The Democrats are trying to say Trump is the cognitively challenged one
It seems a bizarre approach to me, but they must be getting feedback that their base loves it. Because I think that, for most other people, all it does is remind them of how the Democrats tried for so long to cover up Biden’s decline. After all, the fact that they could no longer keep up the pretense is the reason Kamala Harris is the Democrats’ candidate today, and everyone knows it.
And yet in her Fox interview, Kamala Harris continued to deny there was anything wrong with Biden. It’s such brazen gaslighting it deserves some sort of award. Plus, does it fool anyone?
Meanwhile, Trump has coherent long-form interviews with all sorts of people, and although he includes his trademark eccentricities such as what he calls “the weave,” he seems quite with it to me. That doesn’t stop the Democrats from claiming he’s exhibiting cognitive problems. They read it into this town hall meeting – interrupted by medical emergencies for two spectators and overwhelming heat, that then turned into a musical interlude – into some sort of evidence of mental lapses on Trump’s part.
And now there’s Trump’s appearance last night at a Catholic charity event, in which he seems to have been unusually entertaining and funny. You can read an account here and watch some clips. And yet Harris-Walz 2024 Rapid Response Director Ammar Moussa put out this statement about it:
Donald Trump struggled to read scripted notes written by his handlers, repeatedly complaining that he couldn’t use a teleprompter. He stumbled over his words and lashed out when the crowd wouldn’t laugh with him. The rare moments he was off script, he went on long incomprehensible rambles, reminding Americans how unstable he’s become. And of course he made it all about himself. He may refuse to release his medical records, but every day he makes it clear to the American people that he is not up to the job.
To me it seems a weird approach, for the aforementioned reason that Trump isn’t generally perceived that way but Biden was. In addition, Kamala isn’t sounding like the sharpest knife in the drawer. And “every day it’s she who makes it clear to the American people that she is not up to the job.”
Democrats always accuse their opponents of whatever they are themselves guilty.
Mary Callahan Erdoes was enjoying Trump’s comedic turn, right along with Gaffigan. Mike Bloomberg decidely not so much; not sure he once cracked a smile.
“In addition, Kamala isn’t sounding like the sharpest knife in the drawer.”
Uh-huh. Do tell.
“Donald Trump struggled to read scripted notes written by his handlers, repeatedly complaining that he couldn’t use a teleprompter. He stumbled over his words and lashed out when the crowd wouldn’t laugh with him. The rare moments he was off script, he went on long incomprehensible rambles, reminding Americans how unstable he’s become.”
It’s quite stupid to write this kind of drivel when people can see the video for themselves. DJT was quite funny. He speaks in ways that make some uncomfortable, but he knows it.
Trump is funny, even when he’s not delivering prepared jokes (which he does well). Harris’s little video was just strange, not funny. It’s not clear to me that she has a sense of humor.
Kate:
She has never displayed an ounce of humor in any clip I’ve ever seen of her. And yet she laughs and laughs, usually at inappropriate times. She’s just guessing at what a laugh line is.
The Right thinks the Left are intellectual giants
I watched the Al Smith speech by Trump. It was Trump being Trump. Too long, some hard knocks on Kamala, no self-deprecating jokes, etc. He was his usual self. Not, IMO, deranged at all.
However, at the end of his speech, he seemed to change and become much more serious. He pledged to work with anyone, Democrat or Republican, to try to rebuild this country – to make it strong, prosperous and united again. Yes, that’s been his slogan all along, but it seems to me that he expressed it much deeper and more personally last night.
He genuinely loves the country we knew before Obama came along and began the fundamental transformation of the USA. So do I.
Re: Catholics / presidential elections
The Catholic vote is considered a bellwether for presidential elections. For instance, the Catholic vote went to Obama in 2008 and 2012, but then narrowly to Trump in 2016. In 2020 Catholics went for Biden, a nominal Catholic and old-style Union guy.
Pennsylvania is also considered a bellwether state for presidential elections. In 2024 it is the must-get state for Democrats.
Pennsylvania is 24% Catholic. Trump knows this and plays to it. Thus, the singing of the “Ave Maria” last week at his triumphant return to Butler, PA after his near-assassination.
Meanwhile, Harris can’t show up at a charity dinner hosted by Catholics and is totally hammer-down on abortion. She doesn’t seem to like Catholics much.
Hmm … Harris may well lose 2024 on the Catholic vote and Pennsylvania.
BTW, at the Townhall Harris called out as an example Trump’s mental deficiency, which we understand as Trump’s effort to take a breather with music due to medical emergencies in the crowd …
Trump played the “Ave Maria” at least three times.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-town-hall-interrupted-playlist-pennsylvania/
“Ave Maria” is supposed to be one of Trump’s favorites. I have no trouble believing that. I’ve loved it since watching “Fantasia.”
–F.P. Schubert, “Ave María — Fantasía” (1940)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xXkB-ncF2g
Didn’t they try this already from 2017, when Joe Scarborough said he’d heard from Trump “allies” that Trump has dementia, through 2020 when Psychology Today demanded his brain scan results?
