Donald Trump (image via Flickr/WhiteHouse) Donald Trump’s job approval has dropped to 39% as protests regarding racial injustice have endured for weeks across the country. From Gallup:
The decline in approval returns the metric to a level last seen in October, shortly after the House of Representatives launched an impeachment inquiry into Trump’s dealings with the Ukraine government.
Trump’s latest job approval rating fell significantly among all party groups, and by similar margins among each. This includes drops of seven percentage points among Republicans (to 85%) and independents (to 39%), and nine points among Democrats (to 5%).
Republicans’ approval of Trump is the lowest it has been since September 2018 (also 85%).
(graphic via Gallup) In related news, Trump was so incensed over a recent CNN poll showing him 14 points (55% – 41%) behind former Vice President Joe Biden, his campaign sent the cable news network a ‘cease and desist’ letter demanding a retraction and apology. “We stand by our poll,” responded CNN. The CNN survey found the Donald’s approval rating at 38% and his disapproval rating at 57 percent. That puts Trump on par with former one-term Presidents Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush at this point in their presidencies.
The Politico-Morning Consult poll released Wednesday morning found that 27 percent of respondents somewhat or strongly agree that Trump is religious, compared to 55 percent who somewhat or strongly disagree.
Slightly more than a third of self-identified Christians see Trump as religious, pollsters noted, while half say he is not.
Forty percent of evangelicals also agreed that Trump was a man of faith, while 33 percent disagreed.
A total of 23 percent of Catholics and 18 percent of independents supported the statement that Trump is religious.
Only majorities of ideological conservatives — 55 percent — and Republicans — 60 percent — said they see the president as religious.
The poll was conducted after Trump’s disastrous visits to two prominent religious venues (St. John’s Episcopal Church and Saint John Paul II National Shrine) last week. Trump was promptly excoriated for using the church for political theater.
In an interview with his former White House press secretary Sean Spicer last week, Trump, who infrequently attends church services, was asked whether he’s “grown in his faith” since becoming president.
“So I think maybe I have, from the standpoint that I see so much that I can do,” answered Trump before adding, “I’ve done so much for religion.”
Donald Trump (photo: public domain/Flickr)The Daily Beastreports that, in an effort to buoy Donald Trump’s temper tantrums regarding his falling approval numbers, his campaign has begun running pro-Trump ads in the Washington, D.C. area on networks the Donald is sure to watch.
With their boss growing increasingly agitated with the state of his re-election campaign and with the efforts of Republican critics to undermine it, President Donald Trump’s team hatched a plan. They’d run a series of hard-hitting ads and place them on networks that they knew the president and congressional Republicans would watch.
And so, over the past month, the Trump campaign has spent slightly more than $400,000 on cable news ads in the Washington, D.C., area, buying time largely on Fox News but with some smaller buys on CNN and MSNBC as well, according to filings with the Federal Communications Commission. The ads began running in late May and are scheduled through June 23.
It is, on a purely electoral level, a remarkably quixotic use of campaign cash. The purchases have no real shot of moving D.C., Maryland, or Virginia into the Trump column.
Former Vice President Joe Biden (image via Instagram) Former Vice President Joe Biden officially crossed the threshold to secure the 2020 Democratic nomination for president. From NBC News:
Joe Biden won enough delegates on Saturday to become the Democratic presidential nominee in November’s election against President Donald Trump, NBC News projects.
To win the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination on the first ballot at the party’s convention, a candidate must receive support from a majority of pledged delegates — at least 1,991 of the total 3,979 pledged delegates available.
Heading into the weekend, Biden had already amassed a projected 1,970 pledged delegates after winning a series of Democratic primaries on June 2. He now has 2,000, according to NBC News.
(image via NBC News)Real Clear Politics’ average of polls shows Biden leading Trump in national polls, which don’t mean much, by 7.1 points. More importantly, although it’s was early, Biden leads in every swing state poll RCP is tracking. (image via RealClearPolitics)
The U.S. Park Police on Friday attempted to parse its previous statement declaring it did not use tear gas on crowds near the White House Monday prior to Donald Trump’s photo opp in front of a nearby church. From Vox:
A US Park Police spokesperson said in an interview it was a “mistake” to insist in a statement on Tuesday that it didn’t use tear gas the day before in Lafayette Square to disperse a crowd ahead of President Trump’s photo op, explicitly noting that pepper balls shot by officials irritate the eyes and cause tears.
“The point is we admitted to using what we used,” Sgt. Eduardo Delgado said. “I think the term ‘tear gas’ doesn’t even matter anymore. It was a mistake on our part for using ‘tear gas’ because we just assumed people would think CS or CN,” two common forms of tear gas.
