The Decline of the DNC II

[selmaborntidefan]

- the debate was Sept 10 and there's no debate about it, Kamala Harris won
- however, she also was bloodied a bit by Trump assertions on transgender issues
- the entire debate was swallowed up in a ludicrous claim by Trump that immigrants in Springfield, Ohio were eating dogs and cats of the locals for dinner
- it was obvious Trump lost when he spent the next day whining about it being "three on one"
- Harris screwed up, too, by expressing interest in a second debate, which allowed Trump to say she lost because only losers want rematches

- but on 9/11, Biden went to the site of the United 93 crash 23 years earlier and drove the knife further
- he offered to trade an autographed Presidential seal hat for a MAGA hat on an attendee and di
- but challenged to put it on, Biden DID.....and the picture spoke louder than the retraction
- it looked like Biden, after four years of saying he was a threat to democracy, didn't think so

- on 9/15, Trump reconciled on a golf course with DeSantis only to hear gunshots again
- a man named Ryan Routh was 400 yards away and arrested, 2nd attempt in two months
- this second event made claims that Trump was responsible for violence less believable
- by 9/27, Harris had a couple of days of being able to win in the Electoral College but barely

- on 10/1 Vance and Walz debated, and Vance told his whopper about Trump giving up peacefully in 21
- Walz came across as a guy who wasn't up to the big moments, Vance was
- at this point, Biden's chief of staff told Harris "do whatever is necessary" to win including rip Biden
- on 10/8, Harris went on "The View" to say she liked what Biden had done and she would change X
- but she flopped in the execution, saying nothing came to mind that separated her from Biden
- one of Trump's ad makers watching the exchange knew at that point they had her
- Harris basically seemed to be saying she wanted to be President but had no idea why and no plans to tell anyone before the election, and she wasn't coming off well with undecideds
- but there was one answer to this problem: Joe Rogan, the popular host
- Rogan's demands were simple: no staff, no limitations on questions, and sign a waiver
- oh and a fourth one: come to Austin for the interview

- with no reason to go to Texas, the Harris campaign proposed a controlled interview in Michigan. No.
- the campaign decided they could go to blue Houston and talk about abortion restrictions and then fly up to Austin for an interview with Rogan on 10/25
- Rogan had called Trump a baby and was not on his Christmas card list; or Harris's either
- her advisors were saying "no," she flopped so bad on Brett Baier she was looking for trouble with Joe
- on 10/10 right after "the View" flub, the Harris internals showed her winning exactly 270 EVs courtesy of the one blue EV in Nebraska; this document had Harris winning N Carolina.....
- it was right about now the Trump campaign unleashed the "she's a hard left liberal" ads

 

[selmaborntidefan]

- the question to the ad guy - "what is the craziest thing we've got on Harris"? The answer came from her 2019 ACLU questionnaire: she advocated transgender surgery at taxpayer expense for prisoners and illegals.
- most campaigns would be too scared to do this, but Harris was on tape calling herself a trans activist
- Trump had already baked it into the cake in the debate, too
- they came up with a classic, where Trump was for "you" and Harris was for "they/them" (pronouns)
- Trump made one change: Erin Burnett of CNN was in the ad saying it was true about Harris; but Trump didn't like Burnett and wanted her out of it
- the ad man instead put in a photo of a nonbinary Biden official charged with stealing luggage and put it on the air during MLB post-season and NFL games
- one ad included Charlamagne tha God talking bad about Harris
- what Democrats couldn't understand was.....why isn't she responding to this?

- Bill Clinton was being accosted left and right by voters, "does she really believe boys in girls sports?"
- he got ahold of Dillon, who told him that nobody was listening to the ad
- his wife's aides had done the same thing in 2016....and she had lost. Clinton couldn't believe it.
- but all of the veterans in this campaign had no loyalty to Clinton; they were all Obama people.

