190 Comments

On your point. I just emailed this to the political journalists at the Times.

The madness of wannabe King Trump has now descended into the range of Nazi styled fascism. Even actually planned for NYC like the Nazi party rally in 1938.

Is anyone home on the journalism side of the NYTimes? There is a 10 alarm fire going off in the Trump campaign and you guys just keep acting like he's a normal, mentally sound candidate who needs a little sanitizing for public consumption.

You can go on finding some black men and Latinos who might not vote for Harris but when oh when will you wake up and realize what a horrific monster you are normalizing?

This election is not about the esoterica of polling methodologies. It's about the real future of America. Do NYTimes journalists have nothing to say about that?

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Thank you. I find the NYT's banal response to Trump horrifying.

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It is no longer all the news that’s fit to print. It is a dressed up version of the National Enquirer. I canceled my subscription many months ago. I encourage everyone to do the same.

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I cancelled my subscription almost a year ago!

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I canceled quite a while ago, as well.

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The NYT (like all the other mainstream media) are pushing for a horserace because it sells newspapers and clicks. They 'scream Trump leads Harris in these swing states.' Or,'Harris' margin is shrinking to within the margin of error.' Or, 'Black men won't vote for Harris because reasons.'

Yet, the editorial board of the NYT comes out and forcefully writes over a page, endorsing Harris and stating repeatedly that Trump must not be elected because he represents such a clear and convincing danger to our democracy.

So, which is it, NYT? The front page? Or the Op-ed page? You decide.

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My point to the Times is that this race is NOT about the machinations and intricacies of polling methodologies. It's about the future of America and one bat shit crazy candidate wants to replace our democracy with a Nazi like Kingship on day one and one candidate wants to continue building policies and programs that will help all Americans. You'd think that would be the headline news everyday till the election.

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You can bet Hitler will take over just after the final count and well before the EC meets.

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No MSM anymore. It's "Corporate Media" -- all for money. Journalism? -- who needs that?

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Oct 14·edited Oct 14

THAT is an excellent question. Ask the papers' owners. They 'gag' their journalists, probably holding their employment hostage. Let's see....my job or my country...Hmmm

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Merrill, you speak brilliantly for me. Thank you for emailing this article to the "political journalists" at the NYT.

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The Washington Post is also ignoring the FELON's fascism.

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I gave up the NYT many months ago. I haven't given up the WaPo, probably only because my father read it every day for 60 years. I know. Doesn't make sense.

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Thank you. The heritage press is absolutely culpable in the spreading of fear and lies. The are enabling Trump.

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N Y Times is USELES!!

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The Madison Square Garden festive Nazi seig hiel event was ended by thousands of Jews beating the snot out of the Nazis with baseball bats and poles that was the end of it. I would love to see a replay of it.

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Where did you get that false story? I've just reviewed multiple artic les about the Nazi rally and the only violence mentioned (no baseball bats) was the beating of a single Jewish man who got into the event, climbed on the stage and attempted to attack the speaker, the head of the Nazi Party in America.

This historical film illustrates exactly why DJT (more likely, Stephen Miller) wants to hold a campaign rally in the modern Madison Square Garden. https://www.theatlantic.com/video/index/542499/marshall-curry-nazi-rally-madison-square-garden-1939/

The following articles provide more detail on the 1939 Nazi rally and illustrate even more why Trump et al want to hold a rally there. Again, no mention of baseball bats or Jews beating Nazis.

The most extensive detail is in this Wikipedia article but others, below, provide additional perspectives.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1939_Nazi_rally_at_Madison_Square_Garden

https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2019/02/20/695941323/when-nazis-took-manhattan

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/americans-hold-nazi-rally-in-madison-square-garden

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/madison-square-garden-nazis-796197/

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/08/23/nazi-german-american-bund-rally-madison-square-garden-215522/

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That ‘Atlantic’ movie clip was awful. What I saw was on TV I assure you I didn’t knowingly post a falsehood, but it was shocking and I remember it I may not be able to dig it up.

