The LuLac Edition #4,407, September 24th, 2020
FOR MOST AMERICANS, AT LEAST ONE OF THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES IS UNTHINKABLE TO VOTE FOR. OTHERS ARE STILL CONSIDERING BOTH.
THEREFORE, THEY ARE STILL EVALUATING BOTH TRUMP AND BIDEN
A few weeks back, an Oslo, Norway newspaper interviewed a few people on Wilkes-Barre Public Square. Here is what transpired:
- With such different candidates as Joe Biden and Donald Trump, it is difficult to understand that someone has not decided who they will vote for. I could understand if the choice was between one of the candidates, or not to vote, but I can not understand that you can still consider both as relevant, says Karthy Bozinski to VG.
She is the Democrat's local team leader in Lucerne County, Pennsylvania. This is one of the counties political nerds in the tipping state follow with an arguing eye. In both 2008 and 2012, Democrat Barack Obama received the most votes here.
But something happened in 2016. Donald Trump swept Hillary Clinton off the field in Lucerne. He received almost 20 percent more votes than her. That amounted to almost 26,000 actual votes. Across Pennsylvania, he won with just about 44,000 of over 6 million votes.
The election this year is also expected to be even. Then every single voice becomes important. Now in mid-September, Joe Biden is a little horse's head ahead of Trump in the polls.
If the president is to win here again, he may therefore really need the support of the four percent, which according to a survey Monmouth University presented at the beginning of the month, which so far has not decided.
From Trump to doubt
In the square in the center of Wilkes-Barre, Lucerne's largest city with around 40,000 inhabitants, VG meets two of these. Both Gaetano Buonsante (23), who works for an insurance company, and Peter Gagliardi (65), who works in a grocery store, voted for Trump in 2016.
Both say they were in doubt four years ago as well, but in the end it was the belief that Trump was the best for the country's economy that became the tongue in cheek.
- And he did a good job for a long time. The economy went up and unemployment went down, says Gagliardi.
Buonsante agrees:
- But that has changed in recent months, so now I'm unsure, he admits.
Trump on Economy - Biden on Morality
Even though we meet them separately, they respond remarkably equally when VG challenges them on how it is possible to assess and vote for two such different candidates.
They say they have the greatest faith that Trump is again the one who can get the economy back on track once the corona virus has been brought under control. But then they are in doubt whether he is the right person to get control of the pandemic that has so far killed almost 200,000 Americans and shot up unemployment.
They also express that they think Biden is a better candidate when it comes to social issues they are concerned about. Both highlight the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests. They are disappointed with how the president has handled these.
- I feel this is a moment in our history we must seize, so we can have more equality for all. I think Joe Biden will do a better job there. Although I do not always agree with his policy, I think his morals are more similar to my own, says 23-year-old Buonsante.
- I think Biden is better suited to reunite our divided country again. For example, he shows support for both the police and those who are victims of police brutality, says 65-year-old Gagliardi.
Caption below Gagliardi photo:
VOTER: Peter Gagliardi highlights Trump's foreign policy as something he shares with the president. However, he has not yet decided who will get his vote in November.
Will see the debates
He believes it is not so unnatural to consider both candidates, even when they are different.
- I consider both because all choices are about advantages and disadvantages. None of the candidates are perfect, but in a democracy it is our duty to exercise the right to vote. As voters, it is also our job to evaluate them against each other before making a decision. Then you have to make an effort to find out who has more positive sides than negative sides, says Gagliardi.
He believes the three upcoming presidential debates will be decisive for which side they fall on. Buonsante says the same:
- If Biden shows good plans for things like a fairer legal system and support for housing for poor people, then I will probably go for him. But if I do not see a clear plan, then I have to go for what I think is best for those in the family who run a business. Then it's Trump.
- Can it happen that you do not decide before you stand in the polling station?
- I do not think so. And I do not hope so. But at the same time I am an indecisive type, so who knows, says the 23-year-old.
