Earlier this week, the column spoke to a Californian, center-right independent voting friend for some perspective on the two presidential candidates. And while, he said he didn't disagree with many of the president's policies, but also said that the president showed no leadership combating the pandemic. The conversation was very much a referendum on Mr. Trump's presidency as he simply quipped, "Oh yeah, Biden could totally run the country." In the end, he said the one thing that bothered him the most, the deal-breaker, was that the president constantly whines and blames others, and not "owning up to things" (and using some derogatory words inappropriate for the column), as he put it.
So when Congressman and co-chair of the Biden campaign Cedric Richmond (D-LA) said that the president "has to own the moment," he makes a point. Any other individual who abdicated this much responsibility would be the object of universal scorn, but not Donald Trump. It's such an odd moment when you say that the President of the United States, the richest and most powerful country in the world, isn't man enough to take responsibility for his own policies, never "owning the moment." But as they say, here we are.
And where we are is that this week, a white police officer in Kenosha, WI shot Jacob Blake, an African-American man 7 times in the back. There are no excuses that can justify that action. Mr. Blake may not be the most model citizen and he didn't have a gun. Two "trained" police officers can not deescalate the situation or subdue an individual without shooting or killing the person? the 65-day sprint
In the ensuing protests in Kenosha and Portland, Trump supporters clashed with Left-wing rioters and three people were shot dead, and one other severely injured. Neither the Chief of Staff, Mark Meadows, or fmr. North Carolina gov. Pat McCrory specifically called out the shooting in Kenosha by the teenage vigilante, but did refer to the killing in Portland of a Patriots Prayer member, a right-wing group in Oregon. Mr. McCrory said the condemned all "bad shootings," which washes over some very disturbing facts.
The reason Republicans won't address it is not because they're afraid to answer that first question: Do you denounce a teenage vigilante taking the law into his own hands and killing two people? No, it's the follow up question that blows a hole through the "support of law enforcement" argument, hence the president's message. And that question is: How come the Kenosha police didn't stop and question a minor walking the streets with an AR15 while others are yelling to the police that he shot two people? Or why didn't the police do anything but say that they appreciate him being there and offering him water?
Why?
KellyAnne Conway, as a parting gift before leaving the administration, said that the violence in the streets is good for President Trump's campaign, which Hallie Jackson confirmed that the campaign is doubling down on this message as it thinks it's a positive one for Mr. Trump. Michael Schmidt of The New York Times described Mr. Trump running as if he is not in charge of the country and called his an unprecedented approach to the presidency. He's not only running as if he's not in charge, but he's governing this way as well making ideological policy decisions without caring about the negative effects. Just as President Trump said about the administration's pandemic response that he takes no responsibility at all, he's applying this more widely.
An administration with the only goal of playing only to its base will say what is necessary to placate it, despite reality, as we've seen. It was disappointing when Chuck Todd asked Mr. Meadows about what the president could do (and this is where Mr. Todd fumbled the ball, searching for the right phrase)... to make our streets safer? This gave Mr. Meadows the opportunity to filibuster with law and order rhetoric. Instead Mr. Todd should have asked what is the president going to say to the entire nation to console and bring peace? Or something to that effect.
Yamiche Alcindor of PBS explained from her reporting that leaders in the African-American community feel that the disproportionate rate at which black men are killed by the police (2 to 1 vs. white males) should be something this country can get right, yet these tragedies continue. Congressman Richmond did remind us that the president has indeed answered one question that he himself posed back in 2016. To the African-American community, Mr. Trump asked, "What do you have to lose?" African American men are getting the message that if they have an encounter with a police officer, it could be their lives. Eton Thomas, fmr. NBA player, explained that the current players are speaking out because they are worried for their sons, their community and themselves. He also went on to say that despite all the accomplishments and millions of dollars a black professional athlete might have, when they have an encounter with police they're thinking they could die at that moment.
Panel: Yamiche Alcindor, PBS; Hallie Jackson, NBC News; Michael Schmidt, The New York Times; Pat McCrory, fmr. governor of North Carolina
A few more things...
"Let's make America great again... again." A quote from Mike Pence. He's definitely not carrying the ticket, that's for sure. Vice President Pence, we say this only to help you so please excuse this column if we come off as offending you but: You sound like a complete jackass when you say this.
A pet peeve of this column... perpetrated today by Mark Meadows... "the Democrat party..." It's the Democratic Party. We're offended by this intentional grammar error on the part of all Republicans, but we're also offended by Democrats who let this slide because the goal of Republicans is to separate the Democratic Party from anything democratic. And to hear Mr. Meadows use it repeatedly today, not to mention by all his Republic Party friends, is like putting a nail in the ear and then dragging the ear accross a chalkboard.
Lastly, despite the utterly false rosy picture painted by the administration and its response to the Covid-19 pandemic, by this time next week, the United States will be over 6 million infection cases and over 185,000 dead.
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