Category: The Presidency

Sunday Cartoon Blogging – June 4, 2023

Diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives or DEI, are intended to address inequities against historically marginalized groups and individuals who are working within an organization. DEI are three closely linked values that work together to be supportive of different groups of individuals, including people of different races, ethnicities, religions, abilities, genders, and sexual orientations.

DEI has recently come under fire. It’s at the center of some political battles being waged by Republican governors Greg Abbott and Ron DeSantis. Several Red states are considering or have passed legislation targeting DEI in public institutions. Texas passed a bill with a rider banning the use of state funds for DEI programs in universities and colleges. A similar bill to ban spending on DEI in public universities has been advanced in Iowa.

But Chick-fil-A? The same Chick-fil-A that’s given millions of dollars to anti-LGBTQ hate groups? The Chick-fil-A that conservatives circled the wagons around a few years ago after liberals criticized the owners for being haters?

They’re taking MAGA fire for creating a DEI policy and hiring someone to oversee the program. MAGA suddenly realized that Chick-fil-A had gone woke! But their program has been around since 2020. On to cartoons.

Nobody is safe:

Signs are everywhere:

MAGA says ya can’t help trans kids:

Our PolyCrisis government:

It’s a very old game, but Trump’s surrounded:

The Sacklers win:

Victory lap for Biden:

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Thoughts On The Debt Deal

The Daily Escape:

Rosa rugosa, Cape Cod, MA – May 2023 photo by Don Wilding

The holiday is over, and it brought an apparent deal between Biden and McCarthy. But was negotiating with the axe of a default on the national debt hanging over the country worth it? Sure, since it pulled the country back from the fiscal cliff.

But mostly, having to do it at all was stupid, and dangerous. And now, neither Party is completely happy, because both sides had to compromise. Wrongo recommends Noah Smith’s take:

“The recent fight over the debt ceiling, however, seems…like a return to the pointless obstructionism and grandstanding that characterized politics in the 2010s. There was absolutely zero reason for the House GOP leadership to use the debt ceiling — they could have just forced a deal through the normal appropriations process. Few people actually believed that the country’s leaders would let the US default on its sovereign debt due to a random minor budget fight…”

He’s correct, the House is controlled by Republicans. And the Senate also has enough Republicans to control the country’s fiscal budgeting process. They can ensure that what’s included and what’s cut would almost certainly be what Republicans wanted in the final package.

The Atlantic’s Ron Brownstein tweeted:

“It’s really something House GOP was willing to risk tanking global economy for such a tangential set of policy goals. Their plan threatened spending on young & low-income but by excluding revenue & entitlements had small impact on overall deficits. Means wildly excessive for ends.”

Despite all of the grandstanding by both Biden and the Republicans, the compromise deal looks like this:

  • A freeze on non-defense discretionary spending in 2024 and a 1% increase in 2025.
  • A 3% increase in defense spending.
  • Expanding work requirements by four years for SNAP (food stamps) and some smaller welfare programs.
  • Resumption of student debt payments (this isn’t a change to Biden’s student debt plan).
  • Reducing IRS funding by $20 billion.
  • Clawing back some unused Covid relief money.
  • Minor changes on permitting to streamline the process of environmental review.

House Republicans had initially demanded huge cuts in spending, which would have been pretty destabilizing to essential programs. These demands may have been simply an initial negotiating tactic. But not getting them in the final agreement might also speak to Biden’s negotiating ability.

Remember that the GOP’s threat to trigger sovereign default was because they think that the level of our national debt is an existential threat. But they wanted to include tax cuts in their original proposal. That would have been nuts since the purpose of their bill was to limit the growth in federal debt.

Remember too that only about 27% of our federal spending is classified as “discretionary”. About 65% is “mandatory” spending, which means that it doesn’t go through the appropriations process. (The remainder is interest on the debt.)

The spending restraint in this deal will affect only the “discretionary” portion, leaving the “mandatory” majority untouched. The “mandatory” portion includes Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, EITC and SNAP.

