Whether or not he knows what he’s doing, I will only support Democrats, warts and all, over those whose goal is to restrict rights and turn our democracy into dictatorship. Separation of church and state, rule of law, freedom. Things the current Republican Trump party has no interest in. They are evil and dangerous.
If you don’t believe my anecdata, believe the polling: 85 percent of respondents say Biden’s too old, two-thirds of those polled say he should step aside, and even 54 percent of Biden supporters say he should not run again........You can't put lipstick on this essential problem. Either roll the dice and swap him out, or make way for D Jesus T part II...
Both of them are too old. The choice is not that. The choice is which one will destroy this country and which one will keep it together. Stop making it about age. It is a binary choice. Red = evil destruction of this country and certain rights will be lost. Blue = our democratic republic survives an attack on our freedoms as well as not being forced to be ruled by Christian right wing fascists. Seriously, they want to make contraceptives illegal. Why, because this is about reversing the fast approaching white minority population that is diverse and they don’t like this country’s population being diverse. That is why they plan to remove certain words from government documents, diversity being one. They also plan to track women’s pregnancies. They will force children to be indoctrinated with their version of the Bible just as Hitler’s youth were indoctrinated. It is a binary choice. Red or Blue.
Clooney was wrong and his actions did more harm to our democratic process than help. Biden has not lost his mind and his cognitive ability is in tack. CNN should assume the responsibility of a failed political debate. They made zero effort to keep the debate on track and prevent Trump from his usual tyrannical bullying and harmful attacks on Joe Biden. When and if confronted by a bully, Biden did exactly what anyone would do - not take the bait and fight back. So Clooney just lost a fan. Elizabeth
George Clooney should stick to cue cards and let Biden handle the teleprompters. That's a joke! I see plenty of folks here question the wisdom of his jumping ship, as do I. I get that it'd be exciting to have a lightening open primary. And the polls are so, so bad. But as Joe would say "here's the deal": he's not leaving the race, and won't until polls are an utter disaster. And he does not care who's stamping their foot and demanding he drop out.
We look at the debate. I think it's probably true he was feeling like shit. And people had pumped him full of too much data. This isn't how Joe works. Horrible format, Dana and Jake were awful, too. The George S interview was also an unnatural defensive crouch that took away his offensive chops.
Skip ahead to the NATO presser. This was good. A few verbal farts- what else is new? You have a stutter and you might blurt out a wrong name because that person also on your mind in the thought-stream. Yesterday in Michigan we saw the Joe we know. His campaign has realized it's step-it-up time. He also told the folks all he will be doing in 2nd term, not just past accomplishments.
And note: his most loyal, hardworking base is never going to abandon him. And they boosted him into the job once before, 2020. We really won't benefit from drastic change of person now. That chaos, division and uncertainly we don't need. In a most practical, sane sense, we can see the situation. Accept reality and do not succumb to doubt and division. If we pull together, I know a lot of this can be overcome, and we win. We win. Against the unthinkable. 🌹
He’s doing a great job now. I don’t see anyone who thinks the country is in jeopardy because he’s still in the job. Kamala is there to step in when and if necessary.
It sticks with a general pattern we've seen. The biggest 'Biden needs to drop out' voices tend to be affluent white males. As many have noted, the idea that they'll 'ultimately be OK' in a Trump presidency lets them indulge in fantasies of rolling the dice with a plan B. They've often had the luxury of not having to 'be ruthlessly pragmatic' with their vote most of their life.
The second most shaky group is young people. Many of whom are not engaged in politics and underestimate the stakes because they see an America that's harder to get ahead than it was for their parents and grandparents.
I love the t-shirt that I've seen in the past at elections that says 'Vote Like a Black Woman'. It's a core demo that helped save things in 2020, 2022 and are locked in to be part of a winning coalition for 2024 if they had people willing to stay the course and fight for democracy and not panic and want to blow things up 120 days out.
First, they always start with saying how much they love Biden. Sorry, that’s crap. If you love someone you don’t publicly humiliate them in an op-ed. You talk to them privately and then shut the hell up and be supportive because you are his friend and you love him. You don’t cause chaos and a split among Democrats who now will have wannabe’s on tv hoping to get on the ticket themselves but can’t win.
