The Guard Rails Have Collapsed — It’s Up To Us To Save Freedom
The Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post refused to endorse Kamala Harris because they are afraid of retribution from Don Old Trump and his fascist henchmen. This is abject cowardice in the face of a threat to our most fundamental rights. They are contemptible.
What makes the Washington Post decision different from the L.A. Times is that the Post explicitly built its brand around the theme of defending democracy beginning in 2017. Apparently, Jeff Bezos wants democracy to die in the darkness so he can get another tax cut and more government contracts.
These formerly venerable publications surrendered in advance, hoping it will seen by the Trump fascists as gracious. But seeking favor from an unhinged fascist like Trump is dangerous and will be seen as a sign of weakness, which fascists deplore.
“Do not obey in advance. Much of the power of authoritarianism is freely given. In times like these, individuals think ahead about what a more repressive government will want, and then start to do it without being asked. You’ve already done this, haven’t you? Stop. Anticipatory obedience teaches authorities what is possible and accelerates unfreedom.” Timothy Snyder.
“What’s happening at the Wash Post and L.A. Times is not about the editorials. It’s a warning to editors and writers to not do anything “foolish” in the closing days. It’s a clear call for self-censorship.” Simon Rosenberg.
Trump’s campaign against the press has been unfolding before our eyes since he descended the escalator in 2015. Hungarian Prime Minister Orbán did this very effectively. Orbán didn’t neutralize the media overnight. It happened gradually and in plain sight.
“I served as US Ambassador in Hungary during Viktor Orbán’s crackdown on freedom of the press. But the independence of the Hungarian press was only truly extinguished when news outlets began “self-censorship” to avoid political reprisal. Democracy dies in darkness.” Eleni Kounalakis.
Bezos is widely regarded as one of the most successful businessmen of our time. His surrender to Trump sends a signal to other businesses — obey in advance or Trump will come after you. America’s billionaire class is greedy, irresponsible and simply unpatriotic. They will do anything for a tax cut, even if Trump burns down the country.
My educated guess is that most of the top 1% percent would prefer to have a right wing strongman in charge. They don’t want us pesky peasants raising their taxes and protecting ourselves from their predatory practices with reasonable regulations. Big business has a long history of supporting fascism in other countries.
All of the guard rails have collapsed — the press, business, the courts and the Republican Party. It’s up to the American people. We are the last check and balance on Trump. If not us? Who? If not now? When? Let’s go! We can do this!
We are winning this election and if we do the work, we will win. Four recent reputable national polls give Harris around a 3 point lead. A brand new ABC News poll shows Harris leading 51% to 47%. Similarly, a fresh You Gov survey gives Harris a 51% to 47% lead. Among respondents who say they will definitely vote, Harris leads 52% to 46%. That translates into over 270 electoral votes.
A new New York Times poll shows a tied race. This is good news since the Times polls have been the most Trump friendly of the cycle and have had a 3 to 4 point GOP lean.
The most important number in this race is Trump’s inability to move north of 47% in the popular vote. That was true in June. True now. True on Nov. 5th. It’s unlikely that Trump can win 270 electoral votes with 47% of the popular vote.
The Democrats have consistently out performed the polls since the Dobbs decision. Trump under performed the polls in the primaries by 8 to 26 points. 20 percent of Republicans voted for Haley long after she withdrew. Trump has done nothing to convince the Haley voters to support him. Instead, he continue to insult Haley and her voters.
My educated guess is that the elite pundits and the mainstream media are underestimating the Haley voter phenomenon (which got badly underestimated in primary polls). There is a significant minority of Republicans who were unhappy enough with Trump to vote against him long after Haley suspended her campaign. It’s very unlikely that Trump’s unhinged so called closing argument will win them back.
You don’t hear about any of this from the mainstream media. Instead, the cynical press largely focuses on Harris’ alleged weaknesses and constantly tells us what she is supposedly doing wrong. The press is ignoring many of Don Old’s weaknesses with key vote groups.
I would follow Simon Rosenberg, Matthew Dowd and Dan Pfeiffer on social media to get an accurate read on the election. They focus on the valid polls and those polls show that we are winning. These strategists also rely upon important metrics other than polling when analyzing the election.
Real Clear Politics is a Republican site that includes the bogus GOP, red wave polls to make the Republicans look good. Ignore them. Don Old Trump admitted that he has funded many of the red wave polls that are over represented in Real Clear Politics’ polling averages.
Polls aren’t the only data point. Harris has more money and a much better ground game. The Republicans are on a long losing streak outside of the red states since 2018. The GOP hasn’t had a good election night since 2016.
The Democrats have carried the blue wall states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin in every presidential cycle since 1992, with the lone exception of 2016. Democrats have won 16 out of 18 state wide elections in the blue wall states beginning in 2018.
Former Republican strategist never Trumper Stuart Stevens is optimistic about the election: “Harris is going to win fairly comfortably. I think Harris is gonna win by a larger margin than 2020. [Republicans are] gonna say this election was rigged, and the Republican Party is going to fail again. And it’s going to be very, very ugly. And you can look at what these states are doing to protect [vote] counting centers, and take comfort in that, but what [the GOP] is saying is we’re preparing to win a pitched battle over a counting center.”
“Fellow Dems one way we have to make Trump look small not big is to remind folks we are winning the election and he is losing.” Simon Rosenberg.
Be confident going forward. Take nothing for granted. Keep working hard.
It’s America or Dementia Don Old Trump. Choose wisely.