Tag: Speeches

Clown Show At It’s Best

Yesterday was the biggest day for news…..shutdown looms but the big story was the meeting of top commanders with Hogsbreath and Donny.

Most of knew it would be a rally and not some major meetings of the minds…..and it did not disappoint.

Up first to address the military leaders was the idiot in charge of the War Department….

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth addressed a rare assembly of the top US generals and admirals on Tuesday, though his speech didn’t reveal any major surprises. Hegseth reiterated points he has previously made: He wants a less “woke” (a word that idiots use because it is easy to remember than one of those 50 cent words that educated people employ) fighting force and a warrior mentality. Highlights from his speech in Quantico, Virginia, via NBC, the AP, the New York Times, and the Washington Post:

  • Ethos: “The era of politically correct, overly sensitive don’t-hurt-anyone’s-feelings leadership ends right now at every level,” he said. Specifically, “no more climate change worship, no more division, distraction, or gender delusions.”
  • Watchdog: He said the Pentagon’s internal watchdog has been politicized and will be overhauled to discourage anonymous and “frivolous” complaints. It’s the “no more walking on eggshells” policy, he said of the inspector general’s office. “Of course, being a racist has been illegal in our formations since 1948. The same goes for sexual harassment. Both are wrong and illegal.”
  • Non-toxic: He also promised to push back harder against complaints of “toxic” leadership within the military. “We’re undertaking a full review of the department’s definitions of so-called toxic leadership, bullying and hazing, to empower leaders to enforce standards without fear of retribution or second-guessing.”
  • Fitness: “Frankly, it’s tiring to look out at combat formations, or really any formation, and see fat troops,” he said. “Likewise, it’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon. … Whether you’re an Airborne Ranger or a chairborne ranger, a brand new private or a four star general, you need to meet the height and weight standards.” He said all members of the military, at every rank, will now have to pass a fitness test twice a year.
  • Women: He said a new combat field test would require troops to meet the highest male standard, with no separate standard for women. “I don’t want my son serving alongside troops who are out of shape, or in combat units with females who can’t meet the same combat arms physical standards as men,” he said. “This job is life and death. Standards must be met.”
  • Facial hair: “No more beards, long hair, superficial individual expression,” Hegseth said. “We don’t have a military full of Nordic pagans.”

What a douche!

Next up was our Clueless Leader, who by the way served NO time in the military but fancies himself an expert….

As usual he rattled on and on…..

President Trump followed up defense chief Pete Hegseth’s speech to the nation’s top generals with one of his own, though he didn’t lay out any new military initiatives. The president spoke for about 70 minutes and hit a wide range of topics. Some highlights via CNN, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and USA Today:

  • Training grounds: Trump said he suggested to Hegseth that “we should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military,” referring to places where Trump has authorized National Guard troops. “We’re going into Chicago very soon,” he added.
  • Retaliation: Trump told the generals that if military vehicles were struck by bricks or other objects during protests, “you get out of that car, and you can do whatever the hell you want.”
  • Silence: Trump was struck by his silent reception at the start of his speech—the generals weren’t sending a message, just sticking to military protocol. “I’ve never walked into a room so silent before,” Trump said. “Don’t laugh, don’t laugh, you’re not allowed to do that,” he joked. “If you don’t like what I’m saying, you can leave the room. Of course, there goes your rank, there goes your future, but you just feel nice and loose, OK?”
  • Name change: Trump said he expected more pushback from Democrats over the decision to rename the Department of Defense the Department of War. He suggested he’d worn out his critics.
  • Submarines: At one point, Trump recalled how he deployed two nuclear submarines near Russia after comments by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. “It was really a stupid person … mentioned the word nuclear,” he said. “I call it the n-word. There are 2 n-words, and you can’t use either of them.”

An inspirational speaker this moron is not….this was babbling….I am sure that the generals were duly impressed with the stupidity.

Both of these people are loose cannons and will do more harm and make us less safe…..the more they plot and plan the worse the situation will become.

The only way to describe the speeches is a ‘clown show’.

Did you watch any of the acts?

I know I am critical….but others were not impressed either….

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s attempt to rally America’s military brass at Quantico Tuesday seems to have fizzled, with many officials left questioning why hundreds of generals were summoned in person—just hours ahead of the government shutdown. “Could have been an email,” shrugged one of the multiple defense officials who spoke to Politico anonymously after enduring what many described as a partisan spectacle rather than a strategic briefing. Per the Hill, Hegseth referred to it as “liberation day” for “America’s warriors,” who, he said, “kill people and break things for a living.”

