hotair--2020-10-21--Marvel stars support Chris Pratt as Twitter leftists engage in month-long hate fest

Back on October 2 , actor Chris Pratt offended the perpetually offended online when he posted a joke-filled statement on Instagram asking people to vote for the film Onward to received a People ’ s Choice Award .
Pratt ’ s statement mocked Hollywood celebrities for telling people how to vote which irritated people on the left who responded with some version of ‘ that ’ s not funny.
’ Throughout the month , people continued to pile on Pratt using tweets like this one below as an excuse to bring up reasons they dislike him , including his attendance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And from there the hate-fest aimed at Chris Pratt just snow-balled , made up mostly of people on the left who are upset about his religious and political views : Twitter users brought up Pratt ’ s association with the evangelical Hillsong Church , whose founder has made anti-LGBT statements .
Plus the fact that Pratt follows several conservative commentators , politicians and organizations on social media — yet has remained silent on his views leading up to the presidential election — has led many to assume he is a supporter of President @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attention of E !
News , which published a piece about the “ The Battle of the Hollywood Chrises ” and promoted the story on Instagram .
That was the last straw for Pratt ’ s wife , lifestyle blogger and TV personality Katherine Schwarzenegger .
“ Is this really what we need ?
There ’ s so much going on in the world and people struggling in so many ways .
Being mean is so yesterday , ” Schwarzenegger wrote in a comment on E !
News ’ s Instagram post on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ room to love all these guys .
Love is what we all need not meanness and bullying .
Let ’ s try that.
” One of the other complaints is that Pratt follows Ben Shapiro and Rep. Dan Crenshaw on Twitter .
That ’ s more than enough to demand he be shunned for a lot of people on the left .
Yesterday , the online fight escalated when a bunch of his Marvel co-stars spoke up to defend him : Mark Ruffalo is one of the most outspoken leftists actors in Hollywood @ @ @ @ @ @ @ think he knows that , to some degree , these are his people that are on the attack .
Director James Gunn , who has experience being cancelled online , and actor Josh Gad both agreed with Ruffalo : But by far my favorite response came from actor Robert Downey Jr. who instead of just defending Pratt fired back at his critics in a post on Instagram : “ The ‘ sinless ’ are casting stones at my # brother , Chris Pratt… A real # Christian who lives by # principle , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and # gratitude… ” Referring to the cancel culture folks on the left as the sinless is just perfect .
I don ’ t know how much Downey knows about this topic but through study or just plain intuition his post frames the online battle over Chris Pratt as one where the woke are acting like religious zealots eager to condemn everyone else .
He couldn ’ t be more right .
To be clear , I think Downey himself is on the left like every other person in Hollywood but he apparently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and these days that counts for something .
In any case , the pushback has sparked more hate from the left which is now going after the people who defended Pratt with the usual assortment of insults and claims of privilege : And while all of this is happening some people are pretending the left-wing mob doesn ’ t exist and that Pratt ’ s friends are merely upset that he “ lost a twitter poll.
” This is just one example but there are hundreds of people making this dumb claim .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ like Chris Pratt and to say so online but cancel culture comes into it when people pick up any excuse and unleash a torrent of abuse at someone with the hopes of punishing them professionally for holding different opinions .
There ’ s exactly zero chance that Chris Pratt is going to be canceled but they deserve full credit for being a bunch of angry extremists with no sense of humor even if the hate mob they formed online isn ’ t large enough for them to destroy this particular target .

Back on October 2, actor Chris Pratt offended the perpetually offended online when he posted a joke-filled statement on Instagram asking people to vote for the film Onward to received a People’s Choice Award. Pratt’s statement mocked Hollywood celebrities for telling people how to vote which irritated people on the left who responded with some version of ‘that’s not funny.’ Throughout the month, people continued to pile on Pratt using tweets like this one below as an excuse to bring up reasons they dislike him, including his attendance at a church connected to Hillsong.
One has to go. pic.twitter.com/HUWnbQOA43 — Amy Berg (@bergopolis) October 17, 2020
And from there the hate-fest aimed at Chris Pratt just snow-balled, made up mostly of people on the left who are upset about his religious and political views:
Twitter users brought up Pratt’s association with the evangelical Hillsong Church, whose founder has made anti-LGBT statements. Plus the fact that Pratt follows several conservative commentators, politicians and organizations on social media — yet has remained silent on his views leading up to the presidential election — has led many to assume he is a supporter of President Trump. Eventually, this caught the attention of E! News, which published a piece about the “The Battle of the Hollywood Chrises” and promoted the story on Instagram. That was the last straw for Pratt’s wife, lifestyle blogger and TV personality Katherine Schwarzenegger. “Is this really what we need? There’s so much going on in the world and people struggling in so many ways. Being mean is so yesterday,” Schwarzenegger wrote in a comment on E! News’s Instagram post on Monday. “There’s enough room to love all these guys. Love is what we all need not meanness and bullying. Let’s try that.”
One of the other complaints is that Pratt follows Ben Shapiro and Rep. Dan Crenshaw on Twitter. That’s more than enough to demand he be shunned for a lot of people on the left. Yesterday, the online fight escalated when a bunch of his Marvel co-stars spoke up to defend him:
No matter how hard it gets, stick your chest out, keep your head up and handle it.
-Tupac
You got this @prattprattpratt . Your family, friends, colleagues & everyone who’s ever crossed paths with you knows your heart and your worth! — Zoe Saldana (@zoesaldana) October 21, 2020
Mark Ruffalo is one of the most outspoken leftists actors in Hollywood and even he defended Pratt. I think he knows that, to some degree, these are his people that are on the attack.
You all, @prattprattpratt is as solid a man there is. I know him personally, and instead of casting aspersions, look at how he lives his life. He is just not overtly political as a rule. This is a distraction. Let’s keep our eyes on the prize, friends. We are so close now. — Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) October 20, 2020
Director James Gunn, who has experience being cancelled online, and actor Josh Gad both agreed with Ruffalo:
Sorry. Just finding out about this nonsense. @prattprattpratt is the best dude in the world. I’ve spent hours & hours sharing my deepest truths with this man, as he has with me. Please stop assuming what he believes, politically or in any other way, because he’s a Christian. https://t.co/XSIgU9WemX — James Gunn (@JamesGunn) October 20, 2020
But by far my favorite response came from actor Robert Downey Jr. who instead of just defending Pratt fired back at his critics in a post on Instagram: “The ‘sinless’ are casting stones at my #brother, Chris Pratt… A real #Christian who lives by #principle, has never demonstrated anything but #positivity and #gratitude…”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CGlMURZlYWZ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Referring to the cancel culture folks on the left as the sinless is just perfect. I don’t know how much Downey knows about this topic but through study or just plain intuition his post frames the online battle over Chris Pratt as one where the woke are acting like religious zealots eager to condemn everyone else. He couldn’t be more right. To be clear, I think Downey himself is on the left like every other person in Hollywood but he apparently hasn’t joined the woke cult and these days that counts for something.
In any case, the pushback has sparked more hate from the left which is now going after the people who defended Pratt with the usual assortment of insults and claims of privilege:
Chris Pratt's MCU co-stars are defending him from the cancel mob. They're now being bullied & harassed too. Zoe Saldana is getting the worst with racist slurs like "coon." Marvel panders to these woke ideologues who are now attacking them for defending a "cis white man." pic.twitter.com/Z18ky2E210 — Dataracer (@Dataracer117) October 21, 2020
And while all of this is happening some people are pretending the left-wing mob doesn’t exist and that Pratt’s friends are merely upset that he “lost a twitter poll.” This is just one example but there are hundreds of people making this dumb claim.
It's extremely funny that Chris Pratt lost a twitter poll about whos the best Chris and the MCU actors are assembling as if he was murdered https://t.co/ofNr4bReaK — 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐎𝐍 (@Devon_OnEarth) October 21, 2020
Of course people are free to not like Chris Pratt and to say so online but cancel culture comes into it when people pick up any excuse and unleash a torrent of abuse at someone with the hopes of punishing them professionally for holding different opinions.
There’s exactly zero chance that Chris Pratt is going to be canceled but they deserve full credit for being a bunch of angry extremists with no sense of humor even if the hate mob they formed online isn’t large enough for them to destroy this particular target.


