The center-left just. isn't. getting it.

The Times' David Leonhardt:

"The strangest part of President Trump’s coronavirus response is that it’s almost certainly damaging his chances of re-election.

"I realize that may sound surprising, given that his approval rating has been rising."

Surprising? The strangest part of Leonhardt's assertion is that so many center-left columnists still fail to grasp that, in 2016, the American political tradition collapsed on itself in a hellish absurdity. In writing "collapsed on itself" I mean to say that our accustomed politics of mass communication — manifest in America by at least the late-19th century's yellow journalism — was exploited by Trump to an unprecedented degree and in infernal outlandishness. All that has followed is shocking, but not surprising.

Especially his rising approval ratings in a time of — largely — his own self-created crisis. Read 'em and weep:

Approval ratings of 48 to 52 percent in general terms and on his gross mishandling of the covid-19 pandemic. And yet Congress, or rather the publicly known one-half of Congress with a head, a heart, and actual plans to tackle the crisis, the Democratic House, encounters disapproval, with a net-negative rating of 23 percent.

Go figure? No. This is the Twisted Age of Trumpian Politics, in which an inhuman geyser of foul fumes receives plaudits, the farsighted are scorned, and nothing figures.

From where we left him, Leonhardt picks up:

"But when you look beyond day-to-day events … you see that he is creating the conditions for a miserable summer and fall, with extended virus outbreaks and a deeper recession. The summer and fall, of course, are the crux of the presidential campaign."

His point being?

We've suffered three-and-half-miserable-fucking-years of this evil, chronically ill-tempered, overbloated gasbag of a useless POTUS, and for the umpteenth time, this time, believe Leonhardt et al., is that one unique time that will finally catch up to His Orange Rotundity.

The columnist concludes:

"It’s possible that Trump could somehow luck out and the virus will end up being less gruesome for all of us. But that’s not the likely outcome. And nobody should forget that he is choosing a path that endangers lives and jobs mostly because it feels better to him in the moment."

Again, Mr. Leonhardt, your point being? What, really, has changed? Trump is still lying, still insulting the world, destroying America, defaming the honorable and dominating the airwaves and so on ad infinitum. And yet what, really, has changed? His approval ratings have risen. Of course they have. For this is the Twisted Age, and all that once rationally figured is dead.

Comments

[Anne J]

We are facing a pandemic not seen in over 100 years. Millions of us of certain age or with preexisting conditions are staring down the barrel of our own fucking mortality hoping to not be one of the 100-200k dead in the best case scenario (and considering what passes for leadership, do you honestly believe we will get a best case scenario?) And we're supposed to be rallying around this appalling fucking asshole?? Fuck him! Fuck the media who can't stop broadcasting his mini MAGAt rallies. I hope he gets it because I sometimes do wish bad things to happen to bad people. Fuck him! Fuck him into the ground! Sorry, not sorry because he's literally killing us. Yes I will accuse him of genocide and I'm not the least bit sorry about that either.

[Freesia]

I'm so sorry awfully Anne. It must be so scary for you.

[Anne J]

I worry about my HIV positive son and my 80-year-old mother too. Most of us have at least one person in our life that we care about that we worry about them being a casualty in this pandemic, mere collateral damage in Trump's reelection fight.

[Ivory Bill Woodpecker]

Jimmy Carter's approval ratings rose sharply in the first month of the Iranian Hostage Crisis.

Did he win re-election?

[Max]

Bingo. Hell, Jeremy fucking Corbyn's approval rose 10 points last week.

As if Trump will win Pennsylvania, Wisconsin or Michigan - and apparently also Arizona; maybe Iowa (!), North Carolina (a sleeper state) and Florida. Just because David Leonhardt doesn't get it doesn't mean the center-left doesn't. There are things we need to do, of course, but quiet, steely resolve is a far better emotional place than endless hand-wringing.

[pm]

I knew this would be scoffed at as "endless handwringing" by resident cheerleaders, Max. No one is doing that, of course. Some of us are ringing the fucking wake-up bell, however. I see the same overconfidence today that I participated in in 2016. Recent history has taught many of us nothing.

[Max]

Points taken on our having much work ahead of us, yes indeed. As one example see the NYT on our needing to up our online game, to be charitable. And put Joe in a freakin' space suit (I suspect they more or less have done so.) We are not even the same country as we were two weeks ago. I guess we diverge on the underlying *attitude* of the hand wringing, which is not helpful, no more, and no loess, helpful than overconfidence. Neither are how one wins.

[Max]

is.

[Freesia]

I was just about to write something to you about stress and turned on the tv to see Ari Melber interviewing a doctor who was saying it better than I could. She was pointing out that stress is very bad for your immune system and makes you more susceptible to any virus and she said that she advises people to be careful about marinating in too much news about the virus because it can really take a toll.

So whatever you need to do Anne, whatever exercise you're allowed that helps you relax and let off steam, tune out, cuss a blue streak - do it. It sounds like you've got a lot on your plate. Take care of yourself.

[Peter G]

I am not given to panic. It is a last resort mechanism built into our DNA. And occasionally it works. But most times it is better to be coldly dispassionate about the problems that beset you. There is a whole bunch of stuff politically that can and should be done before resorting to panic. I see nothing wrong with pointing out with whatever urgency is required that there is a big fucking problem.

A lot of attention is being paid to popularity ratings. I would not ignore them myself either. But in head to head matchup of Biden and Trump polling still gives Joe a commanding lead. This current crisis gives Trump every opportunity to fuck this up as well as the Trump quotes to prove it to every voter susceptible to facts. I believe that will be sufficient.

[Peter G]

Well the death toll from 9/11 has been beaten. Imagine if Bush had been told months in advance exactly what was going to happen on that date and did nothing to prevent it? According to Birx, if everything is done right, and it won’t be, the US might be expected to get away with as few as 100 to 200 thousand deaths. I guess we are doomed to find out. Now would be a good time to take aerial views of various sized American cities with populations up to say, a population of a million. The empty streets will make excellent campaign visuals for what the sudden disappearance of that many humans actually means.

[Freesia]

That's a wonderful idea. Do you remember the ad on tv (I think David Axelrod was behind it) in 2012 showing the empty rooms in all the businesses thanks to Romney's nasty corporate slash and burn? As I recall it was to the haunting strains of "America". He never recovered from that. It was almost like the "Daisy" ad in it's perfect messaging.

Anyway, that's a really good idea. I wonder if the same team could make the ad, only with streets, and to the tune of "America" because it work as a sequel of the price of putting the country in the hands of a money grubber.

[shsavage]

The empty streets and the full refrigerator trucks.

[shsavage]

https://www.salon.com/2020/03/31/donald-trumps-murder-math-any-death-toll-under-2-million-is-a-very-good-job/