Notices by Chuck Darwin (cdarwin@c.im), page 12

House Republicans just got the rug pulled out from under them.

They’re so used to running against President Joe Biden and seem to be struggling mightily with how to run against Vice President Kamala Harris,
a 59-year-old woman of Black and Indian heritage who is now the presumptive Democratic nominee.

Consider just what’s gone on during the last couple days. Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) called Harris a “DEI hire,”
a shocking remark that Democrats pushed back hard on.

Rep. Burgess Owens (R-Utah), one of just four Black House Republicans,
then told us that Harris is “the greatest example of DEI.”

More Owens: “For those who believe in DEI, this is exactly what DEI is like. Kamala Harris.”

Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.) said on Sunday that Democrats “have to stick with her because of her ethnic background.”

We followed up with Grothman on this, who then informed us
“I don’t think people view her as Black.”

Grothman added that people “just view her as someone who did nothing on the border.”

Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas), when asked if Republicans need to be careful in how they talk about Harris’ race, told us:
“I’m not going to get into all the color stuff. I’m just looking at performance.”

What’s happened to Harris, Biden and the Democratic presidential ticket has no direct precedent.

Democrats dumped Biden just months before the election, leaving Harris roughly 100 days to rally the party
— and the nation
— to her side.

But it’s also a problem for the GOP,
which has spent the last couple of years probing every facet of Biden’s life.

They dug into his family’s business deals. They considered impeaching him. They highlighted Biden’s every weakness, misstep and fumble. Now all of that’s changed.

Harris is a diametrically different challenge for Republicans.

Biden is old and occasionally confused. Harris is younger and sharp.

Biden is a white man. Harris is a woman of color.

There are lots of firsts in Harris’ bio, of course.

Former President Donald Trump seemed to try out some attack lines against Harris on Monday night,
labeling her as “Lyin’ Kamala” while calling himself “a fine and brilliant young man named DONALD. J. Trump.”

At 78, Trump is more than 18 years older than Harris. Harris is trying out her own lines on Trump too.

https://punchbowl.news/archive/72324-am/

Suddenly Trump Looks Older and More Deranged
Now the Republicans are saddled with a candidate who can’t make a clear argument or finish a sentence.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2024/07/trump-looks-older-and-more-deranged/679186/

The all new 2024 race:
Trump hedges on debating Kamala Harris

When it came to debating Biden, Trump said, “ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, ANYPLACE.”

When it comes to debating Harris, Trump’s message is ... noticeably different.

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/new-2024-race-trump-hedges-debating-kamala-harris-rcna163003

The shift in #vibes that happened overnight is so exciting!

So many people I know who found politics too depressing and exhausting to talk about are now excitedly talking about #Harris and the historic #milestones her victory could represent.

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/7/22/2256862/-Friends-who-planned-to-not-vote-are-now-excited-about-Harris-Everone-wants-to-join-joyful-party

Harris is such a huge contrast to Trump in every way,
and all the media coverage and even Republican attacks on her are just going to remind voters of how different she is from Trump.

She is going to not only keep the Biden coalition but also energize turnout and support among so many more voters who had been contemplating third parties or just staying home.

Harris has even more on her side this time—she does especially well among youth, women, people of color, and immigrants and their children.

Republicans will have to throw out their whole playbook, and all the ads they already paid for, and scramble to come up with attacks against Harris.

But Republican attacks on Harris are just going to help her—Republicans say she laughs too much, which reminds voters weary of the negativity in this election how refreshing a joyful warrior can be.

A MAGA ad blaming Harris for being so loyal to Biden shows beautiful and moving images of Harris being supportive and warm

Claiming that she is (insert racist sexist slur) just reminds people how dangerously and disgustingly racist and sexist Republicans are.

All in for Harris 2024!

#vibes #Harris #milestones

Democrats have raised $46.7M:

'Biggest fundraising day of the 2024 cycle'

Barely two hours after announcing it had raised $27.5 million following President Joe Biden's exit from the presidential race
and endorsement of Kamala Harris for president,
ActBlue says it has now processed $46.7 million in donations.
"UPDATE:
As of 9pm ET, grassroots supporters have raised $46.7 million through ActBlue following Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign launch,"
the small-dollar donor fundraising platform said in a statement.
"This has been the biggest fundraising day of the 2024 cycle.
Small-dollar donors are fired up and ready to take on this election."