hotair--2020-10-21--Family restaurant fined for reopening beats the rap in court

Taste of Sicily is a restaurant in Lebanon County , Pennsylvania .
Back in the early days of the pandemic , the siblings who own the joint , Michael Mangano and Christine Wartluft , complied with the mandates being issued and shut down their establishment .
But in May , they had finally had enough , so they cleaned the place up and made allowances for social distancing and other precautions for any diners who wished to do so and they reopened .
This flew in the face of Democratic Governor Tom Wolf ’ s orders and the restaurant was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fines for noncompliance .
In an episode that would have made Brigadier General Anthony “ NUTS ” McAuliffe proud , Mangano issued a response to the state government saying , “ I ’ m not paying crap.
” That led to the state taking the restaurant to court to force the payment of the non-compliance fines .
This week the case was finally concluded and the owners were found not guilty .
( Daily Caller ) The restaurant , which is co-owned by siblings Michael Mangano and Christine Wartluft , was found not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , told he Daily Caller that Wolf ’ s and the Department of Health ’ s Orders couldn ’ t be punished under Pennsylvania criminal law “ It is very questionable as to whether the law allows the Department of Health to issue orders as it did .
It is not possible for a criminal penalty to be imposed for violating the orders , ” he told the Caller… “ The mask mandate , the plexiglass , the social distancing , all of those things that the governor and [ Secretary of Health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an enforceable citation , ” Mangano tells the Caller .
“ In other words , they can ’ t legally enforce that .
This says that any fine that you get from the state is legally non-enforceable.
” Mangano is advising other business owners who have been pressed by the state in this fashion to simply refuse to pay the fines and plead not guilty .
With this case as precedent , it may be very difficult for the Governor to force any other businesses to comply .
Of course , this wasn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has suffered over this issue .
As the Daily Caller further notes , a federal judge ruled last month that the Governor ’ s restrictions and shutdown orders were unconstitutional .
But even if they hadn ’ t , this court ’ s ruling would seem to suggest that in order to impose and collect fines for not complying with the rules , laws should be passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor first .
Failing that , the rules have to be applied equally to all affected persons and businesses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Mandates issued by executive fiat can be issued , but those actions apparently can ’ t be followed up with criminal penalties unless they are enforced in an equal fashion .
It ’ s also worth noting that there seems to be a bit of sour grapes on the part of Tom Wolf here .
Lebanon County is under Republican leadership and the local GOP had been supportive of businesses like Mangano ’ s who were railing against the shutdown orders .
In response , Wolf withheld $ 13 million in coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was the only county in the state to be treated in that fashion .
There ’ s more than a little bad blood to go around it seems .
At least for today , though , Taste of Sicily is coming away with one in the W column .
The next move is up to Governor Wolf .

Taste of Sicily is a restaurant in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. Back in the early days of the pandemic, the siblings who own the joint, Michael Mangano and Christine Wartluft, complied with the mandates being issued and shut down their establishment. But in May, they had finally had enough, so they cleaned the place up and made allowances for social distancing and other precautions for any diners who wished to do so and they reopened. This flew in the face of Democratic Governor Tom Wolf’s orders and the restaurant was soon hit with almost $10,000 in fines for noncompliance.
In an episode that would have made Brigadier General Anthony “NUTS” McAuliffe proud, Mangano issued a response to the state government saying, “I’m not paying crap.” That led to the state taking the restaurant to court to force the payment of the non-compliance fines. This week the case was finally concluded and the owners were found not guilty. (Daily Caller)
The restaurant, which is co-owned by siblings Michael Mangano and Christine Wartluft, was found not guilty. Their lawyer, Eric Winter, told he Daily Caller that Wolf’s and the Department of Health’s Orders couldn’t be punished under Pennsylvania criminal law “It is very questionable as to whether the law allows the Department of Health to issue orders as it did. It is not possible for a criminal penalty to be imposed for violating the orders,” he told the Caller… “The mask mandate, the plexiglass, the social distancing, all of those things that the governor and [Secretary of Health Rachel] Levine were implementing are not an enforceable citation,” Mangano tells the Caller. “In other words, they can’t legally enforce that. This says that any fine that you get from the state is legally non-enforceable.”
Mangano is advising other business owners who have been pressed by the state in this fashion to simply refuse to pay the fines and plead not guilty. With this case as precedent, it may be very difficult for the Governor to force any other businesses to comply.
Of course, this wasn’t the first loss that Wolf has suffered over this issue. As the Daily Caller further notes, a federal judge ruled last month that the Governor’s restrictions and shutdown orders were unconstitutional. But even if they hadn’t, this court’s ruling would seem to suggest that in order to impose and collect fines for not complying with the rules, laws should be passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor first. Failing that, the rules have to be applied equally to all affected persons and businesses, which was not the case here. Mandates issued by executive fiat can be issued, but those actions apparently can’t be followed up with criminal penalties unless they are enforced in an equal fashion.
It’s also worth noting that there seems to be a bit of sour grapes on the part of Tom Wolf here. Lebanon County is under Republican leadership and the local GOP had been supportive of businesses like Mangano’s who were railing against the shutdown orders. In response, Wolf withheld $13 million in coronavirus relief funding from the county. It was the only county in the state to be treated in that fashion. There’s more than a little bad blood to go around it seems.
At least for today, though, Taste of Sicily is coming away with one in the W column. The next move is up to Governor Wolf.


hotair--2020-10-21--Momentum confirmed: Morning Consult poll shows majority support for Barrett confirmation

When the confirmation hearing ended on Thursday , I wrote that the smartest option for Senate Democrats would be to move to an immediate vote on Amy Coney Barrett .
Their attempts to delegitimize Barrett and the nomination process failed so obviously , and Barrett performed so well , that her continuing presence in the news would only make Donald Trump look better .
Instead , Senate Democrats keep making Barrett their focus , while half-heartedly going through the motions in an obviously futile effort to stop her confirmation to the Supreme Court .
Just how obviously futile has this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new poll shows a majority of Americans now favor Barrett ’ s confirmation , matching Gallup ’ s latest results .
And guess where that growth in support originates ?
Last week ’ s Senate Judiciary Committee hearings provided a high-profile opportunity for Democrats to erode public support for Judge Amy Coney Barrett ’ s Supreme Court confirmation , but a new Morning Consult/Politico poll found backing for President Donald Trump ’ s nominee to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has reached a new high .
Following four days of hearings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Senate should vote to confirm Barrett to the Supreme Court , up 3 percentage points from the week before and an increase of 14 points since Trump announced her nomination on Sept. 26 .
It ’ s a higher level of support than Morning Consult measured at any time during the confirmation processes for Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh — the two other jurists Trump has tapped for the high court during his presidency .
… There ’ s been a slight uptick in support for Barrett ’ s confirmation among GOP @ @ @ @ @ @ @ movement was driven by independents , a 44 percent plurality of whom now back her confirmation , and Democrats .
The share of Democratic voters who back Barrett ’ s confirmation ( 32 percent ) is up 5 points from the previous week , and up 18 points from the day Trump nominated her , while the share who say she should be voted down has fallen to 48 percent .
So the net effect of the hearing was … to convince more Democrats and independents that Trump made a good choice for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Senate Democrats !
To my point about political focus , more Americans paid attention to Barrett ’ s hearing last week than they did to the dueling town halls of the presidential candidates on Thursday .
That makes Barrett the lead political story of last week , which puts her stellar performance foremost in voters ’ minds at just the time that Democrats want Trump to be the focus : Just over a third of voters ( 34 percent ) said they ’ d seen , read or heard “ a lot ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which garnered ample attention from cable news networks and the national press .
It ’ s more than the 27 percent each who said the same of the dueling televised town halls for Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Oct.15 , but less than the 38 percent who ’ d heard a lot about Barrett ’ s nomination in the days after Sept. 26 or the 58 percent who ’ d heard a lot about Ginsburg ’ s death on Sept. 18 .
It ’ s the worst of all worlds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ enormously for this hearing , laid all sorts of traps , only to have Barrett perform brilliantly at the moment of greatest public interest .
In doing so , they undermined their process argument , as a 45/34 plurality now believe the Senate should vote to confirm Barrett immediately — regardless of who wins the election .
( Also interesting : A narrow plurality thinks Barrett will move the court in the correct direction , 32/25 . )
Ironically , Mitch McConnell ’ s doing his best to bail Senate Democrats out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vote : The Senate will vote Monday on confirming President Trump ’ s nominee , Judge Amy Coney Barrett , to the Supreme Court .
“ With regard to the Supreme Court justice … we ’ ll be voting to confirm justice-to-be Barrett next Monday , ” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-Ky. ) said during a weekly press conference , confirming the timing of a final vote on her nomination .
“ I think that will be another signature accomplishment in our effort to put on the courts , the federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the quaint notion that maybe the job of a judge is to actually follow the law , ” McConnell added .
Top GOP senators and aides had previously indicated to The Hill that they were likely to set up the final vote for Monday , allowing vulnerable GOP senators to spend the final week before the election back on the campaign trail .
There are good reasons to do this , so it ’ s not a tactical mistake by McConnell .
Far more Republicans are defending seats in the Senate than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the upcoming recess more urgently .
Also , the longer Barrett waits for the vote , the more time there will be for smear merchants to take their shots at her .
By moving immediately on Thursday afternoon ’ s expected endorsement from the Senate Judiciary Committee and holding a Sunday session , McConnell will expedite Barrett and also leave room for passage of a Phase 4 bill , if an agreement comes to pass .
Still , Senate Democrats might be better advised to ask Lindsey Graham to call the meeting today @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Senate floor to get Barrett off of center stage .
The longer she ’ s there , the more popular she ’ s becoming even among their own supporters .

