A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.
Madison Square Garden Redux
The narcissism, the rancid “jokes,” the racism, the misogyny, and every other major element of Donald Trump’s neo-fascist movement to retake the White House was on ugly display in Manhattan Sunday night in his closing incitement to the American people.
A sampling of the coverage:
- NYT: A Closing Carnival of Grievances, Misogyny and Racism
- Axios: MAGA speakers unleash ugly rhetoric at Trump’s MSG rally
- Politico: Trump’s New York homecoming sparks backlash over racist and vulgar remarks
- WaPo: Trump rally speakers lob racist insults, call Puerto Rico ‘island of garbage’
- NYDN:
As Heather Cox Richardson noted: “It turns out that the 2024 October surprise was the Trump campaign’s fascist rally at Madison Square Garden, a rally so extreme that Republicans running for office have been denouncing it all over social media tonight.”
Perhaps the best analysis came from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) who properly places the MSG rally in the context of what comes next (4:00 mark):
“This was a hate rally. This was not just a presidential rally, this was also not just a campaign rally. I think it’s important for people to understand these are mini January 6 rallies, these are mini Stop the Steal rallies. These are rallies to prime an electorate into rejecting the results of an election if it doesn’t go the way that they want.”
AOC’s assessment is backed by experts like Ruth Ben-Ghiat, who pointed specifically to rally speakers claiming an unspecified “they” tried to assassinate Trump: “The purpose of this is to conjure a threat environment sufficient to justify authoritarian action if they win. Old trick of those planning coups as well.”
The MSG rally was a harbinger of what’s to come, not just in a Trump II presidency, but as soon as election night next week. Consider yourself warned.
Fascism Watch
- NYT Magazine: Is It Fascism? A Leading Historian Changes His Mind.
- CBS News: Elon Musk says people accusing Trump of endangering democracy are the real danger
- WaPo: Vance defends Trump on using U.S. military against Americans
- TPM: Trump Is Not A Fascist, Insists Man Who Called Him ‘America’s Hitler’
EXCLUSIVE
WaPo: “Long before he became one of Donald Trump’s biggest donors and campaign surrogates, South African-born Elon Musk worked illegally in the United States as he launched his entrepreneurial career after ditching a graduate studies program in California, according to former business associates, court records and company documents obtained by The Washington Post.”
The Backlash To Billionaire Newspaper Owners
The separate 11th hour decisions by the billionaire owners of the LA Times and WaPo not to issue endorsements in the presidential race was another indicator of creeping authoritarianism. WaPo owner Jeff Bezos took the brunt of the backlash over the weekend:
- WSJ: Washington Post in Turmoil After Opting Against 2024 Presidential Endorsement
- Politico: Second Post columnist resigns while others defend publication
- NYT: Inside The Washington Post’s Decision to Stop Presidential Endorsements
- Former WaPo editor Marty Baron: “This is cowardice, with democracy as its casualty.”
- TPM’s Josh Marshall: Trust, Bewilderment and Billionairedom: Understanding the Backlash Against Bezos
Do Not Obey In Advance
Yale historian Timothy Snyder on how the acquiescence of the billionaire owners of the LA Times and WaPo to the Trump threat violates the first rule of the fight against tyranny:
NYT Goes Big On The Trump Threat
The NYT Opinion section Sunday took a full page to deliver this message:
Important
The NYT has obtained recordings of more than 400 meetings, including over 400 hours of conversations, of longtime GOP election law bamboozler Cleta Mitchell’s Election Integrity Network.
Election Threats Watch
- If he wins election next week, Donald Trump is promising anew to prosecute “Lawyers, Political Operatives, Donors, Illegal Voters, & Corrupt Election Officials” who “CHEATED” in the 2024 election.
- CNN: US intelligence assesses Russian operatives behind fake video showing Pennsylvania ballots being destroyed
- WSJ: Democrats Ready Thousands of Lawyers for Final Days of Race
It Doesn’t Have To Be This Way
WSJ:
What many Americans may not realize is that U.S. elections are an outlier, especially compared to other industrialized democracies. Canada’s campaign typically lasts between 36 and 50 days. The total campaign bill for its 2021 election: $69 million in today’s dollars—about 1/27th the price tag per voter south of the border. U.S. elections cost about 40 times more per person than the U.K. or Germany.
Senate In The Balance
- TX-Sen: Sen. Ted Cruz (R) leads Rep. Colin Allred (D) 50%-46% among likely voters, according to the new NYT/Siena College poll.
- NE-Sen: Sen. Deb Fischer (R) leads Dan Osborn (I) 48%-46% among likely voters, according to the new NYT/Siena College poll.
- WSJ: Republicans Put Pressure on Democrats in ‘Blue Wall’ Senate Races
What You Need To Know About Salt Typhoon
- WSJ: Chinese Hackers Targeted Phones of Trump, Vance, and Harris Campaign
- WaPo: Chinese hackers said to have collected audio of American calls
- NYT: What to Know About the Chinese Hackers Who Targeted the 2024 Campaigns
No Background Checks For Trump II Appointees
NYT: “A memo circulating among at least half a dozen advisers to former President Donald J. Trump recommends that if he is elected, he bypass traditional background checks by law enforcement officials and immediately grant security clearances to a large number of his appointees after being sworn in, according to three people briefed on the matter.”
The Merrick Garland Precedent
Would a GOP-controlled Senate confirm any Supreme Court nominee from President Harris?
NK Troops Deployed To Ukraine Front
NATO chief Mark Rutte told reporters Monday that North Korean soldiers assisting Moscow have been deployed to Kursk, the Russian region partly controlled by Ukrainian troops.
Michelle Obama On Fire
The former first lady lit it up in Michigan over the weekend, in a speech that was most fiery when she focused on abortion, women’s health, and sexism:
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Frist?
Mr. Trump’s Madison Square Garden event apparently encapsulated the MAGA movement: racism, bigotry, dominance, grievance, vulgarity and more than a hint of madness. As many experts and observers have pointed out, those of us who were always somewhat bewildered by how an unhinged demagogue like Hitler could take over a technologically and economically advanced country are getting a real-time lesson.
Discount Goebbels is resentful that he is being associated with wannabe Nazi’s.
The only way Trump’s Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden could have gone worse for them is if they brought out the Ark of the Covenant and decided to have a look inside.
There’s not much else to say. He’s using a bullhorn to tell us exactly who he is, and he’s going to carry 200+ EV and 45% of the popular vote. That says more than I want to know about who WE are.
To borrow from the perversely appropriate Yakov Smirnoff, Vhat a country.