Trump’s dangerous campaign to delegitimize the election

By Mark | November 9, 2020

Generally speaking, I’m OK with the way things are playing out. I’m happy that, so far, there have been no pro-Trump domestic terrorist attacks. And I like that, despite Trump’s unsubstantiated claims of election fraud, every major news outlet went ahead and called it decisively for Biden. I also like that leaders from around the word have come forward to congratulate Biden on his historic win, even as Donald Trump demanded that, despite all the evidence to the contrary, he’d actually won. I like that some Republicans, like Chris Christie, Mitt Romney, and George W. Bush, have publicly acknowledged the reality of the situation, which is that Trump had been soundly defeated. I like that no one in the legitimate press seems to be taking Trump’s claims, that it was him, and not Biden, who had actually won, seriously. And, of course, I loved the mocking that ensued when Rudy Giuliani spoke on Trump’s behalf outside Philly’s Four Seasons Total Landscaping — right between Fantasy Island Adult Books and Novelties and the Delaware Valley Cremation Center — and attempted, without offering a shred of evidence, to convince the American people that the Democrats had hijacked the election. I loved that Trump has, by and large, been ignored, as Biden has started to actually lead… making announcements about how he intended to spend his first days in office, saying that he intended to getting his COVID task force off the ground, reenter the Paris Climate Accord, etc. I knew that Donald Trump would continue to be a threat to our democracy, but the scorn and ridicule being directed at him every time he claimed to have won, gave me a sense of hope. And I’m still optimistic. At the same time, however, I’m growing more concerned about the steps Trump will take to delegitimize the Biden administration in the eyes of his followers in hopes of further serving his own interests. And I find it alarming that some in government seem intent on going along with him.

There are two things specifically that are concerning me today. First, Attorney General William Barr lent some credibility to the Trump election fraud conspiracy theory earlier today when he issued a memo asking federal prosecutors to investigate what he referred to as “substantial allegations” of voting fraud, saying that this had to happen before the results of the election could be officially certified. [It should be noted that no substantial evidence of widespread fraud has been presented to date. The President and his remaining allies keep talking about voter fraud, but, when asked for examples, they are curiously silent.] And, second, Trump appointee Emily W. Murphy, the administrator of the General Services Administration, is refusing to formally recognize Joe Biden as President-elect, making it impossible for the formal transfer of power to begin. And both of these things are keeping Joe Biden and his administration from the access they need to start preparing for the official transition, putting our national security at risk. So, our country is essentially being held for ransom. The only question is why. Why is Trump refusing to concede? What is it that he’s hoping this will accomplish?

Before we go on, I should mention that the above noted actions on the part of Trump’s people are not going unchallenged. Today, in response to the Barr memo, the Justice Department’s top prosecutor for election crimes, Richard Pilger, announced that he would be stepping down in protest. Furthermore, several individuals working in the two law firms that are overseeing the Trump legal challenges — Jones Day and Porter Wright — have started speaking out. “Six Jones Day lawyers,” the New York Times is reporting today, “said that given the small number of late-arriving ballots involved in the litigation, and the fact that they already had been segregated, the main goal of the litigation seemed to be to erode public confidence in the election…” And they don’t appear to be too thrilled that their firm is participating. And, as you can see here, there’s a campaign afoot to initiate an Inspector General investigation into the previously mentioned Barr memo.

Thankfully, as I said earlier, I don’t get the sense that many people in power — with the exception of some Trump enablers like Lindsey Graham — are investing too heavily in the Trump conspiracy theory about widespread election fraud in the states that he lost. For the most part, it seems to me that they’re following Mitch McConnell’s lead and saying that Trump is “within his rights” to challenge the results, but it doesn’t seem to me that they’re willing to join him in his claim that the election was stolen. But, as you’d expect from people like them, they’re going along for the ride. As one senior Republicans official told the Washington Post today, “What’s the downside of humoring him for this little bit of time? He went golfing this weekend… He’s tweeting about filing some lawsuits; those lawsuits will fail; then he’ll tweet some more about how the election was stolen; then he’ll leave.”

It seems to me to be a dangerous game, allowing the President of the United States to tell his followers that the democratic process in our nation isn’t to be trusted, but apparently they don’t give a fuck about that. “What’s the downside?”, they ask.

Just to be clear, the President’s claims have absolutely no merit. When the Republicans fought on the side of Bush against Gore in 2000, they had the best and brightest the GOP had to offer. In this instance, that’s not the case. A few firms are filing challenges on behalf of Giuliani and Trump, but no one believes there’s a chance that Trump will be able to cheat his way into a second term, given the magnitude of the vote deficit he’s facing in multiple states. The person handing the fight for the Trump campaign — David Bossie — isn’t even an attorney. And, as we just learned today, he’s just tested positive for coronavirus.

As for why Trump is pretending to fight it, and telling his people that he’s won, my guess would be that it has to do with money. The Trump campaign is putting out dozens of emails a day, asking their followers to contribute to the court fight over the “stolen election.” The small print, however, makes it clear that a majority of the funds aren’t being used for that purpose at all, but to pay down the debt of the Trump 2020 campaign. He has 30-some percent of the American population in his thrall, and he’s not about to let them go as long as there’s a dollar to be made. And you can bet he’ll be holding rallies, selling Trump 2024 merchandise, launching his own media channel, and doing whatever else he can to ensure that he gets every cent he can from his obedient followers. Or maybe that’s just the threat. Maybe the real goal here is to strengthen his position before going to the Biden administration to make a deal. Whatever his angle, it’s incredibly dangerous, and I wish that more Republicans would have the courage to step up, acknowledge the Biden win, and make it clear to Trump that they’re done with him.

Oh, and just in case anyone really believes that Trump has evidence of election fraud, here’s one more link that might interest you….

update: OK, shit is really getting fucking scary now. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, when asked about working with the Biden transition team, just said, “There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration.” This is beyond terrifying, especially when one considers the most recent polling, which shows that 70% of Republicans think the election was rigged, and 38% believe that the results of the election will be overturned and that Donald Trump will serve a second term. This is beyond insane, and I cannot believe that Republicans are saying, “What’s the downside of humoring him for this little bit of time?,” when asked about Trump’s refusal to concede. And fuck anyone who says that Pompeo was “probably joking.”

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I’ve seen enough. I’m calling the race for Biden. But I don’t think I’m ready to celebrate.

By Mark | November 7, 2020

With Biden’s official electoral vote count sitting at 264, having taken Arizona, he just needs one more state to reach 270 and secure the win. And, at this point, with his leads growing in Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Nevada, it appears to just be a matter of time before he’s announced the 46th President of the United States of America.

Given what we’ve been through these past four years, it feels like we should take a moment, mark the occasion, and celebrate this historic victory over authoritarianism. Yesterday, with that in mind, my son and I set out for a long hike. The idea was to have celebratory picnic overlooking the Huron River. While we took our hike, and had our donuts and cider, it didn’t feel like much of a celebration, though. With Trump still in the White House, a good number of our friends and neighbors still in the thrall of a sociopath, and the balance of the Senate still hanging in the balance, it just felt as though any kind of celebration would be premature. And that, to be honest, kind of pissed me off. I feel like we deserve to enjoy this moment, but I’m finding it impossible to do when Trump is reportedly threatening not to concede.

Anyway, with all of that said, I’m curious as to how you’ll be celebrating, if at all, when official word comes out that Biden has won. If you’ve found a way to thread the needle and celebrate while still acknowledging the very serious threat that we face as a nation, I’d love to hear how you’ve done it. Because I just can’t.

update: On the subject of the U.S. Senate still hanging in the balance, I wanted to share a link. If you have a few dollars to spare, please consider a donation to Stacey Abrams’ organization Fair Fight so that they can continue their work in Georgia in advance of the January 5 run-off election for both of the state’s Senate seats. It we want to defeat Mitch McConnell and the Republicans, we need the Senate, and the only way to do that is to win these two races, putting Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in the office. Abrams, through Fair Fight, registered 800,000 new voters in Georgia, and thereby delivered the win for Biden. If anyone can help us win these two Senate seats, it’s her. Please give her everything you can.

