memeorandum: Elon Musk's Machine for Fascism: A One-Stop Shop for Disinformation and Violence (emptywheel)

1:55 PM ET, November 1, 2024

Top Items:

Trump lagging in early vote with seniors in Pennsylvania, a red flag for GOP — Democrats account for about 58 percent of the votes cast by seniors so far in Pennsylvania. — Donald Trump is lagging Kamala Harris in Pennsylvania early voting with a critical and once-reliably Republican constituency: seniors.

Discussion: New Republic, Washington Examiner, Alternet.org, Newsweek, No More Mister Nice Blog, Election Law Blog, Los Angeles Times, Raw Story, New York Times, Scripps News and Townhall

Justin Brown / Politico:

Why the Polls Might Be Wrong — in Kamala Harris' Favor — It's taken pollsters eight years to pin down Trump's voters. Is 100 days really enough to accurately capture potential Harris voters? — For eight years, pollsters have been striving to accurately capture former President Donald Trump's level of support among voters.

Discussion: Global News

Doug Sosnik / New York Times:

How Harris or Trump Could Win This Deadlocked Presidential Race, in 19 Maps — The best evidence that American politics is deeply, stubbornly and immovably stuck is that the presidential race is back where it started in the Electoral College race for 270 votes, despite the work …

Discussion: Wide World of News, The Guardian, Vox, Althouse and Raw Story

Douglas Murray / New York Post:
Men, get out and vote and don't let Harris lie her way into White House

Discussion: Mock Paper Scissors, Newsweek, El País, Baltimore Sun and Digby's Hullabaloo

Rogé Karma / The Atlantic:
Five of the Election's Biggest Unanswered Questions

Discussion: DNyuz and New Jersey Online

Charles R. Davis / Salon:
“It is so disastrous”: MAGA men are freaking out that wives may be secretly voting for Kamala Harris

Discussion: The Bulwark, The Guardian, Washington Post, New Republic, Semafor, HuffPost, New York Daily News, The Hill, New Jersey Online, Raw Story and The Daily Beast

USA Today:
Exclusive poll: Harris, Trump tied in Pennsylvania as election day approaches

Discussion: Detroit Free Press and Daily Mail

Tal Axelrod / ABC News:
Democrats have tried hard to block third-party candidates. They could still be spoilers

Discussion: WisPolitics

Associated Press:

AP sources: White House altered record of Biden's ‘garbage’ remarks despite stenographer concerns — White House press officials altered the official transcript of a call in which President Joe Biden appeared to take a swipe at supporters of Donald Trump, drawing objections from the federal workers …

William Kristol / The Bulwark:

When You Thought He Couldn't Sink Lower — Donald Trump's two strongest personality traits each had a moment on the campaign trail yesterday. — At a rally in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the buffoon: “I'm here for one very simple reason. I like you very much, and it's good for my credentials with the Hispanic and Latino community.”

Michael Gold / New York Times:
Trump Attacks Liz Cheney Using Violent War Imagery

Discussion: CNN, Bloomberg, CBS News, The Guardian, The 19th, Mediaite, The Daily Signal, BizPac Review, Washington Examiner and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Colby Hall / Mediaite:

Liz Cheney Fires Back at Trump, Accuses Him of Threatening Her ‘With Death’ in Blistering Counter — Liz Cheney shot back at former President Donald Trump's comments from Thursday night, where he darkly floated a scenario where guns were firing at the former Republican Congressional leader and Kamala Harris supporter.

Discussion: Raw Story, CBS News and Washington Times

Washington Post:
Trump embraces violent rhetoric, suggests Liz Cheney should have guns ‘trained on her face’

Discussion: Reuters, Axios, The Hill, The Daily Beast, New Republic, Breitbart, NPR, CBS News, The Daily Caller, DNyuz, IJR, Vanity Fair, USA Today, Forbes, Raw Story, Blaze Media, Fox News and Althouse

David A. Graham / The Atlantic:
Trump Suggests Training Guns on Liz Cheney's Face

Discussion: Washington Examiner, RedState, Mediaite, Fox News and New Jersey Online

Adriana Gomez Licon / Associated Press:
Trump says Liz Cheney might not be such a ‘war hawk’ if she had guns pointed at her

Discussion: Salon, Roll Call, BizPac Review, Mediaite, Alternet.org, Washington Examiner, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, The Guardian, Twitchy and Politico

Nikki McCann Ramirez / Rolling Stone:
Trump Fantasizes About Guns Pointed at Liz Cheney's Face

Discussion: The Hill, ABC News, Digby's Hullabaloo, Alternet.org, The Federalist, Associated Press, New Republic, Raw Story, Deadline, Politico, al.com, New Jersey Online, The Wrap, Daily Mail and HuffPost

NBC News:
Trump attacks Liz Cheney, saying she wouldn't be a ‘war hawk’ if ‘guns are trained on her face’

Discussion: The Hill, Townhall, New York Post, The Guardian, The Independent and Mediaite

ProPublica:

A Pregnant Teenager Died After Trying to Get Care in Three Visits to Texas Emergency Rooms — ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they're published. — Candace Fails screamed for someone in the Texas hospital to help her pregnant daughter.

