94 Comments

Indeed, it was quite a day. Putin's MO for years has been to poison his rivals, which is an interesting choice given he expends so much energy demonstrating how "manly" he is (poison being, supposedly, the female choice for murder). But perhaps my favorite takeaway is Senator Duckworth's new moniker for Trump: coward-in-chief. That he is.

I thought Biden's speech was extraordinary, not just for him--his stutter can be a problem when he is talking extemporaneously because of techniques people with stutters use to work around words that are problematic--but for anyone. I applaud his speechwriters, who really got the tone right. And he delivered it beautifully. It had all the things missing from a Trump experience: heart, warmth, passion, compassion, empathy. We know that Biden has an ego--you can't be a politician without a healthy dose of self-love. But he knows how to bend his ego to humanitarian ends and he has learned over his long career in politics that it really isn't about him. It's about all of us.

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Oh, wow. What a BRILLIANT point. Poison is so traditionally female! I had never thought of this in reference to the present. And yes, they did a nice job with managing to inform of his stutter, and yet letting him hit it out of the park.

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Aug 21, 2020Liked by Heather Cox Richardson

Well, Linda wrote my reply for me...I'll stand by everything said here.

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Aug 21, 2020Liked by Heather Cox Richardson

Thank you Jennifer--I am honored!!

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Aug 21, 2020Liked by Heather Cox Richardson

The Dems' convention theme was hope.

The Republicans' will be fear.

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This simple contrast needs to be in front of the eyes of every voter for the next 75 days. It has felt so good to feel HOPEFUL watching this convention. Well done DNC!

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Aug 21, 2020Liked by Heather Cox Richardson

I have never been so moved emotionally by a speech. Another meaningful thing-did anyone one else notice at the end of his speech how he just stared into the camera with those eyes full of compassion, without a smile on his face? I thought is was very significant though probably just a technical accident. There was a video out recently about the power of just looking into the eyes of another person without talking. Eyes are the windows to the soul ❤️🙏

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I was musing this week that Biden has the Mr. Rogers vibe of calm compassion and kind eyes. Eyes truly are the windows to the soul.

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You're right. Mr. Rogers.

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Eyes can be windows to the soul, George W Bush's assessment of Vladimir Putin notwithstanding.

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Aug 21, 2020Liked by Heather Cox Richardson

Meanwhile, Trump projecting election fraud so early and so vehemently tells us that he, his team and Putin are really up to something.

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Yes indeed.

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And Hannity feeding Trump willfully misinterpreted data from a Heritage Foundation database citing 1200 instances of election fraud spanning close to 40 years.

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Every day, all day. Exhausted from this man. In Florida, and I assume other states, it is illegal for law enforcement to be in a polling location in uniform unless called by the SOE or the officer is there to vote.

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I feel your exhaustion! Unfortunately, we've seen plenty of questionably legal and flagrantly illegal moves from this administration and its stooges. What I'm not well-informed enough to know is what can be done to actually and on-the-ground protect polling places from disruption of voting. I can't be the only person worrying about this and I'd welcome informed &/or expert perspective here!

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Become a poll worker (temporary SOE employee), a poll watcher (volunteer), or poll observer (volunteer). Google these roles to appreciate the difference. These roles are the foundation to voter protection. Your local Democratic Party can connect you with other volunteers for these roles.

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Aug 21, 2020Liked by Heather Cox Richardson

I’m 56 years old and just volunteered for the first time as a poll worker. I have to do everything I can to help save democracy!!

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Me too! I completed the application this morning.

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I'm 64 and first time poll worker, too. I've done the other jobs previously.

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I did not know this. Thank you. Might come in handy.

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Also involved in this Wall scheme of Bannon's is Erik Prince. Founder of the notorious/shady Blackwater Security, and another of Trump's circle who met with a Russian operative secretly in the Seychelles and lied about the meeting. And who is the brother of Betsy DeVos, Trump's education secretary who is working hard to destroy public education and shift funds to private schools. I had not known this until I saw Prince's name come up as one of the board of directors or something, for this wall project, and the name rang a bell. I found much of this on The Daily Beast. Sigh.

Oh, and Kolfage was also planning to "rent" his list of suckers, I mean donors, to Republican politicians for fundraising, and planning to get 50% of the funds they raised. Kris Kobach, general counsel for the We Build the Wall project, apparently used the list in his failed bid for the Senate in Kansas. Does this corruption have no limits at all?

I just hope Biden, should he get in, doesn't pull an Obama and let all of this go. Trump and all of his people need to be held accountable.

And how many times can Trump appeal the same ruling, when even the Supreme Court has ruled against him? Why can't we just see the tax returns.

Yeah, I'll take the message of hope any day over the fear which Trump pushes and which he manifests. I'm not a big Biden fan, and certainly not a fan of the DNC (the committee, that is), but I'll be voting for Biden-Harris.

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May I put in some “props” for the Governor of Kansas, Laura Kelly. I went to high school with Laura for a couple of years and we were all thrilled when she defeated Kobach for governor. He also lost his bid for senator. My HS friends follow Laura on FB and Twitter and she has done a remarkable job for Kansans during this pandemic.

