Will Trump & the RNC repudiate authoritarianism and instead embrace bipartisanship and world peace? Or are they going to continue driving the GOP down the fascist road?
There is no reason to tone down the facts of GOP hypocritical rhetoric. Blame the violence on the fact of GOP unwillingness to act on getting as many guns in the streets as they can. An increase in the number of guns everywhere is the cause of more violence and only the GOP is responsible for it. Push it down their throats for however long it takes.
Yes, Mr. Conway. Good analysis. The country is already polarized and the Republicans are doing nothing to reduce their outrageous rhetoric. Now is not the time for Democrats to back off. They backed off when Al Gore was denied his win by the Supreme Court and we got the W, Iraq and Afghanistan. They backed off when they followed the advice of "party leaders" to dump Bernie Sanders in favor of Hillary and we got the Orange Face. The Dems have shot our collective foot in in the past. I fear they shall do it again.
...and we pretty much know that if TFG loses the election to Kamala, he'll push his case up to SCOTUS and we can guess what the RW members will say-"yeah, you won"fair & square." REGARDLESS of how many millions of votes much she wins by.
Tfg will not change who he has proven to be for his entire life. He is a malignant narcissist who cares only about himself. That being said, he has absolutely no redeeming qualities, so no, he will never soften his message. Now it will be about revenge and retribution.
As for the blame game, they will only reinforce the claims made by his VP wannabes, the “radical” left will be held responsible for the attempt on his life.
We must continue to stick to the facts, whether they like it or not: he is an existential threat to democracy and freedom. If we let up, or soften our message, he will have gained the upper hand.
My conservative friend opened a conversation with me this morning by listing U.S. politicians and presidents who’ve been shot, and some assassinated, in our country.
I responded, fairly calmly, with, “I am your retribution. Who said that? I heard that recently. I am your retribution. And, um, something about Second Amendment solutions. Who has been saying things like that? And somebody’s followers were hollering Hang Mike Pence. Huh! Who said all that stuff? Who thinks owning assault weapons is a good thing? I’m so confused!”
He said he didn’t know who said “I am your retribution.” I told him it was the jerk who just got shot in the ear. He said I should calm down…
This is what we’re up against.
We need some SERIOUS strategy and conversational skill to handle the rhetoric and gaslighting that is now to come from the Right Wing.
They are not only going to demonize Democrats (even if the alleged assassin was one of their own). Further, given my lack of decorum, I am going to scream the silent part that everyone is dancing around: it is entirely possible the incident was staged. That is how unstable this society has become. Nothing is as it appears and everything is possible. Donald Trumps donation servers went down several times over the weekend.
My husband noted how surprising it is that Trump appears to have been marched forward through the crowd after the "shooting," rather than hustled out the back surrounded by secret service for protection. He surely got a great photo op from this event, the bloody face, the raised fist juxtaposed on the American flag is just too good. It will become iconic in the MAGA community. Oops, now we are all on that retribution list the MAGAs are creating. So, Rohn, many of us are right there with you. Thanks
As a person with some knowledge of firearms, a "football field" or even two is a lay-up for a trained marksman with a long gun (rifle). "Long range" means the target is more than 600 m (660 yards) away. While "extreme long range" is generally accepted as when the target distance is more than 1,000 m (1,100 yards) away from the shooter. I know some dudes that can knock the asshole off of a butterfly from 600 yards (that is six "football fields). My father was one of them.
Further, having been on a BCT (Body Coverage Team) I really am curious as to how the shooter got that close (and I was an advance team member) and, more importantly, why his detail did not take the principal (Trump) down when the assault occurred. The first thing taught is to cover the the principal (with your body, if necessary) and protect the head. The shot was to Trump's head. The obvious reason is that a head shot is almost always fatal. Yet, Trump's head is exposed while he fist bumps and screams (three times) "fuck you!"
And, lo and behold!, the federal judge in Trump's document indictments dismisses the case this morning.
Rohn I don't detect any hostility in Danel's brief comment. In fact I don't know what he is referring to. I do know this. I qualified expert with the M-16, military version,original version of the AR-15. I even fired off more than a few rounds in combat (not sure that I hit anything other than tree limbs and branches though).
From the diagrams I saw, the shooter was on a roof 145 yards distant, that it quite a distance and and one half football fields..An M16 has iron sights.,it as not designed for long shots, like over a football field in length,
The M-16 is not a sniper rifle, it is a close combat weapon. To be able to come close to a head at 145 yards would require some zeroing in and factoring in the gravity drop,as well as he wind.
The kid was only 20 years old, and not even a trained marksman with no military experience. Even a qualified military expert would have not been able to pull off a head shot.at that distance with an Ar-15 or M-16
Try it yourself, go to a firing range, rent an AR-15, lie prone and see how many rounds it takes to even hit the target much less the bulls eye at 145 yards.
Thank you for your paternalism, but my father has been dead for 28 years. And the day your white ass becomes the proverbial "Watermelon Man" and spends a week as a Black Man in the United States you MIGHT then have some credibility pertinent to "animosity." In fact, the problem with my people, truth be told, is that they are not angry enough. How dare you.
