Democratic debates October 15, 2019

Harold Levine

October 15, 2019 · 

Rewinding my mind to the last greatly tedious Dems debate.

If they can't be bothered to trim the field, I can't be bothered to make new jokes about 'em. I return to the ramparts where I left off with 10 takes on 10 from The Last Truly Tedious Debate.
(And yes, of course, barbs aside, the nominee gets my vote – even if we screw up and nominate what’s his-name.)

Julian Castro. The Tex-Mex Kid took a swing at Good Old Joe and missed. For that, he has fallen from grace and must now do penance. Let it be brief and forgiveness swift. A true son of the Chicano civil rights movement, Castro is bright, accomplished, has a good heart and is true blue in a state that’s a game changer. He is too important to be sidelined for long. If he’s lucky, one day, decades from now, he may stand on another debate stage having to explain what desperate voices were rattling around in his head the night he lost his mind and mugged an elderly and infirm gentleman. #FAIRPLAYFORCASTRO

Beto O’Rourke. I have no quarrel with one whose conviction was forged by fire and blood. #RESPECT4BETO.

Liz Warren: I believe my Senator will be the nominee but, sooner than later, she’s going to have to tell us how she plans to pay for her plans. #CANLIZGOCENTER?

Joe Biden. A wonderful fellow, but never the fleetest of mind nor gifted of tongue, far too often, he looks and sounds like a man in a fugue state. #AMANOUTOFTIME

Pete Buttigieg: Along with Warren, Mayor Pete has the finest mind in the field; his language conciliatory, his tone unifying, his ideas trending moderate, his brand of Christianity an overt threat to the evangelical voting bloc. His sexual orientation may keep him off the national ticket, but his future is bright. #MAYORPETEISAKEEPER

Kamala Harris. My early favorite for her prosecutorial skills and the diversity she represents, she’s been unable to make meaningful inroads, even within the black community. An inability to articulate a comprehensive vision for the future may have something to do with it. Looks like it’s North Carolina or bust for Kamala. #PROSECUTETHECASEKAMALA

Corey Booker. Articulate, passionate, (if a trifle glib), Booker is intelligent and conciliatory and a natural preacher on the stump. But he simply cannot transcend the racial animus that inflames the land of the free. #COREYISBARACK2.0

Amy Klobuchar: A wise, moderating voice, she simply lacks the outsized personality of a lead actor. Her Senate seat is safe. That is likely where she will remain for many distinguished years to come. #AMYISFARGO

Andrew Yang. Nice fellow. Smart too. But a raffle for a thousand bucks is more befitting a game show host than a presidential candidate. #GRANDKNOWINGYOU

Bernie Sanders. No way a loud, angry, Brooklyn Jew with a funny accent and bad haircut shouting about revolution is ever going to be president of the United States. Bragging about his “damn plan” that has no chance of ever being passed into law isn’t much of a legislative accomplishment. BTW, Bern, getting an “F” rating from the NRA is easy - if you’re a Democrat. It’s only tough when you vote with the gun lobby. All that’s left for this guy is to decide whether he’s going to be the skunk at the convention party. #STOPYELLINGBERN

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talking head hot takes by those who pretend to know more than we do.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w2F_BcYiNM