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/live-updates/biden-drops-out-updates/?id=112113289

The attacks on Harris from the right have been very brazen in their #misogyny and #racism.

For example, the New York Post published a column earlier this month saying Harris would be the country’s first “DEI president”,
referring to diversity, equity and inclusion.
This is a way of dismissing anybody who’s🔸 not white and not a man 🔸as not being worthy of the position they’ve earned.
Trump rose to national prominence prosecuting the same kind of racist campaign against the presidency of Barack Obama.
I think we can expect there to be a push for the Trump campaign not to go down that road any further.
But we’ve seen in the past how Trump completely ignores that kind of conventional wisdom, and just how much that incites his base.
This remains a dangerous and unpredictable era in American politics. There are no rules for what happens next.
-- Emma Shortis, Adjunct Senior Fellow, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University

https://www.rawstory.com/why-this-risky-unprecedented-move-could-be-the-circuit-breaker-the-democrats-needed/

"And, again, sir, I'm so sorry that I called you America's Hitler, and so relieved that you took it as a compliment."

-- Cartoon by Paul Noth

The oligarchs behind the GQP are asking

"Why can't WE ditch the OLD GUY and run our REAL Facist VP?"

( they can't because they've invested too much in #Cheesus )

Past assassination attempts led to US gun reform.

But not this time

Political violence has long shaped the gun control movement, but it appears little will change from this week

In the aftermath of the assassination of John F Kennedy in 1963, the calls for stricter gun regulation came quickly.

Senator Thomas Dodd proposed new legislation five days after the president’s death.

Almost two decades later, the 1981 shooting of Ronald Reagan prompted swift demands for action, including restrictions on handguns.

And though in both instances it would take years for lawmakers to move forward, both tragedies led to meaningful reform:
bans on mail-order gun sales,
restrictions on who can purchase weapons
and federal background checks for all gun purchases.

Political violence has long shaped the US gun control movement, but it appears little will change from this week.

After the attempt on Donald Trump’s life over the weekend,
outcry over the easy access to guns in US has been relatively muted.
There are no Republicans calling for tougher laws.
There’s no national conversation about the toll of gun violence on American life.

The biggest movements for gun control in US history can be traced to specific assassinations, said Andrew McKevitt, a history professor at Louisiana Tech University and the author of
"Gun Country", which looks at America’s relationship with firearms.

“The calls for those things came in the immediate aftermath,” McKevitt said.
“These are both kind of foundational moments for gun control in the United States and yet we haven’t seen anything in that regard in the last week.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/20/trump-assassination-attempt-gun-reform?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

The wife of Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance, #Usha #Chilukuri #Vance, and the couple's #children have become the targets of backlash for their Indian ancestry.
Chilukuri Vance, the daughter of Indian immigrants who grew up in San Diego, as well as RNC speaker Harmeet #Dhillon -- who is Sikh and Indian
– are facing anti-Asian hate from far-right figures online.
Posts appear to have spiked this week following Vance's nomination
criticizing Vance for marrying someone who is non-white,
expressing concerns about an influx of Indian immigrants as a result and the so-called #Great #Replacement #conspiracy
have garnered hundreds of thousands of views according to individual post engagement figures.
"Stop AAPI Hate", an advocacy group that tracks anti-Asian hate incidents,
condemned the attacks, arguing that the onslaught of hate has reinforced
“heightened levels of fear and anxiety Asian Americans and immigrants are currently experiencing across the country leading up to this year’s presidential election.”
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/jd-vances-wife-faces-racist-online-backlash-social/story?id=112096897

Tell Congress: Don't Let Anyone Own The Law

A large portion of the regulations we all live by (such as fire safety codes, or the national electrical code)
are initially written
—by industry experts, government officials, and other volunteers
—under the auspices of standards development organizations (SDOs).

