Comparing Donald Trump to a crazy loveable uncle gives me chills. Uncles who rape, defraud the public, and incite insurrection among vulnerable people should be locked up, not invited to dinner.
I don't disagree with the fact that tRump says stupid things. HOWEVER, tfg is Mary Trump's actual uncle, and she has never once described him as lovable.
Interestingly, 10 minutes with google reveals Matthew Schmitz is a far right theocratic conservative - a Catholic version of an evangelical christian nationalist. I'm soooo surprised.
That explains it. That kind of conservative Catholic are calling for the removal of Pope Francis for his stance on climate change and the LGBTQ community. Ugh and again ugh.
TC, More like 2 minutes….just reading the titles of articles in his Compact Mag
Part of to-do list today, writing to NYT. Maybe I’ll highlight Compact’s “ Handmaids of Capitol”➡️”Forced birth is opposite of the threat women face.” 😱
I'm thinking I will cancel my NYT digital subscription. If we don't take a stand, this rhetoric will continue. I admire many of the writers of the NYC; however, editorial decisions leave a lot to be desired.
I suggest that you write and tell them that if they don’t straighten up, you Weill cancel. You won’t make it into the published letters, but someone will read it.
I plan to write editors and cancel my NYT home delivery. I’ll keep a digital subscription and cancel that if they don’t show more editorial discretion.
I cancelled my NYT subscription a while ago, but I'm thinking of writing an Op-Ed piece on all of the reasons that I did and sending it to them. Some people listen; some hear only money. We need to find out which one the NYT is now.
It's so disappointing that Catholics are saying these things! And on a day when Pope Francis announced that he would bless same sex marriages, and fired an ultra-conservative Bishop for his hateful statements about that community. The Pope is trying to guide us away from hate and judgement; meanwhile that hate is alive and well among some Catholics who are very un-Jesus-like!
In response to Robert's call to communicate with the leadership of the University of New Hampshire, I have sent the following email:
President Dean, Jr., and Chief of Staff Davis:
My name is Gary Stewart. I am a climate activist with Citizen's Climate Lobby, and have had 132 Letters to the Editor published sinc 2018.
I am certain that no climate-friendly actions would come out of another Trump White House, and am very motivated to prevent him from winning in 2024.
I would like to share with you with journalist Robert Hubbell said on his Substack blog today, after noting the messaging of Donald Trump on your campus, which expressed white supremacist/fascist rhetoric ("poisoning the blood" of the country):
"A reader suggested that residents of New Hampshire might want to express their views to the University president and chief of staff about the propriety of giving Trump a presence to unleash hate speech on the campus...Trump may have the right—like every citizen—to rent university facilities. But that doesn’t mean the president of the University and his senior staff must remain silent in the face of a speech invoking Hitler’s vile racial purity philosophy."
I am sympathetic with the situation for the leadership of universities, in light of the very challenging conflict between dedication to free speech and having to determine when speech becomes sufficiently vile that it constitutes incitement, or when certain words are considered to constitute harassment or bullying toward any given individual student.
I do strongly encourage both of you to display the courage and honor that our present political circumstance calls for, with democracy in the balance, and communicate in no uncertain terms exactly where you depart from the fascist rhetoric of Donald Trump. To do less is to effectively condone another coup/insurrection likely to succeed where the previous one failed. That is the risk that Trump's explicit plans (Project 25) represent.
I also submitted a letter to the editor of the New York Times with regard to the appalling editorial from Matthew Schmitz:
It is not Trump’s “resilience” that leads observers to describe his explicit political program as laid out in Project 2025 as a threat to democracy. It is the policies themselves. Donald Trump has never once acknowledged that any of his lies are untrue, whether about his inaugural crowd size, his promise to make Mexico pay for a border wall, his claim that he lost the 2020 election due to massive (but undetectable) invisible voter fraud, or any the thousands of other lies so well-documented by an army of fact-checkers. Mr. Schmitz speaks of Trump’s “success”, but polling numbers are not “success.” He lost the election of 2020, and his favored candidates lost in 2022. Mr. Schmitz’ crafted rhetoric is detached from the reality that Trump’s messaging echoes closely that of the fascists of the 1930s, and that is his primary appeal, such that 30% of Republicans are willing to advocate lawlessness in his name. Referring to Trump as a “moderate” of any stripe is an attempt to normalize fascist rhetoric.
I appreciate your sharing this letter and effort but my first read gave me two impressions. They were the letter is well written but too long and the letter should have been more to the point. I’m afraid if I were the a President I probably would not have read the entire letter.
I agree that the University President might not read the entire letter. I agree that I could have gotten to the point sooner. On balance, I don't think it's necessary that they read the entire letter to get the message - an out-of-state non-student is writing with non-obnoxious concerns that our university campus was used as a tool by a fascist. This is a group effort - the more letters, the better, and the specific wording of each one becomes less crucial as there are more and more of them. I encourage anyone on this comments section to write the university president and the chief of staff, as Robert suggested.
I agree we need to send lots of letters as many as we can get to get the message out but I think they need to be thoughtful, interesting and with a point of view that sounds and feels heartfelt and honest as well as direct.
Therein lies the probably and why we’re called liberal elites. The other side keeps winning with messaging because Dems have become so bad at it. They need to keep hammering away three to five messages over and over. Not paragraph after paragraph of word salad. People having the attention span of 280 characters & bullet points in a PPT, is 1000% true.
I agree that slogans are good. (I suggest, “Democracy works,” and “Trump’s words are the ravings of a lunatic”), but let’s remember that Democrats hold the White House and the Senate, and are within a whisker of a majority in the House, that we swept Virginia this fall and have had a very good run in special elections. So perhaps the messaging isn’t so bad.