So what if you spent a lot of money? I spent what I can afford and others may have sacrificed lunch forever or something else they needed for however long to send Joe what we can. You, Hollywood, backstabbed him and have no right to throw this party into chaos this election just because Joe didn’t capitulate to your demands. This is a binary decision. Biden has the best chance and no one else has the name recognition to do it or would be willing to take the Veep slot. No way would we win if Kamala is shoved aside in any scenario being suggested, so just take that idea and you know what to do with it.
I don’t see the issue. If Dems aren’t split we all will vote for Joe and Kamala and our Democracy. If Biden has health issues in his second term, Kamala will become President and select a veep. We do not need to create a fight to select another candidate at this point. It will become even more divisive and voters will be angry and there will be infighting. Congrats, Hollywood. You just helped Trump and Kevin Roberts win because Biden didn’t capitulate to you. So now you punish Biden and take your money bags home to pout.
How dare you usurp 14 million voters who put Biden on the ticket. Golly, you sure know how to express love and friendship.
Serious WOW and another THANK YOU…. Making me SMILE!!! (-: Yowza! WE ARE HERE…. All ages, colors, shapes and sizes and ethnicities!!!! And at 88, have witnessed and hoped through a lot!!!! Serious gifts from us who care about OUR Country , The UNITED States of America! WHOOP!
Bullshit. Exactly how does humiliating him to the entire world save the world?
Look, Biden has done a fantastic job of dragging this country and us out of a deep crevice of hell. He is still doing a great job. I haven’t heard anyone saying he can’t do the job because he obviously IS still doing a great job (example: see the NATO summit this past week).
Tell me why all those who voted blue the last time would not vote blue this time especially after J6, stealing classified documents and showing them to unauthorized people, learning he conspired to create fraudulent electors forms in multiple states, among numerous other crimes he committed, and now the Trump/Project 2025 plot to destroy our country, only to not vote again in November to keep Trump out of power? I mean, it isn’t logical to me to throw the Democratic Party into a tailspin when we all decided in 2020 to stand together with Biden and Harris to defend our democracy. Are we all unwilling to vote blue again together to stop this scourge of Fascism that has blatantly threatened our lives if we don’t obey their demands?
Well, I’m not and I’m tired of upheaval from Trump already and don’t need more because of in-party fighting in the last few months before the election when we all should be focused on educating voters about Project 2025! We’ve already wasted almost three weeks and Biden continues to do the job and he does not deserve this treatment.
Curious - are you stating your preference for Kamala Harris being the candidate? Because that's what's going to happen in the non-fantasy -football world. (for the record, I'd be fine with that too)
I'm surprised you didn't blame the movie industry for the fix we are in Sonny. Let me explain; just for shits and giggles i Googled movies portraying US presidents. 35 of them popped up. Scrolling through them, there were both men and women, none played by aging out of sorts actors.
In fact, most were virile and larger than life. That's not surprising, especially given your comments about perception. The country at large has been groomed to expect a president to both look and act presidential. They have an objective view of him/her being stereo-typically strong of both mind and body.
Which is why this election is so forked up. Joe neither looks or acts strong of body and only appears strong of mind with the proper rest (not my words, Joe has told us that). On the other hand is trump who appears strong of body (although obese) but who is stone cold crazy and clearly not of a strong mind. He simply functions from a purely narcissistic, reptilian kind of place.
So, here we are. Interesting reads in the comments as you have attracted the stay with Joe crowd who tell us "Joe is the only one who can win." Really? Care to share your crystal ball with us. Sorry, but no one, NO ONE knows for sure.
And lets be really clear as you all lambast the "Hollywood Elites" for having an opinion; they are just as entitled to it as you are. They have the right to share their thoughts as many of you are doing here. Especially given the money they have been raising to support Joe, and the democrats.
Last but not least, none of what i have written suggests Joe must drop out. I've said it numerous times; the campaign has not yet started, everything we have seen is foreplay. Once the conventions are over, or in Joe's case during it, then the real shit-storm starts.
Ultimately that choice to stay or go will be up to President Biden. We'll see eh?
Did you see Biden out on the campaign trail in Michigan last night? He was like Joe Biden of 2020. Damn there were many times he was the Biden of the Obama era. JOE BIDEN'S own era. All those decades of experience. All that kindness, honesty, determination. And the people still love him. I have no idea who is running these polls, but I know what I see.
