hotair--2020-07-08--Top Tulsa health official: Trump rally "likely contributed" to Oklahoma's spiking case count

Much depends on the word “ contributed , ” though .
No doubt the George Floyd protests “ contributed ” to the spread of coronavirus in some cities .
Given all the people who turned out for them , it ’ d be a mathematical near-impossibility for them not to have produced any transmissions .
The question is , did they drive the outbreaks anywhere or were they incidental ?
Any transmission is bad given the chain it can set in motion , but for now the evidence that the protests were major contributors to community spread is thin due @ @ @ @ @ @ @ places like Minneapolis and NYC .
This story doesn ’ t answer that question about the Trump rally and maybe there ’ s no way to do so .
The director of Tulsa ’ s health department is looking at case counts locally and statewide and surmising that yes , an indoor gathering of thousands of people , most of whom weren ’ t wearing masks , probably “ contributed ” to those rising counts .
But did it drive the spike ?
Was it a major contributor ?
I don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ form a solid opinion about that .
Even so , this guy may have just quashed Trump ’ s dream of a large live crowd in Jacksonville for this nomination speech next month .
The public was already leery of mass gatherings indoors .
If there ’ s now a public health official kinda sorta confirming that people got sick because Trump insisted on going through with the Tulsa rally , the politics of him doing it again in Florida will be so dicey that he ’ s probably better off switching to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ small crowd onhand of one or two thousand people spaced out across the arena and instructed to cheer their guts out to try to produce a sufficient amount of crowd noise .
President Donald Trump ’ s campaign rally in Tulsa that drew thousands of people in late June , along with large protests that accompanied it , “ likely contributed ” to a dramatic surge in new coronavirus cases , Tulsa City-County Health Department Director Dr. Bruce Dart said Wednesday… Although the health department ’ s policy is to not publicly identify @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the virus , Dart said those large gatherings “ more than likely ” contributed to the spike .
“ In the past few days , we ’ ve seen almost 500 new cases , and we had several large events just over two weeks ago , so I guess we just connect the dots , ” Dart said .
Note : “ Several large events.
” He ’ s not suggesting that Trump ’ s rally alone drove the uptick in cases lately .
Whether Floridians will find that reassuring as they get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ question .
What sort of numbers was he drawing on to inspire this conclusion ?
Here ’ s the data for Tulsa : It ’ s hard to look at that and conclude that any single event is responsible for the high case counts of the past two days .
After all , the total for July 7-8 is nearly identical to the total that the county experienced in the two-day span of June 23-24 .
And Trump ’ s rally couldn ’ t have caused that earlier spike : It was held @ @ @ @ @ @ @ five to seven days to incubate .
Not only that , the high number of cases in Tulsa over the past 48 hours may be a function of the holiday weekend .
Testing centers may have been slower than usual to process tests on Friday , Saturday , and Sunday , producing a higher backlogged number of positives on Tuesday and Wednesday .
It may be that Tulsa isn ’ t even seeing a true spike at the moment .
Besides , there ’ s no reason to assume that most of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tulsa .
A presidential event is a true event , drawing people regionally .
A better metric might be the trend in Oklahoma ’ s cases statewide .
Which , ah , isn ’ t great : Again , we have a two-day spike following the holiday weekend , with OK setting a record yesterday with 858 cases followed by its second highest number ever today at 673 .
Is that because there ’ s a real spike or is it another artifact of slower testing on and around July 4 ?
Note @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trend in Oklahoma cases even before Trump blew into town .
Cases began rising around June 13 , climbed steadily upward through the rally on June 20 and onward for another week , then briefly plateaued before another spike last week .
Was that second spike a byproduct of Trump ’ s event — or just the continuation of a weeks-long trend , the same sort that ’ s plagued Texas and Florida and Arizona lately ?
The assumption that the rally “ contributed ” in some way to Oklahoma ’ s problem @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was a major contributor is much more questionable .
But like I say , as a political matter it ’ s probably irrelevant .
The RNC doesn ’ t want to be stuck having to argue , “ We ’ re confident there were only a few transmissions of this deadly plague at the president ’ s rally.
” They ’ re going to end up having to do something about the convention .
I ’ ll leave you with this :

Much depends on the word “contributed,” though. No doubt the George Floyd protests “contributed” to the spread of coronavirus in some cities. Given all the people who turned out for them, it’d be a mathematical near-impossibility for them not to have produced any transmissions.
The question is, did they drive the outbreaks anywhere or were they incidental? Any transmission is bad given the chain it can set in motion, but for now the evidence that the protests were major contributors to community spread is thin due to the absence of new spikes in places like Minneapolis and NYC.
This story doesn’t answer that question about the Trump rally and maybe there’s no way to do so. The director of Tulsa’s health department is looking at case counts locally and statewide and surmising that yes, an indoor gathering of thousands of people, most of whom weren’t wearing masks, probably “contributed” to those rising counts. But did it drive the spike? Was it a major contributor? I don’t know if he can possibly hope to form a solid opinion about that.
Even so, this guy may have just quashed Trump’s dream of a large live crowd in Jacksonville for this nomination speech next month. The public was already leery of mass gatherings indoors. If there’s now a public health official kinda sorta confirming that people got sick because Trump insisted on going through with the Tulsa rally, the politics of him doing it again in Florida will be so dicey that he’s probably better off switching to a virtual convention. Maybe have a small crowd onhand of one or two thousand people spaced out across the arena and instructed to cheer their guts out to try to produce a sufficient amount of crowd noise.
President Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Tulsa that drew thousands of people in late June, along with large protests that accompanied it, “likely contributed” to a dramatic surge in new coronavirus cases, Tulsa City-County Health Department Director Dr. Bruce Dart said Wednesday… Although the health department’s policy is to not publicly identify individual settings where people may have contracted the virus, Dart said those large gatherings “more than likely” contributed to the spike. “In the past few days, we’ve seen almost 500 new cases, and we had several large events just over two weeks ago, so I guess we just connect the dots,” Dart said.
Note: “Several large events.” He’s not suggesting that Trump’s rally alone drove the uptick in cases lately. Whether Floridians will find that reassuring as they get ready to host the convention is another question.
What sort of numbers was he drawing on to inspire this conclusion? Here’s the data for Tulsa:
It’s hard to look at that and conclude that any single event is responsible for the high case counts of the past two days. After all, the total for July 7-8 is nearly identical to the total that the county experienced in the two-day span of June 23-24. And Trump’s rally couldn’t have caused that earlier spike: It was held on June 20 and COVID normally needs five to seven days to incubate. Not only that, the high number of cases in Tulsa over the past 48 hours may be a function of the holiday weekend. Testing centers may have been slower than usual to process tests on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, producing a higher backlogged number of positives on Tuesday and Wednesday. It may be that Tulsa isn’t even seeing a true spike at the moment.
Besides, there’s no reason to assume that most of the people who attended the rally were from Tulsa. A presidential event is a true event, drawing people regionally. A better metric might be the trend in Oklahoma’s cases statewide. Which, ah, isn’t great:
❗NEW: Oklahoma reports 673 new coronavirus cases, the 2nd-highest ever single-day increase. The 7-day average has reached a new high of 540 daily cases. pic.twitter.com/KYPewWsYyb — Dillon Richards (@KOCODillon) July 8, 2020
Again, we have a two-day spike following the holiday weekend, with OK setting a record yesterday with 858 cases followed by its second highest number ever today at 673. Is that because there’s a real spike or is it another artifact of slower testing on and around July 4? Note too that there was a steady upward trend in Oklahoma cases even before Trump blew into town. Cases began rising around June 13, climbed steadily upward through the rally on June 20 and onward for another week, then briefly plateaued before another spike last week. Was that second spike a byproduct of Trump’s event — or just the continuation of a weeks-long trend, the same sort that’s plagued Texas and Florida and Arizona lately?
The assumption that the rally “contributed” in some way to Oklahoma’s problem is reasonable. The idea that it was a major contributor is much more questionable. But like I say, as a political matter it’s probably irrelevant. The RNC doesn’t want to be stuck having to argue, “We’re confident there were only a few transmissions of this deadly plague at the president’s rally.” They’re going to end up having to do something about the convention. I’ll leave you with this:


hotair--2020-07-08--Police release video of person of interest in shooting of 8-year-old Atlanta girl

