Afternoon

Apparently it is a holiday.

Ban TikTok

I would say I didn’t approve if asked. The Professional Democrats will intetpret it how they want (how best to keep their consultanting dollars flowing).

 

BIDEN/TRUMP -- A Biden/Trump general election, if that's the outcome of the primary season, would represent a battle of markedly unpopular candidates. Among all adults, Biden's approval rating is just 33% in this poll, worse than Trump's low as president (36%) and the lowest since George W. Bush from 2006-2008. Fifty-eight percent disapprove of Biden's work.

#Notalldemocrats of course but there are lots of people whose job is "politics" with an eye towards "beach"  and they keep winning as long as no one blames them for the losses. The arc of their careers is long and it bends towards getting rich.

Yes I'm a bit cynical today but I see how the actual good people in politics tend to get stomped, while the amoral weirdos thrive, just a bit too often.

Seems Bad

I don't know Ahmed, but accusing a journalist of just fabricating a quote (not that the quote is wrong, or he get played by a source, but that he just made it up) is a big deal!

20 hours after my deadline—now my story has been read by >150k people—WH has sent comment. Spox Adrienne Watson: "This story is not true. Quotes attributed to US officials are made up."

Watson played no role in my interviews.

My quotes are real. Biden team again echoing Trump. https://t.co/cQLVJgnnSK

— Akbar Shahid Ahmed (@AkbarSAhmed) January 13, 2024

We can discuss whether Watson is freelancing or if this is coming from the bosses.

Earlier in the day, a contact told me a US official they contacted about my story said I lack credibility & am seen as an extremist.

Such smear tactics in response to scrutiny & journalism are scary—and reflective of the Trump-style thinking Biden is selling himself as opposing.

— Akbar Shahid Ahmed (@AkbarSAhmed) January 13, 2024

Well he has a funny name so you can say anything about him.

Morning

again

Sunday Night

Rock on.

Did I Say That Out Loud

Monstrous and stupid people.

“If this really goes bad, we want to be able to point to our past statements,” a senior U.S. official said. The official said the administration is particularly worried about a narrative taking hold that Biden supports all Israeli military actions and that U.S.-provided weapons have been used to kill Palestinian civilians, many of them women and children. The Defense Department has said the U.S. is not putting any limits or restrictions on the weapons it’s providing Israel.

The Greatest Tragedy Is Maybe The Left Was Correct

The thing these ghouls are least able to handle.

U.S. officials are now growing increasingly concerned that Israel won't meet its timetable to transition to low-intensity operations in Gaza by the end of January, based on where things stand in Gaza, particularly in the southern city of Khan Younis.

If Israel doesn't significantly scale down its operations in Gaza — which U.S. officials have been pressing for in hopes of reducing Palestinian casualties — it will likely become increasingly difficult for Biden to maintain the same level of support for Israel's military campaign.

It'll be difficult, but Biden will manage somehow.

Help My Profession Is Dead

 Amazing stuff.

Help My Profession Is Dying

I wasn't really joking about this - Dave Weigel has been posting pictures of events where reporters outnumber normal people. Dave's one of the tiny number of political reporters who actually does talk to voters - even listens to them! - and doesn't have the memory of a goldfish, but most of his colleagues just go to hang out with each other and get some quotes to slot into their prewrites.

The Chickenshit Club

The DOJ really needs to confront this stuff.

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) — The U.S. Homeland Security Department said Saturday that Texas denied federal agents access to a stretch of border when they were trying to rescue three migrants who drowned.

Morning

Sunday funday.

Saturday Night

Rock on.

Saturday Evening

There are 13 books in the O'Reilly "killing" series.

A Little Levity

A Florida county removes my books 📚 "Killing Jesus" and "Killing Reagan" from school libraries. Preposterous! We are investigating and are seeking comment from @GovRonDeSantis. This will not stand. Updates on https://t.co/rryWmyXe7C.

— Bill O'Reilly (@BillOReilly) January 12, 2024

Cold

The 13,000 reporters (87% of people still working in journalism) sent to cover the Iowa caucuses aren't going to have much fun!

V

Again I recommend taking a break from yelling at the deluded TikTok teens of the imagination and start yelling at the demented serial killer freaks in power.

“It misses the point,” one U.S. official said of the plan. Another said that McGurk has laid out his vision in a top-secret document shared in some circles of the Washington national security establishment — a plan that envisions Biden traveling to the region in the coming months on “a victory tour” to claim credit for an Israel-Saudi deal as an answer to Gaza’s pain. The document references a preliminary deal called “the Jerusalem-Jeddah Pact,” the official told HuffPost.

Morning

go

Friday Night

Slacker Saturday commences soon!

Happy Hour

Happy time.

Less Popular Than Syphillis

Not among people who matter!

I'm really not joking about the syphillis.

The least popular governor in New Jersey history says he doesn’t care what people think of him because he’s not running for office.

Gov. Chris Christie, whose approval rating landed at a record-low of 15 percent in a recent Quinnipiac University Poll, said such polls meant nothing to him when he was at record highs and they mean even less to him now as he heads into his final six months in office.

How refreshing! A politician who doesn't care what the voters think!   Christie left office with those poll numbers, and was promptly given a job at ABC News, because of his popularity.