Some sources say the 90-minute event felt similar to a campaign rally, including a speech from President Trump, who encouraged attendees to “just have a good time.” As for Hegseth’s call for stricter fitness standards, some worried the move that could limit women in combat. Critics, both in and out of uniform, saw the meeting as a distraction that risked shifting the military’s focus away from foreign adversaries and toward policing American streets, with Trump floating the idea of new quick reaction forces for potential domestic unrest and Hegseth suggesting the rules of engagement, meant to protect civilians, are “stupid.”

Some officials joked about calculating the cost of the event using ChatGPT (one called the event a “total waste of money” that veered dangerously close to a “loyalty test”), while others simply tuned out: “At this point, I am averting my eyes,” said one source. Security experts raised eyebrows at the wisdom of assembling so many senior leaders in one place, suggesting the risks outweighed the benefits. “It’s an inexcusable strategic risk to concentrate so many leaders … to convey an inane message of little merit,” a former senior official said. It’s not clear how much the meeting cost, but many of the leaders had to fly in from across the globe, Reuters reports.

A colossal waste of time and energy…..but what do you expect from masters of wasting time and energy?

Side note:  Hogsbreath is determined to bring religion to the Pentagon….

The new Pentagon worship service was among the first indications that Hegseth planned to inject religion into his profile as secretary. The gathering has taken place in the middle of the workday and is billed as Hegseth’s personal project: A sign that appears to have been posted in the Pentagon earlier in September described the event as “SecWar’s Prayer Service,” inscribing the words over a painting of St. Stephen being stoned to death.

Under his leadership, the Department of Defense — which, like Hegseth, has rebranded as the Department of War, a secondary name — has also shared at least three faith-themed videos. Like the Lord’s Prayer clip, two of the videos featured a montage of images of the U.S. military. But instead of a voiceover, the clips slowly overlaid the footage with two Bible verses from the Bible’s 18th Psalm and the Book of Joshua. One of the videos was captioned: “We Are One Nation Under God.”

This asshole is a menace to this nation and its people…..

I need a drink.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Rambling And Babbling

I have never understood many of Trump’s speeches…..to me he is just making sh*t up as he goes and in some cases just babbling…..and it seems to be getting worse.

Now an analysis of these speeches….

Donald Trump has addressed the perception that his speeches have become less focused, darker, more rambling, and generally less in the moment. He’s called his freewheeling style “the weave,” saying it’s an intentional and “brilliant” way to communicate. A computer analysis has put numbers to the changes, Peter Baker writes in the New York Times. Some rhetorical habits have been there but show up more frequently now, others may or may not be signs of aging, experts say. “He’s not competing at the level he was competing at eight years ago, no question about it,” said Anthony Scaramucci, a former ally who now supports Vice President Kamala Harris for president. “He’s lost an ability to put powerful sentences together,” Scaramucci added.

The differences in Trump speech the computer analysis found include:

  • Length: Speeches at rallies now average 82 minutes long. In 2016, they averaged 45 minutes.
  • Absolute terms: He uses terms like “always” and “never” 13% more often than he did in 2016. Some experts consider that an indication of advancing age.
  • Negativity: He used 21% more negative than positive words eight years ago; he now uses 32% more. Such an increase also can be a sign of cognitive change.
  • Profanity: Swear words appear in his speech 69% more often than they did in 2016. A study by Stat, a health care news outlet, also found as much. That trend can reflect disinhibition, which the National Institutes of Health says concerns the ability to “control one’s behavior.”

There’s also been confusion, which can afflict anyone but has been especially baffling recently. A week after his debate against Harris, Trump talked about the studio audience supporting him and going “crazy” at times in its fervor, per Mediaite. But there was no studio audience. He said last week that “most people don’t have any idea what the hell a phone app is,” though 96% of Americans have a smartphone, Baker points out. Trump has said the Panama Canal was built “a little while ago” and asked supporters if they remember when Charles Lindbergh landed in New York. Lindbergh was going the other way on his historic flight; he landed in Paris in 1927. After being in Georgia, the former president cheered “a great day in Louisiana.”

Am I being too critical?

That is a scary thought if that is the way his tiny mind works….scattered and willy nilly….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

A Labor Day Message–2024

Happy Labor Day!

I have lots of grilling to do so this will be the only post today….but I think the message that was in this DNC speech needs repeating and often…..and a way to honor our workers on Labor day.

AS a past organizer for the IWW I have always wanted more emphasis by our candidates to put the workers above the special interests and in all my years of political watching I have yet to see that happening…..

I will say I like the speech given by John Russel at the recent DNC….words that need repeating, as I have said…..it is said that his speech was the most radical convention speech in history.

The Democratic National Convention featured a video and speech from More Perfect Union reporter John Russell, who stressed to the Chicago crowd that the party has an opportunity to win over working-class people.

“Thank you to the workers that make this convention happen,” Russell began. “Let’s never forget how essential all of our labor is.”

“I come from Appalachia,” he explained. “We kept the lights on in this country for generations. But the wealth made by our broken backs and our black lungs never did trickle down. And Washington listened to rich men demanding that we stick with dirty energy at any cost.”

“Across the country, working-class people are looking for a political home, after years of both parties putting profit above people,” he said before taking aim at the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump—who has chosen Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), author of Hillbilly Elegy, as his running mate.

“Now Trump, a billionaire, says that he’ll take on the elites, but then he promises handouts to Big Oil and he punches down at anyone with the guts to be different,” Russell noted. “Populism that insists we are too different to get along is just divide and conquer by a different name.”

https://www.commondreams.org/news/john-russell

The workers need to be better represented in Congress…..we have enough sycophants that only concern is how much cash they can milk out of the special interests.

Labor is the driving force…..let’s look at something Eugene Debs wrote many years ago…..

I would hail the day upon which it could be truthfully said, “Labor conquers everything,” with inexpressible gratification. Such a day would stand first in Labor’s Millennium, that prophesied era when Christ shall begin his reign on the earth to continue a thousand years. The old Latin fathers did a large business in manufacturing maxims, and the one I have selected for a caption of this article has been required to play shibboleth since, like “a thing of beauty and a joy forever,” it came forth from its ancient laboratory. It is one of those happy expressions which embodies quite as much fancy as fact.

The time has arrived for thoughtful men identified with labor — by which I mean the laboring classes — to inquire, what does labor conquer? Or what has it conquered in all the ages? Or what is it now conquering?

“Labor Omina Vincit”

Put your vote for the good of the people not to massage some egocentric tool….I agree with Debs when he stated….“I’d rather vote for what I want and not get it, than for what I don’t want and get it.”  And that is why I have not voted for a presidential winner since 1976…..not a very good track record but my principles mean more to me than a tick in the win column

Let me reiterate….“I’d rather vote for what I want and not get it, than for what I don’t want and get it.”

Enjoy your day and as always….Be well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

2024 DNC Wrap Up

It’s over!

Last night was the closing night for the Dems and their convention (mercifully)…..and it is now official we have our Dem candidate and now the campaigns can begin in earnest…..

The bummer of the night for those in attendance was the rumor of an appearance by Beyonce was just that…. all smoke and manure…..

Harris made her acceptance speech and made promises that will be idle words come next January…..but do not let me pee on the parade…..you decide….

As Kamala Harris took the stage Thursday during the final night of the Democratic National Convention, the cheering went on for so long that Harris had to gently move things along, saying, “OK, we gotta get to some business.” The vice president started out by wishing her husband, Doug Emhoff, a happy 10th wedding anniversary, then moved on—as expected—to laying out her personal story and accomplishments. Then came the moment many had been waiting for:

  • “On behalf of the people. On behalf of every American regardless of party, race, gender, or the language your grandmother speaks. On behalf of my mother and everyone who has ever set off on their own unlikely journey. On behalf of Americans like the people I grew up with: people who work hard, chase their dreams, and look out for one another. On behalf of everyone whose story could only be written in the greatest nation on earth, I accept your nomination to be president of the United States of America.”

  • She went on to discuss what she sees as the “extremely serious” danger of putting Donald Trump, whom she called an “unserious man,” back in the White House. “Donald Trump tried to throw away your votes. When he failed, he sent an armed mob to the United States Capitol.” More quotes, per CNN and the AP:

  • Appeal to the other side of the aisle: “I know there are people of various political views watching tonight. And I want you to know: I promise to be a president for all Americans. You can always trust me to put country above party and self.”
  • Campaign promises: Harris talked about strengthening the middle class and said her administration would create an “opportunity economy where everyone has a chance to compete and a chance to succeed.” She said she’d end America’s housing shortage and protect social security and Medicare.
  • On the erosion of reproductive rights: Speaking of Trump’s role in the end of Roe v. Wade and the further restrictions Republicans want to see placed on abortion, she said, “Simply put: They are out of their minds.”
  • On Israel and Gaza: She said she’d “always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself, and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself, because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organization called Hamas caused on October 7.” But she also said the devastation and suffering in Gaza must end.
  • On border security: She said as president she’d get the bipartisan border bill, which she accused Trump of killing for political reasons, passed and signed into law. “I refuse to play politics with our security.”

And at the end the big finale….a huge balloon drop all 100,000 of them….yes I counted.

I wish something more interesting had occurred on the last night but it was pretty much the same as all conventions…..

We now have our two candidates and it is official…..let the dueling begin….all the jibes, accusations, insults and whining….

On to November!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

 

DNC–Day 2

I know I said I would not write about the convention until the last day wrap-up…..but the Dems keep doing something not done before and it needs to be reported.

As a political junkie it is my duty to report and analyze.

Day 2 was full of stuff….the dance party and Obama coming to the mike yet again.

