Last Man Standing

Buckeye State:  No Democratic debate last night but we did get to hear from the Republican candidate.  Looking like he just stepped away from an epically bad touch up by a vision impaired colorist, Trump attended another political rally, this one in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Instead of directly going after the members of the so-called Squad he attacked cities in general and their “Democratic” mayors and instead of “send them back” chants the crowd was back to screaming their old “lock her up” standard.  The token phalanx of Blacks for Trump were out in force, lined up in front of the cameras for maximum visibility.  Trump attacked Biden, questioned former special counsel Mueller’s mental acuity and made hay out of the Democrats presidential wannabees, reveling in their debate night criticism of all things Obama.  As to those Democrats, it was particularly ironic to hear them attacking Obama’s legacy right after the release of an old tape of Republican hero Ronald Reagan complaining to Nixon about those African “monkeys” at the UN; what a shocker, it turns out that racism is nothing new to the Republican party, Trump is just a skilled message amplifier.  During the rally, Trump broke another norm when he made a particularly obscene gesture at a protestor carrying an “immigrants made America” sign as he was dragged out and roughed up by the crowd.  For good measure, Trump again claimed that windmills cause cancer and that he was on the verge of eliminating AIDs and cancer, presumably by replacing those windmills with coal burning power plants.  Before leaving for Cincinnati, Trump displayed some of his keen “diplomatic” acumen and skills:  he said that it was okay that North Korean buddy Kim Jong un was shooting off short range missiles because “we never made an agreement on that, I have no problem, we’ll see what happens.  But these are short-range,  missiles, they’re very standard” and he responded to a question about the anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising by saying people in Poland like him and he likes them, another example of how he resorts to bragging about his popularity to camouflage his ignorance.  Then when asked about the wide ranging tariffs that he just imposed on Chinese goods, the ones that undid the day’s interest rate cut infused stock market rally, he pretty much admitted that China hasn’t implemented any of those concessions that he previously bragged about.  When asked if he was concerned that the Chinese Army was poised to intervene in Hong Kong, he signed off on their repression saying “that’s between Hong Kong and that’s between China, because Hong Kong is a part of China.  They’ll have to deal with that themselves.  They don’t need advice.”  For good measure, when asked about Mueller’s statement that the Russians were still interfering in our elections, he questioned why anyone would believe anything Mueller had to say.  He also pretended not to know that the Justice Department had decided not to pursue charges against former FBI Director Comey over his decision to share the contemporaneous notes of his conversations with Trump with the public.  It doesn’t appear that anyone asked him about the FBI’s recent warning that prominent conspiracy theories, including those spread by right wing QAnon followers serve as motivators for domestic extremists to carry out violent acts.  That might have been a bit awkward given how frequently Trump and first son Don Jr retweet those QAnon messages and given that so many of those QAnon folks attend Trump’s political rallies.    

Lawsuit Central:  A Trump appointed federal judge in Washington, DC issued a temporary order blocking New York State officials from providing the House Ways and Means Committee with Trump’s NYS tax returns. Committee Chairman Richard E Neal hasn’t requested the returns, yet; the order came in response to a Trump lawsuit that challenges the recently passed New York State law that would permit their release.  The New York Times reports that Cyrus Vance, the Manhattan District Attorney, has subpoenaed Trump Organization records related to the $130,000 payment made by fixer/layer Michael Cohen to adult film star Stormy Daniels.  Vance’s office is focusing on whether the Trump Organization, which reimbursed Cohen, broke New York State law by falsifying business records about the transaction.  Filing false business records is only a misdemeanor but if prosecutors can link the filing to the commission or concealment of another crime, such as a federal campaign finance violation, it could turn into a bigger problem for those involved including Trump because presidents can be indicted for state crimes.  Then again in addition to having peculiarly dyed hair Trump appears to be covered in a coat, albeit an orange one, of Teflon, the last time that Vance went after members of the Trump family, he blinked, letting Ivanka and Don Jr off the hook despite a recommendation from his staff that they be prosecuted for engaging in misleading real estate charges.  Makes you wonder where Trump would be today if only Vance hadn’t caved?

Exit Update:  Congressman Will Hurd, the only African American Republican in the House of Representatives, announced that he will not be seeking reelection in 2020.  Hurd, who represents the Texas district with the longest stretch of the Mexican border, was one of the very few Republicans to call Trump out for his racist comments about the four Squad members.  A former member of the CIA, he also questioned the need for Trump’s wall. He barely eked out a victory in his swing district in 2018, helped along by friend and former Texas Congressman/presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke’s refusal to endorse his Democratic rival Gina Ortiz Jones, who had already announced plans to run again in 2020.  Those concerned about all of the turnover and unrest at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee are probably breathing a sigh of relief right now, despite their infighting in all likelihood another seat is on the verge of turning blue.