Quotes of the Day -- Presidential Debate Edition

After last evening's debacle of a debate, it seemed a good time to maybe quote some evaluations of it. Mind you, too, most of these are from conservative sources, too.

"I can’t say this any more clearly: Our democracy is in terrible danger....And that is why the only choice in this election is Joe Biden. The Democrats are not blameless when it comes to playing politics, but there is no equivalence to the Republicans. The Democratic Party sorted through all the choices, and, led by older Black men and women in South Carolina, rejected the Democratic socialist candidate and said they wanted a moderate unifier named Joe Biden.

The Republicans — who in the past voted for Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, sane conservatives who could be counted upon to uphold the common good — have done no such equivalent thing. They have fallen in line lock step behind a man who is the most dishonest, dangerous, meanspirited, divisive and corrupt person to ever occupy the Oval Office. And they know it. Four more years of Trump’s divide and rule will destroy our institutions and rip the country apart."  

--Thomas Frieman

After that fiasco, Biden should refuse to debate Trump again. The president was petulant and puerile, so what is the point? I wasn’t in the crowd of people who believed Joe Biden shouldn’t deign to debate President Trump, but put me in the crowd that believes he shouldn’t debate him again. Not after Tuesday night’s horror show: a disgrace to the format, an insult to the country, a nearly pointless 90 minutes. And, I should add, a degradation of the presidency itself, which Trump had degraded so thoroughly already.

--Frank Bruni, The New York Times

This debate was disgraceful and painful to watch; everyone knows the reason was Trump. The psychological effect of this debate will be fairly profound on the majority of Americans, which is, “I can’t bear four more years of this.” Trump is the most intensely unlikable candidate in American history, and that matters.

--Peter Wehner

Chris Wallace..."utterly failed at the job assigned to him, which was to make the president behave like a normal human for 90 minutes."

--Alyssa Rosenberg

"For all his heckling, shouting and nonsense talk, Trump made one thing perfectly clear: He’s getting ready to take his chaos and mayhem from the debate stage and use it to try to disrupt the election itself."

---Dana Milbank

"When faced with questions about his actual record and policy, Trump threw up word salads, switched topics, made scurrilous accusations and convinced any rational viewer he is in over his head. He mostly interrupted, repeatedly and falsely accusing Biden of harboring positions that his more progressive opponents in the Democratic primaries held. Trump was a walking Twitter feed — no facts, all bluster and all insults. Unfortunately, moderator Chris Wallace was never able to control Trump, so the debate devolved into constant interruption."

Chris Wallace "...should have halted the debate or cut Trump’s microphone until he agreed to abide by the rules. Trump’s strategy was to be so obnoxious and aggressive that he could avoid answering questions and defending his record. Trump’s job was to win over voters. It’s hard to believe anyone not already part of his cult would be persuaded to support a rude, blustering know-nothing."

--Jennifer Riubin

Let's do this, folks.  Vote. And vote blue.

86 45

BYEDON

Donald Trump: Russian Plant or Honestly Just That Stupid?

Statistics today, first, ladies and gentlemen, on this pandemic.

As of this moment, the United States of America has more confirmed deaths from this coronavirus pandemic than any other nation in the world.

More confirmed deaths than any other nation.

We have more than 1/4 of all the deaths in the world. Over 52,000 as of yesterday and there are approximately 200,000 deaths worldwide.

And the deaths in America from this are still climbing, keep that in mind.

China has a population of nearly 1.5 billion people. We have about 335 million citizens. But we have more, far more, of the total deaths from this pandemic than China or any other nation?

The "wealthiest nation in the world" has more deaths from this pandemic than any other nation and no way near enough protective equipment or, God knows, tests.

Then, with all this, a few days ago, our own President of the United States suggested, in the middle of one of his own daily press conferences on the coronavirus, that Americans inject disinfectants to treat themselves.

Americans Are Poisoning Themselves in Their Rush to Fight Virus

This is after the same President recommended Americans use a drug the medical field don't, in fact, recommend.

Trump recommends hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19

Our National Institute for Health had to come out against this advice.

