Shabibilicious

Don't think of it as pot stirring.....Consider it more of a friendly reminder that words matter.....And printed words last forever. As always, just my opinion. GO RV, then BV

GO RV, then BV

Hannity: Wear The Masks, People — They Work! ED MORRISSEYPosted at 2:01 pm on June 30, 2020 Did Fox News decide to stage an intervention on behalf of Donald Trump? Over the last 24 hours, two of the hosts in their top-rated lineup have gone out of their way to rebut conservative skepticism over mask-wearing in public venues. No lesser MAGA personality than Sean Hannity launched his show last night to reinforce the notion that masks work to control the spread of COVID-19. “Look, anecdotally, I was in the epicenter of this,” Hannity said, discussing how his grocery store’s customers have all masked up. “No one at my grocery store, thank God, got coronavirus,” he declared. “I think they work.” Did Hannity have a particular audience member in mind for this PSA? (Via Twitchy) If Hannity meant this message for one superfan in particular, perhaps so did Steve Doocy. Earlier this morning, Doocy suggested that MAGA should stand for “Masks are Great Again” and urged the Fox & Friends audience to put them on. “I don’t see any downside to the president wearing one,” Doocy tells Ronna McDaniel, who says that the president is trying to put together a balancing act on reopening. That’s when Doocy offers his “marketing advice” on rebranding MAGA: Maybe these two PSAs are just a coincidence, or perhaps just two hosts independently coming to the same conclusion that Trump’s disdain for masks might cost him the election. As AP noted yesterday, they wouldn’t be the first; Mitch McConnell has gotten much more vocal about his support for wearing masks in public, too. McConnell’s message that we should put “no stigma” on wearing masks seems aimed at the Oval Office as well as some of his allies on Capitol Hill, whose own mask-wearing practices are less than disciplined. How does this relate to Trump’s re-election? For one thing, his support among seniors has reportedly dropped, and they are one of his core electoral bases. Seniors are higher risk for contracting the disease, and the more people mask up, the safer they are. With Trump suggesting that it’s not important to wear masks, it makes seniors less likely to get out of their houses, and might be adding resentment to the COVID-19 isolation they are experiencing. More importantly, though, a broad usage of masks might prevent more economic damage. Goldman Sachs issued a note yesterday that claimed a national mask “mandate” could prevent a -5% GDP hit in 2020: That alone could make the difference between a second MAGA term or a Joe Biden presidency. As Doocy explicitly argued, a national push for mask-wearing might be the key to really reopening the economy and avoiding a second wave of lengthy lockdowns. Will Trump get the message from Hannity and Doocy? Thus far he’s been resistant to wearing masks even while his own advisors keep pushing mask use publicly. If Hannity and Doocy can make masks cool on the Right, though, perhaps Trump will get out in front of that trend. https://hotair.com/archives/ed-morrissey/2020/06/30/hannity-wear-masks-people-work/ GO RV, then BV

