Category: Uncategorized

* Upcoming Democratic debates are being hosted by the usual hosts: Familiar television networks, regional affiliates and local newspapers. Now add a couple of notable newcomers: Apple News and Twitter. It helps refocus their high-profile, often controversial, societal roles and impact–plus Public Relations 101.

* We know that none of the candidates does nearly as well with African-Americans as Joe Biden. But Tom Steyer is making a big pitch. A 12-figured one. Steyer says he would invest $125 billion in historically black colleges and universities and create an H.B.C.U. Board of Regents.

* This just in: Birmingham’s African-American Mayor Randall Woodfin has endorsed Biden. “I think he would view mayors as his partners in the campaign,” said Woodfin, “and he would view us as partners in the White House.” Could be a consolation prize for South Bend’s Pete Buttigieg if Biden were to win out.

* “The debates are not definitive and they haven’t been. Our campaign continues, debate or not.”–Sen. Cory Booker.

* At 37, Buttigieg is barely old enough to be president. But should 2020 result in the inauguration of  President Buttigieg, he would be, at 39, the same age that Emmanuel Macron was when he became president of France.

* “We don’t see anyone who can put together the Obama coalition.”–Trump senior adviser Jared Kushner.

* Thanks to the politically polarizing Brexit vote, has the United Kingdom become an oxymoron? A lot of those living in Scotland and Northern Ireland likely think so.

* “Britain’s Nightmare Before Christmas.”–That’s how The Economist characterized the British election.

* For those, including White House sycophants, drawing parallels between British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s big Tory win and Trump’s nationalist demagogy and 2020 campaign, there is a significant difference. BoJo didn’t double down; he notably never aligned with the hard-right Brexit Party and appealed for unity with promises to increase funding for schools and the National Health Service. As for his unappealing opponent, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, he’s still way left of American progressives.

* We’ve been reminded, again, of the frustration, futility–and costs–of the long-running war in Afghanistan. The Washington Post recently reported that the longest war in American history has been based on lies. But given the chaotic, bitterly-partisan, democracy-threatening times we’re now living through, the reaction to a revelation about America’s ongoing involvement in the Muddled East has been underwhelming. No, this is not a “Pentagon Papers” sequel.

* Republican Rep. Mark Meadows of North Caroline, a co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus, a prominent member of the Judiciary Committee and an uber-staunch Trump ally, has, alas, local ties. Meadows grew up in Brandon and earned an Associate of Arts degree from USF in 1980. Fortunately, he no longer resides in the same state as Matt Gaetz.

*Nice piece the other day in the Tampa Bay Times on the U.S. citizen naturalization ceremony in Tampa that included the British-born Florida Orchestra conductor Michael Francis among the 62 immigrants–from Iran to Venezuela– who took the Oath of Allegiance. We needed a story like this. One that reminds us of our diversity and our welcoming appeal as an opportunity magnet for those who want to come here for the right reasons. It was a feel-good moment of local and national pride, one that we don’t experience enough of these days.

* Jeff Scott, 39, formerly a co-offensive coordinator at Clemson and now USF’s head football coach, was once a very highly successful high school coach. But he was also a teacher–not a PE coach, a driver’s ed instructor or a “time out room” monitor. He taught math, which means he likely knows something about the duality of “student-athletes.”

* The New York Yankees just signed the best pitcher in baseball, the free-agent Gerrit Cole. His annual salary will be more than half of what the Tampa Bay Rays yearly payroll ($62 million) is. That’s Exhibit A for what’s blatantly wrong with Major League Baseball. As opposed to the other major professional sports, MLB has no salary cap. Teams, luxury tax notwithstanding, don’t have to play by the same rules.

* “We will get Brexit done on time by January 31–no ifs, no buts, no maybes.”–British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, after his Conservative Party won a commanding majority in Parliament.

* “Brexit and Trump were inextricably linked in 2016, and they are inextricably linked today. … Working-class people are tired of their ‘betters’ in New York, London, Brussels telling them how to live and what to do.”–Former Trump strategist Steve Bannon.

* “Our president holds the ultimate public trust. When he betrays that trust and puts himself before country, he endangers the Constitution; he endangers our democracy; he endangers our national security.”–Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y.

* “History will look back on our actions here today. How would you be remembered?”–  Jerrold Nadler.