Federal, state, or municipal policymakers then review the codes and decide whether the standard is good broad rule.
❌The Pro Codes Act effectively endorses the claim that SDOs can “retain” copyright in codes,
even after they are made law,
as long as they make the codes available through a “publicly accessible” website
– which means read-only, and subject to licensing limits.

💥That's bad for all of us.
Anyone wishing to make the law accessible in a better format would find themselves litigating whether or not they are sheltered by the fair use doctrine
– a risk that many won’t want to take.
♦️We have a constitutional right to read, share and discuss the law.
SDOs have already lost this battle in court after court, which have recognized that no one can own the law.
✅Tell Congress you agree the law should be open to us all and urge them to reject this bill.
https://act.eff.org/action/tell-congress-don-t-let-anyone-own-the-law

Ocasio-Cortez attacked her fellow Democrats who have spoken anonymously to the press about Biden -- particularly those resigned to defeat in November.

“My community does not have the option to lose,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
“If they’re going to come out and say all their little things on background, off the record,
but they’re not going to be fully honest, I’m going to be honest for them.
I’m in these rooms. I see what they say in conversations.”

“A lot of them are not just interested in removing the president. They are interested in removing the whole ticket,” Ocasio-Cortez added.

As far as a plan for replacing Biden, Ocasio-Cortez said that whenever she has asked, she hasn’t gotten an answer.
“I have stood up in rooms with all of these people and I have said, ‘Game out your actual plan for me.’ What are the risks of this going to the Supreme Court?
And no one had an answer for me.… I’m talking about the lawyers. I’m talking about the legislators,” Ocasio-Cortez said.

She noted that the convention is in less than a month, and that Michigan has to finalize their ballot two days after the convention, which could result in a legal crisis.
Ocasio-Cortez said she was concerned that these factors aren’t being considered by Democrats in the replacement camp.

(Recent reports say Biden dropping out of the race is increasingly likely, and could happen in a matter of days.
The president appears to be strongly considering the idea after meeting with Democratic leaders in the House and Senate, and reportedly even former president Barack Obama thinks Biden needs to reconsider running.
A major West Coast donor has already drafted a withdrawal speech.)

https://newrepublic.com/post/184042/aoc-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-warning-biden-drop-out-instagram-live

Process That Felt ‘Hostile’
Platform day arrived last Monday.
Party regulars arrived in Milwaukee with a sense of excitement.
Many of these activists look forward every four years to shaping the Republican Party’s official vision, and they pay their own way to participate in the process.

Members of the platform committee arrived expecting two days of work ahead, prepared to break into subcommittees to draft sections of a document that typically spans thousands of words.

Instead, they handed over their phones to party officials, who sealed them in the magnetic pouches.

Mr. Trump and party operatives were allowed to keep their devices.

Only delegates and guests were denied the ability to communicate with the outside world.

Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, one of Mr. Trump’s staunchest allies in the Senate, presided over the meeting.

It became clear very quickly to those who wanted to amend the platform that Mr. Trump’s team controlled the room.

One delegate, a state lawmaker from Arizona, Alex Kolodin, had brought a laptop and printer to be prepared.
But there was a quick vote to confiscate those
— and any other electronics.

“The will of the body is the will of the body,” Mr. Kolodin said of having his devices taken.

Mr. Kolodin said he had submitted ideas to the Trump team before the platform committee meeting but did not realize those gathered would have no actual say in the final document.

“This is all for show,” Mr. Kolodin said,
adding that he wished the party had shared that fact in advance.
“We all would have felt more respected by that upfront approach,” he said.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/18/us/politics/trump-gop-platform-convention.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Ted Cruz is a man who,
more than just about anyone in his party,
should understand that Hispanic immigrants are in no way guaranteed votes for the Democratic Party.
(His father was born in Cuba.)

But he not only elevated the false idea that there was an intentional plan to transition immigrants into Democratic voters

but that the party did so despite the putative danger posed to children.

