Sunday School Extra Credit 6/28/20

In our Sunday School post yesterday, we heard from a governor (a Sonofa Gov, to be specific), the House Speaker, and the vice president.

For your Extra Credit we've got two governors - Asa Hutchinson (R-AR) and Jay Inslee (D-WA), the former head of the CDC Tom Frieden, and the HHS Secretary Alex Azar. We'll do a quick drive-by of each interview, in that order.

Governor Hutchinson talked with George on This Week; here are a few highlights.

• On my Sonofa Gov's decision (with his CT/NJ counterparts) to require 14-day quarantines for travelers from hot spots: I think he's understandable as to where he's coming from...And in fact, we had the same order in Arkansas that travelers from NY needed to quarantine... but ultimately we can't be putting restrictions on each other across the country, because we have to do two things -- both manage the virus and manage the growth of our economy...I don't think NY wants to isolate themselves from - from every region of commerce that might have a spike in cases.
• On testing: ...this is a very, very serious challenge we have right now. And let me just emphasize, we doubled the amount of our testing nationally. We've got to double it again... I really think we need to look at greater use of the Defense Production Act so that we can make sure the supply keeps up with the demand that we know is going to continue growing.
• On mask requirements and messaging: We're not going to pass a mandate that is unenforceable... It is important that there's a consistent national message to take this seriously, that we are going to wear masks, that we're going to set that example, that consistent national message supplements what we're trying to do in the state...you can have two messages at a time...let's grow our economy, but let's also have the message of social distancing protecting our self and others from the virus. 

Washington's Governor Inslee talked with John Dickerson on Face the Nation; he was not gentle when talking about president Trump or the veep.

• On messaging: ...when I hear the vice president talk about how things are just hunky dory, it's just - it's just - it's just maddening. The situation is critical in many places...all the happy talk and wishful thinking in the world is not going to wash that away. 
• On mask requirements: ...we put an order in effect, including businesses' obligation in this regard. And we sure could use some leadership from the president. It is so difficult. From day one, he has downplayed and distorted and disabled our ability to fight this war... So right now, we are in an urgent national mission - or should be - to mask up... Donald Trump is for masking up like George Wallace was for integration.
• On presidential priorities: The moment Donald Trump tweeted that he wanted to liberate Michigan from the health messages of Gov. Whitmer...all of a sudden people wearing MAGA hats decided they didn't want to help out as much. And that has been very, very damaging. We need a president who will be fully committed to a message of health, you know, and instead of tweeting the other day about the importance of masks, he tweeted about monuments. We need a president who will care more about living Americans and less about dead confederates... And if we can get everybody wearing a MAGA hat to wear a mask, we're going to tame this virus...

Dr. Tom Frieden talked with Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday, giving us these matter-of-fact highlights.

• On whether we're truly making "remarkable progress" now: Well, there's no doubt we're doing more testing, our hospitals are better prepared, but there's also no doubt the virus has the upper hand. This virus is not going to go away on its own. We have to stop it and only we can do that by working together... we are all sick and tired of staying home, but you know what? The virus is not tire of making us sick. 
• On how he explains the surge in cases: We are moving too fast. If you open when cases are still increasing, as many states did, it's like leaning into a left hook. When we see Arizona, Texas, Florida, South Carolina, they are currently in a rapid upswing and sad to say, this is going to continue to get worse for weeks. Because the physical distancing that they're implementing now will only take effect -- you won't see it for another few weeks, so we are going to see a few more weeks of increases in all likelihood in several states.
• On whether case increases are tied to increased testing: As a doctor, scientist, an epidemiologist, I can tell you with 100% certainty that in most states where you're seeing an increase, it is a real increase. It is not more tests, it is more spread of the virus... you've got Arizona with nearly one out of four tests positive and at the same time you are increasing the number of tests, I can tell you with absolute certainty that's explosive spread of coronavirus.
• On getting a vaccine "very soon": There are more than 100 vaccine candidates being evaluated, some of them are looking good in some preliminary studies. It's really hard to develop a vaccine because you have to make sure it's safe. There's already too much suspicion about vaccines, we can't cut any corners. We have to make sure it's safe, it's effective, figure out the right dose, decide who's going to get it first, develop it, manufacture large quantities, get it out there, set up systems to track for bad reactions. This is not a quick fix...

And finally, HHS Secretary Alex Azar talked with Chuck Todd on MTP.

• On "why we are failing" when so many other countries are succeeding: ...we're seeing surging in cases in counties especially in the southern parts of the US... the majority of the positive cases we're seeing are age 35 and under. A large number of those are going to be asymptomatic... our fatality rates and our hospitalization rates are the lowest they've been in two months. But this is a very serious situation.
• On how we respond to the situation: This is a county by county issue...getting to the bottom of why we're seeing cases surging...in addition to the traditional contact tracing... we've got to test entire communities, find all positive cases...We've got hospital capacity in all of these areas. We have personal protective equipment... We now have treatments, we've got steroids, Remdesivir, convalescent plasma... So, we've got the tools to do this... But the window is closing. We have to act and people as individuals have to act responsibly. 
• On whether we blew it during the first shutdown: So... this isn't about reopening or not reopening. We've got many communities and states that are just as reopened as these southern states but aren't experiencing this. We've got to get to the bottom of why we're seeing these cases surge in this area...we all own, as individuals, our individual behavior to make sure that we are practicing appropriate social distancing and wearing facial covering when we're not able to. And practicing good personal hygiene. And especially protecting our most vulnerable citizens. 
• On whether he has asked the president to ask the country to wear a mask: I'm the president's secretary of health. I'm telling you, practice social distancing. Where you can't appropriately social distance, we encourage you to wear a facial covering.... But we're all saying this. The president's guidelines for reopening, the president's guidelines, his guidelines have said from day one, practice social distancing. If you can't, wear face coverings. Practice appropriate personal hygiene... Protect the most vulnerable...
• On not answering the prior question, and about large gatherings:  I'm not going to talk about politics. But we've seen mass gatherings over the last several weeks with people, rightly, expressing first amendment and political views. And this is appropriate. But my message is one of public health, which is if you're going to participate in any type of large gathering, I encourage you: consider your individual circumstance. Consider the circumstance of those you live with. And take appropriate precautions that are appropriate to yourself and your community.