Posted in Mark's Life, Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 93 Comments

Abdul El-Sayed likes Bellflower a lot

By Mark | November 6, 2020

I’m not in the habit of talking about our guests at Bellflower. I think that people, when they dine with us, are entitled to their privacy, and I don’t intend to start posting here whenever I have a discussion with a public figure at the restaurant. With that said, though, as Abdul El-Sayed took to social media last night to talk about his experience at Bellflower, I think I’m probably within my rights to acknowledge the fact that he and his wife, Sarah Jukaku, came in for dinner last night, and that they were both incredibly kind and tremendously supportive… In a series of social media posts published after they left, El-Sayed shared with his online followers that he’d just eaten “one of the best meals (he’d) had anywhere” at Bellflower, calling our work “incredible,” and saying that he couldn’t “recommend (the restaurant) enough.”

Anyway, I just wanted to note this here so that I wouldn’t forget it. I had no idea who he and his wife were when we first started talking, and it was such a delightful moment for me when I finally put the pieces together and figured out that I was talking with someone whose work in public health I’ve respected so deeply over the past several years. [I’ve been following his career since he was executive director of the Detroit Health Department, and can’t recommend his podcast America Dissected strongly enough.] While it’s true that I ultimately supported Whitmer in the gubernatorial primary, I’m an enthusiastic supporter of his budding political career, and I can’t express to you enough how much it meant to me, as we were in this moment, waiting to hear the official word that Joe Biden had been elected President of the United States, to be having a conversation with someone who actually served on the Joe Biden-Bernie Sanders Unity Task Force on health care, helping to plot our course forward as a nation as we attempt to right the wrongs of the Trump administration and plot a responsible course forward. There’s more that I could say, but I’ll leave it at that. I should add, however, that it’s a great feeling when you come to discover that someone you truly respect tells you that he values your work, especially in uncertain times such as these. Oh, and it’s also really weird knowing that, right now, Abdul El-Sayed is walking around with a photo of the two of us together on his phone. It’s kind of surreal.

Posted in Health, Michigan, Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 21 Comments

Count the votes! Stop the count!

By Mark | November 5, 2020

Supporters of Donald Trump, with his encouragement, have been protesting across the nation since the election. In some states, like Michigan, they’ve been demanding that the counting of votes be stopped. And, in others, like Arizona, they’ve been demanding that the counting of votes be continued. I don’t want to get into how stupid it is that Trump and his people are arguing one thing in states where he’s ahead, and the exact opposite in states where he’s behind. I think it’s probably obvious to most of you what’s going on. I just wanted to note it, though, as I think it speaks to the insanity of what we’re being confronted with at the moment, as America’s least informed citizens, having been fed a constant diet of lies by Fox News for decades, have now been unleashed upon our democratic institutions by a man who has nothing left to lose, and no concern at all for the long term damage being done.

The folks who descended on the TCF Center here in Detroit yesterday to bang on windows and demand that lawfully cast ballots not be counted were apparently called to action by way of a new Facebook group disseminating conspiracy theories about how Joe Biden was attempting to steal the election. Here’s an example of the kind of content this group has been sharing online. This post, made by Fox News personality Lou Dobbs, contends that boxes of fake, pro-Biden ballots have been delivered to Detroit’s TCF Center to be counted. [It’s worth pointing out that the President’s son Eric shared the same post. It’s also worth noting that Dobbs isn’t the only Fox News personality pushing out conspiracy theories for Trump. Maria Bartiromo is dong it too.]

This, of course, was bullshit. As WXYZ’s Ross Jones was quick to point out, the “ballot thief” seen in the above image was his photographer, who was loading camera equipment into the building so that they could cover the ballot counting. Here’s WXYZ telling the story last night.

