Donald Trump did not like the Bureau of Labor Statistics report on unemployment, so he fired the Commissioner of Labor Statistics. Dr. Erika McEntarfer. Prominent conservative economists, including Dr. Michael Strain, from the American Enterprise Institute, pushed back. “President Trump is completely wrong in asserting there’s been any sort of anti-Trump bias in the labor market data. I think that assertion is wholly unsupported.”
If the data were “rigged” as Donald Trump claims, Dr. Michael Strain would know. He is currently the Director of Economic Policy Studies at the American Enterprise Institute. The experts in labor statistics concur that there was no scandal. The Bureau has 2100 employees, and I am certain conservative news outlets are eager to find one employee who can back up Donald Trump’s claims of rigged statistics.
Trump claimed without evidence that the commissioner “faked the Jobs Numbers before the Election to try and boost Kamala’s chances of Victory.” (I believe this is a social media post).
Nobody is faking numbers,” former Labor Department chief of staff Daniel Koh wrote on X. “Revisions happen all the time.” Trump has previously praised the BLS reports, when they were favorable to his administration in April, May and June. (See NBC News link at the end of this post).
In fact, the only the Secretary of Labor, Lori Chavez-Deremer thought it was a good idea to shoot the messenger of bad news. She didn’t say the numbers were rigged, as Trump did, because that is a criminal accusation.
Labor statistics require a team of highly trained professionals. The Bureau is very open on its data collection procedures and deadlines. In industry, when financial results fall far below expectations, the most common trick is to slide the reporting date. BLS can’t do this, their deadlines for the various reports are set in January of each year. The data collection transparency and fixed deadlines are excellent measures to keep the reporting honest.
Dr. Erika McEntarfer was confirmed by the Senate in January 2023 by a vote of 86 to 8. Conservative media (MAGA) outlets will point out she was nominated by Biden. That’s about the worse they can say about Dr. McEntarfer. She served in government for 20 years under both Republican and Democratic administrations. JD Vance voted in favor of her as Commissioner. He was a Senator at the time of the vote.
The BLS had to cut back on the number of surveys they could conduct, because of Trump’s layoffs and employees who accepted severance packages. As a result, BLS is less able to do their job.
Trump is not draining the swamp, he’s adding to it. He is getting rid of honest directors and commissioners and adding MAGA loyalists, who will tow the party line that tariffs are great and our economy is wonderful.
“The politicization of economic data and potential interference with it by political appointees is something that’s typically seen in nondemocratic countries like Russia, Venezuela or China.” (NBC News, see link at the end of this post). Not the US.
Quotes from NBC news: “In May, the White House said that April’s jobs report “proved” that Trump was “revitalizing” the economy. In June, Trump posted, “GREAT JOBS NUMBERS” on Truth Social.
Secretary Lori Chavez-Deremer was approved 67-32 on March 28, 2025. Seems her only government experience is 2 years in the House of Representatives. Previous to this, she was the mayor of Happy Valley, Oregon.
Ambassadors from the United States serve “at the pleasure of the President” and can be removed at any time. They can also resign as Ambassador Brink did on April 11, 2025. Her letter of resignation was published in the Detroit Free Press as follows:
” I just came home to Michigan from three years in the toughest job of my life ― serving as the American Ambassador to Ukraine ― supporting our democratic ally against brutal, unprovoked aggression by Russia.
I have proudly served five presidents ― Republicans and Democrats ― to make sure the United States is the strongest, greatest country that the world has ever known.
I respect the president’s right and responsibility to determine U.S. foreign policy ― with proper checks and balances by U.S. Congress. It is the role of America’s Foreign Service to execute that policy. Unfortunately, the policy since the beginning of the Trump administration has been to put pressure on the victim, Ukraine, rather than on the aggressor, Russia.
As such, I could no longer in good faith carry out the administration’s policy and felt it was my duty to step down. After nearly three decades serving our country, I resigned as our ambassador to Ukraine.
I cannot stand by while a country is invaded, a democracy bombarded, and children killed with impunity. I believe that the only way to secure U.S. interests is to stand up for democracies and to stand against autocrats. Peace at any price is not peace at all ― it is appeasement. And history has taught us time and again that appeasement does not lead to safety, security or prosperity. It leads to more war and suffering.”
— Why Trump doesn’t care about Ukraine
Trump made many promises as he campaigned. One was to end the Ukraine war on day one of his presidency. Nobody believed it. But, it suited right-wing followers, who see the US as too involved in the problems of others.
One sentence in the resignation letter says it all:
“the [Ukraine] policy since the beginning of the Trump administration has been to put pressure on the victim, Ukraine, rather than on the aggressor, Russia.”
What kind of pressure? Putin is looking for concessions from the US and Ukraine, which will ultimately lead to the complete domination of Ukraine by Russia. The Trump administration is helping Russia in their misinformation against Ukraine. The biggest lie, was told just last week, and that Ukraine started the war. Seriously?
“You don’t start a war against someone 20 times your size and then hope that people give you some missiles,” he said at the White House on Monday. (I nominate this as the Politifact Lie of the Year, first told in Feb 15, 2025).
This comment followed Russia’s deadly attack on residential areas of the city of Sumy, killing 35 residents. The strategic importance of Sumy is obvious, as it lies just east of Kyiv, and would be an obvious point of ground attack on the capital.
February 24, 2022 is a day every Ukrainian will remember, as a column of Russian tanks drove south into Ukraine from Belarus, to “liberate” or denazify Ukraine, by capturing Kyiv. They accused Zelensky as being a nazi, even though he is Jewish. So the claim that Ukraine started the war is laughable.
— Mischaracterizing Zelensky as a corrupt leader
The money is the money. What bothered me — I hated to see the way it was, you know, excuse me, pissed away,” Trump said. “I hated to see that checks were sent for $60 billion every time Zelensky [traveled to Washington]. Where is all this money going?” he fumed.
Of course this is not true. Congress approves military assistance. The Defense Department then authorizes and follows up on the assistance.
This follows a whole series of lies Trump has spread since he campaigned for the presidency. And he will always be blaming Biden.
Ambassador Brink served as the US eyes and ears on the ground in Ukraine, and visited the residential areas, including schools and hospitals, that Putin had bombed. It must have been tough hearing Trump praise Putin and blame the victim, which is not just Zelensky, but the 37 million Ukrainian citizens.
Stay tuned,
Dave
Reality check from Wikipedia:
On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the conflict between the two countries which began in 2014.[15][16][17] The fighting has caused hundreds of thousands of military casualties and tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilian casualties. As of 2025, Russian troops occupy about 20% of Ukraine. From a population of 41 million, about 8 million Ukrainians had been internally displaced and more than 8.2 million had fled the country by April 2023, creating Europe’s largest refugee crisis since World War II.
