vox--2020-08-28--Trump’s RNC speech was a mess. But the optics of it were powerful.

The text of President Donald Trump ’ s rambling 70-minute-long RNC-closing speech wasn ’ t particularly impressive .
Trump read laboriously and largely stayed on script .
His remarks consisted of now-familiar lies about his record , overheated attacks on Democratic nominee Joe Biden , and authoritarian bluster .
But the optics of it were striking — for all the wrong reasons .
Trump shredded norms and laws like the Hatch Act that have restrained previous presidents from using public property as a political prop , and delivered his speech from the White House .
The result was gauche images @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that isn ’ t supposed to belong to any political party .
While the president and vice president are technically immune from the Hatch Act , federal employees who helped stage the RNC are not .
But on a deeper level , the decision to hold a political convention at the White House is an affront to the principle that it ’ s wrong for elected officials to use their offices for campaigning .
Walter Shaub , former director of the United States Office of Government Ethics , described Trump ’ s decision @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House as an “ abomination ” that “ may be the most visible misuse of official position for private gain in America ’ s history.
” During his speech , Trump paid lip service to the history of the White House , which he described as “ known all over the world as the people ’ s house , ” but he was shameless about using it as a campaign prop .
At one point , Trump even seemed to mock critics like Shaub .
“ The fact is , I ’ m @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of that building ?
” he said , pointing to the White House .
“ The fact is , we ’ re here and they ’ re not.
” In a statement sent to Vox , Jordan Libowitz , communications director for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington ( CREW ) , noted that “ history is littered with totalitarians who used their government as political props.
” “ With Trump ’ s show in front of the White House — the climax of a three-and-a-half year crescendo of attacking the foundations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we ’ ve never seen before , ” he added .
“ And it ’ s terrifying.
” The corruption involved in using the White House for partisan campaigning wasn ’ t the only respect in which the optics of Trump ’ s speech were disturbing .
Trump defended his administration ’ s response to the coronavirus pandemic , but the crisis still didn ’ t play a major role in the president ’ s speech .
That was for good reason — the US government ’ s response has been uniquely bad @ @ @ @ @ @ @ death toll just passed 180,000 .
The less the campaign is about Covid-19 , the better for Trump .
But Trump ’ s desire to downplay the pandemic and the RNC ’ s effort to portray it in the past tense resulted in more than 1,000 people sitting on the White House grounds to listen to a string of speeches , without social distancing and with very few masks .
For those who care about the rule of law and public health , Trump ’ s speech was an ugly affair .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ noted , the images of power it projected are powerful and could work to Trump ’ s benefit .
CREW ’ s Libowitz characterized the event as another step in America ’ s slow descent into authoritarianism .
“ We are taught about [ totalitarians ] as a warning , as the thing we can never let happen here .
And we ’ ve never had it here , which has led some to believe in an American exceptionalism , [ that ] some love of country would prevent our leaders from using @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government to keep themselves in power over that government , ” he said .
“ No one believes that anymore.
” In the spring , we launched a program asking readers for financial contributions to help keep Vox free for everyone , and last week , we set a goal of reaching 20,000 contributors .
Well , you helped us blow past that .
Today , we are extending that goal to 25,000 .
Millions turn to Vox each month to understand an increasingly chaotic world — from what is happening with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is , quite possibly , the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes .
Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers , your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work — and helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world .
Contribute today from as little as $ 3 .

The text of President Donald Trump’s rambling 70-minute-long RNC-closing speech wasn’t particularly impressive. Trump read laboriously and largely stayed on script. His remarks consisted of now-familiar lies about his record, overheated attacks on Democratic nominee Joe Biden, and authoritarian bluster.
But the optics of it were striking — for all the wrong reasons.
Trump shredded norms and laws like the Hatch Act that have restrained previous presidents from using public property as a political prop, and delivered his speech from the White House. The result was gauche images of “TRUMP/PENCE” signs on property that isn’t supposed to belong to any political party.
While the president and vice president are technically immune from the Hatch Act, federal employees who helped stage the RNC are not. But on a deeper level, the decision to hold a political convention at the White House is an affront to the principle that it’s wrong for elected officials to use their offices for campaigning.
Walter Shaub, former director of the United States Office of Government Ethics, described Trump’s decision to have the RNC at the White House as an “abomination” that “may be the most visible misuse of official position for private gain in America’s history.”
This abomination may be the most visible misuse of official position for private gain in America’s history. It is an abuse of the power entrusted to this man, the breach of a sacred trust. It is the civic equivalent of a mortal sin—maybe a religious one too. And it is a harbinger pic.twitter.com/UryxiQTyv0 — Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) August 28, 2020
During his speech, Trump paid lip service to the history of the White House, which he described as “known all over the world as the people’s house,” but he was shameless about using it as a campaign prop.
At one point, Trump even seemed to mock critics like Shaub.
“The fact is, I’m here — what’s the name of that building?” he said, pointing to the White House. “The fact is, we’re here and they’re not.”
"The fact is, we're here and they're not" -- Trump rubs our noses in the fact he's using the White House as a political prop pic.twitter.com/1C4G0TUXFd — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 28, 2020
In a statement sent to Vox, Jordan Libowitz, communications director for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), noted that “history is littered with totalitarians who used their government as political props.”
“With Trump’s show in front of the White House — the climax of a three-and-a-half year crescendo of attacking the foundations of our democracy — we saw something we’ve never seen before,” he added. “And it’s terrifying.”
Trump pretends the pandemic isn’t happening
The corruption involved in using the White House for partisan campaigning wasn’t the only respect in which the optics of Trump’s speech were disturbing.
Trump defended his administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, but the crisis still didn’t play a major role in the president’s speech. That was for good reason — the US government’s response has been uniquely bad among developed democracies, and the still-mounting death toll just passed 180,000. The less the campaign is about Covid-19, the better for Trump.
But Trump’s desire to downplay the pandemic and the RNC’s effort to portray it in the past tense resulted in more than 1,000 people sitting on the White House grounds to listen to a string of speeches, without social distancing and with very few masks.
portrait of a superspreader event pic.twitter.com/NFyGidb5Mu — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 28, 2020
For those who care about the rule of law and public health, Trump’s speech was an ugly affair. But as Lincoln Project senior adviser Tom Nichols noted, the images of power it projected are powerful and could work to Trump’s benefit.
The speech is basically a rally rehash. But the backdrop is dramatic, and has a strong visual influence, which might be a reason that you’re not supposed to be able to use the official resources of the government as a campaign prop. — Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) August 28, 2020
CREW’s Libowitz characterized the event as another step in America’s slow descent into authoritarianism.
“We are taught about [totalitarians] as a warning, as the thing we can never let happen here. And we’ve never had it here, which has led some to believe in an American exceptionalism, [that] some love of country would prevent our leaders from using their power and the people’s government to keep themselves in power over that government,” he said. “No one believes that anymore.”
New goal: 25,000
In the spring, we launched a program asking readers for financial contributions to help keep Vox free for everyone, and last week, we set a goal of reaching 20,000 contributors. Well, you helped us blow past that. Today, we are extending that goal to 25,000. Millions turn to Vox each month to understand an increasingly chaotic world — from what is happening with the USPS to the coronavirus crisis to what is, quite possibly, the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes. Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers, your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work — and helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world. Contribute today from as little as $3.


vox--2020-08-28--3 winners and 4 losers from the final night of the Republican National Convention

The first hour of the final evening of the 2020 Republican Convention had two clear , albeit somewhat contradictory , messages .
On the one hand , a parade of nonwhite speakers vouched for President Donald Trump both as a nonracist individual and also as a policymaker who delivered criminal justice reform .
On the other hand , Black Lives Matter protests are responsible for rioting and rising crime all across America and only Trump can save the suburbs from inner city chaos .
His election rival Joe Biden , by the same token , was both an avatar of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also somehow the leader of a movement to defund the police .
It was clearly a pitch to more moderate voters who might have misgivings about how things are going under Trump .
Earlier nights in the convention served up plenty of red meat to the base — from anti-abortion tirades to overt attempts to “ own the libs ” — but Thursday night was clearly the persuasion game .
The big message was that America as a whole is tumbling into chaos and lawlessness , and the only person who can rescue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The speech itself was a bit of a letdown .