One more thing. Someone had commented that it does not matter who wins, but how they rule. Well number 1, if you don't win you cannot rule, number 2, only Biden can beat trump. number three, we already know how Biden rules, and it is fantastic!
I think so as well! Have some real skin in the game. And learn a lot along the way. I now understand why I have been binge watching The West Wing. Now for the third time. Its TV, but the consultants and writers include Lawrance O’Donnell and DeeDee Meyers, just to name two that I am remembering right this moment. They spend a lot of time on campaigning. Two terms, two mid-terms, and now starting in season 6 & 7 the fight to get the presidency and all down ticket votes for the new President coming in since Jed Bartlett is finishing up his second term. Like I said, its tv, but vetted by people who have lived it!
How many of the 81 million voters in 2020 aren't going to vote this time for the very reason they voted for him last time - an anti-trump vote? That's the only question, are American voters so superficial they'll base their country's future on whether or not their leader looks 'virile', straight from central casting. There's wisdom and good decision making and sensible policy proposals, and every presidential administration has an entire TEAM of advisers and experts (except trump of course). To spite yourselves 3 1/2 months from now because the president doesn't have the right "look". Jesus.
I appreciate your comments about Duvall in "The Shining." I think it's pretty well known that Kubrick demanded take after take of all his actors, and he got some good performances out of them. I always thought her performance as Wendy was convincing, too. She looked and acted really scared because she was a good actor and not because she was scared of the director. Why diminish her talent by turning her into a victim?
“I am incredibly ambivalent about the effort to replace Biden: the unknown unknowns that come with either a mini-primary at the convention or simply replacing Biden with Harris atop the ticket are vast and, potentially, destabilizing.”
In Hollywood, delivering a line smoothly is the core skill. Biden does not have that ability and never had it to a superlative degree. The skills of Hollywood and Washington are different, and movie stars aren't the sharpest knives in the drawer.
If Biden is not at the top of the ticket trump will win. Yeah, he's old, but he has so many years of experience, and is so well loved by democratic most likely voters WHY TAKE THIS CHANCE!! WHY?
I totally blame NYT and the debate prep team and any democrat that does not seem to understand that Joe Biden is our best, maybe only chance, to beat trump. AND once he is in office, getting older but still having all his experience, he can still use the 25th amendment, let Kamala take the lead, confirm Gavin Newsome as VP and Joe stays on as special advisor in foreign affairs! Simple!
Who will vote for Trump over Biden after voting for Biden to keep Trump out in 2020? It is illogical bordering on crazy to assume that those who saw the dangers of Trump last time will cave and hand it over to him and Project 2025 after the attempted coup, the stealing of hundreds of classified documents,,the most recent threats to fire the majority of career (experienced) workers in our government to replace them with people who know nothing about those jobs? We should be making sure all voters know what is planned because we need people who know how to do those jobs, not a bunch of ignorant arrsse kissers.
Absolutely! Thats why I am researching as much as I can so that I can chip in by emailing, texting and calling perspective voters to get them as energized as I am!
I'm glad you seldom do politics in this newsletter, Sonny. But at least when you do it, you do it well.
Personally, I think the fact that the NYT decided to publish what Clooney wrote says a lot more about their judgement than Clooney's words do about his. But I think the guy probably believes he's actually a fixer in real life instead of just playing one on the screen. And he and the rest of the Hollywood set travel in the elite circles of the Democratic party with their checkbooks as the prime reason for their invites, not their intellects or effectiveness at drawing new blood into the party. Which needs many more of the very type of people that the George Clooneys and Rob Reiners of the world do *not* rub shoulders with.
Besides, I'm not too inclined to give too much cred to the opinion of a guy about the politics in this country when he can't seem to decide exactly what country it is that he really wants to live in in the first place.
What part are you asking about? I'm going to make a guess that maybe it's the last paragraph? If so, Clooney owns 6 homes in 5 countries: two in this country and one each in Mexico, Italy, France and England.
Hope that clears things up. If not, let me know and I'll do my best...
I had written a lengthy reply to your post and my laptop decided it was time to update something. Threw me out of the post, actually the entire internet. And I cannot now remember every thin I said. BUT thank you for giving a newbie a glimpse of the lay of the land.
I'm sure that was frustrating. I've never been kicked by an update. Always managed to hit the 'later' icon before it could toss me. But I live in a rural area where satellite internet is the only option, and I've gotten the boot by more than a few rain clouds.
