The Interview: The One We've All Been Awaiting (Not Really)

It's time to Break It Down!

 

Short post. Since the day Joe Biden removed himself from the Presidential Sweepstakes, and endorsed Kamala Harris, 37 days ago, journalists of every stripe, and the GOP have sniped, wrung hands, and complained that Kamala Harris hasn’t done a single media interview. And that’s all completely understandable.

 

The media, for its part, is accustomed to being the tail that wags the dog, in terms of developing and curating the narratives of our political lives. Of course they are chomping at the bit to get the story, and bitter every day that goes by when they don’t get the chance to tell their story, first person.

 

Then, we come to Republicans. Lay the fact that they tried their darndest to run Joe Biden out of the race, and now like the dog that caught the car, are trying to figure out what to do with it. They need Harris and Walz to get media clicks so they can go about the business to defining them. Yes, they have the historical record, but they want, and probably need more, to fuel the campaign to denigrate and diminish the Democratic duo. In short, they are still angry, if not flummoxed, especially Donald Trump, that Biden is no longer the opponent.

 

Fast forward to yesterday. Harris and Walz have agreed to an interview for tomorrow, with CNN Host Dana Bash. Now, of course, the media, save for CNN, will lament that they were not chosen. Trump, for his part, has labeled the media in general, the enemy of the people, and has called CNN, specifically, fake news.

 

To summarize, the parties who were angry before are still going to be angry, except perhaps, Ms. Bash. The GOP, even though it got what it asked for, will still grumble about CNN having been chosen, though they will surely use any missteps or unforced errors the Harris-Walz team makes, to buttress the prosecution of their case against the pair. 

 

So, what’s the bottom line? While we don’t know, with absolute certainty, we can be sure that the race to 270 electoral votes will be close, and hard-fought. Harris despite, though some would because of, not having done, or agreed to a sit-down interview, for 37 days, has surged relative to Donald Trump. So much so, until she has leads slightly in a few polls, and trails slightly in others. There is every reason to believe this race is going down to the wire. It is conceivable Donald Trump could emerge the winner when the dust settles. This may come as a surprise to those who’ve been amazed by the gawdy numbers Harris has compiled, and tandem with an incredibly well-done Democratic National Convention. But in a country thought to be nearly evenly divided between those who support Trump, and those who do not, hear me when I say, the race is going to be close. “The Interview: The One We’ve All Been Awaiting (Not Really)!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

 

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Obama Played the Inexperience Card Kamala's Got Next

It’s time to Break It Down!

 

(Note: This is a reprised, amended, and expanded presentation of my original blog post) 

 

HAPPY 17th ANNIVERSARY “BREAK IT DOWN!” Today, in acknowledgement of another anniversary of this publication, as I have done occasionally in the past, I am revisiting my inaugural post).

 

Before launching into the post, it’s certainly appropriate to contextualize my original blog. To do that, I note that post was about a young lion, Barack Obama, coming into what would become his era.

 

Tempus fugit (Time Flies)! Yesterday marked a significant milestone in the life and development of “Break It Down!”  I initiated this blog August 20, 2007, on a lark…almost a dare. That was seventeen years (and 886 editions) ago. Having related the story several times over past years, I will not repeat the complete details today.

 

I will note, however, that on that summer’s eve, I contemplated and discussed, in five paragraphs, the experience, or in reality the lack thereof, of then Senator Barack Obama, as he navigated the early stages of his historic Presidential Campaign.

  

So, this was the message in Post #1; five brisk paragraphs and a sign-off:

 

In an apparent calculated act of derring-do, Obama declares the virtue of inexperience. Gotta love it!

 

Personal footnote of recollection: I recall Jimmy Carter running the classic “anti-Washington” (i.e., lack of Capitol Hill experience) campaign in ’75-76. You know what, it worked.

 

The problem was, once JC sent all the reigning bureaucrats & policy wonks home, he was left with an assembly of newbies who didn’t understand how to get things done in DC. The result was that a very smart guy, genuine humanitarian, and erstwhile successful leader presided over what was widely perceived at the time, as a disastrous presidency. President Carter’s solitary term was fraught with innumerable policy failures (see the Shah of Iran, double-digit inflation, runaway gas prices, & the outrageous Interest/Mortgage rate morass) and public relations gaffes (remember the killer rabbit, and the failed helicopter gambit).

