Looks like I’ll be pulling my “Nasty Women Vote” T-shirt out of the drawer for canvassing next year. Neither trump nor the GOP has changed a whit, and both must be stopped.
Yes! They have no resemblance whatsoever to the GOP PRIOR TO TRUMP RIPPING IT TO SHREDS! !! BUT IT DOES TAKE THE GOP WITH BACKBONES TO RUN AGAINST TRUMP IN ANY MATTER!!!
On the contrary. Trump did not create the modern Republican party. He just embodies it. Republican party has been moving towards authoritarianism and fascism for decades.
Their opposition to rule of law, their attempt to gerrymander super majorities and suppress votes, their stacking of the courts, with activist, conservative judges, their claims that they are the “party of personal responsibility“ and “family values” and “smaller government” and “fiscal responsibility“ while actively passing laws against all of those things while blocking laws that would support them have all been standard Republican policy since at least the 1980s.
I agree completely. We lost a friendship during Dubya’s presidency when we dared suggest that he was behaving anti-democratically. It has gotten progressively worse each time a Republican has been in the White House.
I’m sorry it cost you a friend. There are some people who are in my life that I will just no longer speak to anymore. Because, despite any “friendship“, no friend of mine who supports somebody who wants to kill my family (Which *IS* what Republicans want to do) is a friend.
It’s happened several times. The most disappointing was my BFF from u’grad, the first person I knew to subscribe to Ms magazine when it launched. I discovered in mid-Nov 2016 that she’d voted for DT instead of Hillary “because small government” (AKA lower taxes for her & her wealthy hub). Then when I posted a comment that I feared DT’s fascist/Nazi tendencies, she called me “unhinged.” She’d drunk ALL the KoolAid - not just the low taxes crap. It’s appalling to see presumably intelligent people become blind dupes who can abide hate.
Thank you, Jay. I would appreciate your thoughts as well regarding Anderson Cooper's justification for CNN's Town Hall. I'm actually confused by it. I have admired and respected Cooper for years, but I'm afraid I disagree on his rationale that CNB needed to give airtime to Trump "so we can see what's coming." Don't we already *know* what's coming? Payback for his enemies, sacrificing Ukraine to his great friend, Putin, more sorrow and misery for people of color and for Trans kids. Control of School Boards, gerrymandering to give the outcomes the Reps want, and for Trump and his allies to get fabulously wealthy. I'm sure I'm leaving out a lot, but I'm scared of the future.
I decided not to wade into the question of CNN’s decision, which I think was terrible. I feel Cooper is now trying to play cover for Licht, and it’s disappointing to see. CNN has shifted to try and recover some of its loss of audience share, but it’s only producing more defections in my view.
Jay, I absolutely respect your decision not to discuss CNN's decision to have tRump on for a 'town hall.' However, Robert Reich did discuss it in a recent Substack article, and bottom line: Follow the money. It's that simple.
I think the country needed a reminder of how toxic and horrific he is. AND his ‘base’ of deplorable rubes. Some people may have forgotten - or minimized- how truly evil and cruel they all are.
A reminder of how vile he is does not have to take the form of a fawning town hall.
If they really wanted to remind us, to show us “what’s coming“, they could’ve done a story reviewing his record, presenting it clearly, noting his denials and fact checking them. It would not require Trump be present. He would certainly not require a crowd of his ardent supporters cheering him on.
Do not buy into CNN’s nonsensical excuses for this travesty. They did it for the ratings and the money. They did not do it as a public service.
They did get a ratings boost But let's be honest. Who gets their news these days from cable tv? It is a certain demographic that seems prone to support the former occupant. I certainly don't watch; I never watch tv.
And I still don't get why MEN are talking about abortion. They do not have uteruses. If you don't have one, shut up. You know NOTHING about what women go through. We do, however, appreciate those men who have an understanding of our difficulties.
I thoroughly trust that you would be an outstanding ally to a woman facing a difficult pregnancy. Actually, Jay, I can see you supporting a friend in the delivery room because no one else was there. You are a kind person.
Yet MEN have their viagra and penile implants funded. MEN can father a child well into their elderly years.