Expect we'll run into each other again at some point.
So true on all counts! Please read my comment just above yours (I am new to this platform, but not new to political debates. I truly believe everything that you have said, and also what I have said. Let's see if we can form a coalition!
If by "platform" you mean the Bulwark writ large, you'll have ample opportunity to talk to and debate politics with a lot of pretty reasonable, well-spoken (and behaved) people to your heart's content. But as for this particular newsletter, Sonny mostly does stick to entertainment news and movie reviews, which is a nice respite from all the other noise out there.
I will admit that as a pragmatic and lifelong Independent I share a bit of Sonny's ambivalence about Biden and the present circumstances, which I spoke of in a comment in Morning Shots earlier today (the circumstances as I see them as of now, not my ambivalence) if you'd care to look it up. I'd be fine with Biden as President again and will vote for him... or Harris or whoever is on the Democratic ticket when all the dust from this settles. Being ambivalent for someone like me does not equate with being against Biden, his administration or the Democrats writ large. They are, for all practical purposes, all that's currently standing between a fragile coalition of democracy and freedom loving Americans and the abysmal prospects of another Trump presidency.
I really do get the idea you wrote about in your above comment. I've been around for a very long time, and I only wish that it could be that simple.
My partner, a clinical psychologist, differentiates age and cognitive ability. It is the latter that we should be concerned about Biden, not his age.
Biden knows what he is doing. When that changes, Kamala will step in and a new veep chosen.
Whether or not he knows what he’s doing, I will only support Democrats, warts and all, over those whose goal is to restrict rights and turn our democracy into dictatorship. Separation of church and state, rule of law, freedom. Things the current Republican Trump party has no interest in. They are evil and dangerous.
If you don’t believe my anecdata, believe the polling: 85 percent of respondents say Biden’s too old, two-thirds of those polled say he should step aside, and even 54 percent of Biden supporters say he should not run again........You can't put lipstick on this essential problem. Either roll the dice and swap him out, or make way for D Jesus T part II...
Both of them are too old. The choice is not that. The choice is which one will destroy this country and which one will keep it together. Stop making it about age. It is a binary choice. Red = evil destruction of this country and certain rights will be lost. Blue = our democratic republic survives an attack on our freedoms as well as not being forced to be ruled by Christian right wing fascists. Seriously, they want to make contraceptives illegal. Why, because this is about reversing the fast approaching white minority population that is diverse and they don’t like this country’s population being diverse. That is why they plan to remove certain words from government documents, diversity being one. They also plan to track women’s pregnancies. They will force children to be indoctrinated with their version of the Bible just as Hitler’s youth were indoctrinated. It is a binary choice. Red or Blue.
Clooney was wrong and his actions did more harm to our democratic process than help. Biden has not lost his mind and his cognitive ability is in tack. CNN should assume the responsibility of a failed political debate. They made zero effort to keep the debate on track and prevent Trump from his usual tyrannical bullying and harmful attacks on Joe Biden. When and if confronted by a bully, Biden did exactly what anyone would do - not take the bait and fight back. So Clooney just lost a fan. Elizabeth
From Democracy to Democrazy
Agreed, HOW????? Thanks…
George Clooney should stick to cue cards and let Biden handle the teleprompters. That's a joke! I see plenty of folks here question the wisdom of his jumping ship, as do I. I get that it'd be exciting to have a lightening open primary. And the polls are so, so bad. But as Joe would say "here's the deal": he's not leaving the race, and won't until polls are an utter disaster. And he does not care who's stamping their foot and demanding he drop out.
We look at the debate. I think it's probably true he was feeling like shit. And people had pumped him full of too much data. This isn't how Joe works. Horrible format, Dana and Jake were awful, too. The George S interview was also an unnatural defensive crouch that took away his offensive chops.
Skip ahead to the NATO presser. This was good. A few verbal farts- what else is new? You have a stutter and you might blurt out a wrong name because that person also on your mind in the thought-stream. Yesterday in Michigan we saw the Joe we know. His campaign has realized it's step-it-up time. He also told the folks all he will be doing in 2nd term, not just past accomplishments.