‘It would just set a good example’: Trump’s allies push him to embrace masks Quint Forgey , Politico•June 30, 2020 Republican leaders and right-leaning media on Tuesday promoted the use of protective masks to a degree yet unseen during the coronavirus pandemic — casting them as crucial to facilitating an economic reopening while contending with President Donald Trump’s continued reluctance to cover his face in public. The abrupt shift in conservative thought, which coincides with a surge of Covid-19 cases nationwide, reflects both overwhelming popular opinion and the undisputed counsel of health experts on the subject of masks. But the new line of messaging also breaks with a president who has called into question the efficacy of face coverings and contributed to their politicization across American culture. That tension was apparent early Tuesday, when a traditionally friendly messenger targeted Trump with an appeal from the set of his favorite morning cable news show. “I think that if the president wore one, it would just set a good example. He’d be a good role model. I don’t see any downside to the president wearing a mask in public,” said “Fox & Friends” co-host Steve Doocy during an interview with Ronna McDaniel, chair of the Republican National Committee. Doocy went on to pitch the party chief an updated play on Trump’s signature campaign slogan. “‘MAGA’ should now stand for ‘Masks Are Great Again.’ Let me give you some marketing advice right there,” he told McDaniel. The request from Doocy, whom Trump has reportedly ranked as a 12 on a 1-to-10 loyalty scale of Fox News correspondents, came just hours after another of the network’s stars, Sean Hannity, offered an endorsement of mask-wearing on his nightly prime-time program. “I was in the epicenter of this. I went to my grocery store every week. Guess what? They wore masks. Nobody at my grocery store, thank God, got coronavirus,” Hannity, a close ally of the White House and confidant of the president’s, said Monday. “I think they work,” he continued. “And I said — especially if I wear a mask and it opens up baseball, concerts, NFL football — I’d rather wear the mask and go to the game to protect Grandma, Grandpa, Mom and Dad and watch the ballgame.” Elected Republicans as senior as Vice President Mike Pence and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have urged Americans in recent days to wear masks outside their homes if they are unable to socially distance. Health experts within the Trump administration have stressed the same recommendations. “It is critical that we all take personal responsibility to slow the transmission of Covid and embrace the universal use of face coverings,” Robert Redfield, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told congressional lawmakers Tuesday. But the president himself remains resistant to donning a face covering during public appearances, mocking a reporter who wore one during a White House news conference in May and describing masks as a “double-edge sword” in an interview with The Wall Street Journal just two weeks ago. Trump’s dismissive attitude toward masks has elicited consistent rebukes from top Democratic congressional leaders and former Vice President Joe Biden, his presumptive general election opponent, who have signaled support for a national directive requiring all Americans to wear masks. “We absolutely need a clear message from the very top of our federal government that everyone needs to wear a mask in public. Period. Period,” Biden said Tuesday during a speech in Wilmington, Del., focused on Trump’s handling of the pandemic. “It’s a simple measure. It’s also one of the most effective ways we can do the right thing,” he added. “It may be inconvenient. It may be uncomfortable. But it’s the right thing to do as an American. Protect your co-workers and neighbors.” Eighty percent of registered voters polled by Fox News earlier this month have a favorable view of mask-wearers, and 89 percent of Americans said they had covered their face in public in the previous week, according to an ABC News/Ipsos survey published last Thursday. The latest entreaties by GOP officials are in response to spikes in new coronavirus cases cropping up throughout the American South, including in the nation’s most populous states: California, Florida and Texas. The U.S. as a whole has similarly registered single-day records in new infections over the past week, and governors have been forced to pause their states’ reopening plans. The president has not made any marked effort to encourage mask use amid the precipitous climbs in caseloads, instead insistently emphasizing the need to jump-start the national economy. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, however, argued Tuesday that personal mitigation measures such as mask-wearing and frequent hand-washing were helpful tools to prevent another spate of financially draining stay-at-home orders. A report by Goldman Sachs economists released Monday suggested that a national mask mandate “could potentially substitute for lockdowns that would otherwise subtract” nearly 5 percent of country’s gross domestic product. “For my home state, I do believe in wearing masks. I do not want to shut the economy back down,” the California Republican told “Fox & Friends.” He also agreed with Doocy’s assessment that it would be a “powerful symbol” for Trump to wear a mask in public. “It would,” McCarthy said. “I mean, for the Fourth of July, we could all show our patriotism with a red, white and blue mask, going out there and showing some strength.” Even Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, appeared to come around Tuesday to the concept of face coverings after officials in Jacksonville — the Florida city where the Republican National Convention is scheduled to be held in August — announced a mask requirement for indoor public places. “I think we’re going to make sure that everything is done in a safe and appropriate manner,” Trump Jr. told Fox Business. “You know, I don’t think that it’s too complicated to wear a mask or wash your hands and follow basic hygiene protocols.” https://news.yahoo.com/fox-friends-host-trump-wear-122939015.html GO RV, then BV

