Remember when Republicans used to call for the smelling salts because Bill Clinton wore jeans in the White House and Bush ran his campaign promising to “restore honor and dignity” to the presidency? Yeah, that was a while ago. It’s a whole different story today.
He also gave am extended shout out to “the late, great Hannibal Lecter” for some reason.
Never mind. Totally normal stuff. Very cool. Nothing to worry about.
The Ohio race for Senate is pivotal. And the GOP has put up yet another phony:
He is running for the Senate as an immigrant who made good, reaching out to Ohio voters with a stirring, only-in-America bootstraps story: arriving as a child from Colombia, taking a risk on a struggling business, and then turning it into a smashing success and himself into a millionaire 100 times over.
Running under the banner of Donald J. Trump’s populist political movement, Bernie Moreno, the Republican challenging Senator Sherrod Brown, humbly calls himself a “car guy from Cleveland” and recounts the modest circumstances of his childhood, when his immigrant family started over from scratch in the United States. “We came here with absolutely nothing — we came here legally — but we came here, nine of us in a two-bedroom apartment,” Mr. Moreno said in 2023, in what became his signature pitch. His father “had to leave everything behind,” he has said, remembering what he called his family’s “lower-middle-class status.”
But there is much more that Mr. Moreno does not say about his background, his upbringing and his very powerful present-day ties in the country where he was born.
Mr. Moreno was born into a rich and politically connected family in Bogotá, a city that it never completely left behind, where some members continue to enjoy great wealth and status. While his parents left Colombia in 1971 to start over in the United States, where Mr. Moreno fully transplanted, some of his siblings eventually returned. One of his brothers served as Bogotá’s ambassador to the United States. Another founded a development and construction empire that stretches across the Andes from the Colombian interior to its Caribbean shores.
Give me a break. He didn’t come from “communist Cuba” where they confiscated the wealthy citizens’ fortunes. He came from Colombia and they obviously had plenty of financial support from the family back in the home country.
All these richie riches pretending to have pulled themselves up by their bootstraps is absurd and I’m sure plenty of Ohio Republicans see through it — and most of them just don’t care. They admire liars. It means they’re smart. But maybe some of those vaunted Independents might be a little bit skeptical of this sort of lie and will stick with Sherrod Brown as they have since 2007. I would hope so. Brown is a real populist, in his bones, and in the best sense of the word. I hope at least a few of those blue collar indies recognize that. He really is their champion. This dishonest scion of a wealthy Colombian family is anything but.
The Georgia GOP went MAGA. And look what happened:
Georgia’s Republican Party has removed one of its officers after an administrative law judge found he voted illegally nine times after moving to the state.
The state Republican Committee voted 146-24 on Friday to remove Brian K. Pritchard, its first vice chairman, state Chairman Josh McKoon said after the closed meeting.
Georgia is one of a number of state Republican parties that have experienced turmoil as supporters of Donald Trump have taken over at the grassroots level, ousting previous leaders and demanding that the party prioritize Trump’s false claims of fraud in the 2020 election.
Many established Georgia Republicans including Gov. Brian Kemp have walked away from the state party organization. Kemp, for example, doesn’t plan to appear at the state Republican Convention next week in Columbus.
And yet:
But the fervor is having an impact, and demands for “election integrity” have translated into multiple changes to Georgia election law. Earlier this week Kemp signed a law that could ease the removal of people from the voting rolls through challenges to voter eligibility.
Yes, he stood up to Trump’s entreaties to overturn the election in Georgia in 2020. But like most Republicans it hasn’t stopped him from continuing on with the vote suppression efforts that have been the goal of white supremacists American politics since 1864 — which was what set the table for a demagogue like Donald Trump.
In case you don’t want to watch that video, it’s Trump’s top aide talking about how he carries some fake five dollar bills that he gives to panhandlers which he says they will then try to spend and get arrested. Hahaha.
