Comment: Zelenskyy Campaigns for Dems

Editors:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is getting $8 billion more US tax dollars from Biden? No wonder Zelenskyy is campaigning for the Democrats.

Today’s US political left seems to prefer sending billions more to support the war, rather than working toward peace as they did decades ago. We’re at the point the funding serves little purpose but to continue the killing on both sides (I’m having Vietnam déjà vu). The country has truly gone dystopian, now that the liberal Democrats are the war hawks and Republicans are the ones talking about finding peace.

--Rich Corbett

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

FRIDAY Sep. 27, 2024

MVP Performance from Harris and Team

By Ken Zino

While I’m not a big fan of covering politics as if it were a sport, Vice President Harris and team had an all-star performance last night against Team Trump on my scorecard. They are clearly the favorites to win the World Series of American politics this November.

Well prepared from scrutinizing Trump game film, the Democratic game plan shut down all the usual Trump plays of bluster, lies and apoplectic rage. Harris was ready to be thrown at, which Trump did multiple times, but he wildly missed her because he couldn’t hit the strike zone with his increasingly wilder pitches.

Moreover, the loser Trump couldn’t make adjustments during the game and was so flustered that he committed babbling and ranting error after error allowing multiple runs for Harris. From the first inning fastball of the aggressive Harris handshake, Trump demonstrated he couldn’t recognize, let alone hit a curve, so to speak, or any other Democratic pitches as he was shut out enduring a humiliating no-hitter. What could you expect from a loser who boasted about his coaches – autocrats Vladimir Putin and Viktor Orban. Harris crushed the ball, noting both wanted him in power because they know “they can flatter you and manipulate you.”

Yes previous game film shows Trump said he would let Russia “do whatever the hell they want” to our NATO allies. And he calls soldiers who gave their lives in defense of American democracy “suckers” and “losers.” Top American military generals and national security officials – including those who worked for Trump – have warned that he is “dangerous” and “unfit” to lead, and now he is surrounded by ultra-loyalists who enable his worst impulses.

When Trump lied about “migrant crime” in cities: “Well, I think this is so rich,” Harris said. “Coming from someone who has been prosecuted for national security crimes, economic crimes, election interference, has been found liable for sexual assault and his next big court appearance is in November at his own criminal sentencing.”

Harris meanwhile kept adding to her score in what was a rout of Trump. She spit on his wild pitches while laughing. She was a joyful player with positive moves – in the tradition of “let’s play two,” which will be the second debate. Here, I wouldn’t “Bank” on it because Harris has sunshine, fresh air and the team behind us, as the great Hall of Famer Ernie Banks observed.

Trump’s rally crowd was leaving the stadium because he wasn’t talking about doing anything for their problems. “You will see during the course of his rallies, he talks about fictional characters like Hannibal Lecter, he will talk about windmills cause cancer,” she said. “What you will also notice is that people start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom. And I will tell you, the one thing you will not hear him talk about is you. You will not hear him talk about your needs, your dreams, and your desires.”

The result was a convincing win for the Democratic candidate in the first game of a double header who used her experience from years in minor league politics to show that Team Harris is ready for, and can win and stay in The Show.

“Donald Trump was fired by 81 million people,” Harris said. “Clearly he is having a very difficult time processing that.” Trump will be sent down to the minors.

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

Budget Crunch

CPI is 2.5% -- The Consumer Price Index fell to 2.5% in August, from a 2.9% rate in July, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. The Fed’s Open Market Committee is expected to react to cooling inflation with a quarter- to half-point interest rate cut at its next meeting next Tuesday-Wednesday. [Chart: Bureau of Labor Statistics]

THURSDAY 9/12/24

Use the trackball on the far right to scroll down to Wednesday's coverage of Tuesday night's ABC presidential debate, including commentary in the left and right columns.

Between the House and a Hard Place – House Republicans consider Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) six-month stopgap spending bill too spendy and House Democrats will not vote for it with the SAVE Act as a rider. The SAVE Act, sponsored by Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) and separately passed in the House, would require voters to present proof of citizenship in federal elections, just in time for November 5 and Johnson, a close Donald J. Trump ally calls it a “righteous” pursuit of election integrity. But his DOA bill will likely give way to a “clean” stopgap that would extend the budget deadline beyond September 30 into December, Punchbowl News reports.