That’s how MAGAts are describing a vote for Biden. They have practically trademarked “freedom” and “liberty.” And calling Democrats fascists. A hope we can find a message MAGAts cannot take over for their own use.
Erica and Stephen: I have sent another email to the University leadership, in light of both of your thoughtful comments:
President Dean, Jr., and Chief of Staff Davis:
I wrote to you last night, and upon review this morning found that my email was too wordy.
Donald Trump's speech on your campus constituted fascist rhetoric.
I call upon and encourage the leadership of the university to do whatever they can to push back against this vile manipulation of the public space, and ensure that the public knows that such fascist remarks are not consistent with the mission or goals of the University of New Hampshire.
Magnificent. Schmitz mentioned never, not at all, the climate emergency or the botched pandemic response and resulting hundreds of thousands of avoidable deaths. (Could it be those deaths of adults and children do not concern him as much as the deaths of fetuses?)
I think it is fair that is exactly what it means. Pro-birth, not pro-life.
A study comparing life expectancy in Connecticut compared to Oklahoma, over the years from the 1970s to 2019, showed that it was identical in the 1970s, and there was 5-year difference, favoring Connecticut, after all the usual "Red State" measures were instituted. Lin to article at the American Prospect: https://prospect.org/health/2023-12-08-life-death-cost-conservative-power/
This impact of far-right policies is also highlighted in the book "Dying of Whiteness", by Jonathan Metzl, a Vanderbilt U. psychiatrist, who looked at policies embraced by marginalized whites (the "politics of racial resentment") in Missouri (repealed gun control), Tennessee (stymied the Affordable Care Act) and Kansas (massive cuts in education and social services).
The negative impact on health outcomes was striking, and the saddest part was that it was not just predictable - it was explicitly predicted.
Thank you for your encouragement. Here’s my attempt at a the letter to the editor that I just submitted to the New York Times.
Title: “How Can You Soft Pedal Trump?”
Text:
"To the Editor:
Yesterday’s guest essay by Matthew Schmitz entitled "The Secret of Trump’s Appeal Isn’t Authoritarianism” was jaw-dropping in its attempt to whitewash the clear and present danger of Donald Trump. How could such a piece pass editorial muster? Did Joe Kahn, the executive editor, weigh in on publishing it? And if so, why did he platform Schmitz’s “there, there” attempt to assuage our mounting terror about an American dictator on the march?
Trump is no moderate. He planned and attempted a coup to avoid leaving office, where he would be vulnerable as a private citizen to courts of law. He was and is our greatest threat to national security, disclosing our state secrets to sycophants and probably our adversaries. His contrariness led him to withdraw the United States from an agreement with Iran to defang its nuclear threat and bring stability to the Middle East. He normalized racist hatred and violence and was building an army of street thugs. Some policies of his disastrous administration may appear moderate to a soporific viewer squinting sideways. But Trump was too distractible in his megalomania to care about governing. The Times must do better as a paper of record. This is editorial malpractice."
Schmitz is a known right wing propagandist. The NYT published this "op-ed" with full knowledge of Schmitz views. He has these same ideas all over his online magazine Compact.
At the minimum, the Times should be held accountable by it's readership for knowingly publishing propgandizing falsehoods.
I'd been feeling really outside of reality or something like that for awhile before I joined this community. I do live in Texas -- I'm sure that's part of it -- although I'm in San Antonio which is pretty Blue. Am surrounded, however, in my day-to-day by either MAGA or MAGA-adjacent people or others who are indifferent to everything outside their immediate sphere of reference. I felt like a being from another planet dropping by for a visit most of the time. It's been such a delight to read Robert's newsletters and the comments of so many thoughtful, principled people. Makes all the difference in the world in terms of rejuvenating my willingness to get out into the fray ... P.S. It hasn't helped that I'm very introverted; my idea of hell is a group of people unless we're all engaged in doing something rather than chatting. I did contact my local Dem group to see if I could help, got certified to register voters, but they seem to be full up on help at this point. I'll continue to 'torture' irresponsible journalists via email and write GOTV letters and hope that's enough. But -- y'all have helped so much; thanks!!
Meredith, Robert noted Postcards To Voters for Tom Keen in Florida.😎 There are also phone banking and test banking opportunities available ! 📲 Every action helps keep me sane here in outside-of-reality DeSantisland !
Bless Your Heart! as we say in the South. I grew up in 1950s Florida which was, then, relatively sane and very beautiful. I cannot believe what the GOP has done to it and can only hope — like Texas — that enough people will start trying to turn it around. Racism + religion = something very much like evil.
No all Religion is bad, though. I love Pope Francis, and in spite of all of the limits placed on his efforts to teach us all compassion, he moves slowly forward, as he did yesterday.
Meredith: I also grew up in Florida (St. Petersburg), born in 1951. I have encountered a memoir by a respected historian, Charles Dew, entitled "The Making of a Racist." It is about his upbringing, and was a fascinating read for me, with numerous things he said I can verify - segregated drinking fountains, for example, and, in my country-club upbringing, casual use of the N-word, casual use of racist jokes - and my parents were not "Lost Cause" adherents and antebellum-style racists like Professor Dew's father was. When I was in Florida last, it was culture shock (I live in Southern California now), but a lot of what Florida is now remains true to what it was. Another excellent book about Florida is Peter Matthiessen's brilliant historical fiction "Shadow Country."
