Monthly Archives: April 2020

national news

Noticing a partisan pattern on alarm levels

I noticed it early on during the coronavirus pandemic crisis.

Democrats across the nation began sounding the alarm about the potential for mass illness and death; Republicans were, um, a bit more serene about it.

The pattern has continued even as the nation’s economy has ground to a halt, even as governors take varying degrees of steps to fight the virus. Democrats have declared statewide mandates to stay at home, maintain social distance, closing off indoor and outdoor activities; Republicans have expressed more openly their concerns about the impact of all these measures on the economy.

I am not suggesting that Republicans do not care about the health of Americans. I am suggesting that their publicly stated comments focus more on economic health than on individuals’ physical health.

From whom or what are they taking their cue? Gosh, my best guess is that it’s coming from president of the United States, Donald J. Trump.

You heard Trump say early on that the nation had 15 cases of the COVID-19 infection and that it would vanish to zero. As they say … oops! Not so!

We’ve logged nearly 40,000 deaths in the United States. We have a full-blown health crisis on our hands. Yet we keep hearing from Republican governors that they want to reopen their states as quickly as possible. Democrats, meanwhile, suggest a go-slower approach to this, seeking more testing, more data, more science to guide their decisions.

Are members of one political party smarter than members of the other one? I won’t go there. I just am concerned about the partisan divide that even a crisis as massive and dangerous as the one we’re experiencing cannot erase.

In truth, though, I am siding with the Democrats on this one. Their concern is the more appropriate response to this worldwide crisis.

national news

House GOP starting to ‘eat’ one of its own?

The late Texas state Sen. Teel Bivins of Amarillo used to lament the Legislature’s task of reapportioning legislative and congressional districts, saying it gave Republicans a “chance to eat their own.”

I’m not sure what he meant in that context. However, the comment is worth dredging up today as we hear that congressional Republicans are angry with one of their own over his efforts to block the bipartisan economic stimulus package signed into law by Donald Trump; the package is aimed at helping Americans weather the economic storm brought by the coronavirus pandemic.

Rep. Thomas Massie sought to block the House voice vote. He exhibited an extreme case of contrarian impulse. The Kentucky Republican wanted a roll call vote, believing members of Congress needed to put their votes on the record. He angered Democrats and Republicans alike, not to mention the president.

Now the House GOP caucus is mad as hell at Massie. Republican members of Congress are donating money to his primary challenger. They want the guy out of their hair, out of Congress, away from Capitol Hill. They want him gone, man!

U.S. Rep. Michael Turner, R-Ohio, donated to Massie’s opponent while tweeting to Massie he gave money to his opponent “because I believe that you don’t belong in Congress.”

Ouch! Feel the burn.

The effort by Massie would have delayed the payments that have begun arriving in Americans’ bank accounts. And for what purpose? To assuage the nebulous concerns of a House back bencher. That is not what I call “good government.”

Massie has had a reputation for years of being an obstructionist, of seeking to upset what the late U.S. Sen. John McCain used to call “regular order.” Massie’s fellow Republicans are saying that they’ve had enough of this guy’s gamesmanship.

Now they are seeking to consume him, figuratively of course.

Bon appetit.

national news

Trump aligns with protesters … and endangers Americans’ health

Oh, that Donald Trump just cannot control his idiotic impulses.

Trump took to Twitter today to declare it was time to:

LIBERATE MICHIGAN!

LIBERATE VIRGINIA!

and LIBERATE MINNESOTA!

Protesters had marched in Lansing, Mich., seeking Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to pull back on her stay at home mandates. They want the state to relax the restrictions put in place to battle the coronavirus pandemic.

All three of the states mentioned, I need to add, are governed by Democrats.

The social distancing being sought, as well as the stay at home and shelter in place mandates are helping turn the tide against the coronavirus. So, what’s the president trying to do here?

Hmm. I believe the president of the United States is endangering the health and well-being of the citizens he took an oath to protect.

This man is a menace to the nation.

national news

Biden has locked himself in on a VP pick

REUTERS/Brian Snyder 

I have to admit that Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s commitment to selecting a woman as his running mate — presuming his nomination as the Democratic Party’s candidate for president — was a gutsy call.

He has effectively locked himself in. He must select a woman. To do otherwise, in my view, would doom Biden’s campaign against Donald John Trump.

Yet we hear the occasional chatter out there that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, whose daily coronavirus pandemic briefings have produced a sort of cult following of their own must be considered a potential VP selection for Biden.

Hold on! The only way Biden is going to select Andrew Cuomo is if the governor undergoes a sex-change operation … as in right now! It ain’t gonna happen. Therefore, Joe Biden is not going to consider Andrew Cuomo for a vice-presidential slot on the 2020 Democratic ticket.

I’ll certainly concede that Cuomo well could find himself serving in some high-level capacity in a Biden administration. I can think of two tailor-made Cabinet posts that would work well for the country: attorney general and homeland security secretary come immediately to mind.