Monday , Ed wrote about the death of 8-year-old Secoriea Turner in Atlanta .
She was killed on July 4th after her mother drove past a roadblock set up near the burned-out Wendy ’ s where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by police .
Police say several people armed with AR-15s and hand guns fired at the car , striking and killing Turner .
Yesterday police released a brief video clip of one of the people they consider a suspect in the case : A police spokesman said there are probably three other suspects who were involved in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the case which brought up some claims which have been circulating on the streets .
One reporter asked if there was anything to the claim that someone in the car had pulled a gun on the protesters which led to their response .
The police spokesman said they have video showing that did no happen .
Another reporter asked if it was true that the car simply wound up in the middle of crossfire between two groups of armed people .
The spokesman also said that wasn ’ t the case .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shot .
Why did this happen ?
It turns out it ’ s much less of a mystery than I thought .
For two weeks before Turner was killed , people living in the area had been complaining about a group of people who had taken over the Wendys and , armed with guns , had set up roadblocks on University Ave. A group of people has taken over the burned-out property of the Wendy ’ s on University Avenue where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed .
They have refused to leave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said they are no longer protesters , but people using the space for their own gain… They said that people block the street , and sometimes will not even allow residents to pass .
“ My husband literally just missed getting caught in the crossfire when he was on his way home , ” said Kimberlee Jones .
“ And people have been shot and have been hurt.
” She lives about a mile from where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed , and said it ’ s been difficult to get through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ took over the parking lot where it happened .
That link above goes to a story about two people who were previously shot ( one man and one woman ) while driving through this same area of University Avenue .
Authorities were well aware of what was happening .
In fact , the President of the Atlanta City Council tweeted images of the roadblocks on June 20 saying “ tension is in the air and emotions are raw.
” And as this clip points out , the armed groups manning the blockades even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through the area .
She complained about the situation to the interim police chief saying , “ they have literally taken over the streets of University Avenue where they stand in the streets and they determine who goes in and out.
” It sounds to me like Atlanta had its own version of CHOP .
Police said they were monitoring the situation from a distance but hesitated to enter the area after one of their officers were assaulted .
Complaints about the situation continued until police blocked off the street and cleared away @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that still wasn ’ t the end of it .
On July 4th the protesters who want the site of the former Wendys to become a “ peace center ” held a block party .
Looking around on Twitter I came across these images also apparently from the Wendy ’ s posted a day after Turner was killed .
But the protesters at the scene released a statement Monday saying no one from their group had anything to do with the shooting .
They called the mayor a liar : It was only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ death , that police finally entered the area and cleared out everything .
As you ’ ll see in this clip , a member of the protest group that had taken over the Wendy ’ s claims they had nothing to do with it .
The obvious question is this : If it wasn ’ t the protesters who were blocking streets and deciding who could pass , who was it ?
The people who killed Turner were in the same area blocking off University Avenue for weeks but we ’ re supposed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Wendy ’ s knew who they were ?
The only good news here is that police indicated today they have been getting lots of tips from the community about who was involved .
Hopefully they ’ ll be able to announce some arrests soon .
Still , this situation should never have been allowed to fester for so long .
As was the case with CHAZ/CHOP , allowing armed groups to create a police no-go zone only ends with people getting killed .
If Atlanta ’ s mayor had shown less tolerance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two shootings in the same spot , Secoriea Turner might still be alive .

Monday, Ed wrote about the death of 8-year-old Secoriea Turner in Atlanta. She was killed on July 4th after her mother drove past a roadblock set up near the burned-out Wendy’s where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by police. Police say several people armed with AR-15s and hand guns fired at the car, striking and killing Turner. Yesterday police released a brief video clip of one of the people they consider a suspect in the case:
A police spokesman said there are probably three other suspects who were involved in the shooting. Police also answered questions about the case which brought up some claims which have been circulating on the streets. One reporter asked if there was anything to the claim that someone in the car had pulled a gun on the protesters which led to their response. The police spokesman said they have video showing that did no happen.
Another reporter asked if it was true that the car simply wound up in the middle of crossfire between two groups of armed people. The spokesman also said that wasn’t the case. The car was specifically targeted when Turner was shot.
Why did this happen?
It turns out it’s much less of a mystery than I thought. For two weeks before Turner was killed, people living in the area had been complaining about a group of people who had taken over the Wendys and, armed with guns, had set up roadblocks on University Ave.
A group of people has taken over the burned-out property of the Wendy’s on University Avenue where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed. They have refused to leave. People who live in the neighborhood said they are no longer protesters, but people using the space for their own gain… They said that people block the street, and sometimes will not even allow residents to pass. “My husband literally just missed getting caught in the crossfire when he was on his way home,” said Kimberlee Jones. “And people have been shot and have been hurt.” She lives about a mile from where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed, and said it’s been difficult to get through her neighborhood since a group of people took over the parking lot where it happened.
That link above goes to a story about two people who were previously shot (one man and one woman) while driving through this same area of University Avenue. Authorities were well aware of what was happening. In fact, the President of the Atlanta City Council tweeted images of the roadblocks on June 20 saying “tension is in the air and emotions are raw.”
Sad situation someone today and yesterday at Wendy's that is blocked off by armed young men with long guns and pistols. All businesses surrounding are boarded. The tension is in the air and emotions are raw. Police are not in sight. Is this Atlanta? No! We must rise up! pic.twitter.com/At86bIAQYL — Felicia Moore (@FeliciaAMoore) June 21, 2020
And as this clip points out, the armed groups manning the blockades even stopped a City Councilwoman who was passing through the area. She complained about the situation to the interim police chief saying, “they have literally taken over the streets of University Avenue where they stand in the streets and they determine who goes in and out.”
It sounds to me like Atlanta had its own version of CHOP. Police said they were monitoring the situation from a distance but hesitated to enter the area after one of their officers were assaulted. Complaints about the situation continued until police blocked off the street and cleared away the barricades on June 24th, but that still wasn’t the end of it. On July 4th the protesters who want the site of the former Wendys to become a “peace center” held a block party.
Yesterday was amazing! So happy we were able to support the folks at the Rayshard Brooks Peace center and the South Side ATL community! Thank you to everyone who donated either monetarily, by volunteering or both! Highlight was speaking with Rayshard’s sister, Lady A. pic.twitter.com/7x7lOMlis6 — Kamyra Edokpolor, B.A (@EdokpolorKamyra) July 5, 2020
Looking around on Twitter I came across these images also apparently from the Wendy’s posted a day after Turner was killed.
But the protesters at the scene released a statement Monday saying no one from their group had anything to do with the shooting. They called the mayor a liar:
Don't let the local media and mayor Bottoms tie the tragic death of an 8 year old child to those at the Rayshard Brooks Peace Center. Those at the RBPC were not involved. The community wants a Peace Center, the mayor just wants business as usual. @KeishaBottoms = LIAR pic.twitter.com/DBGDkJQibQ — F.L.O.W.E.R. (@flowerunited) July 6, 2020
It was only this week, after Turner’s death, that police finally entered the area and cleared out everything. As you’ll see in this clip, a member of the protest group that had taken over the Wendy’s claims they had nothing to do with it.
The obvious question is this: If it wasn’t the protesters who were blocking streets and deciding who could pass, who was it? The people who killed Turner were in the same area blocking off University Avenue for weeks but we’re supposed to believe none of the protesters at the Wendy’s knew who they were?
The only good news here is that police indicated today they have been getting lots of tips from the community about who was involved. Hopefully they’ll be able to announce some arrests soon. Still, this situation should never have been allowed to fester for so long. As was the case with CHAZ/CHOP, allowing armed groups to create a police no-go zone only ends with people getting killed. If Atlanta’s mayor had shown less tolerance and cleared the streets after the first two shootings in the same spot, Secoriea Turner might still be alive.


hotair--2020-07-08--Today's hot topics on Relevant Radio®: SCOTUS and religious liberty, Catholic education, Chesterton,

Today's hot topics on Relevant Radio®: SCOTUS and religious liberty, Catholic education, Chesterton, and more!

Once again , I get to step outside the box and guest host for Sheila Liaugminas ’ A Closer Look @ @ @ @ @ ET today !
The Catholic talk-radio network is heard nationwide on the air , as @ @ @ @ @ their free mobile app that plays live and podcast shows .
• Did the media @ @ @ @ @ Court decisions right ?
NRO ’ s Andrew McCarthy joins us to discuss Little Sisters @ @ @ @ @ ’ s skeptical on the former as to whether it settles anything .
• Some @ @ @ @ @ in retreat .
Chesterton Academy ’ s Dale Ahlquist talks to us about how his @ @ @ @ @ .
We ’ ll also ask him about the Guadalupe decision and its impact on @ @ @ @ @ Catholic catechesis and classical education .
We will also take your calls at 1-888-914-9149 .
@ @ @ @ @ the Relevant Radio® app no matter where you are in the world , so download @ @ @ @ @ ll look forward to talking with you !

Once again, I get to step outside the box and guest host for Sheila Liaugminas’ A Closer Look on Relevant Radio® from 6-7 ET today! The Catholic talk-radio network is heard nationwide on the air, as well as online and through their free mobile app that plays live and podcast shows.
Today’s Relevant Radio® show includes:
Did the media get the two big Supreme Court decisions right? NRO’s Andrew McCarthy joins us to discuss Little Sisters and Guadalupe, and he’s skeptical on the former as to whether it settles anything.
Some worry that Catholic education is in retreat. Chesterton Academy’s Dale Ahlquist talks to us about how his network of schools keeps expanding. We’ll also ask him about the Guadalupe decision and its impact on his mission to focus on Catholic catechesis and classical education.
We will also take your calls at 1-888-914-9149. You can also listen on the Relevant Radio® app no matter where you are in the world, so download it now. I’ll look forward to talking with you!


hotair--2020-07-08--Et tu, Rasmussen? Trump-friendly pollster has Biden up by 10 nationally