The Dems trying to make the convention pulled out a couple of things out of their butts….like a dance party roll call….

Convention roll call votes can be staid and cheesy, but Democrats turned theirs into the ultimate dance party on Tuesday, the AP reports. DJ Cassidy stood onstage in what appeared to be a double-breasted satin suit of royal blue, spinning a special song for each state and territory awarding their delegates to Vice President Kamala Harris at the Democratic National Convention. What America got was a mashup of an elite karaoke night: Detroit native Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” for Michigan, Dropkick Murphys’ “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” for Massachusetts, and Tupac Shakur’s “California Love” for California. Georgia brought out one of its natives in person: Atlanta’s Lil Jon striding through Chicago’s United Center to the beats of “Turn Down for What,” his song with DJ Snake.

  • Florida’s delegation played Tom Petty’s anthem to hard-headedness, “I Won’t Back Down,” in casting its delegates for Harris—a not-too-subtle jab at the state’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. Petty was born in the Florida city of Gainesville. DeSantis used the song as the theme of his failed Republican presidential primary this cycle, and it was part of the name of a super PAC that spent lavishly on his losing cause.
  • Alabama, obviously, got “Sweet Home Alabama” by Lynyrd Skynyrd. Alaska announced their backing of Vice President Kamala Harris to “Feel It Still” by Portugal. The Man, a band from Wasilla, where Republican Sarah Palin was once mayor.
  • Minnesota went with “1999” by Paisley Park’s own Prince. Indiana, with actor Sean Astin by the microphone, went with Gary native Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough.” Nevada played “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers, the synth pop band from Las Vegas. Kansas went with “Carry On My Wayward Son” by the rock band Kansas.
  • New Jersey went with Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA.” “Under one groove nothing can stop us now,” DJ Cassidy said over Springsteen’s anthem.

Unconventional…..did it generate more enthusiasm?  Did not see it….

Then came the night’s keynote speaker….Barack Obama….

Two decades after making his national debut on a Democratic National Convention stage, Barack Obama closed out the second night of the DNC Tuesday in Chicago, a city particularly meaningful to the former president.

  • Saying Americans want to know who is thinking about their future and their children’s futures, Obama noted Donald Trump isn’t losing sleep over those concerns. “Here’s a 78-year-old billionaire who has not stopped whining about his problems since he rode down his golden escalator nine years ago,” he said. “It has been a constant stream of gripes and grievances that is getting worse now that he’s afraid of losing to Kamala. There’s the childish nicknames. The crazy conspiracy theories. This weird obsession with crowd sizes. It just goes on and on and on.”
  • He said someone recently told him Trump is like a neighbor who constantly runs his leaf blower. “From a neighbor, that’s exhausting. From a president, it’s just dangerous,” Obama said. “The truth is, Donald Trump sees power as nothing more than a means to his ends.”
  • He went on to tout Harris’ accomplishments and what she will achieve should she become president, promising she would not worry only about her own interests, as Obama accused Trump of doing, but about what’s best for all Americans.
  • As the crowd booed while Obama talked about Trump, Obama said sternly, “Do not boo. Vote.”
  • Of Harris’ running mate Tim Walz, Obama said, “Let me tell you something, I love this guy. Tim is the kind of person who should be in politics. Born in a small town, served his country, taught kids, coached football. … You can tell those flannel shirts that he wears don’t come from some political consultant. They come from his closet—and they have been through some stuff.”
  • “I noticed, by the way, that since it’s become popular, they don’t call it ObamaCare no more,” Obama said after a mention of the Affordable Care Act received enthusiastic applause.
  • “Yes, she can,” Obama said of Harris at one point, prompting a round of “Yes she can!” chants from the crowd.
  • “If a parent or grandparent occasionally says something that makes us cringe, we don’t automatically assume that they’re bad people,” he said, noting that “the world is moving fast” and some people need time to “catch up.” He urged Democrats to extend the same grace to those on the other side of the political aisle as they would want extended to them.
  • “If we each do our part over the next 77 days … if we work like we’ve never worked before, if we hold firm to our convictions, we will elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States,” he said as his speech came to a close. “So let’s get to work.”

A typical Obama speech….lots of cheers, applause….but did he change any minds that were on the fence?  Can’t see it.

To be honest there was not much different from the last convention or the one before that or……

So ends day 2 of the DNC…..what fresh Hell will be unleashed on the peasants?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

A Rambling Babbling Sort Of Night

As a political junkie I have been watching the RNC convention not out of interest but rather out of concern….and my concern is well founded.

The one thing after 3 days is a lot of chest thumping from low IQ pronates with nothing substantial other than platitudes and all that gets drooling applause and chants from the adoring crowd.

But I have noticed that the party has tweaked its positions somewhat…..

The Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this week is not just a celebration or a crowning of the party’s presidential ticket. It’s a realignment. Republican positions are no longer standard conservative down the line; the party is turning toward economic populism, for instance, Politico reports. And longstanding relationships with business and unions are changing. The remodeling is driven partly by societal and demographic changes and an attempt at building a broader coalition. The result is a party that its leaders from the 1970s wouldn’t recognize, Stuart Rothenberg writes in an opinion piece in Roll Call. “I think what we’re witnessing now is a full on frontal assault on conservatism,” said Marc Short, who was chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence.

Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan puts the change another way, saying: “I think President Trump has made our party what it always should have been, which is a populist party rooted in conservative principles.” Examples of the sometimes-awkward shift include:

  • Abortion: Organizations working against abortion access objected to the more cryptic plank in the party’s platform, which mostly reiterates Donald Trump’s most recent stance of letting states decide the issue. Those organizations, and delegates, dropped their opposition to the revised wording. “This platform is a platform that is responsive and supportive of where America is actually at,” said one delegate.
  • Unions: The convention heard from a Teamster for the first time ever. Union President Sean O’Brien’s speech was a shock to the GOP system, ripping Right to Work laws and corporations as “the biggest recipients of welfare in this country.” He referred to the Chamber of Commerce as “unions for big business.” Party leaders are reaching out to unions, though polls show little support for that in the party at large, per a Washington Post analysis. “I was starting to squirm a little bit on some of that stuff, but I also know how you blend that, and that’s what makes up my support,” said Indiana Sen. Mike Braun. “And that doesn’t mean you take the most outrageous stuff that he might have said, but you don’t dismiss some of the rest of it, and you find a new coalition.”
  • Ukraine: The speakers Wednesday night “went a step further,” Short said, giving the example of those who essentially said “NATO was at fault for Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.” That follows the lead of Vance, who once said, “I don’t really care what happens to Ukraine one way or another.” There’s no mention of Ukraine in the platform, though polls show Republicans have no objection to the amount of aid provided by the US.
  • Marriage: There’s no mention in the platform anymore about marriage being between one man and one woman, either. It does express support for “a culture that values the sanctity of marriage” and “the foundational role of families.” That appears to be a loss for one segment of the party.

So far my biggest WTF? was the Teamsters boss speech…..not something you would expect to hear at a GOP function.

So far all in all it is a collection of rambling and babbling nonsense.

Sorry anyone that votes for these clowns has a crack problem or they are just plain stupid.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Biden Speaks

What did you do for Friday night?

Mine was exciting!  (Sarcasm intended)

Friday night our president made his very first public speech that was not a campaign promise and lie…..the speech was all about the debt deal…..

President Biden gave his first speech to the public from the Oval Office on Friday evening, and it centered on the debt ceiling deal approved by the House and Senate this week that will keep the United States out of default. “Crisis averted,” Biden declared of the agreement he’d reached with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which he plans on signing into law on Saturday, per Reuters. The president added that he and the GOP leader “were able to get along and get things done. … Both sides operated in good faith.” He conceded that “no one got everything they wanted” in the deal on the government’s $31.4 trillion debt limit, “but the American people got what they needed.” PBS notes that the president’s remarks were the most detailed yet on the agreement, as he’s remained mostly reticent while the major players hashed things out.

It’s a move the news outlet says “frustrated some members of his party but was intended to give space for both sides to reach a deal.” Biden also extrapolated the compromise he was able to reach with McCarthy to America at large, asking Americans to “stop shouting, lower the temperature, and work together to pursue progress,” per Reuters. “No matter how tough our politics gets, we need to see each other not as adversaries but as fellow Americans.” Per PBS, Biden acknowledged that “bipartisanship is hard,” then added, “Unity is hard. But we can never stop trying.” Reuters notes that presidents typically reserve speeches from the Oval Office “for the most significant and dramatic of events.” In this case, the White House says Biden wanted to make clear how serious things would’ve been had the debt limit not been raised.

His speech in full here.

Cutting future spending for poor people, sick people and children in order to pay the debts rung up by tax cuts for the rich and astronomical spending by the Pentagon. This is the gist of the deal Biden brokered with Kevin McCarthy, a deal that needed the support of Democrats to push through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. In the end 165 Democrats voted for the bill and only 149 Republicans.

The deal is bad and probably only a harbinger of the coming bi-partisan austerity. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities the agreement will “increase hunger and poverty” among poor older Americans, a reference to new SNAP work requirements. What a thing to brag about when you go back to your state or district.

