Abbreviated Pundit Roundup: The JD Vance pick is addition by subtraction
Nolan Finley/Detroit News: My beef with J.D. Vance Vance’s pen fuels the myths, and confirms for many what they’re certain they know about “hillbillies.” Let’s start with the book title itself and get this settled: Hillbilly is a pejorative, the same as any other derogatory descriptor assigned to a racial, ethnic or cultural group. It doesn’t matter that it was used in the title of a television show and on bread wrappers. It’s offensive, hurtful and intended to belittle. Anyone who has been the target of the word knows its sting. That Vance chose to mainstream the smear on his book cover says a lot about how he views his own people. Of course not. https://t.co/O8pn1HtcGU— Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) July 13, 2024 Wesley Lowery/Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University: The Right to Know A case for a federal public trust for media A free press is often heralded as a key cornerstone of American democracy, functioning as a vital institution tasked with informing the public and holding those in power accountable. Yet, as the industry faces an existential crisis, with the collapse of traditional business models and the rise of deep political polarization amid a sea of misinformation and propaganda, it has become increasingly clear that thinking of press freedom only as a market that must be protected from government interference cannot sustain the kind of robust, diverse, and accessible press that a healthy democracy requires. This chapter argues that to truly fulfill the promise of a “right to know” for all people, we must reimagine the relationship between the press and the public and consider bold new forms of public support for journalism. Seth Masket/”TUSK” on Substack: RNC Day 1: Vance Vance Revolution A harsh critic becomes heir apparent To me, Vance’s rise to this point of trust in the Trump world is a terrific example of just how easy it is to work one’s way into Trump’s good graces. As many others have noted today, Vance has not been a fan of Donald Trump for all that long. Vance at one point called Trump “an idiot” who was “reprehensible” and said he might be “America’s Hitler.” Vance would later soften his criticism and then became far more embracing of Trump. In early 2022, Vance called Trump “the greatest president in my lifetime,” specifically wooing Trump’s endorsement for his Senate run. Trump rewarded him with it, and Vance rocketed from third to first place in that contest to become the Senate nominee. One of the things that may have helped close the deal on the vice presidential selection was Vance’s strong rhetorical flourishes in the wake of the assassination attempt on Trump, in which Vance specifically blamed Democrats for creating the conditions for the violence. And another, we now know, was the strong lobbying of Eric and Don Jr. I mean, if Biden loses after saving the country from the covid, dodging a recession, investing billions in the public goods and so much more -- what kind of incentive does any Democratic president have to solve any problems? We haven't really talked about that. https://t.co/woqSKyluAO— The Editorial Board (@johnastoehr) July 16, 2024 Brian Beutler/Off Message on Substack: Four Maxims For A Scary Moment Of Uncertainty How to keep a level head. Notwithstanding the seemingly non-political motive for this highly political violence (the shooter apparently a disturbed white conservative), Republicans are assigning collective blame to Trump’s perceived enemies—the nebulous “they” that Josh Marshall detected here. Democrats, overcautious as always, have not aggressively rejected this smear, freeing up a large space in mainstream news (the space not devoted to treating Trump as a living martyr) for reporters to lazily attach blame to rhetoric on “both sides.” The White House has, thankfully, batted down one Reuters report that President Biden would temporarily dial down his already weakened campaign against Trump. That doesn’t sum to much we can be certain of, though certainty is what most people want more than anything. What I can offer instead are the handful of ideas and mental habits that have helped me keep my head level. They all boil down to some version of insisting on truth, even under duress: Dan Pfeiffer/”The Message Box” on Substack: How the GOP is Cynically Exploiting Trump's Shooting The Republicans wasted no time in trying to seek political advantage This was a terrible and shocking day for our country — one that could have been much worse. In the immediate aftermath, Democrats led by President Biden met the moment with the seriousness and sobriety it deserved. Biden received a briefing from his homeland security team, addressed the nation, and then called Trump. He paused his campaign and suspended his advertising. Every senior Democrat responded with an appropriate statement decrying political violence and sending their condolences to the victims, including Trump. Sure, there are ran
JoriPress
Nolan Finley/Detroit News:
My beef with J.D. Vance
Vance’s pen fuels the myths, and confirms for many what they’re certain they know about “hillbillies.”
Let’s start with the book title itself and get this settled: Hillbilly is a pejorative, the same as any other derogatory descriptor assigned to a racial, ethnic or cultural group. It doesn’t matter that it was used in the title of a television show and on bread wrappers. It’s offensive, hurtful and intended to belittle. Anyone who has been the target of the word knows its sting.
That Vance chose to mainstream the smear on his book cover says a lot about how he views his own people.
Wesley Lowery/Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University:
The Right to Know
A case for a federal public trust for media
A free press is often heralded as a key cornerstone of American democracy, functioning as a vital institution tasked with informing the public and holding those in power accountable. Yet, as the industry faces an existential crisis, with the collapse of traditional business models and the rise of deep political polarization amid a sea of misinformation and propaganda, it has become increasingly clear that thinking of press freedom only as a market that must be protected from government interference cannot sustain the kind of robust, diverse, and accessible press that a healthy democracy requires. This chapter argues that to truly fulfill the promise of a “right to know” for all people, we must reimagine the relationship between the press and the public and consider bold new forms of public support for journalism.