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I saw the historic movie of it, the bats and all. No bull, but there was not just one and it is graphic! I respect your posted references but give me some time to look it up I’m pretty sure it was the History Channel, maybe copywriter but it was a whole movie about the times before it was a threat in the current news. Not a false story.

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What a joke. Its not even that they slate their coverage 90/10 to Harris, you can't stand the idea that Trump get any positive press or Harris negative press.

You are a crybaby.

Even the NY TImes has some standards. As the editor wrote, "its your job to make the case to voters, not ours".

You chose the dumbest candidate out there. You are stuck with it.

November is going to be a tsunami.

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Keep watching FOX News. You'll be a happier person

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What a DISGUSTING post. TRUMP IS NOT A NAZI. He is not Hitler. He didn't murder

6 MILLION JEWS.

As for Facism

- Who invoked a police state during the pandemic? Biden?

- Who used the intelligence community to LIE about Hunter Biden's laptop

- Who used the police state to go after its political enemies

- Who forced social media companies to CENSOR American

STOP LYING ABOUT FACISM. It comes from the LEFT and it always has.

Trump was PResident for 4 years.

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During the pandemic, Trump ignored the science, advocted for harmful and ultimatley deadly treatments including swallowing bleach and use of veterinary medicine. Over 1 million Americans died of Covid, the most of any nation.

The left is not and never has been Fascist. That's the perogative of anal retentive right wing bossy, almost always white men. The left advocates for government as a protector of the constitution, and the assurance of equality of all citizens before the law. The right wing advocates for an ever-increasing share for themselves, the good of the whole be damned.

Trump was never president. He was elected by the electoral college, not the popular vote. He was put in office by oligarchs who never respected him, just so long as he cut taxes.

Stop trolling James. Your points are invalid and ignorant. Trump's a mad man and a convicted felon.

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Glad to realize you know more about Trump than Mark Milley, Mark Esper, Mike Pence, John Bolton, and dozens of other republicans :>((

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James illuminates the MAGA thinking. They rather believe in a conman, a felon, a sexual predator, than scientists, economists, judges, doctors, historians and others who have earned degrees in their fields. I always say when I want my pluming fixed I call an expert plumber and when I'm working on my finances I call a financial planner. James, I'm afraid, doesn't know who to listen to and when to actually know that what he hears is reality or fallacy. The MAGA mind rotates in a fog of hate. We should all feel sorry for James and the MAGA thinkers, but we must work to make sure that they, and their cult leader are defeated in November.

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MAGAs love to be conned, duped, grifted and lied to and failed to take modern European history 1890 - present.

They're fed a daily diet of hate and lies from Fake Fox.

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James, James, James. My, my thou doth protest too much. You are correct Trump did not murder 6 million Jews.

You are incorrect about him not being a fascist. Biden did not invoke a police state (whatever and however such an invocation would be made by a POTUS) so you are wrong again.

Nobody used the intel agencies to lie about Hunter Bidens laptop and your prediliction with that topic is, on its face, a sign of some deeper issues in your psyche. Or perhaps just an addiction to far right media that is obsessed with same.

Again, Biden did not use a police state to go after his enemies, but I recall Trump was impeached because he used his office to attempt to strongarm Zelenski in order to gain dirt on his political rival and family. and while the current administration did not censor social media companies, Elon Musk has bought his way into Trump's inner circle and done that job for him.

So, James A., your declrations are without a leg to stand on, leading you in circles of right wing misanthropic logic from which one can gain little real insight other than you are extremely gullible and easily subjected to propagandization. In other words, full MAGA.

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What a disgusting troll.

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James,

It's good to hear from a true MAGA believer. I likened Trump to the Nazis because they/Hitler talked a lot about non-Aryans poising the blood of the German race. Trump is using the same tactics on immigrants, both legal and illegal. Hitler talked about Jews eating German babies. Trump talks about Haitians eating their neighbor's cats and dogs..Really, what kind of a hellscape is Trump asking the American people to believe exists?

Do you know of any one among the 330 million Americans who have had their pet eaten by a Haitian??

I'm afraid MAGA is a lost cause. You will find out that the majority of your fellow Americans do not want to live in the world of the hate filled fantasies of wannabe King Donald.