Now, I have tried to be civil with you, but you know I am a believer in Talion Law, and have zero problem dispensing same. In the words of the great James Baldwin: "To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious, is to be in a rage almost all the time." Since you and your inbred friend have such mind-bending insights, why don't you stop riding on my coattails and just thrill the hell out of the world with your own publications?
William, I can shoot the eye out of a squirrel at one foot! Bastards won't let me get that close though!That is why I prefer a shotgun! Wouldn't you know sawed off shotguns are illegal. The best home defense weapon there is. But the assault rifles and bump stocks are legal?
"This kid, at 150 yards, made a great shot," Pickle [Bill Pickle, the former special agent in charge of Al Gore's vice-presidential Secret Service detail}, said Sunday of the would-be assassin, his voice grim. "I don't know the specifics of whether he used optics, meaning a scope on his rifle," he told BI.
"But even with optics, it takes somebody with training to aim at somebody's head from 150 yards away and you actually hit the edge of the head," he said.
"That's not a lucky shot," he added. "That's a guy who actually shot before."
If he had converted it to a machine gun, used a bump stock like all the right wingers support, including the corrupt Supreme Court of the United States, Trump would probably be dead!
When I saw the first footage, Trump reacting and dipping down, then the rush of secret service encircling him, the entire crowd beside him and in back remained immobile. No one in the crowd seemed to see anyone else shot. An automatic weapon held in full burst would present some close bunching. Yet to come, where were the others sitting, how far away. It will be the subsequent reporting on facts not initially reported that I submit should bear close watching, no matter the risk of appearing conspiracy theoretic.
The AR-15 is not an automatic weapon, and when an M-16 (original military version) is fired on full auto, there is muzzle rise, you can't bunch rounds in full auto.
I am not prone to this crap, but there is no way that an untrained dude with an AR-15 could have pulled this off, and I don't think that Trump was hit by a bullet, my wife said that the original report was that the teleprompter shattered and that it was a piece that cut his head, and Trump reported hearing the bullet whiz by, which is bullshit, when clipped in the ear, there is no whizzing, t probably felt like a bee sting,
My point was that the initial coverage showed no one in the crowd reacted. Your point "Not true. Killed one bystander and wounded another 2". If the one and 2 were anywhere near, or in
the crowd would have scattered for cover like flies fleeing the swatter. If there is has been coverage of where these one and 2 were, I have yet to see it.
Yes, yes and yes. I paused/replayed in slow motion several times, looking for exactly what you expressed. So much about the few seconds and minutes after the bloodied ear appeared don’t make sense. I do not own a gun nor have I ever shot one. I was re-focusing on the crowds reaction, and why they didn’t scramble when the three other victims dropped or when their body parts (should have) exploded.
PS: as one who was first on the scene of a suicide by a rifle shot to the head (my ex-father-in-law on my patio) can attest, bone and brain parts scatter far and wide. At least from the video coverage I saw on TV, nobody in the crowd seemed to respond to what should have been pure horror
The .223 (5.56mm) round is basicall a heavy.22 caliber round, with the weight in the rear, it doesn't start it's tumble until it strikes a target, anything, including leaves and branches (thus easily deflected) and because it tumbles when it hits flesh it does tremendous damage, hydraulic shock, rips through organ and bone.
I've shot steel plate with it on a rifle range and it punctured a hole, but did not carry through, expended all of its energy on the plate., though anything immediately behind the plate would be receive shards and shrapnel.
BTW I qualifed expert with Carbine, M-16, M-14 and the .45, fired the grease gun, M-60, M-19 grenade launcher, AK-47.(the last only for familiarization, not qualification).
Yes, I'm not a conspiracy theorist by any means, but something was off. I too think this was staged, the way he just slapped his ear lightly and then pulled away immediately...strange, and then his holding up the SS taking him offstage so he could have a photo opportunity pump ihis fist in the air. How did he feel comfortable enough doing that? and not fear that the shooter would shoot again or possibly there could be another shooter. There is no way during that time could have known the shooter had been neutralized. It was just strange.
Yes Mr. Kenyatta, I too thought about a false flag operation for a while. But for only a while. The facts are not yet all gathered. After a proper investigation which exposes as many facts as possible; I believe we shall likely find that the Secret Service and/or local police made a mistake of incompetence. Think of 911 and JFK in Dealey Plaza.
Before 911 Bush had many warnings from intelligence agencies. But he went to Florida and read fairy tales to children, while three huge airliners went seriously off their filed flight plans. This is unheard of, until 911. (I had been a pilot for 50 years until I lost my medical)
Old time Republican, Senator Everett Dirksen warned Kennedy about death threats from Dallas. Intelligence agencies warned Kennedy about Dallas. The Secret Service let him go anyway. Incompetence.
I too have thought the same thing- a move right out of Putin’s playbook. I heard a journalist who’s been at just about all of his rallies comment on how T-rump always looks straight ahead at these events, he never turns his head but he did that day. And at a venue with rooftop range so close. I’ve also heard that the local police were supposed to have been covering security of the outside area but that didn’t happen? Let’s see what they come up with when they do their own private investigation, which they’ve already said they’ll be doing. Anything to be King?