Your key takeaway - cover your face, practice social distancing, and think of people other than yourself. 

But say you're worried about paying your monthly bills or having enough money in the bank to pay for home repairs or similar big-ticket items, or even if you just want to make sure you have money in your retirement accounts...what should you do?  Cover your face and practice social distancing.

If we do those things, we can reopen our economy. If we don't, we can't. It's that simple.  

Sunday School 6/28/20

Who's making noise today in the classrooms?

On Meet the Press, Chuck Todd talked with my Sonofa Gov, NY's Andrew Cuomo; George Stephanopoulos had House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on This Week;  and John Dickerson questioned Our Great Vice President Mike Pence on Face the Nation, which is where we'll start.

I'll only share two things from VP Pence; first, his answer to "what do you hear the protesters saying when they protest?"  

Well, it's- it's been a focus of ours since the tragic killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. There's no excuse for what happened to George Floyd. But there's also no excuse for the rioting and looting and violence that ensued. Look, the president engaged law enforcement leaders. We've sat down with leaders in the African American community. I've - I've met with leaders in the African American community and- and law enforcement in cities around this country.

Notice any mention of his meeting with any of the peaceful protesters from around the country? Nope. 

And what I hear is while - while the radical left says we need to defund the police, what the American people want is for us to fund the police with additional training and support and also improve the lives of the people in our African American community, which I'm proud to say, under President Trump's leadership, we were doing over the last three years. We don't - we don't need to choose between supporting law enforcement and supporting our African American neighbors. We can do both. And that's how we bring our country together.

So, what he hears, in a nutshell, is nothing. Not a damn thing. 

And second, why he won't say 'black lives matter.' After citing MLK and Bloody Sunday, he said

I cherish the progress that we have made toward a more perfect union for African Americans throughout our history. And I've - I've aspired throughout my career to be a part of that ongoing work. It's really a heart issue for me. And as a pro-life American, I also believe that all life matters, born and unborn.

And then he added,  

But what - what I see in the leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement is a political agenda of the radical left that would defund the police, that would tear down monuments, that would - that would press a radical left agenda that, and - and - and support calls for the kind of violence that has beset the very communities that they say that they're advocating for. We - I've- I've literally met - I've literally met with African American leaders around this country and in the national capital area who've - who made it clear to us they - they want law and order. They- they want peace in our streets.

Dickerson interjects, saying, "So you won't say black lives matter?" 

John, I really believe that all lives matter. And that's where the heart of the American people lies. And we're going to continue to stand strong. We're going to continue to stand strong with Americans that- that want to see us come together as a nation. And we're going to carry that message all the way to November and for four more years. 

The 'heart of the American people' lies in denial, I guess. And Pence and Trump want to "carry that message" - what a surprise.

Moving to a couple of highlights from the Sonofa Gov's interview, starting with his thoughts on president Trump and Secretary Azar and what they're saying now. 

...they're saying what they said 3 months ago. They're basically in denial about the problem. They don't want to tell the American people the truth and they don't want to have any federal response except 'supporting the states, supporting the states.' I heard that and I understood where they were. I didn't need to torture the rhetoric. I knew what they were saying. 'You're on your own.' It's not a good feeling, but it's sort of liberating. In New York we just handled it totally differently, Chuck. We handled it on our own. Communication, clear, as you mentioned, every day. Then, we came up with a plan and did the testing and did the isolation and that makes a difference.

And on what he'd say if Florida's Gov. DeSantis or Texas' Gov. Abbott call him up and ask him for help, for recommendations?

... This is New York, we're proactive. My team has called their teams and said, can we help? When we were in trouble, Chuck, we had states all across the nation who came to help us. We had 30,000 volunteers from across the United States who came to help us. I called those states. I said any way we can help. We've gone through it. We have the equipment, we have the staff, we have the testing protocols, we have the testing software, we have the tracing program...that's the right thing to do from a community point of view and a citizenry point of view.

He's not just being a nice guy - he is the Sonofa Gov, after all. 

There's also a parochial interest which is if these states keep going up, we are going to have a national crisis like we have never seen. They said this was the way to help the economy by reopening and it's been the exact opposite. Every time the virus goes up, the stock market goes down. If those states continue to increase, you'll see it go all across the nation. You'll see New York on the rise again and you'll see the other states starting to go up even more.

As a New Yorker, I can saw no one I know is at all interested in that.

During her visit, Speaker Pelosi talked about the virus, saying for one thing we need to pass the HEROES Act, which has yet to be taken up by the Senate. 

A major pillar of it is to open our economy by testing, testing, testing, tracing, treating, isolating, wearing masks, washing your hands. There is a way to do it, and instead of what the administration did, deny, delay, death. We have to -- it's time for this administration to take this seriously. As Dr. Fauci said, we have a serious problem ahead. Take this seriously. We are 4% of the world's population... 25% of the cases and the deaths, 25%. We have the worst record of any country in the world. And the president says we're making progress or whatever. So, this is -- this is life and death...We don't have a vaccine, and we don't have a cure. God willing and science-enabling, we will sometime soon. But until we do, we have the tools to halt... the growth of this.

George referenced the NY Times report that says "American intelligence officials have concluded that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing coalition forces in Afghanistan, including targeting American troops. The intelligence finding was briefed to President Trump, and the White House National Security Council the problem at an interagency meeting in late March. Officials developed a menu of potential options along with an escalating series of sanctions, but the White House has yet to authorize any step."

He asked Pelosi, a member of the Gang of Eight that gets this kind of intelligence briefing, whether she was aware of the reports. No, she said, and they've called for a report to Congress on it. And, she added, "This is as bad as it gets, and yet the president will not confront the Russians" and, she said, whether Trump was briefed or not, "his administration knows and ... some of our allies" also have been briefed. 

...I don't know what the Russians have on the president, politically, personally, financially, or whatever it is, but he - he wants to ignore, he wants to bring them back to the G8 despite the annexation of Crimea and invasion of Ukraine, despite what they yielded to him in Syria, despite his intervention into our election which is well documented by our intelligence community, and despite now possibly this allegation, which we should have been briefed on.

