Standing on principle. . . even when it costs votes.

December 18, 2024

Guns are the problem. Guns. Not mental health. Not gangs on campus. Not students arguing over social media posts. Guns. Without guns, the sickening news alerts that plague our smartphones would disappear.

As the media examined Monday’s school shooting in Wisconsin, we were told that “It’s complicated” and that there are “no simple answers.” That may be true up to a point, but the unifying factor in school shootings is guns.

The New York Times published an above-the-fold article on the rise in school gun violence since the pandemic. See NYTimes, Gun Violence Around Schools Has Risen Since the Pandemic. The article references a national database of gun violence at schools and interviews the author about the increase in gun violence on campus since the pandemic.

The Times then writes:

There is no single explanation for the uptick. But researchers who study gun violence believe that the rise in firearm sales over the past decade, the prevalence of unsecured guns in homes where children live and the rise in people bringing guns to campuses may all contribute to the problem.

“It’s complicated,” [the creator of the database said], “and there’s not just one clear factor.”

In 2020, guns became the leading cause of death among children under 18.

To be fair, the database creator was addressing the “uptick” in gun violence when he said, “It’s complicated.” But as the Times notes, the unifying factor in every explanation offered in the article is guns. Guns are the problem. And one day after the 83^rd school shooting in 2024, no one is talking about legislation to regulate gun ownership.

Imagine if a drone dropped out of the sky on Monday and crash-landed in a school parking lot, injuring a single student. Our representatives in Congress would be racing one another to introduce legislation to ban drones.

Guns are the problem. Guns.

That does not mean we should ignore other measures to prevent school shootings. But it makes no sense to talk about every solution except the solution that most directly impacts the problem.

---

Trump sues the Des Moines Register over poll that failed to accurately predict outcome of election.

ABC’s surrender in the Trump defamation suit has predictably encouraged him to file additional suits designed to intimidate the meda. On Tuesday, Trump sued the Des Moines Register for publishing a poll that showed Kamala Harris ahead in Kansas by 3 percentage points. See Des Moines Register, Trump sues Gannett, Des Moines Register over Iowa election poll.

A copy of the lawsuit is embedded in this Axios article, Trump sues Des Moines Register for "election interference" over Iowa poll.

Trump sued under an Iowa consumer fraud statute that states that a

person shall not engage in a practice or act the person knows or reasonably should know is an unfair practice, deception, fraud, false pretense, or false promise, or the misrepresentation, concealment, suppression, or omission of a material fact, with intent that others rely upon [same] . . . .

Trump further alleges

For too long, left-wing pollsters have attempted to influence electoral outcomes through manipulated polls that have unacceptable error rates and are not grounded in widely accepted polling methodologies.

Sound familiar? It should. One of Trump's favorite polling organizations—Rasmussen—was barred from the 538.com polling averages in March 2024 because it could not provide satisfactory answers about its methodology. See MSN, 538 drops Rasmussen Reports from its analysis. As noted in the linked article, “For years, Rasmussen’s results have been more favorable for Republican candidates and issues.”

It will be difficult for Trump to prevail. The Des Moines Register, Gannett, and the pollster can assert constitutional defenses to the claim under the standard established in New York Times v. Sullivan.

Moreover, as was obvious to anyone paying attention, the process of producing a reliable poll has become increasingly difficult. See Scientific American (10/31/2024), Why Election Polling Has Become Less Reliable | Election polls are increasingly vulnerable to huge mistakes.

Per Scientific American article,

Today technological changes—including caller ID, the rise of texting and the proliferation of spam messages—have led very few people to pick up the phone or answer unprompted text messages. Even the well-respected New York Times/Siena College poll gets around a 1 percent response rate, Bailey points out. In many ways, people who respond to polls are the odd ones out, and this self-selection can significantly bias the results in unknowable but profound ways.

Putting aside the apparent baselessness of Trump's suit, its real purpose is its in terrorem effect on others in the media.

The media has created this situation, in part, by treating Trump's election bid as a referendum on inflation or Joe Biden’s age rather than Trump's plan to crush all opposition—including the media. Especially the media.