* “There is no chance the president is going to be removed from office. My hope is there won’t be a single Republican who votes for either of these articles of impeachment … and it wouldn’t surprise me if we got one or two Democrats.”–Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

* “The president deserves to be heard. We should be working hand in hand with (the Senate). The rules of evidence will apply.”–Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who was hired by the White House to help with impeachment strategy, on Fox News Sunday.

* “The fact of the matter is that if a local official abused his power like you did, he’d be in jail.”–Judiciary Committee member Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, in a response to a Trump tweet.

* “This is the fastest, weakest, thinnest, MOST PARTISAN impeachment in American presidential history.”–Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.

* “In Gaetz, we do, at last, have some semblance of a (reality show) contestant willing to perform any trick to win.”–Jacob Bacharach, the New Republic.

* “There is a way to express the opprobrium of the House without allowing the Senate to defang the rebuke. A congressional censure of Trump would do all that impeachment is likely to accomplish. It would express the outrage of today while calling on future historians to take note of the censured behavior.”–David Von Drehle, author of “Triangle: The Fire That Changed America.”

* “As (Sen. Joe) McCarthy’s rise and fall suggests, conspiracy theories serve partisan motives and thrive as long as they remain useful politically. This lesson is significant today. Republicans continue to embrace debunked conspiracy theories over Ukraine and the 2016 election and stand on the coattails of a president who they think will keep them in power.”–Steven Lawson, Rutgers University history professor emeritus and co-author of “Exploring American Histories: A Survey with Sources.”

* “(Cassandra’s) gift was that she could see into the future, but her curse was that no one believed her. Trump’s triumph is that he has sought attention his whole life and now he can command all the attention in the world. But his curse is that the attention he attracts is largely ridicule and repulsion.”–Maureen Dowd, New York Times.

* “Trump is as big a motivator for our base as he is for his own base.”–Democratic pollster Geoff Garin.

* “In this country we pledge allegiance to a flag, and we pledge an oath to the Constitution, not to a party and not to a president.”–Former Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina.

* “(The inspector general) did not find misconduct by FBI personnel, political bias, did not find illegal conduct. … (But) there was real sloppiness. … it was not acceptable.”–Former FBI Director James Comey, on the Justice Department inspector general report that concluded that the FBI opened the Russia investigation for a legitimate reason.

* “America’s Republicans are the world’s only major climate-denialist party. Because of this opposition, the United States hasn’t just failed to provide the kind of leadership that would have been essential to the global action, it has become a force against action.”–Paul Krugman, New York Times.

* “I think one of the things that baseball has done well over decades is maintain its commitment to its current cities.”–MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred.

* “Years of effort and expense have established ‘Tampa Bay’ as a regional brand for all economic development interests in our area. We feel strongly that your action undermines that investment.”–Pinellas County Commission Chairwoman Karen Seel, on the decision by the former Tampa-Hillsborough Economic Development Corp. to change its name to the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council.

* “There is, in my opinion, a crisis going in our society and my concern is not enough people are concerned about it. It’s about us training our officers to do everything they possibly can to de-escalate a situation and use deadly force as a last resort in every situation.”–Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan, in announcing a new mental health training program for his officers and 911 dispatchers.

* “This is not a bridge-burning Administration. This is a bridge-building Administration so far.”–Tampa City Council chairman Luis Viera.

* “You can override anything with five votes.”–Tampa City Council member Charlie Miranda.

* “And while we all love a good parade, the beads thrown during the parade have no place harming our delicate ecosystem.”–Mayor Jane Castor, in announcing Tampa’s “Bead Free Bay” campaign.

* NATO–“Not A Trump Organization.”

It’s understandable that no international leader was spotted sporting a “NATO” cap last week in London. We know that key NATO leaders have a collective loathe affair going with Trump, but it’s counterproductive to be too obvious when you need the cooperation and wherewithal of the wealthiest and most militarily powerful country in the world. That’s why you get awkward body language and what amounts to open-mic lampooning of Trump–for bluster and buffoonery–behind his back. NATO leaders–frustrated and furious with Trump over climate change, treaty commitments and tariff chaos–are trying to bide time until, they hope, they can hit a reset button with President Joe Biden.

* Unsurprisingly, partisanship was very much in play during the Judiciary Hearing. And that continued with the testimony of Constitutional law experts, three of whom were appointed by the Dems, one by the GOPsters. But the Dems passed on the ultimate constitutional law professor with some partisan skin in the game: Barack Obama.