I recommend writing postcards to voters. It's very satisfying and helps voter turnout. Here are two campaigns going on right now: postcardstovoters.org and activateamerica.vote. For Judge Janet in WI, volunteers nationwide wrote a million postcards! It was a very consequential election as her election has tipped the scales and WI is now on track to end gerrymandering and ratify the right to abortion. :-D
Thank you for the suggestion; I've been writing letters thru Vote Forward the past 3 years and have enjoyed it! It's usually non-partisan and targeted toward GOTV; the last campaign I participated in was VA's most recent one and Vote Forward has stats to show that our letters did have some positive effects, which is gratifying. They're a very data-oriented group and try different techniques, then analyze the data of returns before continuing to use them ... My nerd-self appreciates that! :)
I've been doing Vote Forward letters for 3 election cycles and have already bought 400 "Thank You" stamps in anticipation (I figure using those stamps is a way to encourage folks to vote.)
I've been doing those, too, and for 3 cycles!! I've really enjoyed it. As I'm on the Economy Retirement Plan, I ask for donated stamps; the cost of printing out the letters and buying the envelopes is not minor, and having the stamps makes it possible for me to write/send more letters. So nice to 'meet' someone else doing the same thing... If you didn't see their data report recently, there were some positive results -- and I can't remember all the ins and outs of it, but pretty sure it's on their website if you're interested; some techniques work(ed) better than others and I like that they're analyzing their strategies to see what actually DOES work ...
Meredith, take a look at postcard writing. A friend asked me to join her in writing Remember to Vote postcards for Virginia this past October. I was so glad I did, and felt like the 100 we wrote made a difference. Perfect for an introvert. They provide the cards, list and suggested copy for the post card. Your contribution is paying for the cards/ postage and providing the handwriting. Start small (I can only do 25 in one sitting...hand cramps :) up ). Every little bit counts.
I also recommend Vote Forward; have been writing GOTV letters 3 years now and love it. They’re usually non-partisan but they’ve begun testing effects of partisan ones now (it’s a very data-results-oriented group!). And, yes, I have some hand arthritis and just spread out my writing over time. It’s satisfying to do something tangible like this. I’ll also look into the postcards.
Thank you! I love reading good newsletters and wasn’t aware both of this one and that Texas Dems are stepping up their game!! (I still can’t believe that Beto lost; that’s what a dreamer I must still be :))))))
If the NYT and Washington Post editors believe it is necessary or important to give “both sides” editorial space to present their respective views, then “both sides” should be presented side by side in the same paper by honest and responsible spokespersons (if indeed such a person can reasonably be found) for the respective “sides.” It is the consistent failure to follow this practice that must be challenged - as you are justifiably advocating.
Stirred by your calls for 'control the narrative' activism, Mr. Hubbell, I too wrote a reader's comment to the NYT over that awful op-ed excusing Trump's speech and crimes. I've yet to hear back that it was approved. It called out the NYT for publishing such a piece when there are Fox News and Breitbart to sing Trump's praises. Rather they should be publishing critical articles examining the many ways he is unsuited to be president.
On another topic, I have been researching the rise and rise (not rise and fall, alas) of antisemitism. On the subject of trusting the American people to see the light, I'm afraid we simply can't count on that. In 1922, when German (Jewish) Minister of Industry Walther Rathenau was assassinated by a far right terrorist, millions of people poured into the streets to protest. The government erected memorials to him. Mainstream Germans' fears were assuaged. The terrorists were a tiny minority. Within a few short years, the openly antisemitic Nazis won the election. The fraudulent "Protocols of the Elders of Zion", translated from Russian into German, became a bestseller. It was as if people were hungry for someone to blame for... everything. I see the same hunger among Trump's supporters.
Heartedly agree that we can't trust the people to 'see the light' re:Trump or antisemitism. Didn't work in 2016. Now social media business models control the discourse. Yes we must push back. Perhaps we can pronounce January as the 'letter-writing to media month.'
Regarding 11th Circuit Chief Judge Bill Pryor, he also led the 11th Circuit panel which unanimously slapped down District Judge Aileen Cannon a year ago in a lightening quick decision regarding her intervention into the DOJ’s execution of its Mar-A-Lago search warrant pre-indictment. The speed of his opinions clearly reflects that he despises the gaming of the judicial system by Trump and his cronies.
I am so glad to see our Hubbell community taking newspapers to task (and I do so myself, regularly), but there's more we can do to fight disinformation. We need to "flood the zone" with facts and not let the right-wing media machine do so with lies. If you want to learn more about a recent media blitz success in PA during the recent state supreme court election, mark your calendar for a 31st St. Swing Left event on Wed., Jan. 17th, 7pm Eastern. Learn how pro-democracy forces successfully created "surround sound" in all media channels about the anti-abortion stand of one candidate (a stand she was trying to hide until good, old-fashioned reporting found the evidence). Check https://www.31ststreet.org in January for registration information.
Yesterday morning I sent a letter to the NYT Editor letting them know my displeasure that they failed to cover Trump's speech in New Hampshire and his grotesque Hitleresque social media post "ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION IS POISONING THE BLOOD OF OUR NATION." And now they post this BS op-ed defense of Trump? My next letter is to A.G. Sulzberger reminding him that this 50-year long subscriber is very unhappy with (a) the failure of the NY Times to publicize every abhorrent word spoken or written by Trump and the obedience of Republicans like Lindsey Graham and (b) publishing op-eds that defend or minimize the threat of Donald Trump.
There is no greater threat to our Nation than Donald J. Trump. This should be the primary focus of the NY Times.
I think a complementary focus should be the extent that the Biden Administration’s economic program is turning around the US, economically, *demonstrating by examples* how it is helping ordinary people, *including* the disaffected younger Americans. Biden’s personal roles should be highlighted, to counter the narrative that he’s out-of-it.
I am a subscriber to the NYT and wrote a letter to the editor today regarding my objection to the Schmitz Op-Ed and voiced my criticisms of their treating Trump’s candidacy as equal to President Biden’s.
I contribute to President Biden’s reelection campaign, but I am not sure that is the best use for my contribution. Because I have an account with ActBlue, I receive multiple emails daily from Democrats across the country. If anyone has a better idea for where my contribution (it isn’t substantial by any means) can do the most good, I’d like to hear it.
The States Project does research to identify the most effective use of our donor dollars raised through Giving Circles for directing to progressive state legislature candidates’ campaigns.
Thanks for highlighting both of these great organizations. When it comes to dollars-per-democratic impact, state races are the best value. And there can in fact be a "reverse coattails effect" where a voter goes out for their state candidate because they know and like them---and then vote the rest of the blue ticket.
Donations that drive turnout for down ballot races have been very effective in Pennsylvania, where I live. In a national election, rural Democrats who are showing up to vote for candidates where previously no one bothered to run help run up the total for Senator and President. This will be very important in all the swing states and there are many many groups focusing on state-wide offices.
On the theme of "Changing the Narrative" to combat right-wing propaganda, 31st St. Swing Left is supporting Courier Newsroom "Content Organizing" in the key state of Pennsylvania. The basic idea is to gather pro-democratic news content and actively disseminate it through a variety of channels including social media "influencers" and aimed at the key audience of low information voters. The approach was apparently very successful in the recent PA Supreme Court election in framing the Republican candidate as untrustworthy on the issue of abortion.
The role of the media and especially the both-sidesism displayed again and again by the NYT begs the question: are they a. reckless b. downright stupid or c. trying to hedge their bets?
If it is c. they should better listen carefully to what the insurrectionists have in store for them. For all who are (still) on X/Twitter, here is a telling link to listen in to the wet dreams of Steve Bannon and Kash Patel (future CIA director? Oh my!) on how to deal with the judiciary and the media once they have taken over https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1732130346010063053
What will cozying up to these people get them? Perhaps a single cell instead of a bunk in a dormitory in a prison or a work camp somewhere in Alaska.
If the New York Times editorial board and other high-level staff think that giving room to “Trump‘s side of the story“ is going to keep them in business if Trump wins again, then they are very naïve. The idea that a newspaper of record like the NYT would go over to the dark side in preparation for dealing with an authoritarian takeover is chilling, indeed.
One important step is to get over the idea that the NY Times is the “newspaper of record”. For economic and ideological reasons, they’ve stopped being the newspaper of record.
As complaints here in Today’s Edition show, the Times has become selective in what it reports; within individual articles, biases creep in, both in selectivity and emphases. On Israel-Palestinian issues, I’ve made sure to consult the Times of Israel (middle-of-the road politically, and free of charge) daily, in addition to The Times and WaPo (whose articles often are subtly biased).
Oh, I am done with any expectation that the New York Times might rethink its desire to accommodate right-wing opinions, even when those opinions include flat out lies. They’ve also become very good at deceptive headlines. I ended my subscription to the NYT in 2022 when this trend was well underway. I have plenty of other news sources.
As a native of rural PA deep in Trump country, see how local papers shape the narrative in favor of their Republican elected officials. Local weekly papers which primarily cover high school sports and obituaries often print verbatim press releases from their reps. Whether it is taking credit for infrastructure projects they voted against or crowing about their tax cutting ( which of course cuts services) the local papers print unchallenged talking points written by PR pros.
I wish there were more people writing letters to these local papers to challenge the narrative. There are thousands of weekly papers in rural America. Let’s find a way to move the narrative there
I am so glad that we are focusing on the media. A NYT "BREAKING NEWS" just popped up on my phone: "Voters broadly disapprove of President Biden’s handling of the bloody strife between Israelis and Palestinians, a Times/Siena College poll found...Opinion is split between those wanting the war to end and those pressing for a definitive Israeli victory, and the divide is starkest among older and younger generations."
How is a POLL breaking news?!
The NYT should be reporting FACTS about this EVENT, rather than poll results. It's almost as if they're now reporting reactions and poll results, not news which might actually promote an educated citizenry.
I know this topic is tragic and complex and many people more informed than I disagree on ways forward, but to "breaking news" being one poll's results in tabulating reactions to a problem which instead they should be reporting news about is lazy.
Comparing Donald Trump to a crazy loveable uncle gives me chills. Uncles who rape, defraud the public, and incite insurrection among vulnerable people should be locked up, not invited to dinner.
I don't disagree with the fact that tRump says stupid things. HOWEVER, tfg is Mary Trump's actual uncle, and she has never once described him as lovable.
...and, of course, definitely not be allowed back into the Oval Office.
As soon as I read “ unpredictable kind of moderate” I had to stop reading or risk shattering my iPad.
Interestingly, 10 minutes with google reveals Matthew Schmitz is a far right theocratic conservative - a Catholic version of an evangelical christian nationalist. I'm soooo surprised.
That explains it. That kind of conservative Catholic are calling for the removal of Pope Francis for his stance on climate change and the LGBTQ community. Ugh and again ugh.
TC, More like 2 minutes….just reading the titles of articles in his Compact Mag
Part of to-do list today, writing to NYT. Maybe I’ll highlight Compact’s “ Handmaids of Capitol”➡️”Forced birth is opposite of the threat women face.” 😱
I'm thinking I will cancel my NYT digital subscription. If we don't take a stand, this rhetoric will continue. I admire many of the writers of the NYC; however, editorial decisions leave a lot to be desired.
I suggest that you write and tell them that if they don’t straighten up, you Weill cancel. You won’t make it into the published letters, but someone will read it.
Send a copy to the NYT’s Managing Editor, noting that you know of many others who either have canceled or plan to cancel their subscriptions.
Get closer to the NYT’s business operations.
I am in that situation currently.
What's the managing editor's address?