Biden claims he “compromised on the budget, not the debt ceiling.” Of course, that’s the point. The debt ceiling only exists to provide neoliberal politicians like Biden an excuse for imposing austerity on social and environmental programs while funding an ever-expanding defense budget…

Even for Republicans, it’s never been about the debt. As Dark Lord Cheney said, “Reagan taught us that the debt doesn’t matter.” It’s about re-allocating the federal budget to the people who put you in office: arms makers, banks, drug companies, oil companies, slumlords, tech giants, hedge funds. If you don’t have a lobbyist, a PAC or a dark money conduit, you don’t count for a damn thing in this town.

(thoughts from Jeffrey St. Clair

But all this drama about the debt….the GOP just helped add to the total…..

Case in point: the morning after the “Debt” deal passed the House and was sent to the Senate, Susan Collins, the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations committee, announced her intention to introduce an emergency supplemental to raise Pentagon spending beyond debt limit deal. “That is what we need to do,” Collins said. “That is what I would ask the administration and my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to commit to.”

Does anyone else see how pathetic all this crap has become?

In the next couple of years we will hear and see all this absurdity again.

Why?

The debt ceiling legislation that is now headed to President Joe Biden’s desk after the Senate passed it late Thursday includes $1.4 billion in cuts to IRS funding that was aimed at providing the agency with the resources to pursue rich tax evaders, who cost the federal government tens of billions of dollars in revenue each year.

By itself, the $1.4 billion IRS cut would add $900 million to the deficit over a 10-year period, according to a separate CBO analysis released earlier this week.

This stupidity never ends….kinda like the wars we bankroll.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

06 January–The War Of Words

Yesterday we observed the day the insurrectionists stormed the Capitol….Uncle Joe made a speech commemorating the day and the retort from Donald the Orange was inevitable…..

President Biden spoke Thursday on the one-year anniversary of the riot at the Capitol and made clear he places the blame for that day squarely on his predecessor, though he never mentioned Donald Trump by name. Trump has responded with slams of his own. Highlights:

  • Biden: “For the first time in our history, a president not just lost an election, he tried to prevent the peaceful transfer of power as a violent mob breached the Capitol,” said the president, per the AP. “But they failed. … Democracy was attacked … [but] we the people prevailed.”
  • Biden: “We must be absolutely clear about what is true and what is a lie,” he said, per NBC News. “A former president of the United States of America has created and spread a web of lies about the 2020 election. He’s done so because he values power over principle, because he sees his own interest as more important than his country’s interest and America’s interest. He can’t accept he lost.”
  • Biden: “They didn’t come here out of patriotism or principle,” said the president, referring to the rioters, per the Washington Post. “They came here in rage—not in service of America, but rather in service of one man.”
  • Biden: The president accused Trump and his supporters of “trying to rewrite history” in his speech. “They want you to see Election Day as the day of insurrection and the riot that took place here on January 6th as a true expression of the will of the people Can you think of a more twisted way to look at this country, to look at America? I cannot.”
  • Trump: “Biden, who is destroying our Nation with insane policies of open Borders, corrupt Elections, disastrous energy policies, unconstitutional mandates, and devastating school closures, used my name today to try to further divide America,” Trump said in a statement. “This political theater is all just a distraction for the fact Biden has completely and totally failed.” He ticked off a number of issues, from the Afghan exit to rising inflation.
  • Trump: He called members of the House panel investigating the Jan. 6 riot “totally partisan political hacks” and said they should instead be investigating the “Big Lie” of the “rigged” election.
  • Trump: “The Democrats want to own this day of January 6th so they can stoke fears and divide America,” Trump said. “I say, let them have it because America sees through [their] lies and polarizations.”

Placing blame is all well and good but something needs to be done to prevent this sort of stupidity from ever happening again…..words are news making but will do little to stop this erosion of American way of life.

Turn The Page!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

2020 Dem Convention–Day Three

The third day of the Dem convention is now in the can (as they say in show biz)…..this was the Big Day……Obama speech….Clinton speech…. Harris speech…..

The Virtual Convention is novel idea and Trump is losing his mind over all the speakers that are trashing him…….and it is a beautiful sight at that……his ranting is a joy to my ears……

For those that had better things to do….I will give my take on Day Three….big night for speeches…….Obama, Clinton and Harris acceptance…the rest are just filler…..and of course Donald the Orange has to flex his fingers as well…

For all those that cannot live without the words of Obama….the transcript of his speech…..https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/19/politics/barack-obama-speech-transcript/index.html

 

But the most inspirational speech was from Gabi Gifford…at least in my mind……

With no further ado…….Night Three……

The barbs were flying between President Trump and his predecessor before night 3 of the Democratic National Convention even began. Excerpts of Barack Obama’s DNC speech were released in advance, including his comment that he had once hoped Trump “might show some interest in taking the job seriously.” Before the night officially kicked off, Trump tweeted, “Welcome, Barack and Crooked Hillary. See you on the field of battle!” (Hillary Clinton also spoke Wednesday night at the virtual convention.) Then, while apparently watching Obama’s speech in real time, Trump tweeted, “HE SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN, AND GOT CAUGHT!” and then, “WHY DID HE REFUSE TO ENDORSE SLOW JOE UNTIL IT WAS ALL OVER, AND EVEN THEN WAS VERY LATE? WHY DID HE TRY TO GET HIM NOT TO RUN?” More on Obama’s speech and the rest of the evening:

  • Trump also slammed Obama during a press conference before the DNC events got started. “President Obama did not do a good job. And the reason I’m here is because of President Obama and Joe Biden, because if they did a good job I wouldn’t be here. And probably, if they did a good job, I wouldn’t have even run,” he said.
  • Fox News calls Obama’s speech “a blistering attack” while Deadline goes with “scathing.” Other lines included, “He’s shown no interest in putting in the work; no interest in finding common ground; no interest in using the awesome power of his office to help anyone but himself and his friends” and “Donald Trump hasn’t grown into the job because he can’t.” Obama said that during Trump’s presidency we’ve seen “our worst impulses unleashed, our proud reputation around the world badly diminished, and our democratic institutions threatened like never before.”
  • Obama, who spoke from Philadelphia’s Museum of the American Revolution, also criticized Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and his attacks on mail-in voting. “They know they can’t win you over with their policies. So they’re hoping to make it as hard as possible for you to vote, and to convince you that your vote doesn’t matter,” he said. “We can’t let that happen. Do not let them take away your power. Don’t let them take away your democracy.”
  • The word from historian Michael Beschloss on Twitter: “No former President has ever attacked his incumbent successor at a convention like Barack Obama tonight, or even come close.”
  • Obama also, of course, talked about Biden. “Twelve years ago, when I began my search for a vice president, I didn’t know I’d end up finding a brother,” he said. “Joe and I came from different places and different generations. But what I quickly came to admire about him is his resilience, born of too much struggle; his empathy, born of too much grief. Joe’s a man who learned early on to treat every person he meets with respect and dignity, living by the words his parents taught him: ‘No one’s better than you, but you’re better than nobody.’ That empathy, that decency, the belief that everybody counts. That’s who Joe is.”
  • Clinton was no kinder to Trump in her remarks. “If Trump is re-elected things will get even worse,” she said. “Remember back in 2016 when Trump asked what do you have to lose? Well, now we know. Our health care, our jobs, our loved ones.”
  • Nancy Pelosi and Elizabeth Warren also spoke. “Joe Biden is the president we need right now—battle tested, forward looking, honest and authentic. He has never forgotten who he is fighting for,” Pelosi said, per the BBC. “And Kamala Harris is the vice-president we need right now, committed to our Constitution, brilliant in defending it and a witness to the women of this nation that our voices will be heard.”
  • Also up Wednesday was Gabby Giffords, the former congresswoman who was wounded in a 2011 mass shooting. “Words once came easily, today I struggle to speak. But I have not lost my voice. America needs all of us to speak out, even when you have to fight to find the words,” she said, per CNN. “We can be on the right side of history. We must elect Joe Biden. He was there for me, he’ll be there for you too. Join us in this fight. Vote vote vote.”
  • The night wrapped up with Kamala Harris formally accepting her nomination as vice president. She said she envisions America as a “beloved community, where all are welcome, no matter what we look like, no matter where we come from or who we love. A country where we may not agree on every detail, but we are united by the fundamental belief that every human being is of infinite worth.” She said Trump’s ” failure of leadership has cost lives and livelihoods.”
  • Harris also addressed the civil unrest in the nation: “Let’s be clear: there is no vaccine for racism. For George Floyd. For Breonna Taylor. For the lives of too many others to name. For our children. For all of us,” she said. “We must elect a president who will bring something different, something better, and do the important work. A president who will bring all of us together—Black, White, Latino, Asian, Indigenous—to achieve the future we collectively want.”
  • Trump was apparently listening to her speech, too: “BUT DIDN’T SHE CALL HIM A RACIST??? DIDN’T SHE SAY HE WAS INCOMPETENT???” he tweeted. The BBC points out that while Harris and Biden clashed over race issues during the second Democratic debate, she has never called him racist and in fact went out of her way to say she does not think he is racist.

As they say (whoever “they” are)….Night Three is “in the can”….omto night four and the conclusion of the nation;s first “Virtual” political convention……

A suggestion for the DNC….if you talk about the future then stop trotting out fossils like the Clintons, Carvell, Kerry and Powell……talk about the future and let the past slide into the history books there is NO need to rehash the stupidity of the DNC in the past.

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2020 Dem Convention–Day Two

The Virtual Convention continues……

Day two of the Dem Convention is pretty much like day one….blah blah yada yada….beat Trump…..but for those that need more let me help out…..