Years from now we ’ ll ask ourselves , “ Where were you the day Rasmussen went Never Trump ?
” I kid , but a serious case could be made that this is the single worst national poll Trump has gotten all year .
Other polls have showed bigger leads for Biden , but between the “ house effect ” in Rasmussen ’ s surveys that typically favors Trump plus the fact that Rasmussen polls only likely voters , a 10-point lead for a Democrat in a Ras poll feels even bigger than it is .
This should also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surveys showing Biden up by nine or 10 are part of some “ suppression ” effort by pollsters .
That would make no sense four months out from an election anyway , but obviously Rasmussen wouldn ’ t be part of such an effort if one existed .
They have the race Biden +10 right now because that ’ s where the race really is , as various other data has shown .
I ’ m not sure what to make of the strangely low degree of partisan support each candidate is enjoying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sizable “ leaners ” contingent on each side that Ras isn ’ t counting for this purpose .
There are other indicators of the state of the race right now besides the polling data itself .
Harry Enten flagged an interesting one a few days ago , noting that you can always tell who ’ s ahead in an election by comparing the number of internal polls that each side releases to the public .
A few years ago , before the midterms , Democrats publicized far more internal polls than the GOP @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 40 seats and take back the House .
“ Since 2004 , ” writes Enten , “ there has been a near perfect correlation ( +0.96 on a scale from -1 to +1 ) between the share of partisan polls released by the Democrats and the November results.
” Over the last three months , the ratio of internal polls released by Democrats and their allies to polls released by the GOP and its allies is 17 to 0 .
The Cook Political Report announced this morning that they ’ re moving Georgia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ toss-up , ” Wisconsin and Pennsylvania from “ toss-up ” to “ lean Democratic , ” and Maine from “ lean Democratic ” to “ likely Democratic.
” Amy Walter writes that a wipeout looks increasingly plausible : This election is looking more like a Democratic tsunami than simply a Blue wave .
President Trump , mired in some of the lowest job approval ratings of his presidency , is trailing Biden by significant margins in key battleground states like Pennsylvania ( 8 points ) , Michigan ( 9 points ) , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s even running behind Biden in his firewall states of Florida and North Carolina… Republican strategists we ’ ve spoken with this week think Trump is close to the point of no return .
A couple of others wondered if Trump had reached his “ Katrina ” moment : a permanent loss of trust and faith of the majority of voters… [ I ] f voters start to sense that the race for president is a blow-out , will they be more willing to split their tickets to ensure a ‘ check @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
At least one Republican I spoke with , however , was wary of a check and balance working this year , telling me that “ people are looking for a restart and a reset.
” That includes down-ballot candidates as well as the president .
It ’ s not all due to a “ Trump effect.
” Dave Wasserman flagged this fascinating data point yesterday : Trump ’ s base is shrinking irrespective of the things he says and does , although of course the things he says and does could be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some people who didn ’ t vote Democratic in 2016 to do so this year .
Case in point : The Times has a notable example of the “ Trump effect ” at work within the Democratic base , among whom we ’ d expect the left to be more hostile to Biden than the center .
Biden ’ s a centrist himself , after all ; you would think he ’ d have no trouble appealing to Amy Klobuchar ’ s or Pete Buttigieg ’ s voters but maybe some difficulty winning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is the truth , says Nate Cohn of the NYT .
Klobuchar voters are the most likely to prefer Trump to Biden , splitting 82/9 for Joe with another nine percent preferring another option .
Warren voters are practically unanimously behind Biden — 96/0 , if you can believe it , with four percent choosing “ other.
” ( Bernie voters broke 87/4 . )
In a way that makes sense .
Logically , a centrist Klobuchar fan should be more receptive to a right-wing candidate than a left-wing Warren fan should .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in elections that some centrists in each party will find more to like in the other party ’ s candidate than their own .
The big mystery in this election was whether Biden ’ s squishiness would convince progressives to vote third-party .
That was a major potential liability for Sleepy Joe , the sort of thing that might tip the election in a battleground state .
Answer so far : No , they ’ re not breaking away .
Their antipathy to Trump seems to have them firmly in Biden ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to stage a comeback , it ’ ll probably involve more Klobuchar-friendly voters in the Democratic center and among independents than it will lefties staying home .

Years from now we’ll ask ourselves, “Where were you the day Rasmussen went Never Trump?”
I kid, but a serious case could be made that this is the single worst national poll Trump has gotten all year. Other polls have showed bigger leads for Biden, but between the “house effect” in Rasmussen’s surveys that typically favors Trump plus the fact that Rasmussen polls only likely voters, a 10-point lead for a Democrat in a Ras poll feels even bigger than it is.
This should also lay to rest the conspiracy theory that surveys showing Biden up by nine or 10 are part of some “suppression” effort by pollsters. That would make no sense four months out from an election anyway, but obviously Rasmussen wouldn’t be part of such an effort if one existed. They have the race Biden +10 right now because that’s where the race really is, as various other data has shown.
President Trump trails likely Democratic nominee Joe Biden by ten points in Rasmussen Reports’ first weekly White House Watch survey for 2020. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds Biden earning 50% support among Likely U.S. Voters to Trump’s 40%. Six percent (6%) remain undecided. The new survey finds Trump with 74% of the Republican vote. Biden has the support of 79% of Democrats. Among voters not affiliated with either major party, it’s Biden 48%, Trump 36%.
I’m not sure what to make of the strangely low degree of partisan support each candidate is enjoying here. Presumably there’s a sizable “leaners” contingent on each side that Ras isn’t counting for this purpose.
There are other indicators of the state of the race right now besides the polling data itself. Harry Enten flagged an interesting one a few days ago, noting that you can always tell who’s ahead in an election by comparing the number of internal polls that each side releases to the public. A few years ago, before the midterms, Democrats publicized far more internal polls than the GOP did. They went on to win 40 seats and take back the House. “Since 2004,” writes Enten, “there has been a near perfect correlation (+0.96 on a scale from -1 to +1) between the share of partisan polls released by the Democrats and the November results.” Over the last three months, the ratio of internal polls released by Democrats and their allies to polls released by the GOP and its allies is 17 to 0.
The Cook Political Report announced this morning that they’re moving Georgia from “lean Republican” to “toss-up,” Wisconsin and Pennsylvania from “toss-up” to “lean Democratic,” and Maine from “lean Democratic” to “likely Democratic.” Amy Walter writes that a wipeout looks increasingly plausible:
This election is looking more like a Democratic tsunami than simply a Blue wave. President Trump, mired in some of the lowest job approval ratings of his presidency, is trailing Biden by significant margins in key battleground states like Pennsylvania (8 points), Michigan (9 points), and Wisconsin (9 points). He’s even running behind Biden in his firewall states of Florida and North Carolina… Republican strategists we’ve spoken with this week think Trump is close to the point of no return. A couple of others wondered if Trump had reached his “Katrina” moment: a permanent loss of trust and faith of the majority of voters… [I]f voters start to sense that the race for president is a blow-out, will they be more willing to split their tickets to ensure a ‘check and balance’ in Washington next fall? At least one Republican I spoke with, however, was wary of a check and balance working this year, telling me that “people are looking for a restart and a reset.” That includes down-ballot candidates as well as the president.
It’s not all due to a “Trump effect.” Dave Wasserman flagged this fascinating data point yesterday:
By my estimate, if turnout levels & partisan preferences among 1) non-college whites 2) college whites and 3) non-whites were to remain *constant* from 2016, Biden would flip: Florida (29 EVs)
Michigan (16)
Pennsylvania (20)
Wisconsin (10) …based on demographic change alone. — Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) July 7, 2020
Trump’s base is shrinking irrespective of the things he says and does, although of course the things he says and does could be causing it to shrink faster by convincing some people who didn’t vote Democratic in 2016 to do so this year. Case in point: The Times has a notable example of the “Trump effect” at work within the Democratic base, among whom we’d expect the left to be more hostile to Biden than the center. Biden’s a centrist himself, after all; you would think he’d have no trouble appealing to Amy Klobuchar’s or Pete Buttigieg’s voters but maybe some difficulty winning over Berniebros or Warrenites. The opposite is the truth, says Nate Cohn of the NYT. Klobuchar voters are the most likely to prefer Trump to Biden, splitting 82/9 for Joe with another nine percent preferring another option. Warren voters are practically unanimously behind Biden — 96/0, if you can believe it, with four percent choosing “other.” (Bernie voters broke 87/4.)
In a way that makes sense. Logically, a centrist Klobuchar fan should be more receptive to a right-wing candidate than a left-wing Warren fan should. But it’s always the case in elections that some centrists in each party will find more to like in the other party’s candidate than their own. The big mystery in this election was whether Biden’s squishiness would convince progressives to vote third-party. That was a major potential liability for Sleepy Joe, the sort of thing that might tip the election in a battleground state. Answer so far: No, they’re not breaking away. Their antipathy to Trump seems to have them firmly in Biden’s column right now. If POTUS is going to stage a comeback, it’ll probably involve more Klobuchar-friendly voters in the Democratic center and among independents than it will lefties staying home.


hotair--2020-07-08--Vox's Ezra Klein has thoughts on that Harper's letter criticizing cancel culture (Update)