This last link may not be accessible to everyone. The key statement is by Trump, “He can have Peace or, he can fight for another three years before losing the whole Country,” Trump wrote on social media.
It is telling Zelensky that he’s got no options. The fallacy, of course, is Putin doesn’t want 30% of Ukraine. He wants the entire country under his control.
Trump claimed that in 2024, “China made $1 trillion off trade with the United States.” Donald Trump, April 11, 2025. Trump made this claim 5 times in the last week. It is false. There is a trade imbalance with China. China surplus is 263 billion dollars. It means that China sells a lot more goods and services to the US than we sell to China. This surplus was decreasing in 2023 and 2024.
Economists have warned Trump that trade wars are a lose-lose game. The cost of tariffs are passed on to consumer, increasing the cost of products. In 2024, candidate Trump acted concerned about inflation. He blasted Biden for high inflation which peaked in 2022. He gave Biden no credit for bringing down inflation. Now, he doesn’t care. See article:
It is an excellent article. The tariffs cause stagflation, which is a combination of increasing prices and a slowing economy. His reaction is a quick fix, by lowering interest rates, which makes borrowing easier. He is now looking ways to fire Jerome Powell, Chair of the Federal Reserve, so he can install someone who will cut interest rates. The Federal Reserve is an independent branch of government.
Another lie is how much the US is gaining on the payment of tariffs. The U.S. is “taking in almost $2 billion a day in tariffs.” according to Trump. It’s way off base. Politifact rules this as false. The U.S. Treasury’s April 8 daily statement shows $192 million in revenues for custom duties and certain excise taxes.
More absurd false statements came from Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s Press Secretary, who stated that the tariffs should be viewed as a tax cut. Politifact judges this as false. See link below. I particularly like the quote from economist Tara Sinclair, who stated “Economists don’t agree on much, but we agree tariffs are taxes on consumers.” Yes, Trump is raising taxes. If you read Leavitt’s response to a journalist, you have to give her an A+ for creativity in presenting a rosy outlook, detached from present reality.
Liberation Day (April 2) and Hitting the Pause Button (April 9)
April 2 was called Liberation Day by Trump as the trade war suddenly impacted approximately 150 countries with tariffs as high as 50%. Trump referred to them as “reciprocal tariffs” but they were not based on tariffs the countries imposed on US goods sold in their countries.
The reaction was immediate. Across April 3 and 4, U.S. stocks lost $6.6 trillion in value, their largest two-day loss in history by a margin of $2.2 trillion. On April 9, Trump paused all new tariffs for 90 days.
The situation since April 9 is very fluid. The reactions of world leaders were not like Trump described it, as leaders desperately trying to make deals with the US in a mad rush to avoid these tariffs. Instead, they consulted with their other trading partners. It is likely the multinational talks will continue. See Wikipedia link at end.
China and Japan’s Reactions
An extremely high tariff of 125% is currently levied against all of China’s exports. China responded with a tariff of 145% against US goods.
For his part, Chinese President Xi Jinping travelled to three Southeast Asian countries last week to bolster regional ties. He called on trading partners, including Vietnam, to oppose unilateral bullying. “There are no winners in trade wars and tariff wars,” Xi said in an article published in Vietnamese media, without mentioning the US.
Trump stated there has been great progress with Japan on tariffs. Japan’s response to tariffs on export of cars, was that it was “inconsistent” with the trade agreement of 2019 as negotiated in Trump’s first term. So, Trump agreed in 2019 not to levy tariffs on cars, then once he’s re-elected, he ignores his own trade agreement. See link below.
A credibility gap has gotten larger. Trump and his economic advisors, continue their rosy outlook, while the trade relationships deteriorate coupled with a slowing economy and higher prices. The Dow Jones Average dropped about 1,000 points as investors looked elsewhere to invest their money.
How far will Trump go?
Trump is in trouble. Ir is not just his wealthy donors are losing money in the stock market. Many Americans are feeling the pain. My retirement account has definitely been hit hard. Tariffs will mean higher prices. Economists have shown it is the poorest Americans, who buy the most goods affected by tariffs.
“President Donald Trump has proven that tariffs work for the American people,” Mr. Navarro said in January. “It’s not going to be painful for America. It’s going to be a beautiful thing.”
Peter Navarro is the senior counselor for trade and manufacturing to U.S. president Donald Trump since January 2025. Mr. Navarro echoed Mr. Trump’s false claims that he won the 2020 election. And he defied the Congressional subpoena relating to the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol, and was sentenced to jail. Upon his release, Mr. Navarro went directly to the campaign trail and campaigned for the president through Election Day.
So, how far will Trump go all depends on who has Trump’s ear at the time. It has been reported that his other economic advisors want to have a more focused approach to tariffs. But, Trump doesn’t back down easily, despite the push back.
The Wikipedia link provided below is an excellent review of the current tariffs and generally be kept up to date.
It is political aggression. Anger motivates people into action. But anger as a result of a stream of lies, will motivate people to make the wrong choices.
Hurricane Milton took 32 lives and destroy homes, particularly in Florida. People in the affected areas are struggling to put their lives back together. And Trump is lying about FEMA, that they depleted all their money paying for housing for immigrants, and now they have no money to help the poor victims.
I really liked the way super Republican Governor DeSantis put it, that he hadn’t been in touch with Biden, because FEMA gave this state, Florida, everything they asked for. And he added, that if they don’t provide everything, then he’s calling. That’s exactly what FEMA does, partner with the states in helping to rebuild.
The anger is misdirected at FEMA when it should really be directed at Trump for playing politics with a national disaster.
Demonizing Immigrants
And what Trump said about immigrants did make me angry, not because my mother was an immigrant, and so was my wife, but because his claims were just a huge pack of lies. And people were cheering in Madison Garden, when they should have been pouring out of the stadium in disgust.
Trump said Harris “has imported criminal migrants from prisons and jails, insane asylums and mental institutions from all around the world, from Venezuela to the Congo.” Pure MAGA hate speech, and of course it’s a terrible lie. Many immigrants with criminal records have been denied entry in the US. Communities with high immigrant populations have less violent crime. Kamala Harris was not put in charge of border security.
Trump said Harris “vowed to abolish” U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Of course, this is false. Harris wants to hire many more border agents. The bill that Trump had Congress kill, included hiring many more judges to hear (and usually dismiss) amnesty cases. Harris will get the 2024 Immigration bill passed. Donald Trump will not, and keep it a hot political issue.
This is a new one, which gets down right weird. Trump said Harris “called for free sex change operations on illegal aliens in detention at taxpayer expense.” First, it really isn’t an issue, because this has never happened with a detained immigrant. Criminals can not be denied medical treatment, so there has been just two inmates who have sex change operation. This is obviously another “hot button” hate issue, combining immigrants with all kinds of other problems.
Violent Crime is way up.
