26 Comments

"... On the campaign trail, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) blasted the press over the dustup. "You guys in the media, you're acting like Donald Trump filmed a TV commercial at a gravesite,"" because he did!

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I have tried REALLY hard not to get caught up in the newest Trump "thing" this election cycle.

When I first saw the picture of Trump at the gravesite, my stomach churned. I told myself that while I thought it was grotesque, if that military family wanted that, it was their choice. Still, it felt funny to me. THEN I saw the NPR story about the altercation. My gut hadn't been wrong after all. (I wish it had been.)

My (now-military retired) husband has requested Arlington for his burial site. He joined the military in 2003 and I made it a point to attend as many military services as I could whether I knew the family or not. To think about those gravesites being used (directly or indirectly) in a campaign ad is disgusting. It's not about the politics of the person to me, it's about their values and morals.

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As a military child and spouse the thought that keeps returning to me is that the Gold Star family invited/accompanied by Trump bears some responsibility to the other Gold Star families with loved ones in Arlington and national cemeteries everywhere. For 23 years, we have been routinely used for financial and emotional profit, with homecomings and funerals exploited to tug at the heartstrings of our neighbors. Now, apparently, we're doing it to each other.

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Wow. What a newsletter. I worked so much yesterday that I missed reading most news. You have helped plug the gap.

That BJ story and the Q stuff. He is very much revealing who he is.

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The quote from Mike Johnson: "Donald Trump continues to be the most persecuted politician in the history of our country," .... Dear Mike, you misspelled a word there. Here, let me fix it for you: "Donald Trump continues to be the most prosecuted politician in the history of our country". And for good reason too, don't you think?

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Reporting on the rest of this campaign cycle may require a hazmat suit. One thing that’s been interesting to watch? As Trump continues to dig yet another grave for yet another presidential run by posting this stuff daily, his deluded followers are on the attack. Whenever Mr. Dupree posts a new development, these folks instantly come out of the wood work. Heck, even Neal Boortz has pulled his RV over long enough to chime in. These folks see the writing on the wall getting larger and they’re absolutely furious. But weirdly, they’re furious at everyone EXCEPT Trump. If he loses, we should all be worried about what could transpire between Election Day and Inauguration Day.

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I assume NB is chiming in on X? I still remember how much he hated President Obama.

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No, the comments I’ve seen have been on Mr. Dupree’s FB page. Since Musk took it over, I only occasionally go on X to get temperature readings when something breaks. It’s a cesspool. It’s also a platform where the cult attacks most every post Jamie makes.

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There are some real holdouts over there on FB. Loved the guy last week who demanded to know how I could have the audacity to cover the DNC but not the RNC, which of course I did cover

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Thanks, Jamie, for that link to the TruthSocial website. I had never seen any of his crazy posts on the site. What a disgrace and a real dirtbag!

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Republicans fighting to keep people off the ballot in Iowa. Democrats fighting to keep people off the ballot in Georgia. Regardless of whether it hurts or helps the person I might want to win particular races, I want people to have choices.

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This is why I cautiously support the Democrats efforts on ballot access and voting. I know they’ll flip when they get control.

I remember in Georgia the 2000 redistricting and the badly gerrymandered maps passed.

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Perhaps the Defense Dept should begin 'Public military tribunals ' regarding trump's law breaking and desecration.

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Either ticket splitting has returned from the dead or the polling is very wrong ….

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Didn't Jamie report earlier this week that ticket splitting was encouraged by a police rep in Arizona who was supporting Trump but also the Dem for Senate?

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"Republicans in Iowa on Wednesday voted to boot three Libertarian candidates for Congress off the ballot in November, alleging that the party didn't follow the rules correctly for their nominations." So Iowa did the opposite of what SOS Raffensperger did in GA. He over-ruled a judge's recommendation & will be adding Cornel West, Jill Stein & Claudia de la Cruz to the ballot....in addition to the already approved libertarian candidate Chase Oliver. "Raffensperger, an elected Republican, overruled findings made last week by an administrative law judge that removed West and De la Cruz. West is running as an independent. De la Cruz is the nominee of the Party for Socialism and Liberation but has qualified as an independent in Georgia." You can't make this stuff up.

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Thank you Jamie. I only hear about Democrats trying to take third party candidates off of tickets when I sometimes listen to Erick Erickson. You're the best.

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I don’t understand “evangelicals” supporting Trump either. I have a relative who is a Baptist Elder and they had a Let’s go Brandon flag at their family camp out.

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Just a thought or two - I’m no fan of Trump, but you and the MSM seem more focused on him and painting him in a bad light than reporting on Harris and her weaknesses, of which there are plenty. I get it, Trump is much better fodder than Harris. Ratings and clicks matter, but so does being critical of both candidates to help us voters vet them. You’re one of the most objective; all I’m observing is your spending a lot more time pointing out Trump’s failings than examining Harris for her weaknesses. My thoughts FWIW.

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I don’t try to paint him in a bad light. He's the only candidate talking about blow jobs. He's the only one who is still lying about the 2020 election. He's the only candidate talking about pardons for people who brutally attacked police and the building where I work. He's the only candidate who tried to illegally stay in power. He's the only one doing canpaign videos at Arlington. He's the only candidate talking about a military trial for Barack Obama. Other than that, it's all pretty even.

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Not disputing those points. Like I said I’m no fan, but I am a fan of equal time in politics. I know that policy doesn’t apply to independent fellows and just to networks and radio stations, or at least it used to. I may be out of touch in that pint. So how about just comparing and contrasting their policy positions? I’d be interested in your assessment of Harris. Thanks for considering.

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Here’s another idea - what if y’all stopped reporting every little crazy thing Trump says and focus on policies? Extinction is a proven strategy. If he gets no airplay maybe just maybe he’ll stop with the craziness. I know, wishful thinking.

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You almost make me want to be young again, BJ. You have a really good heart. Don't lose that sense of hopefulness.

Meantime, do a web search for Narcissistic Personality Disorder and make a layman's guess how much of what you find applies to you-know-who. This is one of many ways to evaluate people, especially politicians. I hope this helps.

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Thanks for your kind words. I’m very familiar with narcissistic personality disorder. And, yes - DJT is a narcissist - that’s abundantly clear. Many politicians suffer from personality defects - such as lying, hypocrisy and double standards without remorse or impunity. I do dispute these points. If it were just personality that we are voting for, the choice would be easy. But there are also policy and visionary differences. What kind of country do we want to be and all that. I’d like to see reporting focusing on those key questions.

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Don’t dispute those points - sorry about the typo!

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Policies may or may not be acted on after the election (healthcare plan coming in 2 weeks sound familiar?) but we can see their personalities and values by what they say and post and the media should be reporting it.

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