Up in Maine, &c.
On Graham Platner, James Talarico, Friedrich Merz, Pete Hegseth, John Milton (yes, that one), and more
Democrats in Maine have nominated Graham Platner for the Senate. He is a deeply problematic character. Better that he get it together than that he offer himself for high office. Kevin D. Williamson made this point in an article, here.
As I see it, Democrats have given Republicans a tremendous gift in Platner. Republicans in politics and the media can talk of little else but him. For years, they have been carrying water for … deeply problematic characters. Their sense of relief—a change of script—is palpable.
When you give up the moral high ground, you give up a lot. And the Democrats of Maine have given Republicans nationwide a patch of moral high ground.
Now, it’s true: one senatorial nominee in one state is not the same as the president, the vice president, the attorney general, the defense secretary, the FBI director, the DHS secretary, the HHS secretary, and so on.
Then there are such Senate nominees as Herschel Walker and Ken Paxton.
But still …
When I made this point on social media, another tweeter responded,
It so happens that “Shut up, he’s it, get over it” is exactly what I heard from the Right in 2016 (and later). I said no then, and say it now.
“Binary choice!” they yelled at me. I remain deaf to it.
To be continued (alas) …
***
Let us turn to Texas politics (speaking of “alas”). Paxton is the Republicans’ senatorial nominee, the Democrats’, James Talarico. Republicans are doing their best to paint Talarico as … a girlie man, to borrow a catchphrase of the late 1980s.
See what the governor of Texas did. He literally depicted Talarico as a girl.
I admire Greg Abbott for his personal courage. (He was paralyzed from the waist down when he was 26.) But this is a jerk move, to put it mildly.
Regular readers must be sick of hearing me say: We need the recovery of a proper sense of patriotism—as distinct from braying jingoism. And we need the recovery of a proper sense of manliness—as distinct from mindless machismo, or brutishness.
Maybe I could throw a little Scripture at you on Sunday morning?
“Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.”
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart ...”
“Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
Whoa, enough of this crazy talk!
Hang on, this just in:
So, is he a “gay vegan pagan”? Or a lothario? Whatever is handy, I suppose.
***
Stick with matters—semi-sexual? For years, I’ve heard from Republicans, “They can’t even say what a woman is!” This is sometimes a fair charge.
And what is the equivalent on the other side? A few days ago, yet another Trump nominee refused to say who won the 2020 election.
They can’t even say it. (Or won’t.)
***
Friedrich Merz was stand-up in the Bundestag, the German parliament, the other day. (Merz is the country’s chancellor.) He was talking about Ukraine. “Ukraine has been defending its freedom for more than four years,” he said.
Then members of the AfD—the Alternative for Germany, the populist-Right party—started to laugh.
Said Merz, “That’s a telling sign, ladies and gentlemen. They laugh about it. They laugh at the fate of millions of people in Ukraine, and they travel to Moscow for their champagne receptions. Have a good trip. Bon voyage.”
To see it, go here, and to read an article about it, go here.
You know, the AfD may soon be in power, making Europe darker.
***
In related news:
***
As you may have seen, Pete Hegseth, our secretary of defense, spoke at the D-Day ceremony in France. He used the occasion to decry what he called the “invasion” of Europe by immigrants today.
You know what he did not mention (of course)? The invasion of a European country, Ukraine, by Putin’s Russia.
Will Saletan made this point here. A good point, and a painful point, at the heart of our era.
***
All right, an old issue—another one. For years and years, President Trump and his allies have said that elections they lose are “rigged.” Another play in the book is this: During the campaign, say that, if you lose the election, it will have been rigged.
There have been thousands of articles on this subject. I have written dozens of them. Today, I will be brief.
If you lie about election results—“Rigged!”—there are a lot of people who, in their innocence and gullibility, believe you. They may even commit violence as a result.
You yourself know better, of course. You know that, in lying, you’re jes’ playin’—just playing politics. But others do not know better and do not know you’re jes’ playin’. They take you seriously.
Therefore, our democracy is weakened.
Several days ago, the Speaker of the House was asked what evidence there was that the recent mayoral election in Los Angeles was rigged. He answered, “Some of these efforts are so diabolical and so far upstream, it is impossible to prove. But I think everybody knows instinctively, something is wrong here.”
I recall the title of a famous biography (1983)—a biography of Joe McCarthy: “A Conspiracy So Immense.”
(A Republican failed to make the run-off in the L.A. mayoral race. At the same time, a Republican made the run-off in the California gubernatorial race. Lazy Democrats, forgot to rig that one.)
***
Well, shoot. “Raimondo backs away from 2028 presidential run.” Gina Raimondo was governor of Rhode Island and then, under President Biden, commerce secretary. The article whose headline I’ve quoted is here.
“Look, I would like the job, I’m not going to lie,” said Raimondo. “But politics is—it’s in a crazy place right now, and so I’m just going to let it all unfold.”
She also said that her fellow Democrats had “gotten a little far from the meat-and-potatoes issues that matter to people in their day-to-day lives.”
“A little far” is a funny phrase. Anyway …
In 2023, I did a podcast with George F. Will. Let me quote from my write-up, which accompanied the podcast:
In recent weeks, Will has written about two former governors—one R and one D. The R is Doug Ducey, of Arizona. The D is Gina Raimondo, of Rhode Island. It is hard to imagine either one as a presidential candidate—because their parties’ electorates would not put up with them.
Ducey said that Trump lost Arizona in 2020, which he did. Raimondo stood up to public-employee unions. Big no-nos, in the respective parties.
A Ducey–Raimondo contest seems a lovely dream. And a little faraway …
***
You know the first sentence. Do you know its successor?
If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music he hears, however measured or far away.
(Thoreau, Walden.)
***
“No man ever wished it longer.” That’s the way it has come down to us. Here is what Dr. Johnson wrote, precisely:
Paradise Lost is one of the books which the reader admires and lays down, and forgets to take up again. None ever wished it longer than it is. Its perusal is a duty rather than a pleasure. We read Milton for instruction, retire harassed and overburdened, and look elsewhere for recreation; we desert our master, and seek for companions.
Do you know about John Basinger? He has died at 92. And, as this obit tells you, he … memorized Paradise Lost. All twelve books.
And I thought I was doing pretty well to memorize Joan of Arc’s quatrain (18 words)!
Have a great day, my friends. Thank you for reading.
I, too, once admired Greg Abbott. His position as governor of Texas is secure, so I don't understand why he has be-clowned himself by sucking up to Trump. I have voted for Abbott in his past elections, but never again. Like Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, Abbott is yet another Texas conservative who has thrown away his reputation in pursuit of populist applause and naked ambition, seeking approval from the most despicable example of an NYC Yankee money-grubbing swindler. You'd think they'd have more pride...
I’m with you on Raimondo. I have a legion of friends who have only heard of her because I sing her praises. I’m disheartened that she apparently won’t run.