I’m certain that a lot of people went home after watching Trump, and thought how they could better protect their families. Trump said, “Your crime is through the roof” and that newly released statistics showed that “crime was up 45%” under the Biden-Harris administration.
The latest six months data for 2024, showed just the opposite, violent crime was substantially down.
The new numbers show murders from January to June dropped 23% compared with the same period in 2023, while violent crime fell 10% and reported rapes decreased by 18%. Aggravated assaults during that period decreased 8% year over year, according to the data, while robberies fell 14% and reported property crime was down 13%. These are preliminary numbers as not every city has reported.
The 2023 report, which included figures from every major city in the nation, showed a dramatic 12% drop in murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, as well as a 3% fall in violent crime.
I will not go into detail about the many lies regarding the so called “rigged” 2020 election, the Department of Justice investigation, tariffs or the economy. Nor Trump’s appeasement when it comes to Ukraine. His denial of climate change, means we lose our seat at the table, negotiating with the other world leaders on carbon emissions. We will lose four years in the needed transition from non-renewable fossil fuels. California forest fires and two devastating hurricanes are telling us extreme weather events are very real. Trump isn’t capable of addressing global problems, period. He will choose Russia over Europe and weaken NATO. No doubt about it.
Trump’s chosen path to the White House must be rejected
Fear and lies should not be the path to the White House. Trump is using fear to mobilize his supporters to the polls. Without the non-stop lies, Trump could not get elected.
He depends on his supporter not questioning what he says. A little fact checking shows an abundance of lies on just about every topic. (see links at the end)
If you agree with this posting, feel free to pass it on. An informed electorate is necessary part of holding our democracy together. Trump gives his supporters what they want to hear – disinformation and is a divider, not a uniter. On stage with Trump, there were no former Republican candidates, nor members of his former cabinet. Nor the Vice President, Mike Pence, who Trump regularly disparages.
He lost his more moderate supporters as he supported radical groups who assembled on January 6 to attack the Capitol, and he just watched the violence on television for two hours without making a single phone call. After all, they were wearing MAGA caps as they battled with Capitol police. Remember?
The presidential race is extremely close. In the US, we chose our president, so please vote.
I tried to make these summaries as short as possible. For each case, there is massive political commentary on both sides. For each of these cases, I have listed the relevant links at the end of this posting.
My conclusion is that in each case, the guilt or innocence of Donald Trump, must be decided in a courtroom, not on social media. The outcome of the two federal criminal cases should not be decided because Donald Trump won the presidential election and could install a partisan Attorney General to shield him from being accountable for his illegal actions.
FEDERAL CRIMINAL CASES
Classified Documents Case: Status, Dismissed but under appeal by the Department of Justice
On June 13, 2023, Donald Trump plead not guilty to all 37 counts. His defense team filed many pre-trial motions. Judge Aileen Cannon postponed the start of the trial from May 2024 to July 2024, then on July 15, 2024 dismissed the case completely, ruling that the appointment of Special Counsel, Jack Smith, was a violation of the US Constitution. The dismissal of the case is being appealed.
On September 6, 2023, again citing the Presidential Records Act, Trump told radio host Hugh Hewitt: “I’m allowed to do whatever I want.”
On September 14, 2023, Trump was interviewed by Megyn Kelly for SiriusXM. He said: “I’m allowed to take these documents, classified or not classified. And frankly, when I have them, they become unclassified. People think you have to go through a ritual. You don’t — at least in my opinion, you don’t.”
Many fact checking websites have disputed Trump’s claims. CNN fact checked the claim that he has the right to all documents under the Presidential Records Act. Contrary to Trump’s claim, the classified document belong to the National Archives. An excellent summary of seven false claims by Trump is summarized in the link below:
A ruling by the Appellate Court will happen after the election. It may occur before inauguration day, but this doesn’t really matter, as there will be many motions after the court rules, to take us pass January 20, 2025.
If Trump is elected, he has the power to have the case against him dismissed and abolish the Special Counsel, Jack Smith. If Kamala Harris is elected, I believe she will respect the Special Counsel obligation to bring this case to trial, and show no favoritism. The same goes for the January 6 Election Interference case.
January 6 Election Obstruction Case, Active and in pre-trial motions
It looked for a while the court trial is case would start before the election. This all changed with a 6-3 decision by the US Supreme Court that Trump in July 2024, providing partial immunity to Trump for official actions.
They further complicated the case. Both Trump’s lawyers and the Special Counsel will submit briefs related to the immunity issue. Trump’s lawyers have until November 7 to submit their brief. Ultimately no matter how Judge Chutkan rules, the decision will be appealed and likely end up in the Supreme Court in 2025.
Of course, if Trump is elected, he will be make sure the case is dismissed.
MUNICIPAL and STATE CASES
If re-elected, Trump can not get these cases dismissed.
Hush Money Case: Status, awaiting sentencing
Donald Trump was convicted in May on 34 counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels near the end of the 2016 presidential campaign. This was the unanimous decision by a jury. Attorneys for Trump have the conviction be dismissed based on the Supreme Court’s ruling on Presidential Immunity case.
Judge Merchan will rule on November 14, on the immunity issue. I suspect Trump will lose this case. He will sentence Trump on November 26. I feel Judge Merchan made the right decision to delay the sentencing until after the election. Trump’s legal team always appeals any decision, and the case will not end on November 26. If fact, Trump has the legal right to appeal the conviction, after sentencing. I believe the sentence will be stayed (postponed) pending the results of the appeals.
Prosecutor Alvin Bragg did not object to the Trump’s request, and simply responded that he would accept the judge’s decision. This was again, absolutely right, as he did not want to make this case appear as a partisan case against a presidential candidate.
Trump addressed his sentencing hearing being postponed during his speech at the Fraternal Order of Police in Charlotte, North Carolina. he argued that it was postponed because people realized “there was no case,” leaning into his typical attack lines calling the case against him a “witch hunt.”
Merchan said the delay should help “avoid any appearance — however unwarranted — that the proceeding has been affected by or seeks to affect the approaching Presidential election in which the Defendant is a candidate.” This is obviously contrary to what Trump told the police organization.
Georgia RICO Election Interference Case, Active and under appeal
A grand jury indicted Trump and 18 other defendants on August 14, 2023. The discovery that the prosecuting attorney Fani Willis was having an affair with the lead attorney, Nathan Wade, lead to hearings and ultimately a decision by the Judge McAfee that either Nathan Wade or Fani Willis should be removed from the case. Attorney Wade resigned, however Trump’s lawyers are now appealing this decision, and would like Fani Willis to resign. If the appeal is successful, the case could be dismissed. Oral arguments in this appeal have been scheduled for December 5, 2024.
A second complicating issue is the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity. Certain evidence may be excluded based on their ruling. This may result in more appeals and delays.