Johnson’s debate reaction … Asked about Trump’s Tuesday debate performance in a press scrum Wednesday, Speaker Johnson turned and walked away, into the House chamber.

•••

Another Conspiracy – You might still be pondering Donald J. Trump’s repeat in Tuesday’s debate of a raging conspiracy theory, apparently begun by a white supremacist, that Haitian immigrants are eating neighbors’ pets in Springfield, Ohio. Trump misstated the animals involved in the conspiracy theory, claiming Haitian immigrants are eating dogs and cats rather than cats and ducks.

Meanwhile … The Trump camp has begun promoting a conspiracy theory that began among MAGA followers following the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, The Washington Post reports. After his right ear was grazed, Trump thanked local law enforcement for protecting him, offered condolences to the family of an audience member killed in the attempt and called for unity.

Now, he has begun promoting conspiracy theories calling the assassination attempt, by a registered Republican who has left no signs of a political motive, an “inside job” by government agencies or in fabricating Democratic ties to attorneys representing the shooter’s parents, according to the report.

“I probably took a bullet to the head because of the things they say about me,” Trump said during the debate Tuesday.

--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

There’s Reality. Then There’s Trump

By Stephen Macaulay

There is one simple reason why Donald Trump should not be elected. Arguably, he ought not be the Republican nominee because of this.

He still thinks he won the 2020 election. He has no evidence for it. He make claims that he has it, but if he did, if he had the honest-to-god-fact-checked proof, then wouldn’t he have blasted it out, oh, say, January 6, 2021?

The man does not have a grasp of what is generally considered to be accepted reality.

You know, that stuff that’s based on facts, not grievance.

“Everyone” this, “everyone” that.

Yet no substance. Nothing tangible.

And this is the guy who should be running the country?

He claims that he did everything great during his term. He claims that the country is in the shitter since.

When it is pointed out that there have been improvements in things like employment, he says that’s because of what he did.

So could we take it a step further and say everything good that happened on his watch was a consequence of what Obama put in motion?

He can repeat and amplify stories about illegal aliens eating pets. He can claim — with no backup information — that crime rates in other countries are down because all of the bad, very bad, very, very bad . . . insane criminals who have been sent to the U.S.

But if he still thinks that he won the last election, then there is a serious problem — not just for him, but for us if he gets reelected.

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

Undecideds Were Waiting for This Debate?

By Hugh Hansen

It could have been much, much worse. It could have been a little bit better.

I continue to have a hard time wrapping any part of myself around the idea there are 1.) genuinely undecided voters who 2.) sought to make their decision based on watching the debate (I felt that way about the conventions too).

So, what was there for them to see and hear? Trump told many more lies than Harris did, though the moderators only spoke to a few of them. Both candidates sidestepped questions, though in my biased opinion Trump did more of it, and sidestepped into wackier territories.

Harris missed a rhetorical opportunity when asked whether they should have acted earlier or differently on the border; that was the moment to tie it to Trump's torpedoing the Congressional border deal, e.g. "We thought we'd dealt with it more comprehensively and six months earlier, until he meddled."

I was glad she got it in a minute later. Trump gave the Blue side a gift with the criminal immigrants eating pets thing, and with "performing transgender operations on illegal immigrants in prison," things that only the most MAGAfied didn't laugh at. Those will translate better into social media clips, too.

Eight weeks.

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

The Gloves Came Off in a Combative Debate

By Charles Dervarics

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump squared off in a heated debate last night that saw the presidential candidates cover familiar ground — from abortion to the border — but with a bevy of personal attacks that surprisingly had the former president on the defensive.

While Trump predictably leveled some of these attacks, Vice President Harris repeatedly took the offensive to criticize Trump and get him off his game. This strategy was most evident during a tense back-and-forth exchange about the border, when Harris invited voters to attend a Trump rally.

“You’ll hear about Hannibal Lecter, how windmills cause cancer, and what you’ll also notice is that people start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom.”

Rather than go back to criticizing Harris over immigration, the former president instead defended his rallies and crowd sizes. He also opted for unconfirmed claims about migrants in Ohio eating their neighbors’ pets.

While Trump labeled Harris a “Marxist” for her past progressive views, the vice president used several issues to dig at the former president. She noted his many indictments and felony convictions and claimed that military and world see him as a “disgrace.”

She told viewers the former president cares most about himself. “Donald Trump actually has no plan for you, because he is more interested in defending himself than he is in looking out for you.”

