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babylonsister
babylonsister's Journal
babylonsister's Journal
August 17, 2020
How Many Ways to Say This Is Not Normal?
August 17, 2020 at 7:41 am EDT By Taegan Goddard
How Many Ways to Say This Is Not Normal?
https://politicalwire.com/2020/08/17/how-many-ways-to-say-this-is-not-normal/How Many Ways to Say This Is Not Normal?
August 17, 2020 at 7:41 am EDT By Taegan Goddard
New York Times: “That it is not normal for a president to employ transparently racist and sexist attacks. Or pressure his attorney general to prosecute his foes with an election looming. Or resist money for the Postal Service in order to stop people from voting by mail. Or embrace a conspiracy theorist running for Congress. Or condemn American cities to ‘rot.'”
“President Trump, of course, long ago redefined what constitutes normal in the White House, but with 77 days left in a campaign that polls show he is losing, he is pushing all the boundaries at once. At the same time the champion of birtherism is again scraping the raw edges of America’s divisions over race, gender and national origin, he is propelling fringe ideas into mainstream conversation. And now, running as the incumbent, he has levers of power available to help salvage a flagging campaign.”
“Yet what once would have caused jaws to drop barely seems to register for long at this point because it is so quickly overshadowed by the next norm-busting statement or action.”
“President Trump, of course, long ago redefined what constitutes normal in the White House, but with 77 days left in a campaign that polls show he is losing, he is pushing all the boundaries at once. At the same time the champion of birtherism is again scraping the raw edges of America’s divisions over race, gender and national origin, he is propelling fringe ideas into mainstream conversation. And now, running as the incumbent, he has levers of power available to help salvage a flagging campaign.”
“Yet what once would have caused jaws to drop barely seems to register for long at this point because it is so quickly overshadowed by the next norm-busting statement or action.”
August 17, 2020
State Officials Rush to Shore Up Confidence In Elections
August 16, 2020 at 4:08 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard
State Officials Rush to Shore Up Confidence In Elections
https://politicalwire.com/2020/08/16/state-officials-rush-to-shore-up-confidence-in-elections/State Officials Rush to Shore Up Confidence In Elections
August 16, 2020 at 4:08 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard
“President Trump’s unprecedented attacks on the U.S. Postal Service amid widespread mail delays across the country are shaking voters’ faith that their ballots will be counted, prompting a rush among federal, state and local officials to protect the integrity of the Nov. 3 election,” the Washington Post reports.
“Thousands of voters have called government offices in recent days to ask whether it is still safe to mail their ballots, according to officials across the country. Attorneys general from at least six states are huddling to discuss possible lawsuits against the administration to block it from reducing mail service between now and the election.”
“State leaders are scrambling to see whether they can change rules to give voters more options, and Democrats are planning a massive public education campaign to shore up trust in the vote and the Postal Service.”
“Thousands of voters have called government offices in recent days to ask whether it is still safe to mail their ballots, according to officials across the country. Attorneys general from at least six states are huddling to discuss possible lawsuits against the administration to block it from reducing mail service between now and the election.”
“State leaders are scrambling to see whether they can change rules to give voters more options, and Democrats are planning a massive public education campaign to shore up trust in the vote and the Postal Service.”
August 16, 2020
Sunday, August 16, 2020
Trump losing among retirees in must-win Florida
By Ron Gomez Hoff -
August 15, 2020
Jim Farr is a staunch 77-year-old Republican in the sunny southern state of Florida, which lures retirees from all over America – a powerful political bloc.
As the country’s presidential election draws nearer, Farr dislikes the idea of voting for a Democrat. But the idea of giving President Donald Trump another term irks him even more.
Farr, who lives in Kissimmee in the central part of the state, is a devout Christian who considers abortion akin to “murdering babies” and believes in what he calls compassionate capitalism. He says it is not the Republican party that has lost a supporter – the president has.