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What a disgusting comment from. You James A. Just stop with your swooning over a monster!

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Welcome to the Joyce Vance substack, James A. Keep listening, and posting. It's always good for us to hear from contrary points of view, even asinine ones.

One small comment on fascism: almost by definition it cannot be "left". Fascism fundamentally opposes pretty much all of the core tenets of left-wing politics, such as class equality, socialism, and internationalism. Fascism ultimately focuses on hierarchy, nationalism, and suppression of dissent, placing it at odds with far left goals like class struggle, collective ownership, and workers' rights.

Both left and right can be authoritarian, maybe that's what you meant?

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James, Induhlectual or troll ?

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James A is a violator of the current Substack Inc 2024 Terms of Use. I have reported him again.

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For all the good it seems to do. I mostly scroll right past when I see his name.

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What an adorable, uneducated MAGA, bless your heart.

Trump’s vow to only be a dictator on ‘day one’ follows growing worry over his authoritarian rhetoric

https://apnews.com/article/trump-hannity-dictator-authoritarian-presidential-election-f27e7e9d7c13fabbe3ae7dd7f1235c72

Peaceful Protesters Tear-Gassed To Clear Way For Trump Church Photo-Op

https://www.npr.org/2020/06/01/867532070/trumps-unannounced-church-visit-angers-church-officials

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Seem like Nyt and Wapo have decided that Trump's lies cannot be called "lies" in regular columns but only within Op Ed pages. Frustrating. Not that anyone in Maga land would be persuaded by those papers.

The inlaws had family re-union this week. Everyone was complaining about immigrants causing inflation and needing to get back to true conservative principles. Ironically there was a young cousin from visiting Denver and she kept telling everything that Trump was lying about Aurora, but all the "grown-ups" just rolled their eyes at her "naivity".

Somehow I don't think Harris' meandering performances on the View and Daddy are going to change their minds.

The good news is that I'm not getting invited back to any of my wife's family parties....

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I don't believe too many folks in MAGA land read any newspapers. Most probably don't read anything at all.

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They likely feed on Fox entertainment.

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Not necessarily. My cousin gets his “news” from a content aggregator called smartnews (it’s an app) that appears to be an algorithm which reinforces your previously held leanings. So you start with Wall Street Journal maybe, and then it gives you Fox, TheBlaze, RedStateMedia, DailyCaller, etc. all masquerading as “news” sites.

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deletedOct 14
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We have the capacity to flip Trump 2020 voters. . https://rvat.org/

Well placed comments on social media...."Not suckers or losers" to vets groups, military, military dependents, history sites. Vote vets has thousands of testimonials of 2020 Trump voters that flipped. According to Facebook, there are 4 million veterans or active duty members on Facebook, and 12.5 million family members of veterans or active duty members on Facebook.

Trump hates dogs. Pet/animal charity sites.

Trump stole from kids with cancer.

DNC 2024 Victory (dncorganizeeverywhere.slack.com) is recruiting callers.

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founding

"Most probably don't read anything at all."

..Because they CAN'T READ..!

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Trump "loves the uneducated" - because he can lead them into his cult and get them to believe anything.

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I remember feeling a chill when I heard the crowds cheer when he said that. I was shocked, then horrified.

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I don't know if they can't read but I do know they cannot discern facts from fiction

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They certainly cannot read critically.

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why am I blocked from liking this comment??

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No doubt true of many of them, but the frightening fact is many are well educated and very smart. Like J D Vance.

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Louise, intellectual smarts aren't the be all and end all of intelligence. You remind me of a roommate I once had who was a paralegal but had absolutely no common sense. Common sense and emotional smarts are also very important.

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or can read...

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"Everyone was complaining about immigrants causing inflation and needing to get back to true conservative principles."

Immigrants don't cause inflation - pro-capitalist government policies and naked corporate greed do. Why do millions of people vote time and again against their own best interests? Stupidity isn't even a big enough word to cover it!

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Over-pumping the money supply for a short-term sugar high doesnt help ((yes we're talking about you Donnie)

Biden should have been blaming Trump for inflation since Day 1.

