The Floor Is Lava
Let’s get ready to ZOOOOOOOOOM!!!!
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SUPPORTING
ITEM: You can become a voluntary paying subscriber or contributor to back Wide World of News.
What that loudmouth will say on your morning Zoom: Halperin should really stop writing this newsletter if it is such a burden. Or at least take August off.
What you should say on your morning Zoom: Help a fella out!
Or:
Pick the amount of your choice and send it via:
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INVESTIGATING
ITEM: Big Washington Post news break:
The Justice Department is investigating President Donald Trump’s actions as part of its criminal probe of efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, according to four people familiar with the matter.
What that loudmouth will say on your morning Zoom: Blah, blah, blah – there’s nothing new here.
What you should say on your morning Zoom: Ask yourself , who (besides Pence aide Marc Short…), had the motive to leak this – and why now? This is rubicon-crossing stuff.
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GENERALIZING
ITEM: Attorney General Merrick Garland says nothing straightforward or newsy in an interview with NBC News in which he sounded like a law professor or the head of the ACLU.
What that loudmouth will say on your morning Zoom: Still could not pick the guy out of a lineup.
What you should say on your morning Zoom: Joe Biden feels about the level of political sophistication of Mr. Garland as Rahm Emanuel felt about the level of political sophistication of Eric Holder. Could end up being wrong person, wrong job, right time.
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SPINNING/SCAMBLING
ITEM: Politico:
The White House is scrambling behind the scenes and in public to get ahead of a potentially brutal economic punch to the face that could give Republicans the chance to declare that the “Biden recession” is under way.
Wall Street analysts, economists and even some in the Biden administration itself expect a report on Thursday to show the economy shrank for a second straight quarter, meeting a classic — though by no means the only — definition of a recession.
What that loudmouth will say on your morning Zoom: They can’t talk their way out of this.
What you should say/ask on your morning Zoom: The loudmouth is right for once. Team Biden needs to buck up business confidence. But how?
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PREPARING
ITEM: Associated Press:
U.S. officials say they have little fear that China would attack Nancy Pelosi’s plane if she flies to Taiwan. But the U.S. House speaker would be entering one of the world’s hottest spots, where a mishap, misstep or misunderstanding could endanger her safety. So the Pentagon is developing plans for any contingency.
Officials told The Associated Press that if Pelosi goes to Taiwan — still an uncertainty — the military would increase its movement of forces and assets in the Indo-Pacific region. They declined to provide details, but said that fighter jets, ships, surveillance assets and other military systems would likely be used to provide overlapping rings of protection for her flight to Taiwan and any time on the ground there.
What that loudmouth will say on your morning Zoom: I bet she cancels the trip.
What you should say on your morning Zoom: President Biden will use his power of persuasion in his Thursday call with his old pal Xi to lower the temperature enough to allow the Speaker to take the journey.
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JOCKEYING
ITEM: The Wall Street Journal has the best look yet at the Trump-DeSantis relationship, full of color and reported facts, including Trump’s belief that “Only Ron matters” in the context of potential nomination rivals. Essential reading!
What that loudmouth will ask on your morning Zoom: Can Trump change his residency back to New York so they can run as a ticket?
What you should say on your morning Zoom: The most profound question now is not “Is Trump running?” but, rather, “Would DeSantis challenge Trump?” Meanwhile, watch the Old Dominion’s Youngkin (with his boffo Blue state poll numbers), establishment cred, outsider and suburban appeal, and a mountain of ambition. Also, read this thread:
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SPECULATING
ITEM: Holman Jenkins has either cracked the code or reinforced the reputation of the Wall Street Journal op-ed page as having only a passing familiarity with the reality of the real world:
The longest-tail consequence, though, may be found in recent words of Joe Biden. In a series of public statements, he said he wants Mr. Trump to run again. And why wouldn’t he? Never mind that most Americans want neither man on the ballot. If faced with Mr. Trump’s presumed greater corruption, wouldn’t the press continue to ignore the overflowing Hunter Biden evidence? Wouldn’t Democrats hold their noses and renominate Mr. Biden because he already beat Mr. Trump once?
Hunter and his dad need Mr. Trump to run. This, I submit, may be the only way the laptop revelations don’t finally blow up and bring Mr. Biden’s political life to an end. Even so, it’s far from apparent that the rich and varied pathologies of his younger son won’t explode anyway and drag Mr. Biden down and hand the election to Mr. Trump.
What that loudmouth will say on your morning Zoom: I cannot understand a word of that column.
What you should ask on your morning Zoom: Are Eric Schwerin and Tony Bobulinski off the stage for good – or coming back for the second/climactic act?
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POLLING
ITEM:
DURHAM, NH - Only one-fifth of Granite Staters want President Biden to seek another term in 2024 and support among Democrats has fallen dramatically since last summer. When asked who they would support in a 2024 presidential primary, Biden is tied with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Biden's personal favorability is at an all-time low and is lower than many possible 2024 candidates among New Hampshire Democrats.
These findings are based on the latest Granite State Poll, conducted by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center.
What that loudmouth will say on your morning Zoom: I didn’t see the New Hampshire poll, but look what the new CNN poll says:
Among Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters under 45, just 18% prefer Biden as the 2024 nominee.
What you should say on your morning Zoom: Every day, I say to myself, “There can’t possibly be a worse poll for Joe Biden than the one that just came out.” Symbolically and substantively, this might be the worst poll of Biden’s career. The voters of New Hampshire take this stuff seriously. Oh, and don’t overlook the Bernie Sanders, Kamala Harris, and Hillary Clinton numbers in this survey either. OUCH.