Traitor In The White House? Or Just A Doofus?

A new Ipsos poll released by Reuters shows Trump losing badly, with just 38% of registered voters saying they intend to back him in November. Not exactly newsworthy. But what is is how undecideds and third-party backers split.

Reuters/Ipsos polling in 2016 found that support was evenly split that summer between Trump and then Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton among registered voters who had not backed a major party candidate. On Election Day, Trump won a majority of voters who said they decided in the final week.

This year, the poll found that 61% of undecided or third-party registered voters said they would support Biden if they had to choose, while 39% would vote for Trump.

Seventy percent of undecided or third-party registered voters say they disapprove of Trump’s performance in office and the same number said they think the country is headed on the wrong track. And 62% said they thought the U.S. economy was headed in the wrong direction.

Trump's response has been desperate, all about deceitful fear-mongering-- and dangerous for national unity, willing to rip apart the fabric of the country to try to persuade a few voters that Biden is an anarchist-backing socialist.




Yesterday, on Joe Madison's Sirius XM morning show, Bobby Rush (D-IL) responded to a question about Department iff Homeland Security thugs occupying Portland by telling Madison he believes Trump's reelection gameplay is "to instigate a race war. He wants to have black folks fighting white folks. So he can rise up and say, 'I'm the real Grand Wizard of the Klu Klux Klan and I'm the President. Re-elect me. That's what he's trying to do. He's trying to play to the fears, to the racial animus that exists among certain white people, and he will do everything and anything to do that, because he wants to be re-elected at all costs."

A day earlier Peter Wehner penned an essay for The Atlantic, Donald Trump is a Broken Man that everyone should read, especially people who missed the disastrous Fox News interview Trump did with Chris Wallace last Sunday. "At the conclusion of the interview," Wehner wrote, "Wallace asked Trump how he will regard his years as president. 'I think I was very unfairly treated,' Trump responded. 'From before I even won, I was under investigation by a bunch of thieves, crooks. It was an illegal investigation.' When Wallace interrupted, trying to get Trump to focus on the positive achievements of his presidency-- 'What about the good parts, sir?'-- Trump brushed the question aside, responding, 'Russia, Russia, Russia.' The president then complained about the Flynn investigation, the 'Russia hoax,' the 'Mueller scam' and the recusal by his then–attorney general, Jeff Sessions. ('Now I feel good because he lost overwhelmingly in the great state of Alabama,' Trump said about the first senator to endorse him in the 2016 Republican primary.)" What a small, sick, ugly man!

Trump is a psychologically broken, embittered, and deeply unhappy man. He is so gripped by his grievances, such a prisoner of his resentments, that even the most benevolent question from an interviewer-- what good parts of your presidency would you like to be remembered for?-- triggered a gusher of discontent.

But the president still wasn’t done. “Here’s the bottom line,” he said. “I’ve been very unfairly treated, and I don’t say that as paranoid. I’ve been very-- everybody says it. It’s going to be interesting to see what happens. But there was tremendous evidence right now as to how unfairly treated I was. President Obama and Biden spied on my campaign. It’s never happened in history. If it were the other way around, the people would be in jail for 50 years right now.”

Just in case his bitterness wasn’t coming through clearly enough, the president added this: “That would be Comey, that would be Brennan, that would be all of this-- the two lovers, Strzok and Page, they would be in jail now for many, many years. They would be in jail; it would’ve started two years ago, and they’d be there for 50 years. The fact is, they illegally spied on my campaign. Let’s see what happens. Despite that, I did more than any president in history in the first three and a half years.”

With that, the interview ended.

...The fact that he is devoid of any moral sensibilities or admirable human qualities-- self-discipline, compassion, empathy, responsibility, courage, honesty, loyalty, prudence, temperance, a desire for justice-- means he has no internal moral check; the question Is this the right thing to do? never enters his mind. As a result, he not only nurses his grievances; he acts on them. He lives to exact revenge, to watch his opponents suffer, to inflict pain against those who don’t bend before him. Even former war heroes who have died can’t escape his wrath.

So Donald Trump is a vindictive man who also happens to be commander in chief and head of the executive branch, which includes the Justice Department, and there is no one around the president who will stand up to him. He has surrounded himself with lapdogs.

But the problem doesn’t end there. In a single term, Trump has reshaped the Republican Party through and through, and his dispositional imprint on the GOP is as great as any in modern history, including Ronald Reagan’s.

...There were certainly ugly elements on the American right during the Reagan presidency, and Reagan himself was not without flaws. But as president, he set the tone, and the tone was optimism, courtliness and elegance, joie de vivre.