Trump , a master of drawing attention to himself , has never been very skilled at reading prepared text from a teleprompter .
And this night was no exception , as he delivered a somewhat stilted speech largely free of the zany riffing that makes his rallies compelling .
Nonetheless , given a huge ( and illegal ) stage , he was very much the center of attention , giving a looooong speech and making clear that he sees himself as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
That the president of the United States chose to stage his convention speech at the White House as a flagrant violation of the Hatch Act is on some level not important .
But maybe it ’ s the most important thing of all .
In the earliest days of his political career it was often said Trump wouldn ’ t really run for president , because if he did he would “ have to ” release his tax returns and engage in other forms of financial disclosure .
As a candidate , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would “ have to ” divest himself from control over his operating companies .
And in the early days of his administration , he would frequently be told that on the small number of policy issues he did care about , there were various legal or constitutional reasons he couldn ’ t do what he wanted to do .
But as his first term enters its final months , it ’ s now clear to everyone that none of that is true .
If I earnestly wrote that it is bad that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a position to collect cash bribes in unlimited quantities through his hotels and opaque network of shell companies , I ’ d be laughed out of the room as hopelessly naive and a tedious bore to boot .
The smart set of DC journalists who set the political agenda declared days ago that the Hatch Act is something real people don ’ t care about , so the same television networks that devoted more time to Hillary Clinton ’ s emails than all policy issues combined in 2016 feel free to ignore it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government depends on the supposition that a president ’ s co-partisans in Congress will be bothered by lawbreaking — especially lawbreaking that has no ideological purpose .
What congressional Republicans learned about themselves in this year ’ s impeachment process is that they aren ’ t actually bothered .
And now Trump knows that they know this .
And they know that Trump knows that they know it .
So in essence , the gloves are off , the rule of law is dead , and we ’ re simply left with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s illegal orders are followed .
Sure , Trump ’ s finishing speech was long , tedious , and poorly delivered .
But he also used the convention to broadcast a series of blatant lies about his administration ’ s competency , largely uninterrupted , for 10-plus hours over the course of four nights .
And while the theme Trump pushed all week , on the side of police and law and order , could have come across flat — much like his “ immigrants are coming to kill you ” argument did @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Wisconsin , made the message suddenly relevant , and some Democrats are newly worried at the prospect of a Trump reelection .
For a political neophyte often caricatured by both his foes and his allies as somewhat dimwitted , it ’ s genuinely an impressive achievement and it ’ ll be his no matter what the outcome in November .
While the Democrats reacted to the unusual circumstances of a political convention held amid a pandemic with an innovative , integrated multimedia show , the GOP — perhaps lacking the Democrats ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The big set pieces for Trump , first lady Melania , Vice President Mike Pence , and other featured speakers came off well .
And the evening featured many well-crafted videos .
But the bulk of the programming was a series of traditional stand-up podium speeches delivered in the empty Mellon Auditorium in Washington , DC .
With no audience , speeches delivered there mostly came off flat .
Other higher-energy speeches , like the one delivered by Rudy Giuliani , felt unhinged .
At times , the microphones picked up audible @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The eeriness was bad on its own terms .
But it also served as a reminder that Republicans seem to believe the Covid-19 pandemic is somehow gone , irrelevant , or over , even as it visibly , viscerally impacts almost every aspect of American life on a daily basis .
Case loads are now heading downward after their July spike , but more Americans died of Covid-19 during the four days of the GOP convention than died on 9/11 , schools are closed in vast swaths of the country , and nobody @ @ @ @ @ @ @ activity will bring a new spike in infection .
African Americans are hardly part of the Republican base .
In 2016 , just 8 percent of Black voters supported President Trump , according to CNN exit polls .
And yet , if you didn ’ t know that and looked at the faces of the speakers at the Republican National Convention , you ’ d think Black Trump supporters are both welcome at the table of the Republican Party and numerous .
Trump once said that there were “ very fine people on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rally in Charlottesville , Virginia .
But the RNC ’ s planners recruited a sizable roster of African Americans , from among the small minority of Black voters who support Trump , to speak at this week ’ s convention .
At the 2016 RNC , only 18 African American delegates were expected to be present , out of the 2,000-plus delegates invited .
This year , by contrast , about a dozen Black people were given featured speaking slots .
Night one of the convention closed with a speech from Sen. Tim @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Black Republican in the Senate , who powerfully relayed his personal success story — “ Our family went from cotton to Congress in one lifetime.
” Other RNC speakers included 1980s NFL stars Herschel Walker and Burgess Owens , former NFL football player Jack Brewer , long shot congressional candidate Kim Klacik , and civil rights activist Clarence Henderson , all of whom are Black .
Black Trump supporters filled the speaking list on night four .
Trump aide Ja ’ Ron Smith claimed that “ every issue important to Black communities have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Stacia Brightmon , a Black veteran , touted a federal job training program .
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson praised Trump for bringing “ the office of historically Black colleges and universities into the White House.
” Many of these speakers attacked the notoriously loose-tongued Democratic nominee , claiming that one of Biden ’ s more inarticulate moments suggests he takes Black voters for granted .
Over and over this week , speakers brought up a Biden gaffe when the former vice president , in an apparent effort to tout @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that “ if you have a problem figuring out whether you ’ re for me or Trump , then you ain ’ t Black.
” ( Biden later said he “ shouldn ’ t have been such a wise guy ” when he made this remark . )
Perhaps Trump — who polled well , for a Republican , among Black men before the pandemic struck — believes he can narrow Biden ’ s margins among African Americans .
Or perhaps , as the Nation ’ s Elie Mystal writes , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” to “ give white people ‘ permission ’ to vote ” for a president who often pushes a white nationalist agenda .
Whatever the reason , it ’ s clear that Republicans want viewers of their convention to believe that Trump has Black friends .
It was still surreal to see people , without masks , sitting quite close together on the White House lawn .
On Wednesday , Vice President Mike Pence mingled with the audience after the speech he gave the day before Trump .
As the coronavirus pandemic rages @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the United States , the mere sight of so many human beings congregated together is a shock all its own .
At last count , there have been almost 5.9 million cases in the United States and about 180,000 deaths .
The US ranked near the bottom of the new Foreign Policy global response index , behind much of Europe , Australia , and New Zealand , and a number of African and Asian countries .
My colleague German Lopez reports persuasively that Trump , by repeatedly doing nothing , shifting responsibility and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ win.
” It was also reported during the RNC that the CDC had been pressured by the Trump administration to encourage less testing through its official guidance .
The administration ’ s testing czar denies it .
So Trump has been , at best , a hindrance to the US response and , at worst , he may be actively sabotaging it .
He has certainly helped politicize the debate over how the US should contain the virus in his attitude toward social distancing .
He refused to wear a mask for months @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to spite him .
He tweeted that governors should “ LIBERATE ” their states from pandemic-related restrictions , even when cases were still high and the country ’ s capacity to test , trace , and isolate was inadequate .
What followed was a summer wave in cases and then deaths .
People follow signals from their leaders .
We are fortunate that most Americans say they are taking precautions like wearing masks .
But there is already some disparity between Democrats and Republicans .
RNC viewers have heard a clear message from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doesn ’ t need to be taken that seriously .
One of the most emotional moments of the night came from Ann Dorn , the widow of a retired police officer killed when he tried to stop looters in St. Louis after the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd .
Dorn linked the chaos that killed her husband , David , to one of the themes of the Republican convention .
Namely , that in Democratic-run cities , a movement largely supported by Democrats is spiraling into uncontrolled violence , and that Democratic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but Trump is ready to do something .
“ Violence and destruction are not legitimate forms of protest .
They do not safeguard Black lives .
They destroy them , ” she said .
“ President Trump understands this and has offered federal help to restore order in our communities .
In a time when police departments are short on resources and manpower , we need that help .
We should accept that help .
We must heal before we can effect change , but we can not heal amid devastation and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more Davids in our communities , not fewer.
” Republicans hit this message again and again , condemning the property damage and violence by some protesters .
They repeatedly claimed that Joe Biden and Democrats want to defund police departments that are supposed to protect communities from this violence .
( Biden ’ s plan actually calls for an increase in funding for police . )
One can disagree with this message .
Maybe you think protests that become violent or turn to looting are the voice of the unheard , showing a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , or that it ’ s unfair to link such violence to Democrats in particular , given that many of them — including Biden — have condemned it .