More from Noah Smith:

“…what frustrates me about this nothingburger of a result is how incredibly costly it was to produce. The House GOP went through months of dramatic, high-stakes negotiations, forced the administration to consider the Fourteenth Amendment and the trillion dollar coin, got the media talking seriously about the prospect of a US sovereign default…. and all that for a little bit of discretionary spending restraint, a few added work requirements for food stamps, and a little defunding of the IRS?….It’s like…a guy walked into a restaurant with a ticking bomb demanding to blow everyone up if he didn’t get a free peppermint!”

We’re unsure if this compromise will actually pass both Houses of Congress. But if it does, it’s another piece of evidence that Republican politics is largely theater/spectacle. That’s why a reality TV star/performance artist like Trump was able to take over the Party.

OTOH, consider this quote from one of our founding fathers:

“Politics…Has Always Been the Systematic Organization of Hatreds” ̶  Henry Adams

Of course, Adams’ comment raises the question of whether politics has to be a systematic organization of hatreds, or if people could be politically active and committed, while in no way giving in to hatred of their opponents? Sounds utopian to Wrongo.

We have to give credit when credit is due. Politics is supposed to be about compromise. And Biden has accomplished a compromise in one of the most partisan, polarized times in our recent political history. If you’re arguing against what Biden did, remember that unless your Party controls every arm of the government, and in particular the Senate with a big majority, you either compromise or you get nothing done.

Want to get your way every time? Win more elections.

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Cartoons + Memorial Day Weekend

(There won’t be a Monday Wake Up column this week. Wrongo will return on Wednesday, May 31.)

Memorial Day, Arlington National Cemetery – 2013 photo by William Coyle

Monday will be Memorial Day, when we honor the sacrifice of those who died fighting in America’s wars. We mourn those we knew, and we pause briefly to remember those we never knew. The American public’s job is to say, “thank you for your service”. Saying it has become a reflex, like “bless you” when someone sneezes. Our default position is to thank, but not to think. For most of us, America’s foreign wars are a kind of elevator music. Always present, but we barely notice it.

Maybe we watch our town’s parade, or shop at the mall. There’s likely to be a cookout. It isn’t about love of country. It’s about sad Facebook emojis, Memorial Day mattress sales, and burgers on Monday. On to cartoons.

The old man remembers the soldier:

RIP Tina Turner:

More:

Requiring a clean Debt Ceiling dies as Biden negotiates with Freedom Caucus:

A handy reminder:

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Putin Sanctions Some Of Trump’s Enemies

The Daily Escape:

Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains NP, TN- May 2023 photo by Melissa Russell

At the G7 conference in Japan, the Group of Seven (G7) countries announced new sanctions on Russia:

“In a statement, the G7 leaders said restrictions would cover exports of industrial machinery, tools and technology useful to Russia’s war effort, while efforts would be pursued to limit Russian revenues from trade in metals and diamonds…. The actions targeted Russia’s sanctions evasion, future energy revenues and military-industrial supply chains, with sanctions imposed on more than 300 targets on Friday.”

For America’s part, the Treasury imposed sanctions on 22 people and 104 entities in more than 20 countries, while the Department of State targeted almost 200 people, entities, vessels and aircraft.

The NYT reported that Russia had a response ready. Putin sanctioned some Americans:

“Among the 500 people singled out for travel and financial restrictions…were Americans seen as adversaries by Mr. Trump, including Letitia James, the state attorney general of New York who has sued him for alleged fraud, and Jack Smith, the Justice Department special counsel investigating his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his handling of classified documents after leaving office.

Brad Raffensperger, the secretary of state of Georgia who rebuffed Mr. Trump’s pressure to “find” enough votes to reverse the outcome of the election, also made the list. So did Lt. Michael Byrd, the Capitol Police officer who shot the pro-Trump rioter Ashli Babbitt on Jan. 6, 2021.”

Other prominent figures on Russia’s new list included Barack Obama and Rachel Maddow, as well as late-night television hosts Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel and Seth Myers. Newsweek quotes Swedish economist Anders Åslund, who wrote in the Kyiv Post:

“Needless to say, nobody from Fox News…is being sanctioned,”

But Newsweek also reported that Russia’s new list included a few Republicans: Senators Katie Britt of Alabama and JD Vance of Ohio, as well as Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

It’s kinda difficult to follow Putin’s thinking about the GOP politicians, but you can imagine Trump saying: “It’s a strong list. A perfect list. People were crying when they read it.”

