2020 USA presidential election

..my main purpose for posting the sanders piece was the point that biden may be reaching out. if and i say if he, seriously, reaches out lets see what he offers up.

..i personally do not believe that getting rid of trump is enough for the democrats to win. they have to offer up something substantial..a reason for people to fight against the skulduggery that the republicans will be dredging up re the election. voter suppression, in person voting, racism, far right vigilante attacks to name a few but so much more as well. 

..more of the same..but not as bad as trump..just won't cut it. imo. 

..popular shmopular. lets remember. lets look at power.

The Great Hack | Official Trailer | Netflix

..and here one you posted mm. this is why more is needed than trump. 

Why Labour Lost: Oligarchs are Gaming Democracy

Propaganda Machine: The Military Roots of Cambridge Analytica’s Psychological Manipulation of Voters

epaulo13 wrote:

Facebook Is a Crime Scene: “The Great Hack” Documentary Details Big Data’s Threat to Democracy

As new details emerge about how the shadowy data firm Cambridge Analytica worked to manipulate voters across the globe, we continue our look at the documentary, “The Great Hack.” We speak to Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Brittany Kaiser, the film’s co-directors Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer, and the propaganda researcher Emma Briant.

quote:

AMY GOODMAN: Karim Amer and Jehane Noujaim, I was wondering if you can talk about — Brittany sparked this when she talked about voter suppression — Trinidad and Tobago, which you go into in your film, because ultimately the elections there were about voter suppression and trying to get whole populations not to vote.

KARIM AMER: Yeah, I think it was important for us to show in the film the expansiveness of Cambridge’s work. This went beyond the borders of the United States and even beyond the borders of the EU and the U.K. Because what we find is that Cambridge used the — in pursuing this global influence industry that they were very much a part of, they used different countries as Petri dishes to learn and get the know-how about different tactics. And from improving those tactics, they could then sell them for a higher cost — higher margin in Western democracies, where the election budgets are, you know — we have to remember, I think it’s important to predicate that the election business has become a multibillion-dollar global business, right? So, we have to remember that while we are upset with companies like Cambridge, we allowed for the commoditization of our democratic process, right? So, people are exploiting this now because it’s become a business. And we, as purveyors of this, can’t really be as upset as we want to be, when we’ve justified that. So I want to preface it with that.

Now, that being said, what’s happened as a result is a company like Cambridge can practice tactics in a place like Trinidad, that’s very unregulated in terms of what they can and can’t do, learn from that know-how and then, you know, use it — parlay it into activities in the United States. What they did in Trinidad, and why it was important for us to show it in the film, is they led something called the “Do So” campaign, where they admit to making it cool and popular among youth to get out and not vote. And they knew —

AMY GOODMAN: So, you had the Indian population and the black population.

KARIM AMER: And the black population. And there is a lot of historic tension between those two, and a lot of generational differences, as well, between those two. And the “Do So” campaign targeted — was was done in a way to, you know, by looking at the data and looking at the predictive analysis of which group would vote or not vote, get enough people to dissuade them from voting, so that they could flip the election.

KARIM AMER: Exactly. And you look at the level of calculation behind this, and it’s quite frightening. Now, as Emma was saying, a lot of these tactics were born out of our own fears in the United States and the U.K. post-9/11, when we allowed for this massive weaponization of influence campaigns to begin. You know, if you remember President Bush talking about, you know, the battle for the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people, all of these kinds of industries were born out of this.

And now I believe what we’re seeing is the hens have come home to roost, right? All of these tactics that we developed in the name of, quote-unquote, “fighting the war on terror,” in the name of doing these things, have now been commercialized and used to come back to the biggest election market in the world, the United States. And how do we blame people for doing that, when we’ve allowed for our democracy to be for sale?

And that’s what Brittany’s files today, that she’s releasing and has released over the last couple days, really give us insight to. The Hindsight Files that Brittany has released show us how there is an auction happening for influence campaigns in every democracy around the world. There is no vote that is unprotected in the current way that we — in the current space that we’re living.