Ed wrote about the backlash to the Harper ’ s Magazine letter against cancel culture earlier today .
But since then one particular signatory to the letter has received what sounds like a clear warning from his boss .
As I pointed out yesterday , at least two people who work for Vox were complaining on Twitter about Matt Yglesias ’ decision to sign the letter .
One of them , a trans woman named Emily VanDerWerff sent an email to her bosses saying that having Yglesias ’ name on the letter made her feel less safe .
I also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this backlash , Yglesias had apparently deleted all of his tweets .
Today we learned why .
Vox founder Ezra Klein posted this subtweet about the situation a short time ago : He ’ s not mentioning the Harper ’ s letter or Yglesias directly , but it ’ s clear what he ’ s talking about .
In fact , Yglesias responded to this tweet by asking if he was allowed to respond .
It ’ s clear he ’ d previously promised Klein not to make any more controversial statements on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ yesterday .
Yglesias has already deleted his tweet but not before several people got a screenshot of it .
I actually agree that Yglesias was brave to sign given where he works .
This reaction further proves it .
What a jerk move on Klein ’ s part .
If he knew Yglesias had promised not to talk about this , why bring it up publicly ?
Charles Cooke pointed out the absurdity of Klein ’ s position : That 2nd tweet above is a reference to Klein ’ s most recent book @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re Polarized.
” Remember , Klein launched Vox with the goal of trying to combat the scourge of cultural cognition .
This is his beat .
Given that , I wonder if it ever occurred to him that there are two sides to this story : In other words , that letter Emily VanDerWerff sent to Ezra and others at Vox claiming she felt unsafe was about power too .
But I don ’ t see Klein subtweeting her about the mantle of victimhood , which also has tremendous power these days .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the truth : That seems accurate to me .
The real power moves in the free speech debates of the last few years have been made by the people demanding silence from their opponents .
That ’ s what the Harper ’ s letter was about and Matt Yglesias was right to sign it .
As the blowback to that decision continues to show , it was a decision not without risk in this environment .
Update : Ezra Klein says he would never try to get his buddy Matt Yglesias fired @ @ @ @ @ @ @ me if I didn ’ t already know that Ezra Klein will lie to people ’ s faces when he gets in trouble .

Ed wrote about the backlash to the Harper’s Magazine letter against cancel culture earlier today. But since then one particular signatory to the letter has received what sounds like a clear warning from his boss. As I pointed out yesterday, at least two people who work for Vox were complaining on Twitter about Matt Yglesias’ decision to sign the letter. One of them, a trans woman named Emily VanDerWerff sent an email to her bosses saying that having Yglesias’ name on the letter made her feel less safe.
I sent a version of this to the editors of Vox. (I have redacted some bits that are internal to Vox and shouldn’t be aired publicly.) pic.twitter.com/splNNSMivd — Emily VanDerWerff 🙋♀ (@emilyvdw) July 7, 2020
I also noted yesterday that in the wake of this backlash, Yglesias had apparently deleted all of his tweets. Today we learned why. Vox founder Ezra Klein posted this subtweet about the situation a short time ago:
A lot of debates that sell themselves as being about free speech are actually about power. And there's *a lot* of power in being able to claim, and hold, the mantle of free speech defender. — Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) July 8, 2020
He’s not mentioning the Harper’s letter or Yglesias directly, but it’s clear what he’s talking about. In fact, Yglesias responded to this tweet by asking if he was allowed to respond. It’s clear he’d previously promised Klein not to make any more controversial statements on Twitter which explains why he deleted everything yesterday. Yglesias has already deleted his tweet but not before several people got a screenshot of it.
There’s also a lot of *power* in being the actual boss and making it clear that free speech will get the speaker publicly chastised. @mattyglesias was one of the braver signatories: pic.twitter.com/omR7064gkq — Thomas Chatterton Williams 🌍 🎧 (@thomaschattwill) July 8, 2020
I actually agree that Yglesias was brave to sign given where he works. This reaction further proves it.
Clearly, no signatory of The Letter has reason to fear losing their job if they speak their mind. Clearly. pic.twitter.com/U3QhFwxwPk — Yascha Mounk (@Yascha_Mounk) July 8, 2020
What a jerk move on Klein’s part. If he knew Yglesias had promised not to talk about this, why bring it up publicly?
How fucking dare Ezra Klein tell him not to tweet and then subtweet him like that? What an abject asshole. — Noam Blum (@neontaster) July 8, 2020
Charles Cooke pointed out the absurdity of Klein’s position:
Why Vox Is Polarized, Simon & Schuster (2020) — Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) July 8, 2020
That 2nd tweet above is a reference to Klein’s most recent book which is titled “Why We’re Polarized.” Remember, Klein launched Vox with the goal of trying to combat the scourge of cultural cognition. This is his beat. Given that, I wonder if it ever occurred to him that there are two sides to this story:
I wonder whether @ezraklein would admit that a lot of complaints about injustice or "feeling unsafe" are also about power. After all, there's *a lot* of power in being able to claim, and hold, the mantle of victim. https://t.co/Dwj9P02eMn — Matt Harrington (@MattHar65517869) July 8, 2020
In other words, that letter Emily VanDerWerff sent to Ezra and others at Vox claiming she felt unsafe was about power too. But I don’t see Klein subtweeting her about the mantle of victimhood, which also has tremendous power these days. It think this next tweet is closer to the truth:
There's prestige in defending free speech, but less power, because free speech means people who disagree with you are also free to speak. The power is in suppressing free speech, because then you can prevent people who disagree with you from speaking. — Paul Graham (@paulg) July 8, 2020
That seems accurate to me. The real power moves in the free speech debates of the last few years have been made by the people demanding silence from their opponents. That’s what the Harper’s letter was about and Matt Yglesias was right to sign it. As the blowback to that decision continues to show, it was a decision not without risk in this environment.
Update: Ezra Klein says he would never try to get his buddy Matt Yglesias fired.
The idea that I would try to get Matt, literally my co-founder and oldest friend in journalism, fired over this letter is risible. I've asked Matt, and others at Vox, to not subtweet colleagues. My mistake here is this read like a subtweet of him, when it honestly wasn't. https://t.co/oEgNIzGxph — Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) July 8, 2020
This would be more convincing to me if I didn’t already know that Ezra Klein will lie to people’s faces when he gets in trouble.


hotair--2020-07-08--Monmouth: People don't think 'defund the police' literally means 'defunding'

Across the board , Democratic strategists and their candidates have been desperately trying to tiptoe away from the boisterous chants to “ defund the police ” that have been rising up from the streets .
At the same time , they don ’ t want to turn off or aggravate the members of their base that take such messages to heart .
It ’ s a fine line to walk , particularly when poll after poll shows that Americans of all stripes generally consider this to be a very bad , if not suicidal idea .
But perhaps there ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Democrats to be found in the latest Monmouth poll on race relations .
As it turns out , a significant majority of voters , while not being in favor of defunding the police , don ’ t think that the protesters mean it literally when they say it .
Recent protests have also involved calls to “ Defund the Police.
” Most Americans ( 77 % ) believe those who use that phrase really just want to change the way police departments operate .
Only 18 % believe that people who use this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police departments .
The poll also finds about half ( 51 % ) the public believes that police officers are no more or less likely to exhibit racism compared to other groups in the country .
Another 28 % say there is more racism among the police and 14 % say there is less compared to other groups .
These results are similar to a December 2014 poll ( 56 % same amount , 25 % more , 12 % less ) .
“ Most Americans see ‘ Defund the Police ’ as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rather than an actual policy demand , at least for now , ” said [ Monmouth University Polling Director Patrick ] Murray .
I really wanted to point out this poll for our readers and pick apart a few of the details , primarily because there are still people out there who get pretty much all of their news from CNN or MSNBC .
And if you ’ re one of the people who do , you might have gotten the impression that everyone hates ( or is at least suspicious of ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them disbanded .
That is , of course , nonsense .
And it ’ s good to see that 65 % of Americans either think that the police are either no more likely than anyone else to harbor racist views or are actually less likely to do so .
Barely one quarter suspect that police officers are generally more racist than the rest of the public .
At the same time , however , it remains disturbing to learn that so many people ( more than three quarters ) are gullible enough to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ calling for the defunding of the police are just using the phrase as a euphemism .
“ Reforming ” the police is one thing , but literally defunding law enforcement means either substantially weakening it or doing away with it altogether .
And that ’ s precisely what many of the anarchists setting up CHOP zones and their marching masses of supporters want .
They aren ’ t joking .
You may want to flip through the rest of the linked poll results because there do seem to be some gradual shifts taking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ race relations in this country and what they think about the Black Lives Matter movement in general .
A slim majority of 52 % of voters believe that race relations will wind up improving as a result of the current unrest and protests .
( 21 % said things will improve “ a lot ” and 31 % said “ a little.
” ) Meanwhile , 44 % said that things will either get worse or not really change significantly .
Amazingly , the Black Lives Matter movement has somehow managed to improve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Americas , at least in small measures .
A whopping 71 % of respondents said that BLM has “ brought increased attention to racial disparities ” in the country .
But as to whether they are helping or hurting matters , the opinions were more mixed .
38 % feel that BLM has made racial matters worse in America , while 26 % say they ’ ve made things better .
Another 32 % say they haven ’ t impacted the issue one way or the other .
That ’ s a pretty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Barely a quarter of voters think Black Lives Matter is actually helping to improve race relations .
That means that they aren ’ t even getting the support of a majority of Democrats .
When Monmouth breaks that question down along party lines , only 35 % of non-Republicans believe that the group has improved racial issues .
I don ’ t know where the future of race relations in our country is heading , but I suppose it depends where you live and who you talk to .
We really haven @ @ @ @ @ @ @ way of such issues where I live , but if you ’ re watching what ’ s going on in the cities on cable news it looks pretty bad out there at the moment .
And in my opinion , having liberal news outlets stoking the flames 24/7 isn ’ t helping any .

