Donald Trump Archives - Page 25 of 55

Republican National Convention 2020

Barred from using their official position for partisan political purposes

2020 Republican National Convention Official Logo

Not being a masochist, I watched only excerpts of the Republican National Convention. I had decided that I didn’t want to have to get a new television because I had thrown my shoe through the set.

And by the end of the week, the GOP may have largely succeeded in achieving its goals. The fact that some of its actions were inappropriate, probably illegal, and largely false may not really much matter.

Who cares about the Hatch Act?

Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo’s speech, while on an official visit from Israel has incinerated norms. The Hatch Act bars State Department employees from using their official position for partisan political purposes. Surely, this was partisan political activity while on duty. But the boost to the reelection campaign may have been achieved. “Using Jerusalem as the venue, Pompeo has further politicized the U.S.-Israeli relationship with an electioneering pitch.”

Compare this with what Colin Powell said in 2004. “As secretary of state, I am obliged not to participate in any way, shape, fashion, or form in parochial, political debates. I have to take no sides in the matter.” But Pompeo is a politician, not a diplomat.

The naturalization ceremony for five people – hey, djt LIKES immigrants! – was a nice touch, if incongruous with his 2016 campaign and regime. And a surprise political event for two of the women being sworn in. Having acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf on hand could also be a violation of the Hatch Act.

But if you remember Kellyanne Conway’s repeated violations of the Hatch Act in 2019 and earlier caused her no consequences. That’s because of guess who protects her.

Plus the White House was used as a backdrop for Melania’s well-received speech. I did LOL when she said her husband “has not, will not lose focus on you.” The setting may not have violated the law, only precedent, and decorum.

“America is not racist”

You know that conversation America has been having about race recently?

And among the greatest examples of racism? The guy running for reelection. As though you didn’t know.

Of course the regime does not believe in systemic racism. “But it’s so real that Merriam-Webster is changing the definition of racism to include it.” The accomplishments of speakers such as Nikki Haley and Tim Scott rather proves the point that they succeeded despite their struggles.

Beware the “radical left”

Instead of attacking Joe Biden directly, much of the GOP seems satisfied with attacking those around him. Joe is a puppet of AOC and her ilk, the narrative goes. Republicans are attempting to convince voters that nothing less than “Western civilization” was at stake. So registered foreign agent Pam Bondi attacks Biden for … corruption? Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa tells the crowd that Joe is going to ban farm animals?

Biden, correctly, I believe, thinks the GOP is seeing the unrest in Wisconsin as a “political benefit.” Perhaps that’s why the RNC gave prime time to vigilantes.

In his too long speech, the Republican candidate painted Biden as a radical, which will come as a shock to most Democrats.

But even Ann Coulter, in bashing the media, notes the ineptitude of IMPOTUS. “As the country burns, Trump (the president) sits in his bed sending out gratuitously bad-ass tweets… followed by utter spinelessness. He talks like he’s Yosemite Sam, then does nothing. This is the worst of everything…

“Trump claims he’s the antidote to the mass riots in cities across the country, but what powers will he have after being reelected that he doesn’t have right now, while he’s already President?”

Acid reflux

Washington Post editorial board: “But beyond the low unemployment rate he gained and lost, history will record Mr. Trump’s presidency as a march of wanton, uninterrupted, tragic destruction. America’s standing in the world, loyalty to allies, commitment to democratic values, constitutional checks and balances, faith in reason and science, concern for Earth’s health, respect for public service, belief in civility and honest debate, a beacon to refugees in need, aspirations to equality and diversity and basic decency — Mr. Trump torched them all.”

“In this alternative reality, the pandemic has virtually passed — thanks to the heroic efforts of Trump — the economy is roaring back, peace abides in the Middle East, and lions frolic with lambs in prosperous urban Opportunity Zones.”

I worry he can win. Incumbency, which he’s used to great if unethical advantage, is powerful. “With a blaze of fireworks and a burst of heated rhetoric… [he gave] his acceptance speech from the South Lawn of the White House…” And more than 1,000 supporters “packed the grounds on Thursday evening to watch his speech, with few masks in sight, in a spectacle that flouted social distancing guidelines.”

