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Tag: sen. kamala harris

  • Dem Party Officials Have a Plan to Remind Everyone “Trump Praised Hitler” By Projecting It Onto MSG

    Dem Party Officials Have a Plan to Remind Everyone “Trump Praised Hitler” By Projecting It Onto MSG

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    The Democratic Party is keen to remind voters, especially those attending Trump’s planned rally Sunday in New York’s Madison Square Garden, and anyone nearby—that Donald Trump has repeatedly praised Adolf Hitler.

    The Democratic National Committee plans to project unmissable messages in giant, all-capital letters on the New York City landmark, while Trump delivers his closing argument inside, that read “TRUMP PRAISED HITLER,” “TRUMP=UNSTABLE,” “TRUMP=UNHINGED,” “TRUMP=UNFIT,” and “TRUMP=CHEAT.”

    As early voting begins in many states and Tuesday, November 5, looms, Democratic candidate Kamala Harris has leaned hard on Trump’s shortcomings as part of her own final press. During Wednesday night’s town hall broadcast on CNN, Harris said outright that she believes Trump is a fascist and a “danger to the well-being and security of the United States of America.”

    Retired Marine Gen. John Kelly, who served first under Trump as his secretary of homeland security, then as his chief of staff, delivered interviews this week in which he described his former boss as a fascist as well, offering up alternate descriptors of “authoritarian” and “dictator,” for the thesaurus-minded among readers. He also recalled that Trump “commented more than once that, ‘You know, Hitler did some good things, too,’” a replay of a 2021 sound bite, and in another interview recalled Trump speaking wistfully of “Hitler’s generals,” resurfacing another old chestnut that made headlines in 2022 and subsequently appears to have vacated the population’s minds.

    Kelly recalled asking for clarification that Trump meant Hitler’s generals, and upon receiving it, Kelly reminded Trump, “You do know that they tried to kill Hitler three times and almost pulled it off?” There have been two apparent assassination attempts on Trump in the past three months alone.

    Trump’s admiration of Hitler is so old-hat that his late ex-wife Ivana Trump revealed in a 1990 Vanity Fair article that Trump kept a collection of Hitler’s speeches, My New Order, in a cabinet beside his bed.

    When asked about the book, Trump responded, “If I had these speeches, and I am not saying that I do, I would never read them.”

    Harris spoke from the White House on Wednesday to recap, calling Trump “increasingly unhinged and unstable.”

    “It is deeply troubling and incredibly dangerous that Donald Trump would invoke Adolf Hitler, the man who is responsible for the deaths of 6 million Jews and hundreds of thousands of Americans,” she said. “All of this is further evidence for the American people of who Donald Trump really is. This is a window into who Donald Trump really is from the people who know him best, from the people who worked with him side by side in the Oval Office and in the Situation Room.”

    Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, once called Trump “America’s Hitler.”

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    Kase Wickman

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  • Beyoncé Officially Endorses Kamala Harris at Houston Hometown Rally: “It’s Time to Sing a New Song!”

    Beyoncé Officially Endorses Kamala Harris at Houston Hometown Rally: “It’s Time to Sing a New Song!”

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    “It’s time to sing a new song, a song that began 248 years ago,” she continued later. “The old notes—of downfall, discord, despair—no longer resonate. Our generations of loved ones before us are whispering a prophecy, a quest, a calling, an anthem. Our moment right now—it’s time for America to sing a new song. Our voices sing a chorus of unity. They sing a song of dignity and opportunity.”

    As usual, Harris entered the stage to the sound of Beyoncé’s “Freedom.” This time, she was greeted by Queen Bey herself along with her blaring song. Harris hugged Rowland and then Beyoncé, then took the podium to stump in a state with some of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws.

    Until Friday, Beyoncé herself had kept mum on her choice of candidate. Rumors of a performance by Queen Bey on the final night of the 2024 Democratic National Convention back in August turned out to be greatly exaggerated, but, months later, in the final days before voters head to the polls, it came to fruition in Bey’s hometown.

    The singer endorsed the Biden-Harris ticket back in the 2020 election, and in 2016, headlined a performance with her husband, Jay-Z, in support of Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid. Audiences have long waited for Beyoncé to speak out officially, though she’s signaled her support in other ways.

    According to Billboard, the singer’s label sent a cease and desist letter to Donald Trump’s campaign earlier in the election cycle, telling the Republican candidate to remove a video using “Freedom.”

    The singer’s endorsement is more than just symbolic—her stamp of approval could actually sway voters. A recent poll conducted by Newsweek found that some 40% of surveyed Gen Z voters said that they were “more likely” or “significantly more likely” to vote for a candidate who had earned Beyoncé’s endorsement.