My other peeve is that votes complain Harris has no plans to fix inflation. It is at 2% for pete's sake. Her plan should be "don't touch it".

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From the username, this reunion was comprised mostly of Texans, would that be close to right?

As they used to say on Myth Busters, "There's your problem, right there."

We fled Texas in 1978. At the time, it was the most socially backward place I'd ever been. Then there was Idaho...

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We used to have a winter home in NE Florida - we fled there too -- people kept telling me they were voting for Trump because he was a "good businessman" We couldn't take it any more.

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The power of Videodrome.

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Not all Texans are socially backward. We live in El Paso and it's the best place I've ever lived. Most of us here don't vote for the likes of Gregg Abbott and Ken Paxton. If you look at current House representatives like Colin Allred, Veronica Escobar (our rep) and Jasmine Crockett - Texans are not all bad.

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You're in one of the Bluebonnet cities.

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Actually, I'm not. Bluebonnets unfortunately do not do well in the desert. El Paso is definitely in the desert. Bluebonnets stop not too far west of San Antonio - maybe a hundred miles.

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We fled Texas (for California) less than a year ago.

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I fled Texas last year for New Mexico. Much happier here, and don't have to put up with the racist bigots that are so numerous in Texas.

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TX would be blue, if not for severe gerrymandering and voter suppression.

Paxton admitted if he hadn't blocked mail in ballots in Harris County, the state would've gone to Biden.

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And yet, he is still in office. The state of Texas is run by a criminal enterprise known as the republican party!

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a couple of decades ago I fled Los Angeles for the Iron Belt, where people were exactly who they are without pretense. now I'm working my ass off to change minds and hearts. This part of Pa is turned blue HARD since Kamala became the Dem candidate. I have hopes now that it'll not be like the last election here in Pa. It's all so vital and it all counts and it all matters. PS SIGN UP TO BE A POLL WATCHER

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Welcome to neon blue CA, I've been here since Governor St Ronny.

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Well, Texas is a big area. Center of Houston is plenty blue enough for me. But yeh, then there's all the rest of it.

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Maybe count your blessings on the no new invite part. I know I would.

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Me neither

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Why I am very optimistic about Nov... It's not the polls... It's the 2020 numbers.

Here's my back of the envelope forecast:

The Joe Biden coalition of voters beat Donald Trump by 7 million votes in 2020, +81 million to 74 million, that is + 7 million votes! So the first question in forecasting this Nov's outcome is...Has Harris/Walz pulled the Biden coalition back together?

Miraculously, the answer is yes. Mostly..

Mostly means 3.5 million Biden voters have passed away based on mortality averages and it's likely 5-6 million voters simply can't vote for a Black woman for president. This includes Black and Latino men and White guys who believe a woman leader is either "weak" or "strident", both unattractive attributes in a President.

This leaves Kamala with 72-73 million votes from the Biden coalition. What is she likely to add? 7 million young first time voters, 3 million activated, pro-reproductive freedom white women voters, 1 million extra Black woman voters, 2 million Never Trump Republicans, Independents and Haley voters.

This brings Kamal's vote total to 85-86 million. And there is potential for more Harris votes because Trump is such a more deranged, repellant candidate this cycle than he was in 2020.

And what does Trump have? Trump starts with 71 million because 3 million of his voters have passed away. He adds maybe 3 million of those voters who cannot vote for a Black woman, 2 million young first time voters plus 1 million Black and Latino male voters. That gives Trump 75-77 million votes tops.

I think this total is optimistic because, as I said above, Trump is a more deranged, repellant candidate than he was in 2020. It's very likely that Trump will lose more voters and not get to the 74 million he got in 2020.

We have at least 10-15 million volunteers working day and night to put Kamala over the top. Trump has Trump and a very small ground game.

With my forecast, Kamala is likely to win the popular vote by 6%-7%. 53% to 47%. Enough to win the electoral vote with 4 swing states. And what about those scary polls? The polls have become particularly unstable but are are trending in Harris direction. Harris is up by 4-5% in more polls. If she wins by +6% the pollsters can say it was in the margin of error so why were we so irate? Actually because political polls, no matter how unbiased they try to be, partisan political tools that journalists use to tell election stories.