For his part, Trump seemed to score some points by citing prices that have climbed “60-, 70-, 80% higher than they were a few years ago” and pledging to cut taxes and “create a great economy” similar, he said, to his own presidential record prior to the pandemic.

He also criticized the Biden-Harris administration for only taking action on immigration a few months before the election and criticized Harris for her past views including a ban on fracking — a major issue in one of the key battlegrounds, Pennsylvania.

Both candidates skirted interviewer questions to tout some favorite talking points. Harris sidestepped a question about whether voters are better off than they were four years ago, instead citing her plans to support affordable housing and expand the child tax credit. Trump turned aside a question about his past statements on abortion to criticize Democrats for supporting late-term procedures.

The debate in Philadelphia was billed as perhaps the only meeting between Harris and Trump prior to the election. After last night’s event, the Harris campaign called for another debate, and Fox News also has invited the nominees to meet again before the Nov. 5 election.

All that was topped, for Vice President Harris, last night with a post-debate endorsement from Taylor Swift.

_____________________________________________

…meanwhile…

CPI Gets Closer – Closer to the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation target, and anyway, an interest rate cut of a quarter- to a half-point is expected to come out from next week’s meeting. For August, the Consumer Price Index dropped to 2.5% according to the Labor Department, down from a 2.9% annual rate in July. The month-over-month increase was 0.2%, same as July, with an 0.5% increase in shelter accounting for most the increase in prices. Food was up 0.2%, consisting of food away from home up 0.3% and food at home unchanged from July. Energy was off 0.8%.

--TL

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WEDNESDAY 9/11/24

Preparation Matters

By Rich Corbett

Like it or not, last night’s debate on ABC demonstrated why politicians are often trained attorneys. I’m reminded of a high-profile lawyer, turned law professor, telling me that a prosecutor can convince nearly any jury to convict, if the court has favorable judge, or two.

Last night Kamala Harris, the prosecutor, came well-rehearsed and had two favorable moderators; they all spent 90 minutes focused on prosecuting Donald Trump. If voting was scored like boxing, very few punches wielded by Trump connected with Vice President Harris. Trump was not successful in this round in exposing Harris’ failed record and far-left radical “values.” She sustained only a few body blows, so this round goes to Harris.

The problem for Kamala Harris is that the fight isn’t just one round. Trump has time to recover while the Harris campaign, and their propaganda arm -- mainstream media, has been clearly exposed. They can’t hide their candidate, her record and flip-flop positions for another two months … or can they?

Americans know what to expect from a Trump administration. The first Trump administration’s “no wars” kind of strong foreign policy leadership, closed southern border, tough on crime pro-law enforcement positions and lowered taxes to promote a pro-domestic manufacturing economy was impressive. All Americans were doing better prior to the Biden/Harris inflation and world on fire.

A thoughtful voter should be able to see the difference between one artful debate performance by Harris and a lifetime executive manager such as Trump when it comes to being POTUS. It is one thing selling platitudes such as "opportunity economy," but eventually her lifetime of progressive and radical California values will be clear for all to see. Will the real Kamala Harris be exposed?

Hats off to a debate prepared Kamala Harris last night … let’s see if the repackaging and marketing can continue.

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

From the Left

Editors:

As a girl from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, I am deeply sad about this. Tragedy just keeps on giving with this family.

--Kate McLeod

From Substack, re: https://thehustings.substack.com/p/of-fluoride-precious-bodily-fluids

Be sure to sign up for our free newsletter at https://thehustings.substack.com.

Countdown to Debate -- One week from now, Tuesday, September 10, Vice President Kamala Harris debates ex-President Donald J. Trump for 90 minutes beginning 9 pm Eastern/6 pm Pacific time, on ABC TV. There will be no studio audience and microphones will be shut off when it is the other candidate's turn to speak. Look for center-column analysis here on Wednesday, September 11 and send us your comments on the debate.

To submit your comments, use the Comment section in this column or the column on the right, or email editors@thehustings.newsand please indicate your political leanings in the subject line.

