John, the reason a number of us are against the Ukrainian war is not that they are losing or your notion that Putin has charisma...Really? That's how shallow you think OUR thinking is? Says more about you than us. Some of us were against the Iraq war because (as with Ukraine) we see war for profit. Ukraine was disarmed in '94 on the understanding we would come to their defense. What none of us knew is that the machinations of neocons such as Victoria Nuland and Biden have engineered for years behind the scenes. A peace accord was on the table brokered by Naftali Bennett which was sabotaged by Boris Johnson in the interests of profit. This idea of fighting to the last Ukrainian life while this administration boasts of how profitable it is for the US is sick and if you are so convinced and it enables you to sleep well, then I'm surprised. With regard to immigration; I AM an immigrant, prior to that two generations earlier my Grandmother was an immigrant to the country of my birth. It's ILLEGAL immigration, the lack of assimilation and the fact that the criminal activity is undeniable, unless your nose is so stuck in the air you don't see the rapes assaults and murders EVEN on the streets of New York, but maybe not YOUR New York. Do you have doors and locks on your home, do you have a wall, a fence, a gate. Grow the hell up John and stop looking down your nose at the people who may not have a college education but do have common sense and consistency.
I am so glad you wrote this JW as frankly, having not received even one "like", I was beginning to think I was alone in my irritation. It is indeed in so many cases the combination of extremism and lack of consistency which (like Elon Musk's meme showing that we have remained the same in our outlook while the left has ran so far to the extreme that the middle has moved) leaves me open to the label "right wing". And John's simplistic verdict on "our" motivations was just a red rag to a bull. I will always be grateful for the fact that discovering Glenn and John was the gateway to so many voices of rationality which I think it's why it comes as such a disconcerting surprise when John goes so extreme in his language but sadly it is indicative of the times in which we live; the attempt on the life of a former president (and candidate) is not only greeted with dismissive headlines ("Trump leaves stage over loud noises" "Trump falls") but then the media stops questioning AT ALL!! The complete reversal on Harris, the dismissal of concerns over border that Jai Johnson (Obama's border Tsar) described as a crisis if it was 1000 apprehensions per day (and THAT administration was actually apprehending AND repatriating which apparently is unthinkable today) but the media won't question. John and Glenn, despite the fact that they would occasionally disagree to some extent were always the voice I could rely on for a reality check, for real questioning and as Tom Sowell would say, "Facts". So if it becomes that John may as well be a clone, as you rightly say, of NYT talking points then it makes it harder to summon the enthusiasm to listen. But, again thanks to them, there are so many others I've been introduced to who will never see the light of day otherwise. I'm thinking particularly of Carol Swain, for whom John harbors a special animosity, and it was actually (I think) his hostility to her which prompted my first negative response a few months back. Fortunately I still have (amongst others) The Fifth Column of Michael Moynihan, Kmele Foster and Matt Welch to offer rational, fact based coverage of issues in the form of discussion but yeah, I do wish John would come down from his ivory tower and embrace reality. Thank you again for responding and for giving your own family's immigrant story of hard work, perseverance and sacrifice. All the best, James (edit; I beg his pardon Jeh Johnson not Jai Johnson!)
I think Dr. McWhorter is misunderstanding the application of TDS to him. We are not saying Trump has made him deranged. We are saying when it comes to Trump ... Dr. McWhorter applies standards to him (Trump) that he would never apply to anyone else. We are saying (relegated to the domain of Trump) Dr. McWhorter breaks with his normal principles and rationality.
I know it can be hard for him to admit it, but I don't think anyone who objectively looks at him can see otherwise:
* He seriously thinks having a brain in a jar would be better than having Trump as president.
* He publicly made a cavalier comment about assassinating Trump
* He acknowledged that the justice system was treading Trump unfairly but it was okay with it because, you know, Trump.