But Dorn was an effective messenger — though her husband ’ s daughters claim he was not , in fact , a Trump supporter .
It ’ s too soon to know how the protests in Kenosha will affect public opinion in Wisconsin .
A recent study from Omar Wasow , published in the American Political Science Review , concluded that nonviolent protests in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who backed civil rights causes .
But the backlash to the riots of the era was so fierce that it helped Republicans — contributing to the landslide election of Republican Richard Nixon in 1968 .
It ’ s unclear if this study applies to the current political environment , given how much has changed .
And Trump , after all , is the incumbent , whereas Nixon was running in an open contest .
But it suggests riots could lead to a backlash against Black Lives Matter and other causes linked to Democrats @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will .
Not only was New York Mayor Bill de Blasio not invited to the Democratic National Convention last week , he didn ’ t even know it was happening .
( Or so he claims , because who among us has pretended to not care about that party we weren ’ t invited to . )
But at the Republican National Convention on Thursday , the short-lived 2020 presidential candidate and reluctant Upper East Side resident was front and center .
Republicans ran what basically amounted to an attack ad against the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ convention .
The produced video spot showed New York residents and housing leaders criticizing de Blasio .
“ I would really hate to get started on this mayor , ” said Carmen Quiñones , president of the Douglass Houses , a public housing complex on New York ’ s Upper West Side .
The spot seemed to be an attempt to pit Black Americans against immigrants when it comes to housing in the city .
“ How is it that we have people waiting on the waiting list for New York City public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but yes , we have illegal immigrants living here ?
” posited Judy Smith , a resident of New York public housing .
It ’ s true that housing is a perennial issue in New York , and that de Blasio , like many mayors before him , has failed to fix it .
It is also true that the Trump campaign has been making some pretty overt appeals to Black voters throughout the convention , and making immigrants out to be a scapegoat plays very much into that narrative .
Beyond the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the situation does say something about de Blasio , who has had a , say , problematic tenure as mayor .
He hasn ’ t exactly been knocking it out of the park amid the Covid-19 outbreak .
The pandemic is an unprecedented situation , but de Blasio ’ s response has been rather inconsistent and indecisive when it comes to issues such as schools , and his ongoing feud with New York Gov .
Andrew Cuomo hasn ’ t helped the situation .
In early August , the city ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mayor .
Heck , I ’ m somewhat sympathetic to de Blasio , and even I ’ ve thought , “ please stop going to Prospect Park ” on multiple occasions in all of this .
On the one hand , de Blasio is an easy character for Republicans to train their fire on : he is not particularly popular in national politics or in New York ( though in the city , it ’ s worth clarifying his polling problems are more with white residents than with Black residents ) .
Plus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this narrative of Democratic-led cities on fire , and the unpopular New York mayor seems as good an example as any .
On the other hand , de Blasio getting all this attention during the RNC is a bit of a win for him .
Beyond Joe Biden and Kamala Harris , who else has gotten this kind of attention ?
Sports have always been political — and this week that ’ s been incredibly evident , as players in numerous leagues have decided to strike in protest of racism and police brutality @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , MLB , and MLS are among those participating in demonstrations following the police shooting of 29-year-old Jacob Blake earlier this week .
“ Despite the overwhelming pleas for change , there have been no actions , so our focus can not be on basketball , ” Milwaukee Bucks player Sterling Brown said when the team boycotted a playoff game on Wednesday .
Amid these protests , the Republican National Convention included a video montage on Thursday dedicated to the “ American athlete.
” Clips showed Trump praising athletes ’ willingness to “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a nostalgic Lou Gehrig moment .
Yet , despite its alleged praise of American athletes , it was a segment that , likely intentionally , made no mention of the ongoing protests so many athletes are currently involved in .
It was clearly meant to tap into the “ cancel culture ” theme of the week and make overtures to more moderate Republicans who may miss the days when sports were less rife with political strife .
The video ’ s tone-deaf , and insulting , omission of these demonstrations revealed how Republicans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aims as well .
By focusing solely on celebratory meetings in the White House ( something many athletes have actually refused to attend during the Trump administration ) and lauding teams for “ overcoming adversity , ” the RNC montage seemed to ask people to hearken back to a time when sports was solely about “ winning , ” not sending a message .
In other words , by implying that politics and activism shouldn ’ t be present in sports , Republicans were making sports political , too .
In the spring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for financial contributions to help keep Vox free for everyone , and last week , we set a goal of reaching 20,000 contributors .
Well , you helped us blow past that .
Today , we are extending that goal to 25,000 .
Millions turn to Vox each month to understand an increasingly chaotic world — from what is happening with the USPS to the coronavirus crisis to what is , quite possibly , the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes .
Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ part of sustaining our resource-intensive work — and helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world .
Contribute today from as little as $ 3 .

The first hour of the final evening of the 2020 Republican Convention had two clear, albeit somewhat contradictory, messages.
On the one hand, a parade of nonwhite speakers vouched for President Donald Trump both as a non-racist individual and as a policymaker who delivered criminal justice reform. On the other hand, Black Lives Matter protests are responsible for rioting and rising crime all across America and only Trump can save the suburbs from inner-city chaos. His election rival Joe Biden, by the same token, was both an avatar of the “tough on crime” excesses of the 1990s and somehow the leader of a movement to defund the police.
It was clearly a pitch to more moderate voters who might have misgivings about how things are going under Trump. Earlier nights in the convention served up plenty of red meat to the base — from anti-abortion tirades to overt attempts to “own the libs” — but Thursday night was clearly the persuasion game.
The big message was that America as a whole is tumbling into chaos and lawlessness, and the only person who can rescue us is ... the guy in charge.
The speech itself was a bit of a letdown. Trump, a master of drawing attention to himself, has never been very skilled at reading prepared text from a teleprompter. And this night was no exception, as he delivered a somewhat stilted speech largely free of the zany riffing that makes his rallies compelling. Nonetheless, given a huge (and illegal) stage, he was very much the center of attention, giving a looooong speech and making clear that he sees himself as the indispensable man for a country in crisis.
Winner: Donald Trump
That the president of the United States chose to stage his convention speech at the White House as a flagrant violation of the Hatch Act is on some level not important.
But maybe it’s the most important thing of all.
In the earliest days of his political career it was often said Trump wouldn’t really run for president, because if he did he would “have to” release his tax returns and engage in other forms of financial disclosure. As a candidate, even Trump himself claimed to believe he would “have to” divest himself from control over his operating companies. And in the early days of his administration, he would frequently be told that on the small number of policy issues he did care about, there were various legal or constitutional reasons he couldn’t do what he wanted to do.
But as his first term enters its final months, it’s now clear to everyone that none of that is true. If I earnestly wrote that it is bad that the president of the United States is in a position to collect cash bribes in unlimited quantities through his hotels and opaque network of shell companies, I’d be laughed out of the room as hopelessly naïve and a tedious bore to boot. The smart set of DC journalists who set the political agenda declared days ago that the Hatch Act is something real people don’t care about, so the same television networks that devoted more time to Hillary Clinton’s emails than all policy issues combined in 2016 feel free to ignore it.
Fundamentally, the American system of government depends on the supposition that a president’s co-partisans in Congress will be bothered by lawbreaking — especially lawbreaking that has no ideological purpose. What congressional Republicans learned about themselves in this year’s impeachment process is that they aren’t actually bothered. And now Trump knows that they know this. And they know that Trump knows that they know it. So in essence, the gloves are off, the rule of law is dead, and we’re simply left with the question of whether or not Trump’s illegal orders are followed.
Sure, Trump’s finishing speech was long, tedious, and poorly delivered. But he also used the convention to broadcast a series of blatant lies about his administration’s competency, largely uninterrupted, for 10-plus hours over the course of four nights.
And while the theme Trump pushed all week, on the side of police and law and order, could have come across flat — much like his “immigrants are coming to kill you” argument did in 2018 — events in Kenosha, Wisconsin, made the message suddenly relevant, and some Democrats are newly worried at the prospect of a Trump reelection.
For a political neophyte often caricatured by both his foes and his allies as somewhat dimwitted, it’s genuinely an impressive achievement, and it’ll be his no matter what the outcome in November.