Across the board, Democratic strategists and their candidates have been desperately trying to tiptoe away from the boisterous chants to “defund the police” that have been rising up from the streets. At the same time, they don’t want to turn off or aggravate the members of their base that take such messages to heart. It’s a fine line to walk, particularly when poll after poll shows that Americans of all stripes generally consider this to be a very bad, if not suicidal idea. But perhaps there’s some good news for those nervous Democrats to be found in the latest Monmouth poll on race relations. As it turns out, a significant majority of voters, while not being in favor of defunding the police, don’t think that the protesters mean it literally when they say it.
Recent protests have also involved calls to “Defund the Police.” Most Americans (77%) believe those who use that phrase really just want to change the way police departments operate. Only 18% believe that people who use this phrase actually want to get rid of police departments. The poll also finds about half (51%) the public believes that police officers are no more or less likely to exhibit racism compared to other groups in the country. Another 28% say there is more racism among the police and 14% say there is less compared to other groups. These results are similar to a December 2014 poll (56% same amount, 25% more, 12% less). “Most Americans see ‘Defund the Police’ as more of a general statement of purpose rather than an actual policy demand, at least for now,” said [Monmouth University Polling Director Patrick] Murray.
I really wanted to point out this poll for our readers and pick apart a few of the details, primarily because there are still people out there who get pretty much all of their news from CNN or MSNBC. And if you’re one of the people who do, you might have gotten the impression that everyone hates (or is at least suspicious of) the police and would like to see them disbanded. That is, of course, nonsense. And it’s good to see that 65% of Americans either think that the police are either no more likely than anyone else to harbor racist views or are actually less likely to do so. Barely one quarter suspect that police officers are generally more racist than the rest of the public.
At the same time, however, it remains disturbing to learn that so many people (more than three quarters) are gullible enough to think that the rioters in the streets calling for the defunding of the police are just using the phrase as a euphemism. “Reforming” the police is one thing, but literally defunding law enforcement means either substantially weakening it or doing away with it altogether. And that’s precisely what many of the anarchists setting up CHOP zones and their marching masses of supporters want. They aren’t joking.
You may want to flip through the rest of the linked poll results because there do seem to be some gradual shifts taking place in terms of how voters view race relations in this country and what they think about the Black Lives Matter movement in general. A slim majority of 52% of voters believe that race relations will wind up improving as a result of the current unrest and protests. (21% said things will improve “a lot” and 31% said “a little.”) Meanwhile, 44% said that things will either get worse or not really change significantly.
Amazingly, the Black Lives Matter movement has somehow managed to improve their standing in the opinions of some Americas, at least in small measures. A whopping 71% of respondents said that BLM has “brought increased attention to racial disparities” in the country. But as to whether they are helping or hurting matters, the opinions were more mixed. 38% feel that BLM has made racial matters worse in America, while 26% say they’ve made things better. Another 32% say they haven’t impacted the issue one way or the other.
That’s a pretty stunning figure, isn’t it? Barely a quarter of voters think Black Lives Matter is actually helping to improve race relations. That means that they aren’t even getting the support of a majority of Democrats. When Monmouth breaks that question down along party lines, only 35% of non-Republicans believe that the group has improved racial issues.
I don’t know where the future of race relations in our country is heading, but I suppose it depends where you live and who you talk to. We really haven’t run into much in the way of such issues where I live, but if you’re watching what’s going on in the cities on cable news it looks pretty bad out there at the moment. And in my opinion, having liberal news outlets stoking the flames 24/7 isn’t helping any.


hotair--2020-07-08--Floyd homicide defendant: Body cam shows charges should be dropped

Everyone has seen the video that prompted the mass outpouring of anger into the streets of America .
What do the body cam videos of the killing of George Floyd show that might change minds on the case ?
Counsel for one of the other officers on the scene submitted a motion to dismiss today , arguing that the video showed that Thomas Lane could not possibly have known that Derek Chauvin was committing a crime , let alone aid and abet it .
Gray has argued in court that the case against Lane should be dismissed because his client @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who was handcuffed and lying stomach-down in the street , onto his side .
Chauvin said no .
Lane was holding onto Floyd ’ s legs at the time .
Kueng was holding onto Floyd ’ s back .
Thao was managing a crowd nearby that had begun to gather and while some pleaded with the officers to lighten up .
… Lane was holding onto Floyd ’ s legs at the time .
Kueng was holding onto Floyd ’ s back .
Thao was managing a crowd nearby that had begun @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the officers to lighten up .
The motion includes transcripts of footage from Kueng and Lane ’ s body cameras .
Kueng ’ s attorney , Thomas Plunkett , confirmed that body-worn camera footage from Kueng and Lane were publicly filed as part of Lane ’ s motion .
The state court website tracking all four former officers ’ cases listed the transcripts but did not list the camera videos as having been filed .
It ’ s unclear why ; the courts could not be immediately reached for comment .
The body @ @ @ @ @ @ @ description in court filings — give the most complete account of the incident yet .
Floyd apparently didn ’ t entirely cooperate at first , ignoring commands to show his hands .
Floyd apologized and said he had been shot once before by police and that he was flustered at the stop .
Lane told investigators from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension that Floyd had been “ digging underneath the seat ” when they first approached , however , which made them think he was potentially going to pull out a weapon .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ cam footage supports that version , but it would at least have contributed to heightened threat assessment right off the bat .
We also know now why Floyd was on the ground in the first place .
The officers had tried to get him into the squad car , but Floyd refused and resisted , as WCCO reports from the body cam footage transcripts : Floyd also insisted that he was claustrophobic , and even an offer from one of the officers to sit in the back seat with him didn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s clear that there was at least some attempt to get Floyd into the car to process the arrest normally , and Floyd refused to comply .
That still doesn ’ t excuse what Derek Chauvin did — at all .
However , Lane ’ s attorney argued that his client figured that the senior officer had a better grasp on threat assessment , and that Lane questioned Chauvin more than once about Floyd ’ s status .
That much apparently was captured on the body cam : In a memorandum @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cited body camera footage of Floyd ’ s arrest in which Lane asks , “ should we get his legs up , or is this good ?
” and Chauvin replies , “ leave him.
” Again , Lane says “ should we roll him on his side ” and Chauvin says “ no , he ’ s staying put where we got him.
” Lane replies , “ Okay .
I just worry about the excited delirium or whatever.
” According to the memorandum , Lane asks one more time , “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
” and then once the ambulance arrives , offers to ride along and help with CPR .
Lane ’ s training emphasized the need to follow direction from senior officers , Gray emphasized — and noted that Lane had only completed his training five days earlier .
He also cites the MPD ’ s own manual , which authorizes neck restraints , and wants the judge to determine whether Lane committed any crime at all : That ’ s a good argument , but perhaps not in Hennepin County — at least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ might be inclined to consider this an issue for a jury to decide rather than an argument that requires a directed verdict , especially at this early stage .
If so , this will definitely be the argument coming from the three other officers charged in this case — they could not have abetted a crime when they didn ’ t see any crime in process .
If the neck restraint was within the rules at the time , then the other three officers would have been expected to follow the lead of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if it has to go to a jury ?
Don ’ t forget that the jury will also see just how long Floyd suffered in that restraint until he died .
The emotional takeaway will almost certainly be that if jurors could see it on tape , then those three officers should have seen it at the time — especially with an agitated crowd pointing it out to them .
Gray and Lane probably only have the judge as the exit here .
Update : The Star Tribune has the transcript of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is very clear that Lane and Keung did try repeatedly to get Floyd into the squad car and that Floyd repeatedly refused to comply .
The rest is tough to analyze without the video itself .