* North Korea, Ukraine, Iran, NATO, China, Russia. Imagine if America hadn’t elected “a businessman” who was a gifted “negotiator.”  Call it “The Artifice of the Deal,” a disturbing sequel.

And this just in: The demander-in-chief has just brought “Rocket Man” back into the geopolitical conversation, and it has nothing to do with Elton John. Trump’s recent reference to Kim Jong-un–in the context of possibly using military force–as “Rocket Man” brought about a rebuke from North Korea and a warning about the resumption of the war of insults. Indeed, NK’s vice foreign minister, Choe Son-hui, has already resurrected the “dotage of a dotard” in response. This would all be merely goofy and dumb if it weren’t about negotiating “denuclearization.” Remember that?

* “Like a good lawyer, I am gathering evidence to defend my client.”–That was the reason, according to Rudy Giuliani, why he,Trump’s personal attorney and a Mike Pompeo wannabe, was recently in Ukraine meeting with former government officials. Upon reflection, Michael Cohen has never seemed so scrupulous and transparent.

* Whether it’s Russian cooperation/collusion, NATO disparagement or narcissistic North Korean “negotiations,” national security is an inevitable concern, if not a source of ongoing alarm, that comes with the Trump-presidency territory. Now add this. It’s beyond ironic, hypocritical and stupid that the one who wanted to “lock her up” because of Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email account, has conducted numerous conversations on an unsecured cell phone because he didn’t want the calls–to Zolo Zelenskiy? Stormy Daniels? Sean Hannity?  Prince Andrew?    Kanye West? Matt Goetz? Kid Rock?–officially logged in. As a result, those calls were, to be sure, vulnerable to monitoring by Russians and other foreign intelligence services with vile vested interests. Did Moscow, for example, know that Trump was engaged in efforts to extort political favors from Ukraine? Yes, that’s a rhetorical question.

Encryption? What the hell’s that?

* Would that Trump were as conciliatory toward NATO or the House of Representatives as he is toward the Saudis. Presumably, it’s an extension of the “special relationship” that’s been especially fraught for the last two decades between a democracy with a bill of rights and an autocracy with second-class status for women. From 9/11 mass-murdering hijackers to the brutal killing of Jamal Khashoggi to human rights abuses in Yemen to the Royal Saudi Air Force pilot trainee who terrorized the Pensacola naval base and murdered three American sailors. We don’t need their oil like we used to, but they buy billions in armaments from the U.S. and are the only regional power to counter Iran. Too bad the U.S. dropped out of the Iran nuclear deal.

* “Trump of the Tropics.”–That’s how Jair Bolsonaro, the right-wing president of Brazil, is increasingly known as. No, it’s not a compliment.

* “My campaign for president simply doesn’t have the financial resources we need to continue.”–Sen. Kamala Harris.

* Pete Buttigieg is running, in part, on an image of intelligence, eloquence, pragmatic populism and transparency. What’s a bit awkward, speaking of transparency, is having a non-disclosure agreement with a previous employer, the management consulting firm of McKinsey & Company, regarding his clients.

* “A perfectly matched odd couple.”–How Steven Levingston, the author of “The Making of an Extraordinary Partnership,” described Joe Biden and Barack Obama.

* It’s unlikely that a President Bloomberg or a President Steyer will be the 2020 successor to President Trump. Would that all the money they are committing with their costly, out-of-pocket ad buys could be channeled into helping rally the Democratic Party and ginning up the get-out-the-vote effort in critical swing states that cost Hillary Clinton the presidency in 2016.

* It’s hard to overstate the uniquely precarious state of the Tampa Bay Rays and their market vulnerability. And Orlando gearing up for (wink-and-nod) “expansion,” hardly helps. But there was a notably understated comment this week from Rays president Brian Auld. “When we were putting together our plans for the ballpark at Al Lang and then we went on a World Series run, we absolutely thought that attendance was going to jump a lot more than it did.”