The NYT added: (emphasis by Wrongo)

“The Russian Foreign Ministry offered no specific explanation for why they would be included on the list but did say that among its targets were ‘those in government and law enforcement agencies who are directly involved in the persecution of dissidents in the wake of the so-called storming of the Capitol.’”

From MSNBC’s Steve Benen: (brackets by Wrongo)

“The use of the phrase ‘so-called storming,’…was unsubtle. The Kremlin isn’t just targeting Trump’s perceived domestic foes, Putin and his government are…embracing Trump’s preferred rhetorical framings about stories [Trump]….doesn’t like.”

Some context by Benen: (brackets by Wrongo)

“There’s…precedent for Russia imposing sanctions on prominent Americans who’ve criticized Vladimir Putin’s government. Nearly a decade ago…after Russia took Crimea, the Kremlin faced bipartisan condemnations in Washington, DC. Soon after, Moscow announced sanctions against Republicans [including] then-House Speaker John Boehner and then-Sen. John McCain, as well as several Democrats, including then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and then-Sen. Mary Landrieu.”

More: (brackets by Wrongo)

“…in each instance, [regarding Crimea] Russia’s sanctions at least made some sense: They targeted prominent American policymakers, each of whom had at least some role in US foreign policy, and each of whom had criticized Moscow’s policies to one degree or another.”

And as Peter Baker says in the NYT:

“…what is particularly striking is how much President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia is adopting perceived enemies of former President Donald J. Trump as his own.”

When we think about the impact of the new Russian sanctions, it seems that banning Americans from entering Russia in 2023 is a bit like a mother banning her kid from eating kale.

Not allowing NY’s Attorney General, or Georgia’s AG, or the DOJ’s special counsel in the Trump investigations, Jack Smith to enter Russia isn’t going to do anything to help Russia hold on to Ukrainian territory they have seized. From Martin Longman:

“By a simple process of elimination it’s clear that the strategy is to help Donald Trump win the presidency, which they expect would disrupt America’s ability to support Ukraine.”

Putin must be taking the long view, since even if Trump is elected, he wouldn’t take office until January 2025. That’s a long time to wait for the western support for Ukraine to weaken.

And, of course, if the US defaults on its debt, which Trump has been urging Republicans to do, it would be a victory for Russia, possibly equal to anything they could ever hope to gain on the battlefield.

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Sunday Cartoon Blogging – May 21, 2023

Top negotiators for Biden and Speaker McCarthy resumed talks Friday evening after the Republicans said the negotiations had to go on a “pause”. Roll Call reports that:

“After a nearly daylong setback, White House Counselor Steve Ricchetti, White House budget director Shalanda Young, Rep. Garret Graves, R-La., and House Financial Services Chairman Patrick T. McHenry, R-N.C., resumed talks at the Capitol shortly after 6 p.m.”

Time is running out for Congress to raise the debt ceiling. If not, the consequences are stark. Keeping the lines of communication open and giving away the store are two different things entirely. On to cartoons.

McCarthy’s toll booth:

The North Carolina legislature overrode Governor Roy Cooper’s veto  of a bill imposing a ten-week abortion ban. Will this ensure Democratic victory in North Carolina in 2024?

Texas has sued the Biden administration 29 times in a Texas Federal District Court. Now after banning mifepristone, Texas judges have new careers:

Durham’s report:

Disney’s Bob Iger asks DeSantis: “Does Florida want our jobs and taxes or not?” This is a severe kick in the balls:

Wrongo’s old enough to have seen Jim Brown play in Yankee Stadium against the NY Giants:

Trump’s one note:

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Saturday Soother – May 13, 2023

The Daily Escape:

Sunset, Monument Valley, AZ – April 2023 panoramic photo by Rich Vintage Photography

The ripples from Trump’s appearance on CNN continue. Politico reports that: (brackets by Wrongo)

“Nearly under his breath….Trump said that he and…Putin “used to talk about” Moscow’s intention to launch [an] invasion in Ukraine.”

What’s Trump talking about? The invasion happened in February 2022, more than a year after Trump left office. In fact, Russia didn’t even begin massing troops on the Ukraine border until March 2021 while Trump was already at Mar-a-Lago. Russia’s troops were partially withdrawn by June 2021, although the military infrastructure was left in place. The second build-up began in October 2021, lasting until the invasion in February 2022.

