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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsJoan Walsh: Biden Fared Well at Morehouse. So You Didn't Hear About It.
https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/biden-harris-morehouse/No paywall link
https://archive.li/v7Qd1
Trust me: If President Joe Biden had faced hecklers or worse when he gave the Morehouse College commencement speech on Sunday, you would know about it. It would have led every newscast and dominated headlines in every paper, another dire portent of his alleged troubles with Black voters coming in November.
Instead, Biden faced a low-key protest, he clapped for and shook hands with the valedictorian who demanded a ceasefire in Gaza, and otherwise fared well. So you probably didnt hear about it.
I try not to cover the Biden is treated unfairly beat. Its now a dog bites man story. But this was impossible to ignore. I covered many events with Vice President Kamala Harris this last week, and I heard from many reporters how on edge they were, as was the administration, about Bidens reception at Morehouse. Some student activists had demanded that the administration rescind his invitation, and a few faculty members said they wouldnt attend the ceremony.
So why wasnt it a big deal when it went fine?
Its the nature of news. We cover plane crashes, not safe plane landings. But I think Bidens soft landing represents smart outreach to the Black community, or communities, that paid off. And thats news.
*snip*
Bundbuster
(4,018 posts)Hekate
(94,107 posts)Lemon Lyman
(1,463 posts)But one douche had his back turned during PJB's speech (middle east?), so the students weren't happy with hm visiting
MadameButterfly
(1,432 posts)How do we get responsible and productive behavior by a leader covered by the media? If we don't, there won't be any, any more.
KPN
(16,024 posts)hadEnuf
(2,604 posts)They are owned by rabid right conservative corporations who want to stick it to Democrats and Americans, put their own stooges in office to make billions and make more billions while doing it.
On the whole, the media is gone. Hysterical, tabloid propaganda is all that's left.
misanthrope
(8,037 posts)Go back and look at the print journalism landscape 120 years ago.
hadEnuf
(2,604 posts)But I guess not.
MadameButterfly
(1,432 posts)Things we though unthinkableever again
Here's hoping enough of us are smart enough to avoid the same results
Cha
(304,152 posts)TY!
malaise
(277,091 posts)M$Greedia and ReTHUDs were hoping for chaos
shrike3
(5,370 posts)Response to Nevilledog (Original post)
AllaN01Bear This message was self-deleted by its author.
AllaN01Bear
(22,806 posts)BumRushDaShow
(140,314 posts)they created a "narrative" and then magnified it among and between themselves at every outlet, literally manufacturing a whole new universe out of the fake "vision" of what was going on and would happen, completely ignoring reality. And when it didn't pan out, they slunk away to create a new narrative of -
"Democrats are worried that..."
"Democrats are concerned that..."
"Democrats are struggling with..."
"Democrats grapple with..."
and other nonsense that invokes the same old tired "Democrats in Disarray" idiocy that they love write about.
KPN
(16,024 posts)Fuck the corporate media. The local national affiliate evening news we tend to watch (not Fox) finally reported extensively on Cohen's testimony in the hush money trial last night; of course it was all about the defense -- Cohen admits he stole from the Trump organization, the Trump defense team scored big points today, etc., etc. In the moment, it almost makes me want to puke or, more accurately, blow up something. The hill we have to climb -- It's so frigging daunting sometimes!
displaced in ID
(24 posts)I watched the speech on Sunday and the follow-up coverage. The extremely negative host subbing for Ali Velshi (Charles Coleman) could not say a positive thing about it. One guest, Molly Jong Fast, disagreed and said that it was generally positive. Then another guest (can't remember their name) came on and said MJF was totally wrong and Biden was awful and the audience hated the speech. This constant negative drumbeat is just exhausting. The unspoken rule seems to be to figure out how everything is bad for Biden. It's sunny where I am today......a bad omen for Biden no doubt.
spanone
(137,414 posts)DFW
(56,281 posts)"But the main takeaway from his comparative Morehouse triumph is that his administration invested resources in understanding a core constituency and treating it with respect.
"Lets hope Biden and Harris are able to do that in many more Black communities before November."
I think they can and will.
chouchou
(1,205 posts)Biden steps on a bug and the media says: Does Joe Biden enjoy destroying our precious life??
Trump shits in his pants > "Our former President truly cares about not spoiling our wonderful environment! "
and the age thing>> Biden exercises, eats well. Trump plays "Opposite George" (Seinfeld)
hay rick
(8,153 posts)The article itself was short, bland and not terribly slanted. But the 99% of users who only saw the headline and scrolled by without reading the article absorbed a negative message.
Heather Cox Richardson recounted a large part of his speech- it was excellent.
American democracy is being betrayed by our media.
usonian
(13,141 posts)MAYBE IF YOU PAID ATTENTION TO THE SPEECHES INSTEAD OF THE MISSING AGITATORS
You might learn something and report it.
Here are the texts of Joe Biden's speeches at the McCain Library and at Morehouse.
Smokin' stuff.
Despite the lack of violence in the audience that you crave.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2023/09/28/remarks-by-president-biden-honoring-the-legacy-of-senator-john-mccain-and-the-work-we-must-do-together-to-strengthen-our-democracy/
Just a snip.