Democratic Debates

Harold Levine

July 2, 2019 · 

I’ve spent much of the past several days post debates touring other pro-Democratic sites trying to get a general sense of what folks elsewhere are thinking. I got caught up in one very lengthy thread in which Kamala Harris was excoriated in surprisingly nasty personal terms that I characterize as ranging between “how dare she ambush poor Joe” to, “Who does that F***ing B**** think she is?”.
It seems to me the reaction arises, in part, from a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of debates; the purpose of which is to give candidates a chance to introduce themselves, present their proposed policy positions, and to challenge one’s opponents.
That holds true for every candidate, all of whom have vulnerabilities and are going to have to defend their records. The risk that this process will weaken the eventual nominee is real but that’s the price we pay for a big tent party that invited (too) many candidates to participate.
I’ve also seen repeated complaints that Harris broke a “pledge” between the candidates. The pledge was only that they would all support the eventual nominee; not that they would play nice and not engage competitively with each other.
As for the strategy of going at Biden, underdog candidates always “punch up” at the leader to get attention and expand their base of support. That’s exactly what Harris did.
Curiously, Julian Castro did the same thing to Beto O’Rourke in the previous evening’s debate when he asked the latter whether he supported repeal of sec. 1325 (the statute that criminalizes illegal entry into the country). Beto was not ready for the question and floundered – but, curiously, there was no great hue and cry over that “ambush” perhaps because they are perceived as second tier candidates.
As between the candidates, these disagreements are rarely personal. Biden and Harris will find common cause when the time comes – just as Biden found it with Eastman and Talmadge.
One of the more disconcerting aspects of the Harris/Biden exchange was that Joe didn’t have a ready response to an attack he had to know was coming. If he had simply said, “I will match my Senate record on civil rights against yours as California AG. When time permits, let’s have that discussion,” the narrative today would be completely different today. Instead, he fumbled, raising questions about his apparent lack of preparation.
Kamala Harris is a courtroom prosecutor and a good one. That’s her calling card. She has now rocked Kavanaugh, Barr and Biden, placing all three on the defensive. Joe has plenty of time to show he can counter.
We have several other talented candidates worthy of our time and attention. Rather than overreact to one issue or episode, however charged it may be, it seems to me we are best served by studying their positions and presentations, finding those whose views most closely reflect our own, and hope our chosen candidate can beat Trump.
What we do not need to do as Democrats is to destroy our candidates from within. They are quite capable of doing that to one another. As Joe is fond of saying, “that’s the deal.”
Keep on pushing.

Derek Chauvin on Trial

I regret the social myopia that leads us to assign our own apocalyptic nightmares to the outcome of the Derek Chauvin trial. Trial courts are where Constitutional rights of both the accused and state are redeemed. But each trial is self-contained and unique unto itself. Courtrooms are not referendums on social policy or racial injustice. Verdicts are nothing more (or less), than a particular jury’s response to a limited set of facts when measured against the relevant law.

A guilty verdict for Chauvin may satisfy our appetite for immediate vengeance, but the battle for equal rights does not end if, and when, one rogue cop is removed from civil society. There will be many more trial verdicts. Some will seem just. Others, not. When the shouting over the Chauvin verdict is over and those who feel the need to fill the streets have all gone home, the work to insure equal justice will remain.

We are not at an end in the struggle for equal rights; we are at the beginning.

April 20, 2020

"It's about Character." - Caroline Kennedy on Joe Biden

Whether Joe Biden is a man for the times or a man out of time, when his role ends and he bows and leaves the stage, he will be remembered for a life of compassion, kindness, family devotion, and the humility born of soul crushing pain. In a word, decency. For that, he has earned something no lesser man can take from him: True Friends. - HL

This is Caroline Kennedy's endorsement of Joe Biden for President from The Boston Globe. Travel Safely, Joe.

On the passing of the last lion

ON THE PASSING OF THE LAST LION BY JOHN McCCAIN.  

Ted Kennedy was my Senator for 37 of the 47 years he served in the Senate. He never had to ask for my vote. His life was haunted by tragedy including that for which some will never forgive, but in his many years of public service there was nobility, honor and finally, redemption.

This is the text of United States Senator John S. McCain's eulogy on the passing of United States Senator Edward M. Kennedy on this same 28TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2009. Take them both for all and all, they were men and we shall never look upon their like again.

"I was last in this wonderful library ten years ago, when Russ Feingold and I were honored to receive the Profile in Courage award. Ted was very gracious to my family on that occasion. It was my son, Jimmy’s, 11th birthday, and Ted went out of his way to make sure it was celebrated enthusiastically. He arranged a ride for us on a Coast Guard cutter and two birthday cakes, and led a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday, with that booming baritone of his drowning out all other voices, as it often did on the Senate floor.

