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DNC Fun
The three big speeches last night were "Second Gentleman" (Kamala Harris's husband) Doug Emhoff, then Michelle Obama, then former president Barack Obama.
Before commenting on those, one note: Bernie Sanders bashed billionaires a few times in his typical raving socialist speech. The next speaker was the billionaire governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker, who inherited even more than Trump did (a lot more, I think), and, comparing himself to Trump, called himself "a real billionaire."
I'll start at the end: Barack Obama's speech was fine, but like Trump and Biden, it felt too long (only 34 minutes, but felt longer, maybe because he was last and I wanted to be done) and got a bit tedious/repetitive. His main message was that Trump is bad and Kamala should be president but that her supporters, despite their current joy-joy mood, shouldn't take anything for granted. They should get out and work, knock on doors, register more Dem voters, etc. Tactically, he's not wrong even though I don't share his goal of getting Harris elected. He remains a Dem rock star with no equivalent on the GOP side, not even Trump, but his speech was upstaged by his wife's. Barack had one funny line, mocking Donald Trump's obsession with crowd sizes and moving his hands, palms facing each other, apart and together in a way that made it seem like he was measuring something else, if you know what I mean. It was kinda funny.
Doug Emhoff was a great representative of his wife. He was slightly nerdy, utterly relatable, and seemed like the most normal political person to give a speech at either convention so far. (I'm excluding the non-political folks like the Gold Star families who spoke at the RNC who, obviously, were normal, relatable people.) Emhoff also made multiple references to being Jewish (biking to Hebrew school as a kid in New Jersey) and to Kamala supporting his faith and his support for Jews and for Israel. Clearly he had permission to say that stuff and although Forward is a left-leaning outfit I think they basically have it right: Doug Emhoff thrilled Jewish Democrats at DNC – The Forward
Michelle Obama was the star of the night. Even Barack said "I'm the only person in the world stupid enough to speak after Michelle Obama." Her speech was extremely powerful and less condescending than usual...even as she still came across as the very top of Democratic Party royalty. She basically called Donald Trump a racist (without using that word), including one great line about how someone should tell Trump that the presidency is "one of those black jobs." Unlike her husband, at about 21 minutes her speech wasn't obviously too long. And, again, while I don't share any of her political goals, it was a compelling speech. Maybe the best of either convention.
Both Michelle and Barack, especially the former, implicitly tied Kamala Harris to the same "hope" vibe/meme that won Barack Obama his elections, especially the first one. And Kamala has definitely been running a "hope and joy" campaign. That said, I'm not sure if it's a blessing or a burden for her to have the Obama "hope" mantle placed on her shoulders. A lot to live up to. And also, if you're really paying attention, a woman who seems to have done a bad job at all her recent major jobs doesn't seem like an optimal vessel to carry the nation's hope.
Emoff and Michelle speeches here...and just Barack's crowd size thing.
And then the fun video of rapper Lil Jon showing up for the Georgia part of the voting roll call...I mean, I don't know rap these days and I don't know him but he was entertaining and it's a good way to appeal to and motivate younger and black voters.
(At end of blog, see newscast about Planned Parenthood offering free (medication) abortions and vasectomies at the DNC. Ugh.)
Just One Thing: Trump vs Taylor; Trump vs Merchan/Bragg
Two Trump stories: A Trump supporter used AI to make images suggesting that Taylor Swift supports Trump. One was a version of the famous Uncle Sam poster, saying “Taylor wants YOU to VOTE for Donald Trump.” I think it’s harmless and nobody would believe that it came from Ms. Swift but Trump then posted it adding “I accept”, basically claiming Swift’s endorsement. I think Trump was trying to be funny. Still, that’s a mistake…now we just have to see if Swift comes out against him publicly. This is an example of the sort of thing that's so close to not being a mistake. If instead of saying "I accept" he'd said something like "I would welcome this" or "I hope so!" it would have been better. I know this seems like nitpicking but Taylor Swift is probably the most famous and popular person in the world right now. Many of her American fans are probably not very inclined to vote. The ones who do vote are more likely to vote for Harris than for Trump and Trump shouldn't wake that sleeping giant by forcing their leader to make a public statement...which she'd probably rather avoid as well, and maybe she will but it's a bad risk for Trump even as it lets him take back a bit of the social media news cycle from the DNC.
Trump’s post of fake Taylor Swift endorsement is his latest embrace of AI-generated images | AP News
Next, the DA in the New York trial in which Trump was convicted of fraud has admitted that evidence was used in the case that’s not permitted by the Supreme Court’s more recent immunity decision. At the very least the sentencing will be delayed. It could upend the entire case.
