Dear Progressive Reader,

With numbers that appear to defy logic, Donald Trump and Joe Biden remain basically tied in almost every poll. This in spite of Trump’s convictions, the exposure of his dangerous authoritarian plans, and his demonstrated record after four years in office from 2017-2021. It is hard to understand how voters can not see the differences. As humorist David Sedaris noted in The New Yorker during a previous election, when offered a choice of meals between chicken and a plate of broken glass, “to be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked.”

On Thursday, Biden held a nearly one-hour long unscripted press conference, fielding questions on a variety of topics from members of the national and international press. While many of the questions dealt with whether or not Biden would choose to drop out of the race (he won’t) others dealt with details of national and international policy. Biden was quick to respond and had numerous facts and figures at the tip of his tongue (apparently without notes). Two notable gaffes quickly made the circuit on Fox News and, of course, on Trump’s social media network. The first occurred during the NATO summit earlier in the day when he accidentally referred to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “President Putin,” evoking echoes of international missteps by other past U.S. Presidents. Another error came when Biden accidentally referred to “Vice President Trump” when he meant to name Kamala Harris. Trump himself latched onto this incident and immediately posted it online, prompting a final question from a reporter after the press conference had formally ended, which Biden laughed off as he departed the podium. These sorts of stumbles have plagued Biden throughout his political career, but in recent weeks, the spotlight (or perhaps the magnifying glass?) on his performance has intensified. As Biden himself said during the 2020 presidential race, “I am a gaffe machine, but my God what a wonderful thing compared to a guy who can’t tell the truth.” The election for President is just about four months away.

On our website this week Bill Blum analyzes five “truly awful” things in the recent SCOTUS ruling on Trump’s immunity; Sam Stein reports from the West Bank about the recent increase in the taking of land from Palestinians; and Hank Kennedy provides a moving portrait of Palestinian political cartoonist Mohammed Sabaaneh. Plus, Mike Ervin talks about the right to education for disabled adults; Jacob Goodwin writes about a recent court victory for teachers’ speech rights in New Hampshire; and Flora Cardoni opines on getting beyond “climate doomerism.”

Please keep reading, and we will keep bringing you important articles on these and other issues of our time.

Sincerely,

Norman Stockwell
Publisher

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