I wish there was a way to make a man feel ALL the issues of pregnancy and the pain of pushing a watermelon through their pelvis, At three months barfing at the mere sight of a trigger food. Not being able to sleep comfortably because the watermelon in their body won't let them have their favored position. Oh, and then there's eclampsia, and all the other pregnancy related conditions (even carpal tunnel!) Then have to follow through with the baby after it is born. Of course, with no supporting spouse to help. Time to feed? Get your breasts ready. Oh, baby is teething? So, so sorry. It does hurt.
Remember "Men are from Mars and Women are From Venus" (it may be the other way around)? What women are so freaking pissed off about is the complete lack of sympathy and understanding from these cretins who think we push the calf out, and et voila! We have a new milk cow.
This town hall only confirmed the nightmare ahead. The 2024 election will be even more treacherous and exhausting than 2020. I fear the independents will let us down and the tactics Republican's have put in place to gerrymander and suppress the vote will work to their benefit. I am very, very scared.
It would be foolish not to be scared. But our fear is there for a reason: It warns of us the dangers we face. We can choose to act on that fear in a constructive way to avoid the danger, or we can become paralyzed by it. I choose the former, and I hope many others do as well.
I am so happy E. Jean Carroll won her rape and defamation case. I can see her bringing suit again. Though I wonder if the judge in this case can issue a muzzle order on Trump. How many examples of Trump continuing to defame her will there eventually be?
I hope she does. She doesn't need the money; I just hope she does it to make the point.
But, in another matter, Trump has been instructed by the judge to earn how to behave himself on social media. I'm watching that with a big smirk, and thinking "good luck, Judge Marchan with that."
Had CNN scheduled additional - one on one - " Town Hall " events for other Republican, Democrat and Independent candidates BEFORE Trump's event, Michael Signorile would not have written " Not okay for Don Lemon to do it--fired even after apology--but perfectly fine for Trump to do it again and again, not apologize, and will be invited back "
Timothy D. Snyder wrote " No, it's not CNN's job to "make news." It is CNN's job to report the truth. Getting this wrong threatens democracy.
And Anderson Cooper lecturing us was a colossal misstep.
If there's a silver lining in all this, Trump gave Jack Smith, Fany Willis, E. Jean Carroll's atty's and an entire army of other atty's GREAT material to use.
Jeff Tiedrich writes " I've done a lot of stupid shit in my life but I've never gone on live TV and confessed to stealing classified documents "
In the final ( really ? ) analysis, the Smart-O-Matic meter, put's Licht and CNN squarely in DUMMY land.
Beg's the question, will Licht have a job Monday morning.
"And they can’t keep hedging forever, because then they wind up sounding like they really don’t have any spine or principles." They obviously DON'T have any spine or principles, which they have proven repeatedly. Thanks so much for your reporting and analysis as always, Jay.
“The crickets from the GOP highlight how badly broken the party is because of Trump.” The trouble is that Trump is a symptom, not a cause. The Republicans have been stoking the beliefs that support Trump and his lickspittle imitators since at least 1994 with the rise of Gingrich. They sowed the wind and now we are all reaping the whirlwind. Any reasonably charismatic leader who uses the same cruelty, demagoguery and authoritarian tactics will earn the support of the MAGA crowd. And if they’re smart about it, they’ll also get all the right-leaning independents who want those same policies, but don’t like the embarrassment and incompetence of Trump. We are in a bad state, not because of Trump per se, but because Trump’s behavior and cruelty are not automatically disqualifying for nearly half of the voting population.
I was having increasing doubts about CNN and now don’t trust them at all. I have now deleted their app from my phone and iPad. I haven’t watched TV for years.
From the perspective of a couple days out, the "town hall" reads like a Joe Biden advertisement. As Joe said (according to a source I read), "Is this really what you want 4 more years of?" Grievance politics, misogyny, bullying, and ignorance. No less a conservative firebrand that Marc Thiessen of WaPo called the whole thing a "dumpster fire" for Republicans. I have to agree.
Jay, you’re correct that every GOP candidate needs to be asked these YES or NO questions about election theft, pardons, etc., and they should be cut off at anything beyond “yes” or “no.”
Another thing that can’t be let go is Mike Pence’s deflection of the character question. Surely, issues are important but few Presidents are judged on their performance on the election issue of their day. They are judged and remembered by how they responded to the totally unexpected.
George W. Bush may have been elected as a “compassionate conservative,” but he will be remembered and judged by history for his response to 9/11 and his initiation of the interminable “War on Terror.”