We just have to remember, polls don't win elections, voters do! So we have to keep going at 150% and sleep after Nov. 5th

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Finally, a post that provides a glimmer of a reason to be optimistic. I needed that this morning. Thank you!

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I had been waiting for my Harris Walz yard sign and it finally arrived on Thursday morning, just before my husband and I were leaving for a long weekend out of town. I was excited to finally put it up, but my husband said to wait until we returned home today. We live in a reliably blue city in the S.F. Bay Area, but there are pockets of trump signs in the area and we felt it may not be a good idea to put the yard sign out while we were gone. There have been no reports of political vandalism but after the escalating violence in CFDT’s speeches, it’s hard to gauge how some supporters may react. I don’t know if I’m sad or furious about the fact that we were afraid to show our support for Kamala.

This is the possibility of creeping fascism voiced by General Miley and others; that we will be so afraid of retribution we will suppress our own opinions. WTH?!

Proudly putting the Harris Walz sign in my front yard and the Harris Walz sticker on my car were the first two things I did when we arrived home…after hugging my dogs, of course. All is safe and sound.

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I live in a rural red district. Our group of Democrats has a technique for enhancing signs placed in public areas: we coat the sign edges with Vaseline and glitter. And we enhance with small American flags. Somehow it feels that Republicans have coopted the flag from others. Oh no you don't...that flag is for all Americans, especially Harris/Walz.

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Glitter sticks to vaseline, but vaseline also makes the signs slippery, so harder to pull out.

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What's wrong with glue ??

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What’s the point of the Vaseline?

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They should be making them out of Kevlar. With a chain to padlock to a post.

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Within 24 hours of putting out my Harris Walz Obviously sign, it was stolen. That's never happened to me before in the 40 years since I've been putting our signs in presidential campaigns. (P.S. I live in downtown Charleston, SC)

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That is so sad. A very sorry sign of the times.

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"We start this week with a cloud hanging over the country. The same cloud. Donald Trump". It's a terrifying cloud, but maybe it will dissolve in 23 days and make space for new sunshine.

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It’s unfortunately not just him. There’s an entire operation working behind him to suppress voters in swing states with voter roll purges, voter registration hoops to jump through, filing lawsuits,etc.

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Vance is no doubt already planning for 2028 -- with, perhaps, the odious Stephen Miller as VP? That's terrifying.

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You gave me a shock till I realized you meant J D Vance, and not Joyce Vance.

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Haha, isn’t that why Preet opens with her disavowing any possible connection with JD?

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Headline: TRUMP WILL INVOKE THE "ALIEN ENEMIES ACT" TO EXPEL HISPANICS.

"Falsehoods" again.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/10/11/trump-turns-immigration-closing-appeal-edge-economy-fades/

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Joyce Vance -- We are in this together! Particularly worrying is the article you cite by Myah Ward (Politico), where she made the chilling observation:

"His rhetoric has veered more than ever into conspiracy theories and rumors, like when he amplified false claims about Haitian immigrants in Ohio eating pets. And Trump has demonized minority groups and used increasingly dark, graphic imagery to talk about migrants in every one of his speeches since the Sept. 10 presidential debate, according to a POLITICO review of more than 20 campaign events. It’s a stark escalation over the last month of what some experts in political rhetoric, fascism, and immigration say is a strong echo of authoritarians and Nazi ideology."

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/10/12/trump-racist-rhetoric-immigrants-00183537

Trump/Vance in Nazi-like moves incited violence against good, cultured legal immigrants, the Haitians in Springfield, Ohio, with the blood libel (where in the past: "Jews steal children and eat the boys and girls at mock Masses"; now: "Haitians steal pets and eat the kitties and puppies at mock Voodoo-services").

Trump/Vance have blood on their hands.

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and s*&t in their heads

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Oct 14·edited Oct 14

Would it be too much for Judge Chutkan to instruct Trump and his attorneys that they should refer to Mr. Trump as "former president, Defendant Donald J. Trump".? I find it insulting to "The People" that he is called "President Trump" during these proceedings. He is a former president who is now Defendant, nothing more.

