September 11, 2022

"Senator Joseph R. Biden's characterization of his fellow Democratic presidential contender Senator Barack Obama as 'the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy' was so painfully clumsy..."

"... that it nearly warranted pity. There are not enough column inches on this page to parse interpretations of each of Mr. Biden’s chosen adjectives. But among his string of loaded words, one is so pervasive — and is generally used and viewed so differently by blacks and whites — that it calls out for a national chat, perhaps a national therapy session. It is amazing that this still requires clarification, but here it is. Black people get a little testy when white people call them 'articulate.'... With the ballooning size of the black middle and upper class, qualities in blacks like intelligence, eloquence — the mere ability to string sentences together with tenses intact — must at some point become as unremarkable to whites as they are to blacks."

Wrote Lynette Clemetson in "The Racial Politics of Speaking Well," published in the NYT in February 2007.

I thought everyone would have absorbed that lesson by now, but apparently the old custom of praising black people for stringing words into sentences is alarmingly healthy. Watch this clip:
I read that tweet because "Chuck Todd" is trending on Twitter right now. That's because of the clip you see there. People are outraged that he suggested that prosecuting Trump would be too "divisive," not that the Vice President can't or won't give a coherent answer to his perfectly sound question. 

103 comments:

gilbar said...

i'm confused; what does Kamela Harris have to do with African-Americans?

The Crack Emcee said...

I can't imagine calling "Word Salad" Kamala articulate. The people who think she is also think disregarding Bill Clinton's rapes is alright.

TreeJoe said...

Ummm, her answer clearly indicates they want to see Trump prosecuted and found guilty.

She’s a horrible speaker but she can communicate her desire. And there it is.

Why do people and the press like to pretend the DoJ is separate and non political. The entire function is lead by a political appointee and the President has broad powers to prosecute and pardon.

Their actions and words indicate they are supporting the prosecution of Trump and want to see “justice” done.

Dave Begley said...

Prosecute Trump for what?

Bob Boyd said...

When you're a hammer, everything looks like a white male.

Temujin said...

She can't. Word salads are her specialty and no one does them like Kamala. The only question is how does someone like that end up as the AG of the State of California? Wait. Given the current rash of ridiculous DAs in California, I've answered my own question.

We know how she got to the position of VP. Black Leftist with vagina.

Together, Biden and Harris are most certainly the least articulate, least impressive Pres/VP in our history. And I would go a step further and state that together, they are the least intelligent couple to preside over our country, despite the reams of articles on how dumb Republicans are. Reality is what it is and the evidence lies in front of us.

PS- when she says she wouldn't dare tell the DoJ what to do, she's telling the truth by degrees. The fact is that Biden and his team did tell the DoJ to raid Trump, to get all documents and to continue to pursue him. That Kamala may not have spoken the words or given the order is a mealy-mouthed sidestep. But mealy-mouthed and Kamala are interchangeable terms.

gspencer said...

articulate

Acting white,

Buckwheathikes said...

Once again, the media (deliberately, I think, and to protect Biden) misses it.

I thought for sure the word they were going for was in this story would be: "clean."

That's how Barack Obama was described by the President of the United States.

He was one of the "clean" ones. You know, not dirty.

What a racist. Let's not forget that Joe Biden was best friends with a Grand Dragon of the Klu Klux Klan for 40 years.

stutefish said...

" the mere ability to string sentences together with tenses intact — must at some point become as unremarkable to whites as they are to blacks."

I kinda feel like if it were all that unremarkable to blacks, African-American Vernacular English wouldn't be a thing.

Richard Aubrey said...

Trying to prove one's wonderfulness by lowering expectations is....not even appropriate for pre-school.

Gusty Winds said...

Quintilian defined public speaking and rhetoric as “A good man speaking well”. Let’s leave out the sexism of ancient Rome for now. But the point is there is a moral obligation when speaking to the public. Evil men don’t speak well…they speak evil.

Neither Chuck Todd, Kamala Harris, Joe Biden nor Barack Obama are “good men”. They are sophists. They are liars and propagandists like many other false prophets before them. It doesn’t matter if they can string together a coherent sentence. Their mouths mislead and cause damage.