NIH Panel Recommends Against Using Hydroxychloroquine

His own FDA, our Food and Drug Administration, also had to come out after, as other doctors did, and say don't, a few days ago.

FDA warns about use of hydroxychloroquine

Along with this is the fact that earlier in this President's administration, he also praised Russia's Vladimir Putin. And more than once.

Trump Praises Putin

And that's just a little bit of the evidence and information that brings me to my, this question.

Seriously, is Donald Trump a Russian plant in our nation, in our White House, our government?

Or is he just honestly this stupid?

Link:

Injections of Bleach? Beams of Light? Trump Is Self-Destructing Before Our Eyes

"'Twas the Eve of Impeachment..."

With kudos and many, many heartfelt thanks to Frank Bruni at our own New York Times.

’Twas the Eve of Impeachment

Finding verse in this curse.

’Twas the eve of impeachment, when all through the House

No Republicans wavered, each last one a louse.

The articles were drafted by Democrats with care

In hopes that a conscience would soon bloom there.

We pundits were tossing all steamed in our beds,

While Trump’s certain acquittal danced in our heads.

And I in frustration, feeling all solemn,

Wished I could capture my woe in a column,

When out on the web there arose such a clatter,

I signed in to Twitter to see what was the matter.

And there I beheld him, the master of lies,

Weaving fresh falsehoods, to no one’s surprise.

He savaged the Bidens, he smeared Adam Schiff,

And cycled through villains in a furious jiff,

Not to mention distractions, like the teeth of the Speaker.

Could a “leader” be cruder, could his morals be weaker?

So now he’s a dentist, in his all-knowing ways?

I prayed for deliverance one of these days.

When what to my cynical eyes did appear

But a raft of excuses pulled by mangy reindeer,

With a weasel-eyed driver, so meek and so zany,

I knew in a moment he must be Mulvaney.

More shameless than con men, the sycophants came,

And Trump gloated, so bloated, and called them by name:

“Now, Rudy! Now, Jared! Now, Lindsey and Mitch!

Please fly this democracy into a ditch!

It is how you will save me. It is how I prevail.

Or else I will join poor Paul in the jail.

That’s the toll of a presidency ended too soon,

So you must sing along to my favorite tune:

‘It’s a witch hunt! A hoax!’ Those are lyrics for me.

That’s the verse, that’s the chorus, for eternity.”

He was dressed in a necktie, from his jowls to his soles.

He had tanned beyond tanning. Imagine the moles.

His hair, how it swirled! His legs, how they splayed!

On such fishy foundations was his confidence laid.

And we couldn’t stop looking — not his fans, not his foes.

That was what he was after: the show of all shows.

Its plot strained belief. Its appeal tested reason.

Still it was soaring toward a second season.

The economy roared. The Democrats whimpered.

Vladimir chortled. Emmanuel simpered.

In the bag that Trump carried, he had goodies galore:

Lower taxes, the Dow, right-wing judges and more.

They weren’t for the many, they favored the few,

But that was obscured by the smoke that he blew.

All was fog, all was mist, all was boast, all was fiction,

As he hid his true airs with bad diet and diction.

He could do as he wanted and never know fear,

For an elf — and a savior! — named Barr hovered near.

And then there was Tucker and of course Hannity

To put an extra-fine gloss on insanity.

What great luck to discover a country so riven

You could smash it and rule it if suitably driven.

You could summon the Russians, you could bully Ukraine,

Just as long as you made “It’s fake news!” your refrain.

I cringed as I watched him and cried for us all,

Our values, our futures hijacked by his gall.

A last bid to preserve them was cause to impeach

But his party’s corruption put him beyond reach.

So then why all his thrashing? His howls of dejection?

It was just a performance for the next election.

It brought more donations. It rallied the base.

You could see, if you looked, a clear smirk on his face.

If you listened, you heard it: a lilt in his voice.

In drama like this, he would always rejoice.

So as history scarred him, he could nonetheless yell,

“Merry TrumpMas to all! I’m the king of this hell.”