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Wow! Those are some scary comments from Mike Flynn. Another good reason to vote Harris/Walz is the idiots and traitors to be pardoned in a second tRump term.

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I would go further than scary. He would probably have power in Trump.2 as he has been unstinting in his loyalty and represents the very worst of the Trump/Vance mentality; Flynn has lead the way into the darkest reaches of authoritarian cruelty and abuse of power…reaches that the ticket is now plumbing without restraint.

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I’d add:

‘Flynn has lead the way into the darkest reaches of “Christian Nationalist” cruelty’

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("christian Nationalist")

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trump & his crew of unlawful trolls are doing everything they can possibly do to constrain legal voters who they know are Democrats from voting in this election. trump screams about election interference, but with all his sycophants are doing on his behalf, surely a LOT of it is election interference, even Texas dropping 2 million voters from the voter rolls. That is not only insane, it should be illegal. Plus, Gov. Abbott limited Harris county (largest in TX) with over a million citizens to having only 1 (one) ballot drop box. THAT SHOULD BE ELECTION INTERFERENCE, Joyce! Is it not? If not, why not? I yield back my time.

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I expect we will see at least a redacted version of the appendix or the evidentiary basis for the narrative in the Smith & Co. "mega-brief." The only option the "because we say so" defense has to challenge the ruling is through a writ of mandamus, which has no chance of succeeding, since allowing the appendix to be filed on the public docket is well within Judge Chutkan's discretion. And as I said before, while the public release of this information may not produce "ah ha" revelations, its value is in keeping Orange 1's criminal malfeasance in front of voters before Election Day.

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With all these open threats to opponents, even using the military and already upfront contesting the outcome of the election with false rumours, supported and funded by big money and business, America is much closer to becoming a banana republic than one may think. It is completely beyond me that so many Americans would vote for such a future. Even when Harris wins, it will be heavily and desperately contested with all possible means, even violence and sabotage should not be ruled out. The battle to win over the hearts and minds for democracy of most Americans will last even longer. So it isn't over for pro-democracy with a Harris win in November. Keep up the fight.

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What I see are a lot of sheep, who don't want to bother to think. They just want to follow. A sad commentary on the many Americans who see T as the answer. The women who kneel for T ,are selfish. If our country is "free", let each person make their own decisions about their bodies, who they marry, what religion they follow. All the divisions are being widened by T's rhetoric.

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One of the original Nazis (which one, I have forgotten) once observed, "People want to be told what to do."

I used to think that was ridiculous. Not anymore.

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You are absolutely correct.

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A chief reason we are in the mess we are in is a timid, feckless DOJ. Merrick Garland is a weak and fearful man who doesn’t have the fortitude to make hard decisions. We should not be having this conversation, but it has all been allowed. And a large portion of the blame lays at his door. As for the NYT & WaPo et. al. They are traitors to the Union. As is the SCOTUS. Aiding and abetting an insurrectionist and felon who attacked our Capitol. I am sick to my stomach. I can’t take much more incoming, I lack the emotional bandwidth.

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I am waiting and waiting and waiting… for the Attorney General’s office to do something about elon leon to be at least chastised for campaigning for a candidate while clearly being prohibited from such by virtue of being a government contractor. He’s breaking the law with impunity yet again. Where is the AG?!

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Depleted emotional bandwidth is also a problem for me. Physical effects, too. Pepcid is my new best friend.

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I humbly disagree, at least in large part. Garland didn’t cause Georgia case to falter. Garland couldn’t have predicted 2 years ago the SC would muck up presidential immunity in such a disgraceful way. Garland didn’t know that Cannon would randomly (?) be assigned the documents case in Florida. Jack Smith has done a thorough job in his investigations.

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Setting aside the state matter, I concur with you that Garland could not see into the future on November 12th 2022 when he appointed Jack Smith to have foreknowledge vis-à-vis SCOTUS and Cannon. However, counting out from January 6th 2021 to November 12th 2022 leaves a massive 23 months of un-utilized investigatory time. Time that could have, at the time, very well shaped future events much differently. The indictments, both in D.C. and Florida could have been filed much sooner than June 2023 for the Docs case and August 2023 for the election interference case, providing for a much different environment which may very well have impacted the outcomes of the events to which you site. Through the lens that I see this, Garland pulled his punches due to fear and weakness, allowing the current circumstances we are now in to unfold as they have.