I think Dr. McWhorter is a brilliant, rational, honest and good man ... who also has TDS. Everyone in life is a package and has their foibles. For all the respect I have for him and his objectively he obviously is struggling with this. Maybe Dr. Loury could do a intervention for him. 😜
He “should not have said it in public” reminds me of Obama the snake in the grass President. I’ll take a man who doesn’t always get it right, who talks off the cuff, who is not a POS politician, but a business man who says the same in public he does in private albeit probably much more colorful in private. Trump is not a hypocrite and be damn how far the leftist twist it, the media cuts and manipulates it, lies about him and never mind how far they go to put him in jail .. including some wack job who can’t remember when she was raped or what year just that it happened (how can any one defend themselves against that) who then says “rape is cool” and now an assassination attempt.
I’m a college graduate, from a small town in Texas, D1 full scholarship athlete in the late 80’s, grew up around rodeos, bull riders, hunters, fishermen, grew a garden, had horses, cows, chickens and learned to take care of them all.
College taught me how to study, sports taught me how to work, be a team member, continue when it was hard physically and mentally, how to persevere, I learned the best qualities in sports and as a child..
That’s MAGA .. we will survive when the leftist trash push us in a war and I will enjoy watching the leftist demise, waiting on their masters to save them.
I said it in public.
Trump whipped up violence? Really? Russia collusion, two impeachments and non stop NON STOP lies in the media that we heard every day and TRUMP whipped up the sediment? Burning down streets and businesses had nothing to do with Trump and they will do it again.. I sure hope they meet their maker when they do.. Good gawd almighty. Push away from the idiot box JM.
Trump does this for “selfish reason”. Boy oh boy how completely ignorant is that. Just wow. He is a millionaire/billionaire who’s been in court for a year and harassed for eight by the stooges on the left. Thats sounds like a great life for his selfishness. Biden stayed until someone agreed to pay him to leave, he’s whipped up enough foreign dollars at our expense
John. Love you. But you’re having really whacky surface level takes on things lately.
Yes, MAGA is simple minded when you boil every position down to the simplest framing. It’s a tautological argument. That is where people are seeing the “elitism” and bubble in your responses. Every side and every position has the simple minded dip shit argument and both sides have huge contingents of their base that only know those simple arguments.
The entire point is, what is the good argument? How do I steel man this?
Examples of your MAGA takes on the left.
Immigration - diversity is our strength. Diversity is inherently good. Or, they’re already here it’s wrong to deny them.
Economy - we just need more funding.
Education- we just need more funding.
Crime - they’re underprivileged what do you expect them to do?
Ukraine - Russia invaded a smaller country (have the power) it is our duty to stand against that.
The reason MAGA hates the “mainstream media” is because they caricature everyone as holding these mind numbingly stupid/incomplete views. When they don’t have such a surface level understanding and have reasons.
Meanwhile, they take the idiotic views on the other side and couch them as profound.
The reason people like you and Glenn is because you take those idiotic boiled down versions from the left. And say when they’re truly idiotic. But also when they have a point. For maga you don’t do the same. You stop at the caricature.
The public focus on aging and “occasional” mental lapses is at least disingenuous, at worst, cynical and purposefully deceptive, bordering on elder abuse. See link below on Lewy body disease. I lost my father-in-law and my long-time barber to the disease. It is an aggressive disease. Admittedly from a distance, IMHO, President Biden exhibits many of the symptoms. Can he serve another six months? God bless him. I hope I’m wrong.
I'm not upset that John opined Trump should be assassinated. I am definitely a Republican voter but would have preferred another candidate and i wouldn't be unhappy if Trump went away. Not that I specifically hope he'd be assassinated. And not that he doesn't have value to offer as a candidate, he does. He would be a great president if he would just be aware of and determined to work on his character flaws, but that's not going to happen.
However I will certainly vote for Trump over any Democrat, the Democrats are just too far gone for me.
Do you fear Trump so much that you've lapsed into full identitarianism and are now proposing a 2024 Ticket of Kamala Harris and Corey Booker to ride the wave of white guilt you've spent your career describing as patronizing and disgusting to you?
You say "I'm not deranged" at 35:15 while protesting, unprompted, that you don't have TDS. My brother.
