THIS is our next President

Vice-President Kamala Harris just blew the doors off this whole election in Milwaukee today with this INCREDIBLE speech.

THIS is our next President:

GOP demonizes Harris for being Black and a woman

As I posted yesterday, now that Biden's gone, the GOP would have to start demonizing the Democrats' new pick, Vice-President Kamala Harris.

It didn't take long.

Instead of attacking her competence and her record, however, they went right for the racist and sexist jugular. 

WI Rep. Glenn Grothman proudly
shares his racist attitudes

Despite Harris having won elections for San Francisco DA, California AG, US Senate, and as Biden's running mate, the "pride" of my home state, GOP Representative Glenn Grothman (a longtime espouser of misogynist views, btw), jumped into the racism with both feet, attributing her recent backing from Democrats to her "ethnic background."

Tennessee Rep. Tim Burchett (um, also GOP), joined right in, calling Harris a DEI Vice-President (Note: "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion" is designed to provide opportunity for qualified individuals from underserved populations, but has become a right-wing slur accusing people of getting handed a job solely because of their race or their gender), having only gotten the job because of her race. 

TN Rep. Tim Burchett:
"What about white females?"

Amazingly, Burchett dug his racist hole even deeper: "What about--what about white females?" he asked.

It also turns out that GOP VP nominee J.D. Vance has been on the misogyny train all along. In a 2021 video, Vance called Harris one of the "childless cat ladies, who are miserable at their own lives." (Note: Harris is not childless (with two stepchildren) and, anecdotally, does not seem the least bit miserable with her life).

Some GOP have said Harris (to use a longstanding slur against Black Americans) is not articulate or doesn't speak well (which they never said about their mumbling, bumbling Trump).

And the GOP's despicable flag-bearer Donald Trump, in a continuation of his misogynistic behavior he perfected during his 2016 campaign against Hillary Clinton, posted that Harris was "dumb as a rock." Of course, he also purposely mispronounces her name to denigrate her.

And, right on cue, the birther lies and accusations--as is GOP standard procedure--have, once again, reared their ugly, racist heads (to devalue accomplishments of people of color). Supposedly, Harris is ineligible for President because her parents were born outside of the US--which is of no consequence where they were born (Trump even perpetuated this racist lie in 2019: "I heard today that she doesn't meet the requirements").

So, only a day or so in, and the GOP's racist/misogynist banner is fully hoisted and flying for all the world to see.

It's time to send Trump and his GOP packing.

Vote Harris.

Remembering the GOP demonization of Joe Biden

Now that Joe Biden's out of the Presidential race, the GOP will have to start its work on demonizing Harris.

But before we let Biden go, let's take a moment to review the disgusting lies told about him by Trump and his GOP.

The GOP certainly gives Pinocchio
a run for his money

Pre-MAGA GOP colleagues universally found Joe Biden to be a decent and honorable man. For decades. Decent and honorable.

That all changed when the GOP needed to create distractions in order to defend their indefensible President Trump who had had a dalliance with Russia, worked to overturn the election, hoarded and hid classified documents, did nothing for 187 minutes while the US Capitol was being overrun, was found to be a sexual abuser and a business fraud, and was convicted of 34 felonies.

Yikes! That’s a lot of distractions to create.

So, they did.

Biden rigged the election.

Biden accepted bribes.

Biden weaponized the Department of Justice.

And none of it was true.

Not one court found that the election had been rigged. Trump's administration (even his daughter, Ivanka) attested to its legitimacy. The right's baseless claims about Dominion vote-switching or Trump's felonious lies about Georgia's dead voters have all been debunked.

And the sheer scope of rigging an election would include law enforcement, poll workers, political individuals and organizations (both Democrats AND Republicans), and the judiciary. AND NO ONE EVER SPILLED THE TEA?!

And how about Joe's bribes (as part of a GOP impeachment fishing expedition)? Records showed that about $5000 pertained to his son's truck payments, and the $200,000 from his brother James was clearly shown as a loan repayment (by the way, head of the Biden impeachment committee James Comer also loaned his OWN brother about $200,000).

Well, still, Biden certainly weaponized the DOJ, right? Similar to the election-rigging lies, such an operation would have been massive. Joe would have not only had to strongarm the DOJ, but local District Attorneys and their staffs, FBI investigators, judges throughout the country, citizens on several Grand Juries, witnesses, the lawyers (including Trump's) who selected the jurors to hear and decide his case, as well as the jurors themselves.