Similarly, Donald Trump may have some real accomplishments (in conservatives’ eyes) such as packing the courts with unfit judges and getting Roe overturned, but he will be remembered and judged by history for bungling his response to COVID and attempting an “autogolpe” when he failed to be re-elected.
In a President, character is as important as policy, if not more so.
Mr. Trump has amply demonstrated that he a is of unsound character and questions regarding this demand answers, not Mr.Pence’s deflection to “issues.”
I said in 2015 that little donnie running for president was a bad idea. I know 2 people who had to put up with his abuse for 20 years. "THIS IS A BAD IDEA", I shouted from the rooftops.
Looks like I’ll be pulling my “Nasty Women Vote” T-shirt out of the drawer for canvassing next year. Neither trump nor the GOP has changed a whit, and both must be stopped.
They’ve changed.
They’ve gotten worse.
Much worse.
No argument here.
Yes! They have no resemblance whatsoever to the GOP PRIOR TO TRUMP RIPPING IT TO SHREDS! !! BUT IT DOES TAKE THE GOP WITH BACKBONES TO RUN AGAINST TRUMP IN ANY MATTER!!!
On the contrary. Trump did not create the modern Republican party. He just embodies it. Republican party has been moving towards authoritarianism and fascism for decades.
Their opposition to rule of law, their attempt to gerrymander super majorities and suppress votes, their stacking of the courts, with activist, conservative judges, their claims that they are the “party of personal responsibility“ and “family values” and “smaller government” and “fiscal responsibility“ while actively passing laws against all of those things while blocking laws that would support them have all been standard Republican policy since at least the 1980s.
I agree completely. We lost a friendship during Dubya’s presidency when we dared suggest that he was behaving anti-democratically. It has gotten progressively worse each time a Republican has been in the White House.
I’m sorry it cost you a friend. There are some people who are in my life that I will just no longer speak to anymore. Because, despite any “friendship“, no friend of mine who supports somebody who wants to kill my family (Which *IS* what Republicans want to do) is a friend.
It’s happened several times. The most disappointing was my BFF from u’grad, the first person I knew to subscribe to Ms magazine when it launched. I discovered in mid-Nov 2016 that she’d voted for DT instead of Hillary “because small government” (AKA lower taxes for her & her wealthy hub). Then when I posted a comment that I feared DT’s fascist/Nazi tendencies, she called me “unhinged.” She’d drunk ALL the KoolAid - not just the low taxes crap. It’s appalling to see presumably intelligent people become blind dupes who can abide hate.
Yes, this. Trump is a symptom, not a cause.
I now regret donating my " vote: removes orange stains" (in the style of Tide) tshirt
Thank you, Jay. I would appreciate your thoughts as well regarding Anderson Cooper's justification for CNN's Town Hall. I'm actually confused by it. I have admired and respected Cooper for years, but I'm afraid I disagree on his rationale that CNB needed to give airtime to Trump "so we can see what's coming." Don't we already *know* what's coming? Payback for his enemies, sacrificing Ukraine to his great friend, Putin, more sorrow and misery for people of color and for Trans kids. Control of School Boards, gerrymandering to give the outcomes the Reps want, and for Trump and his allies to get fabulously wealthy. I'm sure I'm leaving out a lot, but I'm scared of the future.
I decided not to wade into the question of CNN’s decision, which I think was terrible. I feel Cooper is now trying to play cover for Licht, and it’s disappointing to see. CNN has shifted to try and recover some of its loss of audience share, but it’s only producing more defections in my view.
Jay, I absolutely respect your decision not to discuss CNN's decision to have tRump on for a 'town hall.' However, Robert Reich did discuss it in a recent Substack article, and bottom line: Follow the money. It's that simple.
Exactly, follow the money, our news is sadly Corporate owned, and Corporations are greedy. Overturn Citizens United!
Cooper has shown himself to be a spineless sycophant with ZERO journalistic tendencies. Sad.
I think the country needed a reminder of how toxic and horrific he is. AND his ‘base’ of deplorable rubes. Some people may have forgotten - or minimized- how truly evil and cruel they all are.
A reminder of how vile he is does not have to take the form of a fawning town hall.