In your "apology", you can't even speak the words ("Sometimes I wish someone would just shoot Trump") that you intended to apologize for.
Color me unimpressed.
Glenn came through for you here multiple times to get you back on track, a noble effort but ultimately futile.
Get well soon, John. Your game is off and this country will need you at your best going forward.
Overall, Glenn makes excellent points in his disagreements with John. I have a great liking for John, his deep antipathy for Trump, notwithstanding. Trump gets his goat but that does not devalue all the good things he says and does. He made a mistake in his comment and owned it and I respect that. I don't expect him to change his mind about Trump -- I don't agree with most of my friends' political views either and I'm not inclined let that impact our friendship.
Man John could not be more wrong about left v right being hard v easy... The extremely simplified vision of Israel/Palestine is what motivates the crazy people on both sides. I think he's just stroking his ego because he leans left -everyone likes simplified fight slogans for the things they feel in their gut.
I get the sentiment from John coming off the Trump speech. It was as simplistic as it gets. Everything was the "best ever", now is the "worst ever", and will be the "best ever" again..and oh yeah, "Drill Baby Drill". An otherwise well run convention shot down in one moronic speech. But as someone who has written extensively about the simplicity coming from the left, at least in terms of woke, narrowly defined history, wealth gaps, etc., it was a bit surprising.
Who has better bumperstickers: "BLM". "Trump is a fascist". "No person is illegal." "Hate has no home here". MINITRUE is working 24/7 to come up with catchy slogans. Both sides have nuanced arguments, but both also have simplistic extremes. And the Left's comparison of Trump to Hitler, an existential threat to democracy, etc.. -- the Left certainly has their share of blame for increasing the animosity in the country.
What is seems hard for many on the Left to understand: I can't stand Harris' policies. I could give a crap if she's a black woman (I really like Tulsi Gabbard & Tim Scott. I even like Glenn & John!). She's way to the left -- where she has any coherent policy. She's Biden's "border czar" -- how has that worked out?
Interesting claim about "fake" populists wanting to take power away from the people. I just can't take Jan 6 seriously as an "insurrection". Nobody took guns into the Capitol. What kind of insurrection expects to succeed without real weapons? A 10 year old would have planned it better. Ugly, barbaric, anarchic, disgraceful, shameful? Yes. Of course. A tantrum played out on the world stage? Sure.
A serious attempt at insurrection? No. Not buying it.
Finally, I don't understand the distrust of people with three word names. Particularly from John Mac Whorter ;-)
He delegated the border crisis to her. He said that :
“When she speaks, she speaks for me,” Biden said, noting her past work as California’s attorney general makes her specially equipped to lead the administration’s response.
Biden, who has faced stiff criticism from Republicans over the increased flow of migrants, is hoping to show Americans he’s taking the situation at the border seriously. He also wants to prevent the growing humanitarian and political challenge from overshadowing his administration’s ambitious legislative agenda.
But the high-profile assignment for Harris, who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020 and is expected to run for the White House again in the future, could be politically fraught.
“Needless to say, the work will not be easy,” Harris said. “But it is important work.”
CZAR is defined as a person of great power. Harris was tapped as having presedential powers over the border. That seems like a person of great power over the border to me
Her assignment was to address root causes of migration in Central American countries, not the border per se. There is a lot of bad reporting out there claiming otherwise. Certainly the term 'czar' was never applied to her except by Republicans.
After the assassination attempt, I knew that John would have to come on this show and apologize once again. I'm very glad he explained more in detail why it was irresponsible for him to speak like that in the first place. No one should make comments like that in private or in public about anyone.
Thank you for Glenn for pushing back against the idea that MAGA is an overly simplistic ideology akin to left-wing wokeness. It's true that many adherents of MAGA might express their ideas in crude or overly simplistic ways, but that doesn't mean that the underlying sentiments are necessarily off base.