Politico says that Trump mumbled at some point, that he and Putin discussed Russia’s intention to launch a second, larger incursion of Ukraine. Was Trump talking to Putin about a possible invasion of Ukraine after Trump left office? If so, what are the chances that Trump shared his news with Biden?

Today, let’s spend a bit more time on one of the reasons why we must rebuild our energy grid. Wolf Richter of Wolf Street writes that in 2022, electric vehicles (EVs) made their first visible dent in US gasoline consumption: (parenthesis by Wrongo)

“Gasoline consumption in the US dipped by 0.4% in 2022…(vs.2021) to 369 million gallons per day…. below where it had been in 2002, and down by 5.7% from 2019, and by 5.9% from the peak in 2018, according to data from the Energy Department…”

Wolf reminds us that employment grew in 2022 by 4.8 million. And miles driven by all passenger and commercial vehicles, including those powered by diesel, ticked up nearly 1% to 3.17 trillion miles in 2022, according to the Federal Highway Administration:

Miles driven still haven’t recovered to 2019 levels (-2.8%). That’s probably due at least in part to reduced commuting during the Covid Work From Home times. Now, many office workers are either working from home entirely, or are going into the office on some days and working at home on others.

So the data show that the economy grew and people drove more miles, but they bought less gasoline:

The above chart shows the impact of the various recessions on gasoline consumption.  The deep dip in 2020, and the 2021 recovery only brought gas consumption back to 2002 levels. Then they fell off again in 2022.

The question is why wasn’t there a further recovery in gas consumption from 2021 to 2022? One factor is the rising fuel economy of American vehicles. This started many years ago, and it continues today. But Richter says that the growth in ownership of EVs has dented US gasoline consumption:

“EV sales in 2022 grew to a share of about 7% of total new vehicle sales in the US. In California, EV sales in 2022 accounted for 17% of total sales. These numbers are starting to show up at the gas station as a decline in gasoline sales.”

Still a 7% share of market is small and for now, the impact on gasoline sales is also small in the US.

Another way to look at this is that while gas consumption declined, electricity sold to end-users in the US broke out of 15 years of stagnation and set a new record. The chart below shows that electric utilities have been a no-growth business for more than a decade, but now the volume of electricity sold is suddenly spiking:

Wrongo isn’t sure if these trends will continue, but continued growth in the number of EVs on America’s roads seems undeniable. EVs have lower energy costs and lower maintenance costs. That economic reality seems guaranteed to be sustained in the coming decades. The battery cost curve will continue to decline and the rare metals required in EV batteries are beginning to be helped by both new supply and changing battery chemistry.

Still, Wrongo isn’t a fan of EVs. Perhaps when EV charging stations become ubiquitous, he will reconsider. And there will be a place for the ICE engine for a very long time.

That’s enough for this week. It’s time for our Saturday Soother, where we disconnect from the crisis du jour and spend a few relaxing moments before charging headfirst into whatever next week brings. Here at the Mansion of Wrong, we’re off to the garden store to find vegetable plants for our puny garden.

It looks like a beautiful weekend in the northeast, so grab a chair outside and watch and listen to Manuel De Falla’s Danza from “La Vida Breve” (Life is Short or The Brief Life). It is from Falla’s 1905 opera. Here it is performed live at the ancient Roman Theatre in Cartagena Spain, by Paola Requena and Isabel Martínez who perform as the Carmesí Guitar Duo:

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About The Energy Grid

The Daily Escape:

Coyote Gulch, Escalante, UT – May 2023 photo by Chirag A. Patel

Wrongo and Ms. Right watched the Knicks vs. Miami and Ted Lasso rather than dipping into the political rally for Trump held by CNN. But other news outlets reported on it. Apparently, the live audience gave him a standing ovation as he entered the set. They laughed when he called E. Jean Carroll “a whack job” and belittled her claim of sexual assault:

Trump suggested that the US should default on its debt if Biden didn’t agree to the cuts that House Republicans want. He pledged to pardon many of those convicted in the Jan. 6 attempted coup. He refused to back Ukraine in its war against Russia.

For those who think that there’s an opening in 2024 among GOP partisans to either vote for someone other than Trump or gasp!, vote for a Democrat, you are sadly mistaken.

