Tuesday, September 3, 2024
BY MATT BERG & CROOKED MEDIA
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EDITOR'S NOTE: Well... Hello there! I’m supremely excited to introduce myself as your new What A Day newsletter host, Matt Berg.
First things first, a massive shoutout to Julia Claire, What A Day author emeritus, who leaves some damn big shoes to fill (and not just because she is so tall and has appropriately-sized feet). Thankfully, she’s still here at Crooked, and still contributing her unmatchable style and wit to this newsletter as a member of our editorial team. (She’s joined by News Editor Greg Walters, whose main job seems to be moving commas around and pointing out where the water cooler is, and other vital things like that.)
Before joining Crooked, I anchored the National Security Daily newsletter at Politico.
The next couple months will be a lot for all of us. Like you, I’ll be breathing into a paper bag until this November’s election... and maybe longer (yipe)!
On the upside, there’s no one I’d rather share these wild times with than the What A Day fam.
Don’t be shy, say hello at whataday@crooked.com! |
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Kamala Harris is shaking the money tree: she's raised so much that she’s now sharing her windfall with other Democrats.
- Vice President Kamala Harris raked in the cash after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, raising over $540 million in six weeks — and leaving former President Donald Trump’s campaign in the dust. The VP’s momentum shows no signs of stopping; she’s surging among women voters and is barely trailing Trump among men, according to a new poll. Now, in a sign of confidence in her fundraising prowess, her campaign is putting resources into other political fights — those that will determine whether Congress can back up her agenda, or stymie the plans of disgraced former President Trump.
- Harris and the Democratic National Committee’s plan to spend $25 million to bolster Democrats down the ballot, in what’s being touted as the largest transfer ever in a presidential cycle. That cash injections build on the DNC’s investments into state parties this cycle, including $15 million into battleground state parties in July alone. The DNC is investing 25 percent more in state parties this year than it did in 2020.
- I got a D+ in precalculus in high school, so a DNC official broke down why all these big numbers matter: “Beating Donald Trump is important, there's no doubt about it,” the official told What A Day, granted anonymity to speak candidly. “But we have to also have a functioning government … We need to control basically all levels of power. Otherwise Republicans will exploit whatever lever they have to change laws and to really take away our fundamental freedoms.”
- The DNC warned that Harris can’t declare the money race over yet, though. It’s bracing for trouble in the coming weeks from the convicted felon’s friends: “We're expecting a late cash flow to Trump from those billionaires. So, even though we're doing well in fundraising now and there's a lot of enthusiasm, we need to keep on going,” the official said. Speak of the devil, GOP veep nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) is asking his bff conservative billionaire tech bro Peter Thiel, for some love to boost the Republican campaign. Thiel played a big role in shoehorning Vance into the number-two slot on the ticket, so it seems likely he'll oblige.
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House and Senate Republicans are watching Harris spread the wealth and freaking out about their bank accounts. Some are openly worrying it’s too late to change the game.
- The House Republicans’ largest super PAC needs $35 million to compete with Democrats in November, Dan Conston, the organization's leader, told donors last month, Politico reports. Senate GOP campaign chair Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) publicly admitted that left-leaning billionaires fueling Democrats is “keeping me up at night.” But what’s ultimately feuling the DNC money machine is small-dollar donations from regular people.
- Not all Republicans are panicking. Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY), who trailed liberal candidate Josh Riley in fundraising in June, shook off the stats, telling What A Day that “money won’t change” how voters feel about his opponent.
- Perhaps. But the amount of dollars raised does usually indicate who will be victorious: In 2022, Senate candidates with more money won 94 percent of the time, and House candidates who brought home the bacon won 82 percent of the time, according to an OpenSecrets analysis. That trend has remained mostly the same since as early as 2000.
- What’s different now is that since the 2010 Citizens United decision, the Supreme Court effectively allows a flood of billionaire and corporate money in politics that has made our elections less democratic. Just ask J.D. Vance, who would never have overcome his initial weak numbers in the Ohio Senate primary in 2022 without a $15 million influx from Thiel.