- the next ad was her appearance on "The View," driving home the point she was Biden Part II
- Trump was also enjoying a nostalgia bump, amazing given his last year shut down the country
- then came the throw McDonald's in her face tactic. Harris claimed to have worked at McDonald's in the early 80s; no record exists but that doesn't mean she didn't; Trump went to McDonald's and acted like an every day dude. It probably didn't flip any votes at all.....but it got him huge in the news cycle.
- Harris appeared with Liz Cheney, which was probably pointless; she was hated by Ds and Rs both

- Harris followed this with a face palm appearance in......Texas....Football night Friday in the fall; seriously, how out of touch could she be?
- of course this was to set up the Rogan interview; but Rogan was taking that day off!! WTH???
- then it came out the "personal day" of the 25th, TRUMP was actually gonna be on Rogan
- Harris thought she might salvage the evening with a performance by Beyonce....who refused to perform, she would only speak
- no Rogan, no Beyonce singing and then Rogan buried her by claiming she wanted to limit his questions after failing to even respond to him for weeks; Trump's appearance went viral
- when Rogan refused to come to DC, the campaign said they weren't coming back to Texas

 

[selmaborntidefan]

- being from Florida, Susie Wiles had to get Trump on board with early voting as she understood it
- she repeatedly told him how he had messed up in 2020, framing it as "you won't have to spend money there so long"
- Trump himself voted early and publicly in Florida, sending the signal to the base
- on 10/26, after the Beyonce debacle, Trump passed Harris in the RCP poll; in every election, his support had been understated, meaning he might be leading by quite a bit
- Trump then opted for his home venue, Madison Square Garden; Harris's side began making Nazi comparisons to an MSG gathering in 1939; Trump retaliated by pointing out Bill Clinton had been nominated there in 1992. The suggestion this was a white supremacy whistle was ludicrous - until it wasn't
- comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, trying out material, referred to Puerto Rico as "floating island of garbage"
- this unforced error caused a meltdown inside the campaign. WHY? Why do this?


- Harris responded with a rally on the Ellipse, the same site Trump launched the 1/6/21 riots
- this was intentional, close with the "democracy on the ballot" argument
- Harris still had not said much of anything the entire campaign to justify her candidacy
- and once again - almost on cue - Biden inserted himself into the election again, saying the only garbage he had seen was Trump's supporters at MSG. Yes, right during the Harris speech!
- one Harris campaign official after the election would credit Trump, saying yes he had a national race, but he would also talk about Michigan issues when there; Harris was running for approval from Politico, Axios, and the left-wing publications

 

[selmaborntidefan]

- as happens almost every election, Harris saw support solidify late, but it was in states she had no prayer of winning; she was picking up gobs of votes that would turn 20-point losses into 15-point losses
- then came a controversial poll in Iowa from their most respected pollster, Ann Selzer, who had Harris down by only 3. If THAT was true in a red state like Iowa, she was going to win going away
- Trump's side decided they would PROBABLY win, Harris that they MIGHT
- on the initial conf call, Harris was told she would lose GA, NC, AZ, and NV but looked favorable in MI and WI. And PA showed her with a lead so small, either could win by 4 points.

- Harris wanted to spend election night at Howard Univ but then was told the news: she was going to lose, so don't go there.
- Trump clobbered Harris in the swing states, going 7-0
- in a heavily partisan era, Trump moved the needle about as much as was humanly possible
- and despite facing a woman in the post-Dobbs era, Trump narrowed his gender gap loss on women to only 8 points, the best Republican showing since the concept emerged in 1984
- when it was over, the fact was for better or worse voters knew what Trump would do; they really had no idea what Harris would do other than be "not Trump"



-Trump campaigned on 2 issues, economy and security
- the Democrats had spent years talking about preserving democracy and then replaced the duly elected nominee simply because they thought he was going to lose, which felt kind of undemocratic to folks who weren't partisan Democrats.
- the Democrats had spent four years telling voters, "Don't believe what you're seeing." Whether it was Afghanistan, inflation, or Biden's decline, the fact was they were perceived as liars in all cases.
- one Harris aide even said they were lying to themselves when they told everyone Harris had a chance to win
- Trump won at 233am
- Harris had trouble connecting the call to concede, but Trump was gracious and told her she had given him one helluva fight; she paused to consider he could really be charming when he wanted


