Media who ignore the very clear danger of Trump while grilling Harris on minute details has an agenda....and it isn't democracy.
Anyone who claims they don't know Harris's policies or tries to quibble over her position on fracking has lost the plot entirely.
This weekend, Bret Stephens, a “conservative”1 NYT columnist said to Stephanie Ruhle on Bill Maher’s show that he doesn’t know what Harris stands for. That she should sit down with George Stephanopolis or another corporate media personality and discuss it. This is a load of horse puckey and anyone who looks at it and says, “Yeah! Not even Kamala knows what she stands for!” or “only talking to Stephanopolis will clear this up!” is missing…the plot? the forrest for the trees? their frontal lobe?
Kamala Harris and Tim Walz have been crystal clear what they stand for and what their policies will be: Reproductive freedom, investment in small business, help for young families, family leave. It’s in the debate (remember that?) their websites, in their speeches, in their ads, and delivered by surrogates. It has not been delivered via corporate legacy media interview with the NYT, cable TV news, or network news. And that’s a good thing.
This weekend the corporate media focused on Kamala Harris’s view on fracking. As John Fetterman mentioned…why the hell are we talking about fracking when the other side is dehumanizing immigrants and saying (lying) that they are eating cats and dogs. This rhetoric has led to bomb threats all over Springfield Ohio…that’s what we should be talking about, not freaking fracking.
Corporate media is sulking that she hasn’t done a policy discussion sit down WITH THEM. But why should she? That corporate media wants a national narrative that they can shape, and Kamala is depriving them of that chance. She’s working with local news, writing her own narrative and trying to keep our eyes where they belong. On working for victory, and not getting sidetracked by Trump and Vance and their truly horrifying plans.
So let’s talk about what Trump and Vance are constantly trying to distract us from. We won’t go too far back b/c that would be an article too long to read.
Trump telling us that his mass deportation plans would work b/c he would give every immigrant (legal and illegal) serial numbers to keep track of them. This wouldn’t be a social security card. Which distracts from….
Trump telling his voters that they don’t need to vote because he’s going to win anyway, which tells us he plans to steal the election. Which distracts from….
Trump telling women he’s protecting them from worrying about abortion. Which distracts from….
Mark Robinson using porn sites to announce that he’s a Black Nazi, throw slurs at just about every marginalized group, and describe in painful detail his affair with his SIL. Which distracts from….
Vance admitting that he lied to create a story about legal Haitian immigrants eating cats and dogs in Springfield, OH. And telling us that he doesn’t care whether they’re legal immigrants or those without documentation. Which distracts from….
Trump’s faceplant during the debate, taking the bait about crowd sizes, and ranting about cats and dogs. Which distracts from….
Trump creating a campaign ad at Arlington National Cemetery, which is against the law and the wishes of gold star families of our veterans. Which distracts from….
MAGA capture of the Supreme Court, which gutted the administrative state. Which distracts from…
Project 2025: a 900-ish page document that gives a blueprint for how Rs would govern if they win the presidency. This includes wiping out the civil service, purging and weaponizing the DOJ, banning abortion, contraception, and any reproductive freedom, institutionalizing Christian Nationalism.
Now, all this distraction is meant for us to take our eyes off the ball, to ignore the real issues of this election, and to turn away from what we need to do. Here’s what we need to remember:
This will be a close election. Every door, every dollar, every text, every conversation with your neighbors counts toward helping Kamala/Tim win, and drives votes all the way down the ballot. And the reverse…getting people out to vote for local races helps draw votes for the top of the ticket.
Red states have already started implementing Project 2025, which aims to install a White Christian Nationalist, authoritarian government. Trump abortion bans, defunding public schools, anti-LGBTQ+ legislation is already reality in a large number of states.
Women, particularly Black women, are DYING because of the Trump abortion ban…either b/c they can’t receive life saving care during a miscarriage or an incomplete abortion.
Abortion is an economic issue. Women and families need the freedom to choose when and how to build their family.
We’ve got to take better care of our young families, entrepreneurs, seniors, and veterans, who are all getting the shaggy end of the stick in comparison to large corporations and their profits.
What we’ve been saying her for a LONG time. There’s more that unites than separates us. Whatever your zip code, bank account, religion, skin color, or language your grandmother speaks, we all deserve the freedom to realize the American dream. And when we work together to achieve it, we’re much more likely to succeed.
Republicans aren’t conservative. They’re not trying to conserve anything. Frankly, I’m not clear on why their policies pre-Trump are considered “conservative” in any case.
Excellent summation. There are several moving parts to the GOP's plan to subvert the outcome in November and I'm pretty sure you hit most of them. One thing I'd add is that the SAVE Act, Mike Johnson's move to reduce voting among blue populations, would disproportionately hurt women. 90% of married women take their husbands' names, and many do not have original source documents (like certified birth certificates) to "prove" they are US citizens. Their votes would be thrown out if republicans get their way, and the fight aint over yet. It's a chilling attempt, and more pundits need to discuss it.
Excellent piece. I agree with you 💯. Conservative media has only one reason for existing…lying to the public about both Democratic policies and the lack of reasonable policies put forward by DonOld. If Stephens is clueless about Kamala’s policies that’s on him. There has been much written about her and her rallies are frequently covered on TV and by local news. I’m tired of the same old same old with these people. If he can’t do his job as a journalist then he needs to get another job…maybe as a full time trump lackey.