Send a copy to the NYT’s Managing Editor, noting that you know of many others who either have canceled or plan to cancel their subscriptions.
I am doing so right now. I have had it with the media normalizing this Hitlerian fascist dictator wannabe.
I plan to write editors and cancel my NYT home delivery. I’ll keep a digital subscription and cancel that if they don’t show more editorial discretion.
Do you have the email address for the correct editor to contact regarding that Matthew Schmitz article?
I sent mine to the editorial page editor: editorial@nytimes.com
I don’t but will see if I can find.
I cancelled my NYT subscription a while ago, but I'm thinking of writing an Op-Ed piece on all of the reasons that I did and sending it to them. Some people listen; some hear only money. We need to find out which one the NYT is now.
There's a number of Matthew Schmitz's - took me some time to find the right one, then I read a couple articles so I knew which kind of fascist he is.
It's so disappointing that Catholics are saying these things! And on a day when Pope Francis announced that he would bless same sex marriages, and fired an ultra-conservative Bishop for his hateful statements about that community. The Pope is trying to guide us away from hate and judgement; meanwhile that hate is alive and well among some Catholics who are very un-Jesus-like!
Ugh
I second that. Ugh, ugh!
In response to Robert's call to communicate with the leadership of the University of New Hampshire, I have sent the following email:
President Dean, Jr., and Chief of Staff Davis:
My name is Gary Stewart. I am a climate activist with Citizen's Climate Lobby, and have had 132 Letters to the Editor published sinc 2018.
I am certain that no climate-friendly actions would come out of another Trump White House, and am very motivated to prevent him from winning in 2024.
I would like to share with you with journalist Robert Hubbell said on his Substack blog today, after noting the messaging of Donald Trump on your campus, which expressed white supremacist/fascist rhetoric ("poisoning the blood" of the country):
"A reader suggested that residents of New Hampshire might want to express their views to the University president and chief of staff about the propriety of giving Trump a presence to unleash hate speech on the campus...Trump may have the right—like every citizen—to rent university facilities. But that doesn’t mean the president of the University and his senior staff must remain silent in the face of a speech invoking Hitler’s vile racial purity philosophy."
I am sympathetic with the situation for the leadership of universities, in light of the very challenging conflict between dedication to free speech and having to determine when speech becomes sufficiently vile that it constitutes incitement, or when certain words are considered to constitute harassment or bullying toward any given individual student.
I do strongly encourage both of you to display the courage and honor that our present political circumstance calls for, with democracy in the balance, and communicate in no uncertain terms exactly where you depart from the fascist rhetoric of Donald Trump. To do less is to effectively condone another coup/insurrection likely to succeed where the previous one failed. That is the risk that Trump's explicit plans (Project 25) represent.
****************************************************************************************
I also submitted a letter to the editor of the New York Times with regard to the appalling editorial from Matthew Schmitz:
It is not Trump’s “resilience” that leads observers to describe his explicit political program as laid out in Project 2025 as a threat to democracy. It is the policies themselves. Donald Trump has never once acknowledged that any of his lies are untrue, whether about his inaugural crowd size, his promise to make Mexico pay for a border wall, his claim that he lost the 2020 election due to massive (but undetectable) invisible voter fraud, or any the thousands of other lies so well-documented by an army of fact-checkers. Mr. Schmitz speaks of Trump’s “success”, but polling numbers are not “success.” He lost the election of 2020, and his favored candidates lost in 2022. Mr. Schmitz’ crafted rhetoric is detached from the reality that Trump’s messaging echoes closely that of the fascists of the 1930s, and that is his primary appeal, such that 30% of Republicans are willing to advocate lawlessness in his name. Referring to Trump as a “moderate” of any stripe is an attempt to normalize fascist rhetoric.
************************************************************************************************
Thanks for the letter. It gives us a template to work from!!!!! Good on you!
I appreciate your sharing this letter and effort but my first read gave me two impressions. They were the letter is well written but too long and the letter should have been more to the point. I’m afraid if I were the a President I probably would not have read the entire letter.
I agree that the University President might not read the entire letter. I agree that I could have gotten to the point sooner. On balance, I don't think it's necessary that they read the entire letter to get the message - an out-of-state non-student is writing with non-obnoxious concerns that our university campus was used as a tool by a fascist. This is a group effort - the more letters, the better, and the specific wording of each one becomes less crucial as there are more and more of them. I encourage anyone on this comments section to write the university president and the chief of staff, as Robert suggested.
I agree we need to send lots of letters as many as we can get to get the message out but I think they need to be thoughtful, interesting and with a point of view that sounds and feels heartfelt and honest as well as direct.
Therein lies the probably and why we’re called liberal elites. The other side keeps winning with messaging because Dems have become so bad at it. They need to keep hammering away three to five messages over and over. Not paragraph after paragraph of word salad. People having the attention span of 280 characters & bullet points in a PPT, is 1000% true.
I agree that slogans are good. (I suggest, “Democracy works,” and “Trump’s words are the ravings of a lunatic”), but let’s remember that Democrats hold the White House and the Senate, and are within a whisker of a majority in the House, that we swept Virginia this fall and have had a very good run in special elections. So perhaps the messaging isn’t so bad.
Freedom or fascism, your choice.
That’s how MAGAts are describing a vote for Biden. They have practically trademarked “freedom” and “liberty.” And calling Democrats fascists. A hope we can find a message MAGAts cannot take over for their own use.
Good idea.
Instead of “Trump’s words …”, try shortening it:
“Trump’s becoming a [Fascist] lunatic.”
Erica and Stephen: I have sent another email to the University leadership, in light of both of your thoughtful comments:
President Dean, Jr., and Chief of Staff Davis:
I wrote to you last night, and upon review this morning found that my email was too wordy.