Everyone has seen the video that prompted the mass outpouring of anger into the streets of America. What do the body cam videos of the killing of George Floyd show that might change minds on the case? Counsel for one of the other officers on the scene submitted a motion to dismiss today, arguing that the video showed that Thomas Lane could not possibly have known that Derek Chauvin was committing a crime, let alone aid and abet it.
Good luck with that motion, Earl Gray:
Gray has argued in court that the case against Lane should be dismissed because his client twice asked if they should turn Floyd, who was handcuffed and lying stomach-down in the street, onto his side. Chauvin said no. Lane was holding onto Floyd’s legs at the time. Kueng was holding onto Floyd’s back. Thao was managing a crowd nearby that had begun to gather and while some pleaded with the officers to lighten up. … Lane was holding onto Floyd’s legs at the time. Kueng was holding onto Floyd’s back. Thao was managing a crowd nearby that had begun to gather and while some pleaded with the officers to lighten up. The motion includes transcripts of footage from Kueng and Lane’s body cameras. Kueng’s attorney, Thomas Plunkett, confirmed that body-worn camera footage from Kueng and Lane were publicly filed as part of Lane’s motion. The state court website tracking all four former officers’ cases listed the transcripts but did not list the camera videos as having been filed. It’s unclear why; the courts could not be immediately reached for comment.
The body cam footage — or at least its description in court filings — give the most complete account of the incident yet. Floyd apparently didn’t entirely cooperate at first, ignoring commands to show his hands. Floyd apologized and said he had been shot once before by police and that he was flustered at the stop. Lane told investigators from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension that Floyd had been “digging underneath the seat” when they first approached, however, which made them think he was potentially going to pull out a weapon. It’s unclear whether the body cam footage supports that version, but it would at least have contributed to heightened threat assessment right off the bat.
We also know now why Floyd was on the ground in the first place. The officers had tried to get him into the squad car, but Floyd refused and resisted, as WCCO reports from the body cam footage transcripts:
KUENG: Take seat! FLOYD: I’m not that kind of guy! I’m not that kind of guy, man! KUENG: You need to take a seat right now! FLOYD: And I just had COVID man, I don’t want to go back to that.
Floyd also insisted that he was claustrophobic, and even an offer from one of the officers to sit in the back seat with him didn’t get any cooperation. Whatever else, it’s clear that there was at least some attempt to get Floyd into the car to process the arrest normally, and Floyd refused to comply.
That still doesn’t excuse what Derek Chauvin did — at all. However, Lane’s attorney argued that his client figured that the senior officer had a better grasp on threat assessment, and that Lane questioned Chauvin more than once about Floyd’s status. That much apparently was captured on the body cam:
In a memorandum filed along with the dismissal, Gray cited body camera footage of Floyd’s arrest in which Lane asks, “should we get his legs up, or is this good?” and Chauvin replies, “leave him.” Again, Lane says “should we roll him on his side” and Chauvin says “no, he’s staying put where we got him.” Lane replies, “Okay. I just worry about the excited delirium or whatever.” According to the memorandum, Lane asks one more time, “should we roll him on his side?” and then once the ambulance arrives, offers to ride along and help with CPR.
Lane’s training emphasized the need to follow direction from senior officers, Gray emphasized — and noted that Lane had only completed his training five days earlier. He also cites the MPD’s own manual, which authorizes neck restraints, and wants the judge to determine whether Lane committed any crime at all:
Gray also cited the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) training manual, which outlines neck restraints and excited delerium [sic]. MPD has sinced banned chokeholds under an emergency injunction. In his memorandum, Gray says that to prove aiding and abetting, “the state must show that the defendant played a knowing role in the commission of the crime. … Mere presence at the crime scene does not alone prove that a person aided or abetted, because inaction, knowledge, or passive acquiescence do not rise to the level of criminal culpability.”
That’s a good argument, but perhaps not in Hennepin County — at least in a pretrial hearing. A judge might be inclined to consider this an issue for a jury to decide rather than an argument that requires a directed verdict, especially at this early stage. If so, this will definitely be the argument coming from the three other officers charged in this case — they could not have abetted a crime when they didn’t see any crime in process. If the neck restraint was within the rules at the time, then the other three officers would have been expected to follow the lead of the senior officer.
Will that suffice if it has to go to a jury? Don’t forget that the jury will also see just how long Floyd suffered in that restraint until he died. The emotional takeaway will almost certainly be that if jurors could see it on tape, then those three officers should have seen it at the time — especially with an agitated crowd pointing it out to them. Gray and Lane probably only have the judge as the exit here.
Update: The Star Tribune has the transcript of the Lane body cam embedded here. It is very clear that Lane and Keung did try repeatedly to get Floyd into the squad car and that Floyd repeatedly refused to comply. The rest is tough to analyze without the video itself.


hotair--2020-07-08--A requiem for CHOP: Details of the killing that became the last straw for Seattle's police-free zone

It has been just over a week since Seattle finally cleared out the CHOP , formerly known as CHAZ .
Today the Seattle Times published the results of its investigation into the killing of 16-year-old Antonio Mays and the shooting of an unidentified 14-year-old who was a passenger in the same SUV .
Mays was not a local but had left home in San Diego “ to be a part of history ” by joining the CHOP .
His death would become the last straw for its existence .
The Times notes that , like the previous deadly shooting in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no one has been arrested for killing Antonio Mays .
Police aren ’ t saying much about what happened that night , but the Times pieced together this timeline based on video .
About five minutes before the fatal shooting , videos show roughly a dozen people run from the encampment that had flanked the shuttered precinct building for weeks .
Most run west , toward Cal Anderson .
But a few run the opposite direction .
About a minute later : Gunshots .
First , two or three .
Then a 20-second @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shots , in rapid succession .
Shouts from the protest area sound like they should be coming from a war zone , not a sleepy urban neighborhood .
“ Anyone with weapons , I want them behind this barrier … multiple vehicles , multiple vehicles , stolen white Jeep !
” It ’ s unclear why the speaker thinks , or how they know , the Jeep is stolen… At 2:58 a.m. , three minutes after the previous gunshots , tires screech and a white Jeep Cherokee traveling up East Pike Street turns @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protest area .
Seattle police said that Mays and the injured 14-year-old were “ presumably the occupants of the Jeep.
” There ’ s a scream , then a gunshot , then two more .
People duck behind barricades and flee .
The Jeep hits either a concrete barrier or a portable toilet at the edge of the protest area .
Six more gunshots .
The Jeep backs up briefly , then drives forward again , and again hits the barrier and the toilet .
Ten more gunshots .
Someone appears to approach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ re not dead , huh ?
” someone says .
“ Yo , you want to get pistol whipped ?
” So how did this happen ?
The Times spoke to a man in his 30s who doesn ’ t want to be identified .
He says he was beaten up that night around 2:30 am by two men .
He gave the men the keys to his white Jeep Cherokee in order to get them to stop .
“ I have a car , just take my car , ” he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presumably Mays and his 14-year-old companion , began driving the car and for some reason people inside the CHOP were convinced they were shooting at people from inside .
But the carjacking victim says he never saw any weapons on his attackers and no one claims to have been shot or injured by gunfire coming from the vehicle .
Did Mays and his companion shoot at anyone ?
Did they even have weapons ?
It ’ s not clear and Police Chief Carmen Best said at the time that people were in and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ showed up , so any evidence or absence of evidence is suspect .
Police have said that it ’ s clear several people fired shots into the Jeep .
The Times doesn ’ t draw any firm conclusions but the picture they paint of what happened that night suggests that protesters may have misunderstood what was happening .
Shots were fired but they might not have come from the Jeep .
There were lots of armed people walking around the CHOP .
Security people were convinced the CHOP was under attack and targeted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shots .
But again , it ’ s not clear they really were under attack or that Mays and his passenger even had weapons .
Mays ’ family thinks the CHOP shouldn ’ t have been allowed to exist until his death .
“ It took all these deaths for them to go and say , ‘ this is enough , ' ” his aunt told the Seattle Times .
She added , “ It shouldn ’ t have taken that .
That ’ s what city officials are for.
” Vox published @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of CHOP .
One local woman they spoke to noted the similarity to the collapse of Occupy nearly a decade earlier .
“ The ‘ community center block party ’ vibe ended after the first week , ” said one local woman .
“ This reminds me of NYC during Occupy Wall Street almost to a ‘ T. ’ Except here people are getting killed.
” The issue , she said , is that she felt the protests shifted away from police violence and Black Lives Matter into more of an anarchist message @ @ @ @ @ @ @ voices are all sharing the same ‘ fuck capitalism/establishment/burn it all down ’ rhetoric .
The camp and the early infrastructure is similar , ” she said , saying that the lack of clear leadership hurt efforts to make the area safe .
“ Sure , burn it all down , but have a plan .
The lack of a central voice , the lack of a plan , and the elevation of people who don ’ t even live here are very similar.
” The best part of the Vox piece is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ publisher of CapitolHillSeattle.com , tells Vox that CHAZ/CHOP shouldn ’ t be judged too harshly because it wasn ’ t “ a true police-free neighborhood.
” Part of the issue , according to Justin , is that , despite coverage to the contrary , including from Vox , CHOP was never set up to be a true police-free neighborhood .
It was , above all , a protest .
“ I don ’ t think it ’ s fair as a laboratory for ” a police-free neighborhood , said Justin .
CHOP “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so many other resources that you ’ d have to have to make that world work that it ’ s just not fair to measure it that way.
” It ’ s every communists ’ lame defense of failed communist states , i.e .
real communism has never been tried .
In this case , he ’ s claiming that a real police-free neighborhood has never been tried even though that ’ s exactly what CHAZ/CHOP was from the start .
It failed spectacularly with attempted rape , arson , at least five @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hey , don ’ t let that make you think it was a bad idea .
Thanks for that helpful explainer , Vox .

