July 22, 2024

Monday, June 22, 2024. Annette’s News Roundup.

#Joe is always busy.

Today was special.

Our President is very special.

He has always acted for the good of our country and our Democracy. Yesterday he demonstrated great statesmanship and great courage in stepping down from his re-nomination and endorsing Vice President Harris.

He was the Vice President for the first black President.

He ran for President in 2019 because he was appalled by Donald Trump’s support for the Nazis who marched in Charlottesville in 2017 (“very fine people on both sides”).

He named a woman of color his Vice President - the first woman and first woman of color - and named the first black woman to the Supreme Court.

Now he has passed the torch to a woman of color to lead the Democratic Party to be the 47th President of the United States.

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#The tributes came pouring in.

##Here is a sampling.

##Some from political colleagues.

##From Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Former President Bill Clinton.

##My Statement on President Biden’s Announcement | by Barack Obama | Jul, 2024 | Medium

Joe Biden has been one of America’s most consequential presidents, as well as a dear friend and partner to me. Today, we’ve also been reminded — again — that he’s a patriot of the highest order.

Sixteen years ago, when I began my search for a vice president, I knew about Joe’s remarkable career in public service. But what I came to admire even more was his character — his deep empathy and hard-earned resilience; his fundamental decency and belief that everyone counts.

Since taking office, President Biden has displayed that character again and again. He helped end the pandemic, created millions of jobs, lowered the cost of prescription drugs, passed the first major piece of gun safety legislation in 30 years, made the biggest investment to address climate change in history, and fought to ensure the rights of working people to organize for fair wages and benefits. Internationally, he restored America’s standing in the world, revitalized NATO, and mobilized the world to stand up against Russian aggression in Ukraine.
More than that, President Biden pointed us away from the four years of chaos, falsehood, and division that had characterized Donald Trump’s administration. Through his policies and his example, Joe has reminded us of who we are at our best — a country committed to old-fashioned values like trust and honesty, kindness and hard work; a country that believes in democracy, rule of law, and accountability; a country that insists that everyone, no matter who they are, has a voice and deserves a chance at a better life.

This outstanding track record gave President Biden every right to run for re-election and finish the job he started. Joe understands better than anyone the stakes in this election — how everything he has fought for throughout his life, and everything that the Democratic Party stands for, will be at risk if we allow Donald Trump back in the White House and give Republicans control of Congress.

I also know Joe has never backed down from a fight. For him to look at the political landscape and decide that he should pass the torch to a new nominee is surely one of the toughest in his life. But I know he wouldn’t make this decision unless he believed it was right for America. It’s a testament to Joe Biden’s love of country — and a historic example of a genuine public servant once again putting the interests of the American people ahead of his own that future generations of leaders will do well to follow.

We will be navigating uncharted waters in the days ahead. But I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges. I believe that Joe Biden’s vision of a generous, prosperous, and united America that provides opportunity for everyone will be on full display at the Democratic Convention in August. And I expect that every single one of us are prepared to carry that message of hope and progress forward into November and beyond.

For now, Michelle and I just want to express our love and gratitude to Joe and Jill for leading us so ably and courageously during these perilous times — and for their commitment to the ideals of freedom and equality that this country was founded on.(Substack).

##Some were purely personal.
From Hunter.

From Naomi Biden, Hunter’s daughter, Joe’s granddaughter.

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“Great leaders make great leaders,” said Representative Jamie Raskin, discussing how Joe Biden proved again yesterday he is one of our greatest Presidents.

Vice President Kamala Harris received President Joe Biden’s backing Sunday to take his place as the Democratic presidential nominee, an endorsement he made after announcing he is abandoning his re-election bid.

Biden’s decision to bow out breaks open the nominating process — meaning Harris or any other Democrat could seek the party’s nomination. The delegates who were elected during the primary campaign to support Biden will now be tasked with voting on who will be the party’s nominee. The Democratic National Convention is scheduled to begin Aug. 19 in Chicago, and with Biden’s backing, Harris became the instant favorite.

Harris, the first female vice president, would become the first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to become a major-party nominee.

“I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination," she said in a statement after Biden's announcement and endorsement. "I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party—and unite our nation—to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda.

“We have 107 days until Election Day. Together, we will fight. And together, we will win,” she said.

Biden’s historic and unprecedented decision to withdraw comes amid concerns over his age and mental sharpness sparked by his disastrous debate performance in June against former President Donald Trump.