As I argued in prior comments, the breakdown of the neoliberal political order is a phenomenon which far transcends Donald Trump. Trump was often derided for the transactional nature of his America-first foreign policy during his first presidency, but as I noted, in many instances Biden has doubled down on the policies that Trump began. The semiconductor sanctions the Biden administration levied against China in October of 2022 were extraordinary not only in their breadth but also in the extent to which we had pushed ahead with such sanctions despite not fully getting our allies such as South Korea and the Netherlands on board. And whereas Trump threatened to raise tariffs on Chinese EVs from 25% to 100% should he be reelected, Biden actually went ahead and did just that a few months back.
Interestingly enough, Trump has recently come out against the Biden administration's EV mandates and suggested that he would allow the Chinese to build EV factories in the United States, mirroring the arrangement that the United States reached with Japan during the Reagan administration regarding car factories. This underscores an important point that I think isn't fully appreciated. Most of our politicians are creatures of the swamp and easily controlled by establishment forces. Trump on the other hand is a narcissistic contrarian who serves only his own ego. This has the effect of making him a wildcard on important matters. For instance, despite initially attempting to ban TikTok by fiat back in 2020, Trump has now done a 180 and come out in support of the app. Many have cynically noted that this is in no small part due to the influence of Republican mega-donor Jeffrey Yass, who owns roughly 15% of TikTok through his firm SIG.
The idea that Trump is some uniquely destabilizing force is vastly overstated in my opinion, in light of the greater structural deficiencies of the American political system. At worst Trump is unpredictable because he's motivated by crude self-interest. Given the uninspiring nature of mainstream politicians though, I would argue that unpredictable is actually a breath of fresh air and a jolt of excitement amidst an endless sea of establishment thought.
By the way Glenn, as the Young Turks reported recently, Jamaal Bowman was ultimately defeated by an AIPAC backed contender in large part due to his stance on Israel. Can Americans really say that we have a democracy when so much of our political system has been corrupted by money?
John, I think you're wrong about Trump. One of Trump's most admirable traits is that he's someone who managed to go above and beyond the legacy of what his father Fred Trump created. The elder Trump made his name developing housing and high-rise units for middle income New Yorkers in Brooklyn and Queens. His son managed to far exceed that and make a name for himself in Manhattan real estate and beyond.
Despite growing up in relative affluence in Queens, Trump was never content to merely coast off of his family name or his father's success. Far too many wealthy children end up never accomplishing anything of their own, instead living off of their parents' legacy and wealth. A number end up developing various forms of substance abuse and addiction, in the process destroying their lives. Trump's older brother had his life cut short due to alcoholism, something which motivated Donald to remain sober his entire life.
Personally I give Donald Trump a lot of credit for his relentless work ethic despite the fact that he was born into a life of privilege which didn't necessitate hard work.
John, of course there is stupidity and intellectual laziness on the right wing. Of course, you can find just the same on the other side of the aisle. I'd wager you probably encounter a lot more of the Democratic flavor from day to day - as someone who grew up in a similar environment to you, I know I do!
If you are looking for the counterpoint to "why should we fund Ukraine? Fuck it," I suggest it might sound something like "wouldn't it be great if we just ran two happy good- looking black people [whose lack of any other appealing qualities make them the perfect empty vessels to cynically advance establishment interests]?"
I would like Professor McWhorter to know that tomorrow, I will probably go to the SF Board of Supervisors meeting again. In June 2024; I gave them evidence of extreme antisemitism from DEI in 2021. No phone call, no email and no postal mail response. Since January 2019; I have painfully watched the entirety of SF-Gov refuse to perform democratic governance when presented with criticism about DEI. I feel like a foreigner in my own country. A representative from the LA Synagogue Adas Torah called several LA Council members in June about an upcoming protest and nobody returned his call. That is not governance.