Donald Trump's speech on your campus constituted fascist rhetoric.
I call upon and encourage the leadership of the university to do whatever they can to push back against this vile manipulation of the public space, and ensure that the public knows that such fascist remarks are not consistent with the mission or goals of the University of New Hampshire.
Freedom or fascism. It's our choice.
Agree
Magnificent. Schmitz mentioned never, not at all, the climate emergency or the botched pandemic response and resulting hundreds of thousands of avoidable deaths. (Could it be those deaths of adults and children do not concern him as much as the deaths of fetuses?)
I think it is fair that is exactly what it means. Pro-birth, not pro-life.
A study comparing life expectancy in Connecticut compared to Oklahoma, over the years from the 1970s to 2019, showed that it was identical in the 1970s, and there was 5-year difference, favoring Connecticut, after all the usual "Red State" measures were instituted. Lin to article at the American Prospect: https://prospect.org/health/2023-12-08-life-death-cost-conservative-power/
This impact of far-right policies is also highlighted in the book "Dying of Whiteness", by Jonathan Metzl, a Vanderbilt U. psychiatrist, who looked at policies embraced by marginalized whites (the "politics of racial resentment") in Missouri (repealed gun control), Tennessee (stymied the Affordable Care Act) and Kansas (massive cuts in education and social services).
The negative impact on health outcomes was striking, and the saddest part was that it was not just predictable - it was explicitly predicted.
And Trump knew! He said so on Tucker Carlson's show in March 2017. Link to 3/16/2017 Vox story about this interview: https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/3/16/14945030/trump-tucker-carlson-health-care
Love your letter. Please give me the address to write to the NY Times
Please see the link in yesterday's newsletter to the Comment section. It includes links to many newspapers and reporters.
letters@nytimes.com
If you search <Submit letter to the editor to [media outlet]", there will almost always be a match that provides the email address or link to a form.
Robert,
Thank you for your encouragement. Here’s my attempt at a the letter to the editor that I just submitted to the New York Times.
Title: “How Can You Soft Pedal Trump?”
Text:
"To the Editor:
Yesterday’s guest essay by Matthew Schmitz entitled "The Secret of Trump’s Appeal Isn’t Authoritarianism” was jaw-dropping in its attempt to whitewash the clear and present danger of Donald Trump. How could such a piece pass editorial muster? Did Joe Kahn, the executive editor, weigh in on publishing it? And if so, why did he platform Schmitz’s “there, there” attempt to assuage our mounting terror about an American dictator on the march?
Trump is no moderate. He planned and attempted a coup to avoid leaving office, where he would be vulnerable as a private citizen to courts of law. He was and is our greatest threat to national security, disclosing our state secrets to sycophants and probably our adversaries. His contrariness led him to withdraw the United States from an agreement with Iran to defang its nuclear threat and bring stability to the Middle East. He normalized racist hatred and violence and was building an army of street thugs. Some policies of his disastrous administration may appear moderate to a soporific viewer squinting sideways. But Trump was too distractible in his megalomania to care about governing. The Times must do better as a paper of record. This is editorial malpractice."
Schmitz is a known right wing propagandist. The NYT published this "op-ed" with full knowledge of Schmitz views. He has these same ideas all over his online magazine Compact.
At the minimum, the Times should be held accountable by it's readership for knowingly publishing propgandizing falsehoods.
I'd been feeling really outside of reality or something like that for awhile before I joined this community. I do live in Texas -- I'm sure that's part of it -- although I'm in San Antonio which is pretty Blue. Am surrounded, however, in my day-to-day by either MAGA or MAGA-adjacent people or others who are indifferent to everything outside their immediate sphere of reference. I felt like a being from another planet dropping by for a visit most of the time. It's been such a delight to read Robert's newsletters and the comments of so many thoughtful, principled people. Makes all the difference in the world in terms of rejuvenating my willingness to get out into the fray ... P.S. It hasn't helped that I'm very introverted; my idea of hell is a group of people unless we're all engaged in doing something rather than chatting. I did contact my local Dem group to see if I could help, got certified to register voters, but they seem to be full up on help at this point. I'll continue to 'torture' irresponsible journalists via email and write GOTV letters and hope that's enough. But -- y'all have helped so much; thanks!!
Meredith, Robert noted Postcards To Voters for Tom Keen in Florida.😎 There are also phone banking and test banking opportunities available ! 📲 Every action helps keep me sane here in outside-of-reality DeSantisland !
https://www.grapevine.org/giving-circle/1XQhnyD/Tending-to-Democracy
https://www.mobilize.us/mobilize/event/595477/
Bless Your Heart! as we say in the South. I grew up in 1950s Florida which was, then, relatively sane and very beautiful. I cannot believe what the GOP has done to it and can only hope — like Texas — that enough people will start trying to turn it around. Racism + religion = something very much like evil.
No all Religion is bad, though. I love Pope Francis, and in spite of all of the limits placed on his efforts to teach us all compassion, he moves slowly forward, as he did yesterday.
Meredith: I also grew up in Florida (St. Petersburg), born in 1951. I have encountered a memoir by a respected historian, Charles Dew, entitled "The Making of a Racist." It is about his upbringing, and was a fascinating read for me, with numerous things he said I can verify - segregated drinking fountains, for example, and, in my country-club upbringing, casual use of the N-word, casual use of racist jokes - and my parents were not "Lost Cause" adherents and antebellum-style racists like Professor Dew's father was. When I was in Florida last, it was culture shock (I live in Southern California now), but a lot of what Florida is now remains true to what it was. Another excellent book about Florida is Peter Matthiessen's brilliant historical fiction "Shadow Country."
