Someone named Elaine posted this thread on Twitter:
A decorum observation, thread: you don’t have to like the President’s crassness and tone to understand why Nancy’s speech ripping is perceived as different than his twitter baiting. It’s also an absolute pillar of communication. Let me explain.
President Trump, like it or not, has communicated one thing clearly and unequivocally. It started in the last election. Hillary was going around asking people to use the slogan “I’m with her.” Candidate Trump saw that, instinctively knew it was against the American grain and took the opposite position. His message was “I’m with YOU!” He will attack other politicians, the press, entertainers. Bureaucrats. But he seems to be careful to never attack Americans themselves. Voters of any stripe are not called dumb or deplorable. Or racist or sexist.
He does call out bad behavior like he did regarding gangs. If you go back and actually listen to his words in most cases IN CONTEXT you will see it’s very careful to not insult average PEOPLE, although in most situations he will call out bad behavior.
What he’s done is be inclusive, just as Van Jones alluded to last night. His basic premise is this: “You want me to stand up for you against the machine? ok, I’ll do that to. I’ll take the pain. Don’t care who you are. Come on.” This positions him as the stand in for CITIZENS.
Because of this, when Nancy rips up a speech & says there is no truth in it; or AOC doesn’t attend or listen; Or the Democrats sit on their hands and don’t applaud good things…they don’t realize how many more Americans are starting to see that as an attack on them.
The Democrats see it as an attack on the President. They are “resisting.” But the frame of reference for that resistance is not the man, but those he had agreed to stand up for. The regular folks. Any color, any sexuality, any religion, urban or rural. Trump doesn’t care.
Because it’s not about Him. It’s about those he represents. He knows how to bring people into the tent, not push them out. You may not be a fan of his style, but he’s incredibly effective. And it’s possible that this style is the only grenade that could have made it happen.
He’s not afraid to take on his own party when they want to be in control just like the left. Trump also knows you can be the greatest peace maker in the world but if you don’t get attention, it won’t matter.
Now. His policy effectiveness is, like ALL politicians a mixed bag. But if you can’t admit that things are going very well for many, and many who have been forgotten, you are blind.
Can Trump lose? Yes. An election can never be taken for granted. But from where I sit right now, this bullying people into being able to control them isn’t working well for the Democrats. And they continue to double down.
Trump is a trash-talking, crass, character-challenged man. But he does one thing extremely well and that is to communicate directly to the truly disenfranchised in our country.
We’d be well served to appreciate him for that.
Addendum: An example of his consistency: He doesn’t care about events like the Press Dinners and so forth. Those aren’t the people he wants to be associated with. He’s making a show of not saying one thing and doing another. He keeps fancy White House dinners to a minimum.
It is possible that no political party has had a worse two days than the Democrats have had Monday and Tuesday, to the level of …
First was the Iowa Caucuses, where partial results weren’t released until Tuesday afternoon. That should make everyone think the results were cooked to not show Comrade Bernie Sanders as Iowa’s actual winner.
Maybe the fiasco of the late reporting results from the Iowa caucus this year will have a positive legacy — the end of the caucus process and the invitation to another state to start the delegate selection process.
The caucuses are an embarrassment to the Democratic Party and the United States. This is no way to pick a nominee.
It’s not just that the Iowa caucus is unrepresentative demographically — more than 90% white. It’s far more white than a national party that prizes its diversity. The problem is even more fundamental.
Consider the secret ballot, a foundational value in democratic systems. The caucus is a public process, so that neighbors must advertise their choices in public. This is just wrong.
But the problem is much worse. The caucuses — especially in this cursed year — demand hours of commitment. This limits the number, and kind, of people who can attend, despite Iowa Democrats allowing satellite caucuses this year. Many people who work at night still cannot attend. People who care for children or other relatives cannot attend. People who have other commitments cannot attend.
Then there is the 15% viability threshold. Typically, candidates who don’t draw 15% in the first round don’t receive any delegates. Why? (The Republican caucuses in Iowa have no such rule.) Especially in a first contest, there is no reason to exclude the lesser candidates. And the multiple rounds add to delays.
One of the worst reasons to do anything is … that’s the way we’ve always done it. That’s pretty much the only justification for continuing to have (a) a caucus (b) in Iowa. It’s time for a change — in the process and in the location.
Then came Tuesday’s State of the Union address, when Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi channeled her inner 2-year-old and ripped up Trump’s speech.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi barely let President Donald Trump wrap his State of the Union, and she was already putting on the show, standing dramatically and tearing a paper copy of the speech for all of the watching world to see — and then, later explaining her no-class act as the “courteous” thing to do.
Make no mistake about it. Pelosi’s performance wasn’t aimed just at the president. It was a show of disdain for all the president’s supporters — for all of patriotic America. For all the deplorables out there she hasn’t been able to control and conquer.