_____

…meanwhile…

Federal Reserve interest rate cut, here we come. The US economy added just 142,000 jobs in August according to the Labor Department, with the biggest gains in construction and health care, as the unemployment rate inched down by 0.1 points to 4.2%. The Fed, whose chairman Jerome Powell, recently said “we do not seek or welcome further cooling” of the economy, is expected to lower interest rates later this month. [Chart: Bureau of Labor Statistics]

FRIDAY 9/6/24

Trump Sentencing After Election -- New York Judge Juan Merchan has delayed sentencing of Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump for his conviction of falsified business records -- the "hush money case" -- to November 12, one week after the presidential election (per NPR's All Things Considered). The sentencing hearing was to be held September 18, eight days after the Harris-Trump debate on ABC TV.

This represents a double-edged sword for Trump, whose attorneys asked for the delay and yet could have grown his popularity over having to campaign from jail or while under probation. It's was a damned if you do/don't proposition for Merchan, who would have been accused of election interference with a jail sentence or probation ahead of the election, and is still accused of such with a sentencing date (hopefully) after we know who has won and before Trump or Vice President Harris will take the White House.

•••

Arlington Altercation Update – NPR’s Morning Edition has identified Trump campaign officials accused by an Arlington National Cemetery employee of shoving or pushing her aside when she tried to prevent the campaign from filming the ex-president’s appearance there with Gold Star families. The two involved in the altercation are Justin Caporale, deputy campaign manager, and Michael Picard, a member of Trump’s advance team, a source has told NPR.

Trump this week insisted on his Truth Social website the incident did not happen even after the campaign posted video of the event with families of soldiers killed at the Abby Gate of Kabul International Airport during the Biden administration’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The Army in a rare rebuke issued a statement that the Trump campaign violated cemetery rules and federal law by taking photos and video at Section 60, where soldiers who served in Afghanistan and Iraq are buried. The cemetery employee who says she was shoved in the incident reportedly does not want to press charges for fear of retaliation by Trump supporters.

•••

Is it the Stupid Economy? – Donald J. Trump did not fare much better at the Economic Club of New York, where he was to reveal his “big policy agenda” for the nation’s finances, according to New York.

The magazine’s Intelligencer called the speech before the Trump-friendly group “a bomb of a speech a day after Kamala Harris unveiled a major tax-policy proposal and a pledge to support 25 million new small businesses.”

“We delivered an economic miracle that Kamala and Joe turned into an economic disaster,” Trump said.

The single bit of news, according to Intelligencer is that Tesla/X/SpaceX chief Elon Musk has agreed to lead a commission on government fraud and abuse for a second Trump administration. The Government Accountability Office estimates such fraud and abuse totals more than half a trillion dollars a year, the magazine notes, and the plan to put Musk in the driver’s seat would save “trillions” of dollars over an unspecified period, Trump told the Economic Club.

Note…Trump’s plan is “similar to the GAO’s Biden-era approach for rooting it out,” Intelligencer reports. Also notable is that Musk, who has said he’d take the role for zero compensation, has over the years fought federal probes ranging from his comments about Tesla stock to the automaker’s self-driving technology.

At the Democratic National Convention, United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain announced his union had filed a National Labor Relations board complaint against Musk and Trump over their comments regarding Musk’s alleged worker intimidation at Tesla.

•••

President’s Son Pleads Guilty – Hunter Biden entered a surprise guilty plea in Los Angeles Thursday over federal tax charges, to avoid a trial that was expected to reveal details about past business deals. Prosecutors were expected to argue “he spent freely” on illicit drugs and escorts while neglecting tax obligations, says The Wall Street Journal. Speaking with reporters on Air Force One Thursday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre repeated President Biden’s pledge he would not use his clemency powers to pardon his son, or commute potential sentences.
--TL

________________________________________________

THURSDAY 9/5/24

Trump’s Town Hall with Hannity – It was no debate, as originally proposed for Fox News September 17 to have been moderated by Martha McCollum and Brett Baier. Instead, the hour-long “town hall-style” interview (conversation?) with Sean Hannity was a taped and edited interview with ex-President Trump, held in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The editing left in Trump’s argument that a Harris presidency would lead to another Great Depression and illegal immigrants would be eating up Social Security and Medicaid.

There was no mention of Hannibal Lecter or electric boats v. sharks, though there were high school-style nicknames like “Comrade Kamala” (with accent on the second syllable of Harris’ name) and projection of Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz’s high school criticism of the Trump/Vance ticket.

“There’s something weird about that guy,” Trump said of Walz. “I’m solid as a rock.”