A few big names like Bubba Clinton are on tap for day Two…..

NBC News uses the word “eviscerates” to describe Bill Clinton’s treatment of President Trump during the former president’s speech at night No. 2 of the Democratic National Convention Tuesday. “If you want a president who defines the job as spending hours a day watching TV and zapping people on social media, he’s your man,” Clinton said. “Denying, distracting, and demeaning works great if you’re trying to entertain and inflame. But in a real crisis, it collapses like a house of cards.” NBC notes that the appearance by Clinton, who has spoken at every Democratic convention for more than 30 years, was controversial this year given his history and the #MeToo era. More from the night, which, as the first night, included Republican voices for Joe Biden:

  • Biden is now the official Democratic presidential nominee, the AP reports. In what the Washington Post calls the “first virtual national party roll-call vote,” convention delegates announced how many of the state’s delegates were pledged to Biden. NBC notes that part of the convention is typically “sleepy” and even “tedious,” but the pandemic-induced virtual DNC managed to make it interesting, showing a video that was, essentially, a tour of the USA. The views included Alabama’s Edmund Pettus Bridge, the headwaters of the Mississippi River, a Puerto Rican community recovering from a hurricane, and Washington’s Black Lives Matter Plaza.
  • Republicans Colin Powell and Cindy McCain spoke, with Powell formally endorsing Biden. “The values I learned growing up in the South Bronx and serving in uniform, were the same values that Joe Biden’s parents instilled in him in Scranton, Pennsylvania,” he said. “I support Joe Biden for the presidency of the United States, because those values still define him. And we need to restore those values to the White House.”
  • John Kerry said Trump “inherited a growing economy and a more peaceful world. And like everything else he inherited, he bankrupted it. When this president goes oversees it isn’t a goodwill mission. It’s a blooper reel.”
  • The keynote “speaker” of the night was actually a group of 17 young, diverse Democrats who were featured in a video montage. Among them was Stacey Abrams. “In a democracy, we do not elect saviors. We cast our ballots for those who see our struggles and pledge to serve,” she said.
  • Interestingly, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez used her 60 seconds of speaking time to second the nomination of Bernie Sanders for president. She did, however, congratulate Biden on his nomination, NBC notes. Per this Twitter explainer, AOC’s nomination of Sanders was a “symbolic” “formality” given that he was the only candidate other than Biden to reach the 300-delegate threshold.
  • NBC says Jill Biden “stole the show” with her deeply personal speech. Included in the topics it touched on: the death of the couple’s son, Beau. “How do you make a broken family whole? The same way you make a nation whole,” she said. “With love and understanding. And with small acts of kindness. With bravery, with unwavering faith. You show up for each other in big ways and small ones. Again and again.”
  • Other big names included Jimmy Carter and John Legend, who closed out the night with a performance.
  • In what NBC calls a “standout moment,” Ady Barkan, a health care activist battling ALS, said, “We live in the richest country in history and yet we do not guarantee this most basic human right,” and that “even during this terrible crisis, Donald Trump and Republican politicians are trying to take away millions of people’s health insurance. With the existential threat of another four years of this president, we all have a profound obligation to act.”
  • Barack Obama, who won’t speak at the convention until Wednesday night, offered Biden congratulations on his nomination on Twitter. “I’m proud of you,” he wrote.

And let’s not forget John McCain’s wife…..but I am not sure if she was just there as a nicety or did she actually endorse Biden…….

Joe Biden and John McCain had an “unlikely friendship,” said Cindy McCain while speaking Tuesday night at the virtual Democratic National Convention. They met when Biden was a young senator and McCain a Senate liaison for the Navy, and their relationship progressed to the point that their families shared backyard picnics—despite Biden and McCain’s political disagreements. “They would just sit and joke. It was like a comedy show, sometimes, to watch the two of them,” Cindy McCain said amid a video montage that included clips of the two men together, per Politico.

Their willingness to reach across the aisle “was a style of legislating and leadership that you don’t find much any more,” she continued. However, Fox News notes the longtime Republican stopped short of formally endorsing Biden, though Politico says it’s “unclear” whether her appearance was meant to be taken as such an endorsement. Both Cindy McCain and daughter Meghan have openly criticized President Trump (a major John McCain foe), but while Meghan McCain confirmed she will be voting for Biden in November, Cindy McCain has previously pushed back against reports that she would be throwing her support behind him

AOC had 60 seconds and that was by design….the DNC is scared to death of AOC for her leadership and policies……DNC did not want to give her a good spot as a platform.

All in all Day Two is in the bag…..and Wednesday will be the big nite for ex-President Obama will speak……

Finally, the Dems foreign policy was about yesterday with Powell and John Kerry…..needed to be more forward looking….a disappointment for me.

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