Summer of "Weird"

Plus, a marine honored.

August 12, 2024

The Flag

Good morning and Happy Monday! Here are the Flag’s Top Five stories that should be on your radar to start the day:

  • US: ABC News says Harris and Trump have agreed to a presidential debate on Sept. 10 (NPR)

  • World: Kamala Harris says there are ‘too many’ civilian deaths in Gaza after IDF strike on school building (New York Post)

  • Business: Paramount Global to lay off 15% of its US workforce (Fox Business)

  • Technology: OpenAI warns people might become emotionally reliant on its ChatGPT voice mode (The Hill)

  • Sports: Highlights from the 2024 Olympics closing ceremony (AP)

And of course, some good news: Compton post office renamed in honor of first Black Marine to receive Medal of Honor.

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Left: Harris and Walz Take Upbeat Message on Tour Lauren Gambino, The Guardian

Left: Republicans Have No Idea What To Do About Walz Alexander Nazaryan, MSNBC

Left: Trump's Press Conference Was Rambling Nonsense Sara Pequeño, USA Today

Right: The Harris Boom-and-Bust Cycle Byron York, Washington Examiner

Right: Operation Harris Is One of Shadiest in Media History David Harsanyi, The Federalist

Right: Harris Flop Would Be Scarier Than Her Flip Victor Davis Hanson, American Greatness

2024

Summer of “Weird”

Today’s Top Story in One Sentence: Voices in the Democratic Party, including Vice President Kamala Harris, have increasingly latched onto calling former President Donald Trump, Senator J.D. Vance, and much of the Republican Party as “weird.” The trend likely began before Governor Tim Walz was announced as Harris’s running when he made an appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, stating Trump and Vance are “just weird.”

Reporting from the Left: How Tim Walz became beloved by young voters with a message that the GOP is ‘weird’ (AP)

Reporting from the Right: JD Vance blasts Democratic critics, says people calling him 'weird' are 'projecting' (Fox News)

LEFT-LEANING SENTIMENT

This Is an Effective Strategy

The Top Argument From The Left: Trump can’t take a joke. Democrats need to use that., Ruth Ben-Ghiat, MSNBC: “It’s the summer of weird Republicans. GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump repeatedly mentions Hannibal Lecter at his rallies, speaking about the fictional cannibal as though he were a real person. “He’s a lovely man. He’d love to have you for dinner,” must be one of the strangest things a candidate has said while trying to attract votes. … For scholars of authoritarianism, the success of “weird” is no surprise. That’s because humor has long been one of the most effective weapons of anti-authoritarian politics. Behind the facade of their omnipotence, most strongmen are brittle and insecure personalities. They don’t mind being called evil, but being ridiculed is a different matter. … Humor can have a crucial role in the work of mobilization and civic education to keep those democratic rights. ‘Laughtivism,’ as Serbian democracy activist Srdja Popovic has called it, views humor as more effective than anger in highly polarized situations. When we laugh together, fear and distrust lessen, which is the opposite of what authoritarians want. That, too, is why such leaders can’t take a joke.”

Honorable Mention #1: The Real Reason Trump and Vance Hate Being Called ‘Weird’, Jamelle Bouie, The New York Times.

Honorable Mention #2: “Trump is weird” will only get Kamala Harris so far, Christian Paz, Vox.

RIGHT-LEANING SENTIMENT

A Useful Dodge for Dems

The Top Argument From The Right: The Democrats’ war on weird, Kyle Sammin, Washington Examiner: “‘Weird’ has been the word of the month in politics. If Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign has its way, it will be the word of the year. In an election that, even more than most, leans more on vibes and less on substance, it has become an especially useful dodge. …’weird’ gave the Democrats the substance-free critique they needed. It might have even helped Walz end up as Harris’s running mate. … But how, exactly, are Trump and Vance “weird?” The psychology of Trump has been analyzed to death already, but one thing that clearly makes him different from other politicians is that he says whatever he’s thinking. In Vance, Trump has found a running mate who functions along similar lines. Both men are politicians now, but they both spent most of their lives outside politics and, in Vance’s case especially, outside political circles altogether. Trump talks like a businessman. Vance talks like a writer. Neither sounds anything like what the political class is used to hearing. … Sometimes being different wrong-foots the voters, and they miss the point amid the furor. Vance’s ideas on the American family are a perfect example of him stating some normal thoughts in an abnormal way, to his detriment. The left-wing machine has been digging up all manner of ‘weird’ things Vance has said over the years and will continue to do so from now until November.

Honorable Mention #2: Is the Trump ‘meltdown’ a Democratic fantasy?, Freddie Gray, The Spectator.

FLAG THIS

Weird Identity

A recent YouGov poll surveyed 3,601 U.S. adults about their perceptions of the term "weird" and its potential political implications. The poll found that 48% of Americans consider themselves either "very weird" or "somewhat weird," with a significant skew towards liberals—69% of those identifying as "very liberal" embrace the label compared to 39% of "very conservative" individuals. Young voters (18-29) are particularly inclined to identify as weird, with 56% embracing the term (Newsweek).

The usage of the term "weird" by Harris and Walz is more likely to...

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WATERCOOLER

FDR and Churchill, Helping Future You, Heavy Breathing

On August 12, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill meet on board a ship at Placentia Bay, Newfoundland, to confer on issues ranging from support for Russia to threatening Japan to postwar peace. The meeting was crucial because it resulted in a document outlining American and British commitment to a postwar world of peace. This document, named the Atlantic Charter, was later ratified by 26 nations in January 1942 and became the foundation of the United Nations.

Today I learned people breathe roughly 20,000 times every day.

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Searching for job openings. Sending endless applications into the online void and getting absolutely nowhere. Express Employment Professionals makes getting hired easy. Express is locally owned and operated, connected to dozens of companies in your area, with tons of available jobs. And at Express there are no fees for job seekers.

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