And note: his most loyal, hardworking base is never going to abandon him. And they boosted him into the job once before, 2020. We really won't benefit from drastic change of person now. That chaos, division and uncertainly we don't need. In a most practical, sane sense, we can see the situation. Accept reality and do not succumb to doubt and division. If we pull together, I know a lot of this can be overcome, and we win. We win. Against the unthinkable. 🌹
We should not rely on polls, especially when we now know more Rs answer polls than Dems. I don’t like those small samples of voters, either.
Again…. THANK YOU….
The polls are not so bad. He is up 2 in the Marist poll. 538 has the race tied.
He’s too old to be president for 4 more years. Simple as that.
He’s doing a great job now. I don’t see anyone who thinks the country is in jeopardy because he’s still in the job. Kamala is there to step in when and if necessary.
I love everything you write, Sonny! Keep up the great work!
It sticks with a general pattern we've seen. The biggest 'Biden needs to drop out' voices tend to be affluent white males. As many have noted, the idea that they'll 'ultimately be OK' in a Trump presidency lets them indulge in fantasies of rolling the dice with a plan B. They've often had the luxury of not having to 'be ruthlessly pragmatic' with their vote most of their life.
The second most shaky group is young people. Many of whom are not engaged in politics and underestimate the stakes because they see an America that's harder to get ahead than it was for their parents and grandparents.
I love the t-shirt that I've seen in the past at elections that says 'Vote Like a Black Woman'. It's a core demo that helped save things in 2020, 2022 and are locked in to be part of a winning coalition for 2024 if they had people willing to stay the course and fight for democracy and not panic and want to blow things up 120 days out.
Ruthless pragmatism is a good thing sometimes.
The ruthless pragmatism is him dropping out.
The $1M is drop out for who? Who are you willing to roll the dice on upending the ticket less than four months out with the stakes this high?
First, they always start with saying how much they love Biden. Sorry, that’s crap. If you love someone you don’t publicly humiliate them in an op-ed. You talk to them privately and then shut the hell up and be supportive because you are his friend and you love him. You don’t cause chaos and a split among Democrats who now will have wannabe’s on tv hoping to get on the ticket themselves but can’t win.
So what if you spent a lot of money? I spent what I can afford and others may have sacrificed lunch forever or something else they needed for however long to send Joe what we can. You, Hollywood, backstabbed him and have no right to throw this party into chaos this election just because Joe didn’t capitulate to your demands. This is a binary decision. Biden has the best chance and no one else has the name recognition to do it or would be willing to take the Veep slot. No way would we win if Kamala is shoved aside in any scenario being suggested, so just take that idea and you know what to do with it.
I don’t see the issue. If Dems aren’t split we all will vote for Joe and Kamala and our Democracy. If Biden has health issues in his second term, Kamala will become President and select a veep. We do not need to create a fight to select another candidate at this point. It will become even more divisive and voters will be angry and there will be infighting. Congrats, Hollywood. You just helped Trump and Kevin Roberts win because Biden didn’t capitulate to you. So now you punish Biden and take your money bags home to pout.
How dare you usurp 14 million voters who put Biden on the ticket. Golly, you sure know how to express love and friendship.
Serious WOW and another THANK YOU…. Making me SMILE!!! (-: Yowza! WE ARE HERE…. All ages, colors, shapes and sizes and ethnicities!!!! And at 88, have witnessed and hoped through a lot!!!! Serious gifts from us who care about OUR Country , The UNITED States of America! WHOOP!
He’s not publicly humiliating him. He’s trying to save the country. Biden is being selfish.
Bullshit. Exactly how does humiliating him to the entire world save the world?
Look, Biden has done a fantastic job of dragging this country and us out of a deep crevice of hell. He is still doing a great job. I haven’t heard anyone saying he can’t do the job because he obviously IS still doing a great job (example: see the NATO summit this past week).
Tell me why all those who voted blue the last time would not vote blue this time especially after J6, stealing classified documents and showing them to unauthorized people, learning he conspired to create fraudulent electors forms in multiple states, among numerous other crimes he committed, and now the Trump/Project 2025 plot to destroy our country, only to not vote again in November to keep Trump out of power? I mean, it isn’t logical to me to throw the Democratic Party into a tailspin when we all decided in 2020 to stand together with Biden and Harris to defend our democracy. Are we all unwilling to vote blue again together to stop this scourge of Fascism that has blatantly threatened our lives if we don’t obey their demands?
