I realized many party conventions ago that conventional wisdom about them never fails. That wisdom holds that they have little to no impact on which party wins the General Election. And this has been the case time and again.
Which is why I find watching party conventions akin to drinking a vanilla milkshake to soothe my belly after a Thanksgiving feast – complete with my pagan ritual of gorging on a whole pecan pie.
Still, these quadrennial party conventions are a favorite dish for many in the years-long smorgasbord presidential elections have become. Therefore, I’d be remiss not to at least acknowledge them.
They are famous for slickly produced video montages. This year’s Democratic National Convention (DNC) demonstrated this from the outset with a multicultural choir performing a zoom-style rendition of the National Anthem.
But the speeches are the things whereby the parties generate media buzz. For example, I suspect the only thing most people remember about the 1988 DNC is the long, boring speech Bill Clinton delivered, which drew its most enthusiastic applause when he finally said
In closing.
Except that, just four years later, Clinton was not only the Democratic nominee but the president-elect. Surely that forever vindicated the conventional wisdom about party conventions being more about entertaining supporters and highlighting politicians than winning general elections.
But we need only look to the media buzz Michelle Obama’s speech generated four years ago. Because you would’ve been forgiven for thinking the rave reviews she got for extolling Hillary and flaying Trump guaranteed Hillary’s victory.
Yet, like Chinese food, she’s getting similar reviews this year for extolling Biden and flaying Trump… again. Granted, she would have gotten rave reviews from liberal pundits on CNN and MSNBC even if her speech amounted in substance to reading Facebook’s data disclaimers.
On the other hand, it is noteworthy that Chris Wallace, the chief anchor on Fox News, raved about her speech in ways that might’ve made even fangirl Rachel Maddow blush:
She really flayed, sliced and diced Donald Trump, talking about the chaos and confusion and lack of empathy, especially coming from this president and this White House, spoke more about the deficits of Donald Trump than the pluses of Joe Biden, but did talk about especially, not so much policies, but especially his empathy and what he has been through and his care for average Americans.
This was a very effective speech.
(The Hill, August 18, 2020)
Unsurprisingly, Michelle’s husband delivered an equally effective speech. But listening to pundits rave about both, you’d never know that the Obamas delivered the same four years ago, respectively. The only difference this year is that both did so with righteous indignation laced with unvarnished contempt for the man they say has made not only a preening mockery of the presidency, but a careening shambles of the United States.
Still, there’s no denying that Michelle’s speech was the highlight of this convention. But again, given her performance four years ago, no one should’ve been surprised. Nor should anyone think it will have any impact on who wins in November.
Nonetheless, chances are very good that First Lady Melania Trump watched like an eager student taking notes. Indeed, suspense abounds over which of Michelle’s speeches she will plagiarize when she speaks next week at the Republican National Convention (RNC).
It has become as pointless as it is redundant to denounce the big lies that characterize Donald Trump’s black-swan presidential campaign. And denying the undeniable fact that his wife plagiarized Michelle Obama’s 2008 DNC speech at the RNC’s Hate week on Monday night is the least of them.
His campaign motto seems to be: Deny, deny, deny until a lie becomes the truth!
(“Trump’s Law and Order Doublespeak Has RNC Raving and Roiling,” The iPINIONS Journal, July 21, 2016)
In any event, one can hardly blame DNC organizers for scheduling Michelle for the first of four nights to get the audience hooked. The problem is that it was all downhill from there – as all subsequent speeches paled in comparison. And this, with all due respect to the valiant efforts of Biden, his VP pick Kamala Harris, former presidents Carter and Clinton, and overhyped upstart Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (a.k.a. AOC).
All the same, the speech of visibly grieving Kristin Urquiza deserves honorable mention. Because it included what might prove the defining soundbite of this election cycle:
My dad was a healthy 65-year-old. His only preexisting condition was trusting Donald Trump, and for that, he paid with his life.
(CNN, August 17, 2020)
Not that any of it matters, mind you. And, in a few weeks, the media will throw this into stark relief when they begin hyping the debates like presidential death matches.
This, notwithstanding that those debates will have no greater impact on the election than these conventions. After all, in 2016, Hillary killed Trump in each of their matches. Yet …
Which is why to comment any further on these conventions would be to contribute too much to the feckless media buzz.
Accordingly, I am limiting commentary on next week’s RNC to this warning to all who tune in to its remote fare:
- Beware the stream of “alternative facts” (a.k.a. brazen lies), which spew forth every time Trump-cowered Republicans open their mouths these days. And don’t be surprised if 90 percent of the lies they tell are intended merely to flatter the black-hole ego of their “Dear Leader,” Donald J. Trump.
I assure you, after watching just the first hour on the first night, you will fully appreciate why RNC can fairly stand for Republican National Cult. So enjoy their political pantomime for what it is.
That said, if you are looking to conventions and debates to help you decide how to vote in this election: You. Are. A. Moron! In which case, you’re a member of that (Trumpian) cult; you’re just too stupid to realize it.
In any event, having pooh-poohed conventions and debates, I will end with my abiding belief that getting people not just to vote but to do so early and in person is all that really matters. I’ve been championing the “Plan Your Vote” campaign for months. But my concerns remained such that I felt compelled to publish “PSA: Vote Early in Person to Prevent Trump Throwing a Monkey Wrench in Biden’s Win” on August 6.
This is the best way to protect not only your vote but your health to boot. Forget voting on “Election Day.” For that is yet another norm Trump has terminally defiled with undemocratic antics.
In planning your vote, you will see that, depending on your state, you can vote early in person weeks before Election Day (November 3 this year). Given that, if you find yourself fuming in line to vote on that “normal” day, consider yourself kindred spirits with the nincompoops who attended Trump’s infamous Tulsa rally and then fumed about catching Covid.
So plan, and then vote early and in person. Plan Your Vote!
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