Re-capturing the "can do" spirit of America is my choice. Great week for democrats. Donald Trump is a very wealthy individual with the emotional immaturity of a child who has never been disciplined. I recognize a spoiled brat when I see one after 23 years of teaching special education emotionally disturbed students. Unfortunately media news will continue to report his whining, accusations and childlike behavior before he is either convicted and/or hopefully jailed. It is unlikely he will shut his mouth as long as he has an audience ..... similar to emotionally disturbed children who have difficulty learning.
I can see why Republicans cling to Trump at this point. They have absolutely nothing else. They mostly didn't support the infrastructure bill and roads and other infrastructure projects are already underway around the country. They didn't support the COVID Relief plan and many many families were benefited. They sort of supported the veterans' medical relief but only after shamed into it. They didn't support the inflation relief bill that is now before the House, not one Senator. The gun law they passed is crap and everyone knows it while they want to claim it as the most important gun bill . . . . Republicans across the country are doing their best to deny women bodily autonomy and keep folks they don't like (people of color) from voting. Some Republicans did go along with the bill to make more chips here (they shouldn't have been permitted to all be sent overseas in the first place), but maybe, we're back. So, in short, Republicans have nothing to brag about and now they are defending a law-breaker who kept top secret documents. I can't help but wonder who he was planning to use them against because that is the kind of person he is. So Dems, stand up, speak up loud and clear and stop trying to defend yourselves against Republican whining and baseless accusations! They have nothing to offer anyone! Democratic Representatives and Senators have done a lot, so get the word out there in the language of each community, explaining how the various laws will help them in particular and everyone in general and how we are called to take care of each other in this life, not just work for ourselves.
Aug 10, 2022·edited Aug 10, 2022Liked by Robert Reich
Unfortunately, as we have seen for decades and are seeing again now, the DNC cannot produce a marketing message for free ice cream on a hot summer day. Where are the great speeches about what is coming in the CHIPs and Science Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, and economic gains, and other wins of the current administration, despite being repeatedly hamstrung in Congress? Where is the press coverage? Where is the flood of PR on social media sites? The current and typical tepid DNC activity stands little chance of success against the misguided "moral" outrage and tribal protectionism of the GOP base. If we are lucky enough to find massively condemnatory evidence against Trump made public, the most likely result is still a marginal Dem win in upcoming elections. While it is true that the GOP is actively destroying America, it is the failure of Dem leadership, the failure of people who see it for what it is and are *unable* to move the citizenry that is truly tragic.
We on this forum are repeatedly grateful for the breadth and depth of Prof Reich's clarity and the model he sets for Dem leadership, but he is nearly alone, and that is the problem. FIrst and foremost, this is a failing of President Biden, who I am extremely loathe to criticize, but his is the bully pulpit and him not actively being the compelling source of information about his own accomplishments and the reasons to once again be hopeful for America is a disaster. I get that the DOJ must act independently. I want it to. I get that Garland ensures he can really make the case before he proceeds, and I want that too. I get that for the President to put himself out as the source of information for the previous guy's misdeeds would be bad for the country. But why did we need Reich to explain to us how we could pay for Sanders' proposals, and why do we need Reich to explain to us what Biden has accomplished? Where the F is the DNC?
Aug 10, 2022·edited Aug 10, 2022Liked by Robert Reich
Seen cynically, it's a scenario for Democrats to relish—so very many Republican pols forced to radical-right positions to win primaries, that can only lose them the general. We must never let their noisiness make us forget they are a nuisance minority—IF IF IF we shout our policy successes even louder and vote. Vote. Volunteer, folks. Get out the vote!
Facts matter. TELL the voters who the LAST Repub prez was who balanced a budget: Eisenhower, in fiscal year 1960, 62 years ago before most people alive today in the US were born!
Under Ike there were many more tax brackets than today and the top *marginal* tax rate was 91% (applied only to that part of total income that exceeded the threshold for that top bracket). And the economy boomed. Today the top marginal rate is only 37% which is the main reason US deficits and debt are as high as they are. Under-taxing the very wealthy is not necessary for a robust economy; Ike demonstrated that. Under-taxing the very wealthy does, however, create greater inequality of wealth and, thus, of power. Democracy cannot survive in a political environment in which the wealthy can buy political outcomes with donations of $10's and $100's of MILLIONS.