At 59, Harris is 22 years younger than the 81-year-old Biden. [She is 19 years younger than the 78-year-old Trump].

The daughter of immigrant parents — an Indian mother and a Jamaican father — the Oakland, California, native first made a name for herself as a prosecutor in the San Francisco district attorney’s office and was elected as the DA in 2003. She first rose to national prominence after becoming California attorney general in 2010. She was elected to the U.S. Senate in California in 2016, becoming the second Black woman and first South Asian woman to serve in the chamber.
(Source.https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/bidens-backing-kamala-harris-leads-pack-bid-replace-ticket-rcna160256#

##Kamala in 2019. She seemed to have a premonition.

Biden’s exit leads to the biggest day for Democratic donations online in years — $30 million and counting.

Did you donate in support of #Kamala2024 yet?

The easiest way to do that is through this link Harris Victory Fund — Donate via ActBlue.

Even those who maxed out to the Biden-Harris campaign can contribute and max out again if they would like - to #Harris2024.

#Wall Street money machine whirs back to life for Kamala Harris | Semafor

THE SCOOP
Wall Street’s Democrats are lining up behind Kamala Harris with a mixture of relief and genuine enthusiasm for a politician many of them supported in 2020.

Finance executives’ money and convening power between now and the Democratic convention will be key to Harris’ plans to “earn and win” her party’s nomination. Several donors said Sunday they were prepared to break out checkbooks that had sat untouched since Joe Biden’s debate performance. Among those expected to aid Harris’ bid for the nomination are Centerview’s Blair Effron, Blackstone’s Jonathan Gray, Lazard’s Peter Orszag and Ray McGuire, Paul Weiss’ Brad Karp, and Evercore’s Roger Altman. “100% in,” one donor said Sunday afternoon.

KNOW MORE

Whoever wins the Democratic nomination will be facing a formidable set of conservative billionaires backing Donald Trump, most notably Elon Musk, who has pledged $45 million a month to the former president’s campaign.

The loyalties of Democrats’ other coastal donor base — Hollywood and, to a lessening degree, Silicon Valley — are less clear. Reid Hoffman, one of the loudest voices urging Biden to stay in the race, quickly endorsed Harris, while venture capitalist Vinod Khosla called for an open convention.

Harris was popular with the Wall Street crowd during her short run for the 2020 nomination. She raised more money from lawyers and bankers than any of her primary challengers except Biden, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Lawyers were her largest donor group, by occupation (Harris was attorney general of California), consultants and business-services professionals were fourth, and financial professionals were fifth.(Semafor).

7 Governors have endorsed VP Kamala Harris.

Josh Shapiro, Governor of PA, Gavin Newsom, Governor of CA, Wes Moore, Governor of MD, Jared Polis, Governor of CO, Phil Murphy, Governor of New Jersey, Kathy Hochul, Governor of New York, Roy Cooper, Governor of North Carolina.

Senators have rushed to endorse VP Kamala Harris.

Senators Alex Padilla, CA, New Mexico, Patty Murray, WA, Mark Warner, VA, Chris Murphy CT, Mazie Hirono, HI, Tina Smith, MI, Tim Kaine VA, Tammy Baldwin WI, Elizabeth Warren MA, Amy Klobuchar MI, Mark Kelly AZ, and California Sen. Laphonza Butler also said they would support Harris, as did a growing number of Democratic House lawmakers.

#The Delegate count begins.

There is expected to be a virtual roll call so it is expected that Kamala’s nomination will be settled within the next two weeks.

There are also prediction she will have enough delegate votes tied up before then, maybe by Wednesday.

In the meantime, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee announced yesterday that they pledged their delegates to Kamala Harris.

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#Why I believe Kamala Harris will be the 47th President of pthe United States.

The Planets are aligned for her victory.

Reason #1.
We all know we must defeat Donald Trump and save Democracy. Kamala knows that too and speaks for Democracy.

Reason #2.
The time for a woman President and a woman of color for a president seems to have come.

The nation has witnessed a woman of color in the #2 spot in our Government for 3 1/2 years and not collapsed from the experience. For some, Kamala’s race and ethnicity are representative and even energizing, as is her husband’s religion.

And our voters even seem to be able to handle, and some admire, Doug Emhoff as 2nd Gentleman… with the prospect of moving onto First Gentleman. As a couple, they represent a more equal relationship in a heterosexual couple.