It all seemed like fun and games for the media to report on every Biden stumble or gaffe as if it were a constitutional crisis while ignoring the ugly threats and corruption of a twice impeached, adjudicated sexual abuser who incited an assault on Congress to stop the peaceful transfer of power. While I fervently hope that the media saves itself, part of that effort will be recognizing their role in unleashing Trump's revenge tour—in which they are prominent targets.

I realize that many people are tapped out with subscription payments. But if you are in a position to consider supporting the work of the Des Moines Register, you can sign up here: The Des Moines Register Subscription Offers, Specials, and Discounts. I signed up for the Annual Plan ($25.00).

---

Here we go again: Government shutdown scheduled for Friday

Funding authority for many federal agencies will expire on Friday, December 20, 2024. As of Tuesday, negotiators in the House have failed to release the text of a funding bill that would avert a shutdown.

Per CNN, Democrats and Speaker Mike Johnson are negotiating a bill that would extend the debt limit and authorize government spending through March 14, 2025—when there will be another crisis. See CNN Politics, Bill to fund the government through March 14 unveiled but Johnson’s dealmaking with Democrats angers conservatives | CNN Politics

As became a common practice in 2024, Speaker Mike Johnson will depend on majority support from Democrats—who are in the minority—to pass the continuing resolution. Members of the GOP caucus in the House are already expressing anger over Johnson allegedly “caving” to Democrats, who have managed to secure additional funding for many of their priorities while Johnson has failed to secure funding for farm aid.

As noted in the CNN article,

[GOP Representatives] Crane and Burchett are among multiple House conservatives who said Tuesday they feared Johnson and GOP negotiators have ceded too many Democratic demands — resulting in the kind of massive year-end package that Johnson has promised he’d avoid.

“It is a total dumpster fire,” said Republican Rep. Eric Burlison of Missouri, voicing his frustrations at Johnson, whom he wouldn’t commit to backing on the floor in January.

And then there is GOP Rep. Chip Roy from Texas, who said,

If I was doing this, I would make Democrats vote down farm aid. Put it on the floor, actually go down and legislate … So instead, we get this negotiated crap and we’re forced to eat this crap sandwich - why? Because fricking Christmas is right around the corner.

Merry Christmas to you, too, Chip Roy!

---

House Republicans recommend that FBI investigate Liz Cheney

Former and disgraced Speaker Kevin McCarthy asked Rep. Barry Loudermilk to conduct a “counter” January 6 investigation to rebut the real January 6 Committee report. Ironically, the GOP effort was directed by Loudermilk, who was accused of leading “reconnaissance” tours of the Capitol the day before January 6—when the Capitol was closed. Loudermilk claimed it was a coincidence that his guests were taking photos of nameplates and signage showing the way through the warren of hallways beneath the Capitol. See Rolling Stone (5/19/2022), Jan. 6 Committee: Barry Loudermilk Led Capitol Tour Day Before Riot.

But I digress. The sham report by the GOP calls upon the FBI to investigate former Rep. Liz Cheney for “witness intimidation” for talking to Cassidy Hutchinson, who reached out to Cheney when Hutchinson became uncomfortable with the representation by her GOP-provided attorney. See The Hill, GOP report recommends Liz Cheney be criminally investigated over Jan. 6 work.

Hutchinson later said that she felt that her GOP-provided attorney was urging her to lie to the January 6 Committee. See CBS News, (12/22/2022), Cassidy Hutchinson told Jan. 6 committee Trump-linked lawyer urged her to "downplay" role in testimony, transcript reveals.

Liz Cheney posted a blistering response here: Newsweek, Liz Cheney Rips GOP Report Calling For Her To Be Criminally Investigated.

---

Elon Musk and Space X are under investigation for violating security rules

The New York Times has published a major investigative report on alleged security violations by Elon Musk and Space X. Both Musk and his company have security clearances in connection with government contracts in the US space program. See NYTimes, Elon Musk and SpaceX Face Federal Reviews After Violations of Security Reporting Rules. (This article is accessible to all.)