- We'll see when I make a decision. Maybe I should just say a prayer and follow my conscience, says the 65-year-old on the same question.
Ran out of signs
What the two men fall for could be decisive for whether Kathy Bozinski, the Democrats' local team leader, gets a good day on November 3, or not. Right now, she believes that they will once again be able to make Pennsylvania blue, and thus help ensure that Joe Biden becomes the next president of the United States.
- It is a completely different enthusiasm for the Democrats here now than it was in 2016. I am besieged by people who want to support us, she says, and illustrates it with how they recently ran out of Biden-sign people can get for to set up in his garden.
- We have simply had problems obtaining enough. The other day I had to call the office in a neighboring county for emergency assistance. They came up with 300 signs in the evening, which we started handing out almost in the morning. Already at 4 pm we were empty again. Now we have fortunately got 2000 new ones, she laughs, while volunteers sit around her and assemble the signs together.
VG made several attempts to get in touch with the Republicans' local team leader in Lucerne, but he did not respond to any of our inquiries. During a visit to the party's election office, we were told that no one there had permission to speak to the media.
HICKENLOOPER ATTACKS GARDNER OVER SUPREME COURT VACANCY IN COLORADO SENATE RACE
Gardner and Hickenlooper (Photo: AP)
Former Gov. John Hickenlooper attacked Sen. Cory Gardner in a new ad released Wednesday, charging that the Colorado Republican is "ready to rush through a Supreme Court justice at lightning speed" rather than address a host of other issues. is one of the first in the country to invoke the fight over Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's successor, underscoring how Democrats view the vacancy as a political winner in blue states, where the party base is furious at Republicans for moving forward to confirm a nominee and shift the Court even further to the right. "Cory Gardner has taken no action to lower health care costs, lower prescription drug prices, rebuild our infrastructure, fight climate change or provide economic relief in this pandemic for five months," says Hickenlooper in the ad. "But boy oh boy, Cory is ready to rush through a Supreme Court justice at lightning speed."
"The next court will decide whether to rip up protections for people with pre-existing conditions, whether women still have a right to choose, and really what justice means in this country," he adds. Gardner is one of the most vulnerable Republican senators in the country, running in a state that went for Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump by five points in the 2016 presidential race. His campaign did not immediately respond to CNN requests for comment. It's a Tilt Democratic race, according to Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales. In March 2016, Gardner, like almost every other Republican senator, supported blocking then-President Barack Obama's nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, from filling the seat left by the late conservative Justice Antonin Scalia. "Our next election is too soon and the stakes are too high; the American people deserve a role in this process as the next Supreme Court Justice will influence the direction of this country for years to come," he said at the time.
After Ginsburg's death on Friday, the Colorado senator quickly backed the Senate Republican strategy to consider Trump's to-be-announced nominee to replace her even though Election Day is less than six weeks away. "I have and will continue to support judicial nominees who will protect our Constitution, not legislate from the bench, and uphold the law," said Gardner in a statement earlier this week. "Should a qualified nominee who meets this criteria be put forward, I will vote to confirm." It's unclear exactly how the vacancy will affect the fight for control of the Senate. Democrats are confident that it will help them in blue states like Colorado and Maine, where Republican Sen. Susan Collins faces a tough reelection race, while Republicans are confident it will help them in red states like Montana.
If Sen. Doug Jones loses in deep red Alabama, Democrats needs to win four seats and the White House to take control of the chamber. Democratic Senate candidates including Hickenlooper have advocated for fulfilling Ginsburg's "most fervent wish" to not be replaced until after the next presidential inauguration, when a President Joe Biden could choose her replacement. Democrats have no power to block a nearly unified Senate Republican majority, but are warning voters that a Supreme Court with six conservative justices could dismantle the Affordable Care Act and its protections for those with pre-existing conditions. The Court hears a crucial case on the law's constitutionality a week after Election Day.
