Harris doesn’t need the debate, but Trump does

Donald Trump is a bully, and like all bullies, he loves to make threats. The latest installment is this gem uttered in the direction of presidential frontrunner Kamala Harris:

The vice president should respond with two letters: “OK.”

There should be nothing more — ever — because there is no Fox News debate. There will never be a Fox News debate, and most importantly, there should never be a Fox News debate. Fox News is America’s open sewer, but instead of spilling filth into the ocean, Murdoch’s lie machine drowns the truth in a toxic sludge of bullshit. The entire premise that Fox News is a neutral arbiter of fact and could be trusted to host a debate is lunacy of the highest magnitude.

There is also an important moment at hand for Vice President Harris. The presidential campaign process is a journey, and as such, a test. There is no other test for the presidency other than the brutality of a campaign process that tests the intellect, competence, judgement, stability, vision, connection and toughness of the candidates.  

Soon, the vice president will be commander in chief, and sitting across tables from Xi, and perhaps Putin. The message should always be crystal clear: President Harris doesn’t do threats. With regard to Trump, he wrote in his book that he believes the most effective negotiating position is walking into a room, jamming his finger in his adversary’s chest, and telling them to “go f@$& themselves.”

This is the offer on the table for the Harris campaign, which should show up or not show up at the ABC debate. David Frum makes a compelling case that the rapist doesn’t deserve the opportunity, and I agree, but whatever the decision may be, it must not be made because Donald is screaming like Farkus from “A Christmas Story” after Ralphie takes him down.

There are many variants of bully, but perhaps the worst are those that combine racism with ignorance.

Racist, ignorant bullies like Trump reveal their malice with each breath, and so it was the other day at the National Association of Black Journalists, where ABC’s Rachel Scott afforded The Donald an opportunity to show America who he is for the 150,000,000,000th time.

Look at this incredible quote from a CNN story detailing the chaos inside the Trump campaign:

Prior to his NABJ remarks, Trump’s campaign had sought to distance itself from racially incendiary comments about Harris, including those from GOP lawmakers referring to the vice president as a “DEI hire” – the acronym for diversity, equity and inclusion.

“I don’t know if it’s off limits, but it’s not something that we’ve done. So, it’s not even on our radar,” campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told reporters in North Carolina.

But by Wednesday afternoon, Trump and his campaign had doubled down on his attack on Harris’ racial heritage.

At a rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, hours after the NABJ event, Trump’s team rotated past article headlines about Harris becoming the first Indian American senator on the Jumbotron. And the next day, Trump posted a photo of Harris in a sari.

The messaging made several Republicans who spoke to CNN uncomfortable – and many said they hoped it would not become a lasting part of the campaign’s talking points.

Note the denialism and disassociation from this amazing finishing sentence:

“He’s never going to back down now – he can’t admit he was wrong. You’re going to see them double, triple down now,” one source close to Trump said.

Them. They. Us. It’s all such a fine line.

Here’s the deal. If you work closely with the Trump campaign then it’s an “us” not a “they” when the despicable acts that have long been brewing start happening. We have a saying in New Jersey for such situations: “Get the f@$& outta here.”

VP Harris doesn’t need the debate, but Trump does. He’s losing. He needs oxygen, and I’d make sure the line was cut.

Speaking of black jobs, there was once a governor of Kentucky named AB “Happy” Chandler. Happy Chandler went on to help  desegregate Major League Baseball, alongside Branch Rickey of the Brooklyn Dodgers, who elevated possibility in America by putting Jackie Robinson into the lineup.

When he was governor he had an opponent who demanded a debate. Happy Chandler responded by saying, “Tell that son of a bitch to go find his own publicity.”

This sounds dead right to me. Perhaps Trump should reach out to the elusive PR master who carefully curated his image in the 1980’s NYC tabloids, John Barron.

At any rate, when he passed at 59 years young, the great Jackie Robinson was eulogized by Jesse Jackson in a short commemoration that falls beyond my ability to adequately describe other than to say that beauty can come in words.

Before we allow Donald Trump, MAGA and their collaborators to poison this country with racist rhetoric, propaganda and intimations of violence, perhaps it would be best to listen to something better. The better angels are all around us.

Listen to Jesse Jackson speak about why we must not ever go back:

Dignity and grace must not be unraveled in America.

This election is about right and wrong.
It is about America or Trump.   

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