Recapturing the “can do” spirit of America! The majority of us who aren’t trumpers are sick and tired of being sick and tired-of him 24/7! We’ve forgotten what we would like our country to really look like, not only to ourselves, but to the world. I’ve had it with our Ugly American face and more than ready to be proud of what we can do for the least of ourselves and for others.
The question is not which is more interesting Biden's and the Democratic agenda ot Trumpy's and the RNC shenanigans. What truly matters is what the media covers and very sadly continues to force feed the public. If the media would "STOP" talking about the X-president "ALL THE TIME" I truly think that he would loose a great deal of his popularity! The people who follow him see him as important to a great extent because he is constantly in the media and constantly being talked about. Remember right after he left office and no one talked about him for a wk or two and it seemed like he was fading into the woodwork and then Mitch went to visit him in Florida and that is all the media needed to revive his presence and start talking about him again. This is not to say that we should not cover the news but if it were any other criminal, the news would report the day's occurrence and then move on the the next story. Oddly enough when the x-pres lost the 60+ court cases trying to prove voting fraud, I never heard a single one of those verdicts covered in the media. So I think we give him WAY TO MUCH attention and publicity and if we just stopped giving him so much attention, he would have much less power. Example: Howard Dean was doing well in the polls as a front runner for the 2004 election until he let out a yeehaw at a rally and the media stopped covering him and he just disappeared, eventually dropping out of the race. Not because he made a weird sound though that is what the media implied but once that had happened the media just wasn't interested in covering him anymore and without the spotlight he could not survive. I truly believe the less attention we give our twice impeached x-pres, the better. I know he has a strong following and this should have been done in 2016 when he ran the first time and again when he left office as I said before, but it still could work. Let me know what you think of this idea and if you agree how we as a public can try to communicate this to politically conscious talk show hosts and national news pundits. If we all started communicating to the media that we are soooo over this guy and we want to hear more about the positive improvements of the current regime than the asinine antics of the RNC and their criminal leaders (except when they lose court cases and get jail time) the better off we and our Democracy will be.
I fear the attractive message is CRT, trans athletes, immigration, Hunter Biden, and, of course, Hillary's emails. And let's not forget that Donald Trump, the greatest of all presidents, saved America from a violent takeover by antifa, BLM, and the dastardly Nancy Pelosi while he presided over the greatest economy in human history. And please, Bob, don't try to confuse the issue with "facts", whatever they are. Republicans may have passed on the covid vaccine, but they are surely inoculated against facts.
Appealing to Independent and intelligent Republicans we should list Biden's accomplishments and their effect on the particular Congressional District. But we also need to get the word out in trumpster districts, on talk radio how ads, billboards LOUD, CLEAR, and SIMPLE The FBI had a warrant for probable cause issued by a trump appointed Judge. Especially in districts like Kevin McCarthy's, Rick Scott, Jim Jordan, DeSantis, etc. These people drive and see billboards, they listen to talk radio - they are avid fans of white alt right trash. If the trumpster can spew his lies in ads on CNN. surely we can reciprocate on talk radio and billboards. (And maybe a really big sign out front of Maralago or a loud speaker on a panel truck driving back and forth (:-) )
The population that holds Trump in admiration are not a homogeneous group. They are as diverse as those that hold Trump in contempt. Any conversation between the two must contain at it's beginning, at a bare minimum, a recognition of and a sympathy for those qualities that those that "believe" in Trump hold to be true. The tendency is to believe that that population, as a whole, ARE a homogeneous population of (simplified) indoctrinated clones. Nothing could be farther from the truth, and to hold that view is as good as building an impenetrable brick wall between what is evolving as a massive great divide.
Patronizing platitudes will always be seen through. A genuine, heartfelt, unguarded reaching out is truly the only way to begin to re-unite. It is either that or experience the dire consequences of a Trump "nation" in a retributive state.
Defending Trump vs. the can-do spirit of America? If that were the choice, the resolution would be easy. But it’s not like that. It’s emotion vs. reason. It’s fantasy vs. fact. Are Americans ready to use their brains instead of their spleens? We don’t know.
Between defending Lump and defending the Supreme Court's overturning Roe vs Wade... The Republicans are riding the edge of a very sharp sword!... Not to mention the House and Senate Republicans voting no on everything that would benefit the American people... Including those swing voters they are chasing after!
Republican candidates need to be a true representative of all the people in their state first. Not be a slave to Trump, the Republican Party, or any organization, that is not in line with the majority of the voters they represent.