As Max VonSydow said in “Hannah and her Sisters”, if Jesus came back today he would never stop throwing up.”
Message: they care
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For The Win, 5th Edition is ready for download. Request a copy of my free countywide GOTV planning guide at ForTheWin.us.
What was your top issue two years ago? Climate change? Gun violence? Abortion rights? Preventing another Trump term? What will be your top issue two years from now? What are the odds it will be Israel’s war in Gaza?
I want to follow up on Digby’s (and Rick Perlstein’s) reflections on Saturday about Gaza and young people voting (or not). It’s my regular complaint every four years that the presidential race is not the only one on the ballot or the only reason to cast one. There will be over three dozen races alone on the ballot in my county, one of over 3,100 in the country. Only one race is for national office (two counting the VP). For some states with ballot measures, the fate of women’s reproductive rights is on the ballot. State district, appeals, and Supreme Court races may be on your ballot.
Remember how we held our breath over Janet Protasiewicz in Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race in April 2023? Her colleague, Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Ann Walsh Bradley announced last month that she will retire next spring, putting Wisconsin Democrats’ thin court majority, voting rights and more up for grabs again in April 2025. In your state, such races may be on your ballot in November 2024. Don’t be on the receiving side of what’s going down if Democrats lose.
In the race for governor and other down-ballot contests in North Carolina, Republicans have nominated the Trumpiest head cases they could find — just short of those proudly wearing adult diapers in solidarity with Von Sh**zInPantz. The New Apostolic Reformation is targeting local races in the bluest counties in eight states (including mine).
In 2016, a certain #NeverHillary celebrity argued that a Trump presidency would mobilize the left and hasten the revolution. And then “things will really explode.” Never mind who suffers in the explosion. What the Trump presidency gave us was three U.S. Supreme Court picks that ended a half century of women’s reproductive autonomy, 400,000 dead from COVID-19, and a violent insurrection that might have ended our 250-year experiment in self-government. Plus all those Federalist Society judges Republicans installed like Aileen Cannon.
Another Trump term in 2025 will define the rest of this century and perhaps the fate of democratic self-government across the globe, and the planet itself. There are plenty of reasons to vote this November beyond the presidential contest. And not just reasons to vote against things. For all their shortcomings (we all have them, Joe Biden too), your chances of advancing the issues mentioned above lie with the Democrats and the choices you make (or fail to) this fall.
What was your top issue two years ago? Climate change? Gun violence? Abortion rights? They are on the ballot this November. What will be your top issue two years from now? The same ones? New ones? Fight for the future. Vote for a beautiful tomorrow.
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For The Win, 5th Edition is ready for download. Request a copy of my free countywide GOTV planning guide at ForTheWin.us.
The Seattle International Film Festival is running now through May 19th. This year’s SIFF features a total of 207 shorts, documentaries, and narrative films from 84 countries. The brick-and-mortar event will be immediately followed by a week of select virtual screenings from this year’s catalog (April 20-27) on the SIFF Channel. I’ve been bingeing on screeners and thought I would take a breather and share some reviews. Hopefully, some of these festival selections will be coming soon to a theater (or a streaming service) near you!
Before it Ends (Denmark) *** – In April 1945, the Allies were closing in on Berlin, signaling the imminent demise of the Third Reich. But for the citizens of Nazi-occupied European nations, the trauma was far from over. Anders Walter’s drama is set in a Danish village on the Island of Funen, still in the grip of its German occupiers. When a trainload of German refugees pulls into town, the Nazi commandant orders the local headmaster (the always wonderful Pilou Asbæk) to house them at his school. An outbreak of diphtheria among the refugees, coupled with widening divisions between the locals has the headmaster facing a moral dilemma: if he shows compassion toward the suffering German civilians, does that make him a “collaborator”? A well-acted examination of everyday non-combatants who get caught in the crossfire of (any) war, reminiscent of the excellent TV series A French Village.