This is a woman who’s done nothing but divide to conquer since Trump took over the White House.She’s called for summers of resistance; deceived the American people about impeachment — saying on one hand, impeachment wasn’t a possibility without nonpartisan support, while ultimately pushing impeachment on the wings of utter partisanship; saying on one hand the president’s offenses were national security issues that warranted immediate conviction, while ultimately allowing the articles to be held in the House for more than a month to allow her Democratic minions to pressure and shame senators into voting “guilty.” The list goes on.
Don’t forget the famous Pelosi claim that Trump even admitted — practically, pretty much, almost partly, anyway — to bribery, an impeachable offense. Yet where was bribery in the final articles of impeachment?
Don’t forget the famous Pelosi speeches on the House floor to push for impeachment alongside a poster board of a blown-up American flag, while citing Founding Father principles, while speaking of her “heart full of love for America” — all the while deceiving, spinning and outright lying, committing atrocities and offenses against the very nature of the words she spoke.
It’s all that Trump represents — which is to say, America First. America the Great. America the Exceptional.\And global elites, secretive, behind-the-doors’ political wheelings and dealings, shady, shadowy bargains that enrich the Capitol Hill crowd, but not the average Jane and Joe Q. American — not so much.
Pelosi, and her ilk, are the antithesis of the deplorable. Which is to say: the enemy of the outside-the-Beltway and outside-the-liberal-bubble people.
When she ripped Trump’s speech, she wasn’t just ripping paper. She wasn’t just expressing rage at Trump.
She was showing her fury and disdain for all the MAGAs in America. She’s forgotten her allegiance and oath of office. She’s allowed her personal ambition and quest for power overcome her ability to serve.
That she did it just as Trump actually finished saying, “and God bless America,” is only a remarkable underscore of where her heart genuinely sits: against America.
Democrats tried to justify her petty speech-ripping performance as payback for the president’s avoidance of shaking her hand. But the American people know better. Pelosi, as one Twitter critic wrote, “is a 2 [bit] partisan hack.”
It’s time for Pelosi to go. It’s time for another to take her seat. Americans don’t need politicians who think they’re better than the people who pay their salaries. And you know what? It’s almost assured voters will be making that clear this November, at the polls.
… and Rick Esenberg concludes:
If the Democrats are going to beat Trump, they have to do it by appealing to swing voters who want a return to normalcy and more respectable behavior in their leaders. In other words, they have to offer a contrast to Trump and not simply appeal to their base. This little stunt was quite Trumpian. I don’t think the Democrats are going to beat him at his own game.
Meanwhile, here in Wisconsin, WTMJ radio reports:
Just one day after being placed on administrative leave, 2020 DNC President Liz Gilbert and Chief of Staff Adam Alonso have been fired.
The host committee board issued a statement saying that the group’s president, Liz Gilbert, and its chief of staff, Adam Alonso, were no longer employed by the organization effective immediately.
The firings came a day after Gilbert and Alonso were placed on leave
Democratic National Convention CEO Joe Solmonese told the Associated Press that “the gravity of the concerns raised” and that it demanded a serious response.
While the search for a new president and chief of staff is taking place, Teresa Vilmain, a Wisconsin resident and convention veteran will handle day-to-day operations.
Their firing came after complaints of harassment against women by those working to set up the Democratic National Convention. Yes, Democrats sexually harassing Democrats.
As President Trump gives his annual State of the Union address, Americans in general continue to rejoice over the economy, job creation and an improved U.S. presence in the global trade and national security arenas. Mr. Trump also has a very reassuring agenda.
“In this State of the Union, the president is calling for an end to resistance and retribution politics, and calling for cooperation and compromise. He really wants to unify the nation as its commander-in-chief and its president — the leader of the nation, not the leader of a political party,” White House counselor Kellyanne Conway tells Fox News.
And as the election year picks up speed, a big majority of Republicans still believe in the “Trump Train” — the ebullient symbol of can-do spirit and practical determination that has become a hallmark of the Trump administration despite endless pushback from Democrats and the mostly hostile news media.
With no Iowa Caucus results after midnight due to reported counting problems, we recall one of the more infamous moments in American political history, the “Dean Scream” of Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who finished third in Iowa and was, shall we say, overcome with enthusiasm.
Which prompted this. (Warning: May cause epilepsy or a stroke.)
One of the most significant developments in 2020 politics is how Democratic presidential candidates have embraced hard-left economic policies.
Prominent analysts on the left have noted that even Joe Biden, ostensibly the most moderate of the candidates, has a very statist economic platform when compared to Barack Obama.
And “Crazy Bernie” and “Looney Liz” have made radicalism a central tenet of their campaigns.
So where does Michael Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York City, fit on the spectrum?
The New York Times has a report on Bloomberg’s tax plan. Here are some of the key provisions, all of which target investors, entrepreneurs, small business owners, and other high-income taxpayers.
