You are exactly right. What is the case with Mamdani is that it is a giant experiment that could have many positive effects or could have the opposite. Positive? If a Muslim who has been sympathetic to the Palestinian cause can build major bridges with the Jews in New York. 1

https://twitter.com/larrysabato/status/1937850853739659264

This, I believe is what Brad Lander had in mind and working hard to get him elected, along with finding every way possible to block Cuomo. Along with that, if he can somehow strike a balance with his wish list of policies in a way that won’t either backfire or bankrupt the city.2

I wish every journalistic outlet that normalized Donald Trump during the campaign, that treated him as a mostly typical candidate and both sized the election, would figuratively look themselves in the mirror and understand that they bear partial responsibility for this chaos and bloodshed. 1 Some of them, like the LA Times and Washington Post, have responded by going mostly to the dark side. Others, like the New York Times, have responded by upping their game, but still have headlines that soften the brutal reality. Networks, including CNN, still both sides everything. Fox? Propaganda. 2

No surprise that Schumer is trying to justify his action, as the apologia below shows. If there were an extended shutdown, and as he says, food stamps were eliminated, farmers would be screaming bloody murder. Same w other critical programs Trump deemed non-essential. 1 The idea that he would shut down the govt for six months or a year without a huge backlash is fanciful. Polls show voters would blame Rs & Trump by a 2-1 margin. Ds would have to work to keep the right wing wind machine from blaming them, but it would work. 2

If Trump and his Gestapo defy a court order, which is a real possibility, our only hope is the Senate. We need Senate Democrats to step up and play hardball, using every tactic at their disposal. Put holds on all Trump nominees, use delays for everything. 1 Boycott confirmation hearings that require a member of the minority for a quorum. Insist on no hearings if the Senate is in session. If Senate Republicans bulldoze you by either changing the rules or ignoring them, make sure everyone knows. Force the press to cover. 2

The biggest question about whether we evolve into a vicious autocracy is whether there are any guardrails of meaning that could put limits on Trump‘s most extreme actions. The reaction of Republican lawmakers to the pardons of cop beaters & killers is especially chilling. 1/ If there is no pushback to that, especially after Trump and his cabinet picks, swore that they would do this on a case by case basis, what makes anyone think that there will be pushback to Trump-generated violence or efforts to shred the constitution. Then there is the press. 2/

Jimmy Carter‘s presidency is extraordinarily underrated. But this is a good time to tell my favorite personal story. I was an advisor to the Carter Baker commission on election reform. At one of the meetings, President Carter asked if I would have lunch with him. 1/ He was gracious and warm. I asked him about River blindness and how he had tackled it, saving literally millions of lives. He explained how he had been in Africa, seen the devastation of so many young people blinded with lives destroyed. 2/

There will be a lot of soul-searching among Democrats, as there should be. Those who criticize Joe Biden for not dropping out earlier, or Kamala Harris for her campaign, are looking in the wrong place. This was a broader rejection ofe ruling elites. 1 Including military leaders like Milley& Kelly, exemplary scientists, more broadly all connected to the federal government. I continue to believe a core is Covid, the disruptions in life caused by it and the response to it, ironically driven by the failures of Trump. 2

The meme of the election is nauseously optimistic. I am there, for these reasons:
1. Turnout. Ds have a great infrastructure & framework. Rs turned the effort over to Elon Musk after Trump used the RNC $ to pay for his lawyers. Musk has done for R turnout what he did for Twitter 2. The October Surprise. Not Bibi taking reckless action to hurt Harris & help Trump. It is Madison Square Garden. A big backlash after the hatefest should make a difference in PA and other swing states. Late deciders breaking 2-1 for Harris.

The Supreme Court‘s opinion in the Virginia voter purge case is more deeply unsettling than it appears on the surface. It is about only 1600 voters, a significant portion probably perfectly legal. But right wing justices completely blew away the express language of the law. 1 Congress has superseding authority on federal elections. Actions like Youngkin took are expressly forbidden within the 90 day window before the election. Six justices decided that their partisan views are more significant than the law. This is not the first time. 2

Let's unpack this. Donald Trump just referred again to the press as "the enemy of the people. He has promised to lock up his adversaries, "the enemy within." Pledged to forcibly deport 12 million or more immigrants, legal or not, first putting them in detention camps. 1/ He has expressed admiration for Hitler, wants generals like Hitler had. He is talking regularly to Netanyahu, urging him to do nothing to help Biden. He talks to Putin, pledges to blow up NATO, shows increasing signs of mental decline. He is a narcissistic sociopath & grifter. 2/

This is a must-read thread. Unlike many on this site, I believe Maggie Haberman has done some terrific work on Trump, and is unjustly ripped because not every piece fits the narrative. But her frame here is simply wrong. 1/

https://twitter.com/DougJBalloon/status/1837915755935158743

It reflects a circle-the-wagons mindset that refuses to heed or accept legitimate criticism of the double standard and false equivalence that we see too often in our elite media that set the standard and the signals for all others. 2/