Reason #3.
People want change and are longing for the passing of the baton from an elderly national leadership. By her person - her age, her gender, her ethnicity - Kamala embodies change.

Reason #4.
The Democratic Party has come to recognize that black women are the most important force in the Democratic Party.

Reason #5.
The Vice President has become a terrific candidate on the stump. She brings her popularity with multiple constituencies to the campaign -with younger voters, women for whom abortion and other reproductive rights are a priority, women and men of color, and HSBCU college graduates including members of the Divine 9 black fraternities and sororities. She is a graduate of Howard University, and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated – the nation’s oldest black sorority.

She brings her knowledge and experience on important issues - climate change, gun law and policy, sexual harassment, rape and violence, poverty and labor issues, and foreign policy among others. She also brings with her California, our most populous state with 55 electoral votes.

She brings her talents, judgments and values.

Her experience also includes prosecutorial experience as an Attorney General and legislative experience as a Senator, and multiple experiences including Foreign Policy experience as Vice President.

#Turning to the MAGA crowd for a minute.

First, do you want to see what Trump had to say about the Democratic Restart?

The good news is he is upset, and seems afraid to debate Kamala. Can you blame him?

#In case you missed this, at the Republican Convention.

At the convention last night [Friday], Donald Trump Jr.’s fiancée, Kimberly Guilfoyle, said: “It is no wonder that the heroes who stormed the beaches of Normandy and faced down communism sadly say they don’t recognize our country anymore.” But the Allied soldiers in World War II were not fighting communism. They were fighting fascism. The three great Allied powers were Great Britain, the United States, and the communist Soviet Union.

It might be that Guilfoyle misspoke, or that she doesn’t know even the most basic facts of our history. Or it might be that by rewriting that history to put America on the side of the fascists, people like Guilfoyle hope to make that alliance more palatable to MAGA followers today. (Heather Cox Richardson, Letters from an American).

#One more thing about Trump’s running mate.

##Vance as venture capitalist

J.D. Vance often talks up his business experience and, when Donald Trump picked the senator from Ohio as his running mate, he pointed to Vance’s career in technology and finance.

DealBook spoke to Austyn Gaffney, a reporter at The Times who has investigated a company that Vance backed when he ran Narya Capital Management, a venture capital firm he co-founded. AppHarvest was a high-tech, indoor-farming business that promised good quality blue-collar jobs in Kentucky. But three years after Vance’s investment, AppHarvest went bankrupt, and its leaders were accused of securities fraud.

AppHarvest, based in Kentucky, was pitched as the future of farming. The hydroponic company, which uses robotics, promised that workers would be given a living wage and health insurance in some of the most economically distressed regions in the country. It would replace vegetables and fruit from Mexico with homegrown produce.

That chimed with Vance’s views on how to reorient the economy and business. Vance is part of a new wave of Republicans turning from postwar globalization to economic nationalism. He says that’s needed to help working-class Americans who have been overlooked for decades — the type of voters who back Trump and his “Make America Great Again” movement.

The company raised millions. AppHarvest pulled in more than $700 million, including $28 million from Narya. Vance helped arrange investments by the Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, a V.C. fund founded by Steve Case, the AOL co-founder, to invest in start-ups outside of big urban hubs like San Francisco, Boston and New York. Martha Stewart, the media mogul, and Jeffrey Ubben, the activist investor, joined AppHarvest’s board.

The company went public in 2021 via a Special Purpose Acquisition Company and its market value soon soared to $3.7 billion.

But AppHarvest filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last year. Its top executives have been charged with securities fraud for lying to investors. AppHarvest has denied the accusations. It cited “employee training, turnover, and poor work ethic” as the causes for its downturn but some workers accused the company of not providing the working environment it had promised.

In any case, Vance had jumped ship before AppHarvest went bust. He left in 2021, and said it was because he was eyeing a run for the Senate. He isn’t accused of wrongdoing but experts say the move was unusual.

“If you’re all in, and you think this is a good investment, I don’t know why you would bail at that particular point,” Eric Stein, executive director of the Center of Excellence for Indoor Agriculture, told DealBook. (New York Times).

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#Your Daily Reminder.

Trump is a convicted felon.

On May 30th, he was found guilty on 34 felony counts by the unanimous vote of 12 ordinary citizens.

The Convicted Felon Donald J. Trump was scheduled to be sentenced on July 11. He will now be sentenced sometime around September 18th.

#Who better than a former prosecutor to go against a convicted felon.

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