Just consider these as actual quotes from MAGA the MAGA movement. Quote, I am your retribution. Slitting throats of civil servants, replacing them with extreme political cronies. MAGA extremists proclaim support for law enforcement only to say, We quote, We must destroy the FBI.
Its not one person. Its the controlling element of the House Republican Party.
Whitewash attacks of January 6th by calling the spearing and stomping of police a leg- quote, a legitimate political discourse.
Did you ever think youd hear leaders of political parties in the United States of America speak like that? Seizing power, concentrating power, attempting to abuse power, purging and packing key institutions, spewing conspiracy theories, spreading lies for profit and power to divide America in every way, inciting violence against those who risk their lives to keep America safe, weaponizing against the very soul of who we are as Americans.
This MAGA threat is the threat to the brick and mortar of our democratic institutions. But its also a threat to the character of our nation and gives our that gives our Constitution life, that binds us together as Americans in common cause.
None of this is surprising, though. Theyve tried to govern that way before. And thank God, they failed.
But they havent given up. Just look at recent days: their accusations against of treason treason against the major new net- news network because they dont like its coverage. I dont know what the hell Id say about Fox if that becomes the rule. (Laughter.)
But think about it. Im joking, but think about it.
Tomorrow, I have the honor of overseeing the change of responsibilities of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States military from one genuine hero and patriot, General Mark Milley, to another, General CQ Brown both both defining leaders of our time.
And yet, here is what you hear from MAGA extremists about the retiring patriot general honoring his oath to the Constitution: quote, hes a traitor, end of quote. In times gone by, the punishment quote, In times gone by, the punishment wouldve been death, end of quote.
This is the United States of America. This is the United States of America.
And although I dont believe even a majority of Republicans think that, the silence is deafening. The silence is deafening.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2024/05/19/remarks-by-president-biden-at-the-morehouse-college-class-of-2024-commencement-address-atlanta-ga/
Just a snip:
What is democracy if Black men are being killed in the street?
What is democracy if a trail of broken promises still leave Black Black communities behind?
What is democracy if you have to be 10 times better than anyone else to get a fair shot?
And most of all, what does it mean, as weve heard before, to be a Black man who loves his country even if it doesnt love him back in equal measure? (Applause.)
When I sit behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office, in front of the fireplace across from my my desk, I have two busts: one of Dr. King and one of Bobby Kennedy. I often find myself looking at those busts and making decisions. I ask myself: Are we living up to what we say we are as a nation, to end racism and poverty, to deliver jobs and justice, to restore our leadership in the world?
...
Insurrectionists who storm the Capitol with Confederate flags are called patriots by some. Not in my house. (Applause.) Black police officers, Black veterans protecting the Capitol were called another word, as youll recall.
They also say out loud, these other groups, immigrants poison the blood of our country, like the Grand Wizard and fascists said in the past. But you know and I know we all bleed the same color. In America, were all created equal. (Applause.)
Extremists close the doors of opportunity; strike down affirmative action; attack the values of diversity, equality, and inclusion.
I never thought when I was graduating in 1968 as your honoree just was we talked about I never thought Id be in present in a time when theres a national effort to ban books not to write history but to erase history.
They dont see you in the future of America. But theyre wrong. To me, we make history, not erase it. We know Black history is American history. (Applause.)
Many of you graduates dont know me, but check my record, youll know what Im saying I mean from my gut.
And we know Black men are going to help us, lead us to the future Black men from this class, in this university. (Applause.)
But, graduates, this is what were up against: extremist forces aligned against the meaning and message of Morehouse. And they peddle a fiction, a caricature what being a man is about tough talk, abusing power, bigotry. Their idea of being a man is toxic. I ran into them all the time when I was younger. They got all right, I dont want to get started. (Laughter.)
But thats not you. Its not us. You all know and demonstrate what it really means to be a man. Being a man is about the strength of respect and dignity. Its about showing up because its too late if you have to ask. Its about giving hate no safe harbor and leaving no one behind and defending freedoms. Its about standing up to the abuse of power, whether physical, economic, or psychological. Its about knowing faith without works is dead. (Applause.)
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Martin68
(24,379 posts)"Before Biden spoke at Morehouse, the biggest question was whether his words would be interrupted by protests, like the ones that have sprung up on college campuses across the country. But instead of a loud rebuke, Biden was met with polite, if measured, applause by the more than 400 graduating seniors and their families, and no major demonstrations."
"A handful of students and faculty members at the ceremony turned their backs on Biden as he gave the keynote speech, a silent protest of the presidents support of Israels war in Gaza. As many as six students could be seen seated with their backs to Biden at one point, one with a fist raised in the air. At least one faculty member appeared to be doing the same thing.
Biden recognized the protests and said he respected them. Let me be clear: I support peaceful, nonviolent protest. Your voices should be heard, and I promise I hear them, he said.
Gift article:
https://wapo.st/4auxuha
SouthBayDem
(32,443 posts)News to me.
xmas74
(29,741 posts)Her son was one of the new graduates.
If something had really happened she would have posted about it.
ancianita
(38,058 posts)We should be spreading videos of Pres. Biden's speeches on them as much as possible.