* For college football fans, the first weekend of December is notable for its rollout of bowl game match-ups. It’s also a reminder of what it used to be like. Back in the day (when networks and sponsors were not nearly so influential ), there were less than a dozen, including the high-profile, New Year’s Day quintet of  Cotton, Fiesta, Orange, Sugar and Rose Bowls. Now there are 41 games; that’s way, way too many. That’s why nearly a third (13) of all invited teams–including Miami (Independence), Florida State (Sun) and Florida International (Camellia)–don’t have winning records. At least FAU (Boca Raton), UCF (Gasparilla) and, especially, UF (Orange) had winning records. Which means if you’re not even going to a bowl–given the proliferation of games and the diluted criteria–you’re really hurting. Now we’ll see how that hurt is addressed at USF by incoming head coach Jeff Scott.

* Speaking of bowls, some of them–because of sponsors–have odd names. Would that the Cheez-It Bowl (Phoenix), the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise) and the Lending Tree Bowl (Mobile) were the only weird ones. But at least there is no 1-800-Ask-Gary Bowl. Yet. Thankfully, Tampa’s Outback Bowl, actually sounds like a bowl game.

* Football players on teams such as Ohio State and Michigan wear decals on their helmets to recognize and reward big plays. Are they also removed for misplays and stupid penalties?

* “We Germans owe it to the victims and we owe it to ourselves to keep alive the memory of the crimes committed, to  identify the perpetrators and to commemorate the victims in a dignified manner. This is not open to negotiation.”–German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in a visit to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Southern Poland.

* “For a long time, the United States was considered the leader of the free world, and I think that was fair enough. But remember the Bob Dylan song — ‘The Times They Are a-Changin’.'”–Syvatoslav Vakarchuk, leader of the Ukrainian opposition Holos political party.

* “If the United States really wants to help Mexico in its war against drug traffickers, there are two very important steps it needs to take: First, control the flow of weapons from the United States into Mexico, and second, lower the American demand for narcotics.”–Univision anchor Jorge Ramos.

* “The Jewish state has never had a better friend in the White House than your president, Donald J. Trump.”–President Donald J. Trump, at the Israeli-American Council National Summit in Hollywood, Florida.

* “With limited opportunities, many highly capable Eastern Europeans are carving out careers in cybercrime, leading to the creation of what is effectively a criminal Silicon Valley.”–Jonathan Lusthaus, author of “Industry of Anonymity: Inside the Business of Cybercrime.”

* “Trump is a tariff man: (They) let him exercise unconstrained power, rewarding his friends and punishing his enemies. Anyone imagining that he’s going to change his ways and start behaving responsibly is living in a fantasy world.”–Paul Krugman, New York Times.

* “What we’ve seen here is far more serious than a third-rate burglary of the Democratic headquarters. (This) is beyond anything that Nixon did. The difference between then and now is not the difference between Nixon and Trump. It’s the difference between that Congress and this one.”–House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff.

* “None of us came to Congress to impeach a president of the United States. We take no joy in it, no glee.”–House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

* “How many Democrats will join (Pelosi) driving right off the cliff with this illegitimate impeachment hoax?”–White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham.

* “If what we are talking about is not impeachable, then nothing is impeachable.”–University of North Carolina constitutional scholar Michael Gerhardt, testifying before the House Judiciary Committee.

* “All roads lead to Putin. Understand that. That was the a-ha moment.”–Nancy Pelosi.

* “If we cannot impeach a president who abused his office for personal advantage, we no longer live in a democracy.”–Harvard University constitutional scholar Noah Feldman, testifying before the House Judiciary Committee.

* “This isn’t improvisational jazz–close enough is not good enough.”–George Washington University constitutional scholar Jonathan Turley, testifying before the House Judiciary Committee.

* “The grim reaper (Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell) says all we’re doing is impeachment. No, we have 275 bipartisan bills on your desk.”–Nancy Pelosi.

* “If any of these people that I’ve been watching on this stage got elected, your 401(k)’s would be down the tubes. You’d destroy the country.”–Donald Trump.

* “Intimidation and vilification of the press is now a global phenomenon. We don’t have to look far for evidence of that.”–Shepard Smith, former Fox News anchor.

* “China is building its own internet focused on very different values, and it’s now exporting their vision of the internet to other countries. A decade ago, almost all of the major internet platforms were American. Today, six of the top 10 are Chinese.”–Mark Zuckerberg.

* “Today the real argument is between versions of democratic capitalism, found in the U.S., Canada and Denmark, and forms of authoritarian capitalism, found in China and Russia. Our job is to make it the widest and fairest version of capitalism it can possibly be.”–David Brooks, New York Times.

