegedly “ forgot ” to pay a significant amount of their federal income taxes .
For at least three years .
And now a lien for nearly $ 50K against them has been placed by the taxman .
But hey… they ’ re busy people , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t forgotten the odd item on their to-do list from time to time ?
( Baltimore Sun ) The IRS has placed a $ 45,000 lien against Marilyn and Nick Mosby — Baltimore ’ s top prosecutor and its Democratic nominee for City Council president , respectively — for three years worth of unpaid federal taxes , records show .
Notice of the lien seeking to collect unpaid taxes from 2014 , 2015 and 2016 was filed in Baltimore Circuit Court in February .
The Internal Revenue Service filing shows the couple owes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , more than $ 19,000 for 2015 and about $ 3,000 for 2016 .
Marilyn Mosby said she was unaware of the lien and declined to discuss the matter further .
Nick Mosby did not immediately respond to a request for comment .
This isn ’ t the first time that the couple has run afoul of the IRS .
There was a smaller , $ 5k lien put on their property in 2013 because of unpaid taxes .
Ms. Mosby claims that she ’ s “ unaware ” of any lien @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t have taken her by surprise .
The IRS always makes multiple attempts to contact delinquent taxpayers and work out some sort of resolution before they resort to placing liens .
And the agency confirmed for the media that they have made “ multiple attempts ” to obtain payment from Mosby and her husband prior to this action .
The Mosbys have been “ rising stars ” of the Baltimore Democratic power structure for the past decade , with many people expecting Marilyn Mosby to wind up being the mayor at some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ put on hold after her disastrous handling of the aftermath of the Freddie Gray riots and her attempts to prosecute multiple police officers involved in the original incident .
( Each and every attempt at prosecution failed . )
But they also seem to have the same problems staying on the straight and narrow when it comes to their financial affairs as too many other Baltimore officials .
Keep in mind that the last Mayor to be elected before interim Mayor Jack Young took over , Catherine Pugh , was also hit for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the many hundreds of thousands of dollars she filched from various companies and agencies by “ selling ” them copies of her Healthy Holly children ’ s books .
She ’ s currently cooling her heels in federal prison .
Two mayors before her , Sheila Dixon wound up resigning and barely avoiding a stretch in jail via a plea deal after embezzling money from the city in the form of gift/debit cards intended to help impoverished children .
And don ’ t even get me started on the Board of Directors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Two-thirds of them resigned in a single week after the exposure of all the self-dealing and grifting that was going on in the scandal that wound up taking Pugh down .
Baltimore has had a massive corruption problem for years and they don ’ t seem to be able to shake it .
The inability of the city ’ s top prosecutor and incoming City Council President to simply pay their personal income taxes is yet another symptom of a much larger issue .

Now that a new Mayor is on the way to City Hall in Baltimore, Charm City will soon put its unpleasant history of corrupt elected officials behind them and begin a new era of honesty and transparency in politics. Gone will be the days of Mayors and other top municipal officials going to prison for racketeering, embezzlement, and tax evasion. And once that’s accomplished, they’ll be able to focus on quashing their massive gang violence and murder problems. Trust me. It’s going to be glorious.
Oh, wait… there might be a couple of final wrinkles to iron out of this plan. It seems that the city’s top prosecutor, Marilyn Mosby, and her husband, incoming City Council President Nick Mosby, have received some unpleasant news from the IRS. The power couple allegedly “forgot” to pay a significant amount of their federal income taxes. For at least three years. And now a lien for nearly $50K against them has been placed by the taxman. But hey… they’re busy people, right? Who among us hasn’t forgotten the odd item on their to-do list from time to time? (Baltimore Sun)
The IRS has placed a $45,000 lien against Marilyn and Nick Mosby — Baltimore’s top prosecutor and its Democratic nominee for City Council president, respectively — for three years worth of unpaid federal taxes, records show. Notice of the lien seeking to collect unpaid taxes from 2014, 2015 and 2016 was filed in Baltimore Circuit Court in February. The Internal Revenue Service filing shows the couple owes nearly $23,000 for the 2014 tax year, more than $19,000 for 2015 and about $3,000 for 2016. Marilyn Mosby said she was unaware of the lien and declined to discuss the matter further. Nick Mosby did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This isn’t the first time that the couple has run afoul of the IRS. There was a smaller, $5k lien put on their property in 2013 because of unpaid taxes. Ms. Mosby claims that she’s “unaware” of any lien from the IRS, but this can’t have taken her by surprise. The IRS always makes multiple attempts to contact delinquent taxpayers and work out some sort of resolution before they resort to placing liens. And the agency confirmed for the media that they have made “multiple attempts” to obtain payment from Mosby and her husband prior to this action.
The Mosbys have been “rising stars” of the Baltimore Democratic power structure for the past decade, with many people expecting Marilyn Mosby to wind up being the mayor at some point. Those plans may have been put on hold after her disastrous handling of the aftermath of the Freddie Gray riots and her attempts to prosecute multiple police officers involved in the original incident. (Each and every attempt at prosecution failed.) But they also seem to have the same problems staying on the straight and narrow when it comes to their financial affairs as too many other Baltimore officials.
Keep in mind that the last Mayor to be elected before interim Mayor Jack Young took over, Catherine Pugh, was also hit for tax evasion. That was on top of the many hundreds of thousands of dollars she filched from various companies and agencies by “selling” them copies of her Healthy Holly children’s books. She’s currently cooling her heels in federal prison.
Two mayors before her, Sheila Dixon wound up resigning and barely avoiding a stretch in jail via a plea deal after embezzling money from the city in the form of gift/debit cards intended to help impoverished children. And don’t even get me started on the Board of Directors of the University of Maryland Medical System. Two-thirds of them resigned in a single week after the exposure of all the self-dealing and grifting that was going on in the scandal that wound up taking Pugh down.
Baltimore has had a massive corruption problem for years and they don’t seem to be able to shake it. The inability of the city’s top prosecutor and incoming City Council President to simply pay their personal income taxes is yet another symptom of a much larger issue.