Seth Masket/”TUSK” on Substack:
RNC Day 1: Vance Vance Revolution A harsh critic becomes heir apparent
To me, Vance’s rise to this point of trust in the Trump world is a terrific example of just how easy it is to work one’s way into Trump’s good graces. As many others have noted today, Vance has not been a fan of Donald Trump for all that long. Vance at one point called Trump “an idiot” who was “reprehensible” and said he might be “America’s Hitler.” Vance would later soften his criticism and then became far more embracing of Trump. In early 2022, Vance called Trump “the greatest president in my lifetime,” specifically wooing Trump’s endorsement for his Senate run. Trump rewarded him with it, and Vance rocketed from third to first place in that contest to become the Senate nominee.
One of the things that may have helped close the deal on the vice presidential selection was Vance’s strong rhetorical flourishes in the wake of the assassination attempt on Trump, in which Vance specifically blamed Democrats for creating the conditions for the violence. And another, we now know, was the strong lobbying of Eric and Don Jr.
Brian Beutler/Off Message on Substack:
Four Maxims For A Scary Moment Of Uncertainty How to keep a level head.
Notwithstanding the seemingly non-political motive for this highly political violence (the shooter apparently a disturbed white conservative), Republicans are assigning collective blame to Trump’s perceived enemies—the nebulous “they” that Josh Marshall detected here.
Democrats, overcautious as always, have not aggressively rejected this smear, freeing up a large space in mainstream news (the space not devoted to treating Trump as a living martyr) for reporters to lazily attach blame to rhetoric on “both sides.” The White House has, thankfully, batted down one Reuters report that President Biden would temporarily dial down his already weakened campaign against Trump.
That doesn’t sum to much we can be certain of, though certainty is what most people want more than anything. What I can offer instead are the handful of ideas and mental habits that have helped me keep my head level. They all boil down to some version of insisting on truth, even under duress:
Dan Pfeiffer/”The Message Box” on Substack:
How the GOP is Cynically Exploiting Trump's Shooting The Republicans wasted no time in trying to seek political advantage
This was a terrible and shocking day for our country — one that could have been much worse. In the immediate aftermath, Democrats led by President Biden met the moment with the seriousness and sobriety it deserved. Biden received a briefing from his homeland security team, addressed the nation, and then called Trump. He paused his campaign and suspended his advertising. Every senior Democrat responded with an appropriate statement decrying political violence and sending their condolences to the victims, including Trump. Sure, there are random Democrats online talking about a “false flag” and other nonsense, but everyone who matters in the party was responsible and dignified.
While Trump has been pretty disciplined since the incident, the rest of the party has been ruthlessly and cynically exploiting the shooting for political purposes. Here’s how:
1. Lie to Fire Up the Base
Bill Scher/Washington Monthly:
Get a Grip, Democrats. You Can Still Win This
Biden’s not far behind, the economic conditions remain excellent, and a vile assassination attempt in July doesn’t determine November’s outcome.
No doubt, the last few weeks have been demoralizing for Democrats after Joe Biden’s unsettling debate performance and the dramatic photos of a bloodied yet unbowed Trump. But political professionals should know better than to predict defeat four months before Election Day, especially when polls remain close.
The ups and downs of the 2024 race should have already reminded us that an event today can be superseded by an event tomorrow. Not two months ago, Trump was convicted of 34 felonies, and Biden was inching up in the polls. Just before the debate, Biden took a brief lead in the FiveThirtyEight national average and nearly did the same in RealClearPolitics. Then, the post-debate panic over Biden’s mental acuity knocked him back two or three points in those trackers.
Gabriel Schoenfeld/The Bulwark:
The Truth About Political Violence
To condemn the attack on Trump’s life requires being honest about his candidacy.
We do not yet know the motives of the would-be assassin, a 20-year-old Pennsylvanian registered to vote as a Republican. He may well have been a deranged figure in the mold of Ronald Reagan’s attempted assassin, John Hinckley. But whatever turns out to be the case, we cannot allow this episode to obscure several vitally important truths.
First, Donald Trump does in fact pose a threat to American democracy. It was Trump himself who led a multipronged conspiracy to overturn the results of the 2020 election, an action for which he has been indicted and is facing multiple felony counts. It was Trump himself who called for casting away the Constitution in a 2022 Truth Social post about the 2020 election: “A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution.” And it was Trump who declared that, if elected, he will become a dictator but only on “Day One.”
Second, there is indeed a celebration of violence and a whiff of fascism emanating from Trump and the MAGA crowd that surrounds him. After all, it is Trump himself—and figures close to him—who for years now have been stoking the flames of discord in fascist-lite mode.
The examples are legion.
Jody Hamilton and Cliff Schecter discuss the MAGA response to the shooting:
