DeSantis, Newsom, Biden, Porn, Marijuana, Zelensky, and Cipollone testifies today.
July is soooo boring.
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Just another boring July in politics. *ShakesHead*
Former White House counsel Pat Cipollone testifies today behind closed doors to the January 6 Committee as many conservative media outlets are trying to scoff away the Cassidy Hutchinson testimony as a nothing burger. “No one cares…etc”
Nope.
People care and it’s starting to sink into many persuadable minds. Folks are indoors escaping the summer heat just like last year when they watched the Afghanistan withdrawal debacle. Just ask Google…
Politics is about the future and the longer Trump dwells on the 2020 election, the more he seems out of touch with an electorate more concerned about their future than his past.
Top Ten
1 - This time last year President Biden was 52.6 - 42.9 or +10, today he is -19. Net minus 29
2 - Check out the trend line for “personal financial situation” since this time last year according to Harvard/Harris polling:
3 - Tweets like these do not help the matter. Blame is a not a plan.
4 - With higher prices, will come behavioral changes. Is demand easing off? That along with the possible changeover in storage tanks from the winter formulations to summer might ease supply pricing pressure at the pumps.
5 - Still…only 16% of Americans according to Harvard/Harris think a recession will be avoided. Given what I am hearing from business leaders in banking and mortgage lending, we might be in one already.
6 - Also Harvard/Harris (yes, I like their graphics) note the increase on Women’s Rights and Inflation.
Too early to tell the impact of the SCOTUS overturn of Roe, but enthusiasm has picked up for Democrats among women of all ages. That could help take the edge off of the coming losses in the House and very well might keep the Senate in their control. #CandidatesMatter
7 - Last week, I mentioned that California Governor Gavin Newsom might be the first to break with Biden after the midterms were over. Well, I was half right. He released an ad in FLORIDA - THIS WEEK - going right after fellow Governor Ron DeSantis (FLA).
A recent NH poll showed DeSantis leading Donald Trump and another one from Iowa indicates that he is also gaining similar ground there. In NH, DeSantis leads 39-37 having gained a net 27 points in 9 months, and in Iowa he has gone from down 44 to the former president to just 21 in June. Like NH, that’s a net gain of roughly three points per month 56-12 (+44) to now 38-17 (+21). The obvious big move is the drop of support for Trump vs the Rise of Ron.
Like Newsom, Trump might make an early move and announce his re-elect to stop the bleeding of support. Trump has to know his place with the GOP base is eroding and after this weekend when his former WH counsel Pat Cipollone’s testimony transcript becomes public, it could accelerate. He will make a move - midterms be damned. Cipollone testifies today behind closed doors.
If Trump does announce soon, that would really shake up the midterms. I doubt if it changes the likelihood of Kevin McCarthy becoming the next Speaker of the House, but it certainly won’t help him build a sizable majority.
8 - Okay. Buckle up. I am sharing with you several graphics that should lead, hopefully, to some serious discussions about the toxic blend of violence in movies, marijuana, smart phones and social media use in our youth - especially young men. First this article from the WSJ on how the use of widely available pornography can impact the development of teenage brains. Maybe rewire neural pathways? Yikes.
Look at the time lines of these (smart phone use, violence in movies, marijuana use - focus on the year 2010) and now add in the intensity/addiction of social media use.
From Fast Company article : PG-13 Movies Contain More Gun Violence Than R-Rated Movies
That is a toxic mess for young developing brains. Small wonder why so many mass shootings are by either young white suburban males or young black urban males. If the male brain doesn’t fully develop until the age of 25, it is incumbent upon policy makers, parents, and community/business leaders to address REALITY.
It will be awkward at first to wade into that cesspool, but problems do NOT SOLVE THEMSELVES. Taboos ain’t taboos anymore when they are THIS common.
9 - Aaaand finally…speaking of awkward. Western leaders seem to think Ukrainian President Zelensky doesn’t know what they are doing. Giving him support for his courageous stand against the Russian onslaught comes with a price - photo ops to shore up political support at home. Perhaps if they dealt with their problems at home like Zelensky has, they wouldn’t need to fly to Kyiv.
10 - Speaking of shoring up support at home, Biden is making all the moves to run again in 2024. Breaking Points’ Krystal Ball breaks it down:
My favorite reading around the 4th of July comes from Yeonmi Park, a recently naturalized citizen originally from North Korea. In part:
I officially became an American six months ago. It was January in Chicago, the judge was late, we were all in masks, and there were no guests allowed. In my heart, though, I became an American when I first read the Constitution.
America is not a place, but the states united are.
Talk among yourselves.
Cogent and humorous, as always. Thanks!