While the news that the POTUS and the FLOTUS have tested positive for COVID 19 has dominated the media, the political landscape remains the same, other than that the Proud Boys are all wearing their "stand by" T shirts not convinced by Trump's belated condemnation of white supremacy. The bubble that the omnipotent Trump thought he had put himself in was unsurprisingly penetrated by his contrary behavior against the mitigation advice advocated by his real health care professionals.
The first debate left everyone except Trump speechless. With less than five weeks left and voting already in progress in some states there is no way he can make up the yawning growing deficit in the polls he has with Biden. This was his moment. Debates are Biden’s weakness as witnessed in the Democratic Primary. While the latter’s performance was far from stellar he just needed to provide the contrast with a raving, obnoxious, chaotic, muddled, incoherent, racist President whose only contributions to the evening were to appeal to the white supremacists to “stand by”, declare the election invalid, praise his unbelievable response to the Covid crisis, reassure his base that his Supreme Court will award him the Presidency and smear the Bidens. The bizarre display he generated was the primary cause of the total dysfunction of the debate, according to the moderator. Besides the hole he has dug for himself he has put the Republicans down ballot in an ever bigger quandary - how do they distance themselves from this wrecking ball?
REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES HAVE NO PLACE TO GO
In the words of MacBeth, “I am in blood steeped so far should I wade no more returning would be as tedious as to go o’er”, the GOP legislators and their National Committee have rendered themselves powerless to save themselves from the plight their perfidy has placed them in. They are so overwhelmed by their four year capitulation, hypocrisy and abandonment of principles that even Trump’s inexplicable bad debate performance brought forth very limited response from the Republican side of the aisle. What mixed reaction there was just served to emphasize their impotence - Rick Santorum, the former Republican Governor who somehow always finds a positive spin on the Trump mumbo jumbo, stated if he was a Republican candidate he would be very unhappy at Trump’s performance while Peter Navarro Trump’s WhiteHouse advisor echoed the social media mantra that the Fox News mediator was biased in favor of Biden. The best a few senators could do was mumble that they were against white supremacy - without a doubt the lingering catastrophe of the evening.
The Republican Party’s official policy is the cult worship of Trump. Their sole election platform policy is to support Trump. Trump has one guiding policy - to get reelected, regardless of morality or legality.
TRUMP’S COMMAND PERFORMANCE
As counterproductive as the disgraceful display put on by Trump, he was not winging it - he just overdid his “plan” - try and unsettle Biden, drive a wedge between him and the Progressive wing of the Democratic Party which was part of the successful ploy of the Russian disinformation plan that helped Trump win in 2016, smear Hunter Biden, drown whatever message Biden was trying to deliver and show strength. He also let everyone know that the election would be rigged and that he was going to the Supreme Court to challenge it! This was a naked display of totalitarianism. He underlined what he had openly declared previously that he expected his new nominee to the Supreme Court to support his claims. He also tried to inject fear into the Biden electorate calling for vigilantes to monitor the polls while in the same breath failing to condemn white supremacists who saw his statement as a call to arms. There was no attempt to increase his shrunken base. Rather it was all about ensuring that the forty percent hang in and voter suppresion and the Supreme Court can do the rest.
The central issue for Biden, healthcare, which he linked to the catastrophic management of the Covid pandemic, was not countered to any extent by Trump. Trump fared badly on this key issue which at the end the day is front and central to the voters. It also allowed the former Vice President to once again link the appointment of Justice Barrett to the “plot”. She has authored an article attacking the constitutionality of the Obama program. Chris Wallace persisted on hearing about Trump’s healthcare replacement plan that supposedly has been forthcoming for four years. He made it quite clear to the President that his executive order to instruct Insurance Companies not to eliminate patients on the basis of pre existing conditions was merely “symbolic”. As Trump blustered on Jay H. Ell could imagine the GOP candidates wincing in frustration. He also gave the opening to the Democratic challenger to outline his plan which did not "take away" a hundred and eighty million Americans’ rights to private health care as the POTUS had maintained.
Where the POTUS succeeded was that only some of Biden’s message got through and to some his authoritarian behavior was equated with strength. For the rest it was a disaster and what polls there were showed that he did not make up any further ground and the Republican white women who switched in 2018 were just further revolted. If anything this banana republic like behavior persuaded more undecided voters to go Biden’s way. The CBS as well as the CNN polls showed Biden winning by ten percentage points. The impact on the undecideds will only be fully known once post debate polls become available. According to the authoritative Five Thirty Eight editor the initial Presidential debate moves the numbers in favor of the winner. Finally, for Trump’s troubles the Electoral Commission have resolved to change the rules for the remaining encounters, including the moderator being able to switch off microphones.