Bonjour Switzerland (Switzerland) ***½ – Bananas meets The Mouse That Roared in this refreshingly old-school political satire directed by Peter Luisi. Beat Schlatter (who co-wrote the screenplay with the director) stars as a mild-mannered German-speaking federal agent who gets tasked with overseeing implementation of a controversial new Swiss law that mandates French as the country’s official language (in true Peter Sellers fashion, Schlatter also plays the high-profile media demagogue who pushed for the law). Problems quickly pile up for the hapless agent; he can barely speak French, his dear old mom becomes radicalized, and he finds himself falling for an Italian woman who belongs to a separatist group he’s been assigned to infiltrate. OK, I’ll say it: This is a hilarious, good-natured romp.
Hitchcock’s Pro-Nazi Film? (France) *** – I’ve always considered Alfred Hitchcock’s1944 war drama Lifeboat (about a small group of passengers who survive the sinking of their vessel by a U-boat) as a sharply observed microcosm of the human condition. However, Daphné Baiwir’s documentary sheds a different light, recalling a critical backlash from some who condemned the film as pro-German (an aspect I had never really considered before). A fascinating look at Hollywood in the 1940s, and the effects of war hysteria.
In Our Day (South Korea) *** – Look in the dictionary under “quiet observation”, and you’ll find a print of auteur Hong Sang-soo’s character study of two artists (a 40-ish actress and an aging poet), each at a crossroads in their creative journey. Sang-soo’s beautifully constructed narrative chugs along at the speed of life; I understand that this may induce drowsiness with some viewers-but the devil is in the details, and those who pay close attention to them will be richly rewarded.
I Told You So (Italy) **½ – Set in Rome during a freakish January heatwave, writer-director Ginevra Elkann’s network narrative (reminiscent of P.T. Anderson’s Magnolia) follows the travails of several characters in crisis: an alcoholic mother who has lost custody of her little girl, a faded 80s porn actress coming to grips with her mortality, a bulimic young woman who provides elder care for a woman with a shopping addiction, and an American ex-pat priest struggling with his junkie past. As the heat rises, so does the angst. Episodic; despite a fine cast and some nicely played scenes, the narrative threads never quite gelled for me.
The Missing (Philippines) *** – Writer-director Carl Joseph Papa uses a combination of rotoscoping and hand-drawn animation for this semi-autobiographical drama (the Philippines’ first animated Oscars submission for Best International Feature). A young gay animator who has been mute since childhood suffers a break from reality after discovering his uncle’s body during a wellness check. As the young man comes to grips with suppressed memories, what ensues is an honest, raw, and emotional look at the effects of childhood trauma.
The Primevals (USA) **½ – Stop-motion animator David Allen (The Howling, Q the Winged Serpent, Willow, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, et.al.) originally conceived this film in the 1970s. Live action principal photography was shot in 1994; Allen began work on the stop-motion elements, but sadly he passed away in 1999. The project was finally completed via a recent crowdfunding campaign. The adventure is set in the Himalayas; replete with Sherpa guides, a know-it-all professor, creatures of unusual size and hidden valleys where time has stood still (think a mashup of Lost Horizon, King Kong, and Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World). The dialog is boilerplate, and the acting is stilted; but let’s be honest, does anyone watch The 7th Voyage of Sinbad for the performances? Not critical viewing but taken in the spirit of a midnight movie (or perhaps with the right, um, enhancements) it’s all a right bit of fun.
Rainier: A Beer Odyssey (USA) ***½ –”Raaay-neeEER-BEEERrrrr….” If you lived in Alaska or the Northwest in the 70s and 80s, you’ll “get” that-and likely start chuckling. That said, you don’t have to have lived in Alaska or the Northwest to get a chuckle out of Isaac Olsen’s documentary. Olsen recounts the origin of the small (and unconventional) Seattle ad agency led by madmen Terry Heckler and Gordon Bowker that dreamt up a series of now-iconic Rainier Beer TV ads. A many-tendrilled odyssey indeed, with some unexpected sidebars (like cross-pollination with the inception of the Starbucks empire, and the story behind Mickey Rooney’s involvement with the campaign). A fascinating, entertaining look at the process behind the creative side of marketing, bolstered by a generous helping of the original TV ads.