It has been just over a week since Seattle finally cleared out the CHOP, formerly known as CHAZ. Today the Seattle Times published the results of its investigation into the killing of 16-year-old Antonio Mays and the shooting of an unidentified 14-year-old who was a passenger in the same SUV. Mays was not a local but had left home in San Diego “to be a part of history” by joining the CHOP. His death would become the last straw for its existence.
The Times notes that, like the previous deadly shooting in the CHOP of 19-year-old Lorenzo Anderson, no one has been arrested for killing Antonio Mays. Police aren’t saying much about what happened that night, but the Times pieced together this timeline based on video.
About five minutes before the fatal shooting, videos show roughly a dozen people run from the encampment that had flanked the shuttered precinct building for weeks. It’s 2:53 a.m. Most run west, toward Cal Anderson. But a few run the opposite direction. About a minute later: Gunshots. First, two or three. Then a 20-second lull. And then about 10 more shots, in rapid succession. Shouts from the protest area sound like they should be coming from a war zone, not a sleepy urban neighborhood. “Everybody down, everybody down!” “Eyes up, eyes up, eyes up!” “Anyone with weapons, I want them behind this barrier … multiple vehicles, multiple vehicles, stolen white Jeep!” It’s unclear why the speaker thinks, or how they know, the Jeep is stolen… At 2:58 a.m., three minutes after the previous gunshots, tires screech and a white Jeep Cherokee traveling up East Pike Street turns left on 12th, headed toward the protest area. Seattle police said that Mays and the injured 14-year-old were “presumably the occupants of the Jeep.” There’s a scream, then a gunshot, then two more. People duck behind barricades and flee. The Jeep hits either a concrete barrier or a portable toilet at the edge of the protest area. Six more gunshots. The Jeep backs up briefly, then drives forward again, and again hits the barrier and the toilet. Ten more gunshots. Someone appears to approach the Jeep. “Oh, you’re not dead, huh?” someone says. “Yo, you want to get pistol whipped?”
So how did this happen? The Times spoke to a man in his 30s who doesn’t want to be identified. He says he was beaten up that night around 2:30 am by two men. He gave the men the keys to his white Jeep Cherokee in order to get them to stop. “I have a car, just take my car,” he told them.
The two men, presumably Mays and his 14-year-old companion, began driving the car and for some reason people inside the CHOP were convinced they were shooting at people from inside. But the carjacking victim says he never saw any weapons on his attackers and no one claims to have been shot or injured by gunfire coming from the vehicle.
Did Mays and his companion shoot at anyone? Did they even have weapons? It’s not clear and Police Chief Carmen Best said at the time that people were in and out of the Jeep long before police showed up, so any evidence or absence of evidence is suspect. Police have said that it’s clear several people fired shots into the Jeep.
The Times doesn’t draw any firm conclusions but the picture they paint of what happened that night suggests that protesters may have misunderstood what was happening. Shots were fired but they might not have come from the Jeep. There were lots of armed people walking around the CHOP. Security people were convinced the CHOP was under attack and targeted the Jeep as the source of the shots. But again, it’s not clear they really were under attack or that Mays and his passenger even had weapons.
Mays’ family thinks the CHOP shouldn’t have been allowed to exist until his death. “It took all these deaths for them to go and say, ‘this is enough,'” his aunt told the Seattle Times. She added, “It shouldn’t have taken that. That’s what city officials are for.”
Vox published a piece last week about the collapse of CHOP. One local woman they spoke to noted the similarity to the collapse of Occupy nearly a decade earlier.
“The ‘community center block party’ vibe ended after the first week,” said one local woman. “This reminds me of NYC during Occupy Wall Street almost to a ‘T.’ Except here people are getting killed.” The issue, she said, is that she felt the protests shifted away from police violence and Black Lives Matter into more of an anarchist message. “The people with the loudest voices are all sharing the same ‘fuck capitalism/establishment/burn it all down’ rhetoric. The camp and the early infrastructure is similar,” she said, saying that the lack of clear leadership hurt efforts to make the area safe. “Sure, burn it all down, but have a plan. The lack of a central voice, the lack of a plan, and the elevation of people who don’t even live here are very similar.”
The best part of the Vox piece is the very end where Justin, the publisher of CapitolHillSeattle.com, tells Vox that CHAZ/CHOP shouldn’t be judged too harshly because it wasn’t “a true police-free neighborhood.”
Part of the issue, according to Justin, is that, despite coverage to the contrary, including from Vox, CHOP was never set up to be a true police-free neighborhood. It was, above all, a protest. “I don’t think it’s fair as a laboratory for” a police-free neighborhood, said Justin. CHOP “also lacks so many other investments and so many other resources that you’d have to have to make that world work that it’s just not fair to measure it that way.”
It’s every communists’ lame defense of failed communist states, i.e. real communism has never been tried. In this case, he’s claiming that a real police-free neighborhood has never been tried even though that’s exactly what CHAZ/CHOP was from the start. It failed spectacularly with attempted rape, arson, at least five shot and two people dead but, hey, don’t let that make you think it was a bad idea. Thanks for that helpful explainer, Vox.


hotair--2020-07-08--Another SUV drives through a BLM road blockade

You should probably get used to seeing headlines like this .
With the expansion of the tactic of mobs of protesters and rioters blocking streets and highways , leading to attacks on vehicles and their occupants , more and more motorists seem to be deciding to risk being taken in by the police rather than being beaten or otherwise assaulted .
That means that some of them , when pinned in by an angry mob , are choosing to hit the gas and let fortune sort out the rest .
That ’ s what happened in New York City last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ block off 6th Street near 42nd Avenue , trapping a black SUV in their midst .
A confrontation ensued and the driver wound up taking off , running over some bicycles that were in the middle of the street and knocking some of the members of the mob out of the way .
And , of course , everyone taking part in the demonstration is blaming the driver , but videos of the action tell a different story .
( NY Post ) An SUV driver was taken in custody after driving through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bicycles that Black Lives Matters protesters used to try to prevent traffic on a Midtown road , police sources said .
The confrontation between the activists and the driver of a Dodge Durango unfolded at 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue at about 9:10 p.m. , according to witnesses and police .
The man was driving westbound on Sixth Avenue , when he was surrounded by roughly a dozen protesters , many on bikes , who were attempting to block access to the road for five minutes as marchers made their way to Bryant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
As the ralliers tried to shut off road access , positioning themselves around the SUV , “ the driver kept moving , ” the organizer , who identified as Mary , 23 , said .
This brief video report from the Post doesn ’ t capture that actual collision with the bikes but does pick up on some of the aftermath .
Some self-appointed “ spokespeople ” for the group were quick to try to explain to reporters that they were only trying to block the street “ for a little while.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ wanted to be “ peaceful.
” However , the Post got a look at some now-deleted videos on social media that showed what actually happened .
Once the SUV was stopped , people were immediately heard yelling “ Pop his tires !
” A second video showed one of the “ demonstrators ” doing just that , jabbing a knife into one of the SUV ’ s tires and letting the air out .
That ’ s when the driver decided that discretion was the better part of valor and took off .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ current status of the driver .
The initial report said that they were “ taken into custody.
” However , it was later reported that the man had not been arrested , so it may have been protective custody .
Either way , there were no injuries reported and the only damage was to the man ’ s vehicle and some of the bicycles .
The spokeswoman ’ s claims of not really blocking the street and only needing to briefly cross it don ’ t hold up .
The man driving the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people were riding .
They had been intentionally built into a roadblock to prevent traffic from passing through .
And they clearly had no intention of allowing the man in the SUV to simply drive away .
What was he supposed to do in that event ?
Wait for his windows to be smashed in and hope to escape with his life ?
As I already said , you can pretty much count on seeing more of this , and it ’ s not the fault of the drivers .
When an angry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ streets and highways without obtaining a permit and allowing time for law enforcement to reroute traffic around a planned event , the mob is in violation of the law .
When law enforcement fails to move in and clear the traffic lanes promptly and protect the drivers in the area , the city is complicit in the crime .
We ’ ve already seen far too many instances of vehicles being vandalized , windows being broken and people being dragged out of their cars and assaulted .
If someone is caught up in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no sane justification to say that they should have just sat there and allowed the mob to do as they wished , possibly at the expense of the driver ’ s property , safety , or even life .
When you ’ re trapped and facing a credible threat of imminent danger , you get yourself out of the area as quickly as possible .
And if the rioters offer you no route other than one that leads straight through their crowd or the obstructions they ’ ve erected , that ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ always fix your vehicle later .
The same may not be true about your face .

You should probably get used to seeing headlines like this. With the expansion of the tactic of mobs of protesters and rioters blocking streets and highways, leading to attacks on vehicles and their occupants, more and more motorists seem to be deciding to risk being taken in by the police rather than being beaten or otherwise assaulted. That means that some of them, when pinned in by an angry mob, are choosing to hit the gas and let fortune sort out the rest. That’s what happened in New York City last night. A group had moved to block off 6th Street near 42nd Avenue, trapping a black SUV in their midst. A confrontation ensued and the driver wound up taking off, running over some bicycles that were in the middle of the street and knocking some of the members of the mob out of the way. And, of course, everyone taking part in the demonstration is blaming the driver, but videos of the action tell a different story. (NY Post)
An SUV driver was taken in custody after driving through a crowd and over a barrier of bicycles that Black Lives Matters protesters used to try to prevent traffic on a Midtown road, police sources said. The confrontation between the activists and the driver of a Dodge Durango unfolded at 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue at about 9:10 p.m., according to witnesses and police. The man was driving westbound on Sixth Avenue, when he was surrounded by roughly a dozen protesters, many on bikes, who were attempting to block access to the road for five minutes as marchers made their way to Bryant Park, an organizer told The Post. As the ralliers tried to shut off road access, positioning themselves around the SUV, “the driver kept moving,” the organizer, who identified as Mary, 23, said.
This brief video report from the Post doesn’t capture that actual collision with the bikes but does pick up on some of the aftermath.
Some self-appointed “spokespeople” for the group were quick to try to explain to reporters that they were only trying to block the street “for a little while.” And, of course, everyone wanted to be “peaceful.”
However, the Post got a look at some now-deleted videos on social media that showed what actually happened. Once the SUV was stopped, people were immediately heard yelling “Pop his tires!” A second video showed one of the “demonstrators” doing just that, jabbing a knife into one of the SUV’s tires and letting the air out. That’s when the driver decided that discretion was the better part of valor and took off.
There’s some confusion about the current status of the driver. The initial report said that they were “taken into custody.” However, it was later reported that the man had not been arrested, so it may have been protective custody. Either way, there were no injuries reported and the only damage was to the man’s vehicle and some of the bicycles.
The spokeswoman’s claims of not really blocking the street and only needing to briefly cross it don’t hold up. The man driving the SUV wasn’t hitting bicycles that people were riding. They had been intentionally built into a roadblock to prevent traffic from passing through. And they clearly had no intention of allowing the man in the SUV to simply drive away. What was he supposed to do in that event? Wait for his windows to be smashed in and hope to escape with his life?
As I already said, you can pretty much count on seeing more of this, and it’s not the fault of the drivers. When an angry mob decides they can simply shut down streets and highways without obtaining a permit and allowing time for law enforcement to reroute traffic around a planned event, the mob is in violation of the law. When law enforcement fails to move in and clear the traffic lanes promptly and protect the drivers in the area, the city is complicit in the crime.
We’ve already seen far too many instances of vehicles being vandalized, windows being broken and people being dragged out of their cars and assaulted. If someone is caught up in a situation like this, there is no sane justification to say that they should have just sat there and allowed the mob to do as they wished, possibly at the expense of the driver’s property, safety, or even life. When you’re trapped and facing a credible threat of imminent danger, you get yourself out of the area as quickly as possible. And if the rioters offer you no route other than one that leads straight through their crowd or the obstructions they’ve erected, that’s the way you go. You can always fix your vehicle later. The same may not be true about your face.