I can’t take Chuck Todd or Kamala Harris seriously, other than the fact that they are two inept, corrupt people in positions of influence and power, and people suffer because of them. They personify the clown show that is now America.

And let’s be real. It is not racist to point out that Vice President “Word Salad” is just that. Empty, corrupt, rhetoric. It is dangerous that she is so close to the Presidency. She shouldn’t have gotten past being the second piece of arm candy in the Montel Williams red carpet threesome.

Kamala Harris begs the question of liberal women rising to power…this is the best you’ve got???

Mike said...

Kamala Harris can do a lot of things---word salad wise. But it does kinda take the shine off a claim that she can speak "coherently".

Darkisland said...

But Kamala is not black. At least not in the sense of most American blacks. She is half Jamaican half Indian ancestry.

She did not grow up in the black community. She was not exposed to black culture especially language until she was an adult at Howard University.

She did not even spend her formative years in the US but in French speaking Montreal (where she did NOT learn to speak any French.)

Criticizing her inability to to speak coherently is not criticizing black speech patterns. It is criticizing her brainpower.

People saying that criticizing her speech is racist is bullshit. That is just a smokescreen to deflect criticism.

The above also applies to Obama and AOC generally. Some differences between the 3.

John stop fascism vote republican Henry

rhhardin said...

Blacks have always been able to string sentences together. It's just that the dialect is different from standard English, but there's the same number of rules. They in fact have more verb moods to juggle than standard English. It does make them sound like idiots though, to a standard English ear.

RMc said...

"This Administration is performing exceptionally."

Boy, I'd hate to think what she would consider a bad Administration. (Actually, I already know: any Republican Administration.)

RMc said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Buckwheathikes said...

Let's get something straight: The newest member of the Supreme Court, a black woman, cannot even tell you what a "woman" is.

Articulation is not a feature any longer. In the Democrat Party, it's a bug.

Kamala Harris fills her role nicely. She's there to make everyone is scared of removing Joe Biden, because then she would become the President.

RMc said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Darkisland said...

Otoh, someone like Clarence Thomas grew up in the black community. Not even a primarily English speaking one in his earliest formative, learning to speak years.

He is very articulate.

John stop fascism vote republican Henry

West TX Intermediate Crude said...

Not exactly on point with our host's discussion, but the NYT bringing this up is yet another indication that old Joe is being eased out.

Amadeus 48 said...

You should never call a black person eloquent. It is much safer to go with grandiloquent.

Gusty Winds said...

The irony of all this. Now liberals don’t even require their leaders to be good sophists or public speakers. Biden isn’t a good public speaker. He can’t put together an extemporaneous thought, nor can he read a teleprompter correctly. Harris is and empty shell. Elizabeth Warren just shrieks. Hillary Clinton does that whole over emphasis thing you get from rally bad actors.

All give AOC some credit. She can sling some bullshit at a House Committee hearing.

And now you have vaccine stroke induce Democrat Senate Candidate John Fetterman who can’t remember his name…probably headed to the Senate.

The 144 (now 288) characters allowed on Twitter have diminished American attention spans and made good public speaking null and void. Liberal leaders and the MSM Ron Burgundys don’t say anything that can’t be summed up in the emoji of the moment.

Inga said...

VP Harris did give the correct answers. She and the President can’t step on the DOJs toes. She was careful in her speech and rightfully so.

gilbar said...

in the history of the world; has there Ever been anyone More racist than democrat politicians?

pious agnostic said...

I'm not one of those people who marvel and gush when a black person speaks correctly.

But I am one of those people who notices how a certain type of person rushes to defend anyone who speaks ungrammatically if that person is black.

As for that, I try to accept people whatever their level. But there is a certain amount of booshwah that goes along with all this.

Inga said...

Also Chuck Todd’s question was not so much a sound question as one that possibly could get him a “scoop”. VP Harris didn’t fall for it, good for her.

Spiros said...

Biden didn't say the quiet part out loud -- Obama’s skin color is his most important quality. Black politicians don't need to be "twice as good" or "twice as smart" or "twice as dependable" or "twice as talented" -- just good looking and slightly smarter than average.

(Obama definitely received less scrutiny and his mistakes were more likely to be forgiven.)