Saturn Return (Spain) *** – The unsolved mysteries of romantic relationships and musical partnerships are commensurate. For example, what drives two or more musicians to form a band? What sparks the attraction? Why does the band/creative partnership often break up? Why do human relationships in general almost seem engineered to fail? Is the culprit self-sabotage; i.e., does a fear of success and a fear of romantic intimacy represent two sides of the same coin? And most importantly, why are there so many songs written about failed relationships? Such questions form the crux of Isaki Lacuesta and Pol Rodríguez’s nonfiction drama, inspired by the Spanish indie band Los Planetas.
The story focuses on the creation of the band’s third album (1998’s Una Semana en el Motor de un Autobús); a period when the band was in turmoil. The female bassist has recently quit to pursue her interest in another field, the guitarist is struggling with substance abuse, and the lead singer has a creative block. To add to the pressure, they’ve been invited to record their next album in New York with a notable producer. The directors take a similar tack to Gus Van Sant’s Last Days; painting an intimate and impressionistic portrait. Excellent performances by all, accompanied by an atmospheric psychedelia soundtrack.
In case you’ve never seen it:
Previous posts with related themes:
— Dennis Hartley
I wrote about the attempts to make Haley “reach out” to Trump to try to mend fences the other day. They are clearly getting worried about her ongoing support in these GOP primaries which continues to come in at 15 to 20%. So far, she doesn’t seem inclined to do it. Then came a rash of stories, undoubtedly from the Trump camp, saying he was considering her for the VP slot, probably intended to make her hold out the olive branch. She hasn’t.
Former President Donald Trump is dismissing a report that he is considering his GOP primary opponent Nikki Haley as a running mate.
Trump wrote on his social Media platform Truth Social Saturday that “Nikki Haley is not under consideration for the V.P. slot, but I wish her well!”
Axios, citing “two people familiar with the dynamic, reported that Haley was in the running to be Trump’s nominee for vice president.
The two had a contentious primary battle and Haley has not endorsed Trump. Many of her supporters also continue to be wary of the former president, a warning sign as he seeks to consolidate Republicans ahead of the general election.
It’s unfortunate that Trump won’t choose “Birdbrain” for VP but maybe he can get her voters to come over now that he “wishes her well.”
She’d be a fool to do it. She became a member of the Mike Pence club and the MAGA crowd won’t forgive either one of them. Maybe another line of work?
I’ve been listening to college kids and faculty being interviewed on cable TV all day and I’m feeling overwhelmingly depressed by so many of them saying they won’t vote for Biden and some even saying they’ll vote for Trump instead. That’s crazy talk. The last time we played this game we got George W. Bush and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
I understand the emotion over Gaza. It’s beyond horrible. I wish Biden had handled it differently. I also wish the congress had handled Ukraine differently. And I wish the whole world was handling the current genocide in Darfur differently. (What, you haven’t heard about that one?)
Protests are valuable. I don’t quarrel with that at all. It’s giving Biden the support he needs to pull back from supporting that maniac Netanyahu. But voting is a different story. Biden is not Trump. He is the one who had the guts to get out of Afghanistan which both Obama and Trump promised and didn’t do it. He has dramatically scaled back the drone war that Trump actually ramped up. And you can be sure if Trump wins in November he will pull back all assistance to Ukraine, ramp up support for Israel and give the green light to both Putin and Netanyahu to completely take the gloves off. And nobody should dismiss what he’s going to do with Muslims, latinos, LGBTQ, women and everyone else he sees as his enemies here at home. If they have a heart and truly care about this world there is no choice. The stakes in this election are so high that to choose Trump (which is what failing to vote for Biden really is) will result in a nightmare beyond our imagination.