I’m excited to share some big news: this month I transitioned into a new role as Senior Vice President of Academic Innovation for OU Education Services (OUES). OUES is a new non-profit created to manage and grow online learning at the University of Oklahoma, with the goal of increasing accessibility to higher education. The best […]
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I can’t wait for the new movie about Trump and Roy Cohn. Trump has threatened to sue but nobody seems too exercised about that. One of the investors, Dan Snyder owner of the Washington Commanders (formerly the Redskins), has been gnashing his teeth about it, although he doesn’t appear to have any say in the final cut. It’s controversial to say the least. The script is by Gabriel Sherman who writes for Vanity Fair and had hit with the movie about Roger Ailes called The Loudest Voice starring Russell Crow. This one is about Trump and Roy Cohn — Trump is the apprentice in this one. (I wrote a little bit about their relationship just the other day.) Anyway, this sounds really interesting. It stars Jeremy Strong, who played Kendall Roy in Succession, as Cohn. Perfect. Here’s a little bit of the review in The Hollywood Reporter: Beyond the specific portrait of the man identified by his vanity plates as DJT (Sebastian Stan) and the barracuda who took him under his wing, Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong), the movie takes a broader view of the corruption of the American soul.
You gotta laugh to keep from crying One of MSNBC’s commentators remarked Tuesday on the “thugocracy” on display at Donald Trump’s criminal trial. A parade of characters has pilgrimaged to Lower Manhattan to display their fealty to Boss Trump. On the day his defense rested, they included Chuck Zito, former convict and former leader of the New York chapter of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang. Trump likes his “heavies.” Rachel Maddow remarked: The Hells Angels leader is a very large man wearing a very flamboyant suit with a big, dyed-black pompadour, and huge, gaudy jewelry on very large hands. And he’s sitting next to Boris Epshteyn, who kind of looks like his body double. And there’s Alan Dershowitz, and there’s other recognizable people. And there’s members of Congress and well-known lawyers. And everybody seems sort of, there is a sort of performative aspect to the way they’re behaving in court. It is very noticeable for those of us who are there observing as journalists. I don’t know if they’re catching the jury’s attention so much.
Just a grift before I go Is it possible that the same affinity for conspiracy theories on the right (yes, the left has its own) accompanies the gullibility that makes conservatives fall for grifts? Charlie Kirk is selling Blackout Coffee, you know, for when “The world is in flames, and Bidenomics is a complete and total disaster,” and the liberal zombie apocalypse comes to turn you gay. There are some brands that cater to lefty sensibilities, writes Ali Breland at The Atlantic. But it’s the expansion of niche products for the conservative paranoid that has caught his attention: The ads reflect the new paradigm of advertising. In previous decades, ads had to appeal to whole segments of the population—and products were made with that in mind. That some readers of Vanity Fair might want a Givenchy handbag, and some readers of Sports Illustrated might want Callaway golf clubs, was as targeted as ads could get. Now the country has fractured into partisan subgroups, and companies have access to reams of analytics that enable them to target ever more precise demographics.
Even the Sopranos weren’t this dumb On the last day of testimony in Trump’s NY hush money case, a dozen or so grasping Trump sycophants dressed in the official elite MAGA uniforms of a red tie and blue suit (the troops wear the red hats) all gathered in the Manhattan court house to show their solidarity with their Dear Leader. The group included the Texas Lieutenant Governor of Texas Dan Patrick who weirdly excoriated “the ruling class” of which he and Donald Trump are very much members. SNL alum Joe Piscopo showed up as did former White House physician and current oddball congressman Ronny Jackson. Donald Trump Jr was there for the first time as well, apparently inspired to attend as a MAGA follower rather than a family member in support of his father. It’s become a daily self-abnegation ritual for those yearning to be on the inside of Trumpworld and that apparently includes his own son. If it weren’t for the boring blue suits and red ties, the daily tableau would be more reminiscent of a criminal gang than a political party.
What Immunity? People were dying by the tens of thousands during this period.
It’s only noon but I’m already drinking. I think I’ll just keep going. Maybe until November: Nearly three in five Americans wrongly believe the US is in an economic recession, and the majority blame the Biden administration, according to a Harris poll conducted exclusively for the Guardian. The survey found persistent pessimism about the economy as election day draws closer. The poll highlighted many misconceptions people have about the economy, including: -55% believe the economy is shrinking, and 56% think the US is experiencing a recession, though the broadest measure of the economy, gross domestic product (GDP), has been growing. -49% believe the S&P 500 stock market index is down for the year, though the index went up about 24% in 2023 and is up more than 12% this year. -49% believe that unemployment is at a 50-year high, though the unemployment rate has been under 4%, a near 50-year low. Many Americans put the blame on Biden for the state of the economy, with 58% of those polled saying the economy is worsening due to mismanagement from the presidential administration.
House Republicans have ruled that only comments condemning Trump’s criminal trials are allowed to be spoken in the congress. They just struck Rep. Jim McGovern’s words from the record: Nothing he said was untrue. It’s all factual. But the Republicans are so deep into the cult of Donald Trump that they now panic at the mere idea of someone saying them on the record. Are there any limits to what they’ll do for him now?
“He only cares about holding on to power. I care about you.” If you haven’t seen Trump’s “Reich” video, that’s it. He didn’t make it but he did share it. Nazis just love the guy. Republicans say it’s no biggie: Here’s Biden’s response: Dan Pfeiffer looks at the strategy behind the Biden campaign’s approach in his newsletter: What’s interesting to me is how and why the Biden Campaign is waging the fight this time and what it says about their strategy. Keep Trump on the Defensive and in the News Since officially kicking off the campaign earlier this year, the Biden Campaign has aggressively pursued every Trump misstatement and misdeed. Their BidenHQ account tweets day and night to lift up everything Trump does — from falling asleep in court to suggesting he wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act. It is in their strategic interest to focus the electorate on Trump and remind them who he is and what kind of President he was. This is also why Biden is so eager to debate Trump.
No more rainbow colors, damn it! Red, white and blue ONLY for Freedom Summer. By the way, Florida Freedom extends to your dietary choices as well. So far this year, lawmakers in Florida and Alabama have made it a criminal act to manufacture and sell lab-grown meat in their states. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) went first, signing a bill earlier this month and warning cellular agriculture companies: “Take your fake lab-grown meat elsewhere … we’re not doing that in the state of Florida.” It isn’t actually available but damn it, red states are banning it anyway. Apparently, the mere idea of saving the planet and making it possible to not have to actually kill animals for animal protein is oppressive. I feel so free, don’t you?