George asked her to explain how the info could be in Trump's daily intelligence briefing, but he didn't know about it, or that he might not have read it.

Because the president wants to ignore any allegation against Russia... This is totally outrageous. You would think that the minute the president heard of it he would want to know more instead of denying that he knew anything.

Now, if in fact -- we'll find out he was briefed and it was in his daily brief -- but if it were not, what does that say about the concern that those who briefed the president have about not going anywhere near the Russia issue with this president?

This is appalling. This is beyond, amid -- well, the list is a long one in terms of his ignoring of what Russia has done. You see what he was -- it is a gift to Russian to diminish our leadership in NATO, diminish our troops in Germany, all the gifts to Putin.

Something is very wrong here. But this must have an answer.

Something is very wrong here, indeed, if our allies have this intelligence, but the president does not, or denies he does, and the folks in Congress who are supposed to have it, don't.  And something is also very wrong if our Intelligence folks are making stuff like this up, or passing information to the press that they're not passing on to the president.

Lots to mull over, which I expect you'll do behind your mask, in socially distanced conversations, or just by yelling solo from your balcony, roof, or window. I'll have more on the coronavirus in this week's Extra Credit, coming tomorrow.

See you around the virtual campus.

In Case You Missed it (v42)

It was a slow week...my brain fries a little when the humidity and the temperature feel like they're within single digits of each other, which is how most of last week felt.

I do somehow have a dozen posts in my drafts folder, so I can assure you my intentions were good, even if my follow-through stinks.

Here's what you missed if you were socially distancing on a beach, in a park, or just hanging out in your backyard with a cool, wet towel draped over your head and a frosty beverage in your hand. 

The week started with lots of conversations about John Bolton and his book filling the Sunday School classrooms, including the one at This Week with George, with John Karl sitting in. Among his guests? Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), who was one of the House impeachment managers.

Karl then asked whether John Bolton was right in his criticism about how the House handled the impeachment, keeping it so narrowly focused. That's a no.

Not at all. John Bolton is a political opportunist and a profiteer. He had the opportunity to step forward and participate in the House impeachment inquiry and share any information he had about wrongdoing by president Trump and other members of his administration, and he declined. 

Bolton said it was because the House messed up the impeachment; I think Jeffries is right. 

In our Extra Credit post, we spent time with Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday. I've gotta tell you, I give him props when he deserves them, and his conversations with advisors Symone Sanders (Biden campaign) and Mercedes Schlapp (Trump campaign) qualify. Both of the staffers seemed more interested in giving speeches than answering questions, although Schlapp tried to, at least a little, on this one. 

On all of the top officials who are questioning the president's fitness for office, not just John Bolton: 

Look, these are individuals who did -- did not agree with the president's policies when it came to foreign policy in general. And so, at the end of the day, it's not Rex Tillerson or John Kelly or Secretary Mattis who make these decisions. It's President Trump. And (he) is going to listen to his advisors at the end of the day, but he's the ultimate decision-maker when it comes to foreign policy...

The res of the answer was all blah blah blah, which pretty much sums up both interviews.

What was happening for Wondering on Wednesday?  Well, there's concern with the Trump administration's decision to end testing support at the end of the month, including for states like Texas which are in the middle of a COVID-19 outbreak. Trump wanted to end it back in April, but cooler heads prevailed back then.

Both of the Lone Star State's senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, are asking for the support to be continued. Here's what Cornyn said. 

It’s pretty clear to me, and I think it’s clear to all of us, that with the uptick of cases, now is not a time to retreat from our vigilance in testing. I believe that they need to extend that federal support in Texas, at least until we get this most recent uptick in cases addressed. 

And I have to wonder, how does Cornyn not know that if we just stop testing, we'll stop seeing an uptick in cases?

And then it was TGIF time.  Among other things, I had some of those good news stories from the corona files, including a story about a Scots granny who raised a boatload of money for the National Health Service - fun stuff!  And, of course, to balance things out, there was news from the Fed, and from the EU, and about Mike Pence's uncanny ability to not answer questions, there was this. 

Are you a dead person? If so, you might want to look for your stimulus payment - it could be waiting for you!  That's right - around $1.4B was sent to 1.1M people who are no longer with us. We learned this from a GAO report, which said, in part 

Treasury and IRS did not use the death records to stop payments to deceased individuals for the first three batches of payments because of the legal interpretation under which IRS was operating. 

I suspect that'll be fixed before any other direct payments go out to people again.

So, there you go -- all caught up with last week's posts. I'll be back later with Sunday School, and hoping this week to clear out that drafts folder.  

TGiF 6/26/20

Well, looky here -- another Friday already!

Let's take a peek at just a slice of what's going on out there, shall we?

For starters, the Federal Reserve did some foot-putting-down this week. According to an article in the New York Times,  the country's biggest banks are barred from buying back their own stocks or increasing dividend payments in the 3rd quarter.

The decision to limit payouts is an admission by the Fed that large financial institutions, while far better off than they were in the financial crisis, remain vulnerable to an economic downturn unlike any other in modern history. With virus cases across the United States still surging and business activity subdued, it remains unclear when and how robustly the economy will recover.

There's some other stuff in there, too - more thinking and planning from the banks, some additional stress testing, and whatnot.

Are you a dead person? If so, you might want to look for your stimulus payment - it could be waiting for you!  That's right - around $1.4B was sent to 1.1M people who are no longer with us. We learned this from a GAO report, which said, in part

Treasury and IRS did not use the death records to stop payments to deceased individuals for the first three batches of payments because of the legal interpretation under which IRS was operating. 

I suspect that'll be fixed before any other direct payments go out to people again.

The European Union has gone and done it, they did: most travelers from the US will be barred from entering the bloc when they reopen next week.  The article highlights that Europe will allow outsiders to begin entering again on July 1, but the US and Russia are now among the nations considered too risky because they have not controlled the coronavirus outbreak.

By contrast, travelers from more than a dozen countries that are not overwhelmed by the coronavirus are set to be welcomed when the bloc reopens after months of lockdown on July 1. The acceptable countries include China - but only if China allows European Union travelers to visit as well, the officials said. 

It's some kind of interesting karma, don't you think, after we shut down travel from Europe back in March?

