Funny how just when the Feds left Portland, the violence left too. Will Trump kidnap Biden in a van?
Run away, run away…
— remaster deep space 9, cowards (@catgoats) July 31, 2020
The withdrawal of federal agents from frontline policing of demonstrations in downtown Portland significantly reduced tensions in the city overnight.
Protesters in support of Black Lives Matter once again rallied near the federal courthouse that became a flashpoint, and the scene of nightly battles amid the swirl of teargas, after Donald Trump dispatched agents to end what he called anarchy in the city after weeks of demonstrations.
[…]
In contrast, the state troopers did not intervene even when the scale of the protest on Thursday night passed the point, as demonstrators shook the fence around the courthouse, at which in early demonstrations the federal agents generally fired teargas, stun grenades and baton rounds.
Trump’s right, it’s all going to get worse before it gets better.
— The Bulwark (@BulwarkOnline) August 1, 2020
What is Donald Trump’s incentive structure right now? The hierarchy pretty obviously goes something like this:
(1) Win the election.
(2) Avoid blame for losing the election.
(3) Bind his voters more tightly to his own person.
(4) Establish a framework for his next venture.
— Devin Nunes’ cow ðŸÂ® (@DevinCow) August 1, 2020
Signs that President Trump’s reelection bid is in crisis grew steadily this past week, one of the most tumultuous moments of a presidency increasingly operating with an air of desperation as it tries to avoid political disaster in November.Campaign officials pulled television ads off the air amid a late-stage review of strategy and messaging. At the same time, Trump publicly mused about delaying the November election, airing widely debunked allegations about fraud that were roundly rejected by Republicans and Democrats.
And as the campaign aims to mount a more aggressive defense of Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the president has reverted to touting unproven miracle cures, attacking public health officials and undercutting his own government’s push to encourage good health practices.
— David Nakamura (@DavidNakamura) August 1, 2020
Campaign officials said that when the pause in ad spending ends Monday, new television spots will aim to brand Biden as a tool of liberal extremists. The negative ads will initially target swing states that have the earliest mail-in voting dates.
“It is absolutely a strategic decision,” said a Biden official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal campaign tactics. “We don’t let him pull us off of our message and we don’t play his game.”
— The New York Times (@nytimes) August 1, 2020
— Barbara Malmet (@B52Malmet) August 2, 2020
— Adam Rifkin ðŸÂ¼ (@ifindkarma) April 15, 2018
R&R = revise and resubmit.
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