Four defendants have pleaded guilty. This leaves 14 defendants including Trump, to stand trial. The trial can be televised. I assume that since this is a criminal trial, Trump’s presence will be required.
Summary
Only one of the four criminal cases has gone to trial. The delays caused by pre-trial motion worked.
Soon after the election, I predict that the appellate court will reverse Judge Cannon’s dismissal of the Classified Documents case. Judge Cannon did not rule on several pre-trial motions.
Trump will, if elected, get the two federal cases dismissed. I believe this is very wrong. He should stand trial just like any other American. No one is above the law.
Pennsylvania is one of the most important swing states. In rallies in Reading and Scranton, PA, he lied 40 times. Many of them were “oldies” but he had a few new ones. He must be trolling social media, to keep his stock of lies up to date. The link below has 40 lies, which I numbered for reference. I’m not going in exact chronological order.
Hurricane recovery and FEMA is covered in Lies 1,2 and 3, and I doubt anything Trump said about FEMA having run out of money or workers, was seriously believed, even at his rallies. The claim that FEMA funds were diverted to help illegal immigrants come in, has been debunked many times. As noted, the comment “Harris didn’t send anything or anybody” has been solidly debunked. Even Governor DeSantis said that FEMA has given Florida everything they requested.
Trump has often claimed that Harris is an illegitimate candidate and not entitled to donations made to Biden. I do not see the same claim made at these rallies, but lie #5 comes close, with “they are cheatin’ dogs.” He has said previously, that the only way he can lose, is if the Democrats cheat. So, it is likely, if Trump loses, he will restart a “Stop the Steal” effort once again. He has claimed with no evidence that non-citizens have been allowed to vote.
Energy policy lies were a major part of the rallies. See #10 (Wind power), #11 (electric vehicles) and #12 (Paris climate accords). Right now, there are incentives to provide electric vehicles, based on laws passed by Congress. Lie #12 is really outrageous, that the Paris climate accords cost us, a trillion dollars, while some other countries didn’t have to pay.
It is very evident that more extreme weather, including flooding, hurricanes and wildfires, are on the increase. The best hope to reduce climate change is through the mechanisms set up by the Paris climate accords, where developed countries contribute to a fund, to help with alternative energy projects worldwide. I have stated before, that if Trump pulls out of the Paris accords, we give up our seat at the table.
Immigration lies are abundant at rallies, and the Pennsylvania rallies were no exception. Lie #1 links the broke FEMA and broken immigration policy. “They have no money. You know where they gave the money? To illegal immigrants coming in.” Trump launched into a series of lies (#14 to 18) demonizing immigrants and blaming Venezuela and many other unspecified countries, as sending their unwanted citizens to the US.
Trump always lies about crowd size. In 2020, it was always my rallies are bigger than Biden’s or Obama’s, and it seemed childish. And he will never back down. His inauguration crowd was 1.5 million people, while the White House stated it was approximately 750,000 people. He even claimed that a photo of Harris and Walz arrival in Michigan had been altered using AI. Of course, this was baseless, but it is standard for Trump to steal the media’s attention, with a bogus statement.
He claimed his rally in Butler, PA, the crowd was over 100,000 people, while Secret Service estimate was 24,000 people. [lie #22] The assassination attempt was very tragic, but Trump couldn’t help from embellishing it. [lie #23] He said that before he got up, he asked the Secret Service how many were killed, and the response was three people. The microphone was still on, and none of this conversation happened.
Endorsements are is very important. He said “We got the firefighters endorse us, you probably heard.” [Lie #24] If they heard this, it was a lie. The International Association of Firefighters did not endorse either candidate. Of course, a week prior, Trump shared an posting that the CEO of JP Morgan, Jamie Dimon had endorse him. Dimon announced that he had not endorsed him. Trump shared another posting, that Taylor Swift had endorsed him.
A lot of the lies are ones we’ve heard before. Leaving Afghanistan in 2021, we lost a lot of military equipment. The Pentagon estimates 7.4 billion dollars was lost,and Trump claims 85 billion dollars. [#29] A total of 18.6 billion was spent on equipment during the war, so Trump’s number is baseless.
And, of course, he always is the victim of baseless criminal prosecution. The Classified Documents case is not over. We’ve all seen the photos of boxes of classified documents stacked in ballrooms and bathroom closets at Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach.
His lies on this one have varied over time. One was these were not classified documents. The second was he was not involved in the packing or storage of the documents. Now, of he can correctly state that all charges have been dismissed by the trial judge, but it’s not over. I predict that Appellate Court will overturn Judge Cannon’s ruling and put the case back on track. At the rallies, Trump claimed that “I had the Presidential Records Act; I was totally allowed to do it.” [lie #25] The Act says the National Archives has custody.
Under “Harris and Taxes” Trump used an edited video clip to claim Harris wanted to raise taxes, by 70 or 80%. [Lie #38, second to last]. Trump is pouring millions of money into television ads in swing states with the same edited videos. It sad that certain stations have permitted these adds.
A lot of old lies, on the “corrupt Biden family” dating back to the Trump-Biden debate. Lie #31 was concerning money received by Hunter Biden. “Chris Wallace and a question about the Biden family” was about something that just didn’t happen at the debate, or at least not the way Trump recalled it.
The very last lie #40 looks a bit dated, but it is still a good fake gaffe. “But the worst was when he [Biden] was in New Hampshire and he said, ‘It’s great to be in Florida.’ It is a fake gaffe because it didn’t happen. Biden is known for gaffes, but Trump has told some beauties of his own.
“Trump mistook a wildlife refuge in Alaska for an Afghan airbase. His brains are turning to mush,” wrote one of the critics, author Stephen King, on social media.
So, fact checkers caught 40 lies in two rallies. It was likely a lie every 2 minutes, like being sprayed with Trump’s lies.
Probably the worse ones, were on immigrants.
” Trump repeated his false claim that ‘the prison population all over the world is down, because they put them in our country.’ ”
A close second “Pants on Fire” lie, was #12, that the Paris accords on climate change would have cost us a trillion dollars. As correctly noted, we have paid one billion out of the three billion dollars commitment.
As I stated before, we don’t need to talk about climate models anymore. The unusually high temperatures of water in the Bahamas, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, can turn a tropical storm into a monster of a hurricane. The climate models predicted more extreme weather if we didn’t control carbon emissions. We got it, and it’s name is Milton.
These speeches laden with falsehoods were for his supporters only, who I guess still have blinders on.
The 1950’s was a good time for some, and a bad time from others. Soldiers, latinos, blacks, whites and every ethnic group imaginable, fought the war together. They served this country and on returning home, found there were neighborhoods where they couldn’t live, restaurants where they couldn’t eat, and schools where they could not send their children. Another words, it was a different world without an uniform.