hotair--2020-10-19--Breaking: DoJ indicts six Russian GRU hackers for "most destructive and cos

Breaking: DoJ indicts six Russian GRU hackers for "most destructive and costly cyber-attacks in history"

To quote a political figure from the past , “ this is a big f*****g deal ” — in part .
The Department of Justice accused Russia of conducting “ the most disruptive and destructive series of computer attacks ever attributed to a single group ” in an indictment unsealed against six members of their military intelligence agency , the GRU .
In a press conference immediately afterward , assistant Attorney General John Demers noted that it cost two American corporations and a Pennsylvania hospital hundreds of millions of dollars in damage .
Those weren ’ t the only targets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ indictment also accuses the defendants , all alleged officers in the Russian military agency known as the GRU , in destructive attacks on Ukraine ’ s power grid and in a hack-and-leak effort directed at the political party of French President Emmanuel Macron during the 2017 election .
The indictment does not charge the defendants in connection with interference in American elections , focusing instead on attacks that prosecutors said were aimed at promoting Russian ’ s own geopolitical interests .
Those include cyberattacks that targeted the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a state-sponsored doping effort .
“ No country has weaponized its cyber capabilities as maliciously or irresponsibly as Russia , wantonly causing unprecedented damage to pursue small tactical advantages and to satisfy fits of spite , ” said Assistant Attorney General John Demers , the Justice Department ’ s top national security official .
How costly was this conspiracy ?
The DoJ estimates global damage at ten billion dollars , with over three hundred people and entities targeted .
Not all of the targets were American , but by charging this as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all of the hacks in its charges , regardless of jurisdiction .
Despite the rhetoric about Russia ’ s government , the DoJ took pains to emphasize that the indictments apply to the individuals , not to the Russian government or the GRU as organizations .
The statements during the presser emphasized that the indictments have nothing to do with this election or the 2016 election , for which a Mueller team indictment on GRU members remains in force .
Still , this provides a rather forceful pushback , at least rhetorically , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ahead of this election .
So how is this not a big deal ?
Just as with the earlier indictment , it ’ s not going to result in an active prosecution — not unless one of the six is dumb enough to travel to a country that has an extradition treaty with the US .
That was also true of Robert Mueller ’ s indictment against other GRU members .
As long as they stay in Russia , there ’ s not much the US can do to touch them , except @ @ @ @ @ @ @ normal financial institutions .
We can expect talk of even more punitive sanctions against Moscow too , or perhaps payback will come more covertly .
Whatever we ’ ve done up to this point has clearly not disincentivized Russia from conducting these attacks .

To quote a political figure from the past, “this is a big f*****g deal” — in part. The Department of Justice accused Russia of conducting “the most disruptive and destructive series of computer attacks ever attributed to a single group” in an indictment unsealed against six members of their military intelligence agency, the GRU. In a press conference immediately afterward, assistant Attorney General John Demers noted that it cost two American corporations and a Pennsylvania hospital hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.
Those weren’t the only targets of the GRU, either:
"We announce criminal charges against the conspiracy of Russian military intelligence officers who stand accused of conducting the most disruptive and destructive series of computer attacks ever attributed to a single group," says assistant AG John Demers. https://t.co/cD4Pwdln3L pic.twitter.com/S2xbYY9eqW — ABC News (@ABC) October 19, 2020
The indictment also accuses the defendants, all alleged officers in the Russian military agency known as the GRU, in destructive attacks on Ukraine’s power grid and in a hack-and-leak effort directed at the political party of French President Emmanuel Macron during the 2017 election. The indictment does not charge the defendants in connection with interference in American elections, focusing instead on attacks that prosecutors said were aimed at promoting Russian’s own geopolitical interests. Those include cyberattacks that targeted the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, where Russian athletes were banned because of a state-sponsored doping effort. “No country has weaponized its cyber capabilities as maliciously or irresponsibly as Russia, wantonly causing unprecedented damage to pursue small tactical advantages and to satisfy fits of spite,” said Assistant Attorney General John Demers, the Justice Department’s top national security official.
How costly was this conspiracy? The DoJ estimates global damage at ten billion dollars, with over three hundred people and entities targeted. Not all of the targets were American, but by charging this as a conspiracy, the DoJ can include all of the hacks in its charges, regardless of jurisdiction.
Despite the rhetoric about Russia’s government, the DoJ took pains to emphasize that the indictments apply to the individuals, not to the Russian government or the GRU as organizations. The statements during the presser emphasized that the indictments have nothing to do with this election or the 2016 election, for which a Mueller team indictment on GRU members remains in force. Still, this provides a rather forceful pushback, at least rhetorically, against the Russians for their malicious cyberwarfare ahead of this election.
So how is this not a big deal? Just as with the earlier indictment, it’s not going to result in an active prosecution — not unless one of the six is dumb enough to travel to a country that has an extradition treaty with the US. That was also true of Robert Mueller’s indictment against other GRU members. As long as they stay in Russia, there’s not much the US can do to touch them, except apply sanctions to keep them from using normal financial institutions. We can expect talk of even more punitive sanctions against Moscow too, or perhaps payback will come more covertly. Whatever we’ve done up to this point has clearly not disincentivized Russia from conducting these attacks.


