2020 In Hindsight

 It was a year that began with the impeachment of a President accused of high crimes and misdemeanors by the House of Representatives, yet was acquitted by a Senate whose party was held in thrall by the same man whose careers they depended on, so they let him skate.  It ends with this same President defeated at the polls, yet as his term nears its conclusion continues to cling to the notion that Democratic voter fraud made him the real winner. And President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris are waiting in the wings.

It was a year that began with a viral outbreak in China that spread to the rest of the world with devastating consequences.  The President, when told about it, chose to sit tight and refer to it as a hoax.  As casualties across the United States mounted and life as we knew it went undercover, he held "superspreader" campaign events with masks optional before getting sick himself.  By the end of the year, with over 300,000 dead and millions infected, the President no longer seems to care about the virus that came to be known as COVID-19 ruining his chances of re-election.  If he ever did.

It was a year when George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other Black individuals were murdered by police officers who thought they were breaking the law--just because they were Black.  This led to demonstrations and rioting in the streets of major cities, Black Lives Matter becoming more than just a slogan, athletes and entertainers picking up the mantle for social justice, and much soul searching no matter who you were.  The President's response?  He sent National Guard and other troops to quell demonstrators in such cities as Washington and Portland, OR while posing with an upside-down Bible and yelling "LAW AND ORDER!", representing neither.  Cha-chung.  By year's end, we still don't know what really happened to Floyd, Taylor and the others.

It was a year when, because of coronavirus, everything was closed or went underground.  Events were postponed or canceled.  Zoom meetings became one of the safer ways to communicate.  Unlikely products such as toilet paper and household cleaning products became scarce.  Streaming services such as Disney+ and Netflix had big years as people didn't have much to do but watch TV, and theaters were forced to close.

It was a year when someone like Sarah Cooper could do dead-on impressions of the President and the First Lady and be a hit on social media, leading to a Netflix TV special.  Or when Taylor Swift recorded three albums in a year's time ("Lover", "Folklore", "Evermore"), two of them during the pandemic.

It was a year when sports continued against all logic while the pandemic raged.  The NBA, NHL and WNBA conducted their regular season and playoffs inside tightly-controlled bubbles.  Major League Baseball, the NFL and college football played their seasons in empty stadiums under open skies.  There were some postponements due to players either becoming ill or testing positive for the virus.  It was clear this was all done for the benefit of TV networks, whose lucrative contracts with the leagues may have possibly kept them from going under, never mind the health and safety of the players.

Most of all, though, it was a year of death. Herewith, an extensive list of those you might have heard of who passed away during 2020, whether it was due to COVID-19 or not.  Cue Sarah McLachlan's "Angel".

Don Larsen, Sam Wyche, Elizabeth Wurtzel, Edd Byrnes, Buck Henry, Jim Lehrer, Kobe Bryant, Jack Burns, Marj Dusay, Fred Silverman, Mary Higgins Clark, Gene Reynolds, Willie Wood, Kirk Douglas, Roger Kahn, Orson Bean, Paula Kelly, Zoe Caldwell, Ja'Net DuBois, Mickey Wright, Pop Smoke, Jeanne Evert, AP Indy, B.Smith, Ahmaud Arbery, Clive Cussler, Lee Phillip Bell, Bobbie Battista, Ruth Born, Mal Sharpe, Roger Mayweather, Lyle Waggoner, Kenny Rogers, Jimmy Wynn, Orlando McDaniel. Joe Diffie, KT Oslin, Pierre Cardin, David Stern, Jacob Blake, Ed Farmer, James Drury, Al Kaline, Herb Stempel, Carl Dobkins Jr., Linda Tripp, Mort Drucker, Saul Turteltaub, Pete Retzlaff, Jim Frey, Stirling Moss, Hank Steinbrenner, Milt Sunde, Bobby Lewis, Matt Keough, Don Shula, Barry Farber, Brian Howe, Roy Horn, Little Richard, Betty Wright, Jerry Stiller, Pepper Rodgers, Phyllis George, Fred Willard, Ken Osmond, Chuck Graham, Jerry Sloan, Eddie Sutton, Larry Kramer, Randy Staten, Pat Dye, Lee Grosscup, Wes Unseld, Johnny Majors, Dick Garmaker, Mike McCormick, Jean Kennedy Smith, Lester Crystal, Benny Mardones, Carl Reiner, Sean Connery, Regis Philbin, Chadwick Boseman, Phil Niekro, Ann Reinking, John LeCarre, Charley Pride, David Lander, David Prowse. Diego Maradona, Alex Trebek, Nikki McKibbin, Leanza Cornett, Conchata Ferrell, Whitey Ford, Johnny Nash, Eddie Van Halen, Helen Reddy, Mac Davis, Gale Sayers, Pamela Hutchinson, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Diana Rigg, Lou Brock, Cliff Robinson, Reni Santoni, Wilford Brimley, Alan Parker, Herman Cain, Olivia de Haviland, Grant Imchara, Naya Rivera, Kelly Preston, Charlie Daniels, Nick Cordero, Hugh Downs, Ian Holm, Chuck Yeager, Ken Hansley, John Prine, Joe Morgan, Bob Gibson, Tommy DeVito, Winston Groom, Stanley Crouch, Shere Hite, Tom Seaver, John Thompson, Gail Sheehy, Ben Cross, Trini Lopez, Sumner Redstone, Brent Scowcroft, Pete Hamill, John Saxon, John Lewis, Christo, Lynn Shelton, Peter Beard, Brian Dennehy, Honor Blackman, Bobby Mitchell, Tom Dempsey, Bill Withers, Curly Neal, Stuart Whitman, Max von Sydow, McCoy Tyner, James Lipton, Robert Conrad, Terry Jones, Jim Ramstad, Sid Hartman, Tom Hanneman, Chris Doleman, Tarvaris Jackson, Bob McDonald, John Hankinson, Henri Richard, Tom Heinsohn, Paul Hornung, Rafer Johnson, Dick Allen, Kevin Greene, KC Jones, Ron Perranoski, Nancy Dorsch, Dawn Wells