- the Democrats lost everything: the White House, the House, the Senate, and many friendships
- Pelosi visited Dec 9 befitting a former Speaker, Jill Biden wasn't going to pretend; Pelosi posed as someone who had done what was necessary but she could go to Hell
- Schumer didn't want Pelosi to get the credit all herself so when Harris took the lead, he began to talk about how big his role was in getting Biden to step aside, in a way nobody remembered
- Barack Obama had used magical thinking to persuade himself they could depose Biden, depose Harris, and then get a nominee with an actual chance of winning; they were mad at him, too
- Biden set out for revenge, refusing Obama's call - no, I'm not going to pretend we've mended things; he then named aircraft carriers after Bill Clinton and Dubya and gave HRC the Medal of Freedom; Obama? He could take a hike.
- insiders persuaded themselves Biden had made some sort of one-term promise to move on from Trump in 2020; Biden was already trailing when the debate disaster happened
- and after the election? Biden could say to everyone, "Hey, I COULD have beaten him, I did it before!" And who could prove him wrong?
- this angered the Harris aides, who basically said he was saying "she was awful" (which he was)
- Jill Biden tore out after Pelosi in an interview, not believing she'd toss aside 50 years of friendship to destroy the President. Pelosi fell that week in Europe and broke her hip, but Jill wasn't going to call her to pick her up, either
- Joe Biden lost it all, and he blamed everyone. Obama. Pelosi. Donors. Harris. Harris' side noted that more venom came at Harris from Jill than from Joe, who tended to be pretty good.
- Biden's constant claim he would have won made some of his friends wonder exactly what kind of crazy pills he'd been taking

It was at this point Biden wasn't the only one engaging in historical revisionism.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

- almost immediately, the rewriting of history began
- Dan Pfeiffer turned Harris's nomination into one they could never win the White House anyway
- the same guys who said the day she was nominated she could win ALL SEVEN battlegrounds were now out there saying they knew on day one she had no chance, including David Plouffe
- Democratic voters were learning that their own side had lied to them like Donald Trump: they lied about how badly Biden was slipping, lied about his chances, lied about Harris's chances, and now they were lying about what they were saying about her chances just 107 days earlier

-Harris went to Hawaii and came back with her own excuse: if only she had had longer (either the election later or her nomination earlier), she would have won; it was BIDEN'S fault she lost
- one of her aides spoke the truth: she was more likely to have won if the election was October 1; the more people saw of her, the less they thought.......and she peaked early

buh-dee, buh-dee, buh-dee, THAT'S ALL FOLKS!!!

 

[Bamaro]

Booker’s speech was a publicity stunt. It will quickly be forgotten about.

It was his "Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?" moment.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

It was his "Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?" moment.

He's not wrong but everything has become performative narcissism nowadays anyone.
He already flopped on the "Spartacus" moment.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

Kamala Harris was 'completely shocked' by election night loss to Trump after she 'bought the hype'


“They thought that they were going to win,” she added. “And so, you know, when they come back now and say, ‘Oh no, we didn’t really have a chance.’ No, that’s not what they were thinking. They thought they were going to win.”

Parnes reported that some members of Harris’ team felt they were being “gaslit” by senior campaign officials, who were confident that “things were looking good” for the Democratic nominee.

Look, I would have never given Harris a chance had she not been running against a candidate who botched a pandemic response and then incited a riot at the US Capitol. But I'm sure it will be recast as "she never had a chance" by some of the same people who installed her at the top of the ticket, too.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

This will clearly solve ALL of their problems…..someone more unqualified than Kamala as a nominee would be tough to pull off, but this would do it.

Sports commentator Stephen A. Smith on Monday said he is “leaving all doors open” when it comes to a presidential bid.

Stephen A. Smith ‘leaving all doors open’ for presidential bid

Sports commentator Stephen A. Smith on Monday said he is “leaving all doors open” when it comes to a presidential bid. “Time to stop messing around. Life is great. Especially at ESPN/Disney. Hate the thought of being a politician. But sick of this mess. So I’m officially leaving all doors open,”...

www.yahoo.com

Thing is, Smith himself is more realistic (he’s clearly having a bit of fun) than anyone thinking this is a good idea. Also, why have l not seen one suggestion Doug Emhoff run? Does the Democratic “the spouse of the candidate is qualified to be the candidate” rule only work for women? (Or is it because he’s Jewish…..this is where a half century of identity politics has placed us…)

 

[Crimson1967]

I don’t think he is really serious about a presidential bid. I don’t know where he lives but he’s not a bad candidate for a House seat if he wanted to go that route.

 

[CrimsonJazz]

The American Jacobin: How Some on the Left have Found Release in an Age of Rage

Below is my column in the Hill on the rising political violence on the left. Many have found an irresistible release from both reason and responsibility in rage. A new study found more people embra…

jonathanturley.org

“We should replace our piece of crap Constitution.”

Those words from author Elie Mystal, a regular commentator on MSNBC, are hardly surprising from someone who previously called the Constitution “trash” and urged not just the abolition of the U.S. Senate but also of “all voter registration laws.”

