Lazy Saturday Reads: Clinton’s Embarrassing Memory Error and Escalating Violence at Trump Rallies
Posted: March 12, 2016 Filed under: morning reads, U.S. Politics | Tags: Bernie Sanders, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, presidential debates, presidential primaries and caucuses 51 Comments
Probably nothing to worry about: People raise arms pledging to vote for Trump at the University of Central Florida on March 5, 2016 in Orlando (h/t Slate) Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Good Morning!!
It has been a long and disturbing week for us political junkies. On Sunday night there was the Democratic debate from Flint. We’ve had a number of presidential primaries and caucuses, two Democratic debates and a Democratic town hall, and a Republican debate.
We watched one of the most famous and accomplished women in the world be shushed at the debate in Flint, MI by the 74-year-old not-quite-so-accomplished white man who is running against her.
We watched as debate moderators in Miami asked her “who gave you permission” to use a private email server; and suggested she might be indicted for doing what past Secretaries of State and high level government employees have been doing forever. We cringed as she was forced to respond to insulting questions about why some people don’t like or trust her.
Yesterday we saw her viciously attacked after she made an embarrassing mistake while trying to say something kind about Nancy Reagan at the latter’s funeral. Yes, she made a serious gaffe, but she immediately apologized with no hedging or excuse-making. Note that her opponent has never apologized for a single thing he has said or done–including his sexist behavior and comments.
On the Republican side, we watched another shudder-inducing debate and the country witnessed escalating violence and hate speech at Donald Trump’s rallies.
Rock Hudson at the White House a year before his death from AIDS
On the Nancy Reagan story, I think what Hillary was probably thinking of was Nancy’s efforts later in the Reagan years to convince her husband to soften his stance on funding AIDS research. It was too little, too late, but it did in fact make a difference in terms of making the AIDS epidemic more visible to the millions of Americans who had previously been ignorant about it. From The Advocate: Remembering Nancy Reagan, Her Involvement in AIDS Crisis.
She is being remembered today as the creator of the “Just Say No” to drugs advertising campaign, but most importantly as a powerful ally for her husband, not shy about speaking her mind on political matters affecting Ronald Reagan throughout his career, including as governor of California.
Her husband, though, is notorious among LGBT activists who survived the Reagan presidency, when the AIDS crisis raged, and when the president largely ignored the problem. Reagan didn’t give a formal speech about the epidemic until 1987, after thousands had died. In 1985, he was named The Advocate’s Homophobe of the Year and repeatedly made that annual list.
Nancy Reagan is sometimes credited with pushing her husband to do something about AIDS, and he eventually supported some funding for research. The death of their friend, actor Rock Hudson, is often referred to as a pivotal moment.
But, the Advocate notes, the Reagans refused to help a dying Hudson when he begged them to get him admitted to a French military hospital that supposedly had a “special treatment.” Nancy’s friend Elizabeth Taylor reportedly asked Nancy to get in involved in the AIDS issue, and Nancy was “frosty” about it. However, Nancy later supported marriage equality, according to her daughter Patti.
“She does,” Davis said during a radio interview with Michelangelo Signorile. “I’m hesitant to speak for anyone else, and she’s not comfortable going out in the public eye and getting in the firing line of anything. So, you know, I want to be cautious about speaking on someone else’s behalf. But let me put it this way: I think if she had disagreed with what I said publicly about my father she would have said something publicly. … Let’s just put it that way. That’s the most sort of politically correct way I can answer that question.”
The first same-sex couple to room together at the White House might also be due to Nancy Reagan. According to a 1984 column reportedly published in the Washington Post, interior decorator Ted Graber spent the night with Archie Case while celebrating Nancy Reagan’s 60th birthday.
The Advocate also linked to some PBS clips about Nancy’s role in the AIDS crisis.
C. Everet Koop
Ronald Reagan’s Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, a right wing Christian, also made efforts to deal with the AIDS epidemic. From Slate:
When C. Everett Koop accepted his post as the U.S. surgeon general in 1982, few thought he would become one of the most outspoken advocates of sex education in public schools. Koop was an emerging leader within the Christian pro-life movement, and his conservative credentials caught the attention of Ronald Reagan’s team, who approached him about serving as surgeon general even before the 1980 election. Koop’s appointment reflected Reagan’s appreciation for the conservative evangelicals who voted him into office.
Much more at the link.
Hillary’s words were hurtful to many people, and everyone has the right to feel anger, disappointment, forgiveness, or any other emotional reaction. However, she did quickly realize her mistake and she immediately apologized. I hope she isn’t going to be crucified for it. History is complex and so are people, and human memory is often inaccurate.
Now on to another issue that involves not just words, but actions–the escalating violence at Donald Trump’s campaign rallies.
Last night hundreds of protesters disrupted a Trump rally in Chicago, causing Trump to abruptly cancel his appearance at the University of Illinois Chicago. CNN reports:
Donald Trump’s campaign on Friday postponed a rally in Chicago amid fights between supporters and demonstrators, protests in the streets and concerns that the environment at the event was no longer safe.
The announcement, which came amid large protests both inside and outside the event at the University of Illinois at Chicago, follows heightened concerns about violence in general at the GOP front-runner’s rallies. Illinois holds its Republican primary on Tuesday.
Hundreds of demonstrators packed into an arena, breaking out into protest even before Trump had shown up. At least five sections in the arena were filled with protesters.