However, Joe Biden clearly is dialing in on a potential VP running mate. Whoever she is must rise to the one level of consideration that stands over all the rest: Is she equipped and qualified to step into the presidency?

This process will be exciting to watch unfold.

media news

Crisis producing a whole new category of hero

I am more than willing to admit that I do not like watching all this televised coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.

It is non-stop, relentless and unforgiving. The news is mostly grim and it frightens me as I think of my family and wondering if they’re safe from the killer disease.

Now, is the entire coverage depressing and frightening? No. Much of it also is uplifting. I refer to the feel-good stories we get to see on TV or read in newspapers or online. They tell us about heroes and the truly magnificent heroic acts they are performing.

We need to effectively re-establish the definition of “hero.” The term no longer applies just to military personnel who thrust themselves into harm’s way; they aren’t just firefighters who rush into burning buildings to rescue people caught in the flames; or police officers who stop a criminal from inflicting havoc on a community.

Heroes now include doctors and nurses who are tending to infected patients. They work in nursing homes and assisted living centers tending to elderly residents who are highly vulnerable to the ravages of this disease. They are grocery vendors who deliver food to retail outlets to ensure that residents can purchase the goods they need just to get through the day or the week. Heroes are ambulance drivers, paramedics and utility workers who expose themselves to those in need … who well might be infected with the disease.

I also want to point out that the media that keep getting panned unfairly for the coverage they provide. We hear from those in the conservative media that their “mainstream media” colleagues are overhyping the danger being delivered by the virus.

The media that get vilified unjustly also are telling us regularly about the heroes among us. The media are reporting throughout the day the stories we want to hear, we want to see and about which we want to read. They are giving proper praise to those who are risking their lives to save the lives of others.

Although I am weary of the onslaught of grim news, I am strengthened by news of another sort. The heroes make me humble and proud of the work they are doing to serve all of our communities.

political news

Still prefer old-fashioned voting method, unless danger lurks

Readers of this blog know already that I prefer voting in person on Election Day, standing in a voting booth, selecting my candidates in secret.

That is how I would like to vote for president of the United States on Nov. 3. However, circumstances — and you know what they are — might force all of us to change the way we cast our ballots.

I am OK with that change, if the coronavirus pandemic isn’t sufficiently put down in time for Election Day.

A Texas judge has issued a ruling that greatly enhances absentee and mail-in voting in Texas. The ruling’s most direct impact will be on the July primary runoff contests that were pushed back from late May. That damn pandemic got in the way of our runoffs, too.

Looking ahead to the big day in November, it remains my fervent hope that federal election officials are seeking ways to allow all Americans the chance to vote by mail if circumstances demand it. And — of course — Donald John “Liar in Chief” Trump is railing against voting by mail.

He has leveled a specious argument that is similar to what he alleged after the 2016 election, that mail-in voting invites illegal voting by individuals. Again, just as he always does, Trump has leveled a charge without a scintilla of evidence to back it up. Do you recall how he alleged that 5 million undocumented immigrants cast votes in California enabling Hillary Rodham Clinton to roll up her impressive popular vote margin in 2016 over Trump? He never produced a shred of proof for any of that.

He’s at it again, saying a system that has worked well in the states that use mail-in voting is corrupt and that the results aren’t to be believed.

There is ample, overwhelming evidence to suggest that “widespread voter fraud” in this country is a phony argument. Yes, some ballots are cast illegally, but they comprise a teeny-tiny fraction of all the ballots cast.

Donald Trump likely is going to face Joe Biden later this year. The pandemic might preclude an election that we’ve always known it, resulting in a nationwide mail-in balloting system. We need not reinvent the wheel here.

Election experts in several states can help develop a mail-in national election system that is secure, that can be protected against potential fraud.

I am one American who prefers the pageantry of Election Day. I want to be able to cast my ballot the way I always have done when voting for president. If we cannot do so safely, without endangering our health, then I am all in on a mail-in system.

We must not knuckle under to the demagogic trash spewed by a president who — and this only is just my view — is sounding like someone who is petrified at the result a mail-in presidential election would produce.

national news

Trump continues to seethe at Mitt

Donald Trump asked members of the U.S. Senate to join a task force to help craft a plan to restart the nation’s economy that has been shut down by the coronavirus pandemic.

He asked almost the entire Republican caucus in the Senate to join. Trump left one GOP senator off the list: Mitt Romney of Utah.

Gosh, why is that? Oh yeah! Romney was the lone GOP senator to vote to convict Trump in the impeachment trial; he voted “yes” on the abuse of power article brought to the Senate by the House of Representatives. He made history with that vote, becoming the first senator to vote to convict a president of his own party.

Trump is steamed. It’s not that he and Romney were longtime pals. Mitt spoke in 2016 about how he believes Trump is a “phony” and a “fraud.” He didn’t want him to be the party’s presidential nominee.

Romney has been periodically critical of Trump over the past three years. The Senate trial vote was the last straw.