John, the reason a number of us are against the Ukrainian war is not that they are losing or your notion that Putin has charisma...Really? That's how shallow you think OUR thinking is? Says more about you than us. Some of us were against the Iraq war because (as with Ukraine) we see war for profit. Ukraine was disarmed in '94 on the understanding we would come to their defense. What none of us knew is that the machinations of neocons such as Victoria Nuland and Biden have engineered for years behind the scenes. A peace accord was on the table brokered by Naftali Bennett which was sabotaged by Boris Johnson in the interests of profit. This idea of fighting to the last Ukrainian life while this administration boasts of how profitable it is for the US is sick and if you are so convinced and it enables you to sleep well, then I'm surprised. With regard to immigration; I AM an immigrant, prior to that two generations earlier my Grandmother was an immigrant to the country of my birth. It's ILLEGAL immigration, the lack of assimilation and the fact that the criminal activity is undeniable, unless your nose is so stuck in the air you don't see the rapes assaults and murders EVEN on the streets of New York, but maybe not YOUR New York. Do you have doors and locks on your home, do you have a wall, a fence, a gate. Grow the hell up John and stop looking down your nose at the people who may not have a college education but do have common sense and consistency.
I am so glad you wrote this JW as frankly, having not received even one "like", I was beginning to think I was alone in my irritation. It is indeed in so many cases the combination of extremism and lack of consistency which (like Elon Musk's meme showing that we have remained the same in our outlook while the left has ran so far to the extreme that the middle has moved) leaves me open to the label "right wing". And John's simplistic verdict on "our" motivations was just a red rag to a bull. I will always be grateful for the fact that discovering Glenn and John was the gateway to so many voices of rationality which I think it's why it comes as such a disconcerting surprise when John goes so extreme in his language but sadly it is indicative of the times in which we live; the attempt on the life of a former president (and candidate) is not only greeted with dismissive headlines ("Trump leaves stage over loud noises" "Trump falls") but then the media stops questioning AT ALL!! The complete reversal on Harris, the dismissal of concerns over border that Jai Johnson (Obama's border Tsar) described as a crisis if it was 1000 apprehensions per day (and THAT administration was actually apprehending AND repatriating which apparently is unthinkable today) but the media won't question. John and Glenn, despite the fact that they would occasionally disagree to some extent were always the voice I could rely on for a reality check, for real questioning and as Tom Sowell would say, "Facts". So if it becomes that John may as well be a clone, as you rightly say, of NYT talking points then it makes it harder to summon the enthusiasm to listen. But, again thanks to them, there are so many others I've been introduced to who will never see the light of day otherwise. I'm thinking particularly of Carol Swain, for whom John harbors a special animosity, and it was actually (I think) his hostility to her which prompted my first negative response a few months back. Fortunately I still have (amongst others) The Fifth Column of Michael Moynihan, Kmele Foster and Matt Welch to offer rational, fact based coverage of issues in the form of discussion but yeah, I do wish John would come down from his ivory tower and embrace reality. Thank you again for responding and for giving your own family's immigrant story of hard work, perseverance and sacrifice. All the best, James (edit; I beg his pardon Jeh Johnson not Jai Johnson!)
I think Dr. McWhorter is misunderstanding the application of TDS to him. We are not saying Trump has made him deranged. We are saying when it comes to Trump ... Dr. McWhorter applies standards to him (Trump) that he would never apply to anyone else. We are saying (relegated to the domain of Trump) Dr. McWhorter breaks with his normal principles and rationality.
I know it can be hard for him to admit it, but I don't think anyone who objectively looks at him can see otherwise:
* He seriously thinks having a brain in a jar would be better than having Trump as president.
* He publicly made a cavalier comment about assassinating Trump
* He acknowledged that the justice system was treading Trump unfairly but it was okay with it because, you know, Trump.
I think Dr. McWhorter is a brilliant, rational, honest and good man ... who also has TDS. Everyone in life is a package and has their foibles. For all the respect I have for him and his objectively he obviously is struggling with this. Maybe Dr. Loury could do a intervention for him. 😜
He “should not have said it in public” reminds me of Obama the snake in the grass President. I’ll take a man who doesn’t always get it right, who talks off the cuff, who is not a POS politician, but a business man who says the same in public he does in private albeit probably much more colorful in private. Trump is not a hypocrite and be damn how far the leftist twist it, the media cuts and manipulates it, lies about him and never mind how far they go to put him in jail .. including some wack job who can’t remember when she was raped or what year just that it happened (how can any one defend themselves against that) who then says “rape is cool” and now an assassination attempt.
