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We’ve got some debates town halls to cover, we’ve got a good old fashioned social media shadow banning scandal, Joe Biden’s son is bad at influence peddling, we had a Supreme Court nominee sail through her hearing, and we get into the nitty gritty on the 1619 Project. But most importantly, we spend some quality time with Kim Strassel, she of the Wall Street Journal, and one of the most ardent supporters of the President. We of course talk about that with her, also the Senate, the previously mentioned big tech/media controversy.
Music from this week’s show: Amie by Pure Prarie League
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Peter Robinson says that, having thought that nothing more could shock him, he is now, despite it all, in a state of shock: over the latest Biden scandal and the brazen attempt to suppress the story. Ah, but then there seems to be a consensus among the three that it will have little or no effect on the election result, that few voters know or care about the relevant issues. Did I misunderstand that? If I did not, the suggestion would seem to be that the American electorate is either woefully ignorant or so inured to corruption and deceit as to be morally indifferent.
Here in Japan there is an American social media commentator, a lawyer wonderfully fluent in Japanese, to whom my wife and I regularly listen. An unabashed Republican, he explains the political situation in the United States most lucidly and concisely to his Japanese audience. He remains convinced that Pres. Trump will be reelected, and I don’t think he is simply being a cheerleader. (A Biden/Harris win would clearly be a serious blow to Japan.)
I try (not very successfully) to avoid foolish optimism. It seems to me, however, that there is also another kind of dubious optimism, one derived from a pessimistic view of the election, and it goes: “Oh, it’s just politics. A Biden presidency, with Harris soon taking charge? Hey, it won’t be the end of the world. The media will clean up their act, once they get rid of Trump…America’s still a great country…Common sense will be prevail…Eight-year-old boys who declare themselves transgendered won’t really be subjected to hormone therapy…Yada, yada…”
At the end of the podcast, an ominous but needed note was sounded: No, things will not simply “go back to normal.”
All Journalists Are Statists™
Well, impeachment would require that enough Republicans are elected to gain the majority in the House and to keep (and hopefully expand) the majority in the Senate in order to remove a President Biden…giving the more radical Leftists the President Harris they want. But it’s a counter-intuitive scenario because if Republicans gain and maintain a majority in both houses of Congress respectively it suggests that Trump is also re-elected.
Right now, the Biden campaign is signaling that despite the polls that show that “The Big Guy” is leading by double-digits that the race is actually much closer. This is a signal to Democrats not to get over confident and complacent about a Biden victory…and the mail-in voting may not be delivering the outcome that Democrats intended, so they are also signaling that Dems show up to the polls and risk certain COVID death to make sure Biden’s carcass can cross the finish line. It’s also signaling that their internal polling is showing losses in key states…due to their lack of ground game and the enthusiasm gap. It’s perhaps telling that Barack Obama is emerging from his Martha’s Vineyard mansion to campaign for Biden in Pennsylvania where Biden is presumably leading by 7 points. One would think Obama’s god-like presence would be better served in much tighter races like Arizona, Nevada, Michigan, Georgia and Florida – unless the PA lead is inflated because of poor polling methodology.
As to national comity – the present-day Democrat Party does not believe in that – if they did they would not have allowed the rampant rioting and looting across the country. If Trump is re-elected there will be more riots. If Biden is elected there will also be more riots because Marxists anarchists are never satisfied. A Democrat notion of comity is that Republicans surrender on every socialist policy position the Democrats put forward. Compromise? What’s that?
Watch the video in comment #17.
People that have all of this high school civics idealism crap in their heads are wrong.
Government Is How We Steal From Each Other™
One thing about Biden’s plagiarism – he seems to find the most obscure targets, if you’re going to plagiarize a British politician would you pick Kinnock? (heck, if not plagiarized by Biden, would anyone have heard of him?)
If you’re going to knock Biden for the slogan, then Trump takes a hit too, “Make America Great Asian” was Reagan’s slogan in 1980.