When the confirmation hearing ended on Thursday, I wrote that the smartest option for Senate Democrats would be to move to an immediate vote on Amy Coney Barrett. Their attempts to delegitimize Barrett and the nomination process failed so obviously, and Barrett performed so well, that her continuing presence in the news would only make Donald Trump look better. Instead, Senate Democrats keep making Barrett their focus, while half-heartedly going through the motions in an obviously futile effort to stop her confirmation to the Supreme Court.
Just how obviously futile has this effort been? Morning Consult’s new poll shows a majority of Americans now favor Barrett’s confirmation, matching Gallup’s latest results. And guess where that growth in support originates?
Last week’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearings provided a high-profile opportunity for Democrats to erode public support for Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court confirmation, but a new Morning Consult/Politico poll found backing for President Donald Trump’s nominee to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has reached a new high. Following four days of hearings, 51 percent of voters said the Senate should vote to confirm Barrett to the Supreme Court, up 3 percentage points from the week before and an increase of 14 points since Trump announced her nomination on Sept. 26. It’s a higher level of support than Morning Consult measured at any time during the confirmation processes for Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh — the two other jurists Trump has tapped for the high court during his presidency. … There’s been a slight uptick in support for Barrett’s confirmation among GOP voters, but the bulk of the movement was driven by independents, a 44 percent plurality of whom now back her confirmation, and Democrats. The share of Democratic voters who back Barrett’s confirmation (32 percent) is up 5 points from the previous week, and up 18 points from the day Trump nominated her, while the share who say she should be voted down has fallen to 48 percent.
So the net effect of the hearing was … to convince more Democrats and independents that Trump made a good choice for the Supreme Court. Helluva job, Senate Democrats!
To my point about political focus, more Americans paid attention to Barrett’s hearing last week than they did to the dueling town halls of the presidential candidates on Thursday. That makes Barrett the lead political story of last week, which puts her stellar performance foremost in voters’ minds at just the time that Democrats want Trump to be the focus:
Just over a third of voters (34 percent) said they’d seen, read or heard “a lot” about Barrett’s confirmation hearings, which garnered ample attention from cable news networks and the national press. It’s more than the 27 percent each who said the same of the dueling televised town halls for Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Oct.15, but less than the 38 percent who’d heard a lot about Barrett’s nomination in the days after Sept. 26 or the 58 percent who’d heard a lot about Ginsburg’s death on Sept. 18.
It’s the worst of all worlds for Democrats. They raised the stakes enormously for this hearing, laid all sorts of traps, only to have Barrett perform brilliantly at the moment of greatest public interest. In doing so, they undermined their process argument, as a 45/34 plurality now believe the Senate should vote to confirm Barrett immediately — regardless of who wins the election. (Also interesting: A narrow plurality thinks Barrett will move the court in the correct direction, 32/25.)
Ironically, Mitch McConnell’s doing his best to bail Senate Democrats out of their own trap by fast-tracking the confirmation vote:
The Senate will vote Monday on confirming President Trump’s nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, to the Supreme Court. “With regard to the Supreme Court justice … we’ll be voting to confirm justice-to-be Barrett next Monday,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said during a weekly press conference, confirming the timing of a final vote on her nomination. “I think that will be another signature accomplishment in our effort to put on the courts, the federal courts, men and women that believe in the quaint notion that maybe the job of a judge is to actually follow the law,” McConnell added. Top GOP senators and aides had previously indicated to The Hill that they were likely to set up the final vote for Monday, allowing vulnerable GOP senators to spend the final week before the election back on the campaign trail.
There are good reasons to do this, so it’s not a tactical mistake by McConnell. Far more Republicans are defending seats in the Senate than Democrats this cycle, so they need the upcoming recess more urgently. Also, the longer Barrett waits for the vote, the more time there will be for smear merchants to take their shots at her. By moving immediately on Thursday afternoon’s expected endorsement from the Senate Judiciary Committee and holding a Sunday session, McConnell will expedite Barrett and also leave room for passage of a Phase 4 bill, if an agreement comes to pass.
Still, Senate Democrats might be better advised to ask Lindsey Graham to call the meeting today and waive most of the debate on the Senate floor to get Barrett off of center stage. The longer she’s there, the more popular she’s becoming even among their own supporters.


hotair--2020-10-21--Murder as a group project: Two students pointed out Samuel Paty to his killer for money

The beheading of high-school teacher Samuel Paty in Paris last Friday by an 18-year-old Islamic radical has shocked the nation of France into action .
Police quickly rounded up almost a dozen people connected to the killer , Abdullakh Anzorov , who was shot dead by police .
The Interior Minister promised to shut down several Islamic groups that he said were enemies of the state .
One of the questions that hadn ’ t been answered until now is what Anzorov ’ s connection was to the victim .
Given his age it seemed possible that he was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ offended by Paty ’ s decision to show students the Charlie Hebdo cartoons as part of a lesson on free expression .
But it turns out that ’ s not the case .
Anzorov heard about the case on social media .
A parent of one of the kids in Paty ’ s class made a video mentioning the teacher ’ s name and the school ’ s address .
And those complaints were amplified by a second man who was the leader of an extremist group named for a founder of Hamas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the head of an Islamist pro-Hamas group urged the killing of a French teacher who was beheaded for showing pupils cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed , France ’ s interior minister said Monday , adding that police had carried out dozens of raids in connection with the attack .
“ They apparently launched a fatwa against the teacher , ” minister Gerald Darmanin told Europe 1 radio of the two men , who are among 11 people being held over the deadly attack by a young Chechen man .
One of the men @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the “ Cheikh Yassine collective.
” Sheikh Ahmad Yassin was a founder of the Hamas terror group .
He was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip in 2004… The parent had named Paty and given the school ’ s address in a social media post just days before the assault .
In addition , a local mosque led by a Salafist Imam also amplified the social media post listing the school ’ s address .
That mosque has now been closed for the next six months .
The Grand @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on its Facebook page days before the murder , denouncing the teacher ’ s use of the cartoons… The video posted by the mosque was filmed by the father of one of Paty ’ s pupils .
In it , he calls Paty a thug and accuses the teacher of singling out Muslim students .
The mosque ’ s imam , M ’ hammed Henniche , told the AFP news agency that he regretted sharing the video on social media , but that he had done so out of concern for Muslim children @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Muhammad cartoons .
The attention the story got online caught the attention of Anzorov who went shopping with two other men who are now in custody .
They helped him purchase an airsoft gun and the knife used in the attack .
Finally , last Friday Anzorov showed up outside the school but he had never seen Samuel Paty ’ s face before .
So he offered students money to point him out and two teenagers offered to help : Prosecutor Jean-Francois Ricard said a 14-year-old and a 15-year-old are among seven @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on accusations of “ complicity in murder in relation with a terrorist undertaking ” and “ criminal conspiracy.
” The suspect in Friday ’ s slaying of teacher Samuel Paty , who was attacked and beheaded near Paris , offered students at the school where Paty taught 300-350 euros ( $ 355- $ 415 ) to help him pick out the educator , Richard said during a news conference .
“ The investigation has established that the perpetrator knew the name of the teacher , the name of the school and its address @ @ @ @ @ @ @ means to identify him , ” the prosecutor said .
“ That identification has only been possible with the help of students from the same school.
” “ That ’ s why the anti-terrorism prosecutor ’ s office has decided to prosecute two under-18 minors whose implication in the identification of the victim for the killer has appeared to be conclusive , ” he said .
The students may not have known Anzorov planned to kill Paty .
He allegedly told them he was going to “ humiliate and strike ” him and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cartoons .
So maybe they thought he was only going to assault Paty or maybe they didn ’ t care .
In any case , Anzorov couldn ’ t have carried out the attack without their help .
Between the outraged father who gave out Paty ’ s name and location , the mosque and the extremist who amplified that and the two teens who identified him leaving school that day , this was murder as a group project .
Anzorov is dead but everyone who set him on his path deserves to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Macron will be giving a eulogy for Paty today .
Meanwhile , the NY Times published a piece Monday which gives space to critics who think maybe Paty was wrong to show his students the cartoons .
“ I feel like it ’ s very hard to use these cartoons for strictly educational purposes , ” said Farhad Khosrokhavar , a sociologist at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences , EHESS , in Paris .
“ Secularists think that it is their right , because of the law that allows @ @ @ @ @ @ @ religion .
But on the other hand , there is the feeling that in doing so , it is the Muslims who are despised , not the prophet , ” he said .
“ By using cartoons to teach freedom of expression , we do not understand that we offend people , ” Mr. Khosrokhavar said .
“ There are a thousand ways to express freedom of expression , so why choose this one ?
” Françoise Lorcerie , an education expert at the National Center for Scientific Research , said she had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the prophet in a classroom setting for students of that age .
And she was critical of Mr. Paty ’ s invitation to Muslim students that they leave the class to avoid being offended .
“ Obviously these caricatures are wounding for Muslims , ” said Ms. Lorcerie .
“ I ’ m not so sure about presenting these caricatures , without some sort of justification , ” she said .
It ’ s amazing how dumb some educated adults can be .
Farhad Khosrokhavar ’ s argument boils down to this : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ express free expression so why not pick the ones that won ’ t offend anyone ?
Well , maybe that ’ s because the whole point of free expression is that it isn ’ t restricted to things that don ’ t offend people .
And maybe it ’ s because there ’ s a trial going on right now in Paris for 14 people involved in a 2015 massacre over these exact cartoons , so this is very timely .
There ’ s a fundamental question that is once again before the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be murdered over cartoons of religious figures ?
Samuel Paty said no and showed his class the cartoons .
Abdullakh Anzorov said yes and beheaded Paty in broad daylight .
And the NY Times gives space to people who say it ’ s a tough question with very fine people on both sides .