Somehow the guy is “trying to run as both the incumbent and the outsider.” He is right, though, about one thing. “The choice… is stark, calling this ‘the most important election in the history of our country.’” Polling in August does not win elections in November.

Alternative facts, The assault on truth.

fact checks be damned

Alternative facts My experience is that there are some people with whom I cannot reasonably debate. I keep pondering why. A piece of it, I suppose, is that they don’t know what to believe. And that confusion, it seems, is quite intentionally devised.

At the end of December 2019, there was a special segment of Meet the Press called Alternative Facts, the assault on truth. My wife and I didn’t watch it for four months but found it quite interesting.

And disturbing. “When folks were asked, in a CBS poll, where do they go for trusted information, among Trump supporters, they cited the president himself. 91% of Trump supporters said he’s where they go for accurate information, fact checks be damned.” This explains a lot.

Someone named Ben Nimmo explained the four things that disinformation actors do if they want to attack their enemies or defend themselves against criticism, #1, dismiss. Attack critics to erode their credibility and invalidate the facts. #2, distort: If the facts are against you, make up your own facts. #3, distract. Whataboutism, or the “I’m rubber, you’re glue” defense. If you’re accused of something, accuse someone else of the same thing. #4, dismay — threats and intimidation.

Kernel of truth

The next segment was the anatomy of a lie. “All successful lies begin with a kernel of truth…” The topic happened to be CrowdStrike being hired to investigate the DNC server hack. “So if you want to propel your lie, just keep issuing falsehoods. The truth has one voice. But lies are infinite. Eventually, IMPOTUS was lying, “The Democrats, National Committee, they gave the server to CrowdStrike. It’s a very wealthy Ukrainian. It’s a Ukrainian company. That’s what the word is.”

“You can continue to make more and more lies, which then wears out anybody trying to rebut them… You can make lies faster than you can refute them. And THAT is often the goal. I had erroneously thought the goal of disinformation was to make people believe something that’s not true.

Rather it’s to get people to say, “It’s SO confusing, I don’t know WHAT to believe.” This is even true of things they might have seen with their own eyes. The truth is squeezed out, or at best is in competition with what Kellyanne Conway called “alternative facts.”

War on the United States Postal Service

Postmaster general Louis DeJoy is an RNC megadonor.

There has been a war on the United States Postal Service. It did not start this year, or with this regime, or even in the past decade.

Back in 2006, the Republican Congress passed legislation to impose extraordinary new financial burdens on the USPS. It required that the entity prepay retirement health benefits 75 years in advance. According to the American Postal Workers Union, the mandate is responsible for more than 90 percent of Postal Service net losses since 2007. It is a threat to its economic viability. Check out John Oliver’s piece from May 2020.

That said, the attack on the USPS has escalated this year. As many outlets have reported, IMPOTUS has confirmed it. He’s killing the Post Office to also destroy the election.

The postmaster general, Louis DeJoy, was appointed in May 2020. He is a megadonor of the regime but has no prior expertise pertaining to the Postal Service. He has disrupted the mission of the United States Postal Service, which is to deliver mail to Americans in a timely fashion.

In the last couple of months, mail delivery has dramatically slowed down. “The efforts to sabotage the United States Postal Service are anything but subtle.” It includes mail sorting machines removed without reason, shelves detached to slow down hand sorting, and postal drop boxes being taken away.” Fortunately, in the short term, due to the outcry, these measures have been temporarily stopped. Still, the handpicked postmaster general isn’t threatening to destroy the Post Office; he’s destroying the Post Office.

Reorganization?

This month, there was a major shake-up at the Postal Service. Twenty-three executives were reassigned or displaced, taking out those who might complain. As The Washington Post reported, Postal Service employees with decades of experience have disappeared from the organizational chart. “DeJoy has created a whole new structure, with all new people, to execute his inside attack on the service.” This isn’t coincidental. Or subtle.

“The reshuffling threatens to heighten tensions between postal officials and lawmakers, who are troubled by delivery delays. The Postal Service banned employees from working overtime and making extra trips to deliver mail.” They are “wary of the administration’s influence on the Postal Service.” As well they should.

Last week, djt “made it clear that he was attacking the Post Office explicitly to destroy its ability to handle mail-in ballots. “They want $25 billion for the Post Office. Now they need that money in order to make the Post Office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots. But if they don’t get those two items that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting because they’re not equipped to have it.”