hotair--2020-07-08--Today's culture-war question: Who's had it with the NFL and its hypocrites?

Kyle Smith has , and not because of kneeling or national anthems .
The league ’ s near-dead silence on DeSean Jackson ’ s grotesquely anti-Semitic tweet and half-baked apology stands in stark contrast to the avalanche of vitriol received by Drew Brees just a couple of weeks ago .
For the sin of claiming that patriotism kept him from kneeling before games — but without criticism of those who do — the New Orleans Saints ’ future Hall of Famer got buried in invective from players around the league , and from other sports leagues as well , Smith @ @ @ @ @ @ @ American flag and all it stands for , said he didn ’ t agree with kneeling for the national anthem and correctly described this gesture of open disrespect as disrespect .
“ Is everything right with our country right now ?
” said the Saints ’ future Hall of Famer .
“ No , it is not .
We still have a long way to go .
But I think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart , is it shows unity.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ felt forced to give groveling apology after groveling apology .
One of his own teammates , Emmanuel Sanders , called him “ ignorant.
” LeBron James criticized Brees also .
Philadelphia Eagles star DeSean Jackson posted a ( fake , but in-character ) Adolf Hitler quotation that was nakedly anti-Semitic ( white Jews will “ will extort America , but their plan for world domination won ’ t work if the Negroes know who they were.
” ) together with praise for the most notorious of American anti-Semites , Louis Farrakhan .
Did @ @ @ @ @ @ @ NBA step up to condemn anti-Semitism with the same passion that they condemned Brees ’ statement ?
Not exactly .
In fact , a couple of former players broke the silence by supporting Jackson ’ s anti-Semitic rant , complete with their own versions of idiocy ( via Twitchy ) : This is a hoax perpetrated , ironically , by white supremacists .
Rosenthal was killed by Palestinian terrorists in 1976 , and shortly afterward this manufactured quote emerged .
As the Jerusalem Post notes , even some white supremacists rejected it at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interview ” with Rosenthal or shortly afterward , and has never produced any evidence that Rosenthal met him .
Johnson made it clear he doesn ’ t care , too : Idiots and bigots rarely do , at least willingly .
Johnson isn ’ t the only professional athlete coming to Jackson ’ s defense .
Here ’ s former NBA player Stephen Jackson assuring us that DeSean Jackson ’ s “ is speaking the truth , ” and just wants to “ educate ” us : That wasn ’ t “ truth @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It was literally a series of lies , and easily debunked lies at that .
Jackson may have a point about the league ’ s response to racism , but if selling anti-Semitic slurs is “ speaking the truth , ” then why should the league care if its players don ’ t tackle other forms of hate more vigorously ?
Better yet , why should its fans ?
This point is precisely why Kyle ’ s argument resonates .
The kneeling issue was overblown by all sides , and social activism is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( within the law , of course ) .
Criticism can be met with criticism , and that ’ s also part of the great value within free speech .
The criticism isn ’ t the problem , or at least it ’ s not the real problem — it ’ s the reeking condescension and hypocrisy of these elite athletes and their leagues .
On one hand , they plan to roll out a season of lectures for its fans on racism and hate , and cast those who might have different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
On the other hand , when another player engages in outright declarations of anti-Semitism — especially in regurgitating idiotic hoaxes and cheering on pseudo-Hitler — these same players are not only silent , they occasionally cheer it on .
And the league itself , which has spent the last several years negotiating on just how much money they want to pour into the players ’ social-justice causes , doesn ’ t even issue a peep about it .
And let ’ s not forget about the NBA ’ s cowardly surrender to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ too .
“ Anybody else feeling a loss of interest in the NFL as an institution ?
I know I am , ” Smith concludes .
So am I .
When the league and its players want to address all forms of hate and intolerance , they can call me .
As long as they ’ re giving a pass or actively cheering anti-Semitism , though , I have better uses of my time and money .
See you in 2021 … maybe .

Kyle Smith has, and not because of kneeling or national anthems. The league’s near-dead silence on DeSean Jackson’s grotesquely anti-Semitic tweet and half-baked apology stands in stark contrast to the avalanche of vitriol received by Drew Brees just a couple of weeks ago. For the sin of claiming that patriotism kept him from kneeling before games — but without criticism of those who do — the New Orleans Saints’ future Hall of Famer got buried in invective from players around the league, and from other sports leagues as well, Smith recalls:
So Drew Brees defended the American flag and all it stands for, said he didn’t agree with kneeling for the national anthem and correctly described this gesture of open disrespect as disrespect. “Is everything right with our country right now?” said the Saints’ future Hall of Famer. “No, it is not. We still have a long way to go. But I think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart, is it shows unity.” So much anger followed that Brees felt forced to give groveling apology after groveling apology. One of his own teammates, Emmanuel Sanders, called him “ignorant.” LeBron James criticized Brees also. Philadelphia Eagles star DeSean Jackson posted a (fake, but in-character) Adolf Hitler quotation that was nakedly anti-Semitic (white Jews will “will extort America, but their plan for world domination won’t work if the Negroes know who they were.”) together with praise for the most notorious of American anti-Semites, Louis Farrakhan. His apology amounted to, “Oops.”
Did players around the NFL or in the NBA step up to condemn anti-Semitism with the same passion that they condemned Brees’ statement? Not exactly. In fact, a couple of former players broke the silence by supporting Jackson’s anti-Semitic rant, complete with their own versions of idiocy (via Twitchy):
…is it still “anti-Semitic” when a Jew says it? pic.twitter.com/KyC4Xqy5f5 — Larry Johnson (@2LarryJohnson7) July 7, 2020
This is a hoax perpetrated, ironically, by white supremacists. Rosenthal was killed by Palestinian terrorists in 1976, and shortly afterward this manufactured quote emerged. As the Jerusalem Post notes, even some white supremacists rejected it at the time Walter White published his “interview” with Rosenthal or shortly afterward, and has never produced any evidence that Rosenthal met him.
Johnson made it clear he doesn’t care, too:
Don’t waste your retweet’s on me, I’m not apologizing. — Larry Johnson (@2LarryJohnson7) July 8, 2020
Idiots and bigots rarely do, at least willingly.
Johnson isn’t the only professional athlete coming to Jackson’s defense. Here’s former NBA player Stephen Jackson assuring us that DeSean Jackson’s “is speaking the truth,” and just wants to “educate” us:
Former NBA player Stephen Jackson responds to Desean Jackson’s Hitler post by saying it’s “truth” pic.twitter.com/Web0y3bhoQ — The Conspiracy Libel (@ConspiracyLibel) July 7, 2020
That wasn’t “truth” that DeSean Jackson was selling. It was literally a series of lies, and easily debunked lies at that. Jackson may have a point about the league’s response to racism, but if selling anti-Semitic slurs is “speaking the truth,” then why should the league care if its players don’t tackle other forms of hate more vigorously? Better yet, why should its fans?
This point is precisely why Kyle’s argument resonates. The kneeling issue was overblown by all sides, and social activism is every American’s right to pursue (within the law, of course). Criticism can be met with criticism, and that’s also part of the great value within free speech. The criticism isn’t the problem, or at least it’s not the real problem — it’s the reeking condescension and hypocrisy of these elite athletes and their leagues.
On one hand, they plan to roll out a season of lectures for its fans on racism and hate, and cast those who might have different points of view as quasi-racists or enemies. On the other hand, when another player engages in outright declarations of anti-Semitism — especially in regurgitating idiotic hoaxes and cheering on pseudo-Hitler — these same players are not only silent, they occasionally cheer it on. And the league itself, which has spent the last several years negotiating on just how much money they want to pour into the players’ social-justice causes, doesn’t even issue a peep about it. And let’s not forget about the NBA’s cowardly surrender to China on speaking truth to power, too.
“Anybody else feeling a loss of interest in the NFL as an institution? I know I am,” Smith concludes. So am I. When the league and its players want to address all forms of hate and intolerance, they can call me. As long as they’re giving a pass or actively cheering anti-Semitism, though, I have better uses of my time and money. See you in 2021 … maybe.