Everybody, it seems, is looking forward to 2021.  Let's see where it leads to.

The Man Who Came to the White House--And Stayed

It's been three weeks since the election, and only now has President Donald Trump gotten over himself long enough to allow his successor. President-elect Joe Biden, to begin the transition in earnest prior to his inauguration on January 20.  The General Services Administration gave the go-ahead on Monday.  Biden and his transition team can finally look over all the correspondence and briefings he needs to know about.

But don't think for one moment Trump has abandoned his increasingly quixotic quest to regain the Presidency, in spite of evidence to the contrary.  He has yet to concede the election to Biden, even though the former vice-president has amassed 80 million votes to Trump's 73 million--more than any other candidate in history.  Biden also leads in the Electoral College vote 306 to 232.

Claiming voter fraud and other irregularities, Trump and his gang of fools (also known as his attorneys) have been striking out in the courtrooms of battleground states, leaving behind hollow reassurances to the President's base at every parking lot and strip mall they could find. They haven't looked good doing so, not even with Rudy Giuliani's hair dye.

It's not as though Trump is all that eager to do his job these days.  There's a pandemic going on with 12 million cases of Covid-19, a quarter of a million dead, and people ignoring pleas to mask up and stay home this Thanksgiving--even with vaccines on the horizon.  You've heard of the phrase "when the going gets tough, the tough get going"?  With this President, when the going gets tough, the tough tweets, watches Fox News, then goes golfing.

Meanwhile, Biden has been busy putting together his new staff during the delay, while at the same time reassuring the country that help is on its way.  The President-elect announced his national security cabinet, which includes familiar names such as Janet Yellin for Secretary of the Treasury and former Senator and 2004 presidential candidate John Kerry as climate advisor.  Most of the rest of the nominees (pending Senate approval) are diverse and experienced in government affairs, unlike the revolving door of unqualified yes-people and family members who served during Trump's administration.

It looks like the Democratic "blue wave" in Congress never materialized, which makes Biden's efforts to get things done a lot more complicated.  The Democrats still have the House of Representatives by a 220-208 margin.  But the GOP is still holding on to the Senate 50-46, pending the outcomes of two runoff races in Georgia, meaning Biden might still have Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to deal with.

One reason Trump is taking desperate measures to keep his job is that once he leaves office, he faces numerous federal and state charges against him for everything from financial fraud to sexual assault.  It is more likely, however, that Trump will be filing for bankruptcy rather than see a day behind bars.  He's already on his way to letting his cronies go scot-free, having pardoned Roger Stone and Michael Flynn.  Maybe he'll do the same thing for himself and his family.