Ethnic and racial hatred were strong in my parents era, and Trump is re-igniting these hatreds, in this last month before the election. He attacked Barrack Obama, claiming he was an illegitimate president. He claimed Obama was born in Kenya, Africa. It was of course, total nonsense, but Trump swore he had proof. Trump lies, and he never admits when proven wrong.
Now, it is the Haitian immigrants who have managed to the escape the earthquake or turmoil in Haiti, and live and work legally in our country under temporary protected status. The CNN special last night, highlighted the community of Springfield, Ohio, where many Haitians live. They are refugees, as their lives were in danger from roaming gangs which controlled much of the country. The refugees had to prove to immigration that their lives were in danger, based on their positions within the government, such as a policeman or politician.
The claim that “immigrants” are taking our homes has been taken way out of context. Strong housing demand in a particular area is good. It means that in a particular area, people are finding jobs and can afford the “American dream” of their own house. So, strong housing demand creates a building boom, exactly what has happened in Springfield, Ohio. See CNN link below.
I will not repeat in this blog, all the terrible things Trump has said about immigrants. He singled out the Haitians living in one small community. Actually, the truth is, the Haitians are contributing to the community, working and paying taxes and crime rates have come down.
My grandparents immigrated from France in the 1930’s with a daughter that needed medical treatment. My grandmother went shopping in department stores, not to buy clothes, but so she copy the clothes and sew at home clothes for her 3 daughters and son. Her son was a war hero during World War II, and her children studied at top universities, including Columbia University and Harvard.
So, as I watched the CNN special, my heart went out to the families of Haitians, as they look for work, pay taxes and raise families, just as my grandparents did.
JD Vance stated that the Haitians were illegal, but this was a lie. Trump has gone further, describing anyone who is in the country without documents as a criminal. This would be anyone who has overstayed their visa, or through no fault of their own, missed filing deadlines for visa extensions. He has promised a program to search for, and deport every illegal immigrant. He can make it much more difficult for other refugees from the bombed out areas of Ukraine, and war victims from Afghanistan to migrate to the US.
Trump’s efforts to denigrate and demonize immigrants, appeals to radical white supremacy groups, who have no respect for the law. They are blinded by the hyper nationalism of the MAGA movement. These groups believe in a purity of race ideas espoused by fascists.
This is not the era of the KKK nor the McCarthy era of the 1950. In the 1950’s, there were grand conspiracy theories that communism was like a disease and the government had to question the patriotism of prominent Americans and certain activities, like civil rights marches were considered “Unamerican.” This is why the FBI kept a file on Martin Luther King. The days of “separate but equal” are gone.
The way forward was in the bipartisan Immigration Act of 2024, which would hire more judges to hear amnesty cases. Trump got Congress to kill this bill because it would hurt his re-election campaign.
So, Harris message is right for our times. “We can’t go back.”
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We’ve had our wake up calls. Cautionary tales, if you will. If we can just learn from them, and not be blindsided by Trump’s continuous trail of lies spread by Fox News and others.
Hurricane Milton should be a wake up call. Russia seizure of Crimea, a part of Ukraine, was another wake up call. The storming of the US Capital, and cries to hang Mike Pence, with sitting President, who did nothing for 2 full hours- that certainly should have been a wake up call. Trump needs to be held accountable along with about six administrative accomplices.
And yes, we have very serious problems with fentanyl epidemic in the US. We need action now, not partisan politics from Republicans, who blocked the immigration bill of 2024, because that’s what Trump wanted.
You can’t select your issues – you have to deal with them.
President Trump downplayed Covid-19 epidemic. He dismissed climate change in the debates, like its not our problem because our air and water are clean. Global challenges need cooperation and compromise. He is all about what is best for his base, and will embrace absurd conspiracy theories if it gain him a few extra votes.
We can’t go back to the early 1970’s when global warming was a theory
Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis dismissed climate change as cause of hurricane. The warming of the Gulf of Mexico, and the coastal areas of the Atlantic (Bahamas and Caribbean) our critical factors turning what might have been a tropical storm into a furious and extremely wet hurricane, causing massive flooding. We have created a hurricane incubator right on our doorstep, and the next hurricane may be plowing into very beautiful coastal cities like Galveston, New Orleans or Key West.
The scientific community understands why these extreme weather events (wildfires, floods, and hurricanes are related. Yes, we have had them before, but intensity and destruction is at a whole new level. Kamala Harris will push forward with many practical ways to reduce our energy consumption, and reliance on fossil fuels. And so vital to our challenge is getting China and India at the negotiating table to cut their emissions.
We have to support Brazil also in their efforts to stop rainforest destruction. Trump supported President Bolsonaro when he ignored the burning of millions of acres of rainforest, not understanding the importance to carbon dioxide absorption by the forest vegetation.
Trump lies about electric car mandates, just like he lie about everything else. There are government incentives, which make sense. Trump policy has not changed, since he attacked climate change as a hoax, and put in place the most ineffective cabinet secretaries in the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency, heavily influenced by the coal industry. It was a fiasco.
We can’t go back to year 2016, when Trump pulled out of the Paris Accords. It was our best chance of negotiating with other developed countries on setting goals of reducing carbon emission. And we certainly can’t go back to the early 1970’s when climate change was a theory. Now, we see the real impact and it is lost homes and lives.
We can’t go backto enormous dependence of fossil fuels
Harris will lead our country to take practical measures to reduce our carbon emissions. She is for expansion of our nuclear energy programs. Federal programs which encourage people to buy electric vehicles and expansion of recharge stations is critical to the transition to greener fuels. Trump will gut the IRA, with these vital incentives. Wind and solar power has gone from theory to a real source of renewable energy.
We can’t go back to 1940 either!
This was a time when many in our country felt Hitler could be dealt with diplomatically. Also, the sentiment was that we could take care of the problems in our country and let Europe take care of their problems, namely Germany. Of course, their problems became our problems on at 7:18 am on December 7, 1941, when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Appeasement of Germany wasn’t the solution in World War II, and appeasement of Putin in 2024 by giving them a piece of Ukraine will not satisfy Russia.
This is why Trump is being strongly opposed by Trump’s former National Security Advisor, John Bolton, and former Secretary of Defense, James Mattis. The were in the room, when Trump was actually praising former dictators.
Harris will continue to provide military aid to Ukraine, without sending US troops. Most importantly, this aid will be coordinated with our European allies.
We can’t go back to 1972 either – the Nixon years
The era of Richard Nixon, tested how much a president could hide from the American people, when he broke the law. Nixon crime was obstruction of justice and I feel he knew this was illegal. Trump really feels he can wantonly break the laws with no consequences.
As President, he will subvert the Department of Justice to make it the most partisan department in the United States. He will dismiss only Special Counsels that are investigating him and other Republicans. He really relates to powerful and rich people who committed business and tax fraud. He will pardon corrupt attorneys, claiming they were framed by the government. The only criteria will be if they help him. Trump believes he and his allies are above the law. This is how a democracy erodes into an autocracy.