I note that almost all the other coverage of this story says something like "Bragg leaves decision to judge", but Andy hits the evidentiary point: Trump Sentencing: Bragg Concedes on Immunity Issue, Signaling Postponement | National Review (my "gift link" so you don't need a subscription)
Today's Guests
Mike Bruemmer is Vice President and Head of Experian Global Data Breach Resolution. We'll discuss how data breaches like AT&T and Ticketmaster's happen, actionable tips for what customers should be doing to protect themselves, what to do if your information was exposed in a breach, and more.
AT&T data breach affects millions | How to protect your identity | khou.com
Robert Bryce is one of the nation's (and world's) leading experts on electricity markets, grids, and science, and is the author of multiple books on the subject. We'll talk about the hopes/illusions for "green hydrogen" and just how many taxpayer dollars are being thrown at subsidies for what's likely to be a mirage. Also, the tsunami, pun intended, of problems for offshore wind farms.
Subscribe to Robert's great (and free) Substack: (31) Robert Bryce | Substack
Robert's books: Amazon.com: Robert Bryce: books, biography, latest update
Nantucket Current | Broken Vineyard Wind Turbine Scatters Debris…
Matt Cox is a convicted fraudster who spent 12 years in prison and now is an advisor to Home Title Lock, helping to protect against mortgage and title fraud. We'll discuss how a woman got much closer than she should have to being able to steal ownership of Elvis Presley's former home (and now a museum), Graceland, which some have estimated as being worth $400 million.
Elvis Presley's family targeted in massive fraud scheme by Missouri woman, feds say - CBS News
Other Stuff
I used to think that Robert F Kennedy Jr would take more votes from Biden than from Trump. That started to even out as Kennedy leaned even more into the anti-vax stuff AND being tough on illegal immigration. Lately, though, even as Kennedy's numbers have tanked, both because of Harris' entry into the race and Kennedy's weird stories including dumping a dead bear cub (he didn't kill it) in Central Park, I've thought he'd be taking more from Trump due to the almost-endorsement of RFK by the hugely popular YouTubeer/podcaster Joe Rogan. If that's right, and if Team Trump sees it that way, their nice words about Kennedy and this story make sense: RFK Jr. running mate Shanahan says they’re considering endorsing Trump | CNN Politics I do have to say I find it somewhat hard to believe that Ms. Shanahan, a very very wealthy divorcee from a Google founder, is actually a Trump supporters.
This story is much better than the headline: Exclusive | Elon Musk Moves to Foreclose on Home He Sold to Gene Wilder's Family - WSJ
So the word salad picked the gaffe factory as her running mate? Tim Walz's gaffes are not new to Minnesotans (axios.com)
Probably won't cover this on the show but it's interesting local history: Denver Closing Shop, Cafe Dedicated to Buffalo Bill | Westword
This is better but I still think the city takes enough of its residents' money in sales taxes (which are proposed to increase further with two ballot measures): Final Denver Sidewalk Fee Numbers Come to City Council | Westword
I don't care but many others do for some reason: Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck File for Divorce (variety.com)
Not sure what to make of this but I think it reflects a real estate market with few transactions: DIY slump continues with slashed sales forecasts by Lowe's, Home Depot (axios.com)
That noncompete is still valid. Regardless of how I feel about non-compete agreements, what I fear and loathe is over-reaching government agencies asserting authority that they don't have. All such efforts must be opposed even if you might like the outcome of such an action. FTC noncompete ban blocked by federal judge (thehill.com)
Judge Strikes Down FTC Ban on Noncompete Agreements | National Review
I hate that these people exist in America:
Interesting, though maybe not surprising, results: Most Americans support legal abortion with some restrictions - AP-NORC (apnorc.org)
Seems like a lot...but it's possibly one month of income for them, depending on just who the buyer is. Broncos owners, Walton family planning Denver’s most expensive mansion (denverpost.com)
And going back further: Polo Club mansion in Denver sells for $17.7M to buyer of Bill Gates’ Florida estate (denverpost.com) (may require subscription)
Today's Videos
I don't know if this is real...but I do know that under recently passed UK law, it could be. Makes you appreciate the American Constitution. And perhaps reminds you that Twitter (pre-Elon Musk) and Facebook and YouTube and other social media platforms conspired with the American federal government to censor millions of Americans. No, it's not arrest, but it's still really bad.
Planned Parenthood sent a mobile clinic to the DNC offering free (medication) abortions and vasectomies