The beheading of high-school teacher Samuel Paty in Paris last Friday by an 18-year-old Islamic radical has shocked the nation of France into action. Police quickly rounded up almost a dozen people connected to the killer, Abdullakh Anzorov, who was shot dead by police. The Interior Minister promised to shut down several Islamic groups that he said were enemies of the state.
One of the questions that hadn’t been answered until now is what Anzorov’s connection was to the victim. Given his age it seemed possible that he was a student in the classroom who was personally offended by Paty’s decision to show students the Charlie Hebdo cartoons as part of a lesson on free expression. But it turns out that’s not the case. Anzorov heard about the case on social media. A parent of one of the kids in Paty’s class made a video mentioning the teacher’s name and the school’s address. And those complaints were amplified by a second man who was the leader of an extremist group named for a founder of Hamas.
The father of a student and the head of an Islamist pro-Hamas group urged the killing of a French teacher who was beheaded for showing pupils cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed, France’s interior minister said Monday, adding that police had carried out dozens of raids in connection with the attack. “They apparently launched a fatwa against the teacher,” minister Gerald Darmanin told Europe 1 radio of the two men, who are among 11 people being held over the deadly attack by a young Chechen man. One of the men was named as Abdelhakim Sefrioui, president of the “Cheikh Yassine collective.” Sheikh Ahmad Yassin was a founder of the Hamas terror group. He was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip in 2004… The parent had named Paty and given the school’s address in a social media post just days before the assault.
In addition, a local mosque led by a Salafist Imam also amplified the social media post listing the school’s address. That mosque has now been closed for the next six months.
The Grand Mosque of Pantin had shared a video on its Facebook page days before the murder, denouncing the teacher’s use of the cartoons… The video posted by the mosque was filmed by the father of one of Paty’s pupils. In it, he calls Paty a thug and accuses the teacher of singling out Muslim students. The mosque’s imam, M’hammed Henniche, told the AFP news agency that he regretted sharing the video on social media, but that he had done so out of concern for Muslim children, not to endorse its complaint about the Muhammad cartoons.
The attention the story got online caught the attention of Anzorov who went shopping with two other men who are now in custody. They helped him purchase an airsoft gun and the knife used in the attack.
Finally, last Friday Anzorov showed up outside the school but he had never seen Samuel Paty’s face before. So he offered students money to point him out and two teenagers offered to help:
Prosecutor Jean-Francois Ricard said a 14-year-old and a 15-year-old are among seven people who appeared before an investigating magistrate on accusations of “complicity in murder in relation with a terrorist undertaking” and “criminal conspiracy.” The suspect in Friday’s slaying of teacher Samuel Paty, who was attacked and beheaded near Paris, offered students at the school where Paty taught 300-350 euros ($355-$415) to help him pick out the educator, Richard said during a news conference. “The investigation has established that the perpetrator knew the name of the teacher, the name of the school and its address, yet he did not have the means to identify him,” the prosecutor said. “That identification has only been possible with the help of students from the same school.” “That’s why the anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office has decided to prosecute two under-18 minors whose implication in the identification of the victim for the killer has appeared to be conclusive,” he said.
The students may not have known Anzorov planned to kill Paty. He allegedly told them he was going to “humiliate and strike” him and force him to apologize for showing the cartoons. So maybe they thought he was only going to assault Paty or maybe they didn’t care. In any case, Anzorov couldn’t have carried out the attack without their help.
Between the outraged father who gave out Paty’s name and location, the mosque and the extremist who amplified that and the two teens who identified him leaving school that day, this was murder as a group project. Anzorov is dead but everyone who set him on his path deserves to be punished for their involvement.
President Macron will be giving a eulogy for Paty today.
Meanwhile, the NY Times published a piece Monday which gives space to critics who think maybe Paty was wrong to show his students the cartoons.
“I feel like it’s very hard to use these cartoons for strictly educational purposes,” said Farhad Khosrokhavar, a sociologist at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences, EHESS, in Paris. “Secularists think that it is their right, because of the law that allows blasphemy and any form of mockery of religion. But on the other hand, there is the feeling that in doing so, it is the Muslims who are despised, not the prophet,” he said. “By using cartoons to teach freedom of expression, we do not understand that we offend people,” Mr. Khosrokhavar said. “There are a thousand ways to express freedom of expression, so why choose this one?” Françoise Lorcerie, an education expert at the National Center for Scientific Research, said she had never heard of using the caricatures of the prophet in a classroom setting for students of that age. And she was critical of Mr. Paty’s invitation to Muslim students that they leave the class to avoid being offended. “Obviously these caricatures are wounding for Muslims,” said Ms. Lorcerie. “I’m not so sure about presenting these caricatures, without some sort of justification,” she said.
It’s amazing how dumb some educated adults can be. Farhad Khosrokhavar’s argument boils down to this: There are lots of ways to show express free expression so why not pick the ones that won’t offend anyone? Well, maybe that’s because the whole point of free expression is that it isn’t restricted to things that don’t offend people. And maybe it’s because there’s a trial going on right now in Paris for 14 people involved in a 2015 massacre over these exact cartoons, so this is very timely.
There’s a fundamental question that is once again before the French people right now: Should people be murdered over cartoons of religious figures? Samuel Paty said no and showed his class the cartoons. Abdullakh Anzorov said yes and beheaded Paty in broad daylight.
And the NY Times gives space to people who say it’s a tough question with very fine people on both sides.


hotair--2020-10-21--WSJ: Trump pressing Barr to launch criminal investigations of the Bidens

Inexplicable legally , inexplicable ethically , and only barely explicable politically .
With two weeks to go before the election , Donald Trump wants to make his drain-the-swamp argument focus on Joe and Hunter Biden — by demanding a politically motivated investigation into his rivals .
Trump may want revenge for Russiagate , but he ’ s essentially trying to use the same mechanisms in the exact way he has accused the Obama administration of doing to attack him : President Trump urged Attorney General William Barr to initiate an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his Democratic opponent two weeks before the election .
Asked Tuesday on Fox News whether he supported tapping a special prosecutor to probe the Bidens ’ dealings in Ukraine and China , Mr. Trump said , “ We ’ ve got to get the attorney general to act .
He ’ s got to act , and he ’ s got to act fast .
He ’ s got to appoint somebody .
This is major corruption and this has to be known about before the election.
” Mr. Trump ’ s comments @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 11 House Republicans asking Mr. Barr to appoint an “ independent , unbiased special counsel ” to investigate allegations stemming from New York Post articles suggesting the former vice president was involved in or benefited from his son ’ s overseas work .
The lawmakers also called on such a special counsel to investigate “ any corresponding legal or ethical issues that might be uncovered from the former vice president ’ s 47 years in public office.
” Speaking of ethics , the ordering ( or at least public pleading ) of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against one ’ s political opponents opens up multiple cans of ethics worms .
While presidents have the technical authority to order or stop DoJ investigations , they rarely if ever exercise it , especially in electoral contexts .
While it ’ s not illegal , it presents such a conflict of interest that it instantly undermines confidence in the DoJ ’ s work .
There is almost no way to pull that off so that it doesn ’ t appear to be an abuse of power .
But Obama did it to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but if so , the point of a populist renewal of our institutions is to keep presidents from doing it in the future , not to make it a habit or ( heaven forfend ) a frickin ’ tradition .
That is banana-republic territory .
Legally and logistically , this is even more foolish .
Barr already has investigations into Russiagate that necessarily have stretched into months , if not years of effort .
There are literally fourteen days to Election Day , and millions of people have already voted .
Barr @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in time to get a proper investigation started in two weeks .
Furthermore , there doesn ’ t appear to be any statutory crimes demonstrated thus far — only the kind of influence-peddling that ’ s morally and ethically corrupt but don ’ t necessarily cross the line into crimes .
Even the New York Post ’ s smoking gun demonstrates only that Biden lied about not knowing of his son ’ s business operations before pressing for the removal of Ukraine ’ s chief prosecutor .
That ’ s not a crime @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for an investigation of that would be Congress rather than the DoJ .
Politically , perhaps Trump sees this as a way to stoke the base , and maybe it might excite them tangentially .
But it is a strange decision indeed to focus the last two weeks of an election not on the economy , not on foreign policy , and not on Operation Warp Speed , where Trump has potentially winning arguments , but on the son of his political rival .
Hunter Biden touches nearly no voters ’ lives and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issues .
It ’ s so out of touch that it looks even odder than the sum of its legal and ethical deficiencies .