Democrats know they need to win big, or else any agenda that a potential Harris-Walz administration would hope to pass will get bogged down by Republicans in Congress. The down-ballot spending “is a realization that winning only the presidency only goes so far,” the DNC official said.
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What was the badge created to protect - And who does it really serve? In Wondery, Crooked Media, and PushBlack’s newest limited series Empire City: The Untold Origin Story of the NYPD, Peabody Award-winning host Chenjerai Kumanyika uncovers the complicated and largely invisible history of policing through the origins of the largest police force in the world: The NYPD.
With an election on the horizon, a former prosecutor running for President, and students returning to campus after nationwide protests, Empire City is a must-listen primer for understanding today’s debates around policing and public safety, and where we go from here. Listen to the trailer out now, and follow Empire City wherever you get your podcasts. Listen everywhere on September 9th. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts to listen ad-free. |
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Russia killed more than 40 people and injured more than 200 others during a missile strike in Ukraine on Tuesday. The attack on a military academy and hospital follows a series of deadly bombardments last week. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces are pressing on with their surprise incursion into Russia’s Kursk region, and the U.S. is close to making a deal that would give Kyiv long-range cruise missiles that could reach deep into Russia.
The Justice Department announced criminal charges against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other militants for the group’s October 7 attack in Israel. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blasted Britain after its government decided to halt some weapons sales to Israel, calling the move “shameful.” It comes days after several hostages were found dead in Gaza, reupping calls for Netanyahu to agree to a cease-fire with the Hamas militant group.
Fred Trump III, the convicted felon’s nephew, said he has “no idea” why service members still support his uncle after the Arlington National Cemetery debacle… among other ways Trump has disgraced veterans. “He just doesn’t give a shit about them,” Fred told MSNBC. “Them,” really could mean anybody, in this case, and still be factually accurate.
Anti-abortion activists are split about Donald Trump: One camp sees his flip-flopping on reproductive rights as concerning, while the other still thinks he’ll be their champion on the issue. One prominent anti-aborition activist told NOTUS that “Satan is running his campaign,” which, I mean yeah honestly that would explain a few things!
The New York Times opinion section published a sprawling takedown of Donald Trump, warning what will happen to America if he wins again. As the outlet writes, “Republicans have tried to rewrite the four years of Trump’s presidency as a time of unparalleled peace, prosperity and tranquility … The record of what Mr. Trump actually did in office bears little resemblance to that description.” This is required reading!
Chinese internet trolls are creating fake social media profiles of voters to push divisive content about gun control, racial inequality and the Israel-Hamas war among other issues ahead of the vote in November, according to research firm Graphika. China’s efforts have also reportedly spread offline: Chinese diplomats and pro-China diaspora groups organized protests in San Francisco last year during which protestors opposed to Beijing’s policies were harrassed, a months-long Washington Post investigation found. Then, on Tuesday, a former aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul was charged with being an agent of the Chinese government. Three is a (horrifying) trend.
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Democrats are working hard to make sure Donald Trump can’t run away from Project 2025, the notorious right-wing agenda drafted by his former aides to remake the country within months of Trump retaking the White House. Now, Dems are planning to follow him around with it — literally.
The video billboard will call Trump out for his reproductive rights stances: “Banning abortion and threatening access to IVF is central to Donald Trump Project 2025 agenda for a second term,” DNC spokesperson Addy Toevs said in a statement. “A Trump-Vance administration would threaten Pennsylvanians’ reproductive care and their freedom to build a family how, if, and when they want.”
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Kamala Harris has erased Donald Trump’s edge over Hispanic voters when it comes to the economy, according to a new Reuters’/Ipsos poll. That group also favors the VP’s approach to health care by 18 percentage points and climate change by 23 percent points.
Professional Benevolent Weird Guy/hotdog eater Joey Chestnut is the champion of his gross sport, once again. The legendary glizzy guzzler (I’m so sorry) defeated archrival Takeru Kobayashi in a live-streamed Netflix event, beating his own personal record by downing 83 dogs and buns in 10 minutes. You know a hot dog (and a hotel toilet, probably) hates to see him coming.
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