“He does not seem to care for truth. Truth is very important to me. He does not check facts,” said Farr, who is disappointed with the man he voted for in 2016.
Add what Farr sees as Trump’s me-first agenda, blinding pride that blocks him from listening to advisers and his awful handling of the coronavirus pandemic? The Floridian said those issues mean he will probably do the once-unthinkable: vote for Democrat Joe Biden in November.
“He seems to be an acceptable person,” said Farr.
Farr is not alone: There are signs that more and more retirees in this must-win state who voted for Trump in 2016 are considering dumping him in the upcoming election.
more...
https://trumpvirus.org/trump-losing-among-retirees-in-must-win-florida/
Trump losing among retirees in must-win Florida
Sunday, August 16, 2020
Trump losing among retirees in must-win Florida
By Ron Gomez Hoff -
August 15, 2020
Jim Farr is a staunch 77-year-old Republican in the sunny southern state of Florida, which lures retirees from all over America – a powerful political bloc.
As the country’s presidential election draws nearer, Farr dislikes the idea of voting for a Democrat. But the idea of giving President Donald Trump another term irks him even more.
Farr, who lives in Kissimmee in the central part of the state, is a devout Christian who considers abortion akin to “murdering babies” and believes in what he calls compassionate capitalism. He says it is not the Republican party that has lost a supporter – the president has.
“He does not seem to care for truth. Truth is very important to me. He does not check facts,” said Farr, who is disappointed with the man he voted for in 2016.
Add what Farr sees as Trump’s me-first agenda, blinding pride that blocks him from listening to advisers and his awful handling of the coronavirus pandemic? The Floridian said those issues mean he will probably do the once-unthinkable: vote for Democrat Joe Biden in November.
“He seems to be an acceptable person,” said Farr.
Farr is not alone: There are signs that more and more retirees in this must-win state who voted for Trump in 2016 are considering dumping him in the upcoming election.
more...
https://trumpvirus.org/trump-losing-among-retirees-in-must-win-florida/
August 16, 2020
Esper eyes $2.2 billion cut to military health care
Yet defense officials say troops and their families could be hurt.
By LARA SELIGMAN and DAN DIAMOND
08/16/2020 07:00 AM EDT
Defense Secretary Mark Esper has proposed cutting military health care by $2.2 billion, a reduction that defense officials say could effectively gut the Pentagon’s health care system during a nationwide pandemic.
The proposed cut to the military health system over the next five years is part of a sweeping effort Esper initiated last year to eliminate inefficiencies within the Pentagon’s coffers. But two senior defense officials say the effort has been rushed and driven by an arbitrary cost-savings goal, and argue that the cuts to the system will imperil the health care of millions of military personnel and their families as the nation grapples with Covid-19.
Esper and his deputies have argued that America's private health system can pick up the slack.
more...
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/16/esper-eyes-22-billion-cut-military-health-care-395578
Esper eyes $2.2 billion cut to military health care
Esper eyes $2.2 billion cut to military health care
Yet defense officials say troops and their families could be hurt.
By LARA SELIGMAN and DAN DIAMOND
08/16/2020 07:00 AM EDT
Defense Secretary Mark Esper has proposed cutting military health care by $2.2 billion, a reduction that defense officials say could effectively gut the Pentagon’s health care system during a nationwide pandemic.
The proposed cut to the military health system over the next five years is part of a sweeping effort Esper initiated last year to eliminate inefficiencies within the Pentagon’s coffers. But two senior defense officials say the effort has been rushed and driven by an arbitrary cost-savings goal, and argue that the cuts to the system will imperil the health care of millions of military personnel and their families as the nation grapples with Covid-19.
Esper and his deputies have argued that America's private health system can pick up the slack.
more...
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/16/esper-eyes-22-billion-cut-military-health-care-395578
August 16, 2020
Clyburn: Trump 'signing a death warrant for a lot of people' with mail-in voting opposition
By Kyle Balluck - 08/16/20 08:02 AM EDT
House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) in an interview on Saturday criticized President Trump’s opposition to mail-in voting, saying the president is “signing a death warrant for a lot of people.”