He has since been replaced by the crudest and cruelest man ever to be president. But not just that. One senses in Donald Trump no joy, no delight, no laughter. All the emotions that drive him are negative. There is something repugnant about Trump, yes, but there is also something quite sad about the man. He is a damaged soul.

In another time, in a different circumstance, there would perhaps be room to pity such a person. But for now, it is best for the pity to wait. There are other things to which to attend. The American public faces one great and morally urgent task above all others between now and November: to do everything in its power to remove from the presidency a self-pitying man who is shattering the nation and doesn’t even care.

Hardball by Nancy Ohanian

Another new poll just released, this one of likely Georgia voters, shows both Trump and enabler David Perdue both losing to utterly worthless Democratic candidates. Another one, by Quinnipiac of Texas voters, shows Trump losing there too! And, again, Trump's response: hideous and profoundly unpatriotic divisiveness. Ron Brownstein: "On one front, Trump is taking his confrontational approach toward big cities to an ominous new level by deploying federal law-enforcement officials to Portland and potentially other locales over the objection of local officials… On the other, Republican governors, especially but not exclusively across the Sun Belt, have repeatedly blocked mostly Democratic local leaders from locking down their communities, despite exploding caseloads in cities from Atlanta to Phoenix. The common thread in these twin confrontations is that they pit Republican officials who rely on support primarily from exurban, small-town, and rural voters against major metropolitan areas that favor Democrats. In the process, these Republicans-- Trump in particular-- may be hoping to rally their non-urban voter base by defining themselves explicitly in opposition to the cities." Trump is trying to split America while painting himself as a hero combating violent crime in fetid American cities filled with disloyal, threatening minorities.





In his new book, Traitor: A History of American Betrayal from Benedict Arnold to Donald Trump, set for publication in late October, days before the election, historian David Rothkopf wrote how "Trump is unfit in almost every respect for the high office he holds. But what distinguishes him from every other bad leader the U.S. has had is that he has repeatedly, egregiously, betrayed his country. Regardless of how Senate Republicans have let him off the hook, the facts available to the public show that Trump has met every necessary standard to define his behavior as traitorous. He has clearly broken faith with the people of the country he was chosen to lead, starting long before he took office, then throughout his time in the White House. And we may not yet have seen the last of his crimes. But the story we know so far is so outrageous and disturbing that it raises a question that has never before been presented in American history: is the president of the United States the greatest threat this country faces in the world?"

Rothkopf concludes that Trump and his many abettors have committed the highest-level, greatest, most damaging betrayal in the history of the country-- worse than Benedict Arnold, Aaron Burr and leaders of the Confederacy!

Crooked Chicago Pol Endorses Bloomberg

If this was still the 1960's-- when Bobby Rush was a co-founder of the Chicago chapter of the Black Panthers-- you might scratch your head and wonder how he could have endorsed a multi-billionaire former Republican mayor of New York who instituted a stop and frisk policy aimed directly at African-Americans. But over five decades have gone by and selling his endorsement to the highest bidder is exactly what anyone who's been paying attention would expect from uber-corrupt Chicago Congressman Bobby Rush today.

Lynn Sweet covered the endorsement announcement for the Chicago Sun Times this week and noted that Bloomberg, whose only endorsements have been bought-and-paid for, named Rush a national campaign co-chairman. "Rush," she wrote, told her that he was "impressed by Bloomberg’s approach to the 'economic discrimination in the black community' [and that] he will serve as a surrogate for Bloomberg and have 'influence into strategies.'" Rush is the fourth House member to endorse Bloomberg. The others are ex-Republican Harley Rouda (New Dem-CA), Blue Dog chieftain Stephanie Murphy (FL) and Max Rose (Blue Dog-NY), exactly the kind of corruption-oriented, right-of-center money-grubbers you would expect to gravitate to Bloomberg.

Blue America has endorsed Robert Emmons, Jr., the progressive young reformer who is taking on Rush this cycle. We asked him how he sees the endorsement. "Congressman Rush, like many Democrats at the time," he reminded us, "voted in favor of the 1994 Crime Bill. Also like many Democrats who voted for the bill, he later apologized for doing so. But nothing about his apology rings true after endorsing a Chicago mayoral candidate who wanted to use drones to monitor black and brown communities around Chicago, and now the presidential candidate responsible for implementing stop and frisk, Michael Bloomberg."