Nancy said...

I don't get the controversy. Harris answered the question appropriately for a Democrat: it doesn't matter if it's divisive because it's necessary.

mikee said...

Interesting post, weaving a trail from the inane words of the shambolic Biden from 2016 and then a reporter pretending VP Harris had anything at all to do with the FBI/DOJ inquisition of Trump. The issue under question is how to not insult POC. May I suggest the answer to that issue is to treat them not like they are some separate species, as Biden did, but like the individual humans they are.

And VP Harris not flubbing her response to what sure appeared to be preplanned questions is indeed news. What medication is she taking that had the power to stop the cackling?

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

"Painfully clumsy" was awful generous. I guarantee you it would've been anything but "painfully clumsy" had it been alluding to a republican.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

How dare NBC wander off The party loyalty platform.

Narayanan said...

Kamala Harris is personification of eloquence = linguistic mastery / or is it misery

Narayanan said...

as I live in south USA media English is strange/foreign language

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Kamala and Swetnik "...The unthinkable could happen."
Code: Democrats lose elections. That should be illegal!

Ralph L said...

Cashill pointed out that in his non-ghosted, pre-presidential written oeuvre, Obama often doesn't make the verb and subject agree when they're not adjacent.

wild chicken said...

Booker Washington wrote in his memoir that he feared worst of all that freed blacks would gravitate toward the bullshitting professions like preacher or politician, rather than to the skilled trades he was promoting.

I wonder why.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Strange how no one on the TV ever ask Kamala about her support for rioting, Antifa thuggery, and BLM crime. She said about it "It's not going to stop."

Weird how that's just gone.

Meade said...

Amadeus 48 said...
“You should never call a black person eloquent. It is much safer to go with grandiloquent.“

LOL

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

flashback:


"If you're able to, chip in now to the @MNFreedomFund to help post bail for those protesting on the ground in Minnesota," Harris tweeted.

At least 13 Biden campaign staff members made donations to the fund, according to Reuters.

Including actors Steve Carell, Cynthia Nixon, and Seth Rogen.

The fund help spring rioters from jail. Some went on to commit violent crimes.

Christopher B said...

Wasn't there just an entire thread of comments repeatedly attacking Clarence Thomas for 'acting white' by expressing conservative, even Republican, ideas in standard English?

I don't think I've ever heard anybody claim Thomas Sowell or Glenn Loury or even John McWhorter are notable primarily because they are 'clean and articulate'.

As Inga's predictable contributions illustrate, the standing ovations for oratory only seem to occur when liberal pieties get stroked.

And lost in Biden's tortured prose is that the immediate comparison of Obama in 2008 was to Jesse Jackson's 1988 effort to win the Democrat Presidential nomination. Whatever you think of Jackson's demeanor he was of the generation of black politicians who cut their teeth attacking the white establishment of the Democrat Party as much as anyone else, while Obama was entirely comfortable with it.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Bail fund backed by Kamala Harris freed Minneapolis man charged with murder

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

"It is time for us to do what we have been doing. And that time is every day."

-Kamala Harris

Latest installment of empty calorie word salad?

"Today, the business of our work is for the council to report on the work that has occurred since our last meeting across these areas. We will today also discuss the work yet ahead, the work we must still do."



ooo that's good.

Meade said...

The Crack Emcee said...
“I can't imagine calling "Word Salad" Kamala articulate. The people who think she is also think disregarding Bill Clinton's rapes is alright.“

A generalization that can be disproven with a single exception. What say you, Inga? Do you think it’s alright to disregard Bill Clinton’s sexual assaults?

pacwest said...

She's there to make everyone is scared of removing Joe Biden, because then she would become the President.

I remember the same thing being said when Obama picked Biden as VP. It's hard to imagine how deep into the incompetence pool Harris will have to reach to achieve the same thing. After awhile Dumb and Dumber gets hard to reach. Insert Inga joke here.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Many people lack the ability to articulate well. It's not a skin color thing.

The clumsy part of Biden's description of Obama was the word "Clean"

Another moment in democrat party press laundering the historical record.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Many people lack the ability to articulate well. It's not a skin color thing.