Trump’s congressional team comprises a lot of smart folks from both parties. Mitt Romney could have added considerable expertise and perspective to the discussion. Donald Trump, though, won’t sweep aside a grudge … even when the nation’s economic health hangs in the balance.

State news

Classrooms remain empty for the rest of the school year

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MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)

BLOGGER’S NOTE: This post has been corrected. Your blogger regrets the error of the original post.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott made what might be among the most predictable decisions yet in this coronavirus pandemic fight.

He has closed Texas’s public schools for the remainder of the academic year. The state’s 5.4 million students and their teachers and school staffers are still at work. They are studying at home. Teachers are sending study materials to the students’ homes; the students are turning in their work. However, the school buildings themselves remain dark.

A relaxation of other restrictions appears to be coming. Abbott announced the formation of a task force that will craft a list of recommendations to be presented in fairly short order on how the state should proceed with lifting certain restrictions.

The school recommendation was pretty much a fait accompli. Abbott had set a May 4 target date for classes to reopen with students and teachers, but that date became unrealistic because the state was unable to curb the infection rate sufficiently to allow the reopening of schools.

Now comes the harder part. The “strike force” that Abbott announced will decide on a phased-in approach to restarting the Texas economy. Abbott already has announced some loosening of restrictions at hospitals, certain retail businesses and — this is my favorite item — reopening of state parks; my wife and I are itching to awaken our fifth wheel from its extended winter hibernation and take it to a state park for a few days.

Abbott pledges that his actions will be guided by “data and doctors.” That’s a welcome pledge from the governor. Proceed, Gov. Abbott … but with maximum caution.

I, too, am anxious to return to some semblance of what we used to think of as normal. However, the stakes are too great to mess this up by proceeding too hastily.

medical news, national news

Will POTUS seek to take credit for states’ pandemic-reduction success?

Donald John Trump’s well-known penchant for clumsy incoherence is likely to present itself when more of our states report an actual decline in the hospitalization caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has delivered some good news on that front. My concern, as always, is how center on how Donald Trump might seek to take credit where he doesn’t deserve it.

The national response, such as it has developed, has been pitiful and pathetic. Trump claimed to have “total authority” over every decision made at the state level; then he backed off that statement, releasing a blueprint for guidelines to relax certain restrictions that governors could follow if they wish.

He has downplayed the impact of the pandemic, then declared he knew it was a pandemic before anyone else knew it. Trump has accused hospitals of hoarding masks and ventilators. He has scolded governors, calling one of them a “snake.” Trump has accused Democrats of playing politics. He has blasted the media for reporting “fake news.”

Donald Trump has contradicted analyses given by his top medical experts.

Meanwhile, governors have been left to employ their own devices to battle the pandemic. The epicenter of the outbreak in this country, which started in Washington but moved across the nation to New York, has caused untold heartache and misery.

Now we’re beginning to see more than a glimmer of hope that social distancing and other measures enacted by governors are starting to pay dividends, as Andrew Cuomo has suggested.

I just don’t want Donald Trump to get in the way of this message. I do not want to hear this Bloviator/Braggart in Chief take credit he doesn’t deserve. I want him to keep his yapper shut.

I know I am asking for too much. I just have to get it off my chest.

national news

Stars are aligning for a Trump election defeat, however …

As I look ahead to the upcoming presidential election, I am tempted to fill myself with hope that we well might change presidents when all the ballots are counted.

Joe Biden is the presumptive Democratic Party nominee. He has to win a few more primary elections to corral enough convention delegates to win the nomination when the party convenes its convention, be it a virtual event or one with actual delegates meeting in Milwaukee.

Biden has garnered the endorsements of virtually all his former rivals in what once was a huge and diverse field of contenders. He also has scored the endorsement of the most popular Democrat in America, former President Barack Obama.

The economy has collapsed. Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has been pathetic, feckless, confused, chaotic. He once downplayed the threat and then has been caught flat-footed as it has killed more than 20,000 Americans; the number is going up.

However, let’s remember that the stars aligned in 2016 for a Trump defeat. Then he won. He captured enough Electoral College votes to defeat a supremely more qualified candidate, Hillary Rodham Clinton. The Trump defeat shocked virtually every political observer on Earth.

That result gives me pause to suggest that former Vice President Biden is a shoo-in to defeat the former reality TV celebrity/carnival barker/con man/charlatan/conspiracy theorist/habitual liar.

My sincere hope is that Biden’s campaign brain trust learns from the fluke that produced a Trump election in 2016, studies how this travesty occurred and attacks with full force the record that Donald Trump has produced.

Trump’s team already knows what it has to do to win re-election. It has to retain its base and energize it. They’ll turn Trump loose and allow him to rail and rant in that incoherent fashion that seems to play well in front of those campaign rallies.

At this moment, the stars are lining up to defeat this fraudulent president. Oh, how I hope they remain aligned … and how I hope that Joe Biden can deliver on his pledge to “restore the nation’s soul.”