I give Joe a pass on normalcy. It has entered into the language, where it will remain until a properly authorized Aggrieved Group™ detects a microaggression. It is just funny that the source was a guy who was pushing back against the overreach of the progressives. Since most of the current progressives have never read a book that doesn’t have “Harry Potter” in the title, it goes right over their misshapen little heads.
Rob, your bubble may be bicoastal, but it is still a bubble. You hang out with Hollywood types, who won’t shut up about their political positions, and East Coasters, who won’t shut up.
EDIT: you’re/your. It bugs me when other people do it.
I have been saying it for months, and will say again.
The vast majority of people make up there minds in the last week of the election. So I dont obsess over polls like i used to.
Hello, I’m right here. What exactly have I said about Minneapolis and Minnesota are ridiculous? I’ve been writing about the decimation of downtown and the graffiti and disorder on my blog off and on since the troubles began, and while I don’t expect you to know that, it might argue against the assertion that I live in a “make believe nostalgic world.”
@lileks doesn’t need my defense but I’ll offer it anyways. He’s been clear-eyed about the jolting transformation of Minneapolis from vibrant mix of professional industry, traditional Midwest heritage, and burgeoning cross cultural intellectualism, to nothing but a husk of a city in a matter of months. It’s devastating. Lamenting such a loss isn’t nostalgia or willful ignorance. In my opinion it’s seeing what could have been but being realistic about what it’s become – and perhaps ore importantly, where it’s headed if nothing changes.
Maybe there needs to be a “Harry Potter, On the Road to Roota” … It would essentially be re imagining of the wizard of oz, with Harry Potter standing in for Dorthy. (Dorthy’s magic shoes where supposed to be silver – but because on Black and white film silver would not be dramatic – they where changed to Ruby.)…
Um. Weren’t the slippers only ever filmed/shown in color? After the transition?
I suppose one significant indicator might be how Minnesota votes next month. And if a lot of people have fled the state from the larger cities, perhaps the rest of the state will be solidly for Trump?
That also gets me wondering how Ilhan Omar’s district is faring. Getting her out of office would be a plus. But it’s possible her campaign has invincible cheating in place.
There will be no return to normalcy unless you think normalcy is giving Democrats a pass and having a corrupt Democrat FBI and AG and the media come down on Republicans, hammer and sickle. There can be no national unity because Democrats are insane. 7 and 8 year olds getting to pick a gender and fed hormones and have bits chopped off? Abortions up to and even after birth? Deciding whether you can buy seeds at Walmart or not? You know I could go on and on.
He was even too strange for Trump! I don’t understand why Scaramucci is listened to by anyone. Unless he greased a lot of palms, I guess.
Scaramucci?
Scaramucci?
Does he do the fandango?
You’re right, the Wizard of Oz was an early Technicolor film – not Black and White. I had assumed it was Black and White, because it was released in 1939.
Thunderbolt and lighting very, very frightening!
After this election is when the winners wander the battlefield, shooting the wounded.
“Vast Majority”? At an absolute minimum, 70% of the electorate is purely partisan (35% R, 35% D) and will vote for that party’s candidate no matter what.
The problem is, elections are decided by the 5-10% of non-partisan, uninterested voters in the middle.
Speaking of which, my wife had daytime television on yesterday while I was upstairs eating lunch. It was non-stop wall-to-wall Biden commercials. I don’t think I saw a single Trump ad.
If you haven’t seen these ads, apparently Biden is very, very good, and Trump is very, very bad.
So, you’ve never actually seen it, to know it was mostly in color?
It’s not too late! Watch it!
Brilliant!
Warren Harding is no Neil Kinnock!
Good point
Which state are you in?
Wisconsin
I believe Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama used it too. Or very, very close, at least.
(Obama might have left off “again” because apparently he and his wife never thought America was great until he was elected.)
No no, I ve seen it. I thought it got colorized by Ted Turner.