This is interesting to watch what Fox News is doing, which is Matt Drudge redux. Drudge jumped right on board the Trump Train back in 2016. He milked the phenomenon for all that it was worth. And when he saw the tide change, good businessman that Drudge is, he said bye bye to Donald, because he wanted to keep saying hello to clicks and money. A philosophy I completely embrace. The only difference is that we’ve been on the Democracy Train all these years and that won’t change.
Jessica Tarlov is one of the rotating “liberal contributors” on Fox News. Why would they even have such a thing? Because the Murdochs are no fools. They know when to ride a certain train and when it’s time to get off and get on another conveyance. The Trump Train is going to go off a bridge in 2024, forever and pyrotechnically, is my prediction. Or, maybe it will keep rolling down the track for a bit and then sputter out, and then sit there and rust. In all events, here’s Tarlov interjecting real world facts into the Fox narrative, while the rest of her co-workers sit there like dumb beasts of the field.
"They said I looked like Elvis" 😆 #DonTheCon pic.twitter.com/5sJ4hiVyle
— 🌻Justiceâš–Now 🌟🇺🇸 (@ChrisJustice01) January 3, 2024
Trump and Elvis. Elvis and Trump. I don’t pretend to know the politics of The King, but I tend to think that he would have had common sense and seen Trump for who and what he was, much as Frank Sinatra did. Sinatra told Trump to go fuck himself. I don’t see Elvis with the Kevin Sorbo, Jon Voight, Kid Rock crowd. But then again, I was in my early twenties when The King was found dead and so what did I really know? Merely speculating here.
Two things: We’ve said here many times how challenging the profession of scientific polling is. I, for one, would not want to work in that field, and precisely because it is so hard to get people on the phone, of all ages. I do answer strange numbers because if it is a pollster, I want to talk to the person. (The only political calls I have gotten, however, are from the local Democratic Party and that’s fine, too. I enjoy talking with those folks.) And I also enjoy harassing telemarketers. God mocks mortals for his sport, we mortals have to have somebody to mock, right?
Second, I don’t know if the 81 million people who voted for Joe Biden did it because of him or because of what he represents, which is sane governance. And who cares? A vote for sane governance, meaning the Democrats because the GOP is on its merry way to self annihilation, is a vote for sane governance. We don’t need a charismatic leader, we need somebody who knows what they’re doing and we have that in office now; after four interminable years of the ship of state casting to and fro on the political seas, the laughing stock of the world.
I do find it interesting that Fox News is actually flirting with reality a bit here and there. This is more like it was in the days of Roger Ailes. The crazy wasn’t the predominant theme. Extremism was slipped in there between the cracks. Ailes was a genius of subtlety, I give him that.
There was no subtlety in the Trump era. Fox New went right along with the most extreme Trump nuttiness and they are the poorer for it, $787 million big ones, to be precise. That is a lot of mackerel. Fox News has been looking for an off ramp from Trump for some time. They briefly thought that they had found it in Ron DeSantis, “DeFuture” as the New York Post headline read. Talk about a one night stand. Fox News recovered from its hangover and its embarrassment and went looking for bigger fish to fry.
Now we’re finally in 2024 and less than two weeks away from the Iowa Caucus. We live in interesting times.
FOX has about 2 BLN reasons to be careful. It’s facing ANOTHER suit from anothee votong tech co (Smartmatic), for that amount. In dollars.
Lachlan Murdoch is simply hedging Fox’s bets. Not “balance” as in “Fair and Balanced.” Not by a long shot. As for the Elvis stuff I was never a fan of his. Growing up I thought his movies were stupid. I just never saw his appeal. Now, in the years before he died, when he turned into what became unkindly referred to as “Fat Elvis” well I can see making Trump comparisons! As for what he’d think of Trump that’s easy. It’s well know Elvis was a functional (sort of) junkie popping all manner of pills. He’s said to have ranted he’d buy his own pharmacy if he had to. So one call from Trump to Ronny Jackson, Dr. Pill Popper to hook Elvis up in exchange for an endorsement and even some appearances and it would have been one of the easiest deals Trump ever made. Sorry but that’s my opinion and I’m sticking to it. I think I’d better break out my flame-retardant gear at this point however.
Young Elvis was something to behold. He had an incredible energy. Col. Parker ran Elvis’ career into a ditch with those stupid movies, the Army stint, and the gawd-awful white jumpsuit era. No wonder he drugged himself to death. He knew he’d lost it, and it’s tragic. There’s a 1968 Christmas TV special (One Night with You) of him that’s quite delightful, before he’d started his descent. It’s a small audience, he’s dressed in black leather, and wow! It’s young Elvis again, but sad to watch at the same time, knowing how his life went thereafter. Those pressures of celebrity have swallowed up more than a few of our favorite performers, Elvis was certainly not the first, and far from the last.
The original Sun records stuff is very good. As to Elvis’ politics, when the Beatles came to the US they wanted to meet Elvis. He agreed to see them but before they showed up he called the FBI and said this is Elvis Presley, I would like to speak to Mr Hoover. Hoover took the call. Elvis told him about the Beatles and asked if J Edgar wanted him to bug them or just report back on the meeting. I don’t remember what actually happened but basically Elvis wasn’t down with those pot smoking hippies from England. Of course there are also all those stories about his legendary generosity and how on tour instead of partying he would find a black church and sit in with the choir. Still, I think he was a bit right of center but that meant something different then.
The runaway Trump came over the hill and he blew…..