    Bey joins other powerhouse musical acts such as Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, Bruce Springsteen, and more by voicing her support for Harris.

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    Kase Wickman

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  • Dave Portnoy Showed Everyone What a Taylor Swift Thank-You Note Looks Like, Including Her Stationery

    Dave Portnoy Showed Everyone What a Taylor Swift Thank-You Note Looks Like, Including Her Stationery

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    It comes as no surprise that when Taylor Swift passes notes, they’re on custom stationery with a bespoke wax “13” seal. What is surprising is that the recipient of a handwritten note on that “from the desk of Taylor Swift” cardstock was Dave Portnoy, the Barstool Sports founder who is known for being a Swiftie—and a supporter of Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential aspirations.

    Portnoy, who attended the second show of Swift’s Miami leg of her Eras Tour Saturday night wearing his special sparkly jacket, shared that Swift’s younger brother, Austin Swift, hand-delivered the note to him in the VIP tent at the show, and that he shared a nice hug with Swift’s mom, Andrea Swift. The note (with its footer that describes Swift as a “songwriter/feline enthusiast,” by the way) thanked Portnoy for his longtime support, and hinted at some of the blowback she’s gotten since endorsing Kamala Harris for president.

    “Dave, I’m so happy to have you at the show tonight!” Swift wrote. “I wanted to say thank you for always being so supportive, so loyal, and for having my back when a lot of people didn’t. I hope you have a blast tonight!! Love, Taylor”

    Back in September, speculation about whether Swift would share her choice of candidate was at a high. Portnoy, a self-proclaimed Swiftie, was asked about it.

    “I’ll never criticize someone for talking about politics,” he said in an interview on Fox News ahead of the debate between Harris and Trump, on whether he thought Swift would make an endorsement. As we know now, it was shortly after that debate ended that Swift released her statement voicing her support for Harris. “I don’t see the upside for her, but to each their own,” Portnoy said of whether Swift would speak out on the election. He also disclosed then that, “Yeah, I’m voting for Trump. I don’t know that I’d call myself a Trump guy.”

    Whatever he’d call himself, he’s outspoken: As recently as last week, Portnoy posted a video of a six-minute-long rant about Harris.

    “It’s the gaslighting that the left is doing with Kamala Harris, making it sound like she’s some great, groundbreaking candidate,” he said in part. “She is the worst candidate to ever run for president ever.”

    However, the morning after Swift released her own endorsement, Portnoy stood up for her on social media. “As the king of the Swifties people are asking me what I think of her Kamala endorsement,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “I don’t care at all. People can vote for whoever they want in this country. How somebody votes will never change my opinion of a person. I’m voting the other way but to each their own.”

    Flavor Flav took issue with that “king of the Swifties” title, but Swift apparently appreciated the cross-aisle gesture, and thanked him for it this weekend.

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    Kase Wickman

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  • Kamala Harris Launches Media Blitz in Final Weeks of Campaign

    Kamala Harris Launches Media Blitz in Final Weeks of Campaign

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    Even supporters of the Democratic candidate for president Kamala Harris have complained that the current vice president remains a mystery to broad swaths of the country. Though media outlets (including this one) have noted that coverage of Harris and her campaign attracts a greater readership than coverage of her opponent, Republican nominee and former president Donald Trump, those outlets have struggled to convince Harris to sit down for an interview. It’s a decision that’s concerned even the journalists who seem receptive to her message, and prompted observers such as media writer Jon Allsop to note that as of late September, Harris and running mate Tim Walz “had taken part in seven interviews or press conferences, compared with Donald Trump and J.D. Vance’s combined seventy-two.” Of those, Harris personally has participated in just three.

    But all that changes this week, as Harris is launching into a set of sit-downs and interviews at the national level, presumably in an effort to—as Democratic strategist James Carville recently put it——win the news cycle. Here’s where to find an interview with Kamala Harris this week:

    TBD: Call Her Daddy

    Harris sat for an interview with influential podcast host Alex Cooper on Tuesday, for an episode slated to be released on an at-yet-undisclosed day this week. Quoting the Harris campaign, the Washington Post reports that the interview focused on “reproductive rights and ‘other critical issues important to women.’” Listeners can find the episode on Spotify when it’s released.