He added that the election in November would not be free and fair “if it’s left up to the president.”
more...
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/512207-clyburn-trump-signing-a-death-warrant-for-a-lot-of-people-with-mail-in-voting
Clyburn: Trump 'signing a death warrant for a lot of people' with mail-in voting opposition
Clyburn: Trump 'signing a death warrant for a lot of people' with mail-in voting opposition
By Kyle Balluck - 08/16/20 08:02 AM EDT
House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) in an interview on Saturday criticized President Trump’s opposition to mail-in voting, saying the president is “signing a death warrant for a lot of people.”
"We ought not be crippling the Post Office and for the president to admit that he is doing this in order to gum up the works when it comes to the elections, he is actually signing a death warrant for a lot of people that he ought not be doing this," Clyburn said on CNN.
He added that the election in November would not be free and fair “if it’s left up to the president.”
more...
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/512207-clyburn-trump-signing-a-death-warrant-for-a-lot-of-people-with-mail-in-voting
August 16, 2020
There Aren’t That Many ‘Hidden’ Trump Voters
August 16, 2020 at 8:30 am EDT By Taegan Goddard
There Aren't That Many 'Hidden' Trump Voters
https://politicalwire.com/2020/08/16/there-arent-that-many-hidden-trump-voters/There Aren’t That Many ‘Hidden’ Trump Voters
August 16, 2020 at 8:30 am EDT By Taegan Goddard
New York Times: “The idea that there are substantial numbers of Trump voters who will emerge from hiding on Election Day, large enough to sway the outcome, is not supported by the latest public opinion research — or by a proper understanding of what happened in past elections where the voter surveys were off, said pollsters who work for Republican and Democratic candidates.”
“This does not mean that Joe Biden’s lead, with the most recent national polls putting him ahead by as much as 10 points, won’t tighten. And public opinion experts say there is growing evidence that Americans across the spectrum have become more skittish about sharing their political preferences outside of a trusted group of like-minded people. But it would be a huge leap to conclude that the country’s tense political dynamics are causing people to lie to pollsters in large enough numbers to explain Mr. Trump’s poor standing.”
“This does not mean that Joe Biden’s lead, with the most recent national polls putting him ahead by as much as 10 points, won’t tighten. And public opinion experts say there is growing evidence that Americans across the spectrum have become more skittish about sharing their political preferences outside of a trusted group of like-minded people. But it would be a huge leap to conclude that the country’s tense political dynamics are causing people to lie to pollsters in large enough numbers to explain Mr. Trump’s poor standing.”
August 16, 2020
Georgia State Sen. Nikema Williams On Moving The Needle Forward On John Lewis's Legacy
I've been friends with Nikema since I lived in GA. What a kind soul she is, and smart as a whip! Good luck, Nikema!
https://www.essence.com/feature/nikema-williams-us-congress-john-lewis/
Georgia State Sen. Nikema Williams On Moving The Needle Forward On John Lewis’s Legacy
By Breanna Edwards · August 14, 2020
Williams, who was selected to take Lewis’s place on the ballot in the November elections, spoke to ESSENCE about her run for U.S. Congress.
Last month, Georgia Democrats selected State Senator Nikema Williams to take the late Rep. John Lewis’s place on the ballot after the beloved civil rights icon passed away. It might be a daunting prospect for some, but Williams knows she’s not Lewis, and she knows that she can’t step into his shoes…no matter how many other people have asked her to. However, she does plan to move ahead and live up to the ideals and values that she learned from him, while still being herself, and while “moving the needle forward” for the betterment of the next generation.
“There are absolutely things that Mr. Lewis fought for that I want to pick up the mantle and continue, but each generation has an obligation to take it one step further,” Williams told ESSENCE. “So just picking up where he left off and continuing isn’t, simply, enough; and I know that Mr. Lewis would feel this way as well.”