hotair--2020-10-19--Trump: Fauci and these other idiot scientists are a disaster and Americans are tired of hearing abou

Trump: Fauci and these other idiot scientists are a disaster and Americans are tired of hearing about coronavirus; Update: "Also, bad arm!"

Perfect closing message , sir .
“ The doctors are morons ” and “ people are bored with a deadly disease that ’ s spiking again in the U.S. right now ” is exactly what those suburban moms you ’ ve been courting have been waiting to hear .
You have your finger on the pulse of swing voters .
May I recommend a little pro-QAnon rhetoric today as well , to really lock them down ?
The final two weeks of this campaign are going to be pure self-sabotaging panic and flailing rage .
( The two weeks *after* @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than that . )
As surreal as the first debate was , Thursday night has a real chance to top it .
Didn ’ t we just have a news cycle about the Trump campaign insisting on using a clip of Fauci in their ads , against his wishes , because they know the public ( especially non-Republicans ) likes him and trusts him on the virus ?
There are 15 days to the election , which means today represents 6.67 percent of Trump ’ s remaining time to move the needle .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ this afternoon for some reason .
As a matter of strategy , it ’ s madness .
As a matter of impulse , in which he just reacts to whatever ’ s on his TV from moment to moment , it makes sense .
This was on his TV last night .
“ Trump ’ s been caught in a vicious cycle that ’ s especially pronounced with COVID where his credibility problems require him to cede ground to others in the administration , but his political and personal instincts fundamentally will not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , succinctly , of Trump ’ s dynamic with Fauci .
If I were Biden , I ’ d mention Fauci at every opportunity during the final debate to see if I could bait POTUS into ripping on him in front of an audience of 70 million people or whatever .
Dems would like nothing more than to have a “ Trump versus scientists ” subplot to the closing days of the campaign while early voting is going on and headlines like this are circulating .
And he seems eager to oblige them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ll say this for him : If he ’ s going down on November 3 , at least he ’ s going down with the message that got him there .
There ’ ll be no last-minute switcheroo in which he tries to convince undecideds that safety is his top priority .
From day one of the pandemic , his view has been that the public is making too big a deal of it and everyone should get back to normal .
He ’ s going to ride or die with that talking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ come to an important question .
Should Anthony Fauci or Deborah Birx or Robert Redfield quit ?
Trump ’ s comment today about how it ’ d be a “ bigger bomb ” politically to fire Fauci than to let him go on counterprogramming the administration ’ s message is ominous .
If he loses on November 3 — especially if he loses badly — it ’ s possible if not likely that he ’ ll purge all of the people in the administration who ’ ve crossed him in one way or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Redfield , maybe Birx , possibly even Bill Barr could be fired on the morning of November 4 as an enraged Trump tries to cheer himself up by punishing his enemies .
Every one of those people should ask themselves whether they ’ d rather leave on their own terms right now and share what they ’ ve seen about how the administration operates , knowing that voters would be keenly interested , or whether they ’ d rather be humiliated with a public termination during the lame-duck session , when their opinion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ may be the likeliest candidate to do that .
Trump hasn ’ t attacked her the way he has Fauci because she ’ s kept a low — very low — profile .
She basically serves as a White House goodwill ambassador to colleges and other COVID hot spots now , blowing into town to discuss sound practices for containing the pandemic and then leaving .
But she could do that as an independent consultant just as well .
And she seems to be the insider who ’ s taken the strongest objection @ @ @ @ @ @ @ force under Scott Atlas : Birx recently confronted the office of Vice President Pence , who chairs the task force , about the acrimony , according to two people familiar with the meeting .
Birx , whose profile and influence has eroded considerably since Atlas ’ s arrival , told Pence ’ s office that she does not trust Atlas , does not believe he is giving Trump sound advice and wants him removed from the task force , the two people said… These days , the task force is dormant relative to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Fauci , Birx , Surgeon General Jerome Adams and other members have confided in others that they are dispirited… At a task force meeting late last month , Atlas stated that there was herd immunity in much of the country because of a combination of high infection rates in cities such as New York and Miami and T-cell immunity , according to two senior administration officials .
He said that only 40 to 50 percent of people need to be infected to reach the threshold .
And he argued that because of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lifted , schools should be opened and only the most vulnerable populations , such as nursing home residents , should be sheltered .
This resulted in a fierce debate with Birx and Fauci , who demanded Atlas show them the data that backed up his assertions , one of the officials said .
Remember , Atlas isn ’ t even a specialist in infectious disease .
He ’ s a radiologist who used to do Fox News hits and was added to the task force by Trump because Trump liked the fact that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a tweet Atlas sent in which he insisted that masks don ’ t work to reduce infections despite all evidence to the contrary .
The de facto head of the White House ’ s task force on handling a deadly disease is being put in time out on social media for tweeting like some run-of-the-mill denialist crank .
If Trump wins a second term , Atlas is likely to remain in charge of the federal response to COVID indefinitely .
So what are Fauci , Birx , and Redfield — who recently said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” — waiting for ?
If Trump wins , he ’ s going to fire one or all of them .
( Maybe he ’ ll keep Birx on as an ornament of respectability , with no meaningful duties . )
If Trump loses , he ’ s going to fire one or all of them .
Apparently their objections to Atlas inside the administration are going unheeded .
They might as well quit and speak candidly .
Update : These tweets are funny , but they also reminded me of Tim Miller @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a lot more time with fighting with people on his own side than he does his actual opponents .
He hasn ’ t had much to say today about Democratic Senate candidates , but he ’ s taking ol ’ Tony Fauci out to the woodshed .