What brought Walmart and the Mississippi Baptist Convention together? The Mississippi state flag, that's what. The retailer says it will no longer display it and that not doing so is "consistent with Walmart's position not to sell merchandise with the confederate flag," while the Baptists said

While some may see the current flag as a symbol of heritage, a significant portion of our state sees it as a relic of racism and a symbol of hatred. The racial overtones of the flag's appearance make this a moral issue. 

And Vice President and vote-by-mail fraudster Mike Pence, at the first White House Coronavirus Task Force press conference in a nearly two months, said that holding rallies in the middle of a pandemic, and not wearing masks when you do that, is freedom of speech and peaceable assemblage and oh, by the way, there's an election coming up. This is one of those cases where the last should be first, I think.

On to some good news:

• A 90-year-old woman named Margaret Payne from Sutherland, Scotland, climbed 2,398 feet - the height of Suilven mountain, which she climbed as a child - by walking up her stairs 282 times. Over the 73 days it took her to complete the climb, she raised $521,000 for the National Health Service.
• Ashanti Palmer, who was the valedictorian of her class, graduated this year having had perfect attendance forever. Seriously, she never missed a day of school from pre-K through 12th grade. She figured it out in 10th grade that she hadn't missed a single day, and then worked to keep her streak alive.  Headed to RPI to study biomedical engineering and medicine, she's gotten more than $430,000 in scholarships to pay for college.
• In an amazing case of generosity and DNA, Terri Herrington donated one of her kidneys to a man who had received Herrington's husband's pancreas and kidney 16 years earlier. Their story is heartwarming, for sure. 
• Mary Trump, niece of the president, might be allowed to publish her book after all. Seems her father, Robert, tried to block it, but Judge Peter J. Kelly said he had no jurisdiction over the family feud. Her father's lawyer has said he'll shop around for a different court to file a new lawsuit. The book, if you want to put it on your to-read list in the event Ms. Trump is successful in fighting off her father, is 'Too Much and Never Enough.'

TGIF, everyone. 

Wondering on Wednesday(v213)

Ready... Set... Wonder!

Fair warning, this'll likely be all over the map - it'll be a miracle if anything flows with what came before or comes after it, just saying. So, where do we start?  

Lots of people have been posting a meme suggesting that if we just turned off the media for 30 days, the world would be a better place. I disagree, on principle, but I do have to wonder, how on earth is the Jerry Springer show still on television?  I was channel-surfing yesterday in our unairconditioned house, trying to find something soothing to nudge me into nap-land, and stumbled upon an episode that was, um, well, the weirdest marriage proposal in the history of television, I'm sure. All I can tell you is, there were three women, a stripper pole, a kiddie pool, wrestling, some wardrobe malfunction pixelating, and the obligatory chanting, of course. So, getting back to the meme: yes, let's see if taking Springer off the air would help what ails our society. 

What else is going on? Oh -- let's talk about NASCAR and the noose investigation. Someone, NOT Bubba Wallace, found what they took to be a noose hanging in the garage stall assigned to Wallace, NASCAR's only black full-time driver. Now, in case you're wondering, yes, there WERE immediate comments about Wallace being "just another Jussie Smollett" and pictures of Wallace with Smollett's face superimposed on them, and lots of delightful comments from people -- all of that is to be expected.  At the conclusion of the investigation, NASCAR issued a statement. 

The FBI has completed its investigation at Talladega Superspeedway and determined that Bubba Wallace was not the target of a hate crime. The FBI report concludes, and photographic evidence confirms, that the garage door pull rope fashioned like a noose had been positioned there since as early as last fall. This was obviously well before the 43 team’s arrival and garage assignment. We appreciate the FBI’s quick and thorough investigation and are thankful to learn that this was not an intentional, racist act against Bubba. We remain steadfast in our commitment to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for all who love racing.

And so, what's the wondering? Well, I'm wondering whether we should hold any of the "just another Jussie Smollett" crowd accountable for their comments, and ask them for an apology?  And then, I realized, if I were going to do that, I'd be at it for a really long time... and my chances of success are about as low as that bar people set for the president.

Hey, maybe I can get this post flowing after all... Speaking of the president, how about that "slow down testing - he's only kidding - he's picking on the media who won't report on how much testing we're doing- I don't kid" stuff? I mean, who the heck should we listen to here, I wonder? And another thing I wonder, how much would you have to be paid to get up, go to work, defend your boss's insane comment, and then have him basically say that you are the liar when he doubles down on what he said in the first place?  Honestly, I can't think of a number that I'd accept for doing that.

But someone has a number in mind, I guess - and it must be being met, right? I mean, Kellyanne Conway is still there, working for Trump. Back in March, someone told her that "White House staffers" have referred to the coronavirus as the "Kung flu" which she said was highly offensive and wrong, and she (rightfully, in my opinion) asked for the names of the staffers involved.  Fast forward to June, and now instead of saying it's highly offensive, it's just the president's way of saying that the virus originated in China. What compels people to do this, to put themselves through this, I wonder?

Oh -- one more thing on testing, before we go. Seems that the Trump administration is planning on ending support for community testing sites in Texas and other states. According to the linked article from TPM, there was an effort back in April to end the support for the sites, but "after a public outcry" support was extended until the end of this month. And out of the original 41 sites, there are now only 13, including seven in Texas, one of the hardest hit states right now.  

Both of the Lone Star State's senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, are asking for the support to be continued. Here's what Cornyn said.

It’s pretty clear to me, and I think it’s clear to all of us, that with the uptick of cases, now is not a time to retreat from our vigilance in testing. I believe that they need to extend that federal support in Texas, at least until we get this most recent uptick in cases addressed.

And I have to wonder, how does Cornyn not know that if we just stop testing, we'll stop seeing an uptick in cases?

What's got you wondering tonight?

Sunday School Extra Credit 6/21/20

In yesterday's Sunday School, we heard from Reps. Adam Schiff and Hakeem Jeffries, as well as from Preet Bharara, with most of the conversation centered on the firing of Geoffrey Berman, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and on John Bolton's book. 

