Oppo Research

 Last night, my wife had the CNN townhall with Trump on briefly in the other room. Then she switched to MSNBC, which still played clips from the Trumpfest. I suppose the question is: Was this journalistic malpractice by CNN? Especially stacking the room with Trump supporters? Did we learn nothing from 2016?

Look, CNN is... pretty bad. But I wonder if the dynamic isn't different this time around, and if Trump's own impulsive doubling down on his problems won't help Democrats. In 2016, Trump was a novelty. Covering him extensively, beaming his rallies non-stop into people's homes, "normalized" Trump. That's a fair criticism of the complicity the media had in elevating Trump to the presidency.

However, Trump was - like it or now - president for four years. There's no "normalizing" to be done anymore. What's more, Democrats have two big problems going into 2024. Biden's job approval with independents is soft and there are legitimate questions about his age. Trump saying the outrageous shit he said last night is a bigger vote-getter for Biden than any imagined policy victory could be.

When you have Trump on air saying misogynistic things, lauding Dobbs, and calling January 6th "a beautiful day" you've basically handled two problems: Can you motivate Democrats to vote and can you sway independents?

Just hearing that bloviating scrotum from the next room was exhausting. The fact that the GOP audience was laughing at his crude misogyny and cheering his promise to pardon the January 6th insurrectionists merely shows how off-the-rails the GOP a has become. There is the problem of normalizing THAT. Trump remains unalterably Trump, but if "being a Republican" means cheering on sedition...yeah, that's a huge problem.

For most Americans, you might have your doubts about Biden's age or whether he's equal to everything the job might throw at him. I'm not. I think he's doing fine, considering he has to deal with a bunch of lunatics in the House. 

However, if your choice is Biden vs. Trump, I have to think that "worried about his age" takes a back seat to "worried about the future of American democracy."