The clumsy part of Biden's description of Obama was the word "Clean"

Another moment in democrat party press laundering the historical record.

Wilbur said...

I thought her response to the first question was perfectly appropriate, if appreciably less than truthful.

The second question? Yikes. "I think that, um, our country is a country that has always gone through different periods of time where, um, the unthinkable has happened, and where there has been a call for justice and justice has been served, and um, I think that's always going to be the case in our country that people are going to demand justice and they rightly do."

It's overpraising her to label this sentence as incoherent.

Inga said...

“What say you, Inga? Do you think it’s alright to disregard Bill Clinton’s sexual assaults?”

It’s not alright to disregard anyone’s sexual assaults.

cassandra lite said...

It is an extraordinary thing that we elected to the presidency a man whose verified serial lying and fabulism were matched in length and degree only by his record as an utter mediocrity who makes Salieri look like Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven rolled into one.

This is why Trump must be kept far from the 2024 ballot. He inspires such revulsion that tens of millions of voters would rather vote for Jim Jones, and thousands of others will cleverly cheat with the acquiescence of the watchers, in order to keep him out of the WH.

Lurker21 said...

Everything is obfuscation. This is the age of public relations. Everyone tries to put the best possible face on what they're doing. Some people are just better at spinning and deflecting than others. KJP isn't very good at it either. I don't think it has anything to do with race, though many would say that if she wasn't a twofer (or threefer or fourfer) she wouldn't have gotten the job.

Bernard Shaw died on the same day as the queen. Very articulate man. That had nothing to do with race. And it would be insulting to say that he was very well spoken for a Black man. It was what was still expected in those days. It went with the job. Even a newsreader has to be able to make himself or herself understood. The government's standards aren't so high.

The other side of articulateness is glibness. Being "articulate" and being "inarticulate" can just be different ways of saying nothing. The master wordsmiths may be the people who can say nothing and make you think they've said much. You say it best when you say nothing at all.

Kate said...

What Biden meant by "articulate" is "without a noticeable dialect". You would not know where Obama grew up without being told. Linguists have explained why many Black people have a distinctive speech pattern that's identifiable. Obama doesn't have it.

To Biden, Obama sounded white, which meant we could safely vote for him.

Sebastian said...

"People are outraged that he suggested that prosecuting Trump would be too "divisive,""

People = progs. But why the outrage? If Todd said "too" divisive," OK--there's no such thing as being too divisive in the prog playbook. But they want to be divided from the deplorables, no? Separating out the deniers from the nice Americans is the strategy, isn't it? Divide the right and conquer is rational, ain't it?

Anyway, I take it Harris "correctly" said that squashing political opponents with semi-fasicst speeches, raids on a former president and his allies, and political persecutions aren't "divisive" at all. Reinforcing prog hegemony is unifying. QED.

Rollo said...

Maybe Kamala read too much Hemingway in high school.

Michael K said...

Obama did not do well off the teleprompter, either.

I keep wondering who is the boss?

Jersey Fled said...

"Otoh, someone like Clarence Thomas grew up in the black community. Not even a primarily English speaking one in his earliest formative, learning to speak years.

He is very articulate."

He went to Catholic School.

Kevin said...

The Biden White House doesn’t need to directly influence the DOJ.

The media knows what the White House wants and tells everyone through selected leaks in the NYT.

Gracelea said...

'Chuck Todd appears to have cut off his shamble bangs' - now that is an eloquent description.

Smilin' Jack said...

eloquence — the mere ability to string sentences together with tenses intact

I have no idea what that means, but I’m pretty sure it doesn’t define eloquence.

JK Brown said...

First off, where is the Kamala we've come to know from her public speaking. Her answers to Todd were non-answers, but far less gibberish than we've become accustomed.

Now, me, while "articulate" was a bit insulting,"eloquent" would have been a better term, what struck me from Biden's characterization of Obama was "clean". That seemed more classist, if not racist, in the statement. It reminded me of George Orwell in 'Road to Wigan Pier' commenting on it was smell that most created the animosity between the middle class and working class. He was taught that the lower classes smelled.