Perfect closing message, sir. “The doctors are morons” and “people are bored with a deadly disease that’s spiking again in the U.S. right now” is exactly what those suburban moms you’ve been courting have been waiting to hear. You have your finger on the pulse of swing voters.
May I recommend a little pro-QAnon rhetoric today as well, to really lock them down?
The final two weeks of this campaign are going to be pure self-sabotaging panic and flailing rage. (The two weeks *after* the election will be even more insane than that.) As surreal as the first debate was, Thursday night has a real chance to top it.
On call with campaign staff, President Trump says people are tired of hearing about coronavirus. "People are saying whatever. Just leave us alone. They’re tired of it. People are tired of hearing Fauci and all these idiots…Fauci is a nice guy. He’s been here for 500 years." — Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) October 19, 2020
Trump: "Fauci is a disaster. If I listened to him, we’d have 500,000 deaths," before later saying it would be 700,000 or 800,000. "If there’s a reporter on, you can have it just the way I said it, I couldn’t care less." (CNN was given access to the call by a source.) — Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) October 19, 2020
Trump says every time Fauci goes on TV it's a "bomb," but it's a "bigger bomb if you fire him." — Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) October 19, 2020
Didn’t we just have a news cycle about the Trump campaign insisting on using a clip of Fauci in their ads, against his wishes, because they know the public (especially non-Republicans) likes him and trusts him on the virus?
There are 15 days to the election, which means today represents 6.67 percent of Trump’s remaining time to move the needle. This is what he wants out there this afternoon for some reason. As a matter of strategy, it’s madness. As a matter of impulse, in which he just reacts to whatever’s on his TV from moment to moment, it makes sense. This was on his TV last night.
Dr. Fauci says he was “absolutely not” surprised that President Trump got sick with coronavirus after seeing POTUS at what “turned out to be a super-spreader event” at the White House. https://t.co/Iq75GoCErk pic.twitter.com/iDWEaoX582 — 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) October 18, 2020
“Trump’s been caught in a vicious cycle that’s especially pronounced with COVID where his credibility problems require him to cede ground to others in the administration, but his political and personal instincts fundamentally will not allow it,” says Benjy Sarlin, succinctly, of Trump’s dynamic with Fauci. If I were Biden, I’d mention Fauci at every opportunity during the final debate to see if I could bait POTUS into ripping on him in front of an audience of 70 million people or whatever. Dems would like nothing more than to have a “Trump versus scientists” subplot to the closing days of the campaign while early voting is going on and headlines like this are circulating. And he seems eager to oblige them, for whatever reason:
I’ll say this for him: If he’s going down on November 3, at least he’s going down with the message that got him there. There’ll be no last-minute switcheroo in which he tries to convince undecideds that safety is his top priority. From day one of the pandemic, his view has been that the public is making too big a deal of it and everyone should get back to normal. He’s going to ride or die with that talking point. Good.
And now we come to an important question. Should Anthony Fauci or Deborah Birx or Robert Redfield quit? Trump’s comment today about how it’d be a “bigger bomb” politically to fire Fauci than to let him go on counterprogramming the administration’s message is ominous. If he loses on November 3 — especially if he loses badly — it’s possible if not likely that he’ll purge all of the people in the administration who’ve crossed him in one way or another. Chris Wray, Fauci, Redfield, maybe Birx, possibly even Bill Barr could be fired on the morning of November 4 as an enraged Trump tries to cheer himself up by punishing his enemies. Every one of those people should ask themselves whether they’d rather leave on their own terms right now and share what they’ve seen about how the administration operates, knowing that voters would be keenly interested, or whether they’d rather be humiliated with a public termination during the lame-duck session, when their opinion won’t matter anymore.
Birx may be the likeliest candidate to do that. Trump hasn’t attacked her the way he has Fauci because she’s kept a low — very low — profile. She basically serves as a White House goodwill ambassador to colleges and other COVID hot spots now, blowing into town to discuss sound practices for containing the pandemic and then leaving. But she could do that as an independent consultant just as well. And she seems to be the insider who’s taken the strongest objection to the direction of the coronavirus task force under Scott Atlas:
Birx recently confronted the office of Vice President Pence, who chairs the task force, about the acrimony, according to two people familiar with the meeting. Birx, whose profile and influence has eroded considerably since Atlas’s arrival, told Pence’s office that she does not trust Atlas, does not believe he is giving Trump sound advice and wants him removed from the task force, the two people said… These days, the task force is dormant relative to its robust activity earlier in the pandemic. Fauci, Birx, Surgeon General Jerome Adams and other members have confided in others that they are dispirited… At a task force meeting late last month, Atlas stated that there was herd immunity in much of the country because of a combination of high infection rates in cities such as New York and Miami and T-cell immunity, according to two senior administration officials. He said that only 40 to 50 percent of people need to be infected to reach the threshold. And he argued that because of this immunity, all restrictions should be lifted, schools should be opened and only the most vulnerable populations, such as nursing home residents, should be sheltered. This resulted in a fierce debate with Birx and Fauci, who demanded Atlas show them the data that backed up his assertions, one of the officials said.
Remember, Atlas isn’t even a specialist in infectious disease. He’s a radiologist who used to do Fox News hits and was added to the task force by Trump because Trump liked the fact that he was anti-lockdown. Yesterday Twitter removed a tweet Atlas sent in which he insisted that masks don’t work to reduce infections despite all evidence to the contrary. The de facto head of the White House’s task force on handling a deadly disease is being put in time out on social media for tweeting like some run-of-the-mill denialist crank.
If Trump wins a second term, Atlas is likely to remain in charge of the federal response to COVID indefinitely. So what are Fauci, Birx, and Redfield — who recently said that everything Atlas says is “false” — waiting for? If Trump wins, he’s going to fire one or all of them. (Maybe he’ll keep Birx on as an ornament of respectability, with no meaningful duties.) If Trump loses, he’s going to fire one or all of them. Apparently their objections to Atlas inside the administration are going unheeded. They might as well quit and speak candidly.
Update: These tweets are funny, but they also reminded me of Tim Miller’s point yesterday that Trump spends a lot more time with fighting with people on his own side than he does his actual opponents. He hasn’t had much to say today about Democratic Senate candidates, but he’s taking ol’ Tony Fauci out to the woodshed.
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1318252740431155200