For your Extra Credit this week, we're going to look at the view from Fox News Sunday, where Chris Wallace talked to representatives from the Biden and Trump campaigns, about Trump's failed Tulsa Million-MAGA-Rally and more.  Right off the bat, I want to include this reporting from Mark Meredith, which was part of the opening of the show. 

Inside the Bank of Oklahoma Center, supporters filled about two-thirds of the arena, with many empty seats in the upper deck...

(Photo: Patrick Semansky, AP)

Meredith's arena being two-thirds full estimation is clearly optimistic; of the 19,000 available seats, only about 6,200 had butts in them. And the fact that the empty seats are blue? Well, let's just say the view from the president's perspective must have been frightening, and I'm sure a contributor to how he looked when he got back home. 

Joining Wallace yesterday were Symone Sanders, a senior advisor to the Biden campaign, and Mercedes Schlapp, who holds a similar position with the Trump campaign. 

Here are some excerpts from Sanders giving campaign speeches in response to questions, starting with Trump's rally. 

...I think the most damning thing from that rally... was the president's admission that he, quote/unquote, said to his people to slow down the testing. This is an appalling attempt to lessen the numbers only to make him look good. And so, I think that's what will be remembered long after (the) debacle of a rally...

On the 'double standard' of complaining about the rally and coronavirus, but not complaining about protests and the coronavirus:

There is no double standard here... the American people have the right to go out and raise their voices. The difference here is... we are talking about the president...holding a rally, not following their own precautions that his own public health officials have put out... the president has to lead, Chris, and president Trump has demonstrated so many times, in every sense of the word, that he is unable to do so. 

On why Biden didn't caution protesters about the potential for spreading the coronavirus:

I'm not sure what you're asking or what you're suggesting. Look, Vice President Biden has really exhibited leadership on this issue...you have seen Vice President Biden go back out onto the actual campaign trail and our events are safe. They are socially distant. They adhere with the CDC guidelines.

On Biden's 'reclusivity' - staying Delaware, very few socially distanced events, and so on:

...we have adjusted to this new normal like most people in America...just because we are campaigning virtually does not mean we are not meeting actual voters across the country.... the reality is, what we have been doing it following CDC guidelines. 

On why no press conference for 80 days: 

...as many of you -- many of y'all in the national press and the beltway press are well aware, we take pride in prioritizing local media. And so, the Vice President is going local media interviews. He's doing national media interviews and he is taking questions from reporters. 

On whether Biden contributes to the conversation that he's not up to the challenge of the campaign by staying home:

This is just despicable, Chris, honest. It truly is. The fact that folks are parroting this - you, just unfounded salacious lie from the president and his campaign that Vice President Biden isn't up to the challenge. He's absolutely up to it... 

And, for campaign blah blah blah from the Trump side of here are highlights from the interview with Schlapp, starting, again, with the pitiful rally attendance:

Let me explain. When it comes to understanding how the rallies work, it's a first-come, first-served basis. Basically, what the 1 million RSVPs include are -- it's an opportunity for us to gather data, to get information, obviously.  So the key here that that's -- that is important is to understand -- and I had this with my own personal family who lives not far away from Tulsa, that they were concerned. There were factors involved, like they were concerned about the protesters who were coming in. There were protesters who blocked the MAGAs. And so we saw that have an impact in terms of people coming to the rally.  

On the Fox polling showing that by wide margins, people think Biden respects racial minorities and Trump does not: 

I don't know how that's even possible because the -- here we -- if you want to see the record of Joe Biden, it's one in which he proudly embraced segregationists. I mean even his colleagues, like Senator Kamala Harris, look, basically accused him of being a racist. He's one who gave the eulogy at Senator Robert Byrd's funeral... He did not provide any significant change for the black community. In fact, he supported mass incarceration when it came to supporting the 1994 Crime Bill. This is in complete contrast to President Trump, who has been focused on uplifting the black community. Just this week he signed an executive order on the police reform where in essence he's ensuring that these police departments implement these best practices and they get incentive for this. 

On the recent resignation of Mary Elizabeth Taylor, one of the highest-ranking African Americans in the Administration, who said, "The president's comments and actions surrounding racial injustice in black Americans cuts sharply against her core values:" 

Well, I wish that Mary Elizabeth would listen to the president's speech following the tragedy of George Floyd's death where he said healing, not chaos, where he called for justice, were he brought in community leaders from the black community to -- to speak with them, to listen to them. Just yesterday I was with our coalition, our black voices coalition. These men and women who stand with President Trump because of what he has done to help the black community. 

On all of the top officials who are questioning the president's fitness for office, not just John Bolton: 

Look, these are individuals who did -- did not agree with the president's policies when it came to foreign policy in general. And so, at the end of the day, it's not Rex Tillerson or John Kelly or Secretary Mattis who make these decisions. It's President Trump. And (he) is going to listen to his advisors at the end of the day, but he's the ultimate decision-maker when it comes to foreign policy... You talk to Secretary Pompeo, you talk to Robert O'Brien, you talk to Secretary Esper, these are individuals who know that the president is focused on keeping America safe and ensuring that we keep working with our allies in all the areas of foreign policy, whether it be North Korea, whether it be the Middle East and being tough on Iran. 

And yes, in case you were wondering, Wallace called them both out for speechifying and not answering questions, particularly Schlapp, who is better at it than Sanders.

See you around the virtual campus.

Sunday School 6/21/20

Happy Father's Day, everyone.  Ready to dive in to the classrooms?  

CNN's State of the Union and Jake Tapper's conversation with Preet Bharara, CNN Senior Legal Analyst and former US Attorney from the Southern District of NY.

Bharara was there to talk about the firing of Geoffrey Berman, the most recent US Attorney for the SDNY. First off, he said he doesn't know if Berman will testify before any Congressional committees. Reflecting on his own experience after he was fired by Trump, he said that lots of folks wanted to hear from him, but the standard operating procedure is not to talk about ongoing investigations, even when you're no longer in office. 

And about impeaching Barr? He'll leave that up to Congress, but did say 

...the attorney general of the United States made a public misrepresentation about whether or not Geoff Berman as stepping down from office.  It was clearly not the case. It was clearly a falsehood... and I think that conduct alone shows there's some sort of unfitness for office... I know it's not the biggest thing in the world... but you make a representation that's not true, that's a problem for most people in any profession. It's a particular problem if you're the attorney general of the United States of America.