“Mr. Trump just arrived in Chicago, and after meeting with law enforcement, has determined that for the safety of all of the tens of thousands of people that have gathered in and around the arena, tonight’s rally will be postponed to another date,” the Trump campaign said in a statement. “Thank you very much for your attendance and please go in peace.”
Demonstrators celebrate after Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump cancelled his rally at the University of Illinois in Chicago March 11, 2016. REUTERS/Kamil Krzaczynski
Chicago police later said they did not recommend cancelling the rally. That was Trump’s decision.
Several fistfights between Trump supporters and protesters could be seen after the announcement, as a large contingent of Chicago police officers moved in to restore order.
Supporters of Trump still inside chanted “We want Trump” after the event was canceled. Protesters, meanwhile, shouted “We shut s*** down” and “We stumped Trump.” Others chanted “Bernie” as supporters whipped out Bernie Sanders campaign signs.
Some protesters were being detained and forcefully carried out.
Earlier in the day there were problems at a Trump rally in St. Louis. KTLA reports: Violence Erupts at Donald Trump Rally in St. Louis; At Least 32 People Arrested.
Thousands of people attended the Missouri rally, and “battle lines” were drawn between supporters and protesters, MSNBC reporter Trymaine Lee tweeted.
At least 32 people were arrested in protests both inside and outside Trump’s rally at the Peabody Opera House, police said.
Thirty-one people were charged with disturbing the peace, and one was charged with third-degree assault. St. Louis police declined to provide further details….
At the scene in St. Louis, one man was seen with a blood-spattered shirt and tissues inside his nose, apparently stopping blood from flowing.
In video posted online, he could be heard saying, “he sucker punched me.”
It was not clear what led to his injury, and he was receiving medical treatment, according to a Black Lives Matter supporter who used the Twitter username @southards_3.
Protesters outside Trump’s rally in St. Louis yesterday. Getty images.
Here’s what Trump was saying during the St. Louis event, according to the Chicago Tribune:
Facing intensifying criticism for the violent clashes between supporters and protesters that have come to define his rallies, GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump on Friday continued to taunt those who interrupt his events while promising that police and security would be “gentle” as they removed them.
“They’re allowed to get up and interrupt us horribly and we have to be very, very gentle,” Trump said in response to one of nearly a dozen interruptions as he spoke in St. Louis at the regal Peabody Opera House. “They can swing and hit people, but if we hit them back, it’s a terrible, terrible thing, right?”
Throughout his speech, Trump was deeply critical of the protesters, all of whom appeared to leave the venue largely without incident. Police later said that 31 people were arrested and charged with general peace disturbance, and one person was charged outside the venue with third-degree assault.
He panned the protesters as weak “troublemakers,” ordered them to “go home to mommy” or “go home and get a job” because “they contribute nothing.”
“These are not good people, just so you understand,” Trump said. “These are not the people who made our country great. These are the people that are destroying our country.”
This kind of encouragement of attacks on protesters has become standard behavior for Trump at his campaign appearances.
As Trump attempts to unify a fractured Republican Party, racially charged images of his supporters attacking protesters and allegations that he’s inciting violence have cast new attention on the divisive nature of his candidacy.
It intensified this week, when a North Carolina man was arrested after video footage showed him punching an African-American protester being led out of a rally in that state on Wednesday. At the event, the billionaire real estate mogul recalled a past protester as “a real bad dude.”
“He was a rough guy, and he was punching. And we had some people — some rough guys like we have right in here — and they started punching back,” Trump said. “It was a beautiful thing.”
Is this man really someone Americans want in the White House with access to nuclear codes?
For comparison: Ovation for Hitler in the Reichstag after announcing the successful Anschluss, 1938
Nick Gass at Politico on the St. Louis speech: Trump: ‘There used to be consequences’ for protesting.
“Part of the problem and part of the reason it takes so long [to kick them out] is nobody wants to hurt each other anymore,” Trump said during a speech at the Peabody Opera House — around 12 miles from Ferguson, Mo., the site of racially charged mass protests in 2014.
“There used to be consequences. There are none anymore,” Trump said. “These people are so bad for our country. You have no idea folks, you have no idea.” ….
“These people are so bad for our country, folks. You have no idea,” Trump continued during a longer break in the action. “They contribute nothing. Nothing. And look at the police, they take their lives in their hands.”
“We don’t even win here, with protesters anymore” he complained. “The protesters end up taking over. And frankly, I mean, have to be honest: From my standpoint it makes it a little more exciting, and it gives me time to think about where I want to go next. It’s beautiful. It’s like intermission. And the guys that are near the event, they see some pretty good stuff.”
Then Trump lashed out at the media.
“And these people in the media, the most dishonest human beings on Earth. They are the worst. They are the worst. So what they’ll do is they’ll take 10 minutes worth of clips of that and if one policeman accidentally moves a finger and touches this wiseguy, it’s like, ‘Oh, it’s the worst thing I’ve ever seen.’ And yet the police are being abused for 10 minutes, OK? ” he said. “Give me a break. Give me a break. We better toughen up, we better smarten up, and we better stop with this political correctness because it’s driving us down the tubes.”
After the events in St. Louis and Chicago, Trump cancelled an appearance in downtown Cincinnati. He has now rescheduled it at a suburban location.
A couple more links:
Mashable: All the times Trump has called for violence at his rallies.
Mother Jones: This Is What It Looks Like to Get Beat Up at a Trump Rally. Here are 10 really ugly incidents.
What are your thoughts on Hillary’s gaffe and Donald’s inciting of violence? What other stories are you following today?
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