If they really wanted to remind us, to show us “what’s coming“, they could’ve done a story reviewing his record, presenting it clearly, noting his denials and fact checking them. It would not require Trump be present. He would certainly not require a crowd of his ardent supporters cheering him on.
Do not buy into CNN’s nonsensical excuses for this travesty. They did it for the ratings and the money. They did not do it as a public service.
They did get a ratings boost But let's be honest. Who gets their news these days from cable tv? It is a certain demographic that seems prone to support the former occupant. I certainly don't watch; I never watch tv.
IOW, you're giving CNN a “Yes it was vile. But who did it hurt?” excuse. Which is shameful.
Is a crime not a crime unless some quota of people are harmed?
I have to agree with you, Christopher Foxx. Ratings. And Ratings = $
I was done with Cooper after he hung Kathy Griffin out to dry.
CNN, not CNB....
2016 taught us that the media LOVES Trump; the more outrageous the better.
Outrage = views = advertisements = $$$$ = GOP President = Tax breaks = even more $$$$
etc. etc.
As Leslie Moonves former head of CBS said (paraphrase): he’s bad for the country, but great for CBS!
And why? Because cable news is not "news" it is opinion and slanted, the almighty dollar going to the corporations that own these companies.
Just one time when the Dump calls a woman interviewer a “nasty woman”, I want to hear her respond “and you’re a disgusting pig.”
As Hilary should have done in that debate.
I’d go with “revolting lump of slime” for describing Trump
Or fat-fingered vulgairan.
And I still don't get why MEN are talking about abortion. They do not have uteruses. If you don't have one, shut up. You know NOTHING about what women go through. We do, however, appreciate those men who have an understanding of our difficulties.
The only response a man should have is that a woman’s uterus is not any of his damn business.
I should say, he should also push back on the men who think otherwise and be a good ally.
I thoroughly trust that you would be an outstanding ally to a woman facing a difficult pregnancy. Actually, Jay, I can see you supporting a friend in the delivery room because no one else was there. You are a kind person.
Well, yes, just as it is none of my business what you do in your bedroom and any outcomes from that. LGBTQ+ issues are so tied to this mess.
Control. Control. Control. That’s the ONLY reason!
Yet MEN have their viagra and penile implants funded. MEN can father a child well into their elderly years.
I wish there was a way to make a man feel ALL the issues of pregnancy and the pain of pushing a watermelon through their pelvis, At three months barfing at the mere sight of a trigger food. Not being able to sleep comfortably because the watermelon in their body won't let them have their favored position. Oh, and then there's eclampsia, and all the other pregnancy related conditions (even carpal tunnel!) Then have to follow through with the baby after it is born. Of course, with no supporting spouse to help. Time to feed? Get your breasts ready. Oh, baby is teething? So, so sorry. It does hurt.
Remember "Men are from Mars and Women are From Venus" (it may be the other way around)? What women are so freaking pissed off about is the complete lack of sympathy and understanding from these cretins who think we push the calf out, and et voila! We have a new milk cow.
This town hall only confirmed the nightmare ahead. The 2024 election will be even more treacherous and exhausting than 2020. I fear the independents will let us down and the tactics Republican's have put in place to gerrymander and suppress the vote will work to their benefit. I am very, very scared.
It would be foolish not to be scared. But our fear is there for a reason: It warns of us the dangers we face. We can choose to act on that fear in a constructive way to avoid the danger, or we can become paralyzed by it. I choose the former, and I hope many others do as well.
I'm in Ohio and have been on the horn for days. So what happened? The Republicans steam rolled voter opinion over the will of the voters.
Yes, ACT.
I’m pretty sure the majority of Americans, regardless of their R or D or I, agree with you. Let’s hope they all vote accordingly. Biden.
Great piece Jay! E. Jean may sue him again for defamation after his comments on CNN. I sure hope she does! What do you think?
I am so happy E. Jean Carroll won her rape and defamation case. I can see her bringing suit again. Though I wonder if the judge in this case can issue a muzzle order on Trump. How many examples of Trump continuing to defame her will there eventually be?
I hope she does. She doesn't need the money; I just hope she does it to make the point.
But, in another matter, Trump has been instructed by the judge to earn how to behave himself on social media. I'm watching that with a big smirk, and thinking "good luck, Judge Marchan with that."
