Chattanooga Times Free Press

BIDEN’S ACCOMPLISH­MENTS? WELL …

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GIVE ME A DAY, I’LL THINK OF SOMETHING

Former Vice President Joe Biden doesn’t have a commanding lead in the polls for the 2020 Democratic presidenti­al nomination for nothing, does he?

Well, if you ask the electorate why he enjoys such a lead over nearly two dozen other announced candidates, those supporting him in polls should be able to tell you.

When Cabot Phillips with Campus Reform checked with debate attendees in Detroit last week about just what it was about the 76-year-old career politician they liked, they were a little at loss for words.

“I don’t know of a single accomplish­ment of his,” a woman said, having been deferred to from a male companion. “I know there are things he can put his name on and say this was done while I was in office.”

“I’ll be honest with you,” a senior on a scooter chair said, “I’m drawing a blank on what he accomplish­ed.”

Asked if she could point to Biden’s accomplish­ment, one woman answered simply, “No.”

Another opined that he was a segregatio­nist and a flip-flopper.

Several others decided Biden’s top accomplish­ment was being vice president for Barack Obama.

So much for a learned Democratic electorate.

THE RUSSIAN THING … AGAIN

Most pundits agreed U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris, D-California, did not do well in the second round of Democratic primary debates last week. Indeed, she was clocked at one point in the debate by U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, on her record as attorney general of California.

But her press secretary, Ian Sams, said there is a reason the Aloha State congresswo­man hit her so hard. Yeah, it’s Russia.

“Reporters writing their stories with eyes on the modern-day assignment desk of Twitter, read this: ‘The Russian propaganda machine that tried to influence the 2016 election is now promoting the presidenti­al aspiration­s of a controvers­ial Hawaii Democrat,’” he tweeted.

An NBC News article from February, Sams pointed out, said “several experts who track websites and social media linked to the Kremlin” have seen “what they believe may be the first stirrings of an upcoming Russian campaign of support for Gabbard.”

Let’s see if we can get this straight. An obscure Hawaii congresswo­man who has no chance of being the Democratic nominee for president, much less winning the White House, is Russia’s pick to go all the way?

Harris played off Gabbard’s attack. “This is going to sound immodest,” she said, completely immodestly, “but I’m obviously a top-tier candidate. And so I did expect that I would be on the stage and take hits tonight.”

I CAN SAY IT, BUT HE CAN’T

The left was outraged last week when President Donald Trump answered an attack on his border policy by U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, by calling Baltimore, the city the congressma­n represents, “a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess.”

How dare a president of the United States defame a city like he did, one of the 2020 Democratic presidenti­al candidates said during the party’s two-night primary debate last week.

As usual, Trump was described as a racist.

But Cummings has always been upbeat about the city he represents, right? In a word, no.

In a video from a congressio­nal hearing, he had this to say about Charm City: “This morning, I left my community of Baltimore — a drug-infested area where a lot of the drugs we are talking about today have already taken the lives of so many children.”

Though we don’t defend Trump’s comments, the president may have been attempting to tell the truth just as Cummings was.

WITCHY WOMAN?

If you’re wondering who’s keeping spiritual teacher and author Marianne Williamson on stage for the 2020 Democratic primary debates, wonder no more.

The Hill recently reported that the candidate is backed by a group of people who have reportedly organized an “‘occult task force’ on her behalf.”

The publicatio­n said the group consists of “13 chaos magicians, witches and energy workers” who believe they’re helping Williamson’s candidacy by contributi­ng spirituall­y charged “synchroniz­ed gestures” intended to give her “more visibility in the presidenti­al race.”

The candidate, perhaps worried about such backing, tweeted recently that she is “not a cult leader,” “not anti-science” and “not an anti-vaxxer.”

In addition her spokeswoma­n said, “I am very, very concerned about the word occultist.”

Neverthele­ss, Williamson did warn in last week’s debate about “dark psychic forces” and did become the most searched candidate during that night’s debate.

Perhaps it’s working.

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