Movin' On Up

On Wednesday last, the Cook Political Report moved North Carolina from “Lean Republican” to “Toss-up.”^[1] There’s a couple of obvious reasons for this, and perhaps one reason that doesn’t get sufficient attention.

The most obvious reason is the graceful bow-out by Dark Brandon, and the unlikely fever generated by Kamala Harris, hubby Doug Emhoff, Tim Walz, his wife Gwen, and dog Scout. Even more unlikely is the apparently solid acceptance of the candidates by people across the spectrum of the Democratic Party, a group of people whom, historically, can’t agree on whether the sun is shining. The Dems are in step, their nominees are making all the right moves, and most of the Republican snide asides are falling flat.

Which brings me to the second reason for this improvement in Democratic prospects in the Old North State: Mark Robinson. Coincidental with the revised evaluation of the Presidential race, the state gubernatorial race has gone from “Toss-up” to “Lean Democrat.”^[2] Part of the shift, to be sure, is the surprising enthusiasm (and dollars) being generated by the Presidential candidates, but the change also in no small measure is the product of Trump-sycophant and reality-denier Robinson, whom, like his mentor, has a congenital inability to keep his pie-hole shut. This is a man who frames the abortion argument in terms of women killing children because you’re “not responsible enough to keep your skirt down.” He said it, the Stein camp put it in their ads, he howled “Out of Context!” and here we are. The litany of shit Robinson has said and later claimed was taken “out of context” could fill a few pages, among his many other failings (failing to pay his taxes for several years, a fistful of bankruptcies, some questionable business projects with his wife’s name on the letterhead, and, of course, that abortion HE paid for, back in the day, humm?) This dog don’t hunt, it slithers.

Robinson’s fortunes may be bound up with Trump, but (speaking of dollars) it’s possible this wildcat is pumping a dry hole. Trump is shoveling all the income from the Trump National Committee (formerly the RNC) to his lawyers and into his own campaign. Those down-ballot guys, like Robber Robinson, are gonna have to find their own grift. Politics is not for the faint of heart.

Another thing that has changed, in my estimation, is the willingness of Dems and their supporters to call out the mainstream media on their various (and obvious) bias – in the way they frame headlines, the inequities in their evaluations of the candidates, and how they spin the words that come from the candidate’s mouths. For example, this week Kamala was accused of wanting to outlaw fracking and was fact-checked when she claimed that she had made assertions to the contrary in 2020. In the same week, her opponent literally spun in tight circles trying to both support and reject the abortion restrictions proposed on the Florida ballot. Little mention was made of his dancing, other than to admire his lightness of being. Everyone knows he supports abortion restrictions. Or not.

Progressive and Democrat attacks on the national press come via the internet and social media (like this one) for the simple reason that the business of “news” in the U.S. (and the rest of the world, for that matter) is basically controlled by six conglomerates, with big chunks belonging to National Amusements (Sumner Redstone), Time-Warner (Jeff Bewkes), and News Corp (Rupert Murdoch). To be fair, the Big Six also own most of the social media outlets.^[3]

Unlike the so-called dark web, Dems get a lot of legitimate (albeit potty-mouthed) support from social media, and the willingness and ability to call out horseshit headlines and biased inferences is instant and non-stop. Most of the “breaking news” about the latest Republican screwup starts on social media – like the debacle at Arlington Cemetery. In the meantime, the “news media” continue to ignore that the Republican presidential candidate is exactly what they attacked Joe Biden for being: old, brittle, and confused, much of the time.

As to social media commentators on Substack: Heather Cox Richardson is a historian who publishes every day of the year. She is in a class by herself, and you can subscribe to her letters for free. A personal favorite is Jeff Tiedrich, but Jay Kuo is also excellent, albeit more restrained. We’re ALL more restrained than Tiedrich, godlove’im. Even Rick Wilson. Lots of bloggers out there, and most of them can be subscribed for free.

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^[1]

North Carolina Is in Play

^[2] https://www.cookpolitical.com/analysis/governors/north-carolina-governor/north-carolina-and-washington-gubernatorial-races-shift

^[3] https://www.webfx.com/blog/internet/the-6-companies-that-own-almost-all-media-infographic/