Take a minute to [un]wind with our Sunday morning newsletter. Grab a cup of coffee and catch up on what you may have missed from [un]Divided this week.
Donald Trump’s retort
Two days after President Joe Biden stood in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia and declared “MAGA Republicans” a threat to the country, former President Donald Trump held a “Save America” rally two hours north in Wilkes Barre – near Biden’s hometown of Scranton.
“Joe Biden came to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to give the most vicious, hateful and divisive speech ever delivered by an American president,” the former president said. “His speech was hatred and anger.”
In the same breath, Trump peddled hatred and anger of his own.
He labeled Biden an “enemy of the state.”
He called U.S. Senate candidate John Fetterman “one of the most fringe far-left freak shows ever to seek election in any state.”
He aired new grievances, mostly against the FBI, and revisited old grievances – Hillary Clinton’s emails, the Russia probe, the 2020 election, etc.
On Friday’s podcast (2:00 mark), I expressed my disappointment with the message of Biden’s speech given his own party’s efforts to boost Trump-backed candidates during August primaries. While I have little doubt Democrats truly see these so-called “MAGA Republicans” as a threat to the country, it rings hollow when the DCCC is using donor funds to prop up their campaigns in a misguided effort to send what they deem as beatable Republicans through to November.
Certainly, Trump’s rally was also poisonous to our political dialogue. His remarks go beyond the “straight talk” some voters say they value. Biden painted “MAGA Republicans” as an enemy of the country and Trump responded in kind. Biden claimed “MAGA Republicans” embrace “anger.” Trump didn’t do much to disprove that characterization.
I refuse to accept that this is the best our country can do. I refuse to accept that the only options available to us are men who care so little about uniting the country.
In an op-ed this week, I offered a 2024 presidential ticket that I believe prioritizes competency and minimizes drama. You can read it here. What is your 2024 dream ticket?
Why the media made Trump
Some of you questioned my characterization Friday that the media made Donald Trump’s presidency possible. While your disagreement is always welcome, I wanted to further explain that comment.
During the 2016 presidential election, the networks found ratings gold in Donald Trump. Never had a candidate been given so much free airtime – and in the world of political campaigns, airtime is an advantage.
It is that simple.
Sure, the media often covered Trump with scorn, but Trump used that to his advantage as well – making the media a central narrative of his campaign. The more media attention he got, the more Trump leaned into his “fake news” messaging, and the more people paid attention as the drama unfolded.
Trump is a master salesman – and the networks gave him what amounted to daily infomercials. That’s why Trump spent virtually no money on TV ads. Why would he bother? His name and message reached tens of millions of Americans every day for free.
That's an advantage, no matter how you slice it.
Punishing COVID-19 speech
On Wednesday’s subscriber-only show, I discussed a bill passed out of the California Assembly that would punish doctors and nurses for spreading bad info about COVID-19 … or, at least, what the government decides is bad info.
AB 2098 reads as follows:
“It shall constitute unprofessional conduct for a physician and surgeon to disseminate misinformation or disinformation related to COVID-19, including false or misleading information regarding the nature and risks of the virus, its prevention and treatment; and the development, safety, and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines.”
The bill is incredibly vague, offering the following definition for “misinformation”:
“Misinformation means false information that is contradicted by contemporary scientific consensus contrary to the standard of care.”
The problem, of course, is that “contemporary scientific consensus” can change over time. What happens if a doctor or nurse loses their license for a view on COVID-19 that later turns out to be true?
This week on the show I’ll be joined by a California doctor who has been trying to raise awareness about the bill before it's too late.
Housekeeping
I hope you’re enjoying the holiday weekend as we wave goodbye to the final days of summer. Our regular Monday show will move to Tuesday.
Have a great week – thank you all for believing in this mission to bring common sense back to news and politics.