hotair--2020-10-19--Washington Post editorial: We support Twitter and Facebook siding with Joe Biden but they need to of

Washington Post editorial: We support Twitter and Facebook siding with Joe Biden but they need to offer a better excuse

Democracy dies in darkness so let ’ s see if we can shed some light on this Post editorial published yesterday under the headline : “ Twitter and Facebook were right to suppress a Biden smear .
But they should tell us why they did.
” The piece itself opens by admitting there ’ s a problem : FACEBOOK AND TWITTER don ’ t want to make the same mistakes that marred this country ’ s last presidential election , but righting old wrongs can introduce new obstacles .
Last week , Facebook reduced the distribution of a dubious story @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Democratic nominee Joe Biden , pending third-party fact-checking .
Twitter blocked the URL from being shared altogether .
Both platforms made the correct decision to slow what so far seem to be baseless accusations backed up by leaked emails of murky origin — yet the way the sites made that decision matters , too .
The confusing and opaque process that accompanied the positive outcome threatens to render pyrrhic any victory over the forces of misinformation and meddling .
The Post has obviously taken a side here , saying the NY Post story @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that claim at all .
If the emails are real is this a smear or just a legitimate story about influence peddling by the candidate ’ s son ?
In any case , it ’ s clear up front that the Post is aware what ’ s at stake : Joe Biden ’ s image .
The Post then states that Twitter and Facebook made the right choice to block the story even though the reasons they did so don ’ t make much sense .
Specifically , Facebook claimed it was slowing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because of “ signals ” of falsehood .
But as the Post admits : “ The problem is that no one knows what the signals in question are… ” Well , yes , that does seem to be a problem .
And Twitter ’ s decision to block the story was just as incomprehensible .
They claimed the material was hacked and therefore needed to be blocked but how did they know this ?
Once again , the Post admits , “ Twitter never shared its basis for believing the materials were hacked.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ was the reason they blocked the story they changed their policy on hacked material .
So we have two social media giants both reaching the same conclusion and neither is able to offer a clear reason .
That almost leads the Post to an uncomfortable conclusion : This is the Post way of saying : This looks a lot like partisan bias and that ’ s bad because conservatives might seize on this as proof bias exists .
The problem of course is that there isn ’ t a better explanation than the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is trying so hard to avoid .
Partisan bias not only makes sense of what Facebook and Twitter did ( protecting Biden ) it also explains why the process was “ confusing and opaque ” ( because this wasn ’ t a case of applying the existing rules fairly ) .
Contrary to what the Post claimed , there is plenty of evidence the people working at these sites are biased against conservatives .
In fact , the NY Post did a round up this weekend of comments by Twitter employees about President @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , in some cases , vows to help Joe Biden across the finish line in next month ’ s presidential election continue to live online as the company earlier this week decided to censor The New York Post ’ s revelations about Hunter Biden ’ s emails to a consultant for the Ukrainian energy company Burisma… One Twitter engineering manager said Trump should “ die in a fire ” in a January 2017 tweet .
A year later , he rang in the new year by saying “ Happy 2018 !
Donald Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s global creative partnership head has called Trump “ swine.
” An associate brand strategist labeled the president an “ egomaniacal blowhard.
” A sales manager in New York called Trump “ the Enron of presidents.
” There ’ s a lot more where that came from .
Of course people are allowed to have their own political opinions no matter where they work but you get the impression there ’ s some anti-Trump group think at Twitter .
The company ’ s response to all of this is to claim that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rules : “ Our employees are professionals , and we require them to bring objectivity to their work regardless of their personal views .
We will not be dissuaded from continuing to work to fairly and impartially enforce our rules.
” But did they “ impartially enforce ” the rules in this case ?
Clearly the answer is no .
The Post admits both Twitter and Facebook were unable to explain how the rules applied to the NY Post story .
The fact that the Post ’ s editorial board endorsed the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ compelling justification for it only show ’ s another layer of the same bias in action .
Like Twitter and Facebook , the Post is grasping at straws to justify this partisan behavior after the fact .
The real message of this editorial is : Create a better set of rules so that next time you take action to protect a Democrat the partisan bias is less obvious .
Update : The Post published this today .
The guy who founded political advertising teams at Google and Twitter saying it ’ s time @ @ @ @ @ @ @