Re-capturing the "can do" spirit of America is my choice. Great week for democrats. Donald Trump is a very wealthy individual with the emotional immaturity of a child who has never been disciplined. I recognize a spoiled brat when I see one after 23 years of teaching special education emotionally disturbed students. Unfortunately media news will continue to report his whining, accusations and childlike behavior before he is either convicted and/or hopefully jailed. It is unlikely he will shut his mouth as long as he has an audience ..... similar to emotionally disturbed children who have difficulty learning.
I can see why Republicans cling to Trump at this point. They have absolutely nothing else. They mostly didn't support the infrastructure bill and roads and other infrastructure projects are already underway around the country. They didn't support the COVID Relief plan and many many families were benefited. They sort of supported the veterans' medical relief but only after shamed into it. They didn't support the inflation relief bill that is now before the House, not one Senator. The gun law they passed is crap and everyone knows it while they want to claim it as the most important gun bill . . . . Republicans across the country are doing their best to deny women bodily autonomy and keep folks they don't like (people of color) from voting. Some Republicans did go along with the bill to make more chips here (they shouldn't have been permitted to all be sent overseas in the first place), but maybe, we're back. So, in short, Republicans have nothing to brag about and now they are defending a law-breaker who kept top secret documents. I can't help but wonder who he was planning to use them against because that is the kind of person he is. So Dems, stand up, speak up loud and clear and stop trying to defend yourselves against Republican whining and baseless accusations! They have nothing to offer anyone! Democratic Representatives and Senators have done a lot, so get the word out there in the language of each community, explaining how the various laws will help them in particular and everyone in general and how we are called to take care of each other in this life, not just work for ourselves.
Unfortunately, as we have seen for decades and are seeing again now, the DNC cannot produce a marketing message for free ice cream on a hot summer day. Where are the great speeches about what is coming in the CHIPs and Science Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, and economic gains, and other wins of the current administration, despite being repeatedly hamstrung in Congress? Where is the press coverage? Where is the flood of PR on social media sites? The current and typical tepid DNC activity stands little chance of success against the misguided "moral" outrage and tribal protectionism of the GOP base. If we are lucky enough to find massively condemnatory evidence against Trump made public, the most likely result is still a marginal Dem win in upcoming elections. While it is true that the GOP is actively destroying America, it is the failure of Dem leadership, the failure of people who see it for what it is and are *unable* to move the citizenry that is truly tragic.
We on this forum are repeatedly grateful for the breadth and depth of Prof Reich's clarity and the model he sets for Dem leadership, but he is nearly alone, and that is the problem. FIrst and foremost, this is a failing of President Biden, who I am extremely loathe to criticize, but his is the bully pulpit and him not actively being the compelling source of information about his own accomplishments and the reasons to once again be hopeful for America is a disaster. I get that the DOJ must act independently. I want it to. I get that Garland ensures he can really make the case before he proceeds, and I want that too. I get that for the President to put himself out as the source of information for the previous guy's misdeeds would be bad for the country. But why did we need Reich to explain to us how we could pay for Sanders' proposals, and why do we need Reich to explain to us what Biden has accomplished? Where the F is the DNC?
Seen cynically, it's a scenario for Democrats to relish—so very many Republican pols forced to radical-right positions to win primaries, that can only lose them the general. We must never let their noisiness make us forget they are a nuisance minority—IF IF IF we shout our policy successes even louder and vote. Vote. Volunteer, folks. Get out the vote!
Facts matter. TELL the voters who the LAST Repub prez was who balanced a budget: Eisenhower, in fiscal year 1960, 62 years ago before most people alive today in the US were born!
Under Ike there were many more tax brackets than today and the top *marginal* tax rate was 91% (applied only to that part of total income that exceeded the threshold for that top bracket). And the economy boomed. Today the top marginal rate is only 37% which is the main reason US deficits and debt are as high as they are. Under-taxing the very wealthy is not necessary for a robust economy; Ike demonstrated that. Under-taxing the very wealthy does, however, create greater inequality of wealth and, thus, of power. Democracy cannot survive in a political environment in which the wealthy can buy political outcomes with donations of $10's and $100's of MILLIONS.
Recapturing the “can do” spirit of America! The majority of us who aren’t trumpers are sick and tired of being sick and tired-of him 24/7! We’ve forgotten what we would like our country to really look like, not only to ourselves, but to the world. I’ve had it with our Ugly American face and more than ready to be proud of what we can do for the least of ourselves and for others.