We don't care what Republicans say. Sometimes chickens come home to roost. Shooter, a registered Republican wearing gun club garb used NRA choice of weapons.
Yes, the choices are very clear. I believe there are more decent people in America who want to live in peace, harmony, and prosperity. We can't let them get frightened away by billionaire bullies.
I worry Biden will go back to weak sauce comments while the Republicans continue on down their hate-filled, dishonest ranting. It's already happened with Vance and Gaetz posting direct accusations that Biden call a hit on trump. Biden wants us to think he's up to the job of being president for the next four years but if he can be so easily censored by those who are abusing his country, I have to wonder. I read he's cancelling his stern ads, but haven't confirmed this.
Trump said he's ready to tone things down and will do so at the coming convention. But he can't survive without the grievance, hatred, cruelty, dishonesty and threats. These things are what binds MAGA together. It's what they go to the rallies to feed on. They're already very upset that he is pretending to "soften" his stance on abortion, a stance that can't be trusted anyway. If he asks them to give up their hatred, they won't. At this point, they can't.
I'm not a conspiracy-minded person, but I am deeply suspicious of this supposed assassination attempt. I wouldn't put it past Stone, for example, to have recruited the kid, who if you think about it, was willing to give his life for his country - meaning to or not, misguided or not. He was, however, hot a great marksman. With his weaponry, there was no reason he should have missed (whether or not one agrees with what he did.)
I am frustrated with the usual "We have to be nice and let the bully win every time" stance of Democrats. Nancy Pelosi spoke out against the shooting and wished Trump well. Trump and his allies laughed and made jokes when her husband's skull was crushed by a MAGA with a hammer.
I agree. Since the shooting, BIden and Dems have given all the proper condolences and calls for non-violence, but now they must continue to clearly campaign against Trump and the Project 2025 vision.
Nothing about Saturday's event have made TFG more fit for office or less dangerous.
I wonder what MAGA would do if the Democrats all banded together stated that this whole thing was staged, give them a taste of their own medicine so to speak. Wishful thinking.
It is now very clear that American has to choose what kind of country it is, and will be forever. Are we going to be bullied and intimidated by the liars, cheaters, racists, and misogynists, who want to install a Russian style oppressive government? Or do we want to be a free people, who have a government of the people, by the people and for the people. Do we want everyone to enjoy the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, or is that that only for the few special people who rise to power through violence and intimidation?
That’s it. That’s the choice. We have three and half months to sort it out. Judge Cannon just dismissed the documents case against Trump, inventing her own laws. The courts will not help us.
Ever since Trump was an emotionally neglected child he's been organized around one thing...getting and keeping the spotlight. Every moment is driven by that need and goal...that's the only way he can barely maintain the feeling that he matters.
It would be completely out of character for him to have a Ronald Reagan shift internally, and be able to recognize that the people he's been demonizing, symbolized byJoe Biden, are actually caring and emotionally responsive to his suffering. They've been calling to wish him well, they've committed to a thorough investigation of the shooting incident, they are responding with empathy and compassion.
If that transformation were possible it could soften his rhetoric and genuinely meet an ancient need... to be seen as vulnerable and to have that vulnerability responded to with tenderness. Trump's father ridiculed vulnerability and idealized a Hitlerian style of "strength," that very German form of toxic masculinity.
But the likelihood of that transformative experience lasting longer than a brief minute, is tiny. It seems way more likely that he will be encouraged by the likes of Stephen Miller, et.al. to do the bloody shirt routine and further grasp the opportunity to be the vindicated martyr/hero. We'll see...
Thank you, Thom, for a most enlightening post. As usual I'm always learning so much from you.
He must still be held accountable. The majority decision of Trump v United States (agreed upon by all - and only - Republican judicial appointees) was an abomination devoid of logic and any understanding of human nature. By legalizing “official acts”, regardless of intent, it clearly ignored the fact that one President (Trump) had already committed crimes in office, and that individual promises to do so again. Without accountability, there is no deterrence, and accountability was speciously removed for the President.
Absolutely, Joe...it is vitally important that he experience the limits and the boundaries that prevent a civil society from falling into violent, traumatizing disarray. Yielding and relenting to the threats he makes when the "grownups" set a limit, just inflates his pathological grandiosity. There needs to be enough sane and law abiding citizens and institutions to maintain the rule of law even though TFG and his followers throw themselves up against these rules relentlessly.
I think if Trump had a"born again"moment, his base would not know what to think and they would desert him! His base would think that he had gone to the other side, and became gay and started loving unicorns and whales.
How can J. D. Vance blame Joe Biden for the assassination attempt on Donald Trump by calling Trump a danger to democracy, when Vance himself called Trump "an American Hitler"? Inflammatory language is actually a specialty of Trump himself, who called for a "2nd amendment solution" to Hillary Clinton. How is that not deplorable?
which precipitated anti Asian violence- not to mention his rhetoric
against Georgia election workers ,
Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman .
We know what followed that cruel
incident.
I would be overjoyed if the Republican Leadership called for and sincerely wished for lowering the temperature fostering violent behavior. But - will we see actual
Trumps wound doesn't compare to Reagans, but this may have put some fear in him. I heard it reported that he's changing his convention speech to emphasize unity. Probably just P. R. ,but maybe not. Still he's a terrible choice for president.