I’m a college graduate, from a small town in Texas, D1 full scholarship athlete in the late 80’s, grew up around rodeos, bull riders, hunters, fishermen, grew a garden, had horses, cows, chickens and learned to take care of them all.
College taught me how to study, sports taught me how to work, be a team member, continue when it was hard physically and mentally, how to persevere, I learned the best qualities in sports and as a child..
That’s MAGA .. we will survive when the leftist trash push us in a war and I will enjoy watching the leftist demise, waiting on their masters to save them.
I said it in public.
Trump whipped up violence? Really? Russia collusion, two impeachments and non stop NON STOP lies in the media that we heard every day and TRUMP whipped up the sediment? Burning down streets and businesses had nothing to do with Trump and they will do it again.. I sure hope they meet their maker when they do.. Good gawd almighty. Push away from the idiot box JM.
Trump does this for “selfish reason”. Boy oh boy how completely ignorant is that. Just wow. He is a millionaire/billionaire who’s been in court for a year and harassed for eight by the stooges on the left. Thats sounds like a great life for his selfishness. Biden stayed until someone agreed to pay him to leave, he’s whipped up enough foreign dollars at our expense
John. Love you. But you’re having really whacky surface level takes on things lately.
Yes, MAGA is simple minded when you boil every position down to the simplest framing. It’s a tautological argument. That is where people are seeing the “elitism” and bubble in your responses. Every side and every position has the simple minded dip shit argument and both sides have huge contingents of their base that only know those simple arguments.
The entire point is, what is the good argument? How do I steel man this?
Examples of your MAGA takes on the left.
Immigration - diversity is our strength. Diversity is inherently good. Or, they’re already here it’s wrong to deny them.
Economy - we just need more funding.
Education- we just need more funding.
Crime - they’re underprivileged what do you expect them to do?
Ukraine - Russia invaded a smaller country (have the power) it is our duty to stand against that.
Racism - you mentioned.
Fairness - disparities inherently indicate mistreatment.
Etc etc etc.
The reason MAGA hates the “mainstream media” is because they caricature everyone as holding these mind numbingly stupid/incomplete views. When they don’t have such a surface level understanding and have reasons.
Meanwhile, they take the idiotic views on the other side and couch them as profound.
The reason people like you and Glenn is because you take those idiotic boiled down versions from the left. And say when they’re truly idiotic. But also when they have a point. For maga you don’t do the same. You stop at the caricature.
Immigration
On Biden stepping down:
The public focus on aging and “occasional” mental lapses is at least disingenuous, at worst, cynical and purposefully deceptive, bordering on elder abuse. See link below on Lewy body disease. I lost my father-in-law and my long-time barber to the disease. It is an aggressive disease. Admittedly from a distance, IMHO, President Biden exhibits many of the symptoms. Can he serve another six months? God bless him. I hope I’m wrong.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27042903/
I'm not upset that John opined Trump should be assassinated. I am definitely a Republican voter but would have preferred another candidate and i wouldn't be unhappy if Trump went away. Not that I specifically hope he'd be assassinated. And not that he doesn't have value to offer as a candidate, he does. He would be a great president if he would just be aware of and determined to work on his character flaws, but that's not going to happen.
However I will certainly vote for Trump over any Democrat, the Democrats are just too far gone for me.
This is remarkable.
John,
Do you fear Trump so much that you've lapsed into full identitarianism and are now proposing a 2024 Ticket of Kamala Harris and Corey Booker to ride the wave of white guilt you've spent your career describing as patronizing and disgusting to you?
You say "I'm not deranged" at 35:15 while protesting, unprompted, that you don't have TDS. My brother.
In your "apology", you can't even speak the words ("Sometimes I wish someone would just shoot Trump") that you intended to apologize for.