* “It’s that word that nobody likes to use–retreat. We’re going to have to retreat from some areas, and that’s going to be costly.”–Monroe County Administrator Roman Gastesi, acknowledging that the costs of flood-proofing Florida Keys’ roads can overcome the benefit of keeping communities dry. Buying out homes is a familiar scenario.

* “You can’t hack paper.”–Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee.

* “Hillsborough County is critical statewide. They need a little help. They need to be better organized and funded in 2020. The state party will supplement resources and manpower to make sure.”–State Republican Party Chairman Joe Gruters.

* “There is nothing we would want more than for that number to go to zero.”–Brightline President Patrick Goddard, on statistics showing that 40 deaths–in less than two years–have occurred involving Florida’s new passenger rail service between Miami and West Palm Beach. It’s the worst per-mile death rate of the nation’s 821 railroads. The majority were suicides.

* “We’re a region surrounded by water and while that is a part of our beauty it also makes us ground zero for sea-level rise. I look forward to tackling this effort as a region while implementing best practices from coastal cities from around the globe.”–Mayor Jane Castor, who recently joined the Climate Steering Committee organized by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.

* “We are prepared and look forward to discussing post-2027 opportunities in Hillsborough with the (Rays).”–Hillsborough County Commissioner Ken Hagan.

* “We don’t like to say ‘never,’ but I think as (Rays owner Stu Sternberg) said, it’s highly unlikely that a full-season baseball team in Tampa Bay is going to be here in 2028.”–Rays President Brian Auld.

* “Efforts to transition the economy from one based on traditional construction, agriculture and tourism businesses to an economy built on technology are paying off.”–The Computing Technology Industry Association (Comp-TIA), in referencing Tampa as one of America’s top 20 “Tech Towns.”

* “The idea of reading from a textbook and memorizing it is completely antiquated. This building is designed to better marry teaching and technology to how humans actually learn.”–Dr. Charles Lockwood, USF medical school dean, on next month’s downtown opening of the 13-story Morsani College of Medicine tower that has been billed as a state-of-the-art teaching and research facility.                                         

* All politicians love props. From kids to military to minorities. From selfies to framed, campaign-rally backdrops. President Donald Trump is, obviously, no exception. He just ups the ante on hypocrisy and self-service. As a result, no one is precluding the possibility that a campaign rally could very well include, if not feature, Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher, who had been incarcerated for violating the military’s rules of conduct before being pardoned by Trump. A rally warrior-prop in exchange for a pardon? There is quid pro quo precedent.

* Republicans for the Rule of Law–remember them?–is running an ad about the impeachment hearings that slams the White House for not allowing key witnesses to testify. “These witnesses must testify,” it says. “What is Trump afraid of?”  How about the rule of law?

* During his NATO visit to London this week, President Trump attended a reception at Buckingham Palace hosted by Queen Elizabeth II. This has all the trappings of a “Saturday Night Live” cold opening.

* So who does President Trump nominate–after a three-year vacancy–to be undersecretary of state for civilian security, democracy and human rights? Marshall Billingslea, an official involved in the Pentagon’s post-9/11 use of harsh interrogation techniques. The controversial choice of Billingslea might not matter much to the Republican Party or the Trump base, but whoever holds the top human rights post in the State Department is well noted by those assessing America’s commitment to human rights abroad.

* Food for thought: Used to be that price supports for farmers were the domain of Congress. No longer. Trump just sent some $20 billion in aid to farmers. It’s what happens when a trade war wreaks havoc and the wreaker-in-chief  believes in the usurpation of powers.

* “I believe the only check on government power in real time is a free and independent press. A free press ensures the flow of information to the public … ensuring the vitality of a free and independent press is more important than ever.” That’s not some idealized progressive rhetoric. That was VP Mike Pence’s take on the role of the press vis a vis government a few, pre-Trump years ago.

* It had to be awkward when “Triggered,” the anti-left screed by Donald Trump Jr., debuted at No.1 on the New York Times Best Seller non-fiction list. It was a PR coup at the expense of the “failing New York Times.” Ironically, it has since dropped back to No. 2, replaced by “A Warning” by Anonymous, whose sales were not ginned up by campaign-related bulk sales.

* How dare Republicans still claim that theirs is the “Party of Lincoln,” unless they’re referring to George Lincoln Rockwell.