In fact, the United States Postal Service has notified 46 states and the District of Columbia that they may be unable to deliver some ballots cast by mail for the November election in time to be counted. IMPOTUS is publicly opposing any effort to strengthen the Postal Service because he’s afraid it will enable more voters to vote safely by mail in November.

RNC cronies

“This isn’t just a Trump effort… Not only are Republicans meeting with DeJoy to plan the destruction of the Postal Service, but this also isn’t the first time most of these Republicans have met DeJoy.” He was a top National Republican Committee money guy who was actually in charge of fundraising before being handed the keys to one of the nation’s most vital institutions.

The NRC is engaged in a massive campaign to limit mail-in ballots. They are spending tens of millions of dollars on lawsuits to limit the franchise. They fight against states attempting to expand mail-in ballots and for ballot restrictions.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has done nothing to defend the Postal Service, allowing the Senate to fill the board of governors with IMPOTUS appointees. By extension, he has limited Americans’ ability to vote in the most important election of our lifetimes. (Note: he’s yup for re-election in 2020.)

The post office was codified in Article 1. Section 8 of the US Constitution. Why destroy a public service? These efforts delay not only elections but the delivery of checks, bill payments, legal documents, Census forms, and vital medications in the midst of a pandemic. And yes, with millions of people planning to vote by mail, we need to ensure that our ballots arrive and are counted.

An odd sidebar: IMPOTUS Suddenly Urged Florida Voters To Use Mail Ballots. Perhaps he is afraid of losing in his newly-adopted state. He’s done so himself, with some difficulty. “It may be the tactically correct move. But it just comes at the cost of completely undermining his attempt to delegitimize the process. He began with such little credibility outside his support base that he may not care.”

This should happen

I’m happy to see the USPS inspector general is investigating changes at post offices. The story notes: “The Democrats also requested that the IG assess whether DeJoy and his wife – who ‘reportedly own assets worth tens of millions of dollars in Postal Service competitors and contractors have fully complied with ethics requirements.” This is according to a statement from Senator Elizabeth Warren’s office.

Also, Louis DeJoy has agreed to testify at a Congressional hearing on August 24.

The Senate should pass H.R.2382, the USPS Fairness Act. This legislation would specifically repeal the harmful and costly requirement that the U.S. Postal Service prepay retirement health benefits 75 years in advance. This bill would unsaddle the USPS of an immense and unnecessary financial burden.

The USPS board of governors should require the Postmaster General to permanently reverse this assault on America’s Postal Service, or else remove Louis DeJoy from the position.

August rambling: a word with no meaning

keep the lowest-ranked people at the bottom

https://wronghands1.com/2020/07/07/rock-classification-table/ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 3.0 Unported License

The NRA and the Long Con.

There’s No Such Thing as Family Secrets in the Age of 23andMe.

Telehealth Boom Misses Older Adults.

Don’t Blame Colleges for the Coming Fall Debacle. This is just what higher education looks like in a failed state.

Google Voice deserves your attention (again).

The Anonymous Professor Who Wasn’t.

Urban Dictionary TOP Definition: Literally – a word with no meaning in today’s USA.

Webwaste: The Web is Obese.

Vlogbrothers (Hank Green): Ideas are absolutely a kind of magic and It seems like content is now infinite and internalizing the reality that critique is vital…but so is knowing when you think it’s wrong.

A Tale of Two TV Producers and How They Switched Places (Gene Roddenberry and Jack Webb).

Ken Levine interview of Debbie Gibson: Part 1 and Part 2.

Songwriter Ashley Gorley Becomes First with 50 Number One Songs.

Double-O Thoughts.

Octothorpe – another term for the pound, number, or hashtag symbol (#).

Race

John Oliver: US history books and racism.

How Stephen Miller Molded the GOP to His Anti-immigration Agenda.

Pitfalls Black Lives Matter must avoid to maintain momentum and achieve meaningful change.

A Rare Recipe From a Talented Chef, Enslaved by a Founding Father.

A historical reckoning for the global slave trade including the database Legacies of British Slave-ownership.