Hartman suggested Trump may pretend to change in order to appeal to moderate independent voters, so I won't be surprised at whatever the evil camelian does to win and grab power.
No sense wasting worry on what the MAGAites will do with this, they are always predictable, full throttle and loud. Any occurrence will be bent to their nimrod narrative.
But how the Blue will respond is also predictable, and that is cause for worry. They traditionally will bend to the pressure of Red's crap criticism by striving to be fair and open and you know, take time to be silent while they contemplate how their humility could best represent their ohthehumanity. Meanwhile, hope can be restored if a brassy, abrasive, doubled fisted Blue should manifest out of the ranks and present America with a presence worth the price of the seats.
Gerald, I completely agree with your point of view. I was actually heartened to hear Biden up against Lester Holt in that disgusting so-called interview the other night. That's the voice we need to hear not just from Biden but from dozens and dozens of Democrats giving Interviews and public service announcements and speeches on the House and Senate floors that make the nightly news. We need to hear their perspective strongly and often.
I'm not toning down. I suppose all the "well wishes" were obligatory, but I have no pity for someone who blatantly incited this, who supports public access to these types of weapons, whose lack of response to the CoVid virus murdered a quarter million people, who, if elected, would unleash Putin against the Ukrainians and weaken Europe's ability to stop further invasion, whose denial of environmental degradation is killing people all over the world and causing the ego migration that is destabilizing Latin America and European nations and causing the very influx of nondocumented into our country which Trump supposedly despises. Trump has blood on his hands for the spectator killed. It may be politically incorrect to say so, but I'll say what frankly we are all thinking: If he had been killed, you wouldn't have seen a tear flow from my eyes. But I know that Trump is in large part a symptom rather than a cause. As long as so many Americans feel despair and anger over the dysfunctional state of American economy and politics, if Trump were killed, these desperate "burn it all down" Americans would just replace him with another sociopath to lead them in their vengeance. We need to show them that there is a constructive path to fixing America's real problems that are causing so much despair and anger. Electing Biden and demanding he take bold action will do that.
He has sown the wind for far longer than his brief political presence. This was barely the first puff of the whirlwind. Everybody has an obligation to rebut / refute every attempt at Republican misdirection. Everybody. Every attempt. Every!
Not just a blood flag or bloody shirt, there's the Nazi's Horst Wessel Song , which begins:
Flag high, ranks closed,
The S.A. marches with silent solid steps.
Comrades shot by the red front and reaction
March in spirit with us in our ranks.
Personally I think this was a real assassination attempt by a stereotypical loner. But whatever the circumstances the GOP will use it for all its worth and if Trump is elected we'll have a blood hungry wounded tiger on our hands. Hopefully the next stage won't be the equivalent of burning the Reichstag.
An assault rifle wase used, and it's the Republicans that want everyone to own an assault rifle. One that has been converted into a machine gun preferably, with the blessings of the corrupt Supreme Court of the United States and department of Justice and FBI and all the other right wing crazies. Now they will play the persecuted and oppressed, innocent victims!
What do the right envision a society with no minimum wage and guns everywhere will be like, if they get their way? A polite society? It will be more like a third world hell hole where people will do anything to survive! Putin smiles!
The Democrats need to blame the NRA and all the other right wingers and not back off! This kid was a victim of bullying and was a loner, and a registered Republican! A disgruntled Republican who did not like the direction Trump was taking his old party. Telling the truth serves God and telling lies serves the devil. The right lies constantly!
Bob; your question," What do the right envision a society with no minimum wage and guns everywhere will be like? Is a good question. Do they want a completely new system? Of course they do. I saw a documentary yesterday about how central banks change policies and then the laws. They followed Japan's Ministry of Finance post WWII. In order to replace their institution with a central bank with public support, they first intentionally caused a sustained economic recession. It caused me to wonder why the SCOTUS is so obviously causing the public to lose respect for it. What do the elites have planned for us? How are we being manipulated? It's obvious to me that the monied elite get their way up to the total collapse of the system they manipulate so well to serve them.
Funny. I appreciate your wife's sense of humor. Too bad another another bullied young kid slipped through the cracks in our failing public education system. Sometimes we need to inject humor into tragedy to keep our sanity.
There is no reason to tone down the facts of GOP hypocritical rhetoric. Blame the violence on the fact of GOP unwillingness to act on getting as many guns in the streets as they can. An increase in the number of guns everywhere is the cause of more violence and only the GOP is responsible for it. Push it down their throats for however long it takes.
Yes, Mr. Conway. Good analysis. The country is already polarized and the Republicans are doing nothing to reduce their outrageous rhetoric. Now is not the time for Democrats to back off. They backed off when Al Gore was denied his win by the Supreme Court and we got the W, Iraq and Afghanistan. They backed off when they followed the advice of "party leaders" to dump Bernie Sanders in favor of Hillary and we got the Orange Face. The Dems have shot our collective foot in in the past. I fear they shall do it again.
...and we pretty much know that if TFG loses the election to Kamala, he'll push his case up to SCOTUS and we can guess what the RW members will say-"yeah, you won"fair & square." REGARDLESS of how many millions of votes much she wins by.
