TWO BLACK HOLES, RIPPING THEM APART
Is it an example of spaghettification? Over there, picking a direction at random, is President Trump and his influence over MAGA and MAGA-inclined voters, while some other random direction has all the other voters who might be conservatives, but are furious because of the imposition of tariffs; the obstruction of the full release of the Epstein Files; people recently shot dead, wounded, or at least improperly jailed by incompetent ICE agents, and defended by Secretary of DHS Mullin; inflation; foreign conflicts and interference, along with incompetence at same; and continual lying, boasting, and all the other nonsense that erupts from the mouths of President Trump and his minions.
In between them is an exceptionally uneasy mob of GOP Senators and Senator-wannabes, pulled one way and then the other. If they stick with President Trump then they may not attain or be reelected; if they separate from him and resume their traditional role of judging the suitability of new laws, sometimes certifying and sometimes rejecting, then the President may attack them, and it’ll be tantamount to admitting their Party put an infamous incompetent in the seat of the Presidency.
And actions they felt were safe have become nightmares. Consider Maine. Joan Sebastian Guerrero was shot to death by ICE agents in Biddeford, Maine on 13 July, and a consequence of this was a protest of the tragic incident, including of Senator Collins (R) and her vote to certify the ICE budget.
The Republicans’ association with government-sponsored murder on the streets isn’t a positive, even if we consider the consequent prosecutions of the ICE agents responsible, because those people are still dead.
Pressure on GOP Senate hopefuls will continue to intensify.
DANCING THE TIGHTROPE
President Trump, snarling imprecations, tried to avoid biting off his own tongue by not signing the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act … but not vetoing it, either. This means it became law, on 11 July 2026, not through a Congressional override of a Trump veto, which would have been interpreted as yet another sign of Trump’s eroding prestige and influence, but through Trump’s lack of action on the matter. For those voters paying attention, this may seem to be the moral equivalent; the rest may wonder if the President is becoming overly-forgetful.
Will voters notice the difference? Well, in households that watch conservative news, it’s likely that Trump’s lack of action will be downplayed or even omitted. A strongly bipartisan piece of legislation will have passed, meant to increase the affordability of housing, and that will be celebrated. Unless Fox News makes the mistake of bringing on popular Democrat Pete Buttigieg on for an interview, viewers will probably not notice.
On independent and liberal outlets there will be a higher likelihood of a mention of Trump’s frantic behavior, and if viewers are concerned with affordability or fear the SAVE AMERICA ACT, which has been characterized as a vote suppression tactic, their attraction or loathing for Trump will be in accordance with their previous inclination. Whether that will extend to GOP Senate candidates will depend on the allegiance of said candidates to Trump.
Or so I’d expect.
CAN MAGIC FLOW FROM THE MENDACIOUS MOUTH AGAIN?
President Trump has announced that he’ll address the nation tonight, probably right after I post this, so my reader may know more than I.
The subject? Beats me.
But it’s worth remembering that the President’s entire life and career has been hallmarked by mendacity. That’s been his path to whatever he calls success, and so why should he stop now? I recommend taking nothing at his word. What can be verified should be verified. Ignore the rest.
Steve Benen would have me believe the President’s addresses of the nation have been failures; I wouldn’t know as I’m invariably busy when these addresses come through, and, like most politicians, he makes my skin crawl, only moreso. Maybe tonight, though, Thursday nights are more idle than most.
But the garden needs weeding.
THE SORDID DETAILS
Starring … ummm … I know I put those notes down around here somewhere….
- Is it usual in Texas to mistake money for something important?
State Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic U.S. Senate nominee, raised a staggering $30 million from April through June, his campaign announced Wednesday — more than triple the amount brought in by his Republican opponent, Attorney General Ken Paxton.
The haul is a record total for a U.S. Senate candidate in the second quarter of an election year, Talarico’s campaign said, noting he has now raised more than $70 million from over 1.5 million donations, including 780,000 individual contributors, since launching his bid in September.
“I’m honored to stand alongside more than 780,000 neighbors who are tired of being divided into teams — red versus blue, left versus right, rural versus urban,” Talarico, D-Austin, said in a statement. “We are uniting Texans onto one team to change this broken, corrupt political system and bring down costs for working families.” [The Texas Tribune]
Money is flowing from out of state, which means Talarico’s collection may not be indicative of any kind of lead or popularity with relevant voters. Such is the nature of crowd-based funding for political campaigns. Perhaps there’ll be legitimate excitement when financial disclosure reports are filed.