Harris will allow the Department of Justice to proceed with criminal investigations, regardless of status and political parties. She will keep a hands off approach to criminal investigations by the FBI and DOJ.
Bottom Line:
It is all about progress. Climate change from carbon emissions in the 1970’s was theory, built mainly form computer modeling. In 2024, the evidence on the ground is overwhelming, including Hurricane Milton. It isn’t a China Hoax.
Carbon emissions can be reduced. We can’t go back to our dependence on fossil fuels. Today, 80% of solar panels are made in the US, and this is good for employment. We win the trade war by making better products.
We can’t appease Putin. We must support Ukraine. Trump has said he will end the war in one day. Yes, by cutting off Ukraine from all military assistance, lifting sanctions on Russia and telling Putin that Ukraine is theirs.
We can not put Trump back in the White House, because he will make the Department of Justice and the FBI, the two most partisan and corrupt departments in government, since the era of Nixon. Nixon at least resigned when he was caught. Trump feels he is above the law.
Kamala Harris has provided a way forward, which will require compromise and cooperation. Trump is just the same hot rhetoric. We can’t go back. Trump will make America worse.
Vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz to keep moving forward.
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Honestly, I did not know Elon Musk had 200 million followers on Twitter (now X). He and others are extreme irresponsible in disseminating false information about hurricane recovery efforts.
Somehow all this BS is supposed to help Trump. Similar, irresponsible claims from Trump, that Harris stole FEMA funds for other purposes, which is a lie. From Politifact:
• Former President Donald Trump attacked his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, by arguing that she cares more about immigrants in the U.S. illegally than Americans. “Well, for one thing, $1 billion was stolen from FEMA to use it for illegal migrants,” Trump said Oct. 4. “And FEMA is now busted. They don’t have any money.” This gross mischaracterization of FEMA funding programs is Pants on Fire! No one “stole” FEMA money intended for natural disaster victims; Congress funded another program for immigrant services that started under Trump. FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund is expected to face a deficit, but the agency is not out of money. Congress can step in and provide more funding for FEMA, as it has done nearly every year since 2017.
There are so many good sources of information. But it seems many Americans are real suckers for Trump and Musk lies, and the assorted nonsense they can get from social media (Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram).
FEMA is working hard, but the destruction is enormous. Harris was right, it will take days, months and years to fix. Trump is lying through his teeth about how Harris took money from FEMA to help migrants. It should qualify for a “Pants on Fire” lie.
Consider contributing to the Red Cross and other organizations helping the victims of Hurricane Helene. I am.
We are getting close to the end. Polls show no clear winner. My last post showed how Trump was demonizing immigrants, even Haitians who are here legally, and live in Springfield, Ohio. The evidence is that the crime rate among illegal immigrants, is less than legal residents.
Harris will raise your taxes – FALSE
The latest lie is a campaign video ad showing a clip where Harris says she wants to raise taxes in general. But critical words were cleverly deleted from the start and end of the statement as:
“estate taxes are gonna have to go up for the richest Americans.”
becomes “taxes are gonna have to go up.”
It is an outrageous to doctor up a clip and present it as part of a campaign television ad.
Other supporting statements are also doctored. Thee ad quotes the New York Times, but cuts out critical words. The quote “Harris is seeking to significantly raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans and large corporations.” cuts out the words in bold.
The ad cites the Tax Foundation, a right-leaning think tank, as the basis for a narrator’s claim that “Kamala’s plan will raise families’ taxes by nearly $2,600 a year.” This statement is loaded with problems, because the Tax Foundation never came up with this estimate, and second, Harris has not proposed eliminating tax benefits for those making less than $400,000 per year. It is the third lie in the ad.
Kamala Harris “let in the 13,099 convicted murderers and opposes all efforts to find them and to remove them.”
It is FALSE. He is using data from official documents, but it is completely mischaracterized. Most of the 13,099 people likely didn’t enter the U.S. in the last three and a half years; the full data goes back 40 years. Many of them are not in immigration detention because they’re in law enforcement custody serving sentences. Not everyone on the nondetained docket entered the U.S. illegally. Legal permanent residents who commit crimes can also end up on the docket. This is explained in the link below.
Trump is peddling a huge lie, that Kamala Harris was the border czar and allowed everyone to cross the southern border, carrying with them drugs and guns. Seriously! And you have heard the rest. These were people released from mental institutions, or violent criminals, capable of rape and murder. In this blog, we will not touch on pet-eating Haitians.
I am preparing a second blog, just on immigration. It has been in preparation for over a week.
To begin with Kamala Harris was never the border czar. Her mission under Biden was to discuss with Central American countries on how best to keep their citizens from coming to the US illegally. The responsibility for border security was the Department of Homeland Security.
The October 2 Vice Presidential debate was similar to the Trump-Harris debate on immigration. At every turn, JD Vance was blaming immigrants for every problem in the United States, including the high cost of housing and crowding in our schools. So, if we just round up and get rid of immigrants, all our problems suddenly disappear.
JD Vance stated that there was a Federal Reserve report, showing that immigrants were driving up the cost of housing and rents.
“After the debate, Vance’s X account shared a link to remarks by Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman, who said that “the inflow of new immigrants to some geographic areas could result in upward pressure on rents, as additional housing supply may take time to materialize” — though in the same speech, she said immigrants had also helped ease labor shortages.”
Sure. Miami grew by a huge influx of Cuban immigrants. And it helped our prosperity. Bowman was addressing immigrants in general, not illegal immigrants.
Many Haitians are living in Springfield, Ohio. They qualified for Temporary Protected Status, because of the current turmoil in Haiti. In their country of Haiti, gangs control much of the country. It is in a state of civil war. Should the country stabilize, they can lose their protected status from deportation.
Communities like Springfield, OH have not seen a significant increase in either communicable diseases, AIDS or violent crime. But on social media, Vance has claimed there has been a “massive rise” in communicable diseases. At times, he’s specifically singled out increases in HIV and tuberculosis. The county records show that vaccine-preventable diseases, infectious disease cases (without COVID) and sexually transmitted infections in 2023 were all lower than what they were during the Trump administration.
Tuberculosis has not been eliminated in the US. For a population of 138,000, Clark County total infection diseases decreased slightly from 2022 to 2023. Se link:
Excellent research work by the CDC will hopefully find a vaccine and affordable treatments for tuberculosis. Just keep Robert Kennedy, Jr. away from the CDC and FDA, his two nemesis.
Now, the US has a real problem with the smuggling of fentanyl into the US. Approximately 90% comes through Mexico, through legal ports of entry. Building a wall, to completely seal off the US, will not stop this trafficking. The smugglers are people who can pass easily through the US-Mexican checkpoints. The article below is excellent as to the participation of ordinary American citizens in the border smuggling.