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On The Daily Show last night Trevor Noah had a piece narrated by Steve Buscemi that said Biden is okay for right now. Gave Biden a B-. After all we’ve endured it’s plenty better for me! 💙

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Thanks for the further info.

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Trump’s “business” model has always been to fleece the rubes. Whether the rubes are the ladder climbing nouveau riche lusting after a gold plated bathroom in a Trump tower condo, or down-on-their-luck strivers signing up to learn how to be a real estate wheeler-dealer at Trump U, Trump knows the rubes will get googoo-eyed at the Trump glitz and tinsel. The Trump presidency (surprise :) ) has turned out to be one long con game, which Bannon understood from the get go. Bannon’s slipshod attempt as a wannabe Trump “player” is rather pathetic. First off, such small change? It sounds like he got less than a million $$, hardly worth going to prison over. Secondly, he couldn’t parlay his Trump connections into a bigger, flashier con than a phony wall scheme? Foreign governments would pay Bannon many millions to whisper in Donny’s ear. As a conman, Bannon falls short. When you think about it, just about every one of Trump’s mafia lieutenants has turned out to be nothing more than a clumsy, petty thief. Manafort, Stone, Gates and now Bannon - just a bunch of small-time felons. Like Trump.

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My apologies, but whether tongue-in-cheek or not, I’m afraid that I would go a tad further than demoting them to “petty thieves” and “small-time felons.” To my mind, irrespective of $ amounts, ALL of them — together with their beloved leaders, 45 & Putin — are odious, immoral villains, because, ultimately, they are using their connections/positions/power to cheat blacks, minorities, the poor, the elderly, and the vulnerable out of financial assistance and valuable support services. For example, the elderly fall for these wall schemes without fail and every time these conmen are taken to court, millions of dollars from community budgets are wasted on them, etc.

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Not tongue in cheek, just making the point of how Trump’s cronies are not only criminals, but they’re small-minded. Putin has ripped off Russia for hundreds of billions, as have his oligarch buddies. Bannon, Stone and Manafort? A measly million or two, running small-time grifts. Bannon imagined himself a master of the universe, and he’s going to jail for ripping off naive MAGA dopes. If you’re going for thievery, go big!

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😂😂😂True! But, then again, that’s all we know about at the moment.

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I and others have pointed out how conflicted we are about Bannon's arrest. A Corrupt Grifter embezzling money from Racists, Bigots & Xenophobes. I hope he does time and pays millions in fines, but also hope no one gets restitution.

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I felt the same way about the NY AG prosecuting those NRA execs for fleecing the NRA. Let Wayne LaPierre steal millions from the NRA and run it into the ground. They deserve nothing less.

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Sheesh. What a summary. I am in awe of your ability.

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I was reading Peggy Noonan's WSJ article today and seemed like we were watching different programs. Thanks for confirming I was not going nuts. The Democrats nailed it. Now, we need to bring it home on November 3rd.

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I don’t waste my time reading Peggy Noonan any longer. There’s too much good journalism out there.

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I like how she writes. Even though I don't always agree with her, it is good writing. Her critique was very disappointing.

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💙

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I am beginning to think that, given Trump's shockingly poor performance and his even worse strategic and tactical judgement, his very bad polling numbers and the successful Democratic Convention and the closing judicial net around him and his people (Bannon + many others, his taxes, his financial frauds etc), Putin has abandoned support for Trump and will concentrate on generating election chaos in order to undermine people's confidence in institutions and will look to consolidate his gains over the last few years. The poisoning of Navalny could not be effected without Putin's permission .....if it was done "independently" then Putin is weakening in the eyes of his Oligarchs and this is not a good sign for him and a precurser of "troubled" times for all as the internal battle for political succession takes off fully.

Hospital "treatment" for Russian political opponents has always been a very sombre affaire and the "doctors" are now saying both that he is too weak to be transported to a real specialist clinic in Germany.....and that they can't find any poison in his system! Putin needs absolute control of his internal sphere to face a resurgent America under Biden...and will brook no manifestation of opposition and will silence those that try to oppose.

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And let’s not forget this is precisely what trump wants for America.

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Is anybody else imagining Putin getting so fed up that he poisons Trump in order to have a more disciplined team in the US? Thinking it could pull the rug out from under all the personally directed anti-Trump energy?

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Dear Heather, Thank you for your wonderful work. Your letters are sometimes the only way I can face the news on some days.

Though I know you are already up until dawn most nights putting this letter together, I do have one small request of you to carry out sometime.

If you have any way to contact that remarkable young man Brayden Harrington, please let him know that he nailed it. Having an inkling how much effort that performance must have cost him, he clearly already has the kind of perseverance that will take him anywhere. Kudos!

Thank you.

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Yes, and it was very interesting that one of the commentators on Morning Joe this morning mentioned that all the viewers were rooting for him. That’s how I felt too.

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Yesterday was a particularly strange day, wasn't it? I wasn't shocked by Steve Bannon's arrest, but I thought it was unusual that law enforcement felt the need to go out to sea to arrest him on a boat. Were they concerned he was fleeing the country? And then, of all ironies, he was arrested by postal inspectors?! Oy vey, you can't make this shit up.