For good measure (to evidently throw people off the scent of his insidious weaponization plot) Biden retained the Special Prosecutor investigating HIS OWN SON! And then he let the court proceedings run their course of convicting him. I'm curious, was Joe willing to also throw Jill under the bus, if it had come to that?

As Joe Biden would say, "C'mon, man!"

And now that Biden is gone, it's Harris's turn to take the slings and arrows launched by the lying, desperate, and morally-bereft GOP.

How long, for instance, before Trump amplifies another birther accusation against an opponent (especially one born of two immigrants)? Or creates dishonest narratives about her record? Or maybe the porn-star-hush-money-payer will salaciously question Harris's past? 

After the demonization of Joe Biden--a decent and honorable man--nothing is beneath Trump and the GOP.

Harris, I think, is more than ready to take them on.

 

Can Kamala Harris win?

Now that Democrats are coming to grips with Biden's much-needed departure from the presidential race, it's time to choose the successor.

Being this late in the game, the logical choice is Biden's VP Kamala Harris.

But can Harris win?

She has a lot of things going for her.

Harris can beat Trump in November

She's got the name recognition, her policies have been out there since her run for the Democratic nomination in 2020, she was elected Vice President in 2020 and is on the Biden/Harris ticket that resoundingly swept the primaries in 2024.

Harris is a known commodity that could hit the campaign trail running.

And, perhaps the biggest reason of all, because Harris and Biden share a campaign committee, all $91 million on hand of the campaign's war chest would come Harris's way (which wouldn't likewise transfer to any other Democrat).

Note: Although, amazingly, that massive amount still trails Trump's $116 million, it towers above the available funds any other potential Democratic hopefuls might have.

Harris's polling tends to run a bit better than Biden's in a match-up with Trump. Her numbers are generally better, as well, with two demographics that are well-positioned to make a difference in the upcoming election: Blacks and women.

She has also gained renown as a champion for abortion and women's reproductive rights, an issue that has mobilized voters even in red states to support laws protecting a woman's right to choose. Ostensibly, Harris would bring those voters out in November, as well.

There are the Biden/Harris administration successes she could point to--bipartisan bills regarding infrastructure and semi-conductor production, for example--and what, by then, should be a much more positive picture regarding issues such as inflation and the border (especially with Biden's recent executive action).

And her experience as a California prosecutor would eviscerate Trump's positions and record--the exact opposite of what Biden should have done (and was unable to do) in his catastrophic June debate.

Some down sides: She's connected to the perceived failures of the Biden administration, i.e., inflation and immigration (the latter of which she was tasked with improving, pretty much to no avail); her disapproval rating runs higher than her approval (although she still fares better than both Biden and Trump); she fostered some policy and performance criticism during her time as San Francisco DA and California Attorney General; and the above-mentioned Biden/Harris administration successes appear to have been pretty much all Joe, no Kamala.

But there are two ENORMOUSLY important points that would help Kamala Harris win in November:

1) She's not Biden

2) She's not Trump

So, Democrats, let's get on with it.

It's Harris's time.

Bring on November.

Here's a great take about why Harris may NOT win (from Politico)

Today's take from "The None-yun": Where's Melania? Top 10 reasons Melania hasn't been with Donald during his campaign/court proceedings/assassination attempt/convention

Where's Melania?
 (image from craiyon.com)

So, where, exactly, IS Melania?

The None-yun offers some insight.

Click here for the "Top ten reasons Melania hasn't been with Donald during his campaign/court proceedings/assassination attempt/convention"

Trump's pathetic band of GOP hypocrites

GOP "leaders" crawled out from the cesspool that is their party last night at the RNC Convention in Milwaukee to lavish praise upon GOP Presidential nominee Donald Trump.

The evening featured fellow Republicans (who have said some much-less-than-complimentary things in the past about Trump's character and abilities) now fawning over their fearless leader. Perhaps they're angling for Cabinet posts in a Trump administration. Perhaps they justifiably fear retribution from Trump and his worshipping minions for any dissent. Or maybe--and this seems the most reasonable explanation--these GOP politicians really are that spineless and unprincipled.

So, sit back and enjoy a trip down memory lane as we compare what Trump's GOP hypocrites said about him--then and now. By the way, Trump's clever nicknames (um, sarcasm intended) for his now-staunch allies are referenced after their quote from last night's RNC Convention.

