Democrats are in varying stages of grief when it comes to realizing that months of rioting are improving President Trump's re-election odds. CNN's Don Lemon, for example, has achieved a worried acceptance, recognizing that the rioting is "showing up in the polling."
But there are still those stuck in that early stage of grief -- denial.
Take Princeton prof and frequent MSNBC guest Eddie Glaude Jr. On today's Morning Joe, Glaude suggested that the rioting really isn't pushing any additional people to vote for President Trump. Nope, insisted Glaude, such people are just using the riots as an "excuse" to support President Trump. In fact, "they wanted to already."
Glaude didn't explain why people would need an "excuse" to vote for the candidate of their choice. The professor was reacting to a New York Times article, quoted in horror by Mika Brzezinski, about Kenosha voters being swayed by the violence:
"Some voters who [had been] less sure of their choice said the chaos in their city and the inability of elected leaders to stop it were currently nudging them toward the Republicans."
Glaude claimed "it doesn’t follow, at least to my mind -- that what we’re witnessing should drive you to someone who's threatening the very foundation of democracy." Liberals can claim Trump will kill democracy on cable news all day long, and none of these "news" people question that.
Note also the Times reporting that some Democrats are "nervous about condemning the looting." Because they "understood where the anger was coming from." But they can't see where the "anger" and destruction is directed? At people who aren't in way responsible?
A political party that cannot forthrightly condemn the rioting and looting shouldn't be shocked by predictions it is headed to defeat.
Professor Glaude's denial of the political implications of months of rioting was sponsored by Choice Hotels and National Car Rental.
Here's the transcript.
MSNBC
Morning Joe
8/27/20
7:11 am EDT
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: In Kenosha county, where the president won by fewer than 250 votes in 2016, those who already supported Trump told the New York Times in interviews that the events of the past few days have simply reinforced their conviction that he is [laughs] the man for the job.But some voters who were less sure of their choice said the chaos in their city and the inability of elected leaders to stop it were currently nudging them toward the Republicans. Meanwhile, some Democrats told the Times they were nervous about condemning the looting because they said they understood where the anger was coming from, but said they were worried that was happening in their city might backfire and aid the president’s re-election prospects.
. . .
EDDIE GLAUDE JR.: Mika, when we think about folks who are looking at what happened — what’s happening in Kenosha, and what's happened in Portland and the like, and saying that this is driving them to the Republicans. For me, they’re just using that as an excuse to vote for Donald Trump. They already wanted to. Because it seems to me that it doesn’t follow, at least to my mind --
MIKA: Right.
GLAUDE: -- that what we’re witnessing should drive you to someone who's threatening the very foundation of democracy.