In other news, Steve Benen of Maddowblog believes Mr Talarico will be using Mr Paxton’s real estate holdings against him. In a time of housing shortages, the question might be whether or not someone needs eleven homes.
I do have to wonder if the GOP is having buyers’ remorse over Paxton’s selection. It would certainly be a brazen rejection of President Trump, who endorsed Paxton, if members of the GOP suggested to the voting public that they write-in Paxton. Remember, that worked in Alaska when the Alaska GOP got out of control.
- In South Carolina, the passing of Senator Graham (R) has set off a frenzy as politicos consider whether they want to try to move up the prestige ladder or not. In possibly not-incidental news, Graham’s short-term replacement will be his sister, Darline Graham Nordone:
A mother of two who has never held elected office, Graham Nordone was a political confidante of her older brother, who helped raise her after their parents died. She often appeared in Graham’s campaign advertisements and, when he ran for president in 2015, Graham, who never married, said his sister could play the role of first lady. [WaPo]
Her intentions concerning the next term for Graham’s seat have not been stated. At least that I know. Whoever may be Belle of the Ranch seems to think a perfectly horrible replacement candidate is possible, but that translating to a Democratic victory remains doubtful to me.
- The Democratic nominee for the Maine Senate seat, Graham Platner, is no longer that. I thought he already had repudiated the nomination, but it’s official as of 10 July. According to Politico, there are at least eight candidates to replace him as the candidate du jour; none of the names are familiar to me, and none are Gov Mills (D). Quite sensibly, the Maine Democrats are running a debate today.
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On The Issues: Abdul El-Sayed (D-MI).
Michigan’s Senator Gary Peters (D) has endorsed Rep Haley Stevens (D) to succeed him, now that state senator McMorrow (D) has dropped out. The AP, at the above link, reports the endorsement is due to increased concerns in the Democratic leadership that Stevens’ rival, Abdul El-Sayed (D), a former state health official who holds MD and PhD degrees, and has led for most of the race, is too far left for Michigan voters. To the right is the On The Issues summation for El-Sayed, and that is a far ways left, I must say. However, Rep Stevens is only marginally more conservative; both earn the moniker Hard-Core Liberal from On The Issues. Also, again from the AP report, there may be concerns that his outspoken views on the Gaza War would repel independent voters. Reading the AP report on this contest reminds me of the local-to-Minnesota commercials I see from the two primary rivals for the retiring Senator Smith’s (D-MN) seat, Rep Craig (D) and Lt Gov Flanagan (D), in which each attempts to flay the other. Not that I disapprove of vigorous campaigns, but sometimes I wonder if they recall they’re on the same side, more or less.
There have been few polls from known & respectable pollsters of late for Michigan, and the only polls in the last couple of weeks are from unknown Tavern Research, calling it an even race within the margin of error, and WDIV/Detroit News, giving Rep Stevens (D) a remarkable lead of 48% – 41%. I don’t know if I should take these polls seriously, but it’s all I have.
- Georgia Senator Ossoff (D) continues to appear to have the advantage over his challenger, Rep Mike Collins (R), as the latter is having staffing problems:
In yet another humiliation to Georgia Senate candidate Mike Collins, he is losing his second congressional chief of staff, forcing him to open hiring for a third one.
According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “Collins said Thursday he hired Andrew Eisenberger to lead his Congressional office. Eisenberger is a former deputy aide for Collins who most recently worked for American Waterways Operators, the national trade association for the barge, towboat and tugboat industry.”
Collins, a MAGA-aligned member of Congress, makes the staff shakeup as he prepares for a tough campaign against Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff, who has “repeatedly labeled Collins a ‘notorious bigot, antisemite and extremist,’ citing, in part, his ties to former aides Brandon Phillips and Kip Talley,” noted AJC. [Raw Story]
It seems Erick Erickson has this race right. Election Day is a ways off, but right now it looks like Georgia GOP officials had best find others hopes to follow.
AND ENOUGH OF THIS
I hope to have more news than that paltry bit above for my kind readers next time.