Well, I’m not and I’m tired of upheaval from Trump already and don’t need more because of in-party fighting in the last few months before the election when we all should be focused on educating voters about Project 2025! We’ve already wasted almost three weeks and Biden continues to do the job and he does not deserve this treatment.
Curious - are you stating your preference for Kamala Harris being the candidate? Because that's what's going to happen in the non-fantasy -football world. (for the record, I'd be fine with that too)
I'm surprised you didn't blame the movie industry for the fix we are in Sonny. Let me explain; just for shits and giggles i Googled movies portraying US presidents. 35 of them popped up. Scrolling through them, there were both men and women, none played by aging out of sorts actors.
In fact, most were virile and larger than life. That's not surprising, especially given your comments about perception. The country at large has been groomed to expect a president to both look and act presidential. They have an objective view of him/her being stereo-typically strong of both mind and body.
Which is why this election is so forked up. Joe neither looks or acts strong of body and only appears strong of mind with the proper rest (not my words, Joe has told us that). On the other hand is trump who appears strong of body (although obese) but who is stone cold crazy and clearly not of a strong mind. He simply functions from a purely narcissistic, reptilian kind of place.
So, here we are. Interesting reads in the comments as you have attracted the stay with Joe crowd who tell us "Joe is the only one who can win." Really? Care to share your crystal ball with us. Sorry, but no one, NO ONE knows for sure.
And lets be really clear as you all lambast the "Hollywood Elites" for having an opinion; they are just as entitled to it as you are. They have the right to share their thoughts as many of you are doing here. Especially given the money they have been raising to support Joe, and the democrats.
Last but not least, none of what i have written suggests Joe must drop out. I've said it numerous times; the campaign has not yet started, everything we have seen is foreplay. Once the conventions are over, or in Joe's case during it, then the real shit-storm starts.
Ultimately that choice to stay or go will be up to President Biden. We'll see eh?
Did you see Biden out on the campaign trail in Michigan last night? He was like Joe Biden of 2020. Damn there were many times he was the Biden of the Obama era. JOE BIDEN'S own era. All those decades of experience. All that kindness, honesty, determination. And the people still love him. I have no idea who is running these polls, but I know what I see.
One more thing. Someone had commented that it does not matter who wins, but how they rule. Well number 1, if you don't win you cannot rule, number 2, only Biden can beat trump. number three, we already know how Biden rules, and it is fantastic!
I did and he’s too old.
Well, that issue is now fully taken care of. And I am with Kamala all the way!
And you are wrong.
I already addressed this very issue TO YOU in another thread.
Maybe you are too old to remember.
Wonderful Diane, S’Wonderful!!!! And how awesome that “we” do this!!!!!!
I think so as well! Have some real skin in the game. And learn a lot along the way. I now understand why I have been binge watching The West Wing. Now for the third time. Its TV, but the consultants and writers include Lawrance O’Donnell and DeeDee Meyers, just to name two that I am remembering right this moment. They spend a lot of time on campaigning. Two terms, two mid-terms, and now starting in season 6 & 7 the fight to get the presidency and all down ticket votes for the new President coming in since Jed Bartlett is finishing up his second term. Like I said, its tv, but vetted by people who have lived it!
How many of the 81 million voters in 2020 aren't going to vote this time for the very reason they voted for him last time - an anti-trump vote? That's the only question, are American voters so superficial they'll base their country's future on whether or not their leader looks 'virile', straight from central casting. There's wisdom and good decision making and sensible policy proposals, and every presidential administration has an entire TEAM of advisers and experts (except trump of course). To spite yourselves 3 1/2 months from now because the president doesn't have the right "look". Jesus.
Precisely.
WONDERFUL!!!!! Just WHOOPING W O N D E R F U L!!!!!!
I am with you 100% Hope there are more of us them! Lets keep fighting.
I appreciate your comments about Duvall in "The Shining." I think it's pretty well known that Kubrick demanded take after take of all his actors, and he got some good performances out of them. I always thought her performance as Wendy was convincing, too. She looked and acted really scared because she was a good actor and not because she was scared of the director. Why diminish her talent by turning her into a victim?
“I am incredibly ambivalent about the effort to replace Biden: the unknown unknowns that come with either a mini-primary at the convention or simply replacing Biden with Harris atop the ticket are vast and, potentially, destabilizing.”
Me, too.