I’ll have to read Isabel Wilkerson’s important new book, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. She makes unsettling comparisons between India’s stigmatizing treatment of its untouchables, Nazi Germany’s treatment of Jews, and America’s treatment of African-Americans, the social systems that “keep the lowest-ranked people at the bottom.”

Now I Know

The Color of Fraud and The Holbrook Holiday and The Horseless Headsman and The TV That Needed Help and Kindergarten Crabs?

https://wronghands1.com/2020/05/26/regency-novel-or-pandemic-life/ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 3.0 Unported License

IMPOTUS

His Threat to Press Freedom Is Global.

Weekly Sift: The Election: Worry or Don’t Worry?

The Lincoln Project: Wake Up.

Yes, Kanye Is Trying To Help Trump Win By Spoiling Biden’s Chances with some help.

MUSIC

Lookin’ For a Leader 2020 – Neil Young.

Global Warming by Michael Abels.

The Ordering of Moses by Robert Nathaniel Dett.

Stevie Wonder music featuring Rebecca Jade and Leonard Patton on vocals, Tripp Sprague on sax and flute, Mack Leighton on bass, Duncan Moore on drums, and Peter Sprague on guitar. The Prayer featuring Rebecca Jade and Chris Walker.

AGO Organfest: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday

Concerto for Left Hand in D Major by Ravel, performed by Leon Fleischer, who died at the age of 92.

16, Going On 17 – Laura Benanti and Christopher Fitzgerald

You’ll Be Back, priest’s viral ‘Hamilton’ video.

Brandy – Elliot Lurie. and friends, a cappella (and an Evanier story).

Electric Avenue – The Last Bandoleros and SHAGGY.

William Tell Overture finale, played by the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.

Coverville 1319: Covers of Public Enemy, RUN-DMC and LL Cool J.

Have I lived the life I wanted?

Canaan’s descendants settled in the land of Canaan!

canaan In the Boston Globe recently, there was an interesting title. “If I die now, have I lived the life I wanted to?” The subtitle: “The pandemic has people examining their lives. Some don’t like what they’re seeing.”

“Spouses are being left, retirements pushed up, friends dropped. People are moving to rural spots and strengthening their faith, and those fortunate enough to have a choice are saying ‘no’ to commuting.”

But I don’t think it’s just the pandemic. As the article noted, “A married couple have taken stock of their lives… They have been hanging out with the wrong people — friends who were nice to their faces, but, they now realize, are selfish. The friends refuse to wear masks or support Black Lives Matter, stances that rule out any further relationship.”

So it’s all of it: IMPOTUS, COVID-19, George Floyd and all of the ramifications of each. It’s certainly true for me.

Let me let you in on a little secret. I hate writing about race and racism in America. The only thing that I hate more is NOT writing about it. There is a hole in my stomach, probably from acid reflux, when I don’t write what I am feeling.

So I have come to a conclusion. There’s a woman in my life who is really upset with me. It is because I told her, in an email discussion in late June, that IMPOTUS was a bigoted person. Therefore, her support of him appeared racist to me. She says she’s “devastated.”

Old Testament

My realization, my culpability in this, is that I held back in the past. For instance, when she laid out to me that black people became slaves in America because of the curse of Canaan. I wrote about this theory five years ago.

From here: “Canaan’s descendants, however, did not settle in Africa, but in the land to which they gave their father’s name—the land of Canaan!… Later, Joshua conquered this land and placed the Canaanites under forced slave labor (Josh. 9:23)…. Thus, the prophetic curse of slavery was literally fulfilled on the Canaanites. The curse, therefore, applies to no ethnic group in existence today. The mistaken idea that Ham’s African descendants are cursed is a myth too often repeated even to this day!” And it’s out there a lot.

When I finally did figure out the absurdity that she was talking about – even assuming that the Bible is literally true, which she does – I might have called her out about it. But I didn’t, in the name of peace. But, as it states in Jeremiah 6:14-15:

They dress the wound of my people
as though it were not serious.
‘Peace, peace,’ they say,
when there is no peace.
Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct?
No, they have no shame at all;
they do not even know how to blush.

My disservice to her, then, was not saying something sooner. It’s not her support for IMPOTUS that is the reason I believe her views are racist; that just codifies it. It’s because of her views on the curse of Ham, and the seeming glee she had sharing this with me five or six years earlier. And some other things too.