    Monday: 60 Minutes

    For decades, the venerable CBS newsmagazine has hosted an interview with both presidential candidates in the weeks leading up to the election, with Trump famously walking out on that conversation in 2020. Via statement, the show says, “This year, both the Harris and Trump campaigns agreed to sit down with 60 Minutes. Vice President Harris will speak with correspondent Bill Whitaker. After initially accepting 60 Minutes’ request for an interview with Scott Pelley, former President Trump’s campaign has decided not to participate. Pelley will address this Monday evening. Our election special will broadcast the Harris interview on Monday as planned.” According to the show, expect questions about “the economy, immigration, and the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Israel.” 60 Minutes will air on CBS on Monday, October 7 at 8 p.m. ET, and will be available for streaming via CBSNews.com, on the CBS News app, or Paramount+.

    Kamala Harris appears on ABC’s “The View” on Friday, July 12, 2019.

    Jenny Anderson/Getty Images

    Tuesday: The View

    Harris will travel to New York on October 8 for an in-person interview with the ABC roundtable talk show. Planned topics of discussion with hosts Sunny Hostin, Joy Behar, Ana Navarro, Whoopi Goldberg, Sara Haines and Alyssa Farah Griffin have not been released. ABC broadcasts The View on weekdays at 11 a.m. ET, 10 a.m. CT and PT., with episodes streaming at a later date on ABC.com and Hulu.

    Tuesday: The Howard Stern Show

    The iconic interviewer’s once-controversial style is far less shocking in these days of wildly popular batshit podcasters, but with an audience of listeners who followed him to incessant spam call network SiriusXM, he arguably still enjoys some pull. Stern’s show airs live on Sirius’s channel 100 from 7-11 a.m. ET, with clips and segments typically shared to its YouTube channel in the hours following the broadcast.

    Tuesday: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

    Harris will cap off her busy Tuesday with an appearance on the late night talk show hosted by frequent Trump antagonist Stephen Colbert. (Other guests for the episode have yet to be announced.) The October 8 episode will air from 11:35 p.m. to 12:37 ET on CBS and will be available to stream on Paramount+.

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    Eve Batey

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  • Amid Black Mold Battle, Janet Jackson Questions Kamala Harris’s Race

    Amid Black Mold Battle, Janet Jackson Questions Kamala Harris’s Race

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    Musician, actor, and style icon Janet Jackson has been open about her views in recent years, with her 2017 State of the World tour beginning with a video statement of her politics. “We will not be silent. LGBTQ rights. Peace not war. Black Lives Matter. Immigrants are welcome. Liberty and justice for all,” the screens at tour stadiums read. “Prejudice: No! Ignorance: No! Bigotry: No! Illiteracy: No!” the message continued.

    Those values were at odds with the messages presented by then-president Donald Trump, whose own values appear to have grown even further from those tenets during his current campaign to retake the White House. It appears that Jackson’s values might also have shifted, at least when it comes to her list of non-negotiables.

    The 58-year-old singer’s 1986 song, “Nasty,” received an ironic bump in 2016 when Trump used that word against Democratic contender Hillary Clinton during that election cycle’s presidential debate. That was a politics-meets-pop-culture moment that almost seems quaint now, given Trump’s reported fondness, these days, for referring to his Democratic opponent, vice-president Kamala Harris, as a “bitch.” (Sadly for “Bitch” singer Meredith Brooks, the American public seems less inclined to view Trump’s insults as a silly joke this time around.)

    Janet Jackson fans will likely be relieved to learn that the megastar didn’t use language that harsh to describe Harris. But her framing of a possible Harris presidency wasn’t terribly supportive, either. In an interview published Saturday by the Guardian, the “Pleasure Principle” singer perpetuated one of the most ignorant falsehoods presented during this Idiocracy-leaning presidential election: the lie that Harris has been deceptive about her race.

    It’s clear from reading the conversation that even reporter Nosheen Iqbal was nonplussed. According to the journalist (who also hosts the Guardian’s Today in Focus podcast), she only asked Jackson about Harris due to the social justice messages Jackson has presented in work going back to her groundbreaking Rhythm Nation album in 1989. “Well, you know what they supposedly said?” Jackson responded. “She’s not black. That’s what I heard. That she’s Indian.”

    It’s a claim that echoes the one first made by Trump in July, when he participated in an interview with the National Association of Black Journalists. At that event, Trump said of Harris that “She was always of Indian heritage and she was only promoting Indian heritage.”

    “I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago, when she happened to turn Black and now she wants to be known as Black,” Trump falsely continued regarding the vice-president, who has never concealed her identity as the daughter of Donald J. Harris, her Black, Jamaican American father, and mother Shyamala Gopalan, who came to the U.S. from India in 1958.