Take, for example, voting rights, something that the civil rights icon literally shed blood for during the march from Selma to Montgomery when he was brutally beaten by White officers in 1965. If elected, one of the first things Williams plans to do is work on the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, if it has not already been dealt with by the time she arrives on Capitol Hill.
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn moved to rename H.R.4, the Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2019, which passed in the House, after his departed colleague. The bill, if passed and signed into law, restores the full protections of the Voting Rights Act, which the Supreme Court gutted in 2013. A perfect representation of Lewis’s legacy.
However, Williams says beyond that, more has to be done to protect voting rights, an issue that she is equally passionate about, and one that she herself was arrested for back in 2018 while demonstrating with constituents to have every single vote be counted in the contentious Georgia elections.
snip//
“When I go to Congress, I’m bringing you with me. I want to be your voice. We can only do this if we do this together,” she said. “We’re all going to make sure that we’re living up to the promise of America when I get there.
Take, for example, voting rights, something that the civil rights icon literally shed blood for during the march from Selma to Montgomery when he was brutally beaten by White officers in 1965. If elected, one of the first things Williams plans to do is work on the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, if it has not already been dealt with by the time she arrives on Capitol Hill.
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn moved to rename H.R.4, the Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2019, which passed in the House, after his departed colleague. The bill, if passed and signed into law, restores the full protections of the Voting Rights Act, which the Supreme Court gutted in 2013. A perfect representation of Lewis’s legacy.
However, Williams says beyond that, more has to be done to protect voting rights, an issue that she is equally passionate about, and one that she herself was arrested for back in 2018 while demonstrating with constituents to have every single vote be counted in the contentious Georgia elections.
snip//
“When I go to Congress, I’m bringing you with me. I want to be your voice. We can only do this if we do this together,” she said. “We’re all going to make sure that we’re living up to the promise of America when I get there.
August 15, 2020
Pelosi weighs bringing House back early to address Postal Service crisis
Just do it!
Pelosi weighs bringing House back early to address Postal Service crisis
The chamber has no votes scheduled until mid-September, but Speaker Nancy Pelosi might bring lawmakers back sooner.
By HEATHER CAYGLE, JOHN BRESNAHAN and SARAH FERRIS
08/15/2020 06:47 PM EDT
Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Democratic leaders are considering cutting short the August recess and bringing the chamber back into session to deal with the unfolding crisis at the U.S. Postal Service, according to Democratic sources.
The House could return to vote with the next two weeks, the Democratic sources suggested. The chamber is currently in recess, with no votes scheduled until the week of Sept. 14.
Pelosi and other top Democrats, including House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), discussed the possibility of returning early during an emergency leadership call Saturday afternoon.
Democrats are looking to address organizational issues at the Postal Service in the coming weeks, not to provide additional funding at this time, according to sources familiar with the discussion.
One option would be to vote on a modified version of a bill introduced by House Oversight Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) earlier this week that would prohibit USPS from implementing a planned organizational overhaul that critics maintain would handicap mail-in voting.
Other top Democrats also floated addressing other issues, including expired federal unemployment benefits and voting rights. But Democratic sources said the immediate focus — at least for now — is preserving the Postal Service ahead of the election.
more...
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/15/pelosi-bringing-house-back-early-postal-service-395791
August 15, 2020
8/14/20 2:17pm
Kamala Harris As VP Completely Blows Up Trump Campaign's Strategy, If It Ever Had One
If there's one takeaway from the Trump campaign's rapid-fire response to Joe Biden choosing Sen. Kamala Harris of California as his running mate, it's that Trump and his supposed operatives have no idea what they're doing.
By Kerry Eleveld
If there's one takeaway from the Trump campaign's rapid-fire response to Joe Biden choosing Sen. Kamala Harris of California as his running mate, it's that Trump and his supposed operatives have no idea what they're doing.