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Perhaps he weighed the current political climate and too heavily. I can agree with that. But I also believe that these cases were not cases the Country could afford to lose before the election. Or even if Trump loses the election and they go to trial in 2025. Smith needs a solid win. BTW: I’m with you on “can’t take any more” train. It’s very difficult to live in a nation where nearly half of voters would pick a sociopathic fascist over any reasonable alternative.

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There is another aspect to all of this that has gone for the most part completely unaddressed. During this squandered 23 months, a thorough investigation into House & Senate members who are culpable in all of this should and could have been launched. There are traitors within those bodies that are part of the continuing killing of this country. Mike Johnson to name one in particular. This guy is a fascist to be sure, I would rather he not be in our Congress, let alone Speaker of the House.

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Love this newsletter by Joyce. I am having to forgo any MSM opinion pieces because they are so dire.

How can any election be simpler? Fabulous, smart VP versus (you know!). I feel we live on a different planet or are with Alice in her up side down world. I suspect it is money fueling

propaganda not unlike 1930s Germany where free radios were given out to German citizens

so all could hear the lies. I think it was 70 million given to families.

It worked.

How can we defend our democracy when so much $$$$$$ is driving the narrative?

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Hate and division is nothing new in America.

Here's the 1950s’ "Manual For Southerners" that taught young children:

GOD MADE FOUR RACES

GOD PUT EACH RACE BY ITSELF

WHITE MEN BUILT AMERICA

https://forgottenfiles.substack.com/p/respectable-hate

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The KKK coin was inscribed, "America First." "Preserve Racial Purity."

(edit: to correct my quote.)

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Seems on brand

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Someone from Wyoming just quoted Putin's Press secretary, by name, as saying that what Bob Woodward published in his latest book about Trump sending COVID testing equipment to Putin wasn't true. I asked her if she knew the name of Biden's Press Secretary, or Trump's.

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That person is repeating propaganda. I just did a search for 'Putin's press secretary covid tests" and every single article that came up began "Kremlin confirms that Trump sent Covid test equipment" (paraphrased after "Kremlin confirms...." The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, is quoted as confirming that covid equipment was sent to Putin but that there had not been phone calls between tfg & Putin.

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Thank you Joyce, for another very important Civil Discourse. For those of your voters who can vote by mail, please do not put it off. Have the envelope properly signed and dated and in the nearest mailbox no later than Tuesday October 22, 2024. Even a snail can get it to your elections office by November 5

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Snail mail is well-named. My ballot hasn't arrived after over 2 weeks! (Yes I'm already talking to my County Clerk.) I mailed it on Sept 28; it still hasn't arrived (?) Oct. 14.

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I don't know which State you live in Margaret, The USPS is not as reliable as it once was, But is it usual for the County Clerk to send out mail on Saturday? Have you checked to make sure you weren't disenfranchised? Ken Taylor was saying he has been disenfranchised three times this year in Nevada, possibly because he is on some Government assistance, but that is inexcusable.

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I MAILED IT on a Saturday. My husband dropped his voted ballot and mine directly into the blue mailbox immediately outside the Post Office. I was there and saw both envelopes drop into the box. His was officially received Oct 3rd. Mine still hasn't been received.

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Aaah, then it is most likely the postal service at fault. You may need to vote again if they have lost it. Louis DeJoy is to USPS what trump was to the Presidency.

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Yes, I have to vote again. I am furious. How many people will check to make sure their ballots were received?

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I agree, Margaret. That's why we have Ballot Trax in California. Personally I think every one of our 50 States should offer mail in votes and use a similar system to Balllot Trax to let you know when your ballot has been received and counted. I have no idea how much these programs cost but they are worth every penny.

Of course, those States that want to suppress the vote to retain their personal power will not want to have these services, it might result in (gulp) fair elections, how horrible.

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National voting system!! Sanity uplifted !!!

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