The question is not which is more interesting Biden's and the Democratic agenda ot Trumpy's and the RNC shenanigans. What truly matters is what the media covers and very sadly continues to force feed the public. If the media would "STOP" talking about the X-president "ALL THE TIME" I truly think that he would loose a great deal of his popularity! The people who follow him see him as important to a great extent because he is constantly in the media and constantly being talked about. Remember right after he left office and no one talked about him for a wk or two and it seemed like he was fading into the woodwork and then Mitch went to visit him in Florida and that is all the media needed to revive his presence and start talking about him again. This is not to say that we should not cover the news but if it were any other criminal, the news would report the day's occurrence and then move on the the next story. Oddly enough when the x-pres lost the 60+ court cases trying to prove voting fraud, I never heard a single one of those verdicts covered in the media. So I think we give him WAY TO MUCH attention and publicity and if we just stopped giving him so much attention, he would have much less power. Example: Howard Dean was doing well in the polls as a front runner for the 2004 election until he let out a yeehaw at a rally and the media stopped covering him and he just disappeared, eventually dropping out of the race. Not because he made a weird sound though that is what the media implied but once that had happened the media just wasn't interested in covering him anymore and without the spotlight he could not survive. I truly believe the less attention we give our twice impeached x-pres, the better. I know he has a strong following and this should have been done in 2016 when he ran the first time and again when he left office as I said before, but it still could work. Let me know what you think of this idea and if you agree how we as a public can try to communicate this to politically conscious talk show hosts and national news pundits. If we all started communicating to the media that we are soooo over this guy and we want to hear more about the positive improvements of the current regime than the asinine antics of the RNC and their criminal leaders (except when they lose court cases and get jail time) the better off we and our Democracy will be.
I fear the attractive message is CRT, trans athletes, immigration, Hunter Biden, and, of course, Hillary's emails. And let's not forget that Donald Trump, the greatest of all presidents, saved America from a violent takeover by antifa, BLM, and the dastardly Nancy Pelosi while he presided over the greatest economy in human history. And please, Bob, don't try to confuse the issue with "facts", whatever they are. Republicans may have passed on the covid vaccine, but they are surely inoculated against facts.
It's an obvious choice for rational thinkers. But we all know that members of a cult are anything but.
Appealing to Independent and intelligent Republicans we should list Biden's accomplishments and their effect on the particular Congressional District. But we also need to get the word out in trumpster districts, on talk radio how ads, billboards LOUD, CLEAR, and SIMPLE The FBI had a warrant for probable cause issued by a trump appointed Judge. Especially in districts like Kevin McCarthy's, Rick Scott, Jim Jordan, DeSantis, etc. These people drive and see billboards, they listen to talk radio - they are avid fans of white alt right trash. If the trumpster can spew his lies in ads on CNN. surely we can reciprocate on talk radio and billboards. (And maybe a really big sign out front of Maralago or a loud speaker on a panel truck driving back and forth (:-) )
The population that holds Trump in admiration are not a homogeneous group. They are as diverse as those that hold Trump in contempt. Any conversation between the two must contain at it's beginning, at a bare minimum, a recognition of and a sympathy for those qualities that those that "believe" in Trump hold to be true. The tendency is to believe that that population, as a whole, ARE a homogeneous population of (simplified) indoctrinated clones. Nothing could be farther from the truth, and to hold that view is as good as building an impenetrable brick wall between what is evolving as a massive great divide.
Patronizing platitudes will always be seen through. A genuine, heartfelt, unguarded reaching out is truly the only way to begin to re-unite. It is either that or experience the dire consequences of a Trump "nation" in a retributive state.
Defending Trump vs. the can-do spirit of America? If that were the choice, the resolution would be easy. But it’s not like that. It’s emotion vs. reason. It’s fantasy vs. fact. Are Americans ready to use their brains instead of their spleens? We don’t know.
The ‘law & order’ groupies are outraged! Maybe they have finally realized they’ve been conned by Trump & big money!
Stoic Silence
Boy, The Turtle must really be ticked. .who wants Rid of the Son of a . .glitch
Now they're all rallyin round . .the insane Mango Clown
when Gravitas-y Not Hanged Mike his pick . . .#into Each Life a little . . .
Between defending Lump and defending the Supreme Court's overturning Roe vs Wade... The Republicans are riding the edge of a very sharp sword!... Not to mention the House and Senate Republicans voting no on everything that would benefit the American people... Including those swing voters they are chasing after!
Republican candidates need to be a true representative of all the people in their state first. Not be a slave to Trump, the Republican Party, or any organization, that is not in line with the majority of the voters they represent.