Trump made some kind of speech last night. In prime time. The networks didn’t broadcast it. The messages of these three items are in the titles or subtitles; I don’t need to quote from the pieces themselves.
Slate, Ian Prasad Philbrick, today: The Most Important Thing About Trump’s Big Election Speech Was What He Didn’t Say, subtitled “The president has claimed more than 100 times that the 2020 election was stolen. So why did he shy away from that lie in his big ‘election fraud’ speech?”
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The Bulwark, Brian Tyler Cohen, today: The Silver Lining of Trump’s Reheated Election Denialism, subtitled “Take Trump seriously. Take him literally. But also see his speech for what it is: He knows he’s losing.”
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Robert Reich, today: Trump Can’t Get No Respect, subtitled “His biggest lie wasn’t about elections”
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And in recent discussion about the CHIPS Act, he confused ‘transistor’ with ‘transgender.’ Examples here.
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This movie opens today. Not sure when I’ll see it. I will eventually. Anyway, of course any work of art that doesn’t pander to white supremacy evokes the wrath of MAGA.
The Daily Beast, yesterday: Why ‘The Odyssey’ Is Exposing the Stupidity of MAGA’s Uproar, subtitled “Believe it or not, right-wingers have gotten ‘The Odyssey’ all wrong.”
Casting. (It’s supposed to be about white people!) And about Elliot Page as Achilles. It turns out Page is playing a different character.
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Briefly noted.
- Salon, Amanda Marcotte, today: Pete Hegseth wants to measure your manhood
- Subtitled: “The defense secretary’s obsession with high testosterone levels can’t hide MAGA insecurity”
And
- Slate, Christina Cauterucci, today: Pete Hegseth’s Testosterone Fantasy Is Part of a Much Larger Right-Wing Phenomenon
- Subtitled: “It’s not just the military they want to turn into rage-addled hulks.”
- They’re obsessed with primal drives. Not with intelligence.
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- This is rich.
- JMG, from The Hill, today: GOP Senator Seeks To Sanction Canada Over Smoke
- and
- JMG, from Donald J. Trump, today: Trump: Canada Has Failed To Maintain Their Forests Therefore I’m Raising Their Tariffs Over Wildfire Smoke
- It’s not about maintaining forests. (Trump thinks it’s about sweeping up debris on the forest floors? Which has ever happened in human history?) It’s about climate change, which makes huge wildfires more common. And now this administration, that doesn’t “believe” in climate change let alone take any responsibility for its effects, wants to blame other countries for its effects.
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- Once again, tribalists value loyalty above all else, in particular above experience or expertise.
- JMG, from Donald J. Trump, today: Trump Endorses Graham’s Sister For Full Senate Term
- She has no experience in government whatsoever. She’s a placeholder, but who presumably can be counted on to vote the way her brother would have.
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- JMG, today: MAGA Cultist Melts Down Over Air Quality Warning: How Dare They, This Is Big Brother, I’m A Free Man!
- He confuses advice with orders. He’s freedom-addled. To the point where any advice that might promote public health must actively be resisted.