"He was good company, my friend, Ted. He had the Irish talent for storytelling and for friendship. At the lunch he hosted for us, in the family quarters on the top floor of the library, he recalled an earlier episode in our friendship, a story he delighted in retelling. It occurred on the Senate floor, when two freshman senators, one a Democrat and the other a Republican, neither of whom would remain long in the Senate, were getting a little personal with each other as they debated an issue, which must have seemed important at the time, but which neither Ted nor I were paying any much notice to.

"We both happened to be on the floor at the time, and the heat of our colleagues’ exchange eventually managed to get our attention. You might think that two more senior members of the Senate would in such a situation counsel two junior members to observe the courtesies and comity, which, theoretically, are supposed to distinguish our debates. But Ted and I shared the sentiment that a fight not joined, was a fight not enjoyed. And irresistibly we were both drawn into a debate we had no particular interest in, but which suddenly looked like fun.
"I struck first, castigating the young Democratic Senator for abusing my Republican colleague. Before she could respond for herself, Ted rode valiantly to her rescue. And within minutes, he and I had forgotten why we were there, and what the debate was all about. We had probably even forgotten the names of our two colleagues. As one of us spoke, the other would circle the floor, agitated and anxious to fire back.

"After a while, we must have thought the distance between our desks too great for either of us to hear each other clearly or that the presence of the clerk transcribing our exchange had become too distracting. And as if we had both heard some secret signal, we set down our microphones simultaneously and walked briskly to the well of the floor, where we could continue in closer quarters, and in language perhaps too…familiar…to be recorded for posterity, which, regrettably was still audible enough to be overheard by a few reporters, who were now leaning over the railing of the press gallery trying to ascertain just what the hell was going on between McCain and Kennedy.

"After we both were satisfied we had sufficiently impressed upon each other the particulars of proper senatorial comportment, we ended our discussion, and returned to the business that had brought us to the chamber in the first place. And, I’m happy to report, we succeeded in discouraging our colleagues from continuing their intemperate argument. They both had deserted the chamber with, I was later told, for I did not notice their escape, rather puzzled if not frightened looks on their faces.

"When I next saw Ted, ambling down a Senate corridor, he was bellowing laughter, that infectious laugh of his that could wake the dead and cheer up the most beleaguered soul. He was good company. Excellent company. I think I’m going to miss him more than I can say.
"We disagreed on most issues. But I admired his passion for his convictions, his patience with the hard and sometimes dull work of legislating, and his uncanny sense for when differences could be bridged, and his cause advanced by degrees. He was a fierce advocate, and no senator would oppose him in debate without at least a little trepidation, often more than a little. We all listened to him, of course. He was hard to ignore.

"When we were agreed on an issue, and worked together to make a little progress for the country on an important issue, he was the best ally you could have. You never had even a small doubt that once his word was given and a course of action decided, he would honor the letter and spirit of the agreement. When we worked together on the immigration issue, we had a daily morning meeting with other interested senators. He and I would meet for a few minutes in advance, and decide between us which members of our respective caucuses needed a little special encouragement or on occasion a little straight talk. If a member tried to back out of a previous commitment, Ted made certain they understood the consequences of their action. It didn’t matter to him that the offender was a member of his own caucus. He was the most reliable, the most prepared, and the most persistent member of the Senate. He took the long view. He never gave up. And though on most issues I very much wished he would give up, he taught me to be a better senator.

"After Labor Day, I’ll go back to the Senate, and I’ll try to be as persistent as Ted was, and as passionate for the work. I know I’m privileged serve there. But I think most of my colleagues would agree, the place won’t be the same without him."
Permalink: https://www.mccain.senate.gov/…/post-70fa80b8-e62c-423e-dac…
August 25, 2018

The Devil You Say

Four years under the rule of The Usurping Serpent have seen US battered by: Hurricanes. Earthquakes. Floods. Fire. Dissension. Division. Treachery. Extortion. Bribery. Kidnapping. Hatred. Fear. Murder. Assassination. Riots. War. Facts denied. Truth destroyed. Cruelty and Criminality beyond measure. All in service of treacherous scoundrels and villains; shameless curs whose very existence defiles nature. If I believed in the Devil, I would swear that slithering Son of a Bitch was sent here to unleash the Plague.

HL 9/16

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