But Mystal’s radical rhetoric is becoming mainstream on the left, as shown by his best-selling books and popular media appearances.

Democratic leaders see these “protests” as needed popularism to combat Trump — to make followers “strike ready” and “to stand up and fight back.”

For a politician, a mob can become irresistible if you can steer it against your opponents. The problem is controlling the mob once it has broken free of the bounds of legal and personal accountability.

 

[Its On A Slab]

The American Jacobin: How Some on the Left have Found Release in an Age of Rage

Below is my column in the Hill on the rising political violence on the left. Many have found an irresistible release from both reason and responsibility in rage. A new study found more people embra…

jonathanturley.org

"For a politician, a mob can become irresistible if you can steer it against your opponents. The problem is controlling the mob once it has broken free of the bounds of legal and personal accountability."

This pretty much sums up the core of MAGA, and Jan. 6th.

 

[AWRTR]

"For a politician, a mob can become irresistible if you can steer it against your opponents. The problem is controlling the mob once it has broken free of the bounds of legal and personal accountability."

This pretty much sums up the core of MAGA, and Jan. 6th.

Agreed, the BLM riots fall under this as well.

 

[crimsonaudio]

"For a politician, a mob can become irresistible if you can steer it against your opponents. The problem is controlling the mob once it has broken free of the bounds of legal and personal accountability."

This pretty much sums up the core of MAGA, and Jan. 6th.

Also evidenced by the George Floyd / BLM protests in 2020 ($1–2 billion in insured damages nationally, the highest recorded damage from civil disorder in U.S. history).

 

[cdub55]

Proof that idiots exist on both sides.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

All they have to do is be LESS BAD AT POLITICS than a party that is lousy at politics.
Incredibly low bar.

Why do so many liberals/Democrats - who in so many cases either ARE quite intelligent or think they're smarter than everyone else - why in the world can they turn an EASY question on these "voting fraud" Republicans? Why? This is not that difficult.

Instead of dying on the hill of "no voter ID because not everyone has an ID" - we're back at the 0.1% "this is whom we will defend" - why not TURN THE QUESTION on the one pompously insinuating things? Why not ask them for a specific place that doesn't have at least some form of voter ID? "Well, you've made quite the broad accusation there and not provided a scintilla of evidence, can you give me a specific place where people are able to register to vote without some sort of verification of some type?"

first of all, most people making this allegation don't have any specific place they can name that will support them. I know this is anecdotal, but I've ALWAYS had to present an ID when I vote going back to the 1980s when this wasn't as much of an issue. The only exception was when I voted in the 2000 election and one of the poll workers just happened to be our church secretary who knew me, so she verified my address and signed me out the ballot.

Seriously, I've never understood why something so simple cannot be handled by people who will repeatedly look down their noses because "I went to college" at other folks. Remember - these are the exact same people who think you should have to undergo a waiting period to buy a firearm, which of course, mandates some form of (wait for it) identification. I have no problem with a waiting period, I mean, who really cares? I'm all for a background check - but nobody needs to pretend this poppycock will stop even ONE school or mass shooting because it won't.

Why not come up with this one - "Yeah, I'm all for a national ID that every citizen has to have. Show it to vote, show it to buy a gun"? The stridency of "I will die on the hill of no voter ID of ANY kind and will call it 'racist'" is the very thing that makes people think you have a reason for hiding something.

This ain't that difficult, folks.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

Also evidenced by the George Floyd / BLM protests in 2020 ($1–2 billion in insured damages nationally, the highest recorded damage from civil disorder in U.S. history).

Not sure if this belongs better here or on the media thread:

(Btw - the media COMPLETELY MISSED the truth of the Jacob Blake story, and tried to turn it into "unarmed black kid shot by cop." Yeah, unarmed black kid entering a vehicle (which IS a weapon) and resisting lawful arrest - you know, the same people libs suddenly like on January 6 while some Trump supporters hate them)

 

[Its On A Slab]

Both sides.

 

[Crimson1967]

I once had a poll worker greet me by name and then ask for my ID.

 

[CrimsonJazz]

"For a politician, a mob can become irresistible if you can steer it against your opponents. The problem is controlling the mob once it has broken free of the bounds of legal and personal accountability."

This pretty much sums up the core of MAGA, and Jan. 6th.

I can go along with that, but I think it's worth pointing out that all of the political capital has been squeezed out of a three hour riot from 5 years ago. There just ain't no toothpaste left in the tube.