And Bharara said all of this probably stems from the president wanting Berman gone, and that it wasn't a case of the department losing confidence in Berman, since he was offered other positions within the DOJ.  And, 

Given that fact, and the weirdness of it, and all the other evidence that the president wasn't happy with how things were going in the Southern District, and wanting to make sure that they were stayed and they kept their place, stayed in their lane, that lane being loyalty to the president, I think it's a reasonable conclusion that the decision to get rid of Geoff Berman was not done in good faith.

Hard to disagree with him on that.

Chuck Todd had Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) on Meet the Press.  Schiff said he can't accept the explanation that Trump was "just trying to do a favor for a golfing buddy" by moving him to the US Attorney position in New York City,

given the pattern and practice of the president in seeking to use the justice system to reward friends, punish enemies, protest people he likes, and Bill Barr's willingness to carry that water for the president.

Schiff, like Rep. Jerry Nadler, who talked with Jake Tapper, said he hopes that Berman will testify before Congress. He also said 

It's, you know, I think, the most disastrous mismanagement of the Justice Department in modern memory. And like so much of what we have seen (with) this administration, it doesn't come as a surprise anymore. But yet, it's completely demoralizing to the people in the Department and dangerous to the rule of law. 

Moving on to Bolton, Schiff said he's seen the excerpts of the book, but hasn't read it yet - and "there's a tremendous amount to be disturbed about the substance of" the excerpts.

... we warned during the (impeachment) trial that you could only count on Donald trump to do what's right for him, not what's right for the country. And John Bolton says that is exactly this president's pattern and practice...

Todd reflected back on a pre-impeachment conversation he had with Schiff, about Bolton and not forcing him to testify, and he wondered if Schiff regretted not having fought harder to get Bolton's testimony in the House before voting on the Articles of Impeachment. Schiff said no.

I think, indeed, our decision has been vindicated by the fact that we are still in court now over a year later trying to get (Don) McGahn to testify. Bolton said he would sue us if we subpoenaed him. We would still be trying to get John Bolton's testimony today. 

And, he said, the House "made the case" when they urged the Senate to call Bolton during the trial, that "the senators would one day have to explain why they didn't want to hear from him when they had the opportunity. " 

He also said Bolton lacked the "basic courage and patriotism" and that it was "only greed that made him come forward in this book..."  It's hard to disagree with Schiff, too.

Finally, a quick check-in with Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), who talked with Jon Karl on This Week with George Stephanopoulos. Here, too, the conversation started out with the Geoffrey Berman thing.  

Karl wondered if he thought that Berman would actually testify. Jeffries said he hoped at some point the Judiciary Committee would hear from him,

because I think he has a lot to say about a continuing pattern of chaos, crisis and corruption that we have seen from the Trump administration from the very beginning until this very day.

Karl pointed out that the president "gets to hire, gets to choose, nominate, appoint, in the case of acting US attorneys" - so doesn't he also have the right to fire them?  Jeffries pointed to the "long tradition...of there being no political interference" between the executive and the DOJ,

which is the primary vehicle at the federal level for ensuring that there's equal protection under the law, liberty and justice for all, anchored in the principle that we are a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, not a government of a dictator or a monarch or a king.

He added that Nadler has the "full support" of the Speaker on wanting to have a hearing on this type of interference between the White House and Justice. 

Karl then asked whether John Bolton was right in his criticism about how the House handled the impeachment, keeping it so narrowly focused. That's a no.

Not at all. John Bolton is a political opportunist and a profiteer. He had the opportunity to step forward and participate in the House impeachment inquiry and share any information he had about wrongdoing by president Trump and other members of his administration, and he declined. 

And, he said, it was the Senate that committed malpractice in terms of acquitting Trump, and "now it's in the hands of the American people.

Karl's final question: If the Dems retain the House, should Nancy Pelosi step aside so there could be a black Speaker of the House? 

Not at all. Nancy Pelosi has done a phenomenal job as speaker leading our 'for the people' agenda... She has been a legendary speaker working with a historically diverse caucus, leading us forward. And I look forward to her continuing to do so in the next Congress.

See you around campus, in accordance with all applicable CDC guidelines, of course. 

In Case You Missed it (v41)

Last week was a crazy one, for sure, and in case you missed anything, here's your week in review. 

The Sunday School classrooms were full of talk about the ongoing protests, and about the ways the establishment can or should respond to them. Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), who's leading Senate's efforts on police reform, sat down with Chuck Todd; here's a bit of their conversation on holding police accountable, and on how we take care of bad cops. 

I would be interested in decertification of officers, the left says that's a union issue that's kind of hard to get at. Qualified immunity on the right, that's an issue that most Republicans don't like at all, to include myself. So the question is, is there a path forward that we take a look at the necessity of eliminating bad behavior within our law enforcement community? ... I think we'll find that. I'm not sure that it's qualified immunity.

Also covered in the post? Martha Raddatz and Seattle's Police Chief Carmen Best.

For this week's Extra Credit, I covered HUD Secretary Dr. Ben Carson's chats with George Stephanopoulos Chris Wallace. I had hoped for a little more meat from both of these interviews, and for an ABC - Fox perspective opportunity, but Carson doesn't really lend himself well to that type of thing.  

Here's an excerpt of the part of the interview where George tried to to get him to talk about stuff Trump says - in this case, his comments about dominating the streets. 

George, never one to drop a bone, asked again if Trump's talk of dominating the streets, or saying he'll send in the troops - which admittedly seem 'combative' - were "appropriate right now." Carson dodged again, saying there are lots of ways to express things, and then he did what everyone does - explain what the president meant with his inflammatory remarks. Trump was talking about not submitting to anarchy, see? And we all agree with that, right?

We might not all express it the same way, but we would all agree with it. And so we've got to begin to look at the big picture, what is the thing we're aiming to do, not what someone said this day or that day.

He was equally obsequious in his Fox News Sunday interview.  

In a Shots Fired entry, I took a look at some comments people have made lately on systemic racism, which in reality extends far beyond the issue of law enforcement - that's a deadly example, but it's only a part of the problem. There was little surprise, really, that white folks saw little indication of systemic racism, but the explanations?  Those were, um, interesting. 