At the White House task force briefing following the announcement, Trump deployed the word "nasty" several times to describe Harris, but it was really nothing more than his predictably misogynistic muscle memory taking over.
snip//
But the lack of a cohesive line of attack wasn't just a failure of execution. The campaign hadn't actually pre-scripted a response, according to The Washington Post's Ashley Parker. When Parker reached out to Trump campaign officials following Biden's announcement, they really didn't have a set direction or opposition research lined up to deploy, she told MSNBC on Wednesday. When she asked what angles they planned to take, "[n]o one really knew," Parker recalled. Stunning.
That lack of preparation also trickled down to GOP lawmakers on the Hill. Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri, a member of the GOP leadership team, didn't even try to take a shot at Harris when asked about the pick on Wednesday.
That sounds like someone who didn't get the memo because there wasn't one.
Kamala Harris As VP Completely Blows Up Trump Campaign's Strategy, If It Ever Had One
https://crooksandliars.com/2020/08/kamala-harris-vp-completely-blows-trump8/14/20 2:17pm
Kamala Harris As VP Completely Blows Up Trump Campaign's Strategy, If It Ever Had One
If there's one takeaway from the Trump campaign's rapid-fire response to Joe Biden choosing Sen. Kamala Harris of California as his running mate, it's that Trump and his supposed operatives have no idea what they're doing.
By Kerry Eleveld
If there's one takeaway from the Trump campaign's rapid-fire response to Joe Biden choosing Sen. Kamala Harris of California as his running mate, it's that Trump and his supposed operatives have no idea what they're doing.
At the White House task force briefing following the announcement, Trump deployed the word "nasty" several times to describe Harris, but it was really nothing more than his predictably misogynistic muscle memory taking over.
snip//
But the lack of a cohesive line of attack wasn't just a failure of execution. The campaign hadn't actually pre-scripted a response, according to The Washington Post's Ashley Parker. When Parker reached out to Trump campaign officials following Biden's announcement, they really didn't have a set direction or opposition research lined up to deploy, she told MSNBC on Wednesday. When she asked what angles they planned to take, "[n]o one really knew," Parker recalled. Stunning.
That lack of preparation also trickled down to GOP lawmakers on the Hill. Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri, a member of the GOP leadership team, didn't even try to take a shot at Harris when asked about the pick on Wednesday.
"I don’t vote with her very often, we don’t agree on our votes, but I served with her, I like her," he told CNN's Manu Raju, noting that they serve on the Senate Intelligence Committee together. “She has normally stayed very well within the standards of that committee, which in the Senate is the least political of all committees. And she’s smart and she’s tough.”
That sounds like someone who didn't get the memo because there wasn't one.
August 15, 2020
Trump Didn't Answer Police Questionnaire
Another instance where this POS thinks rules don't apply to him.
https://politicalwire.com/2020/08/15/trump-didnt-answer-police-questionnaire/
Trump Didn’t Answer Police Questionnaire
August 15, 2020 at 7:56 am EDT By Taegan Goddard
The International Association of Chiefs of Police “asked for each candidate’s views on nine specific areas of crime or other issues that impact law enforcement, and the solutions they planned to provide. The chiefs asked how they would address violent crime, violence against women, hate crimes, homegrown violent extremism, opioid abuse and traffic safety,” the Washington Post reports.
“Biden’s response on the nine issues stretched over four pages, calling for assault weapons bans, massive investment in drug treatment programs and investing $300 million in the COPS program to hire more officers and deputies.”
“Trump did not respond to the nine issues and provided no explanation.”
“Biden’s response on the nine issues stretched over four pages, calling for assault weapons bans, massive investment in drug treatment programs and investing $300 million in the COPS program to hire more officers and deputies.”
“Trump did not respond to the nine issues and provided no explanation.”
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Gender: FemaleHometown: NY
Home country: US
Current location: Florida
Member since: Mon Sep 6, 2004, 09:54 PM
Number of posts: 171,065