Trump picked Putin's choice -- JD Vance.
https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2024/04/23/jd-vances-dismissive-attitude-toward-ukraine-is-an-insult-to-70000-ukrainian-americans-in-ohio/
Tfg will not change who he has proven to be for his entire life. He is a malignant narcissist who cares only about himself. That being said, he has absolutely no redeeming qualities, so no, he will never soften his message. Now it will be about revenge and retribution.
As for the blame game, they will only reinforce the claims made by his VP wannabes, the “radical” left will be held responsible for the attempt on his life.
We must continue to stick to the facts, whether they like it or not: he is an existential threat to democracy and freedom. If we let up, or soften our message, he will have gained the upper hand.
My conservative friend opened a conversation with me this morning by listing U.S. politicians and presidents who’ve been shot, and some assassinated, in our country.
I responded, fairly calmly, with, “I am your retribution. Who said that? I heard that recently. I am your retribution. And, um, something about Second Amendment solutions. Who has been saying things like that? And somebody’s followers were hollering Hang Mike Pence. Huh! Who said all that stuff? Who thinks owning assault weapons is a good thing? I’m so confused!”
He said he didn’t know who said “I am your retribution.” I told him it was the jerk who just got shot in the ear. He said I should calm down…
This is what we’re up against.
We need some SERIOUS strategy and conversational skill to handle the rhetoric and gaslighting that is now to come from the Right Wing.
They are not only going to demonize Democrats (even if the alleged assassin was one of their own). Further, given my lack of decorum, I am going to scream the silent part that everyone is dancing around: it is entirely possible the incident was staged. That is how unstable this society has become. Nothing is as it appears and everything is possible. Donald Trumps donation servers went down several times over the weekend.
My husband noted how surprising it is that Trump appears to have been marched forward through the crowd after the "shooting," rather than hustled out the back surrounded by secret service for protection. He surely got a great photo op from this event, the bloody face, the raised fist juxtaposed on the American flag is just too good. It will become iconic in the MAGA community. Oops, now we are all on that retribution list the MAGAs are creating. So, Rohn, many of us are right there with you. Thanks
Like you, I have my suspicions.
Anything is possible.
Hell of a shot from more than a football field away.
As a person with some knowledge of firearms, a "football field" or even two is a lay-up for a trained marksman with a long gun (rifle). "Long range" means the target is more than 600 m (660 yards) away. While "extreme long range" is generally accepted as when the target distance is more than 1,000 m (1,100 yards) away from the shooter. I know some dudes that can knock the asshole off of a butterfly from 600 yards (that is six "football fields). My father was one of them.
Further, having been on a BCT (Body Coverage Team) I really am curious as to how the shooter got that close (and I was an advance team member) and, more importantly, why his detail did not take the principal (Trump) down when the assault occurred. The first thing taught is to cover the the principal (with your body, if necessary) and protect the head. The shot was to Trump's head. The obvious reason is that a head shot is almost always fatal. Yet, Trump's head is exposed while he fist bumps and screams (three times) "fuck you!"
And, lo and behold!, the federal judge in Trump's document indictments dismisses the case this morning.
That dog don't hunt. No pun intended.
Not with an AR -15.
Okie Dokie. You seem to pine for my attention and exhibit some level of ad hominem hostility. I suggest you tread lightly. Forewarned is forearmed.
Rohn I don't detect any hostility in Danel's brief comment. In fact I don't know what he is referring to. I do know this. I qualified expert with the M-16, military version,original version of the AR-15. I even fired off more than a few rounds in combat (not sure that I hit anything other than tree limbs and branches though).
From the diagrams I saw, the shooter was on a roof 145 yards distant, that it quite a distance and and one half football fields..An M16 has iron sights.,it as not designed for long shots, like over a football field in length,
The M-16 is not a sniper rifle, it is a close combat weapon. To be able to come close to a head at 145 yards would require some zeroing in and factoring in the gravity drop,as well as he wind.
The kid was only 20 years old, and not even a trained marksman with no military experience. Even a qualified military expert would have not been able to pull off a head shot.at that distance with an Ar-15 or M-16
Try it yourself, go to a firing range, rent an AR-15, lie prone and see how many rounds it takes to even hit the target much less the bulls eye at 145 yards.
I see no cause for animosity Rohn.
Thank you for your paternalism, but my father has been dead for 28 years. And the day your white ass becomes the proverbial "Watermelon Man" and spends a week as a Black Man in the United States you MIGHT then have some credibility pertinent to "animosity." In fact, the problem with my people, truth be told, is that they are not angry enough. How dare you.
Now, I have tried to be civil with you, but you know I am a believer in Talion Law, and have zero problem dispensing same. In the words of the great James Baldwin: "To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious, is to be in a rage almost all the time." Since you and your inbred friend have such mind-bending insights, why don't you stop riding on my coattails and just thrill the hell out of the world with your own publications?
As a matter of fact, I had qualified for all of the above, plus the M-79 grenade launcher. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M79_grenade_launcher
In combat, we had no scopes.
Most deer hunters prefer a 30.6. or a 30-30.