 

Fortunately for former President Carter, he was able to live long enough and subsequently do enough good deeds to distance himself from most of an unremarkable tenure as a one-term president, followed by a resounding defeat by that cowboy actor Teflon guy.

 

Of course, none of that has anything to do with Obama…except in the unlikely event he prevails. If he does, let’s hope he doesn’t take that inexperience thing too far. As W constantly reminds us, getting to the White House is one thing (after all, he’s done it twice), providing prudent and effective leadership once there is quite another. (Of course, in hindsight, we know President Obama not only prevailed, but went on to win re-election, and serve a second term).

 

Posted on Mon, Aug. 20, 2007

 

“Obama Plays the Inexperience Card Redux ’23!” 

 

So, transition/fast forward to present day. Ironically, not only do we find ourselves amid the Democratic National Convention, but last night, former President Obama, and his wife, former First Lady Michelle Obama were featured speakers at the Convention. Both were charged with making the case for Vice President Kamala Harris, in her quest to succeed President Biden in the coming November Election. 

 

Barack Obama, who many Democrats, and even some Republicans consider a sterling orator, won wide acclaim two decades ago in 2004, when he addressed the Convention in Boston, an aspiring Senatorial candidate at the time. Fresh off an unexpected landslide victory in the March 2004 Illinois U.S. Senate Democratic Primary, he was catapulted into rising star status within Democratic Party Circles, and he went on to leverage his newfound celebrity into a speaking role at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, which he crushed. He would go on to successfully vie for and win in his race to become a U.S. Senator from the State of Illinois, where he served four years, before his successful 2008 Presidential run.

 

In addition to the Obamas, last night’s cavalcade of luminaries included Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, Vermont Senior Senator Bernie Sanders, Senate Majority Leader, and New York Senior Senator Chuck Schumer, Junior Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker, and former Trump White House Press Secretary, and Communications Director Stephanie Grisham. Not bad for night 2 of 4.

 

A word about Vice President Harris, whom Former President Trump has denigrated by calling her dumb, claimed she couldn’t pass the Bar, referred to her as a communist, Comrade Kamala, crazy, fascist, lunatic, antisemitic, mocked her laugh, consistently butchers her name, said she is not a very good wordsmith, declared himself better looking, and in front of an audience of Black journalists, declared he was surprised to learn that Harris had “turned Black.”. Moreover, quite a few of his surrogates have gone a step further and labeled her a DEI hire, in effect, weaponizing the term.

 

The low blows may be an indication that Trump actually rues Biden having left the race and is having a hard time figuring out the best way to effectively attack Harris on the campaign trail. For the record, she was elected San Francisco District Attorney. Twice. She was also elected California Attorney General. Twice. She then ran for and was elected to the United States Senate from California, the nation’s most populous state. Finally, she ran for Vice President alongside Joe Biden, and won, defeating Donald Trump and Mike Pence. In the simplest of terms, she has more experience than Donald Trump and JD combined. Add Tim Walz 10 years in Congress, and two wins as Minnesota Governor, and the Trump-Vance Ticket pales in comparison to Harris Walz. All things considered, Trump’s ill-tempered behavior, even if it weren’t his norm, is understandable. 

 

For her part, Vice President Harris has largely stayed above the fray of personal attacks and has concentrated on contrasts with Trump on the issues. She has cast herself as the clear underdog and is both leaning into the great start her campaign has had, while simultaneously urging her supporters to embrace the fight ahead, because, as she likes to say, when we fight, we win. “Obama Played the Inexperience Card: Kamala's Got Next!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

 

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

 

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Paris: Home Away From Home

It's time to Break It Down!

 

The 2024 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad, were branded as Paris 2024. The Games ended with the closing ceremony last Sunday, amid wide-ranging entertainment, and the official passing of the Olympic Flame from representatives of Paris to representatives of Los Angeles, host of the 2028 Olympics.

 

That’s right, the Summer Olympics are “Coming To America.” But that’s a story for another day. This conversation is an ode to Hoops Heads. As an OG fancier of the game, my favorite moments were the combination of Gold Medals that American Men and Women collected on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Both American squads took the best shot from their Home Team counterparts. Team USA Men held off the Frenchmen, who were led by NBA Number 1 Draft Pick, and Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama, of France and the San Antonio Spurs. The Frenchmen were within striking distance with less than 3 minutes to play. That’s when the greatest shooter God ever created, Steph Curry, hit 4 consecutive 3, varying in degree of difficulty from average (for him) to amazing (for anyone, even him), leading the Americans to a 98-87 victory, and clenching the Gold Medal. The game was played at Bercy Arena in Paris and was the 5^th consecutive Gold Medal win for the American Men.