A big part of the press (obviously including CNN) just can’t bring itself to admit the truth about the current state of the Republican Party. And they don’t really see it as their job to engage in such denunciations, even to protect the nation.

America is chockfuckingfull of Republicans who are, as Hillary said, “deplorables”. And they’re not all in New Hampshire. It’s way past time for the press to acknowledge this sad fact.

But today, let’s talk about the US energy grid. Our transition from fossil fuels to a green energy future will require a huge investment in our current electric grid. This probably means we’ve understated the costs of America’s energy transition. From Haley Zaremba, at OilPrice: (emphasis by Wrongo)

“In order to keep up with the expansion of renewable energy production capacity, the United States will have to more than double the current size of the electric grid. Stimulus from both the public and private sectors are hitting their intended mark, and the clean energy sector is booming. However, much of the potential environmental benefits of electrification will be completely wasted if we don’t have the power lines and grid capacity to transmit that power from where it’s being produced to where the demand is concentrated.”

Zaremba quotes McKinsey, who say that building sufficient wind and solar farms to power the clean energy transition will require overcoming three major hurdles: Finding enough land at an affordable price, building up the power grid to support the influx of electricity, and fixing the archaic and inefficient permitting process that governs these processes.

America needs massive investment in our national energy simply to stand still, regardless of the source of electricity.

But it’s important to identify today the key energy sources of the future because that determines how we specify and build the upgraded grid. A grid based on renewable sources requires a denser network and more long distance direct current lines, while conventional grids need a relatively small number of very high capacity short distance alternating current lines (i.e. from a cluster of small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) to the nearest city).

Either option is expensive and each brings its own set of regulatory issues. Zaremba notes that:

“Building power lines alone is an enormous bureaucratic hurdle that can take years to gain approval. The  average review of renewable energy projects takes about 3.5 years, but there are cases in which a single transition line took over a decade to be completed…”

According to the US DOE, the country will need 47,300 gigawatt-miles of new power lines by 2035. That represents a 57% expansion of the existing grid. And the real issue is the glacial pace of the bureaucratic review processes which underlie permitting and oversight of clean energy projects as well as grid expansion.

Zaremba closes with:

“Fixing the presently nightmarish permitting and approval system will be integral to decarbonizing the US economy…and making sure that the efforts already underway to decarbonize the nation’s energy mix are not squandered. It’s great that wind and solar capacity are being added at a record-breaking rate, but it’s all a waste if, once completed, there’s no permit allowing them to plug into the grid – or if there’s no grid at all.”

As if on cue, on Wednesday Biden signed on to Sen. Manchin’s (D-WVA) plan to speed the approval of some fossil fuel projects and to hasten the construction of new transmission lines. The NYT quotes John Podesta, Biden’s senior adviser for clean energy innovation:

“Right now, the permitting process for clean energy infrastructure, including transmission, is plagued by delays and bottlenecks…”

Manchin’s bill has some holding their noses because it is so pro-fossil fuel. But should it become law, perhaps the US government will be able to speed up approval for at least some of the green energy projects.

In summary, there’s lots to do and no sure way to get it all done.

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Sunday Cartoon Blogging – May 7, 2023

(The Monday Wake Up Call will be published on Tuesday this week.)

America has been waiting for more than a year for the Federal Reserve to get control over inflation. In that time, they’ve jacked up interest rates to over 5%. A year ago, raising rates that high seemed unthinkable, but here we are. Wages have also risen.

There was some damage: A few horribly managed banks collapsed. A couple of auto dealer-lender chains that specialized in selling overpriced used cars to subprime customers collapsed. And there were some fiascos in commercial real estate.

All of that has led the Fed to indicate that there could be a “soft landing” for our economy. But with the latest jobs growth numbers, maybe the Fed will have to keep circling the airport. In April, 253,000 jobs were created. There are now a record 155.7 million payroll jobs. Over the past 3 months on average, 222,000 jobs were created per month. So is a soft landing ahead?

Please raise your seat tables to the upright position and pass your trash to the attendant. On to cartoons.

Coronations aren’t just for the Brits:

(Wrongo watched the coronation of King Charles III yesterday. Seventy years ago, he also watched the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II  on a 9″ black & white Philco television. Yesterday’s was on a 55” Samsung.)