William, I can shoot the eye out of a squirrel at one foot! Bastards won't let me get that close though!That is why I prefer a shotgun! Wouldn't you know sawed off shotguns are illegal. The best home defense weapon there is. But the assault rifles and bump stocks are legal?
"This kid, at 150 yards, made a great shot," Pickle [Bill Pickle, the former special agent in charge of Al Gore's vice-presidential Secret Service detail}, said Sunday of the would-be assassin, his voice grim. "I don't know the specifics of whether he used optics, meaning a scope on his rifle," he told BI.
"But even with optics, it takes somebody with training to aim at somebody's head from 150 yards away and you actually hit the edge of the head," he said.
"That's not a lucky shot," he added. "That's a guy who actually shot before."
https://www.businessinsider.com/ex-secret-service-agents-how-trump-assassin-could-fire-shots-2024-7
Did he have a scope?
If he had converted it to a machine gun, used a bump stock like all the right wingers support, including the corrupt Supreme Court of the United States, Trump would probably be dead!
When I saw the first footage, Trump reacting and dipping down, then the rush of secret service encircling him, the entire crowd beside him and in back remained immobile. No one in the crowd seemed to see anyone else shot. An automatic weapon held in full burst would present some close bunching. Yet to come, where were the others sitting, how far away. It will be the subsequent reporting on facts not initially reported that I submit should bear close watching, no matter the risk of appearing conspiracy theoretic.
The AR-15 is not an automatic weapon, and when an M-16 (original military version) is fired on full auto, there is muzzle rise, you can't bunch rounds in full auto.
I am not prone to this crap, but there is no way that an untrained dude with an AR-15 could have pulled this off, and I don't think that Trump was hit by a bullet, my wife said that the original report was that the teleprompter shattered and that it was a piece that cut his head, and Trump reported hearing the bullet whiz by, which is bullshit, when clipped in the ear, there is no whizzing, t probably felt like a bee sting,
"No one in the crowd seemed to see anyone else shot." Not true. Killed one bystander and wounded another 2.
That kind of weapon is inefficient because the round flops
My point was that the initial coverage showed no one in the crowd reacted. Your point "Not true. Killed one bystander and wounded another 2". If the one and 2 were anywhere near, or in
the crowd would have scattered for cover like flies fleeing the swatter. If there is has been coverage of where these one and 2 were, I have yet to see it.
Yes, yes and yes. I paused/replayed in slow motion several times, looking for exactly what you expressed. So much about the few seconds and minutes after the bloodied ear appeared don’t make sense. I do not own a gun nor have I ever shot one. I was re-focusing on the crowds reaction, and why they didn’t scramble when the three other victims dropped or when their body parts (should have) exploded.
PS: as one who was first on the scene of a suicide by a rifle shot to the head (my ex-father-in-law on my patio) can attest, bone and brain parts scatter far and wide. At least from the video coverage I saw on TV, nobody in the crowd seemed to respond to what should have been pure horror
The .223 (5.56mm) round is basicall a heavy.22 caliber round, with the weight in the rear, it doesn't start it's tumble until it strikes a target, anything, including leaves and branches (thus easily deflected) and because it tumbles when it hits flesh it does tremendous damage, hydraulic shock, rips through organ and bone.
I've shot steel plate with it on a rifle range and it punctured a hole, but did not carry through, expended all of its energy on the plate., though anything immediately behind the plate would be receive shards and shrapnel.
BTW I qualifed expert with Carbine, M-16, M-14 and the .45, fired the grease gun, M-60, M-19 grenade launcher, AK-47.(the last only for familiarization, not qualification).
Yes, I'm not a conspiracy theorist by any means, but something was off. I too think this was staged, the way he just slapped his ear lightly and then pulled away immediately...strange, and then his holding up the SS taking him offstage so he could have a photo opportunity pump ihis fist in the air. How did he feel comfortable enough doing that? and not fear that the shooter would shoot again or possibly there could be another shooter. There is no way during that time could have known the shooter had been neutralized. It was just strange.
I smell a rat...and a MAGA hat.
Yes Mr. Kenyatta, I too thought about a false flag operation for a while. But for only a while. The facts are not yet all gathered. After a proper investigation which exposes as many facts as possible; I believe we shall likely find that the Secret Service and/or local police made a mistake of incompetence. Think of 911 and JFK in Dealey Plaza.
Before 911 Bush had many warnings from intelligence agencies. But he went to Florida and read fairy tales to children, while three huge airliners went seriously off their filed flight plans. This is unheard of, until 911. (I had been a pilot for 50 years until I lost my medical)
Old time Republican, Senator Everett Dirksen warned Kennedy about death threats from Dallas. Intelligence agencies warned Kennedy about Dallas. The Secret Service let him go anyway. Incompetence.
Same thought went thru my head. I'm sure if the exact same thing happened to Biden there would be claims by right wingers of a 'false flag'.
There ain't no bout adoubt it (that is not a typo).
Fahgettaboudit.
On Robert Reich's substack, the idea that it was staged has a lot of momentum.I am of the same inclination.