Discussion: The Guardian, The Barbed Wire, PoliticusUSA and Eschaton

Salon: A pregnant teenager died after trying to get care in three visits to Texas emergency rooms

emptywheel:

Elon Musk's Machine for Fascism: A One-Stop Shop for Disinformation and Violence — Just over a year ago, I described how Twitter had been used as a way to sow false claims in support of Trump in 2016 and 2020. — I described how, in 2016, trolls professionalized their efforts …

Discussion: The Guardian, Fortune, Wired, Rolling Stone and CNN

Claire Lampen / The Daily Beast:

J.Lo Claps Back at Trump Rally Puerto Rico Jab: ‘We Are Americans’ — LET'S GET LOUD — “Our pain matters” the singer said at a Las Vegas event for Kamala Harris. — As promised, Jennifer Lopez took the stage at Kamala Harris's rally in Las Vegas on Thursday night …

Discussion: Deadline, The Hill, Associated Press, Billboard, The Guardian, TMZ.com, WHDH-TV, The Wrap, Daily Mail, Page Six, DNyuz, Rolling Stone, The Hollywood Reporter, Mediaite and Variety

Noah Berlatsky / Public Notice:
Trump actually treats Puerto Rico like garbage

Discussion: The Guardian

Harry Lambert / The Daily Beast:

Listen to Jeffrey Epstein Spill Intel on Donald Trump's White House — OH LORDY — A new recording captures Epstein dishing on Trump. — Michael Wolff, the explosive chronicler of Donald Trump's four years in the White House, has released what he says is a recording of Jeffrey Epstein …

Discussion: New Republic, The Guardian and The Independent

Associated Press:

Texas hospitals must now ask patients whether they're in the US legally. Here's how it works — Texas hospitals must ask patients starting Friday whether they are in the U.S. legally and track the cost of treating people without legal status following an order by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott …

Discussion: Scripps News

Rebecca Solnit / The Guardian:

Some Maga men seem to think women don't have rights - starting with their wives — The 2024 election is in part about whether women can be free and equal citizens of this republic. Right now too many cannot — This week, the fundamentalist Christian pastor Dale Partridge argued in a series …

Discussion: The Daily Beast

Allan Smith / NBC News:

‘All hell has broken loose’: Inside Elon Musk's high-stakes pro-Trump door-knocking effort — More than a half-dozen operatives and canvassers connected to America PAC described an inordinate number of suspect entries and having to canvass during Hurricane Helene.

Discussion: The Guardian, Atlanta Black Star, DNyuz, Digby's Hullabaloo and Associated Press

Asawin Suebsaeng / Rolling Stone:

What Happens When Trump Exploits Your Daughter's Murder — When Mollie Tibbetts was killed by an undocumented immigrant, Trump tried to hijack her story. Her mom says his divisiveness “has got to stop” — BROOKLYN, Iowa — It's been more than six years since Mollie Tibbetts …

Graham Kates / CBS News:

“Voter Report Card” mailings described as “creepy” and “insulting,” defended as effective tool — Julia Ramsey is used to a deluge of election-related mail. Campaign mailings have clogged her Pennsylvania mailbox day after day for months, but one she received this week stood out from the rest.

Discussion: FOX 2

Jamelle Bouie / New York Times:

Donald Trump Is Done With Checks and Balances — What does it mean to say that “democracy is on the ballot” on Election Day? — In her speech on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., delivered from the same place near the White House where Donald Trump incited a crowd to attack the Capitol on Jan. 6 …

Discussion: Persuasion

Daniel Dale / CNN:

Donald Trump's campaign of relentless lying — The United States that Donald Trump describes in his rally speeches would be pretty bad if it actually existed. — Schools secretly sending children for gender-affirming surgeries without parental consent. Towns and even cities conquered by illegal immigrants.

Discussion: Alternet.org, Raw Story, USA Today and Washington Post

Politico:

Europe's Greens ask Jill Stein to pull out of US election to prevent Trump victory — “The race for the White House is too close for comfort,” write parties from around Europe, calling on Stein to throw her support behind Democrat Kamala Harris. — Green politicians from across Europe …

Discussion: The Guardian

Tatum Hunter / Washington Post:

Trump's ‘grab them’ comment was history. Now TikTok is showing it to young voters. — As the audio clip circulates on the popular video app, Gen Z users are expressing their shock. — It's been eight years since leaked audio from a conversation between Donald Trump and TV host Billy Bush …

Luke Gentile / Washington Examiner:

Millionaire Marvel actors assemble to endorse Harris — Millionaire actors from the Marvel Cinematic Universe assembled Thursday to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris. — “Hi Avengers!” Scarlett Johansson said. “Thanks for jumping on the call.” — “Woah, woah, woah,” Don Cheadle shot in.

Discussion: New York Post, Breitbart, UPI and Deadline

Megan Cerullo / CBS News:

October jobs take a hit from hurricanes, strike — U.S. payrolls slumped sharply in October, weighed down by people not working as a result of two hurricanes and major labor disputes. — The U.S. added just 12,000 in October, well below economists' estimate of 100,000, marking the slowest month for hiring since December 2020.