In Hollywood, delivering a line smoothly is the core skill. Biden does not have that ability and never had it to a superlative degree. The skills of Hollywood and Washington are different, and movie stars aren't the sharpest knives in the drawer.
If Biden is not at the top of the ticket trump will win. Yeah, he's old, but he has so many years of experience, and is so well loved by democratic most likely voters WHY TAKE THIS CHANCE!! WHY?
I totally blame NYT and the debate prep team and any democrat that does not seem to understand that Joe Biden is our best, maybe only chance, to beat trump. AND once he is in office, getting older but still having all his experience, he can still use the 25th amendment, let Kamala take the lead, confirm Gavin Newsome as VP and Joe stays on as special advisor in foreign affairs! Simple!
Who will vote for Trump over Biden after voting for Biden to keep Trump out in 2020? It is illogical bordering on crazy to assume that those who saw the dangers of Trump last time will cave and hand it over to him and Project 2025 after the attempted coup, the stealing of hundreds of classified documents,,the most recent threats to fire the majority of career (experienced) workers in our government to replace them with people who know nothing about those jobs? We should be making sure all voters know what is planned because we need people who know how to do those jobs, not a bunch of ignorant arrsse kissers.
Absolutely! Thats why I am researching as much as I can so that I can chip in by emailing, texting and calling perspective voters to get them as energized as I am!
ABSOLUTELY!!!!!!
How do you know that?
I'm glad you seldom do politics in this newsletter, Sonny. But at least when you do it, you do it well.
Personally, I think the fact that the NYT decided to publish what Clooney wrote says a lot more about their judgement than Clooney's words do about his. But I think the guy probably believes he's actually a fixer in real life instead of just playing one on the screen. And he and the rest of the Hollywood set travel in the elite circles of the Democratic party with their checkbooks as the prime reason for their invites, not their intellects or effectiveness at drawing new blood into the party. Which needs many more of the very type of people that the George Clooneys and Rob Reiners of the world do *not* rub shoulders with.
Besides, I'm not too inclined to give too much cred to the opinion of a guy about the politics in this country when he can't seem to decide exactly what country it is that he really wants to live in in the first place.
What part are you asking about? I'm going to make a guess that maybe it's the last paragraph? If so, Clooney owns 6 homes in 5 countries: two in this country and one each in Mexico, Italy, France and England.
Hope that clears things up. If not, let me know and I'll do my best...
What are you talking about?
I had written a lengthy reply to your post and my laptop decided it was time to update something. Threw me out of the post, actually the entire internet. And I cannot now remember every thin I said. BUT thank you for giving a newbie a glimpse of the lay of the land.
I'm sure that was frustrating. I've never been kicked by an update. Always managed to hit the 'later' icon before it could toss me. But I live in a rural area where satellite internet is the only option, and I've gotten the boot by more than a few rain clouds.
Expect we'll run into each other again at some point.
Yeah, I live less than a mile from the western most building of Yale University, so lots of people fighting for the same bandwidth!
I would think so. I like the way you write, and I like the way you think!
So true on all counts! Please read my comment just above yours (I am new to this platform, but not new to political debates. I truly believe everything that you have said, and also what I have said. Let's see if we can form a coalition!
If by "platform" you mean the Bulwark writ large, you'll have ample opportunity to talk to and debate politics with a lot of pretty reasonable, well-spoken (and behaved) people to your heart's content. But as for this particular newsletter, Sonny mostly does stick to entertainment news and movie reviews, which is a nice respite from all the other noise out there.
I will admit that as a pragmatic and lifelong Independent I share a bit of Sonny's ambivalence about Biden and the present circumstances, which I spoke of in a comment in Morning Shots earlier today (the circumstances as I see them as of now, not my ambivalence) if you'd care to look it up. I'd be fine with Biden as President again and will vote for him... or Harris or whoever is on the Democratic ticket when all the dust from this settles. Being ambivalent for someone like me does not equate with being against Biden, his administration or the Democrats writ large. They are, for all practical purposes, all that's currently standing between a fragile coalition of democracy and freedom loving Americans and the abysmal prospects of another Trump presidency.
I really do get the idea you wrote about in your above comment. I've been around for a very long time, and I only wish that it could be that simple.
I don't think anyone would refer to Clooney as a 'long time Biden supporter'; he's an Obama guy only.
How do you know that?