—Matthew Yglesias
Loser: The Mellon Auditorium
While the Democrats reacted to the unusual circumstances of a political convention held amid a pandemic with an innovative, integrated multimedia show, the GOP — perhaps lacking the Democrats’ Hollywood connections — struggled more with format.
The big set pieces for Trump, first lady Melania, Vice President Mike Pence, and other featured speakers came off well. And the evening featured many well-crafted videos. But the bulk of the programming was a series of traditional standup podium speeches delivered in the empty Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC. With no audience, speeches delivered there mostly came off flat. Other higher-energy speeches, like the one delivered by Rudy Giuliani, felt unhinged. At times, the microphones picked up audible echo from the vast empty chamber.
The eeriness was bad on its own terms. But it also served as a reminder that Republicans seem to believe the Covid-19 pandemic is somehow gone, irrelevant, or over, even as it visibly, viscerally impacts almost every aspect of American life on a daily basis.
Caseloads are now heading downward after their July spike, but more Americans died of Covid-19 during the four days of the GOP convention than died on 9/11, schools are closed in vast swaths of the country, and nobody knows if cooler weather and more indoor activity will bring a new spike in infections.
—MY
Winner: Black Republicans
African Americans are hardly part of the Republican base. In 2016, just 8 percent of Black voters supported President Trump, according to CNN exit polls. And yet, if you didn’t know that and looked at the faces of the speakers at the Republican National Convention, you’d think Black Trump supporters are both welcome at the table of the Republican Party and numerous.
Trump once said there were “very fine people on both sides” of a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. But the RNC’s planners recruited a sizable roster of African Americans, from among the small minority of Black voters who support Trump, to speak at this week’s convention.
At the 2016 RNC, only 18 African American delegates were expected to be present, out of the 2,000-plus delegates invited. This year, by contrast, about a dozen Black people were given featured speaking slots.
Night one of the convention closed with a speech from Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), the only Black Republican in the Senate, who powerfully relayed his personal success story — “Our family went from cotton to Congress in one lifetime.” Other RNC speakers included 1980s NFL stars Herschel Walker and Burgess Owens, former NFL football player Jack Brewer, long-shot congressional candidate Kim Klacik, and civil rights activist Clarence Henderson, all of whom are Black.
Black Trump supporters filled the speaking list on night four. Trump aide Ja’Ron Smith claimed that “every issue important to Black communities has been a priority for” Trump. Stacia Brightmon, a Black veteran, touted a federal job training program. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson praised Trump for bringing “the office of historically Black colleges and universities into the White House.”
Many of these speakers attacked the notoriously loose-tongued Democratic nominee, claiming that one of Biden’s more inarticulate moments suggests he takes Black voters for granted. Over and over this week, speakers brought up a Biden gaffe when the former vice president, in an apparent effort to tout his broad support among African Americans, said that “if you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t Black.” (Biden later said he “shouldn’t have been such a wise guy” when he made this remark.)
Perhaps Trump — who polled well, for a Republican, among Black men before the pandemic struck — believes he can narrow Biden’s margins among African Americans. Or perhaps, as the Nation’s Elie Mystal writes, the GOP is simply engaged in “tokenism” to “give white people ‘permission’ to vote” for a president who often pushes a white nationalist agenda.
Whatever the reason, it’s clear that Republicans want viewers of their convention to believe that Trump has Black friends.
—Ian Millhiser
Loser: Social distancing
It was still surreal to see people, without masks, sitting quite close together on the White House lawn. On Wednesday, Vice President Mike Pence mingled with the audience after the speech he gave the day before Trump.
Seating on the White House South Lawn for @realDonaldTrump #RepublicanConvention speech. Chairs are close together, there is little social distance, and most people are not wearing masks. The Trump campaign says precautions against the #coronavirus have been taken. pic.twitter.com/qlpWRTzYM1 — Jeff Mason (@jeffmason1) August 27, 2020
As the coronavirus pandemic rages around the world, and particularly in the United States, the mere sight of so many human beings congregated together is a shock all its own.
At last count, there have been almost 5.9 million cases in the United States and about 180,000 deaths. The US ranked near the bottom of the new Foreign Policy global response index, behind much of Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, and a number of African and Asian countries. My colleague German Lopez reports persuasively that Trump, by repeatedly doing nothing, shifting responsibility and blame to others, “let Covid-19 win.”
It was also reported during the RNC that the CDC had been pressured by the Trump administration to encourage less testing through its official guidance. The administration’s testing czar denies it.
So Trump has been, at best, a hindrance to the US response, and at worst, he may be actively sabotaging it. He has certainly helped politicize the debate over how the US should contain the virus in his attitude toward social distancing. He refused to wear a mask for months and suggested other people were wearing masks to spite him. He tweeted that governors should “LIBERATE” their states from pandemic-related restrictions, even when cases were still high and the country’s capacity to test, trace, and isolate was inadequate.
What followed was a summer wave in cases and then deaths.
People follow signals from their leaders. We are fortunate that most Americans say they are taking precautions like wearing masks. But there is already some disparity between Democrats and Republicans. RNC viewers have heard a clear message from their leaders this week: Social distancing doesn’t need to be taken that seriously.
—Dylan Scott
Loser: Riots
One of the most emotional moments of the night came from Ann Dorn, the widow of a retired police officer killed when he tried to stop looters in St. Louis after the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd. Dorn linked the chaos that killed her husband, David, to one of the themes of the Republican convention. Namely, that in Democratic-run cities, a movement largely supported by Democrats is spiraling into uncontrolled violence, and that Democratic leaders have failed to stop this violence, but Trump is ready to do something.
“Violence and destruction are not legitimate forms of protest. They do not safeguard Black lives. They destroy them,” she said. “President Trump understands this and has offered federal help to restore order in our communities. In a time when police departments are short on resources and manpower, we need that help. We should accept that help. We must heal before we can effect change, but we cannot heal amid devastation and chaos. President Trump knows we need more Davids in our communities, not fewer.”
Republicans hit this message again and again, condemning the property damage and violence by some protesters. They repeatedly claimed that Joe Biden and Democrats want to defund police departments that are supposed to protect communities from this violence. (Biden’s plan actually calls for an increase in funding for police.)
One can disagree with this message. Maybe you think protests that become violent or turn to looting are the voice of the unheard, showing a genuine grievance that should be taken seriously, or that it’s unfair to link such violence to Democrats in particular, given that many of them — including Biden — have condemned it.
But Dorn was an effective messenger — though her husband’s daughters claim he was not, in fact, a Trump supporter.
It’s too soon to know how the protests in Kenosha will affect public opinion in Wisconsin. A recent study from Omar Wasow, published in the American Political Science Review, concluded that nonviolent protests in the 1960s successfully built support for Democrats who backed civil rights causes. But the backlash to the riots of the era was so fierce that it helped Republicans — contributing to the election of Republican Richard Nixon in 1968.
It’s unclear if this study applies to the current political environment, given how much has changed. And Trump, after all, is the incumbent, whereas Nixon was running in an open contest. But it suggests riots could lead to a backlash against Black Lives Matter and other causes linked to Democrats — and Trump is clearly hoping it will.
—German Lopez
Loser: Bill de Blasio
Oh, Bill.
Not only was New York Mayor Bill de Blasio not invited to the Democratic National Convention last week, he didn’t even know it was happening. (Or so he claims, because who among us hasn’t pretended not to care about that party we weren’t invited to.) But at the Republican National Convention on Thursday, the short-lived 2020 presidential candidate and reluctant Upper East Side resident was front and center.
Republicans ran what basically amounted to an attack ad against the mayor on the final night of the convention. The produced video spot showed New York residents and housing leaders criticizing de Blasio. “I would really hate to get started on this mayor,” said Carmen Quiñones, president of the Douglass Houses, a public housing complex on New York’s Upper West Side.
The spot seemed to be an attempt to pit Black Americans against immigrants when it comes to housing in the city. “How is it that we have people waiting on the waiting list for New York City public housing for 10 years or more, but yes, we have illegal immigrants living here?” posited Judy Smith, a resident of New York public housing.
It’s true that housing is a perennial issue in New York, and that de Blasio, like many mayors before him, has failed to fix it. It is also true that the Trump campaign has been making some pretty overt appeals to Black voters throughout the convention, and making immigrants out to be a scapegoat plays very much into that narrative.
Beyond the ins and outs of the policy debate, the situation does say something about de Blasio, who has had a problematic tenure as mayor. He hasn’t exactly been knocking it out of the park amid the Covid-19 outbreak. The pandemic is an unprecedented situation, but de Blasio’s response has been rather inconsistent and indecisive when it comes to issues such as schools, and his ongoing feud with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo hasn’t helped the situation.
In early August, the city’s health commissioner resigned over disagreements with the mayor. Heck, I’m somewhat sympathetic to de Blasio, and even I’ve thought, “Please stop going to Prospect Park,” on multiple occasions in all of this.
On the one hand, de Blasio is an easy character for Republicans to train their fire on: He is not particularly popular in national politics or in New York (though in the city, it’s worth clarifying his polling problems are more with white residents than with Black residents). Plus, the GOP is trying to run this narrative of Democratic-led cities on fire, and the unpopular New York mayor seems as good an example as any. On the other hand, de Blasio getting all this attention during the RNC is a bit of a win for him. Beyond Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, who else has gotten this kind of attention?
So, I guess, go Bill?
—Emily Stewart
Winner: The politicization of sports
Sports have always been political — and this week that’s been incredibly evident, as players in numerous leagues have decided to strike in protest of racism and police brutality. Teams in the NBA, WNBA, MLB, and MLS are among those participating in demonstrations following the police shooting of 29-year-old Jacob Blake earlier this week. “Despite the overwhelming pleas for change, there have been no actions, so our focus cannot be on basketball,” Milwaukee Bucks player Sterling Brown said when the team boycotted a playoff game on Wednesday.
Amid these protests, the Republican National Convention included a video montage on Thursday dedicated to the “American athlete.” Clips showed Trump praising athletes’ willingness to “strive for greatness,” and spotlighted a nostalgic Lou Gehrig moment. Yet, despite its purported praise of American athletes, it was a segment that, likely intentionally, made no mention of the ongoing protests so many athletes are currently involved in.
It was clearly meant to tap into the “cancel culture” theme of the week and make overtures to more moderate Republicans who may miss the days when sports were less rife with political strife.
Tonight, we honor the American Athlete!#RNC2020 pic.twitter.com/fcBrj2XcZE — Team Trump (Text VOTE to 88022) (@TeamTrump) August 28, 2020
The video’s tone-deaf, and insulting, omission of these demonstrations revealed how Republicans are using sports for their own ideological aims as well. By focusing solely on celebratory meetings in the White House (something many athletes have actually refused to attend during the Trump administration) and lauding teams for “overcoming adversity,” the RNC montage seemed to ask people to hark back to a time when sports was solely about “winning,” not sending a message.
In other words, by implying that politics and activism shouldn’t be present in sports, Republicans were making sports political, too.
—Li Zhou
New goal: 25,000
In the spring, we launched a program asking readers for financial contributions to help keep Vox free for everyone, and last week, we set a goal of reaching 20,000 contributors. Well, you helped us blow past that. Today, we are extending that goal to 25,000. Millions turn to Vox each month to understand an increasingly chaotic world — from what is happening with the USPS to the coronavirus crisis to what is, quite possibly, the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes. Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers, your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work — and helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world. Contribute today from as little as $3.


vox--2020-08-28--The 3 charts that disprove Donald Trump’s convention speech

The central question going into Donald Trump ’ s acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention was how he ’ d spin his disastrous record — which now includes more than 200,000 Americans dead of coronavirus , and an unemployment rate above 10 percent .
And Trump quickly made his strategy clear : Take credit for something he didn ’ t do , and dodge blame for something he did do .
Let ’ s start with what he didn ’ t do .
The convention was suffused with nostalgia for the economy of six months ago .
“ Before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump said wistfully , the US “ produced the best unemployment numbers for African Americans , Hispanic Americans , and Asian Americans ever recorded.
” And he ’ s right , in a way .
Unemployment was low .
Wages were rising .
GDP was growing .
The stock market was shattering records .
But that wasn ’ t a boom Trump created .
It was a boom Trump inherited , and one that slowed and then collapsed on his watch .
During the first three years of the Trump administration , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than during the last three years of the Obama administration — 182,000 jobs a month vs. 224,000 jobs a month .
The first three years of the Trump economy look like the last three years of the Obama economy , albeit with somewhat less job growth .
If Trump ’ s economic policy was so masterful , why is it impossible to pinpoint his takeover on a simple chart of job growth ?
You can see the economy turn around under Obama .
You can ’ t see job growth accelerate under Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ To the extent presidents deserve credit for economic trends , Trump is taking credit for someone else ’ s work .
Of course , a quick look at that chart does show a radical break with the economic trend under Trump — but it ’ s over the last year , and it ’ s much for the worse .
So far , in 2020 , the economy has lost , on average , 1,774,000 jobs each month .
Which brings us to the blame Trump wants to dodge .
Coronavirus , not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ economy .
But presidencies are defined by how they respond to the crises that happen on their watch .
The Obama administration had to pull the country out of the Great Recession .
The Trump administration had to defend America against coronavirus .
It failed , and horribly so .
Trump worked gamely Thursday night to defend his record here , through a mixture of blame-shifting ( “ our nation , and the rest of the world , has been hit with a once-in-a-century pandemic that China allowed to spread around the globe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ United States has among the lowest case fatality rates of any major country in the world ” ) .
But the truth here is undeniable .
Under Trump , America has let coronavirus rage across the population in a way peer developed nations haven ’ t .
We have far more cases per capita : And we have far more deaths per capita : In this context , to argue that America is leading the world because of a lower case fatality rate is perverse .
Case fatality rate measures the proportion of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ death .
That rate might reflect treatment , or it might reflect that we ’ ve let the virus rage across the population unimpeded , leading to more healthy people getting sick , or it might reflect differences in testing or data .
If we ’ d kept case counts as low as peer nations had , comparing case fatality rates might be useful .
But we didn ’ t .
On the measures we care about most — case counts and deaths — America is doing worse than any other rich nation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is not Trump ’ s fault that the coronavirus reached our shores .
It is Trump ’ s fault that we ’ ve responded so fecklessly .
There is no reason that , say Germany , should ’ ve been so much more capable in its response .
The difference was political leadership — a difference that was viscerally , visually on display during Trump ’ s speech , which packed 1,500 people onto the white House lawn , with barely a face mask in sight .
The grim truth is that , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t have a plan to control the coronavirus , save to hope for a vaccine .
Vice President Mike Pence admitted as much on Wednesday .
“ Last week , Joe Biden said ‘ no miracle is coming , ’ What Joe doesn ’ t seem to understand is that America is a nation of miracles and we ’ re on track to have the world ’ s first safe , effective coronavirus vaccine by the end of this year.
” So that ’ s the plan , then .
A miracle .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ now and then ?
How many will die if we don ’ t have an effective vaccine , produced and delivered at scale , by the end of the year ?
So this is the core of Trump ’ s reelection message : You should give him credit for the economic recovery he inherited from Obama .
And you should blame someone else for the disastrous response to the coronavirus .
Inspiring stuff .
In the spring , we launched a program asking readers for financial contributions to help keep Vox free for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ set a goal of reaching 20,000 contributors .
Well , you helped us blow past that .
Today , we are extending that goal to 25,000 .
Millions turn to Vox each month to understand an increasingly chaotic world — from what is happening with the USPS to the coronavirus crisis to what is , quite possibly , the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes .
Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers , your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work — and helping @ @ @ @ @ @ @ world .
Contribute today from as little as $ 3 .

The central question going into Donald Trump’s acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention was how he’d spin his disastrous record — which now includes more than 200,000 Americans dead of coronavirus, and an unemployment rate above 10 percent. And Trump quickly made his strategy clear: Take credit for something he didn’t do, and dodge blame for something he did do.
Let’s start with what he didn’t do. The convention was suffused with nostalgia for the economy of six months ago. “Before the China virus came in,” Trump said wistfully, the US “produced the best unemployment numbers for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian Americans ever recorded.” And he’s right, in a way. Unemployment was low. Wages were rising. GDP was growing. The stock market was shattering records.
But that wasn’t a boom Trump created. It was a boom Trump inherited, and one that slowed and then collapsed on his watch.
During the first three years of the Trump administration, the economy added slightly fewer jobs per month than during the last three years of the Obama administration — 182,000 jobs a month vs. 224,000 jobs a month. The first three years of the Trump economy look like the last three years of the Obama economy, albeit with somewhat less job growth.
If Trump’s economic policy was so masterful, why is it impossible to pinpoint his takeover on a simple chart of job growth? You can see the economy turn around under Obama. You can’t see job growth accelerate under Trump — because it didn’t. To the extent presidents deserve credit for economic trends, Trump is taking credit for someone else’s work.
Of course, a quick look at that chart does show a radical break with the economic trend under Trump — but it’s over the last year, and it’s much for the worse. So far, in 2020, the economy has lost, on average, 1,774,000 jobs each month. Which brings us to the blame Trump wants to dodge.
Coronavirus, not a new Trump policy, obliterated the economy. But presidencies are defined by how they respond to the crises that happen on their watch. The Obama administration had to pull the country out of the Great Recession. The Trump administration had to defend America against coronavirus. It failed, and horribly so.
Trump worked gamely Thursday night to defend his record here, through a mixture of blame-shifting (“our nation, and the rest of the world, has been hit with a once-in-a-century pandemic that China allowed to spread around the globe”) and misdirection (“The United States has among the lowest case fatality rates of any major country in the world”). But the truth here is undeniable. Under Trump, America has let coronavirus rage across the population in a way peer developed nations haven’t. We have far more cases per capita:
And we have far more deaths per capita:
In this context, to argue that America is leading the world because of a lower case fatality rate is perverse. Case fatality rate measures the proportion of total, confirmed cases that end in death. That rate might reflect treatment, or it might reflect that we’ve let the virus rage across the population unimpeded, leading to more healthy people getting sick, or it might reflect differences in testing or data. If we’d kept case counts as low as peer nations had, comparing case fatality rates might be useful. But we didn’t. On the measures we care about most — case counts and deaths — America is doing worse than any other rich nation (save maybe Spain).
It is not Trump’s fault that the coronavirus reached our shores. It is Trump’s fault that we’ve responded so fecklessly. There is no reason that, say Germany, should’ve been so much more capable in its response. The difference was political leadership — a difference that was viscerally, visually on display during Trump’s speech, which packed 1,500 people onto the white House lawn, with barely a face mask in sight.
The grim truth is that, even today, we still don’t have a plan to control the coronavirus, save to hope for a vaccine. Vice President Mike Pence admitted as much on Wednesday. “Last week, Joe Biden said ‘no miracle is coming,’ What Joe doesn’t seem to understand is that America is a nation of miracles and we’re on track to have the world’s first safe, effective coronavirus vaccine by the end of this year.” So that’s the plan, then. A miracle. And how many Americans will die between now and then? How many will die if we don’t have an effective vaccine, produced and delivered at scale, by the end of the year?
So this is the core of Trump’s reelection message: You should give him credit for the economic recovery he inherited from Obama. And you should blame someone else for the disastrous response to the coronavirus. Inspiring stuff.
New goal: 25,000
In the spring, we launched a program asking readers for financial contributions to help keep Vox free for everyone, and last week, we set a goal of reaching 20,000 contributors. Well, you helped us blow past that. Today, we are extending that goal to 25,000. Millions turn to Vox each month to understand an increasingly chaotic world — from what is happening with the USPS to the coronavirus crisis to what is, quite possibly, the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes. Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers, your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work — and helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world. Contribute today from as little as $3.


vox--2020-08-28--The real-life origin story behind The Count of Monte Cristo

Today ’ s Google Doodle celebrates the work of Alexandre Dumas , the French writer who penned swashbuckling adventure novels like The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo .
It ’ s The Count of Monte Cristo that has an anniversary today — its serial publication first began on August 28 , 1844 , making it a sprightly 176 years old — and that means we have an excuse to dive into the novel ’ s secret history .
The Count of Monte Cristo wasn ’ t just a book for Dumas .
It was a revenge fantasy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a Black general who fought in the French Revolution and was ultimately betrayed by Napoleon .
The novel tells the story of one Edmond Dantès , a promising young man whose friends , jealous of his charisma and professional abilities , secretly betray him to have him locked up in prison .
Dantès eventually escapes , becomes impossibly rich after digging up a buried treasure trove , and while in disguise as the Count of Monte Cristo , wreaks implacable vengeance on all those who have wronged him .
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who has ever felt betrayed : This is how I ’ ll get mine if fate is just , you might think , seething .
But Dantès ’ s betrayal bears a startling resemblance to the real-life story of what happened to Dumas ’ s father — only he never got his revenge .
Dumas ’ s father was also named Alexandre Dumas , but we ’ ll call him Alex here ( his preferred nickname ) to distinguish him from his famous son .
As chronicled in Tom Reiss ’ s excellent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in 1762 in what is now Haiti , the son of a white French count and a Black enslaved woman .
The French empire offered legal protections to mixed-race people at the time , so at age 14 Alex made his way to France and enlisted in the army .
Charismatic and principled , he shot up through the ranks as the revolution caught fire .
While the Revolutionary Army would become infamous for its excesses , Alex remained steadfast in his nobility .
He briefly fell under suspicion by the Committee of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his treatment of the enemy , and when he put down a peasant resistance in Vendée , he forbade his men to plunder or pillage .
Still , Alex won battle after battle and terrified his enemies : When he fought against the Austrians , they called him the Black Devil .
Alex served as a general alongside Napoleon , and as Napoleon began to consolidate power on his way to becoming emperor , Alex continued to serve him .
But he made Napoleon nervous : Alex was more handsome and charismatic , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ idea of the republic .
After they quarreled during the French invasion of Egypt in 1798 , Napoleon decided to take drastic measures .
In 1799 , Alex was taken prisoner of war in Naples .
Rather than negotiate for the release of a valuable member of the military , Napoleon left him there to rot .
As The Black Count lays out , Alex was released in 1801 after vigorous petitioning from his wife , Marie-Louise , and the pair soon had a child , Alexandre .
But Alex never fully recovered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the time of his release he was partially paralyzed , blind in one eye , and temporarily deaf .
( He suspected poison . )
He died in 1806 of stomach cancer , with his son not yet 4 years old .
His back wages and military pension were never paid out , and he left his family impoverished .
Centuries later , when the Nazis occupied France , they destroyed the one remaining statue of him in Paris because it depicted a man of mixed-race heritage .
Alex ’ s story is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any sort of satisfying payoff .
But Dumas , who grew up on his mother ’ s memories of his heroic and betrayed father , wrote that payoff for him .
Dumas turned his father , the count ’ s Black and illegitimate son , into the Count of Monte Cristo , and he gave Alex the rewards Dumas believed should always have been his .
Correction : An earlier version of this article listed the incorrect birth date for Alex and the incorrect publication date for The Count of Monte Cristo .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the book began its serial publication in 1844 .
In the spring , we launched a program asking readers for financial contributions to help keep Vox free for everyone , and last week , we set a goal of reaching 20,000 contributors .
Well , you helped us blow past that .
Today , we are extending that goal to 25,000 .
Millions turn to Vox each month to understand an increasingly chaotic world — from what is happening with the USPS to the coronavirus crisis to what is , quite possibly , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lifetimes .
Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers , your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work — and helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world .
Contribute today from as little as $ 3 .

Today’s Google Doodle celebrates the work of Alexandre Dumas, the French writer who penned swashbuckling adventure novels like The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo. It’s The Count of Monte Cristo that has an anniversary today — its serial publication first began on August 28, 1844, making it a sprightly 176 years old — and that means we have an excuse to dive into the novel’s secret history.
The Count of Monte Cristo wasn’t just a book for Dumas. It was a revenge fantasy he wrote on behalf of his father, a Black general who fought in the French Revolution and was ultimately betrayed by Napoleon. The novel tells the story of one Edmond Dantès, a promising young man whose friends, jealous of his charisma and professional abilities, secretly betray him to have him locked up in prison. Dantès eventually escapes, becomes impossibly rich after digging up a buried treasure trove, and while in disguise as the Count of Monte Cristo, wreaks implacable vengeance on all those who have wronged him.
It’s a rich and satisfying story for anyone who has ever felt betrayed: This is how I’ll get mine if fate is just, you might think, seething. But Dantès’s betrayal bears a startling resemblance to the real-life story of what happened to Dumas’s father — only he never got his revenge.
Dumas’s father was also named Alexandre Dumas, but we’ll call him Alex here (his preferred nickname) to distinguish him from his famous son. As chronicled in Tom Reiss’s excellent The Black Count, Alex was born in 1762 in what is now Haiti, the son of a white French count and a Black enslaved woman. The French empire offered legal protections to mixed-race people at the time, so at age 14 Alex made his way to France and enlisted in the army. Charismatic and principled, he shot up through the ranks as the revolution caught fire.
While the Revolutionary Army would become infamous for its excesses, Alex remained steadfast in his nobility. He briefly fell under suspicion by the Committee of Public Safety for being too lenient in his treatment of the enemy, and when he put down a peasant resistance in Vendée, he forbade his men to plunder or pillage. Still, Alex won battle after battle and terrified his enemies: When he fought against the Austrians, they called him the Black Devil.
Alex served as a general alongside Napoleon, and as Napoleon began to consolidate power on his way to becoming emperor, Alex continued to serve him. But he made Napoleon nervous: Alex was more handsome and charismatic, and he was truly devoted to the idea of the republic. After they quarreled during the French invasion of Egypt in 1798, Napoleon decided to take drastic measures. In 1799, Alex was taken prisoner of war in Naples. Rather than negotiate for the release of a valuable member of the military, Napoleon left him there to rot.
As The Black Count lays out, Alex was released in 1801 after vigorous petitioning from his wife, Marie-Louise, and the pair soon had a child, Alexandre. But Alex never fully recovered from his years behind bars: By the time of his release he was partially paralyzed, blind in one eye, and temporarily deaf. (He suspected poison.) He died in 1806 of stomach cancer, with his son not yet 4 years old. His back wages and military pension were never paid out, and he left his family impoverished. Centuries later, when the Nazis occupied France, they destroyed the one remaining statue of him in Paris because it depicted a man of mixed-race heritage.
Alex’s story is almost unbearably bleak, and it lacks any sort of satisfying payoff. But Dumas, who grew up on his mother’s memories of his heroic and betrayed father, wrote that payoff for him. Dumas turned his father, the count’s Black and illegitimate son, into the Count of Monte Cristo, and he gave Alex the rewards Dumas believed should always have been his.
Correction: An earlier version of this article listed the incorrect birth date for Alex and the incorrect publication date for The Count of Monte Cristo. He was born in 1762, and the book began its serial publication in 1844.
New goal: 25,000
In the spring, we launched a program asking readers for financial contributions to help keep Vox free for everyone, and last week, we set a goal of reaching 20,000 contributors. Well, you helped us blow past that. Today, we are extending that goal to 25,000. Millions turn to Vox each month to understand an increasingly chaotic world — from what is happening with the USPS to the coronavirus crisis to what is, quite possibly, the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes. Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers, your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work — and helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world. Contribute today from as little as $3.


vox--2020-08-28--Facebook banned violent militia groups. We still found plenty of them on its platform.

Just last week , Facebook finally banned militia groups and pages that advocate for violence on its platform .
But Recode ’ s quick Facebook search for “ militia ” groups and pages on Friday surfaced over a dozen results for national and local militia groups , most of them private , with many of them openly calling for violence against protesters .
Two of these groups that Recode accessed had a combined 25,000 members and included posts where members encouraged and celebrated shooting people involved in recent Black Lives Matter protests .
Some groups did not contain “ militia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members to take up arms .
One page , called the “ The III % Organization , ” contained overtly racist and violent posts , such as a meme comparing BLM protesters to dogs and joking about running them over with a car .
After Recode flagged seven of these groups and pages to Facebook , the company took down four of them for violating its policies , and said it independently took down another .
Militia groups that organize on Facebook are under particular scrutiny this week after a 17-year-old who is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suspicion of killing two people protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha , Wisconsin .
In the aftermath of that shooting , Facebook has faced sharp criticism , including from its own employees , for initially failing to remove a Kenosha militia page despite prior complaints from at least two Facebook users about the group inciting violence .
The company eventually took the page and an associated event down , but only after suspected shooter Kyle Rittenhouse allegedly killed two protesters and injured another on Tuesday night .
Facebook said Rittenhouse @ @ @ @ @ @ @ militia page in question .
Many civil rights groups leaders , employees , and politicians have long accused the company of not doing enough to stop the spread of violent rhetoric on its platform .
The social media giant ’ s CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a company meeting Thursday that the initial decision to not take down the Kenosha militia group ’ s page was a mistake , according to internal remarks first reported by BuzzFeed News , which the company later posted publicly .
Zuckerberg said the company is working to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shooter , and that it ’ s all part of Facebook ’ s recently expanded policy against dangerous groups and threats .
While the militia groups Recode found on Friday represented a small fraction of Facebook ’ s some 2.7 billion users , their continued presence on the platform despite its new policies signals how big of a challenge it is for Facebook to stop people from using its platform to organize violence and amplify hate speech .
While Facebook , Twitter , and other platforms have adopted stricter guidelines over the years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ struggled to catch harmful content in real-time , while balancing concerns about limiting free speech online with strict enforcement .
“ The continued presence of these militia Facebook groups and the concerning content that they contain represent multiple layers of failure on the part of Facebook to adhere to its own policies that it repeatedly pushes in press releases and statements to media , ” said Katie Paul , director of tech watchdog group Tech Transparency Project , which has been researching some of these militia groups .
A spokesperson for Facebook issued @ @ @ @ @ @ @ part : “ The shootings in Kenosha have been painful for everyone , especially our black community .
Mark addressed this at yesterday ’ s weekly company Q & A ... We launched [ the dangerous individuals and organizations ] policy last week and we ’ re still scaling up our enforcement of it by a team of specialists on our Dangerous Organizations team.
” Under pressure , Facebook recently expanded its policies against violent individuals and organizations to restrict the influence of domestic militia groups and conspiracy groups like QAnon .
While @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ban on militia groups which don ’ t overtly call for violence , it removed hundreds of them last week for advocating for violence , and says it is continuing to take down groups and pages which do so .
The militia Facebook groups and pages Recode reviewed on Friday advocate for US citizens to take up arms to counter what they describe as worsening lawlessness in the country , with many members aggrieved by property damage that ’ s occurred during protests for racial justice in cities across the US .
While @ @ @ @ @ @ @ States in recent months have been peaceful , there has been significant damage to buildings in some areas , such as Minnesota , where insurance claims have been filed for tens of millions of dollars .
The Kenosha protest shooting demonstrates how militia attempts to guard buildings from such damage can result in escalating conflict — and ultimately , lives lost .
One private Facebook group called “ United States Militia ” had over 12,000 members and was active on Facebook until Recode flagged it to Facebook on Friday afternoon .
Its description @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are the militia ” and that “ we the people ” “ prepare for the worst and rejoice on the best ... with the blood of patriot ’ s [ sic ] and tyrants… ” Recode reviewed comments from within the private group from screenshots provided by the Tech Transparency Project .
In response to one “ United States Militia ” member post about people setting fire to a car dealership during protests this week , one user responded that self-designated “ patriots ” should “ shoot first and ask questions later.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for shoot to kill these asswipes !
” In another Facebook page called “ Virginia Militia , ” which had over 13,000 members until it disappeared from Facebook on Friday afternoon , over a hundred users commented in support of alleged shooter Rittenhouse , arguing his violence was justified .
This was a clear violation of Facebook ’ s stance against any praise of the suspected shooter .
One commenter went so far as to advise other members to evade law enforcement if they are involved in a similar shooting .
“ I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a sign , ” wrote the user .
“ If you ’ re forced into a shootout , and you survive .
Do not wait for police , do not turn yourself in .
Grab your survival bag and go ghost .
Get in contact with a trusted patriot and hide out.
” Sixteen members of the group reacted with a thumbs up .
Recode also found several other groups and pages on Facebook that organize members for coordinated armed action , but that omit the word “ militia ” in their names @ @ @ @ @ @ @ called the “ The III % Organization ” — a reference to the far-right “ 3 percenters ” movement , which advocates for armed militia to promote gun ownership rights and resistance to the US federal government in local affairs .
This page also disappeared after Recode flagged it to Facebook .
A user in the group posted a meme on Wednesday , the morning after two protesters were killed in Kenosha , showing a man standing next to his car , with his hand over his chest and looking visibly relieved , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ think you ran over a dog but it was just a few BLM & Antifa Rioters.