I too have thought the same thing- a move right out of Putin’s playbook. I heard a journalist who’s been at just about all of his rallies comment on how T-rump always looks straight ahead at these events, he never turns his head but he did that day. And at a venue with rooftop range so close. I’ve also heard that the local police were supposed to have been covering security of the outside area but that didn’t happen? Let’s see what they come up with when they do their own private investigation, which they’ve already said they’ll be doing. Anything to be King?
We don't care what Republicans say. Sometimes chickens come home to roost. Shooter, a registered Republican wearing gun club garb used NRA choice of weapons.
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Yes, the choices are very clear. I believe there are more decent people in America who want to live in peace, harmony, and prosperity. We can't let them get frightened away by billionaire bullies.
Great essay, once again, Thom.
I worry Biden will go back to weak sauce comments while the Republicans continue on down their hate-filled, dishonest ranting. It's already happened with Vance and Gaetz posting direct accusations that Biden call a hit on trump. Biden wants us to think he's up to the job of being president for the next four years but if he can be so easily censored by those who are abusing his country, I have to wonder. I read he's cancelling his stern ads, but haven't confirmed this.
Trump said he's ready to tone things down and will do so at the coming convention. But he can't survive without the grievance, hatred, cruelty, dishonesty and threats. These things are what binds MAGA together. It's what they go to the rallies to feed on. They're already very upset that he is pretending to "soften" his stance on abortion, a stance that can't be trusted anyway. If he asks them to give up their hatred, they won't. At this point, they can't.
I'm not a conspiracy-minded person, but I am deeply suspicious of this supposed assassination attempt. I wouldn't put it past Stone, for example, to have recruited the kid, who if you think about it, was willing to give his life for his country - meaning to or not, misguided or not. He was, however, hot a great marksman. With his weaponry, there was no reason he should have missed (whether or not one agrees with what he did.)
I am frustrated with the usual "We have to be nice and let the bully win every time" stance of Democrats. Nancy Pelosi spoke out against the shooting and wished Trump well. Trump and his allies laughed and made jokes when her husband's skull was crushed by a MAGA with a hammer.
I agree. Since the shooting, BIden and Dems have given all the proper condolences and calls for non-violence, but now they must continue to clearly campaign against Trump and the Project 2025 vision.
Nothing about Saturday's event have made TFG more fit for office or less dangerous.
I wonder what MAGA would do if the Democrats all banded together stated that this whole thing was staged, give them a taste of their own medicine so to speak. Wishful thinking.
I'm not a conspiracy monger. That said, this reeks of Roger Stone.
It is now very clear that American has to choose what kind of country it is, and will be forever. Are we going to be bullied and intimidated by the liars, cheaters, racists, and misogynists, who want to install a Russian style oppressive government? Or do we want to be a free people, who have a government of the people, by the people and for the people. Do we want everyone to enjoy the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, or is that that only for the few special people who rise to power through violence and intimidation?
That’s it. That’s the choice. We have three and half months to sort it out. Judge Cannon just dismissed the documents case against Trump, inventing her own laws. The courts will not help us.
Ever since Trump was an emotionally neglected child he's been organized around one thing...getting and keeping the spotlight. Every moment is driven by that need and goal...that's the only way he can barely maintain the feeling that he matters.
It would be completely out of character for him to have a Ronald Reagan shift internally, and be able to recognize that the people he's been demonizing, symbolized byJoe Biden, are actually caring and emotionally responsive to his suffering. They've been calling to wish him well, they've committed to a thorough investigation of the shooting incident, they are responding with empathy and compassion.
If that transformation were possible it could soften his rhetoric and genuinely meet an ancient need... to be seen as vulnerable and to have that vulnerability responded to with tenderness. Trump's father ridiculed vulnerability and idealized a Hitlerian style of "strength," that very German form of toxic masculinity.
But the likelihood of that transformative experience lasting longer than a brief minute, is tiny. It seems way more likely that he will be encouraged by the likes of Stephen Miller, et.al. to do the bloody shirt routine and further grasp the opportunity to be the vindicated martyr/hero. We'll see...
Thank you, Thom, for a most enlightening post. As usual I'm always learning so much from you.
He must still be held accountable. The majority decision of Trump v United States (agreed upon by all - and only - Republican judicial appointees) was an abomination devoid of logic and any understanding of human nature. By legalizing “official acts”, regardless of intent, it clearly ignored the fact that one President (Trump) had already committed crimes in office, and that individual promises to do so again. Without accountability, there is no deterrence, and accountability was speciously removed for the President.
Absolutely, Joe...it is vitally important that he experience the limits and the boundaries that prevent a civil society from falling into violent, traumatizing disarray. Yielding and relenting to the threats he makes when the "grownups" set a limit, just inflates his pathological grandiosity. There needs to be enough sane and law abiding citizens and institutions to maintain the rule of law even though TFG and his followers throw themselves up against these rules relentlessly.
I think if Trump had a"born again"moment, his base would not know what to think and they would desert him! His base would think that he had gone to the other side, and became gay and started loving unicorns and whales.
Best comment in my opinion.
How can J. D. Vance blame Joe Biden for the assassination attempt on Donald Trump by calling Trump a danger to democracy, when Vance himself called Trump "an American Hitler"? Inflammatory language is actually a specialty of Trump himself, who called for a "2nd amendment solution" to Hillary Clinton. How is that not deplorable?