"That was what we were taught--the lower classes smell. And here,
obviously, you are at an impassable barrier. For no feeling of like or
dislike is quite so fundamental as a physical feeling. Race-hatred,
religious hatred, differences of education, of temperament, of intellect,
even differences of moral code, can be got over; but physical repulsion
can-not. You can have an affection for a murderer or a sodomite, but you
cannot have an affection for a man whose breath stinks--habitually
stinks, I mean."

Jamie said...

Ugh, I remember when Biden made that comment at first. It didn't strike me then as "painfully clumsy"; it struck me as flat-out racist.

Harris isn't articulate. She's just pretty.

Breezy said...

Kamala rambles, inflates, repeats and accentuates words as if in an ad lib skit. She’s trying to find what she thinks she should say and having a hard time doing so. She’s like a squirrel looking for an elusive acorn, most often not finding it.

Compared to Kari Lake’s verbal and messaging skills, Kamala is a toddler.

stlcdr said...

gilbar said...
i'm confused; what does Kamela Harris have to do with African-Americans?

9/11/22, 7:41 AM


:snort!:

That is coffee coming out of my nose. Well played, sir, well played!

Joe Smith said...

First, let's NOT have a 'chat.'

That's liberal code for 'We're going to put you white people in your places, call you racists, and demand more government money and resources.

Affirmative action, social programs, the Great Society, etc. has done that already. Been there, done that.

Second, Joe is kind of a racist. So there's that...

hawkeyedjb said...

We elected a senile, grifting, unaccomplished third-rate mediocrity as president, and his vice president makes him look good. There is a great deal of ruin in a country, it is said, and we're experimenting with just how much that is.

Roy Lofquist said...

Blogger Inga said...
VP Harris did give the correct answers. She and the President can’t step on the DOJs toes. She was careful in her speech and rightfully so.

She gave the correct answer for the moment at hand. The real world situation is that Republican presidents can't touch the DOJ whereas a Democratic president can have his own brother as Attorney General.

Gusty Winds said...

Speaking of Quintilian and "good men speaking well". The content and theme of both Biden (at the Pentagon) and Harris (at Ground Zero) speeches are to exploit 9/11 for their political advantage of "saving democracy"...and further push their effort to create a heretic class here in the United States.

Biden suggests that we owe it to the victims of 9/11 to "come together" to save democracy. Simply, everyone unite behind the establishment and isolate MAGA-Republicans he recently branded as semi-fascists. Harris reiterated this theme but took it further claiming we should treat domestic threats to democracy the same as the as foreign terrorists. Again, simply, MAGA-Republicans are to be treated and viewed as the hijackers that flew the planes into the Twin Towers.

Today Democrats have successfully vilified Rudy Guliani. On 9/11 he lead NYC through that tragic day, and that was after he had successfully cleaned up NY mob corruption through aggressive use of RICO laws, and also brought violent crime down in the city...which is now completely out of control. But yeah...Rudy Guliani is a domestic terrorist because he knows exactly what happened in the 2020 election.

And Donald Trump, who basically hung an "I Heart NY" sign on his tower downtown Chicago, is now Osama Bin Laden.

Greeks and Romans who debated what is and isn't good rhetoric were onto something important. Is a moral element required for rhetoric to be "good", or should it just be judged on the speakers ability to move the masses, no matter the direction, or the morality of the content? Obviously we have seen corrupt sophists throughout history who have the rhetorical ability to move the masses in horrible directions.

What we should mourn this 9/11 is not only the lives lost on that day and in the War on Terror, but the absolute success of Bin Laden and his 19 hijackers. It was a long term strategy that America would split and tear itself apart after such and event.

Joe Smith said...

“You should never call a black person eloquent. It is much safer to go with grandiloquent.“

So would a black magician be a Grand Wizard?

MikeR said...

If that was her "eloquent and correct" answer, someone is setting a painfully low bar. It was only eloquent compared with (a) everything else we see Kamala Harris saying, (b) every time we hear the President speak and drift off message.
Look! Kamala Harris didn't embarrass us and make a fool out of herself!

Carol said...

I can't find a definition of "shamble bangs" outside of the Chuck Todd context.

It must be a thing. We have local persons who got that same hairdo to go on TV or run for office.

Joe Smith said...

