Marine One with President Barack Obama onboard on his way back to the White House from the Pentagon on 9-11-2015: Glynn Wilson
The Big Picture –
By Glynn Wilson –
CATOCTIN MOUNTAINS, Md. —- I heard the Marine One helicopter landing at Camp David on Friday, Aug. 16, after flying overhead right above the Owens Creek campground in Catoctin Mountain (National) Park. President Joe Biden arrived for another weekend preparing his speech for Monday night, Aug. 19, at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
It was a sad speech in a way marking the end of an era.
“It’s been the honor of my lifetime to serve as your president,” he said in a 52-minute speech capping the first night of a convention. “I love the job, but I love my country more. And all this talk about how I’m angry at all the people who said I should step down — it’s not true.”
“We love Joe! We love Joe!” the crowd chanted,
“I love my country more,” Biden repeated, “and we need to preserve our democracy.”
The rest of the week was a joyful love-fest for Kamala Harris, an event with much hope for a better future for women, minorities and young people, as well as poor people and the working middle class. That is if the Kamala Harris-Tim Walz campaign can find a way to beat Donald Trump and J.D. Vance in November.
See Our Coverage Here
Michelle Obama Steals the Show on Night Two of the Democratic National Convention
Tim Walz Accepts the Democratic Party’s Nomination for Vice President: Oprah Winfrey Wows the Crowd
Kamala Harris’s Presidential Address Knocks Trump Out of the Park
The Momentum
It’s still touch and go, although Harris grabbed the momentum and the news cycle right away when Biden agreed to step aside for the good of the country. She ramped it up even more by picking Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate. What a winning combination? The crowd sizes, man, put Trump’s and Vance’s to shame.
The polls reflected the changing tide, showing Harris pulling even with and then leading Trump in key battleground states, first Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan, then Arizona, Nevada and even Georgia and North Carolina. She even hit 50%, with rounding, in a national Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll, that had Trump with only 45% support. That was two points outside the margin of error. The last time a Democrat hit 50% in a national poll was Bernie Sanders during the Democratic primaries of 2016.
This should give people a clue about where the electorate stands on the issues. Some still believe Sanders was on the right campaign track to beat Trump in 2016, even though the Democratic Party establishment was not going to allow an independent, Democratic Socialist from the small state of Vermont to win the primaries and become the nominee.
But the Harris-Walz campaign was beginning to look very good leaning in that policy direction, even though the Georgia Election Board is now stuffed with MAGA supporters, which could cause big problems in that state on election night. How many days and how many recount demands and lawsuits will we have to endure this time if this is not a massive landslide blowout?
Then a story came out about ongoing plans by the Three Percenters, the radical, far right militia group that is planning much more than the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, if their White nationalist dictator does not regain power in Washington. Talk of another civil war made the rounds one more time, as I took a day to tour Gettysburg again, just as a reminder of the losses that happened back then.
Armed and Underground: Inside the Turbulent, Secret World of an American Militia
A view of one of the monuments in Gettysburg National Park in Pennsylvania: Glynn Wilson
Meanwhile, after narrowly dodging an assassin’s bullet, Donald Trump seemed to lose it even more than usual, spouting more personal insults and selfish, hateful bile and nonsense, while Republican Party leaders tried to get him to focus on the issues. It didn’t take. He can’t do it. It’s just not in him.
Millions of people watched a conversation on video between Harris and Walz about how to treat other people, with an emphasis on not letting anyone fall through the economic cracks because of a lack of money or education.
Many people are already falling through the cracks, and this would get much worse if the Heritage Foundation and the Catholic cult Opus Dei have their way with a new Trump administration implementing Project 2025.
The United States of America will no longer be a democratic republic if that comes about. I wish they would just come out and say what they want: A theocracy, not a government of, by and for the people. Let the American people in on the plan, so we can have an open debate.
Even in his address to the nation upon announcing he would not seek a second term, in addition to talking about Trump being supported by an un-hooded Ku Klux Klan, President Biden quoted Benjamin Franklin.
I told this story best after a visit to Independence Hall in 2018, right before the Democrats seized control of the House under Speaker Nancy Pelosi. You know the famous true story of what Dr. Benjamin Franklin said at the close of the Constitutional Convention in 1787 as he left Independence Hall on the final day of the deliberations of the Continental Congress before heading over to City Tavern for a cool ale.
If You Want to Keep Democracy Alive, Vote Nov. 6 Like Your Life Depends on It
“Well, Doctor, what have we got?” a woman asked. “A Republic or a Monarchy?”
“A Republic,” Franklin replied. “If you can keep it.”
We will see how much sway Trump and his MAGA movement still have on the mostly uneducated, rural masses come Nov. 5 (and the days fighting over the vote count afterward).
Can the joyful movement of Harris and Walz overcome all the negativity and hate and sweep enough people in this country off their feet?
Dog damn I hope so. Otherwise I will be joining the massive RV caravan headed north toward Canada.
___
Glynn Wilson is editor and publisher of New American Journal at NewAmericanJournal.Net. Republished from The Progressive Populist, Sept. 15, 2024 edition online and in print.
___
If you support truth in reporting with no paywall, and fearless writing with no popup ads or sponsored content, consider making a contribution today with GoFundMe or Patreon or PayPal.
Related Posts:
Before you continue, I’d like to ask if you could support our independent journalism as we head into one of the most critical news periods of our time in 2024.
The New American Journal is deeply dedicated to uncovering the escalating threats to our democracy and holding those in power accountable. With a turbulent presidential race and the possibility of an even more extreme Trump presidency on the horizon, the need for independent, credible journalism that emphasizes the importance of the upcoming election for our nation and planet has never been greater.
However, a small group of billionaire owners control a significant portion of the information that reaches the public. We are different. We don’t have a billionaire owner or shareholders. Our journalism is created to serve the public interest, not to generate profit. Unlike much of the U.S. media, which often falls into the trap of false equivalence in the name of neutrality, we strive to highlight the lies of powerful individuals and institutions, showing how misinformation and demagoguery can harm democracy.
Our journalists provide context, investigate, and bring to light the critical stories of our time, from election integrity threats to the worsening climate crisis and complex international conflicts. As a news organization with a strong voice, we offer a unique, outsider perspective that is often missing in American media.
Thanks to our unique reader-supported model, you can access the New American journal without encountering a paywall. This is possible because of readers like you. Your support keeps us independent, free from external influences, and accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for news.
Please help if you can.
American journalists need your help more than ever as forces amass against the free press and democracy itself. We must not let the crypto-fascists and the AI bots take over.
See the latest GoFundMe campaign here.
Don't forget to listen to the new song and video.
Just because we are not featured on cable TV news talk shows, or TikTok videos, does not mean we are not getting out there in search engines and social media sites. We consistently get over a million hits a month.
Click to Advertise Here