Former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York unveiled a plan on Saturday that would raise an estimated $5 trillion in new tax revenue… The proposal includes a repeal of President Trump’s 2017 tax cuts for high earners, along with a new 5 percent “surcharge” on incomes above $5 million per year. It would raise capital gains taxes for Americans earning more than $1 million a year and…it would partially repeal Mr. Trump’s income tax cuts for corporations, raising their rate to 28 percent from 21 percent. …Mr. Bloomberg’s advisers estimate his increases would add up to $5 trillion of new taxes spread over the course of a decade, in order to finance new spending on health care, housing, infrastructure and other initiatives. That amount is nearly 50 percent larger than the tax increases proposed by the most fiscally moderate front-runner in the race, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. …Mr. Bloomberg’s advisers said it was possible that he would propose additional measures to raise even more revenue, depending on how his other domestic spending plans develop.
These are all terrible proposals. And you can see even more grim details at Bloomberg’s campaign website.
Every provision will penalize productive behavior.
Though it would be more accurate to say that there’s a partial absence of additional bad news.
Bloomberg hasn’t embraced some of the additional bad ideas being pushed by other Democratic candidates.
It would…maintain a limit on federal deductions of state and local tax payments set under the 2017 law, which some Democrats have pushed to eliminate. …the plan notably does not endorse the so-called wealth tax favored by several of the more liberal candidates in the race, like Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.
I’m definitely happy he hasn’t embraced a wealth tax, and it’s also good news that he doesn’t want to restore the state and local tax deduction, which encouraged profligacy in states such as California, New Jersey, and Illinois.
It also appears he doesn’t want to tax unrealized capital gains, which is another awful idea embraced by many of the other candidates.
But an absence of some bad policies isn’t the same as a good policy.
And if you peruse his website, you’ll notice there isn’t a single tax cut or pro-growth proposal. It’s a taxapalooza, what you expect from a France-based bureaucracy, not from an American businessman.
To add insult to injury, Bloomberg wants all these taxes to finance an expansion in the burden of government spending.
For what it’s worth, this is my estimate of what will happen to America’s tax burden (based on the latest government data) if Bloomberg is elected and he successfully imposes all his proposed tax increases. We’ll have a more punitive tax system that extracts a much greater share of people’s money.
P.S Take these numbers with a grain of salt because they assume that Bloomberg’s tax increases will actually collect $5 trillion of revenue (which won’t happen because of the Laffer Curve) and that GDP won’t be adversely affected (which isn’t true because there will be much higher penalties on productive behavior).
Today in 1959, a few hours after their concert at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa, Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson got on a Beechcraft Bonanza in Mason City, Iowa, to fly to Fargo, N.D., for a concert in Moorhead, Minn.
The trio, along with Dion and the Belmonts, were part of the Winter Dance Party Tour, a 24-city tour over three weeks, with its ridiculously scheduled tour dates connected by bus.
Said bus, whose heater broke early in the tour, froze in below-zero temperatures two nights earlier between the scheduled concert in the Duluth, Minn., National Guard Armory, and the next scheduled location, the Riverside Ballroom in Green Bay.
Holly’s drummer had to be hospitalized with frostbite in his feet, and Valens also became ill. The tour got to Green Bay, but its scheduled concert in Appleton that evening was canceled.
After the concert in Clear Lake, Holly decided to rent an airplane. Holly’s bass player, Waylon Jennings, gave his seat to the Big Bopper because he was sick, and Valens won a coin flip with Holly’s guitarist, Tommy Allsup. Dion DiMucci chose not to take a seat because the $36 cost equaled his parents’ monthly rent.
As he was leaving, Holly told Jennings, “I hope your ol’ bus freezes up,” to which Jennings replied, “Well, I hope your ol’ plane crashes!”
Shortly after the 12:55 a.m. takeoff, the plane crashed, instantly killing Holly, Valens, the Big Bopper and the pilot.
The scheduled concert that evening went on, with organizers recruiting a 15-year-old, Robert Velline, and his band the Shadows. Bobby Vee went on to have a good career. So did a teenager in the audience, Robert Zimmerman of Hibbing, Minn., who became known a few years later as Bob Dylan.
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The number one single today in 1968:
The number one single today in 1973:
The number one album today in 1979 was the Blues Brothers’ “Briefcase Full of Blues”:
Birthdays begin with one of Dion’s Belmonts, Angelo D’Aleo:
Dennis Edwards of the Temptations:
Eric Haydock played bass for the Hollies:
Dave Davies of the Kinks:
Two-hit wonder Melanie Safka:
Tony Butler played bass for Big Country:
Lol Tolhurst played keyboards for the Cure:
Who is Richie Kotzen? You know him as Mr. Big, whose career really wasn’t, having one hit:
Steve Prestegard.com: The Presteblog 