People are outraged that he suggested that prosecuting Trump would be too "divisive,"

At this point, I think they will wait until after the election to indict Trump.

If they do it now it will be a HUGE motivator for R voters.

Even moderate Rs will see clearly that the game is rigged.

If they indict him after the election they have a couple of years for the furor/anger to die down...

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Ack - post this instead please.

The real criminals in the American story are Joe and Hunter Biden.

Why Trump must pay.

The Crack Emcee said...

Inga said...

"It’s not alright to disregard anyone’s sexual assaults."

Yes, it is. And has been. This is the way they want it. All anyone has to do is Google Bill Clinton + Rape and you'll see decades of Democrats making excuses for it, lying about it, marginalizing anyone who brings it up, and dismissing it out of hand. Here's a pretty good breakdown of the known evidence: https://youtu.be/m40ULGZotAk

The Crack Emcee said...

Paula Jones says Bill Clinton's dick is curved - to the left.

https://youtu.be/0gWjRu3Gj_o

realestateacct said...

It must be very satisfying to be able to personify all evil outside your self.

BUMBLE BEE said...

When Kamal starts talking what comes to my mind is golf ball and garden hose.

Joe Smith said...

'It’s not alright to disregard anyone’s sexual assaults.'

Except if he could run again, Inga would still vote for him.

And she'll vote for the senile child-sniffer again as well...

Mason G said...

"The government's standards aren't so high."

Not all idiots are satisfied with living on welfare. They've got to go somewhere and the private sector, for the most part anyway, requires at least a minimum of competence.

Michael K said...

What we should mourn this 9/11 is not only the lives lost on that day and in the War on Terror, but the absolute success of Bin Laden and his 19 hijackers. It was a long term strategy that America would split and tear itself apart after such and event.

Yes. The security state that he helped create is now destroying this great country.

Buckwheathikes said...

Gilbar asked: "I'm confused; what does Kamela Harris have to do with African-Americans?"

Well, see, she's put thousands of them in prison chains.

She's not African-American if that's what you mean.

She's Jamacian-Indian.

But it's pretty easy to trick the black community in the United States.

n.n said...

Diversity [dogma].

Michael said...

Progressives don't care in the least if something is divisive as long as their division comes out on top.

Jamie said...

The master wordsmiths may be the people who can say nothing and make you think they've said much. You say it best when you say nothing at all.

MAYBE this is what people mean when they say that Harris or Jean-Pierre is "articulate" or "eloquent": that they manage to say nothing while talking for a long time. But it seems to me that in order to be a master wordsmith as described above, you have to pull that off without your listeners' noticing, at least in the moment, and neither of these speakers seems to say anything without making a whole lot of people (everyone on the right and many an honest person of the left) scratch their heads in befuddlement.

The part that's really amusing is the frequent, "Let me be clear." Is that a prayer or what?

Ralph L said...

When you're a hammer, everything looks like a white male.

Classic Bob Boyd.

Nicholas said...

@Inga - "VP Harris did give the correct answers. She and the President can’t step on the DOJs toes."

To be fair to Biden and Harris, it's pretty hard to step on the toes of someone who is prostrated before you in order to demonstrate their absolute fealty.

Howard said...

It's hard to drive a car forward by looking in the rear view mirror. Bill Clinton is a piece of s***. What does that have to do with the price of avocado toast in Cambridge Massachusett?

Joe Smith said...

'Maybe Kamala read too much Hemingway in high school.'

If she did, she didn't learn from him. Hemingway was known for writing short, simple sentences.

'Paula Jones says Bill Clinton's dick is curved - to the left.'

By today's democrat standards, it would be more down the middle...

MadisonMan said...

I have no clue who Kathleen Wright is. Thus I can't understand why I should care about what she thinks. I see she's a hardline Democrat. (shrug)
O/T: Boy the rain is coming down hard on the porch roof right now!

The Crack Emcee said...

Buckwheathikes said...

"It's pretty easy to trick the black community in the United States."

Looking at our present situation, I'd say that statement is true for America as a whole, Son. It's not an original observation to say we've been reduced to a nation of suckers. We've got a government that sold us a bill of goods and, right now, it looks like our best hope is with the guy who famously ran Trump University, and surrounds himself with a carnival of cranks, so even you never know.