Emmons continued: "For months we have called attention to Rush’s corporate loyalty, and his endorsement to Mike Bloomberg follows a clear pattern. If Congressman Rush were to support a candidate because he truly believed that individual would work to empower our community, I would have no issue with it. But he has a history of moving where the money moves, and this is business as usual. There is nothing that myself and my team are more committed to than actual reform in our community, and we’ll keep fighting for Medicare for All, a Green New Deal and Restorative Justice. We’ll continue to support Bernie Sanders, a presidential candidate who supports true progressive reform through an agenda with far more to offer our district than Bloomberg. #NotMeUs #WeAreTheSolution"

If you'd like to help Emmons raise money to combat the Bloomberg-Rush machine, please consider tapping on the 2020 Chicagoland thermometer above and contributing what you can to his campaign.

Can Robert Emmons Do For Chicago's South Side What Obama Was Unable To Accomplish?

In the 1960s, Bobby Rush, now a 72 year old establishment congressman from Chicago's South Side (and the only person to ever beat Barack Obama in an election), founded the Chicago chapter of the Black Panthers. He completely abandoned radical politics in 1974 after his ill-fated run for the city council-- and never looked back. By the time Rush got to Congress in 1993-- by primarying an incumbent-- he was a self-described "deeply religious born-again Christian" and closer to a conservative Democrat than a progressive. In 2015 he endorsed Rahm Emanuel in his primary against Chuy Garcia. He rates high on the congressional corruption scale, having long funneled campaign money to his family-- like paying his wife $50,000 as a "consultant." He was caught taking bribes from multimillionaire businessman Joseph Stroud in return for helping Stroud's business interests in the telecom sector overseen by Rush's committee. Starting last year 15% of Rush's congressional salary is being garnished to repay more than $1 million he owes on a delinquent loans. And today, in one of the bluest districts in the country, Rush has a mediocre 89.09 Progressive Punch crucial vote score-- and a "B" rating. He has refused to co-sponsor AOC's Green New Deal resolution. His status quo politics doesn't make sense in IL-01, a district that craves fundamental change. And now he has a serious primary challenger: Robert Emmons, Jr. Please read his guest post below and consider contributing to his campaign by clicking on the new Chicagoland congressional thermometer below.





Let’s Give Our Youth A Reason To Trust
by Robert Emmons, Jr.
candidate for Congress, IL-01

My job as a social innovator requires me to be curious about everything. In social innovation, the question, “why” or “how” become tools rather than barriers. Those questions allow the observer to begin to truly build an understanding. One of the biggest mistakes you can make in the design process is to allow guesses to guide decisions. That is why before deciding to run for US Congress in Illinois’ First district, I decided to spend three month asking questions and building trust with my community.

Last weekend, while collecting petitions in Woodlawn, I met a group of young people who were hesitant to provide their signatures. Most of those who decline to sign our petitions might be in a rush or simply not interested giving me their support. In most cases, trust doesn’t play a major factor in their decision.

When this group of individuals declined to sign my petitions, that wasn’t the case. They weren’t telling me they didn’t have the time or didn’t care for politics. In fact, it was the opposite. What they wanted was an explanation as to why I should be trusted. Simply telling them who I was, and what I hoped to achieve while in office, wasn’t going to cut it.

What followed was an extemporaneous town hall.

From healthcare (how to pay for it) to the Climate Crisis, I answered their questions and addressed their concerns, each of them as valid as the last. By the end of it, I found that I was able to alleviate much of the concerns they had about politicians. One of them had recommended a book to me on the interconnectedness of major issues in our communities. Another young woman happened to be the niece of one of our board members; she went went so far as to sign up to volunteer. Another offered to have me speak to his group at COAL. And the last individual wouldn’t sign the petition at all, but I believe she went home and donated $20.20 after listening in and perhaps googling my campaign issues page.

This event reminded me of my own behavior not so long ago. I saw the same level of distrust that I had myself for so many years. But at the same time, I saw hope in the absence of trust. While each of the individuals I spoke with was skeptical of politicians, they still believed that our political system could solve big problems.

Our youth aren’t lazy or apathetic towards politics, they’re skeptical of an unjust system.

It is upon us, those who seek the support of our youth, to regain that trust. Whether or not we are incumbents or challengers, we must acknowledge that this is a new time, a new moment in our country’s political trajectory. Saying that our youth-- those who comprise the very future of our nation-- are uninterested in politics is not only false, but disrespects legitimate grievances towards a system that has been built over generations.

In an uncharted political landscape, we now have the chance to renew that trust in our youth. We can show them that the vision we have for a better community is no different than their own. I’m proud of those who do not just sign our petition. They do not indicate a generation that is losing interest, but one that values accountability.