NO LIGHT ON THE HORIZON
There are roughly five weeks left before the election. The voters have yet to get an exposure to Kamala Harris who debates Mike Pence in the Vice Presidential debate next week. She has been painted as Katrina Marx who Biden is going to hand over the Presidency in short order. She is the sharpest tool in the Senate shed. She will be on display in the hearings on Justice Barnett who is being hailed as the female messiah. It is being mooted in the Senate Democratic Caucus that members of the Judiciary Committee should yield their questioning time to the Vice Presidential candidate.
It bears mentioning that Justice Barnett’s opinion on whether a Judge should be appointed in election year has changed. She argued in favor of McConnell’s failure to allow Obama’s replacement of Justice Scalia ten months before the election date in 2016. The basis of her rationale was that it would change the political representation of the court. Presumably her response now will be that she is the ideal candidate to be head of the liberal wing of the court!
Incidentally Judge Amy Barrett was on the legal team that represented George W. Bush against Al Gore in his case against a recount of Florida vote. Her mentor Anton Scalia when faced with the criticism that enveloped the controversial decision to interfere with the State’s right to control voting in their jurisdiction told critics, “To get over it”. The five to four court outcome stopped the recount while it was taking place. Presumably this is whyTrump and McConnell are in such a hurry to get her ratified.
Now that the revelations that Hillary was behind the story that Russia interfered with the 2016 election and Hunter Biden is a crook like his father have fizzled what October surprises has Trump still got up his sleeve? It is more likely that the New York Times exposes on his financial records will put him under more and more pressure. Maybe they know who his creditors are for the four hundred and fifty one million dollar loans that are due or who signed as security?
Trump's intent for his part was for holding rallies which are petrie dish for the spreading of the virus. His plans for meetings in Wisconsin where there has been a massive uptick in cases is the venue for two jamboree events have not been officially cancelled. The hospitals in the area are ninety - four percent full. He has been asked by the authorities to call the rallies off but as in other instances ignored the pleas. “People can decide whether to come or not and whether to wear masks”, his Press Secretary confirmed. Trump has been unaware that leaders have responsibility. Perhaps he is giving the whole matter a rethink.
WHO IS CULPABLE OF COMPLICITY.
History has long debated what represents culpability and the list with Trump is endless. Those that bear the brunt of the burden of blame are his administration but even more important the Republican legislators who took an oath which included oversight of the President. To date they have failed miserably. This includes the State legislators whose attempts to suppress the vote as illustrated by the Texas Governor and the Pennsylvania legislature are a disgrace.
The question remains is how the Republican candidates are going to respond in the five weeks remaining as more and more constituencies and states become marginal? Rather than Minnesota swinging to Trump, South Carolina, Alaska, Iowa and Georgia are becoming competitive. Don’t hold your breath because their knee jerk reaction to support is baked in as their past obsequious behavior has exhibited. Some are just trying to focus on local issues but that cannot last in this environment.
The irony is those that have taken him on are the civil servants many who have paid for their efforts with retaliation and curtailment of their careers. There is that band of former Republican operatives and pundits that have not only been vocal they have formed Political Action Committees to take him on. But for the rest that have either gone along for the ride or just shrugged their shoulders and done nothing, they need reminding of Edmund Burke’s wisdom, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”.
Then the media who have protection that is unparalleled in any other country have done what they have done since time immemorial produced exposure after exposure. Maybe the Constitution with the First Amendment which enshrines free speech has provided the ultimate “check and balance” for the control of a mad king.
AT THE END OF THE DAY
The Biden/Harris argument that everyone should stop worrying about Trump’s back up plan to remain in office and vote is valid. If Biden has a landslide the question of whether five ballots with Trump's name on it are found in a dumpster on November 4, is not material. Bush was five hundred votes ahead nearly a month after the election. The Supreme Court’s credibility is at stake and they will not without some solid legal justification intervene. However for those still worried, and G-d knows there are many, according to John Dean of Watergate fame, the Biden camp have a powerful legal team in place that are well ahead of the game.
To anyone with any oversea contact there is the reinforcement of the realization that America with its power and its former commitment to liberal democracy has an influence on the world which makes the outcome of this era of history in the Age of Covid even more far - reaching.
As for Trump he believes his debate was a devastating victory and his advisors don’t know how to break the news that it is not just the “Fake News” that is reporting the reality.
All that is left for the Trump and his Republican Party is voter suppression.
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