Musk and Space X are under “continuous reporting requirements” to update information relating to their initial security clearances. But according to sources interviewed by the Times and an inspector general, Musk and Space X have failed to report information about Musk’s travels, meetings with foreign leaders, and use of drugs.

Musk’s growing power within the Trump administration is subjecting witnesses and government agencies to fear of reprisals. Per the Times,

Some of the SpaceX employees who complained about the privately held company’s reporting practices have been fired or forced out, the people with knowledge of the rocket maker said.

Two defense officials said senior Pentagon leaders had given directives to avoid discussing the matter so they would not become targets of Mr. Musk, who has promised to cut government workers and budgets in his new role in Washington.

The apparent concern is that Musk and Space X are threats to national security because of failure to follow security protocols that bind other contractors with access to sensitive information. This has the potential to be a major scandal.

The prominent placement by the Times and the investigative work that produced the article should be praised. When the media gets it right in this new era of cowardice, we should thank those who step up to hold the government and its contractors accountable.

The journalists listed in the byline are: Kirsten Grind, Eric Lipton and Sheera Frenkel.

---

Opportunity for Reader engagement.

A reader wrote today to say that she was engaged in the PostCardsToVoters effort for Virginia Senate District 32 to encourage them to vote for Kannan Srinivasan in the January 7, 2025, Special Election. Kannan currently serves in the Virginia House of Representatives and is running for Senate. Sign up for here to write postcards for Kannan PTV Current Campaigns and see Kannan’s website here: Kannan Srinivasan for State Senate.

Special elections are usually low-turnout affairs. A few well-placed postcards could determine the outcome of the election!

---

Concluding Thoughts

Yesterday I wrote about commentators who are claiming that Democrats failed to “listen” to working-class voters, Black and Hispanic men, rural voters, etc. in the 2024 presidential campaign. To be clear, listening is an under-utilized skill that should be at the top of the list for any party hoping to persuade voters. Democrats should do more of it—based on general principles and good political hygiene.

But part of what makes the ceaseless scolding by pundits so irritating is that not all viewpoints can benefit from “listening.” Author Rebecca Solnit addressed a similar demand in 2020 that Democrats “listen” to angry Trump voters seeking to overturn Joe Biden’s victory. Solnit published an essay in Literary Hub on November 19, 2020, entitled On Not Meeting Nazis Halfway.

Excerpts from Solnit’s insightful essay include the following:

[T]he ethical [path] is not halfway between white supremacists and human rights activists, rapists and feminists, synagogue massacrists and Jews, xenophobes and immigrants, delusional transphobes and trans people. Who the hell wants unity with Nazis until and unless they stop being Nazis?

This unilateral surrender is how misogyny and racism are baked into a lot of liberal and centrist as well as right-wing positions, this idea that some people need to be flattered and buffered even when they are harming the people who are supposed to do the flattering and buffering, even when they are the minority, even when they’re breaking the law or lost the election.

Now is an excellent time to stand on principle and defend what we value, and I believe it’s a winning strategy too, or at least brings us closer to winning than surrender does.

Well said. While we should “listen” to opposing views, we should also stand on principle and refuse to treat racism, misogyny, or white supremacy as viewpoints worthy of political compromise.

If our decision to remain steadfast in condemning racism, misogyny, and white supremacy costs us votes in the short term, we should continue to stand on principle, which (in the words of Rebecca Solnit) will “bring us closer to winning than surrender does.”

Talk to you tomorrow!

---

Daily Dose of Perspective

As the Orion Nebula dipped below the horizon last evening, I moved my scope to the next object “above” Orion—the Horsehead Nebula. But in my effort to image an object that was low in the sky and rapidly setting, I also captured a telephone wire. See the first photo below. The second photo shows the magic of Adobe Photoshop’s AI “Remove Wires” function. (I also boosted the exposure and contrast in the second photo.)

The Horsehead Nebula is 1,375 light years from Earth. It is a “dark” nebula backlit by a portion of the Orion molecular cloud.

Enjoy!