 

Arguably, their semi-final game against the Serbians was their toughest game of the tournament. Team USA trailed for all but a handful of minutes in the 40-minute game, including being down by as many as 17 points, and by 11 entering the 4^th Quarter. Serbia featured Nikola Jokić, also known as the best player in the world today, along with a team of fellow countrymen totally committed to upsetting the Americans. For the vast majority of the game, it looked as if they would succeed. Finally, in the 4^th Quarter, Team USA found the necessary defense, bolstered by the offense of its 4 NBA MVP’s (LeBron, Step, KD, and Embiid) to overcome the Serbs, outscoring them 32-15, and winning by a score of 95-91. With the win, KD won his 4^thGold Medal, the most in Olympic Men’s Basketball History. 

 

On Sunday, in the signature event of the day, and the final event of the Games, the American Women took on the Women of France, in another matchup against the Home Team. It was the first time in Olympic History that teams from the same two countries played in the Gold Medal Basketball Games. The game was hard-fought. In fact, while it marked a 61-game winning streak for American Women, and culminated in their 8^th consecutive Gold Medal, breaking a record 7-in-a row won by American men from 1936-68, it was also just the third time in 61 games Team USA was held to a single digit win.

 

The game literally went down to the wire. Gabby Williams, a former UConn star playing for France, took and hit a shot at the buzzer. Her foot was on the three-point line, making the shot a 2-pointer, and allowing the American Women to exhale, and escape with a 1-point victory, 67-66, and their record 8^th consecutive Gold. It also marked the 6^th Gold Medal for Diana Taurasi, who did not play in the Gold Medal Game. She is now the most decorated Women’s Basketball Player in Olympic History. 

 

Paris proved to be a great venue for American athletic competitors. Team USA tied China with 40 Gold Medals, and outdistanced their Chinese rivals 44-27 in Silver Medals, and 42-24 in Bronze Medals. Team USA collected 126 total medals to China’s 91. It’s fair to say, Team USA contemplated the XXXIII Olympiad and thought…”Paris: Home Away From Home!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

 

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A new post is published each Wednesday. For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the link below:

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The Match-up is Set: Tim Walz Completes the Democratic Ticket

It's time to Break It Down!

 

Short post today. Vice President Kamala Harris revealed her pick to join the Democratic ticket, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. The two are taking on Donald Trump and JD Vance in a match-up that will determine the next President and Vice President of the United States. 

 

It’s fair to say, for those who bet on such things as this, the odds-on favorite was Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro. In that way, similar to their Republican counterparts, the results were somewhat of an upset. That’s largely where the similarities end. 

 

Unlike Vance, who served a year and a half of his first term as a United States Senator, Walz served 6 terms as a U.S. Congressman in a formerly Republican District in Minnesota (that flipped by to the GOP) when he left. Vance spent four years in the Marines as a military journalist, Walz spent 24 years in the Army as an Enlisted man. Vance attended The Ohio State University and is a graduate of Yale Law School. Walz attended college on the G.I. Bill and earned a bachelor’s degree from Chadron State College in Nebraska, and a master’s degree in educational leadership from Minnesota State University. Vance worked in a multinational law firm, and in an investment firm. He later published a book, Hillbilly Elegy, that propelled him to fame, and propelled him to his political career. Walz worked as a classroom social studies teacher, and football coach. He was encouraged by his students to run for Congress, where he ran and won in a district that hadn’t been held by a Democrat in more than a hundred years.

 

You already know the principals, Harris and Trump, and you’ve had a couple of weeks to get to know Vance. Yesterday was the national coming out party for Walz. The 2024 Race for the White House is now properly underway. There is still the matter of the Democratic National Convention in a couple of weeks. But Democratic delegates completed voting this week, voting to make Harris the party’s official nominee. As a result, the GOP has launched its campaign to define Harris and Walz. The ramp up will continue for weeks, but for all practical purposes, it’s on. “The Match-up is Set: Tim Walz Completes the Democratic Ticket!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

 

Read my blog anytime by clicking the links: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or /http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com.

 

A new post is published each Wednesday. For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2024/08/the-match-up-is-set-tim-walz-completes.html