And the thing that’s allowing this to happen is these information platforms like Facebook. And that is what’s so upsetting, because we can actually do something about that. We are the only country in the world that can hold Facebook accountable, yet we still have not done so. And we still keep going to their leadership hoping they do the right thing, but they have not. And why is that? Because no industry has ever shown in American history that it can regulate itself. There is a reason why antitrust laws exist in this country. There’s a tradition of holding companies accountable, and we need to re-embrace that tradition, especially as we enter into 2020, where the stakes could not be higher.

Thanks Contrianna and Cody for replies above, you've given me lots to think about, I may have more to say later.   Big ups for the Fugs link, that was hilarious.

..since the early 70' i've been voting lesser of the evils. except for the elections that i wanted to make a point. the lesser represented maybe 85% of my voting. i don't oppose it. but something has changed.

..it was the corbyn election that made me finally understand what i am posting about in this thread. people rejected the labour manifesto! how could this be? for starters brexit was a manufactured issue by the right. and cambridge analytica was involved with the initial vote. they proved to be effective. when the reality was the remedy for the eu powers was the manifesto. 

..in the us the democrats don't have anything near the manifesto. and biden is such an easy target on so many levels. i'm hoping this thread begins to start looking beyond the lesser evil position.  

epaulo13 wrote:

..it was the corbyn election that made me finally understand what i am posting about in this thread. people rejected the labour manifesto! how could this be? for starters brexit was a manufactured issue by the right. and cambridge analytica was involved with the initial vote. they proved to be effective. when the reality was the remedy for the eu powers was the manifesto.

The manifesto itself was actually popular. The problem with that campaign was that the Tories had bungled Brexit under 2 leaders who tried to go through the motions but were at heart comitted Remainers. Boris Johnson was committed to Brexit, and there was a great deal of frustration in the country over the thwarting of a democratically held vote on whether to stay or leave. Labour had an incoherent position after Corbyn had been arm-twisted into holding a second referendum. Had Labour committed to respecting the result of the referendum and trying to get the best deal, Brexit would not have hung over that campaign like it did.

The other problem with the Manifesto is that even if people like it, they generally don't believe big promises politicians make. That's where Johnson capitalized on the desire to get Brexit done.

Michael Moriarity wrote:

epaulo13 wrote:

..in the us the democrats don't have anything near the manifesto. and biden is such an easy target on so many levels. i'm hoping this thread begins to start looking beyond the lesser evil position.  

In all seriousness, I don't know what you mean by this. The only alternatives I can see are boycotting the election, and voting for a third party candidate, and I don't see how either of these is better than voting for the lesser evil.

Chomsky suggests that we vote for the lesser evil, but not take the whole business of elections too seriously. In his view, the bulk of our energies should go to organizing outside the electoral system. Regarding this election in particular, he says that a Biden administration will be much more likely to respond to pressure from the movement Sanders founded as well as other left popular movements than a second Trump administration would.

..monbiot's piece talks about how we can do this. where we can start. and since there are already struggles on the ground..were we can join in or fit in. we do not have to start from scratch. i don't say don't vote democrat but don't rely on them. which is what is happening. even under bernie.

Why Labour Lost: Oligarchs are Gaming Democracy

..in the same thread you posted that monbiot piece in Here are more alternative approaches. here was my last post there.

..monbiot's antidote can take many forms

Municipalist Syndicalism: From the Workplace to the Community

Aristotleded24 wrote:

epaulo13 wrote:

..it was the corbyn election that made me finally understand what i am posting about in this thread. people rejected the labour manifesto! how could this be? for starters brexit was a manufactured issue by the right. and cambridge analytica was involved with the initial vote. they proved to be effective. when the reality was the remedy for the eu powers was the manifesto.

The manifesto itself was actually popular. The problem with that campaign was that the Tories had bungled Brexit under 2 leaders who tried to go through the motions but were at heart comitted Remainers. Boris Johnson was committed to Brexit, and there was a great deal of frustration in the country over the thwarting of a democratically held vote on whether to stay or leave. Labour had an incoherent position after Corbyn had been arm-twisted into holding a second referendum. Had Labour committed to respecting the result of the referendum and trying to get the best deal, Brexit would not have hung over that campaign like it did.

The other problem with the Manifesto is that even if people like it, they generally don't believe big promises politicians make. That's where Johnson capitalized on the desire to get Brexit done.