Inexplicable legally, inexplicable ethically, and only barely explicable politically. With two weeks to go before the election, Donald Trump wants to make his drain-the-swamp argument focus on Joe and Hunter Biden — by demanding a politically motivated investigation into his rivals. Trump may want revenge for Russiagate, but he’s essentially trying to use the same mechanisms in the exact way he has accused the Obama administration of doing to attack him:
President Trump urged Attorney General William Barr to initiate an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter, escalating his efforts to discredit his Democratic opponent two weeks before the election. Asked Tuesday on Fox News whether he supported tapping a special prosecutor to probe the Bidens’ dealings in Ukraine and China, Mr. Trump said, “We’ve got to get the attorney general to act. He’s got to act, and he’s got to act fast. He’s got to appoint somebody. This is major corruption and this has to be known about before the election.” Mr. Trump’s comments come in response to a letter from 11 House Republicans asking Mr. Barr to appoint an “independent, unbiased special counsel” to investigate allegations stemming from New York Post articles suggesting the former vice president was involved in or benefited from his son’s overseas work. The lawmakers also called on such a special counsel to investigate “any corresponding legal or ethical issues that might be uncovered from the former vice president’s 47 years in public office.”
Speaking of ethics, the ordering (or at least public pleading) of the Department of Justice to undertake criminal probes against one’s political opponents opens up multiple cans of ethics worms. While presidents have the technical authority to order or stop DoJ investigations, they rarely if ever exercise it, especially in electoral contexts. While it’s not illegal, it presents such a conflict of interest that it instantly undermines confidence in the DoJ’s work. There is almost no way to pull that off so that it doesn’t appear to be an abuse of power.
But Obama did it to Trump! people will respond. Perhaps, but if so, the point of a populist renewal of our institutions is to keep presidents from doing it in the future, not to make it a habit or (heaven forfend) a frickin’ tradition. That is banana-republic territory.
Legally and logistically, this is even more foolish. Barr already has investigations into Russiagate that necessarily have stretched into months, if not years of effort. There are literally fourteen days to Election Day, and millions of people have already voted. Barr couldn’t even get agents reassigned in time to get a proper investigation started in two weeks. Furthermore, there doesn’t appear to be any statutory crimes demonstrated thus far — only the kind of influence-peddling that’s morally and ethically corrupt but don’t necessarily cross the line into crimes. Even the New York Post’s smoking gun demonstrates only that Biden lied about not knowing of his son’s business operations before pressing for the removal of Ukraine’s chief prosecutor. That’s not a crime in itself, and the proper forum for an investigation of that would be Congress rather than the DoJ.
Politically, perhaps Trump sees this as a way to stoke the base, and maybe it might excite them tangentially. But it is a strange decision indeed to focus the last two weeks of an election not on the economy, not on foreign policy, and not on Operation Warp Speed, where Trump has potentially winning arguments, but on the son of his political rival. Hunter Biden touches nearly no voters’ lives and matters less than all of those other issues. It’s so out of touch that it looks even odder than the sum of its legal and ethical deficiencies.


hotair--2020-10-21--Trump campaign was down to $63 million in the bank for the final month of the race

No resource will be more plentiful among Republicans on November 4 than scapegoats for Trump ’ s defeat if the current polling holds .
The media , Never Trumpers , phantom illegal aliens voting , Chinese hackers surreptitiously tinkering with the vote totals — it ’ ll be a free-for-all .
But don ’ t sleep on the possibility of Brad Parscale becoming a top villain for how he mismanaged the campaign ’ s gigantic war chest before being demoted .
Combined with the RNC , Team Trump raised $ 1.5 billion — billion — since the start of 2019 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all they had to show for it was an eight-point deficit and a little more than $ 60 million in the bank .
Worst of all , Parscale was hubristic about his operation after the primaries this year , gloating about the damage the Trump Death Star was about to do to Planet Biden : Around the time he posted that , Trump and the RNC had an advantage of $ 190 million on their Democratic counterparts .
As of October 1 , the two parties ’ fortunes had reversed , with Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around $ 180 million .
Eliminating the RNC and DNC from the equation , the Biden campaign had nearly three times as much cash on hand as Trump ’ s campaign did — $ 177 million to $ 63 million .
To put that in perspective , Politico notes that Mitt Romney had around the same amount in the bank as Trump now has for the final month of the 2012 campaign , a time when fundraising totals for both sides were less gaudy than they are today .
The Obama campaign had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — a little more than half of what Biden ’ s got .
There are two surprises here .
One , of course , is that the Trump campaign squandered a huge advantage , but that ’ s old news to some degree .
We ’ ve been writing about it since at least the beginning of September .
The new numbers today simply quantify how much squandering has been done .
The other surprise , and a bigger one , is how much harder Team Trump has had to work than Team @ @ @ @ @ @ @ base .
If there ’ s one thing I would have thought Trump could count on , it ’ s that his small donors would squash Biden ’ s small donors head to head this year .
Trump ’ s the one with an enthusiastic following willing to do anything for him .
Biden ’ s just “ the guy running against Trump ” to liberals .
But it turns out that ’ s enough this year .
From the Times : The Trump campaign has to beg , the Biden campaign barely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bucks to build a mega-database of potential donors but “ as the election neared , hopeful projections for a large uptick in contributions have not materialized.
” Put it all together and what does it add up to ?
Bad things : On TV ads in September , Biden outspent Trump more than 2-to-1 , $ 173 million to $ 69 million , according to Advertising Analytics , a media tracking firm .
The spending disparity looks even worse in the three Great Lakes states Trump flipped to win the White House in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ getting drowned out on TV .
In Pennsylvania and Wisconsin , Biden outspent Trump by more than 4-to-1 last month .
The disparity was little better in Michigan , where Biden spent $ 15.3 million to Trump ’ s $ 4 million .
The future advertising picture looks similarly dire for Trump , heading into the final two-week stretch of the campaign .
Biden is has reserved $ 63.8 million in TV ads across 20 states , while Trump has booked $ 31.9 million , and the deficit could get worse as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been regularly canceling prebooked ad buys in Ohio , Iowa , New Hampshire and other states in the days before they are set to air .
It ’ s grimmer than it looks .
Politico has another story today about Mike Bloomberg essentially taking over election spending in Florida for the Democrats , freeing up Team Joe to spend more heavily in the Rust Belt .
That ’ s forcing Trump to spend more to defend Florida — an absolute must-win for him — and therefore less in the midwest .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden will happily trade Florida for Michigan , Wisconsin , and Pennsylvania , as those three can get him to 270 .
Florida is gravy .
“ Basically , Trump has now been committed to the equivalent of land war in Asia by having to spend so much of his money in Florida , ” said the head of one pro-Biden outside group .
Trump can always do earned media , like local rallies with free TV coverage , to whittle down Biden ’ s advertising edge .
But whether the rallies do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at this point is anyone ’ s guess .
His staff claims that they bring in new voters , but as he works himself up at the mic and wanders into talking about locking up his opponents , say , he ends up counterprogramming the kitchen-table message his campaign wants out there .
I wonder what Bill Stepien would do right now if the financial tables were magically turned and he had a three-to-one cash advantage on Team Biden .
Would he try to keep the president off the trail and unleash a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s economic growth over Trump ’ s first three years in office ?
Would Trump take his advice — even if Stepien could show him hard statistical evidence that his chances of winning would improve if he stopped speaking off the cuff for awhile ?
Trump ’ s interest in holding rallies reminds me of a point Ross Douthat made about him a few months ago .
Most politicians seek attention as a means of gaining power , said Douthat , but Trump seems to have sought power as a means of gaining @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could win by simply keeping a lower profile , he ’ d probably say , “ Then what ’ s the point ?
” By the way , buried in this Politico piece about his campaign ’ s financial woes is are two interesting bits of news .
First , a lot of the Trump campaign ’ s spending in September was funneled through an LLC that doesn ’ t have to disclose the names of its vendors .
If he ends up losing , Republican donors may want more information on that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ maximize Trump ’ s chances of winning , or was it being spent to line the pockets of cronies amid a darkening electoral picture that made victory seem unlikely ?
Second , Trump himself was reportedly considering putting $ 100 million into his campaign in early September .
If he did that now , he could singlehandedly all but erase Biden ’ s advantage .
The fact that he hasn ’ t leads one to wonder .
Does he not have $ 100 million ?
Or is he unwilling to spend his money @ @ @ @ @ @ @ despite knowing that that might mean the end of MAGA ?
That would be of a piece with his refusal to stick to an economic message on the stump that really might improve his chances at winning : He seems less interested in doing whatever it takes to win than his fans are .