Democracy dies in darkness so let’s see if we can shed some light on this Post editorial published yesterday under the headline: “Twitter and Facebook were right to suppress a Biden smear. But they should tell us why they did.” The piece itself opens by admitting there’s a problem:
FACEBOOK AND TWITTER don’t want to make the same mistakes that marred this country’s last presidential election, but righting old wrongs can introduce new obstacles. Last week, Facebook reduced the distribution of a dubious story by the New York Post that smeared Democratic nominee Joe Biden, pending third-party fact-checking. Twitter blocked the URL from being shared altogether. Both platforms made the correct decision to slow what so far seem to be baseless accusations backed up by leaked emails of murky origin — yet the way the sites made that decision matters, too. The confusing and opaque process that accompanied the positive outcome threatens to render pyrrhic any victory over the forces of misinformation and meddling.
The Post has obviously taken a side here, saying the NY Post story “smeared” Biden without really justifying that claim at all. If the emails are real is this a smear or just a legitimate story about influence peddling by the candidate’s son? In any case, it’s clear up front that the Post is aware what’s at stake: Joe Biden’s image.
The Post then states that Twitter and Facebook made the right choice to block the story even though the reasons they did so don’t make much sense. Specifically, Facebook claimed it was slowing distribution in advance of a fact check because of “signals” of falsehood. But as the Post admits: “The problem is that no one knows what the signals in question are…”
Well, yes, that does seem to be a problem. And Twitter’s decision to block the story was just as incomprehensible. They claimed the material was hacked and therefore needed to be blocked but how did they know this? Once again, the Post admits, “Twitter never shared its basis for believing the materials were hacked.” In fact, after claiming this was the reason they blocked the story they changed their policy on hacked material.
So we have two social media giants both reaching the same conclusion and neither is able to offer a clear reason. That almost leads the Post to an uncomfortable conclusion:
Allegations of partisan bias in content-moderation decisions have never been borne out by the evidence. Yet it’s much easier to launch such allegations when platforms aren’t clear about precisely what their rules are and precisely how they’re being applied.
This is the Post way of saying: This looks a lot like partisan bias and that’s bad because conservatives might seize on this as proof bias exists.
The problem of course is that there isn’t a better explanation than the one the Post’s editorial board is trying so hard to avoid. Partisan bias not only makes sense of what Facebook and Twitter did (protecting Biden) it also explains why the process was “confusing and opaque” (because this wasn’t a case of applying the existing rules fairly).
Contrary to what the Post claimed, there is plenty of evidence the people working at these sites are biased against conservatives. In fact, the NY Post did a round up this weekend of comments by Twitter employees about President Trump:
The venom, vitriol and, in some cases, vows to help Joe Biden across the finish line in next month’s presidential election continue to live online as the company earlier this week decided to censor The New York Post’s revelations about Hunter Biden’s emails to a consultant for the Ukrainian energy company Burisma… One Twitter engineering manager said Trump should “die in a fire” in a January 2017 tweet. A year later, he rang in the new year by saying “Happy 2018! Donald Trump is dead!”… The company’s global creative partnership head has called Trump “swine.” An associate brand strategist labeled the president an “egomaniacal blowhard.” A sales manager in New York called Trump “the Enron of presidents.”
There’s a lot more where that came from. Of course people are allowed to have their own political opinions no matter where they work but you get the impression there’s some anti-Trump group think at Twitter. The company’s response to all of this is to claim that its employees are professionals whom impartially apply the rules: “Our employees are professionals, and we require them to bring objectivity to their work regardless of their personal views. We will not be dissuaded from continuing to work to fairly and impartially enforce our rules.”
But did they “impartially enforce” the rules in this case? Clearly the answer is no. The Post admits both Twitter and Facebook were unable to explain how the rules applied to the NY Post story.
The fact that the Post’s editorial board endorsed the action the companies took despite lacking a compelling justification for it only show’s another layer of the same bias in action. Like Twitter and Facebook, the Post is grasping at straws to justify this partisan behavior after the fact. The real message of this editorial is: Create a better set of rules so that next time you take action to protect a Democrat the partisan bias is less obvious.
Update: The Post published this today. The guy who founded political advertising teams at Google and Twitter saying it’s time to silence Trump on social media:


hotair--2020-10-19--International Brotherhood of Boilermakers fact checks Biden's claim of endorsement: False

Oops , he did it again .
Joe Biden claimed that The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers union endorsed him for president during a televised town hall on ABC last week .
The Boilermakers disagree with his claim .
They didn ’ t endorse his bid for president at all .
As a matter of fact , the union doesn ’ t make presidential endorsements and that is clearly stated on their website .
Headquartered in Kansas City , Kansas , the union services more than 200 local lodges across North America .
The website sites political activity but not endorsements @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for its members but there is no endorsement of either candidate .
From the website : As a union Boilermaker , your vote is a personal decision .
You have the right to vote for candidates and issues as you so choose .
Your vote can make a difference in electing the representatives and policymakers who support labor issues and advocate for the work Boilermakers do .
Information on this site is intended to help you understand issues important to our union and the labor movement .
The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the 2020 Election , and the information contained on this webpage in no way serves as an endorsement by the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers for any U.S. Presidential candidate .
Joe Biden either lied to the voter when that person asked a question about hydraulic fracking and his energy policy or he is confused about union endorsements .
Frankly , either excuse could be true .
Biden has a very long history of difficulties with the truth and , by all appearances , he is suffering from mental decline .
Hydraulic fracking is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gas .
Boilermakers work closely with the energy industry .
Natural gas burns clean so when Biden goes off on fossil fuels and their elimination , Boilermakers notice .
During the town hall , Biden said the union is “ overwhelmingly ” supporting him .
Not so fast , says John Hughes .
Hughes appeared on Fox and Friends this morning .
Not only has the union not endorsed Biden , the Boilermaker union ’ s Local 154 in Pittsburgh endorsed President Trump for reelection last month .
At that time , Local @ @ @ @ @ @ @ announcing its support and pointing to Trump ’ s strong support of the coal industry .
Most people don ’ t think about the energy industry and fossil fuels very much .
People go to the gas pump and fill up their cars and that ’ s that .
Fossil fuels companies have a part to play in green energy and have been doing so , certainly in the development stages , for many years now .
Fossil fuels are needed to make solar panels and windmills , for example .
Electric cars @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are inconvenient truths for extremists in the far left who want to destroy the fossil fuel industry .
Biden had to move to support their crazy rhetoric to make it through the Democrat primary .
Hughes points out that Biden ’ s support of the Green New Deal isn ’ t for them .
“ The Green Plan has nothing in it for Boilermakers.
” So , there is no endorsement .
“ We just don ’ t feel Joe Biden is good for us.
” Who can blame them ?
Biden has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He was for it before he was against it before he was for it again .
Andrew Bates , Biden campaign spokesperson responded to an inquiry from Fox and Friends Sunday : “ The Boilermakers endorse Joe Biden twice and have never supported Donald Trump .
Over 60 national unions back Joe Biden , including unions that had never endorsed a presidential candidate before.
” Democrats tend to score endorsements from unions , that isn ’ t breaking news .
Unions donate big money to the Democrat Party .
Biden probably thinks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Biden campaign spokesperson was wrong to say Boilermakers endorsed Biden twice and don ’ t support Trump .
In Pennsylvania , fracking is an important job creator .
The state reportedly represents the largest natural gas reserves in the world .
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reports that there are 10,000 natural gas wells in the state that use the technology of fracking .
Biden is desperately trying to win Pennsylvania , a swing state that went to Trump in 2016 so now he pretends to be in favor of protecting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ union news , the United Steelworkers union is trolling President Trump .
The union is using a “ bat light ” to project a giant Biden-Harris campaign logo onto the side of Trump International Hotel and Tower in downtown Chicago .
The bat light is projected just above Trump ’ s name on the building .
It isn ’ t the first time the bat light has been used , it even has its own Twitter account to publicize the shenanigans .
There are two weeks left until the November 3 election .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , especially since Trump seems to be closing the gap in polls in swing states .