Color me unimpressed.
Glenn came through for you here multiple times to get you back on track, a noble effort but ultimately futile.
Get well soon, John. Your game is off and this country will need you at your best going forward.
Overall, Glenn makes excellent points in his disagreements with John. I have a great liking for John, his deep antipathy for Trump, notwithstanding. Trump gets his goat but that does not devalue all the good things he says and does. He made a mistake in his comment and owned it and I respect that. I don't expect him to change his mind about Trump -- I don't agree with most of my friends' political views either and I'm not inclined let that impact our friendship.
Man John could not be more wrong about left v right being hard v easy... The extremely simplified vision of Israel/Palestine is what motivates the crazy people on both sides. I think he's just stroking his ego because he leans left -everyone likes simplified fight slogans for the things they feel in their gut.
I get the sentiment from John coming off the Trump speech. It was as simplistic as it gets. Everything was the "best ever", now is the "worst ever", and will be the "best ever" again..and oh yeah, "Drill Baby Drill". An otherwise well run convention shot down in one moronic speech. But as someone who has written extensively about the simplicity coming from the left, at least in terms of woke, narrowly defined history, wealth gaps, etc., it was a bit surprising.
John: A heartfelt thank you.
Who has better bumperstickers: "BLM". "Trump is a fascist". "No person is illegal." "Hate has no home here". MINITRUE is working 24/7 to come up with catchy slogans. Both sides have nuanced arguments, but both also have simplistic extremes. And the Left's comparison of Trump to Hitler, an existential threat to democracy, etc.. -- the Left certainly has their share of blame for increasing the animosity in the country.
What is seems hard for many on the Left to understand: I can't stand Harris' policies. I could give a crap if she's a black woman (I really like Tulsi Gabbard & Tim Scott. I even like Glenn & John!). She's way to the left -- where she has any coherent policy. She's Biden's "border czar" -- how has that worked out?
Interesting claim about "fake" populists wanting to take power away from the people. I just can't take Jan 6 seriously as an "insurrection". Nobody took guns into the Capitol. What kind of insurrection expects to succeed without real weapons? A 10 year old would have planned it better. Ugly, barbaric, anarchic, disgraceful, shameful? Yes. Of course. A tantrum played out on the world stage? Sure.
A serious attempt at insurrection? No. Not buying it.
Finally, I don't understand the distrust of people with three word names. Particularly from John Mac Whorter ;-)
She was never Biden's "border czar." That's a GOP attack line.
CZAR: a person appointed by government to advise on and coordinate policy in a particular area.
"America's new drug czar"
He delegated the border crisis to her. He said that :
“When she speaks, she speaks for me,” Biden said, noting her past work as California’s attorney general makes her specially equipped to lead the administration’s response.
Biden, who has faced stiff criticism from Republicans over the increased flow of migrants, is hoping to show Americans he’s taking the situation at the border seriously. He also wants to prevent the growing humanitarian and political challenge from overshadowing his administration’s ambitious legislative agenda.
But the high-profile assignment for Harris, who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020 and is expected to run for the White House again in the future, could be politically fraught.
“Needless to say, the work will not be easy,” Harris said. “But it is important work.”
CZAR is defined as a person of great power. Harris was tapped as having presedential powers over the border. That seems like a person of great power over the border to me
https://apnews.com/general-news-3400f56255e000547d1ca3ce1aa6b8e9
Her assignment was to address root causes of migration in Central American countries, not the border per se. There is a lot of bad reporting out there claiming otherwise. Certainly the term 'czar' was never applied to her except by Republicans.
blah blah blah
After the assassination attempt, I knew that John would have to come on this show and apologize once again. I'm very glad he explained more in detail why it was irresponsible for him to speak like that in the first place. No one should make comments like that in private or in public about anyone.
Please feel free to agree or disagree.
Thank you for Glenn for pushing back against the idea that MAGA is an overly simplistic ideology akin to left-wing wokeness. It's true that many adherents of MAGA might express their ideas in crude or overly simplistic ways, but that doesn't mean that the underlying sentiments are necessarily off base.