No resource will be more plentiful among Republicans on November 4 than scapegoats for Trump’s defeat if the current polling holds. The media, Never Trumpers, phantom illegal aliens voting, Chinese hackers surreptitiously tinkering with the vote totals — it’ll be a free-for-all.
But don’t sleep on the possibility of Brad Parscale becoming a top villain for how he mismanaged the campaign’s gigantic war chest before being demoted. Combined with the RNC, Team Trump raised $1.5 billion — billion — since the start of 2019, and at the start of October all they had to show for it was an eight-point deficit and a little more than $60 million in the bank.
Worst of all, Parscale was hubristic about his operation after the primaries this year, gloating about the damage the Trump Death Star was about to do to Planet Biden:
For nearly three years we have been building a juggernaut campaign (Death Star). It is firing on all cylinders. Data, Digital, TV, Political, Surrogates, Coalitions, etc. In a few days we start pressing FIRE for the first time. pic.twitter.com/aJgCNfx1m0 — Brad Parscale (@parscale) May 7, 2020
Around the time he posted that, Trump and the RNC had an advantage of $190 million on their Democratic counterparts. As of October 1, the two parties’ fortunes had reversed, with Biden and the DNC enjoying an edge of around $180 million. Eliminating the RNC and DNC from the equation, the Biden campaign had nearly three times as much cash on hand as Trump’s campaign did — $177 million to $63 million. To put that in perspective, Politico notes that Mitt Romney had around the same amount in the bank as Trump now has for the final month of the 2012 campaign, a time when fundraising totals for both sides were less gaudy than they are today. The Obama campaign had $100 million to start that month — a little more than half of what Biden’s got.
There are two surprises here. One, of course, is that the Trump campaign squandered a huge advantage, but that’s old news to some degree. We’ve been writing about it since at least the beginning of September. The new numbers today simply quantify how much squandering has been done. The other surprise, and a bigger one, is how much harder Team Trump has had to work than Team Biden to raise money from the MAGA base. If there’s one thing I would have thought Trump could count on, it’s that his small donors would squash Biden’s small donors head to head this year. Trump’s the one with an enthusiastic following willing to do anything for him. Biden’s just “the guy running against Trump” to liberals.
But it turns out that’s enough this year. From the Times:
Recent campaign filings show how much more the Trump campaign’s joint operation with the Republican Party is spending to raise its money than Mr. Biden. The two joint Trump committees with the R.N.C. spent $190.8 million in July, August and September to raise $355.2 million. The Biden campaign spent less than half as much on fund-raising from its two joint operations with the Democratic Party ($82.4 million) and yet raised far more, $457 million, during that same period.
The Trump campaign has to beg, the Biden campaign barely has to ask. Parscale spent big bucks to build a mega-database of potential donors but “as the election neared, hopeful projections for a large uptick in contributions have not materialized.” Put it all together and what does it add up to? Bad things:
On TV ads in September, Biden outspent Trump more than 2-to-1, $173 million to $69 million, according to Advertising Analytics, a media tracking firm. The spending disparity looks even worse in the three Great Lakes states Trump flipped to win the White House in 2016, where the president is now getting drowned out on TV. In Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Biden outspent Trump by more than 4-to-1 last month. The disparity was little better in Michigan, where Biden spent $15.3 million to Trump’s $4 million. The future advertising picture looks similarly dire for Trump, heading into the final two-week stretch of the campaign. Biden is has reserved $63.8 million in TV ads across 20 states, while Trump has booked $31.9 million, and the deficit could get worse as the campaigns adjust their ad buys. Trump has been regularly canceling prebooked ad buys in Ohio, Iowa, New Hampshire and other states in the days before they are set to air.
It’s grimmer than it looks. Politico has another story today about Mike Bloomberg essentially taking over election spending in Florida for the Democrats, freeing up Team Joe to spend more heavily in the Rust Belt. That’s forcing Trump to spend more to defend Florida — an absolute must-win for him — and therefore less in the midwest. And at the end of the day, Biden will happily trade Florida for Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, as those three can get him to 270. Florida is gravy. “Basically, Trump has now been committed to the equivalent of land war in Asia by having to spend so much of his money in Florida,” said the head of one pro-Biden outside group.
Trump can always do earned media, like local rallies with free TV coverage, to whittle down Biden’s advertising edge. But whether the rallies do him more harm than good on balance at this point is anyone’s guess. His staff claims that they bring in new voters, but as he works himself up at the mic and wanders into talking about locking up his opponents, say, he ends up counterprogramming the kitchen-table message his campaign wants out there. I wonder what Bill Stepien would do right now if the financial tables were magically turned and he had a three-to-one cash advantage on Team Biden. Would he try to keep the president off the trail and unleash a barrage of ads about the country’s economic growth over Trump’s first three years in office? Would Trump take his advice — even if Stepien could show him hard statistical evidence that his chances of winning would improve if he stopped speaking off the cuff for awhile?
Trump’s interest in holding rallies reminds me of a point Ross Douthat made about him a few months ago. Most politicians seek attention as a means of gaining power, said Douthat, but Trump seems to have sought power as a means of gaining attention. If you told him he could win by simply keeping a lower profile, he’d probably say, “Then what’s the point?”
By the way, buried in this Politico piece about his campaign’s financial woes is are two interesting bits of news. First, a lot of the Trump campaign’s spending in September was funneled through an LLC that doesn’t have to disclose the names of its vendors. If he ends up losing, Republican donors may want more information on that. Was the money being spent to maximize Trump’s chances of winning, or was it being spent to line the pockets of cronies amid a darkening electoral picture that made victory seem unlikely? Second, Trump himself was reportedly considering putting $100 million into his campaign in early September. If he did that now, he could singlehandedly all but erase Biden’s advantage. The fact that he hasn’t leads one to wonder. Does he not have $100 million? Or is he unwilling to spend his money on a longshot chance at victory, despite knowing that that might mean the end of MAGA? That would be of a piece with his refusal to stick to an economic message on the stump that really might improve his chances at winning: He seems less interested in doing whatever it takes to win than his fans are.


hotair--2020-10-21--Houston police officer killed by illegal immigrant, another officer injured

Two Houston police officers responded to a domestic violence call Tuesday morning which resulted in the death of one officer and another injured .
An illegal immigrant killed a Houston police officer just weeks away from retirement .
Sgt .
Harold Preston , a 41-year veteran of the force , was at the end of his career , preparing to file paperwork to retire in just a matter of weeks .
He was 65 years old .
The other officer involved , Courtney Waller , is a three-year veteran of the department .
Waller was shot in an arm and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tragic enough but the fact that the murderer is an illegal immigrant with a long criminal record just compounds the tragedy .
Elmer Rolando Manzano-Martinez , age 51 , is in the U.S. illegally from El Salvador .
He was arrested on the scene .
ICE officials identified Manzano-Martinez as a “ convicted criminal alien who is unlawfully present in the U.S. ” The Enforcement and Removal Operations ( ERO ) unit of ICE placed an immigration detainer with the Harris County Sheriff ’ s Office .
Detainers are placed against illegal immigrants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ charges and who ICE has probable cause to believe are removable aliens , the agency statement said .
The detainer requests that a state or local law enforcement agency notify ICE in advance if the suspect will be released.
” Manzano-Martinez was shot in the abdomen area and his condition is stable in the hospital .
He is expected to be charged with murder .
The domestic violence call came in about 8:15 a.m. Tuesday morning .
Manzano-Martinez ’ s estranged wife called police for help in getting into their apartment .
She @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officer on the scene that she wanted to get her belongings out of the apartment as she was moving out .
She had their 14-year-old son with her .
They were out in the apartment complex ’ s parking lot when police arrived .
Multiple units responded , as well as fire trucks and a SWAT team in case it was a situation where Manzano-Martinez tried to barricade himself in the apartment .
The reporting states that when the suspect ’ s son opened the apartment ’ s door , he saw his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police about it .
Houston Police Chief Acevedo said Manzano-Martinez fired multiple rounds in their direction .
Officer Preston was hit multiple times , including more than once in the head .
His fellow officers moved him to safety .
Officer Waller was moved by a bystander and escorted to safety in front of the apartment complex .
That person also went back and retrieved Waller ’ s handgun which fell on the ground a short distance away , wrapped it in a towel , and handed it to the police on site @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the apartment .
Could all of this have been prevented ?
It ’ s likely that it could have been prevented .
Besides the fact that the killer , a convicted felon with multiple prior assaults on his record , is in Texas illegally , there was an incident just two days earlier .
On October 18 , HPD Officers responded to a call from Mrs. Santos , stated that her ex-husband , Elmer Manzano , was at the location brandishing a gun threatening Mrs. Santos and her children .
HPD Officers took @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg declined to take charges , instructing Officers to release him , and return the six bullets he had in his pocket , he was also allowed to keep his gun which he claimed was locked in his safe .
Had charges been accepted , Mr. Manzano might be back on the street , but his gun and ammunition would have been seized and held as evidence .
No gun would have meant no dead officer and injured officer .
This is a horrible story .
The actions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up for re-election , I add here ) have to be weighed into the death of Officer Preston , right ?
It is particularly hard to stomach because D.A .
Ogg , a Democrat , was the executive director of Crime Stoppers before she became Harris County District Attorney .
Shouldn ’ t she be aware of the dangers of domestic violence situations ?
Why was Manzano-Martinez in possession of a gun in the first place , much less allowed to keep it ?
The story on Fox News online says the police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over the weekend for domestic violence .
The police chief said that Manzano-Martinez has a long criminal history .
In 2002 he was charged with felony evading of police .
Manzano pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 120 days in jail .
He didn ’ t serve his sentence in state prison , as is normally the case .
So , why did he have a gun ?
You ’ ll have to excuse my cynicism here .
I ’ m assuming that a convicted felon who is here illegally probably illegally had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The problems with immigration laws and monitoring people in our country are a part of this story , too .
His presence in Texas goes back thirty years .
I do ponder if the police chief ever feels twinges of guilt when these deaths occur .
He is a politically active Democrat who does not support ICE in Houston .
He compared ICE agents to Nazis in 2019 during a case involving an 11-year-old girl and a bogus story that she was being separated from her mother .
He is also a @ @ @ @ @ @