Well, I don't believe in systemic racism. I think the American system is the best system ever devised for mankind, for history. We are liberty, we are equality, we are fairness, we have come a long way in this country...Here's a thought: President Obama, the first black president was elected twice, and he got 79 million white votes - 79 million in two elections. Now therefore, I find it hard to understand something called 'systemic racism. ~ Larry Kudlow, White House economic advisor, June 2020.

I still can't even with that comment, and I've read it dozens of times.

Moving on to the weekly Wondering on Wednesday - and I'm so grateful that there's a day set aside for wondering, aren't you? - I looked at the concept of ignoring things to make them go away. There are lots of real examples of that  - the pandemic and now racism being two - I tried to think of other things to which we could apply this concept.

How about poverty... Can we ignore that? I mean, we've been talking about it to some degree for quite a while, just like we've been talking about racism in some way, shape or form for some time. Maybe with a concerted effort, we can ignore the living daylights out of it, and make it go away? 

Or cancer... Let's ignore that, instead of trying to treat people into remission, instead of spending all that money on research and trying to drill down into treating various cancers based on genetic markers and what not - we can just stop that, and we'll stop cancer, right?

Ignorance is powerful, for sure, but curative? Probably not...

Next up? I played the #throwbackThursday game and reposted a 'four years ago today'  entry saying Donald Trump should resign. I based the post on the same logic used by a Fox guy who said that Pope Francis should resign - he's an outlier, does not toe the party line, and so on. I was pretty smart back then, with my logic, but unfortunately Trump did not listen to me.

Lincoln, Reagan and Goldwater are rolling in unison in their graves; I suggest there are Republicans wishing they too were dead, so as to avail themselves of the same opportunity. 

He does not care how he defies, and defiles, the Republican party and the believers. While the party’s authority rests on their ability to promote their message, their beliefs, their positions, and to have those supported by any who would wear their colors into battle, Trump has turned that on its head, to the party's peril. He simply does not care.

His words and actions demonstrate a lack of faith in the party and its believers. He’ll take their money,  and their endorsements, yet he treats leaders and followers alike even more poorly than he claims to have been treated by the rest of us. In doing so, he has brought the party’s very legitimacy into question.

Too bad the Rs didn't take advantage of the impeachment to take back their party, right?

On Juneteenth, I turned to self-reflection, and examined My Middle-aged White Lady Perspective on racism, and privilege, and on myself.  

I've talked about some of that in this blog, in the past, and I'm not proud of some of the posts I've written - because I can see my privilege showing, like a slip hanging below the hem of my dress back in the day. 

I was too eager to see both sides of the story, and not hold both sides equally accountable. 

I was quicker to judge one side and feel myself being dragged kicking and screaming towards a more balanced position, by the time I got to the last paragraph where I'd throw up my hands and wish for something better. 

I would not commit to doing anything to make me better, to make things better, even in my own little circle, much less in the larger scheme of things.

I can do better. I need to do better.

And, I closed the week with a rambling-yet-connected TGIF entry, where just about everything flowed really nicely. Here's a segue from John Bolton and his book to Mick Mulvaney and his perspective on 'appropriateness' - fun stuff.

And speaking of John Bolton, Mick Mulvaney - remember him, the acting chief of staff who was exiled to Ireland to serve as chief groundskeeper or something at Trump's golf course?  Among other things, Mulvaney said something to the effect that no one else who was in The Room Where it Happened mentioned anything inappropriate. And I had to laugh at that - as if Mulvaney, Pompeo, or others still in Trump's universe would recognize anything as being in appropriate? I mean, they thought an obvious quid pro quo was nothing other than a perfect phone call, for Pete's sake.

 So, there it is - last week's veritable pastiche. 

Enjoy the day; I'll be back later with Sunday School. 

TGIF 6/19/20

Oh, what a week it was... Here's just a slice.

Take John Bolton. Liar, or teller of the most secrety of our secrety stuff? Money-hungry man without a conscience, or money-hungry man without a conscience? A would-be do-gooder, if only there'd been a subpoena, or a man who doesn't really give a rat about our country and protecting it from the Trumpeters?

Could he be all of those rolled into one? Seems like the answer is yes, or sorta kinda maybe. Here's one take on it, from The Atlantic. The author, Thomas Wright, gives a litany of reasons (and likely not a full list, it sounds) of why he's no fan of Bolton, only to land here:

But I have to acknowledge that Bolton behaved honorably as national security adviser when he told his staff to report illegality to the White House lawyers. He also defended those who served under him against Trump loyalists. He is right to publish his book. If he gives a full accounting of what he saw as national security adviser—and from a recent article in The New York Times and an excerpt in The Wall Street Journal, it seems he might have—he deserves credit for it regardless of what he did or did not do during the impeachment hearings and trial. He will have done the nation a service.

ABC's Martha Raddatz has Bolton exclusively, Sunday night; check your local listings.

And speaking of John Bolton, Mick Mulvaney - remember him, the acting chief of staff who was exiled to Ireland to serve as chief groundskeeper or something at Trump's golf course?  Among other things, Mulvaney said something to the effect that no one else who was in The Room Where it Happened mentioned anything inappropriate. And I had to laugh at that - as if Mulvaney, Pompeo, or others still in Trump's universe would recognize anything as being in appropriate? I mean, they thought an obvious quid pro quo was nothing other than a perfect phone call, for Pete's sake.

And speaking of Pete's sake, here's the question NBC's Peter Alexander asked at the presser today.

Why does the president keep hiring people who are dumb as a rock, overrated, way over their heads, whack' and incompetent?

The answer, from Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany? Trump likes "countervailing opinions" and likes to balance his own opinion with those who disagree with him, similar to Lincoln's Team of Rivals model. Except that the words Alexander used in his question are Trump's words, used to describe former staffers - and they did actually apply to Bolton, she added.

And, McEnany went on to say that even the FAILING NEW YORK TIMES!!! which is often FAKE NEWS!!! and which NOBODY READS ANYWAY!! because they're losing subscribers left and right has criticized Bolton. Except, I have to correct the part about the Times losing subscribers left and right - because they didn't have any 'right' ones, right? I mean left? Or something?