Politics Trump defense on Russian bounty story falls flat, even with Republicans David Knowles Editor Yahoo News•June 30, 2020 Scroll back up to restore default view. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany continued to defend President Trump on Tuesday in the wake of reporting by the New York Times and confirmation by other news outlets that intelligence officials had concluded in 2019 that Russia’s government offered bounties to Taliban fighters for killing American troops in Afghanistan. One day after telling reporters that Trump had not been briefed on the alleged Russian bounties — contradicting reports that the intelligence was included in at least one President’s Daily Brief in 2019 — McEnany was asked why the president does not read those documents. Numerous insider accounts of Trump’s time in the White House portray him as having a short attention span and demanding information be presented orally or graphically, rather than in written form. “The president does read,” McEnany responded. “And he also consumes intelligence verbally. This president, I’ll tell you, is the most informed person on planet earth when it comes to the threats that we face.” But the wave of outrage over the reports, in which at least a few Republicans joined, did not abate Tuesday. After criticizing the Times for publishing its initial story on the bounties paid by Russia, McEnany also took aim at presumed leakers in the intelligence community. Asked if intelligence officials could be seeking to embarrass the president with leaks about the Russian program, McEnany replied, “It very possibly could be, and if that’s the case it’s despicable.” Former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, said Tuesday that the Russian bounty story was evidence of a concerning pattern. “This president talks about cognitive capability. He doesn’t seem to be cognitively aware of what’s going on,” Biden said. “He either reads and/or gets briefed on important issues, and he forgets it, or he doesn’t think it’s necessary that he need to know it.” The intelligence community finding that Vladimir Putin’s government paid Taliban fighters to kill Americans in Afghanistan was relayed to Trump in person more than a year ago, former national security adviser John Bolton said Monday. “He can disown everything if nobody ever told him about it,” said Bolton, whose memoir, “The Room Where It Happened,” paints a damning picture of a disengaged, ignorant and impulsive Trump. Trump has often spoken warmly of his personal relationship with the Russian president and has pursued policies that appear to align with Russian interests, including relocating some American troops from bases in Germany and seeking to have Russia readmitted to the G-7. Russia was expelled from the compact in 2014 as punishment for invading Ukraine and annexing Crimea. At the same time, he has boasted of his “toughness” toward Moscow, and McEnany insisted that “no president has been as tough on Russia as this president.” “This is as bad as it gets, and yet the president will not confront the Russians on this score,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday in response to the story in the Times. Some Republicans, including Trump allies, have also been critical of the administration in the wake of reporting about Russia’s actions and the lack of an administration response. Locked in a tough reelection fight, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., suggested Tuesday that Russia should be designated as a state sponsor of terrorism. While Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that briefings given by the White House to members of the Senate Republicans were “appropriate,” he added that he did not “have an observation about what may have happened” regarding Trump’s knowledge of the bounties. Asked if Russia should be allowed back in the G-7, McConnell replied, “Absolutely not.” At least two PACs opposed to Trump, VoteVets and the Lincoln Project, released ads over the weekend attacking the administration on the issue. Cindy McCain, the widow of Sen. John McCain, who clashed with Trump in the year before he died, also weighed in: _____ https://news.yahoo.com/trump-defense-on-russian-bounty-story-falls-flat-even-with-republicans-234205365.html GO RV, then BV

Noted and fair enough, to the "Righties" anyway. Take care. GO RV, then BV

Ahh....Washington Examiner "OPINION" piece. GO RV, then BV

Your continued divisiveness does no favors for Pitcher....as he now either pushes back on your comments and confirms his equal justice proponent chops....or lose all credibility by doing nothing. You built that. GO RV, then BV

I denounce any and all violence and vandalism by those who infiltrate the ranks of peaceful protesters practicing their constitutionally protected right to peaceably assemble.....Just as I denounce Trump's militant actions in Lafayette Square against peaceful protesters. Violence is violence and it should be denounced on all levels. That's where I stand. GO RV, then BV

As is everybody's right.....Keep on keeping on. GO RV, then BV

That's a good point....keeping Trump phoneless at the golf course protects us all from further division. Plus from me. GO RV, then BV

I notice you didn't call out the post directly above the Trump Baby Blimp picture and it's divisive words.....Those words must fit a like minded narrative of yours, eh? Funny thing is, you're the man who is always preaching about sad world of double standards. P.S....don't be like Trump, wear your mask....protect those around you and yourself. Also, as I've told you multiple times....if you're going to post to me, berate me or otherwise....you really need to quote me. You're better than this, Pitch. GO RV, then BV

True enough.....nothing to see here Christian conservative Trump supporters....just the pOTUS retweeting his support for racism. Go back to what you were doing, blinders engaged. GO RV, then BV

Politics Trump's 'white power' retweet set off 'five-alarm fire' in White House Carol E. Lee and Kristen Welker , NBC News•June 29, 2020 Scroll back up to restore default view. President Donald Trump set off a "five-alarm fire" in the White House on Sunday morning after he retweeted a video of one of his supporters saying "white power," according to two White House officials. The video remained on the president's Twitter page, where he has 82 million followers, for more than three hours because White House officials couldn't reach him to ask him to delete it, the two officials said. The president was at his golf club in Virginia and had put his phone down, the officials said. Aides also tried unsuccessfully to reach deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino to ask him to delete the retweet, officials said. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., added to the urgency when he called the tweet "indefensible" and demanded that the president take it down during an interview on CNN, the officials said. Once officials were able to reach the president, he agreed to delete it, they said. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and senior adviser Jared Kushner were among those trying to contain the fallout. McEnany said Monday that Trump had watched the video before retweeting it but didn't hear his supporter say "white power." Officials said the president gets a deluge of content from aides and allies, with one of them saying the "white power" incident was a "lesson to all of us in the White House to be more aware of what's out there." In April, the president retweeted a posting that included the hashtag "#FireFauci." When asked at the time whether he had noticed the hashtag when he retweeted it, the president said, "Yeah, I notice everything." https://news.yahoo.com/trumps-white-power-retweet-set-011126104.html The pOTUS (leader of the free world) couldn't be reached for more than 3 hours because he was golfing......Every registered voter needs to let that sink in. GO RV, then BV

GO RV, then BV