Two Houston police officers responded to a domestic violence call Tuesday morning which resulted in the death of one officer and another injured. An illegal immigrant killed a Houston police officer just weeks away from retirement.
Sgt. Harold Preston, a 41-year veteran of the force, was at the end of his career, preparing to file paperwork to retire in just a matter of weeks. He was 65 years old. The other officer involved, Courtney Waller, is a three-year veteran of the department. Waller was shot in an arm and expected to recover. The story is tragic enough but the fact that the murderer is an illegal immigrant with a long criminal record just compounds the tragedy.
Elmer Rolando Manzano-Martinez, age 51, is in the U.S. illegally from El Salvador. He was arrested on the scene.
Those of us who knew, loved, & respected Sgt. Harold Preston knew him to be a wonderful, courageous, and humble servant, from an amazing family. While many may never say his name, or honor his life of selfless service, we will never forget. RIP kind hero, we will celebrate you. pic.twitter.com/3U370XNsFc — Chief Art Acevedo (@ArtAcevedo) October 20, 2020
“We’ve lost just a wonderful human being,” Acevedo said during a news conference at Memorial Hermann Hospital. “He is leading with men and women on streets, instead of choosing to sit in an office drinking coffee and reading the paper. That is the man he was — he is a man who lived with elderly parents to take care of them. As good as he was as a cop, he was a better human being, that is just the guy that he was and we are going to miss him.”
Please continue to send your thoughts and prayers to Officer Courtney Waller as he recovers from his injuries after being shot in the line of duty today. #hounews pic.twitter.com/VtSJrYb0u3 — Houston Police (@houstonpolice) October 20, 2020
ICE officials identified Manzano-Martinez as a “convicted criminal alien who is unlawfully present in the U.S.” The Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) unit of ICE placed an immigration detainer with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office. Detainers are placed against illegal immigrants who “have been arrested on criminal charges and who ICE has probable cause to believe are removable aliens, the agency statement said. The detainer requests that a state or local law enforcement agency notify ICE in advance if the suspect will be released.”
Manzano-Martinez was shot in the abdomen area and his condition is stable in the hospital. He is expected to be charged with murder.
The domestic violence call came in about 8:15 a.m. Tuesday morning. Manzano-Martinez’s estranged wife called police for help in getting into their apartment. She told Officers Preston and Waller and another officer on the scene that she wanted to get her belongings out of the apartment as she was moving out. She had their 14-year-old son with her. They were out in the apartment complex’s parking lot when police arrived. Multiple units responded, as well as fire trucks and a SWAT team in case it was a situation where Manzano-Martinez tried to barricade himself in the apartment. The reporting states that when the suspect’s son opened the apartment’s door, he saw his father with a gun and alerted the police about it. Houston Police Chief Acevedo said Manzano-Martinez fired multiple rounds in their direction.
Officer Preston was hit multiple times, including more than once in the head. His fellow officers moved him to safety. Officer Waller was moved by a bystander and escorted to safety in front of the apartment complex. That person also went back and retrieved Waller’s handgun which fell on the ground a short distance away, wrapped it in a towel, and handed it to the police on site. Manzano-Martinez surrendered after barricading himself inside the apartment.
Could all of this have been prevented? It’s likely that it could have been prevented. Besides the fact that the killer, a convicted felon with multiple prior assaults on his record, is in Texas illegally, there was an incident just two days earlier.
On October 18, HPD Officers responded to a call from Mrs. Santos, stated that her ex-husband, Elmer Manzano, was at the location brandishing a gun threatening Mrs. Santos and her children. HPD Officers took Elmer Manzano into custody that day but Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg declined to take charges, instructing Officers to release him, and return the six bullets he had in his pocket, he was also allowed to keep his gun which he claimed was locked in his safe. Had charges been accepted, Mr. Manzano might be back on the street, but his gun and ammunition would have been seized and held as evidence. No gun would have meant no dead officer and injured officer.
This is a horrible story. The actions of the Harris County District Attorney ( up for re-election, I add here) have to be weighed into the death of Officer Preston, right? It is particularly hard to stomach because D.A. Ogg, a Democrat, was the executive director of Crime Stoppers before she became Harris County District Attorney. Shouldn’t she be aware of the dangers of domestic violence situations? Why was Manzano-Martinez in possession of a gun in the first place, much less allowed to keep it? The story on Fox News online says the police responded to calls from that apartment twice over the weekend for domestic violence. The police chief said that Manzano-Martinez has a long criminal history. In 2002 he was charged with felony evading of police. Manzano pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 120 days in jail. He didn’t serve his sentence in state prison, as is normally the case.
So, why did he have a gun?
“There is a very narrow exception in Texas that allows for a convicted felon, after a five-year waiting period to possess a gun, but only when in the home they reside in.” It is unclear whether Manzano had the gun legally or not.
You’ll have to excuse my cynicism here. I’m assuming that a convicted felon who is here illegally probably illegally had a gun in his possession, too.
The problems with immigration laws and monitoring people in our country are a part of this story, too. His presence in Texas goes back thirty years.
Sources told KPRC 2 Investigates that Border Patrol first encountered Manzano in Brownsville, Texas, in 1989. He was released with a future immigration court date. He was granted temporary protective status in 1991, and that status expired in 1994. He was issued work authorization, but that authorization expired on Dec. 20, 2000.
I do ponder if the police chief ever feels twinges of guilt when these deaths occur. He is a politically active Democrat who does not support ICE in Houston. He compared ICE agents to Nazis in 2019 during a case involving an 11-year-old girl and a bogus story that she was being separated from her mother. He is also a vocal critic of President Trump.
Yep. The Nazi’s enforced their laws as well. You don’t separate children from their families! Ever! You’d have to kill me to take my child from me simply because I was trying to get them to a better place for a better tomorrow. I am glad to be on the right side of history. — Chief Art Acevedo (@ArtAcevedo) April 12, 2019
Governor Abbott issued a statement.
Statement on the tragic death of @houstonpolice Sergeant Harold Preston: pic.twitter.com/eej5nzl5nn — Gov. Greg Abbott (@GovAbbott) October 20, 2020
A police motorcade escorted Preston’s body to the Medical Examiner’s office.
Motorcade Escort of Fallen Sgt. Harold Preston Arrives at Medical Examiners Office https://t.co/bmd4qC7mII — Houston Police (@houstonpolice) October 20, 2020
R.I.P., Officer Preston.


hotair--2020-10-21--Biden is running against Trump's record on the pandemic, but he has no new ideas

During the few times that Joe Biden has emerged from his basement during the general election campaign , he ’ s primarily stuck to one theme .
President Trump hasn ’ t done a good enough job in battling the pandemic and all of the lives lost or ruined are somehow his fault .
Most of the mainstream media has happily abetted Biden in keeping this narrative going .
CNN spends most of the day displaying their programming in a smaller box to the left side of the screen while a column on the right grimly reminds everyone of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ both globally and in the United States .
Any time a GOP event takes place where the number of people wearing masks is deemed insufficient , they rail about it for hours .
( Complaints about similar careless behavior at BLM marches or riots never seem to be newsworthy . )
But if the President has fumbled the response to the pandemic so badly , what would Joe Biden have done differently ?
Even more to the point , if the nation decides to elect him as the next president , what brilliant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will slay the novel coronavirus monster and bring us back to some sense of normality ?
We don ’ t know because Joe Biden isn ’ t saying .
As Karol Markowicz points out in an op-ed at the New York Post this week , the reason that Biden is at best silent , or at worst confused , is that he doesn ’ t have a plan .
And if he ’ s elected , you ’ re going to see a very different response to this situation on your cable news @ @ @ @ @ @ @ week , Joe Biden made a startling admission : “ You can ’ t mandate a mask.
” This was puzzling , because he had spent August badgering President Trump to implement a national mask mandate .
The confusion is of a piece with the ex-veep ’ s wider struggle to explain what , exactly , he would have done differently in response to the pandemic were he the one in power… As it is , the Biden-Harris campaign offers nothing but unscientific blame .
In August , Kamala Harris commented , “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ virus ] has hit America worse than any other advanced nation .
It ’ s because of Trump ’ s failure to take it seriously.
” In fact , America ’ s death rates are in line with many other Western countries , including Spain , Britain , Italy and Sweden .
Our implementation of lockdowns and mask compliance are also comparable to many developed states .
If Joe Biden has a plan that ’ s materially different from what Donald Trump has been doing , he owes it to the voting public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doesn ’ t he support a national mask mandate ?
He ’ s implied both over the past few weeks .
Would he push for continued or renewed lockdowns , further gutting the economy in a nation already long past the point of being weary of these restrictions ?
Should all of the schools be reopened or does he believe that ’ s an unacceptable risk to both students and teachers ?
We have no idea because Joe Biden won ’ t say .
It ’ s a blatant lie to pretend that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ available sooner just because Biden is in the White House .
And the virus isn ’ t going to simply go away just because it ’ s frightened of Big Bad Joe and his California Senator sidekick .
Biden claims , along with a majority of the cable news talking heads , that Trump hasn ’ t “ spent enough money ” fighting the virus , but that ’ s nonsense .
Most of the relief money has been going to ease people ’ s suffering as a result of the pandemic , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or a vaccine .
And not to put too fine of a point on this , but it ’ s the Democrats who have blocked another round of pandemic relief funding while Trump has been begging for another stimulus bill to sign .
I ’ ll put on my prognosticator ’ s hat here for a moment and predict that there is one significant change on the way if Donald Trump doesn ’ t win another term .
If Joe Biden wins the election , you ’ re going to see a shocking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pandemic is .
Reminders of how many people are dying will quickly fade from cable news coverage and the nation ’ s larger newspapers .
If and when a viable vaccine does arrive , Biden will somehow be credited with riding to the rescue even though the work that went into creating it happened almost entirely under Trump ’ s watch .
And assuming we manage to get the virus under control to the point where it ’ s not much worse than the seasonal flu , you won ’ t be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the person in charge has a D after their name .