Trump also insulted Ted's wife and suggested
Cruz's father was in on the JFK assassination

"I'm going to tell you what I really think of Donald Trump. This man is a pathological liar. He doesn't know the difference between truth and lies. He lies, practically every word that comes out of his mouth...Whatever he does, he accuses everybody else of doing. The man cannot tell the truth, but he combines it with being a narcissist, a narcissist at a level I don't think this country has ever seen...the man is utterly amoral. Morality does not exist for him."

Senator Ted Cruz, 2016

"God bless Donald J. Trump!"

"Lyin' Ted" Cruz, last night

Trump spread "birther" lies about
South Carolina-born Haley

"We need to acknowledge (Trump) let us down. He went down a path he shouldn't have, and we shouldn't have followed him, and we shouldn't have listened to him. And we can't let that ever happen again."

UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, 2021 

"Let me be clear, Donald Trump has my strong endorsement, period." 

"Nimbra" "Birdbrain" Haley, last night

Rubio once wondered why the hands of 6'2"
 Trump were the size of someone who is 5'2"

"He runs on this idea that he is fighting for the little guy. But he has spent his entire career, sticking it to the little guy...If you all have friends who are thinking about voting for Donald Trump, friends do not let friends vote for con artists." 

Senator Marco Rubio, 2016

“It is time to put our country and its people first again…Together we will make Donald Trump president again!”  

“Liddle Marco” Rubio, last night

Trump, who once implied DeSantis
was a pedophile, now calls him
"a really terrific person"

"You can be the most worthless Republican in America, but if you kiss the ring, he’ll say you’re wonderful."  

Ron DeSantis, earlier in 2024

“Donald Trump…stands up for America…We cannot let him down.” 

"Meatball Ron" DeSanctimonious, last night

“Mr. Trump is unfit for our nation’s highest office; My God, what an idiot.” 

Trump running mate J.D. Vance, 2016

Check out the whole, pathetic Day 2 of the RNC Convention in Milwaukee Bing Videos

A great take on the current state of the GOP (from Rex Huppke, USA Today): Nikki Haley booed, other sad losers paraded out for Trump's Republican National Convention (msn.com)

WI's Ron Johnson and "his" people

"Unity" has been tabbed the new watchword for Milwaukee's RNC convention.

Wisconsin's own US Senator, Ron Johnson, took the podium yesterday to address the GOP (aka: the new "unity party," apparently) with his personal take on unity:

"Today’s Democrat agenda. Their policies are a clear and present danger to America, our institutions, our values, and our people."

WI's Sen. Ron Johnson is a bit confused
about the meaning of the word "unity"

So, not only does Johnson essentially call Democrats a "clear and present danger," he very clearly pits the sides against one another in "us" vs. "them" camps (highlighted by my italics, above). He states that a Democrat's values and institutions are different from, and dangerous to, HIS values and HIS people.

Johnson claims the wrong speech had been loaded into the teleprompter--his rewritten speech had supposedly omitted the line about "clear and present danger" as well as the "us" and "them" descriptors of his fellow citizens and constituents. But, the fact is, this divisive speech is the one he intended to give before Trump was shot. And, um, actually, he did give it, after all (just maybe Johnson wasn't aware enough or bright enough to realize the word unity was nowhere to be found in the words he was saying?).

But the idea of his people is nothing new for Johnson. At a 2020 Janesville, WI, presidential rally, a hot mic picked up Johnson telling Trump, "You know who doesn't love this country? Joe Biden supporters." 

Trump supporters? 

HIS people.

More than half the country's voters--as well as the majority of his home state constituents--who voted for Biden? 

NOT his people.

And, of course, Johnson claimed he wasn't worried about January 6 rioters as they attacked police, ransacked the US Capitol, or threatened Vice-President Pence because he "knew those were people who loved this country (and) would never do anything to break the law."

Violent Trump supporters?

 HIS people.

Oh, yeah, and then Johnson added, "Now, had the tables been turned...and President Trump won the election and those were tens of thousands of Black Lives Matter...protestors, I might have been a little concerned."

Black Lives Matter protestors? 

NOT his people.

So, it appears that Ron Johnson--and the GOP that backs him and asks him to speak at its convention--have a ways to go before they can meaningfully use the word "unity," huh?