Oh, the Orbánity… Trump began the interview quoting Hungary’s authoritarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán, “Bring Trump back and we won’t have these problems.”

We do it all for you… Apparently an issue on Fox News and perhaps other conservative news outlets is they can find no evidence Vice President Kamala Harris ever worked at a McDonald’s fast-food restaurant, an issue Hannity raised Wednesday night.

•••

Cheney to Vote for Harris – Former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), who lost her seat after voting to impeach then-President Trump over the January 6 attack on the US Capitol said at an event at Duke University Wednesday she will vote for the Democratic presidential ticket.

“Because of the danger that Donald Trump poses, not only am I not voting for Donald Trump, but I will be voting for Kamala Harris,” she said (per The New York Times). She went on; “I don’t believe we have the luxury of writing in candidates’ names, particularly in swing states.”

•••

Economy v. Economy – Goldman Sachs, the second-largest investment bank in the world according to Wikipedia, says US economic growth would get a bigger boost from a Harris presidency than with a Trump presidency.

Why? Mostly the return of Trump tariffs and more strict immigration policies, the bank said in a release late Tuesday (per Reuters).

Job growth also would be greater under a Democratic sweep – meaning, House and Senate (unlikely) as well as White House. New spending and expanded middle-income tax credits would “slightly more than offset” the lower investment that higher corporate taxes would cause.

“We estimate that if Trump wins in a sweep or with divided government, the hit to growth from tariffs and tighter immigration policy would outweigh the positive fiscal impulse,” Goldman Sachs said, which would result in an 0.5% decline in GDP in the second half of 2025 that would abate in 2026.

•••

Headline Redux – Wednesday’s tragic school shooting in Winder, Georgia, where two students and two teachers were killed has activated The Onion’s boilerplate headline, “No Way to Prevent This’ Says Only Nation Where this Regularly Happens.”

--TL

_____________________________________________

Campaign Season Notes – Republican presidential nominee Donald J. Trump tapes a “town-hall-style” event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with Sean Hannity of Fox News set for broadcast at 9 pm Wednesday night. …

Meanwhile, Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is in North Hampton, New Hampshire to tout her small business plan, which includes a tenfold tax credit for new businesses, from $5,000 currently to $50,000 (NPR). She hopes to cull a record 25 million new small business applications over four years of a presidential term. …

The youngest son of the late Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain, Army 1^st Lt. Jimmy McCain has changed his registration from independent to Democratic and says he will vote for Harris/Walz in November. He made the announcement in a press release and on social media Tuesday. McCain also expressed “outrage” over the Trump video altercation at Arlington National Cemetary, calling it a “violation” and a “painful experience.” …

George Conway, the conservative attorney, Trump critic and ex-husband of Kellyanne Conway last July launched the Anti-Psychotic PAC with plans to spend more than $100,000 on anti-Trump ads. Conway has launched the PAC’s first 60-second ad featuring clips of Republicans bashing Trump.

--TL

_____________________________________________

Russia Strikes Central Ukraine – At least 41 were killed and more than 180 injured by two Russian ballistic missiles in a strike on Poltava Tuesday, an otherwise quiet city in central Ukraine, according to NPR. The strike prompted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to call for more Western air defenses and to allow his country to strike deeper into Russian territory with long-range missiles, The Guardian reports.

“We keep telling everyone in the world who has the power to stop this terror: Air defense systems and missiles are needed for Ukraine, not in a warehouse somewhere,” Zelenskyy said.

•••

Netanyahu Remains Defiant After Protests – In retrospect, it was inevitable that the latest round of ceasefire talks with Israel over its war on Gaza and Hamas would stall. This time, it was over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s intransigence in giving up Israeli control of Philadelphi, a narrow strip of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt that Netanyahu’s government says Hamas uses to smuggle weapons into Gaza and which Egypt and Hamas deny.

Even after Israeli protesters took to the streets of Tel Aviv by the “hundreds of thousands” last weekend according to The Associated Press, to protest the killing of six Israeli hostages, demanding a ceasefire deal and immediate release of hostages, Netanyahu pushed back, saying “No one will preach to me.”

The UK Tuesday, led by its first liberal leader in 14 years Tuesday morning said it is suspending certain arm sales to Israel, NPR’s Morning Edition reports, though it will have little effect on Israel’s military capability, as the US and Germany are its two biggest arm suppliers.

