As readers of these pages know, I have been writing for a long time that, "This isn't about Trump, we know who he is. This is about the elected members of the Republican Party who enable him and are complicit."
So, it was a total joy to read this absolutely wonderful long and detailed column in the Washington Post yesterday by Paul Waldman. It makes largely the same point but with so much more verve and specifics than any pithy two sentences could do. Though titled, "Can we stop pretending Trump is fit to be president?", the article goes much deeper and that question is really directed to Republicans in Congress, not the majority of Americans who long ago stopped pretending. At the heart of the column is this passage -- "The truth is that Trump is not much more despicable of a human being than he has always been; it’s just that standard Trumpian behavior becomes more horrifying when it occurs during an ongoing national crisis. It is reality that changed around him, and he was incapable of responding to it. "We all know this. In public, Republicans may say that the real villain in the pandemic is China, or that all those deaths — and the tens of thousands yet to come — were inevitable, or that it is essential to get the economy moving. But they know as well as the rest of us do what a catastrophic failure Trump has been. "They must own the moral choice they now make. In 2016, they said Trump would grow serious and sober once he was faced with the awesome responsibilities of the office. There was little reason at the time to think it would happen, but it was at least possible. "No one can say that now. Not only do we know who Trump is, we know who he will always be. And we know that reelecting him will be disastrous in a hundred ways." But there is so much more. And it's just as eloquent and pointed, full of explanations of past history that give substance to it all. You can read the whole thing here. Hopefully the article will be accessible to all.
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For Memorial Day, we have a bonus edition of Piano Puzzler. From the archives, the contestant is Genevieve Wilde from Quakertown, Pennsylvania. I could hear the tune, and almost clearly, but just couldn't get it. It's definitely known, and I got it later when pianist Bruce Adolphe brought the music out more, but it was tough, even though known and clear. The composer style seemed to be from an era that I overlap a lot of people, so I took a guess. I was surprised that I was somewhat close, but didn't get that either.
Polls are pretty much only meaningful in perspective -- how they compare to other polls, or how them compare to their own polling from week to week.
Therefore, it's important to put into perspective this is the new poll from Rasmussen Polling. Rasmussen is the Republican polling service that is an outlier, regularly skewing pro-Trump. When you read about Trump pointing to how well he's doing in polls, it's almost always Rasmussen he's referencing. It’s the one poll that once had him over 50%, at 51% So, this then is his best, favorite poll -- and it now gives him just 43% approval. Down five points. With a 55% disapproval. But also, “Strongly Approve” is 31% and “Strongly Disapprove” is 47%. That makes his “Approval Index” a minus-16. For perspective, only nineteen days ago on May 6, Trump's “Approval Index” for Rasmussen was only minus-4. A drop of 12 points in less than three weeks. Again, this is Trump's best, favorite poll -- now giving him just 43% approval. And 55% disapproval. And with 99,448 Americans dead and 43 million having filed for unemployment. And millions of Americans across the country believing Trump that it's safe to "open" America as they flock out together form Memorial Day Weekend, ensuring that the numbers will soar. The other day, the Chicago Symphony had what they called a "Watch Party" and streamed a 2013 concert of the Verdi Requiem conducted by Music Director Riccardo Muti. Along with the Chicago Symphony Chorus and soloists, it was glorious -- and at least for the time being it appears to still be up online. Even if you don't want to watch the whole thing -- it's long, about an hour and 22 minutes -- it makes for absolutely wonderful music to soar in the background as you go about your Memorial Day.
From the archives. This week's contestants are Peter and Mary-Bess Staffel from Bethany, West Virginia. This is an oddity: although I got both parts, it was touch-and-go that I would. I could tell the composer of the hidden song right away, but it took me a short while to "sing through" the song to get the title, but I did get it. It's well known, but might not be so for everyone. And the composer style was very guessable...but...it came down to two possibilities who overlap a bit. But I guessed right.
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AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. Feedspot Badge of Honor
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