Jeffrey,
Trump also called Covid 19
“Kung Flu” at a rally in Tulsa , Ok.
which precipitated anti Asian violence- not to mention his rhetoric
against Georgia election workers ,
Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman .
We know what followed that cruel
incident.
I would be overjoyed if the Republican Leadership called for and sincerely wished for lowering the temperature fostering violent behavior. But - will we see actual
gun control reform and toned down rhetoric?
Trumps wound doesn't compare to Reagans, but this may have put some fear in him. I heard it reported that he's changing his convention speech to emphasize unity. Probably just P. R. ,but maybe not. Still he's a terrible choice for president.
Hartman suggested Trump may pretend to change in order to appeal to moderate independent voters, so I won't be surprised at whatever the evil camelian does to win and grab power.
No sense wasting worry on what the MAGAites will do with this, they are always predictable, full throttle and loud. Any occurrence will be bent to their nimrod narrative.
But how the Blue will respond is also predictable, and that is cause for worry. They traditionally will bend to the pressure of Red's crap criticism by striving to be fair and open and you know, take time to be silent while they contemplate how their humility could best represent their ohthehumanity. Meanwhile, hope can be restored if a brassy, abrasive, doubled fisted Blue should manifest out of the ranks and present America with a presence worth the price of the seats.
Gerald, I completely agree with your point of view. I was actually heartened to hear Biden up against Lester Holt in that disgusting so-called interview the other night. That's the voice we need to hear not just from Biden but from dozens and dozens of Democrats giving Interviews and public service announcements and speeches on the House and Senate floors that make the nightly news. We need to hear their perspective strongly and often.
I'm not toning down. I suppose all the "well wishes" were obligatory, but I have no pity for someone who blatantly incited this, who supports public access to these types of weapons, whose lack of response to the CoVid virus murdered a quarter million people, who, if elected, would unleash Putin against the Ukrainians and weaken Europe's ability to stop further invasion, whose denial of environmental degradation is killing people all over the world and causing the ego migration that is destabilizing Latin America and European nations and causing the very influx of nondocumented into our country which Trump supposedly despises. Trump has blood on his hands for the spectator killed. It may be politically incorrect to say so, but I'll say what frankly we are all thinking: If he had been killed, you wouldn't have seen a tear flow from my eyes. But I know that Trump is in large part a symptom rather than a cause. As long as so many Americans feel despair and anger over the dysfunctional state of American economy and politics, if Trump were killed, these desperate "burn it all down" Americans would just replace him with another sociopath to lead them in their vengeance. We need to show them that there is a constructive path to fixing America's real problems that are causing so much despair and anger. Electing Biden and demanding he take bold action will do that.
Biden needs to fire Garland now so the Republicans cannot still the election if Biden wins!
He has sown the wind for far longer than his brief political presence. This was barely the first puff of the whirlwind. Everybody has an obligation to rebut / refute every attempt at Republican misdirection. Everybody. Every attempt. Every!
Not just a blood flag or bloody shirt, there's the Nazi's Horst Wessel Song , which begins:
Flag high, ranks closed,
The S.A. marches with silent solid steps.
Comrades shot by the red front and reaction
March in spirit with us in our ranks.
Personally I think this was a real assassination attempt by a stereotypical loner. But whatever the circumstances the GOP will use it for all its worth and if Trump is elected we'll have a blood hungry wounded tiger on our hands. Hopefully the next stage won't be the equivalent of burning the Reichstag.
An assault rifle wase used, and it's the Republicans that want everyone to own an assault rifle. One that has been converted into a machine gun preferably, with the blessings of the corrupt Supreme Court of the United States and department of Justice and FBI and all the other right wing crazies. Now they will play the persecuted and oppressed, innocent victims!
What do the right envision a society with no minimum wage and guns everywhere will be like, if they get their way? A polite society? It will be more like a third world hell hole where people will do anything to survive! Putin smiles!
The Democrats need to blame the NRA and all the other right wingers and not back off! This kid was a victim of bullying and was a loner, and a registered Republican! A disgruntled Republican who did not like the direction Trump was taking his old party. Telling the truth serves God and telling lies serves the devil. The right lies constantly!
Bob; your question," What do the right envision a society with no minimum wage and guns everywhere will be like? Is a good question. Do they want a completely new system? Of course they do. I saw a documentary yesterday about how central banks change policies and then the laws. They followed Japan's Ministry of Finance post WWII. In order to replace their institution with a central bank with public support, they first intentionally caused a sustained economic recession. It caused me to wonder why the SCOTUS is so obviously causing the public to lose respect for it. What do the elites have planned for us? How are we being manipulated? It's obvious to me that the monied elite get their way up to the total collapse of the system they manipulate so well to serve them.
My Wife thinks he was an Incel, pissed off at the Project 2025 plank that would ban pornography, would would an Incel then do for self satisfaction.?
Funny. I appreciate your wife's sense of humor. Too bad another another bullied young kid slipped through the cracks in our failing public education system. Sometimes we need to inject humor into tragedy to keep our sanity.
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