“I’m not going to say that pepper balls don’t irritate you,” Delgado said, noting they contain capsicum, an irritant derived from pepper plants. “I’m not saying it’s not a tear gas, but I’m just saying we use a pepper ball that shoots a powder.”
The original statement from acting Chief Gregory Monahan said that no tear gas was used by any federal force present, but that the Park Police itself “employed smoke canisters and pepper balls.” Pepper spray is a naturally derived chemical irritant that causes many effects similar to that of common types of tear gas, including temporary blindness and a burning sensation in the nose. At the end of the day, it becomes an issue of semantics. The authorities did fire irritating pepper spray and smoke grenades at peaceful protesters so that the Donald could have his awkward photo opp. Let me know if you think these non-violent protesters were fired upon in the video below.
As I’ve pointed out in the past, while national polls may provide a snapshot of the mood of the American electorate, it’s polling in about seven swing states (Wisconsin, Michigan, Florida, Arizona, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Minnesota) that you would want to keep an eye on. A new Fox News poll shows former Vice President Joe Biden leading Donald Trump by 9 points in the vital swing state of Wisconsin.
Majorities of Wisconsin voters rate the economy negatively and are concerned about coronavirus. That helps explain Democrat Joe Biden’s gains in the presidential race, in a Fox News Poll of Wisconsin registered voters released Wednesday.
Biden has a 9-point edge over President Donald Trump, 49-40 percent. That’s up from a 5-point advantage in January, and is outside the poll’s margin of sampling error. Another 11 percent are uncommitted.
A big reason Trump trails Biden is lack of party support: 85 percent of Republicans back him, while 93 percent of Democrats support Biden. Eight percent of Republicans defect to Biden. In addition, only 87 percent of those who approve of Trump’s job performance support his reelection.
Biden leads Trump by 14 points on job handling of the coronavirus health threat and 22 points on race relations. Only 22 percent view the economy in a positive light, while 76 percent rate it as fair or poor. Biden’s favorable rating (52 percent) is 8 points higher than his unfavorable (44 percent). Trump, however, is upside down by 12 points (43 favorable, 55 unfavorable). Trump’s strongest backing comes from (no surprise here) white men without a college degree (+19 points), white evangelical Christians (+29), and self-described very conservatives (+81). But Biden scores stronger support among women (+20 points), suburban voters (+14), and independents (+8). Of those voters who describe themselves as ‘extremely interested’ in the upcoming election, Biden holds a 15 point lead over Trump (55-40 percent). Also – there are more Biden supporters who say they are ‘extremely motivated’ to vote in the upcoming election (71 percent) than Trump supporters (63 percent) who say the same.
Ret. General James Mattis (photo: Defense Dept) Since his resignation as Defense Secretary in December 2018, James Mattis has remained silent regarding Donald Trump’s performance as president. Mattis resigned as secretary of defense after the Trump administration announced a withdrawal of troops from Syria, citing differing views with the administration. But in an extraordinary statement, the decorated Marine general expresses his support for those protesting, calls out Trump for dividing the nation, and denounces the ordering of uniformed military to ‘dominate’ American citizens. Via The Atlantic:
Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership.
We can unite without him, drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society. This will not be easy, as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens; to past generations that bled to defend our promise; and to our children.
[snip]
We know that we are better than the abuse of executive authority that we witnessed in Lafayette Park. We must reject and hold accountable those in office who would make a mockery of our Constitution. At the same time, we must remember Lincoln’s “better angels,” and listen to them, as we work to unite.
Only by adopting a new path—which means, in truth, returning to the original path of our founding ideals—will we again be a country admired and respected at home and abroad.