..the point is that even with the most progressive platform that i've ever witnessed in my long life it was defeated. nothing else should have mattered but through manipulation plus, as i've described above, the right did it.  

Biden: Criticism of Israel is Not Anti-Semitism Unless it Comes From the Left

https://twitter.com/MintPressNews/status/1263139665156222978

"Special Report: Presidential nominee Joe Biden affirmed his 'unshakeable' commitment to Israel during an online fundraiser by former US ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro. 'My commitment to Israel is absolutely unshakeable,' he assured his prospective donors..."

'But China/Russia!'

NDPP wrote:

Biden: Criticism of Israel is Not Anti-Semitism Unless it Comes From the Left

https://twitter.com/MintPressNews/status/1263139665156222978

"Special Report: Presidential nominee Joe Biden affirmed his 'unshakeable' commitment to Israel during an online fundraiser by former US ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro. 'My commitment to Israel is absolutely unshakeable,' he assured his prospective donors..."

'But China/Russia!'

 

He's certainly no bargain on the issue.  But unlike Trump, Israel would not be poised to formally annex 30% of the West Bank, the embassy would not have been moved to Jerusalem without getting something in return, and the education and justice departments would not be going around trying to enforce Zionist Political Correctness.

No, technically he is not out campaigning but he is visible. Where is Biden?

NorthReport wrote:

Trump will lose in a landslide because of the economy, new election model predicts

https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/20/business/economy-election-trump-biden-jobs/index.html

He's not going to lose by that much.  40-45% of the voters will stick with him no matter what.  Extreme polarization 

josh wrote:

NorthReport wrote:

Trump will lose in a landslide because of the economy, new election model predicts

https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/20/business/economy-election-trump-biden-jobs/index.html

He's not going to lose by that much.  40-45% of the voters will stick with him no matter what.  Extreme polarization 

I agree. Trump could lose the electoral college big time, but he won't get under 40% of the vote. Also, models like this are only valid (if they are valid at all, which I doubt) for "normal" elections, not one of a kind situations like the present craziness.

Trump Threatens to Cut Funding to Michigan, Nevada over Mail-in Voting

President Trump is intensifying his attack on mail-in voting by threatening to cut funding to the swing states of Michigan and Nevada, where officials are attempting to make it easier for residents to vote by absentee ballot due to the pandemic. In a series of tweets, Trump accused the states of acting illegally and promoting voter fraud.

Trump’s tweets came a day after Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson tweeted, “No voter should have to choose between their health & their vote. And every Michigan citizen has a right under our state constitution to vote by mail. With funding from the federal CARES act, I am ensuring every registered voter has the tools to conveniently exercise that right.”

Public support of mail-in voting is high across the U.S. One recent poll showed three-quarters of Americans support universal access to mail voting.

Cody87 wrote:

Klobuchar is the only plausible VP pick that could help Biden beat Trump. Every other VP pick is horribly flawed, except Kamala Harris, who will garner more opposition and less support than Klobuchar.

Also, I think the Trumpers will not be able to resist "Karen" slurs about Klobuchar, which will fare poorly among the important suburban white women vote.

Note that this evaluation is not based on Klobuchar or anyone else's policies. Those aren't relevant to the electoral math.

The way Biden wins is by upping the black turnout which dropped from 65% in 2012 to 59% in 2016.  That's why Clinton lost states like Michigan and Pennsylvania.  I think Harris the likely choice, but also keep an eye on Florida congresswoman Val Demings.

josh wrote:

Cody87 wrote:

Klobuchar is the only plausible VP pick that could help Biden beat Trump. Every other VP pick is horribly flawed, except Kamala Harris, who will garner more opposition and less support than Klobuchar.

Also, I think the Trumpers will not be able to resist "Karen" slurs about Klobuchar, which will fare poorly among the important suburban white women vote.

Note that this evaluation is not based on Klobuchar or anyone else's policies. Those aren't relevant to the electoral math.

The way Biden wins is by upping the black turnout which dropped from 65% in 2012 to 59% in 2016.  That's why Clinton lost states like Michigan and Pennsylvania.  I think Harris the likely choice, but also keep an eye on Florida congresswoman Val Demings.

What makes you think Harris has more appeal to black voters than Klobuchar or any other VP candidate? She didn't seem to have any during the primary.