As I argued in prior comments, the breakdown of the neoliberal political order is a phenomenon which far transcends Donald Trump. Trump was often derided for the transactional nature of his America-first foreign policy during his first presidency, but as I noted, in many instances Biden has doubled down on the policies that Trump began. The semiconductor sanctions the Biden administration levied against China in October of 2022 were extraordinary not only in their breadth but also in the extent to which we had pushed ahead with such sanctions despite not fully getting our allies such as South Korea and the Netherlands on board. And whereas Trump threatened to raise tariffs on Chinese EVs from 25% to 100% should he be reelected, Biden actually went ahead and did just that a few months back.
Interestingly enough, Trump has recently come out against the Biden administration's EV mandates and suggested that he would allow the Chinese to build EV factories in the United States, mirroring the arrangement that the United States reached with Japan during the Reagan administration regarding car factories. This underscores an important point that I think isn't fully appreciated. Most of our politicians are creatures of the swamp and easily controlled by establishment forces. Trump on the other hand is a narcissistic contrarian who serves only his own ego. This has the effect of making him a wildcard on important matters. For instance, despite initially attempting to ban TikTok by fiat back in 2020, Trump has now done a 180 and come out in support of the app. Many have cynically noted that this is in no small part due to the influence of Republican mega-donor Jeffrey Yass, who owns roughly 15% of TikTok through his firm SIG.
The idea that Trump is some uniquely destabilizing force is vastly overstated in my opinion, in light of the greater structural deficiencies of the American political system. At worst Trump is unpredictable because he's motivated by crude self-interest. Given the uninspiring nature of mainstream politicians though, I would argue that unpredictable is actually a breath of fresh air and a jolt of excitement amidst an endless sea of establishment thought.
By the way Glenn, as the Young Turks reported recently, Jamaal Bowman was ultimately defeated by an AIPAC backed contender in large part due to his stance on Israel. Can Americans really say that we have a democracy when so much of our political system has been corrupted by money?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKPmhsEv7Qw
John, I think you're wrong about Trump. One of Trump's most admirable traits is that he's someone who managed to go above and beyond the legacy of what his father Fred Trump created. The elder Trump made his name developing housing and high-rise units for middle income New Yorkers in Brooklyn and Queens. His son managed to far exceed that and make a name for himself in Manhattan real estate and beyond.
Despite growing up in relative affluence in Queens, Trump was never content to merely coast off of his family name or his father's success. Far too many wealthy children end up never accomplishing anything of their own, instead living off of their parents' legacy and wealth. A number end up developing various forms of substance abuse and addiction, in the process destroying their lives. Trump's older brother had his life cut short due to alcoholism, something which motivated Donald to remain sober his entire life.
Personally I give Donald Trump a lot of credit for his relentless work ethic despite the fact that he was born into a life of privilege which didn't necessitate hard work.
Trump is a guy who was born on third base and believes he hit a triple.
John, of course there is stupidity and intellectual laziness on the right wing. Of course, you can find just the same on the other side of the aisle. I'd wager you probably encounter a lot more of the Democratic flavor from day to day - as someone who grew up in a similar environment to you, I know I do!
If you are looking for the counterpoint to "why should we fund Ukraine? Fuck it," I suggest it might sound something like "wouldn't it be great if we just ran two happy good- looking black people [whose lack of any other appealing qualities make them the perfect empty vessels to cynically advance establishment interests]?"
I would like Professor McWhorter to know that tomorrow, I will probably go to the SF Board of Supervisors meeting again. In June 2024; I gave them evidence of extreme antisemitism from DEI in 2021. No phone call, no email and no postal mail response. Since January 2019; I have painfully watched the entirety of SF-Gov refuse to perform democratic governance when presented with criticism about DEI. I feel like a foreigner in my own country. A representative from the LA Synagogue Adas Torah called several LA Council members in June about an upcoming protest and nobody returned his call. That is not governance.