The reality about the GOP:

What to expect after the GOP talks with Biden about the Debt Ceiling:

Proud Boys found guilty, but who pulled the strings?

Kremlin complains:

Justice Thomas needs to be taller to take the ride:

Time to buy more cards:

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Monday Wake Up Call – May 1, 2023

The Daily Escape:

The Schooner Surprise, built in 1918, is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places, Camden Harbor, ME – April 2023 photo by Daniel F. Dishner

A few words about Biden, McCarthy and the Debt Ceiling. We all know that the clock is ticking on a US default of our debt sometime in June. There are multiple opinions in DC about who has the leverage in the coming debate between the House GOP, Senate Dems and Biden.

The institutionalist view is that McCarthy and the House GOP have taken the Debt Ceiling hostage and they plan a hostage negotiation with Biden. Some think that McCarthy is doing it badly. Others take the darker view that the Republicans are actually trying to crash the economy so that America blames Biden and returns the GOP to power in 2024.

If you think, based on what we’ve seen so far, that the GOP doesn’t plan to negotiate, that like terrorists, they will kill as many hostages as possible until their terms are 100% met, what they’re doing makes sense.

The NYT reports that McCarthy has been open about the fact that this is not a real bill:

“This bill is to get us to the negotiations….It is not the final provisions, and there’s a number of members who will vote for it going forward…say there are some concerns they have with it. But they want to make sure the negotiation goes forward because we are sitting at $31 trillion of debt.”

For the umpteenth time, we’re watching a game of chicken about raising the debt limit. There are something like 45 days until the Debt Ceiling must be raised. You know the “or else” sentence that follows: Or else, the US will face potentially calamitous economic consequences.

McCarthy’s bill may get the Republicans a seat at the table in the negotiations over raising the debt limit, but Biden’s position remains: “Send a clean debt limit bill, or pound sand.”

Has McCarthy overplayed a bad hand? If he had failed to get anything passed he would have looked completely incompetent. Nevertheless, passing a bill filled with devastating cuts and manifestly unpopular positions that will be difficult to defend except to the Party faithful, it is arguably worse than getting nothing done at all.

If the Dems are smart they will take the GOP’s messaging bill and come up with a message that has broad appeal that can be used to hurt the GOP in swing districts for the next two years. McCarthy’s bill shows that Republicans’ ultimate goal is to gut health care, food stamps and education, and even veterans benefits. The Vote Vets organization is out with a message:

“And now, it is the fringe MAGA party that voted for a budget that would gut health care and support for our Veterans. 217 of them voted for it, and just 4 against. They talk tough when it comes to Military action, but go AWOL when it’s time to take care of those who served.”

This bill isn’t intended to pass. Republicans had an opportunity to aim a productive salvo at swing voters to convince them that GOP majorities can deliver normalcy, and give them some sign that the Party was tacking away from the extremist positions that alienated voters in the last midterm elections.

Instead, their message is that the Party is about owning the libs and slashing aid for veterans and the poor. The GOP can’t even fake being a Party interested in governing anymore. That’s bad news for McCarthy, the man chained to the GOP canoe that’s heading over the falls. As Succession’s the late Logan Roy would say “You are not serious people.”

Instead the GOP’s message to the world is that America’s commitment to paying its debts is contingent on an underlying political negotiation about the size of the budget deficit.

  • Republicans believe they can win the political standoff by making Biden and Democrats look petty by refusing a basic negotiation.
  • Democrats also seem to be betting that Senate Republicans will step in as more mature political actors and defuse this situation.

The NYT quotes Sen. Chuck Schumer, (D-NY) and majority leader:

“Discussion of spending cuts belongs in talks about the budget, not for bargaining chips on the debt ceiling….The speaker should drop the brinkmanship, drop the hostage taking, come to the table with Democrats to pass a clean bill to avoid default.”

Time to wake up America! This kabuki play will run through at least mid-June. It’s a DC big boy fight. And we the little people, will have no say until November 2024 when we can escort the GOP flame throwers out of the House. To help you wake up, watch Crowded House perform “Don’t Dream It’s Over” from their first (of three) farewell tours, played at the Sydney Opera House in November 1996:

One of the greatest songs of the 80s and it still hits hard today.