” These groups are organizing and spreading their calls to violence in an increasingly polarized political atmosphere .
In recent days , major right-wing media figures like Ann Coulter and Fox News host Tucker Carlson have attempted to justify vigilante violence at protests .
Twitter took down a tweet from Coulter saying she wanted the suspected Kenosha shooter to be president after individuals and groups like civil rights groups Color of Change raised concerns about its glorification @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same time , some conservative politicians have been sharply criticized for seemingly threatening state-sponsored violence against civil rights protesters since the George Floyd and Breonna Taylor protests began earlier this year .
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has accused President Trump of rooting for violence at recent protests around racial justice in the US .
In May , Trump posted on social media that “ when the looting starts ... the shooting starts , ” about protests in Minnesota against the police killing of George Floyd .
In June , Senator Tom Cotton @ @ @ @ @ @ @ column in the New York Times that the paper eventually said “ should not have been published ; ” it was titled “ Send in The Troops ” and advocated for bringing military forces to protests .
The proliferation of militia groups and violent , partisan rhetoric isn ’ t just happening on Facebook , and it ’ s not even necessarily originating there — it ’ s a complex problem that involves elected officials and right wing media figures , too .
But even if militia groups aren ’ t contained to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ possible for members to amplify their views .
The groups and pages that Facebook only took down after Recode flagged them are a signal that the company has a major challenge ahead if it intends to effectively enforce its new policies prohibiting the propagation of violent views on its platform .

Just last week, Facebook finally banned militia groups and pages that advocate for violence on its platform. But Recode’s quick Facebook search for “militia” groups and pages on Friday surfaced more than a dozen results for national and local militia groups, most of them private, with many of them openly calling for violence against protesters.
Two of these groups that Recode accessed had a combined 25,000 members and included posts where members encouraged and celebrated shooting people involved in recent Black Lives Matter protests. Some groups did not contain “militia” in the title but still encouraged members to take up arms. One page, called the “The III% Organization,” contained overtly racist and violent posts, such as a meme comparing BLM protesters to dogs and joking about running them over with a car.
After Recode flagged seven of these groups and pages to Facebook, the company took down four of them for violating its policies, and said it independently took down another.
Militia groups that organize on Facebook are under particular scrutiny this week after a 17-year-old self-identified militia member was arrested on suspicion of killing two people protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
In the aftermath of that shooting, Facebook has faced sharp criticism, including from its own employees, for initially failing to remove a Kenosha militia page despite prior complaints from at least two Facebook users about the group inciting violence. The company eventually took the page and an associated event down, but only after the alleged shooter killed two protesters and injured another on Tuesday night. Facebook said the suspect was not a member of the Kenosha militia page in question.
Many civil rights groups leaders, employees, and politicians have long accused the company of not doing enough to stop the spread of violent rhetoric on its platform.
The social media giant’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a company meeting Thursday that the initial decision to not take down the Kenosha militia group’s page was a mistake, according to internal remarks first reported by BuzzFeed News, which the company later posted publicly. Zuckerberg said the company is working to take down any posts praising the alleged shooter, and that it’s all part of Facebook’s recently expanded policy against dangerous groups and threats.
Do you work at Google and want to talk? Please email Shirin Ghaffary at shirin.ghaffary@protonmail.com to reach her confidentially. Signal number available upon request.
While the militia groups Recode found on Friday represented a small fraction of Facebook’s some 2.7 billion users, their continued presence on the platform despite its new policies signals how big a challenge it is for Facebook to stop people from using its platform to organize violence and amplify hate speech. While Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms have adopted stricter guidelines over the years on violent speech, they’ve struggled to catch harmful content in real time, while balancing concerns about limiting free speech online with strict enforcement.
“The continued presence of these militia Facebook groups and the concerning content that they contain represent multiple layers of failure on the part of Facebook to adhere to its own policies that it repeatedly pushes in press releases and statements to media,” said Katie Paul, director of tech watchdog group Tech Transparency Project, which has been researching some of these militia groups.
A spokesperson for Facebook issued the following statement to Recode, in part:
The shootings in Kenosha have been painful for everyone, especially our black community. Mark addressed this at yesterday’s weekly company Q&A ... We launched [the dangerous individuals and organizations] policy last week and we’re still scaling up our enforcement of it by a team of specialists on our Dangerous Organizations team.
Under pressure, Facebook recently expanded its policies against violent individuals and organizations to restrict the influence of domestic militia groups and conspiracy groups like QAnon. While Facebook doesn’t have a blanket ban on militia groups that don’t overtly call for violence, it removed hundreds of them last week for advocating violence, and says it is continuing to take down groups and pages which do so.
The militia Facebook groups and pages Recode reviewed on Friday advocate for US citizens to take up arms to counter what they describe as worsening lawlessness in the country, with many members aggrieved by property damage that’s occurred during protests for racial justice in cities across the US.
While many of the protests across the United States in recent months have been peaceful, there has been significant damage to buildings in some areas, such as Minnesota, where insurance claims have been filed for tens of millions of dollars. The Kenosha protest shooting demonstrates how militia attempts to guard buildings from such damage can result in escalating conflict — and ultimately, lives lost.
One private Facebook group called “United States Militia” had over 12,000 members and was active on Facebook until Recode flagged it to Facebook on Friday afternoon. Its description stated, in part, “Citizens are the militia” and that “we the people” “prepare for the worst and rejoice on the best ... with the blood of patriot’s and tyrants.” Recode reviewed comments from within the private group from screenshots provided by the Tech Transparency Project.
In response to one “United States Militia” member post about people setting fire to a car dealership during protests this week, one user responded that self-designated “patriots” should “shoot first and ask questions later.” Another posted in response, “Time for shoot to kill these asswipes!”
On another Facebook page called “Virginia Militia,” which had over 13,000 members until it disappeared from Facebook on Friday afternoon, more than 100 users commented in support of the alleged Kenosha shooter, arguing his violence was justified. This was a clear violation of Facebook’s stance against any praise of the suspected shooter.
One commenter went so far as to advise other members to evade law enforcement if they are involved in a similar shooting. “I believe we should all take this as a sign,” wrote the user. “If you’re forced into a shootout, and you survive. Do not wait for police, do not turn yourself in. Grab your survival bag and go ghost. Get in contact with a trusted patriot and hide out.” Sixteen members of the group reacted with a thumbs-up.
Recode also found several other groups and pages on Facebook that organize members for coordinated armed action, but that omit the word “militia” in their names or descriptions.
One such page was called the “The III% Organization” — a reference to the far-right “3 percenters” movement, which advocates for armed militia to promote gun ownership rights and resistance to the US federal government in local affairs. This page also disappeared after Recode flagged it to Facebook.
A user in the group posted a meme on Wednesday, the morning after two protesters were killed in Kenosha, showing a man standing next to his car, with his hand over his chest and looking visibly relieved, with the caption, “When you think you ran over a dog but it was just a few BLM & Antifa Rioters.”
These groups are organizing and spreading their calls to violence in an increasingly polarized political atmosphere. In recent days, major right-wing media figures like Ann Coulter and Fox News host Tucker Carlson have attempted to justify vigilante violence at protests.
Twitter took down a tweet from Coulter saying she wanted the suspected Kenosha shooter to be president after individuals and groups like civil rights groups Color of Change raised concerns about its glorification of a suspected killer.
At the same time, some conservative politicians have been sharply criticized for seemingly threatening state-sponsored violence against civil rights protesters since the George Floyd and Breonna Taylor protests began earlier this year.
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has accused President Donald Trump of rooting for violence at recent protests around racial justice in the US. In May, Trump posted on social media that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” about protests in Minnesota against the police killing of George Floyd. In June, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) published a deeply controversial column in the New York Times that the paper eventually said “should not have been published”; it was titled “Send in the Troops” and advocated for bringing military forces to protests.
The proliferation of militia groups and violent, partisan rhetoric isn’t just happening on Facebook, and it’s not even necessarily originating there — it’s a complex problem that involves elected officials and right-wing media figures, too. But even if militia groups aren’t contained to Facebook, the platform is making it possible for members to amplify their views. The groups and pages that Facebook only took down after Recode flagged them are a signal that the company has a major challenge ahead if it intends to effectively enforce its new policies prohibiting the propagation of violent views on its platform.