During the few times that Joe Biden has emerged from his basement during the general election campaign, he’s primarily stuck to one theme. President Trump hasn’t done a good enough job in battling the pandemic and all of the lives lost or ruined are somehow his fault. Most of the mainstream media has happily abetted Biden in keeping this narrative going. CNN spends most of the day displaying their programming in a smaller box to the left side of the screen while a column on the right grimly reminds everyone of the total number of COVID-19 cases and deaths both globally and in the United States. Any time a GOP event takes place where the number of people wearing masks is deemed insufficient, they rail about it for hours. (Complaints about similar careless behavior at BLM marches or riots never seem to be newsworthy.)
But if the President has fumbled the response to the pandemic so badly, what would Joe Biden have done differently? Even more to the point, if the nation decides to elect him as the next president, what brilliant plan does Biden have in store that will slay the novel coronavirus monster and bring us back to some sense of normality? We don’t know because Joe Biden isn’t saying. As Karol Markowicz points out in an op-ed at the New York Post this week, the reason that Biden is at best silent, or at worst confused, is that he doesn’t have a plan. And if he’s elected, you’re going to see a very different response to this situation on your cable news stations.
During his town hall last week, Joe Biden made a startling admission: “You can’t mandate a mask.” This was puzzling, because he had spent August badgering President Trump to implement a national mask mandate. The confusion is of a piece with the ex-veep’s wider struggle to explain what, exactly, he would have done differently in response to the pandemic were he the one in power… As it is, the Biden-Harris campaign offers nothing but unscientific blame. In August, Kamala Harris commented, “There’s a reason [the virus] has hit America worse than any other advanced nation. It’s because of Trump’s failure to take it seriously.” In fact, America’s death rates are in line with many other Western countries, including Spain, Britain, Italy and Sweden. Our implementation of lockdowns and mask compliance are also comparable to many developed states.
If Joe Biden has a plan that’s materially different from what Donald Trump has been doing, he owes it to the voting public to tell us. Does he or doesn’t he support a national mask mandate? He’s implied both over the past few weeks. Would he push for continued or renewed lockdowns, further gutting the economy in a nation already long past the point of being weary of these restrictions? Should all of the schools be reopened or does he believe that’s an unacceptable risk to both students and teachers? We have no idea because Joe Biden won’t say.
It’s a blatant lie to pretend that a workable vaccine will somehow magically become available sooner just because Biden is in the White House. And the virus isn’t going to simply go away just because it’s frightened of Big Bad Joe and his California Senator sidekick. Biden claims, along with a majority of the cable news talking heads, that Trump hasn’t “spent enough money” fighting the virus, but that’s nonsense. Most of the relief money has been going to ease people’s suffering as a result of the pandemic, not on efforts to find a cure or a vaccine. And not to put too fine of a point on this, but it’s the Democrats who have blocked another round of pandemic relief funding while Trump has been begging for another stimulus bill to sign.
I’ll put on my prognosticator’s hat here for a moment and predict that there is one significant change on the way if Donald Trump doesn’t win another term. If Joe Biden wins the election, you’re going to see a shocking decrease in news stories about how bad the pandemic is. Reminders of how many people are dying will quickly fade from cable news coverage and the nation’s larger newspapers. If and when a viable vaccine does arrive, Biden will somehow be credited with riding to the rescue even though the work that went into creating it happened almost entirely under Trump’s watch. And assuming we manage to get the virus under control to the point where it’s not much worse than the seasonal flu, you won’t be hearing a word about it as long as the person in charge has a D after their name.


hotair--2020-10-21--Hunter associate emails: Let's profit off our "direct administration pipeline"

Ho hum , just another day in Washington ’ s vast career-politician-industrial complex .
If one ever wondered how family members of Beltway barnacles get so wealthy , this primer from Peter Schweitzer and Seamus Bruner at Breitbart will provide a reminder .
E-mails culled from Hunter Biden ’ s business associates — from an entirely different source than Rudy Giuliani and the purported Hunter hard drive — show the way money gets attracted to people with familial connections to power .
Or , to use the words of Hunter ’ s associates , attracted to Hunter ’ s “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New York Post ‘ s alleged “ smoking gun ” involving Joe Biden , but it ’ s still clear why people kept giving Hunter money .
They wanted to buy influence , or at the very least the appearance of it : Hunter Biden ’ s business associates spoke candidly in emails about Hunter Biden ’ s role in the business , particularly as it related to foreign ventures , apparently viewing the Biden name as a form of “ currency , ” and bragging that they had a “ direct…pipeline ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ email , Hunter Biden ’ s associates touted Hunter ’ s access to the White House and contrasted his willingness to “ take on risk ” with that of Chris Heinz—then-Secretary of State John Kerry ’ s stepson and a close friend of Biden and Archer—who was uncomfortable with some of their potential partnerships .
… In an email on November 4 , 2014 , Biden ’ s business associate Jason Galanis discussed a draft pitch that he was preparing for possible investors .
Galanis explained that the presentation would cover boilerplate issues @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sought to emphasize their connections to the White House , specifically Vice President Joe Biden : “ I wanted to focus on the ‘ other currency ’ we are bringing to the table…direct administration pipeline.
” Galanis also mentioned dropping Joe Biden ’ s connections in their pitch when dealing with union pension funds .
Galanis wrote , “ maybe we should also remind of HB ’ s dad ’ s union relationships to justify the ask ?
?
” Hunter wasn ’ t the only Biden family member to profit off this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ union implications , either : In a March 2015 draft investor pitch , Biden ’ s associates wrote about the need to “ leverage Hunter Biden Taft Hartley network.
” Taft Hartley is the law governing union pension funds , and Joe Biden has a long-established history of close relationships with union bosses , which Hunter Biden and Joe ’ s brother James Biden have reportedly sought to capitalize on in the past .
The presentation noted that the team “ led by Archer and Biden ” would create “ unprecedented opportunity for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and referenced tapping finances from Chinese officials .
In December 2013 , as has been widely reported , Biden and Archer secured a $ 1 billion private equity deal financed by the Chinese government .
Biden and his associates wanted to go back for even more Chinese money .
Schweitzer and Bruner have more examples that show just how sleazy these family connections can get .
What it lacks , at least thus far , is an actual corrupt act by Joe Biden himself .
The NY Post story had that as its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that Biden himself lied about being involved in Hunter ’ s work at Burisma , before his intervention in an official VP capacity to demand the removal of Ukraine ’ s chief prosecutor .
Thus far , that e-mail has not yet been authenticated , but the Biden camp isn ’ t claiming that it ’ s fake , either .
All this smoke does lead one to wonder just how much of a fire there actually was , however .
Hunter scored massive deals by trading off access to his father .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ results , how long could that sales pitch work ?
At some point the investors would either have access to Joe or they would take their money elsewhere , especially those investors from China ’ s state-controlled companies .
Did they pack up and leave ?
Or did Hunter and his associates deliver on their “ direct administration pipeline ” ?
Perhaps the FBI already knows the answer to that question .

Ho hum, just another day in Washington’s vast career-politician-industrial complex. If one ever wondered how family members of Beltway barnacles get so wealthy, this primer from Peter Schweitzer and Seamus Bruner at Breitbart will provide a reminder. E-mails culled from Hunter Biden’s business associates — from an entirely different source than Rudy Giuliani and the purported Hunter hard drive — show the way money gets attracted to people with familial connections to power. Or, to use the words of Hunter’s associates, attracted to Hunter’s “direct administration pipeline.”
This lacks the New York Post‘s alleged “smoking gun” involving Joe Biden, but it’s still clear why people kept giving Hunter money. They wanted to buy influence, or at the very least the appearance of it:
Hunter Biden’s business associates spoke candidly in emails about Hunter Biden’s role in the business, particularly as it related to foreign ventures, apparently viewing the Biden name as a form of “currency,” and bragging that they had a “direct…pipeline” to the Obama-Biden Administration. In another email, Hunter Biden’s associates touted Hunter’s access to the White House and contrasted his willingness to “take on risk” with that of Chris Heinz—then-Secretary of State John Kerry’s stepson and a close friend of Biden and Archer—who was uncomfortable with some of their potential partnerships. … In an email on November 4, 2014, Biden’s business associate Jason Galanis discussed a draft pitch that he was preparing for possible investors. Galanis explained that the presentation would cover boilerplate issues like investor protections. But Galanis also sought to emphasize their connections to the White House, specifically Vice President Joe Biden: “I wanted to focus on the ‘other currency’ we are bringing to the table…direct administration pipeline.” Galanis also mentioned dropping Joe Biden’s connections in their pitch when dealing with union pension funds. Galanis wrote, “maybe we should also remind of HB’s dad’s union relationships to justify the ask??”
Hunter wasn’t the only Biden family member to profit off this “direct administration pipeline” and its union implications, either:
In a March 2015 draft investor pitch, Biden’s associates wrote about the need to “leverage Hunter Biden Taft Hartley network.” Taft Hartley is the law governing union pension funds, and Joe Biden has a long-established history of close relationships with union bosses, which Hunter Biden and Joe’s brother James Biden have reportedly sought to capitalize on in the past. The presentation noted that the team “led by Archer and Biden” would create “unprecedented opportunity for a firm at our scale,” and referenced tapping finances from Chinese officials. In December 2013, as has been widely reported, Biden and Archer secured a $1 billion private equity deal financed by the Chinese government. Biden and his associates wanted to go back for even more Chinese money.
Schweitzer and Bruner have more examples that show just how sleazy these family connections can get. What it lacks, at least thus far, is an actual corrupt act by Joe Biden himself. The NY Post story had that as its hook — an e-mail which allegedly confirms that Biden himself lied about being involved in Hunter’s work at Burisma, before his intervention in an official VP capacity to demand the removal of Ukraine’s chief prosecutor. Thus far, that e-mail has not yet been authenticated, but the Biden camp isn’t claiming that it’s fake, either.
All this smoke does lead one to wonder just how much of a fire there actually was, however. Hunter scored massive deals by trading off access to his father. If that didn’t actually deliver results, how long could that sales pitch work? At some point the investors would either have access to Joe or they would take their money elsewhere, especially those investors from China’s state-controlled companies. Did they pack up and leave? Or did Hunter and his associates deliver on their “direct administration pipeline”? Perhaps the FBI already knows the answer to that question.