This was a major bust. Kudos to the DEA and the Department of Justice.
The 2024 immigration bill would have funded better detection of fentanyl in suspected vehicles at legal ports of entry. Donald Trump was instrumental in killing this bill.
Final comments
I do not support illegal immigration. Neither does Kamala Harris. She wants more money to control the border and expediate amnesty petitions, many of which will be rejected. She will push through and sign the 2024 immigration bill as president.
Trump likes to demonize immigrants, including the Haitians living legally in Springfield, Ohio. They are his scapegoats for real problems. They are not rapist and murderers. They are here legally. His attack on immigrants as spreading diseases is baseless, and only fuels racial and ethnic hatred. We don’t need this.
We don’t need Robert Kennedy, Jr. who is relishes the spotlight to expound conspiracy theories, and is now part of Trump’s supporters.
I am a son of an immigrant. I am married to an immigrant. I am very tired of all the attacks on our immigrant population.
Russia would love to see Donald Trump win the election. He would appease Russia by giving them part of Ukraine, that they currently occupy. From there, Russian troops would pour into Kyiv and Trump would do nothing.
For anyone who is undecided who to vote for- the choice should be clear after Trump’s statement to appease Putin.
Per AP news story:
Former President Donald Trump described Ukraine in bleak and mournful terms Wednesday, referring to its people as “dead” and the country itself as “demolished,” and further raising questions about how much the former president would be willing if elected again to concede in a negotiation over the country’s future.
The Ukrainian people are not dead and the country is not demolished. Russia has done its best to conquer the country, and Ukrainians have fought and given their lives so they can live in a free country. Ukraine is an independent country with internationally recognized borders. Donald Trump does not appreciate the need to contain Russian aggression. He wants to appease Putin.
If there is any lesson to be learned from World War II, it is that appeasement does not work. Russia controls Belarus and Chechnya. The leaders of these countries report to the Kremlin.
Since the invasion on February 24, 2022, Russia thought it could send its tanks from Belarus, to Kyiv, but the Ukrainians proved them wrong. From the outset, the US pledged military support in terms of weapons but not soldiers. Biden had it right when he said that once there were Americans and Russians on the same battlefield, you have the beginnings of a world war.
Trump has lied repeatedly about VP Harris meeting with Putin before the war started. It never happened.
CNN Facts First: Trump’s claim is false. Harris has never met with Putin. In reality, she met with US allies, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, at the Munich Security Conference in the days before Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Putin was not at the conference.
The US position prior to the invasion was to maintain full alignment with partners and send a clear message to Russia that the US prefers diplomacy but is ready in case of Russian aggression, according to CNN. This is why Harris was in Munich.
And just as I completed this post, General McChrystal endorsed Kamala Harris. He wrote:
Character will dictate whether we stand by our NATO allies and against Vladimir Putin’s continued aggression. Character will dictate whether we have a commander in chief who honors and respects the men and women who serve in uniform.
And later he writes, Harris has the right character to be commander in chief.
Ms. Harris has the strength, the temperament and, importantly, the values to serve as commander in chief. When she sits down with world leaders like President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, representing the United States on the global stage, I have no doubt that she is working in our national interest, not her own.
General McChrystal service to our country spans decades in many conflicts. His bio is provided below.
Trump has always threatened to pull out of NATO. Per The Atlanta, “But during Trump’s time in office, the withdrawal never happened. That was because there was someone there to talk him out of it. Bolton says he did it; Jim Mattis, John Kelly, Rex Tillerson, Mike Pompeo and even Mike Pence are thought to have done so too. (The Atlanta, issue January/February 2024)
James Mattis, the Secretary of Defense under Trump, said it best, “He is more dangerous than anyone could ever imagine.”
National Security Advisor H.H. McMasters under Trump stated, “President Trump and other officials have repeatedly compromised our principles in pursuit of partisan advantage and personal gain.”
Harris will work with our allies and see that Putin never takes Ukraine. The Ukrainians are paying the ultimate price, defending the country with their lives. Trump will leave Ukraine defenseless to satisfy Putin.
On November 5, tell Trump that Ukraine lives. It doesn’t matter how much damage Russia inflicts on Ukraine. They will not surrender to tyranny. And we should not either.
It’s deja vu all over again. Yogi Berra, I say this because these were election issues in the past 4 elections. It also was an attempt to steer the debate away from Harris, to criticize Biden’s decisions.
Nord Stream 2
The Harris-Trump debate consisted of some very old recycled falsehoods from Trump, more than 2 years old. Here it is:
“Why does Biden go in and kill the Keystone pipeline and approve the single biggest deal that Russia’s ever made, Nord Stream 2?” Trump said Tuesday night. Harris finally came back with the great one liner, “Well I am not Joe Biden, and I am certainly not Donald Trump.”
I call it the double whammy, because it calls for Harris to defend Biden’s supposed “approval” of Nord Stream 2. There was no approval, because it was Germany’s decision. For now, it isn’t even an issue. No gas is flowing from Russia to Germany. The pipelines were sabotaged in September 2022 and repair is unlikely because Germany will not allow the pipeline to go in service.
Nord Stream 2 is an underwater natural gas pipeline connecting Russia and Germany, which was first planned in 2015. It is 767 miles long. Because the pipeline exports Russian gas to Germany, they must approve the project. The US can make it more difficult to construct the pipeline by sanctioning the companies involved in the construction. But approval or disapproval are not options.
Biden’s approval of Nord Stream 2 is a recycled lie. Trump’s February 2022 speech at the CPAP conference is just one long series of lies, exaggerations and deceptive statements. Of course this is a conservative Republican event that is very eager to embrace his false statements because they sound good. See link at bottom.
“It’s a good thing to get along with people not a bad thing. You can be very tough and get along. You know, I’m the one that ended [Putin’s] pipeline. He said, ‘You’re killing me with the pipeline.’ Nobody else ended his pipeline. Biden came in, he approved it.”
Sorry, This is a baseless lie. It only highlights Trump’s creativity in telling lies with Vladimir Putin, down on his knees to Trump, begging him to approve the pipeline. US sanctions may have slowed construction but they did not stop it. Per Wikipedia: “In December 2020 [while Trump was still President] , the Russian pipelaying ship Akademik Cherskiy continued pipe-laying… The laying of the second line was completed in September 2021.
In May 2021, Biden allowed soften the sanctions. At the time, Germany was very upset with the US sanctions against companies involved in the construction of the pipeline as they saw it as an interference in their foreign policy. Biden attempted to re-direct the sanctions more specifically at Russia’s economy as it became clear that the Nord Stream 2 project was going to be completed no matter what the US wanted.