David, I understand why journalists want to take this stance. But the fact is we have had no reflection, no willingness to think through how irresponsible and reckless so much of our mainstream press and so many of our journalists have bern and continue to be 1

https://twitter.com/davidfolkenflik/status/1823382392452595780

Watch how often the White House press briefings end up as embarrassing zoos. Consider for example at O’Keefe’s shouting at and hectoring the press secretary. Far too many questions have little to do with what Americans care about, and more reflect the egos of the reporters. 2

There was a seminal study in North Carolina, a controlled one that showed that the same kids during times in the month when they were food insecure performed far worse than when they had enough food. It matters! And not just to the kids-- to the society. 1 My family and I sponsor a summer debate camp for public school kids in the DC area. 200 from sixth grade thru high school. 3 wks for varsity, 2 for JV and novice. All free, including breakfast and lunch each day. 2

I am a native-born Minnesotan. My mother's family was deeply involved in social justice, civil rights and the labor movement going back to the 1930s. I had many mentors in the state, including Hubert Humphrey, Walter Mondale, Don Fraser, Art Naftalin. Al Franken is my dear friend. So is Keith Ellison. 1 So is Amy Klobuchar. So were some Minnesota Republicans, like Bill Frenzel, Dave Durenberger, Jim Ramstad, Doug Head-- back when the state GOP was a model of intelligent and honest moderate conservatism. 2

An interesting piece by @ErikWemple which I believe misses the point. He says there have been a lot of stories about what a Trump second term would be like-- although they amount to far less than one a day over more than a year, across a slew of newspapers and magazines. 1/washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/… A story here, a story there, will never penetrate public consciousness. They do not signal to readers-- or importantly, viewers and the editors and producers who take their cues from what is front page above the fold stories in opinion leading media, esp. the NYT and WaPo. 2/

FTWE Cannon’s lawless decision, it is worth repeating a little history. In 1999, George Mitchell and Bob Dole asked me and Tom Mann to lead a project on alternatives to the Independent Counsel statute that was expiring, know informally s the Ken Starr/Brett Kavanaugh Abuse Law. 1 We spent a year, with an incredible staff led by Mike Davidson and Elaine Stone, researching what states and other countries had done. Then we assembled an all-star team to sit for three intensive days to draft an alternative. 2/

A couple of observations. First is the sharp contrast in reactions of Democrats and Republicans. Democrats from Biden on down offer sympathy for Trump and condemn violence, especially political violence. 1/ Contrast all that with the reactions of Trump, Don Jr, and others after Paul Pelosi was brutally assaulted in what was an abortive effort to assassinate Nancy Pelosi. Or Trump's ridicule of Gretchen Whitmer after the kidnapping attempt. 2/

Just saw the sad news about Dr. Ruth. Ruth was a family friend, from Renaissance Weekends. Here is my favorite story: we were together at a conference in Coronado California. After reception on the beach on Friday night, Ruth, a devout Jew, turned to me and said “I want to do a Friday night service, I brought books and we can get a minion of 10 from the attendees.” We walked together back into the hotel, where the lobby was filled with Pfizer sales people, there for a meeting of their Viagra team. The entire group swooped down on us, treating Ruth as if she were Jesus entering the Vatican. I got a Viagra pen! don’t worry, I won’t tell one of the many jokes that are obvious.

Let me be clear: I don’t criticize our media for intense coverage of the health of the president and whether he can fill another term or stay on the ticket. Those are big stories. They are not the only stories. The fact that he is the incumbent does not excuse the inattention to the other major party candidate who was a former president, much less the dereliction of duty that comes with treating his abnormal behavior as normal. 1/ Of course, Biden’s disastrous debate performance was the biggest news. But Trump’s serial lies was also really big, and brushed aside. The revelations from Jeffrey Epstein’s investigation, including the multiple trips Trump took with him, largely ignored. Far worse is what we know will be the consequences of another Trump presidency. 2/

Back in 1999, George Mitchell and Bob Dole asked me and Tom Mann to take on a major project, to look for alternatives to the Independent Counsel Statute that was set to expire. We did an intensive examination, including looking at other countries and states' experiences. 1/ With a crack team, including former Senate Counsel Mike Davidson and lawyer Elaine Stone, we took our evidence and convened a stellar group of eight to do, in effect a markup to find the best alternative. That group included former Attorney General Dick Thornburgh, former Solicitor General Drew Days-- and John Roberts, then in private practice. 2/

I am fiercely pro Israel, including its right to defend itself against terrorists. But I can also draw a distinction when leaders do bad things, including sanctioning armed vigilantes in the West Bank and pushing to annex more territory for settlements in a rebuke to Biden. 1 The millions of Israelis have demonstrated against Netanyahu's government, even during this war are not anti-Israel propagandists. What Bibi, Smotrich, Ben Gvir are doing will divide and alienate many of the remaining supporters of the country, further isolating Israel. 2