Prior to running for Office, I also worked in Civic Engagement with the Obama Foundation as a Community Leader (consultant). The key to the lessons that I taught was an orientation to civics that I had learned from my grandmother. She taught me that civic engagement wasn’t just about voting, it was about holding our elected officials accountable each and everyday; it’s about working to make our community stronger and more resilient.

I love earning the trust of my future constituents. That constant curiosity keeps me honest and authentic. So when I tell folks that I am a Gun Violence Prevention Advocate, Social Innovator and nonprofit leader who is running for congress to make this the last generation to be faced with everyday gun violence, I pray that I continue to hear the question “why.” And I will continue to be honored to answer that call.

Marie Newman: "Robert Emmons is a truly perfect fit for his district: compassionate, bright, incisive and in complete alignment with the residents on top issues. I've campaigned with him side by side and believe in him 100%"

First Contact: Robert Emmons, Jr. (IL-01)

I'll have to ask Mr. Emmons how he thinks that turned out

Blue America is at the very beginning stages of getting to know-- sounds so much better than "vetting," right?-- Robert Emmons, the progressive Democrat challenging longtime Chicago Congressman Bobby Rush. When he first e-mailed and asked for our endorsement, I was super-slammed with the whistleblower papers being released so I responded with this e-mail, thinking it might give me some breathing space to postpone a phone conversation by a few days so I could catch up. "Nice to hear from you, Robert.," I wrote. "Before we talk on the phone, can you tell me the case you're making against Rush and how you sense that is going over in the community?" The other possibility with a request like that-- a telling one-- is that a candidate doesn't have it together to respond at all. Almost half the candidates who request endorsements don't have what it takes to carry out a simple task like that. It saves me a lot of time and energy because then I know right off that bat that there's nothing we can do to help them.

But not Emmons. He was ON IT-- and FAST! Here's his response:

Here is a sample of our case:

We respect Bobby Rush, but he has failed our community for far too long. When Barack Obama ran against Bobby Rush in 2000, he said that Bobby Rush is out of touch and represents a reactive politics. We couldn’t agree more, and 20 years has made the situation even more dire.

I want to point out that we have a vision for the district that goes beyond politics. We want to make this the last generation to be faced with everyday gun violence by addressing the root causes. This is not an issue that Bobby doesn’t care about. This is an issue that we have disagreements on how to solve. Militarizing and criminalizing our community is not the answer. Addressing poverty and environmental racism’s is the answer. Our campaign is predicated on the belief that we are the solution together; that the solutions to our community’s most pressing needs are in the minds and hearts of those who have been hurt by the laws designed to hold them down.

  Issues:

• Bobby Rush voted for the disastrous 1994 crime bill. This further exacerbated the vicious cycle of poverty and hence violence in communities of color across the nation.
• 25 years after the Crime Bill passage, he still supports local policies that are “tough on crime”. For example he supports proposals of 50 million dollars on drone surveillance on the Southside of Chicago. Evidence has proven this strategy to be ineffective and a terrible use of resources. This means that even though he has apologized for the 94’ crime bill, he hasn’t learned from the impacts it has had.
• He has always taken money from the fossil fuel industry. This is while we in the First’ have some of the highest percentages of people with asthma in the nation(including myself).
• He sits on the committee on Energy and Commerce. He called the Green New Deal a smash and grab. This isn’t surprising due to his relationship with the fossil fuel industry.
• He has one of the poorest run constituent services. Electeds around the district have said that they can’t work with him.
• He has spurred division in our district. More recently in the Chicago Mayoral elections.
• Our District is ready for reinvigoration. We have felt an energy in the district that we haven’t felt in our lives.
• We have built a multi-generational coalition across the district.
• Our campaign has 40xs more small dollar contributions than Bobby Rush. We have proven to be about the people.
• We received endorsements from public officials, YoungPac, People For Bernie Sanders, and more recently Brand New Congress.
• We have already started working with elected officials to make our district stronger. 

Our campaign has received support from folks in 43 states.

I hope this helps to begin. Please let us know if you’d like to discuss these points further. 

And that was good enough to set up a phone call so we can begin the process of making sure Mr. Emmons will make a member of Congress we know we will be able to count on to do the right things for IL-01 and for the country. After all, these congressional candidates wind up as senators and governors and cabinet secretaries and even presidents. We have to make sure we're not going to wind up with some fast-talking crook like Joe Biden. I promise to let you know how it goes. So far my gut is telling me, we have a good one here. Here's the video he released on his campaign site; sounds good, right?