So whether Trump finally throws in the towel and concedes, or waits for the Electoral College to to decide his fate, his spectre for the next few weeks will be hanging over the White House like an unwanted house guest who's stayed too long.  Because if he can't move on, neither can the country.

 

Biden Wins. Trump Pouts.

After four agonizing days and nights of needing just one or two more states to make it past the Electoral College-mandated 270 mark, former Vice President Joe Biden finally passed that hurdle when the TV networks declared him the winner in Pennsylvania Saturday morning. He will become the 46th President of the United States on January 20, 2021.  Senator Kamala Harris of California becomes the first woman and person of color to be Vice President.

The votes are still being counted as of November 7 in Arizona, Nevada and Georgia with Biden in the lead.  But Pennsylvania was the big prize with 20 electoral votes.  Biden won more popular votes than anyone in history with more than 74 million.

Donald Trump becomes the first President since 1992 to be defeated for a second term.  For a man who's used to "so much winning", as he might have put it, he's not handling losing very well.  His nationally-televised rants about Democrats committing voter fraud and threats of suing his way to a second term, possibly all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, did nothing but paint him as a desperate old man clinging to the spotlight.  And what was he doing when Biden was announced as the winner?  Playing golf, which is a typical move whenever the President wants to get away from reality. Conceding?  Are you kidding?

But Trump won over 70 million votes, and if that doesn't tell you how divided the United States is right now, I don't know what will.  Seems there are a lot more folks outside his political base who liked how he's handled the coronavirus pandemic (which is currently near ten million cases and over 236,000 dead, with the worst still to come), the pre-Covid economy and other kinds of behavior unbecoming a President.  If Trump had so much as taken the pandemic seriously, not only would he have saved a lot of lives, but he would have won a second term too.  

As it stands, Biden won because people got sick of all the lies, all the racism, all the tweeting, all the corruption, all the nepotism, all the spinelessness of the GOP, all the ignoring of his Western allies and coddling of dictators, and, most importantly, ALL TRUMP ALL THE TIME. By contrast, Biden has been in and out of public office for nearly 50 years and seems to know how to deal with the world.  He may be older than Trump (78 by inauguration), but he's exactly what America needs right now.  Boring but competent.

Now that it's all over but the pouting, the next three months should be interesting.  As President-elect Biden and his transition team hit the ground running, what will President Trump be doing in the days before his TV show of an administration goes off the air?  Will he cooperate with Biden's team?  Will he fire everyone right and left?  Will he find a way to stay out of prison?  Or will he simply fade into America's collective rear view mirror?

"Rounding The Turn" to Election Day(s)

 In a few days (or so) will come the event we've waited four years for.  Will President Donald Trump win another four year term in the White House?  Or will defeat at the polls to former vice president Joe Biden finally do what scandal, impeachment, Covid-19 and just plain buffoonery could not--remove him from office?  If that's the case, will Trump do so gracefully?

Most of the polls nationally and in battleground states indicate that Biden has a sizable lead over Trump.  But no one, not even Biden, is convinced that the Democrats have this one in the bag yet.  Remember 2016?  Or even 1948, if you've done your research?  Those elections taught us that polls and the popular vote doesn't matter.  Only the Electoral College matters, and a few votes in the right places is Trump's best hope for defying the experts once again.

Trump's (mis)handling of the coronavirus crisis has led to (as of 10/29) nearly nine million cases and over 227,000 deaths, including himself and most of the White House staff.  And the worst is yet to come as winter approaches. Yet he insists on jetting around the country to rallies attended by thousands of supporters who don't mask up, spreading disease wherever he goes.

Lacking a real plan to control the virus without hurting the economy, the President tells anyone who'd listen that we're "rounding the turn" in developing a vaccine that won't be available to everyone until next summer.  Trouble is, it sounds like what President Herbert Hoover kept saying as the Great Depression got worse:  "Prosperity is just around the corner".

It also doesn't help that the Trump administration has all but surrendered to the virus, offering scant suggestions that don't involve mask wearing and social distancing while muzzling the experts, who have a better idea of what's going on than the politicians do.

The U.S. Senate's confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett as the newest Supreme Court justice, so soon after the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg as Americans are voting early, is a clear indication that Trump and Senate Republicans are imposing their will on the country long after they're gone, leaving hot-button issues like abortion and the Affordable Care Act at the mercy of a conservative-majority court.  The Democrats, if not Biden, are screaming about the GOP's "court packing" and vow revenge.  But any attempt to do some of that themselves, including adding two more seats, will likely result in leaving the Court's conservative majority intact.