The number of senior LGBTQs is expected to double in the next 10 years Some news items you might have missed: • LGBTQ Nation: Experts say there are 2.4 million LGBTQ seniors in the U.S. and that number is projected to reach seven million by 2030. Check out this list of organizations that offer valuable resources for aging LGBTQ people. • Instinct: The British government has announced that strangers (or couples living apart from each other) are no longer legally allowed to have sex for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. The text of the legislation outlaws indoor gatherings “when two or more people are present together in the same place in order to engage in any form of social interaction with each other or to undertake any other activity with each other.” • Pink News: Levi’s has released a pair of denim chaps for Pride Month which are apparently “inspired by the resilience and beauty” of the LGBT+ community. The Pride offering is described as a “classic Levi’s silhouette, reimagined as a pair of unapologetically bold chaps.” #ThingsThatMakeYouGoHmm(image via Levi’s) • The Advocate: The state of Minnesota has filed a human rights complaint against the Minneapolis Police Department following the death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who died last week while being pinned him to the ground by a white police officer. The Minnesota Department of Human Rights will begin an investigation into the MPD’s conduct over the past decade to determine if officers “engaged in systemic discriminatory practices.” • New York Times: The ongoing protests across the country have spurred political campaign donations to Democrats via their ActBlue website. Between Friday and Monday, the online donor platform processed over $60 million in donations. • NowThis News: Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, the bishop who oversees St. John’s Episcopalian Church in Washington DC, was outraged over the use of force on peaceful protesters and church clergy by Donald Trump. Bible in hand, Trump posed awkwardly for a photo and then walked away from the chaos, but many are calling this an abuse of power and a dangerous stifling of the 1st Amendment right to peaceful protest.
L-R President Donald Trump, former Vice President Joe Biden As in previous years, President Donald Trump did not issue a presidential proclamation recognizing June as Pride Month. Now, I realize we are in the middle of a global pandemic, skyrocketing unemployment and racially-charged protests across the nation. But Trump’s office did manage, in the last days of May, to prepare proclamations recognizing June as Great Outdoors Month, National Ocean Month, and National Homeownership Month, to name just a few. Last year, Trump broke his silence of the previous two years to dispatch – no, not a proclamation – but two tweets wherein he lauded his administration’s “global campaign to decriminalize homosexuality” around the world. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1134538168324300800 You may recall when he was initially asked about the effort in February 2019, he didn’t know anything about it. But this year? Nothing. Trump has, however, been selling an uninspired, rainbow-themed campaign t-shirt on his website for months, so…there’s that. Contrast that with former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, who penned a lengthy statement honoring the 50th anniversary of LGBTQ Pride. https://twitter.com/JoeBiden/status/1267650896562843648 Noting the first Pride event occurred a year after the Stonewall protests, Biden remarked on past progress by the LGBTQ community from Harvey Milk’s election to office in San Francisco to the historic candidacy of Pete Buttigieg, the first openly gay mayor to run for president. He also pointed to positive steps made during the Obama-Biden Administration including “signing the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law; repealed Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell; addressed the epidemic of bullying in schools; established the advancement of LGBTQ+ equality as a foreign policy priority; and the White House beamed bright with the colors of the rainbow to mark the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision recognizing marriage equality.” I’ll note here that the Obama-Biden administration issued presidential proclamations recognizing Pride Month 8 years in a row. Biden then shifted his focus forward to the damage done to the LGBTQ community by the Trump-Pence administration. “Donald Trump and Mike Pence have systematically used the power of the White House as a literal bully pulpit to undermine LGBTQ+ rights,” he wrote. “They have given safe harbor to white supremacists and other forms of hate. Predictably, we’ve experienced a rise in hate crimes targeting LGBTQ+ people.” Biden mentions just some of the ways Team Trump has worked to reduce rights and protections for LGBTQ people including banning transgender individuals from serving in the U.S. military, denying LGBTQ people access from critical health care, and ignoring the “epidemic of violence” against trans people. “This is wrong,” Biden continued. “We must send a clear message that hatred and bigotry have no place in America or on the world stage.” He promises that, as President, he will “take swift action to reverse these odious policies and advance our progress toward ending discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals.” “There are dark and challenging realities ahead that we cannot ignore,” he adds before striking an upbeat tone. “Yet, I remain optimistic because I believe in who we are as a nation. I believe in the story of this country and the LGBTQ+ community.” You can read the full text of Biden’s statement on the 50th Anniversary of Pride here.
Protesters in Washington, D.C. (screen capture) Donald Trump tweeted a message of self-congratulatory tidings for the “domination” of protesters in Washington, D.C. Monday night. The Hillreports, “Officers arrested scores of demonstrators who continued to gather and march downtown, and military helicopters were used to try to disperse individuals by hovering above them to produce intense gusts and noise.” Military helicopters and tear gas were reportedly used throughout the evening to break up active protests both before and after the 7pm curfew. Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was spotted roaming the streets of Washington in his military uniform. Attorney General William Barr was seen monitoring the situation in plain clothes. Trump tweeted, “D.C. had no problems last night. Many arrests. Great job done by all. Overwhelming force. Domination. Likewise, Minneapolis was great (thank you President Trump!).”
D.C. had no problems last night. Many arrests. Great job done by all. Overwhelming force. Domination. Likewise, Minneapolis was great (thank you President Trump!).