Dr. Oz is going to be a Senator. The King of England is a crank. Bill Clinton is a three-time rapist who gets glad-handed in the Hamptons. Caitlyn Jenner is beautiful. Whoopi Goldberg is smart enough to host a daytime talk show. Netflix is now filled-to-the-gills with movies about the cults everyone used to say didn't exist. (Is anyone else following the story about Placido Domingo and the yoga sex cult that abused children?) Hillary won't shut up. And Tucker Carlson won't stop laughing. Ukraine.

If you ask me, when it comes to playing Americans of all races, and the world, for fools, we're now in one of those moments in history when everybody can admit "This is Chess, not Checkers".

Mr. Forward said...

"CHUCK TODD:

Final topic here. Since we're here in Texas, I want to ask you about the border. Would you call the border secure?

VICE PRES. KAMALA HARRIS:

I think that there is no question that we have to do what the president and I asked Congress to do, the first request we made: pass a bill to create a pathway to citizenship. The border is secure, but we also have a broken immigration system, in particular, over the last four years before we came in, and it needs to be fixed.

CHUCK TODD:

We're going to have two million people cross this border for the first time ever. You're confident this border's secure?

VICE PRES. KAMALA HARRIS:

We have a secure border in that that is a priority for any nation, including ours and our administration."

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Fixing immigration to democrats - let endless illegal entrants stream in - them give them legal status just for being here.

Mason G said...

"Let me be clear." Is that a prayer or what?

It means "I'm getting ready to lie to you."

rsbsail said...

Barack Obama was articulate. Why is stating that such a big deal? OTOH, Kamala Harris is only capable of sending up word salads using words and phrases that tick off leftist paradigms, but in the end, make no sense whatsoever. She is a fool, and how we ended up with her as a VP is a scandal.

rsbsail said...

And I only watched a few minutes of Chuck Todd's interview, but what struck me was that he finally had a interviewee that didn't make him look like a dwarf.

boatbuilder said...

I just watched the excerpt. Sounds like Kamala said that Trump is so unprecedented that despite the Biden Administration's cruel neutrality regarding the DOJ (snort!) we're gonna indict the bastard!

Did anyone watch the entire thing? Did either of them mention what crime it is that Trump is alleged to have committed? Or are they still working on that?

Tommy Duncan said...

It's my impression that Harris frequently attempts to appear profound, but fails to notice the relation between intelligent thought and the utterance of profound statements. Lacking thought, Harris instead produces only her famous word salads which she garnishes with her annoying cackle.

Fred Drinkwater said...

Jamie, Obama was pretty good at using a lot of articulate speech to say nothing while leaving his audience with the impression of substance and profundity. Biden is not. Harris can barely form a sentence.

Gahrie said...

that Harris or Jean-Pierre is "articulate" or "eloquent": that they manage to say nothing while talking for a long time. But it seems to me that in order to be a master wordsmith as described above, you have to pull that off without your listeners' noticing, at least in the moment,

Drat, my secret is out......

PB said...

If you thought Kamala was disconnected from reality before, just look what 18 months have done to her. She is really in a fantasy world.

Jamie said...

Jamie, Obama was pretty good at using a lot of articulate speech to say nothing while leaving his audience with the impression of substance and profundity. Biden is not. Harris can barely form a sentence.

Agree completely.

I didn't have enough exposure to pre-convention Obama to form an opinion about his rhetorical skill absent speechwriters - some here have said that without them, he was not nearly as good at empty profundities - but his speech at the Democrat convention, back when he was a lowly senator (was he even just a state senator then? I've forgotten), left me saying, "But... he sounds like a Republican!"

jg said...

Obama deserves to be called 'articulate'. Don't let them take your words away.

GRW3 said...

I would have thought the segment where she brazenly told him the border is secure and left him slack jawed would have have garnered more attention.

PM said...

"I think that, in a world of division and, well, we see it all the time, how the push and pull of the stress so many people are faced with has a way letting them, and all of us, really, ignore the values so often hidden by our day-to-day struggles..."

"Ma'am?"

"The Chocolate Mint."