•••

U.S. Steel should remain domestically owned, Vice President Kamala Harris said in Pittsburgh in her first joint campaign rally with President Biden, the AP reports. Harris and Biden opposition to the $14 billion sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel of Japan is echoed by Harris’ opponent in the presidential race, former President Donald J. Trump.

“U.S. Steel should remain American-owned and American-operated, and I will always have the backs of America’s steelworkers,” Harris said at a Labor Day rally before cheering union members.

--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

The Joker

By Stephen Macaulay

On August 25, Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance appeared on NBC News’ Meet the Press. Kristen Welker, the interviewer, asked him about his comment about “childless cat ladies.” He’d made the quote during an interview in 2021 with Tucker Carlson on Fox News. As you may recall, Carlson was fired from his gig in 2023 after Fox settled a defamation lawsuit with voting machine company Dominion. The suit was brought because Dominion maintained that some folks at Fox were spreading false claims about the 2020 election being rigged. It cost Fox $787 million. Fair and balanced, right? Lying didn’t seem to matter much until it cost them.

The quote was a description of who Vance considered to be running the U.S., including “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.”

Welker pointed out, “The Census Bureau estimates there are 22 million women between the ages of 20 and 40 who for whatever reason do not have children. What do you say to those women who hear some of your comments, including the childless cat lady comments, which you’ve been asked about, but who feel as though you won’t represent them?’

He, of course, answered that he wants to be the “vice president for the whole country” and “represent everybody.” Not respect everybody.

Vance claimed it was a “sarcastic comment [made] years ago that I think a lot of Democrats have willfully misinterpreted.” There are probably more Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and other people who have a grasp of the English language who can read what he said without any misinterpretation.

It is flat out mean.

Welker asked if he regretted making the comment.

“Look, I regret certainly that a lot of people took it the wrong way, and I certainly regret that the DNC and Kamala Harris lied about it.”

What’s the lie, Vance? Didn’t you say these women are miserable with their lives because of choices they’ve made? What choices might they be? That they, for whatever reason, didn’t have children? What about all of the women who for medical reasons are childless? They need to be characterized by a smarmy politician who wants to “represent them”?

Welker pressed him again about whether he has any regret.

“Look, Kristen, I’m going to say things from time to time that people would disagree with. I’m a real person. I’m going to make jokes.”

And there it is: “I’m going to make jokes.”

In other words, he can say things that are mean, despicable and otherwise beneath someone who wants to be the person who is a heartbeat away from the presidency who can sluff off any decency by saying it was just a joke.

That’s the sort of dodge most people left behind when they graduated high school.

Then The New York Times reported August 31 on another Vance attack on women.

In 2007 there was a teen beauty pageant. A young woman was asked a question and she totally flubbed it to a painfully embarrassing degree.

A video of it went viral. The young woman became depressed and considered suicide.

Presumably, as those things go, its virality had a half-life of days, to be replaced by some other epic fail.

But Vance, having spent time in Silicon Valley, proved himself not merely a tech bro but a bro bro and pulled it out from the pits of the internet and posted it on X prior to Kamala Harris’ CNN interview. It was captioned: “BREAKING: I have gotten ahold of the full Kamala Harris CNN interview.”

That’s right Vance, the man who seems exceedingly concerned about family values when it comes to things like procreation and what books should and shouldn’t be read in schools, shamed a person who was then a teenager, to make fun of a political opponent. Epic, bro.

And Donald Trump Jr. chimed in by posting “This is total Fake News from JD. We all know that Kamala isn’t that articulate.”

Again, victimize a young woman for some laffs.

Has he listened to one of his father’s public presentations lately?

According to Times, when Vance was asked if he had been aware of the fact that the young woman in the post had considered suicide he answered he hadn’t. And he said, “My heart goes out to her, and I hope that she’s doing well.”

A bit of contrition.

Then he was asked to apologize.

Oh, but the decent thing would be far too much for the man who wants “represent everyone.”

He is quoted:

“Politics has gotten way too lame,” he said, adding, “I’m not going to apologize for posting a joke, but I wish the best for Caitlin.”

Did Caitlin consider this to be a joke?

Is his approach to politics one where he is cruel and then just passes it off as a joke?

Vance told Kristen Welker that he was raised by two grandparents who “believed in some fundamental American values.”

Those values probably don’t include spite, meanness, callousness, and brutishness.