In spite of the millions of people who waited in line for several hours to vote in a shrinking number of polling places across the country, and in spite of all those who wanted to avoid getting sick on Election Day by voting early by absentee ballot (your Postal Service mail delivery might vary), the winner might be determined by six conservative justices and three liberals if the totals between Trump and Biden are close enough, and Trump demands a recount  If there's interference by a foreign government, that's another story altogether.

So yes, we're "rounding the turn" all right.  Do we really want to know what's around the corner?

Debates and Consequences

 For someone who loathes wearing masks and thinks a deadly virus that has so far killed over 210,000 people in the United States alone is no big deal, it came as a shock when President Donald Trump was forced to spend last weekend fighting COVID-19 symptoms in a military hospital.  He has also infected nearly everyone in his path, which includes White House staffers, key associates and wife Melania.  Not to mention those he met along the campaign trail, and in his first presidential debate with former vice-president Joe Biden (who tested negative), all with nary a mask in sight. 

If you thought getting the virus would somehow humble the President into understanding the devastation around the country he helped create, you'd be wrong.  Trump made a dramatic, made-for-TV return to the White House, declared victory even though he's still contagious and should really be in quarantine, and claimed that if he beat the virus, we can too.  That is, if we had the superior medical care Presidents usually get (and even if he weren't President, Trump would still be able to get the best docs available) and experimental drugs that are more powerful than, say, Tylenol.

The first debate with Biden was such a disaster that it was suggested none ever be held again,  But the committee handling the debates insisted on another one, so they scheduled one for October 15.  Because the President got sick, what was supposed to be a town hall setup has been changed to a glorified Zoom meeting.  But Trump said he didn't want to waste his time on a virtual debate, so unless he's persuaded otherwise, there's not going to be one.  Biden will use the time to do his own town hall for ABC News.

The debate between Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic challenger Senator Kamala Harris in Utah did come off Wednesday, plexiglass and all.  Neither candidate answered critical questions from moderator Susan Page of USA Today about whether Trump would accept the results of the election, or whether there would be a peaceful transfer of power if he lost.  Harris won the debate because Pence was too busy talking over both women and going past his allotted time to notice that there was a fly on his head.

Whether you think President Trump is hopped up on drugs and can't think straight as he's recovering, or if he's just being himself, you have to wonder how much longer America and the world can put up with his antics.  Whatever happens on or around November 3, we'll have to live with the consequences.

Random Thougts: Breonna Taylor, RBG, COVID and All That "Schitt's"

 No Justice, No Peace in Louisville

You can say Breonna Taylor's name as much you want, but it doesn't mean she's going to get any justice.  A grand jury in Louisville, KY charged only one of the four police officers accused of her murder, and that was for shooting someone else in the next room.  Taylor's family had already settled with the city for $12 million in a civil trial.  The Feds have yet to complete its investigation into the incident, but they'll be under enormous pressure to satisfy Taylor's supporters, who took to the streets of Louisville and other cities as soon as the verdict was announced.  This does not bode well for what will happen in Minneapolis when the police officers allegedly responsible for George Floyd's death will come to trial.

Change Over RBG's Dead Body

Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death at age 87 on September 18 is a win-win for President Donald Trump.  With a few weeks remaining before the Presidential election, Trump and his Republican pals in the Senate can ignore Ginsburg's dying wish that her replacement wouldn't be approved and seated before the people elect a new leader.  Not only would Trump have an insurance policy in his favor in case of a tight election, but should he lose to Joe Biden (a fact the President has been known to dismiss as his way of staying in power no matter what), the Democratic candidate (and future Presidents) would be stuck with a 6-3 conservative majority for the foreseeable future unless his plan to "pack the Court" (ala FDR) gets past Congress

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who has rightfully been recognized as a role model and trail blazer for women and others who believe in social justice, deserved better than to be a cold body stepped over by those who couldn't wait for a more conservative future for the Supreme Court.  Everything she ever championed on the bench might not survive her death.