Cruz claimed not only that Democrats were encouraging immigration to gain power,
but that they were callously sacrificing children to do so.

https://c.im/@cdarwin/112800295119901507

Now that Ohio Senator J.D. Vance is Donald Trump’s running mate,
everyone is combing through his old quotes,
and a striking one has surfaced:

in 2016, Vance warned that Trump threatened to take the white working class to a “very dark place.”

In short, Vance once understood that MAGA ideology, at its core, is really, really toxic.

And that’s a big political vulnerability.

We talked to Sarah Longwell, the pollster and prominent Never Trumper, about how the Vance pick will showcase the worst aspects of MAGA throughout this race and how Democrats can try to use that to win swing voters.

https://newrepublic.com/article/183904/jd-vances-stunning-admission-trump-spells-trouble-maga

The MAGA Plan to End Free Weather Reports

Project 2025 would all but dissolve the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Charging for popular services that were previously free isn’t generally a winning political strategy.

But hard-right policy makers appear poised to try to do just that should Republicans gain power in the next term
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2024/07/noaa-project-2025-weather/678987/

Hi there. My name is
Trisha Calvarese,
and I am OFFICIALLY the Democratic nominee running
against Lauren Boebert
here in Colorado's 4th congressional district.

Lauren Boebert is a national embarrassment.

After Beetlejuice-gate, she packed her bags and moved across the state to my district.

Her political career was about to end, and she knew it.

Now, she's brought her bonkers to eastern Colorado,
but that doesn't mean she's going to cruise to victory here:

Brand-new polling shows I can defeat Lauren Boebert and flip this seat blue!

But only if I can raise the money needed to win...

My team has set a goal of raising another $50,000 so we can give Boebert the boot,
but right now, we're still short.

I'm not taking money from corporate PACs,
so if I am going to win and defeat Lauren Boebert, I need grassroots donors like you to chip in to my campaign right now.

This is our last chance to put an end to Lauren Boebert's political career forever:

Please, will you make a weekly donation to my campaign now
-- to help me defeat Lauren Boebert,
flip this seat blue,
and take back the House for Democrats?

https://go.trisha4co.com/7161

Together, we are going to finish the job and finally kick Lauren Boebert out of Congress.

Your support means the world to me.
Thank you.

Trisha

‘Not welcome in our city’: protesters march on Republican convention

“Today is about telling the Republicans that they’re not welcome in our city,
they’re not welcome anywhere and anywhere they show up, we’re going to show the opposition to their ideas,” Flores told the Guardian.

“Basically the entire platform of the Republicans this year is they want to increase border restrictions,
they want to deport immigrants,
they are attacking LGBTQ rights,
and they stand with Israel, and we don’t stand for any of that.
So that’s why we’re marching today,” said Emily Chu, a 22-year-old student who had traveled by bus from Minneapolis.

Sasmit Rahman, who traveled to Milwaukee with Chu, said:
“The Republicans know that their policies aren’t popular with people. You can visibly see that:
they’ve been walking back their public anti-abortion sentiments because they know that it’s not popular.
It doesn’t change the fact that they’re still going to put it in place, but like,
they’re scared of how the people are going to react when they put unpopular policies in place.”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/15/republican-national-convention-protest?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

When lobbyists and corporate interests want to influence policy going forward,
they’ll be putting 👉more resources toward the judiciary than the president.👈
When the Supreme Court overturned #Chevron deference last month,
it also 💥upped the ante for corporate interests to land their cases in a favorable court.💥
Before the landmark ruling, presidential administrations could change government rules and expect courts to side with them.
♦️Now, a judge’s decision on a government rule becomes “locked in” as a judicial precedent for future challenges♦️
— 🔸even if the executive branch tries to change it in the future.🔸
“Chevron was supposed to, deference was supposed to, take some of the edge off of those selections
because whatever judge you got, they were supposed to be deferential.
But that’s gone now,” administrative law expert Craig Green told NOTUS.

The incentives for corporate interests to invest financially in presidential elections don’t disappear,
but they do shift, in part, from the president’s power over agencies to the president’s power over judicial appointments.
https://www.notus.org/courts/scotus-chevron-judge-shopping-brand-x