THE DAILY NEWSLETTER  - THURSDAY, JULY 16, 2020

Media Winners & Losers

MEDIA WINNER:
Gov. Larry Hogan

In a scathing oped published on Thursday, Maryland's Republican Governor Larry Hogan tore into President Donald Trump on the president’s leadership throughout the coronavirus crisis, taking a stand on the health of his constituents over party loyalty.

Hogan recalled numerous meetings earlier in the year where he and his fellow GOP governors were warned about the possible severity of the incoming pandemic.

“I remember hearing many dire claims,” Hogan wrote. “'This could be catastrophic…The death toll could be significant… Much more contagious than SARS…Testing will be crucial…You have to follow the science — that’s where the answers lie.'”

He said Trump spent months dismissing concerns, bragging, and making false claims of success. Most importantly, Hogan recounted Trump fluctuating between blaming various targets rather than taking appropriate actions.

“It was hopeless, waiting around for him,” said Hogan. “Governors were being told that we were on our own. It was sink or swim. And if I didn’t do something dramatic, we simply would not come close to having enough tests in Maryland.”

"I did the best I could for Maryland," he said.

That is theoretically how things are supposed to work. Putting the needs of the many above the needs of the one.

MEDIA LOSER:
Brad Parscale

Trump 2020 campaign manager Brad Parscale has been demoted, less than four weeks after an embarrassing, poorly attended Trump rally in Tulsa that Parscale had boasted beforehand could have up to one million in attendance.

TikTok teens were given credit for punking Parscale’s campaign apparatus, and he lashed out at the press in a pretty transparent effort to shift the target. He soon came under intense criticism from some pro-Trump supporters for riding the president’s coattails to wealth and fame.

Some of Trump's most devoted suggested firings were due over the whole thing. Others were more subtle but to the same end.

Ironically, Parscale has made his possible firing or reassignment a frequent taunt over time, after unsourced reports here and there said he was on thin ice with the president, and just three days before being tossed made a point of it again, to the Washington Post.

This is the same tired story being shopped every week by the same lowlife anonymous sources who are putting their own personal interests ahead of the president and his campaign, in a misguided attempt to weasel their way in to resurrect their failed and disgraced careers," he said.

And insult to injury? Polling and Fox pundits may have been the final nail. Ouch.

The A-Block

Boat or Die

White House pollster John McLaughlin confesses that the coveted "boater" demographic may not be enough to propel President Donald Trump to victory in November, but stresses that there are still the important segments like golfers, aviators, college and high school tailgaters, and other groups to consider.

At least, those are the things he's been telling Trump to, like a lot of people in the administration find themselves doing, try to make the president feel good about himself.

The Great Twitter Bluecheckout

There was a gigantic, prominent, big-name hacking yesterday, resulting in spam tweets sent from the accounts of dozens of major, verified accounts, including Bill Gates, Kanye West, Elon Musk, and even former President Barack Obama

It caused a huge reaction, of course, and eventually resulted in the unprecedented locking of ALL verified users

It could have been even worse. noted NBC's Ben Collins. In fact, it might have been, says Sen. Josh Hawley, who is demanding to know more.

Twitter denies it was an inside job. So far...

There's 'no editorial view here' at MSNBC

So says Chuck Todd, at least. The anchor and host bristled at the notion, from Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh, of a point of view on the channel's daytime programming.

"Just a reminder, for what it’s worth, there is no editorial view here on any of these newscasts on MSNBC in the daytime," he said in the contentious segment.

"if you are going to dish it out..."

Former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson sparred with Fox News Channel’s Harris Faulkner, Wednesday, over the controversial and very public resignation letter from now-former opinion editor for the NYT Bari Weiss.

"[Weiss] has been in there on Twitter throwing some — some punches herself at people she disagrees with," said Abramson at one point. "You know, if you are going to dish it out, you have got to be ready to take it."

She got a "wow" from Faulkner for the under-the-bus interview.

FNC's Special Report Scores Big

Trump’s impromptu Rose Garden speech/pseudo-campaign rally powered Fox News’ Special Report with Bret Baier to a big ratings win on Tuesday and on the first night of Tucker Carlson’s vacation, his show still scored the best ratings in cable news in the coveted 25 –54 age demographic.



Those strong performances led Fox to sweep total day and primetime ratings on Wednesday. 

Get the numbers and details, via Mediaite+!

950,000

Mary L. Trump’s tell-all book on her uncle President Donald Trump sold more than 950,000 copies in its first day of release.

NASCAR

NASCAR mandated masks for all-star race that attracted a socially-distanced crowd of about 20,000 people who "showed practically universal compliance" with the policy while waiting in line — although most of them then went maskless to watch the race.

And on the topic of policies and the ignoring of those policies, a Confederate flag was flown over the track - literally flown, from a plane - despite or in protest of the sport's policy prohibiting them. We're guessing it wasn't there just to open a garage door.

Smart Tattoos?

Google has been working on several new ideas that may impact our lives very soon, in a push spurred on by the needs of the "new reality" mid- and, later, post-pandemic. The company outlined some coming tech, including wearable gear like smartwatches, or eyewear like Google Glass, fantastic-sounding virtual reality devices and even things like wearable smart temporary tattoos.

Must See Clip

"Are you kidding me?!"

CNN’s Chris Cuomo volcanically erupted at Trump last night over the president's turning the Oval Office into a scene of culture war product placement, as coronavirus cases in the country surpassed 70,000 on Wednesday and daily deaths are spiking once more.

“Let’s start with this. The pandemic is in full effect. It’s feasting on us, especially red states whose governors followed Trump’s trail of denial to their own detriment,” Cuomo said. “You tell me how a president in the middle of a pandemic has got time for this *******?! Are you kidding me?!"

I mean go off, fam.

Links We Like

Where can Americans travel now? A guide to countries open to U.S. tourists
- via Newsweek
Yes, Trump IS Down in the Polls
- via Morning Jolt
Trump’s Party Cannot Survive in a Multiracial Democracy
- Francis Wilkinson, via Bloomberg
The public's disconnect from COVID-19 reality worries experts
- Reid Wilson, via The Hill
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