And they probably wouldn’t find these so-called “jokes” funny.

American leaders shouldn’t make fun of other Americans.

_____________________________________________

Reader Comments on the Right

Editors:

Stephen Macaulay’s “Warm Spit & Standards” happened to trigger thoughts of Harry Truman as VP under President Franklin Roosevelt. Having recently read about Truman, it was surprising to me that he only had two in-person meetings with life-long philanderer FDR before the president died in the presence of his mistress (Eleanor’s social secretary). It just goes to show the significance of the passage of time in how history records American presidents, and footnotes their vice presidents. Perhaps little has really changed when it comes to presidents, politics and the power hungry?

--Rich Corbett

Countdown to Debate -- One week from now, Tuesday, September 10, ex-President Donald J. Trump debates Vice President Kamala Harris for 90 minutes beginning 9 pm Eastern/6 pm Pacific time, on ABC TV. There will be no studio audience and microphones will be shut off when it is the other candidate's turn to speak. Look for center-column analysis here on Wednesday, September 11 and send us your comments on the debate.

Be sure to sign up for our free newsletter at https://thehustings.substack.com.

To submit your comments, use the Comment section in this column or the column on the right, or email editors@thehustings.newsand please indicate your political leanings in the subject line.

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Your Turn

Your thoughts are welcome on Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris’ stemwinder of an acceptance speech Thursday night. Can she extend her honeymoon period past the Democratic National Convention?

Also, be sure to scroll down with the scrollbar on the far right side to read this week’s coverage of the DNC, including Thursday’s coverage of running mate Tim Walz’s acceptance speech and Wednesday’s coverage of Tuesday’s Harris/Walz appearance in Milwaukee.

Add your Comments to the left or right column, appropriate to your leanings. Or email editors@thehustings.news and please indicate whether you lean left or right in the subject line. Or go to our free Substack newsletter site at thehustings.substack.com and post your comments there.

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The People vs. Populism

FRIDAY 8/23/24

There was much familiar in Vice President Kamala Harris’ acceptance speech for her nomination as Democratic presidential candidate. And yet, there was much new in its execution. As a former prosecutor and San Francisco district attorney, Harris no doubt has made countless closing arguments. But her national performances as a speaker have heretofore been less than engaging, until now.

Harris began, as many politicians do, with anecdotes about her late mother and her family’s humble middle-class upbringing in the flats of the San Francisco area’s East Bay.

“She taught us to never complain about injustice, but to do something about it. Do something about it.”

And … “And never do anything half-assed.”

Her speech was not the least bit half-assed, even as she riffed on familiar themes. Much of the Harris/Walz campaign is about preventing a “tyrant,” ex-President Trump, from returning to power, though she did outline some specific agenda items.

“In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man. But the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious,” she said.

Harris continued, “we are not going back … And we are charting a new way forward, with a way forward for the middle-class,” a defining goal of her presidency.

As president, Harris intends to “create an opportunity economy,” she said, offering labor, small enterprise and businesses “the chance to compete and the chance to succeed,” with a federal program to provide capital for entrepreneurs and small businesses.

Her plans for a middle-class tax cut contrasts with “another (Trump) tax break that will add $5 billion to the national deficit.”

There’s also legislation restoring Roe v. Wade that a President Harris would sign, along with the bipartisan border bill that Trump killed because he wanted to keep the issue for his campaign.

But it’s on the international issues that must have been terra infirma for her.

“Five days before Russia attacked Ukraine, I met with President Zelenskyy to warn him about Russia’s plans to invade,” Harris said. “I helped mobilize a global response – over 50 countries – to defend against Putin’s aggression. And as president, I will stand strong with Ukraine and our NATO allies.”

Then she tried to make up some ground lost to “uncommitted” Democratic voters on the issue of a ceasefire in Gaza, saying “now is the time to get a hostage deal and a ceasefire deal done,” adding that she always stands for Israel’s right to defend and arm itself, while acknowledging “so many innocent lives lost” in Gaza, filled with hungry, desperate people. “President Biden and I are working to end this war.”

--Todd Lassa

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

Will the Real Conservative Please Stand Up?

ICYMI, Donald J. Trump has returned to Elon Musk’s X, the social media formerly known as Twitter, to try and take some steam out of Kamala Harris’ DNC pep rally. He did manage to keep the capital letters to a minimum …

“Kamala implemented policies that put prices through the roof. Then when inflation got out of control, she sat by and did nothing to stop it. If she wins the Presidency, the middle class will be priced out of existence. #Comrade Kamala: We can’t afford her as President.”