    “So I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?” Trump continued from the NABJ stage in July. “She was Indian all the way, and all of a sudden, she made a turn and she became a Black person.”

    Though nearly every journalistic outlet fact-checked Trump’s remarks that day, it appears that the message didn’t reach Jackson, who actually expanded on Trump’s falsehoods when speaking with Iqbal. “Her father’s white. That’s what I was told. I mean, I haven’t watched the news in a few days,” Jackson said when Iqbal corrected her. “I was told that they discovered her father was white.”

    It’s unclear who the “they” is that Jackson referred to, nor did she cite a source for the false claim about Harris’s father. Representatives for Jackson have not responded to Vanity Fair’s request for clarification.

    As Iqbal wrote, “The people who are most vocal in questioning the facts of Harris’s identity tend to be hardcore QAnon-adjacent, Trump-loving conspiracy theorists,” but as she doesn’t “think Jackson falls into that camp,” one has to “wonder what the algorithms are serving her.” But just hours after the Guardian interview was published, Jackson returned to the headlines for another reason: her penthouse apartment is allegedly infested with black mold, a fungal growth that experts say can cause neurological issues including memory loss, confusion, and cognitive impairments.

    According to the Daily Mail, Jackson recently moved out of her $26,000/month residence in London’s Chelsea Barracks after finding the toxic substance, after living in the flat “for several years.” The Mail reports that she’s now mulling a return to America, which is surprising given what else she had to say about the aftermath of the upcoming election. “I think either way it goes is going to be mayhem,” Jackson said, then repeated herself. “I think there might be mayhem either way it goes. But we’ll have to see.”

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    Eve Batey

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  • Inside the “Big Weirdo” Political Strategy That Democrats Are Using to Taunt Republicans

    Inside the “Big Weirdo” Political Strategy That Democrats Are Using to Taunt Republicans

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    Even Republican cheerleader senator Mitch McConnell despairs over his party’s increasing weirdness.

    In 2022, explaining away the GOP’s midterm election performance (read: not good!) he basically said, yikes, what can you do? “My view was do the best you can with the cards you’re dealt,” he said of his fellow Republicans. “Now, hopefully, in the next cycle we’ll have quality candidates everywhere and a better outcome.”

    McConnell is the guy at the rager who’s telling people that he “came in with those guys, but not, like, with those guys” and hissing through his teeth at his colleagues to “try to act normal.”

    No one is immune, no matter their political affiliation. Former president George W. Bush was ahead of the curve in fingering Trump and his cohort as weirdos, a sense of cringe transcending any party loyalties he might have. Officially, he attended Trump’s presidential inauguration in January 2017 to witness the peaceful transfer of power. Unofficially, he reportedly turned to his companions as they left the dais and said, “That was some weird shit.”

    TikTok and internet culture aren’t the only fields Harris’s campaign has pulled from. Modern dating parlance lends us the idea of “the ick,” a term so relatable it was recently added to the Cambridge Dictionary.

    It’s defined as “a sudden feeling that you dislike someone or something or are no longer attracted to someone because of something they do.”

    Once you get the ick, you can’t un-ick. Ever. In dating, that might mean losing someone’s number. In politics, the Democrats are hoping that voters’ ick will translate at the polls. Picture senior Democrats pulling voters aside like they’re their closest girlfriends and muttering, “Really? Him? But he’s so…weird.” Politicos can’t go all in, Walter Masterson style, but they can get away with a deftly wielded light trolling.

    Of course, the Unified Theory of Ick (Politics Edition) is nonpartisan, as evidenced by a severe case of the ick being the straw that broke the Biden-reelection-campaign-shaped camel’s back just days ago.

    As Lawrence points out, “If you’re making an attack, and then there’s something that happens that reinforces that, it’s really hard to get away from it. The Biden debate, going into it, [Republicans said], ‘he’s old, he’s old, he’s old,’ and then he looked old. There’s just no turning away from that. You can’t get that out of people’s heads.”

    Again, it goes both ways: “And so you have Democrats saying, ‘they’re weird freaks, they’re weird freaks, they’re weird freaks,’ and then old clips of JD Vance come out talking about cat ladies and talking about how people without children shouldn’t be allowed to vote. Donald Trump talking about Hannibal Lecter like he’s a real person. All of that stuff just kind of builds on itself until it becomes a part of the zeitgeist.”

    Progressive voters are noticing this linguistic shift, and they’re on board.

    One person on X wondered why “anyone at all” would vote for a Republican. “Hateful, cruel, misogynistic and like, vibey in a weird unsettling way,” they wrote.

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    Kase Wickman

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