Sample Lyrics:

There is freedom within, there is freedom without
Try to catch a deluge in a paper cup
There’s a battle ahead, many battles are lost
But you’ll never see the end of the road
While you’re traveling with me

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My Way Or The Highway

The Daily Escape:

Azalea gardens at the Biltmore, Asheville NC – April 2023 photo by Sherry Maddock

We all know that the US is staring down a series of domestic threats to American democracy. Here’s a short list: Corruption on the Supreme Court, fundamental rights being lost via Supreme Court decisions, and voting rights being on the ballot in many states. Then there’s the question of whether any high level politician will ever be held to account for the Jan. 6, 2021 coup attempt.

These threats require that we convince every voter to turn out in 2024. Even so, surprisingly the presidential race in 2024 could be very close.

All of this could be undermined by the plans of the emerging political party called No Labels. They are gathering signatures to get on the presidential ballot in all 50 states in 2024, while recruiting both Democrats and Republicans to run as a bipartisan ticket. The WaPo reports that the group has already gained ballot access in Arizona, Colorado, Alaska and Oregon. Apparently, they are backed by shadowy donors who have provided them with $70 million in seed money.

Former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman is associated with No Labels. Other names often mentioned as possible No Labels candidates are Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WVA), Kirsten Sinema (I-AZ), Susan Collins (R-ME), and former Republican Governor of Maryland, Larry Hogan.

Here we go again. Another centrist third party effort to create a “unity” ticket that supposedly appeals to those Americans who say they want to end the partisan bickering in Washington. This year, it’s No Labels who are trying to throw a big monkey wrench onto our Electoral College map. If they are successful, it could possibly send Trump back to another term in Washington.

All in the name of unity, of course.

Lieberman is acutely aware of the impact third-party bids can have on presidential elections. He ran as Gore’s VP candidate in 2000, when the Democratic campaign fell 537 Florida votes short of an Electoral College victory. That year, Ralph Nader, the Green Party nominee, won more than 97,000 Florida votes.

It might be useful for Lieberman et al to remember that in the 2016 presidential election, Jill Stein got 50,000 votes in Michigan, allowing Trump to win Michigan by 14,000 votes. Ross Perot in 1992 arguably shifted the race to Bill Clinton.

The No Labels website specifically describes itself as an “insurance policy against a Trump-Biden rematch.” From Larry Hogan:

“The vast majority of people in America are not happy with the direction of the country and they don’t want to see either Joe Biden or Donald Trump as president.”

Hasn’t Biden worked productively with Republicans to pass a broad array of bipartisan legislation? His main partisan domestic initiative was essentially written by Manchin, who now wants a larger voice with No Labels.

First, it seems bizarre for No Labels to equate Biden with Trump. Comparing the two when Trump is under indictment in NY and likely to be indicted in several more cases, after having incited an insurrection is crazy. What’s Biden’s crime? Not paying off porn stars?

Second, why is a group dedicated to promoting moderate, bipartisan legislation working against a president who has actually accomplished just that? Jonathan Chait in NY Magazine reports that No Labels’:

“…own polling suggests its candidacy would serve as a spoiler on behalf of Republicans. In December, it found an unnamed moderate third-party candidate would win just 20% of the vote, against 33% for Trump and 28% for Biden.”

This result seems completely logical given Biden’s greater reliance on moderate voters than Trump. But still they persist. For Wrongo, you only needed to say “Joe Lieberman” to convey that this organization is wrong-headed on its face. When politically marginal people like Lieberman and Manchin are interested in a new political organization, you know they’re looking for a way to insert themselves more deeply into our politics, despite how little actual support they have.

They’re willing to cause great harm for an outside shot at real power.

We need to understand that political centrism isn’t the halfway point between today’s median Democrat and today’s median Republican. Biden has governed basically as a 21st Century centrist; otherwise, the left of his Party wouldn’t be so frustrated with him. The No Label people need to realize that there’s already a perfectly good moderate Party in America, and it’s called the Democratic Party.

The No Label centrists seem to be living in some kind of dream world where the Electoral College isn’t closely divided and today’s political stakes aren’t monumental.

This is a vanity political project that could easily lead to a political disaster. Let’s hope it fizzles like most centrist third party bids have done in the past.

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