Mulvaney, for his part, felt safe in saying that the president isn't good at hiring people.

And speaking of the president, he's having his love-fest tomorrow in Tulsa OK, against the advice of Drs. Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx, according to this NBC News report. I guess the docs are part of the 'team of rivals' on the White House Coronavirus Task Force?  Anyway, a couple of days ago, Fauci said he would not ("of course not") attend any of Trump rallies, being in a high-risk category, and he added

outside is better than inside, no crowd is better than crowd, and crowd is better than big crowd.

And speaking of crowds (sheesh, this whole post reads like an ad for Segues, doesn't it?), the president had this to say about what might happen in Tulsa.

And, now we learn how it will be "a much different scene" - some 250 National Guard soldiers will be there, unarmed except for shields, batons, and pepper spray, to help keep the peace. Of course, it could have been a very much different scene entirely, but the Oklahoma Supreme Court refused to issue an injunction keeping the rally from going on as planned, saying there was no law requiring masks or physical distancing.

And speaking of the National Guard, it seems some of the folks who were called to duty helping out with coronavirus efforts will be one day short of the 90-day deployment requirement for benefit eligibility.

The issue arose after the administration decided to end federal deployment orders for National Guard members on June 24. The decision would leave some who were placed under federal orders in late March just short of reaching a 90-day threshold that would allow them to collect retirement benefits early, before turning 60. The date also would cut short access to some GI Bill benefits, though that could be earned later.

Which stinks, especially when "we love the military." I can't imagine that no one knew that picking this specific date - a seemingly random Wednesday - would ensure that so many folks who put themselves on the line when asked to, who were away from their families helping protect the country from an invisible Chinese enemy, were going to be treated this way.

I'll leave you with this closing thought. My Sonofa Gov, Andrew Cuomo, is ending his daily coronavirus briefings. No word on whether he's also ending his participation in the Cuomo Brothers show on CNN.

TGIF, everyone.

My Middle-aged White Lady Perspective: Juneteenth

I'm not going to pretend - not even for a minute - that I know everything there is to know about Juneteenth.  What I do know is from the 30,000-foot level, which, as a particular executive I used to deal with always said, was "plenty enough detail for the moment."  

Juneteenth commemorates the day that Union soldiers made it to Texas and informed the slaves there that they were free, that they had been emancipated by President Abraham Lincoln - nearly two years earlier. That should be enough to give one pause, don't you think? You're free, no longer a slave, and it took that long for you to find out? (You can learn more here, if you're interested, or really, just do an Internet search. There's plenty of information out there.)

As a middle-aged white lady, I've done some soul-searching on racism, and tolerance, and bias, and prejudice and yes, on white privilege, over the years, admittedly most often when we hear about a black man, a black child, a black young adult, being killed by a white man in a police officer's uniform. I've talked about some of that in this blog, in the past, and I'm not proud of some of the posts I've written - because I can see my privilege showing, like a slip hanging below the hem of my dress back in the day. 

• I was too eager to see both sides of the story, and not hold both sides equally accountable. 
• I was quicker to judge one side and feel myself being dragged kicking and screaming towards a more balanced position, by the time I got to the last paragraph where I'd throw up my hands and wish for something better
• I would not commit to doing anything to make me better, to make things better, even in my own little circle, much less in the larger scheme of things.

I was - I am - a middle-aged white lady.  And until I went back and read some of my old posts, I didn't realize how much of a one I was.  Which is funny - curious/interesting/hmm... funny, not haha/laugh out loud funny, because I know I've talked about racism and bias and about trying to change my perceptions. I guess I just never put those posts here, or I have to think differently about how I tagged them.

Which brings me to the point of this: thinking differently. Challenging myself to think differently, or to at least think like the person I think I thought like, if that makes any sense at all?

A former co-worker sent me the information below. We've been discussing #BlackLivesMatter and racism and white privilege on social media lately. Most of the time we find common ground - sometimes it takes a bit - even though we have different perspectives. 

Her perspective includes being in the south, a black woman in a Mercedes with out-of-state-plates, driven by her black boyfriend, being on pins and needles as they were followed - for miles - by a white cop who only stopped following them when they crossed into another state. I will never have that experience - and she shouldn't have had it.

It's a simple list - only ten things - that white people can do to celebrate Juneteenth. 

Black and Brown people are calling on white people to stand with them and take action. They’ve been fighting too hard and too long. ​​​It made us think about what do we want white people to do to celebrate Juneteenth? 

10 Things We Want White People to Do to Celebrate Juneteenth

1. We want white people to deeply consider the wound of racism on the hearts of every Black American.

2. On Juneteenth we want white people to read, study Black history, Black poets, Black leaders, Black achievements.

3. We want white people to do things about racism as readily as they do things for their own children.

4. We want white people to make a list of resolutions, of promises, of vows about what will it take for them to use their power, their privilege, their platforms of power to give space to Black and Brown leaders.

5. We want them to find an accountability partner and make the list public of what actions they will take. They CAN do this on social media. A lot of those actions will be giving up privilege and making room for folks who they may not have noticed have no room at all.

6. We want white people to stop talking about how uncomfortable it is to talk about racism or police violence.

7. We want white people to stop being afraid of their own internalized white supremacy. I want them to search and look within at hard facts of thought and deed. Who cares about being comfortable? What about being true, brave and real instead?

8. Then we want white people to stop talking and listen to what needs to be done.

9. We want white people to plan on spending time in spaces with folks who are not like you.

10. We want white people to hold other white people accountable not on social media, instead with measured voices that call folks in to look and wrestle – to change. We are interested in courageous conversations, in hearing folks out and in allowing themselves to feel terrible and to let that feeling be a crucible for change.

I've read the list more than once, and I will continue to read it, to find my place in it, starting at the top and working my way to the bottom. Because I can do more than just find the posts that I thought I wrote that describe the me I am today, not the me I was seven or six or five years ago. 

And if I find I'm not the person I think I am today - or, even if I am the person I think I am - I have a path forward. Not just for today, on Juneteenth , but for tomorrow and the day after and the days, weeks, months and years after that.  

I'll still be a middle-aged white lady, informed by my experiences, but I'll be a better one, I hope.