CRUZ BLOCKS AMENDED RESOLUTION HONORING GINSBURG OVER LANGUAGE ABOUT HER DYING WISH
Sen. Ted Cruz blocked an amended resolution honoring the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Tuesday, objecting to language about her reported dying wish that her successor not be chosen until a new president is installed. "All the kind words and lamentations about Justice Ginsburg from the Republican majority will be totally empty if those Republicans ignore her dying wish and instead replace her with someone who will tear down everything she built," Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said while addressing the resolution, which was introduced by Republicans in the upper chamber. "That, of course, is not the standard," Cruz responded. "Under the Constitution, members of the judiciary do not appoint their own successors."
The Texas Republican also said in his floor remarks that Schumer "put forth an amendment to turn that bipartisan resolution into a partisan resolution." That’s crazy. She never mentioned a name, just the process. As a matter if fact she was following the same logic set forth by Cruz’ pig faced mumbled mouth thug boss, Mitch “The Bitch” McConnell.
CARTWRIGHT ANNOUNCES $900,000 TO DELAWARE-LACKAWANNA RAILROAD CO.
Congressman Matt Cartwright (Photo: LuLac archives)
U.S. Representative Matt Cartwright announced that the Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad Company will receive $900,000 in federal funding through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) fiscal year 2020 Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Grant Program (CRISI) for the enhancement of the Green Ridge Yard located in Scranton. The CRISI program provides funding for capital projects that will improve passenger and freight rail transportation systems in terms of safety, efficiency, or reliability. “Rail is important to Northeastern Pennsylvania’s role in transporting goods up and down the Eastern U.S., and I applaud the partnership between the Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad and the Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority for their commitment to expanding rail in the region,” said Cartwright, a member of the House Appropriations Committee.
“During this pandemic, we need to stay focused on our long-term goals for a sustainable economy—with clean air and safe roadways—as we also respond to our urgent, current needs. This grant will help us now and for years to come as it expands our ability to use rail for shipping, helping our businesses and taking pressure off our roads.” “This federal CRISI grant awarded to the Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad (DL) is another example of our nationally recognized successful public/private partnership between the DL and the Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority that has brought back the rail freight industry as a new economic growth industry in Lackawanna and Monroe Counties in Northeastern Pennsylvania,” said Larry Malski, President of the Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority (PNRRA). Malski also cited the state of the art Flour Mill built on the rail line in Mt. Pocono as an example of the many new industries that have located on the rail lines that were saved from abandonment by the Rail Authority and now have again become a powerful economic tool in creating new jobs in Lackawanna and Monroe Counties in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
The PNRRA was formed in 2006 with long-term goals to keep rail as a major economic development force in Northeastern Pennsylvania and to continue to solicit, market and expand new industries along their regional rail network.
“This CRISI Grant is an essential investment in a public asset, and a strategic investment in the Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad,” said Charlie Monte Verde, Senior Director of Strategic Planning at Genesee Valley Transportation Co. Inc. “In 1993, we took over an operation of around 1,500 railcars-hauled. We’ve grown that figure to just shy of 10,000 railcars-hauled for our substantial customer base. 2020 has illustrated just how many of our customers are essential services in times of national emergency.
The components will:
1) construct the connecting track between the South Wye Track and North Wye Track at Hyde Park,
2) construct additional working tracks and a crossover at the new locomotive service and inspection facility at Green Ridge,
3) realign and extend yard tracks at Green Ridge Yard, and
4) enable other site improvements at the locomotive service and inspection facility.
CASEY STATEMENT ON PASSING OF JUSTICE RUTH BADER GINSBURG
Senator Robert Casey (Photo: LuLac archives)
U.S. Senator Bob Casey released the following statement in response to the passing of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg:
“Tonight our Nation mourns the passing of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Justice Ginsburg was a pioneer for gender equality, a champion for human rights and a fierce defender of workers on an increasingly corporate Supreme Court. Justice Ginsburg served our Nation honorably and with distinction for four decades. Her heroic battles with cancer inspired countless Americans. I extend condolences to her family and may her memory be a blessing to millions of Americans.