Meanwhile … “The Republican Party is no longer conservative. It has switched its allegiance from the principles that gave it purpose, to a man whose only purpose is himself.”

-- Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), one of two Republicans on the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6^th Attack on the United States Capitol and one of several Republicans to address the Democratic National Convention this week.

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

Your Thoughts?

Much going on for political animals this week, what with the Democratic National Convention at the United Center, and a special appearance by presidential nominee Kamala Harris and vice presidential nominee Tim Walz at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum, site just a month earlier of the Republican National Convention.

There’s much to discuss, and whether you identify as “conservative” or “liberal,” anywhere along the American political horseshoe, we want The Hustings to be your vessel for civil debate. Speeches from Wednesday’s DNC are covered by Contributing Editor Charles Dervarics in Thursday’s center column.

Scroll down with the scrollbar on the far right side to read Wednesday’s coverage of Tuesday’s Harris/Walz appearance in Milwaukee.

Add your Comments to the left or right column, appropriate to your leanings. Or email editors@thehustings.news and please indicate those leanings in the subject line. Or go to our free Substack newsletter site at thehustings.substack.com and post your comments there.

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Walz-ing to the Veep Nomination

By Charles Dervarics

The speeches ran long again Wednesday on a celebrity-filled night in Chicago, but fortunately for Democrats, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz showed he’s a former football coach who knows the value of a powerful pep talk.

In a folksy 18-minute address, Walz introduced himself to the nation as a farm boy, veteran, teacher, and (by the way) a politician whose humble roots will serve him well as Kamala Harris’ Vice President. He also highlighted his background as a high school football coach, with members of his state championship team — in their team jerseys — coming out on stage.

That was just the start of the football analogies. Of the tight presidential race, he said, “It’s the fourth quarter, we’re down a field goal but we have the ball and we’re driving downfield. Our job is to get into the trenches and do the blocking and tackling.”

Of the Republicans’ Project 2025, he said not to take the GOP’s word that they are abandoning this governing blueprint. “When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they’ll use it.”

He also drew wide applause by proclaiming “never underestimate a teacher” when citing his gubernatorial accomplishments such as paid family leave and free meals for school-age children. “While other schools were banning books from their schools, we were eliminating hunger at ours.”

With shouts of “Coach, Coach” from the crowd, he also offered his takes on these hot-button issues:

•On Abortion: Regarding reproductive rights, he said Minnesotans have a rule: “Mind your own damn business.”

•On Guns: He described himself as a hunter who’s “a better shot” than many Republicans in Congress. Still, he has signed gun safety laws as it’s “our first responsibility is to keep our kids safe.”

With Walz’ nomination complete, the last remaining task for Democrats is Harris’ speech Thursday where she will accept the nomination for president.

•••

Oprah Winfrey, Stevie Wonder and John Legend were among the celebrities on stage Wednesday for speeches and music. Winfrey noted that she’s not a registered Democrat but urged fellow independents to support Harris. She said character and values “matter most of all.”

•••

The night’s speakers also included Republicans critical of Trump, including Geoff Duncan, lieutenant governor of Georgia from 2019 to 2023. Duncan talked about Trump’s detailed efforts to undermine Georgia’s 2020 election tally, which led to Republicans repeatedly protesting at Duncan’s home when he did not want to alter the results.

“These days our party acts more like a cult — a cult worshipping a felonious thug,” he said. “If you vote for Kamala Harris in 2024, you’re not a Democrat. You’re a patriot.”

•••

Former President Bill Clinton left the Oval Office in 2001, but last night he noted that he’s still younger than Donald Trump. It’s one of the ways the presidential race has changed in the past month, with Trump now facing questions about his ability to serve as president as he nears age 80.

Clinton returned to familiar territory though, by claiming the GOP nominee cares more about himself than the country. “The next time you listen to him, don’t count the lies. Count the I’s.”

Clinton was known to be a fast-food aficionado — satirized on Saturday Night Live among others — and he leaned into this Wednesday night. Noting that Kamala Harris worked at McDonald’s when she was young, the former president was glad that a President Harris would set one new mark: “She will break my record for the president who spent the most time at McDonald’s.”

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news