Oops, he did it again. Joe Biden claimed that The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers union endorsed him for president during a televised town hall on ABC last week. The Boilermakers disagree with his claim. They didn’t endorse his bid for president at all. As a matter of fact, the union doesn’t make presidential endorsements and that is clearly stated on their website.
Headquartered in Kansas City, Kansas, the union services more than 200 local lodges across North America. The website sites political activity but not endorsements of presidential candidates. Information is provided for its members but there is no endorsement of either candidate. From the website:
As a union Boilermaker, your vote is a personal decision. You have the right to vote for candidates and issues as you so choose. Your vote can make a difference in electing the representatives and policymakers who support labor issues and advocate for the work Boilermakers do. Information on this site is intended to help you understand issues important to our union and the labor movement. The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers has not endorsed any U.S. Presidential candidate for the 2020 Election, and the information contained on this webpage in no way serves as an endorsement by the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers for any U.S. Presidential candidate.
Joe Biden either lied to the voter when that person asked a question about hydraulic fracking and his energy policy or he is confused about union endorsements. Frankly, either excuse could be true. Biden has a very long history of difficulties with the truth and, by all appearances, he is suffering from mental decline. Hydraulic fracking is a technique designed to recover oil and gas. Boilermakers work closely with the energy industry. Natural gas burns clean so when Biden goes off on fossil fuels and their elimination, Boilermakers notice. During the town hall, Biden said the union is “overwhelmingly” supporting him.
“I’m telling [you] the boilermakers overwhelmingly endorse me, OK?” he said. “So the boilermakers’ union has endorsed me because I sat down with them and went into great detail earlier to show their leadership exactly what I would do.”
Not so fast, says John Hughes. Hughes appeared on Fox and Friends this morning. Not only has the union not endorsed Biden, the Boilermaker union’s Local 154 in Pittsburgh endorsed President Trump for reelection last month. At that time, Local 154 wrote a letter to President Trump announcing its support and pointing to Trump’s strong support of the coal industry.
“Your administration has convinced my members that you will protect the future of our industry,” business manager John J. Hughes wrote in a letter (pdf) on Sept. 3. “Boilermaker jobs specifically rely on coal-fired power generation and we strongly encourage the advancement of carbon capture technologies which can secure jobs for our members,” he added.
Most people don’t think about the energy industry and fossil fuels very much. People go to the gas pump and fill up their cars and that’s that. Fossil fuels companies have a part to play in green energy and have been doing so, certainly in the development stages, for many years now. Fossil fuels are needed to make solar panels and windmills, for example. Electric cars are powered by coal plants. These are inconvenient truths for extremists in the far left who want to destroy the fossil fuel industry. Biden had to move to support their crazy rhetoric to make it through the Democrat primary. Hughes points out that Biden’s support of the Green New Deal isn’t for them. “The Green Plan has nothing in it for Boilermakers.” So, there is no endorsement. “We just don’t feel Joe Biden is good for us.” Who can blame them? Biden has been all over the place about fracking. He was for it before he was against it before he was for it again.
Andrew Bates, Biden campaign spokesperson responded to an inquiry from Fox and Friends Sunday: “The Boilermakers endorse Joe Biden twice and have never supported Donald Trump. Over 60 national unions back Joe Biden, including unions that had never endorsed a presidential candidate before.” Democrats tend to score endorsements from unions, that isn’t breaking news. Unions donate big money to the Democrat Party. Biden probably thinks he has the Boilermakers endorsement. But, the Biden campaign spokesperson was wrong to say Boilermakers endorsed Biden twice and don’t support Trump.
In Pennsylvania, fracking is an important job creator. The state reportedly represents the largest natural gas reserves in the world. The Pennsylvania Department of Health reports that there are 10,000 natural gas wells in the state that use the technology of fracking. Biden is desperately trying to win Pennsylvania, a swing state that went to Trump in 2016 so now he pretends to be in favor of protecting fracking jobs.
Meanwhile, in other union news, the United Steelworkers union is trolling President Trump. The union is using a “bat light” to project a giant Biden-Harris campaign logo onto the side of Trump International Hotel and Tower in downtown Chicago. The bat light is projected just above Trump’s name on the building. It isn’t the first time the bat light has been used, it even has its own Twitter account to publicize the shenanigans.
The United Steelworkers endorsed Biden’s candidacy back in May and have been using their “bat light” to project the Biden/Harris logo on the side of a number of Chicago landmarks in recent weeks, including Wrigley Field and the Chicago Theatre. The union’s use of “bat light” is a play off of the ‘bat signal’ from the Batman comics and films.
Sing along: 🎶 Take me out to the ballot box,
Take me out to the polls.
Get me my sticker so I can ‘gram,
I won’t stand for their suppression scams.
For it’s root, root, root for @JoeBiden,
If we don’t win we‘re all doomed.
‘Cause in 1-2…17 more days,
We can save the USA! 🎶 pic.twitter.com/nOnBLtXhoq — USW Bat Light (@USWBat) October 17, 2020
There are two weeks left until the November 3 election. Look for lots of silly last-minute shenanigans, especially since Trump seems to be closing the gap in polls in swing states.