I recommend writing postcards to voters. It's very satisfying and helps voter turnout. Here are two campaigns going on right now: postcardstovoters.org and activateamerica.vote. For Judge Janet in WI, volunteers nationwide wrote a million postcards! It was a very consequential election as her election has tipped the scales and WI is now on track to end gerrymandering and ratify the right to abortion. :-D
Thank you for the suggestion; I've been writing letters thru Vote Forward the past 3 years and have enjoyed it! It's usually non-partisan and targeted toward GOTV; the last campaign I participated in was VA's most recent one and Vote Forward has stats to show that our letters did have some positive effects, which is gratifying. They're a very data-oriented group and try different techniques, then analyze the data of returns before continuing to use them ... My nerd-self appreciates that! :)
I've been doing Vote Forward letters for 3 election cycles and have already bought 400 "Thank You" stamps in anticipation (I figure using those stamps is a way to encourage folks to vote.)
I've been doing those, too, and for 3 cycles!! I've really enjoyed it. As I'm on the Economy Retirement Plan, I ask for donated stamps; the cost of printing out the letters and buying the envelopes is not minor, and having the stamps makes it possible for me to write/send more letters. So nice to 'meet' someone else doing the same thing... If you didn't see their data report recently, there were some positive results -- and I can't remember all the ins and outs of it, but pretty sure it's on their website if you're interested; some techniques work(ed) better than others and I like that they're analyzing their strategies to see what actually DOES work ...
We got you! One easy thing to do is write for Postcards to Voters. I just get 10 addresses at a time; not so overwhelming.
I feel the same as you do about this Community. It saves me.
Meredith, take a look at postcard writing. A friend asked me to join her in writing Remember to Vote postcards for Virginia this past October. I was so glad I did, and felt like the 100 we wrote made a difference. Perfect for an introvert. They provide the cards, list and suggested copy for the post card. Your contribution is paying for the cards/ postage and providing the handwriting. Start small (I can only do 25 in one sitting...hand cramps :) up ). Every little bit counts.
I also recommend Vote Forward; have been writing GOTV letters 3 years now and love it. They’re usually non-partisan but they’ve begun testing effects of partisan ones now (it’s a very data-results-oriented group!). And, yes, I have some hand arthritis and just spread out my writing over time. It’s satisfying to do something tangible like this. I’ll also look into the postcards.
https://open.substack.com/pub/davidpepper/p/breaking-great-news-in-nc-tx-and?r=7c9sb&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post
Thank you! I love reading good newsletters and wasn’t aware both of this one and that Texas Dems are stepping up their game!! (I still can’t believe that Beto lost; that’s what a dreamer I must still be :))))))
https://bluetexas.org/
Thanks, Jenny! You can never give me enough information :)
If the NYT and Washington Post editors believe it is necessary or important to give “both sides” editorial space to present their respective views, then “both sides” should be presented side by side in the same paper by honest and responsible spokespersons (if indeed such a person can reasonably be found) for the respective “sides.” It is the consistent failure to follow this practice that must be challenged - as you are justifiably advocating.
Good point, John. I’ll include in my letter to NYT.
The Orlando Sentinel often does present “both sides”in such a way.
Stirred by your calls for 'control the narrative' activism, Mr. Hubbell, I too wrote a reader's comment to the NYT over that awful op-ed excusing Trump's speech and crimes. I've yet to hear back that it was approved. It called out the NYT for publishing such a piece when there are Fox News and Breitbart to sing Trump's praises. Rather they should be publishing critical articles examining the many ways he is unsuited to be president.
On another topic, I have been researching the rise and rise (not rise and fall, alas) of antisemitism. On the subject of trusting the American people to see the light, I'm afraid we simply can't count on that. In 1922, when German (Jewish) Minister of Industry Walther Rathenau was assassinated by a far right terrorist, millions of people poured into the streets to protest. The government erected memorials to him. Mainstream Germans' fears were assuaged. The terrorists were a tiny minority. Within a few short years, the openly antisemitic Nazis won the election. The fraudulent "Protocols of the Elders of Zion", translated from Russian into German, became a bestseller. It was as if people were hungry for someone to blame for... everything. I see the same hunger among Trump's supporters.
Thanks for the historical background on Walter Rathenau. I was unaware of Rathenau and his contributions to post-WWI Germany.
Heartedly agree that we can't trust the people to 'see the light' re:Trump or antisemitism. Didn't work in 2016. Now social media business models control the discourse. Yes we must push back. Perhaps we can pronounce January as the 'letter-writing to media month.'
Well said, NC. Thank you, and spot on.
Regarding 11th Circuit Chief Judge Bill Pryor, he also led the 11th Circuit panel which unanimously slapped down District Judge Aileen Cannon a year ago in a lightening quick decision regarding her intervention into the DOJ’s execution of its Mar-A-Lago search warrant pre-indictment. The speed of his opinions clearly reflects that he despises the gaming of the judicial system by Trump and his cronies.
Good point! I should have mentioned that fact! Thanks for doing so!
I am so glad to see our Hubbell community taking newspapers to task (and I do so myself, regularly), but there's more we can do to fight disinformation. We need to "flood the zone" with facts and not let the right-wing media machine do so with lies. If you want to learn more about a recent media blitz success in PA during the recent state supreme court election, mark your calendar for a 31st St. Swing Left event on Wed., Jan. 17th, 7pm Eastern. Learn how pro-democracy forces successfully created "surround sound" in all media channels about the anti-abortion stand of one candidate (a stand she was trying to hide until good, old-fashioned reporting found the evidence). Check https://www.31ststreet.org in January for registration information.
Hey, Julie. Can you send me a two para write up of this event at the appropriate time for publication? Thanks.
Jim Shelton and I will be happy to write up a couple of paragraphs and send them to you!