I wasn't aware that Trump's lawsuit about kicking people off Twitter was still active. I really don't understand how the President can justify limiting the audience on a forum he clearly uses for official pronouncements, but he's at it nonetheless. I check out what Trump says on Twitter because I find it irritatingly funny, but I have never wanted to give him the tacit support of following him. Now I've found a work-around. Instead of following Trump on Twitter, I follow @TheIdiotDonald: “What Donald Trump would say if he was an idiot. All his tweets retweeted. Now you can read them without giving him the satisfaction of being followed.”

Finally, even though HCR didn't address this issue in her post, I've been particularly concerned about Trump's constant harping on the idiotic notion that mail-in voting will unleash a torrent of voter fraud. At one of his recent events he was even drawing out a scenario of illegal aliens crowded around a kitchen table filling out stacks of mail-in ballots. WT-actual-F?! I understand that he can say stuff like this because of first amendment protections, but I think an argument can be made for a shouting-fire-in-a-crowded-theater exception. The President of the United States, for better or worse, is by the very nature of his office a human bullhorn. Somebody needs to take his batteries away and steer him back to the big shiny box of crayons that he loves to chew on.

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∆∆ "illegal aliens crowded around a kitchen table filling out stacks of mail-in ballots." ∆∆

Would that be the Beldar Conehead family from Paris, France filling out those ballots? How can any one person be so dumb?

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Yes, it was the Beldars, filling out ballots and consuming mass quantities.

I really don't know how someone could be so dumb as to say that, but our country voted the numbnut into office the last time around.

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Perfect recap of an incredibly busy day. It seems as though the days are becoming more sensational with no end insight. Heather, do you feel Trump is nearing the end of the days of being able to try to hide his association with the decline/corruption of this country?

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It’s only a matter of time before what he’s done comes to light. My concerns are will the country to turn a blind eye? Will the country understand the implications of what’s happened/happening? Will the country make a stand for what’s right? Will we have the strength to start and continue on the long road to recovery?

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I think a Democratic win will enlighten all of us to take up the work that must be done to correct the wrongs and then enhance the recovery. But we must not sink to looking back and crying "Foul"...that would undermine what the party needs to get done. Let's do everything needed to get Trump out of the White House (along with all his family and minions) and move forward. The energy will be there....

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"Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night." Margo Channing said it best.

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"Sheesh" indeed...one of those days where there are so many stories to take in that one easily gets overwhelmed. I find I have to kind of take things in doses, then cogitate on each one, and gird myself for the next one. It will only get worse as events swirl toward Election Day. As inspiring and hopeful I felt Biden's address--and indeed the whole convention--was, I can't shake the creeping feeling that Trump will still SOMEHOW manage to jerry-rig the system so much that he'll succeed in staying in the White House. (His niece in an interview with Rachel Maddow basically said that there is no way in hell that Trump will willingly leave the White House, no matter the results. She bases this on knowing him as well as anyone. He simply does not accept defeat. We should expect a "bataille royale".) It is all the more important that so many people turn out to vote against him that the election results will be absolutely incontrovertible, no matter how much he petulantly rages and tweets. The next 80 days or so are going to test us ALL. Last night gave me some hope that we've got this. Thanks again, Heather, for all you do!

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On a recent interview with Jane Fonda, Mary Trump said if there is a landslide by Joe Biden..Trump is likely to give up..

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Thank you again Professor Richardson - a wonderful Letter today.

A couple of questions for the room: Who is watching the polling places for the Democrats? To whom can we send donations?

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I’m a poll worker in TN. We are always told to call the police if necessary, but they don’t show up otherwise (or haven’t). We have never had any problem of any type. I hope that is the case again. Also hoping people outside the poll (candidate surrogates, waiting voters, etc.) keep an eye on things too.

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I signed up early and have taken the course to be an Election Inspector. That’s what poll workers are called in NY. One policy that I know of is that there has to be a republican and Democrat at each of the tables/stations. It’s my first time doing this. I signed up for 2 early voting sessions. I’m gonna make a call to volunteer for more if there’s a need.

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Thanks for your service Marcy - now more than ever, the work you are doing is vital!

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I think this is a crucial question. Who has the responsibility, the power, the brief, the [fill in blank] to make sure that polling places aren't made ineffectual by threats of violence, unannounced early closings, and all the other dirty tricks that have been or could be pulled?

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I live in a diverse neighborhood and plan to walk to my polling area and keep an eye out for “intruders”. But we need to do more, but not sure what that looks like.

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That's great! I'm not able to vote in person this year, and I'd like to contribute to the effort as best I can. Good luck in your district - folks like you are needed to keep this election fair. All the best.

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While direct donation are probably impossible, instead, support the people who will/might be waiting in line on election day. Set up a refreshment booth with free snacks. Get your friends together and offer to hold their place in line if they have to go pick up their kids, and help entertain those kids when the parent comes back. Have umbrellas in case it rains, or is too hot.

Everyone must vote.

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