Today’s notice: A lot of talk about talk in politics — threatening, hollow or inconvenient.
Rhetorical Questions
On Sunday morning, JD Vance was outraged that anyone would suggest the Trump campaign’s false and incendiary rhetoric around legal immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, could possibly have set off a week of threats to schools and other municipal buildings in the city. On Monday morning, Donald Trump was outraged that anyone could possibly say Democrats’ incendiary rhetoric wasn’t responsible for what authorities are calling a second assassination attempt on the former president.
Hypocrisy? Contradictory? You decide. But it’s evidence of a problem that Trump has to solve if he actually wants to start winning on the politics of political language, say Republicans.
Trump on Monday suggested he was not interested in solving it.
“Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at,” Trump said of Democrats in a Fox interview Monday. He then immediately attempted to become rubber and make the Dems glue. They “are the ones that are destroying the country,” he said, calling them “the enemy from within.”
So it’s not saying “threat to democracy” that is offensive but rather who it is being said about. Is this a strategy? If so, Republican strategists have some concerns.
“I think everyone would do better to be mindful that over-the-top rhetoric, regardless of who it’s aimed at, can create an atmosphere where some feel that violence is permissible,” Doug Heye told Riley. “That’s true whether you’re talking about somebody trying to potentially assassinate a presidential candidate or whether you’re talking about bomb threats happening in a small town in Ohio.”
Of course, people being shot is exactly what politics is supposed to prevent. Matt Mackowiak said one can understand why Trump is having a hard time practicing what he seems to be preaching.
“You try to kill him twice, and then you ask him to start behaving better, start speaking in a different manner. I can understand why that falls flat to him,” he said. “I can understand why that’s a dead key on his piano.”
But playing the same old song may not be the best move here. Even if it is the move Trump is going with.
“I think what many voters are looking for are leaders who will encourage people to take a step back, reflect on what they’re saying and understand that words can have consequences and getting back to the issues that will decide this election,” Brian Walsh said.
Democrats paused all campaigning after Trump was hit in Butler, and there was briefly a concern about what rhetoric would be fair game. Trump didn’t change, and Democrats largely followed that lead. This time, there is no hand-wringing.
“That is patently absurd,” Richard Blumenthal said when asked about Trump’s comments that Democrats calling Trump a “threat to Democracy” inspired the shooter.
The senator ticked off Trump’s promised retaliation against political opponents and claims about immigrants when asked about the future of Dem rhetoric. “It’s not personal,” he said, “but if he expresses those intentions and plans, it’s a threat to democracy.”
—Evan McMorris-Santoro, Riley Rogerson, Claire Heddles
House task force chair has questions for USSS, warnings for Trump critics
Speaking of rhetoric, Mike Kelly has made up his mind that political speech is responsible for the targeting of Trump. “When people make that declaration that ‘this is the greatest threat to our democracy,’ to me, that is a dog whistle for folks that are out there that are so deeply involved in this,” Kelly told NOTUS.
But the chair of the House investigation into July’s assassination attempt against Trump also wants to know why Trump’s security still needs tightening. “That makes absolutely no sense,” he said of the alleged gunman getting as close to Trump on Sunday as authorities say he did.
The view from inside the campaigns
- Jasmine Wright is hearing that Harrisworld is moving on from the weekend. The campaign is unlikely to make changes to its strategy, an operative close to her said, despite Trump’s claims that Democrats are responsible for Sunday’s incident in Florida.
Front Page
- Republicans Turn to IVF to Avoid Talking About Abortion: The pivot to IVF is “all about elections” said one anti-abortion lawmaker.
- The Feds Are Concerned Another Jan. 6 Is Coming. Republican Lawmakers Aren’t. Congressional Republicans seem perfectly happy to go along with Trump’s ongoing claims of election fraud — and his skepticism of this year’s results.
- Congress Plans to Investigate the Possible Assassination Attempt at Trump’s Golf Course Too: The House approved the task force in July to specifically investigate the assassination attempt in Butler, and it’s unclear if a new vote will be needed to expand its scope.
- CHC Is Banking On Kamala Harris Pivoting on Immigration: Harris has adopted an immigration proposal as part of her platform that many lawmakers in the CHC hate.
Please do not hold us responsible for what we say now, say politicians in the midst of a heated election
There’s a lot of winking in NOTUS stories today, with pols from across the political spectrum saying they do not expect the politics of this moment to have any bearing on the politics after the election. Yes, they’re on side now, they say, it’s an election after all. But after that?
- “My hope is that after the passions of the current cycle subside that we get back to those hard, tough conversations.” —Chuy Garcia on Congressional Hispanic Caucus members staying silent on the bipartisan immigration bill killed by Trump during the election, but hoping to tear it up if Harris wins.
- “It’s not about being sincere on it; it’s about making statements ahead of time, and then afterwards, you do what you want.” —Mike Kelly on Trump’s IVF politics and abortion opponents’ postelection plans.
So you want to vote but also never talk to a human…
The DNC is rolling out a new GOTV tool this week, NOTUS has learned, and one that is perfect for the call-phobic. A number will connect would-be voters to real people who will text with them about their registration status and where to cast a ballot. We can only imagine (young people) who (the young) this is targeted at (YOUNG PEOPLE).
New Hampshire Libertarians Are Having a Normal One
Monday appeared to be a master class in corncobbing from the New Hampshire Libertarian Party. After the party posted a tweet Sunday claiming “anyone who murders Kamala Harris would be an American hero” and then deleted it, many assumed party leaders were sorry. Not so! In a full day of posting Monday, the party attacked the national party’s presidential nominee, Chase Oliver, for condemning the post, reposted screenshots of the post and said the post was a reflection of how some of its members actually feel.
From the outside, it was one of the year’s true meltdowns. But party spox Jeremy Kauffman told me it was all in a day’s work for a party that wants people who are not libertarians to leave New Hampshire if they’re already there and never go if they’re not. “Anything that amplifies or brands New Hampshire as a state for libertarians is good,” he said over email. “Anything that alienates progressives, socialists, or democrats is good.”
—Evan McMorris-Santoro
Tell Us Your Thoughts
Trump did a Q&A with a Canadian crypto bro Monday. Who should interview Trump next?
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