A Grim Milestone--And Counting

The death toll in the United States in the six months since a health emergency was declared over COVID-19 has risen (as of 9/24/2020) to over 201,000, with nearly seven million confirmed cases.  This is a tribute to the confusion, denial and mismanagement of the pandemic caused by our elected leaders, choosing fear over the advice of scientists and doctors that they themselves had hired, resulting in untold misery for those who are working from home--or not, kids who are learning from computer screens instead of in classrooms, and for those who could not see their loved ones.  According to those scientists, the pandemic might actually run its course by mid-2021--if all goes well, a safe vaccine can be found, and enough people take precautions.  The politicians and business leaders run the risk of prolonging things unnecessarily if they continue to believe the bottom line is being affected, and if they continue to believe the rising death toll from COVID amounts to, well, nothing.

The Emmys Go Up a "Creek"

The Canadian sitcom "Schitt's Creek", in its final season, swept the comedy category at the 72nd Emmy Awards September 20.  No other show has ever done that.  Awards went to its stars Catherine O'Hara (actress in a comedy), Eugene Levy (actor in a comedy), Daniel Levy (supporting actor), Annie Murphy (supporting actress), and "Creek" itself (best comedy).

Elsewhere, two shows from HBO dominated the Limited Series and Drama categories.  "Watchmen" won for Best Limited Series?Movie, along with stars Regina King (best actress) and Yahya Abdul-Mateen (supporting actor).  "Succession" won for best drama, and Jeremy Strong won for best actor in a drama.

The Emmy telecast was staged virtually from Staples Center in Los Angeles, was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and shown on ABC.  It was, as Kimmel predicted, the lowest-rated Emmy ever.  You can't just blame competition from sports for the low numbers.  Many of the shows that were nominated were ones that weren't familiar to most viewers, and the few that were depended on where they got their TV.  Or are people just tired of awards shows where Hollywood stars preach at them to vote and to end racism and sexism?

Trump vs. "Not Trump"

Well, here it is.  The presidential election season (such as it is) has begun after a summer full of virtual conventions, clashes in the street. possible mail-in voter fraud and arguments over wearing masks and how to open school as the COVID-19 pandemic is on its way to killing almost 200,000 Americans in just a few months. 

President Donald Trump, the Republican incumbent, may not have helped start the outbreak.  But he's certainly responsible for his mismanagement of it, having said as much on tape about downplaying the seriousness as prime fodder for Bob Woodward's new book.  Trump faces former Democratic vice president Joe Biden, who made headlines for making Kamala Harris his running mate.  The current Senator from California, who would be the first of Asian and Jamaican descent to serve in the office if they win, ran against Biden in the primaries.

The President promises to "keep America great" as cities burn, businesses shut down, millions lose their jobs due to COVID, and there's a trade war with China.  Biden wants to "build back better", as if he's a Detroit auto executive trying to sell his fading lineup of cars.  He also wants to do a better job of handling the virus by mandating masks and relying on scientists and doctors instead of promoting questionable miracle cures and "wishing" the virus away.  But mainly what Biden, Harris and the Democrats have to sell is that they're not Trump, and that may be enough for them to win in November.

Nearly two decades have passed since the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks, and America's national security is in danger of being compromised--if it isn't already.  Trump's disdain for climate change and for the "suckers" and "losers" who populated the military he commands past and present are matched only by his unyielding friendship and support of the authoritarian dictators he wants to emulate, if the Constitution would only let him.

We know that race relations is not Trump's strong suit, having long ago sided with white nationalists in his quest for "law and order" instead of immigrants and African-Americans, for whom he has often whined about how much he has done for them than any other President.  Now, to go along with George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other Blacks who have been victims of overzealous police, we add Jacob Blake Jr.  He was shot in the back seven times by Kenosha, WI police for trying to escape capture on a charge of domestic abuse.  Protests on the streets of Kenosha led to a 17-year old white teenage boy accused of shooting two men to death, earning the tacit approval of the President.  Which is not much different than sending armed militias into the streets of Portland and Washington,D.C. because of real or perceived threats by extremists right and left, making things worse.

This is Trump's race to lose, and he's losing it.  Most of the major polls in the battleground states show him trailing Biden, as well as in fundraising for the million or so campaign ads you'll be seeing until November 3.  But Trump is scaring the heck out of those who want to avoid the polls and mail in their votes instead due to the virus by slowing down the U.S. Postal Service, which is now run by one of his campaign contributors. Which means we may not know who won on Election Night, with the voters risking illness to cast their ballots and the tidal wave of mail order ballots to be counted.  And even then, we won't know if Trump will go away peacefully if he loses.

We're still waiting for the "October Surprise".  If it isn't Trump disparaging the troops, downplaying the virus or promising a vaccine by November, then what is it?  Do we really want to know?