Robert, you are the best cheerleader! Your newsletters motivate us and I know that’s your goal. Thanks!
Yesterday morning I sent a letter to the NYT Editor letting them know my displeasure that they failed to cover Trump's speech in New Hampshire and his grotesque Hitleresque social media post "ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION IS POISONING THE BLOOD OF OUR NATION." And now they post this BS op-ed defense of Trump? My next letter is to A.G. Sulzberger reminding him that this 50-year long subscriber is very unhappy with (a) the failure of the NY Times to publicize every abhorrent word spoken or written by Trump and the obedience of Republicans like Lindsey Graham and (b) publishing op-eds that defend or minimize the threat of Donald Trump.
There is no greater threat to our Nation than Donald J. Trump. This should be the primary focus of the NY Times.
I think a complementary focus should be the extent that the Biden Administration’s economic program is turning around the US, economically, *demonstrating by examples* how it is helping ordinary people, *including* the disaffected younger Americans. Biden’s personal roles should be highlighted, to counter the narrative that he’s out-of-it.
I am a subscriber to the NYT and wrote a letter to the editor today regarding my objection to the Schmitz Op-Ed and voiced my criticisms of their treating Trump’s candidacy as equal to President Biden’s.
I contribute to President Biden’s reelection campaign, but I am not sure that is the best use for my contribution. Because I have an account with ActBlue, I receive multiple emails daily from Democrats across the country. If anyone has a better idea for where my contribution (it isn’t substantial by any means) can do the most good, I’d like to hear it.
Sister District channels both donations and grassroots activism.
https://sisterdistrict.com/
The States Project does research to identify the most effective use of our donor dollars raised through Giving Circles for directing to progressive state legislature candidates’ campaigns.
https://statesproject.org/
https://www.grapevine.org/giving-circle/1XQhnyD/Tending-to-Democracy
💙I support States Project/ Tending To Democracy. It felt great knowing I contributed to the Dem sweep in Virginia this year !
Thank you ! Bookmarked all 3.
Thanks for highlighting both of these great organizations. When it comes to dollars-per-democratic impact, state races are the best value. And there can in fact be a "reverse coattails effect" where a voter goes out for their state candidate because they know and like them---and then vote the rest of the blue ticket.
Donations that drive turnout for down ballot races have been very effective in Pennsylvania, where I live. In a national election, rural Democrats who are showing up to vote for candidates where previously no one bothered to run help run up the total for Senator and President. This will be very important in all the swing states and there are many many groups focusing on state-wide offices.
On the theme of "Changing the Narrative" to combat right-wing propaganda, 31st St. Swing Left is supporting Courier Newsroom "Content Organizing" in the key state of Pennsylvania. The basic idea is to gather pro-democratic news content and actively disseminate it through a variety of channels including social media "influencers" and aimed at the key audience of low information voters. The approach was apparently very successful in the recent PA Supreme Court election in framing the Republican candidate as untrustworthy on the issue of abortion.
The role of the media and especially the both-sidesism displayed again and again by the NYT begs the question: are they a. reckless b. downright stupid or c. trying to hedge their bets?
If it is c. they should better listen carefully to what the insurrectionists have in store for them. For all who are (still) on X/Twitter, here is a telling link to listen in to the wet dreams of Steve Bannon and Kash Patel (future CIA director? Oh my!) on how to deal with the judiciary and the media once they have taken over https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1732130346010063053
What will cozying up to these people get them? Perhaps a single cell instead of a bunk in a dormitory in a prison or a work camp somewhere in Alaska.
If the New York Times editorial board and other high-level staff think that giving room to “Trump‘s side of the story“ is going to keep them in business if Trump wins again, then they are very naïve. The idea that a newspaper of record like the NYT would go over to the dark side in preparation for dealing with an authoritarian takeover is chilling, indeed.
One important step is to get over the idea that the NY Times is the “newspaper of record”. For economic and ideological reasons, they’ve stopped being the newspaper of record.
As complaints here in Today’s Edition show, the Times has become selective in what it reports; within individual articles, biases creep in, both in selectivity and emphases. On Israel-Palestinian issues, I’ve made sure to consult the Times of Israel (middle-of-the road politically, and free of charge) daily, in addition to The Times and WaPo (whose articles often are subtly biased).
Oh, I am done with any expectation that the New York Times might rethink its desire to accommodate right-wing opinions, even when those opinions include flat out lies. They’ve also become very good at deceptive headlines. I ended my subscription to the NYT in 2022 when this trend was well underway. I have plenty of other news sources.
As a native of rural PA deep in Trump country, see how local papers shape the narrative in favor of their Republican elected officials. Local weekly papers which primarily cover high school sports and obituaries often print verbatim press releases from their reps. Whether it is taking credit for infrastructure projects they voted against or crowing about their tax cutting ( which of course cuts services) the local papers print unchallenged talking points written by PR pros.
I wish there were more people writing letters to these local papers to challenge the narrative. There are thousands of weekly papers in rural America. Let’s find a way to move the narrative there
I am so glad that we are focusing on the media. A NYT "BREAKING NEWS" just popped up on my phone: "Voters broadly disapprove of President Biden’s handling of the bloody strife between Israelis and Palestinians, a Times/Siena College poll found...Opinion is split between those wanting the war to end and those pressing for a definitive Israeli victory, and the divide is starkest among older and younger generations."
How is a POLL breaking news?!
The NYT should be reporting FACTS about this EVENT, rather than poll results. It's almost as if they're now reporting reactions and poll results, not news which might actually promote an educated citizenry.
I know this topic is tragic and complex and many people more informed than I disagree on ways forward, but to "breaking news" being one poll's results in tabulating reactions to a problem which instead they should be reporting news about is lazy.