Twenty years ago we all used to say that “the Internet is forever”. It’s so easy now to show that we were at war with Eastasia two years ago and with Eurasia two years before that, contrary to what the telescreens are telling us. But it’s odd how many of us just forget what everyone was talking about a few months ago, especially when it’s so easy to look up.
The Scarborough article hilariously reminds me of when Trump was going to get us all into nuclear war with North Korea, remember that?
@ Neo > “You can read an account here and watch some clips.”
That link didn’t work for me, however, I watched a video of the Al Smith speech this morning and, as noted, Trump was pretty much Trump.
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2024/10/17/watch_live_donald_trump_attends_al_smith_catholic_charity_dinner.html
The Media: “Donald Trump struggled to read scripted notes written by his handlers, repeatedly complaining that he couldn’t use a teleprompter.”
Some of his funniest lines were about finding out he wouldn’t have a teleprompter, which every speaker today uses in public because it allows them to read their pre-written speeches and still see the audience. Remember how lost Obama was on the few occasions he had to speak without one? Biden can’t even speak coherently WITH one. Trump joked that Kamala refused to come because she couldn’t have one.
So he did appear to struggle, because looking down at a lectern is unusual for speakers these day, and he would lose his place — plus his adlibbing on top of the canned jokes.
He didn’t stumble over reading the jokes that were obviously scripted by his team, but he didn’t deliver them as well as his own barbs, and quickly dismissed them (“lashed out” is pretty strong for what happened) when they didn’t get any laughs.
(Note about the media reaction to the “revelation” that some Fox people helped with his script: the MSM was shocked, shocked to discover that Trump had some ghostwriters — just like every single president and candidate that has ever appeared at that dinner. One of Obama’s performances was so bad, he looked to me like he hadn’t even read it over before coming to the event. If they were just objecting to the inclusion of journalists on the team: it’s not as bad as having them pretending to be debate moderators.)
As for there being no self-deprecating jokes, that was one of his funniest schticks: “They told me I have to tell some self-deprecating jokes. (pause) Nope, I got nothing.”
The audience roared, as they did at a lot of his quips.
@20:11 in the video at RCP:
@ J.J. > “However, at the end of his speech, he seemed to change and become much more serious.”
Definitely.
I think it started when he mentioned some of the previous mayors, all of whom he knew from living and working in NYC (BTW, he was very gracious to Eric Adams, and the jokes he made about him were well in the character of the dinner’s past precedents).
When he got to DeBlasio (@ 23:16), his tone changed from humor to a much harsher delivery, as he castigated that particular mayor for the major decline of NYC, which Trump loves very much as a place and as an idea.
“He did a terrible job. That’s not comedy, that’s fact.”
This obviously very personal, emotional, moment segued into his rousing finish — which was NOT “all about him” (speakers are expected to include themselves in the joking), but about restoring the foundations of the American Dream as it once thrived in New York City and the state.
MNYGA, to coin a meme.
I think he may have won over some of the Democrat Catholics.
BTW, I loved the way Trump hammered Schumer about belonging to the Democrat Party, not the Democratic Party (as in “Our Democracy”) — I always use the former when referring to the Donkeys.
The Progressive Left have planned all along to use Trump’s age against him, as soon as they finished demolishing Biden’s re-election campaign and installing Kamala as the chosen, but unapproved-by-vote candidate. ‘
It’s one of the few factual things they have in their quiver, against Trump. But it’s largely benign, because Trump even at this age, has the energy to out-campaign even Kamala, at 60. It won’t stick and I think it shows that the Progressive Left is running out of cogent arguments against Trump.
@ Aggie > “It won’t stick”
Not with the way Trump runs in high gear all the time.
Even when he relaxes, he is playing a vigorous game of golf, not lounging in a beach chair.
Query: what does Kamala do when she is off-stage? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a post on her vacations or hobbies.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2024/10/18/trump-slams-kamala-harris-over-claims-hes-exhausted-she-didnt-come-to-al-smith-dinner/
I’m exhausted just reading his schedule!
Besides projection, is it also to remind voters she isn’t Biden? Or basically reminding people Trump could turn into what Biden has been since he took office, so really a attack on aging.
Was stuck at car service so actually saw the entire F&F show, he did very well. And was at the Oaks Townhall and saw nothing that he has degraded mental.
” I don’t think I’ve ever seen a post on her vacations or hobbies.”
She has been seen playacting at cooking, I think. But indeed, little else comes to mind.
If the facts are against you, argue the law.
If the law is against you, argue the facts.
If the law and the facts are against you, pound the table and yell like hell”
–attributed to Carl Sandburg (I have my doubts)
________________________________________
Democrats have neither the facts nor the law on their side. They are pounding the table.
“If the law and the facts are against you, pound the table and yell like hell”
Heh.
That’s starting to resemble Hegel’s formula *Thesis>Anti-Thesis>Syn-Thesis*
wherein each tragically bears the seeds of their individual destruction.
The table-pounding hysterical yelling is a sort of answer to neo’s question: “How do you solve a problem like Kamala?”
You don’t. You let her bellow and destroy herself!
@ huxley > QuoteInvestigator to the rescue.
PS AesopSpouse heard this aphorism many times in law school.
https://quoteinvestigator.com/2010/07/04/legal-adage/