Biden was looking for some leverage to negotiate with Putin. The real threat was a Russian invasion of Ukraine not Russian gas flowing to Germany. Biden was attempting to solidify European unity to counter Russia’s hostile and aggressive policies. The Ukrainian invasion occurred because of Putin’s underestimation of Ukraine’s willingness to fight, and the US and European support for an independent Ukraine.
Germany will not permit the pipeline be put in service as long as Russia occupies Ukraine. Germany never granted Russia a certification of completion for the Nord Stream pipeline.
The claim by Trump during the debate that Biden terminated the Keystone XL project is correct. He did so on his first day in office, based on environmental concerns. His agenda to rejoin the International Paris Accords and gain further cooperation for reduced CO2 emission would be inconsistent with supporting import of heavy oil from Canada. Per Wikipedia: “As of 2024, oilsands account for 8% of the total of Canadian emissions. Emissions from the oilsands continue to increase, while most other sources are decreasing.
The Keystone pipeline saga is a long one. There are multiple pipeline construction phases. The one that Biden cancelled was the fourth phase called the Keystone XL pipeline. The KXL pipeline would have shorten the route to Texas refineries. Trump tried to hasten the approval permitting process, but legal challenges in Montana succeeded in November 2018, with the judge ruling that the expediated approval violated the Administrative Procedure Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and the Endangered Species Act.
It is true that the construction of the other phases of the Keystone project were easily approved during the Obama administration. The real issue was whether it was in the US interest to import the heavy crude (the nastiest oil, see NRDC link) which would have serious environmental and ecology impact.
Did Biden’s cancellation of the pipeline hurt the oilsands projects? Not really, as production from Canada’s oilsands continued to grow. There are still the longer route to bring Canadian oil to the US. Railcars can transport the heavy oil. And this is not good for climate change efforts. See links below.
The pipeline construction is 8% complete. TransCanada Corporation (now TC Energy, TRP stock symbol) disbanded efforts to continue the construction after Biden denied the export permit. The company is still doing well with a market cap of 42 billion dollars. The CBS article suggests that Canada production growth may flatten out in 2024, with competition from other sources.
(The long and controversial history of the Keystone XL pipeline stretches back to 2008 when Bush was president)
The German Experience transitioning to Green Energy
Immediately after the debate, Germany took exception to the following:
“You believe in things like, we’re not going to frack, we’re not going to take fossil fuel, we’re not going to do things that are going make this country strong, whether you like it or not,” Trump said Tuesday night, referring to Harris. “Germany tried that, and within one year, they were back to building normal energy plants.”
Their response: “Like it or not: Germany’s energy system is fully operational, with more than 50% renewables,” the ministry wrote. “And we are shutting down — not building — coal & nuclear plants. Coal will be off the grid by 2038 at the latest.”
Harris stated that she supported fracking. The side comment on Germany was just thrown into the mix for effect. They also watch our debate.
Opening up and closing other potential areas for drilling by Biden
Energy policy will continue to be controversial and poorly understood by the electorate, regardless of who wins the 2024 election. Biden surprised climate activists when he approved the massive Willow project (massive in terms of investment required) in the petroleum reserve.
The 2021 ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) lease sale by Trump, after he lost the election in 2020, was a total disaster. The potential of ANWR is poorly defined, as no wells have been drilled inside the refuge. Chevron drilled an exploratory well just outside of the refuge in 1985. Results have never been disclosed.
Per Wikipedia:
Two small independent companies, Knik Arm Services LLC and Regenerate Alaska Inc, won one tract each. The auction generated $14.4 million, lower than the $1.8 billion estimate from the Congressional Budget Office in 2019, and the auction did not receive bids from any oil and gas companies.[53]
On June 1, 2021, Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland suspended all Trump-era oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge pending a review of how fossil fuel drilling would impact the remote landscape.[10] Indigenous and conservation groups urged Biden to make the suspension permanent. On September 6 2023, the Biden administration cancelled the leases.
The same article notes that Goldman Sachs and other investment banks stated they would not finance investments in ANWR. On September 6, 2023, the Biden administration cancelled the leases.
I doubt that the lease holders really lost because without a major oil company taking over the lease, there would be no exploratory drilling.
Summary
I have corrected the misrepresentations by Trump at the debate concerning the two pipelines, neither of which are operational. So, this is a matter of old and bitter political fights. Canada will produce their heavy oil to the chagrin of climate activists.
The supply of oil is likely to increase from new discoveries offshore Guyana, and from developments in Brazil, US (offshore developments plus fracking) and Canada. Gas prices could definitely go down, as supplies increase.
Our energy policy is too short term focused. Going forward in the long run, will mean transitioning from our dependence on fossil fuels, to renewable fuels, which includes solar and wind energy. We can’t keep building roads, and adding gasoline burning cars. Collaborating with other countries, like China and India, I hope, can lead to cutting global carbon emissions. Global problems require global solutions.
I don’t think there is any hope of a Trump administration addressing these future challenges. The hubris that comes from the MAGA folks, is competitive, and ignores the climate impact.
I am much more hopeful that a Kamala Harris would make real progress in green energy and more efficient use of our resources, for the long term future.
The news reporting is frequently the same on both networks. If there is some big event, like a plane crash, the content on both networks will be pretty much the same.
The difference is in commentary. Fox News supports conservatives, including Donald Trump. CNN supports Kamala Harris but will report on news damaging to her campaign. The difference is apparent on their websites.
Fox Example
Today on the FOX News website is the headline “Melania Trump releases new video with warning to all Americans ahead of a 100 million dollar lawsuit.” This is a teaser headline. The key words are “ahead of.” Trump hasn’t filed a lawsuit.
Seriously, who is he going to sue? The FBI? Filing a frivolous lawsuit can backfire. If search is illegal, then all evidence is thrown out. This is the case law since the 1961 “Mapp” Case by the US Supreme Court. Note, that the three more conservative justices did not want to extend the protection to searches by state and local authorities.
This is a case of more false information on Twitter, but this time, in support of Kamala Harris. There is a second Twitter account which is uncovering all the lies this Twitter account.
Video clips of Trump or JD Vance have been edited to make them deceptive or false. As stated in the CNN article, this was done recently. They cite eight different examples including one where the post infers that Trump was confused on the name of the state of the rally was occurring. It is a complete lie. CNN calls these hacked videos misleading. I would call them a complete lie.
My take
Fox News is more likely to post misleading “news stories” which are really commentary. Fox News headlines of a 100 million dollar lawsuit, which does not exist. And if Trump’s lawyers say they will sue Biden, they are forgetting they just won in the Supreme Court on presidential immunity.
CNN commentary is often biased, but they are doing a better job with fact checking. This includes fact checking pro-Harris twitter posts.
Don’t go to Youtube, Twitter, Facebook or any other social media. It is mostly political entertainment. It is not reliable information.
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