A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=1476243
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=1476243
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Yes, yes it is
The New York Times Is Part of the Effing Problem (archive.is)
Schmitz, who is one of the Catholic integralist MAGA fans, fills his essay with euphemisms about Trump’s actions. Here are some of them:
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Trump is “pragmatic if unpredictable”
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He occasionally uses “incendiary language”
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And “intemperate rhetoric”
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And “provocative comments”
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And makes “outrageous statements”
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Because he possesses “braggadocio”
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And has a “combative personality”
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And an “irreverent demeanor”
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And is “politically incorrect”
There are more. The piece is filled with both euphemism and the passive voice, all in an attempt to obscure reality from readers and present a sympathetic case for Trump.
Look at this passage:
To be sure, Mr. Trump’s wild rhetoric, indifference to protocol, and willingness to challenge expertise have been profoundly unsettling to people of both political parties. His term in office was frequently chaotic, and the chaos seemed to culminate in the Capitol riot of Jan. 6, 2021.
This might be the most misleading passage ever published in the paper of record.
It was not Trump’s “indifference to protocol” which was “unsettling” to people. And the “chaos” of Trump’s term did not “seem” to culminate in a “riot” at the U.S. Capitol.
Here is an accurate description of what happened in the waning days of the Trump administration:
Donald Trump falsely proclaimed that the presidential election was illegitimate. He attempted, through both legal and extralegal means, to overturn the result of the election. Trump’s maneuverings in both the Department of Justice and the Department of Defense were so dangerous that ten former secretaries of defense penned an op-ed warning that it was not lawful to use the military in an election dispute. Trump then called thousands of people to Washington, assembled them into a crowd which he knew was armed, and personally directed them to march to the Capitol and “take back” the country “with strength.”
If you came down from Mars and simply read today’s NYT op-ed, you would have absolutely no idea that any of this happened. Instead, you’d think that Trump was some kind of a ne’er-do-well or scamp.
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One year ago, today, Matthew Freeman quit riding his spiffy new bicycle and giving everyone a little joy in their lives. May his memory continue to guide our futures.
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Netanyahu Is Trying to Hold Both Israel and Biden Hostage - Israel News - Haaretz.com
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking at the war cabinet press conference in Tel Aviv on Saturday.Credit: Noam Rivkin Fenton/Pool
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Dec 18, 2023 9:22 pm IST
The war cabinet’s press conference on Saturday was supposed to be about the war in Gaza. There was certainly more than enough war-related issues to discuss, starting with the tragic killing of hostages Yotam Haim, Samer Fuad El-Talalka and Alon Shamriz by Israel Defense Forces soldiers the previous morning in Gaza.
Instead, what Israelis got was a preview of what they can expect in the election campaign that increasingly seems imminent.
The politicking was, of course, started by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He began with his standard “We’re in a war for our existence, in which we must continue until victory,” followed by some empty words on how the tragedy of the three hostages had broken his heart – without referencing the awful circumstances of their deaths. He had a message for bereaved families who have lost soldiers in the war, saying that “coming from a bereaved family … I know that the pain which rends your heart will never relent.”
He then launched into what can only be seen as a thinly veiled election campaign speech.
There was no other reason for Netanyahu to openly and directly challenge Israel’s only strategic ally, to state that Israel would continue fighting on the ground in Gaza, “continue to the end – until we eliminate Hamas,” and that he won’t “allow us to replace Hamastan with Fatahstan, that we replace Khan Yunis with Jenin.” In other words, he was defiantly thumbing his nose at U.S. President Joe Biden’s stated preference for the Palestinian Authority to reassert control in the Gaza Strip.
The personal fate of one man now holds precedence over those of entire nations.
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Shaye and Ruby would be doing Rudy a solid if they could get him to finally STFU.
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Fox of course
US economist predicts 2024 will bring ‘biggest crash of our lifetime’ (foxbusiness.com)
As the clock ticks closer to 2024, one outspoken economist is making a dire predication about the markets in the new year. “Since 2009, this has been 100% artificial, unprecedented money printing and deficits; $27 trillion over 15 years, to be exact. This is off the charts, 100% artificial, which means we’re in a dangerous state,” Harry Dent told Fox News Digital. "I think 2024 is going to be the biggest single crash year we’ll see in our lifetimes.
Of course
According to a recent article by ThinkAdvisor, Harry Dent has made some accurate predictions in the past, such as the bursting of the dot-com bubble and the recession that followed the “bubble burst” in Japan in 19891. However, many of his forecasts have missed the mark1.
In a recent interview with ThinkAdvisor, Dent predicted that “The biggest stock market crash of our lifetime will hit in 2022” and that “crypto is going to drop even more” 1.
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Ripped straight from the bowels of the earth!
Yesterday, the calm broke as a new fissure unzipped with very little warning and lava spewed forth in the precise area scientists had thought most likely to the focal point of an eruption,…
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When you’ve lost this guy . . .
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Pope Francis is heightening the contradictions. I think he knows what he’s doing. I know this is counter-intuitive but I think he is forcing his internal opposition into a sharper divide. The reactionaries go nuts.
I’m steeped in Catholic education, nuns then Jesuits tried their best through college. A great foundation for an errant yours truly. I’ve let go of lots of ideas as I’ve learned and relearned. I carry my past with me happily free of as much of the heavy, smelly, stupid stuff as I can shed.
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A roguish rapscallion.
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“[T]he New York Times illustrates precisely how unprepared our liberal institutions are for dealing with the expressly illiberal threat of Trump 2024 … The Times has no idea how to handle this threat except to present two sides: One which warns about the danger and one which prevaricates and misdirects in an attempt to hide it.”
The good fascists deserve to have their side of the story told.
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How stupid are Americans? This stupid:
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Amen.
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More concern trolling from NBC…
But don’t worry, because 5 paragraphs later…
“We’ve been seeing this in our data and focus groups actually since May,” said Ashley Aylward, a senior researcher at the Democratic polling firm HIT Strategies. “And to me, it’s because the 2024 campaign season for Democrats hasn’t started yet.” 🥹
Oh and this…
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Make no mistake these people are as bad as Hamas, and they currently hold several cabinet positions in the Israeli government
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Yeah, the Times sure made use of its thesaurus, didn’t it? You left out “mercurial.”
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Who Will Rid Me Of This Meddlesome Debt?
“Saddled with debt, Justice Clarence Thomas was complaining loudly about his meager government paycheck and suggesting he might resign from the Supreme Court right around the time wealthy benefactors began to shower him with gifts, according to new reporting from ProPublica.”
About as clear an example of a public official soliciting a bribe as one could imagine.
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I looked up the Supreme Court salaries — high $200s. (And then there’s the lifetime appointment, great healthcare, etc.)
Clarence wanted to eat his cake and have it, too. And he got his way.
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