“we stop killing all those people”
Note the WE. That was no mistake. Trump identifies with Russia. He makes it clear that he sees the United States as a Russian
As a Russian Subsidiary.
I caught that too. WTH
I posted this exact thing. Glad I'm not the only one who catches those things.
Had CNN scheduled additional - one on one - " Town Hall " events for other Republican, Democrat and Independent candidates BEFORE Trump's event, Michael Signorile would not have written " Not okay for Don Lemon to do it--fired even after apology--but perfectly fine for Trump to do it again and again, not apologize, and will be invited back "
Timothy D. Snyder wrote " No, it's not CNN's job to "make news." It is CNN's job to report the truth. Getting this wrong threatens democracy.
And Anderson Cooper lecturing us was a colossal misstep.
If there's a silver lining in all this, Trump gave Jack Smith, Fany Willis, E. Jean Carroll's atty's and an entire army of other atty's GREAT material to use.
Jeff Tiedrich writes " I've done a lot of stupid shit in my life but I've never gone on live TV and confessed to stealing classified documents "
In the final ( really ? ) analysis, the Smart-O-Matic meter, put's Licht and CNN squarely in DUMMY land.
Beg's the question, will Licht have a job Monday morning.
IDK
Let us also never forget, Cooper is a Vanderbilt, he’s one of the oligarchs and always will be.
"And they can’t keep hedging forever, because then they wind up sounding like they really don’t have any spine or principles." They obviously DON'T have any spine or principles, which they have proven repeatedly. Thanks so much for your reporting and analysis as always, Jay.
“The crickets from the GOP highlight how badly broken the party is because of Trump.” The trouble is that Trump is a symptom, not a cause. The Republicans have been stoking the beliefs that support Trump and his lickspittle imitators since at least 1994 with the rise of Gingrich. They sowed the wind and now we are all reaping the whirlwind. Any reasonably charismatic leader who uses the same cruelty, demagoguery and authoritarian tactics will earn the support of the MAGA crowd. And if they’re smart about it, they’ll also get all the right-leaning independents who want those same policies, but don’t like the embarrassment and incompetence of Trump. We are in a bad state, not because of Trump per se, but because Trump’s behavior and cruelty are not automatically disqualifying for nearly half of the voting population.
Quislings, every single one of them!
Quislings is a perfect word for it.
He claims this country is dying. Yes, it is, because he's killing it.
I was having increasing doubts about CNN and now don’t trust them at all. I have now deleted their app from my phone and iPad. I haven’t watched TV for years.
I did have their app for the 2020 election as one of my many sources of info but I deleted it shortly thereafter
I feel the same.
From the perspective of a couple days out, the "town hall" reads like a Joe Biden advertisement. As Joe said (according to a source I read), "Is this really what you want 4 more years of?" Grievance politics, misogyny, bullying, and ignorance. No less a conservative firebrand that Marc Thiessen of WaPo called the whole thing a "dumpster fire" for Republicans. I have to agree.
Jay, you’re correct that every GOP candidate needs to be asked these YES or NO questions about election theft, pardons, etc., and they should be cut off at anything beyond “yes” or “no.”
Another thing that can’t be let go is Mike Pence’s deflection of the character question. Surely, issues are important but few Presidents are judged on their performance on the election issue of their day. They are judged and remembered by how they responded to the totally unexpected.
George W. Bush may have been elected as a “compassionate conservative,” but he will be remembered and judged by history for his response to 9/11 and his initiation of the interminable “War on Terror.”
Similarly, Donald Trump may have some real accomplishments (in conservatives’ eyes) such as packing the courts with unfit judges and getting Roe overturned, but he will be remembered and judged by history for bungling his response to COVID and attempting an “autogolpe” when he failed to be re-elected.
In a President, character is as important as policy, if not more so.
Mr. Trump has amply demonstrated that he a is of unsound character and questions regarding this demand answers, not Mr.Pence’s deflection to “issues.”
Presidential character is an issue.
I said in 2015 that little donnie running for president was a bad idea. I know 2 people who had to put up with his abuse for 20 years. "THIS IS A BAD IDEA", I shouted from the rooftops.
Nobody heard me. And here we are.
Not enough heard you, that is clear.
Any of us who ever worked in New York city knew.
H3ll, anyone who even VISITED New York City knew....
I look forward to your well reasoned and well said article daily. Thank you.