According to CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan, the social media disinformation campaigns are coming fast and furious now. The group pro-Trump Facebook group “Stop The Steal,” he says is “gaining about 1,000 new members EVERY 10 SECONDS.” So this is likely only going to get worse. Thankfully, it looks like Biden’s lead here in Michigan is large enough that we can avoid the worst of it, as the attention of those looking to steal the election on Trump’s behalf has been turned to other states, where it may be easier for them to obfuscate the truth and sell a narrative of election fraud. The good news is, the Republicans, for the most part, don’t seem to be pitching in to help Trump in his attempt to hijack the election. As Matthew Gertz just pointed out, “Trump needing to trot out the Sekulow/Giuliani/Bondi team for the election lawsuits kinda suggests that the GOP legal establishment extracted everything it wanted from Trump and is now leaving him for dead.” Let’s hope that’s the case, and that we’re spared the civil war by those self-serving Republicans who would rather just focus on keeping their positions of power and holding onto the Senate. It should also be noted that, so far, at least as far as I can tell, no states have stopped counting their ballots in order to appease Donald Trump. As Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf just said, “Pennsylvania is going to count every vote and no amount of intimidation will stop our dedicated election officials in our municipalities… The planned attacks on our elections this morning are undemocratic and all elected officials must denounce them.”

update: Trump has put out an official statement, again claiming to have won, despite the popular vote.

update: In Nevada, former Trump Director of National Intelligence Ric Grenell and right wing operative Matt Schlapp claim to have evidence of illegal ballots having been cast for Biden. They they refuse to share what that evidence is, when asked by reporters.

update: It seems likely, as of right now, that Biden will win Nevada, and maybe even Georgia. Here’s the latest.

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As Biden seems poised to win, a desperate and pathetic Trump claims victory

By Mark | November 4, 2020

[The above electoral map from the New York Times shows where we are as of 9:30 AM this morning, with ballots still being counted across the United States.]

As expected, Donald Trump claimed victory early this morning, before all of the votes were counted, saying that he would call upon the Supreme Court to stop millions of legally cast ballots from being counted. Appearing in the East Room of the White House at approximately 3:00 AM, Donald Trump said, “Frankly we did win. So we’ll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court. We want all voting to stop. As far as I’m concerned, we already did win.” And, I should add, Trump said this after Fox News had called the historically Republican state of Arizona for Biden, signaling that things were trending well for the former Vice President. As Chris Wallace said on Fox after Trump made his statement about having won, “This is an extremely flammable situation and the president just threw a match into it.”

The truth is, we don’t yet know who won, but things are looking positive for Biden at the moment, as ballots across the United States continue to be counted. As of this moment, Biden is leading in Wisconsin, Michigan and Nevada, and, if his lead in these states holds, he will have the 270 electoral votes he needs to claim victory, even if Pennsylvania and Georgia go to Trump. And there’s still a good chance that Biden could win in those states as well.

As for the Senate, things are still up in the air, as we’re waiting to hear how things go in a number of states, including Michigan, where Democratic Senator Gary Peters is presently trailing his Republican challenger. If things play out the way people think that they will, the best case scenario for Democrats is a split Senate, with 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans, in which Kamala Harris would be in the position to cast tie-breaking votes as the Vice President. This, however, would require not only that Peters win, but that Warnock win his run-off in Georgia… In order to have gained control of the Senate outright, the Democrats would have needed to pick up four seats, and, with Doug Jones losing in Alabama, that became even more of an uphill battle. Still, though, the Democrats appear to be picking up seats in Arizona, Colorado and Georgia. [There were two Georgia Senate races this election cycle.] And it’s conceivable that North Carolina, Maine and Iowa could still be in play.

One last thing. Just keep in mind, when you hear Donald Trump complaining about the counting of mail-in ballots, that we have Republican legislatures to thank. The following is from USA Today’s Kirsten Powers.

So, no, there are no “surprise ballot dumps (being) counted” as Donald Trump just claimed. The ballots being counted are ballots that were lawfully cast, and are now being counted in accordance with rules established by Republican legislatures. There is nothing “magical” about what it happening. Absentee ballots were cast, and now they are being counted.

update: Here’s the Detroit Free Press weighing in on Trump’s claim that Michigan flipped for Biden because of a massive “ballot dump.” That’s not true, they report.

update: Jonathan Oosting is reporting that the Trump campaign is seeking to stop the count in Michigan. The Trump campaign, he says, has put out the following statement: “We have filed suit today in the Michigan Court of Claims to halt counting until meaningful access has been granted.”

update: Another response to Trump’s assertion that “Michigan has now found the ballots” to change the course of the election.

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