Framing

I know one can go too far in obsessively examining the nuance of NYT headlines and ledes, but here is a pretty good example of how they almost always frame things in the Trump era.

Instead of putting the critics and criticism first - as in "Democrats blame Trump cuts for flood response" or similar - they put the response first, making it sound as if Trump is on offense and the Dems are on defense.

It's a small thing but it's extremely common, and it's a choice.  A series of choices.

Morning

Once again.

Monday Night

Rock on.

Happy Hour

A bit late. Got busy with some things.

Another Fine Elon Product

He does like things that explode.

In its first year on the road, the Cybertruck ended up being tied to five fire fatalities through Jan. 1, a concerning trend that makes the rate of such fatalities higher than that of the notorious Ford Pinto, which was in production from 1970–80.

Baby Steps

Slotkin finding some of that Alpha Energy.

The debate is no longer progressive vs. moderate; that is very 2017.

The debate is how do you answer one question: Is the second Trump administration an existential threat to democracy or is it bad but survivable?

I believe it is an existential threat. https://t.co/0AT2AUjMqo

— Elissa Slotkin (@ElissaSlotkin) July 6, 2025

Lunch

eat

Sure, Jan

🚨 EXCLUSIVE: President Trump's Justice Department and FBI have concluded they have no evidence that Jeffrey Epstein blackmailed powerful figures, kept a "client list” or was murdered, according to a memo detailing the findings obtained by Axios.https://t.co/Dyt4ycKRuV

— Axios (@axios) July 7, 2025

An official Trump White House account posted this 5 months ago btw https://t.co/3TxT72LAcb

— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) July 7, 2025

Agendas

It's always clear when the NYT has an agenda, but they do the "I know you are but what I am I" thing when you point out the obvious.  The critics of the Times are always "activists" who expect the newspaper to depart from its Vulcan objectivity and impartiality to push an agenda, while they are the platonic ideal of journalistm, merely pursuing truth wherever it may lead.

Death Cult

I don't really want to get into specifics of whether a particular budget cut was the issue or whether the floods were a result of climate change, because arguing over the specifics can obscure the larger undeniable truth:  It is the case that Republicans are actively hostile to dealing with climate change and even inexpensive measures to ameliorate its consequences.  It is also the case that climate change and its effects are real whether or not you can pin any specific weather event on it.

Texas braces for more rain as death toll mounts to at least 82 with dozens missing

Morning

Marvelous Monday

Happy Hour

Get happy

Of Course They Did

The Tony Blair Institute For Taking Bribes To Do Middle East Murder couldn't not:

The Tony Blair Institute participated in a project to develop a postwar Gaza plan that envisaged kick-starting the enclave’s economy with a “Trump Riviera” and an “Elon Musk Smart Manufacturing Zone”.

It envisaged all Gaza’s public land being put into a trust for development, whose assets could be sold to investors via digital tokens traded on a blockchain. Gazans would be offered the chance to contribute their privately owned land to the trust in return for a token that gave them the right to a permanent housing unit.

How my apes doing?

 Amazing people:

When first approached by the FT regarding its role in the project, a TBI spokesperson said: “Your story is categorically wrong . . . TBI was not involved in the preparation of the deck, which was a BCG deck, and had no input whatever into its contents.”

The FT then provided details of a 12-person message group used for the project — including two TBI staff, BCG consultants and the Israeli businessmen — and an unpublished TBI document shared within the group titled “Gaza Economic Blueprint”.

At this point, the TBI spokesperson said: “We have never said TBI knew nothing about what this group was working on or that they weren’t on calls in which the group discussed their plans.”

Keep On Extending

Mr. Deals gives everybody another 3 weeks or so.   Remember when all the MAGAs were fantasizing about having iPhone factories up and running by June 1, or whatever.

Countries that don't make trade deals with the U.S. by August 1 can expect tariff rates to return to the levels announced in April, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday.

It had been July 9.

Kooky Billionaries And Politics

Musk isn't the first rich guy to try to enter national politics in a bigly way, and of course it remains to be seen if he follows through. While they obviously have a lot of influence working within the parties - and keeping Supereme Court members as pets - the "third party" or "I will run for president myself" versions generally have extremely limited success.

I suspect it to be more funny than important, with a reasonable chance that he just forgets about it in a month. Unless he has some genuinely cunning plan I can't fathom, the smarter play for a rich guy is the threat of primary challenges against Republican candidates.

The cult of Trump beats the limited cult of Elon. I don't think he gets this.

Most likely it all comes to little. They almost always claim they speak for the "middle" which is both stupid and clever. Stupid because they believe it, clever because our stupid Advanced Politics Knowers love calling far right things "centrist" if you give them any excuse.

Just the commonsense bipartisan solutions that hardworking Americans are craving.

Sadly, that's how Hakeem Jeffries talks, too.

Morning

Sunday funday

Sure Why Not

Mr. Trump, sir, crush this rival, Mr. Musk.

Horrible

No politics content, just tragic.

Rescuers search for over 20 girls from Texas camp as flooding death toll rises to 27

Afternoon

Enjoy

What's It All About Then

The NYT has gone another around on their attempt to portray Mamdani correctly checking boxes as somehow suspect. They are what they are and if I haven't convinced you of that after 20 years of doing this then I never will (though I will admit Dash is worst in the failson line), but in case you still can't figure out who what they are trying to communicate, it is:

Mamdani pretended to be black, because black people have lots of unfair advantages that he wished to exploit.