Consistent with the precedent set by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2016, Justice Ginsburg’s seat should not be filled until the presidential election concludes and the candidate chosen by voters is sworn into office.”
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1980
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Our 1980 logo.
The explosion of the fuel tank of a Titan II missile occurred at a missile silo near Damascus, Arkansas one day after a workman had accidentally dropped a ratchet while working on maintenance. At 3:01 in the morning, the missile exploded, killing U.S. Air Force Sergeant David Livingston and injuring 21 airmen. The blast also hurled an unarmed, nine megaton nuclear warhead, 200 yards from the silo……The Indian state of Bihar, led by Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra, made Urdu a second official language for that state in addition to Hindi as part of a campaign promise that had been made by Mishra. At the time, Urdu, spoken by India's Muslims, had only been official in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Following Bihar's action, four additional would give Indian states gave official status to Urdu……In a bout for the World Boxing Council (WBC) bantamweight title, champion Lupe Pintor of Mexico faced contender and European bantamweight champ Johnny Owen of Wales at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles. In the first eight rounds, Owen appeared to have the advantage.….With 25 seconds left in the 12th round, however, Owen was knocked down (for the first time in his career) by a short right punch and as he attempted to get up, Pintor struck Owen with a left uppercut knockout punch. Owen never regained consciousness, and was rushed from the auditorium to California Hospital Medical Center, where he underwent emergency brain surgery. Owen lived for 46 days before dying on November 4…..
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With Carter absent, Anderson and Republican nominee Ronald Reagan appeared in Baltimore and before a national television audience. A Carter versus Reagan debate would take place on October 28, seven days before the 1980 U.S. presidential election... Religious services were broadcast on the radio in Poland for the first time since the 1947 foundation of the Communist-governed Polish People's Republic. The concessions were made by Poland's government as part of the August 31 agreement with striking shipyard workers…..The Iran–Iraq War began with a surprise attack by the Iraqi Air Force on 10 Iranian airfields, in an unsuccessful attempt to destroy most of Iran's combat aircraft. Air raids were made by 36 MiG-23 fighters and 92 other Iraqi planes on Tabriz, Hamadan, Dizful, Isfahan, Ahwaz, Agha Jari, Bushire, Abadan, and Shiraz, as well as Tehran's airport. At the same time, tanks rolled across the Iraq border into Iran's Kermanshah Province. The next day, ground troops crossed from Iraq into Iran in three simultaneous attacks and captured Iran's oil-rich Khuzestan Province at the north of the Persian Gulf. Two of the six divisions of the Iraqi Army began a siege of the cities of Abadan and Khorramshahr. Iran responded with the aerial bombing the same day of Iraqi bases at Hamedan and Bushehr. The war would last until August 20, 1988, at a loss of as many as 500,000 Iraqi troops, 600,000 Iranian troops and 100,000 civilians in the two nations…….William Lee Bergstrom made gambling history with a successful $777,000 cash wager on a roll of the dice at the craps table at the Horseshoe Casino in Las Vegas. The amount would be equivalent to almost $2.4 million in 2020 money…..The Washington Post newspaper published the feature article "Jimmy's World" on its front page, a story by reporter Janet Cooke that began "Jimmy is 8 years old and a third-generation heroin addict, a precocious little boy with sandy hair, velvety brown eyes and needle marks freckling the baby-smooth skin of his thin brown arms." Copyrighted by the Post and reprinted by other newspapers, Cooke's story would win a Pulitzer Prize for feature writing on April 13, 1981. Two days later, Cooke admitted to executive editor Benjamin Bradlee that she had fabricated the story. In a telegram to the Pulitzer Prize Foundation, Bradlee returned the prize and wrote that Cooke had conceded "that her story about an 8-year-old-heroin addict was in fact a composite, that the quotes attributed to a child were in fact fabricated and that certain events described as eye witnessed did not in fact happen."…..and the number one song in LuLac land and America, 40 years ago was " Lookin' For Love - Johnny Lee. It was from the movie, "Urban Cowboy" .
posted by David Yonki @ 7:25 PM
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